Dear Doves,

According to the Hidden Prophecies in the Psalms discovered by J.R. Church, the year 2020 is hidden in Psalm 120. I believe I have discovered the rapture hidden in this psalm!

I will not attempt to speculate on a specific day, although the probability of the rapture falling on a Jewish feast day is always higher than a non-feast day given that Jesus fulfilled the spring feast days in His First Coming.



The Rapture Word

We begin by inspecting a piece of inconspicuous evidence hidden in Psalm 120. It is found in verse 2 when the psalmist cried out to God to deliver his soul. The word, deliver, is translated from the Hebrew word, natsal, which means to escape or to be snatched away. Natsal is like the rapture in the Hebrew language. Christians are more familiar with its Greek equivalent, harpazo, which means to be caught up, taken by force, as found in the famous rapture verse in 1 Th 4:17, "Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord."

Natsal is not as well known as harpazo as far as the rapture goes. However, the idea of a natsal escape, or removal by force, can be established with very strong scriptural types in the Old Testament. In Amos 4:11 we read, "I have overthrown some of you, as God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah, and ye were as a firebrand plucked out of the burning: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD."

The phrase 'plucked out' is translated from the Hebrew word, natsal. That was what happened when the angel removed Lot and family by force before fire and brimstone rained down from heaven and destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen 19:16). Likewise, Christians will be removed at the rapture prior to sudden destruction when judgment falls upon the unsuspecting world.

The Hebrew word, natsal, appears a total of 44 times in the book of Psalms alone. It appears for the 40th time in Psalm 120, the hidden prophecy psalm pointing to the year 2020. After this appearance, the next appearance occurs 22 psalms further down the book at Psalm 142, the hidden prophecy psalm pointing to the year 2042. This big gap of years between the two psalms that contain the word natsal, gives us a hint that our deliverance will more likely take place in the year 2020, rather than the year 2042 twenty two years later, simply because given the world-shaking events that are going on right now, it is hard to imagine how much longer this world will last. The year 2042 is just too distant for the rapture to happen.

Before the natsal in Psalm 120, another occurrence just before it in Psalm 119 verse 170 seems to shout out that something significant is coming our way. The Hebrew gematria of natsal is also 170, the same as the verse number 170 in Psalm 119. Is God drawing our attention to what is going to happen this year?

2019:  Ps 119:170 natsal (gematria 170)
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2020:  Ps 120:2 natsal (gematria 170)

The fact that the word natsal can be found in Psalm 120 is inconclusive of the rapture happening in the year 2020 in view of its many occurrences in other psalms. However, there are other compelling evidence in Psalm 120.



The Rapture, the Antichrist, and the Tribulation

The rapture takes place just prior to the tribulation when all hell breaks loose. When reading Psalm 120, does the reader get a sense that this psalm is describing the end times? From the verses, are we able to detect the veiled presence of the Antichrist who is yet to be revealed? Bear in mind the Antichrist will come out like a roaring lion ready to devour believers when the final curtain falls. Right now he is waiting in the wings biding his time.

Psalm 120 is a short psalm with 7 verses, jam-packed with amazing hidden clues: "In my distress I cried unto the LORD, and he heard me. Deliver [natsal] my soul, O LORD, from lying lips, and from a deceitful tongue. What shall be given unto thee? or what shall be done unto thee, thou false tongue? Sharp arrows of the mighty, with coals of juniper. Woe is me, that I sojourn in Mesech, that I dwell in the tents of Kedar! My soul hath long dwelt with him that hateth peace. I am for peace: but when I speak, they are for war."

Without trying too hard, even a cursory reading of this psalm tells us that the psalmist wants to get out of the depressing situation he is in, appealing to God to deliver him from distress, woe, and war.

Are we not in the same depressing situation now?

Satan and his right hand man are both number one liars. Jesus describes the devil in John 8:44, "Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it."

In Psalm 120, the psalmist cried to God to deliver (natsal) him from lying lips (verse 2), a deceitful tongue (verse 2), and false tongue (verse 3). These descriptors triangulate on the Antichrist, a liar who takes after his father, the devil.

The first Hebrew word at the opening of Psalm 120 is tsarah, translated as 'distress' in the KJV. It is translated as 'tribulation' three times elsewhere in the Old Testament. The first time tsarah (actually its root word 'tsar') is translated as 'tribulation', it refers to the latter days, that is, the end times. This is the scripture here, "When thou art in tribulation, and all these things are come upon thee, even in the latter days, if thou turn to the LORD thy God, and shalt be obedient unto his voice;" Deu 4:30

Thus, Psalm 120 sets the opening scene at the time of tribulation in the latter days when the Antichrist is raring to step into his role. The believer, represented by the psalmist, at the start of Psalm 120, finds himself in a distressing situation, not unlike in a pandemic, aka Covid-19, currently ravaging the world. Furthermore, the believer is asking God to deliver (natsal) him from the Antichrist, and from the distress he is in.

Bit by bit, we are seeing mounting evidence of the rapture hidden in Psalm 120. As we read further, more and more confirmations will emerge from the verses that follow.

In verse 4 of Psalm 120 we read, "Sharp arrows of the mighty, with coals of juniper." This immediately jolted my memory to what happened during the Gulf Wars in 1991 when 39 Scud missiles were fired at Israel by the Iraqi army. I wrote about this hidden prophecy in Psalm 91 more than twenty two years ago long before it became more widely known in Christian forums (see http://www.fivedoves.com/tng/ps91.htm). The reference to these devastating missiles is couched in less deadly metaphor by the psalmist as "the arrow that flieth by day" in Psalm 91 verse 5. These missiles, if fitted with nuclear warhead, are weapons of mass destruction.

Psalm 120 seems to point to a nuclear war in 2020. It can happen either prior to the natsal deliverance of believers or shortly after. As with the "arrow that flieth by day" of Psalm 91, here in Psalm 120, the "sharp arrows of the mighty" may suggest some kind of missiles fired, with hint that they may be nuclear judging from the second part of verse 4, "with coals of juniper" (see proof near the end of this post). Given the current geopolitical situations in the Middle East and the world, this scenario is not that far-fetched.

Reading on, verse 5 further intimates that this war may well be the Ezekiel 38 war, "Woe is me, that I sojourn in Mesech, that I dwell in the tents of Kedar!" One of the nations that will attack Israel in the Ezekiel 38 war is Meshech (Eze 38:2,3). The psalmist seems to clue us in to the Ezekiel 38 war by mentioning his sojourning in Meshech, one of the attacking nations.

The Ezekiel 38 war is the most anticipated event next on the prophetic calendar. Many scholars believe it is the sudden destruction just prior to or immediately after the rapture.

"For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape." 1Th 5:2-3

By the time the reader finishes reading Psalm 120, the idea that the rapture is hidden in this psalm appears very compelling. The thief-in-the-night snatching away of believers will happen in the midst of war and peace, wars and rumors of wars. This uneasy state of war and peace is very thinly veiled in the ending verses of Psalm 120, "My soul hath long dwelt with him that hateth peace. I am for peace: but when I speak, they are for war."

Thus, amazingly, the entire psalm conceals the rapture of the saints at a time when the world is in great turmoil, mired in economic woes, wars and rumors of wars, when "evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived." 2 Tim 3:13

Psalm 120 fits the rapture scenario to a T.



The Rapture & the Bride

One very strong hidden evidence in Psalms 120 supports the idea that the psalmist represents the bride of Christ, the body of believers who will be raptured. Only two scriptures in the Bible contain the phrase, "the tents of Kedar", Psalm 120:5 and Song 1:5.

The second scripture clearly points to the bride of Christ, typified by the main character in the book of Song of Solomon, known as the Shulamite, the bride, "I am black, but comely, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, as the tents of Kedar, as the curtains of Solomon." Song 1:5

But the more intriguing hidden gem is found in the phrase, "the tents of Kedar". First, note that Kedar is the second son of Ishmael; his name means dark or black. So, here we see a direct link to the Shulamite bride who is described in verse 5 as "black, but comely", a black beauty if you will.

Second, a deeper and more profound meaning hidden in the tents of Kedar lies in the fabric that goes into the making of the tents. These tents were made from black goat hair, the same fabric that was used to make one of the curtains that covers the Tabernacle in the wilderness (Exo 26:7). It is no wonder that the psalmist equates the tents of Kedar to the curtains of Solomon in Song 1:5, reminding us that King Solomon's Temple is an upgraded version of the Tabernacle, built by his father King David.

I think you can see where this is leading. According to the writer of Song of Solomon, the Shulamite bride is likened to a tent, a curtain, a covering. As Christians, we know this amazing fact -- spiritually the church is an organic part of the Tabernacle, the vital body, or vessel or covering that conceals the glory of the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies, the two sacred rooms in the Tabernacle. This is only possible because the bride of Christ is the body of Christ and the temple of the Holy Spirit.

Without a doubt, the bride of Christ is hidden in plain sight in Psalm 120.



The Rapture & the Song of Ascents

Next, I want to consider another piece of evidence that is no less compelling. Psalm 120 is not just another psalm. It is the first in a series of 15 psalms collectively known as the Songs of Ascents, or the Psalms of Ascents, from Psalm 120 to Psalm 134. These songs were sung by the Jews during their pilgrimage to Jerusalem to present themselves before God at the three annual feasts of Israel. In Psalm 120, the psalmist expressed his longing to return to Jerusalem so that he be far from the oppressive company of evil doers.

The sojourning psalmist reminds us of this well known Christian song, "This World is Not My Home". It sums up perfectly the longing of the to-be-raptured bride of Christ.

This world is not my home I'm just a passing through
My treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue
The angels beckon me from heaven's open door
And I can't feel at home in this world anymore
Oh lord you know I have no friend like you
If heaven's not my home then lord what will I do
The angels beckon me from heaven's open door
And I can't feel at home in this world anymore.

In Psalm 120, the believer sojourning in Meshech (the world) could not wait to return to Jerusalem to worship God, to part company with those who hate peace and are for war, and with those who delight in spreading falsehoods and lies. The sojourner of Psalm 120, in the midst of distress and tribulation, cries out to God to deliver him from evil and from evil men.

The title or superscription of these psalms, Song of the Ascents, is remarkable for three reasons. First, the pilgrims of old, who lived in the surrounding cities and villages, three times annually, journeyed up to Jerusalem that sits atop the mountain. So, the pilgrims were ascending from a lower plane to a higher ground. Second, the ancient Levite singers stood around the foot of a 15-step semi-circular stairway located at the Court of the Women leading up into the entrance of the raised inner court, the Court of Israel. With songs and musical instruments, the Levite singers would sing these 15 psalms. Only the priests and Levites were permitted to ascend these steps to enter into the inner court. Third, these psalms were sung starting in a low tone of voice and steadily ascending to a higher one.

Why this multiple emphasis on ascending?

The imagery of journeying up the mountain or going up the staircase or singing with ascending tone are all calculated to point to one thing -- the ascending of the saints at the rapture to meet God in heaven and to worship Him in the New Jerusalem. This upward theme is encapsulated in the Ascents part of the title of the Psalms of Ascents.

Psalm 120, the hidden prophecy psalm pointing to the rapture in year 2020, is itself intriguing because of the number 120. More can be said about the number 120 and its link to the number 15, the number of psalms in the Psalms of Ascents. Suffice for now to note that if we were to add all numbers from 1 to 15, the sum is 120! Perhaps this is why Psalm 120 is the first in the series of these 15 Psalms of Ascents.

The number 120 is no ordinary number in the New Testament. There were 120 believers in the upper room when the Holy Spirit descended on the first Pentecost.

Is it now time for the Holy Spirit to reverse the 'descension' and to ascend together with the bride of Christ at the rapture after nearly 2,000 years of grace?

We don't have to wait too long to find that out.



The Raptured Saint

Our second last piece of hidden evidence should thrill all believers who are waiting for the appearing of Jesus. In Psalm 120 verse 4, we find this cryptic clue, "coals of juniper". Juniper is a desert shrub. Why did the psalmist mention this desert plant in verse 4 right after the phrase, "sharp arrows of the mighty"? They seem incongruent. Earlier we made this connection between sharp arrows and missiles; furthermore, we surmised that the reference on coals could imply nuclear explosion.

However, there is more to the phrase "coals of juniper" than meets the eye. The Hebrew word for juniper appears only four times in the Old Testament. It last appears in Psalm 120, the rapture psalm. The word juniper first appears two times in quick succession in 1 Kings chapter 19 verses 4 and 5. This chapter records the story of an Old Testament prophet who was escaping from his enemy who wanted him dead. He was definitely in a great distress to put it mildly. He went on a day's journey into the wilderness and came to rest under the shade of a juniper tree. He cried out to God to take away his life for he had had enough.

This looks very much like the distressing scenario in Psalm 120. But the kicker is this -- this Old Testament prophet is none other than Elijah, the only other saint, besides Enoch, who bypassed death and entered straight into heaven alive.

If this is not a rapture clue I don't know what is.

But there is more. Poor Elijah must have been so exhausted physically and mentally that he fell asleep under the juniper tree. The angel of the Lord (some scholars think he was Jesus appearing in His pre-incarnate form) came and woke Elijah up, touched him and commanded him to arise and eat. Arise is a code word for resurrection and rapture; think of it like ascending.

After Elijah ate the bread and drank the water supernaturally provided by the angel, he went on his way without food and water for forty days and forty nights as he journeyed to Horeb, the mount of God.

Any way you cut it, the parallel to the rapture is unmistakable.

In Psalm 120, the psalmist secretly plants phrases like "the tents of Kedar" and "coals of juniper" to transmit hidden codes of the bride of Christ and the rapture of the saints in plain sight.



The Testimony of Hibakujumoku

I reserve this piece of evidence last not because it is the most intriguing (even though it is!), but because I found it last.

Hibakujumoku is A-bombed tree in the Japanese language. Today, there are about 170 trees that survived the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. I fell out of my chair when I saw the number 170, the Hebrew gematria of natsal, the rapture. Did God miraculously preserve these trees, and in such a number too, to convey a message to watchers like us at a time such as this? You decide.

Hibakujumoku are not just any trees; they are hardy trees that can withstand the nuclear blast and still survive. It turns out the juniper tree is one such tree! The evidence will be shown shortly. So our initial suspicion that the coals of juniper is a result of nuclear explosion, is proven right.

According to the Wikipedia article at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hibakujumoku, with source reference, "Hiroshima and Nagasaki: The Physical, Medical, and Social Effects of the Atomic Bombings", published in 1981 by Basic Books, the effects of the atomic bomb fit the phrase "coals of juniper" perfectly:

The degree of damage [to trees] was quite different by direction. At places far from the hypocenter, only the side of the tree trunk facing the hypocenter was burned, while the opposite side was frequently normal in appearance. In some trees, there were no branches on the side facing the hypocenter, while the other side had many branches. Damage to plants was found only in the portions exposed above ground, and portions underground were not directly damaged. Consequently, the root and the underground stalk put forth new buds even in those whose above ground portion was completely burned.

In 1945, some 170 hibaku trees were charred like coals and burned above ground seconds after the detonation of the atomic bomb in Hiroshima and survived. Today, these trees are regenerated and continue to live.

55 species of Hibakujumoku that survived are documented in the UNITAR database; out of these, one species has the name juniper in it: Pyramid juniper (Juniperus chinensis 'Kaizuka'). The evidence that the juniper tree could survive a nuclear explosion and became charred like coal is well documented in the literature. Our initial hunch has been vindicated.

The Hebrew word for bride is kallah; its gematria is 55!

The conclusion is: the phrase, "coals of juniper", not only confirms that Psalm 120 intimates a nuclear war in the Middle East; today, the supernatural preservation and regeneration of the 55 species of A-bombed trees totaling 170, testifies to the coming natsal (gematria 170) rapture of the kallah (gematria 55) bride in the year 2020.

Doves, we are living in exciting times! Get excited! The rapture is coming soon.

If this is not the year, take heart that we are one year closer!

May the Spirit and the bride say, Come, Lord Jesus!


John Tng