The Mystery of the Shemitah (10 page)

Shemitah’s Wake

Beyond this, there is nothing confining the repercussions to just one season. They may continue into the winter, the following spring, and onward. But the autumn following the Shemitah’s dramatic conclusion, being closest to the Day of Remission, would be foremost in manifesting these repercussions, and within this, Tishri would be foremost.

Elul: The Lead-In Month

We must also take note of the month of Elul. Elul plays a significant role in the Shemitah as well. At the end of the sixth year Elul leads up to the Shemitah’s commencement. And at the end of the seventh year Elul leads up to the Shemitah’s dramatic end—on Elul 29. Tishri remains the Shemitah’s key month, but Elul plays a supporting role as the lead-in month.

The mass wiping clean of a nation’s financial accounts would translate into a collapse in the financial realm. Thus if the mystery of the Shemitah is still in effect, we might expect that there exists a connection between the Hebrew month of Tishri and a collapse in the financial realm—as in that of a stock market crash.

Could there exist such a connection? Could an ancient mystery, over three thousand years old, be operating in modern times and even ordaining the fate of world financial markets?

Having now found the fives keys, let us begin to unlock the ancient mystery.

Chapter 9
The FINGERPRINTS of the MYSTERY

The Prophet in the Field

T
WO MEN STAND
in the midst of vast expanse of farm land. The wind sweeps down on the stalks of wheat, causing a continuously shifting pattern of light and shadow. One of the two, a man named Nouriel, is seeking answers to solve an ancient mystery. The other, in a long dark coat, known only as “the prophet,” is seeking to help him do that. The prophet begins sharing with Nouriel of the ancient observance called the Shemitah.

The scene just described is from
The Harbinger.
During this exchange Nouriel asks the prophet a question alluding to a second mystery. Most people who read the exchange either missed what was being said or the implications of what was being said. It was an easy thing to miss as the exchange lasted just a few lines:

“How far does the cycle go,” I asked, “every seventh year in the past . . . and into the future?”

 “The subject is for another time,” he said. “The point now is the Shemitah as a sign of judgment.”
¹

The prophet had just told Nouriel of the reappearing of the ancient mystery in modern times, a reappearance linked to the years 2001 and 2008 and to the nine harbingers of judgment. Nouriel then asks the prophet if the mystery and its manifestations extend back in time or forward into the future. I included this exchange from the pages of
The Harbinger
to note that there was another entire realm to the mystery—but too much to include in the exchange. The prophet answers Nouriel, “The subject is for another time.”
That time is now.

Observances vs. Prophetic Signs

Is it possible that the mystery of the Shemitah has been operating in the modern world since before the time of the harbingers? Is it possible that it’s been affecting the course of nations and world history, and that it lies behind some of the most pivotal events of modern times?

To answer this, we must distinguish between the
observance
of the Shemitah and the Shemitah as a
prophetic sign
. Only Israel was compelled to keep the Shemitah
as an observance.
As an observance, the Shemitah applies to one nation. But as a prophetic sign, it may apply to any nation. As an observance, the Shemitah comes regularly, every seventh year. But as a sign, it is not bound to any schedule or regularity. But when it does appear, it will manifest the essence of the Shemitah, its effect and mystery, in the form of a sign.

Identifying the Shemitah’s Fingerprints

The Shemitah most directly affects and operates within a nation’s economic and financial realm. So if the mystery is still in effect, it should be manifesting in these two realms. We must therefore begin our search by looking into the economic and financial realms of the modern world and nations—and specifically in the realm of financial and economic crises, downturns, recessions, depressions, stock market collapses, and crashes.

Since we are not dealing with the command, the observance, and the regulations of the Shemitah, but rather the prophetic signs, we would not expect the manifestation to necessarily occur on a regular basis, every seven years. We would expect rather that it would not be a regular phenomenon but a unique one. We would not expect the connection to be formulaic or simplistic. Nor would we expect that every economic downturn must be connected to the phenomenon. But we will look at the economic downturns, recessions, and depressions of modern times and see if they manifest the fingerprints of the ancient mystery.

Land of Apostasy

In the case of the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BC, the Shemitah appears as a prophetic sign against a nation in moral and spiritual apostasy from God. This would point us toward nations and cultures moving away from their biblical foundations. We have seen that America contains a unique connection to ancient Israel, being formed and established after its pattern. Therefore while looking at the global picture, and the nations, we will pay special attention to America.

We will take note that the Shemitah is linked not only to national judgment but also to national blessing. The sign may appear at the time of a nation’s rise to power. And yet, if that same nation should turn away from God and the foundations on which it was established, we would expect the sign of the Shemitah to increasingly appear as a warning of judgment.

The Clues

We will now see if there could exist any connection between the occurrences of financial and economic collapses in the modern world and . . .

•
  A seven-year cycle

•
  The specific seven-year cycle of the biblical Shemitah

•
  The seventh year of the specific seven-year cycle

•
  The Hebrew month of Tishri

•
  Financial or economic collapses and the Hebrew month of Tishri converging with the Year of the Shemitah

•
  The autumn wake that seals the end of the seventh year

•
  The Hebrew month of Tishri in convergence with the Year of the Shemitah

•
  The Hebrew month of Tishri in convergence with the climactic
end
of the Shemitah year

•
  The Hebrew month of Elul, or proximity to its point of greatest impact

•
  The Hebrew month of Heshvan, which begins where Tishri ends

Using these keys, we will now open up the backstage of world history. We will look at the greatest economic and financial collapses of modern times. And we will see if the fingerprints of the ancient mystery appear.

Chapter 10
The MYSTERY of SEVEN CRASHES

The Great Crashes

W
HAT HAPPENS IF
we search for the greatest long-term crashes (as opposed to day crashes) or collapses in stock market history? These will generally be connected to economic crisis and recession. What happens if we take the Bible’s ancient mystery of economic cessation and financial nullification and hold it up against these greatest collapses?