That Vision Of Prophet Habakkuk On The Plan Of God

And the Lord answered me, and said, write the vision, and make it plain upon tablets, that he may run who reads it” Habakkuk 2:2.

This is another very important study in the scriptures which requires your whole attention and time with your Bible in place to make full meaning out of it.
Before the creation of man, God omnipotent, omniscience, and omnipresence, had a full knowledge of what shall befall man and hence His articulated plan for the world's salvation. To reveal this plan to man, God showed this vision to prophet Habakkuk as indicated in the quoted text.

By this, Pastor C. T. Russell have sought to aid the mind, through the eyes, in understanding something of the progressive character of God's plan, and the progressive steps which must be taken by all who ever attain the complete “change” from the human to the divine nature. He decided to illustrate this in a form of tabulator chart as shown below:

From the scriptures, this prophecy was fulfilled in its “due time” more than 2000 years later and today this chart before us is that “VISION”. It is necessary to let you know that this “Divine Plan” of God is hidden in the Bible from Genesis to Revelation and it is “here a little and there a little” but at the proper time God decided to make it “plain” on a table or chart.

Although, many who have come across this chart lament not being able to understand, while some having not seen this chart before, it not easy or simple to understand; just like it is not easy to walk into an Architects workshop and see the various plans and blueprints and be able to interpret until the Architect himself begins to explain them. It is similar with the great Divine ARCHITECT and His Great PLAN. HE IS TO EXPLAIN IT TO US.

This chart study will be gradual and take about a year to gain the full understanding. This is why it was earlier mentioned in the introduction of your commitment better understanding. Let us begin to look at its various features as we study in details.

First, we have an outline of the three great dispensations, A, B, C the first of these, A, lasting from man's creation to the flood; the second, B, from the flood to the commencement of the Millennial reign of Christ, at his second advent; and the third, or “Dispensation of the Fullness of Times,” C, lasting from the beginning of Christ's reign for “ages to come”, (Ephesians 1:10; 2:7). These three great dispensations are frequency referred to in the scriptures as:
Ø 1. The First World
Ø 2. The Second World
Ø 3. The Third World
All these are as continued in 2 Peter 3:5-7, 13. Here, the Apostle Peter speaks of the “World that was” before the flood; “the present evil world” and a “new world to come” where righteousness shall dwell. Each world is said to have “a heaven and an earth”. What is the meaning of all these? The answer is as contained in 2Corinthians 12: 1-4 “It is doubtless not profitable for me to boast. I will come to visions and revelations of the Lord: I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago, whether in the body I do not know, God knows, such a one was caught up to the third heaven. And I know… how he was caught up into Paradise and heard in expressible words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter”.

Here, Apostle Paul speaks of “a man in Christ” who in a “vision” was 'caught up' to the 'third heaven' and saw a “paradise” and things “not permitted to be told'. But what is this “third heaven” and where are the “first” and “second” heaven? First and foremost, we must realize that in the Bible the English word “Heaven” is applied to three meanings: i. Heaven- the abate or the ``home of God (Ecclesiastes 5:2). ii. Heaven the sky and space with the sun, moon and stars (Psalm 19:1). Iii. Heaven the third meaning here is little known to many and is used extensively in the Bible and has very important understanding which we must now gain. See Matthew 24:35 “Heaven and Earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away”.

Does God's abode or the sky pass away? Of course not! Let's see the answer in Ecclesiastes 1:4 “One generation passes away, and another generation comes; but the earth abides forever.” Psalms 104:5 “Who laid the foundations of the earth, that it should not be removed for ever.” This also confirms the literal sky or heavens and earth not to be removed forever.

Not only is the earth to abide forever but it was not made to be empty, but to be “inhabited” forever (Isaiah 45:18). The scriptures in 2Timothy 2:15 says we must “rightly divide the word of truth” or correctly understand the language used. Therefore, the statement in Matthew 24:35 “Heaven and earth shall pass away is not literal language but symbolic language sometimes discussed in our course of study. As in Ephesians 2:2 “Wherein in time past …the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now works in the children of disobedience '

. The prince of the power of the air is referred to Satan and his spiritual invisible rulership of this earth at the present time. Thus the symbolic meaning of “heaven” refers to the invisible spiritual rulership of the earthly affairs.