THE PROMISE OF ELIJAH TO COME

It is written in the book of Malachi that before the Messiah shall come Elijah must first come and restore all thing and a time line is also given in: 

 Hosea 6:1-2 Come, and let us return unto the LORD: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up.  After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight.
So much is noted in this verse(s) and we will explore a few,

1.The LORD is spelled with all caps which is also noted in -

John 20:28  And Thomas answered and said unto him, My LORD and my God.The spelling is shown another 3 times in the same chapter spelled with all caps which emphasizes the "glorified" body of Jesus after His resurrection. This is not alway noted in all bibles but is found in some of the NIV's and King James Version which is an accurate rending of the spelling.

2. This is in the old testament as it is written unto and for the Jew, Hosea being a prophet for the Jew, and to the Jew it is stating "Let us return unto the LORD" meaning they were not with the LORD but  will seek to return unto Him. The LORD has both "torn and smitten" Israel but now He will "heal and bind them up"

3. This will take place "after two days" which is noted in ll Peter as two thousand years (which it has been two thousand years since Christ was here)

ll Peter 3:8  But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.  - Now how would we know that it denotes two thousand years and not two days-because Christ would not come for another few hundred years to His cross - so Hosea could not be speaking of a time denoted by a literal 24 hour periods and it would be a time when the Jew would accept Jesus which they did not do when He came so He had to first come and be rejected by the Jew for them to state "Let us return".

4.  Hosea states,"in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight" which has not yet occurred as Christ is not reigning on the earth as yet but will during what is termed as the "Millenium" or the literal one thousand year reign of Christ in and from Jerusalem.

                                         BACK TO ELIJAH

Malachi 3:1-3 Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts. But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap: And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness. The messenger that God would send is identified in Chapter 4 -

Malachi 4:5-6 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD: And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.
When Christ came He did not smite the earth with a curse but blessed it with salvation it was a "great" day in that it offered salvation for all who would accept and it was a dreadful day for those who did not receive him. Elijah's job was two-fold -

1. To usher in the Messiah and anoint Him as the most Holy and the Saviour

2. To change the hearts of the children to the fathers and fathers back to the children. In Rome during the time of Jesus the parents of the children would sell the children on the auction block as sex slaves to pay off debts and to make money and many other atrocious things which would take to much time to describe and to atrocious to mention, but with the preaching of Elijah this was brought to a halt  and since that time parents have cared for and loved their children, until this "modern" age which is showing more abuse and "ill will" toward the children. The reason of course is the Holy Spirit is decreasing His power over the people as the reign of the anti-christ is about to take place, although it is only a six and half year reign.

Matthew 3:1- 4  In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. And the same John had his raiment of camel's hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his meat was locusts and wild honey.

This is the same description of Elijah found in - 

 ll Kings 1:8 And they answered him, He was an hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins. And he said, It is Elijah the Tishbite.

There is one thing which is extremely important to obtain understanding in the Bible and that is we must alway believe the words of God over that of man, now this may seem a mute point but there are many that do not accept the words of God over man.

( Note: 1 John 5:9 If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son. Here God declares His word to be the final authority. )

Matthew 11:9-15  But what went ye out for to see? A prophet? yea, I say unto you, and more than a prophet. For this is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee. Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force. For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. And if ye will receive it, this is Elias, which was for to come. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. (although the spelling here is Elias it is interpreted as Elijah)

Matthew 17:10-13 And his disciples asked him, saying, Why then say the scribes that Elias must first come? And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things. But I say unto you, That Elias is come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed. Likewise shall also the Son of man suffer of them. Then the disciples understood that he spake unto them of John the Baptist.

The disciples understood that John the Baptist was indeed Elijah, however, as I stated earlier many do not accept this and why do they not believe it?  The most quoted reason is that in-

 John 1:19-25  And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou? And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ. And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? And he answered, No. Then said they unto him, Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself? He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias. And they which were sent were of the Pharisees. And they asked him, and said unto him, Why baptizest thou then, if thou be not that Christ, nor Elias, neither that prophet?  They asked him a great question and would have killed him for the answer if it were not for the people who liked John and would have fought for him. If he were not Elijah or Christ he would not be allowed to baptise anyone, and yet he did, thus proving as well as his statement above that he was indeed Elijah ( I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord). What about the "spirit and power" of Elijah that was mentioned above?
Ephesians 4:4-6  There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.  Men only have one Spirit that is their life which is given by God, so if John had a Spirit and he also had the Spirit of Elijah then there would have been confuscion and contradiction of the scriptures as man only has one Spirit. The power of Elijah was to preach the gospel and return the hearts of parents and children to each other which is what John accomplished. Another reason given by the ministry is reincarnation but this is inaccurate and does not occur as it is appointed for man to die once and then the judgement, ministers state that Elijah would have been born twice and he would not be made that small - they forget that Christ pre-existed before his birth with Mary -  thus He was made small also in order to be born. Elijah never died but ascended up into heaven in a flaming chariot.  None of the arguments hold any weight against the words of God, that is Christ.
(John 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

John 10:30 I and my Father are one.)

                          BELIEVING GOD OR MAN

                                       VERSES TO PONDER

Isaiah 28:10 For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little:

John 1:19-26 (esp. 29-34)  And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou?  And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ.  And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? And he answered, No.  Then said they unto him, Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself?  He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias.  And they which were sent were of the Pharisees.  And they asked him, and said unto him, Why baptizest thou then, if thou be not that Christ, nor Elias, neither that prophet?  John answered them, saying, I baptize with water: but there standeth one among you, whom ye know not;

Hebrews 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.  Hebrews 11:1  Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

1 John 5:7-10 For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.  And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.  If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son.  He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son.

                                                            TEST OF GOD AND MAN

 John 1:19-26 (esp. 29-34)  His mission and Baptisim: Luke 1:15-17

   and verse 41  Malachi 4:4-5 Matthew 11:12-15  Matthew 17:10-13  John's change of name in the words of the angel, from God, and his mother and dad: Luke 1:19-22  And the angel answering said unto him, I am Gabriel, that stand in the presence of God; and am sent to speak unto thee, and to show thee these glad tidings.  And, behold, thou shalt be dumb, and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall be performed, because thou believest not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season.  And the people waited for Zacharias, and marvelled that he tarried so long in the temple.  And when he came out, he could not speak unto them: and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple: for he beckoned unto them, and remained speechless. and verse's 59-64: And it came to pass, that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child; and they called him Zacharias, after the name of his father.  And his mother answered and said, Not so; but he shall be called John.  And they said unto her, There is none of thy kindred that is called by this name.  And they made signs to his father, how he would have him called.  And he asked for a writing table, and wrote, saying, His name is John. And they marvelled all.  And his mouth was opened immediately, and his tongue loosed, and he spake, and praised God.

Luke 1:12-13  And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him.  But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John.  * John was named by the angel Gabriel whom was dispatched from God to name him.
Luke 1:76-80  And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest: for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways;  To give knowledge of salvation unto his people by the remission of their sins,  Through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the dayspring from on high hath visited us,  To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.  And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his showing unto Israel.
Matthew 21:23-27  And when he was come into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came unto him as he was teaching, and said, By what authority doest thou these things? and who gave thee this authority?  And Jesus answered and said unto them, I also will ask you one thing, which if ye tell me, I in like wise will tell you by what authority I do these things.  The baptism of John, whence was it? from heaven, or of men? And they reasoned with themselves, saying, If we shall say, From heaven; he will say unto us, Why did ye not then believe him?  But if we shall say, Of men; we fear the people; for all hold John as a prophet.  And they answered Jesus, and said, We cannot tell. And he said unto them, Neither tell I you by what authority I do these things. 
Luke 1:33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.  Luke 1:54 He hath holpen his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy; Luke 1:55  As he spake to our fathers, to Abraham, and to his seed for ever. Luke 1:71-74  As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been since the world began:  That we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us;  To perform the mercy promised to our fathers, and to remember his holy covenant;  The oath which he sware to our father Abraham, That he would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve him without fear,  The church is saved but Israel shall be saved and delivered.  Joel 2:32 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call. Compare this language with that of the church in -  Acts 2:21 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.  Note: Joel is written to the Jew and the LORD is all capital lettering which indicates the advent after the Cross and the Jew is to be delivered out of all their tribulations and it is the LORD that will call on them in salvation.  Acts is written to the church and the spelling is Lord that is to say before He has gone to the cross or that He came as a man/flesh and blood, He came to be a light unto the Gentiles and He will save them. And again the promise yet to come for the Jew:

Romans 11:25-29  For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.  And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:  For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.  As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they are beloved for the fathers' sakes.  For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.

Note: The time frame is when the fulness of the Gentiles is come in then the Deliverer, as stated in Joel, shall come to Mount Zion and He shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob. He makes sure to state Jacob so we could make no mistake as to whom he was speaking about. Hebrews 8:8-10 For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah:  Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord.  For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:  Ezekiel 36:21-28  But I had pity for mine holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the heathen, whither they went.  Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; I do not this for your sakes, O house of Israel, but for mine holy name's sake, which ye have profaned among the heathen, whither ye went.  And I will sanctify my great name, which was profaned among the heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them; and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, saith the Lord GOD, when I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes.  For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land.  Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you.  A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.  And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.  And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.

                               THE SECOND WITNESS UNTO 

                                                                  MAN - GRACE -

John the Beloved: John 21:20-25   Revelation 1:1-4  Revelation 1:9-10 brother and companion

Revelation 10:8-11 (esp. V.11)   Revelation 11:1-14  Time of the Kings Revelation 17:9-15 Peoples,multitudes,nations,and tongues Revelation 17:15 (compare with Revelation 10:11 - Peoples,nations,tongues,and kings)

                                        Whom is your King O'Israel?

John 14 And it was the preparation of the passover, and about the sixth hour: and he saith unto the Jews, Behold your King! 15 But they cried out, Away with him, away with him, crucify him. Pilate saith unto them, Shall I crucify your King? The chief priests answered, We have no king but Caesar. 16 Then delivered he him therefore unto them to be crucified. And they took Jesus, and led him away.

Therefore the two systems with which God has issued unto Man is the system of LAW and the system of GRACE and therefore Man is standing in the guilt of his transgression and remains accountable without the Mercy and Grace of Jesus Christ - the innocent blood.

                           THE PROMISE OF ELIJAH TO COME

It is written in the book of Malachi that before the Messiah shall come Elijah must first come and restore all thing and a time line is also given in: 

 Hosea 6:1-2 Come, and let us return unto the LORD: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up.  After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight.
So much is noted in this verse(s) and we will explore a few,

1.The LORD is spelled with all caps which is also noted in -

John 20:28  And Thomas answered and said unto him, My LORD and my God.The spelling is shown another 3 times in the same chapter spelled with all caps which emphasizes the "glorified" body of Jesus after His resurrection. This is not alway noted in all bibles but is found in some of the NIV's and King James Version which is an accurate rending of the spelling.

2. This is in the old testament as it is written unto and for the Jew, Hosea being a prophet for the Jew, and to the Jew it is stating "Let us return unto the LORD" meaning they were not with the LORD but  will seek to return unto Him. The LORD has both "torn and smitten" Israel but now He will "heal and bind them up"

3. This will take place "after two days" which is noted in ll Peter as two thousand years (which it has been two thousand years since Christ was here)

ll Peter 3:8  But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.  - Now how would we know that it denotes two thousand years and not two days-because Christ would not come for another few hundred years to His cross - so Hosea could not be speaking of a time denoted by a literal 24 hour periods and it would be a time when the Jew would accept Jesus which they did not do when He came so He had to first come and be rejected by the Jew for them to state "Let us return".

4.  Hosea states,"in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight" which has not yet occurred as Christ is not reigning on the earth as yet but will during what is termed as the "Millenium" or the literal one thousand year reign of Christ in and from Jerusalem.

                                         BACK TO ELIJAH

Malachi 3:1-3 Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts. But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap: And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness. The messenger that God would send is identified in Chapter 4 -

Malachi 4:5-6 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD: And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.
When Christ came He did not smite the earth with a curse but blessed it with salvation it was a "great" day in that it offered salvation for all who would accept and it was a dreadful day for those who did not receive him. Elijah's job was two-fold -

1. To usher in the Messiah and anoint Him as the most Holy and the Saviour

2. To change the hearts of the children to the fathers and fathers back to the children. In Rome during the time of Jesus the parents of the children would sell the children on the auction block as sex slaves to pay off debts and to make money and many other atrocious things which would take to much time to describe and to atrocious to mention, but with the preaching of Elijah this was brought to a halt  and since that time parents have cared for and loved their children, until this "modern" age which is showing more abuse and "ill will" toward the children. The reason of course is the Holy Spirit is decreasing His power over the people as the reign of the anti-christ is about to take place, although it is only a six and half year reign.

Matthew 3:1- 4  In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. And the same John had his raiment of camel's hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his meat was locusts and wild honey.

This is the same description of Elijah found in - 

 ll Kings 1:8 And they answered him, He was an hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins. And he said, It is Elijah the Tishbite.

There is one thing which is extremely important to obtain understanding in the Bible and that is we must alway believe the words of God over that of man, now this may seem a mute point but there are many that do not accept the words of God over man.

( Note: 1 John 5:9 If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son. Here God declares His word to be the final authority. )

Matthew 11:9-15  But what went ye out for to see? A prophet? yea, I say unto you, and more than a prophet. For this is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee. Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force. For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. And if ye will receive it, this is Elias, which was for to come. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. (although the spelling here is Elias it is interpreted as Elijah)

Matthew 17:10-13 And his disciples asked him, saying, Why then say the scribes that Elias must first come? And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things. But I say unto you, That Elias is come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed. Likewise shall also the Son of man suffer of them. Then the disciples understood that he spake unto them of John the Baptist.

The disciples understood that John the Baptist was indeed Elijah, however, as I stated earlier many do not accept this and why do they not believe it?  The most quoted reason is that in-

 John 1:19-25  And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou? And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ. And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? And he answered, No. Then said they unto him, Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself? He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias. And they which were sent were of the Pharisees. And they asked him, and said unto him, Why baptizest thou then, if thou be not that Christ, nor Elias, neither that prophet?  They asked him a great question and would have killed him for the answer if it were not for the people who liked John and would have fought for him. If he were not Elijah or Christ he would not be allowed to baptise anyone, and yet he did, thus proving as well as his statement above that he was indeed Elijah ( I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord). What about the "spirit and power" of Elijah that was mentioned above?
Ephesians 4:4-6  There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.  Men only have one Spirit that is their life which is given by God, so if John had a Spirit and he also had the Spirit of Elijah then there would have been confuscion and contradiction of the scriptures as man only has one Spirit. The power of Elijah was to preach the gospel and return the hearts of parents and children to each other which is what John accomplished. Another reason given by the ministry is reincarnation but this is inaccurate and does not occur as it is appointed for man to die once and then the judgement, ministers state that Elijah would have been born twice and he would not be made that small - they forget that Christ pre-existed before his birth with Mary -  thus He was made small also in order to be born. Elijah never died but ascended up into heaven in a flaming chariot.  None of the arguments hold any weight against the words of God, that is Christ.
(John 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

John 10:30 I and my Father are one.)

                          BELIEVING GOD OR MAN

                                       VERSES TO PONDER

Isaiah 28:10 For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little:

John 1:19-26 (esp. 29-34)  And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou?  And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ.  And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? And he answered, No.  Then said they unto him, Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself?  He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias.  And they which were sent were of the Pharisees.  And they asked him, and said unto him, Why baptizest thou then, if thou be not that Christ, nor Elias, neither that prophet?  John answered them, saying, I baptize with water: but there standeth one among you, whom ye know not;

Hebrews 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.  Hebrews 11:1  Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

1 John 5:7-10 For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.  And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.  If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son.  He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son.

                                                            TEST OF GOD AND MAN

 John 1:19-26 (esp. 29-34)  His mission and Baptisim: Luke 1:15-17

   and verse 41  Malachi 4:4-5 Matthew 11:12-15  Matthew 17:10-13  John's change of name in the words of the angel, from God, and his mother and dad: Luke 1:19-22  And the angel answering said unto him, I am Gabriel, that stand in the presence of God; and am sent to speak unto thee, and to show thee these glad tidings.  And, behold, thou shalt be dumb, and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall be performed, because thou believest not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season.  And the people waited for Zacharias, and marvelled that he tarried so long in the temple.  And when he came out, he could not speak unto them: and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple: for he beckoned unto them, and remained speechless. and verse's 59-64: And it came to pass, that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child; and they called him Zacharias, after the name of his father.  And his mother answered and said, Not so; but he shall be called John.  And they said unto her, There is none of thy kindred that is called by this name.  And they made signs to his father, how he would have him called.  And he asked for a writing table, and wrote, saying, His name is John. And they marvelled all.  And his mouth was opened immediately, and his tongue loosed, and he spake, and praised God.

Luke 1:12-13  And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him.  But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John.  * John was named by the angel Gabriel whom was dispatched from God to name him.
Luke 1:76-80  And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest: for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways;  To give knowledge of salvation unto his people by the remission of their sins,  Through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the dayspring from on high hath visited us,  To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.  And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his showing unto Israel.
Matthew 21:23-27  And when he was come into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came unto him as he was teaching, and said, By what authority doest thou these things? and who gave thee this authority?  And Jesus answered and said unto them, I also will ask you one thing, which if ye tell me, I in like wise will tell you by what authority I do these things.  The baptism of John, whence was it? from heaven, or of men? And they reasoned with themselves, saying, If we shall say, From heaven; he will say unto us, Why did ye not then believe him?  But if we shall say, Of men; we fear the people; for all hold John as a prophet.  And they answered Jesus, and said, We cannot tell. And he said unto them, Neither tell I you by what authority I do these things. 
Luke 1:33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.  Luke 1:54 He hath holpen his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy; Luke 1:55  As he spake to our fathers, to Abraham, and to his seed for ever. Luke 1:71-74  As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been since the world began:  That we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us;  To perform the mercy promised to our fathers, and to remember his holy covenant;  The oath which he sware to our father Abraham, That he would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve him without fear,  The church is saved but Israel shall be saved and delivered.  Joel 2:32 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call. Compare this language with that of the church in -  Acts 2:21 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.  Note: Joel is written to the Jew and the LORD is all capital lettering which indicates the advent after the Cross and the Jew is to be delivered out of all their tribulations and it is the LORD that will call on them in salvation.  Acts is written to the church and the spelling is Lord that is to say before He has gone to the cross or that He came as a man/flesh and blood, He came to be a light unto the Gentiles and He will save them. And again the promise yet to come for the Jew:

Romans 11:25-29  For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.  And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:  For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.  As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they are beloved for the fathers' sakes.  For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.

Note: The time frame is when the fulness of the Gentiles is come in then the Deliverer, as stated in Joel, shall come to Mount Zion and He shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob. He makes sure to state Jacob so we could make no mistake as to whom he was speaking about. Hebrews 8:8-10 For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah:  Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord.  For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:  Ezekiel 36:21-28  But I had pity for mine holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the heathen, whither they went.  Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; I do not this for your sakes, O house of Israel, but for mine holy name's sake, which ye have profaned among the heathen, whither ye went.  And I will sanctify my great name, which was profaned among the heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them; and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, saith the Lord GOD, when I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes.  For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land.  Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you.  A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.  And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.  And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.

                               THE SECOND WITNESS UNTO 

                                                                  MAN - GRACE -

John the Beloved: John 21:20-25   Revelation 1:1-4  Revelation 1:9-10 brother and companion

Revelation 10:8-11 (esp. V.11)   Revelation 11:1-14  Time of the Kings Revelation 17:9-15 Peoples,multitudes,nations,and tongues Revelation 17:15 (compare with Revelation 10:11 - Peoples,nations,tongues,and kings)

                                        Whom is your King O'Israel?

John 14 And it was the preparation of the passover, and about the sixth hour: and he saith unto the Jews, Behold your King! 15 But they cried out, Away with him, away with him, crucify him. Pilate saith unto them, Shall I crucify your King? The chief priests answered, We have no king but Caesar. 16 Then delivered he him therefore unto them to be crucified. And they took Jesus, and led him away.

Therefore the two systems with which God has issued unto Man is the system of LAW and the system of GRACE and therefore Man is standing in the guilt of his transgression and remains accountable without the Mercy and Grace of Jesus Christ - the innocent blood.