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BIBLICAL GUIDE TO THE SHEMITAH

AND THE BLOOD MOONS
Published by The Berean Call

Copyright © 2015
ISBN: 978-1-68138-007-0
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CONTENTS
P R E FA C E .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
S E C T I O N 1 : T H E M Y S T E R Y O F T H E S H E M I TA H : I S I T B I B L I C A L ?
1 O R I G I N O F T H E S H E M I TA H . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
2 T H E T H E O R Y O F S H E M I TA H C YC L E S I N A M E R I C A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
3 “ T H E R E V E L AT I O N S C A M E R A P I D LY ” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 3
4 AMERIC A AS THE SECOND ISRAEL.................................................... 36
5 T H E H E B R E W C A L E N D A R . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
6 “ N O N - D AT E - S E T T I N G ” D AT E S E T T I N G . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 6
7 W H AT ’ S I N A T I T L E ? T H E “ M Y S T E R Y ” O F T H E S H E M I TA H . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 2
8 T H E B L O O D M O O N T E T R A D .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 6
9 A S U R P R I S I N G L A C K O F D O C U M E N TAT I O N . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
10 M A R K E T I N G “ F E A R ” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 0
S E C T I O N 2 : T H E S E C O N D S H A K I N G — ”A P R O P H E T I C WA K E - U P C A L L” ?
11 T H E S E C 0 N D S H A K I N G . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
12 T H E I S A I A H 9 : 10 E F F E C T . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 3
13 T H E F I N A N C I A L C O L L A P S E . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 9
14 T H E S H E M I TA H C O N N E C T I O N . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 4
15 T H E C A S E F O R T H E S H E M I TA H .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
16 F U D G I N G T H E N U M B E R S .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 0
17 B I B L I C A L R E A L I T I E S & I N E S C A PA B L E C O N C L U S I O N S.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 0
S E C T I O N 3 : THE BLOOD MOON TETRAD—A PROPHETIC WARNING TO AMERICA AND THE WORLD?
18 S I G N S O F T H E S E C O N D C O M I N G ? .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 6
19 T H E I M M I N E N C Y P R O B L E M . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 5
2 0 A P O T E N T I A L D A N G E R — A N D A W O R D O F C A U T I O N .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 3
A P P E N D I X : “LAMPLIGHTER” CRITIQUE AND EXCHANGE WITH DR. DAVID REAGAN................ 156
E N D N O T E S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 3
PREFACE
The Harbinger, by Jonathan Cahn, became the #1 Christian book of
2012, reaching publishing milestones and propelling the author to
national and even international prominence. Because of the many
biblical errors, theological flaws, and historical misrepresentations,
what began as a two-or three-page book review quickly turned into
a book-length response and led to the publication of my first book,
The Harbinger: Fact or Fiction? by The Berean Call.
On September 2, 2014, Jonathan Cahn’s third book, The Mystery
of the Shemitah debuted at #5 on the New York Times best-seller list,
largely on the strength of pre-orders alone, forcing a second printing
on the second day because of the high demand. The ongoing popu-
larity of the book is evidenced by its holding its ranking as #1 on
Amazon.com as of June 16, 2015, in two prophecy categories. This
suggests that The Mystery of the Shemitah also needs to be carefully
examined to determine if the errors in The Harbinger have been cor-
rected or perpetuated in this new volume.
My purpose for evaluating and critiquing The Mystery of the
Shemitah is twofold:
First, because so many have been influenced by The Harbinger,
and because this new book is already a bestseller, the Body of Christ
needs to see that there is another side to the story that may not be
completely obvious at first glance. And even for those who may sense
that something isn’t quite right, the time it takes to work through
–5–
THE MYSTERY OF THE SHEMITAH AND THE BLOOD MOONS
the frequently slow and laborious, yet necessary, task of fact-check-

ing is probably more than most readers will want to invest.
Second, just as one of my goals in writing The Harbinger: Fact
or Fiction? was to model the process of discernment, the same is true
of this booklet. First and foremost, discernment involves check-
ing everything against the Word of God to make sure that all the
arguments, theories, and claims are biblically sound. Beyond this,
discernment also frequently involves evaluating the logic arguments,
the veracity of assertions from a historical perspective, and even the
proper use of statistics, which, unfortunately, can be framed in such
a way that the true picture is obscured or hidden from the reader,
even if unintentionally.
– 6–
SECTION 1
THE MYSTERY
OF THE SHEMITAH:
IS IT BIBLICAL?
CHAPTER 1
ORIGIN OF THE SHEMITAH

THE MYSTERY OF THE SHEMITAH (or TMS for brevity) builds
on the concepts and theories first presented by Jonathan Cahn
in The Harbinger, particularly those in the chapter likewise titled
“The Mystery of the Shemitah.” The author’s theory is that God
has visited warnings and/or judgments against the United States
according to a seven-year cycle that corresponds to the modern
Hebrew calendar, going back many decades.
Foundational Flaws
Make no mistake: This reviewer fully understands that America

is deserving of God’s judgment, and that judgment may even be
well underway. Furthermore, a call to repentance is definitely in
order. However, the foundational premise of TMS is biblically and
thus fatally flawed. The Shemitah (Jewish Sabbath year) was an
obligation given specifically and exclusively to the nation of Israel as
part of the Law of Moses—as Cahn himself acknowledges:
Only Israel was compelled to keep the Shemitah as an

observance. As an observance, the Shemitah applies to one
nation.1
–9–
He goes on to argue, however, that there is more to the Shemitah

than its required observance by Israel:
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 regu-
larity. But when it does appear, it will manifest the essence of
the Shemitah, its effect and mystery, in the form of a sign.2
Unfortunately, Cahn provides no direct biblical support for this

assertion—nor could he, for there are no passages in Scripture to
remotely suggest that God would impose a Shemitah-type judg-
ment according to a seven-year cycle on any nation—including
even Israel itself. Beyond this, the Shemitah, being a Sabbath and an
integral part of the Law of Moses, was completely fulfilled in Christ
and is no longer an obligation or in operation in any way (even
if the theory were correct in the claim that the Shemitah affected
other nations prior to the Cross).
And finally, in what is a troubling issue for a nonfiction book,
none of the overwhelming number of assertions and fact claims
throughout the book concerning economic trends, financial statis-
tics, or historical events are documented whatsoever. This raises the
question of the source of the author’s information, the accuracy of
that information, and why this most basic and necessary aspect of
any research-based nonfiction book is completely missing. The bur-
den of proof for such assertions and claims should never be on the
reader if an author is to be taken seriously. In addition, the integ-
rity of any publisher is rightly called into question when one of its
authors doesn’t cite his sources.
The bottom line is that the significant problems that plague The
Harbinger have possibly been exceeded in this book and so should
give pause to anyone who takes the Word of God seriously.
– 10 –
Background to the Biblical Shemitah
As most readers of this critique will know, in the Law of Moses, God
required that His chosen people, the Children of Israel, cease from
their work on the seventh day of each week (the Sabbath):
Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you

shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is
the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no
work: . . . For in six days the Lord made the heavens and
the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the
seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day
and hallowed it. (Exodus 20:8-11)
In addition to the Sabbath day, the Lord also instructed Israel to

observe every seventh year as a Sabbath as well. During the Sabbath
year, the Israelites were to allow the land to “rest” by leaving it fal-
low. In other words, there was to be neither planting nor harvesting,
and whatever grew on its own was to be left for the poor among
them (Exodus 23:10-12; Leviticus 25:1-7). Just as God had pro-
vided a double-portion of manna on the sixth day of each week
while the Israelites were in the wilderness so that they wouldn’t have
to work on the Sabbath day, He actually tripled the harvest in the
sixth year—which would carry them through the seventh year, and
all the way to the harvest in the eighth year, the first year of the new
seven-year cycle.
Not only was it an agrarian cycle, but it was an economic one,
as well. On the last day of the Sabbath year, lenders were required to
forgive, or “release” (the meaning of “Shemitah”), borrowers from
the obligation of repaying their debts:
At the end of every seven years you shall grant a release of

debts. And this is the form of the release: Every creditor
– 11 –
who has lent anything to his neighbor shall release it; he

shall not require it of his neighbor or his brother, because
it is called the Lord’s release. (Deuteronomy 15:1-2)
Over time, the last day of the Sabbath year, and then the entire
year itself, came to be known as the “Shemitah” (pronounced
sh’mee’-tah). Although one would naturally suppose that such a sys-
tem would wreck an economy and the lives of those who possessed
enough to be lenders rather than borrowers, once again, keeping the
Lord’s commandments regarding this matter would be a source of
blessing rather than hardship:
For the Lord will greatly bless you in the land which
the Lord your God is giving you to possess as an inheri-
tance—only if you carefully obey the voice of the Lord
your God, to observe with care all these commandments
which I command you today. For the Lord your God
will bless you just as He promised you; you shall lend to
many nations, but you shall not borrow; you shall reign
over many nations, but they shall not reign over you.
(Deuteronomy 15:4b-6)
Although the Sabbath year was to be a source of blessing to

the Israelites as they relied on the Lord’s provision each seven-year
cycle, they failed to observe the Shemitah for a significant por-
tion of their history as a nation in the land. Between the time the
Law was given (approximately 1445 bc) and the time God judged
the southern kingdom of Judah through the Babylonians, they
had failed to obey this particular law for a total of 70 cycles (490
years)—which is precisely the reason for the specific 70-year length
of the Babylonian captivity.
And those who escaped from the sword he carried away to
Babylon, where they became servants to him and his sons
– 12 –
until the rule of the kingdom of Persia, to fulfill the word

of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had
enjoyed her Sabbaths. As long as she lay desolate she kept
Sabbath, to fulfill seventy years. (2 Chronicles 36:20-21)
Failure to observe the Shemitah year was just one of many sins
that began to plague the nation of Israel, as they also disobeyed the
Lord’s specific command not to take foreign wives from nations where
idolatry and the worship of false gods was practiced (Deuteronomy
7:1-5). As a direct result of disobeying this particular command, the
idolatrous practices and pagan worship of those nations became an
integral part of Israel’s own culture and religious practices.
Another apparent example of ignoring God’s laws for a pro-
tracted period of time is found in Nehemiah 8:17 where it is
revealed that the nation had inexplicably failed to observe the annu-
ally required Feast of Tabernacles for nearly a millennium (since the
time of Joshua).
In turn, the worship of the one true God was largely abandoned,
and virtually the entire Law of Moses began to be ignored by most.
By the end of the sixth century bc, Israel had failed to observe a
total of seventy Sabbath/Shemitah years.
In judgment against Israel’s pervasive and persistent sin, God
used the Babylonian empire to execute judgment upon the south-
ern kingdom of Judah beginning in 606 bc just as He had used the
Assyrians more than a century earlier against the northern kingdom
of Israel. In addition to ultimately leveling Jerusalem and destroying
the temple, the Babylonians carried away large numbers of Israelites
into captivity—a captivity that lasted for 70 years, one year for each of
the Sabbath years that the nation had failed to observe the Shemitah.
In practical terms, this meant that the Babylonian captivity
functioned as a God-imposed Shemitah, because with few Israelites
left to cultivate, plant, and harvest, the Promised Land experienced
– 13 –
a forced “rest”—a rest that totaled the exact number of years that
the Israelites had failed to voluntarily allow the land to rest as the
Lord had commanded (2 Chronicles 36:20-21).
Has Jonathan Cahn “Done It Again”?
The fundamental premise of The Mystery of the Shemitah is that not

only did God require the nation of Israel to observe the Shemitah/
Sabbath year but that there is also a far-reaching “ancient mystery”
connected to the Shemitah, which the author, Jonathan Cahn, has
just recently discovered. Cahn’s treatment of this “ancient mystery”
suggests that there is a seven-year cycle woven into the very fabric
of history and into the order of the universe following the Hebrew
calendar—a cycle that can and does affect other nations besides
Israel—and even affects the entire world.
According to Cahn, this mystery manifests itself through various
calamities, including natural disasters, wars, and economic crises that
tend to occur according to this seven-year cycle and are most evident
when God is trying to get the attention of a nation to warn her of
impending judgment. His book begins with the following question:
Is it possible that there exists a three-thousand-year-old

mystery that lies behind everything from the implosion
of the New York Stock Exchange, the collapse of the
American and world economy, the attack of 9/11, the rise
of nations, the fall of nations, and events that have not yet
happened but are yet to take place?3
Interestingly, rather than attempting to test his case to determine

whether this is actually a universal principle that operates through-
out history and around the world, he specifically focuses on a single
country, the United States of America—and then, over only a por-
tion of its history. If Cahn’s theories are correct about the Shemitah
– 14 –
being a universal principle in God’s dealings with nations, it should

be readily observable and easily demonstrable throughout history.
Unfortunately, as was demonstrated by this author in The
Harbinger: Fact or Fiction?, Jonathan Cahn’s view of the United States
in God’s program has some serious flaws. These erroneous views form
much of the basis of TMS. Just as he did in the corresponding chap-
ter in The Harbinger, in TMS Cahn argues that the Lord continues
to follow the same seven-year cycle in His dealings with America that
He established for ancient Israel in the Law of Moses:
There is yet another mystery in The Harbinger we haven’t

mentioned—for the reason that we will now devote the
rest of this book to revealing it. Having now set the pro-
phetic context, we will now begin to unlock that ancient
mystery that has not only determined the course of
modern history and modern events in America and the
nations, but has also ordained the very timing of those
events, down to the days—even down to the hours—the
mystery of the Shemitah.4
Thus, just as God had imposed seventy forced Sabbath years

upon the nation of Israel as a judgment during the Babylonian
captivity, He has likewise been visiting calamities upon America
as warnings of impending judgment through stock market crashes,
economic crises, and various other cataclysmic events—all because
of the “mystery of the Shemitah.”
Throughout the book, Cahn goes to great lengths in his attempts
to demonstrate that this has been going on for at least a century in
this country. And, as he did in The Harbinger, the author contends
that the most recent cluster of devastating events began with the
terrorist attacks of 9/11/2001 on the World Trade Center towers,
the Pentagon, and United Airlines flight #93 (which he collectively
refers to as “the first shaking”).
– 15 –
Furthermore, Cahn claims that the mystery of the Shemitah

has been working in conjunction with what he calls the “Isaiah 9:10
Effect”—a theory he proposed in The Harbinger as “The attempt of
a nation to defy the course of its judgment, apart from repentance,
will, instead, set in motion a chain of events to bring about the very
calamity it sought to avert.”5 According to Cahn, the “Isaiah 9:10
Effect” has manifested itself as a “second shaking” with the precipi-
tous fall of the stock market on the last day of the Shemitah year in
both 2001 and 2008, according to the modern Hebrew calendar.
Although some have suggested that “Cahn has done it again,”
this author believes that there are many significant issues in this new
book—and so many of them rival or surpass the problems found in
The Harbinger that it seems as if The Mystery of the Shemitah may be
an even more fragile house of cards than the first book.
– 16 –
2 DISCERNMENT TIP #1
Strive to understand what the author is saying well enough
to be able to summarize it in a few sentences.
When working through a book or an article, the first step in exercising discernment is to
read the work all the way through and simply highlight or otherwise mark areas that are
not clear, things that strike you as possible problems, statements that are obviously erro-
neous, weak arguments, and statistics or other information that need to be fact-checked.
The first time through, don’t worry about getting into the details or formulating some
sort of response to issues of concern.
After thoroughly reading it through the first time, jot down a few notes concerning
your overall impressions and two or three major “takeaways” that reflect what you believe
to be the author’s primary thesis, his major arguments, and his overall conclusions. After
this, try to summarize the entire piece in just a few sentences.
Now you’re ready to go through it a second time and begin the process of a more
careful evaluation.
* * * ************** *
– 17 –
CHAPTER 2
THE THEORY OF SHEMITAH

CYCLES IN AMERICA
THAT GOD EXPECTS any nation other than Israel to observe
a seven-year Sabbath cycle has no scriptural basis (as Jonathan
Cahn rightly notes). However, neither do the Scriptures indicate
that there is a “mystery” that functions as some sort of universal
principle in operation throughout or at various times in history and
corresponds to a seven-year cycle on the Hebrew calendar as God
metes out warnings and/or judgments to rebellious nations as an
“imposed Shemitah.”
In fact, even when Israel failed to observe the Sabbath year
for several centuries, Scripture gives no indication that the nation
experienced economic catastrophes every seven years due to God’s
judgment as Cahn claims has been happening to America for
decades. Even though Israel had fallen into some of the deepest sins
of depravity associated with the fertility cults of the surrounding
nations, there is no biblical evidence that God ever dealt with the
nation according to the “mystery of the Shemitah” on such a seven-
year cycle. Rather, God delayed His judgment against Israel until
He finally imposed what amounted to a seventy-year Shemitah by
virtue of the Babylonian captivity. Cahn’s proposed parallel between
– 18 –
THE THEORY OF SHEMITAH CYCLES IN AMERICA
the way that God dealt with Israel and the way that He has been
dealing with America simply does not exist.
Furthermore, there is no record that God ever stopped sup-
plying three times the normal produce in the sixth year during the
entire time of their rebellion. If the Lord did continue to provide in
this way, then every seventh year Israel once again had the oppor-
tunity to repent and observe the Shemitah and not suffer from
starvation and economic collapse because of God’s provision in the
previous year.
This is significant, because it directly flies in the face of Cahn’s
theory concerning what has been happening to America for
decades. For the ancient pattern in Israel to have a modern-day
parallel in America, there could not be economic downturns every
seven years, and instead, there would have to be massive surges
in America’s productivity during the sixth year of the Shemitah
cycle, accompanied by a protracted delay of judgment by several
centuries. However, Jonathan Cahn argues that America has been
subjected to the mystery of the Shemitah repeatedly over at least
the last century, according to the modern Hebrew reckoning of
Sabbath/Shemitah years. Not only is there a general lack of parallel
between Israel and America in this regard, but it isn’t even close.
In TMS, the author uses many graphs that supposedly chart
America’s economic cycles, with significant rises in the S&P 500
during bull markets, inevitably followed by sometimes precipitous
declines or crashes leading into a bear market. (Unfortunately,
despite the fact that these are key pieces of evidence in his case for
the reality of the mystery of the Shemitah, he provides no documen-
tation concerning the source of these charts.) He further suggests
that if one were to similarly graph ancient Israel’s economy, because
of the mystery of the Shemitah, it would track very closely with
America’s economy and exhibit similar trends with sharp increases
– 19 –
and rapid declines as Israel observed the Shemitah every seven years.
This theory, however, is entirely without merit on multiple counts.
America-Israel Disconnect
First of all, during the eight hundred years between the time Israel
entered the Promised Land around 1400 bc and Babylon’s first
attacks on the southern kingdom in 606 bc, the nation did not
observe seventy of the required Sabbath years (2 Chronicles 36:20-
21). Yet, in spite of this protracted period of disobedience, God did
not impose a Shemitah upon them until the Babylonian captivity.
The Lord gave hundreds of years and allowed dozens of Shemitah
cycles before bringing any sort of judgment upon the nation of
Israel that would be connected directly to the Sabbath years.
Yet, in sharp contrast to the way that God dealt with ancient
Israel, Cahn asserts that He has imposed a Shemitah on America
for many or most seven-year cycles going back to at least the begin-
ning of the twentieth century. He more than implies that because
America has turned from God, the nation has been subject to the
natural consequences of the “mystery of the Shemitah” and states
that these have happened in or around the last year in the Sabbath
cycles according to the modern Hebrew calendar. Clearly, Cahn’s
theory does not fit the biblical pattern.
In what appears to be an instance of Cahn’s anticipation of such
criticisms of his theory, he writes:
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 obser-
vance, the Shemitah comes regularly, every seventh year.
–20–
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.1
The only problem with this explanation is that, like the rest of
the theory, it has no biblical basis. There is not a single passage of
Scripture that remotely suggests what Cahn is claiming.
Biblical Shemitah a Blessing, Not a Curse
Furthermore, there is no biblical evidence to support Cahn’s

suggestion that when Israel did observe the Shemitah, the nation’s
economy experienced crashes or even economic downturns for a
period of time following the last day of the Shemitah year (which
Cahn refers to as “the Shemitah’s wake”). His theory is that because
debts were wiped clean and there had been no planting or harvesting
during the Sabbath year, Israel must have been subject to wildly
swinging economic cycles of seven years each that tested that nation’s
faithfulness.
In contrast, the Scriptures indicate that the Shemitah was
a blessing in every respect, with no downside whatsoever. God’s
promises concerning the blessings associated with keeping His
commandments, which He gives in the context of instructions
concerning the Sabbath year, are worth noting once more:
For the Lord will greatly bless you in the land which
the Lord your God is giving you to possess as an inheri-
tance—only if you carefully obey the voice of the Lord
your God, to observe with care all these commandments
which I command you today. For the Lord your God
will bless you just as He promised you. (Deuteronomy
15:4b-6a)
– 21 –
Although Cahn does acknowledge that the Shemitah was to be

a blessing, he argues that there was much economic hardship as the
nation recovered from the effects of the Shemitah due both to the
release of debts and the lack of crop production during the Sabbath
year—something that he must claim in order to set the stage for his
theory concerning America:
The idea of a nation ceasing all work on its land for an

entire year is a radical proposition. No less radical is the
idea of a day in which all credit and debt are wiped away.
The ramifications of these two requirements are so great
that concerns arose in later generations as to the Shemitah’s
financial and economic consequences.2
After a brief discussion regarding how in these later generations

the rabbis devised ways to work around the system, Cahn notes two
principles that he says are “important in unlocking the mystery of
the Shemitah”:
1. The Shemitah bears consequences that specifically affect

the financial and economic realm.
2. The effects of the Shemitah bear key similarities to the

effects of an economic and financial collapse.3
Once again, Cahn offers no scriptural evidence that ancient Israel

experienced any hardship at all because of the Shemitah. Rather, the
Scriptures clearly indicate that the opposite was true because, as pre-
viously noted, in the sixth year God actually tripled the harvest so
that the Israelites would not have to work in the fields during the
entire Shemitah year. Furthermore, the nation also had more than
enough to carry the Israelites all the way through to the harvest sea-
son in the first year of the next seven-year cycle.
–22–
Ancient Israel Economy Unlike America Today
Another important point to consider is that ancient Israel’s economy

was not based on deficit spending and running up huge debts as is
true not only of the government but also of individual Americans
today. In today’s economy, almost everyone has debt of some
sort—and, in many cases, the debts are staggering. Consequently,
if those debts were wiped off the books, the entire US economy
would almost certainly collapse.
In contrast, this is not at all the way it would have been in
ancient Israel, as there was most likely very little debt as compared to
modern America. In ancient Israel there was no banking or lending
system backed by the FDIC, meaning that all loans were necessar-
ily personal. Common sense suggests that if potential lenders knew
that they had to recover all their money before the end of the next
Shemitah year or forfeit it, there would very likely have been few
willing to extend credit and personal loans to others.
Beyond this, unlike today, only those who were poor were bor-
rowers, and only those who could afford to write off debts could
possibly have been lenders in the first place. In fact, there were a
couple of provisions in the Shemitah laws for not wiping debt off
the books—for example, if a borrower was not an Israelite and if the
entire country was prosperous:
Of a foreigner you may require it; but you shall give up

your claim to what is owed by your brother, except when
there may be no poor among you; for the Lord will
greatly bless you in the land which the Lord your God is
giving you to possess as an inheritance—only if you care-
fully obey the voice of the Lord your God, to observe
with care all these commandments which I command you
today. (Deuteronomy 15:3-5)
–23–
Going back to the “imposed Shemitah”: God’s reason for link-

ing judgment to an imposed Shemitah upon Israel was because they
had failed to observe the required Sabbath years in the first place.
However, there is no biblical basis for suggesting that God would
impose a Shemitah-type judgment upon any nation that was not
obligated to observe the Sabbath year. Therefore, no matter what
has happened to America over the last one hundred-plus years, it
cannot be linked in any biblical way to the Shemitah, even if it
could be demonstrated that economies tend to naturally go through
roughly seven-year cycles.
“Precise” Cycles Fail to Yield Fantastic Fortunes
If Cahn were right about the mystery of the Shemitah, then

economists almost certainly would have noticed and been writing
about this precise seven-year cycle long before God “revealed” it to
the author. Tremendous fortunes could have been made by savvy
investors who knew how to play just such market cycles. Some
people have accumulated the greatest portions of their wealth
during bear markets.
However, preliminary research indicates that although some
economists have suggested that economies may naturally follow a
cycle of slightly less than seven years to as many as ten years, there is
no universal agreement on this point. This stands in sharp contrast
to the precise seven-year Sabbath cycles in ancient Israel and to the
analysis that Jonathan Cahn has offered. The following quote and
graph (see opposite page) reflect this general lack of regular and pre-
cise economic cycles:
Since World War 2, we’ve already had 11 recessions. And if

you go back another hundred years, you’ll see the same pat-
tern. Those dates in red show the bottom of each recession.
Now look: how far they spaced apart?
– 24 –
Would you agree: another recession is inevitable? It’s only

a matter of when. In the past, recessions occurred at intervals
of 7-10 years (barring a few that came a little quicker).
It’s almost like summer hurricanes in the Caribbean. We
know they’re going to happen. We just don’t know when
and where exactly. Fortunately, we’ve developed a good sys-
tem of hurricane warnings.4
–25–
Cahn’s “Mystery” — Out of Sync with Reality?
Obviously, economic cycles of some duration are inevitable because

neither bull nor bear markets last forever. The fact that economic
cycles might generally have some average length is not necessarily
surprising either—even if it were seven years, which it doesn’t
appear to be. Once again, the evidence seems to undermine the idea
that the mystery of the Shemitah is behind these modern economic
fluctuations not only because the Shemitah cycle is exactly seven
years but also because the length of the modern cycles varies by as
much as three years or more.
Jerry Bowyer, an economist and president of Bowyer research,
has co-authored an important white paper, “Shemitah Years and
Blood Moons as Market Timing Tools.” The authors introduce the
paper with the following:
The hypothesis that the years 2014-2015 are of high

prophetic significance based on the conjunction of lunar
eclipses, Hebrew holidays and an alleged “Shemitah” year
has gained rapid attention in evangelical Christian circles.
This approach has become more than the thought of one
or two men; it has become a movement. It appears that
this movement started with the work of Pastor Mark Biltz,
was picked up by a messianic Rabbi named Jonathan
Cahn and by television evangelist, John Hagee. Books,
DVDs, Study Guides, blogs and media appearances have
multiplied as the interest in this topic has intensified. This
white paper is not designed to examine one particular
author and/or one particular book. It is an attempt to fac-
tually test common claims associated with this movement.
Not every claim dealt with in this paper is held by every
promulgator of the general point of view. The reason for
this is that this paper is designed for the ordinary investor
–26–
who is troubled by these claims at the grassroots level and

at the grassroots level, these various ideas are widely drawn
from various broadcasters, authors and speakers.5
Jerry Bowyer is a Christian with an impressive set of credentials.

A recognized authority as a financial analyst and economist, he is
Senior Economic Advisor to Ronald Blue & Co. and has been a
regular commentator on Fox News and Fox Business network, as a
well as a contributor on CNBC. He is a columnist for Forbes.com
and has written for CNBC.com, National Review Online, and The
Wall Street Journal, as well as many other publications. Bowyer also
consulted extensively for the Bush White House concerning seri-
ous national economic issues during that administration following
9/11. In addition, Mr. Bowyer has taught social ethics at Ottawa
Theological Hall, public policy at Saint Vincent’s College, and
guest lectured at Carnegie Mellon’s graduate Heinz School of Public
Policy.6 In short, he is eminently qualified to evaluate Jonathan
Cahn’s economic claims and his theories related to Shemitah cycles.
Bowyer goes into great detail analyzing Cahn’s claims concern-
ing the correlation of Shemitah cycles with important historical
events and has clearly demonstrated that Cahn’s work is filled with
significant historical inaccuracies. However, his most devastating
analysis concerns Cahn’s economic claims:
There are problems with this use of data: historically large

point declines can actually represent very small fluctuations
in market value. . . . Today with DJIA markets hovering
near 18,000 it is common to have 300-400 point changes
in any given day, swings that are as large as the entire value
of the Dow in 1929 before the crash! In fact, the great crash
of 1929 did not occur on a Shemitah year and does not
fall in the list of ten largest point corrections in the last
hundred years.
– 27 –
So, Rabbi Cahn is correct when he says that eight of

the top ten largest collapses have occurred in Shemitah
years, but he did not point out that 5 of that 8 were all in
2008, and that the remaining 3 were in 2001.7
Perhaps the most important section in Bowyer’s paper is the fol-

lowing graph, which shows the average market changes for Shemitah
and non-Shemitah years in comparison to the overall market aver-
age changes:
The first bar in the graph represents the average rise of about
8 percent year-on-year. Non-shemitah years average a rise of about
9.4 percent while Shemitah years average a decline of about 4 per-
cent. The average underperformance of the market of less than 14
percent in Shemitah years, as compared to non-Shemitah years,
hardly represents the economic collapses one would expect in con-
nection with God’s judgment and is dramatically different from the
imposed-Shemitah collapse experienced as part of God’s judgment
in ancient Israel.
–28–
The following is Bowyer’s overall analysis:

On average, the Dow Jones price declined by 4.1% in
Shemitah years, and rose by 9.4% in non Shemitah years.
However, if you exclude 2008, the average decline in
Shemitah years is only 2.9%. In terms of the top 20 larg-
est daily percentage declines in the Dow Jones in history,
9 out of 20 took place on Shemitah years. If you exclude
2008 (which is an outlier year which contains several
top 20 market declines), only 5 out of 20 take place in
Shemitah years. As for the 20 largest gains, 7 are Shemitah
years, and 2 of those 7 were from 2008. In the last cen-
tury, when you exclude 2008, the probability for there
being a major market correction in a Shemitah year in the
20th century and early 21st century is slightly above 1/7.
Statistically, it’s hard to find justification for the claims
that alleged Shemitah years constitute high probabilities
for major market corrections.8
All of this raises many questions, of which the following are just
a few:
1. If the mystery of the Shemitah is a valid theory con-

cerning how God has been dealing with America, then
why has He never dealt with Israel (the only nation
ever obligated to keep the Shemitah) by imposing
Shemitah-type judgments every seven years?
2. How could the Lord apparently ignore Israel’s ongo-

ing failure to keep the Sabbath year while at the same
time He has been using seven-year Shemitah cycles
as warnings or judgments upon America over the last
one hundred years or so?
–29–
3. With no biblical reason for anyone to think that

the mystery of the Shemitah might be influencing
America’s economy, how could it possibly be consid-
ered a warning from God?
4. If the mystery of the Shemitah affects the world, does

this mean that every country experiences and suffers
under the same seven-year economic cycles, or is this
now reserved only for America? (The fact that the
world economy is influenced by the US economy is
beside the point.)
5. If the mystery of the Shemitah is always at work,

then how can it be determined when God is issuing a
warning and when He is not?
6. If there are no cataclysmic events connected to a

particular Shemitah cycle, does it mean that God is
pleased with the way things are going?
7. What is it that determines that one economic cycle

might be six-and-a-half years, while another might
be eight years in duration? Why are they not always
exactly seven years so that a precise pattern might be
recognized by serious believers who know the Bible
well?
8. Although Israel was to be blessed by the Shemitah

through God’s faithful provision, on what scriptural
basis can Jonathan Cahn suggest that America has
experienced nothing but judgment related to this
seven-year cycle?
–30–
9. Exactly when in America’s history did God begin

using seven-year Shemitah cycles according to the
modern Hebrew calendar in order to begin judg-
ing America, and if it began one hundred years ago
or more, when did He expect Americans to finally
realize what He was doing—again, completely apart
from any biblical reason for believing that He was
doing such a thing?
Once again, Cahn’s theories don’t make any sense from either a
biblical or logical perspective.
– 31 –
As someone has rightly said,
“Context isn’t the main thing—it’s the only thing.”
Always take care to understand all passages that are used to support a given point in the
original context. Of course there is the literary context of the text itself, which includes the
verses leading up to and following the passage being considered. However, the histori-
cal context (which includes the author, the recipients, the time period in history, various
cultural factors, etc.) often provides valuable insight into how to correctly understand some
biblical passages.
In the case of the Shemitah, the historical context is supremely important. The rev-
elation and commandments concerning the Sabbath years were given specifically and
exclusively by God through Moses to the nation of Israel. This “Law of Moses” was in effect
from the time it was given on Mount Sinai (around the middle of the 14th century bc) to
the time it was fulfilled through Christ’s death on the cross (around ad 30).
Therefore, we understand that the Shemitah laws were given exclusively to a specific
people during a limited period of time (about 1,500 years), with a clear beginning and
ending and with no other revelation suggesting that there was an underlying mystery
affecting the nation of Israel or that God would use such a mystery when dealing with any
other nation besides Israel.
* * * ************** *
–32–
CHAPTER 3
“THE REVELATIONS
CAME RAPIDLY”
THE SUGGESTION that God has been revealing all of these things
to Jonathan Cahn alone is quite problematic. In an appearance
on the Jim Bakker Show in August 2014, Jonathan Cahn stated,
concerning the writing of The Mystery of the Shemitah, “This is
what came and the Lord did it—and He did it rapidly, as with The
Harbinger. The revelations came rapidly and it went forth,”1 as he
gestured toward heaven, obviously indicating that God had revealed
these truths to him. He has also said on numerous occasions that,
just as with The Harbinger, this book also “almost wrote itself.”
And, just as with The Harbinger, this essentially puts him in
the position of being an end-times prophet who is now receiving
new revelation from God and revealing a mystery that has never
been seen by any biblical scholar of the last 2,000 years. He contin-
ues to be referred to and introduced as “an end-times prophet.” If
this were simply in reference to his being one who boldly proclaims
God’s Word, it wouldn’t be a problem. However, this is specifically
related to his being considered a revealer of mysteries such as has
never before been seen in history or the Bible.
–33–
Some have tried to deflect any criticisms of Jonathan Cahn by

saying that they are fueled by a specific perspective concerning the
sign gifts of the Spirit. This is a straw man argument that has no
merit.
First, criticisms of Jonathan Cahn’s work have come from across
the spectrum of beliefs concerning the sign gifts, from firm cessa-
tionism to firm continuationism. Second, the fundamental issue
is not whether either the office or sign gift of prophet continues
to function today. The issue is that even though Cahn has repeat-
edly said that he has never called himself a prophet, the fact remains
that he continues to be frequently introduced, received, referred to,
and viewed as one. This undoubtedly influences some to defer to
this assessment by others and to simply accept that Cahn’s message
comes directly from God in one way or another. Yet, if the gift of
prophecy is functioning today, the standard of truth and the respon-
sibility associated with being prophets is the same as for a teacher of
the written Word of God—it must be understood and communi-
cated correctly.
This leads to another important question in the process of try-
ing to discern whether or not Cahn’s message is from the Lord: If
the revelations came so quickly that both The Harbinger and The
Mystery of the Shemitah “almost wrote [themselves],” then why has
God just now sent a warning of judgment through a modern-day
prophetic voice well after the fact? The Harbinger was published in
2012, more than three years after the stock market crash of 2008,
more than ten years after 9/11, and close to one hundred years after
some of the events that Cahn attributes to the operation of the mys-
tery of the Shemitah through significant historical events, such as
the Balfour Declaration of 1917:
The Balfour Declaration was the single most important

document in the establishment of the state of Israel . . .
–34–
“THE REVELATIONS CAME RAPIDLY”
It promised that England would support and help facili-

tate the establishment of a national home for the Jewish
people in Palestine.2
Once again, Cahn’s views concerning what God is doing now

do not follow any pattern seen in the Scriptures regarding the way
that God deals with mankind.
Beware of claims of “newly discovered” truth
in the biblical text that no one has ever seen before.
Though we can never fully plumb the depths of the Scriptures in terms of implications and
applications, the text says now precisely what it has always said and means what it has
always meant. Some have attempted to defend Jonathan Cahn by saying that he is only
finding new applications, which would not be a problem.
However, as his conclusions are analyzed, it becomes fairly clear that they go beyond
being simple application issues and extend to the intent of the biblical author(s) (both
divine and human) and the meaning the author(s) intended to convey. For example, it
is impossible to conclude on the basis of any passage or combination of passages that
anything such as “the mystery of the Shemitah” even exists as a principle that operates
behind the scenes throughout history.
When it comes to the interpretation, the student of the Bible must always keep in
mind, “If it’s not in the text, then someone made it up.”
* * * ************** *
–35–
CHAPTER 4
AMERICA AS
THE SECOND ISRAEL
IN ORDER TO MAKE his case that the mystery of the Shemitah
has been manifesting itself in the United States for decades, Jonathan
Cahn must necessarily treat America as at least some sort of “second
Israel”—which is precisely what he did in The Harbinger, as was
demonstrated in The Harbinger: Fact or Fiction?
That he has done this again in The Mystery of the Shemitah can
be seen in multiple places but perhaps most obviously in two of the
section headings in chapter 7. One is titled “The Israel of the New
World” and the other is “The Fall of the Second Israel.”
Having heard, read, and interacted with both Jonathan Cahn
and some of his supporters, this author fully accepts that Cahn does
not hold to “Replacement Theology.” Replacement Theology is the
idea that because Israel rejected her God, most notably through
the rejection of Jesus, her Messiah, then God has also rejected
Israel, excluding the nation from His present and future plans.
Furthermore, in Replacement Theology, the church is now viewed
as the only “true Israel”—one that has replaced national Israel in
God’s program, leaving her with no claims to the unconditional
promises made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—including the prom-
ises concerning the land.
–36–
AMERICA AS THE SECOND ISRAEL
However, it is difficult to escape the fact that he at least gives

the impression (repeatedly) that he holds to something that might
be called “Parallel Israel Theology” or “Secondary Israel Theology”
(both terms coined by this author to describe Cahn’s handling of the
place of America in God’s program).
In the section “The Israel of the New World” Cahn writes:
Most would find it surprising to learn that America was

consciously, intentionally, and specifically founded and
formed after the pattern of ancient Israel. Its founders saw
it as a new Israel, the Israel of the New World. It was their
exodus from Europe like the Hebrew exodus from Egypt.
The New World was their new promised land, and the
Massachusetts Bay Colony was their New Jerusalem.1
There is no nation in the modern world so deeply
linked to ancient Israel as America. There is, therefore, no
stage or platform on earth so well suited for the manifest-
ing of the mystery of the Shemitah as America.2
Cahn has tried to clarify his position by suggesting that he means

only that the early founders viewed America as the “New Israel” and
not that he personally believes this is true. Yet the entire basis for
both The Harbinger and The Mystery of the Shemitah depends on
the close parallels he draws between ancient Israel and the United
States—including the way God directly deals with both nations.
Cahn can maintain the parallels necessary to link God’s treat-
ment of both Israel and America only if he can also maintain the
perspective that America was founded as a Christian country. This
is a point of serious contention, because any objective evaluation
of America’s history reveals that although God was invoked by the
Founding Fathers at various times, it is equally true that the pagan-
ism of Freemasonry is deeply embedded into the very foundations
of this country.
– 37 –
America’s Founding — Christian or Masonic?
For example, the evidence of Freemasonry can be found throughout

the nation—to the degree that one of its most obvious displays is
found on the paper currency that passes through the hands of mil-
lions of Americans every day: the pyramid with the “seeing eye.” And,
as the director of collections at the George Washington Masonic
Memorial in Alexandria, Virginia, told National Geographic in 2009:
Individually, Masons had a role in building the White
House, in building and designing Washington, D.C. And
[small scale] Masonic symbols can be found throughout
the city, as they can in most U.S. cities.3
Interestingly (given the source of the above quote), George

Washington himself is a prominent figure in Cahn’s theories, and
he regularly cites the inaugural prayer of the first president, which
he quotes in The Harbinger:
The propitious smiles of Heaven can never be expected on
a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order and right
which Heaven itself hath ordained.4
Earlier in the same chapter of The Harbinger, Cahn uses a liter-

ary device in the form of a dream sequence as explained by the main
character in the book:
Solomon was the king of Israel. Washington was the first
president of the United States. There was something in
the linking of ancient Israel and America, as with all the
other mysteries.5
The reader should note that the first President of the United
States holds the dubious distinction of being depicted as becoming
deity upon being received into heaven in the famous painting inside
the dome of the US Capitol building.6 In addition:
–38–
AMERICA AS THE SECOND ISRAEL
• Washington’s inaugural procession to St. Paul’s Chapel

was part of a Masonic ceremony that has been re-enacted
for years by Freemasons in New York City.7
• The one who administered the oath of office to Washington
was a Grand Master Freemason.8
• Multiple portraits of Washington depict him in Masonic
garb.9
• Washington was appointed as the charter Master of
Alexandria Lodge #22 in Virginia.10
• Washington was buried with a Masonic ceremony.11
The website formermasons.org, cites the book The Craft and Its
Symbols to demonstrate that the god of Freemasonry and the God
of the Bible are incompatible:
You have learned that Freemasonry calls God, “The

Great Architect of the Universe” (G.A.O.T.U.). This is
the Freemason’s special name for God, because he is uni-
versal. He belongs to all men regardless of their religious
persuasion. All wise men acknowledge His authority.
In his private devotions a Mason will pray to Jehovah,
Mohammed, Allah, Jesus or the Deity of his choice. In a
Masonic Lodge, however, the Mason will find the name of
his Deity within the G.A.O.T.U.12
In order to truly worship the God of the Bible and to stand

as a representative before God, one’s concept of God must at
least be somewhat consistent with the Scriptures’ description of
Him. Although no one knows for certain whether or not George
Washington was a true, born-again believer, it is reasonable to sug-
gest that his view of God was more consistent with Freemasonry
than with the Scriptures. Even though the “Great Architect of the
Universe” is content with being thought of as the god of Islam or the
–39–
“deity of choice,” the God of the Bible is definitely not. Therefore,

it is also reasonable to raise the question as to in what degree he was
even addressing the God of the Bible in His inaugural prayer.
Despite the title and words of the song “Every Promise in the
Book Is Mine,” this really isn’t true—and if we fail to recognize that certain
things concerned only ancient Israel, our understanding
of the entire Bible will be fraught with problems.
Though the entire Bible is the inspired Word of God and is profitable for doctrine, reproof,
correction, and instruction in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16), not every truth, promise,
or principle is equally applicable in the same way that it was for the original recipients.
For example, God promised Abraham that through him all nations would be blessed
(Genesis 12:3). We also know that Abraham became the model of faith for believers
of all generations (Romans 4:2-3). We can easily see all sorts of applications for these
truths. However, God also promised Abraham that his descendants would inherit a large
piece of land (Genesis 13:14-15)—and there is no direct application of that truth to all
believers. Rather, the application is indirect and concerns God’s faithfulness. It does not
extend to all believers inheriting the actual physical land that was promised to Israel or
any other geographical place.
God dealt with the descendants of Abraham through Isaac and Jacob in a unique
and exclusive way, and this cannot be extrapolated to any other country, even if America’s
founders saw it as a “Second Israel” and dedicated this country to God’s purposes. There
is no scriptural basis for concluding that God would ever deal with America on the basis of
the Shemitah, which was given to Israel alone. Any attempt to do so is to read a meaning
into Scripture and theorize an application that the original (divine and human) authors
never intended or would even have imagined.
* * * ************** *
–40–
CHAPTER 5
THE HEBREW CALENDAR

EVIDENCE SUGGESTS that the modern Hebrew calendar is out
of sync with that of Moses’ day—perhaps by a significant amount.
Although according to the modern Hebrew calendar, the last year in
the present Shemitah cycle began on September 25, 2014, according
to the Jewish Encyclopedia, the actual Shemitah year is disputed.1
Although Dr. David Reagan unfortunately has been a vocal
proponent of Jonathan Cahn and his book, The Harbinger,* to his
credit he has rightly taken Cahn to task concerning his book on
the Shemitah. In this regard, Reagan has written an interesting and
important article concerning the calendar problem, in which he
cites an authority on the subject who deals with this issue in the
book Jewish History in Conflict:
The calculation of the years of the Jewish calendar, accord-

ing to the Talmud, was done in the 2nd Century A.D. by
Rabbi R. Yose. His rabbinic chronology is called the Seder
Olam Rabbah.
*The May-June 2013 edition of Lamplighter magazine featured Jonathan Cahn on its cover and
included a rather scathing article by Dr. Reagan against critics of The Harbinger and Jonathan Cahn.
Given his present criticism of The Mystery of the Shemitah, which is simply an expansion of the same
unbiblical theories in The Harbinger, this seems to place Dr. Reagan in an odd and inconsistent posi-
tion, because it is virtually impossible to separate the two books in any meaningful way.
– 41 –
Since the rabbinical chronology from the time of the

Creation to the end of the Hebrew Scriptures is relatively
clear, the discrepancy between the rabbinical calendar
and the Christian reckoning of time relates mainly to the
inter-testamental period for which there are no biblical
records. This period is referred to by secular historians as
“the Persian period.” The Babylonian Empire was over-
thrown by the Medo-Persian Empire (539 bc), and it is
the length of the Persian period that is in dispute. The
rabbinical chronology says it lasted 52 years (with 34 years
of domination over Israel). The accepted chronology of
historical experts says it lasted 207 years.
A remarkable new book has recently been published
which examines this problem in detail. It is called Jewish
History in Conflict. The author is a New York attorney and
Orthodox Jew by the name of Mitchell First. He stud-
ied Jewish history at Yeshiva University’s Revel Graduate
School, receiving his M.A. in Jewish history in 1995. He
had previously earned a law degree from Columbia Law
School in 1982.
The book provides an intriguing survey of what Jewish
rabbis have had to say about the calendar discrepancy. He
quotes the writings of 105 rabbis and scholars from 882
A.D. to the present, and it is fascinating reading.
In the process, the author proves that the Jewish
chronology is flawed and the conventional chronology
is the correct one. In fact, the evidence he presents is
overwhelming.2
Being a highly debated issue, it seems unlikely that this problem

will be completely solved to the satisfaction of everyone. Yet, in the
context of the present discussion, it does make a difference.
For example, if the actual year is disputed, that also means
that it is impossible to determine where the calendar is, relative to
–42–
THE HEBREW CALENDAR
the seven-year Shemitah cycle as it was established by God around

1445 bc. Furthermore, attempts to establish when Sabbath years
occurred relative to the known date of certain events in the Old
Testament have remained inconclusive. And if the modern Hebrew
calendar is off such that the Sabbath-year cycle is wrong by even one
year, then a key component of Cahn’s premise for the entire book is
undermined because none of the events cited by the author can be
conclusively connected to the biblical Sabbath years of Moses’ day.
Cahn asks the question in chapter 1 of TMS:
Could this phenomenon from ancient times be so pre-

cise that it has not only determined events in the modern
world but also ordained their timing, down to exact dates,
hours, even minutes?3
The problem is that one can’t argue for the precision of God’s
intervention to the exact day without also being concerned about
whether the modern calendar is in sync with the ancient calendar.
Even less certain is the timing of the Jubilee year, which was
a special Shemitah year that occurred after seven of the seven-year
Sabbath cycles, i.e., in the fiftieth year. Furthermore, there is no con-
sensus among the rabbis as to whether the Jubilee year was concurrent
with the forty-ninth year or whether it was after the forty-ninth year
and concurrent with the first year of the next seven-year cycle.
To complicate things further, some have suggested that the Jubilee
was an intercalary year (a year that is inserted into the calendar), such
that the Jubilee cycles were fifty years each. If this is true, which the
Jewish Encyclopedia indicates is the majority view among the rabbis,4
then the seven-year cycle would move later by one year for every fifty
years and therefore cannot be aligned with a forty-nine year cycle at
all. And besides all this, there are questions concerning exactly when
the Jubilee year was suspended (as it is no longer observed).5
–43–
Taken together, this means that it is virtually impossible to

know for certain if the Shemitah years are being reckoned accord-
ing to God’s calendar. Yet, despite all of these difficulties, which
should be known by a Jewish rabbi, and after acknowledging that
no one knows when the Jubilee years are on the Hebrew calendar,
Cahn apparently brushes these problems aside and begins discuss-
ing the Balfour Declaration of 1917 and the Six-Day War in 1967,
claiming that these amount to Jubilee years for the nation of Israel,
whether or not they are legitimate Jubilee years in the eyes of God.
Whether 1917 was the actual calendar year of Jubilee or

not, we cannot say. But with regard to the two-thousand-
year exile of the Jewish people from their land, it was
certainly a prophetic Jubilee—a mega-Jubilee, a Jubilee of
ages. And it happened to take place in the year following
the Shemitah, as ordained in the ancient decree concern-
ing the Jubilee.6
The problem is obvious: Even though Jonathan Cahn cannot

know for certain when the Shemitah cycles actually occur on God’s
calendar, and even though there is even less certainty concerning
the Jubilee, he seems to ignore this and proceeds to build his case
that the mystery of the Shemitah is directly affecting America with
to-the-minute precision. He can’t have it both ways.
In an October 19, 2014, message given at Joshua Springs Calvary
Chapel in Yucca Valley, California, after making the point that the
darkening of the sun in the Bible indicates judgment, Cahn states:
Now people have asked me about the Blood Moons, even
here. And I’m not being dogmatic about what’s significant
or what’s not. However, I will say this: the period of the
Blood Moons is one and a half years. The first half-year
is already gone. The rest of the period is going to be the
Shemitah. It’s all converging. . . . In the year 2015—the
–44–
THE HEBREW CALENDAR
Shemitah, the majority of the Shemitah, the sun will be

darkened two times. The first will be in the Spring. The sun
will be darkened on the exact day that marks the exact cen-
ter point day of the Shemitah—the sun will be darkened.7
Yet, if the calendar is off by just one year, then such precision
loses its significance. Furthermore, with this message he brought the
topic of the “Blood Moons” directly into the equation—which links
him to Mark Biltz, who, in 2008, discovered that a series of four full
lunar eclipses (a tetrad) would occur on Jewish feast days in 2014
and 2015. This problem will be discussed in the next chapter.
Take nothing for granted and be willing to do the hard work
to check any and all assertions and fact claims, even by “experts,” especially if
there are other red flags.
Given that The Harbinger was the #1 best-selling Christian book, remaining on the New
York Times best-seller list for more than two years, Jonathan Cahn is viewed by many
as a leading authority on the Old Testament, all things Hebrew and Jewish, Israel, the
founding of America, the Lord’s feasts, current events, and the end times. For this reason,
it is unlikely that all but perhaps a few readers of The Mystery of the Shemitah will ever
even think to dig a little deeper to see if the foundational issue of the Hebrew calendar
is as certain as assumed by the author, which is a crucial presupposition in his theories.
This is not mentioned to bring Cahn’s integrity into question. However, everyone
brings certain presuppositions, assumptions, and knowledge to the table, and these influ-
ence one’s worldview regarding how the Scriptures, events, trends, statistics, and any
number of other things might be interpreted.
* * * ************** *
–45–
CHAPTER 6
“NON-DATE-SETTING”
DATE SETTING
IN HIS BOOK, Blood Moons: Decoding the Imminent Heavenly
Signs, Mark Biltz popularized the notion that there is end-times
prophetic significance to a set of four consecutive lunar eclipses
falling on Jewish feast days in 2014 and 2015. Although John
Hagee’s better-known book1 on this subject came out before Biltz’s
book, Hagee noted in his book that he got the idea from Biltz while
visiting his church.*
Although it isn’t clear exactly when Jonathan Cahn began incor-
porating the Blood Moons theory into his teachings, he did have
Mark Biltz speak at his church on the topic in June 2014—and
WND actually billed that weekend as “The Harbinger meets Blood
Moons.”2 This is significant in relation to knowing the exact year of
the Shemitah cycle, because a foundational premise in Biltz’s theo-
ries is also that the modern and ancient Hebrew calendars are in
sync with each other. In fact, Biltz regularly says that the church
*In an unexpected development, John Hagee came under fire when WND founder, Joseph Farah,
charged that in a movie he produced Hagee failed to properly credit Biltz with the discovery of the Blood
Moon Tetrad, giving the impression that he was the one who discovered this series of lunar eclipses and
their significance himself. http://www.wnd.com/2015/03/hagee-walks-back-blood-moons-discovery/
–46–
“NON-DATE-SETTING” DATE SETTING
needs to be on God’s calendar. Therefore, it is insufficient to simply

suggest that God has accommodated man’s miscalculated calendar
in the modern era and shifted His calendar accordingly. This repre-
sents a significant contradiction in the way both men are handling
this entire matter.
Not only is it very likely that the modern Hebrew calendar and
God’s calendar are out of sync, but Cahn and Biltz then use this
out-of-sync calendar to engage in what comes perilously close to
date setting if it doesn’t actually cross the line.
This can be seen during one of Biltz’s several appearances on
The Jim Bakker Show (on September 16, 2014),3 as he and Bakker
discuss even the precise timing of the start of the Tribulation in
connection with the Shemitah cycles—which also means that Biltz’s
and Cahn’s theories are very much intertwined. (Note: the exchange
between Biltz and Bakker does not include everything they said, but
the meaning and intent has been preserved.)
Biltz (at the 19:43 mark): Well, how long is the Tribulation?
Bakker: Seven years.
Biltz: And guess what. It is a Shemitah cycle.
Bakker (exclaims): Ohhh!
Biltz: Which means next year . . . (interrupted by Bakker)
Bakker: That’s enough right there to rock my boat!
Biltz: . . . next year begins a new seven-year cycle. If the

Tribulation does not start next year, it cannot start for
seven more years.
Bakker (at the 21:06 mark): But we’re going to be out of

a generational period of time.
– 47 –
Biltz: That’s my point. And not only that, the fact that
we have these solar and lunar eclipses [at] the end of this
Shemitah cycle—so we have one year to prepare before the
Tribulation. (Emphasis mine)
Bakker (shouts): Ahhh! I’ve just never heard anybody say

it quite that bluntly—(crosstalk) I’m following.
Biltz: That’s what I’m trying to say. If you realize, just like
the seven-day week—it doesn’t start with a Thursday—
the Tribulation cycle will not start in the middle of a
Shemitah year.
Bakker: Now the super blood moon—is that in that year?
Biltz: It is, this next year. That’s what I’m saying. The
super blood moon is the end of the seventh Shemitah
year [sic]—beginning the next—well, actually, the Feast
of Tabernacles is two weeks into the first year of the
Tribulation.
Biltz (at the 22:18 mark): But I want everyone to under-

stand—the Tribulation is a seven-year cycle based on the
clockwork . . . the seven-year cycle isn’t randomly stuck
into our pagan calendar. It is on God’s time clock.
A few minutes later in the program, they show a video clip with
Jonathan Cahn’s comments regarding the Jubilee year from a previ-
ous appearance on the program. He cites Leviticus 25:8-13, which
Biltz refers back to a little later in the program.
Biltz (at the 35:20 mark): . . . Go back to Leviticus 25:8-

10—this is what Jonathan [Cahn] was speaking about . . .
–48–
Biltz (at the 35:50 mark): . . . so here we see the signifi-

cance of the Shemitah year and you see Rosh Hoshanah,
you see Yom Kippur and on Yom Kippur...(interrupted
by Bakker)
Bakker: But the Rapture has to take place on the trumpet

sound day . . .
Biltz: . . . yeah—I don’t know what year, I don’t get into

whether. . . . (interrupted by Bakker)
Since Biltz is so certain of the exact year of the beginning of the

Tribulation, i.e., the first year of the Shemitah cycle, when he says
that he doesn’t know what year the Rapture will take place, it would
appear that he refuses to commit to a pre-tribulation Rapture. This
comes into direct conflict with Bakker, who then addresses the stu-
dio audience, concerning the Rapture.
Bakker (to the studio audience): Now, do y’all accept that

or not? If you can’t accept that, you have never studied the
Old Testament—you have no idea of the trumpet—you
always say, “Oh, He’s coming at the sound of the trumpet.”
You’ve got to understand that this is the VERY HEART . . .
Biltz: Yes.
Bakker: . . . of ALL God’s teaching in the Old Testament.
Biltz: Sure. It’s all tied to His calendar . . .
Bakker (at the 36:50 mark): I believe this is the final

[blood moon] tetrad. God is specific. His numbers are
always the same. Numerology will make you know God.
I mean real numbers.
–49–
This would suggest that Bakker holds to a pre-tribulation

Rapture and he seems not to have picked up on the fact that Biltz
hasn’t agreed to that. Therefore, it appears that Bakker is thinking
that if the Tribulation can begin only in a Shemitah year, then, just
as Biltz has said concerning the Tribulation, the Rapture can occur
only on the Feast of Trumpets in 2015 or it can’t happen for another
seven years.
This “non-date-setting date setting” concerning the Rapture is
apparently affirmed by Biltz, although he will only commit to the
likelihood that the Tribulation will begin in the Fall of 2015.
Bakker (at the 41:13 mark): So you’ll see . . . (interrupted

by Biltz)
Biltz: . . . the Tribulation as a seven-year cycle that will

follow the cyclical Shemitah cycle.
Bakker: So—you would feel like maybe we should pre-

pare for the Tribulation (interrupted by Biltz) . . .
Biltz: Definitely. I think we have one year to really prepare

for what God’s coming. [sic ]
Bakker: You said that right out flat. You didn’t even give a
disclaimer? Now say that again.
Biltz: If it doesn’t begin next year, it won’t begin for seven

more years.
Jonathan Cahn has also been a regular guest on The Jim Bakker
Show in connection with both The Harbinger and The Mystery of
the Shemitah. And in TMS, he, too, makes a connection between
the Shemitah and the blood moon tetrad. This would suggest that
he, Bakker, and Biltz are all on the same page regarding the likely
timing of the Tribulation, although Cahn tends to try to appear
–50–
more noncommittal by saying things like, “I’m not putting God in

a box,” or “I’m not saying it has to be this way,” and “It could be
earlier or later.” However, in spite of these disclaimers, he spends the
majority of the time speaking as if it will happen according to the
dates of the Shemitah cycles, the Blood Moon Tetrad, and the two
solar eclipses of 2015.
Beware of those who become too bold in predicting
the precise “what and when” of future events.
Many have attempted to determine the timing of events surrounding the Second Coming
of Jesus Christ, including the Rapture and the Tribulation—and all have failed. Given
that Jesus told his disciples that no one would know the day or the hour of His return
(Matthew 24:36, 42, 44), one would think that such prediction attempts would have
been long since abandoned. In fact, many prophecy teachers have become far more care-
ful in trying to connect the dots between current events and prophecy.
The interplay between the theories of Jonathan Cahn and Mark Biltz easily lends
itself to date setting, in spite of the fact that they both try to add disclaimers and caveats
that they are only suggesting “what could happen.” Unfortunately, these brief disclaim-
ers are quickly lost in the midst of lengthy and often dramatic explanations of why these
things are likely to happen and within a very specific timeframe.
* * * ************** *
– 51 –
CHAPTER 7
WHAT’S IN A TITLE?
THE “MYSTERY”
OF THE SHEMITAH...
JONATHAN CAHN has positioned himself as a revealer of
mysteries—which he claims no one else has seen before in the
biblical text. One need only consider the many titles of his messages
that contain the word “mystery.” This could be rightly characterized
as Jonathan Cahn’s ministry trademark.
However, concerning the biblical Shemitah, there is no mys-
tery—and there never has been. The exact requirements for
keeping the Sabbath year were very explicitly revealed by God to
and through Moses as recorded in the Pentateuch. The Scriptures
never give any indication that there was some sort of underlying
mystery or principle that was also in operation. It was all very
straightforward and clear.
Furthermore, God’s imposed Shemitah upon Israel through
the judgment of the Babylonian captivity was not a mystery either.
Everything that was happening to the nation of Israel—and why
it was happening—was very clearly revealed through the prophets.
–52–
WHAT’S IN A TITLE? THE “MYSTERY” OF THE SHEMITAH
Again, there was never some sort of “mystery woven into the fabric
of the creation” at work.
Bible teachers have long defined a biblical mystery as
“something that was hidden in the past but is now revealed.” And
the nature of biblical mysteries is such that they can be known and
understood only by direct revelation from God through a prophet
(and apostles functioned as prophets in the New Testament). For
example, in dispensational theology, the church is understood to
be a mystery in the Old Testament, not being foreseen even by the
prophets until God revealed it through Jesus and the apostles in the
New Testament. Therefore, since Cahn has positioned himself as
the revealer of biblical mysteries that have never before been seen,
and given that he says that “the revelations came rapidly” as he
was writing The Mystery of the Shemitah, he is being viewed as an
end-times prophet—not just in the sense of a forth-teller, but as a
foreteller. And this is the way he has been frequently introduced
during the past three years.
If Cahn really is receiving revelation from God such that he can
reveal previously hidden mysteries, it raises some serious questions
concerning the way that God does things. If Cahn is right, then
not only was America’s relationship to the Shemitah never revealed
by God until a few years ago through Cahn, but the Lord had also
been judging America according to the Shemitah cycle but with no
warning or explanation until after the fact.
This same problem is found in The Harbinger. According to the
author, God sent a warning through the terrorist attacks in 2001
but with no corresponding prophetic revelation that this was to be
the “first shaking,” as Cahn puts it, before the fact. Then, according
to Cahn, the Lord sent a “second shaking” through the stock market
crash of 2008 and the subsequent recession, yet without any warn-
ing before the fact. This does not fit the biblical pattern. If things
–53–
had gone according to the biblical pattern, there would have been
very specific revelation given years in advance that 9/11 was coming
if America didn’t turn to God.
Interestingly, Cahn is claiming that what he is now revealing is
the expected warning by God ahead of even more calamitous events
that will occur as God judges this nation. Once again, this makes no
sense biblically or logically.
Then there is the matter of the subtitle: The 3,000-Year-Old
Mystery That Holds the Secret of America’s Future, the World’s Future,
and Your Future! As a revealer-of-mysteries, Cahn adds to the drama
of the book’s title by insisting that the mystery he has discovered
is both universal and personal in scope while directly appealing
to the national conscience of Americans. Unfortunately, this has
the feeling of being little more than sensationalism and marketing
hype—and perhaps even comes perilously close to “peddling the
Word of God,” even if unintentionally.
Always judge a book by its cover.
Although contrary to the popular saying, book covers contain valuable clues to be used
in the process of discernment. The biographical sketch usually includes where the author
went to school, past and present ministries, and various accomplishments such as books
he or she may have written. Just knowing these things about an author can be invaluable
because all of them likely give insight into the author’s beliefs.
The relative trustworthiness of a book can often be determined simply on the basis of
the publisher. Few Christian publishers will print anything with which they don’t agree, at
least in general. Therefore, if a publisher consistently puts out material that is questionable
–54–
WHAT’S IN A TITLE? THE “MYSTERY” OF THE SHEMITAH
or worse, it tells you something about what might be in the particular book you are consid-
ering. In the case of The Mystery of the Shemitah and The Harbinger, both were published
by Frontline, which is a division of Charisma Publishing—a huge publishing empire that
is the purveyor of some of the most unbiblical work of this generation. Also, if an endorser
of a book is known to have questionable or outright bad theology, then that, too, tells you
something about the book he is endorsing.
Finally, when someone writes a foreword to a book, they are giving their strongest
seal of approval to its contents—and they are putting their own reputation on the line.
You can be fairly certain that the theology of the book’s author and the theology of the
foreword’s author is very closely aligned in general terms. Therefore, if you are familiar
with the author of the foreword, you already know a lot about the book and its author.
* * * ************** *
–55–
CHAPTER 8
THE BLOOD MOON TETRAD

THE MATTER of the “Blood Moon Tetrad” has taken on a life of
its own over the past year. For those who may not be aware, a full
lunar eclipse is sometimes referred to as a “blood moon” because
when the shadow of the earth completely blocks the sun’s direct
rays, the moon takes on a reddish or red-orange color for the same
reason that sunsets also frequently reflect this aspect, due to the way
light passes through the earth’s atmosphere.
A blood moon tetrad is when four consecutive full lunar eclipses
occur with no other intervening eclipses. Interestingly, as they have
sometimes in the past, all four full lunar eclipses fall on Jewish feast
days (Passover and the Feast of Tabernacles) in the spring and fall of
2014 and 2015.
Because of this, some prophecy teachers are now suggesting that
prophetic passages in the Bible that refer to the sun being dark-
ened and the moon turning to blood (e.g., Joel 2:30-31) could find
their fulfillment during this current blood moon tetrad (which also
includes a full solar eclipse at the mid-point).
Suffice it to say that in TMS Jonathan Cahn also suggests that
there may well be a connection between the blood moon tetrad (and
the solar eclipses) and the supposed Shemitah of 2014-15. Apart
–56–
from the many biblical problems with this theory, one of the great-
est concerns is the practical consequence of this quasi-date-setting.
The immediate problem is that if people think the Rapture,
the beginning of the Tribulation, or the Second Coming of Christ
are directly connected to these completely natural events, then they
don’t have to be concerned with the idea that the Rapture could
happen at any moment—which, given human nature, means that
some won’t be prepared and will be caught off-guard. Those who
haven’t trusted in Christ for salvation will enter into the Tribulation
and experience the worst cataclysmic events this world has ever seen
as God pours out His wrath in a series of devastating judgments.
Although Jonathan Cahn tends to be more careful in making
absolute statements, Mark Biltz has said categorically that if the
Tribulation doesn’t start next Fall, it cannot start for another seven
years. In this author’s view, this is egregious and irresponsible.
The longer-term problem is that if the blood moon tetrad, solar
eclipses, and Shemitah pass without anything happening, how many
will completely turn their backs on anyone who teaches prophecy—
or turn their backs on the Word of God altogether? We could well
be in the last days, or even the last hours of the last days—but God’s
timetable is not the same as ours, and Christ could come at any
moment—before, during, or after the blood moon tetrad.
Furthermore, history shows that when dates are suggested for
the end of the world, the Rapture, Armageddon, etc., there are
those who become so caught up in it that they quit their jobs, get
rid of everything they own, and just wait for the end to come. Even
more tragically, as happened because of the date setting of Harold
Camping, some may even commit suicide. Perhaps this is one rea-
son why Jesus told his disciples that no one knows the day or the
hour, not even the angels or the Son of Man himself (Matthew
24:36, 44; Mark 13:32).
– 57 –
Although the Lord has frequently used nature to bring warnings

and judgment, the events themselves were anything but natural.
The many biblical examples include Noah’s flood, the plagues of
Egypt, the parting of the Red Sea, and Joshua’s long day when the
sun stood still. Then there are all of the future cataclysmic events in
nature described in the book of Revelation. Although they involve
God’s use of nature, none of them were or will be merely natural,
predictable events but will be supernatural manifestations of His
wrath and power.
The present blood moon tetrad is a completely natural and pre-
dictable event. NASA has calculated the precise location and the
exact timing (to the minute) of every lunar and solar eclipse for
thousands of years in the past to thousands of years into the future.
Being the Creator (Colossians 1:16), Jesus is the one who estab-
lished the precise timing and geometry of the orbits of the earth,
moon, and sun in the very beginning, even though astronomers
have only been able to calculate and create the timetable for eclipses
relatively recently. Yet, He told his disciples, “But of that day and
hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but
only the Father” (Mark 13:32).
Furthermore, the wording of Joel 2:30-31, quoted by Peter on
the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:19-20) suggests that the darkening of
the sun and the moon turning blood red are simultaneous events:
And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth:

Blood and fire and pillars of smoke. The sun shall be
turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, Before
the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord.
(Joel 2:30-31)
The events also seem to be simultaneous in Matthew 24 and

Revelation 6:
–58–
Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun

will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the
stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens
will be shaken. (Matthew 24:29)
I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold,
there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black
as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood.
(Revelation 6:12)
If Cahn and Biltz are right about the present blood moons being
fulfillment of this prophecy, there is a problem. Why? Because solar
and lunar eclipses can only occur two weeks apart. A solar eclipse
occurs when the moon is directly between the earth and the sun,
while a lunar eclipse occurs when the earth is directly between the
moon and the sun—and it takes two weeks for the moon to move
to the opposite side of the earth in its four-week orbit.
The science, history, and speculation surrounding the phenom-
enon of the lunar tetrad—along with its purported relevance to
Bible prophecy—will be covered in greater detail in Section Three.
–59–
Think.
Think biblically, think spiritually, think logically,

and think theologically—because these aren’t at odds
with one another for the believer.
The Lord has given us His word to know and understand what He has done in the past,
what He is doing in the present, and what He will do in the future. He has also given us
His Spirit to enlighten our hearts and minds and to give us wisdom. Beyond this, He has
given us the ability to reason, meaning that sometimes the most spiritual thing one can
do is to think logically.
This should not be misunderstood to mean that reason is the final arbiter when it
comes to truth. Some things must be accepted by faith because they have been revealed
by God—such as the Trinity or the Incarnation of Christ.
* * * ************** *
–60–
CHAPTER 9
A SURPRISING
LACK OF DOCUMENTATION
ALTHOUGH The Harbinger was classified as a work of fiction,
Jonathan Cahn stated in an interview with Brannon Howse in 2012
that his book was 90 percent fact and 10 percent fiction. Also, in
the lead-in to the book, Cahn wrote: “What you are about to read
is presented in the form of a story, but what is contained within the
story is real.”1
Given that it is “mostly real,” a particular problem with The
Harbinger is that the author documented very few of his assertions
and fact claims. Because of this, a tremendous amount of primary
research was needed to do the necessary fact checking to any degree.
As it turned out, there were many problems, not the least of which
was the author’s very selective use of historical facts and statistics
in order to make his case (as was thoroughly documented in this
reviewer’s book, The Harbinger: Fact or Fiction?).
Although this lack of documentation might be understandable
for a work of fiction, The Mystery of the Shemitah is a completely
different situation because it is nonfiction. Unfortunately, Cahn
bombards the reader with dozens and dozens of assertions and fact
claims concerning historical events, economic trends, financial sta-
tistics, and includes many graphs depicting the course of the stock
– 61 –
market—all with absolutely no citation of sources of any kind. This

is a significant issue for many reasons, not the least of which is that
with the overwhelming success of The Harbinger, it is unlikely that
many, if any, of Cahn’s readers will ever take the time to do the nec-
essary fact checking themselves.
It is inconceivable that a nonfiction book with so many fact
claims would be published with no documentation. The standard,
even for college-level papers, is that if there are facts that are not
common knowledge (e.g., the Grand Canyon is in Arizona; George
H. W. Bush’s son was also a President of the United States), then the
source of those facts must be cited in footnotes or endnotes. For a
best-selling author and a major publisher to release something like
this into the marketplace with no citation of sources raises serious
ethical questions, if not worse.
Straight from the Source’s Mouth?
Because of the lack of documentation, a significant amount of

research was necessary to discover the sources of Cahn’s assertions
and fact claims. The results of that research indicate that many of
the “facts” cited by Jonathan Cahn may have come from a source
that is not even recognized as legitimate by many colleges and
universities. The following are a few of what appear to be some of
the more obvious examples.
NOTE: In each of the following pairs, the first is from the TMS
and the second from Wikipedia. (The reader may also note in some
cases the similarity of wording between the book and the apparent
source material.)
TMS: The crash of 1901–1903 was brought on by the

struggles of E. H. Harriman, Jacob Schiff, and J. P. Morgan
to gain financial control of Northern Pacific Railroad.2
–62–
A SURPRISING LACK OF DOCUMENTATION
Wikipedia: The Panic of 1901 was the first stock market

crash on the New York Stock Exchange, caused in part
by struggles between E. H. Harriman, Jacob Schiff, and
J. P. Morgan/James J. Hill for the financial control of the
Northern Pacific Railway.3
***
TMS: In the two years from 1972 to 1974 the American

economy’s real gross domestic product (GDP) growth
shrank from 7 percent to a negative 2 percent contraction.4
Wikipedia: In the two years from 1972 to 1974, the

American economy slowed from 7.2% real GDP growth
to −2.1% contraction, while inflation (by CPI) jumped
from 3.4% in 1972 to 12.3% in 1974.5
***
TMS: Even after the great stock market crashes of 1929,
there had been an upward turn. In fact, within six months
of the initial crashes, the stock market had returned to
early 1929 levels.6
Wikipedia: The stock market turned upward in early

1930, returning to early 1929 levels by April.7
***
TMS: The year 1931 was also when a deflationary spiral
began, bringing the American and world economies into
paralysis.8
Wikipedia: Prices in general began to decline, although

wages held steady in 1930; but then a deflationary spiral
started in 1931.9
–63–
Concerning the use of Wikipedia as a primary source for research

work, the following comes from an essay on the Wikipedia website:
Wikipedia is not considered a credible source. Wikipedia

is increasingly used by people in the academic community,
from freshman students to professors, as an easily accessible
tertiary source for information about anything and every-
thing. However, citation of Wikipedia in research papers
may be considered unacceptable, because Wikipedia is not
considered a credible or authoritative source.10
Even the founder of Wikipedia, Jimmy Wales, has been quoted

as saying the following concerning the popular website:
Wales said that he gets about 10 e-mail messages a week

from students who complain that Wikipedia has earned
them fail grades.
“They say, ‘Please help me. I got an F on my paper
because I cited Wikipedia’” and the information turned
out to be wrong, he says. But he said he has no sympa-
thy for their plight, noting that he thinks to himself: “For
God sake, you’re in college; don’t cite the encyclopedia,”
the journal reports.11
To be fair, not all of the facts cited in TMS seem to have come
from Wikipedia, and yet in some of those cases, there are serious
(potentially even legal) issues because of similar or nearly exact word-
ing combined with the lack of documentation. Here is one example.
TMS: Starting with this collapse and continuing over the

next nine months, America’s manufacturing employment
fell by a quarter, its industrial output by a third, the stock
market by half, and profits by over three quarters. By June
of 1937 four million workers lost their jobs.12
– 64 –
Blackwell Reference Online: Over the following nine

months, manufacturing employment fell by almost a
quarter, industrial output by a third, the stock market by
half, and profits by over three-quarters. By June, as the
economy began to revive, 4,000,000 workers had become
jobless.13
Beyond the lack of documentation of facts and figures, there are

a total of nineteen graphs in TMS—none of which have any citation
for the source of the graphs or for the data used to create the graphs.
The following are three graphs found in the book.
Cahn’s “Fourth Turning Point: 2000” (TMS, page 94)
–65–
Cahn’s “Fifth Turning Point: 2007” (TMS, page 95)
Cahn’s “First Turning Point: 1973” (TMS, page 90)
–66–
The first thing that should catch the reader’s attention is the
lack of vertical scales with units for reference points. Depending on
the amount of compression or expansion done on the vertical scale,
such graphs, just as with statistics, can be made to support virtually
any theory or conclusion if there is no scale for context. The reader
should also note the lack of a zero point on the vertical axis, making
it impossible to determine the significance of the fluctuations on the
graphs. Understandably, Cahn’s crude illustrations would fail to be
useful by any economist. At best, they are a literal stretch; at worst,
an intentional exaggeration of scale that grossly distorts the truth.
The following graph (next page) perfectly illustrates the prob-
lem of having no reference points. Based on Cahn’s book, one would
think that the stock market fluctuations on the proposed seven-year
cycle were producing economic cataclysms of profound propor-
tions. However, as can be seen here, when compared to the rises
in the stock market, the economic downturns are relatively minor.
Someone has rightly said that if you torture statistics long
enough, you can get them to confess to anything.
Be very careful when an author uses statistics to lay the primary foundation for his theo-
ries. Statistics, like history and economics, can usually be interpreted in a variety of ways.
Whenever an author bombards his readers with statistics to prove his point, it should be
an immediate red flag to the reader to dig deeper to avoid being caught up in the drama
of the “overwhelming evidence.”
* * * ************** *
– 67 –

Beware of an author who fails to document assertions and
fact claims when they are critical to his argument.
An author should never leave the burden of proof upon his readers by forcing them to
replicate the research necessary for fact-checking purposes.
The context of the original information can be vital to a correct understanding of
what is being presented. Information that is presented as fact in a secondary source (such
as TMS) can actually be nothing more than one person’s interpretation of the data in a
primary source. This can be true particularly when things like history and economics are
involved.
* * * ************** *
–69–
CHAPTER 10
MARKETING “FEAR”
WITTINGLY OR UNWITTINGLY, these men are marketing

“fear”—and “fear” is selling at a brisk pace in today’s troubled world.
Is this assessment too harsh? Consider this:
As noted earlier, Jonathan Cahn and Mark Biltz have recently
made regular appearances on The Jim Bakker Show. The program
that aired on September 16, from which the previously cited
exchange between Biltz and Bakker is taken, is fifty-eight minutes
long. The final twelve minutes of the program (20 percent of the
show) is devoted exclusively to the promotion of “survival” products
and food packages. In order for the ministry to maintain 501(c)3
nonprofit status with the IRS, this survival gear cannot be sold, so
these things are “given away” for “donations” of up to $3,000 for
a package that is supposed to feed two people for up to two years.
Naturally, the promotion of survival products doesn’t happen
only when Mark Biltz is on the program but is part of every show.
On the September 2, 2014 show with Jonathan Cahn, the survival
equipment and food advertisement takes place in the middle of the
program. It is difficult to not characterize this as anything but gra-
tuitous, shameless marketing.
–70–
Although these men are only guests on the program, it can be

argued that they are no less culpable than Jim Bakker himself. In fact,
they are more than just guests—they are regular fixtures on the pro-
gram. Cahn and Biltz are a vital part of the success of The Jim Bakker
Show, and they are helping him to get rich by trying to create a mar-
ket of fearful people and then selling products to this very market.
When Mark Biltz and Jim Bakker team up to warn their audi-
ence that they have one year until the Tribulation begins—and when
(at least) Biltz and Cahn will not allow themselves to be pinned
down on the timing of the Rapture (meaning that they hold open
the possibility that the church may go through it)—and then they
turn around and promote these survival products with slick market-
ing techniques, it is nothing less than peddling the Word of God.
Now, thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in

Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowl-
edge in every place. For we are to God the fragrance of
Christ among those who are being saved and among those
who are perishing. To the one we are the aroma of death
leading to death, and to the other the aroma of life leading
to life. And who is sufficient for these things? For we are not,
as so many, peddling the word of God; but as of sincerity,
but as from God, we speak in the sight of God in Christ. (2
Corinthians 2:14-17)
The truth is we simply don’t know God’s timetable, and so we

can’t know when the Rapture will happen or when the Tribulation
will begin. The Rapture could take place before you finish reading this
sentence. It may happen on the Feast of Trumpets in 2015. Or it could
be long after the last lunar eclipse in the current Blood Moon Tetrad.
The only thing we know for certain is that the Rapture will take
– 71 –
place (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18)—followed by the outpouring of

God’s wrath upon the earth. Being ready for the Rapture by trust-
ing in Christ for salvation is the only way to avoid the horrors of the
seven-year Tribulation to come.
The Gospel of Salvation
Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, God in the flesh, became a man by
being born to a virgin. He lived a perfect life in complete obedience to
God the Father. He willingly offered Himself up as a perfect sacrifice,
taking the punishment we all deserve, dying in our place on a Roman
cross, where His precious blood was poured out. On the third day
He arose from the grave to claim victory over death. He now offers
salvation—forgiven sin and eternal life—as a free gift of God’s grace to
anyone who will turn to Him in faith, trusting Him alone.
***
Here are a few Scripture passages pertaining to God’s wonderful
free gift of salvation:
Mark 1:15; 10:45

John 3:16; 6:28-29
Acts 16:30-31; 17:30
Romans 3:23; 5:19, 21; 8:1; 10:9
–72–

“For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some
have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves
through with many sorrows.” (1 Timothy 6:10)
Only God knows the heart, and judging motives is not our prerogative. However, when
massive amounts of money are in play, it can be difficult for even the most spiritual, well-
meaning people to keep their bearings—at least for a time. This is not an accusation, and
we can only hope that this hasn’t happened in connection with the current Shemitah / Blood
Moons debacle.
* * * ************** *
–73–
SECTION TWO
THE SECOND SHAKING—

“A PROPHETIC
WAKE-UP CALL”?
This section examines connections between the “Shemitah”
in America (which many believe indicates a looming financial
collapse) with Jonathan Cahn’s “Isaiah 9:10 Effect” as presented
in The Harbinger—and as addressed by David James in The
Harbinger: Fact or Fiction? from which chapters 11-16 originate.
These chapters are included as background information for
those who have not read David’s previous book.
All italics within quoted sections of The Harbinger are the

emphasis of David James.
Readers who would first like more details on the “Blood Moon”
tetrad may skip to Section Three.
CHAPTER 11
THE SECOND SHAKING

JONATHAN Cahn’s book The Harbinger has two major parts. The
first part (chapters 1-13) lays a foundation for Cahn’s interpretation
and arguments. This foundation consists primarily of the author’s
attempts to correlate the nine harbingers of Isaiah 9:10 with events
of the last decade in America as evidence for the first wave of God’s
judgment.
In the second part of the book (chapters 14-22), Cahn presents
his theory that a second wave of God’s judgment, a “second shak-
ing,” has taken place as a follow-up to the first. He contends that
this is God’s final warning of impending severe judgment, which
could mean the end of America if the country persists on its present
path and refuses to repent.
[The Prophet] “More than one warning may be given,”

said The Prophet. “If one alarm is ignored, then there
comes a second.”
[Kaplan] “Then there comes a second, or there may come

a second?”
[The Prophet] “Then there comes a second.”
– 76 –
THE SEC0ND SHAKING
[Kaplan] “Then a second warning is coming?” I asked.
[The Prophet] “A second warning,” he said, “a second

alarm . . . a second shaking.”
[Kaplan] “A second shaking of America?”
[Kaplan] (To Goren) He turned his gaze so that he was

now looking directly into my eyes as he gave his response.
[The Prophet] “There comes a second,” he said again.1
Cahn is certainly correct in his assessment that America is on a

path that could lead to its demise. He has rightly enumerated a whole
host of sins that have become endemic to the American culture and
continue to move the country farther and farther away from many of
the moral and ethical foundations on which it was built.
The day may come when God severely judges the United
States, and it could even be true that such a judgment is already
underway. However, as has been discussed throughout this book,
the evidence that Cahn has presented fails to demonstrate a con-
nection between Isaiah 9:10 and America concerning that judgment.
On careful examination, the case he tries to make for the “Second
Shaking” fares no better.
The Mystery and the Great Recession
So, what was the second warning, the second shaking to which Cahn
refers?
[Kaplan] “The Prophet spoke of the Harbingers as sym-

bols. That was a clue. The World Trade Center was a
symbol of America’s global financial and economic power.
So what would such a fall foreshadow?”
– 77 –
[Goren] “An economic . . . fall?”
[Kaplan] “As in a financial and economic collapse.”
[Goren] “The collapse that began the Great Recession?”
[Kaplan] “Yes.”
[Goren] “The collapse of the American and global econ-

omy is connected to 9/11?”
[Kaplan] “Yes.”2
Of course it makes sense that there would be a clear connection

between the attacks of 9/11 and subsequent financial and economic
problems both nationally and internationally. There is no mystery
in that suggestion. However, that is not the issue. The question is
whether there is a mystery hidden in Isaiah 9:10 that connects it
to the financial and economic problems of the last decade in the
United States and particularly those of the last five years or so. Based
on the second half of The Harbinger, Cahn’s answer, as expected, is a
resounding “Yes!” as evidenced by the way the above exchange con-
tinues. His belief that Isaiah 9:10 and Israel are deeply connected to
recent events in the United States continues to be undeniable:
[The Prophet] “It all goes back to the prophecy . . . every-

thing—the collapse of Wall Street, the rise and fall of the
credit market, the war in Iraq, the collapse of the housing
market, the foreclosures, the defaults, the bankruptcies,
the government takeovers—everything—politics, foreign
policy, world history—everything that happened after. It
all goes back to the prophecy and to the ancient mystery.”3
These claims will be examined in the coming pages.
–78–
THE SEC0ND SHAKING
It Had to Happen . . .
Any claim that Isaiah 9:10 has been and continues to be fulfilled
in America presents serious interpretative problems, as Cahn
well knows. That being true, he has insisted that he has been
misunderstood by those who think he has suggested anything more
than parallels and patterns between Isaiah’s prophecy and recent
events in America.
Prior to the discussion of the “Second Shaking,” however, The
Prophet’s words once again make it clear that Isaiah’s prophecy carries
far more meaning and far more force than that of a simple paral-
lel. In Cahn’s mind, the passage unquestionably has prophetic force
because it required certain things to happen. They had to happen:
[The Prophet] “So what happens if a warning is given, if

the alarms go off, and nobody listens?”
[Kaplan] “Then it happens.”
[The Prophet] “So then it happens.”
[Kaplan] “But does it have to happen?” I asked.
[The Prophet] “If the warning is rejected, then, yes, it

has to happen.”4
Things that are merely parallels do not necessarily have any con-
nection with one another. They may be connected but they don’t
have to be. They can involve things that are the same or similar, or
they may only have a superficial resemblance to one another. They
can be intentional, or they may be entirely coincidental (if anything
can be called “coincidental” in view of God’s sovereignty).
However, whatever the specific situation may be, there is no nec-
essary or required relationship between things that are merely parallel
–79–
to one another. In other words, each thing can exist entirely inde-
pendently from the others.
On the other hand, prophecy is an entirely different matter.
Prophecy involves a necessary connection between what is said and
a subsequent event. A prophecy and its fulfillment are not indepen-
dent of one another. If something is prophesied, then something
must happen—otherwise it has been uttered by a false prophet.
Conversely, if something must happen because of something
that was said, then there is a prophetic connection. This is precisely
why Cahn cannot legitimately deny that he sees a prophetic con-
nection between Isaiah 9:10 and America. The Prophet said, “If the
warning is rejected, then, yes, it has to happen.” So, what is it that
must happen? The prophesied judgment.
The author has tried to get around this problem by explaining
that Isaiah 9:10-11 is merely functioning as a sign to America (as
noted in chapter 3 of this book). However, if what did happen had
to happen, then the sign has prophetic force, and any attempt to
distinguish a sign from a prophecy in relation to the Isaiah passage
is not convincing.
As the Commentaries Say . . .
A somewhat puzzling feature of The Harbinger is the way that

Cahn appeals to commentaries numerous times. The following are
representative examples:
[Kaplan] “I found a match—what The Prophet said to

me when he left and what the commentaries said about
Isaiah 9:10 . . . they matched.”
[Goren] “How?”
–80–
THE SEC0ND SHAKING
[Kaplan] “In one of the commentaries I found this:

‘Divine anger, being a remedial force, will not cease until
its purposes are wrought out. . . . Therefore, if . . . Israel
resisted one expression of the anger, another must be
found.’”
***
[Kaplan] “The commentaries were consistent in linking

Isaiah 9:10 with the same principle. And then, in another
commentary, I found this: ‘As the first stage of the judg-
ments has been followed by no true conversion to Jehovah,
the Almighty Judge, there comes a second.’” 5
Several years ago, a well-known pastor and author of two best-

selling books met with some criticism because of the way he seemed
to garner biblical support for his ideas. The books sometimes gave
the impression that he would hit on an idea and then try to find a
biblical passage to support it. Such “proof-texting” is the wrong way
to handle the Word of God.
However, a bigger problem was that the author took proof-tex-
ting to a new level by extending his search across Bible translations
and paraphrases until he found one that best suited a particular
point. Even if the majority of accurate translations did not say
what he “needed them to say,” he could sometimes find a para-
phrase that did.
Unfortunately, Jonathan Cahn’s selective use of biblical com-
mentaries to support his theories feels remarkably similar. He
frequently quotes commentaries that are worded so closely to a par-
ticular aspect of his theory that it’s not clear whether he has adjusted
his wording to match a commentary or found a commentary to
match his wording.
– 81 –
In either case, as helpful as commentaries can be, they are not

the final word, even though Cahn almost treats them as if they were.
Another oddity that compounds the problem of his use of commen-
taries authoritatively is that The Prophet is frequently the one who
is quoting the commentaries. Why would a prophet of God need
to appeal to commentaries to make, support, or defend his point?
Perhaps Cahn didn’t think this through carefully. In the story,
The Prophet makes no discernible distinction between the author-
ity of a biblical author and that of a commentator. The impression
one gets is that Cahn is using the commentaries almost as if they
were inspired by God in some way, as well.
One also senses that Cahn’s use of commentaries in this way
serves as something of an apologetic for his views. He may be the
first to pull all the evidence together in such a way that the hidden
ancient mystery is clearly revealed for the first time, but he can also
argue that he is not just making this up as he goes—others have also
seen and written about these various bits and pieces before.
The result is that this approach helps the author to amass a
good number of additional “proofs” for his theories. With this kind
of support from historical authorities and biblical scholars, the
“coincidences” are just too many and too significant to ignore. This
must all be from God—or so the reasoning goes.
–82–
CHAPTER 12
THE ISAIAH 9:10 EFFECT

THE NEXT major idea that Cahn introduces in connection with
the “Second Shaking” is termed the Isaiah 9:10 Effect. Just as the
theory of the nine harbingers was developed to demonstrate the
connection between Isaiah 9:10 and America, the Isaiah 9:10 Effect
is crucial to understanding God’s second round of warning to
America.
[The Prophet] “As in there comes a second, yes. So what

would it mean?”
[Kaplan] “The prophecy has a second part, it leads to

something else . . . to a second manifestation.”
[The Prophet] “The Isaiah 9:10 Effect.”
[Kaplan] “Which is what?”
[The Prophet] “This: ‘The attempt of a nation to defy

the course of its judgment, apart from repentance, will,
instead, set in motion a chain of events to bring about the
very calamity it sought to avert.’”1
Before going any further, the first question every reader should
–83–
be asking about The Prophet’s definition of the Isaiah 9:10 Effect

is, “Where did this definition come from?” It certainly didn’t come
from Isaiah 9:10. Neither did it come from any of the verses in the
vicinity of Isaiah 9:10. The importance of this matter cannot be
overstated because the rest of Cahn’s entire theory depends on this
theory—that there really is such a thing as the Isaiah 9:10 Effect.
This is immediately apparent as the dialogue continues:
[Kaplan] “And this all has to do with America?” I asked.
[The Prophet] “Seven years after 9/11,” he said, “the

American economy collapsed, triggering a global eco-
nomic implosion. Behind it all, and all that followed, was
something much deeper than economics.”
[Kaplan] “Behind the collapse of Wall Street and the

American economy was . . .”
[The Prophet] “Isaiah 9:10.”2
In the author’s mind, Isaiah’s words in the alleged Isaiah 9:10

Effect actually cause things to happen. This is clearly affirmed in the
following exchange at the end of chapter 16:
[Kaplan] “As in the Isaiah 9:10 Effect?”
[The Prophet] “Yes, but in this mystery the connections

are even more beyond the realm of the natural.”
[Kaplan] “They’re supernatural?”
[The Prophet] “You could say that.”
[Kaplan] “And they connect 9/11 to the economic

collapse?”
– 84 –
[The Prophet] “Not only do they connect them . . . they

determined them . . . down to the time each would take
place.”
[Kaplan] “An ancient mystery?”
[The Prophet] “Yes, an ancient mystery upon which the

global economy and every transaction within it was deter-
mined, a mystery that begins more than three thousand years
ago in the sands of a Middle Eastern desert.” 3
A Fatal Flaw in the Theory
So, the question remains, “Where does the concept of the Isaiah
9:10 Effect come from?” Since it doesn’t come from the text itself
nor from the immediate context, nor is anything remotely similar
to the Isaiah 9:10 Effect mentioned or implied anywhere else in
Scripture, it appears to be just another one of those things in the
book that has been made up. Yet one would never guess that from
reading The Harbinger. Cahn presents the Isaiah 9:10 Effect as
if it were an inviolable scriptural principle—that once it is set in
motion, the corresponding prescribed outcome is inevitable.
However, even if he were discussing only the fulfillment of
Isaiah 9:10 in ancient Israel, this would not be a good way to explain
how prophecies work. The reason that prophesied events happen is
because God causes them to happen, not because the prophecy itself
somehow causes them to happen. Yet Cahn seems to be suggesting
that as a principlethe Isaiah 9:10 Effect can cause these same events
to happen anywhere at any time once it is triggered.
Of course, if it were simply a general principle such as that of
“sowing and reaping,” or like the many principles found in Proverbs,
it wouldn’t necessarily be as problematic. Even this would disregard
the fact that Isaiah 9:10 does not appear to be a principle in con-
text. The Isaiah 9:10 Effect is presented as being so specific that it
–85–
is independently formulaic. In other words, if and when the First

Harbinger happens, then it is just a short matter of time until the
Second Harbinger also happens—which will then be followed by
each of the other harbingers—until finally the judgment takes place.
As noted before, Cahn strenuously argues that he has been
misunderstood by those who believe he is saying that Isaiah 9:10
specifically applies to America. However, if that is not what he is
saying, then the only other possible explanation is that the Isaiah
9:10 Effect is an independent and formulaic principle that operates
in a mystical way through the power of the words themselves. Once
again, he tries to have it both ways, as can be seen in the necessary
results of the Isaiah 9:10 Effect (emphasis added):
• “So the rebuilding must begin . . .”4
• “So the Gazit Stone must be brought . . .”5
• “...the Sycamore must be replaced . . .”6
• “The Erez Tree must be planted . . .”7
• “The vow must be spoken . . .”8
• “But according to the Isaiah 9:10 Effect the second

calamity must be born out effectively of the first . . .”9
This leaves Cahn with two major problems. If Isaiah 9:10 is to

both ancient Israel and America, he is faced with an insurmountable
hermeneutical problem. But if instead there really is such a thing as
the Isaiah 9:10 Effect, he then has a historical problem.
What if “the breach” and “the terrorist” had been observed in
1812 or 1861 or 1941? In theory, could someone have discovered
the “hidden ancient mystery” of Isaiah 9:10 in 1949? And if it had
been claimed that Pearl Harbor was a breach by an enemy who
persistently used terrorist tactics throughout the war in the Pacific
–86–
(which the Japanese did), then could it not be argued that God’s
hedge of protection had been withdrawn prior to December 7,
1941? And if the hedge of protection had been removed long before
9/11, had God put yet another hedge of protection in place since
WWII? The questions are truly endless.
This is not an attempt to mock the author. This is a very seri-
ous issue because if he is correct about the Isaiah 9:10 Effect, then
it could have happened at any time in the past or it could happen
again at any time in the future. On the other hand, if it could only
have happened one time on September 11, 2001, then there is no
such thing as the Isaiah 9:10 Effect as a principle.
Other “. . . Effect” Passages?
If Cahn is right about the Isaiah 9:10 Effect, this raises another
very important question: Are there any other prophetic passages in
the Old Testament that also function like the Isaiah 9:10 Effect?
How many other prophecies that were directed to Israel can also be
correlated to historical events in the United States?
Is there also a “Genesis 12:2 Effect?”:
I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name
great; and you shall be a blessing.
Or a “Joshua 1:2 Effect?”:
Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given you,
as I said to Moses.
Are there dozens of others? Or is Isaiah 9:10 the only such pas-
sage in the entire Bible? If the Isaiah 9:10 Effect really exists, then it
– 87 –
seems remarkably unlikely that it would be the only such principle

in the entire Old Testament. But if not from the context, how could
it possibly be known whether any given passage is supposed to func-
tion in this way? And yet there is nothing whatsoever in the context
of Isaiah 9:10 that would suggest the existence of such an effect.
As noted earlier: If a proposed theological or spiritual idea is not
found in the Bible, or if it cannot at least be supported by the text in
some way, then someone made it up. This is exactly the nature of the
Isaiah 9:10 Effect—someone made it up.
(Readers should consider if the “mystery” of the Shemitah also
fits this conclusion.)
–88–
CHAPTER 13
THE FINANCIAL COLLAPSE

THE VERY CONCEPT of the Isaiah 9:10 Effect itself is
problematic, and Cahn’s attempt to demonstrate how it actually
played out in practical terms is confusing and enigmatic. He engages
in making even larger leaps of logic, putting the story on a trajectory
that takes it further than ever from Scripture and in some cases into
the ethereal realm of allegory:

American economy was . . .”
[The Prophet] “Isaiah 9:10.”
[Kaplan] “How?”
[The Prophet] “. . . according to the Isaiah 9:10 Effect,

the second calamity must be effectively born out of the
first . . . and out of the nation’s response to that first
calamity.”
[Kaplan] “So then the collapse of the economy and Wall

Street would have to somehow go back to 9/11.”1
***
–89–
[Kaplan] “And it all would lead up to the economic

collapse?”
[The Prophet] “In part,” he said. “And for all that, it

would be yet another manifestation of the Isaiah 9:10
Effect that would bring about the collapse of the American
and global economy. And this too was born out of the ruins
of 9/11. The most critical effect of the calamity on the
American and global economy would begin six days after
the attack.”
[Kaplan] “As a response to the calamity?”
[The Prophet] “Yes,” he said, “as in the ancient vow. . . .”2
In this exchange Cahn directly ties America’s economic collapse

to the statement by America’s leaders that “we will rebuild.” This in
turn is connected to what he claims3 is a vow in Isaiah 9:10. Once
again, it is impossible to accept that he is arguing for simply a parallel
or pattern. He makes a direct prophetic connection between ancient
Israel and the United States. However, Cahn takes this part of his
theory far beyond the rebuilding that was prophesied in Isaiah into
an elaborate maze of national economic policies, corporate stock
exchanges, and international financial markets.
An Allegorical Blunder
In an attempt to bridge the logical gap that he has created between

the biblical text and current events, Cahn introduces allegory into the
interpretive equation—a decision that was doomed from the outset.
[Kaplan] “So what happened six days after the attack?”

[The Prophet] “The Isaiah 9:10 Effect begins with the
nation’s response to the first calamity.”
–90–
[Kaplan] “So the effect would begin with the proclaim-

ing of the vow on Capitol Hill, the next day.”
[The Prophet] “Yes,” said The Prophet, “but those
were words, ‘We will rebuild.’ It would be the following
Monday that those words would be translated into real-
ity. It was the day that the Federal Reserve attempted to
inject liquidity into the market in a campaign to avert
economic disaster and ensure that America would indeed
rebuild and recover.”
[Kaplan] “As ancient Israel had attempted to defy the
consequences of its first calamity.”
[The Prophet] “Yes, except that the hewn stones of America’s
recovery were primarily economic. So on the first Monday
after 9/11, the Federal Reserve slashed its target interest
rate still further . . . as the first concrete act of the nation’s
rebuilding.”4
The hewn stones of America were primarily economic? Where

does Isaiah 9 suggest that the hewn stones carried an allegorical or
metaphorical meaning beyond the literal meaning? It’s one thing to
say that rebuilding has economic implications. But to say that the
meaning of hewn stones is rebuilding the financial foundations or
that they are symbolic of economic recovery lacks any textual sup-
port and is therefore completely unbiblical.
Cahn’s imposition of his own ideas on the text represents a serious
departure from a literal, grammatical, historical hermeneutic. Yet he
states the supposed underlying meaning so matter-of-factly and with
such confidence that he appears to simply assume that the reader will
accept his allegorical interpretation of historical events without giving
it a second thought.
– 91 –
A complex and tedious analysis

The story continues with a discussion of slashing interest rates
by the Federal Reserve, which would be so extreme that it “would
open up an era of easy money.”5 Cahn then delves into a complex
and rather tedious discussion of the economic ins and outs of the
Federal Reserve, the US Treasury, the global economy, interest rates,
monetary policy, credit bubbles, housing booms, the stock market,
and more.
A significant amount of time and effort would be required to
even begin to evaluate the accuracy of the many components of the
author’s analysis. Undoubtedly Cahn has done a lot of research into
this matter, and he does include footnotes to support some (though
certainly not all) of his statements.
However, he has ventured into an area that involves such highly
interpretive, speculative, and often subjective analyses that even
respected economists and financial experts will seldom agree on all
of the causes and effects for these types of things. Cahn’s attempt to
prove a biblical connection and precise prophetic fulfillment with this
argument is less than convincing.
The following are just two of many examples where the author
makes far-reaching claims with no reference to supporting research
and evidence:
[The Prophet] “Easier mortgages would cause an already

rising housing market to explode beyond all standard
economic fundamentals, creating an unprecedented hous-
ing and building boom. The exploding housing market
would lead homeowners to borrow and spend against the
rising value of their homes. The phenomenon would cre-
ate credit bubbles throughout the economy. This, in turn,
would encourage massive inflows of capital from Asia to
compound the problem. The stock market would surge
–92–
along with the volume of monies borrowed and leveraged.

And the effect would spread throughout the world.”6
***
[The Prophet] “In September of 2008, the American

financial system began to implode, triggering the great-
est economic disaster since the Great Depression. The
American-led global economic explosion turned into an
American-led global economic implosion. The house of
cards was collapsing and drawing the world into its fall.
And so behind the entire global economic collapse . . . was
Isaiah 9:10. It all began in the ruins of 9/11.”7
At the risk of beating the proverbial “dead horse,” it bears

repeating that despite the author’s strong denials that he sees a
direct connection between Isaiah 9:10, ancient Israel, and post-
9/11 America, here he has linked them once again. However, now
the connection for which Cahn is arguing extends beyond the 9/11
attacks to include the ongoing economic crisis in the US since
September 2008. Then he goes even further by not only linking
America with the ancient mystery of Isaiah, but he also proposes
that the entire world is directly affected and that this, too, is part of
Isaiah’s hidden message:
[The Prophet] “And notice, Nouriel, the dynamic keeps

getting larger. It begins with the voicing of the ancient
vow. Then it becomes a direction, then the policy of an
entire nation, and then a collapse affecting the course of the
entire world. The Harbingers draw in everything to them-
selves, from the Federal Reserve to the global economy. . . .
They touch the entire world, and no one realizes that it’s all
part of the ancient mystery.”8
–93–
Cahn has continued his foray into the speculative unknown and
strays further and further from the biblical text. Although Isaiah
9:10 involves a very localized regional conflict, Cahn has made its
contemporary fulfillment a global matter.
Where do his conclusions come from? Certainly not from Isaiah
9:10, nor from any of the surrounding context. Unfortunately,
though not surprisingly, he has again turned to commentaries for
support. This time, however, a commentary is not used to support
the Bible per se but to link an analysis of the current economic crisis
to both Isaiah 9:10 and September 11, 2001:
[Kaplan] “Isaiah 9:10 translated into modern economics.”
[The Prophet] “Exactly. And from another source: ‘The

financial house of cards was slowly built following the
9/11 attacks. As the U.S. government tried to revive the
economy by repeatedly dropping interest rates, families
lunged at the opportunity to refinance their mortgages.
Now, the collapse of the mortgage market is felt around
the world.’”
[Kaplan] “‘Divine anger,’ I said, quoting what I had read,

‘being a remedial force, will not cease until its purposes
are wrought out. . . . If one expression is resisted another
must be found.’”
[The Prophet] “And where did you get that?” he asked.
[Kaplan] “From a commentary on Isaiah 9:10.”
[The Prophet] “Very good, Nouriel. So you’ve been

searching.”9
– 94 –
Exposing the Foundation
Cahn introduces the next aspect of his financial collapse theory

by predictably merging Israel and America as objects of Isaiah’s
prophecy and the mystery hidden therein:
[Kaplan] “You’re giving me the seal of the Sixth

Harbinger.”
[The Prophet] “That’s correct.”
[Kaplan] “The fallen Sycamore . . . the tree of Israel’s

judgment.”
[The Prophet] “And why am I giving it to you a second

time?” he asked.
[Kaplan] “Because it has something to do with the sec-

ond shaking.”
[The Prophet] “It does,” he said. “But also for another

reason.”
[Kaplan] “What?”
[The Prophet] “Within the Sycamore are two myster-

ies—one going back to the last days of ancient Israel, and
the other going back to the first days . . . ”
[Kaplan] “The first days of ancient Israel?”
[The Prophet] “The first days of America.”10
–95–
More misleading “support”

In this section of The Harbinger, Cahn continues to try to build
additional support for his theory by reintroducing “The Sycamore,”
which is the Sixth Harbinger. He quotes prophecies by Ezekiel and
Jeremiah while explaining them in such a way that the reader would
think they are referring to the same events as Isaiah and at the same
time giving further insight into the mystery concerning America.
Ezekiel 13:14—
So I will break down the wall you have plastered with untempered
mortar, and bring it down to the ground, so that its foundation will
be uncovered; it will fall, and you shall be consumed in the midst of it.
Then you shall know that I am the Lord.
Jeremiah 45:4—
Thus you shall say to him, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Behold, what I have
built I will break down, and what I have planted I will pluck up.’”
The first problem is that neither Ezekiel nor Jeremiah were

referring to the Assyrian attacks on the Northern Kingdom of Israel,
as was Isaiah. Rather, both were prophesying over one hundred
years after the destruction of the Northern Kingdom, and thus they
were focused on what was left of Israel in the Southern Kingdom
of Judah. This would not necessarily be a serious problem were it
not for the fact that Cahn repeatedly does this type of thing—mis-
leading the reader by giving details that appear to fit and support
his case, while leaving out other details that could weaken or even
contradict it.
Beyond this, of course, similarities can be found between many
different judgments in the Bible, including those that are not con-
nected with each other in any way. This is particularly true when the
judgment involves a foreign power launching a military assault. Even
–96–
the most basic of military strategies involves breaching defenses at

their weakest point and then systematically dismantling them—that
is, tearing down walls to their foundations. Unfortunately, Cahn
uses just these sorts of similarities again and again to overwhelm the
reader with volumes of corroborating evidence. This is misleading.
Even more significant than these issues is the fact that Cahn has
completely missed the primary point of the passages in both Ezekiel
and Jeremiah. He compounds the problem by wrongly allegorizing
what is said in Ezekiel but then oddly missing what is a metaphor
in Jeremiah.
Mishandling Ezekiel 13
The passage in Ezekiel is not so much a prophecy about an
actual military attack against Israel (although it does include that).
Rather, it is primarily an oracle against the false prophets who have
been telling the people that they have nothing to worry about—
that God will not bring judgment upon them. Ezekiel figuratively
(which is different from allegory) speaks of their false prophecies as
“untempered mortar” (13:11, 14) that provides no protection for
walls made of clay bricks when hit by storms packing strong winds
and torrential rains. In other words, the assurances of peace and
safety given by the false prophets will be shown to be lies that offer
no protection against God’s judgment when they see the walls of the
city torn down to their foundations. Ezekiel is making a different
point than Isaiah did in chapter 9, even though Isaiah speaks of false
prophets in verse 15.
Furthermore, when the Lord speaks about the walls being torn
down so that the foundations are uncovered, He is not speaking
figuratively, as Cahn argues. The Lord is saying that when the literal
physical foundations are exposed, the people will then understand
that they have believed false prophets. Cahn wrongly turns the
– 97 –
Lord’s words into an allegory and then uses that allegory as a spring-
board for launching into another speculative theory in the rest of
the chapter.
[The Prophet] “Its foundation will be uncovered. What

foundations do you think the prophecy is referring to,
Nouriel?”
[Kaplan] “The foundation of a wall, it would seem.”
[The Prophet] “A foundation is that upon which some-

thing stands or rests or is built. So a nation’s foundation is
that upon which it stands . . . or on which it was founded . . .
or that in which it rests or places its trust. The nations of
the ancient world trusted in their idols and gods. Modern
nations trust in their powers, their militaries, their econo-
mies, their resources. But what it’s saying here is that in
the days of judgment a nation’s foundations are laid bare.
Its idols fall, and its powers fail. It’s one of the key signs of
judgment—the laying bare of foundations.”11
Cahn’s elaborate allegorization of the Lord’s words is completely

without biblical warrant. The problem is not that he is wrong about
nations misplacing their trust in everything but God. Of course
Cahn is right about that. The problem is that he states that this is
what the passage in Ezekiel is about. It is not. The Word of God
cannot be manipulated and misused in this way.
Mishandling Jeremiah 45
The way that Cahn handles the Jeremiah passage makes one
sense that perhaps a bit of interpretive sleight-of-hand is going on
once again. In this case, he gives the impression that the phrase “what
I have planted I will pluck up” in Jeremiah can be directly correlated
–98–
with the statement that “the sycamores have been cut down” in
Isaiah. The reader would therefore assume that Jeremiah was talking
about sycamore trees being plucked up. In fact, he was not.
[The Prophet] “But in the days of Israel’s judgment, that

which was built up would be broken down and that which
was planted would be uprooted. Two images of national
judgment—the breaking down and the uprooting.”
[Kaplan] “Repeat that,” I said.
[The Prophet] “Repeat what?” he asked.
[Kaplan] “Jeremiah’s prophecy.”
[The Prophet] “‘Behold, what I have built I will break

down.’”
[Kaplan] “‘The bricks have fallen,’” I answered.
[The Prophet] “‘And what I have planted I will pluck up.’”
[Kaplan] “‘The sycamores have been cut down,’” I answered.
[The Prophet] “Yes, Nouriel, it follows the same pattern.”
[Kaplan] “It’s the same pattern and the same order as

Isaiah 9:10. First comes the breaking down—the fallen
bricks. Then comes the uprooting—the sycamore.”12
Once again, this is very misleading. Unless the reader took the
time to actually look at the Jeremiah passage in the Bible, he would
never know that Cahn did not quote the entire verse. If he had, it
would have been obvious that the claimed precise link between
Jeremiah 45:4 and Isaiah 9:10 does not exist.
–99–
Jeremiah 45:4—
Thus you shall say to him, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Behold, what I have
built I will break down, and what I have planted I will pluck up, that is,
this whole land.’”
What is “plucked up” is not sycamores. Rather it is the nation

itself, with no reference to trees whatsoever. Even this would not
necessarily have to be a significant problem because both have to
do with Israel’s destruction. However, because of the way Cahn
argues for such a high level of precision in the corresponding details
between the two passages, this omission is notably problematic.
Leaving out the last phrase in Jeremiah 45:4 is not being at all forth-
right with the reader about the passage.
Mishandling the details

Another interpretive and practical issue is that Cahn mixes and
exchanges elements of the prophecies and historical events. In Isaiah
9:10, the fact of the sycamores being cut down obviously has noth-
ing to do with the foundations of the city. There is no connection
between them whatsoever, either physically or logically.
However, in a new allegorical twist, using tortuous logic, Cahn
tries to apply Isaiah’s prophecy to the United States by connecting
the sycamores to the foundation of America’s economy, which he
says is the New York Stock Exchange. Thus the NYSE is the foun-
dation of America’s power as a nation. The author then attempts
to connect everything together through what is known as the
“Buttonwood Agreement”:
[The Prophet] “In March of 1792, a secret meeting

took place at a Manhattan hotel . . . the merchants again
gathered together, this time at 68 Wall Street to sign a
document. . . . The document was called the Buttonwood
– 10 0 –
Agreement. The organization born of the agreement

would be known as the Buttonwood Association and later
as the New York Stock and Exchange Board, and finally as
the New York Stock Exchange.”
***
[The Prophet] “The twenty-four merchants used to
meet and carry on their transactions under a buttonwood
tree that grew on Wall Street . . .”
***
[The Prophet] “Buttonwood,” he said, “is, in essence,
just another way of saying sycamore . . .”
***
[Kaplan] “And the New York Stock Exchange is, in
essence, the Sycamore Association.”
***
[The Prophet] “The World Trade Center was a towering
symbol of what that power had become. But the sycamore
was the symbol of its origin.”
[Kaplan] “The foundation,” I said, “the foundation of a

nation’s power.”13
Therefore, when the sycamore at Ground Zero was blown over

and uprooted, Cahn contends that this was symbolic of America’s
foundation being exposed. And herein lies the problem. As noted
earlier, signs from God carry prophetic significance. They are
revelatory.
Likewise, symbols signify something—they are signs. Because
of this fact, something can be a biblical symbol only if God intends
for it to have that function. Thus Cahn essentially assigns biblical
– 101 –
symbolic status to the Ground Zero sycamore because he believes

that it is directly tied to both the ancient mystery of Isaiah 9:10 and
to America’s financial collapse:
[Kaplan] “So the Sycamore wasn’t only a warning of judg-

ment; it was, at the same time, a specific foreshadow of
economic collapse.”
[The Prophet] “The striking down of the sycamore tree

is a biblical sign of judgment,” he said. “But the same tree
is also a symbol specific to American power.”
[Kaplan] “So then the uprooting of the sycamore would

foreshadow . . . ”
[The Prophet] “Yes,” he said, “it would foreshadow the

uprooting of America’s financial and economic power.”14
Just when it seems that Cahn has stretched things as far as he

possibly can, he goes even further by turning the entire life cycle of
the Ground-Zero sycamore into an allegory, a metaphor for the rise
and fall of America as a world power:
[Kaplan] “So what does it mean?” I asked. “What does it

mean specifically for America?”
[The Prophet] “If a living sycamore signifies the rise of

America as the world’s preeminent financial power, what
then does an uprooted sycamore signify?”
[Kaplan] “Its fall,” I answered. “It would have to signify

its fall.”
[The Prophet] “God had allowed America’s power to

be planted here, to take root, to grow, and to branch out
over the world. The nation would rise to unprecedented
– 10 2 –
heights of global power and economic prosperity. But in

its departure and its rejection of His ways, a sign was given.
If now it refused to turn back, the blessings and prosper-
ity symbolized by the sycamore would be removed—that
which had been built up would be broken down, and that
which had been planted would be uprooted.”15
The Seventh Harbinger revisited

Cahn has now set the stage for reintroducing the Seventh
Harbinger, The Erez Tree:

collapse?”

place.”
[Kaplan] “An ancient mystery?”
[The Prophet] “Yes, an ancient mystery upon which the

global economy and every transaction within it was deter-
mined, a mystery that begins more than three thousand
years ago in the sands of a Middle Eastern desert.”16
Just as the Ground Zero sycamore was also assigned a symbolic

meaning, the Erez tree is no longer only a literal Norway spruce.
It now becomes symbolic and is connected with the next phase of
God’s judgment against America and the world—the Shemitah.
– 10 3 –
CHAPTER 14
THE SHEMITAH CONNECTION

AS HAS BEEN SHOWN repeatedly, despite Cahn’s claims to the
contrary, The Harbinger very clearly and directly connects America
and ancient Israel through Isaiah’s prophecy. In chapter 17 of his
book, however, Cahn goes well beyond this and turns to a theme
that casts America into a role and situation that was exclusively
reserved for Israel. Cahn believes that he has discovered another
mystery in addition to the one hidden in Isaiah 9:10—the mystery
of the Shemitah (Hebrew for release)—and that this mystery is now
affecting the United States.
[Kaplan] “I still don’t see how it connects with America.”
[The Prophet] “Behind the collapse of Wall Street and

the implosion of the American and world economy,
behind all of it lies the mystery of the Shemitah.”1
Later The Prophet explains:
[The Prophet] “In the days of the prophet Jeremiah,

with Jerusalem lying in ruins and the people taken away
in captivity, the key that held the timing of the nation’s
judgment was hidden in the mystery of the Shemitah.”2
– 10 4 –
Cahn’s argument builds on the fact that two stockmarket crashes

occurred on exactly the last day of the Shemitah year according to the
Jewish calendar in both 2001 and 2008. Without a doubt, this is an
interesting phenomenon (and will be discussed later). However, for
now, suffice it to say that this is where any similarity to the Shemitah
required of Israel begins and ends.
The Shemitah and Israel
Just as Israel was to observe the seventh day of the week, the Sabbath, as
a day of rest, they were also to observe the seventh year, the Shemitah,
as a year of rest. The Shemitah was a sabbath year. In the Law of
Moses, God had commanded that every seventh year Israel must allow
the land to completely rest, with no sowing, reaping, or any other
work in the fields. In addition, all who owed money to creditors were
to be released from their debts.
Deuteronomy 15:1–2—
At the end of every seven years you shall grant a release of

debts. And this is the form of the release: Every creditor who
has lent anything to his neighbor shall release it; he shall not
require it of his neighbor or his brother, because it is called
the Lord’s release.
Humanly speaking, this law has “economic disaster” written

all over it. How could a nation possibly survive such an economic
requirement every seventh year? The Shemitah would almost certainly
cripple any nation attempting to practice it.
However, Israel was not just any nation. It was the one and only
nation chosen by God to be His covenant people. Israel was separate
and distinct from all other nations and was called to be uniquely faith-
ful to and dependent on Him.
– 10 5 –
God would demonstrate His love and faithfulness to Israel by

providing enough in the sixth year to meet the nation’s needs the fol-
lowing year. In fact, the land would actually yield three year’s worth
of produce in the sixth year (Leviticus 25:20-21). Conversely, Israel
would demonstrate her faith in God both as a nation and as individu-
als by obeying His command to keep the Shemitah and trusting Him
for the results.
The word shemitah in its noun form is found five times in the
Old Testament and only in Deuteronomy. The verb form appears
nine times, and except for once in Exodus, it too is found only in
Deuteronomy.
The concept (though not the word) also appears in Leviticus
25:3-4—
Six years you shall sow your field, and six years you shall
prune your vineyard, and gather its fruit; but in the seventh
year there shall be a sabbath of solemn rest for the land, a
sabbath to the Lord. You shall neither sow your field nor
prune your vineyard.
Then after every seventh Shemitah year (i.e., after forty-nine

years) there was to be an additional “Jubilee Year.”
Leviticus 25:10–11—
And you shall consecrate the fiftieth year, and proclaim lib-
erty throughout all the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be
a Jubilee for you; and each of you shall return to his posses-
sion, and each of you shall return to his family. That fiftieth
year shall be a Jubilee to you; in it you shall neither sow nor
reap what grows of its own accord, nor gather the grapes of
your untended vine.
– 10 6 –
In the next chapter, the Lord warned of multiple waves of hor-

rific judgments that will fall on the nation if they fail to keep His
commandments, including His sabbaths. If, after all that, Israel still
refuses to repent and return to the Lord in response to these judg-
ments, He warned of what was to come, which was essentially an
imposed Shemitah:
Leviticus 26:33–35—
I will scatter you among the nations and draw out a sword
after you; your land shall be desolate and your cities waste.
Then the land shall enjoy its sabbaths as long as it lies deso-
late and you are in your enemies’ land; then the land shall
rest and enjoy its sabbaths. As long as it lies desolate it shall
rest—for the time it did not rest on your sabbaths when you
dwelt in it.
Hundreds of years later, Israel experienced precisely this judg-

ment—first with the Assyrian invasion and later with the Babylonian
invasion, conquest, and captivity. Because Judah had not observed the
Shemitah for seventy cycles of seven years, the nation was in captivity
(thus leaving the land idle) for seventy years.
The nation had not observed the Shemitah because they had
forsaken their God, had intermarried with foreign women, and were
worshiping their pagan gods. Therefore God imposed a Shemitah
upon Israel as a judgment rather than a blessing because they had
failed to observe the Shemitah willingly.
There were certainly many other judgments against both Israel
and Judah because of persistent lack of faith in the God of Israel and
their blatant worship of other gods, with all of the attendant pagan
practices. There were attacks and wars, storms and droughts, sickness
and plagues, corrupt kings and wicked priests.
– 107 –
However, the Bible connects none of those to the Shemitah. The

Shemitah that God imposed as a judgment was very specific and
involved only the nation of Israel. No Gentile nations were ever obli-
gated to keep the Shemitah, and in the absence of this obligation,
there is no scriptural basis for suggesting that any Gentile nation
would ever experience an imposed Shemitah judgment.
The Shemitah as a Mystery
God defined the Shemitah very explicitly, and the Scriptures make it
abundantly clear how it was to function in Israel and the consequences
associated with failure to observe it. Obviously, there was no mystery
concerning the Shemitah and the nation of Israel.
As he has done before, Cahn introduces a concept that has no
scriptural support. He does, however, correctly present the fact that
the Shemitah was never given to nor binding upon any nation other
than Israel:
[Kaplan] “But what does it have to do with America?

America has never had a Sabbath Year.”
[The Prophet] “That’s correct. It was only commanded for

one nation. But the issue here isn’t the literal observance of
the Shemitah or any requirement to keep it.”3
Yet he wrongly makes the case that the Shemitah is essentially a

universal, inviolable principle that functions much like the Isaiah 9:10
Effect. Consequently, the mystery of the Shemitah, which the author
has somehow discovered, can directly affect America.
[Kaplan] “Then what is the issue here?” I asked.
[The Prophet] “The issue here,” he replied, “is its dynamic,

its effect, and its consequence.”4
– 10 8 –
By explaining it this way, Cahn tries to make it appear as if the

Shemitah is somehow mysteriously integrated into the order of the
universe and that it operates both nationally and internationally.
Furthermore, he incorporates this idea into his financial collapse
theory and actually builds the entire theory around this view of the
Shemitah.
However, just as with the Isaiah 9:10 Effect, Scripture nowhere
presents the Shemitah as a universal principle or pattern connected
with God’s judgment. The Shemitah was anything but a mystery. And
because of the way that Cahn tries to make the case for the “mystery
of the Shemitah,” it represents one of the most thoroughly unbiblical
ideas in the entire book, and his argument for it also includes some of
the most misleading “support.”
The Shemitah as a Principle
To lay a foundation for the argument that the Shemitah is a universal

principle, Cahn makes the following assertion through the words of
Nouriel Kaplan:
[Kaplan] “Seven years—the biblical period of time that

concerns a nation’s financial and economic realms.”5
Although it is true that Israel was on a seven-year economic cycle

imposed by God as part of the Law of Moses, this was not true of any
Gentile nation. Nor are there any biblical passages to support the idea
suggested by Kaplan in the story that seven years represent a natural
economic cycle for nations in general.
Furthermore, extensive internet research does not reveal any
uniform conventional wisdom or consensus among economists or
financial experts that seven years is a known natural economic or
financial cycle. Things are said about various cycles that range from
– 10 9 –
three to ten years, and a couple of people have suggested seven, but
cycles of even roughly seven years apparently do not exist. The biblical
Shemitah, however, was exactly seven years to the day.
Cahn’s theory that the Shemitah is a universal principle is yet
another example of speculation raised to the level of fact. Yet the sec-
ond half of the book is built almost entirely on this theory.
The Shemitah as a Sign
Cahn takes this unscriptural theory even further by proposing that the
Shemitah is a sign—not just to Israel, but to any nation.
[Kaplan] “And what does that mean?”
[The Prophet] “The issue is the Shemitah as a sign.”
[Kaplan] “The Shemitah as a sign . . . ?”
[The Prophet] “The sign of the Shemitah, given to a

nation that has driven God out of its life and replaced Him
with idols and the pursuit of gain. The issue is the Shemitah
as a sign of judgment, the sign that specifically touches a
nation’s financial and economic realms.”6
If the Shemitah is a sign, this means that it is a predictor of

things to come. It must be revelatory, as are all signs. In other words,
if God warns that a specific judgment is on its way because of fail-
ure to observe the Shemitah and that this judgment will be executed
through a specific set of events, then when those events begin to hap-
pen they reveal that the judgment has begun. However, in the absence
of such a prophetic warning, even if identical events happen, it cannot
be concluded with any certainty that God is executing a Shemitah or
Shemitah-type judgment against America.
– 110 –
As noted earlier, just because God judged Egypt through a plague

of locusts, another such plague somewhere, even in Egypt, does
not necessarily mean that God is specifically judging those people.
Although God judged ancient Israel through a severe drought in the
time of Elijah,7 this does not mean that the present drought in much
of the United States is the result of God’s judgment. Of course, it
could be, but the Creation is under the curse of the Fall, and terrible
things happen in nature apart from God’s miraculous intervention.
Not only does the rain fall on the just and the unjust, but both can also
experience natural disasters.
Because the Word of God does not give the required prophetic
warning concerning America and the Shemitah, there is no scrip-
tural basis to interpret recent events as a sign that God is imposing
a Shemitah judgment on the United States. Even if it is true that
America is in the very midst of God’s judgment, it cannot be said
biblically that any signs point to the judgment being related to the
Shemitah—that is unless something is going on that Cahn has
repeatedly denied.
The Shemitah and America
What, then, could bring someone to suggest any sort of connection

between the Shemitah and America? The only potential explanation
would seem to be that Cahn believes that the founders were right about
America being in covenant with God—if not as a new Israel as such,
then at least as one patterned after Israel’s covenantal relationship with
Him. This is not to suggest that Cahn believes that national Israel has
been replaced and has no future in God’s program. He has said that
he does not believe this. Unfortunately, there seems to be a significant
disconnect between what the author says he believes about this and
the ideas he so clearly presents in The Harbinger.
–111 –
CHAPTER 15
THE CASE FOR THE SHEMITAH

THE EXAMPLES Cahn uses to demonstrate that America is going
through an imposed Shemitah feel contrived. In contrast, the
Shemitah in ancient Israel was simple: The Israelites were not to
work the land, and the wealthy lenders were required to forgive the
debts owed to them by average people.
Later, when Israel fell into sin, God imposed the Shemitah on
Israel, forcing them to stop working the land completely by taking
the nation into captivity. And, as captives, the wealthy were brought
down to the level of their debtors, and the financial system com-
pletely collapsed. The imposed Shemitah was not simply a sign—it
was the judgment itself. It meant utter devastation. Almost every-
one lost almost everything.
Since the situation with America has not come close to approach-
ing this level of disaster, Cahn must go to great lengths to support
his interpretation of both the Bible and history. He has clearly done
extensive research and has assembled an impressive array of facts and
figures. Because he writes and speaks with conviction and authority,
he makes a case that initially seems compelling—and one that has
persuaded a lot of people that he is right.
– 112 –
The “fallow land”

As noted, the first major component of the imposed Shemitah
was that the Lord forced Israel to allow the land to lie completely
fallow by having much of the nation carried away into captivity—
there was no one to work the land. However, in America there has
been no collapse of the agricultural sector nor any other sectors that
might be considered modern-day economic equivalents. There is
no parallel to one of the most important aspects of the imposed
Shemitah and nothing to indicate that an imposed Shemitah might
be underway. The Shemitah cannot be found.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac

An analysis of the other major component, concerning credit
and debt, reveals that the parallels proposed by the author are not
much closer. Cahn draws his support almost exclusively from the
failure of a few large financial institutions and the response of the
federal government. He cites four major corporations: Fannie Mae,
Freddie Mac, Lehman Brothers, and AIG.
[The Prophet] “Each failure, each remission, each

Shemitah triggers the next and the next as the global
economy continues disintegrating. Then, in late August,
early September, as the year of Shemitah enters its last and
climactic phase, so too does the financial crisis.”
[Kaplan] “With the collapse of Fannie Mae and Freddie
Mac.”
[The Prophet] “Yes,” he said, “and then of Lehman
Brothers, and then of the global economy—everything
reaching the climax on September 29, 2008, the last and
climactic day of the Shemitah.”
[Kaplan] “Everything following the ancient pattern.”1
– 113 –
Although these events were significant factors in the economic

crisis of 2008, including the stock market, this does not follow “the
ancient pattern”—not at all. The ancient pattern was that Israel was
invaded and overrun by a foreign army with everything of value
either destroyed or carried away. In sharp contrast, America suffered
one relatively minor attack. (Perhaps it seems almost sacrilegious
to call 9/11 a minor attack, but compared to what ancient Israel
endured, it really was minor.)
And even though the US and global economies have gone
through a serious contraction (in the business sense), and certainly
many people have been hurt financially, it has not even come close
to the scale, especially in relative terms, of the utter devastation
that occurred in Israel. Even Cahn himself rightly notes that Fannie
Mae and Freddie Mac were rescued by the federal government
when the Federal Financial Housing Authority placed them under
conservatorship.
Not only did they not collapse, but according to an August
2010 article on ProblemBankList.com:
Fannie and Freddie are not likely to disappear anytime

soon. The combined mortgage giants, now 80% owned
by the government, continue to provide approximately 75%
of funding to the mortgage market. In addition, Fannie
and Freddie insure or own $5.7 trillion of the outstand-
ing total of $11 trillion in mortgages. The government has
agreed to provide unlimited funding while policy makers
debate how to reform the mortgage system to prevent
Fannie and Freddie from again becoming a systemic risk
to the financial system.2
The financial woes of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac cannot be

compared with what Israel suffered—and they definitely were not
symptomatic of an imposed Shemitah.
– 114 –
Lehman Brothers
Then there is the matter of Lehman Brothers. It is true that
when Lehman Brothers filed the largest bankruptcy in history after
being denied a federal bailout, the US and world markets were
rattled for weeks. However, Cahn’s analysis is filled with overstate-
ments that don’t reflect the reality of what happened:
[The Prophet] “Lehman Brothers filed for bank-

ruptcy—the largest bankruptcy in American history up
to that date. It would be called the collapse heard around
the world. The fall of Lehman Brothers would, in turn,
trigger the collapse of Wall Street and the global financial
implosion.”3
However, Wall Street did not collapse, and the global economy
did not implode. They were seriously shocked, even damaged, but
they did not collapse—not even close.
So why is it that so many have bought into this illusion? Perhaps
in part it is because the Lehman Brothers failure was staggering in
terms of actual dollars ($639 billion in assets and $619 billion in
debt).4 At first glance, the reader’s initial reaction might be that
Cahn has surely made his case on at least this point—but he has not.
Even if both the assets and the debt of Lehman Brothers, at
$1.25 trillion, are added together, this represents an almost immea-
surably tiny fraction of the world economy. To put things in
perspective, even when compared to just the American economy,
with an estimated value of $188 trillion in assets,5 it comes out to
only about 0.6 percent—exceedingly insignificant when compared
to what happened when God judged Israel and imposed a seventy-
year Shemitah, which was carried out through the Babylonian
captivity.
Furthermore, one of the author’s own sources states:
– 115 –
But when one looks closely at what happened in the weeks

after the bank’s fall—by any measure the most turbulent
and dramatic period in the last 75 years of financial his-
tory—Lehman’s collapse was not in fact to blame for pushing
global markets and the economy over the edge.6
Where is the precise parallel that Cahn claims? Where is the

Shemitah? Once again, it is an illusion.
The stock market crash

Cahn continues to try to build his case by citing the September
29, 2008, stock market crash as the “greatest single-day stock mar-
ket crash in Wall Street history.”7 He does mention that it was the
biggest drop in terms of points—but only once. It was not, however,
the biggest percentage drop by any means. Yet Cahn declares over
and over that it was the “biggest crash in Wall Street history”:
[The Prophet] “It was the climactic moment of the

global implosion and the greatest single-day stock market
crash in Wall Street history. Why did it happen?” he asked.
“Why did it happen just when it did?”
[Kaplan] I didn’t answer. He paused before revealing the

answer.
[The Prophet] “The greatest single-day stock market crash

in Wall Street history took place on the twenty-ninth day
of Elul—the critical and crowning day of the Hebrew
Shemitah.”
[Kaplan] “My God!” I exclaimed. It was the only thing

that could’ve come out of my mouth at that moment.
[The Prophet] “The day when financial accounts must

be wiped away,” he said.8
– 116 –
When God imposed a Shemitah on ancient Israel, everything

was wiped away. This is not what happened in 2008. As Cahn
points out in the book, the drop in the Dow Jones industrial aver-
age was 7 percent.9 What he does not mention is that this drop does
not even rank in the historical top ten in terms of percentages.10 Not
only would Israel have survived such a meager judgment; it could
have continued to thrive.
To be fair, the Dow did drop a total of about 25 percent in the
two weeks following the defeat of the bailout bill in the US Congress
on September 29. Once again, however, this does not rank in the
same league as the 1929 market collapse. Not only did it fall 48
percent in just over two months, but by the time the crash had run
its course, stocks had lost 90 percent of their value.11 Yet even that
horrendous financial crisis, which triggered the Great Depression,
was not nearly of the same relative magnitude as the devastation
experienced by ancient Israel. Cahn’s treatment of the entire sce-
nario demonstrates just how easily statistics can be manipulated to
support almost anything.
Even setting that aside for a moment, given Cahn’s reasoning,
if the 2008 crash and Great Recession were part of an imposed
Shemitah, what about the 1929 crash and the Great Depression?
What about the other major market crashes that actually do rank
among the top ten worst crashes? Were each of these also a Shemitah
judgment?
The overstatements continue to the degree that one would
think it would be difficult for even Cahn’s most ardent supporters
to stand with him:
[The Prophet] “The crashing of stock markets across the

world meant that the funds invested had vanished and
would not be paid back, at least not for the foreseeable
future. Both credit and debt, trillions of dollars worth
– 117 –
of credit and debt, had, in effect, been canceled. ‘Every

creditor who has made a loan to his neighbor will let it go,
will cancel it’ . . . a Shemitah.”
[Kaplan] “How far back did it go,” I asked, “the cancella-

tion of debt in the Shemitah?”
[The Prophet] “Back to the end of the last Shemitah,”

he replied, “to the last remission of debt.”
[Kaplan] “So the Shemitah would wipe away all the debts
of the previous seven years?”
[The Prophet] “Yes.”
[Kaplan] “And when the stock market crashed in

September 2008, how much was wiped away?”
[The Prophet] “All the gains of the past seven years, and
then some.”12
All credit and debt from 2001 to 2008 had “in effect, been
canceled?” There were certainly a lot of losses experienced by both
creditors and investors, but nowhere close to all debt was wiped
away. Just the simple fact that many people ended up upside down
on their mortgages as the housing market collapsed and many lost
their homes because of foreclosures clearly demonstrates this. The
overstatement here is breathtaking. If debt had been wiped away,
these people could have kept their homes and owed nothing.
Another crucial issue that could be easy to miss is the fact
that the author has just redefined the Shemitah itself. The biblical
Shemitah involved the cancellation of all debt owed to creditors.
However, Cahn has completely redefined it, with no scriptural sup-
port whatsoever, to include the wiping out of savings and investments.
– 118 –
This is more than misleading. Why is he not being called out on

this by every serious student of the Word of God?
And the speculation does not end there. Cahn goes so far as to
argue that God was imposing a global Shemitah made up of count-
less smaller ones all over the world:
[Kaplan] “And it touched the entire world.”
[The Prophet] “It touched the entire global economy

in the form of collapsing markets, vanishing investments,
government bailouts, corporate and personal bankrupt-
cies, and foreclosures . . . each of which was, in effect, a
financial nullification.”
[Kaplan] “So, in each case, whether by bankruptcy, by

aid, or by vanishing accounts, the burden was remitted . . .
released . . . each becomes a form of Shemitah.”
[The Prophet] “Not only each,” he said, “but all . . . the

whole. The global economic collapse was, itself, one colos-
sal Shemitah . . . made up of countless smaller ones.”13
This is so far beyond the realm of reasonable logic, so thor-

oughly contradicted by historical facts, and so completely devoid of
any biblical support, that it simply requires no rebuttal other than
to say, “It did not happen.” It is a mere illusion—and not a convinc-
ing one at that.
– 119 –
CHAPTER 16
FUDGING THE NUMBERS
The date coincidence
IN THE HARBINGER, Jonathan Cahn traces a series of events in the

financial realm in the month of September 2008, which is generally
regarded as the beginning of the “Great Recession” and the “Global
Economic Crisis.” These included the problems with Fannie Mae and
Freddie Mac, as well as with Lehman brothers. Then on September
29, the stock market crashed more than seven hundred points.1
As Cahn points out, September 29, 2008, was also the 29th
of Elul on the Hebrew calendar. Sunset on Elul 29 marks the end
of the year, according to Hebrew reckoning, when all debts among
the Jewish people are to be forgiven according to the mitzvah (com-
mandment) of Shemitah.
He further notes that precisely seven years earlier on Elul 29
(September 17, 2001, on the Gregorian calendar) the largest stock
market crash up to that time had taken place in the wake of 9/11:
[The Prophet] “It happened on Monday, September 17,

2001. It took place in the economic realm, and it would
match . . . and would foreshadow what would happen
seven years later.”
– 12 0 –
FUDGING THE NUMBERS
[Kaplan] “And it was . . . ”
[The Prophet] “It was the greatest stock market point

crash in Wall Street history up to that day. The record
would remain intact for seven years, seven years until the
crash of 2008. Take note, Nouriel, of what we have.”
[Kaplan] “What do we have?” I asked.
[The Prophet] “A seven-year period that begins with a

stock market crash and ends with a second stock market
crash. We have a seven-year period framed by the two
greatest stock market crashes in Wall Street history up to
that time.”
[Kaplan] “A seven-year cycle beginning and concluding

with two massive remissions of credit and debt.”
[The Prophet] “Which is what?”
[Kaplan] “The Shemitah,” I answered.2
As has already been noted, the reader has been somewhat misled
because these crashes did not rank in even the top ten largest crashes in
terms of percentages.
Admittedly the timing is interesting, but is it significant? If any
of the other proposed harbingers in the book genuinely pointed to
divine origin, it might be easier to take this detail more seriously.
The fact that Cahn has given an unbiblical definition to Shemitah
doesn’t help. Nor does the fact that the Shemitah was never required
of any nation except Israel. Then there is the problem that the
stock market crashes of 2001 and 2008 came nowhere close to the
Shemitah that God imposed on Israel.
“Trying to have it both ways” is a recurring issue in the methods
Cahn uses as he tries to collect and correlate evidence for his theories.
– 121 –
He does this again concerning the seven years between 2001 and
2008—so much so that it has the feel of his being far too selective in
choosing which facts to present and which to leave out. Of course,
every author has to be selective, but in this case the result is to make
it very difficult for readers to objectively evaluate the entire body
of evidence for themselves. Readers are not necessarily being misin-
formed, but they are being left uninformed.
In order to make his case for the exact seven-year “Shemitah
timing” between the stock market crashes, he appeals to the Hebrew
calendar to show that both happened on the last day of the Jewish
year, Elul 29. That seems reasonable. However, he shifts to the
Gregorian calendar (the one normally used) to show the precision of
the seven years between 9/11/2001 and 9/11/2008:
[The Prophet] “The collapse of Lehman Brothers and the

American economy took place over the course of one week. It
was the anniversary week of another American calamity . . .”
[Kaplan] “9/11.”
[The Prophet] “Yes, 9/11,” he said. “The collapse of

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac happened on September 7.
The collapse of Lehman Brothers began two days later on
September 9 when it lost 45 percent of its value. It was
on September 10 that it announced its loss of almost four
billion dollars. The following day its stock took a second
precipitous plunge.”
[Kaplan] “September 11.”3
Here Cahn uses the Gregorian calendar (which is used in

America) when it suits his purposes to show precise timing. Then to
show the precise timing of another set of events, he uses the Hebrew
calendar to demonstrate that the two collapses of the stock market
– 12 2 –
FUDGING THE NUMBERS
on 29 Elul matched the seven-year cycle of the Shemitah. So eco-

nomic cycles follow the Hebrew calendar? Not necessarily, as can be
seen when Cahn tries to muster additional support for his theory:
[Kaplan] “And the time separating the two events . . . ”
[The Prophet] “Seven years,” said The Prophet. “There

were seven years between the two.”
[Kaplan] “Seven years—the biblical period of time that

concerns a nation’s financial and economic realms.”4
In this case, he isn’t talking about seven years based on the

Hebrew calendar. He’s talking about September 11, 2001, and
September 11, 2008—according to the Gregorian calendar.
Beyond this, the way that he deals with the dates is also rather
questionable. Things happened on various dates around September
11, 2008, but he picks out that date to argue for the precision:
[The Prophet] “So not only did the collapse of 2008

take place at the seven-year mark from 9/11, but it specifi-
cally concerned the principle of the Shemitah.5
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac collapsed on September 7.

Lehman Brothers’ stock dropped 45 percent on September 9 and
then announced a $4 billion dollar loss on September 10. And
then on September 11, Lehman’s stock “took a second precipitous
plunge.” But why is September 11 considered the significant date
and not September 15, which is the day it filed for bankruptcy?
Or why not September 9, when the drop started? This seems very
arbitrary and gives the impression of “cherry-picking” evidence in
order to strengthen the author’s arguments while diminishing the
significance of related evidence that does not support and, in many
ways, even undercuts his arguments.
– 12 3 –
Some might suggest that such criticisms miss the larger impor-
tant point while unnecessarily getting lost in minute details.
However, if Cahn relies on this level of precise detail, then his claims
need to be examined at that level. When this is done, the claimed
precision required by the Shemitah begins to fade away.
Once again, the author cannot have it both ways by arguing
for exact precision to the day, on one hand, but then arguing for
“in-the-ballpark” precision on the other—especially by switching
between two different ways of reckoning dates (the Hebrew and
Gregorian calendars). This is not significantly different from using
the Septuagint to prove one point and the Masoretic text to prove
another point—even though they are mutually contradictory.
The “mystery of sevens”

Someone has well said, “If you torture statistics long enough,
they will confess to anything.”
A significant feature of Cahn’s ongoing argument is what he
calls “a mystery of sevens,”6 which relies on numbers and statistics.
This refers to several occurrences of the number seven such that
together coincidence is not a reasonable explanation, meaning that
the pattern must be a sign from God. Cahn cites three instances
where seven appears in association with the Shemitah and thus
“demonstrates divine intervention”:
1. $700 billion: The amount of Lehman Brothers’ rejected

government bailout request
2. 7%: The size of the stock market crash by percentage in

2008 on the day that Congress voted down the bailout
3. 777: The size of that stock market crash by points
– 124 –
FUDGING THE NUMBERS
Could the Lord do this? Yes, He certainly could. Does He still

do this? Yes, He very well may. And if He has, then anyone would
be insanely foolish to ignore His warning.
Of course, the number seven undoubtedly has special significance
throughout the Bible. Among the many things tied to the number
seven are the number of days in a week, the Sabbath day, the number
of generations between Adam and Enoch, the number of animals
required for the burnt offering, the month of the Feasts of Trumpets
and Tabernacles, the Day of Atonement, and of course the Shemitah
(Sabbath year). In the book of Revelation, seven is the number of the
churches in Asia Minor, the number of the Spirits of God, the num-
ber of judgments in each of the three series among others.
So, the significance of the number seven is clearly biblical. That
is not the issue. The issue is whether Cahn has correctly identified
the hand of God through these occurrences of the number seven.
Unfortunately, Cahn’s insistence on making significant claims based
on precise statistics forces a fairly tedious analysis of the details.
However, as the analysis will show, by arguing for such detailed pre-
cision, he ends up falling on his own sword.
Failed Lehman Brothers bailout

As one would expect, this failed bailout involves a huge number
of statistics. However, an examination of the evidence shows that
the number seven actually appears in very few places and simply
does not support the claim. The following are just a few of the many
related statistics:7
1. $2.8 billion: 2008 second fiscal quarter losses

2. $6 billion: Amount of assets sold because of the
above losses
3. 73%: Loss of value in first half of 2008
– 12 5 –
4. 6%: Amount of assets sold because of the above

losses
5. 9/15/2008: Date of bankruptcy filing
6. $639 billion: Assets
7. $619 billion: Debt
8. $10 billion: Erosion of market capitalization in 2008
9. $86.18: The record the stock price hit in 2007
10. 3/13/2007: Largest one-day stock drop in five years
11. 2500: Number of mortgage-related jobs eliminated
in August 2007
12. 77%: Stock drop in first week of September 2008
13. 93%: Stock plunge on September 15, 2008
The above list is fully representative of all the statistics and is

not intentionally selective. Cahn has chosen to focus on only one
number—700 (he does not cite the 77 percent drop in the first
week of September). Can that single number really be counted as
an amazing match for which only God could be responsible? Does
700 even count as a seven? Perhaps 777, but 700?
How does Cahn justify picking just one number from such a
large universe of statistics in order to prove his point? Using this
method, the author could have been trying to prove any number
from zero through nine and found the evidence he was looking for.
The suggestion that the number 700 has any significance is just not
reasonable.
And finally, an interesting fact is that although Congress allowed
Lehman Brothers to fail by voting down their $700 billion bailout
on Monday, September 29, on Friday of that week the bailout was
approved for the financial sector in general.8 Once again, the reader
– 12 6 –
FUDGING THE NUMBERS
has been misled through the very selective use of facts that do not
remotely represent the whole picture—and the total proof is now
down from three points to two.
Stock market crash of 2008

As he does on several occasions, in trying to demonstrate the
validity of the “mystery of sevens,” Cahn appeals to what he says
are very precise numbers. Therefore, if precision is claimed to
prove God’s involvement, the numbers actually need to be precise.
Anything less proves nothing more than an interesting coincidence.
The first issue is the supposed sign of the 777-point drop on
September 29, 2008. Late that day, CNNMoney.com reported the
drop as 778 points.9 This was because the actual figure was 777.68
points. It was not 777, nor could it properly be rounded to 777.
If the Lord were trying to draw attention to what He was doing,
causing the drop to be precisely 777.77 or 777.00 certainly would
be no more difficult for Him than 777.68. But as it is, the actual
figure is just another number.
Of course, the charge could be made that this is just wrangling
over insignificant details and missing the main point. However, it
is the details on which Cahn’s theories depend, and in this case, the
theory is dashed on the rocks of those details. This takes the total
proof down to just one final point.
As has been previously noted, the corresponding 7 percent
drop does not even rank in the top ten declines by percentage
points. Furthermore, while the DOW is an important measure, the
NASDAQ and S&P 500 indexes are also significant indicators, and
they fell 9.1 percent and 8.8 percent respectively.10 How does the
author determine which one of the three important stock market
numbers is a sign from God? Would it have also been a sign if the
DOW had fallen 8 percent but the NASDAQ had fallen 7 percent?
– 127 –
And finally, the fact is that the drop was not exactly 7.0 per-
cent. Rather, it was 6.98 percent.11 Citing this exact number will
surely cause some to roll their eyes at the meager two-hundredths
difference. However, when the basis for one’s arguments is precise
numbers, then they need to be precise. Would it also have been a
sign if it had been 6.51percent or 7.49 percent? How much could it
be off and still be a sign?
This is not 722 bc, when numbers were considered precise if
they were in the ballpark. In the twenty-first century, with incredibly
precise computers and lightning-fast communications technology,
millions of dollars are often at stake with even just 1 hundredth of a
percent. For example, 2 hundredths of 1 percent of the $700 billion
bailout is $14 million. If God were sending a sign, how difficult
would it have been for Him to make it exactly a 7.0 percent drop?
Or better still, 7.7 percent, or even 7.77 percent?
This is not to presume to tell the Lord how He should send
signs or with what precision. On the other hand, if someone claims
to try to discern what God has done with precision, then precision
should be expected. Yet the degree of precision that Cahn employs is
both arbitrary and inconsistent. The numbers are interesting—but
not amazing. They do not rise to the level of being the sure signa-
ture of the hand of God.
This is compounded by the fact that it is impossible to jus-
tify the very narrow selectivity that Cahn uses. This is “stacking
the deck.” The mathematical improbability argument to which so
many appeal in support of the validity of the author’s theories sim-
ply evaporates under even moderate scrutiny. This removes all three
numbers from the “mystery of the sevens,” leaving just the dates
themselves to consider.
The most obvious problem is that if the three numbers have no
statistical significance, then the significance of the date on which
– 12 8 –
FUDGING THE NUMBERS
they occurred is lessened dramatically. Granted, the timing of what

happened on these two dates is perhaps the most interesting phe-
nomenon in the book, but this is simply because none of the rest of
the “evidence” has any demonstrable significance.
Cahn has noted that the “first shaking” occurred on September
17, 2001 (29 Elul), in the form of a stock market crash on the last
day of the Shemitah year. For that to be significant would require
the previous seven years to also be part of an imposed Shemitah cycle,
beginning with September 6, 1994 (1 Tishri).
Another consideration is that in 2001 the drop was 684 points
at 7.1 percent.12 Close, perhaps, but this is even less precise than in
2008. Can it be said with any confidence that God caused this drop
as a warning to America? And did He do so in a way that would be
recognized as connected to the Jewish Shemitah? To even suggest
that this might be true requires a lot of supporting evidence, which
simply doesn’t exist.
No one else has noticed this over the last eleven years for a very
good reason—it is not obvious. And if it isn’t obvious, then it isn’t
a sign or warning of judgment. Cahn says that there was a second
warning in 2008 because everyone ignored the first warning in
2001. No, they didn’t. It was not ignored—it wasn’t seen.
Of all the godly men and women across America who love and
serve the Lord, of the thousands and thousands of outstanding Bible
teachers and preachers, virtually no one was sounding the alarm
because they did not recognize it as a warning of an impending
Shemitah judgment. The reason they did not recognize it is because
the evidence is not there and the idea of a Shemitah being imposed on
America is unbiblical.
– 12 9 –
CHAPTER 17
BIBLICAL REALITIES &

INESCAPABLE CONCLUSIONS
THE MYRIAD of practical problems strongly mitigates against
Cahn’s theory that God has imposed a Shemitah on the United
States. As previously noted, Cahn acknowledges that the Shemitah
was given to Israel and not to any other nation. But the theological
problem involved with proposing that God is still using the
Shemitah as a principle is even greater.
The Sabbath day and the Sabbath year, the Shemitah, were
exclusively part of the Law of Moses. If God had any expectations
of man with regard to the Sabbath day or a seven-year economic or
agricultural cycle apart from the Law, there would be corresponding
revelation. However, the Scriptures are silent on this, both before
and after the Law.
The New Testament neither prescribes nor describes any
Sabbath-keeping for believers after Christ’s death on the cross.
There are only seven references to the Sabbath day after the Day of
Pentecost (Acts 2). These references occur only in the book of Acts
in chapters 13 through 18 and are only in reference to the day of the
week when unconverted Jews gathered in the synagogues.
– 13 0 –
BIBLICAL REALITIES & INESCAPABLE CONCLUSIONS
Other than these, there are no references to the Sabbath day

or year—not a single instruction to the churches—except for one
important passage in Romans concerning Sabbath-keeping:
Romans 14:5-6—
One person esteems one day above another; another

esteems every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his
own mind. He who observes the day, observes it to the
Lord; and he who does not observe the day, to the Lord
he does not observe it. He who eats, eats to the Lord, for
he gives God thanks; and he who does not eat, to the Lord
he does not eat, and gives God thanks.
In keeping with this principle, the writer of Hebrews gives addi-

tional insight into the theological basis for what Paul wrote to the
believers in Rome. In order to prepare ethnically Jewish Christians
for the soon-coming destruction of the temple, chapter 4 makes
it clear that those who have believed the gospel have entered into
God’s Sabbath rest—which would include both the Sabbath day
and the Sabbath year:
Hebrews 4:1-3, 8-10—
Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest,

let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it.
For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to
them; but the word which they heard did not profit them,
not being mixed with faith in those who heard it. For we
who have believed do enter that rest . . .
For if Joshua had given them rest, then He would not
afterward have spoken of another day. There remains
therefore a rest for the people of God. For he who has
entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as
God did from His.
– 131 –
Those who are in Christ by faith have entered into the Sabbath
rest that God has promised and prepared. Apart from Christ there
is no Sabbath requirement, meaning that because Christ fulfilled
the Law, God does not impose a Sabbath day or a Sabbath year
(the Shemitah).
God no longer expects Jews to continue keeping the Sabbath day
or Shemitah. Rather, His desire is that they would enter His Sabbath
through faith in Christ. Gentiles were never required to keep either
Sabbath. Therefore, there is no biblical basis whatsoever for Cahn’s
theory concerning an imposed Shemitah. Quite the opposite is
true—his theory runs counter to the Word of God and the gospel.
The Shemitah: Concluding Thoughts
Together, this all explains why no one else has seen this for so many
years—except for Cahn, who has a propensity for seeking hidden
mysteries in obscure passages. The Bible teachers and theologians
who have endorsed The Harbinger need to ask themselves why they
did not see this imposed Shemitah. If it is now so obvious, how
could they have missed it? There is no new information, no new
revelation from God. The only thing new is profound speculation.
Beyond this, if God were sending a specific warning through
a specific set of circumstances in order to bring America to repen-
tance, why would He make the signs so obscure and imprecise as
to be virtually impossible to recognize? And if this is all part of
a parallel or pattern, why are there no biblical examples of God
being so cryptic in warning of impending judgment? God’s warn-
ings were almost universally clear and could not be missed. They
were ignored, but they were not missed or misunderstood.
And finally, the imposed-Shemitah theory is thoroughly
– 13 2 –
BIBLICAL REALITIES & INESCAPABLE CONCLUSIONS
unbiblical at its core. It is antithetical to the biblical concept of the

Sabbath laws given to Israel alone and the fulfillment of those laws
for believers in Christ.
This doesn’t mean that God will not judge the nations, includ-
ing America. This doesn’t mean that His judgment is not already
underway. It may very well be—and if so, it is well deserved.
However, whatever the judgment is or will be, it is not an imposed
Shemitah judgment connected with Isaiah 9:10.
– 13 3 –
SECTION 3

A PROPHETIC WARNING
TO AMERICA
AND THE WORLD?
CHAPTER 18
SIGNS OF
THE SECOND COMING?
A RELATIVELY RARE series of lunar and solar eclipses, which

coincides with important dates on the Jewish calendar in 2014 and
2015, is generating a significant amount of speculation that these
could be signs connected with the Second Coming of Jesus Christ.
The four consecutive total lunar eclipses are known as a “blood
moon tetrad.” Interestingly, each of the lunar eclipses falls on two
specific Jewish feast days in both 2014 and 2015, namely, Passover
and Sukkot (Feast of Tabernacles). In addition, a solar eclipse
occurred on the first day of the religious new year on the Jewish
calendar, Nisan 1, which corresponded to March 20 in 2015.
The speculation that this blood moon tetrad may be directly
connected with Christ’s return is completely based on speculation
connected with biblical prophecies found most notably in Joel 2
(and as quoted by Peter in Acts 2), Matthew 24, and Revelation 6.
And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth:

Blood and fire and pillars of smoke. The sun shall be
turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before
the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord.
(Joel 2:30-31)
– 13 6 –
SIGNS OF THE SECOND COMING?
Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun

will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the
stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heav-
ens will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of Man will
appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will
mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the
clouds of heaven with power and great glory. (Matthew
24:29–30)
I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold, there

was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sack-
cloth of hair, and the moon became like blood. And the
stars of heaven fell to the earth, as a fig tree drops its late
figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind. Then the sky
receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and every moun-
tain and island was moved out of its place. And the kings
of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the command-
ers, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid
themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains.
(Revelation 6:12–15)
These passages refer to God’s coming judgment upon the earth

as part of what is known in the Old Testament as “the Day of the
Lord” (or frequently just “that day”). Furthermore, these passages
clearly indicate that there will be specific events in nature that will
serve as signs that God’s judgment is at hand or is already under-
way. When understood in light of other passages, we know that
this judgment will begin shortly after the Rapture of the church
and prior to the Lord’s return to the earth, during the seven-year
tribulation period.
However, do the Scriptures genuinely support the conclusion
that these upcoming eclipses are the specific signs predicted by Jesus
and Joel and which were shown to John the apostle?
– 137 –
Knowing the Day and Hour . . .
Although most prophecy teachers who believe that the coming

blood moon tetrad is connected with Christ’s return want to avoid
the charge of “date-setting,” they are also going to great lengths to
persuade people that these eclipses could very well represent pro-
phetic fulfillment. For example, in his book, Four Blood Moons:
Something Is about to Change, John Hagee writes:
The fourth series of Four Blood Moons is coming! They

are extremely rare even by scientific standards. God is
shouting to us, “Something big is about to happen!”
However, the coming Four Blood Moons of 2014–15
does not mean the Rapture is going to happen during
that time. Why? Because the Rapture could happen at
any moment. What they are telling us is that God is get-
ting ready to change the course of human history once
again. He is preparing to display the next series of signs
in the heavens.1
This is a very definitive statement by Hagee and one that is

going to be difficult for him to walk back if it turns out that he is
wrong.
The inspiration for Hagee’s book is found in the work of Hebrew
Roots pastor Mark Biltz of El Shaddai Ministries, who was perhaps
the first one to discover (in 2008) that the blood moon tetrad of
2014 and 2015 would fall on Jewish feast days. His discovery was a
result of doing research on the part NASA’s website devoted to lunar
and solar eclipses. At that time, some speculated that the Rapture
might occur in 2008, with Christ’s return in 2015, because of the
intervening seven years that would have corresponded to the tribula-
tion period. In 2008, Biltz wrote the following on his blog:
– 13 8 –
When I talk about the second coming I am not referring

to the rapture but to Messiah’s feet landing on the Mt of
Olives in Zech 14. I am not setting dates for the rapture.
The only dates I am giving is the dates NASA gives us
for eclipses and the dates God gives us on His calendar
and then I bring in the connection. You can do what-
ever you want according to your own theology with this
information. With much humor I say, “Put it in your own
theological pipe and smoke it however you want.”
I did say, and again say, IF these eclipses in 2015 are
what the Lord was referring to, then 2015 would look like
a possible year for His feet to land on the Mt of Olives.
And, IF this is true then the tribulation could, not would,
start this fall at the Feast of Trumpets, (which technically
is 2 days long: KJV Matthew 24:36 - But of that day and
hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my
Father only). In light of all the prophetic events going on I
would say it is likely but I’m not saying definitely.2
Although I fully believe that we may be in the last of the last

days, and I also understand that we must always be prepared for the
Lord’s appearing, there are very real dangers associated with attempt-
ing to assign prophetic fulfillment to specific current geo-political,
religious, societal, or natural events. Many have tried to do this in the
past, leading to scores of failed predictions concerning the Rapture,
the Tribulation, the rise of the Antichrist, Christ’s return, and the
end of the world—and to date, every single one has failed.
Of course we certainly don’t want to miss any signs from the
Lord, but concerning His return, Jesus issued this warning:
But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the
angels of heaven, but My Father only. . . . Watch therefore,
for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. But
know this, that if the master of the house had known what
– 13 9 –
hour the thief would come, he would have watched and

not allowed his house to be broken into. Therefore you
also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you
do not expect. (Matthew 24:36–44)
Mark records that Jesus said that even He was among those who
did not know the time of His return by including the rather remark-
able phrase “. . . nor the Son”:
But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the
angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Take
heed, watch and pray; for you do not know when the time
is. (Mark 13:32–33)
Some argue, however, that rather than stating the impossibility

of knowing the timing of His return in advance, the Lord was actu-
ally using a well-known Hebrew idiom to inform His disciples of
the precise time of the Second Coming. In an article on the Hebraic
Heritage Ministries website, the author expands on ideas gleaned
from a 1996 book by Avi Ben Mordechai, Signs in the Heavens:
Understanding the expression “No man knows the day or

hour” is not possible by simply taking the English transla-
tion literally, because in the book of Daniel and the Book
of Revelation, we are given EXACT descriptions of tim-
ing, relative to KEY events – such as the shutting down of
the altar sacrifices in Jerusalem at the MID-POINT of the
70th week. Dan 9:27
Jesus was asked, “When shall these things be?” Matt 24:3
His answer ties us in to a very specific event (The
Abomination of Desolation) which can be measured
on our calendars: “When you therefore shall see the
Abomination Of Desolation, spoken of by Daniel the
prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoever reads, let him
understand:)…” Matt 24:15. It is now clear that “no man
– 14 0 –
knows the day or hour” does NOT mean “no man knows
the day or hour” as we read it from a modern-day English
perspective.
The following chapter contains edited excerpts from
Avi Ben Mordechai’s commentaries and builds on them
aiming to explain that the Holy Bible does in fact reveal
the “day and hour” or “exact timing” of our Lord’s return.
No One Knows the Day or the Hour?

Christians over the centuries have separated themselves
from their Hebraic roots causing the misunderstanding of
key Jewish biblical idioms. An idiom is also a figure of
speech. When Y’shua (Jesus) uttered His famous words
concerning the Messianic Era in Mattityahu (Matthew)
24:26, “No one knows about that day or hour, not even
the angels in Heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father,”
He used a common Jewish figure of speech referring to a
specific Jewish Festival. In essence He was saying, “I am
coming for My Bride on such and such a day! Be watch-
ing!” What day could the Jewish idiom be referring to?
Keep reading!3
The above article then goes into a very lengthy discussion of the
matter in question, while the Sound Doctrine Ministries website
more succinctly explains:
The phrase “no one knows the day or hour” is a Hebrew

idiom for the Rosh Chodesh (New Moon Festival), which
ushers in the Feast of Trumpets and the fall feasts of God
(YHWH). Many times God has the new moon tarry
over Jerusalem for one, two or more days, before com-
ing into its young crescent sighting for the announcing
of the New Moon Festival (John 14:3). Therefore we wait
and watch for the “day and hour” of His return. When
– 141 –
that Last Trump blows, the Bride trims her lamp and goes
out to meet her Bridegroom for the start of their wedding
(Matthew 25:1-13).4
In other words, because the lunar cycle is approximately (but

not exactly) 29.5 days, the precise timing of the appearance of the
new moon sometimes falls on the twenty-ninth day of the month
and sometimes on the thirtieth. Since the new moon appears near
sunset and because according to Hebrew reckoning, each day begins
at sundown, the sighting could be slightly before or slightly after the
start of the new day—thus, because the hour is unknown, the same
is true of the day.
The Feast of Trumpets (Yom Terueh) is the only feast that
begins with a new moon, falling on the first day of the lunar month
of Tishri on the Jewish calendar. Tishri is the seventh month of the
religious year, but Tishri also corresponds to the first month of the
civil year—with the first day of that month being known as “Rosh
Hashanah” or “head of the year.” Furthermore, because the Feast
of Tabernacles occurs on the fifteenth day of Tishri, which is when
full lunar eclipses will occur in both 2014 and 2015, and because
these dates are now being suggested as signs of Christ’s return, the
speculation is that the Rapture may occur on the Feast of Trumpets
in one of those years.*
At first glance, such an explanation of Jesus’ words concerning
not knowing the day or the hour may seem to be plausible and thus
unlock Jesus’ statement by revealing the timing of His return, right?
Well, not exactly.
The exact day and time of the appearance of the new moon
is neither random, nor mystical, nor determined by the Lord via
*Obviously, it didn’t happen in 2014 and for readers of this book prior to September 2015, there is very
little time left to wait to determine just how rightfully deserved the title of “false prophet” will apply to
certain of the deeply entrenched prophecy teachers who are trying so hard to avoid exactly that label.
– 14 2 –
miraculous intervention each month such that the specific timing

would be known only to Him. Prior to the development of tele-
scopes and astronomy as a scientific discipline, such celestial events
did seem to have an uncertain, perhaps even mystical quality to
them. However, now that we understand the mechanics of planetary
motion, the timing, along with every other parameter associated
with the movement of all of the bodies within our solar system can
be calculated very precisely for decades, centuries, and even millen-
nia, both in the past and into the future.
For example, the NASA website has an area dedicated to lunar
and solar eclipses, with a full catalog of lunar eclipses over five mil-
lennia, from 2000 bc to ad 3000. The first graphic shows a portion
of the NASA catalog for the lunar eclipses from 2011 through
2015, while the second graphic shows detailed information con-
cerning solar eclipses in the first five years of the first century ad.
These charts clearly demonstrate just how precisely the eclipses can
be calculated.5
http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/LEdecade/LEdecade2011.html
– 14 3 –
The NASA Solar Eclipse Website features a five millennium catalog of solar
eclipses. This table is for the first century (1 to 100 A.D.)
The ability to calculate solar and lunar eclipses with such preci-
sion provides crucial insight into Jesus’ words concerning no one
except the Father knowing the day or hour of His return. One might
argue that Jesus was using the Hebrew idiom to cryptically signal
to his disciples that He would return on the Feast of Trumpets, the
timing of which could not be known precisely at that point in his-
tory. However, we now know that the motion of the sun, moon, and
planets was established at the moment of creation by Jesus Christ
himself as the Creator (Colossians 1:16). This means that, in con-
trast to those to whom He was speaking, Christ would have known
precisely when every eclipse would occur throughout history. And
so Jesus, himself, has always known that a blood moon tetrad would
occur precisely on Jewish feast days in 2014 and 2015. And since
the exact timing of these events is not simply a matter of foreknowl-
edge, but rather a matter of simple mathematical calculations, the
angels in heaven could just as easily have been able to determine
each time this would happen throughout history, as well—and it
has happened several times.
– 14 4 –
CHAPTER 19
THE “IMMINENCY” PROBLEM
ANOTHER SIGNIFICANT PROBLEM with the theory that

Christ’s return must be tied to a blood moon tetrad that falls on
Jewish feast days has to do with the doctrine of the “imminency”
of the Rapture of the church. Dispensational theologians have long
recognized that the Scriptures teach that although there are many
prophesied events that will take place after the Rapture, there are
none that must take place prior to it. In other words, the Rapture
could happen at any moment. Prophetically, it is imminent.
One thing that needs to be noted at this point has to do with
the difference between the Rapture and the Second Coming of
Christ in relation to His statement about not knowing the day or
the hour. In the context of Matthew 24, where the Lord is teaching
about events that will take place after the Rapture and during the
seven-year Tribulation period, it is clear that He is specifically refer-
ring to His return to the earth at the end of the Tribulation, when
He will arrive from heaven (Revelation 19) and touch down on
the Mount of Olives (Zechariah 14). Therefore, the matter of not
knowing the day or the hour isn’t directly connected to the Rapture
itself. However, between not knowing the day or hour of Christ’s
return to the earth and the fact that the Rapture is imminent, also
– 14 5 –
suggests that no one can know the day or hour of the Rapture either.
Another factor to consider with regard to Jesus’ words is that the
disciples may not have yet received specific revelation concerning
the relative timing of the Rapture, the Tribulation, and the Second
Coming. They were still looking at things from an “Old Testament
perspective” that saw the Lord’s coming as a single event rather than
the two phases we see in the New Testament. And even if the Lord
had provided that information to them at some point, it was appar-
ently not widely known or completely clear until Paul wrote about
it in 1 and 2 Thessalonians about twenty years later and then John
received further revelation roughly forty years after that.
This being said, there is really no consensus concerning the rela-
tionship between the timing of the blood moons and the Rapture,
the Tribulation, and the Second Coming. In the first half of 2008,
when Mark Biltz first discovered that a tetrad of lunar eclipses would
take place on Jewish feast days in 2014 and 2015, he speculated
that the eclipses in 2014 might take place during the Tribulation,
with the last eclipse in 2015 connected to Christ’s return to the
earth. Then taking into account the seven years of the Tribulation,
he speculated that the Rapture might occur later in 2008.
Since that obviously did not happen, the speculation by some
is now that the Rapture could occur two weeks prior to the lunar
eclipses in the fall of 2014 or 2015 on the Feast of Trumpets. (Of
course, 2014 is no longer a contender as of the date of this writing.)
However, the theory that the Rapture must occur on the Feast of
Trumpets is not something that just developed in the context of the
coming blood moon tetrad.
If the Rapture must occur on the Feast of Trumpets, then for
every year that it doesn’t happen, yet another entire year would need
to pass until the day when the Rapture could again possibly occur.
Looking at it another way, over the course of a century there are
– 14 6 –
THE IMMINENCY PROBLEM
approximately one hundred Feasts of Trumpets, which when added

together is a total of less than four months of days when Christ could
have come for His church, and, conversely, there would be more
than ninety-nine years and eight months of days when Christ could
not have come.
This problem is compounded if the return of Christ could
only be in connection with a blood moon occurring on the Feast
of Tabernacles. For example, during the last century, between 1901
and 2000, total lunar eclipses occurred in the month of Tishri
only seven times. The longest stretch between total lunar eclipses
occurring on the Feast of Tabernacles was when the first one of the
century occurred on October 17, 1902, and the second occurred
on September 26, 1931.1 This means that there was a gap of nearly
thirty years when the Rapture could not have happened if one
accepts the premise of the blood moon/Feast of Trumpets theory.
However, the problem is compounded exponentially if the
return of Christ could happen only in connection with an entire
blood moon tetrad occurring on Jewish Feast days. In the last five
hundred years this will have happened only four times—in 1493-94,
1949-50, 1967-68 and 2014-15. If the coming blood moon tetrad
of 2014 and 2015 is a sign directly associated with the Rapture or
the Second Coming of Christ to the earth, then that means that
it could not have occurred at any time over the last forty years,
meaning that our watching and waiting during that time has been
completely in vain—and our warning people of the Lord’s immi-
nent coming in the clouds to receive the church unto Himself has
been foolish—or worse. And if these events must be tied to any
blood moon tetrad on the Jewish feast days in general, then it means
that Christ could not have returned at any time between 1495 and
1949—a period of more than 450 years.
All of this would seem to completely undermine Jesus’ words
– 147 –
concerning being alert and watching because He could come at any

time. After referring to the judgment by flood in the days of Noah,
Jesus warned:
Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your

Lord is coming. But know this, that if the master of the
house had known what hour the thief would come, he
would have watched and not allowed his house to be
broken into. Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of
Man is coming at an hour you do not expect. (Matthew
24:42–44)
After this, Jesus drove the point home by using an illustration of

a man who left an untrustworthy servant in charge of his household
while he away on business:
But if that evil servant says in his heart, “My master is

delaying his coming,” and begins to beat his fellow ser-
vants, and to eat and drink with the drunkards, the master
of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking
for him and at an hour that he is not aware of, and will cut
him in two and appoint him his portion with the hypo-
crites. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then
the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who
took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.
(Matthew 24:48–25:1)
Jesus continued this extended exhortation by using a parable

about ten virgins who were invited to a wedding, of whom five acted
irresponsibly and therefore were not ready to go with the bride-
groom when the time to go to the wedding came without warning:
And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and
– 14 8 –
those who were ready went in with him to the wedding;

and the door was shut. Afterward the other virgins came
also, saying, “Lord, Lord, open to us!” But he answered
and said, “Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.”
Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the
hour in which the Son of Man is coming. (Matthew
25:10–13)
The Nature of Signs Vs. Signs in Nature
One of the most frequently quoted passages of Scripture by

those who believe the coming blood moon tetrad is a sign of Christ’s
coming is Genesis 1:14
Then God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of

the heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them
be for signs and seasons, and for days and years. (Genesis
1:14)
The argument is that God has told us that He specifically set

up the present lunar and solar cycles to specifically function as signs
of major events (such as Christ’s return). However, there are several
significant problems with this understanding of Genesis 1:14. The
first is that it actually reverses the meaning of the verse. The point
the Lord was making was that He had set up the universe, and spe-
cifically our solar system, such that the combination of the earth’s
and moon’s rotation and orbits would establish fixed, regular inter-
vals of time—days, weeks, months and years—according to which
He could then prescribe when His people would engage in various
activities and meet various obligations in every sphere of life, includ-
ing the agricultural, social, civil, and spiritual/religious realms.
In other words, the sun, moon, and stars were “signs” that
– 14 9 –
provided a completely natural and absolutely predictable frame of

reference. We could call these “providential signs,” which stand in
stark contrast to “miraculous signs” that God would give in con-
nection with His direct miraculous intervention at various points
in history. Miraculous signs are neither natural nor predictable.
In fact, if they were natural and predictable they wouldn’t even be
recognized as signs for which God would be the only possible expla-
nation. And “signs” that cannot be recognized as such are really not
signs at all.
Those who are trying to argue that the coming blood moons are
signs from God that the end is near point to God’s frequent use of
things in nature as described throughout Scripture. However, they
consistently seem to miss the obvious concerning what is going on
and that those signs are fundamentally different from predictable
events in nature such as lunar and solar eclipses.
Frequently, we see God giving miraculous signs as either a
warning of judgment or as the judgment itself. And even though
they often involve His use of things in nature, as noted above, they
can’t be classified as “natural” at all.
For example, when God judged the earth by flood (Genesis
6-9), He did it through nature, but what happened could never have
occurred naturally. When God gave signs to Pharaoh and brought
judgment against Egypt (Exodus 5-12), he used many things found
in nature, such as frogs, gnats, locusts, and hail, but He manipulated
them such that no one could have reasonably thought they were just
natural occurrences. When the Lord parted the Red Sea (Exodus
14), He used wind, but no “natural” wind could have caused what
happened on that day. Similarly, Joshua’s “long day” (Joshua 10)
involved the rotation of the earth and the relative position of the
sun in the sky over Israel, but the only explanation for what took
place was God’s supernatural intervention. When the Lord Jesus
– 15 0 –
Christ was born, there was some sort of celestial body that became
visible as a sign, and magi who had seen this star in the East fol-
lowed it to Bethlehem as it went before them. As they approached,
the star stopped over where Jesus was (Matthew 2). There are many
other examples.
All of these were signs in nature, but they were categorically
different from the blood moons of 2014-15. Because these are com-
pletely natural and absolutely predictable, even with the interesting
fact that they fall on Jewish Feast days, they cannot biblically func-
tion as signs warning of God’s impending judgment or some other
major event. Something that occurs naturally, predictably, and with
any regularity simply doesn’t work as a sign because it isn’t like any
other biblical sign. And because of this, even those who most love
the Lord and His Word would also be the most likely to miss it. This
just doesn’t work—because it follows no known biblical pattern.
Beyond this, as one reads the descriptions of the signs con-
nected with the sun and moon in both the prophecies by Joel and
Jesus, and then the visions given to John of their prophetic fulfill-
ment in Revelation, one gets the sense that these are anything but
normal total eclipses. The duration of totality for both lunar and
solar eclipses is so short that it is measured in just minutes and sec-
onds. And in the case of solar eclipses, totality occurs along a very
narrow path on the face of the earth, such that it is not even a major
event for all but a very small portion of the world’s population. How
could such an event be a sign to the world?
Furthermore, these prophecies were given specifically to Israel
so that they could understand that God’s judgment was at hand or
had already begun. Yet the path of totality for the solar eclipse in
2015 didn’t, but was visible from only a very small strip of ocean and
an island in a very sparsely populated region of the North Atlantic.
It didn’t fall anywhere close to Israel. So how could this eclipse be
– 151 –
a sign in Israel? (And even though some have suggested that lunar
eclipses are for Israel and solar eclipses are for the world, this still
doesn’t work in any significant way.)
Beyond even these things, the prophecies seem to suggest that
the moon turning to blood and the sun being darkened like sack-
cloth are simultaneous events and ones that affect the entire earth
simultaneously, as well. If that is true, then another problem arises
because the closest that solar and lunar eclipses can occur is fifteen
days apart. This is because the positions of the earth and moon rela-
tive to the sun are reversed depending on whether it is a solar or
lunar eclipse. Solar eclipses can only occur right around the new
moon when the moon is between the earth and the sun, while lunar
eclipses can only occur during a full moon when the earth is between
the moon and the sun.
– 15 2 –
CHAPTER 20
THE POTENTIAL DANGER AND

A WORD OF CAUTION
BECAUSE SO MANY have been making predictions concerning
the Rapture, the Second Coming of Christ and the end of the world
for so many years, no doubt there are many who have become very
disillusioned with prophecy and prophecy teachers. For some it has
meant much more than simple disillusionment. Over the years, some
have had their lives completely destroyed as they have left family
members behind or have given away everything in anticipation that
the Rapture was going to occur on a specific day. When Harold
Camping predicted two different dates for the Rapture in 2011,
there were reports of at least one person committing suicide. Now
the questions concern what will happen if the Rapture doesn’t occur
by the time of the last full lunar eclipse in 2015.
Even with the caveats that no one is setting absolute dates, this
issue has already garnered a huge amount of attention as can be seen
with a simple Google search on “blood moons” which yields almost
half a million hits. There are entire websites devoted to this subject.
There are a number of radio and television interviews dealing with
the blood moon tetrad. There are videos on YouTube. DVDs have
been produced. Bestselling books by John Hagee and Mark Biltz
have been leading this trend, with more seeking to follow.
– 15 3 –
There are two significant and very real dangers associated with the
hype surrounding the total lunar and solar eclipses this year and next.
The first danger is that because biblically the Rapture really could
occur at any moment, many could be caught unawares if they think
they can legitimately wait until the Feast of Trumpets on September
28, 2015, to do something about their spiritual condition.
The second danger is that if these predictions fail, as have all
others in the past, for how many will this be the last straw—with the
result that they decide to have nothing more to do with prophecy
teachers, with the Bible, or even with God? Because of disillusion-
ment and the resulting skepticism, many could easily fall into the
trap described by the Apostle Peter in his second letter:
Knowing this first: that scoffers will come in the last days,
walking according to their own lusts, and saying, “Where
is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell
asleep, all things continue as they were from the begin-
ning of creation.” (2 Peter 3:3–4)
Does this mean that it is impossible that the Lord might do

something significant on one or several of these feast days on which
there will be solar and lunar eclipses in 2014 and 2015? Not at all.
He can do what He wants, when He wants.
However, whether the Rapture takes place before, during, or
after these events, we must always heed the Lord’s words as previ-
ously noted:
Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord
is coming. But know this, that if the master of the house
had known what hour the thief would come, he would
have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into.
Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming
at an hour you do not expect. (Matthew 24:42–44)
– 15 4 –
APPENDIX
DAVID JAMES RESPONDS TO

“IN DEFENSE OF A PROPHETIC VOICE”
BY DAVID REAGAN
Background
SINCE the publication of my book, The Harbinger: Fact or Fiction?

addressing critical concerns in Jonathan Cahn’s The Harbinger
that are unfavorably impacting the body of Christ, many things
have been said to us and about us, both publicly and privately, to
which we have responded very little. I have never desired to engage
in an escalating war of words, or to get into an endless cycle of
unprofitable battles. Neither do I wish to be perceived as becoming
defensive and blindly defending an indefensible position.
One reason I have chosen to begin discussing some of this is to
help our readers more fully understand the serious nature of The
Harbinger controversy. Another reason is to provide some insights
into how to respond to those who vigorously defend The Harbinger
and find themselves facing harsh criticism.
Since its publication, The Harbinger and its author, Jonathan
Cahn, have experienced an almost unprecedented rise to promi-
nence, influence, and fame in America by a Christian book and
author. Its status as the #1 Christian book for 2012, with over
seventy-five weeks on the New York Times bestseller list and one
million copies sold is impressive by any measure.
The Harbinger has struck a chord with many Christians because
of its call to repentance in the face of present or impending judg-
ment by God. Cahn claims that this judgment is evidenced by a
series of events that began with the terrorist attacks of 9/11/2001
and have continued since then, following what he says is a “tem-
plate” found in Isaiah 9:10. The case the author presents for
parallels between events in ancient Israel and present-day America
has persuaded many that it is impossible for this correspondence to
be mere coincidence and therefore it must be a message from God,
making it a “must-read.”
– 15 6 –
APPENDIX
Ultimately, the level of The Harbinger’s success can be attrib-

uted largely to the support and promotion from a wide array of
ministry leaders who have also become convinced that God is using
Cahn as a prophetic voice and who have combined constituencies
numbering in the millions. Jonathan Cahn has been interviewed
countless times, with one writer referring to him as “one of the most
interviewed Christians in America”1 and has appeared (sometimes
multiple times) on some of the most highly watched programs on
Christian television such as The Jim Bakker Show with Jim and Lori
Bakker, The 700 Club with Pat Robertson, It’s Supernatural with
Sid Roth, Prophecy in the News with Gary Stearman, This is Your
Day with Benny Hinn, Praise the Lord on TBN, and many oth-
ers. In 2012 he was interviewed on two consecutive days by Glenn
Beck, and more recently he was interviewed on the radio by former
Gov. Mike Huckabee of FoxNews and also by Dani Johnson (Secret
Millionaire).
There has also been a significant amount of controversy within
the Body of Christ over The Harbinger and Jonathan Cahn as not
everyone has shared this enthusiasm for the book. That such a book
would generate at least some controversy isn’t entirely unusual in
today’s theological climate. However, what is unusual regarding this
particular controversy is the sharp division within the evangelical
community.
Although I wrote The Harbinger: Fact or Fiction? as a critique
and response to The Harbinger, I am definitely not alone in my
criticism of the book. A good number of conservative Bible teach-
ers, pastors, and theologians have also expressed their deep concerns
about various issues related to the message of the book and its
author. The critics of The Harbinger include many respected men
and women in the conservative evangelical community such as (the
late) Roy Zuck, Gary Gilley, T. A. McMahon, Jimmy DeYoung,
– 157 –
Larry DeBruyn, Ken Silva, Danny Isom, Paul Barreca, Sarah Leslie,
Gaylene Goodroad, Chris Lawson, Brannon Howse, Tommy Ice,
Keith Gibson, Berit Kjos, and Susan Puzio to name a few.
Compounding the controversy has been the deep division
caused by some very emotional articles aimed at critics of The
Harbinger, with very little response to the actual substance of our
critiques. One example of just how personal this has gotten at times
is the following from a blogger who says of The Harbinger’s critics:
You fit the bill as the modern version of the Sanhedrin,

the Catholic Inquisition, and every man-made religious
construct of destruction that the human race has ever
erected against the face of God to obstruct His purposes
and persecute His servants in the name of God and now
in the last two thousand years – in the name of Christ.2
Despite this, we have tried to stay focused on The Harbinger

and deal exclusively with the teaching and views of Jonathan Cahn
as presented in his book, interviews, and messages. In doing so,
we have chosen to say very little about those who have so strongly
supported and promoted The Harbinger and its author, and who
have also leveled some serious personal accusations against those
with concerns. However, with The Harbinger phenomenon show-
ing few signs of letting up, it seems that the time has come to begin
to address not only the specific issues at hand, but also some of
what has been said about those who have been critical of the book,
because in many ways it has just gotten out of hand.
Jonathan Cahn
An End-Time Prophet to America
On the front cover of the May/June 2013 edition of his magazine,

Lamplighter, Dr. David Reagan suggests that Jonathan Cahn is “an
– 15 8 –
APPENDIX
end-time prophet to America.” This cover is consistent with the fact

that he has been repeatedly referred to as a prophet in many inter-
views, articles, and promotions. And although Jonathan Cahn denies
that he has ever personally called himself a prophet, I am not aware
of any time when he has denied that he is a prophet or has corrected
someone who has introduced him as a prophet. Rather he has always
accepted that appellation the many times it has been used of him.
In an article titled “In Defense of a Prophetic Voice,”3 Dr. Reagan
launches a fairly serious attack against the critics of The Harbinger.
This is a response to that article (although this response could be
generally directed to many who have supported The Harbinger and
defended Jonathan Cahn and have said many of the same things).
NOTE: The section titles in quotation marks correspond to
subheadings in Dr. Reagan’s article. All quotes attributed to Dr.
Reagan are from the article cited above.
“In Defense of a Prophetic Voice

Jonathan Cahn”
As I have followed The Harbinger controversy, I have tried to read

everything that has been written about the issue, both positive and
negative. What I have found is that theological liberals have been
almost uniformly silent about The Harbinger. Although one might
expect that it would provoke a response from some in mainstream
denominations or from some emerging church leaders, I don’t recall
reading anything specific from them. This makes the opening quote
in Dr. Reagan’s article both puzzling and troubling:
People love pillow prophets. They hate true prophets.

Pillow prophets tell people what they want to hear. They
cry, “Peace and safety!” when danger is imminent. True
prophets warn of danger and cry for repentance.
– 15 9 –
Since the normal “pillow prophets” have said virtually nothing

about The Harbinger, to whom, then, could Dr. Reagan be referring
except the theologically conservative evangelical critics of the book?
Comparing Jonathan Cahn to the biblical prophet Jeremiah,
Dr. Reagan further writes:
In like manner, Jonathan Cahn has been the victim of

irresponsible and vicious attacks. He has been accused of
“parading as a prophet.” Others have branded him a “false
prophet.” These charges are reckless, unwarranted and
un-Christ-like.
So, apparently anyone who has criticized The Harbinger falls

into the category of “pillow prophet” (or at least in the category
of “those who love pillow prophets”). However, anyone who has
followed this controversy knows that no one could reasonably sug-
gest that The Harbinger’s critics are the type of “pillow-prophets” he
describes. This is a very hollow charge that has no basis in fact.
Another problem is the accusation that these “pillow-proph-
ets” have subjected Jonathan Cahn to “irresponsible and vicious
attacks.” With few, if any, exceptions the vast majority of critiques
have focused only on the issues and have purposefully avoided per-
sonal attacks. I don’t think any of the primary, more well-known
critics have said or written anything that could be characterized as
anything close to “irresponsible” or “vicious.”
These charges raise the question of whether Dr. Reagan has
actually read some of the more significant critical reviews of The
Harbinger. Has he actually considered the substance of our con-
cerns? Has he read The Harbinger: Fact or Fiction?
Dr. Reagan goes on to say:
Jonathan Cahn’s message is thoroughly biblical. It is not

based on any new revelation from God. Rather, it is based
– 16 0 –
APPENDIX
on the biblical principles that govern God’s relationship

with nations.
This is quite a gloss that overlooks a number of serious issues.

For example, the most important principle of biblical inter-
pretation is to never lift a verse from its context. If the context is
not considered, it is impossible to understand a passage correctly.
However, this is precisely what Jonathan Cahn has done with Isaiah
9:10. The nine verses which precede Isaiah 9:10 represent one of
the most important Messianic Kingdom passages in the entire
Old Testament, yet they are completely ignored in The Harbinger.
Neither are the following verses considered. How is it that a single
verse in the middle of a chapter with twenty-one verses is a template
for events that have happened in America and the other twenty
verses have no connection whatsoever? If verse ten is a template,
why not the entire chapter? And if not the entire chapter, why 9:10?
Surely a Bible teacher like Dr. Reagan realizes just how serious this
problem really is. It is difficult to understand how he can suggest
that The Harbinger’s message is “thoroughly biblical.” And this only
begins to scratch the surface.
Another issue is Cahn’s speculation concerning the Shemitah
(Israel’s Sabbath year). He claims that America experienced a judg-
ment (or at least a warning) from God in both 2001 and 2008, tied
to the Hebrew Sabbath year in the form of stock market crashes.
To suggest that God is using the Shemitah as a basis or principle of
judgment against any nation except Israel is thoroughly unbiblical.
What about 1994, 1987, 1980, 1971 . . . ? Why did it begin in
2001 and without any warning that we, as a Gentile nation, were
obligated to the Shemitah?
This isn’t the way God does things. And beyond this, in terms of
percentage, neither of these even rank in the top ten crashes—that
they were the largest in absolute numbers means nothing more than
– 161 –
saying gas was so much cheaper in 1976 at only 60 cents per gallon.
There wasn’t anything approaching a total collapse as happened
in ancient Israel. Neither was there a “wiping out of debt” as Cahn
claims in his book. How is it that he is being given a pass on these
claims by those who are normally critical thinkers?
Besides this, there isn’t even any indication that God imposed
judgment on Israel related to the Shemitah specifically on 29 Elul,
as Cahn says happened in America. The only element of judgment
against Israel which was connected with the Shemitah involved
the length of the Babylonian captivity, which at seventy years was
one for each of the Sabbath-year cycles Israel had failed to observe.
And yet, a substantial part of The Harbinger is built exclusively on
this completely unbiblical premise and conjecture that God judged
America in this way, at this time, and for this reason. This is just fac-
tually wrong on innumerable counts as I demonstrate in my book.
It would also be difficult to overstate just how serious this is
in terms of misunderstanding and misapplying the Old Testament.
It is equally difficult to overstate just how puzzling it is that Dr.
Reagan has overlooked this issue (as have so many others), especially
when it makes up such a significant part of The Harbinger.
Then there is the serious problem of the unbiblical “Isaiah 9:10
Effect,” which also forms a major theme in The Harbinger. Jonathan
Cahn contends that the Isaiah 9:10 Effect actually caused a series
of events to inevitably happen once the effect was triggered. (All
emphasis in quotes below is mine.)
[Kaplan] “And this all has to do with America?” I asked.
[The Prophet] “Seven years after 9/11,” he said, “the

American economy collapsed, triggering a global eco-
nomic implosion. Behind it all, and all that followed, was
something much deeper than economics.”
– 16 2 –
APPENDIX

American economy was. . . .”
[The Prophet] “Isaiah 9:10.”4
In the author’s mind a repetition of the Lord’s words as recorded

by Isaiah, the alleged Isaiah 9:10 Effect, actually causes things to
happen. This is clearly affirmed in the following exchange at the
end of chapter 16:
[Kaplan] “As in the Isaiah 9:10 Effect?”
[The Prophet] “Yes, but in this mystery the connections

are even more beyond the realm of the natural.”
[Kaplan] “They’re supernatural?”
[The Prophet] “You could say that.”

collapse?”

place.”5
Surely it is obvious that this is a thoroughly unbiblical, entirely

made-up principle that has no scriptural foundation. How did this
slip by Dr. Reagan?
But beyond being unbiblical because it isn’t found in Scripture
as a principle, another extremely unbiblical idea is the very nature
of the Isaiah 9:10 Effect itself. The way it is used here is more like
an occultic spell or incantation than a biblical principle. The idea is
that once the words were said by a couple of American leaders, they
set into motion and determined a whole cascade of specific events.
– 16 3 –
Nothing like this mystical power of words is ever seen in Scripture

and it is surprising that Dr. Reagan has missed such an extremely
serious problem.
Yet another example of the unbiblical ideas in The Harbinger
is the assumption that in some way Isaiah 9:10 must be connected
to the United States because of events the author believes paral-
lel events in ancient Israel. Although he has tried to mitigate the
implication by calling it a “template,” this doesn’t solve the problem
or make it any more “thoroughly biblical” at all. No such template
is identified or described in Scripture either before or after Isaiah
9:10. It is a unique prophecy concerning Israel’s response to God in
the face of judgment that has no precedence and is never repeated.
There is no biblical (nor historical) basis to call it a “template”—
especially to the degree that it determines or causes specific events
to happen.
And finally, one of the most serious examples of a thoroughly
unbiblical aspect of The Harbinger is the supposed presentation of
the gospel in the chapter titled “Eternity.” Tragically, the author
does not explain how to be saved at all. He does present some
important principles and could have made the gospel clear with
nothing more than a few key sentences. And yet, the words “faith”
and “believe” are nowhere to be found, being replaced with very
ambiguous ideas about what needs to happen in one’s heart and
mind. The following is the essence of how Cahn explains what
someone must do in order to be saved:
[The Prophet] “By receiving . . . by letting go . . . by letting

the old life end and a new one begin. By choosing . . . by
opening your heart to receive that which is beyond contain-
ing—the presence . . . the mercy . . . the forgiveness . . . the
cleansing . . . the unending love of God.”6
– 164 –
APPENDIX
And this is put in the mouth of a prophet of God?

The idea that Christ died in our place for our sins is very much
obscured—to the point that only someone who is already familiar
with the gospel would understand what the author is getting at. And
the complete absence of any mention of the resurrection of Christ,
which Paul says must be believed, renders Cahn’s presentation of
the gospel incomplete, ineffective, and unbiblical. How would a
prophet of God not include the resurrection in what is supposed to
be a clear presentation of the gospel? This is not just nitpicking. I
would encourage Dr. Reagan to examine this chapter carefully and
read the corresponding chapter in The Harbinger: Fact or Fiction?
Concerning Cahn’s message not containing “new revelation
from God,” it must be pointed out that even the subtitle of The
Harbinger is designed to make the reader think that the author has
discovered a never-before-seen “ancient mystery.” In more than one
interview, Jonathan Cahn has said it was as if The Harbinger had
already been written. At the very least, this statement is ambiguous
enough for a lot of his readers to think that God had revealed it to
him (as evidenced by what so many have said in the positive com-
ments on Amazon.com).
It must also be noted that it has been strongly suggested and
implied that The Harbinger is, in fact, based on new revelation from
God. In September 2011, the program It’s Supernatural aired shows
produced around interviews with Jonathan Cahn. The following are
excerpts from an advertisement for a DVD set featuring those shows:
Rabbi Jonathan Cahn’s new book gives a fresh prophetic

Jewish perspective and insight that clearly shows the
future of America. . . . And is it possible that God is now
sending a prophetic word to America, a word of warning
that the nation lies in danger and unless it returns to Him
is heading for impending judgment?
– 16 5 –
The same promotional ad says the following of the author:

Jonathan Cahn is a Jewish believer in Messiah and leader
in the Messianic movement. His teachings and messages
are known for their profound and prophetic nature and for
revealing the deep mysteries of biblical truth.
The following is from another website that exclusively promotes

The Harbinger and an accompanying DVD set:
Listen as Jonathan Cahn shares the revelations, the details,

and the significance that lie behind and within the mysteries
and prophetic message of The Harbinger.
In a promotional video for the DVD set, Cahn affirms the pro-
phetic nature of his message (and not simply in the generic sense of
being a “forthtelling” of God’s Word from Scripture):
[Jonathan Cahn] Could there exist an ancient mystery that

holds the secret of America’s future? And could this mys-
tery touch everything, explains everything from 9/11, to the
global war on terror, to Wall Street, to your bank account, to
your future, to your well-being? The answer is yes.
[Voice-over] Call now and receive Rabbi Jonathan Cahn’s

two-part prophetic audio CD revelation. . . .
On Amazon.com, the book description includes the following:
Hidden in an ancient biblical prophecy from Isaiah, the

mysteries revealed in The Harbinger are so precise that they
foretold recent American events down to the exact days. The
revelations are so specific that even the most hardened skep-
tics will find it hard to dismiss or put down. It sounds like
the plot of a Hollywood thriller with one exception. . . .
IT’S REAL.
– 16 6 –
APPENDIX
A promotional article by WND (formerly WorldNetDaily)

quotes Jonathan Cahn as saying, “There’s nothing natural about
this book!”7
However, the real elephant in the room is the character of The
Prophet himself. Of course, his presence in the story is a fictional lit-
erary device, but the problem is that Cahn uses him to reveal things
about supposed connections between events in ancient Israel and
America that no one has ever seen before—and that no one could
ever see because the “mystery” is not in the text nor is it supported
by the evidence alone (as I show in my book).
It is The Prophet who reveals the never-before-seen “ancient
mystery.” The Prophet makes the connection with America’s found-
ers. The Prophet reveals the proposed Isaiah 9:10 Effect. The Prophet
reveals the nine harbingers in Isaiah 9:10 some of which are not at
all obvious in the text. The Prophet uses the Septuagint to add an
idea that is not found in the Hebrew text of Isaiah 9:10. The Prophet
reveals the supposed connection between the Shemitah and America.
This is all new information and suggests that at some level
Jonathan Cahn has received this message from God that no one else
has ever received.
It is very troubling that Dr. Reagan has come to the conclu-
sion that there is nothing unbiblical about The Harbinger when
there are so many substantial problems. Given that he is a respected
Bible teacher, it would seem that either he hasn’t carefully analyzed
the book himself or he that is not familiar with the reviews of The
Harbinger that have pointed out these issues over and over again.
It is also troubling that Dr. Reagan is not more familiar with
the facts concerning what has been said about The Harbinger being
promoted as prophetic in a revelatory sense. Given the intense con-
troversy surrounding the book, it would probably have been helpful
for Dr. Reagan to take some time to find out exactly why these things
– 167 –
are being said—and it would not have been difficult to do because of

the extensive documentation in The Harbinger: Fact or Fiction?
“False Prophet?”
The question of whether or not Jonathan Cahn’s message is biblical

continues in this section of Dr. Reagan’s article as he begins with the
following question:
The charge that he is a “false prophet” is downright ludi-

crous. His message is that America is in rebellion against
God, that God has placed remedial judgments upon us,
and that if we do not repent, God will deliver us from
judgment to destruction. I ask you, “What part of that
message is unbiblical?”
Of course, as Dr. Reagan knows, there’s nothing particularly

unbiblical about this part of the message (except that we don’t
know for certain that God has already placed remedial judgments
upon us—perhaps He has, perhaps He hasn’t). But none of The
Harbinger’s critics have suggested that this is what is unbiblical. I
find it very unfortunate that Dr. Reagan would try to set us up to
look bad in this way. If he really has listened to what we have all
consistently said, then he would know that we generally agree with
Jonathan Cahn on this point—at least with the fact that America
as a nation is deserving of judgment and that broad repentance is
in order.
I have no doubt that Dr. Reagan does not wish to mislead his
readers. Unfortunately, he seems to be relying on hearsay and sec-
ondary sources who are being somewhat misleading. Based on what
is said later in citing Jonathan Cahn, it would seem that it may
well be Cahn himself who is the source of some of these misleading
notions. This would be consistent other times Jonathan Cahn has
– 16 8 –
APPENDIX
elsewhere misrepresented his detractors and then mocked the mis-

representation with classic straw man argumentation.
Dr. Reagan goes on to define a false prophet:
Furthermore, the Bible defines a false prophet as one who

prophesies events that do not come to pass. If Rabbi Cahn
prophesied that a specific event would take place on a spe-
cific date and that date were to come and go without the
event happening, then he could legitimately be labeled as
a “false prophet.” But he has done no such thing.
Unfortunately, this is a case of Dr. Reagan himself using a straw

man argument because no one has suggested that Cahn is a false
prophet on these grounds.
On the other hand, as a prophecy expert himself, Dr. Reagan is
certainly aware that this is an incomplete definition of a false prophet.
Prior to the test to which Dr. Reagan refers in Deuteronomy 18:22,
we read the following:
And the Lord said to me: “What they have spoken is

good. I will raise up for them a Prophet like you from
among their brethren, and will put My words in His
mouth, and He shall speak to them all that I command
Him. And it shall be that whoever will not hear My
words, which He speaks in My name, I will require it of
him. But the prophet who presumes to speak a word in
My name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or
who speaks in the name of other gods, that prophet shall
die.” (Deuteronomy 18:17–20)
The Lord’s warning involves more than just prophesying things

that don’t come to pass (or encouraging people to follow other
gods). He also says to mark the man who claims to speak out what
God did not say. The way Jonathan Cahn has handled Isaiah 9:10, 2
– 16 9 –
Chronicles 7:14 and other passages of Scripture, as well as the issues

of the Shemitah, the Isaiah 9:10 Effect, the harbingers, and even
the gospel, all make it clear that he is misrepresenting what God has
really said in His Word—and this is no different from saying that
God has said things He has not said.
So, although it may be unnecessarily harsh to assign to him
the label “false prophet,” it has been clearly demonstrated over and
over that Jonathan Cahn does engage in teaching many false things
by mishandling Scripture and misrepresenting historical events and
facts. This then raises the question of just how much significant
mishandling of Scripture is necessary for someone to be considered
a false teacher—and what is the difference between a false prophet
and a false teacher?
Even if one is reticent to say that he is a false prophet, it can be
said with a high degree of confidence that Jonathan Cahn is most
assuredly not God’s “End Times Prophet to America.”
“Misuse of Scripture?”
Dr. Reagan further clouds the issue and engages in straw man argu-
mentation when he refers to Psalms, Proverbs, and the churches of
Revelation along with Isaiah 9:10. Does he really think that The
Harbinger’s critics would suggest there is nothing applicable to the
church in these parts of Scripture?
Whether it is Isaiah 9:10 or Psalm 23 or any other passage, the
question is never “Is this relevant and applicable?” but rather “How
is this relevant and applicable?” This is the task of the Bible inter-
preter—to determine how a passage is to be understood and applied
correctly to those who were not the original recipients. In the case
of Proverbs, much of what is said is general truth and so a given pas-
sage and the timeless principle are often equivalent.
– 17 0 –
APPENDIX
However, this is not always the situation. For example, in the

case of Psalm 23; the timeless principles must be extracted from the
shepherding imagery (i.e., the Lord isn’t literally comforting us with
His physical staff ). Concerning the churches of Revelation, not
many modern-day churches eat food offered to idols as in Thyatira.
We understand from basic Bible study methods and hermeneutics
that not every detail is equally and as directly applicable to us as it
was to the original recipients. We just have to keep these principles
in mind—which leads to the next point.
Dr. Reagan then discusses the frequently misapplied passage of
2 Chronicles 7:14
Incredibly, Rabbi Cahn has been criticized for applying

2 Chronicles 7:14 to the United States. It reads as fol-
lows: [If ] My people who are called by My name humble
themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their
wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive
their sin and will heal their land.
Are we actually going to contend that this scripture
applies only to Israel? Are we really going to argue that if
the professing Christians of this nation were to sincerely
repent of their sins and the sins of our nation, that God
would ignore it? This particular scripture contains a time-
less principle about repentance that even applies to pagan
nations.
Of course, Dr. Reagan certainly understands that for any pas-

sage there is the technical interpretation and then there is the general
application. Although it is true that evangelicals have long used this
passage as a call to America to turn to God, this is neither the proper
interpretation nor application.
One would think that as a dispensational Bible teacher, Dr.
Reagan would not make this mistake of failing to distinguish
– 171 –
between the way God deals with national Israel and the way He
deals with individual believers. The promise of 2 Chronicles was
given specifically and exclusively to Israel. They were God’s people
as a nation. America is not God’s people as a nation. God’s people,
Israel, had a geographical piece of land to restore that had been
ravaged by His judgments through human agency. Christians liv-
ing in America do not have a land that is God-given in the way the
Promised Land was given to Israel.
The “land” in the promise would, of course, mean the nation as a
whole and not just the physical land itself. However, in context, “my
people” refers exclusively to national Israel and the promise is to heal
the nation—which was made up of both believers and unbelievers.
Therefore, God’s people were called to turn back to Him collectively
so that the nation as a whole would experience His blessings. As a
theocratic kingdom, everyone (believer and unbeliever alike) was
obligated to obey and observe the externals of the Law (even though
no one could be saved spiritually by observing the Law). If such obe-
dience to the law given through Moses were to characterize the nation
as a whole, the nation would be saved from destruction and the Lord
would heal their land. This was God’s promise to “my people.”
Such a promise has not been made to America as a nation—and
any attempts to make such an application of 2 Chronicles 7:14 to
any nation except Israel is arguably a form of Restorationism or
Dominionism or Kingdom Now theology.
Of course, if individuals in America would begin to turn to the
Lord in large numbers (and they would need to be very large num-
bers), there would be ripple effects throughout society. However,
none of The Harbinger’s critics would deny this either. But God’s
people in the sense of believers in the church are not the “my peo-
ple” of 2 Chronicles 7:14 and there is no Scriptural promise that
God will heal any nation other than Israel in this sense.
– 17 2 –
APPENDIX
Dr. Reagan contends that the 2 Chronicles 7:14 principle

works for pagan nations as well—and some might argue that what
happened in Nineveh is a clear example of this. However, careful
examination of the book of Jonah shows that this is not the case.
And there are several important differences that must be observed:
1. Nineveh initially had no one in it who could be called

“my people” by God.
2. Jonah was called to preach against Nineveh, only warn-
ing them of the coming destruction.
3. Jonah was not called to preach a message similar to 2
Chronicles 7:14, with a call to repentance accompanied
by a promise of restoration.
4. The repentance rate in Nineveh was 100 percent.
5. In His mercy, God relented and did not destroy them,
but because there was no promise, there was no obliga-
tion to do so.
6. There is no record of the withholding of judgment
being accompanied by restoration and blessing.
It must be noted that America is a Gentile nation like Nineveh,

not God’s nation of “my people” like Israel. So, if the principle
of 2 Chronicles 7:14 did not apply to Nineveh, then there is no
Scriptural basis for attempting to apply it to America. Conversely,
any attempt to apply it to America is to suggest that this country
is more like Israel rather than Nineveh, which takes us back to the
problem of some sort of covenant between America and God—the
very thing Cahn is now denying.
So, to specifically reply to Dr. Reagan’s questions and statement:
– 17 3 –
[Dr. Reagan] “Are we actually going to contend that this

scripture applies only to Israel?”
[Reply] Yes, because in context it does apply only to Israel

which is exclusively “my people” as a nation.
[Dr. Reagan] “Are we really going to argue that if the

professing Christians of this nation were to sincerely
repent of their sins and the sins of our nation, that God
would ignore it?”
[Reply] Unfortunately, Dr. Reagan has made at least a cou-

ple of serious mistakes in this question. The first mistake is
that he has introduced a straw man argument, because no
one is suggesting that God would ignore believers in the
church who would repent of their sins. The second mis-
take is that although Christians may repent for the sins of
the nation in one sense, since the nation as a whole is not
going to actually repent (i.e., turn from sin), then we can’t
expect that God is going to relent and exchange judgment
for blessing. He could do that, but that is not the nature
of the promise in 2 Chronicles. Even if everyone in the
church were to begin to live perfectly godly lives, as long
as the major sins of the nation continue among unbeliev-
ers, God is not going to ultimately withhold judgment
and restore this nation.
[Dr. Reagan] “This particular scripture contains a time-

less principle about repentance that even applies to pagan
nations.”
[Reply] Dr. Reagan is correct, but only to the degree that

the “timeless principle” is understood and applied cor-
rectly. As has already been shown, the entire verse as it
– 174 –
APPENDIX
stands is not a timeless principle because it refers to the

restoration of the nation that is “my people.” No pagan
(i.e., Gentile) nation fits that description. The only way
it could be applied directly to America is if it is assumed
that this country is also in some way understood to be
“my people,” which is precisely the mistake that Jonathan
Cahn makes (at least the way he has stated it in The
Harbinger). In other words, the timeless principle is con-
tained within the verse, but is not the entire verse itself.
To illustrate, let’s consider the Abrahamic Covenant, which also

contains a timeless principle. We understand that the timeless prin-
ciple is the idea that “Abraham believed God and it was credited to
him as righteousness.” However, the entire Abrahamic Covenant as
a whole can only be applied to the descendants of Abraham through
Isaac and Jacob, i.e., the nation of Israel. To attempt to apply
the whole covenant directly to anyone who believes God would
mean that every believer could expect that they would also be the
progenitors of “many nations” and that through each one “all
nations would be blessed.”
Obviously, these conditions are not part of the timeless principle.
This goes to the heart of how to correctly interpret and apply the Bible
and in this case, with all due respect, Dr. Reagan gets this wrong—and
in the case of The Harbinger, Jonathan Cahn gets it wrong.
“Jumping to Conclusions”
Dr. Reagan writes:
Many of the criticisms of Rabbi Cahn’s message are based on

unwarranted conclusions that people have jumped to in an
effort to find something to criticize. For example, he has been
accused of teaching that America is in a covenant relationship
– 17 5 –
with God. The fact of the matter is that he has never said that.
He simply notes that America’s founding fathers believed that,
and therefore they consecrated the nation to God.
The first problem with this statement is the apparent underlying

assumption that The Harbinger’s critics have some sort of agenda and
are just looking for something to criticize. However, this overlooks
the obvious fact that Jonathan Cahn was largely unknown at the
national level prior to writing The Harbinger. It’s not as if we were
just waiting for him to produce something so we could pounce on it.
He started with a blank piece of paper as far as we were concerned—
and we would have welcomed a biblical book with the message he
is bringing. Therefore, if anyone is guilty of drawing unwarranted
conclusions, in this case it would have to be Dr. Reagan.
Concerning the matter of America being in a covenant relation-
ship with God: In spite of Jonathan Cahn’s denials concerning this,
there are statements made throughout The Harbinger that reinforce
the idea that the Founding Fathers were successful in actually enter-
ing into a covenant with God. The following exchange between the
two main characters in the book is just one of many specific exam-
ples that indicate this:
[The Prophet] “Those who laid America’s foundations saw

it as a new Israel, an Israel of the New World. And as with
ancient Israel, they saw it as in covenant with God.”
[Kaplan] “Meaning?”
[The Prophet] “Meaning its rise or fall would be depen-
dent on its relationship with God. If it followed His ways,
America would become the most blessed, prosperous, and
powerful nation on earth. From the very beginning they
foretold it. And what they foretold would come true. America
would rise to heights no other nation had ever known. Not
– 176 –
APPENDIX
that it was ever without fault or sin, but it would aspire to

fulfill its calling.”
[Kaplan] “What calling?”
[The Prophet] “To be a vessel of redemption, an instrument
of God’s purposes, a light to the world. It would give refuge
to the world’s poor and needy, and hope to its oppressed….
And, as much as it fulfilled its calling or aspired to, it would
become the most blessed, the most prosperous, the most
powerful, and the most revered nation on the earth—just as
its founders had prophesied.”
[Kaplan] “But there’s a but coming, isn’t there?”
[The Prophet] “Yes,” he replied. “There was always another
side to the covenant. If ancient Israel fell away from God and
turned against His ways, its blessings would be removed and
replaced with curses.”8
The point of this exchange is obvious—the entire premise of

The Harbinger is that America is facing imminent judgment for pre-
cisely the same reason that God judged ancient Israel, namely that they
broke their covenant with God. This is not a matter of unfairly
jumping to conclusions. We’re simply observing and commenting
on what Cahn has repeated throughout his book.
Again, it makes one wonder: Has Dr. Reagan seriously interacted
with either The Harbinger itself or with any of the critical reviews?
In the next paragraph Dr. Reagan writes:
Another unwarranted conclusion is that he teaches Isaiah

9:10 was a prophecy about the United States rather than
Israel. Again, Rabbi Cahn has never made such an asser-
tion. What he teaches instead is that the ancient pattern
of judgment that occurred in Israel is now recurring in
America, and in “a stunningly precise way.”
– 177 –
Unfortunately, in the first sentence above, Dr. Reagan has mis-

characterized what we are saying and his statement is simply not
true. No one has ever said (to my knowledge) that Cahn is teaching
that Isaiah 9:10 is “about the United States rather than Israel.” We
all understand that the author believes the passage was specifically
to Israel. However, our concern is that he has consistently made it
sound as if it was not exclusively to Israel—and there is a big differ-
ence between the two.
The following exchange from the The Harbinger once again
seems to make it clear that the author is saying exactly what we have
reported and why we are concerned:
[The Prophet] “In the wake of their calamity, the leaders

of ancient Israel proclaimed, ‘We will rebuild’—the first
sign of defiance. If the mystery holds and has now applied
to America, we would expect to hear the same vow, the
same three words, in the wake of 9/11, now proclaimed
by American leaders.”
[Kaplan] “And did it happen? Did they say it?”
[The Prophet] “Yes. They said it.”9
[Goren] “How could an ancient mystery possibly have
anything to do with September 11?”
[Kaplan] “An ancient mystery behind everything from 9/11
to the economy . . . to the housing boom . . . to the war
in Iraq . . . to the collapse of Wall Street. Everything in
precise detail.”10
In an interview on The 700 Club with Pat Robertson, Cahn put

it this way:
[The mystery] even has determined the actions and the

actual words of American leaders. A mystery that goes back
– 17 8 –
APPENDIX
two and a half thousand years and is a warning of judg-

ment and a call of God—a prophetic call of God.11
“A prophetic call of God.” But to whom? Not just to Israel, but

also to America. This is Cahn’s entire point and one he has made
over and over again.
Again, even if The Harbinger’s critics are wrong, it is not because
we are jumping to conclusions without warrant, making this a very
unfair statement by Dr. Reagan.
Concerning the recurring of parallel events in a “stunningly
precise way.” I have to wonder if this is another case of Dr. Reagan’s
only being familiar with one side of the story. In The Harbinger:
Fact or Fiction? I demonstrate that few, if any, of the supposed har-
bingers even rise to the level of being interesting coincidences let
alone exact matches. And as a significant number of other conser-
vative Bible teachers (with no agenda) have examined my work,
they have also agreed.
In reality, who has jumped to conclusions?
“A Book and A Sermon”
Dr. Reagan then discusses Jonathan Cahn’s message at one of the

Presidential Inaugural Prayer Breakfasts. I would readily admit that
it was a powerful message and there were a number of important
things that were said that he was exactly right about. No one has
ever suggested that everything Jonathan Cahn teaches or believes
is wrong. We’re only saying that the way he has put everything
together in The Harbinger is wrong, even though some specific ele-
ments may be right.
At the prayer breakfast, he was doing pretty well and was on-
target for the most part until he started discussing details from his
message in The Harbinger. At that point he simply repeated all of
– 17 9 –
the problems in the book. (For those who are interested, Chris
Rosebrough has provided an excellent commentary on this particu-
lar message.)12
However, Dr. Reagan says of the message:
The message presented a stark, bone-chilling indictment

against this nation for thumbing its nose at God. It was a hard-
hitting prophetic message that took great courage to deliver.
Christians should be giving Rabbi Cahn a standing ovation,
and many have. But some leaders of discernment ministries
have tried, instead, to crucify him.
A few questions are in order:
1. Should Christians really be giving Jonathan Cahn a

standing ovation for this message when it was based
almost entirely on a book that is built on a mishandling
of Scripture and the misrepresentation of historical
events?
2. This is not to take away from Jonathan Cahn at all,

but why would Dr. Reagan seek to bolster his argu-
ment that Jonathan Cahn is a prophet by claiming that
it took courage for him to deliver his message at the
prayer breakfast? Cahn was invited to speak in that
venue because the organizers were already familiar with
what he would say and wanted him to preach that mes-
sage, knowing it would be well-received. The response
of the audience confirms that he was in friendly terri-
tory and not in a hostile environment. There was no
risk, danger, or downside that would have made it cou-
rageous. (Again, this is not about Jonathan Cahn, only
about Dr. Reagan’s argument.)
– 18 0 –
APPENDIX
3. What exactly have discernment ministry leaders done to

“crucify” Jonathan Cahn? (There have been no personal
attacks and ad hominem arguments against Jonathan
Cahn that come anywhere close to what these same lead-
ers have experienced by supporters of The Harbinger, of
which Dr. Reagan’s article is a clear example.)
Then, Dr. Reagan attempts to defend Cahn by referring to

David Wilkerson as an example of someone who was vilified as
a false prophet because of his strong message of repentance—a
message now being echoed by Jonathan Cahn. Although David
Wilkerson didn’t make friends with some because of his direct style,
he was also loved by many. He did deliver some powerful messages
that undoubtedly made a difference in many lives. On the other
hand, it is well-documented that Wilkerson also claimed that God
had shown him a number of things that he formulated into predic-
tions, but which did not come to pass.
Therefore, based on Dr. Reagan’s own definition of a false
prophet, David Wilkerson is an unlikely person to be used in a
defense like this. And, because Dr. Reagan defends someone with
numerous failed predictions, this also raises questions about the fol-
lowing statement he makes about Jonathan Cahn:
I know a genuine prophetic voice when I hear one, and

as I watched Rabbi Cahn deliver his powerful message,
I realized he was a prophetic voice raised up by God to
warn this nation of its impending doom and to call us to
repentance.
How does Dr. Reagan reconcile his belief that Jonathan Cahn
is a “prophetic voice raised up by God” with the fact that he misap-
plies Isaiah 9:10, claims there is an Isaiah 9:10 Effect, argues that
– 181 –
America is experiencing a Shemitah-type judgment from God, cre-

ates an illusion that there have been parallel harbingers in ancient
Israel and America, issues such a generic call to repentance, and so
poorly communicates the gospel? Is this consistent with the message
of a prophet raised up by God?
“Christian McCarthyism”
This is where Dr. Reagan takes what feels like an unnecessarily

mean-spirited turn, following a pattern characteristic of many who
have denounced The Harbinger’s critics. He resorts to a style and
uses an appeal that is long on emotion and generalities and short on
facts and specifics.
The current unbridled, petty and vicious attacks on

Rabbi Cahn smack of what I would call “Christian
McCarthyism.” For those of you who might not be famil-
iar with what I’m referring to, let me explain.
After giving some historical background, Dr. Reagan gets to the

point of his illustration, which is obviously aimed directly at those
who have expressed concern about The Harbinger:
When McCarthy resumed his attack, Welch interrupted

him: “Let us not assassinate this lad further, Senator.
You’ve done enough. Have you no sense of decency, sir, at
long last? Have you left no sense of decency?”
This was one of the first Congressional hearings ever to
be televised, and it exposed the Senator for what he was—a
shallow, irresponsible, arrogant power-seeker who was will-
ing to destroy other people in order to gain the limelight.
In like manner there are hyper-critics within
Christianity today who are yelling “Apostate! Apostate!”
over matters that really amount to nothing. If a person
– 18 2 –
APPENDIX
speaks to a group they disapprove of, they label him

an “Apostate.” If he has a different viewpoint from
theirs about a non-essential doctrine, he is branded an
“Apostate.” If he compliments someone they don’t like, he
is relegated to Hell as an “Apostate.”
This very unfortunate use of the McCarthy illustration compels

me to ask several questions:
1. Hasn’t Dr. Reagan just engaged in the very thing that

he appears to decry?
2. Is Dr. Reagan actually suggesting that, like McCarthy,

any critics of The Harbinger are “shallow, irrespon-
sible, arrogant power-seekers who [are] willing to
destroy other people in order to gain the limelight?”
(Doesn’t this radically cross the line into judging motives
and intents of the heart? I am not aware of anyone who has
done this with Jonathan Cahn, yet it is precisely this sort of
personal attack that has characterized much of what has
been said about those with concerns about The Harbinger.)
3. What are some examples of specific “unwarranted

vicious attacks” upon Jonathan Cahn, the man?
4. Exactly where are we wrong in the details of our analy-

sis of The Harbinger?
5. Who specifically has called Jonathan Cahn an “apos-

tate”? (Is it one person? Many? Any?)
6. Exactly what are the matters that “amount to really

nothing” that we have challenged Cahn on? (Does he
mean the mishandling of Scripture, the misrepresentation of
– 18 3 –
historical facts, and faulty conclusions based on those, along

with a failure to communicate the gospel? Is he suggesting
that these kinds of things “amount to really nothing?”)
“An Appeal for Sanity”
Dr. Reagan quotes Grant Philips—and I don’t disagree with what

he is saying in principle:
Look folks, many of us need to . . . stop nitpicking every-
thing the Lord is trying to tell us and just listen to what
He is saying in whatever manner He chooses to say it.
Even in my own experience of writing articles, every now
and then, someone emails me who just wants to nit-pick
at something I wrote while missing the message of the
article. The phrase comes to mind, “They’re so heavenly
minded, they’re no earthly good.” We need to humble our
hearts and stop being so self-righteous.
I have given a lot of thought to this and similar admonitions

(which in some cases have included some of the nastiest commu-
nication I have ever witnessed from professing believers in Christ).
Nonetheless, these criticisms have not fallen on deaf ears. This past
year has been one of prayer, introspection, contemplation, Bible
study, and much communication seeking wisdom from a multitude
of counselors. Only a fool would take lightly the matter of challeng-
ing the #1 Christian book of the year.
And one of these question that I have had to consider, as Pastor
Philips points out, is whether or not we are “nit-picking.” But after
carefully evaluating this for a long time, I still have to conclude that,
no, we are not nit-picking.
At the same time I would ask if Dr. Reagan (and others) have
carefully considered our claims, especially as documented in The
– 184 –
APPENDIX
Harbinger: Fact or Fiction? We are not talking about a poor choice

of words here and there. Jonathan Cahn has clearly stated what he
meant and in every one of the dozens of interviews since the book
was released, he has reaffirmed over and over that he is saying exactly
what we have consistently claimed he is saying—and we still believe
he is wrong on significant issues. If he is being so consistently mis-
understood by good, solid Bible teachers, then he needs to consider
revising some of what he has written and continues to say.
Unfortunately, Jonathan Cahn’s responses below, as noted by
Dr. Reagan, serve to demonstrate that he is neither listening nor
taking seriously what his critics are saying. Although his responses
are attributed to his sense of humor, they seem to reflect more of a
mocking tone (which I have also seen in a video of him addressing
these same issues at a church). It is one thing to disagree with our
conclusions, but it is entirely another to mock and use straw man
arguments against those who disagree—particularly when respond-
ing to men who are respected for their knowledge of the Scriptures
and their defense of the faith. And it is even more troubling that a
respected man like Dr. Reagan has chosen to incorporate this type
of response into his own.
Jonathan Cahn’s response #1
In response to crazy allegations that he is somehow

involved in advocating the prosperity message of the
Word of Faith Movement, he wrote: “I not only speak
against those doctrines regularly, but my author’s photo
[shown on the cover of this magazine] was taken at Sears
Budget Photo!”
To my knowledge, not one of The Harbinger’s critics has

ever suggested that Jonathan Cahn was advocating a “prosperity
– 18 5 –
message.” Our concern has only been that he and his message have
consistently received some of the strongest support from those in
the extremes of the Word Faith movement, namely Jim Bakker, Pat
Robertson, Benny Hinn, and others. Furthermore, his publisher
is Charisma Media (and Steve Strang), a media empire which is
responsible for producing what is perhaps the greatest volume of
heretical teaching by false teachers of this generation.
Although we have been taken to task for making a “guilty-by-
association” argument, the fact is that his associations in this case run
so deep that he is guilty. These are not simply incidental acquain-
tances. Rather, they are meaningful, ongoing and deep ministry
partnerships—at least in the case of Jim Bakker and Steve Strang.
His comment about his picture being taken at Sears is humorous
on its own, but in this context it really tends to demean and mock
those who would dare challenge these deep ministry associations.
In response to an assertion that he is advocating

Replacement Theology, he wrote: “I’m Jewish and a
believer. In order to subscribe to Replacement Theology,
I’d have to replace myself with myself. I’m open to trying,
but it just strikes me as a lot of work to end up no better
off than when I started!”
This is an example of a good sound bite that just keeps getting

repeated, but which is rather pointless. The matter of Replacement
Theology (which says that the church has replaced Israel in God’s
program) came up in the first interview between Jimmy DeYoung
and myself, the week of The Harbinger’s release and was based on
some initial concerns I had after reading only the first few chap-
ters in the book. However, either in that interview or the next (or
– 18 6 –
APPENDIX
perhaps both), I noted that I had set aside this concern after finishing
the book (and I may have made that point in subsequent inter-
views, as well). And unless Jonathan Cahn has not read my book, he
must realize that I also clearly stated in my book that I completely
accept the fact that he doesn’t hold to classic Replacement Theology.
Although perhaps a good talking-point in the attempt to discredit
The Harbinger’s critics, it is really nothing more than that. It is dif-
ficult to understand why Dr. Reagan would join with others who
continue to try to make this an issue because it simply lacks merit
and has never been a significant part of the discussion.
In response to the nutty charge that he is espousing prin-

ciples of Mormonism, he [Cahn] wrote: “Okay, I was
once into Donny and Marie Osmond, but when they
started singing ‘I’m A Little Bit Country, And I’m A Little
Bit Rock and Roll,’ I drew the line. You see, I don’t believe
in mixing doctrines.”
My first request of Dr. Reagan would be for him to provide the

name of even one person who has made “the nutty charge that he
[Cahn] is espousing principles of Mormonism.” It would seem that
Dr. Reagan is once again relying on second-hand caricatures of what
we have said. And given Jonathan Cahn’s witty response, it would
seem that he himself is likely the source of this misleading caricature.
As to the issue of Mormonism as I dealt with it in The Harbinger:
Fact or Fiction?, either Jonathan Cahn has completely missed the
point in my book—or he is intentionally misrepresenting what I
wrote as a distraction. No one, including myself, has ever thought
or implied that the author has Mormon connections or remotely
holds to any aspect of Mormon theology. However, our contention
– 187 –
has been that Jonathan Cahn has stated things in The Harbinger
in such a way that it surely sounds like he holds to some sort of
American covenant view, no matter how ill-defined.
The proof that The Harbinger’s critics are not just making up
another “nutty charge” is that even Mormon theologians and his-
torians have appealed to The Harbinger on multiple occasions to
support their thoroughly unbiblical doctrine of Anglo-Israelism
(which holds that America was founded by descendants of the “ten
lost tribes of Israel”). If a cult is able to use someone’s primary the-
sis to undergird one of their heretical doctrines, then the burden
is upon that writer to rework the relevant material so that it can-
not be misappropriated in this way. This is particularly true because
Jonathan Cahn contends that he is not promoting the idea that
there is an American covenant in the first place.
In summary, I don’t think and never have thought that Jonathan
Cahn is espousing principles of Mormonism, and I’m not aware of
anyone else who thinks so either. At the same time, because the
entire narrative of The Harbinger gives the distinct impression that
there is some sort of covenant between God and America, Mormons
have added the book as further support for their heretical doctrines.
This isn’t a “nutty charge.” It is a fact.
In response to the absurd allegation that he is involved in some

way in Masonry, he replied: “It’s true. I once had involvement
with Masonry. It happened when I appeared as a guest on the
Jackie Mason Show. But he’s the only Mason I’ve been involved
with. And I renounced his comedy soon after the show.”
Does Dr. Reagan have first-hand knowledge of anyone alleging

this or is he relying on what he has been told? Who has suggested
– 18 8 –
APPENDIX
that Jonathan Cahn is involved in Masonry in some way? It is pos-

sible that someone has said this, but I’m not aware of it and it is
definitely not a widely held view among critics of The Harbinger.
Unfortunately, this is another caricature that misses the point of the
concerns that have been raised about Masonic issues and Jonathan
Cahn’s book.
Cahn’s response, though once again humorous on one level,
also feels deeply sarcastic and mocking in tone as response to a very
real issue—while also completely missing the point (or diverting
attention).
The concern of some regarding his book is due to his heavy
dependence on George Washington as an example of one who was
part of invoking (or affirming) a covenant between America and
God. In The Harbinger’s well-known dream sequence King Solomon
morphs into George Washington. Without assigning nefarious
motives to Jonathan Cahn, given that some trace Freemasonry back
to Solomon, it is a very strange literary device when combined with
the fact that Washington is a celebrated Freemason, was sworn into
office on a Masonic Bible in the presence of Masonic leaders, was
part of a Masonic procession to St. Paul’s church, was the charter
Master of the Alexandria lodge, is depicted in several paintings as
well as a famous statue in full Masonic regalia and was buried with
a Masonic ceremony. Furthermore, there is the troubling matter
of the interior of the dome of the nation’s capitol building which
depicts Washington’s ascension to godhood (“apotheosis”).
These are our concerns and they are well-founded. They are not
“absurd allegations” and should not be misrepresented as suggest-
ing that he has any direct Masonic connections—nor even that he
intentionally included a Masonic connection in his book. However,
considering that Cahn is widely regarded as an “End-Time Prophet
to America” and promoted as a foremost revealer of mysteries, his
– 18 9 –
abject failure to discover and/or disclose any of these important his-

toric and spiritual facts to the reader is a mystery in itself.
“My Personal Stance” (Dr. Reagan’s)
Dr. Reagan concludes his article:
The nit-picking, Pharisaical hyper-critics of Christianity

need to be reminded of the wisdom of Gamaliel which
he shared with the Sanhedrin Council when they arrested
Peter and the apostles and desired to kill them (Acts 5:29-
33). Gamaliel stated that if what the followers of Jesus
were teaching was false, nothing would come of it. “But
if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them.”
He then added, “You may even be found fighting against
God” (Acts 5:38-39).
The pit bulls of Christianity can growl and yap and
snarl all they please, but anointed messengers of God like
Wilkerson and Cahn will prevail because they are speak-
ing the truth. I stand with them, and I am proud to do so.
Together with them, I cry from the depths of my heart,
“Wake up America! You are blaspheming the very God
who blessed you. He has sent prophetic voices and reme-
dial judgments to warn you and call you to repentance.
What will be your choice? Repentance or Destruction?”
Although Gamaliel’s observation turned out to be correct con-

cerning the gospel and Christianity, it isn’t a universal truth. Not
everything that is not from God “comes to nothing”—at least for
a time. This is obvious when one considers that with one billion
adherents each, neither Islam nor Hinduism have “come to noth-
ing.” That the vast majority of the world’s population believes things
that are patently false is a sober reminder that truth is not decided
– 19 0 –
APPENDIX
by popular vote. Similarly, that The Harbinger was the best-selling

Christian book of 2012 does not necessarily demonstrate that it
is from God. The only determining factor is how it compares to
Scripture—and The Harbinger doesn’t meet this test very well.
But even beyond this, why has Dr. Reagan felt it necessary
to launch a personal attack and characterize those with concerns
about The Harbinger as “nit-picking, Pharisaical hyper-critics of
Christianity?” Doesn’t this put us in the same category as those
outside the faith—those who are skeptics, scoffers, mockers and
unbelievers?
And how does Dr. Reagan explain the fact that many of The
Harbinger’s critics have a long and consistent history of being
respected Bible teachers and firm defenders of the faith? Why would
those who have been trusted for so long now suddenly become
numbered among the worst of God’s enemies?
Why would Dr. Reagan characterize those with concerns about
The Harbinger in such a pejorative way as to describe them as the
“pit bulls of Christianity” who “growl and yap and snarl”—and who
by implication are not “speaking the truth?” And he has done so
although neither the issues addressed nor the methodology of expos-
ing and responding to error have changed. Although it is true that
historically much of the focus in apologetics and discernment has
been on the dangers of philosophy, world religions, and Christian
cults, errors coming from within the church have also been the
subject of much work from this same group over the years—and
rightfully so.
“As I urged you when I went into Macedonia—remain

in Ephesus that you may charge some that they teach no
other doctrine, nor give heed to fables and endless gene-
alogies, which cause disputes rather than godly edification
which is in faith.” (1 Timothy 1:3–4)
– 191 –
“Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times

some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving
spirits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypoc-
risy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron,”
(1 Timothy 4:1–2)
It has always been our shared responsibility to deal with error,

not just outside the church, but inside it—which is arguably the
greater problem. When error arises from within the church it is gen-
erally more insidious—and as this controversy has shown, it is often
more difficult to deal with. And in fact, many of The Harbinger’s
supporters have dealt with exactly these kinds of things within the
church themselves over the years.
So, the question that begs to be asked in relation to The
Harbinger (and its sequel, The Mystery of the Shemitah) is, “Who
changed the rules?”
***
– 19 2 –
ENDNOTES
Section One: The Mystery of the Shemitah
Chapter 1
1. Jonathan Cahn, The Mystery of the Shemitah (Lake Mary, FL: Frontline,
2014), 76-77.
2. Ibid., 77.
3. Ibid., 1-2.
4. Ibid., 22.
5. Jonathan Cahn, The Harbinger (Lake Mary, FL: Frontline, 2011), 136.
Chapter 2
1. Cahn, Shemitah, 76-77.
2. Ibid., 29.
3. Ibid. 30.
4. William Cowie, “How Predictible is the Economy,” http://retireby40.org
/predictable-economy-cycle/.
5. Jerry Bowyer, Jay Ryan, Charles Bowyer, “Shemitah Years and Blood Moons
as Market Timing Tools,” April 2, 2015, http://affluentinvestor.com/2015/04
/shemitah-years-and-blood-moons-as-market-timing-tools/.
6. Biography posted at www.bowyerbriefing.com/bio/.
7. Bowyer, et al., “Shemitah Years.”
8. Ibid.
Chapter 3
1. Jonathan Cahn, interview by Jim & Lori Bakker, The Jim Bakker Show, program
2568, aired August 11, 2014, 13:00 minute mark, http://jimbakkershow.com
/video/the-mystery-of-the-shemitah-03/.
– 19 3 –
2. E. Michael and Sharon O. Rusten, The Complete Book of When & Where
(Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 2005), 415.
Chapter 4
1. Cahn, Shemitah, 57.
2. Ibid., 58.
3. Brian Handwerk, “‘The Lost Symbol’ and the Freemasons: 8 Myths
Decoded,” September 15, 2009, http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news
/2009/09/090915-lost-symbol-dan-brown-freemasons-book.html.
4. Cahn, Harbinger, 213.
5. Ibid., 195.
6. Explore Capitol Hill, “Apotheosis of Washington,” http://www.aoc.gov
/capitol-hill/other-paintings-and-murals/apotheosis-washington.
7. Kenneth R. Force, “The First Inauguration—Patriotic & Masonic,” http://
www.masonicworld.com/education/files/artjun02/THE%20FIRST%20
INAUGURATION.htm.
8. Philip M. Thienel, “A Masonic Presence at Washington’s Inauguration 200
Years Ago,” April 1989, http://www.masonicworld.com/education/articles/A
-MASONIC-PRESENCE-AT-WASHINGTONS-INAUGURATION.htm.

9. Alexander Imekus, “Freemasonry,” http://www.mountvernon.org/research
-collections/digital-encyclopedia/article/freemasonry/.
10. “George Washington, The Mason,” George Washingon Masonic National

Memorial website article, http://www.gwmemorial.org/washingtonTheMason
.php.
11. Ibid.
12. Allen E. Roberts, The Craft and Its Symbols, quoted on Order of Former
Freemasons website, http://formermasons.org/issues/the_masonic_view_of
_God.php.
Chapter 5
1. “Sabbatical Year and Jubilee,” Jewish Encyclopedia website article, http://www
.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/12967-sabbatical-year--and-jubilee.
2. David R. Reagan, “The Jewish Calendar—What Year is it, and does it really
matter?” July/August 2000, http://lamblion.com/articles/articles_jewishlife3.php.
– 194 –
ENDNOTES
4. “Sabbatical Year,” www.jewishencyclopedia.com.

5. Baruch S. Davidson, “When is the Next Jubilee Year?” http://www.chabad.org
/library/article_cdo/aid/513212/jewish/When-is--the-next-Jubilee-year.htm.
7. Message presented at Calvary Chapel Joshua Springs, “The Mystery of
the Shemitah with Rabbi Jonathan Cahn at Joshua Springs,” October
20, 2004, beginning at 57:43 minute mark, https://www.youtube.com
/watch?v=YLP5CZLLaG8.
Chapter 6
1. John Hagee, Four Blood Moons (Brentwood, TN: Worthy Publishing, 2013),
14ff.
2. “The Harbinger Meets Blood Moons,” WND.com, June 24, 2014, http://www
.wnd.com/2014/06/the-harbinger-meets-blood-moons/.
3. Mark Biltz, interview by Jim & Lori Bakker, The Jim Bakker Show, program 2592,
aired September 16, 2014, http://jimbakkershow.com/video/mystery-sevens/.
Chapter 9
1. Cahn, Harbinger, v.
3. Wikipedia, s.v. “Panic of 1901,” last modified March 2, 2015, https://
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panic_of_1901.
5. Wikipedia, s.v. “1973-74 stock market crash,” last modified August 27,
2014, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1973%E2%80%9374_stock_market_crash.
7. Wikipedia, s.v. “Great Depression,” last modified March 24, 2015, https://
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Depression.
9. “Great Depression,” wikipedia.org.
10. “Wikipedia: Academic use,” Wikipedia, last modified September 4, 2014,

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Academic_use.
11. Andrew Orloski, “Avoid Wikipedia warns Wikipedia chief,” The Register, June 15, 2006,
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/06/15/wikipedia_can_damage_your_grades/.
– 19 5 –
THE HARBINGER — FACT OR FICTION?
13. “Recession of 1937-8,” Blackwell Reference Online, http://www.blackwellreference

.com/public/tocnode?id=g9781577180999_chunk_g978157718099920_ss1-27.
Section Two: The Second Shaking
Chapter 11
2. Ibid., 129.
3. Ibid.
4. Ibid., 125.
5. Ibid., 127-28.
Chapter 12
1. Cahn, Harbinger, 135-36.
2. Ibid., 136.
3. Ibid., 151-52.
4. Ibid., 73.
5. Ibid.
6. Ibid., 92.
7. Ibid., 94.
8. Ibid., 116.
9. Ibid., 136.
Chapter 13
2. Ibid., 138.
3. The view that Isaiah 9:10 actually constitutes a vow is rather debatable. Although
a declaration by Israel’s leaders to the people, this does not necessarily make it a
vow to God. However, given all the other problems in the book, this particular
fine point is not necessarily worth debating.
4. Cahn, Harbinger, 139. 
5. Ibid, 140. 
6. Ibid. 
– 19 6 –
ENDNOTES
7. Ibid., 142. 
8. Ibid., 143. 
9. Ibid., 142-43. 
10. Ibid., 143-44.
11. Ibid., 145-46.
12. Ibid., 146. 
13. Ibid., 147-49 (Non-essential parts of this dialogue have been omitted because of
its length in the book. The breaks are indicated by “* * *” as line separators.).
14. Ibid., 149. 
15. Ibid., 150-51. 
16. Ibid., 151-52.
Chapter 14
2. Ibid., 161.
3. Ibid., 159.
4. Ibid.
5. Ibid., 161.
6. Ibid., 159.
7. 1 Kings 17:1.
Chapter 15
2. “FHFA Conservator’s Report – Why Fannie Mae And Freddie Mac Failed,”
Problem Bank List website, August 30, 2010, http://problembanklist.com
/fhfa-conservators-report-why-fannie-mae-and-freddie-mac-failed-0183.
4. “Case Study: The Collapse of Lehman Brothers,” Investopedia website, April
2, 2009, http://www.investopedia.com/articles/economics/09/lehman-brothers-
collapse.asp#axzz1sMPT0MMA.
5. Dr. John Rutledge, “Total Assets of the U.S. Economy $188 Trillion,
13.4xGDP,” Rutledge Capital blog entry, May 24, 2009, http://rutledge
capital.com/2009/05/24/total-assets-of-the-us-economy-188-trillion-134xgdp/.
– 197 –
6. “Did Lehman’s Fall Matter?” from Newsweek, May 17, 2009, http://www
.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2009/05/17/did-lehman-s-fall-matter.html.
8. Ibid., 164-65.
9. Ibid., 166.
10. Alexandra Twin, “Stocks Crushed,” CNNMoney.com special report,

September 29, 2008, http://money.cnn.com/2008/09/29/markets/markets
_newyork/index.htm.
11. Harold Bierman, Jr., “The 1929 Stock Market Crash,” Economic History
Association website, February 5, 2010, http://eh.net/encyclopedia/article
/bierman.crash.
13. Ibid.
Chapter 16
2. Ibid., 170.
3. Ibid., 161.
4. Ibid.
5. Ibid., 162.
6. Ibid., 165.
7. “Case Study: Collapse of Lehman.”
8. Richard Simon and Nicole Gaouette, “Approval of bailout comes amid signs that
a steep recession is just beginning,” Los Angeles Times, October 4, 2008, http://
articles.latimes.com/2008/oct/04/business/fi-bailout4.
9. Twin, “Stocks Crushed.”
10. Ibid.
11. Ibid.
12. Alex Altman and Frances Romero, “Top 10 Dow Jones Drops,” Time Specials,
http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1845523
_1845619_1845553,00.html.
– 19 8 –
ENDNOTES
Section Three — The Blood Moon Tetrad
Chapter 18
1. Hagee, Blood Moons, 244.
2. Mark Biltz, “Stipulating Eclipse Comments,” http://www.elshaddaiministries
.us/handouts/Stipulating%20Eclipse%20Comments.pdf.
3. Tony Galli, “No One Knows the Day or the Hour,” http://www.hebroots.org
/hebrootsarchive/9807/980715_c.html.

4. Mark Bowron, “The Blessed Hope,” September 10, 2012, https://
sounddoctrineministries.wordpress.com/tag/the-blessed-hope/.
5. Fred Espenak, NASA Eclipse Web Site, “Lunar Eclipses: 2011-2020,” http://
eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/LEdecade/LEdecade2011.html.
Chapter 19
1. Danny Faulkner, “Will Lunar Eclipses Cause Four Blood Moons in 2014 and
2015?” July 12, 2013, http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/2013/07/12
/lunar-eclipses-cause-blood-moons#table-1.
Appendix
1 . Ginny Dent Brant, “Jonathan Cahn - Proclaiming Details of God’s

Judgment,” May 23, 2013, http://sonomachristianhome.com/2013/05
/interview-with-jonathan-cahn-proclaiming-details-of-god%E2%80%99’s.
2. Jose Bernal, “The Ongoing Debate on The Harbinger Continues Unabated a Year
Later,” http://avoiceincyberspace.blogspot.com/2013/03/the-ongoing-debate-on
-harbinger.html.
3. David Reagan, “In Defense of a Prophetic Voice,” http://www.lamblion.com
/articles/articles_issues7.php.
5. Ibid., 151.
6. Ibid., 233.
7. Jim Fletcher, “Runaway Bestseller Sets Christian World Abuzz,” http://www
.wnd.com/2012/09/runaway-bestseller-sets-christian-world-abuzz/.
9. Ibid., 61.
– 19 9 –
10. Ibid., 3.
11. Interview with Pat Robertson on The 700 Club, beginning at the 2:15 mark,
http://www.cbn.com/media/player/index.aspx?s=/mp4/SUB109_Jonathan
Cahn_010312_WS.
12. Chris Rosebrough, Review of Jonathan Cahn’s Keynote Address at the 2013
Inaugural Prayer Breakfast, http://podbay.fm/show/268985402/e/1359204642.
–200–
NOTES
– 2 01 –
READ THE EXPOSÉ CHARISMA SOUGHT TO CENSOR!*
THE HARBINGER:
FACT OR FICTION?
By David James—A thorough and biblical
response to the serious flaws found throughout
the New York Times best-seller from Charisma
Media, The Harbinger. Messianic rabbi
Jonathan Cahn believes he has discovered an
“ancient mystery” in Isaiah 9:10 that “explains
everything from 9/11 to the collapse of the
global economy.”
As Cahn states at the beginning of his book
“What you are about to read is presented in
the form of a story, but what is contained
within the story is real.” Many have accepted Cahn’s message as being
genuinely from God. However, David James has clearly demonstrated that
The Harbinger falls far short of meeting the biblical requirements for such
a message from God, being based on the mishandling of Scripture, faulty
theology, misleading statements, the selective use of historical facts, and
unsupported speculation.
“David James has used true discernment, extensive research, and

biblical hermeneutics to reveal the dangerous message of The
Harbinger [and its] extra-biblical revelation.” — Brannon Howse,
President and Founder, Worldview Weekend
“Anyone interested in The Harbinger needs to note [its] numerous
errors . . . as presented in James’s excellent analysis.” — Roy B. Zuck,
Senior Professor Emeritus of Bible Exposition, Dallas Theological
Seminary
“Dave James provides a fair biblical analysis for anyone wanting
scrutiny of The Harbinger. I commend James’s book . . . for those
seeking the truth rather than popularity.” — Tommy Ice, Executive
Director, Pre-Trib Research Center
ISBN 978-1-928660-80-4 • The Berean Call • paperback, 223 pages
*Read the press release here: http://www.christiannewswire.com/news/1198271448.html

HAS THE CHURCH FORGOTTEN ITS HIGHER CALLING?
WHATEVER HAPPENED
TO HEAVEN?
(From the “Dave Hunt Classic” Series)
By Dave Hunt—More than two decades

after the original printing of this book, yet
another Bible prophecy is proving itself true
today:
There shall come in the last days

scoffers, walking after their own
[desires] . . . saying, “Where is the
promise of his coming? for since the
fathers fell asleep, all things continue
as they were from the beginning of
the creation” (2 Peter 3:3-4).
During the 1970s when The Late, Great Planet Earth was outselling
everything, the rapture was the hot topic. Pastors preached about heaven,
and Christians eagerly anticipated being taken up at any moment to meet
their Lord in the air. When Christ didn’t return and the 40 years since the
establishment of a new Israel in 1948 expired without the fulfillment of
prophesied events, disillusionment began to set in.
Today, a growing number of Christians are exchanging the hope for

the rapture for a “new” hope . . . that Christians can clean up society
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ISBN 978-1-928660-70-5 • The Berean Call • paperback, 327 pages

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BIBLICAL GUIDE TO THE SHEMITAH

Published by The Berean Call

Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from

Copyright & Fair Use

The Publisher reserves all rights, but encourages readers to

The Berean Call

Printed in the United States of America

A P P E N D I X : “LAMPLIGHTER” CRITIQUE AND EXCHANGE WITH DR. DAVID REAGAN................ 156

the frequently slow and laborious, yet necessary, task of fact-check-

ORIGIN OF THE SHEMITAH

Make no mistake: This reviewer fully understands that America

Only Israel was compelled to keep the Shemitah as an

He goes on to argue, however, that there is more to the Shemitah

But as a prophetic sign, it may apply to any nation. As an

Unfortunately, Cahn provides no direct biblical support for this

Background to the Biblical Shemitah

Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you

In addition to the Sabbath day, the Lord also instructed Israel to

At the end of every seven years you shall grant a release of

who has lent anything to his neighbor shall release it; he

Although the Sabbath year was to be a source of blessing to

until the rule of the kingdom of Persia, to fulfill the word

Has Jonathan Cahn “Done It Again”?

The fundamental premise of The Mystery of the Shemitah is that not

Is it possible that there exists a three-thousand-year-old

Interestingly, rather than attempting to test his case to determine

being a universal principle in God’s dealings with nations, it should

There is yet another mystery in The Harbinger we haven’t

Thus, just as God had imposed seventy forced Sabbath years

Furthermore, Cahn claims that the mystery of the Shemitah

THE THEORY OF SHEMITAH

We must distinguish between the observance of the

But as a sign, it is not bound to any schedule or regularity.

Biblical Shemitah a Blessing, Not a Curse

Furthermore, there is no biblical evidence to support Cahn’s

Although Cahn does acknowledge that the Shemitah was to be

The idea of a nation ceasing all work on its land for an

After a brief discussion regarding how in these later generations

1. The Shemitah bears consequences that specifically affect

2. The effects of the Shemitah bear key similarities to the

Once again, Cahn offers no scriptural evidence that ancient Israel

Ancient Israel Economy Unlike America Today

Another important point to consider is that ancient Israel’s economy

Of a foreigner you may require it; but you shall give up

Going back to the “imposed Shemitah”: God’s reason for link-

“Precise” Cycles Fail to Yield Fantastic Fortunes

If Cahn were right about the mystery of the Shemitah, then

Since World War 2, we’ve already had 11 recessions. And if

Would you agree: another recession is inevitable? It’s only

Cahn’s “Mystery” — Out of Sync with Reality?

Obviously, economic cycles of some duration are inevitable because

The hypothesis that the years 2014-2015 are of high

who is troubled by these claims at the grassroots level and

Jerry Bowyer is a Christian with an impressive set of credentials.

There are problems with this use of data: historically large

So, Rabbi Cahn is correct when he says that eight of

Perhaps the most important section in Bowyer’s paper is the fol-

The following is Bowyer’s overall analysis:

1. If the mystery of the Shemitah is a valid theory con-

2. How could the Lord apparently ignore Israel’s ongo-

3. With no biblical reason for anyone to think that

4. If the mystery of the Shemitah affects the world, does