Isaiah 45:11 Thus saith the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, and his Maker, Ask me of things to come concerning my sons, and concerning the work of my hands command ye me.
John 16:24-25
24 Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.
25 These things have I spoken unto you in proverbs: but the time cometh, when I shall no more speak unto you in proverbs, but I shall shew you plainly of the Father.
What is the Latter Rain?
Briefly, the Latter Rain is the Holy Spirit coming down, without measure, on God’s people in the end times just preceding the Harvest.
The great Pentecostal Movement or revival began in 1901. There have been three teachings or doctrines closely connected with this movement. They are known as the Latter Rain, the Manchild, and the Manifested Sons teachings. Some refer to these as Pentecostal Theology.
We have focused on the Manchild at ETPV lately. Now I want to look at the Latter Rain. I have written a lot about it already, and believe it is more comprehensive and foundational. Later we’ll look at the Manifested Sons.
I considered doing a study giving the historical background and development of these teachings. But as I looked into it, most of the material I found was hostile, and confusing. Many sources in the internet consider these teachings to be among the blackest of heresies. While there is some interesting writing available on these topics, making sense of it all was just confusing. So we are just going to look at what the Bible says, and share as the Holy Spirit has given us understanding.
The Harvest
Matthew 13:39 … the harvest is the end of the world; ….
The first mention of Harvest is found in Genesis.
Genesis 1:11-13
11 And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so.
12 And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
13 And the evening and the morning were the third day.
The Last mention is in Revelation 14.
Revelation 14:15 And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe.
Hebrew definitions from Strongs show the former rain to mean the autumn showers and the latter rain to be the spring rains. Also the spring harvests are connected with the spring feasts. Passover is the time of Barley harvest and Pentecost is the time of the wheat harvest.
So the idea of latter rain is connected to the harvest as it comes later in the Jewish secular year. It is also linked to the idea of the latter days. Strongs gives last days or end days as synonyms.
To sum this up, the Lord is using a figure of speech here. There is a comparison or analogy between the agricultural harvest and the spiritual harvest. Just as liter rainfall of water is needed for crops to ripen and be ready to harvest, so there is a need for a full pouring out of the Holy Spirit for harvest of souls to be made ready. So any place where the latter rain is mentioned in the bible has a spiritual application to the end time harvest of souls.
First let’s look at the scriptures which directly mention latter rain.
Deuteronomy 11:14 That I will give you the rain of your land in his due season, the first rain and the latter rain, that thou mayest gather in thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil.
The Latter Rain enables the harvest.
Here we note first of all that the rain comes in a due season. Secondly the Rain makes it possible to gather in the crops. And thirdly they are said to be corn, wine and oil. The Corn the Oil and the Wine are mentioned together in 18 old testament verses. In other verses, bread of wheat occurs instead of corn which can mean any kind of grain. There is a spiritual meaning to each of these. The clue is found in Psalm 104.
Psalms 104:15 And wine that maketh glad the heart of man, and oil to make his face to shine, and bread which strengtheneth man's heart.
Oil is a symbol of the Holy Spirit. The application of oil is anointing and forms the meaning of Messiah or Christ, The Anointed. Wine that makes us glad, speaks of the Joy of the Lord. And bread, made from grain, speaks of the word of God, the Lord Jesus who is the bread come down from heaven. So our quote from Deuteronomy 11 is telling us that God will provide us the Joy of the Lord, The Word of the Lord, and the Power [anointing] of the Lord in our harvest time.
Job 29:23 And they waited for me as for the rain; and they opened their mouth wide as for the latter rain.
The Latter Rain is the promise of the Father, that all the nations will be blessed.
Luke 24:49 And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.
Here God is telling us that to wait on the Lord is to wait on the Latter Rain, which is to say, He is the Latter Rain.
Proverbs 16:15 In the light of the king's countenance is life; and his favour is as a cloud of the latter rain.
Here God is saying the Latter Rain is having favor with God, and having his face to shine on us bringing life.
Repentance is required.
Jeremiah 3:1-4
1 They say, If a man put away his wife, and she go from him, and become another man's, shall he return unto her again? shall not that land be greatly polluted? but thou hast played the harlot with many lovers; yet return again to me, saith the LORD.
2 Lift up thine eyes unto the high places, and see where thou hast not been lien with. In the ways hast thou sat for them, as the Arabian in the wilderness; and thou hast polluted the land with thy whoredoms and with thy wickedness.
3 Therefore the showers have been withholden, and there hath been no latter rain; and thou hadst a whore's forehead, thou refusedst to be ashamed.
4 Wilt thou not from this time cry unto me, My father, thou art the guide of my youth?
Here God is saying that without repentance there will be no latter rain.
Jeremiah 5:24 Neither say they in their heart, Let us now fear the LORD our God, that giveth rain, both the former and the latter, in his season: he reserveth unto us the appointed weeks of the harvest.
The Latter Rain Is Fear Of The Lord
And in Jeremiah, he is telling us that Fear of the Lord is to accompany the Latter Rain.
Hosea 6:1-3
1 Come, and let us return unto the LORD: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up.
2 After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight.
3 Then shall we know, if we follow on to know the LORD: his going forth is prepared as the morning; and he shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter and former rain unto the earth.
Judgment, Then Revival At A Set Time
In Hosea, the Father is saying that judgment will come first, then revival. And that we must follow him to truly Know Him. The phrase his going forth is prepared as the morning speaks of his coming at a set time, a scheduled or appointed time, the fullness of time. Then he will come to us as the Latter Rain.
Joel 2:23-25
23 Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God: for he hath given you the former rain moderately, and he will cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month.
24 And the floors shall be full of wheat, and the fats shall overflow with wine and oil.
25 And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpiller, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you.
The Latter Rain Is Harvest Plus Restoration
Here in Joel, we see the Lord speaking of a Harvest of Corn, Oil and Wine; plus a restoration of all the enemy has stolen. And this is associated with the Latter Rain.
Zechariah 10:1 Ask ye of the LORD rain in the time of the latter rain; so the LORD shall make bright clouds, and give them showers of rain, to every one grass in the field.
We Need To Ask For The Latter Rain
Zechariah 10 is showing us we need to ask for the rain in the latter days.
James 5:7-8
7 Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.
8 Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.
The Latter Rain Is The Coming Of The Lord Spiritually.
James 5 gives us a clear link between the Latter Rain, the Harvest and the Coming of the Lord.
Rain in General
Now we’ll look at some scripture using just Rain as a figure of the Holy Spirit instead of Latter Rain.
A Rain Of Righteousness.
Hosea 10:12 Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the LORD, till he come and rain righteousness upon you.
First there is a mention of breaking fallow ground. This continues the agricultural parallel speaking of plowing up hard ground. But it is mainly speaking of righteousness and mercy. The rain to come down is not just water but the water of the Word. And the Word is The Lord; one of his names is the Lord our Righteousness.
Psalms 72:1-7
1 <A Psalm for Solomon.> Give the king thy judgments, O God, and thy righteousness unto the king's son.
2 He shall judge thy people with righteousness, and thy poor with judgment.
3 The mountains shall bring peace to the people, and the little hills, by righteousness.
4 He shall judge the poor of the people, he shall save the children of the needy, and shall break in pieces the oppressor.
5 They shall fear thee as long as the sun and moon endure, throughout all generations.
6 He shall come down like rain upon the mown grass: as showers that water the earth.
7 In his days shall the righteous flourish; and abundance of peace so long as the moon endureth.
Righteousness And Peace
This quote from Psalm 72 mentions righteousness and peace, which are aspects of the Kingdom of God. Also it compares the Lord coming down as rain or showers.
Favor Of The King
Proverbs 19:12 The king's wrath is as the roaring of a lion; but his favour is as dew upon the grass.
Here the dew upon the grass, which is another form of water coming down, is compared to the favor of the King.
Showers Of Blessing In His Season
Ezekiel 34:26 And I will make them and the places round about my hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down in his season; there shall be showers of blessing.
Here note the mention of the shower to come in his season, again speaking of an appointed time.
Isaiah 32:15 Until the spirit be poured upon us from on high, and the wilderness be a fruitful field, and the fruitful field be counted for a forest.
Acts 2:17-18
17 And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:
18 And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:
Joel 2:28-29
28 And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions:
29 And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit.
A New Covenant
Jeremiah 31:31-33
31 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:
32 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD:
33 But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.
Clothed With Righteousness
The Latter Rain is a rain of righteousness. This is synonymous with Salvation.
Let’s consider some verses relating to being clothed with righteousness or salvation.
Psalms 132:13-16
13 For the LORD hath chosen Zion; he hath desired it for his habitation.
14 This is my rest for ever: here will I dwell; for I have desired it.
15 I will abundantly bless her provision: I will satisfy her poor with bread.
16 I will also clothe her priests with salvation: and her saints shall shout aloud for joy.
2 Chronicles 6:41 Now therefore arise, O LORD God, into thy resting place, thou, and the ark of thy strength: let thy priests, O LORD God, be clothed with salvation, and let thy saints rejoice in goodness.
Revelation 12:10 And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.
Psalms 118:21-26
21 I will praise thee: for thou hast heard me, and art become my salvation.
22 The stone which the builders refused is become the head stone of the corner.
23 This is the LORD'S doing; it is marvellous in our eyes.
24 This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.
25 Save now, I beseech thee, O LORD: O LORD, I beseech thee, send now prosperity.
26 Blessed be he that cometh in the name of the LORD: we have blessed you out of the house of the LORD.
Isaiah 61:10-11
10 I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels.
11 For as the earth bringeth forth her bud, and as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth; so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations.
Take note of how the mention of righteousness and salvation in these last 5 quotes is accompanied by mention of gladness, rejoicing and praise.
Putting On Christ The New Man
The idea of being clothed with salvation is expressed in the following verses as putting on Christ or the New Man. He is the second man, the second Adam. When you put him on you become a new creation.
Romans 13:14 But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.
Galatians 3:27 For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
Ephesians 4:24 And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.
There is much more that could be said. The Latter Rain relates to the river of God, the waters to swim in, the wind of the Spirit, and the Baptism of Fire.
First Peter mentions salvation coming in the ‘Last Time’.
1 Peter 1:5 Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
The Latter Rain is that Salvation.
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