Backs are turned to the temple of God. 

Ezekiel 8:16a.

Click for a description of the mark of the beast.
Click for a description of the image of the beast.

“And he brought me into the inner court of the Lord’s house, and, behold, at the door of the temple of the Lord, between the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the temple of the Lord…” Ezekiel 8:16a.

The location of “…between the porch and the altar…” is easily described by thinking of the safe distance between a porch of a house and a bar-b-que grill. The area between the porch and the bar-b-que grill is the location “...between the porch and the altar…” The porch is the place just before entering the door into the temple of the Lord. This symbolizes the place just before entering into the presence of the Lord within our soul and spirit. We are created to be the temple of the Holy Spirit. The altar is where animal sacrifices were burnt in the fire. The altar of the soul is where we offer ourselves to Jesus Christ who gave Himself as a sacrifice, the Lamb of God, to atone for sin.

The “twenty-five men”, were between the porch and the altar, and represent the ministers of the churches responsible for escorting people into the temple through the preaching and teaching of the Gospel of Christ. The ministers of today’s churches have their backs turned to the temple of the Lord, meaning they refuse to serve God by bringing people to Jesus Christ for the remission of sin. People are not being led to dedicate their body as the temple of the Holy Spirit.

Today, the Israelis and Jewish people all around the world have turned their backs on the temple of God by rejecting Jesus Christ who gives the Holy Spirit by the remission of sin. Jesus said this, “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.” Matthew 23:13

The entity giving people what to feel, think, say, and do has its back turned towards the temple of God to prohibit anyone from entering. This entity is hostile to the human body being the temple of the Holy Spirit. It enflames feelings against the spirit of Holiness, browbeats thoughts focused on Jesus Christ, forms words against the word of God, and manipulates behaviors contrary to the will of God. The purpose of this entity is to enliven the image of the beast to live and speak through people. People everywhere conform to the anti-Christian global culture as they are groomed to the mark of the beast by what they say and do.

In the next verse, we see that they have their faces turned toward the sun as they turn their backs on God.

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“….to you who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned Satan’s so-called deep secrets,“
‘I will not impose any other burden on you, except to hold on to what you have until I come.’”
“I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.”
Revelation 2:24-25, 3:1