JEHOVAH KNOWS HOW TO DELIVER HIS PEOPLE

2 Peter 2:9
"Jehovah knows how to deliver people of godly devotion out of trial."

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1 Thessalonians 5:2,3 "For YOU yourselves know quite well that Jehovah's day is coming exactly as a thief in the night. 3 Whenever it is that they are saying: "Peace and security!" then sudden destruction is to be instantly upon them just as the pang of distress upon a pregnant woman; and they will by no means escape."

Zephaniah 1:14-17 ""The great day of Jehovah is near. It is near, and there is a hurrying [of it] very much. The sound of the day of Jehovah is bitter. There a mighty man is letting out a cry. 15 That day is a day of fury, a day of distress and of anguish, a day of storm and of desolation, a day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick gloom, 16 a day of horn and of alarm signal, against the fortified cities and against the high corner towers. 17 And I will cause distress to mankind, and they will certainly walk like blind men; because it is against Jehovah that they have sinned. And their blood will actually be poured out like dust, and their bowels like the dung."

Matthew 24:21,22 "for then there will be great tribulation such as has not occurred since the world's beginning until now, no, nor will occur again. 22 In fact, unless those days were cut short, no flesh would be saved; but on account of the chosen ones those days will be cut short."

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Ezekiel 38:2 ""Son of man, set your face against Gog [of] the land of Ma'gog, the head chieftain of Me'shech and Tu'bal, and prophesy against him."

Ezekiel 38:14-16 ""Therefore prophesy, O son of man, and you must say to Gog, 'This is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah has said: "Will it not be in that day when my people Israel are dwelling in security that you will know [it]? 15 And you will certainly come from your place, from the remotest parts of the north, you and many peoples with you, all of them riding on horses, a great congregation, even a numerous military force. 16 And you will be bound to come up against my people Israel, like clouds to cover the land. In the final part of the days it will occur, and I shall certainly bring you against my land, for the purpose that the nations may know me when I sanctify myself in you before their eyes, O Gog."'"

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2 Peter 2:9 "Jehovah knows how to deliver people of godly devotion out of trial, but to reserve unrighteous people for the day of judgment to be cut off,"

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Genesis 6:3 "After that Jehovah said: "My spirit shall not act toward man indefinitely in that he is also flesh. Accordingly his days shall amount to a hundred and twenty years.""

Questions From Readers
At Genesis 6:3, we read: “My spirit shall not act toward man indefinitely in that he is also flesh. Accordingly his days shall amount to a hundred and twenty years.” Was Jehovah limiting the life span of humans to 120 years, and did Noah preach about the coming Flood for that long?
The answer to both parts of the question is no.
Prior to the Flood, many humans lived for centuries. Noah was 600 years old when the Flood came, and he lived to be 950. (Gen. 7:6; 9:29) Some who were born after the Flood also lived much more than 120 years. Arpachshad died at 438 and Shelah at 433. (Gen. 11:10-15) Yet, by Moses’ time, the normal life span was down to 70 or 80 years. (Ps. 90:10) So Genesis 6:3 was not fixing for humans a maximum or normal life span of 120 years.
Then, does that verse amount to a divine comment to Noah about warning others of the destruction to come in 120 years? No. On a number of occasions, God did speak to Noah. We read ten verses later in the account: “God said to Noah: ‘The end of all flesh has come before me, because the earth is full of violence.’” In the following years, Noah finished the massive task of building the ark, and at that point “Jehovah said to Noah: ‘Go, you and all your household, into the ark.’” (Gen. 6:13; 7:1) And there are other instances when Jehovah informed Noah of certain facts.—Gen. 8:15; 9:1, 8,  17.
However, Genesis 6:3 reads differently; it does not mention Noah, nor does it say that God was addressing him. It can be taken to be a simple expression of God’s purpose or determination. (Compare Genesis 8:21.) Significantly, in the historical record about developments long before Adam’s time, we find such expressions as: “God went on to say.” (Gen. 1:6, 9, 14, 20,  24) Obviously, Jehovah was not speaking to a human on earth, for man had not yet been created.
It is logical, therefore, to conclude that Genesis 6:3 expresses God’s resolve to end the corrupt system of things on earth. Jehovah issued a judicial decree to do so in 120 years, though Noah was not yet aware of that. But why set a time limit? Why wait?
The apostle Peter provides reasons: “The patience of God was waiting in Noah’s days, while the ark was being constructed, in which a few people, that is, eight souls, were carried safely through the water.” (1  Pet. 3:20) Yes, when God made his determination concerning 120 years, there were things remaining to be done. Some 20 years later, Noah and his wife began to have children. (Gen. 5:32; 7:6) Their three sons grew up and married, bringing the family up to “eight souls.” Then they had to build the ark, which was no quick task considering its size and the size of Noah’s family. Yes, God’s patience for 120 years allowed for those things to be accomplished and set the stage for the preservation of life, allowing eight faithful humans to be “carried safely through the water.”
The Bible does not specify the year in which Jehovah informed Noah that the Flood would occur. Inasmuch as his sons had been born, had grown up, and had married, possibly 40 or 50 years remained before the Flood. Then Jehovah said to Noah: “The end of all flesh has come before me.” He added that Noah was to build a huge ark and go into it with his family. (Gen. 6:13-18) During the remaining decades, Noah did more than provide an example of righteousness by his life. He served as “a preacher of righteousness” who had a very pointed warning message to declare—God’s determination to bring to ruin the ungodly of that time. Noah did not know long in advance in what year that would be, but he knew that it definitely would come. And you know that it did.—2  Pet. 2:5.

Genesis 7:6 "And Noah was six hundred years old when the deluge of waters occurred on the earth."

Genesis 5:32 "And Noah got to be five hundred years old. After that Noah became father to Shem, Ham and Ja'pheth."

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Genesis 6:22 "And Noah proceeded to do according to all that God had commanded him. He did just so."

Genesis 7:1-5 "After that Jehovah said to Noah: "Go, you and all your household, into the ark, because you are the one I have seen to be righteous before me among this generation. 2 Of every clean beast you must take to yourself by sevens, the sire and its mate; and of every beast that is not clean just two, the sire and its mate; 3 also of the flying creatures of the heavens by sevens, male and female, to preserve offspring alive on the surface of the entire earth. 4 For in just seven days more I am making it rain upon the earth forty days and forty nights; and I will wipe every existing thing that I have made off the surface of the ground." 5 And Noah proceeded to do according to all that Jehovah had commanded him."

Genesis 7:11 "In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, on the seventeenth day of the month, on this day all the springs of the vast watery deep were broken open and the floodgates of the heavens were opened."

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Matthew 24:36 ""Concerning that day and hour nobody knows, neither the angels of the heavens nor the Son, but only the Father."

Habakkuk 2:3 "For [the] vision is yet for the appointed time, and it keeps panting on to the end, and it will not tell a lie. Even if it should delay, keep in expectation of it; for it will without fail come true. It will not be late."

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Exodus 14:1-4 "Jehovah now spoke to Moses, saying: 2 "Speak to the sons of Israel, that they should turn back and encamp before Pi·ha·hi'roth between Mig'dol and the sea in view of Ba'al-ze'phon. In front of it YOU are to encamp by the sea. 3 Then Phar'aoh will certainly say respecting the sons of Israel, 'They are wandering in confusion in the land. The wilderness has closed in upon them.' 4 So I shall indeed let Phar'aoh's heart become obstinate, and he will certainly chase after them and I shall get glory for myself by means of Phar'aoh and all his military forces; and the Egyptians will certainly know that I am Jehovah." Accordingly they did just that."

Exodus 14:5-10 "Later it was reported to the king of Egypt that the people had run away. Immediately the heart of Phar'aoh as well as his servants was changed regarding the people, so that they said: "What is this that we have done, in that we have sent Israel away from slaving for us?" 6 So he proceeded to make his war chariots ready, and he took his people with him. 7 And he proceeded to take six hundred chosen chariots and all the other chariots of Egypt and warriors upon every one of them. 8 Thus Jehovah let the heart of Phar'aoh the king of Egypt become obstinate, and he went chasing after the sons of Israel, while the sons of Israel were going out with uplifted hand. 9 And the Egyptians went chasing after them, and all the chariot horses of Phar'aoh and his cavalrymen and his military forces were overtaking them while camping by the sea, by Pi·ha·hi'roth in view of Ba'al-ze'phon. 10 When Phar'aoh got close by, the sons of Israel began to raise their eyes and here the Egyptians were marching after them; and the sons of Israel got quite afraid and began to cry out to Jehovah."

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Exodus 14:19,20 "Then the angel of the [true] God who was going ahead of the camp of Israel departed and went to their rear, and the pillar of cloud departed from their van and stood in the rear of them. 20 So it came in between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel. On the one hand it proved to be a cloud together with darkness. On the other hand it kept lighting up the night. And this group did not come near that group all night long."

Exodus 14:21-25 "Moses now stretched his hand out over the sea; and Jehovah began making the sea go back by a strong east wind all night long and converting the sea basin into dry ground, and the waters were being split apart. 22 At length the sons of Israel went through the midst of the sea on dry land, while the waters were a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. 23 And the Egyptians took up the pursuit, and all the horses of Phar'aoh, his war chariots and his cavalrymen began going in after them, into the midst of the sea. 24 And it came about during the morning watch that Jehovah began to look out upon the camp of the Egyptians from within the pillar of fire and cloud, and he went throwing the camp of the Egyptians into confusion. 25 And he kept taking wheels off their chariots so that they were driving them with difficulty; and the Egyptians began to say: "Let us flee from any contact with Israel, because Jehovah certainly fights for them against the Egyptians.""

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Exodus 14:26-28 "Finally Jehovah said to Moses: "Stretch your hand out over the sea, that the waters may come back over the Egyptians, their war chariots and their cavalrymen." 27 Moses at once stretched his hand out over the sea, and the sea began to come back to its normal condition at the approaching of morning. All the while the Egyptians were fleeing from encountering it, but Jehovah shook the Egyptians off into the midst of the sea. 28 And the waters kept coming back. Finally they covered the war chariots and the cavalrymen belonging to all of Phar'aoh's military forces and who had gone into the sea after them. Not so much as one among them was let remain."

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Matthew 24:15,16 ""Therefore, when YOU catch sight of the disgusting thing that causes desolation, as spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in a holy place, (let the reader use discernment,) 16 then let those in Ju·de'a begin fleeing to the mountains."

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Matthew 24:17,18 "Let the man on the housetop not come down to take the goods out of his house; 18 and let the man in the field not return to the house to pick up his outer garment."

Luke 19:43 "Because the days will come upon you when your enemies will build around you a fortification with pointed stakes and will encircle you and distress you from every side,"

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James 3:17 "But the wisdom from above is first of all chaste, then peaceable, reasonable, ready to obey, full of mercy and good fruits, not making partial distinctions, not hypocritical."

22 We cannot presently have full details about the great tribulation, but we can logically conclude that for us the flight Jesus spoke of will not be in a geographic sense. God’s people are already around the globe, virtually in every corner. We can be sure, though, that when flight is necessary, Christians will have to continue to maintain a clear distinction between themselves and false religious organizations. It is also significant that Jesus warned about not going back to one’s house to retrieve garments or other goods. (Matthew 24:17,  18) So there may be tests ahead as to how we view material things; are they the most important thing, or is the salvation that will come for all on God’s side more important? Yes, our fleeing may involve some hardships and deprivations. We will have to be ready to do whatever it takes, as did our first-century counterparts who fled from Judea to Perea, across the Jordan.

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Habakkuk 3:16 "I heard, and my belly began to be agitated; at the sound my lips quivered; rottenness began to enter into my bones; and in my situation I was agitated, that I should quietly wait for the day of distress, for [his] coming up to the people, [that] he may raid them."

Habakkuk 3:18,19 "Yet, as for me, I will exult in Jehovah himself; I will be joyful in the God of my salvation. 19 Jehovah the Sovereign Lord is my vital energy; and he will make my feet like those of the hinds, and upon my high places he will cause me to tread. To the director on my stringed instruments."