From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia my suppliants, even the daughter of my dispersed, shall bring mine offering.
Zephaniah 3:10
Did you know there is an end-time prophecy in the Bible concerning Black women? It is found in Zephaniah 3:10. The Lord led me to this Scripture on my birthday back in 2002. I asked Him for a special word and boy did He deliver! I saw in this Scripture a prophetic promise for daughters of the African Diaspora. Zephaniah was a minor prophet, preaching an end-time message of divine judgment to Israel and the nations. The Bible says Zephaniah was the son of Cushi which means he was a Cushite or of the Black race. His name even means Jehovah of darkness. Zephaniah in the midst of prophesying end-time destruction and distress upon Israel and the nations, says that daughters of the African Diaspora will bring God His offering. The Bible calls these women suppliants, or worshippers. In our modern vernacular we would call them prayer warriors and intercessors.
For the most part, Bible commentators tend to skip over this verse. They have no idea what it means or why it is placed where it is in the text. At first glance it does appear out of context, but God in His infinite wisdom has place this verse right where it is supposed to be between judgment and mercy. After all, isn’t that the definition of intercession, to stand in the gap between judgment and mercy.
It is good to know that worshipping Black women, those who have been hiding and crying out to God in their prayer closets will take center stage in these end-times. They will stand as beacons of light and hope in the midst of darkness. God says, “They shall bring mine offering.” What type of offering is the Lord talking about? We know that He is no longer interested in the blood of bulls and goats. We know that Jesus provided the ultimate sacrifice when He offered His body. The offering that God is talking about is the souls of men. He is talking about humanity. Multitudes are in the valley of judgment, and daughters of the Diaspora are charged with the awesome task of bringing many to the Lord. Isaiah 66:20 says,
And they shall bring all your brethren for an offering unto the Lord out of all nations upon horses and in chariots, and in litters, and upon mules and upon swift beasts to my holy mountain Jerusalem, saith the Lord, as the children of Israel bring an offering in a clean vessel into the house of the Lord.
Notice also that Zephaniah 3:10 mentions the daughter of my ‘dispersed’. The Hebrew word for dispersed is puwts. It means to dash in pieces or to scatter abroad. It is where we get the word Diaspora. The biblical idea of “Diaspora” suggests the harsh uprooting of seedlings and scattering them in the wind so that they may take root and blossom beyond their existing sphere. It is associated with the judgments of God against the Israelites when they were driven out of Jerusalem and dispersed amongst the Gentile nations.
However, outside the Jewish Diaspora, we have the African Diaspora which started with the Trans-Atlantic slave trade. Here, millions of Africans were captured from their homelands along the coasts of Africa and transported to North America, the Caribbean, Central and South America as slaves. Their descendents are now called African-American, Afro-Cuban, Afro-Caribbean and Afro-Brazilian. No matter what language is spoken in the African Diaspora, whether English, Spanish, or Portuguese, there is a shared legacy of suffering and oppression. Various social ills still plague the African Diaspora, including oppression, poverty, crime, addiction and other forms of self-destructive behavior. However, these weights have also shaped a culture of resistance, resiliency, vitality, creativity, and spirituality.
I believe God allowed the scattering of Africans throughout the Diaspora to condition and position a people for a shared destiny of recovery and recompense. As I pondered this, the Holy Spirit simply said, “Issachar.” I thought to myself ‘Issachar’, what does that mean and what does it have to do with my people? I had never heard anyone preach on Issachar in all my years of sitting in church. I searched the Scriptures and found that Issachar was one of Jacob’s twelve sons, and his name means “reward” or “recompense.” Issachar was Leah’s fifth son, and when she bore him, Leah said “God has given me my reward because I have given my slave to my husband’: and she called his name Issachar” (Genesis 30:18). I continued searching the Scriptures surrounding the tribe Issachar and tried to discern exactly what it was the Lord was trying to tell me.
As I meditated on this Scripture and others involving Issachar, I finally understood that God was giving me a blueprint of a special end-time anointing on daughters of the Diaspora: women of African descent in the Americas. I call it the Issachar Anointing. It is an anointing that goes from being in bondage to bearing the fruit of redemption and financial deliverance. This end-time endowment involves a significant shift in the world order. The lowly will be exalted and the mighty brought low.
The story of Joseph in the book of Genesis is an excellent parallel of the Issachar Anointing. Just as Joseph endured bondage, oppression and cultural detachment prior to his ascent in Egypt, our experiences as Africans of the Diaspora have prepared and refined us to ascend the world stage during perilous times. Our unique struggles with captivity and economic oppression that resulted from being dispersed throughout the Americas and the Caribbean have qualified us for this turnaround anointing. Like Joseph, Africans of the Diaspora will soon say to the power structures that perpetuated and profited from slavery: “So it was not you that sent me hither but God…” (Genesis 45:8). The divine providence of God orchestrated Joseph’s path from bondage and hardship to leadership and stewardship in the Egyptian empire. The Issachar Anointing will chart a similar path for daughters of the Diaspora within the American empire.
This book illuminates two primary Scriptures involving Issachar: Genesis 49:14-15 foretells the dire condition of Issachar as a “tribute slave,” while Deuteronomy 33:18-19 foresees the final position of Issachar as spiritual leader and wealthy distributor of aid. As will be illustrated in this book, women endowed with the Issachar Anointing have dual callings involving (1) restoration and (2) recompense. On one hand they will be instrumental in helping restore the body of Christ to its full stature and bring souls into the kingdom of God. They will also steward tremendous wealth as recompense for the atrocities of slavery and oppression. The Issachar Anointing is a mantle that will take what the enemy meant for bad and turn it around for the good.
Albeit, we must be prepared to walk in the Issachar Anointing: This book addresses the necessary preparation, and the expectations on these women of destiny. As will be illustrated in the ensuing chapters, daughters of the Diaspora must rest in God. We must take on the burden of the Lord. We must yield completely to the Holy Spirit. We must have prophetic vision, and we must have a burden for the nations that are currently untouched by the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Once we are in position, God will entrust us with His divine Spirit and vast financial resources in order to promulgate the Gospel throughout the world and restore the body of Christ to righteousness.
I believe in these final hours, the world’s eyes will be on daughters of the Diaspora who are endowed with the Issachar Anointing. These great women will display the splendor of God. It is my sincere desire that this book will reach these women of destiny and aid them in seizing this momentous occasion.
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