The Lord says:
"It's time for you to receive My power to overcome! Overcome and triumph over whatever your bondage may be! Overcome and triumph over whatever evil and wickedness thrown at you by the enemy! Overcome and triumph over whatever curse or disease that has been inflicted upon you! Be set free! And start afresh!"
Judges 3:7-8 (NKJV) says, 'So the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord. They forgot the Lord their God, and they served the Baals and the Asherahs. Therefore the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel, and He sold them into the hand of Cushan-Rishathaim king of Mesopotamia; and the children of Israel served Cushan-Rishathaim eight years.'
Judges 3:9 (NKJV) says, 'When the children of Israel cried out to the Lord, the Lord raised up a deliverer for the children of Israel, who delivered them: Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother.'
For every name in the Scripture, there is a meaning. What does 'Cushan-Rishathaim' mean? It is translated as 'double wickedness'. It can also be translated as 'repeating wickedness that comes again and again like a curse'. Now, what does this speak of? It speaks of your bondage in life that seems so hard to be set free from. It speaks of the curse that has been inflicted upon you, or whatever thought of certain bad experiences, hurts, pains, or even guilt of your past that keeps trying to make a comeback to your life. And it comes again and again, attacking and pounding you over and over again, pulling you back to those past. That's what the definition of 'repeating wickedness that comes again and again' means here.
You see, we all have our "Cushan-Rishathaim". It's like you are trying to forget it and move on, but somehow it still comes back again and again to haunt you. And you feel so helpless, and it's like there's just no way out.
That's what the people of God experienced at that time as well. They were suffering under the 'double wickedness' of the king, Cushan-Rishathaim.
Beloved of God, maybe you too are going through a time like this. Your past keeps haunting you, be it those pains, bad experiences, tragedies, guilt, even shame or mistakes in your life, or failures in your life. And the enemy, your "Cushan-Rishathaim" keeps wanting to pull you back to remember those past.
The name 'Rishathaim' comes from two words: 'Rishah' which means 'wickedness, condemnation, fault'; and 'Ayim' which means 'double, plural, repeat'. See the word 'repeat' here? It means 'repeatedly pounding you again and again, reminding you of those past pains, condemnation, failure, guilt, or whatever bad experiences that you've had'.
How about the word 'Cushan' here? It comes from the word 'Cush'. Who is 'Cush'? He's the son of Ham. Remember that Ham who uncovered and exposed his father's (Noah's) nakedness? You can see that in Genesis 9:22-23. So, 'Cush' here speaks of 'guilt, curse'.
Have you been having nightmares or thoughts recently that bring you all the way back to those certain past failures, mistakes, or shame of yours? It's like all of a sudden, all those past bad memories you've wanted to forget suddenly make a comeback to haunt you again.
You see, the devil, the enemy, always wants to try to pull you back to your past, pointing fingers at you, and reminding you of those bad past of yours. Now, he's good at that. You know what? The Bible says he is the accuser of our brethren, accusing us day and night. That's in Revelation 12:10.
But look at one verse later in Revelation 12:11. That's the good news. 'And they (God's people) overcame him (the devil) by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony...' Who is this Lamb? Jesus! Who is this Word? Jesus! If you have Him, He has overcome for you! By His blood shed for you on the cross! And by His Word, which is like a sword that slays the power of darkness!
When Jesus' power is at work, the curse is broken! The bondage is broken! The 'spell' over you is broken! By Jesus' blood and by His Word! Amen! And that's where Othniel comes into picture! It is a 'picture' of who Jesus is in your life!
Judges 3:10 (NKJV) says, 'The Spirit of the Lord came upon him (Othniel), and he judged Israel. And so he went out to war, and the Lord delivered Cushan-Rishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand; and his hand prevailed over Cushan-Rishathaim.'
You see, the enemy wants you to relapse into your old cycle of repeated failures and pain again and again. The enemy wants history to repeat itself. I mean, those bad history. Those bad past. That's also what King Cushan-Rishathaim of Mesopotamia did against the people of God those days. In other words, he was bringing their memories back to Mesopotamia. And you know where is Mesopotamia? That's the place God had told Abraham to get out of there those days, and go to the land that God had promised him and his descendants.
But right now, praise the Lord and thanks be to God, because Jesus has overcome and prevailed for you! And you are now set free! See Jesus carrying all your curse and all those past of yours on the cross once and for all.
I want to declare that your bad history doesn't have to repeat itself! I also want to declare that you are now set free, and you can start afresh today!
Interestingly, 'Othniel' means 'Force of God, Strength of God, Power of God' in Hebrew. This name comes from two words: 'Othniy' which means 'force, strength, power'; and 'El' which is 'the name of God Almighty'. Othniel! Force of God! Strength of God! Power of God!
This speaks of Jesus who lives in you! This speaks of Jesus who has overcome for you! This speaks of Jesus who has prevailed over all your "Cushan-Rishathaim". Amen!
Right now, God's power is being released upon you. Receive by faith. Nothing of the enemy can stand this power of God. Declare that all the curse in your life is broken! And for all those bondages in your life, you are now set free from those!
Receive God's anointing right now! Receive the anointing for you to also start afresh! Yes, a new strength and a new vigor is coming upon you. Amen!
