The Glory Of The Latter House Will Be Greater Than The Former

“The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former, and in this place will I give peace.”

I had a dream a few weeks ago that I believe was a message from God. I think it was God answering my many questions about why I experienced so many trials. I was surprised to receive this message now as I had already made peace and was content with my situation.

In the dream, I was on my way home from a meeting. I was standing outside my former house. It did not exactly look like my former house, but I knew it was my “former house.” It was overcast and started raining. Even though I seemed confused about where I was, I was in a hurry to get inside. The security alarm went off. I went inside and the security company called me complaining that they do not understand why the alarm went off or what triggered it. They explained that they could not help me and hung up. Then I was in the bathroom, opened the tap and left it running. I remember being concerned about the water bill but left it running. The rain was beating down on the house. Water was starting to leak through the ceiling. I was concerned that it was not going to hold. The house was becoming increasingly flooded. Eventually, the passage in the hallway started to collapse as the rain was coming down. The house was becoming increasingly flooded. I did not know what to do and stared in horror as everything started to fall apart. The water continued to rise. I noticed the ceiling in the kitchen collapsing. I also saw something, what initially looked like a red spider coming from the roof. This freaked me out. However, it changed to a massive red frog with black spots. It had a web coming out from its behind. The house was flooded. I felt helpless, sad, and devastated … I knew the house was going to be destroyed by the rain. I called my sister for help.

I woke up and had to resist the urge to Google my dream. Instead, I became quiet. I knew that my dream was a message from God. But what was God telling me?

I know that the Holy Spirit speaks to us through dreams. It is biblical fact. According Acts 2:17 “In the last days,’ God says, ‘I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams.”

I became quiet and listened carefully to the Holy Spirit as I attempted to understand my dream. Rain and water represent the Holy Spirit. There are several scriptures in the bible that rain and water is symbolically used to show the presence of God’s Spirit. Sometimes, He is referred to as an all-consuming fire but in my dream, the Holy Spirit was represented by rain and water. Ezekiel 34:26 “I will cause the shower to come down … there shall be showers of blessing”. Psalm 72:6 “He shall come down like rain … As showers that water the earth.”

Rain and water in my dream was the outpouring of the Spirit of God, which essentially is God manifesting His presence. The outpouring of God’s Spirit led to my “former house” being destroyed.

The red frog with black spots that had a spider web coming from its behind represented something toxic in my life. This is what came to my mind as I thought about what it represented in my dream. In the Bible frogs are mentioned in two contexts. In Exodus 8, as the second plague as God was freeing his people from slavery of the Egyptians, and in Revelation 16 where evil spirits looked like frogs.

The Holy Spirit showed me that the ceiling was collapsing because of the rain and that the frog was escaping. The frog was running for its life. The web attached to him, meant that it was building a nest in the roof. The revelation was that the house had to be destroyed to remove what was residing in it. After, my quiet time, I eventually googled red frogs with black spots. It turns they are actually known as toxic amphibians. Frogs do have a benign meaning for other religions but in my dream it represented something toxic that was oppressing me and God had to free me of it.

As the dream spoke of the former house, the scripture of Haggai 2:9 came to mind. The glory of the latter house will be greater than the former house. God will give his peace to the latter house. I believe that house represents me as God’s temple. This is what I heard in my spirit, and it is supported biblically. Ephesians 2:22 – “And in him [Christ] you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.” 1 Corinthians 3:16 – “Do you not know that you yourselves are God’s temple, and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?”

I read the book of Haggai to add more context to my dream. As background, Haggai’s prophecy came at a time when the people of Judah were extremely vulnerable. They had been humbled by their exile to Babylon, their temple was destroyed, and hopeful in their return to their Promised Land. They were discouraged by the opposition in their rebuilding of the temple that they had quit. Haggai was called by God to encourage the people to finish the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem. God promised that he would be in their midst. His presence would be with them.

Haggai 1:7 and 8, resonated with me. In the scriptures God said,

“Give careful thought to your ways. Go up into the mountains and bring down timber and build my house, so that I may take pleasure in it and be honored,”

When a Christian accept Christ as Lord and Savior, the Spirit of God comes to dwell in us. The process of becoming new being in Christ starts. We start reading and meditating on God’s Word. We are prompted by the Holy Spirt. Our thinking is renewed. Wrong and negative thoughts, characteristics and attitudes are destroyed. If you do this, you will discover and learn the meaning of what true resistance entails.

The former house will inevitably be destroyed and whatever or whoever dwelled in there previously, will be evicted.

New thoughts, attitudes, and characteristics will be built until the dwelling, house or temple eventually resembles the host that dwells within. The word of God will come to pass. The glory of the latter house will be greater than the former and God’s presence and his peace that surpasses all understanding will be in its midst.

Zelna Jansen is an ex officio board member of BE ✝️HE CHANGE

BE ✝️HE CHANGE vision is “Empowered communities where every young woman and child has self-agency.” Be ✝️he Change is a non-profit organization, facilitating change within society by improving and enhancing the lives of young women and children through education support, advocacy work, skills for life and other empowerment programs.

Zelna Jansen is also the Executive Director of Zelna Jansen Consultancy, a lobbying and advocacy firm with the aim of bringing people together to find solutions and helping people to have a more effective conversations with their law- and policymakers.

She is an admitted attorney of the High Court, with an especially keen interest in public policy, trade law and constitutional law. She has a Bachelor of Arts (prelaw), a Bachelor of Laws and a Master of Commerce degree specializing in trade law and policy. Through her volunteerism in leading roles in several organizations she actively engages the community and social spirit necessary to uplift many in South Africa today. This includes writing opinion editorials, news and radio interviews and educational workshops with community organizations and schools on how to conduct advocacy on law and policy reform.