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A Dissertation on Armageddon
from the Pre-wrath Perspective
INTRODUCTION
From AD 30 until the inception of the 70th week, there will exist in
the world, "wars and rumors of war" as the beginning of birth
pains, especially for the people of Israel (Dan. 9:26; Mat. 24:4-8).
The Roman Prince who is to come" will
become a world leader, and bring a temporary end to that period of warfare
by establishing the covenant of peace and religious
toleration; man's Covenant Experiment. For the sake of simplicity, I will designate this as M.E.P.T.A.
(the Middle East Peace and Tolerance Accord). The primary focus of this
covenant will be on the Middle East but probably extend world wide as this
world ruler promises peace and security to the people of the earth.
Daniel 11:33-35, tells of "a little help"
that will be extended to Israel after their world wide dispersion of 70 AD.
Hindsight of course is usually impeccable, but it seems that the "little help" will come in 3 phases.
(1) In 1917, the Balfour Declaration that provided a homeland for the Jews
in Palestine.
(2) In 1948, the United Nations decree that recognized Israel as an
independent nation.
(3) The yet future 7-year Covenant Experiment that will allow Israel to have
a temple and to worship through animal sacrifices. Daniel 9:27, "with the
many."
Daniel 11:34 indicates that through acceptance of this covenant "many will
join with them in "hypocrisy."
It is within the context of all three of
these factors, that it can be said of Israel, she "has been restored from
the sword," (Ezek. 38:8). This time of peace will continue for 3 1/2 years
until the world leader receives a fatal head wound, probably at the hand of
an assassin through Satan's influence. This man will then be brought back to life by the power of
Satan in the eyes of all the world, and is designated in the book of
Revelation as one of the heads of the beast out of the sea (Rev. 13:1). It is this event that
will bring the people of the world to his feet so that they will elevate and
honor him as a god. Then through that same Satanic power, he will begin to
act out the wrath of Satan toward God and God's people (Jews and
Christians). Rev. 12:12-17; 13:3-7.
He will begin by taking "his seat in the temple of God, displaying
himself as God" (2 Thes. 2:4), thus effectively sabotaging the Covenant
Experiment (M.E.P.T.A.). He will also "put a stop to
the sacrifices and grain offerings" the Jews were performing in the
temple (Dan. 9:27). He will place some kind of image of himself in the holy
place and demand worship. Jesus calls this the "abomination of desolation,
spoken of by Daniel the prophet (Dan. 12:11), standing in the Holy Place."
(Mat. 24:15) This breaking of the covenant will officially begin the great tribulation of oppression and persecution
for those who will not worship the beast (Mat. 24:9-29; Rev. 13:15-17).
When this resuscitated person begins
his reign of world domination and oppression at the midpoint of the 70th week of Daniel,
he will promise economic security to those who will worship him and take "the
mark of the beast." Thus, the beast worshippers will continue to proclaim
"peace and security" as they rejoice in the economic programs
of the beast and are able to participate in normal life activities without
fear or distraction (1 Thes. 5:3; Mat. 24:38).
Jesus said that it will be for them "as in the days of Noah .
. . eating and drinking," etc. (Mat. 24:38), lulled to sleep by the
economic security provided through beast worship (Rev. 13:17). But as Paul
wrote, then destruction will come upon them suddenly.
Since the beast will control the majority
of material resources for MOST of the world, there will be economic hardship
and famine conditions for those who are not under his wings.
Seals 3-4 of Revelation 6:5-8.
It seems that the reach of the beast will not actually be world-wide.
Even though "authority over every tribe, people tongue and nation" will be
given to the beast (Rev.13:7), the EFFECTS of his reign, "to kill with
sword, famine, pestilence and wild beasts" will reach to only "a fourth of
the the earth."
Other parts of the world then will also fall under the condition of "eating
and drinking," and be unprepared for the return of the Lord.
Neither Jesus nor Paul
addresses the REASON for this false security. Jesus indicates that it is
during the time of the tribulation that this will be an issue. Paul just
indicates it is before the day of the Lord arrives, except in his second
letter, he clearly relates it to the tribulation (2Thes. 1:6-7; 2:1-10) and
the man of lawlessness. But we learn later that they will feel secure
because they are enjoying the temporal economic benefits of beast worship.
It should be further
noted that the point of comparison to the days of Noah, is not the idea that people
(unbelievers) are TAKEN all away, but that judgment comes when people are
occupied with material things. The verb, “took away” simply describes the FACT
of the judgment that came upon them. When the day of the Lord judgments
begin, the issue is not that anyone will be TAKEN away. The issue is that
RIGHT NOW, judgment is upon them and there is no escape.
At Luke 17:27, the word that is used is “destroyed”
(apollumi), and indicates death rather
than any kind of removal. And of course, after the rapture, all unbelievers
will eventually encounter physical death, either through the various judgments
during the day of the Lord,
or just before the millennial kingdom when all the living unbelievers will be removed
from the earth (Mat. 25; Ezek 34).
During the first several months of the
beast's reign, the people and nations of the world will continue to follow the beast as
long as he can fulfill his promise of "peace and security." But
when least expected, during this time of security (1 Thes. 5:2-3), and
while the beast worshipers are afflicting the believers (2 Thes. 1:6-7;
Rev. 13:7a; Dan. 7:21), the Day of the Lord will occur. (Mat. 24:29-31;
Rev. 6:12-17).
1 Thessalonians 5:2-3
"For you yourselves know full well that the day of the Lord will
come just like a thief in the night. While they are saying, 'Peace and
safety!' then destruction will come upon them suddenly like birth pangs
upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape."
2 Thessalonians 1:6-8
"For after all it is just for God to repay with affliction those
who afflict you, and {to give} relief to you who are afflicted and to us
as well WHEN the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with His mighty
angels in flaming fire, dealing out retribution to those who do not know
God and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus."
The general day-of-the-Lord judgments are
not the subject of this treatise, but this "destruction" and repayment "with affliction"
and "dealing out retribution" includes the events leading up to
the battle of Armageddon and is the subject. This general judgment upon the
world is summarized at Isaiah 24:1-23.
Isaiah 24:1-6 The DOL judgments in general.
The statement of guilt and consequences.
Isaiah 24:7-13, the economic affects from the DOL judgments.
Isaiah 24:14-16a, Evangelism during the DOL
judgments.
Isaiah 24:16b-20, states the DOL judgments in a more intense degree.
Application to the 7 bowls of Revelation.
Isaiah 24:21-22, The final judgment on angels and humans.
Isaiah 24:23, The establishment of the earthly Davidic kingdom.
Specifically, the judgments will take
place in 5 stages.
1. The trumpets stage: Divine judgment (fire) poured out on the earth
from the Day of the Lord arrival of Jesus until the end of the week (a
period that covers anywhere from 8 to 36 months (Rev. 8-9).
2. The bowls stage: The final wrath of God poured out on the kingdom
of the beast during the 30-day period which immediately follows the end
of the 70th week. (Rev. 11:14-19; 15:1-16:21; Dan. 12:11)
3. The Armageddon stage: When Jesus comes physically down to the earth
and destroys the invading nations in Palestine, which takes place in connection
with the 6th and 7th bowl judgments. (Rev. 14:14-20; 16:12-21; 19:11-21)
4. The Separation stage: When the living unbelievers are removed from
the earth after Armageddon so that the kingdom of Christ will begin with
believers only.
A. The separation of sheep and goats from among the Gentiles (Mat.
25:31-46; 13:36-43, 47-50).
B. The separation of the fat and lean sheep of Israel (Ezek. 34:17-24).
C. The removal of Satan and demons:
Isaiah 24:21-22; Zech. 13:2; Rev. 18:2
5. The eternal stage: Lake of fire (2 Thes. 1:9; Rev. 14:9-11; Rev.
20:11-15;
Isaiah 24:22, "and after many days they will be punished").
Once the Day of the Lord judgments begin to come upon the earth, the
beast's ability to provide peace and security will be greatly impeded.
Through trumpets 1-4, food supplies will be diminished, energy resources
will be diminished and many plagues and disasters will affect the nations
with the result that "many men died," (Rev. 8:11). Isaiah 24:7-11
Through trumpet #5, the people of the world will be severely terrorized
for five months by the demon horde from the abyss and the beast will have
no control over the attack.
The 6th trumpet judgment is when the permissive will of God allows
a kingdom power to move in opposition to the beast and seek world domination.
I believe this to be the world-wide invasion of the king of the North which
will culminate in the final battle of Armageddon in Palestine (Rev. 9:13-19).
THE SIXTH TRUMPET
Rev. 9:13-15,
And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns
of the golden altar which is before God, one saying to the sixth angel
who had the trumpet, 'Release the four angels who are bound at the great
river Euphrates.' And the four angels, who had been prepared for the hour and day and
month
and year, were released, so that they might kill a third of mankind."
These four angels have been functioning in
a restraint operation from before the time of John's writing until the
present time. Whether they are elect or fallen is not mentioned, nor does it
matter. The main point is to recognize that the general flow of history is
controlled
by God and nothing happens except what his sovereignty permits (Daniel 4:17, 34-35).
These angels have been specially prepared for this specific time in human
history to allow
the unrestricted advance of a military machine of the
like the world had never seen before (Joel 2:2).
Rev. 9:16
"And the number of the armies of the horsemen was two hundred
million; I heard the number of them."
The number designation of this army as it appears in the Greek
(dismuriadoes muriadon) literally means twice (or several) ten thousand times ten thousand.
It is suggested on the one hand to be a specific number of 200 million,
and on the other hand to simply indicate an innumerable host. Many commentators
of the past have discounted the idea of "200 million," as being
quite impossible for any "then" known geographical area. However,
in this century, the clear reality of such numbers is no longer in question,
whether it be from the area of the east (China and India), or from a large alliance of nations
which can be associated with Russia.
And the description in Ezek 38 indicates an allegiance of nations which
according to today's population stats, could easily match the required
number.
DESCRIPTION OF THE ARMY
Rev. 9:17-19
"And this is how I saw in the vision the horses and those who
sat on them: {the riders} had breastplates {the color} of fire and of hyacinth
and of brimstone; and the heads of the horses are like the heads of lions;
and out of their mouths proceed fire and smoke and brimstone. A third of
mankind was killed by these three plagues, by the fire and the smoke and
the brimstone, which proceeded out of their mouths. For the power of the
horses is in their mouths and in their tails; for their tails are like
serpents and have heads; and with them they do harm."
This is viewed by most scholars as describing a military machine from
the perspective of modern mechanized weaponry.
Pentecost writes, "The sixth trumpet judgment, which is the second woe
(9:13-19), is seen to be a great army turned loose to march with destructive
force across the face of the earth. (Things to come, page 362).
Notice the similarity found at Joel 2:3-4,
"A fire consumes before them, And behind them a flame burns. The
land is like the garden of Eden before them, But a desolate wilderness
behind them, And nothing at all escapes them. Their appearance is like
the appearance of horses; And like war horses, so they run."
It is the view of this writer, that the army of the 6th trumpet
is the Northern army which is described at Ezekiel 38-39 and Joel 2:1-20.
ORIENTATION
First point of orientation is to recognize that the understanding of
this invasion has nothing to do with the timing of the rapture. Therefore,
the pretrib, midtrib, pre-wrath and posttrib positions are not pertinent
to this study. However, this discussion will be flavored by definitions
in terminology characteristic of the pre-wrath view of the rapture.
The second point of orientation is to recognize that in the book of
The Revelation, the seven seals, trumpets and bowls follow one upon the
other in chronological order. Specifically, that the seven trumpets come
out from the 7th seal and that the seven bowls come out from the 7th trumpet
which sounds immediately after the ascension of the two witnesses, 1263
1/2 days after the midpoint of the week (Rev. 11:7-15). And that there
is a 30 day period which follows the end of the 70th week, as indicated
at Daniel 12:11, during which the seven bowls will be poured out upon the
earth.
The third point of orientation is to recognize that the 6th trumpet
takes place toward the end of the 70th week, as is also acknowledged by
John F. Walvoord:
"Chronologically the trumpets involved closely succeed one another
and their judgments seem to fall like trip-hammer blows as the great tribulation
comes to its close."
(The Revelation of Jesus Christ, page 166).
THE KING OF THE NORTH
The basic outline for the movement of these troops in this end-times
context is found at Daniel 11:40-45. Here we find troop movement from the
North, South, East and West, all leading up to the final confrontation
between them and the Lord Jesus Christ at Armageddon.
There are some who suggest that these
military maneuvers take place prior to the breaking of the Covenant, that
is, prior to the midpoint of the week. However, the context clearly
indicates that they will take place AFTER the world ruler has exalted
himself "above every god," which is at the midpoint of the week.
The reason for this attack is because the
day-of-the-Lord judgments will have greatly impeded the beast's ability to
provide peace and security and economic stability. Thus, the king of the
North and many other nations will rebel against the beast and begin to move
against him in order to acquire much needed material resources for the
survival of their lands.
There are two stages to the invasion of the king of the North. First,
he pushes against the kingdom of the beast by attacking him on a worldwide
scale (Jeremiah 25:15-38; Dan. 11:40; Rev. 9:13-19) and then when the king
of the West is adequately distracted, he invades Palestine (Ezekiel 38-39;
Joel 2:2-11, 18-20, 25). The details are filled in from the prophets of
the Old Testament and the Book of the Revelation.
Daniel 11:36-39 identifies the main actor in this military scenario.
It describes the dramatic change in personality of the benevolent king of the West,
the world ruler who instituted the Covenant Experiment of Daniel 9:27
at the beginning of the 70th week. This happens at the midpoint of the
week shortly after the ruler is assassinated and brought back to life by
the power of Satan (Rev. 13:3-7).
There is much debate as to the identification of the person in view
at this passage, but to spare the reader all my research into this, I will
simply agree with the conclusion of Walvoord,
"A better identification of the king,. . . however, is to relate
him to the Roman world ruler, the same individual as the little horn of
Daniel 7 and the beast out of the sea of Revelation 13:1-10." (Daniel,
page 272).
I will therefore operate on the premise that this "king"
is indeed the world ruler who controls the 10-nation political body with
roots in ancient Rome, who is known as the king of the West and who is
often represented in the Old Testament as the king of Babylon. The 3rd
person pronouns that follow the phrase, "the king of the North will
storm against him," in verse 40, ALL refer to the king of the West.
For more information on this world ruler see THE
POLITICAL POWER BASE OF THE BEAST
Daniel 11:40-45
Verse 40
1. At the end-times: This identifies our time frame as relating to
the last 7 years (Daniel's 70th week) PLUS the 75 days mentioned at
Daniel 12:11-12, prior to the establishment of Messiah's
kingdom on the earth. And since we are clearly in a context where the world
ruler has been revealed as "the man of lawlessness" of
2Thessalonians 2, it refers
specifically to sometime after the midpoint of the 70th week.
And since DURING the unrestrained reign of the beast (the period between
the midpoint and the arrival of Jesus in the clouds of the sky), "who is
like the beast and who is able to wage war against him (Rev. 13:4)," the
nations will not move against him during that phase of his reign.
2. The king of the South will collide with him: The K/S is usually
associated with Egypt and we here see him rebelling against and attacking the beast (K/W), perhaps in alliance with the
king of the North. Jordan (Edom, Obadiah 12-18) also will rebel and
advance into the Israeli territory seeking to possess resources for
itself. In fact, it is probable that all the Arab nations bordering Israel
will take sides either with the Northern Alliance. the Southern alliance, or the beast.
The king of the South is mentioned elsewhere in the Old Testament, which I
will cover at a later time. Isaiah 19:16-25
3. And the king of the North will storm against him: This introduces
us to the revolt of the Northern nations allied with Gog and Magog which
is detailed in other passages. This summarizes an attack against the kingdom
of the beast in both a worldwide and Palestinian arena. Other passages
will establish the fact that the king of the North targets the nations
under the beast's jurisdiction on a worldwide basis in preparation for
his advance into Palestine. It might be limited to a European arena, since
"all the nations" at the time of writing had in mind that general
geographical area.
JEREMIAH
The "world-wide" attack of the king of the North is summarized at Jeremiah
25:15-38.
At verses 11-12, the Babylonian captivity is referenced indicating
that its duration will be 70 years and when its over, Chaldea will be conquered
and destroyed by Persia.
Verses 13-14, speaks of Persia's conquest of the world and becomes
the pattern for the end-times invasion of the king of the North.
Verses 15-38, Gives us the basis for viewing this as the Northern invasion.
The section goes beyond Persia and views that end-times invasion by
the Northern alliance.
Verses 15-29, are written in prose and give geographic specifics about
this world wide invasion. Verse 15, establishes this as God's wrath upon
all the nations.
As the king of the North advances, no area is left untouched, North,
South, East and West, all experience the devastation of this mighty military
machine storming against the beast's kingdom. These directions are in
reference to the land of Israel and are probably limited to Europe, Asia,
Palestine and North Africa.
Although, the "inhabited earth" in the 21st century encompasses the entire
globe, and given the nature of the world's technology, this attack from the
king of the North might very well include a much wider geographical arena
than what was in view at the time of writing.
Verses 27-28, establish the fact that it is unavoidable.
This worldwide reach of the Northern army is suggested at Rev. 9:14-16,
where we see restraint on the army removed by the releasing
of the 4 "restraining" angels so that the impact of this invasion
is felt in all four directions branching out from the pivot of the
Euphrates. The army does not originate at this location. The Euphrates river
has historically been a point of division and limitation. It seems that the
vision is showing symbolically that there is now nothing that prevents the
army from reaching wherever it chooses.
Rev. 9:14-16,
"one saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, 'Release the
four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates. 'And the four angels, who had been prepared for the hour and day and
month and year, were released, so that they might kill a third of mankind. And the number of the armies of the horsemen was two hundred million;
I heard the number of them."
The result is that 1/3 of the earth's population will be killed as
indicated at Revelation 9:18,
"A third of mankind was killed by these three plagues, by the
fire and the smoke and the brimstone, which proceeded out of their mouths."
(At the 4th seal of Rev. 6:8, it is one fourth of the LAND area that is affected
by the economic shortages caused by the reign of the beast before the arrival of Jesus. At Rev.
9:18, it is one third of the POPULATION that is killed and it happens AFTER
the arrival of Jesus.)
Jeremiah 25:29a, indicates that this worldwide invasion has as its
ultimate goal, a judgment on the land of Palestine.
"For behold, I am beginning to work calamity in {this} city which
is called by My name."
Verse 29b, however, indicates that all the world will be touched by
this judgment from God.
"and shall you be completely free from punishment? You will not
be free from punishment; for I am summoning a sword against all the inhabitants
of the earth, declares the LORD of hosts."
Verses 30-38 are written in poetry and identify this worldwide invasion
by a kingdom power as taking place DURING the Day of the Lord.
Now even though the term, "Day of the Lord," does not occur
in this context, the language clearly describes the arrival of Yahweh to
pour out judgment on the world.
Jeremiah 25:30,
"Therefore you shall prophesy against them all these words, and
you shall say to them, The LORD will roar from on high, And utter His voice
from His holy habitation; He will roar mightily against His fold. He will
shout like those who tread {the grapes,} Against all the inhabitants of
the earth."
This is the arrival of the Messiah in the "clouds of the sky"
at the Day of the Lord. This arrival BEGINS the Day of the Lord judgments
which are not only against His pasture, but also against all nations. This
is exactly why, when Jesus returns, "there will be dismay among nations
. . . men fainting from fear and the expectation of the things coming upon
the world," (Luke 21:25-26). And why "all the tribes of the earth
will mourn," (Mat. 24:30) and why "the kings of the earth and
the great men and the commanders and the rich and the strong and every
slave and free man, (symbolically) hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of
the mountains; and they said to the mountains and to the rocks, "Fall
on us and hide us from the presence of Him who sits on the throne, and
from the wrath of the Lamb; for the great day of their wrath has come; and
who is able to stand?" (Rev. 6:15-17)
His fold refers to Israel and "the
inhabitants of the earth" refers to the rest of the world.
Before the restraints are removed for the advance of the King of the North,
Israel and the rest of the world will feel the wrath of God through the
trumpet judgments.
Jeremiah 25:31a, "A clamor has come to the end of the earth, Because
the LORD has a controversy with the nations."
The "controversy with the nations" makes reference to the
universal rebellion that mankind expresses toward God and God's Anointed.
Moral deviation, rejection of the gospel and direct antagonism characterize
the earth dwellers.
Psalm 2:1-5
WHY are the nations in an uproar,
And the peoples devising emptiness?
The kings of the earth take their stand,
And the rulers have established themselves together
Against Yahweh and against His Anointed:
"Let us tear apart Their fetters,
And cast from us Their cords!
He who sits in the heavens laughs,
The Lord scoffs at them.
Then He will speak to them in His anger
And terrify them in His burning fury:
Isaiah 24:5
"The earth is also polluted by its inhabitants, for they transgressed laws,
rejected (passed over) statutes, violated the everlasting covenant (rejected
the gospel)."
Jeremiah 25:31b,
"He is entering into judgment with all flesh; As for the wicked,
He has given them to the sword, declares the LORD."
The phrase, "entering into judgment with all flesh," refers
specifically to the judgment that comes through the invasion of the Northern
alliance, but certainly extends beyond that to all the expressions of divine
wrath poured out during the Day of the LORD.
Jeremiah 25:32,
"Thus says the LORD of hosts, Behold, evil is going forth From
nation to nation, And a great storm is being stirred up from the remotest
parts of the earth."
"From nation to nation" indicates clearly the advance of
this military invasion as being throughout the world and corresponds with
the worldwide focus of the 6th trumpet (Rev. 9:13-19) rather than the isolated
focus of the battle of Armageddon.
Furthermore, "from the remotest parts of the earth" indicates this is the
movement of an army that is advancing throughout the world.
At the time that this was written, the "world" involved the areas of Europe,
Asia and Northern Africa. This seems to be the primary focus during the
events of the end times as well.
Although, given the technology of today, it might very well include the
entire world, or at least to whatever areas the beast has under his control.
Jeremiah 25:33-37a, describes the worldwide destruction
Verse 33,
"And those slain by the LORD on that day shall be from one end
of the earth to the other. They shall not be lamented, gathered, or buried;
they shall be like dung on the face of the ground."
Revelation 9:18 says that "a third of mankind was killed" by this marauding
army.
The phrase, "on that day," refers to what happens DURING
the time period rather than what happens on a SINGLE day.
Some may want to make this apply to the final battle at Armageddon,
but the language in the following verses makes it apply to the "home
land" of the nations involved. For this reason, it lines up better
as referring to the world-wide invasion of the king of the North.
Another alternative is that this is talking about the Day-of-the-LORD
judgments in general that reach to every nation on the earth. I accept
this as a viable possibility, but the language seems more like the progress
of a military invasion to me. Technically, there are ample passages that
discuss the movements of the king of the North and this one is not absolutely
necessary for support of those movements. This is simply an attempt to
place this passage into the whole end times scenario and it seems to fit
the advance of the king of the North better than anything else.
Verses 34-36
"Wail, you shepherds, and cry; And wallow {in ashes,} you masters
of the flock; For the days of your slaughter and your scatterings have
come, And you shall fall like a choice vessel."
"Flight shall perish from the shepherds, And escape from the masters
of the flock. {Hear} the sound of the cry of the shepherds, And the wailing
of the masters of the flock! For the LORD is destroying their pasture,"
This indicates that the leaders of these nations will be defeated by
the invading army and many people will be killed and scattered away from
their cities. Again, Rev. 9:18, "A
third of mankind."
Jeremiah 25:37a,
"And the peaceful pasture lands are made silent
Because of the burning of the anger of the LORD"
Massive slaughter of people will leave the
national life of these countries, neutralized and silent. Because of the
judgment that comes from God's wrath, which allows the Northern army to
move, the unbelievers (who are mostly beast worshippers) will suffer
greatly.
Jeremiah 25:38a,
"He has left His hiding place like the lion"
The coming of the Lord, the second coming of Jesus the Messiah, is viewed in
the Old Testament as a single event known as the day of the Lord, covering a
period of several months. A particular passage can be showing the inception
of His arrival or His arrival in connection with some activity that will
occur DURING the Day of the Lord.
At this particular point in the passage,
the focus is on the judgment that the Lord brings upon the earth dwellers
through the advance of the King of the North.
He will leave His "hiding" place and arrive in the clouds of the sky to
begin the day of the Lord judgments as portrayed at the 6th seal. The
movement of the armies in view here will not begin until the 6th trumpet
judgment.
Jeremiah 25:38b,
"For their land has become a horror Because of the burning of the oppressing
one (king of the North) and because of the burning of His (Yahweh's) anger."
This clearly connects the idea that it is
God's judgment but He USES the army of the north to execute it.
At Joel, we see "His army" (Joel 2:11) and "my great army" (Joel 2:25).
Also, at Isaiah 13:3, "I have commanded My consecrated ones, I have even
called My mighty warriors, My proudly exulting ones, To {execute} My anger."
ISAIAH 13:1-16
This passage also describes the world-wide invasion of the king of
the North.
Verse 1,
"The oracle concerning Babylon which Isaiah the son of Amoz saw."
The oracle is about judgment on Babylon, but verse 1-16 jumps beyond
the historical fulfillment which will take place at the hand of Persia
after the 70 year Babylonian captivity of Judah and looks to the future
judgment in an end-times context after the arrival of the Day of the Lord (vs. 6, 9).
And since the historical judgment takes place at the hands of Persia,
the "end-times" judgment should be viewed as taking place at
the hands of the king of the North.
Isaiah 13:5, "They are coming from a far country From the farthest
horizons."
Iran (Persia) alone also qualifies as a Northern army, but Isaiah 13:4 indicates it is an
alliance of nations
that is involved.
"a sound of the uproar of kingdoms, of nations gathered together."
Iran (Persia) is included in this Northern alliance according
to Ezekiel 38:5.
Isaiah 13:2-3
"Lift up a standard on the bare hill, Raise your voice to them,
Wave the hand that they may enter the doors of the nobles. I have commanded My consecrated ones, I have even called My mighty
warriors, My proudly exulting ones, To {execute} My anger."
This is the call to the king of the North to begin his worldwide advance
against the king of the West, the beast, represented by Babylon in the
historical setting. The worldwide focus is found at verse 11, "thus
I will punish the world for its evil."
God calls this army "My" because He is
USING them to execute His justice on the earth.
Verse 5, "The LORD and His instruments of indignation."
At Joel, we see "His army" (Joel 2:11) and "my great army" (Joel 2:25).
It is the same "call to action" found at Ezek. 38:4 and permitted
at Rev. 9:13-15.
Isaiah 13:4,
"A sound of tumult on the mountains, Like that of many people!
A sound of the uproar of kingdoms, Of nations gathered together! The LORD
of hosts is mustering the army for battle."
This clearly speaks of an alliance of nations gathered together against
"Babylon."
Isaiah 13:5
They are coming from a far country From the farthest horizons, The
LORD and His instruments of indignation, To destroy the whole land.
This speaks of the distance from Palestine of this army and its allies.
It corresponds with Ezekiel 38:6, "the remote parts of the North."
At Joel 2:20, it is identified as the Northern army. The reason the
two armies can be equated is because of the time frame for their activity.
At Isaiah 13, the army advances worldwide AFTER the arrival of the
Day of the Lord.
Isaiah 13:6,
"Wail, for the day of the LORD is near! It will come as destruction
from the Almighty."
This indicates that WHEN the army invades that it will be a fulfillment
of the coming of the day of the LORD and not that the day of the LORD follows
the invasion.
The DAY of the Lord begins at the 6th seal, when Jesus arrives in the clouds
of the sky in power and great glory (Mat. 24:29-31; Rev. 6:1-17). But this
invasion will not begin until the 6th trumpet judgment of Revelation
9:13-21, probably several months after Christ's arrival.
The army at Joel 2 will have advanced into Palestine, and is also viewed
as taking place AFTER the ARRIVAL of the Day of the Lord. That is, when
the army invades, it is DURING the day of the Lord that the invasion takes
place.
Joel 2:2, "for the day of the Lord is
coming, surely it is near."
This indicates that the BEGINNING time for the DOL is coming.
The army is also viewed as such an army that will NEVER again come
into Palestine UNTIL many generations. Joel 2:2,
"there is a great and mighty people; there has never been anything
like it, nor will there be again after it to the years of many generations."
Many generations AFTER the Day of the Lord would refer to the end of
Messiah's 1000 year reign when another large Northern army will invade
Palestine (Rev. 20:7-9).
THE NORTHERN ALLIANCE
There is only ONE Northern army that will have a role during the Day
of the Lord. And it is that Northern army and alliance which is described
at Ezekiel 38:2-6.
"Son of man, set your face toward Gog of the land of
Magog, the
prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal, and prophesy against him, and say,
'Thus says the Lord GOD, "Behold, I am against you, O Gog, prince
of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal.
"And I will turn you about, and put hooks into your jaws, and
I will bring you out, and all your army, horses and horsemen, all of them
splendidly attired, a great company {with} buckler and shield, all of them
wielding swords; Persia, Ethiopia, and Put with them, all of them {with}
shield and helmet; Gomer with all its troops; Beth-togarmah {from} the
remote parts of the north with all its troops - many peoples with you."
Gog is either a personality or a dynasty that dominates the land of
Magog and rules over three chief cities or peoples.
These descendants of Japheth are clearly mentioned at Gen. 10:2,
"The sons of Jepheth were, Gomer and Magog and Madai and Javan
and Tubal and Mesheck and Tiras."
The identification of Magog and Rosh is summarized by Pentecost, after
quoting several sources:
"Thus the identification of Rosh as modern Russia would seem to
be well authenticated and generally accepted." (Things to Come, page
328).
"Meshek and Tubal have been identified as Phrygia and
Cappadocia.
They appear to be the Moschi and Tibareni of the classical writers. They
lived in the neighborhood of Magog." (Charles Feinberg, Ezekiel, page
220)
This places them in the land area we know as Turkey.
Associated with Gog, we have five other nations which need to be identified.
At Ezekiel 38:5, we have three mentioned, Persia
(paras), Ethiopia (kush) and Libya (phut).
Persia is unanimously identified as Iran.
Ethiopia and Libya, however, do not fair as well. There are some who
would limit both of these groups to those Arabic nations North and East
of Israel. Others, associate Kush with modern day Ethiopia, and associate
Libya with the nations of North Africa; Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and Libya.
At Daniel 11:43, there is mention of the Libyans, but the Hebrew is
different than what we find at Ezekiel. At Daniel, the word, lubhiym, clearly
refers to the Libyans in North Africa. Accordingly, phut might refer to
a different people and perhaps a different geographical area.
However, Phut is consistently mentioned with other names identified
with North Africa (Jeremiah 46:9 & Nahum 3:9, in Pharaoh's army), especially
at Ezekiel 30:5, where we see a group of nations that the context suggests
would all be within the same "southern" area around Egypt.
Furthermore, at Daniel 11:43, after the king of the West counterattacks
against Egypt, he continues into both Ethiopia (Kush) AND Libya. It seems
most probable that the Kush mentioned here is the same as mentioned at
Ezekiel 38:5. And since it is also quite probable that the Ethiopia in
Daniel is South of Palestine, it is best to take the Ethiopia of Ezekiel
as also being South of Palestine. This should prove that there are Southern
nations in Gog's Northern alliance, and it might even include Egypt since
it appears that the king of the South and the King of the North at Daniel
11:40, push against the king of the West at the same time.
This makes it much easier to associate Phut (Libya) with North Africa
instead of limiting the Northern alliance to those areas North and East
of Palestine.
At Ezekiel 38:6, the final two members of this alliance are mentioned.
Gomer is universally identified as the Germanic land area.
Beth-togarmah is equally identified as the area of upper Turkey and Armenia.
Let's keep in mind that these general geographical distributions overlap
with several different nations or cultures in existence today, similar
to how the former Soviet Union embraced so many smaller nations. The best
that we can do is to recognize the general geographical areas involved
and not be too rigid in assigning nations their allegiance until the actual
alliance is established. However, that reality may not be ours to discern
since the rapture will occur BEFORE the Northern alliance actually moves
in resistance to the king of the West (the beast). The prewrath view teaches
that the rapture occurs at the 6th seal, before the 6th trumpet which
refers to this great worldwide invasion by a large military body.
Back to Ezekiel 38:2-6 for a moment.
"Behold, I am against you"
and -
"And I will turn you about"
As mentioned earlier, God USES the king of
the North to execute his justice on the earth, but at the same time, the
king of the North is also the target of God's justice.
The king of the North, as well as all the unbelieving armies of the world
will be judged and destroyed during the various wars of the Armageddon
campaign, which will culminate in the valley of Megiddo.
There is also a Gog/Magog revolt at the end of the Millennium, which
involves the same geographical location, but is not the same as this invasion
that is described here.
See: Gog Magog
revolt: Millennium
A MATTER OF TIMING
The big question still unresolved in many minds, concerns the exact
time placement for the Gog invasion which is described in Ezekiel 38 and
39.
There are those who view this invasion as taking place prior to the
beginning of Daniel's 70th week, which is seven years in length. The main
proof for such a theory is found at Ezekiel 39:9, where after the invading
Northern army is defeated, the "booty" left behind will be burned
for a period of seven years. Others believe that the invasion takes place
immediately at the beginning of the seven-year period, viewing it as the
reason the "world ruler" is able to come on the scene and establish
a 7-year covenant in the Middle East. Once again, they use the seven years
of burning the "booty" as proof for this. Others still, place
this invasion at the midpoint of the 70th week and view it as the reason
for the rise to power of the man of lawlessness (the antichrist) who breaks
the 7-year covenant and will then seek to dominate the politics and economy
of the world and reign for 42 months (3 1/2 years). Then there are those
who view this invasion as taking place just before the final battle of
Armageddon and has the alliance's defeat take place at that battle.
Although the term, "Day of the Lord," does not occur in Ezekiel
38-39, the language indicates that this invasion can refer to none other
than the king of the North as described in the other passages. Some have
suggested that Ezekiel 38-39 refers to an invasion that precedes the Day
of the Lord, however that cannot be in light of verse 39:7, "And I
shall not let My Holy Name be profaned anymore." If this invasion
refers to an army other than the one which invades DURING the Day of the
Lord, then this verse would be violated, for during the Day of the Lord,
through the advance of armies in connection with the Armageddon campaign,
the land of Israel and God's Name will be trodden down by the invaders.
Furthermore, the defeat of this Northern army is followed immediately by
Israel's promotion and blessing in Messiah's kingdom.
Ezek. 38:7-8,
"Be prepared, and prepare yourself, you and all your companies
that are assembled about you, and be a guard for them.
"After many days you will be summoned; in the latter years you
will come into the land that is restored from the sword, {whose inhabitants}
have been gathered from many nations to the mountains of Israel which had
been a continual waste; but its people were brought out from the nations,
and they are living securely, all of them."
This is another reason some think that the Gog invasion occurs "before"
the 70th week and/or after the 70th week has started. It is suggested that if Israel has been restored from the sword and
the people are living "securely," then it cannot refer to the
time of Great tribulation when the beast will be attempting to force the
world into beast worship. It is suggested that this refers to the nation
of Israel, having been restored in 1948 and today existing on her own land.
I think that these descriptions of Israel's
condition apply IN GENERAL to the status of the nation as it has progressed
through history from the time of the Roman dispersion with special emphasis
on the present status of the nation as a free and independent entity. AND it
applies to a yet future condition that
will fulfill ALL the language of the prophecy.
Hindsight is wonderful in these kinds of situations, but as of 1948,
although still under national discipline from God, Israel has indeed "been
gathered from many nations to the mountains of Israel which had been a
continual waste; but its people were brought out from the nations . . ."
The nation of Israel is independent and
prosperous. The people are dwelling in their own homeland, and although the
Arab conflicts rage, the people have certainly been gathered back from a
world-wide dispersion.
To this extent, the language at Ezekiel 38:8 is fulfilled.
However, the condition of "and they are living securely, all of them" cannot
be said of the nation at this time. Even though
Israel resides in the land, the nation as a whole is still in unbelief,
and there is certainly no peace and security for her. This condition
must await
a yet future fulfillment.
It seems that a good
time for fulfillment of the language at verse 7, "and they are living
securely, all of them," is when the 7-year Covenant Experiment is
instituted at the beginning of the 70th week. The establishment of The Covenant
Experiment brings to completion and fulfills completely all the language of
Ezekiel 38:7. Thus, it would seem appropriate to look
for this invasion sometime during the first half of the week.
However,
this seems unlikely to me because of the language of "closure"
at Ezek. 39:7, "And I shall not let My Holy Name be profaned any longer."
If the defeat of this "Gog" army takes place during the first
half of the week (or before) and is defeated as described in Ezekiel 38-39,
then this "language of closure" forbids the oppression of the
beast during the last half of the week, during which time, God's name most
certainly will be profaned (Rev. 13:6; Dan. 7:25).
But, does the condition of "living
securely, all of them" apply to the oppressive reign of the beast?
I suggest that at the midpoint of the week, after the beast gains ascendancy
over Jerusalem (Rev. 11:2) and begins his oppressive reign (Rev. 13:5-6),
that the majority of people in Jerusalem will be in alliance with the beast
and therefore be "living securely, all of them." Therefore, "living
securely" would qualify for a time after the midpoint of the week even
though not EVERYONE will embrace beast worship.
Around the midpoint of the week, the
"faithful" ones of Israel (ones who reject beast worship, but are still
unbelievers) will have fled into the wilderness (Rev. 12:6, 13-14; Is. 26:20), and many
of the others will have adopted beast worship and be reaping the economic
benefits of allegiance to him.
There will also be many Jews in Jerusalem
living "underground" to escape the oppression of the beast. These were
unable to escape into the wilderness at the midpoint of the week along with
"the woman" of Revelation 12, and are barely surviving in the city.
(During
the trumpet judgments, many of these people will be emboldened to carefully
come out of hiding. These will be impacted by the final testimony of the two
witnesses in Jerusalem. After the two witnesses are taken up into the sky
and after the earthquake, many of these will believe in the everlasting
gospel and trust in Christ as Savior (Rev. 11:11-13). When Jesus stands on
the Mount of Olives and puts the invading armies in disarray, these
believers will begin to battle the invading armies with the help of the
clans of Judah. These are the inhabitants of Jerusalem of Zechariah 12:5-8,
who will "once again dwell ion their own sites in Jerusalem.").
Another difficulty with the timing:
Jesus will return at an unknown day and hour after the midpoint of the week.
At that time He will pour out the wrath of God via the trumpet judgments and
much of the earth will be affected by those judgments. Even with all the
chaos around the world, it is still possible for the people of Israel to be
in a place of security under the reign of the beast, and not be affected by
the judgments.
Since the king of the North will be suffering from the economic chaos, he
will move against the beast (king of the west) and seek to gain control of
the resources located in Israel.
It is for these reasons that we must find a time slot for this invasion
that is associated with the final movement of nations into the land of
Palestine and the final confrontation with God at the battle of Armageddon.
THE DAY OF THE LORD
Returning to Isaiah 13, at verses 7-8, we see the reaction of people
to the ARRIVAL of the Day of the LORD. According to verse 6, the Day will
come as destruction from the Almighty.
Paul tells us at 1 Thes. 5:3
"The Day of the Lord will come just like a
thief in the night.
While they are saying, "Peace and safety!" then destruction will
come upon them suddenly like birth pangs upon a woman with child; and they
shall not escape."
When the Day of the Lord SIGNS occur and people SEE the sign of the
Son of Man, they will then know that the wrath of the Lamb has arrived.
Thus, the reaction recorded at verses 7-8 as well as at Mat. 24:30; Luke
21:25-26 and Rev. 6:15-16.
Isaiah 13:7-8
"Therefore all hands will fall limp, And every man's heart will
melt."
"And they will be terrified, Pains and anguish will take hold
of {them} ; They will writhe like a woman in labor, They will look at one
another in astonishment, Their faces aflame."
This tells of the reaction from the people
as they see the signs and the arrival of Jesus in the clouds of the sky with
power and great glory.
Luke 21:25
"And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and upon the
earth dismay among nations, in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and
the waves,
Luke 21:26
men fainting from fear and the expectation of the things which are
coming upon the world; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
Matt. 24:30
and then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then
all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the SON OF MAN
COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF THE SKY with power and great glory.
Rev. 6:15-16
And the kings of the earth and the great men and the commanders and
the rich and the strong and every slave and free man, hid themselves in
the caves and among the rocks of the mountains;
and they said to the mountains and to the rocks, "Fall on us and
hide us from the presence of Him who sits on the throne, and from the wrath
of the Lamb;
Isaiah 2:10-22
Verses 5-9 is the condition of the people before the arrival of the Messiah.
Verse 5 is a plea for them to turn to God in the midst of national
discipline.
Verse 6-9 indicates that the nation is under discipline because of their
moral and spiritual apostasy.
Verses 10-11, the arrival of the Messiah at the Day of the Lord.
Verses 12-22, The day of the Lord is a day of judgment.
Verse 22, logical reason to disassociate from the beast and not take the
mark.
"For why should you regard THE man, whose breath of life is in his nostrils,
for why should he be esteemed as valuable?"
Isaiah 2:19, "And men will go into the
caves of the rocks,
and into holes of the ground
before the terror of Yahweh,
and before the splendor of His majesty,
when He
arises
to make the earth tremble."
Isaiah 13:9
Behold, the day of the LORD is coming, Cruel, with fury and burning
anger, To make the land a desolation; And He will exterminate its sinners
from it.
The Day of the Lord has a beginning point,
which is when Jesus arrives in the clouds of the sky. After he removes the
believers from the earth at that time, and after the conversion of the
144,000 Jewish bond servants (Rev. 7:1-8), Jesus will begin to judge the
earth through the trumpets and bowls. "Fury and burning anger" will be expressed with the intent "to make
the land a desolation," and judge the sinners.
Isaiah
24:19-20
"The earth is broken asunder,
The
earth is split through,
The
earth is shaken violently.
The earth reels
to and fro like a drunkard
And
it totters like a shack,
For
its transgression is heavy upon it,
And
it will fall, never to rise again."
Isaiah 42:14-17
“I have kept silent for a long time,
I have
kept still and restrained Myself.
Now
like a woman in labor I will groan,
I will
both gasp and pant.
15 “I will lay waste the mountains and hills
And wither
all their vegetation;
I will
make the rivers into coastlands
And dry up
the ponds.
(16 “I will lead the blind by a way they do not know,
In paths
they do not know I will guide them.
I will
make darkness into light before them
And rugged
places into plains.
These are
the things I will do,
And I will
not leave them undone.”)
17 They will be turned back and be utterly put to shame,
Who trust
in idols,
Who say to
molten images,
“You are
our gods.”
Isaiah 59:17-19
Verse 17a,
"He put on righteousness like a breastplate,
And a helmet of salvation on His head;"
This refers to the work of the Savior during His first coming; the Redeemer
advent.
Verse 17b-19 refers to His second coming; the judge advent, and specifically
His initial arrival in the clouds of the sky.
"And He put on garments of vengeance for clothing
And wrapped Himself with zeal as a mantle.
18 According to their deeds, so He will repay,
Wrath to His adversaries, recompense to His enemies;
To the coastlands He will make recompense.
19 So they will fear the name of the Lord from the west
And His glory from the rising of the sun,
For He will come like a rushing stream
Which the wind of the Lord drives."
Isaiah 61:2b, "to proclaim . . . the day of vengeance of our God."
Isaiah 59:20 gives an amplification of the judge advent
“A Redeemer will come to Zion,
And to (or FOR, concerning) those who turn from transgression in Jacob,”
declares the Lord.
See details at the commentary: Isaiah 59
The ones who turn from transgression are the Jews who recognize Jesus as the
promised Messiah. But they have not as yet accepted Him as the SAVIOR. This
group will be the 144,000 Jewish servants of Rev. 7:1-8, who will trust in
Jesus as the Messiah after the rapture.
Later, after the day of the Lord judgments are completed, the entire nation
of Israel will be saved and will go alive into the earthly Davidic kingdom.
The process of deliverance and restoration will begin with the conversion of
those 144,000 and include the rescue of the Jews who will be fighting in
Jerusalem when the king of the North invades during the 30-day period that
will extend from the end of Daniel's 70th week.
The ones in Judah will be delivered when Jesus stands on the Mount of Olives
after He comes from His defeat of Edom.
The others who are scattered throughout the world will be gathered into
Israel after Armageddon (Isaiah 60:4-9) and undergo the evaluation process
of Ezekiel 34:17-22.
And then verse 21 refers to the kingdom covenant that God will make with
Israel after the evaluation and purging of the unbelievers out from the
believers, so that only believers will enter into the kingdom.
Isaiah 59:21
As for Me, this is My covenant with them,” says the Lord: “My Spirit which
is upon you, and My words which I have put in your mouth shall not depart
from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your offspring, nor from the mouth of
your offspring’s offspring,” says the Lord, “from now and forever.”
At Isaiah 66:12-14, the prophet described the blessings of the earthly
Davidic kingdom.
Verse 14 ends with a statement of judgment upon His enemies in contrast to
the blessing that the nation of Israel will experience in that future
earthly kingdom.
Verse 14d, But He will be indignant toward His enemies.
Then at Isaiah 66:15-17 he proclaims once again the initial arrival of the
Lord and the judgment that will come from the wrath of God.
Verse 15, FOR: This is the word, kiy, which means BECAUSE. This word is used
to introduce and summarize the BASIS for the previously mentioned blessing
on Israel and the judgment on God's enemies.
It will be the arrival of the Messiah to initiate the day of the Lord
judgments.
15 For behold, the Lord will come in fire
And His chariots like the whirlwind,
To render His anger with fury,
And His rebuke with flames of fire.
16 For the Lord will execute judgment by fire
And by His sword on all flesh,
And those slain by the Lord will be many.
17 “Those who sanctify and purify themselves to go to the gardens,
Following one in the center,
Who eat swine’s flesh, detestable things and mice,
Will come to an end altogether,” declares the Lord.
Isaiah 13:10
Here Isaiah backs up again to the time just before the day of the Lord
arrives, when there will be the triple signs to announce its coming.
For: The conjunction, kiy, simply explains something that has just been
mentioned in the context. In this case, it goes back to the beginning of
verse 9, and the phrase, “Behold, the day of the Lord is coming.” The
explanation in verse 10 is given then, not to explain the nature of the
judgments, but the fact of its arrival, and the signs that will announce it.
The signs that precede the arrival of the day of the Lord, and announce not
only its arrival, but the second coming of the Messiah at its inception, are
described in other passages (Joel 2:31, quoted at Acts 2:20; The
Olivet Discourse, Matthew 24:29-31, Mark 13:24-26, Luke 21:25-27; and
Revelation 6:12-13).
"For the stars of heaven and their constellations
Will not flash forth their light;
The sun will be dark when in its going;
And the moon will not shed its light."
As
mentioned above, there will be signs in the sun, moon and stars which will
announce the arrival of the Messiah and the start of the Day of the LORD.
For Details on this passage: See Commentary - Isaiah
13
There are other places where these "effects" are mentioned, but they do
not always refer to the initial arrival of the Day of the Lord. Sometimes
they refer to effects that will occur DURING the day of the Lord.
The arrival of the day of the Lord is
mentioned at Isaiah 51:6.
1. "Lift up your eyes to the sky, Then look to the earth beneath;
For the sky will vanish like smoke:
The initial signs that Jesus mentioned at Matthew 24:29, will cause the
people of the earth to look UP to "observe" the darkness, and then react to
what is expected to come upon the earth. Luke 21:26, "men fainting from fear
and the expectation of the things that are coming upon the world."
The sky vanishing does not refer to a "destruction" but rather
to the massive darkness that will precede the arrival of Jesus in the clouds
of the sky with power and great glory.
Matthew 24:29
2. And the earth will wear out like a garment:
This symbol however, does refer to destruction.
Like a garment that no longer provides adequate covering and protection,
so the earth will no longer provide what man needs for security and comfort. This describes the first 3 trumpet judgments (Rev. 8:7-11) and the
second and third bowl judgments (Rev. 16:3-4).
3. And its inhabitants will die in like manner:
Death through the judgments that come from God's wrath. Rev. 8:11;
9:18; 14:19-20; 19:21.
4. But My salvation shall be forever, And My righteousness shall not
wane:
This refers to the millennial kingdom of the Messiah which extends
on into eternity.
These passages are NOT referring to the renovation of the physical
universe which takes place at the end of the 1000 year kingdom. (Revelation
20:11 with 21:1).
Although the language at 2 Peter 3:10 is similar, it is likewise, quite
different, for Peter describes a complete "chemical" renovation,
through intense heat.
"But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, IN WHICH (or
THROUGH WHICH) the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements
will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be
burned up."
This "total" renovation is referenced at Psalm 102:25-26
(Heb. 1:12).
"Of old Thou didst found the earth; And the heavens are the work
of Thy hands. Even they will perish, but Thou dost endure; And all of them
will wear out like a garment; Like clothing Thou wilt change them, and
they will be changed."
DURING THE DAY
Isaiah 13:11
"Thus I will punish the world for its evil, And the wicked for
their iniquity; I will also put an end to the arrogance of the proud, And
abase the haughtiness of the ruthless."
(Isaiah 2:12-17)
This is a summary statement concerning
God's intent in destroying the arrogant and rebellious sinners of the world
through the last three trumpets; the THREE woes of Revelation.
Rev. 8:13
"And I looked, and I heard an eagle flying in
mid-heaven, saying
with a loud voice, 'Woe, woe, woe, to those who dwell on the earth, because
of the remaining blasts of the trumpet of the three angels who are about
to sound!'"
The first woe will be torment on the sinners of the world via the demon
horde from the abyss (Rev. 9:1-11).
The second woe will be the killing of 1/3 of the earth's population
via the destruction from the Northern army (Rev. 9:12-19).
And the third woe will be the seven bowls of the "final"
wrath of God that come through the blowing of the 7th trumpet (Rev. 15:1; 16:1).
Isaiah 2:12
"For the LORD of hosts will have a day {of reckoning} Against
everyone who is proud and lofty, And against everyone who is lifted up,
That he may be abased."
2Ths. 1:6-8
"For after all it is {only} just for God to repay with affliction
those who afflict you, and {to give} relief to you who are afflicted and
to us as well at the revelation of the Lord Jesus from heaven with His
mighty angels in flaming fire, dealing out retribution to those who do
not know God and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus."
Isaiah 13:12
"I will make mortal man scarcer than pure gold, And mankind than
the gold of Ophir."
This refers to the extreme "thinning" of the human population
that results from the Day-of-the-LORD judgments.
Death from the third trumpet judgment:
Rev. 8:11
"and the name of the star is called Wormwood; and a third of the
waters became wormwood; and MANY MEN DIED from the waters, because they
were made bitter."
Extreme torture from the 5th trumpet; the
first woe:
Revelation 9:1-11
"And in those days men will seek death and will not find it; and they will
long to die
and death flees from them."
Death from the 6th trumpet judgment; the
2nd woe:
Rev. 9:18
"A THIRD OF MANKIND WAS KILLED by these three plagues, by the
fire and the smoke and the brimstone, which proceeded out of their mouths."
Torture and death from the 7 bowls of the
final wrath of God; the third woe which will
culminate in all the death involved with the Armageddon campaign.
Revelation 16; 19:17-21.
Isaiah 13:13
"Therefore I shall make the heavens tremble, And the earth will
be shaken from its place At the fury of the LORD of hosts In the day of
His burning anger."
Here, the THEREFORE (al ken), changes our focus and takes us back to
the inception of this Day of the LORD period. It is the initial SIGNS in
the sun, moon and stars (heavens tremble, Luke 21:26; Rev. 6:13-14); and
the earth shaking (Rev. 6:12; Luke 21:25) that officially ANNOUNCE that
these judgments are at hand or as the panicking world proclaims, "has
come," and "who is able to stand," (Rev. 6:17).
Isaiah 13:14-16, describes the effects on the "homelands" of
the nations involved in this SPECIFIC worldwide attack of the king of the
North, permitted by the wrathful vengeance
of God.
"And it will be that like a hunted gazelle, Or like sheep with
none to gather {them,} They will each turn to his own people, And each
one flee to his own land.
Anyone who is found will be thrust through, And anyone who is captured
will fall by the sword.
Their little ones also will be dashed to pieces Before their eyes; Their
houses will be plundered And their wives ravished."
It should be clear that this activity occurs in the homelands of the
nations through the onslaught of an invading army, just as we saw earlier
at Jeremiah 25:32-37. It does not describe what occurs AT Armageddon. The
military maneuvers that take place DURING the worldwide attack of the king
of the North, occur over a period of time and not in one day.
People will be traveling all over the
world, as Daniel 12:4 indicates, "many will go back and forth." When the
Lord arrives, everyone will panic and many will try to get back "home" as
quickly as possible. But it will be very difficult to escape the onslaught
of the military
machine of the King of the North. Also, the environmental judgments from the
previous trumpets will make travel very difficult.
The final section of Isaiah 13 (verses 17-22), mentions the historical
invasion of the Media-Persian empire, but then makes application BEYOND
that historical time period and once again, to an end-times judgment and
the resultant status of the Babylonian area during the Messiah's earthly
kingdom.
The degree of judgment described in these
verses has not, to date,
been totally fulfilled.
In the same way, the language at Jeremiah 51:62,
seems to look beyond the history of the city and land area, and looks to
an "end-times" disposition where during the Messiah's kingdom,
and as a result of judgment described in Revelation 18:21, Babylon will
not exist.
However this language does not refer to the entire geography of the
Babylonian empire, but probably looks to just the city.
Furthermore, the destruction of "Babylon" in the end times looks beyond even
that city and sees the Babylonian system of evil that began with Nimrod, and
the replacement city for the capital of this evil religious system, which
will be Rome. Only Rome can fulfill completely the descriptive language at Revelation
17:6.15, 18; 18:24.
But if the actual city of Babylon will be rebuilt during the end times, its destiny
will certainly be as described in these Old Testament passages. Isaiah
13:19-22; 14:22-23; Jer. 50:13, 39-40.
The city in view will be destroyed through the earthquake of Revelation
18:21, when Jesus stands on the Mount of Olives.
The severity of the judgment is described at Jeremiah 51:62, "there will be
nothing dwelling in it, whether man or beast, but it will be a desolation of
perpetuity."
This is amplified at Revelation 18:2. "it has become a dwelling place for
demons and a prison of every unclean spirit, and a prison of every unclean
and hateful bird."
No man, no beasts; just demons and scavenger birds will be there.
So, during the millennial reign of Jesus, although Satan will be bound in
the abyss for 1000 years (Rev. 20:1-3), it seems that all the demons will be imprisoned on
the earth in the city of Rome.
This also fulfills Zech. 13:2,
"I will remove the prophets and the
unclean spirit from the land."
Isaiah 24:21-22
So it will happen in that day,
That the
Lord will
punish the host of heaven on high,
(The demons)
And the kings of the earth on earth.
(the armies gathered in Megiddo)
Verse 22, They will be
gathered together
Like prisoners in the dungeon,
And will be confined in prison;
And after many days they will be
punished.
(The demons will be imprisoned in Babylon; Rome)
(The armies will be killed and be put into Hades, Rev. 19:21)
At the last judgment, all will be thrown into the lake of fire. Rev.
20:11-15.
COUNTERATTACK
Returning to Daniel 11:40-45 we see the counterattack from the king
of the West.
1. And he will enter countries: The K/W must respond to the invasions
from the North and the South.
At this point, I mention again the difficult problem of identifying
the "king" referred to by the 3rd person pronouns in this sentence
and through the remainder of the chapter. The immediate "flow"
of the narrative "suggests" that the "he will enter"
phrase refers to the king of the North. However, whoever the "he"
is, it seems best to make that identification uniform through the remainder
of the chapter. Accordingly, based on the activities ascribed to the "he"
in question, which take place in this context, it is still best to identify
him as the king of the West, the world leader who is both the 7th and 8th
head on the beast out of the
sea of Revelation 13:1.
2. Overflow and pass through: This indicates an intensive campaign
to counter the attack from the North that touched every corner of the beast's
kingdom. But the focus in Daniel is the armies running amok in Palestine.
Daniel 11:41
The King of the west will enter into Palestine (the beautiful land), and
have a successful counter attack against the armies there. These will probably
be Egypt,
and the armies of Jordan (Edom, Obadiah 15-18),
for "many will fall."
However, the homeland areas of Edom, Moab and Ammon are not affected either by the
invading armies or the beast's defense. God provides extra protection for this
general land area because it is where the remnant from Judah has fled for
refuge from the oppression of the beast.
There are two (possibly 3) groups of refugees outside of Jerusalem.
(1) The Jews of Palestine who flee into the wilderness and are protected by
God in the regions of Moab and Ammon. Revelation 12:13-16
(2) The Jews of Palestine who are stranded and are hiding in the mountains
of Edom. Ezekiel 35:5; Obadiah 12-14
And perhaps there will be resisters hiding in the areas outside the city of
Jerusalem.
The "clans of Judah" of Zechariah 12 must come from somewhere. They could be
people who are in hiding outside the city, or the resisters in Edom who
return, or the resisters protected in the wilderness or all three groups.
The ones protected in the wilderness (the woman of Revelation 12) will be
secure for the duration of the 1260 days of the last half of the week. The
invasion of Jerusalem and Judah will take place during the next 30 days. It
is very possible then, that when Jesus DESCENDS from the cloud, the men will
be motivated to return to Judah and become part of the "clans of Judah"
mentioned at Zechariah 12:5-6.
Daniel 11:42-43
"Then he will stretch out his hand against {other} countries,
and the land of Egypt will not escape. But he will gain control over the
hidden treasures of gold and silver, and over all the precious things of
Egypt; and Libyans and Ethiopians {will follow} at his heels."
The beast will have the vast majority of
his material resources stockpiled in Egypt. They will be "hidden" but still
need to be "rescued" from the rebelling nations. The beast's economic base
to control the Gentiles will be in Rome. Of course, everything will be
controlled through computers, but much of the PHYSICAL resources ("treasures") will
be located in a "hidden" location in Egypt.
The beast drives the K/S out of Palestine
back into his own land and continues against the other countries involved.
He defeats Egypt in her own land, re-taking possession of the material
"treasures," and then proceeds to enter into Libya and Ethiopia before the
rumors from the North and East make him return to Jerusalem.
Isaiah 19
THE ATTACK ON EGYPT AND GOD'S DELIVERANCE
At verse 1, "Behold, Yahweh is riding on a swift cloud, and is about to come
to Egypt."
This is the launching pad for both the contemporary and eschatological
"coming" of God.
(1) Verses 2-15 is written in poetry and refers to the contemporary attack
by Sennacherib of Assyria that devastates Egypt. The language in verses 5-10
is hyperbolic and therefore symbolic of the economic devastation that
Assyria brings upon Egypt in 713-712 BCE (Isaiah 20).
(2) Verses 16-25 is written in prose and focuses on a distant situation for
Egypt during the Day-of-the-Lord judgments and afterward in Messiah's
earthly kingdom. Usually, the contemporary prophecies are written in prose
and the "end times" prophecies in poetry. It is reversed in this chapter.
The main point is that transition will usually be indicated by change in the
written format or definite "breaks" in the Hebrew text.
Verse 16, "in that day" is the transitional phrase that moves from
contemporary to the end times. It usually refers to the general "time
period" of the day of the Lord rather than to a specific "moment" in time.
Thus, this is not the coming of Jesus at the inception of the Day of the Lord,
which began the oracle at verse 19:1. It refers to the event during that day is the judgment and blessing upon Egypt.
Verse 16
"In that day the
Egyptians will become like women, and they will tremble and be in dread
because of the waving of the hand of the
Lord of
hosts, which He is going to wave over them."
This is judgment from the armies of the king of the West as he counter
attacks Egypt's invasion of Palestine. Daniel 11:4-43.
"The king of the South will collide with him (K/W)"
"He (K/W will enter the beautiful land (Palestine) and many will fall."
"Then he (K/W) will stretch out his hand against countries and the land of
Egypt will not escape."
Isaiah 19:17, "The land of Judah will become a terror to Egypt; everyone to
whom it is mentioned will be in dread of it, because of the purpose of the
Lord of
hosts which He is purposing against them."
Because Egypt
will move against the king of the West into Palestine, "Judah will become a
terror to Egypt." Not because Judah does anything at this time, but because
"Judah" or rather the attack against Judah is what causes terror to Egypt
through the counter attack from the King of the West.
In other words, it is BECAUSE they messed with Judah, that they reap
judgment as God allows the king of the West to defeat them.
But this terror upon Egypt will actually
become a source of blessing.
Isaiah 19:22, God's judgment on Egypt will be both striking and healing.
When Egypt receives this crushing blow from the king of the west (the
beast), it will elicit in the inhabitants of Egypt a response of trust
toward God. The people as a whole will call out to God and God will deliver
them.
The invitation of Joel 2:32 applies to everyone during the Day of the Lord.
"Whoever will call upon the name of Yahweh will be saved."
Thus, after the beast moves on to the other countries, eventually arriving
in Megiddo, he will be destroyed there by Jesus. Egypt, as well as other
countries will thus be delivered
from the oppression
of the beast.
After the dust settles, the surviving peoples of the world will be evaluated
(Mat. 25:32-46).
The sheep (believers) will be divided from the goats (unbelievers),
and judged accordingly.
The believers will go into Messiah's earthly kingdom (Zech. 14:16).
The unbelievers will go into Hades to await the last judgment.
Egypt will have a large population of believers to
go alive into the kingdom.
Isaiah 19:18, "In that
day five cities in the land of Egypt will be speaking the language of Canaan
and swearing allegiance to the
Lord of
hosts; one will be called the City of Destruction."
Again, "in that day" refers to the time period of the day of the Lord. This
time the focus is after the battles have all been resolved and the kingdom
has started.
The reference to "the city of destruction" is probably the idea that ONE OF
THE FIVE will be designated as an historical "reminder" or memoriam of all
that happened during the day of the Lord judgments. This is suggested by
verses 19-20. The "pillar" will be a sign and a "witness" BECAUSE, "they
will cry to Yahweh because of oppressors, and He will send them a Savior and
a Champion, and He will deliver them."
Isaiah 19:19-20, "In that
day there will be an altar to the
Lord in the
midst of the land of Egypt, and a pillar to the
Lord near
its border. It will
become a sign and a witness to the
Lord of
hosts in the land of Egypt; for they will cry to the
Lord
because of oppressors, and He will send them a Savior and a Champion, and He
will deliver them."
The blessing on Egypt that is described here
is BECAUSE they called out to Yahweh.
There will be many people of Egypt who did not take the mark of the beast.
These will turn to the Lord during the time of oppression and Jesus the
Messiah will rescue them
There will be world-wide evangelism during the whole time period of the 70th
week.
Isaiah 19:21a, "Thus
the Lord
will make Himself known to Egypt, and the Egyptians will know the
Lord in
that day."
Apparently, and finally, the people of Egypt (and Assyria) will be impacted
by the message and accept it. I suggest that this "impact" will be made upon
the people during the time from Christ's arrival in the clouds and His
physical descent to the earth several months later. There will be many, many
people who become believers after the rapture and during the day-of-the-Lord
judgments.
There will be:
(1) The evangelistic message of the church up to the arrival of Jesus at the
6th seal of Revelation 6.
Matthew 26:14; 10:23; Daniel 11:35; Isaiah
42:10-17; 52:6-7
(Romans 10:15).
(2) The visible and glorious appearance of Jesus in the clouds of the sky at
the inception of the DOL.
(3) The evangelistic message will continue with the 144,000 Jewish
bond-servants.
Rev. 14:1-7;
Isaiah 52:8-10; 24:14-16a; 40:9-11; 62:6-12
A. Messengers within the city of Jerusalem: Isaiah
62:6-7
B. Messengers outside the city: Isaiah 62:10-11
(4) The two witnesses of Revelation 11 will have their 3 1/2 year ministry.
(5) The judgments of the trumpets and bowls. Isaiah 5:10; 26:9
(6) The visible PHYSICAL descent of Jesus to the Earth at Revelation 19:11.
All of this will make an impact all throughout the world
Verse 21b, They
will even worship with sacrifice and offering, and will make a vow to the
Lord and
perform it."
This will occur during the Messiah's kingdom
and is summarized at Zechariah 14:16, "Then
it will come about that any who are left of all the nations that went
against Jerusalem will go up from year to year to worship the King, the
Lord of
hosts, and to celebrate the Feast of Booths."
The unbelievers will be removed from the believers during the sheep and Goat
evaluation described by Jesus at Matthew 25:31-46.
Also the unbelieving Jews will be removed out from among the believing Jews
in the separation described at Ezekiel 34:17-2 (Isaiah 27:12-13)
Isaiah 19:22 gives
the summary of the judgment and the blessing.
"And the Lord
will strike Egypt, striking but healing; so they will return to the
Lord, and
He will respond to them and will heal them.
Isaiah 19:23-25, During the kingdom
In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrians
will come into Egypt and the Egyptians into Assyria, and the Egyptians will
worship with the Assyrians.
In that day Israel
will be the third party with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing in the
midst of the earth,
whom the Lord
of hosts has blessed, saying, “Blessed is Egypt My people, and Assyria the
work of My hands, and Israel My inheritance.”
Notice that IN THE MIDDLE is "Israel My inheritance." Egypt and Assyria will
express together their worship of Yahweh, but the focus will be in Israel
where the Millennial temple will be located.
Ezekiel 40-47.
THE KING OF THE WEST CONTINUES THE COUNTER
ATTACK
From Egypt, the King of the West will continue into Libya and Ethiopia. They are identified at
Ezekiel 38:5, as being in alliance with the king of the North. The
movement of the king of the West into these areas is described at Ezekiel
30:1-9.
EZEKIEL 30:1-3
The word of the LORD came again to me saying, "Son of man, prophesy
and say, 'Thus says the Lord GOD, Wail, 'Alas for the day!'
"For the day is near, Even the day of the LORD is near; It will be
a day of clouds, A time {of doom} for the nations."
As in so many other passages, the day of
the Lord is seen as ARRIVING, but the focus is clearly on some event that
will take pace DURING that day. In this case, it is the military maneuvers
that will be described as "a time for the nations." But
the specific focus is on the Southern alliance associated with Gog.
Ezek. 30:4
"And a sword will come upon Egypt, And anguish will be in Ethiopia,
When the slain fall in Egypt, They take away her wealth, And her foundations
are torn down."
I discussed above the attack on Egypt and
both its judgment and its healing.
And once again, we see these maneuvers presented at Daniel 11:42-43.
Ezek. 30:5
"Ethiopia, Put, Lud, all Arabia, Libya, and the people of the
land that is in league will fall with them by the sword."
These are in league one with another, as members of the Southern alliance
but are also seem to be allied with the king of the North. The king of the West is
allowed to use its superior weaponry and military might to achieve the
victory over this Southern alliance. Although the LAND area of Jordan (Edom)
will not be touched.
Ezek. 30:6,
"Thus says the LORD, 'Indeed, those who support Egypt will fall,
And the pride of her power will come down; From Migdol {to} Syene They
will fall within her by the sword,' Declares the Lord GOD."
Migdol is in Northern Egypt and Syene is in the South.
Ezek. 30:7-8
"And they will be desolate In the midst of the desolated lands;
And her cities will be In the midst of the devastated cities.
"And they will know that I am the LORD, When I set a fire in Egypt
And all her helpers are broken.
The defeated armies of northern Africa will
recognize the working of God even though administered by the military might
of the king of the west.
Isaiah 26:9, "For when the earth experiences your judgment
the inhabitants of the earth learn righteousness."
However, most of them are probably beast-worshippers and recognition of God's
judgment does not deliver them from the destiny of having taken the mark,
even though they are now in rebellion against the beast. Rev. 14:9-11.
Ezek. 30:9,
"On that day messengers will go forth from Me in ships to frighten
secure Ethiopia; and anguish will be on them as on the day of Egypt; for,
behold, it comes!"
This indicates the divine permission for the king of the West to defend
itself and push beyond Egypt to the other nations involved. Usually, any
mention of ships in these military scenarios, has reference to the Western
nations.
Daniel 11:43,
"and Libyans and Ethiopians {will follow} at his heels."
After neutralizing Egypt and regaining
control of the "treasures" located there, the king of the West will continue into the other
North African nations that have pushed against him.
RUMORS FROM THE EAST
But while the beast's troops are occupied in the South, the king of
the East begins to mobilize his troops toward Palestine. This is designated
as "rumors from the East" at Daniel 11:44. It happens in connection
with the 6th bowl and brings our time line beyond the end of the 70th week
of Daniel into the 30 day period of "cleansing" which follows.
There is very little information in the Scriptures about the king of the
East, but it probably refers to a large block of Asian nations, if not China
alone.
The 70th week ends in association with the sounding of the 7th trumpet
(Rev. 11:2-15) and the 7 bowls of judgment "which are the last, because
in them the wrath of God is finished" (Rev. 15:1), are poured out
on the kingdom of the beast.
Daniel 12:11, indicates that there is an additional 30 day period after
the designated 1260 days for the last half of the "week." During
this time, the temple is still desolated and the beast is still alive and
fighting for survival.
But the remaining blows of God's wrath through the bowl judgments will
bring it all to an end.
Rev. 16:12-15,
"And the sixth {angel} poured out his bowl upon the great river,
the Euphrates; and its water was dried up, that the way might be prepared
for the kings from the east.
And I saw {coming} out of the mouth of the dragon and out of the mouth
of the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet, three unclean spirits
like frogs; for they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go
out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them together for the war
of the great day of God, the Almighty."
It is probably best to see in this prophecy
a reference to the Asian area because the Euphrates was a "natural" obstacle
to easy maneuvering at that time. It is therefore symbolic, for that river
certainly poses no maneuvering problems in our modern era.
Notice also, that in connection with the advance of the kings of the
East, we see the gathering of other nations as well. This includes the king of the North entering Palestine,
the armies of the South (Jordan/Edom) and the king of the West returning.
RUMORS FROM THE NORTH
Daniel 11:44 also indicates that rumors from the North disturb the
king of the West. This is when the king of the North actually invades Palestine
and Jerusalem as is described in Ezekiel 38, Joel 2, and Zechariah 12:1-2;
14:1-2.
It also refers to the other armies that enter into Jerusalem, including
specifically, Edom (Jordan) as prophesied in Obadiah 12-21.
Ezekiel 38:15-16
"And you will come from your place out of the remote parts of
the north, you and many peoples with you, all of them riding on horses,
a great assembly and a mighty army; and you will come up against My people
Israel like a cloud to cover the land. It will come about in the last days
that I shall bring you against My land, in order that the nations may know
Me when I shall be sanctified through you before their eyes, O Gog."
Joel 2:1-2
"Blow a trumpet in Zion, And sound an alarm on My holy mountain!
Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, For the day of the LORD is
coming; Surely it is near,
A day of darkness and gloom, A day of clouds and thick darkness. As the
dawn is spread over the mountains, {So} there is a great and mighty people;
There has never been {anything} like it, Nor will there be again after
it To the years of many generations."
Again, it needs to be pointed out, that the
arrival of the day of the Lord occurs BEFORE these armies begin to move. We
are given a general announcement that THE DAY is coming attendant with its
signs and darkness. Then the focus moves forward to the invasion of the
northern army that will occur DURING the day of the Lord.
Zechariah 14:2
"For I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city
will be captured, the houses plundered, the women raped, and half the city
taken to exile."
We therefore find the connection between all the Old Testament passages
concerning the king of the North. His worldwide aggressions are focused
into his ultimate goal of possessing Palestine and thus, joins with the
other nations to fulfill the messages of the other prophets.
Micah 4:11-13
The subject of chapter 4 is the establishment of the Messiahs' earthly
kingdom.
Verses 1-8 describes kingdom blessing. Verses 1-3 are identical to Isaiah
2:2-4.
Verses 9-10 predicts the Babylonian captivity of 605 BCE which begins "the
times of the Gentiles," and includes God's promise to rescue the nation.
It looks to the overall discipline on the nation from 605 BCE until the end
of "the times of the Gentiles" at the end of the 70th week of Daniel.
In verse 10, the time of national discipline is described with the image of a woman
in labor to bear a
child.
Even though the nation is delivered from the Babylonian captivity in 536
BCE, it is still under the 4th cycle of discipline, and never fully
recovers. In fact, in 70 AD, the nation is once again placed under the 5th
cycle until the events of the Day of the Lord and the establishment of the
Messiah's earthly kingdom will remove that discipline.
See Topic: Israel, national discipline
Verse 11 looks beyond the fact of the
Babylonian invasion to a much larger invasion that includes "many nations
have assembled against you," and complements Zechariah 14:2.
The nation is still under the labor pains of national discipline.
Verses 12-13 predicts the battle of Jerusalem after Jesus stands on the
Mount of Olives.
"Arise and thresh,
daughter of Zion,
For your horn I will make iron
And your hoofs I will make bronze,
That you may pulverize many peoples,
That you may devote to the
Lord their
unjust gain
And their wealth to the Lord of all the earth."
It is at this time that the clans of Judah
and the inhabitants of Jerusalem "will fight at Jerusalem," Zech. 14:14.
Zech. 12:4-9.
And afterwards, repossess their own resources (Zech. 14:1) and also the
resources of the invading armies (Ezek. 39:10; Is. 33:23).
Micah 5:1
There is a natural break here and the
focus of the prophet returns to the invasion
of the Chaldeans
that will occur in 605 BCE, as predicted in verses 9-10.
(1) "Now muster yourselves in troops, daughter of troops."
It is the "now" (attah, in the Hebrew) that takes us back to verse 9,
instead of an "and" that would indicate a continuation.
In view of the coming invasion from Chaldea, the nation is relegated to forming small
bands of resistance, even
though it will be to no avail.
"Daughter of troops" is probably a derogatory reference to Jeremiah 5:7,
where it is said that the citizens of the nation habitually gather in troops
(same verb) on their way to the house of the harlots.
(2) "He has laid siege against us." Reference to the attack of the Chaldeans.
(3) "With a rod they will smite the judge of Israel on the cheek." This
removes the independent rule of the nation over itself, as the nation is
taken into captivity by Nebuchadnezzar in 605 BCE.
The resistance fails and the nation is
conquered by Neb's army.
Thus, the labor pain of national discipline
begins in 605 BCE and continues
until "she who is in labor has borne a child," Micah 5:3. This will occur at
the end of "the time of Jacob's distress," and more specifically, when the
Messiah arrives and rescues the nation during the day of the Lord.
Micah 5:2
"But you Bethlehem." This moves from the shame of national ruin to the
promise of deliverance. This verse is a double prophecy of the coming of the
Messiah.
(1) In Bethlehem, the Messiah will be born. This is the first advent (the
Redeemer advent), during
which
He comes
as a suffering servant to provide spiritual redemption for His people
and
the world.
He does not rule at this time, but will die for sins and then return to the
presence of the Father. And of course, there cannot be a second coming in
glory
until there is a first coming.
(2) At the second advent, the Messiah will come to be the "ruler in Israel."
This is the judge advent.
This ARRIVAL of the Messiah is described at verse 4.
"And He will arise and strengthen His flock in the strength of Yahweh."
The "He" here goes back to the one in verse 2, who will be ruler in Israel.
Micah 5:3a
After the death and resurrection of Jesus, the nation will go into world
wide dispersion
throughout the Roman empire.
Thus, "He will give them up." This refers to the perpetuation of national
discipline in 70AD that will last until the end of the 70th week, which is
also the end of "the times of the Gentiles." Romans 11:25-27.
The 5th cycle of National discipline on the Southern kingdom began in 605
BCE. God's discipline on the nation has never been removed since then. Even
in 536 BCE when Israel returned from the Babylonian captivity, the nation
still remained under the 4th cycle, which is political control by a foreign
nation. The 5th cycle was once again administered in 70 AD by Rome, and has
continued to this very time.
Micah 5:3b
The length of the time of discipline extends from 605 BCE, beyond 70 AD, and
into the present era UNTIL "She who is in labor has borne a child."
At first glance, one might want to make application to the "birth" of the
Messiah in Bethlehem. However, the birth of the Messiah did not end the time
of discipline.
Instead, this is a reference back to the labor pains of verse 10.
The labor is the pain of national discipline. The release of the pain (the
birth of a child) is when the discipline will be removed. That will occur
when "the mystery of God is finished," at the end of the 70th week. Rev.
10:7
After that, "all Israel will be saved" (Romans 11:26)
Hosea 5:14-6:3
Hosea 4:14
For I will be like a lion to Ephraim
And like a young lion to the house of Judah.
I, even I, will tear to pieces and go away,
I will carry away, and there will be none to
deliver.
This refers to the 5th cycle of national
discipline in 70 AD; world-wide dispersion.
After the Messiah arrives and presents Himself to the nation as their
Savior, the nation rejects Him and He in turn rejects the nation.
Jesus returns to heaven until the perfect timing for His second coming.
Acts 3:21, "whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all
things."
After the nation recognizes that Jesus was their promised Messiah and
expresses desire to know the truth and to return to the Lord, He will
interrupt the tribulation and return in the clouds of the sky with power and
great glory.
Hosea 4:15
"I will go away and return to My place
Until they acknowledge their guilt and seek My
face;
In their affliction they will earnestly seek
Me."
During the time of their
affliction (the tribulation), the nation as a whole will
SEEK MY FACE. This is not getting "saved," but is an expression of hunger
for the truth.
"Their guilt" refers to a specific national sin that has plagued the
nation since it was committed.
It is the national rejection of Jesus as their promised Messiah.
It is this acknowledgment and expression of spiritual hunger that will
trigger the foreknown plan of God for bringing the Messiah back into the
world.
This expression of hunger is indicated at Hosea 6:2-3
Hosea 6:1
“Come, let us
return to the
Lord.
For He has torn us, but He will heal us;
He has wounded us, but He will bandage
us."
This is not salvation. It is not a return to the Lord.
It is the expression of DESIRE to learn and return based on the
acknowledgment
of their national sin, but it is not YET trust in Him as savior.
Hosea 6:2
“He will revive us
after two days;
He will raise us up on the third day,
That we may live before Him."
Now, we can have some fun with
these 2 days and 3 days.
It does not seem to have any significance if viewed as literal 24 hour
days.
Is "day" symbolic for a year or for 1000 years?
1. If it is symbolic for a year, could this be a subtle prophecy that the
return of the Lord
will occur during the third year of the tribulation?
2. If it is symbolic for 1000 years, could it be saying that the return of
the Lord will occur AFTER 2000 years of history transpires from the first
arrival of the Messiah?
I would like to think that God intends for this to be understood by the
hearers,
but I can find no
proof for ether option.
It seems that option 1 would partially violate "no man knows the day or
hour."
It still does not say WHAT day, but it does place it beyond the two year
mark of the tribulation.
It seems that option 2 is pretty close to what has happened so far in
history.
Regardless, the acknowledgment of the nation that they failed to accept
Jesus as their Messiah, that God has disciplined them, and that He will
rescue them in His own perfect timing will be the trigger for God to
advance to the next stage of His "plan of the ages." It will come as
scheduled according to His perfect plan which is as certain as the dawn
and as promising as the spring rain.
Hosea 6:3 "
So let us know, let us press on to know the
Lord.
His going forth is as certain as the dawn;
And He will come to us like the rain,
Like the spring rain watering the earth.”
This desire and appeal to the people of
Israel is from someone among themselves, and will occur before the return of
Jesus. Accordingly, it is not a message from the 144,000 bond servants since
they will not minister until AFTER the arrival of Jesus.
It is recognition that Jesus was the promised Messiah and that He will
indeed return.
But the 144,000 servants will not put personal trust in Him as Savior until He
actually arrives in the clouds of the sky and they see Him.
During this time, the church will
be proclaiming the gospel right up until the Lord arrives in the clouds. This,
along with the ministry of the two witnesses of Revelation 11, who testify
from the start of the tribulation at the midpoint of the 70th week, will result in this acknowledgment of
national sin. Thus, various people from among the Jews will be appealing one
to another to learn more and
return to the Lord.
After the nation acknowledges that Jesus
was the Messiah, He will cut short the tribulation and arrive in the clouds
of the sky with power and great glory.
The first to believe in Jesus as Savior after His return will be the 144,000
Jewish bond servants of Revelation 7:1-8 and 14:1-5. After that there will
be many from among both Jew and Gentile who become believers. Just before
Jesus sets up His earthly kingdom, He will separate all the unbelievers from
the believers so that only believers will enter alive into the kingdom.
Ezekiel 34:17-22; Mat. 25:31-46.
Micah 5:3c
"Then the remainder of His brethren will return to the sons of Israel."
The nation will become united through
personal faith in Jesus as the Savior.
He will descend from the cloud and rescue the nation and the city of
Jerusalem.
He will judge and remove all unbelievers and He will establish His kingdom
over the earth as centered in Jerusalem in righteousness and peace for 1000
years.
This "return" is the message of the end-times witness of Elijah the prophet
according to
Malachi 4:6, "and he will restore the hearts of the fathers to the children
and the hearts of the children to the fathers."
Micah 5:4a
"And He will arise and
shepherd His flock
In the strength of the
Lord,
In the majesty of the name of the
Lord His
God."
The "will arise" here is just like all the other references to the second
coming.
It refers to the GENERAL time frame of the day of the Lord.
It can refer to the start of the Day (the initial return) or it can refer to
various events
that will occur
during the day.
Of course, He will initially arrive at the the 6th seal, but He will not
begin to shepherd His flock until the 45 day period prior to the
establishment of the earthly kingdom. It is at
this time that as a "shepherd" He will remove the unbelieving sheep out from
the believers. Ezek. 34:17-23.
Here, it seems that the "coming" of the Lord has a more specific focus of
His physical "descent" to the earth AFTER the "arrival" of the Day of the
Lord. It seems that the "arrival" is to initiate the trumpet and bowl
judgments and His "descent" is to provide specific deliverance for Israel.
And it is after that deliverance, which culminates in Armageddon, that He
will begin to shepherd His people both before and in His earthly kingdom.
Notice also Isaiah 40:9-11
This is the message of the 144,000 Jewish bond-servants who will witness
after the "arrival."
The focus is from (1) the bond servants to (2) the physical descent of the
Lord to (3) reward and recompense to (4) shepherding in the kingdom.
Get yourself up on a
high mountain,
O Zion, bearer of good news,
Lift up your voice mightily,
O Jerusalem, bearer of good news;
Lift it up, do not fear.
Say to the cities of Judah,
“Here is your God!”
10 Behold,
the Lord God
will come with might,
With His arm ruling for Him.
Behold, His reward is with Him
And His recompense before Him.
11 Like
a shepherd He will tend His flock,
In His arm He will gather the lambs
And carry them in His bosom;
He will gently lead the nursing ewes.
Micah 5:4b
"And they will remain, Because at that time He will be great
To the ends of the earth."
The
rescue will officially begin at the end of the tribulation when Jesus
ARRIVES in the clouds
of the sky as portrayed at the 6th seal of Revelation 6. The time of
discipline for the nation will end several months later when the 70th week comes to a close and "the mystery of God is finished
as He proclaimed to His servants the prophets," (Rev. 10:7). But the
PHYSICAL rescue of the nation will not begin until He DESCENDS onto the earth. There will be
an additional 30 days after the week ends in order to complete the
"final wrath of God" through the 7 bowls which will result in the cleansing
of the temple from the abomination of desolation (Daniel 12:11). Then there
will be an additional 45 days to prepare the earth and the earth's
population for entrance into the Messiah's earthly kingdom.
(Daniel 12:12;
Mat. 25:11-46; Ezekiel 34:17-22).
THE BOOK OF JOEL
Joel prophesied during a time of severe national crisis.
The land had been invaded by a large army that can only find identification
in the Assyrians who rose to world prominence in about 745 BCE and lasted
until about 611 BCE.
This Assyrian invasion of Judah began in 736 BCE and caused great economic
devastation, and is even the cause for King Ahaz shutting down the offerings
and sacrifices in the temple.
As a result Joel described both the land and the temple:
(1) The land: Verse 1:7 with 2Chron. 28:16-20
(2) The temple (house of the LORD): Verse 1:9 with 2Chron. 28:24 and 29:7.
This is the present condition in the land and is described using present
tenses and past tenses of the verbs in verses 1:1-14. I deduce that this
section is describing what is going on at the present time in the land
because it is governed by verse 6, "For a nation has come up against my
land.
Right after verse 12 there is a natural break in the Hebrew text that
prepares for a transition from the present crisis to a far distant crisis.
Verses 13-14 appeals to the people to return to God and to gather at the
temple (the house of the LORD) in order to avoid the 5th cycle of discipline
at the hands of Assyria. This is also the focus at verses 2:11-17 on which I
will comment shortly.
In contrast, at verse 1:15, the prophet leaps ahead far into the future
and teaches the people that the day of the LORD is approaching (near); not
here yet.
Verses 1:16-20 then describes what will happen during this future time of
judgment, known as the day of the Lord. Joel uses present and past tenses in
this section but the section is governed by verse 15, "the day of the LORD
is near," so it is NOT referring to the present crisis but to a future
crisis.
However, the same conditions in the land will exist at the time that is NEAR
the arrival of the day of the LORD. From the midpoint of the 70th week, the
beast will have confiscated the temple and shut down the sacrifices. His
economic policy of operation 666 will control all material resources. And
then after the day of the LORD actually arrives, the divine judgments will
wreak such havoc and destruction, that the natural resources of the land
will be greatly diminished (trumpets 1-3).
Thus in chapter 2:1-11, the Spirit of God uses Joel to prophesy of the much
future invasion of a Northern army during the day of the Lord judgments.
Verse 2:1, "For the day of the LORD is coming."
And verse 2, "there is a great and mighty people."
This is all future, but at verse 2:11-17, the prophet's message returns to
the present crisis in 736 BCE and exhorts the people to return to the LORD
in order to avoid even greater national destruction and removal through the
5th cycle of discipline (destruction and dispersion).
Verse 12, "Yet even now, declares Yahweh, return to me with all your heart."
They did in fact recover through the Hezekiah revival of 724 to 711 BCE,
and did not undergo further oppression from Assyria during the reign of
Hezekiah. However, the nation failed again and finally fell to Babylon and became
disinherited and dispersed for 70 years from 605
to 536 BCE.
At verse 2:18, there is a natural break in the Hebrew as the prophet once
again looks forward to the day of the LORD. During the time of that
future crisis the unbelieving nation will once again be in a time of judgment. In
that future time, if they will turn to God, He will deliver them and "never
again make you a reproach among the nations, but I will remove the northern
army far from you" (verses 19-20).
Thus, in connection with the arrival of the day of the LORD, the promise is
made, "whoever will call upon the name of Yahweh will be delivered," (Joel
2:32).
This is what we just saw above at Hosea 6:1-3 and Micah 5:1-4.
And then verses 2:21-29 describe blessings during the millennial kingdom.
Joel 2:1-11 describes this future invasion by a northern army during the
Day of the LORD, as was discussed earlier in connection with Ezekiel 38. But
at Joel chapter 3 the prophecy goes beyond the king of the North to the
gathering of MANY nations into Palestine to surround Jerusalem and pave the
way for the Lord's ultimate victory over them "in the valley of the verdict"
(Joel 3:14), and the valley of Yahweh judges (Jehoshaphat, Joel 3:2). This
refers to Armageddon as we saw earlier at Rev. 16:12-15.
Joel 3:1
"For behold, in those days and at that time, When I restore the
fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem"
This gives us the time frame for this final invasion of Palestine.
It occurs at the time that
God intends to "restore the fortunes of
Judah and Jerusalem." In other words, at the time that God intends
to fulfill all of Israel's national promises as initially given to Abraham.
As already mentioned, this refers to finishing "the mystery of God" at the
end of the 70th week of Daniel (Rev. 10:7).
This is in the context of the "approaching" Day of the LORD mentioned at
Joel 1:15; 2:1, 11, 31; and 3:14.
Daniel 9 tells us that the goal of the "70
weeks" is to ultimately "bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up
vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most holy {place}." These three
phrases refer to bringing in Israel's kingdom blessings. It will be
fulfilled AFTER the 70 weeks are completed. This is what was shown to John
at Revelation 10:7, "but in the days
of the voice of the seventh angel, when
he is about to sound, then the mystery of God is finished, as He proclaimed
to his servants the prophets."
The mystery of God is His plan for the nation of Israel. Romans 11:25-27.
This will begin the final preparation of the earth for the Messiah's kingdom
and Israel's national glory.
The 70 weeks bring us to the time of fulfillment, but there will be another 75
days
AFTER the
final 1260 days of the last half of the 70th week, before
the Messiah will "officially" begin the kingdom (Dan. 12:11-12;
Mat. 25:31-32).
Joel 3:2
"I will gather all the nations, And bring them down to the valley
of Jehoshaphat. Then I will enter into judgment with them there On behalf
of My people and My inheritance, Israel, Whom they have scattered among
the nations; And they have divided up My land (v. 1-2).
The valley of Jehoshaphat (Yahweh judges) refers to the valley of "judgment from
Yahweh." It embraces the whole land area
of Palestine with a special focus on the actual valley of Megiddo (or the
plain of Esdraelon) which lies between the Sea of Galilee
and the natural
seaport of Haifa. The valley is 20 miles long and about 16 miles wide.
The "valley" of judgment, or as at Joel 3:14, "the valley
of the decision."
This does not refer to a separate or
different battle from the Valley of Megiddo. There are only three locations
where the Lord does battle with His enemies; Edom, Jerusalem and Megiddo. As
I see it, all the various expressions that describe the battles need to be
adapted to these three.
The word "decision" is charuts
and means a "cutting" or "dividing." Thus the idea of divine judgment, since
all will be "cut off" from the land of the living through the sword of
divine justice (Rev. 19:21). Many battles have been fought here throughout
history, as control of the valley basically controls land travel between
North and South, and determines the usefulness of the seaport at Haifa.
Joel 3:9-11
Proclaim this among the nations: Prepare a war; rouse the mighty men!
Let all the soldiers draw near, let them come up!
Beat your plowshares into swords, And your pruning hooks into spears; Let
the weak say, "I am a mighty man."
Hasten and come, all you surrounding nations, And gather yourselves there.
Bring down, O LORD, Thy mighty ones.
Notice the need for armament. Through the
7-year Covenant Experiment of the first half of the 70th week, there will be a massive
worldwide disarmament. This will continue when the beast begins his oppressive reign, but as his ability
to meet the needs of the nations diminishes through the Day of the Lord
judgments (trumpets), the nations will begin to "chomp at the bit"
and begin to rearm themselves in preparation for resistance to the beast.
At this "gathering" of the nations into Palestine, the activities
of the king of the East
are not detailed for us. It is probable that he
simply deploys his troops into the area of Megiddo and awaits the outcome
of the conflict between the king of the West and the
North.
However, before
there can be any "human" victory, the Lord Jesus will descend from
His "control center" on the cloud and begin the reaping process
of judgment (Rev. 14:14-20). This physical descent has three phases to it as
has already been mentioned. He will descend physically and visibly from the
sky (Rev. 19:11-16); survey and startle the nations (Habakkuk 3:6); go to Edom (Habakkuk
3:7; Is. 63:1-6); then to Jerusalem where He will stand on the
Mount of Olives (Is. 63:1; Zech. 14:3-4); and then from there go to Megiddo
to finish off all the armies that are gathered there (Rev. 19:17-21).
Although, this gathering of armies from many
nations is the ultimate focus in the Old Testament prophets, the king of the North is
signaled out much more than any other.
The advance of its army through Palestine is described at
Joel 2:3-9 (verse 20, "the
Northern army").
"A fire consumes before them, And behind them a flame burns. The
land is like the garden of Eden before them, But a desolate wilderness
behind them, And nothing at all escapes them.
Their appearance is like the appearance of horses; And like war horses,
so they run.
With a noise as of chariots They leap on the tops of the mountains, Like
the crackling of a flame of fire consuming the stubble, Like a mighty people
arranged for battle.
Before them the people are in anguish; All faces turn pale.
They run like mighty men; They climb the wall like soldiers; And they each
march in line, Nor do they deviate from their paths.
They do not crowd each other; They march everyone in his path. When they
burst through the defenses, They do not break ranks.
They rush on the city, They run on the wall; They climb into the houses,
They enter through the windows like a thief."
The King of the North and many other armies
will invade Jerusalem and wreak havoc within the city, oppressing the beast
worshipers who are there as is summarized
at Zech. 14:2.
"For I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem to battle,
and the city will be captured, the houses plundered, the women ravished,
and half of the city exiled, but the rest of the people will not be cut
off from the city."
A DIVIDED ARMY
Daniel 11:45a
"And he will pitch the tents of his royal pavilion between the
seas at the beautiful Holy Mountain."
The king of the West will continue his
counter attack against the other nations by moving from North Africa, back
to Palestine and into Jerusalem. He will set up his camp between the Mediterranean Sea
and the
Dead sea in the city of Jerusalem (AT the beautiful holy mountain).
This maneuver will effectively split the Northern army into 2 sections
according to Joel 2:20. The army will be pushed West into the Megiddo, and
up against the Dead Sea in the other direction (East).
"But I will remove the northern {army} far from you, And I will
drive it into a parched and desolate land, And its vanguard toward the eastern
sea, And its rear guard toward the western sea. And its stench will arise
and its foul smell will come up, For it has done great things."
The Northern army in Jerusalem will be unable to escape
as the King of the West drives their "rear guard" toward the
Mediterranean Sea (into the area of Megiddo) and the "vanguard"
toward the Dead Sea.
Later when Jesus descends to the Mount of
Olives, it will cause the great earthquake of Revelation 16:18-19. This will
split the mountain
down the middle and form an East/West valley extending for 6 miles West
of Jerusalem to Azel, and effectively divide the city into
3 parts (Rev. 16:19). As a
result, the King of the West (the beast) will likewise be driven out of
Jerusalem
into the plain of Megiddo, where with all the other nations, "he will come
to his end."
Daniel 11:45b.
This earthquake will "shake" the
underground beast resisters out of hiding, and embolden them to fight the
remaining invaders that are still in the city. These invaders will be defeated at the
hands of the clans of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem as they fight with the prowess of thousands
of "David's" (Zech. 12:5-9), "that you may pulverize many peoples"
(Micah 4:13). To facilitate the victory, God will send a supernatural plague
upon the invaders as we will see later (Zechariah 14:12-15).
Through this victory, all the resources possessed by these invading
armies will become plunder for Israel. Zech. 14:1, "Behold, a day is coming for the LORD when the spoil taken from you
will be divided among you."
Verse 14, "and the
wealth of all the surrounding nations will be gathered, gold and silver and
garments in great abundance." (Ezekiel 39:10;
Obadiah 18; Micah 4:13).
Among these invading nations will be armies
from Edom, which is specifically mentioned in Obadiah, and is the nation of Jordan at this present time.
Probably all the Arab nations that currently surround Israel will be
involved with this invasion.
They will be among the armies that Israel will fight against after the Lord
descends to the Mount of Olives.
Obadiah 10-18
Verses 10-14 is a warning to Jordan NOT to attack and oppress Israel "in the
day of their distress."
Verse 15, “For the day of the
Lord draws
near on all the nations."
The context is the DOL judgments when the nations have been influenced to
gather into Palestine by the demons of the 6th bowl. Revelation 16:12-14.
Verse 16, "Because just as
you drank on My holy mountain,
All the nations will drink continually.
They will drink and swallow,
And become as if they had never existed."
This refers to the invasion by the nations
into the area of Israel, and specifically, Jerusalem, and includes the
armies of Jordan (Edom), specifically mentioned as "you" in the entire
context. And it proclaims the destruction of all these nations as they are
defeated not only through the battle of Jerusalem, but through Christ's
total victory at Armageddon.
Zechariah 14:2, "But Yahweh will go forth and fight against those nations."
Obadiah verse 17
“But on Mount Zion
there will be those who escape,
And it will be holy."
The people of Israel will be rescued by the
descent of Jesus to the Mount of Olives.
Zechariah 14:4.
Jesus will "save" and "deliver" the clans of
Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
They will fight and be victorious over the invading nations including the
armies of
Jordan (Edom).
Zechariah 12:4-8; 14:12-15
Obadiah 18,
“Then the house of Jacob
will be a fire
And the house of Joseph a flame. But the house
of Esau will be as stubble.
And they will set them on fire and consume
them,
Zechariah 12:8, "In
that day the Lord
will defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and the one who is feeble among
them in that day will be like David, and the house of David will be
like God, like the angel of the
Lord before
them."
Obadiah 17
"And the house of Jacob will possess their
possessions."
All that Jordan and the other nations leave behind will be possessed by
Israel.
Zechariah 14:1,14
Obadiah 18, "So that there will be no
survivor of the house of Esau,”
For the
Lord has
spoken."
This refers to the ultimate defeat of the
area of Edom when Jesus physically descends there, as discussed above
concerning the battle of Edom.
There will be no one in the Edomite area who will not have taken the mark of
the beast.
All will be unbelievers and all will perish.
Jordan, and the other nations that comprise the ancient area of Edom will be ruined and Israel will absorb its land area during the
kingdom as was originally promised to Abraham.
Obadiah 19-21.
CONVERGENCE ON PALESTINE
Ezek. 38:9,
"And you will go up, you will come like a storm; you will be like
a cloud covering the land, you and all your troops, and many peoples with
you."
Joel 2:2,
"A day of darkness and gloom, A day of clouds and thick darkness.
As the dawn is spread over the mountains, {So} there is a great and mighty
people; There has never been {anything} like it, Nor will there be again
after it To the years of many generations."
Ezek. 38:10,
'Thus says the Lord GOD, "It will come about on that day, that
thoughts will come into your mind, and you will devise an evil plan,
Ezek. 38:11,
and you will say, 'I will go up against the land of un-walled villages. I
will go against those who are at rest, that live securely, all of them
living without walls, and having no bars or gates."
As mentioned before concerning Ezekiel
38:8, I think that these descriptions of Israel's condition apply IN GENERAL
to the status of the nation as it has progressed through history from the
time of the Roman dispersion with special emphasis on the present status of
the nation AND A yet future condition that will fulfill ALL the
language of the prophecy.
Hindsight is wonderful in these kinds of situations, but as of 1948,
although still under national discipline from God, Israel has indeed "been
gathered from many nations to the mountains of Israel which had been a
continual waste; but its people were brought out from the nations and they
are living securely all of them."
The completion of these descriptions will take place as a result of the
Covenant Experiment at the beginning of the 70th week, and be extended to
those who accept beast worship in Israel after the covenant is broken.
Ezek. 38:12,
"to capture spoil and to seize plunder, to turn your hand against the
waste places which are {now} inhabited, and against the people who are
gathered from the nations, who have acquired cattle and goods, who live
at the center of the world.'
They desire the material resources
controlled by the beast's presence in Jerusalem. The natural resources are
located in the
Dead Sea, but much of the mined and refined "treasures" will be stockpiled in Egypt
(Dan 11:43). The kingdom
of the beast is centered in Jerusalem and has apparently hoarded in Egypt an abundance
of the resources needed by the nations. But even though the "treasures" are
in Egypt they are controlled by the computerized economic system of 666
which is probably centered in Rome.
Of course, the beast's ability to defend his territory and enforce beast
worship will have been greatly impeded by the trumpet judgments from God. The king
of the North and other nations will be aggravated at the beast's inability to
provide what he promised and therefore, will begin making advances on his
kingdom.
Daniel 11:40, "And at the end time, the king of the south (Egypt) will
collide with him, and the king of the north will storm against him."
So as the beast moves to fight off the
rebellion of all these nations, he must conquer them once again, including
Egypt, where much of the "treasure" is located. Dan 11:40-43.
He must advance through many countries including Palestine (the beautiful
land) once again, and finally to Egypt and North Africa.
But the primary goal of the king of the
North is Jerusalem, thinking that control of Jerusalem will gain him control
of the beast's economic resources, for he who controls the land controls the
mineral resources located in the dead Sea.
See: THE ABUNDANT WEALTH OF THE DEAD SEA
and: ISRAEL'S MINERAL RESOURCES
These invaders will enter into Jerusalem
causing havoc on the beast-worshippers who are there. Zech. 14:2.
The
advance of the king of the north into Jerusalem will probably occur at the
end of the 70th week, when the beast's reign will have been terminated by
the decree of God (He has been given only 42 months to reign, Rev. 13:5;
Dan. 7:25).
It seems that the beast is still in control in Jerusalem as he confronts the
two witnesses at that time and kills them (Rev. 11:3-8).
After the two witnesses ascend into the sky there is a great earthquake and
a tenth of the city is destroyed.
This then seems an opportune time for the king of the north to invade and
try to wrest power away from the beast (king of the West).
The city will be populated by many beast worshippers from among the Jews as well
as many Gentiles who are living there. This defection from their Jewish
heritage is part of THE APOSTASY of 2 Thes. 2:3. The apostasy also includes
any from among the Gentiles and professing Christians who will have accepted
beast worship.
These people will be the victims of the invading armies that are rebelling
against the beast.
There will also be in Jerusalem many Jewish beast resisters living "underground" to escape the
oppression from the beast. These were unable to escape into the wilderness at
the midpoint of the week along with "the woman" of Revelation 12, and are
barely surviving in the city. The Day-of-the-Lord judgments through the
trumpets have greatly impeded the aggressiveness of the beast as he pursues
his agenda to bring the whole world under operation 666.
However, at the end of the week, when the evangelistic testimony of the Two
is being completed in Jerusalem, It is probable that many of the Jews who
have been hiding will have come out to hear them.
These have been resisting beast worship and through the testimony of the
Two, and through the earthquake, these "the rest" will be seriously
frightened, and give glory to God by trusting in the gospel.
Later, after Christ stands on the Mount of Olives, these newly converted
Jews will organize to fight against the invaders. Zech. 12:2-8; 14:12-14.
Ezek. 38:13
"Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of
Tarshish, with all its
villages, will say to you, 'Have you come to capture spoil? Have you assembled
your company to seize plunder, to carry away silver and gold, to take away
cattle and goods, to capture great spoil?'"'
The king of the West will rebuke this advance and take counter measures
to protect his interests in Palestine, Egypt and elsewhere. Daniel 11:40-43.
Ezek. 38:14-17 provides a summary of what we have already seen.
"Therefore, prophesy, son of man, and say to
Gog, 'Thus says the
Lord GOD, "On that day when My people Israel are living securely,
will you not know {it}?
"And you will come from your place out of the remote parts of
the north, you and many peoples with you, all of them riding on horses,
a great assembly and a mighty army; and you will come up against My people Israel like a cloud to cover
the land. It will come about in the last days that I shall bring you against
My land, in order that the nations may know Me when I shall be sanctified
through you before their eyes, O Gog." 'Thus says the Lord GOD, "Are you the one of whom I spoke in former
days through My servants the prophets of Israel, who prophesied in those
days for {many} years that I would bring you against them?
As the king of the North advances into Palestine, so also does the
Eastern alliance and the Western alliance. Most of these troops are in
the Valley of Megiddo, including portions of the Gog alliance, assembled
to resolve once and for all the question of who is the "boss."
Rev. 16:12-14,16
"And the sixth {angel} poured out his bowl upon the great river,
the Euphrates; and its water was dried up, that the way might be prepared
for the kings from the east. And I saw {coming} out of the mouth of the
dragon and out of the mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of the false
prophet, three unclean spirits like frogs; for they are spirits of demons,
performing signs, which go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather
them together for the war of the great day of God, the Almighty. And they
gathered them together to the place which in Hebrew is called Harmagedon.
Joel 3:2a, 9-12
"I will gather all the nations, And bring them down to the valley
of Jehoshaphat."
Joel 3:9-12
Proclaim this among the nations: Prepare a war; rouse the mighty men!
Let all the soldiers draw near, let them come up!
Beat your plowshares into swords, And your pruning hooks into spears; Let
the weak say, "I am a mighty man."
Hasten and come, all you surrounding nations, And gather yourselves there.
Bring down, O LORD, Thy mighty ones.
Let the nations be aroused And come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat, For
there I will sit to judge All the surrounding nations.
Rev. 19:19
"And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies,
assembled to make war against Him who sat upon the horse, and against His
army."
At this point the prophecies concerning the king of the North blend
together with the final assembly of all nations and the destruction of
these nations at the hand of Jesus the Messiah. Accordingly, both Ezekiel
39 and Joel 3 are to be viewed within the context of the final battle at
Armageddon.
THE PHYSICAL DESCENT OF MESSIAH
When Jesus first "arrived" at the Day of the Lord,
"in the clouds of the sky with power and great glory," He raptured
the church from the earth and then took His seat upon a cloud to pour out
God's wrath upon the kingdom of the beast, using angels for various
administrations of judgment (trumpets and bowls).
Rev. 14:14-16
"And I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and sitting on the cloud {was}
one like a son of man, having a golden crown on His head, and a sharp sickle
in His hand.
And another angel came out of the temple, crying out with a loud voice
to Him who sat on the cloud, "Put in your sickle and reap, because
the hour to reap has come, because the harvest of the earth is ripe."
And He who sat on the cloud swung His sickle over the earth; and the
earth was reaped."
This reaping refers to the general
outpouring of divine wrath on the unbelievers which takes place through the
7 trumpets and the first 5 bowls.
Some interpret this to refer to the rapture itself. However, if Revelation
chapter 14 is viewed as chronological, beginning with the conversion of
the 144,000 at verses 1-5, and ending with the battle of Armageddon at
verses 17-20, then the rapture cannot be in view. The rapture takes place
BEFORE the conversion of the 144,000.
In fact, the raptured saints are certainly those who are seen as harpists
singing before the
throne at 14:2-3.
The final act of "reaping" occurs at the
battle of Armageddon,
which is seen at Rev. 14:17-20,
And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, and he
also had a sharp sickle. And another angel, the one who has power over fire, came out from the
altar; and he called with a loud voice to him who had the sharp sickle,
saying, "Put in your sharp sickle, and gather the clusters from the
vine of the earth, because her grapes are ripe." And the angel swung his sickle to the earth, and gathered {the clusters
from} the vine of the earth, and threw them into the great wine press of
the wrath of God. And the wine press was trodden outside the city, and blood came out
from the wine press, up to the horses' bridles, for a distance of two hundred
miles.
This final judgment on the nations is
portrayed by the 5th and 6th bowl at Rev. 16:12-21.
As the nations are gathering, maneuvering
and fighting each other, through all the battles mentioned above, Jesus will descend physically to the earth.
The physical descent of Jesus ONTO the earth is not taught in the New
Testament. We learn about it in the prophets of the Old Testament.
What we are shown at Rev. 19:11-16 is a
summary statement of the initial arrival of Jesus in the clouds of the sky
that is portrayed at the 6th seal.
The prewrath view equates Joel 2, Matthew 24 and Rev. 6 as
all referring to the arrival of the Lord at the inception of the day of the
Lord.
The chronology of the book of Revelation is not entirely
chronological in the presentation of the visions shown to John. Several
times the running chronology is interrupted and a new vision backs up to a
previous point in the chronology and starts over. It is not inconsistent to
see a new vision at Revelation 19:11 that interrupts the chronology that
ended at verse 9 with the marriage of the Lamb and the start of the
millennial kingdom. The new vision then restates the arrival of Jesus, skips
over everything that happened after that, and continues in verse 17 with the
final confrontation at Armageddon.
For details see the commentary on
Rev. 19:11-16
When Jesus descends ONTO the earth He will go first
to Edom (Is. 63:1), then to Jerusalem (Zech. 14:3-4) and finally to the actual
Valley of Megiddo (Plain of Esdraelon) at Mount Megiddo (Armageddon) to
defeat and destroy all the armies that are gathered there (Joel 3:16).
The trip to Edom will be immediate and the judgment meted out there will be
quick and complete for
"there will be no survivor of the house of
Esau,” Obadiah 18.
According to Isaiah 34:9, the destruction
will be through a downpour of brimstone.
There will be no one in this area who is a believer. The entire population
of the Edomite area will be destroyed and sent to Hades to await the last
judgment.
Probably very little time will pass as Jesus will then immediately go to
Jerusalem
and stand on the
Mount of Olives.
FIRST TO EDOM
It is proper that we first see what the bible teaches about this "descent"
to Edom.
He goes there to destroy the unbelievers of that area who were
turning Jews over
to the beast.
Apparently, there will be many Jews who will reject beast worship and try to
hide out
in the region of Edom (. For many, this is a response to the teaching of
Jesus at Mat. 24:15-22, which says, "let those who are in Judea flee to the
mountains." This could include the Jews who are described at "the woman" of
Rev. 12. These are able to leave Judea for a place of safety that has been
prepared for them in the wilderness.
The entire Edomite population, who have embraced beast worship
will be adamant in finding these Jews and delivering them over "to the power
of the
sword
at the time of their calamity, at the time of the iniquity of
the end." Ezek. 35:5; Obadiah 12-14.
After seeing the descent of Jesus and His advance toward Edom, any surviving Jews will
probably go to Judah to join the battle of Jerusalem as
part of "the clans of Judah" to assist "the inhabitants of Jerusalem" to
defeat the invading armies.
Isaiah 34 discusses this judgment on Edom.
Verses 1-4 give a general overview of the Day of the Lord judgments.
Verses 1-2,
"Draw near, O nations, to hear; and listen, O peoples! Let the
earth and all it contains hear, and the world and all that springs from
it. For the LORD'S indignation is against all the nations, And {His} wrath
against all their armies; He has utterly destroyed them, He has given them
over to slaughter."
This is the general attitude of God toward the rebellious nations as
we have previously seen. It is the assembly of the nations in Palestine
that triggers Christ's physical descent to the earth.
Isaiah 34:3
"So their slain will be thrown out, And their corpses will give off
their stench, And the mountains will be drenched with their blood."
This describes the ultimate defeat of all
these nations at Armageddon, and the "dinner" that God provides for all the
scavenger birds.
Revelation 19:17-21.
Isaiah 34:4
And all the host of heaven will wear away,
And the sky will be rolled up like a scroll;
All their hosts will also wither away
As a leaf withers from the vine,
Or as one withers from the fig tree.
It seems that here, Isaiah "backs up" to a
time prior to the actual battle of Edom. As the prophets are prone to do,
Isaiah mentions the cosmic signs that will precede the arrival of the Lord,
and initiate the Day-of-the-Lord judgments. These things appear IN THE SKY
and announce or “portend” the things that will happen on the earth (Luke
21:25-26).
As is the case with many of the other prophets, Isaiah does not provide any
chronological order to these events. He has announced the judgment of God’s
wrath on the world in verses 2-3. Here he simply indicates that there will
be these awesome “heavenly” signs associated with that judgment. Quite often
the prophets mention the arrival of the Lord and/or the judgment of God at
THE DAY OF THE LORD, and then AFTER that, tell about the SIGNS that will
“announce” that arrival. Many other passages establish for us that these
signs will occur BEFORE the judgment from God’s wrath is expressed. Joel
2:31; Rev. 6:12-17; Matthew 24:29-30.
This is the same kind of summary that
we saw at Zechariah 14:5-7 that predicted the total darkness that will occur
just before -
"and the Lord my God will come and all the holy ones with Him."
1. And all the host of heaven will wear away, And the sky will be rolled
up like a scroll:
These symbols refer to massive darkness.
A. Initially, AT the arrival of the Day:
Rev. 6:12; Mat. 24:29; Joel 2:31; Luke 21:25
B. Throughout the time period: Rev. 8:12; 16:10;
Is. 34:4; Zech. 14:4-7; Joel 3:14-16.
2. All their hosts will also wither away As a leaf withers from the
vine, Or as {one} withers from the fig tree.
This is symbolism that expresses almost total
darkness. The stars wither away, that is, their "light" becomes hidden so
that there will be darkness on the earth. No light from the sun, or the
stars. The moon will appear as a dark red orb. And then the "stars" will
fall to the earth which indicates a massive meteor shower.
A. Initially: Rev. 6:13; Mat. 24:29b; Luke 21:26
Rev. 6:13,
"and the stars of the sky fell to the earth, as a fig
tree casts
its unripe figs when shaken by a great wind."
Mat. 24:29b,
"and the stars will fall from the sky."
Luke 21:25-26, "There will be signs
in sun and moon and stars,
and on the earth dismay among nations, in perplexity a
the
roaring of the sea and the waves . . .
for the power of the heavens will be
shaken."
B. But unlike those other passages, the
reference to darkness
here at Isaiah 34:4 does not include the massive signs
ON the
earth such as are mentioned at Luke 21:25-26.
THE DESTRUCTION OF EDOM
Isaiah 34:5
For My sword is satiated in heaven, Behold it shall descend for judgment
upon Edom, And upon the people whom I have devoted to destruction.
Here, we find a specific focus on Edom.
The geographical area of Edom today is the nation of Jordan.
Edom comes under a special judgment from
God because of its historical oppression of Israel and its allegiance to the
beast in the end-times (Ezek. 35:1-15; Obadiah 10-14).
First, during the attack of Egypt against
the beast, Edom will be crushed by the Egyptian armies. Then later after
Jesus descends physically from His seat on the cloud, He will go to Edom and
totally saturate the land area of Edom in brimstone and pitch.
Isaiah 34:6-8
"The sword of the LORD is filled with blood, It is sated with
fat, with the blood of lambs and goats, With the fat of the kidneys of
rams. For the LORD has a sacrifice in Bozrah, And a great slaughter in
the land of Edom. Wild oxen shall also fall with them, And young bulls with strong ones;
Thus their land shall be soaked with blood, And their dust become greasy
with fat. For the LORD has a day of vengeance, A year of recompense for
the cause of Zion."
Edom and its inhabitants will be destroyed just before Jesus descends to Jerusalem.
Apparently, everyone there is an unbeliever for there will be no survivors. Notice,
this is "for the cause of Zion." The people of Edom (Jordan) will be in the process
of oppressing the many Jews (Ezek. 35:5) who have resisted beast
worship
and taken shelter in the regions of Edom. At Christ's initial arrival in the
clouds of the sky with power and great glory, many of these Jews will
believe in Jesus as SAVIOR. They might at this time, be emboldened to return
to Judah. Eventually, all will get out of the region before its destruction,
and participate in the battle of Jerusalem as "the clans of Judah."
The "clans of Judah" of Zechariah 12:5-6 have to come from somewhere.
There are probably beast resisters hiding in the wilderness of Judah.
These, together with the Jewish resisters from the area of Edom will join in
the battle to defeat the remaining armies isolated in the city of Jerusalem.
Ezekiel 35:1-15, gives three reasons for
the destruction of
Edom.
(1) Because you have had everlasting enmity: Verse 5
(2) Because you oppressed the Jews during the tribulation. Verse 5
(3) Because you have claimed the territory of Judah and Israel as your own.
Verses 10-15
We also see at Ezekiel that there are two
aspects to the judgment on Edom.
(1) There will be a warfare judgment first. verses 6-8
Ezekiel focuses on the warfare that kills most of the
people and then looks beyond that to the end result of God's judgment, which will be
total destruction.
It is Isaiah 34 that relates the mechanics of the FINAL destruction.
The warfare
destruction is probably through the attack from the King of
the South; Egypt. Prior to Christ's physical descent to the earth, the
king of the South will push against the kingdom of the beast (king of the
west), Daniel 11:46.
It seems that Edom is still allied with the Beast, so
Egypt will move against this area as it pushes North toward Israel.
When the King of the west counter attacks and drives
Egypt back into her own land, the area of Edom (and Moab and Ammon) will not be
touched.
So it seems that the likely agent of the killing will be Egypt.
(2) Then a total destruction of the entire area. Ezek. 35:9.
Isaiah 34:9-10 describes this as some kind of fire and
brimstone judgment.
Isaiah focuses just on the FINAL destruction, which is
symbolically portrayed by the sword of the Lord saturating the land with blood
(verses 5-7).
And then the final condition of the land is seen as
flowing fiery brimstone and pitch.
Isaiah 34:9-10
"And its streams shall be turned into pitch, And its loose earth
into brimstone, And its land shall become burning pitch. It shall not be
quenched night or day; Its smoke shall go up forever; From generation to
generation it shall be desolate; None shall pass through it forever and
ever."
The judgment on the land area of Edom will
be total.
This sounds like the same kind of destruction that occurred in the judgment
on Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 19:24).
During Messiah's kingdom, it will be a desolation with no
population, housing only wild birds and animals. 34:11-15.
After the destruction of Edom, which will
probably be completed in just a matter of minutes, Jesus will move to
Jerusalem and stand on the Mt. of Olives.
Habakkuk 3:3-4
God comes from Teman, And the Holy One from Mount
Paran. Selah. His
splendor covers the heavens, And the earth is full of His praise. {His} radiance is like the sunlight; He has rays {flashing} from His
hand, And there is the hiding of His power.
At first glance it appears that this may simply be saying that the
Messiah comes from the EAST. However, in view of Isaiah 34 and 63, it is clear
that He comes from this area AFTER judging it.
In verses 1-5, the
arrival FROM Edom is indicated by the present tense of the verbs.
At verse 6, the PAST tense
is used to indicate what happens after He arrives in Jerusalem.
At verse 5, “before Him
goes pestilence,”
indicates the ruin that He brings with Him, and “after Him comes plague,” indicates the
plague that He brings to Jerusalem.
(Zech. 12:4; 14:12-13)
So, when He descends to
the earth from His seat on the cloud, He will proceed to Edom to quickly and completely mete out
His justice upon the people and the region with fire
and brimstone. He will destroy the Edomites who caused many Jews who
were hiding in the region to be turned over to the beast (Ezek. 35:5). He
will then severely judge the entire region of Edom (Isaiah 34:5-10; Ezek.
35:1-15).
The destruction of the Edomites will occur immediately upon His arrival there.
The judgment will be devastating, total and
permanent as already mentioned.
Isaiah 34:9-15
"And its streams shall be turned into pitch, And its loose earth
into brimstone, And its land shall become burning pitch. It shall not be
quenched night or day; Its smoke shall go up forever; From generation to
generation it shall be desolate; None shall pass through it forever and
ever."
The surviving Jews in
this area will have already left sometime after seeing the initial arrival
of Jesus in the clouds of the sky. They will probably go to Judah to join “the clans
of Judah” as they help “the inhabitants of Jerusalem” fight off the invading armies.
Zechariah 12:5, 14.
Habakkuk 3:6a-7
"He stood and surveyed the earth; He looked and startled the nations, and the perpetual mountains were shattered, The ancient hills collapsed.
His ways are everlasting. I saw the tents of Cushan under distress, The
tent curtains of the land of Midian were trembling."
There are two ways to understand these
verses.
The survey of the nations WHEN he descends. Or the survey of the nations
after He stands on the Mt. of Olives.
FIRST: The prophet makes a summary statement of the
judgments that come upon the area of Edom.
(1) First He descends from His cloud in the sky.
(2) He evaluates the nations.
(3) His arrival in the midst of darkness will startle the nations.
(4) His judgment on Edom will be topographically devastating.
(5) The whole area of the Edomites were under distress and trembling.
SECOND: he describes what will happen
AFTER He leaves Edom and arrives in Jerusalem. Habakkuk 3:6a
“He stood and surveyed the earth;
He looked and startled the nations.”
It seems that the prophet has in mind the
general judgment on the rest of the nations. As He stands on the Mt. of
Olives, as the area is trembling from the great earthquake, Jesus looks out
over the vast horde of armies that are assembled in the
valley of Megiddo and especially around Jerusalem. The armies that will
witness His arrival and will be affected by the great earthquake will be startled by His presence.
They will be fighting with each other for dominance in the area
and control of the material resources that the beast has hoarded there. But
when they see Jesus standing on the Mt. of Olives, all of them will be quite
terrified (startled) and be scattered in disarray. To make matters worse, after He
stands on the Mount of Olives, He will then strike those armies in
Jerusalem with a plague of confusion. Many of them will fall prey to some
kind of selective biological weapon, or be struck down by the army of "Davids,"
which is now more motivated to defend their city and families. The others will start fighting against each other.
And the clans of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem will make short work
of any invaders who survive the plague. After the victory is secured, all
the material resources that the armies had will be seized by the people of
Israel.
Zechariah 12:4
In that day,” declares Yahweh, “I
will strike every horse with bewilderment and his rider with madness. But I
will watch over the house of Judah, while I strike every horse of the
peoples with blindness.
Zechariah 14:12-15
"Now this will be the plague with which Yahweh will
strike all the peoples who have gone to war against Jerusalem; their flesh
will rot while they stand on their feet, and their eyes will rot in their
sockets, and their tongue will rot in their mouth.
13 It
will come about in that day that a great panic from Yahweh
will
fall on them; and they will seize one another’s hand, and the hand of one
will be lifted against the hand of another.
14 Judah
also will fight at Jerusalem; and the wealth of all the surrounding nations
will be gathered, gold and silver and garments in great abundance.
15 So
also like this plague will be the plague on the horse, the mule, the camel,
the donkey and all the cattle that will be in those camps."
The language in verses 14-15 reflects the
time in which it was written. In that time the armies would rely upon
animals for carrying resources, and many of their weapons would be made of
the precious metals.
THE ARRIVAL IN JERUSALEM
ISAIAH 63
Isaiah 63:1
"Who is this who comes from Edom, With garments of glowing colors from
Bozrah, This One who is majestic in His apparel, Marching in the greatness
of His strength? It is I who speak in righteousness, mighty to save."
The Messiah comes FROM Edom with His garments already stained with
the blood of battle. He has already engaged the enemy in Edom and is now
ready for Jerusalem and then Armageddon.
Isaiah 63:2-6
Why is Your apparel red, And Your garments like the one who treads
in the wine press? "I have trodden the wine trough alone, And from
the peoples there was no man with Me. I also trod them in My anger, And
trampled them in My wrath; And their lifeblood is sprinkled on My garments,
And I stained all My raiment. "For the day of vengeance was in My
heart, And My year of redemption has come. "And I looked, and there
was no one to help, And I was astonished and there was no one to uphold;
So My own arm brought salvation to Me; And My wrath upheld Me. "And
I trod down the peoples in My anger, And made them drunk in My wrath, And
I poured out their lifeblood on the earth."
Of course, the blood on the garments of the
Messiah is symbolic of having accomplished a total defeat of the Edomites
and their land.
Jesus will not be engaging in any "hand to hand" combat. We already saw that the destruction will be a fiery
outpouring of brimstone. The question from Isaiah brings the Messiah's response, that He has
expressed His righteous wrath upon those who were deserving of judgment.
MOUNT OF OLIVES
Zechariah 14:4-5
"And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which
is in front of Jerusalem on the east; and the Mount of Olives will be split
in its middle from east to west by a very large valley, so that half of
the mountain will move toward the north and the other half toward the south.
And you will flee by the valley of My mountains, for the valley of the
mountains will reach to Azel; yes, you will flee just as you fled before
the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. THUS, Yahweh, my God,
will come, {and} all the holy ones with Him!"
He will stand on the Mount of Olives which
causes a very great earthquake. This is probably what is described at
Revelation 16:17-20.
"And the seventh {angel} poured out his bowl upon the air; and
a loud voice came out of the temple from the throne, saying, "It is
done." And there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder;
and there was a great earthquake, such as there had not been since man
came to be upon the earth, so great an earthquake {was it, and} so mighty. And the great city was split into three parts. . ."
There is still difference of opinion as to the identification of "the
great city." It seems that since Babylon is mentioned in the next
sentence as coming under a separate judgment, the mention here of "the
great city," probably refers to Jerusalem which is identified
as "the great city . . . where also their Lord was crucified,"
at Rev. 11:8.
Jerusalem being split into three parts is
not at all inconsistent with what will result when the Mount of Olives is
split in two at Zechariah 14:4.
The city itself is divided into three sections, and the splitting of the
mountain simply causes the valley "pathway" out of the city to safety. This
of course is for the women and children, as the men will remain behind to
fight.
". . .and the cities of the nations fell."
We have dramatic affects worldwide, from this earthquake.
"And Babylon the great was remembered before God, to give her
the cup of the wine of His fierce wrath."
This is the final judgment on Babylon (Babylonian evil), the ideology that empowers
and controls the king of the west (beast) through the influence of Satan
himself. The history of that ideology and its final demise is later summarized
in Revelation chapters 17 and 18.
The judgment is also on the CITY that is "housing" Babylonian evil and is
the "throne" of the beast at that time, which is probably Rome.
See commentary on Revelation 17.
The religious power base of the beast.
Babylonian religion
"And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found."
This is hyperbole. The significance is that every island and every
mountain are AFFECTED so that they are NOT as they were before. It does
not mean that the whole world is now "flat as a pancake." Even Olives
is not "flattened." It simply says that the mountain is split
in half.
However, in Palestine, from Geba (about 6 miles north) to Rimmon in the
South (about 33 miles southwest), the land will be flattened so that
Jerusalem itself will remain elevated above all the land. Zech. 14:10.
At this same time, there will be a hail
storm of huge hail stones about 100 pounds in weight, which apparently fall
world wide. Revelation 16:21
The arrival of Jesus onto the Mount of
Olives triggers many things throughout the world which elicits various
responses from the people.
(1) on the one hand we have the blaspheming of God because of the hail
storm. Rev. 16:20.
(2) and we also have the mourning at the loss of the city of Babylon. Rev.
18:9-19.
Upon the descent of Jesus from the cloud in the sky, His presence will be dramatically visible
in all of Palestine.
Accordingly, the refugees in Edom, who had not previously left, will
immediately head back to
Judea
where
they will probably BECOME part of "the clans of Judah" fighting to help the inhabitants of
Jerusalem defeat the invaders. Zechariah 12:5, 14.
The "clans of Judah" have to come from SOMEWHERE. They could be Jews who
have been hiding outside the city and are now able to come out of hiding and
fight the invaders.
But it is a fact that there will be Jews hiding in the region of Edom. And
these need to leave the region before it is destroyed by Jesus. It is
therefore likely that these beast resisters in Edom will leave that area
before it is destroyed by Jesus. So the "clans" are either the resisters
from Edom only, or a combination of them and any resisters who were hiding
in Judah. This group of fighters might also include men who were protected
by God in the wilderness for the remaining 1260 days of the 70th week. After
the 70th week comes to a close just before the sounding of the 7th trumpet
(angel, Rev. 10:7), many of these men could possibly return to Judea to assist in defeating the
invaders.
As previously mentioned, there will be many Jews living in Jerusalem "underground" to escape the
oppression of the beast. These were unable to escape into the wilderness at
the midpoint of the week along with "the woman" of Revelation 12, and are
barely surviving in the city. The Day-of-the-Lord judgments through the
trumpet and bowl judgments will have greatly impeded the aggressiveness of the beast to bring the whole world under operation 666,
and his ability to defend his territory As a result, the king of the
North and other armies will invade Jerusalem (Zech 12:1-2), and seriously
oppress the beast worshippers who are there.
But after Jesus descends to the Mount of Olives these "inhabitants of
Jerusalem" will join forces with "the clans of Judah" who are outside the city to
fight and defeat the invaders.
When Jesus comes from Edom to conclude His victory over the nations,
He arrives at Jerusalem, stands on the Mount of Olives and then begins
to fight for the inhabitants of the city and the people of Judah (Zech.
14:1-4).
THE BATTLE OF JERUSALEM
From Edom, Jesus goes to Jerusalem to fight with the armies gathered
there. Zech. 14:3,
"Then Yahweh will go forth and fight against those nations,
as when He fights on a day of battle."
He stands on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem and causes a great earthquake.
Zech. 14:4
And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which is
in front of Jerusalem on the east; and the Mount of Olives will be split
in its middle from east to west by a very large valley, so that half of
the mountain will move toward the north and the other half toward the south.
Zechariah 14:4a
"And you will flee."
The women and children resisters hiding out in Jerusalem will now be able to
escape, while their men join forces with the "clans of Judah" to fight off
the invaders with the help of the personal presence of Jesus. Zech. 12:5-8;
14:3,14.
The "fighting" that Jesus does is probably the administration of the plague
that is described at Zechariah 12:4 and 14:12-15.
In that valley is where the bulk of the worlds armies are assembled.
They are there to organize a major attack against Jerusalem in order to
defeat the armies of the beast, which are now centered in Jerusalem (Dan.
11:45, "at the Holy mountain") and take by force control of the material
resources they all need for their nations to survive. Thus, as Zechariah
writes, "all the nations of the earth will be gathered against it" (Zech.
12:3c).
But after Jesus stands on the Mount of Olives and throws all the land of
Palestine into convulsions through the huge earthquake, all these armies
that are gathered in Megiddo
will be thrown into confusion.
At that time Jesus will leave Jerusalem and with another earthquake and more
darkness (Joel 3:14-16), He will appear in the sky above the valley. it will
be a dramatic "entrance" that will captivate the attention of all the
armies. When they see Him arrive, they will muster all their troops against
Him. Revelation 19:19.
Meanwhile in Jerusalem, the great earthquake and the splitting of the mountain,
will cause great devastation throughout the land of Palestine and even
throughout the world.
IN THE LAND OF PALESTINE
This is described in Hab. 3:8-15
THROUGHOUT THE REST OF THE WORLD
This is described at Rev. 16:17-21 through the 7th bowl judgment.
IN JERUSALEM
The city of Jerusalem will be split into 3 parts (Rev. 16:19a).
There will be a great plague upon the armies that have invaded the city,
causing great panic among the soldiers.
"Now this will be the plague with which the LORD will strike all
the peoples who have gone to war against Jerusalem; their flesh will rot
while they stand on their feet, and their eyes will rot in their sockets,
and their tongue will rot in their mouth."
This is NOT use of a nuclear weapon because the casualties are selective
rather than total. We know this because there will still be some "hand-to-hand"
conflict going on between the invaders and the Israelites at this time.
It might be some kind of "selective" or "individual"
biological weapon. However, this is not a man-made plague. It is
administered directly by Jesus, and is therefore a supernatural effect that will cause a great panic among
the invading armies so that they are even confused about who they should be fighting.
Zech. 14:13
"And it will come about in that day that a great panic from the
LORD will fall on them; and they will seize one another's hand, and the
hand of one will be lifted against the hand of another."
Zech. 12:5-8
"Then the clans of Judah will say in their hearts, 'A strong support for us
are the inhabitants of Jerusalem through Yahweh of hosts, their God.'
"In that day I will make the clans of Judah like a firepot among
pieces of wood and a flaming torch among sheaves, so they will consume
on the right hand and on the left all the surrounding peoples, while the
inhabitants of Jerusalem again dwell on their own sites in Jerusalem.
Micah 4:13,
“Arise and thresh, daughter of Zion,
For your horn I will make iron
And your hoofs I will make bronze,
That you may pulverize many peoples,
That you may devote to Yahweh
their unjust gain
And their wealth to the Lord of all the earth.
Zechariah 12:7-8
“Yahweh also will save the tents of
Judah first in order that the glory of the house of David and the glory of
the inhabitants of Jerusalem may not be magnified above Judah.
“In that day the LORD will defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and the
one who is feeble among them in that day will be like David, and the house
of David {will be} like God, like the angel of Yahweh before them.
Zech. 14:14
And Judah also will fight at Jerusalem; and the wealth of all the
surrounding nations will be gathered, gold and silver and garments in
great abundance.
While the Israelites are defeating the troops in the immediate vicinity of
the city, Jesus begins the maneuvers to destroy all the nations that come
against
Jerusalem as was
mentioned at Zechariah 12:2-3.
It is restated here at verse 12:9, "And it will come about in that day,
that I will set about
to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem."
The main armies of the nations have now assembled in the valley of Megiddo
and are still
united in their goal to defeat the beast. It is at this time that
Jesus goes forth and destroys the armies that have gathered in the valley.
Zechariah 12:9-14 and 13:1-6 flashes
forward to the start of the earthly kingdom.
Zechariah 13:7-9 is a POETIC parenthesis that goes from the Messiah's
first coming,
through national discipline on Israel, and then to the blessing of the
kingdom.
Zechariah 14:1-5b then picks up again with the Battle of Jerusalem and
Megiddo.
Zechariah 14:5c-7 gives a summary statement of the initial physical
descent of Jesus.
Zechariah 14:8-11 flashes forward to blessing in the kingdom.
Zechariah 14:12-15 flashes back to the battle of Jerusalem.
Zechariah 14:16-21 flashes forward again to life in the kingdom. (Isaiah
11:10; 2:1-4)
ON TO MEGIDDO
Joel speaks of Him coming FROM ZION at Joel 3:16, "The LORD roars
from Zion."
As Joel develops the Armageddon confrontation, he writes,
“Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! For the day of the LORD
is near in the valley of decision.”
“The sun and moon grow dark, And the stars lose their brightness,” (Joel
3:14-15).
This is not talking about the “initial” arrival of the Day of the LORD,
but the effect of That Day in reference to Armageddon. It is already here,
but it is NEAR in the Valley of decision.
Joel 3:16
“And Yahweh roars from Zion And utters His voice from Jerusalem, And the
heavens and the earth tremble. But Yahweh is a refuge for His people And
a stronghold to the sons of Israel.”
Here we see the order of movement. FROM Jerusalem He goes somewhere else.
We know that location to be the valley of Megiddo.
It seems that anytime Jesus makes a movement to a different location there
will be some dramatic visible and physical occurrences. Here, as usual, we
see effects in the sky and on the earth. There was already the extreme
darkness (Zech. 14:6-7) when He descended from the cloud in the sky at
Revelation 19:11.
The darkness at that time and here plus the earthquake from standing on
the Mount of Olives will have the armies that are gathered in Megiddo
seriously agitated and frightened.
THE BATTLE OF ARMAGEDDON
It is possible to let the very Scriptures themselves describe what
happens, with very little commentary.
Before the battle, the scavengers of nature sense what is coming and await
the slaughter in order to feast on the dead. Revelation 19:17-18
Rev. 19:19
And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies, assembled
to make war against Him who sat upon the horse, and against His army.
Here the armies of the East, West and North have regrouped to join forces
against the Son of God. Once gathered here, God will judge the assembled
nations and destroy them.
Joel 3:12-14
Let the nations be aroused And come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat
(Yahweh's judgment), For
there I will sit to judge All the surrounding nations.
Put in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Come, tread, for the wine
press is full; The vats overflow, for their wickedness is great.
Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of the verdict! For the day of Yahweh
is near in the valley of the verdict.
Rev. 14:19-20
And the angel swung his sickle to the earth, and gathered {the clusters
from} the vine of the earth, and threw them into the great wine press of
the wrath of God.
And the wine press was trodden outside the city, and blood came out from
the wine press, up to the horses’ bridles, for a distance of two hundred
miles.
That which causes the various nations involved to move into Palestine, is
the political, military, religious and economic influences placed upon
them by the demonic powers that control the beast and the false prophet.
Rev. 16:13-14, 16
And I saw {coming} out of the mouth of the dragon and out of the mouth of
the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet, three unclean spirits
like frogs; for they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out
to the kings of the whole world, to gather them together for the war of
the great day of God, the Almighty.
And they gathered them together to the place which in Hebrew is called
Harmagedon.
DINNER TIME!
The peoples who are assembled in the valley are to be physically killed
through the military prowess of the Lord Jesus as He wields the sword of
His mouth and scatters the enemy on the face of the battlefield. Since the
bodies of the dead will be left lying on the ground for later burial by
the Jews at the beginning of the Kingdom, it provides an abundant food
source for the scavengers of the animal kingdom. Thus, they are called to
gather in anticipation of the divine meal that will be provided to them.
Rev. 19:17-18
And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried out with a loud
voice, saying to all the birds which fly in mid-heaven, “Come, assemble for
the great supper of God; in order that you may eat the flesh of kings and
the flesh of commanders and the flesh of mighty men and the flesh of
horses and of those who sit on them and the flesh of all men, both free
men and slaves, and small and great.”
Ezek. 39:17-21
“And as for you, son of man, thus says the Lord Yahweh, ‘Speak to every kind
of bird and to every beast of the field, “Assemble and come, gather from
every side to My sacrifice which I am going to sacrifice for you, as a
great sacrifice on the mountains of Israel, that you may eat flesh and
drink blood.
“You shall eat the flesh of mighty men, and drink the blood of the princes
of the earth, as {though they were} rams, lambs, goats, and bulls, all of
them fatlings of Bashan.
“So you will eat fat until you are glutted, and drink blood until you are
drunk, from My sacrifice which I have sacrificed for you.
“And you will be glutted at My table with horses and charioteers, with
mighty men and all the men of war,” declares the Lord Yahweh.
The darkness and the earthquake precede His arrival at Megiddo. And once
again, as this "entrance" to the sky above the valley, Jesus breaks through the heavens with His own glory piercing the
darkness, and all the armies will see Him coming upon them.
MESSIAH’S PERSONAL VINTAGE
Rev. 14:19-20
And the angel swung his sickle to the earth, and gathered {the clusters
from} the vine of the earth, and threw them into the great wine press of
the wrath of God.
And the wine press was trodden outside the city, and blood came out from
the wine press, up to the horses’ bridles, for a distance of two hundred
miles.
This distance of 200 miles includes the entire area affected by the influx
of nations into Palestine. The land of Israel itself is only 160 miles
from North to South, but this number should probably be taken as “square
mileage” covering all directions from Jerusalem.
Thus, although the "battle" is designated as being in the valley of
Megiddo, the armies are scattered all over the land as a result of all the
maneuvering and forced retreats.
Armies from the king of the North will be located everywhere from the
Mediterranean Sea, West of Jerusalem, East to the Dead Sea, and in Megiddo
as well.
Armies from the King of the East will be gathered into Megiddo. Armies
from all the Arab nations that are in Palestine will be gathered there.
The "blood" coming up to the height of
horses bridles is hyperbolic symbolism. It communicates the extent of the
slaughter. There won't be any horses for this will involve mechanized and
manual warfare.
Rev. 19:21
And the rest were killed with the sword which came from the mouth of Him
who sat upon the horse, and all the birds were filled with their flesh.
The summary of this final battle finds ALL the people who have gathered,
killed and placed on the “table” of the battlefield as a divine meal for
all the predatory animals that have been invited.
THE DESTRUCTION OF THE NORTHERN ARMY
Ezekiel 38:18-23; Joel 2:18-20; Zech. 12:2-9; 14:12-15;
Through both the battle of Jerusalem and the battle of Armageddon, the
Northern army will be totally destroyed. This army receives special
attention in the Scriptures since it will have accomplished such a
devastating ruin in Israel.
Although viewed separately, by comparing Scripture with Scripture, it can
be determined that the ultimate destruction of the Northern army takes place at the
final battle described above.
In Ezekiel 38-39 we are shown a SUMMARY of
what happens to the Northern army.
It does not give a "moment by moment" chronology, but rather a snapshot of
the things that the army will encounter.
1. The movement into Palestine before Christ's DESCENT to the earth.
2. The protest and response of the king of the west (the beast).
3. King of the North continues into Palestine.
4. Severe military defeat via hand to hand and fighting each other.
5. Ultimate destruction of the army via fire and brimstone.
Ezek. 38:18-20
“And it will come about on that day, when Gog comes against the land of
Israel,” declares the Lord Yahweh, “that My fury will mount up in My anger.
“And in My zeal and in My blazing wrath I declare {that} on that day there
will surely be a great earthquake in the land of Israel.
This is probably the earthquake that occurs when Jesus stands on the Mount of
Olives.
“And the fish of the sea, the birds of the heavens, the beasts of the
field, all the creeping things that creep on the earth, and all the men
who are on the face of the earth will shake at My presence;”
The extent of this earthquake will be such that there will be massive
destruction both of natural and manmade structures.
“the mountains also will be thrown down, the steep pathways will collapse,
and every wall will fall to the ground.”
As already noted, one result from this earthquake will be the panic among
the invading soldiers.
Ezek. 38:21, “And I shall call for a sword against him on all My
mountains,” declares the Lord Yahweh. “Every man’s sword will be against his
brother.
This is similar to the plague that God brings upon the armies in the city
of Jerusalem after Jesus stands on the Mount of Olives.
Zech. 14:13,
"And it will come about in that day that a great panic from
Yahweh will fall on them; and they will seize one another’s hand, and
the hand of one will be lifted against the hand of another."
It appears that FIRST the armies will
basically kill each other, leaving bodies all over the place for the
animal scavengers to devour (Ezek. 39:17-19; Rev. 19:17-18) and the
kingdom believers to bury (Ezek. 39:11-16).
Then Jesus will pour out the "hailstones, fire, and brimstone" to kill any
survivors.
Ezek. 38:22
“And with pestilence and with blood I shall enter into judgment with him;
and I shall rain on him, and on his troops, and on the many peoples who
are with him, a torrential rain, with hailstones, fire, and brimstone.
This language describes the “physical” mechanics of destruction.
Revelation 19:21 says that they were killed by the “sword which came from
the mouth” of Jesus. The word, “sword” is symbolic summarizing both the
"warfare" death and the destruction that will be accomplished by the “torrential rain,
with hailstones, fire, and brimstone.”
The hail here is different from the hail storm of Revelation 16:21. The
storm there is not a "fire and brimstone" storm and will occur in
connection with the huge earthquake when Christ descends onto the Mount
of Olives which will cause the huge earthquake. (Rev 16:18-20; Zech
14:4, 10).
EZEKIEL 39 repeats and amplifies the invasion of this northern alliance
into Palestine.
Ezek. 39:1-5
“And you, son of man, prophesy against Gog, and say, ‘Thus says the Lord
GOD, “Behold, I am against you, O Gog, prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal;
and I shall turn you around, drive you on, take you up from the remotest
parts of the north, and bring you against the mountains of Israel.
“And I shall strike your bow from your left hand, and dash down your
arrows from your right hand.
“You shall fall on the mountains of Israel, you and all your troops, and
the peoples who are with you; I shall give you as food to every kind of
predatory bird and beast of the field.
“You will fall on the open field; for it is I who have spoken,” declares
the Lord GOD.
This takes us from Revelation 9:13-19 to
16:12-16 to 19:19-21.
It also indicates the "warfare" death mentioned at verse 38:21, although
"fall on the open field" can also apply to the fire and brimstone
destruction of verse 38:22.
In addition, the homelands of the Gog alliance will come under judgment
from God.
Ezek. 39:6
“And I shall send fire upon Magog and those who inhabit the coastlands in
safety; and they will know that I am Yahweh."
The "fiery" nature of this destruction
could suggest nuclear warfare both in Megiddo and on the coastlands.
However, that kind of destruction would not fulfill the language at the
end of verse 39:6, "and they will know that I am Yahweh"
This requires a supernatural effect that focuses attention on the person
and nature of God.
An important factor concerning the Gog invasion is the time that it
occurs. There is much debate as to whether it occurs prior to the 70th
week of Daniel, during the first half of the week, last half, or at the
end in association with the battle of Armageddon.
Ezekiel 39:7-8 is
valuable in placing the timing for this invasion.
“And My holy name I shall make known in the midst of My people Israel; and
I shall not let My holy name be profaned anymore. And the nations will
know that I am Yahweh, the Holy One in Israel.
“Behold, it is coming and it shall be done,” declares the Lord Yahweh. “That
is the day of which I have spoken.
It appears that after the defeat of Gog in Israel, that God will not let
His holy name ever be profaned again. Were this invasion and defeat to
occur prior to the 70th week, then after the beast begins to reign and
throughout the Armageddon campaign, God’s name will continually be
profaned and violate this promise. It is therefore not likely that this
invasion should be placed prior to the 70th week. Furthermore, the burial
of bones that takes place for 7 months requires a peaceful environment
which will not exist until after Armageddon (Ezek. 39:11-16).
Ezek. 39:9-10
“Then those who inhabit the cities of Israel will go out, and make fires
with the weapons and burn {them,} both shields and bucklers, bows and
arrows, war clubs and spears and for seven years they will make fires of
them.
“And they will not take wood from the field or gather firewood from the
forests, for they will make fires with the weapons; and they will take the
spoil of those who despoiled them, and seize the plunder of those who
plundered them,” declares the Lord Yahweh.
All the plunder of the invading armies will belong to Israel.
Furthermore, there will be an abundance of flammable items which the
people of Israel will use in place of firewood for energy - perhaps to
provide electricity. The nature of this "energy need" during the first 7
years of the kingdom age is a side issue. Regardless, the language
certainly
communicates a “closure” that can only come at the completion of
Armageddon. The 7 month period and the 7 year period MUST occur after God
has
vindicated His name and promised that it will never be profaned again
among the nations.
Verses 17-20
Prior to the burial, the predatory animals will be gathered to clean the
bones of the slain.
This invitation fulfills the indictment of verse 4, "I will give you as
food."
CLOSURE AND GLORIFICATION
Ezek. 39:21-24
“And I shall set My glory among the nations; and all the nations will see
My judgment which I have executed, and My hand which I have laid on them.
“And the house of Israel will know that I am Yahweh their God from that
day onward.
“And the nations will know that the house of Israel went into exile for
their iniquity because they acted treacherously against Me, and I hid My
face from them; so I gave them into the hand of their adversaries, and all
of them fell by the sword.
“According to their uncleanness and according to their transgressions I
dealt with them, and I hid My face from them.”’”
Ezek. 38:23
“And I shall magnify Myself, sanctify Myself, and make Myself known in
the sight of many nations; and they will know that I am Yahweh.”
After the victory, there will be a worldwide victory proclamation so
that everyone, believer and unbeliever alike, will come to understand
the glory of God.
The nations will see and understand. But for the unbelievers it will be
too late. The sheep and goat judgment of Matthew 25:31-46 will remove
the unbelievers from the world during the 45 days prior to the
establishment of the kingdom. And only believers will be left alive to
enter the kingdom.
Zech. 14:16
“Then it will come about that any who are left of all the nations that
went against Jerusalem will go up from year to year to worship the King,
Yahweh of hosts, and to celebrate the Feast of Booths.”
These are the "sheep" believers who go
into the kingdom of Christ after being separated
from the "goat" unbelievers during the 45 days prior to the establishment
of the kingdom.
Matthew 25:31-46
Ezek. 39:25-29
Therefore thus says the Lord Yahweh, “Now I shall restore the fortunes of
Jacob, and have mercy on the whole house of Israel; and I shall be jealous
for My holy name.
“And they shall forget their disgrace and all their treachery which they
perpetrated against Me, when they live securely on their {own} land with
no one to make them afraid.
“When I bring them back from the peoples and gather them from the lands of
their enemies, then I shall be sanctified through them in the sight of the
many nations.
“Then they will know that I am Yahweh their God because I made them go
into exile among the nations, and then gathered them {again} to their own
land; and I will leave none of them there any longer.
“And I will not hide My face from them any longer, for I shall have poured
out My Spirit on the house of Israel,” declares the Lord Yahweh.
"When I
bring them back" refers to the general time frame when all of these
things will take place. First Israel will be re-gathered prior to the
start of the 70th week, as already discussed, and then the events
leading up to Armageddon and the establishment of the kingdom will
occur.
PREPARATION FOR THE KINGDOM
Daniel 12:11
“And from the time that the regular sacrifice is abolished, and the
abomination of desolation is set up, {there will be} 1,290 days.
This extra 30 days beyond the 1260 days of the last half of the 70th week
is for the outpouring of God’s “final” wrath, which culminates in
Armageddon.
Dan. 12:12
“How blessed is he who keeps waiting and attains to the 1,335 days!”
The additional 45 days beyond Armageddon is for the cleansing of the land
and the separation of believers from unbelievers.
The Gentiles will be divided, believer from unbeliever (Mat. 25:31-46).
And the Jews will be divided, believer from unbeliever (Ezek. 34:17-24;
20:33-38).
All believers will go alive into Messiah’s kingdom to populate the world
and begin the new civilization, over which righteousness and justice rules
in the person of Jesus the King.
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