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Lesson
7
THE
MIDDLE OF THE TRIBULATION
Revelation 11-12
7 "And there
was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and
the dragon and his angels fought back. 8 But he was not strong
enough, and they lost their place in heaven. 9 The great dragon
was hurled down -- that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who
leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels
with him.
10 Then I heard a
loud voice in heaven say: "Now have come the salvation and the power
and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the
accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night,
has been hurled down. 11 They overcame him by the blood of the
Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so
much as to shrink from death. 12 Therefore rejoice, you heavens
and you who dwell in them! But woe to the earth and the sea, because the
devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury, because he knows that
his time is short." Revelation 12:7-12
The
Interlude
Revelation 10-11
As if taking a
breath, John is greeted in Chapter 10 of Revelation by the sight of a
mighty angel with the voices of the seven thunders. But whatever John saw,
he was not allowed to write it down. The description of the angel could
fit that of Christ Himself, and many expositors belief it was Jesus. On
the other hand, this angel swore by the creator, and Jesus swore by
Himself.
Whoever the identity of the
angel, it proclaimed, 6"There will be no more delay! 7
But in the days when the seventh angel is about to sound his trumpet, the mystery
of God will be accomplished, just as he announced to his servants
the prophets." (Revelation 10:6-7) Salvation by Jesus Christ has
always been the mystery of God throughout the New Testament. Paul has
assured us that there can be no other meaning than the salvation of God's
chosen people, the Jews:
25"I
do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers,
so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in
part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in. 26 And
so all Israel will be saved, as it is written: 'The deliverer will come
from Zion; he will turn godlessness away from Jacob. 27 And
this is my covenant with them when I take away their sins.'" (Romans
11:25-27)
4"In
reading this, then, you will be able to understand my insight into the
mystery of Christ, 5 which was not made known to men in other
generations as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God's holy
apostles and prophets. 6 This mystery is that through the
gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of
one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus." (Ephesians
3:4-6)
John was then instructed to take
the little scroll, eat it, and then prophesy again about things that would
happen during the Seven Year Tribulation. The Word of God is sweet as John
eats it. But God's divine judgments and wrath to yet be poured out on the
world are bitter, made all the more so by the realization that the
majority of the earth's population will be lost forever.
As Revelation 11:15 makes clear,
Christ's reign begins with the seventh trumpet. But first, God reveals to
John that two witnesses will speak for Him for three and a half years.
The
Two Witnesses, Rev 11:1-14
Except for the rapture, nothing
is more in doubt about the last days than the timing of when the two
witnesses will prophesy for God in Jerusalem. Scholars are divided over
whether they are there during the first or last half of the Tribulation.
At first glance, it sounds simple enough:
1"I
was given a reed like a measuring rod and was told, 'Go and measure the
temple of God and the altar, and count the worshipers there. 2 But
exclude the outer court; do not measure it, because it has been given to
the Gentiles. They will trample on the holy city for 42 months. 3 And
I will give power to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260
days, clothed in sackcloth.' 4 These are the two olive trees
and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. 5 If
anyone tries to harm them, fire comes from their mouths and devours their
enemies. This is how anyone who wants to harm them must die. 6 These
men have power to shut up the sky so that it will not rain during the time
they are prophesying; and they have power to turn the waters into blood
and to strike the earth with every kind of plague as often as they
want." (Revelation 11:1-6)
Those that believe the two
witnesses prophesy during the last half of the Tribulation do so because
the power to stop rain and turn the waters into blood are descriptive of
the judgements and plagues during the last half of the Tribulation. Most
of the last half expositors also place the seven trumpets in the last half
of the Tribulation as well.
The last half expositors also
note that it would not make sense that the Gentiles would have access to
the outer court, during the first half of the Tribulation. That is the
time when the world government has given the Jews their right to worship
in the Temple again. The Gentiles occupy the Temple, they claim, during
the last half of the Tribulation when the Antichrist tramples on their
Temple by establishing the abomination that causes desolation of Daniel
9:27 and Matthew 24:15.
The last half theorists also
claim that the purpose of the two witnesses is to warn the world and to
call to the Jews to accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior -- during the
Great Tribulation or last half of the Tribulation. This assumes, of
course, that the Jews do not accept Jesus as Lord until the end of the
Tribulation. In the meantime, the two prophets witness outside the Temple
while the Antichrist desecrates it inside. It is argued that the trampling
of the Temple and the establishment of the abomination that causes
desolation is a stumbling block to the "first half" theory.
Those expositors that believe the
two witnesses prophesy during the first forty two months base their
understanding on the fact that drought, water turning to blood, and
plagues all occur during the first half of the Tribulation, albeit during
the very last of it. To the question of the Temple, first half expositors
note the Gentiles have always had access to the outer court of the Temple.
In fact, that area has always been called the Court of the Gentiles and is
where Jesus "cleansed the Temple." (John 2:14-17). Only the
inner courts are restricted to Gentiles.
Interestingly, the only real
theory that provides harmony among all scripture, is if Jesus comes in the
middle of the Tribulation, as Ezekiel 39:22, Zechariah 12:1-11, and
Revelation 10:6-7, 11:15, and 12:14 strongly suggest. In fact, the seventh
seal in Revelation 11:15, which comes after the discussion of the
two witnesses, notes that Christ's kingdom is established on earth.
Since the seven bowls are yet to come, last half theorists must somehow
explain how Christ's kingdom is established in the world sometime during
the last three and a half years. This they cannot do.
Most expositors slough off the
scriptural conflict by saying that this is a "heavenly event"
with no earthly counterpart. Perhaps, but they violate the simplest
interpretation by doing so. Plus, there is absolutely no supporting
evidence elsewhere in scripture. But there is complete harmony with all
other scripture if the Jews accept Jesus as Messiah in the middle of
the Tribulation.
God has always desired that His
people worship Him with their heart, not with Temple sacrifices (Mark
12:33, Hebrews 10:5-10). The Temple in existence during the Tribulation is
not what God ultimately wants. If the Jews receive their Messiah in the
middle of the Tribulation, what happens to the Temple after that is of no
consequence to God. Those Jews who accept Jesus as their Messiah have
solved God's mystery and need no longer sacrifice with burnt offerings.
Nonetheless, one cannot be
dogmatic about when the two witnesses will be in Jerusalem to prophesy.
There is legitimate evidence on both sides of the question, and almost all
expositors recognize this. For purposes of our discussion, however, we
will assume that they are sent during the first half. In making this
assumption, Chapter 11 of Revelation provides an account of critical
information and had to be included, but didn't fit the flow of the
previous revelation. In essence, God suddenly switches gears and
backtracks over an event that had dumbfounded the world during the first
half of the Tribulation.
Although there is little
agreement of when the two witnesses have their ministry, there is general
agreement of who they are. Although some believe it will be Enoch and
Elijah, most expositors believe it will be Moses and Elijah. Evangelist
Dr. David Jeremiah explains:
"First, Malachi the prophet
predicted that Elijah would come to prepare the way for the Messiah
(Malachi 3:1-3; 4:5-6). Second, Elijah never experienced death; therefore,
he could return and die, just as the witnesses do. Third, the witnesses
have the same sign that was given to Elijah in regard to rain. . . .
Fourth, Elijah was one of the two who appeared at the Transfiguration
(Matthew 17:3). . . . [Moses] also appeared at the Transfiguration. He
turned waters into blood, just as the witnesses will do (Exodus 7:19-20;
Revelation 11:6). Also, the body of Moses was preserved by God so that he
might be restored. Tourists often ask their Israeli or Arab Holy Land
guides, "Where is Moses buried?" No one knows. If his grave site
were known, the Jews would have a shrine built over it larger than any
other in the land. But Moses does not have a grave."(1)
Of course, with God all things
are possible. The two witnesses may be two other great prophets as well,
but there is strong evidence they will be Elijah and Moses.
There is no question that the
purpose of the two prophets is to call to the Jews that Jesus is Lord, and
warn the world that God's Judgement is coming. It is highly probable that
the two prophets provide specific prophecies of what is about to take
place. For 1260 days they are mocked and ridiculed by the world and by the
Jews. Most of the first half of the Tribulation will be characterized by
unprecedented world peace. No doubt the harlot church will hate the two
witnesses and will attempt to get rid of them. But no matter how hard they
try, they not only can't get rid of them, they can't even kill them!
Anyone who tries winds up a burnt offering themselves!
As peace turns to war, followed
by the death of half the world's population from starvation, pestilence,
and plagues, plus massive drought and water turning to blood, the world
begins to worry. Along with the 144,000 Jewish evangelists, the two
witnesses bring in the greatest harvest the world has ever seen. It is
likely that the ministry of the 144,000 is to evangelize the world while
that of the two witnesses is to evangelize the Jews in Israel and warn the
nations. When God destroys the invading Russian army, just as Ezekiel and
the two prophets had foretold, the Jews have their confirmation that Jesus
is their long sought Messiah after all.
At the end of the 1260 days the
beast who comes from the Abyss is finally able to kill them:
7"Now
when they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up from the
Abyss will attack them, and overpower and kill them.
8"Their
bodies will lie in the street of the great city, which is figuratively
called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified. 9 For
three and a half days men from every people, tribe, language and nation
will gaze on their bodies and refuse them burial. 10 The
inhabitants of the earth will gloat over them and will celebrate by
sending each other gifts, because these two prophets had tormented those
who live on the earth.
11"But
after the three and a half days a breath of life from God entered them,
and they stood on their feet, and terror struck those who saw them. 12
Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, 'Come up
here.' And they went up to heaven in a cloud, while their enemies looked
on." (Revelation 11:7-12)
Once again those expositors that
believe God will send the two witnesses during the second half of the
Tribulation run headlong into a potential conflict. Verse 7 notes that it
is the beast who finally kills them -- after they have finished their
mission, of course! Daniel and Revelation make it very clear that the
beast arrives in the middle of the Tribulation and persecutes the
"saints" or "holy ones" during the last half of the
Tribulation. If so, why did the beast (Antichrist) wait until the end of
his reign to attempt to kill them? Such an egomaniac would not tolerate
such accusations against him.. Yet, there is no mention that earlier
attempts had been made. And if he had tried to kill them, why wasn't he
killed as well?
On the other hand, if the two
prophets were sent during the first half of the Tribulation, the text fits
perfectly. In fact the easiest reading of verse 7 is that it is not until
the beast comes up from the pit that he kills the two witnesses. The world
government, of which the Antichrist is a part, repeatedly sends men to
attempt to kill the witnesses, but all attempts fail in the death of the
assailants.
If this is the way it happens,
the most likely sequence is that Russia is destroyed by God and a short
nuclear war breaks out, proving the prophecies of the two witnesses
correct. The Antichrist is somehow killed, perhaps when he attempts to
kill the two witnesses before the appointed time. He is
"resurrected" from the pit in a sorry imitation of Christ's
resurrection and takes credit for the destruction of the troublesome
Russian and Arab armies. The Antichrist leads his army into North Africa
(Daniel 11:44) where he hears of a great revival breaking out in Jerusalem
and all of Israel that is spreading like wildfire into surrounding nations
(Zechariah 12:1-10). Fully possessed by Satan himself, he is filled with
fury that he has been outwitted by Jesus again and returns and kills the
two witnesses (Revelation 11:7).
Such an event would cause the
world to cheer. The Antichrist had delivered them from what seemed certain
judgement by God. It would be easy to reason that the Antichrist was more
powerful than God Himself, since he alone had the power to kill God's
emissaries. In an utter act of carnality and depravation, they leave the
bodies lying where they were killed while dignitaries from around the
world come to view their defeated enemy. The event will be broadcast by
television twenty-four hours a day to the whole world so those who could
not come personally could witness the greatest victory for mankind in
history. The gloating and celebration will continue for three and a half
days.
But their victory is premature.
They are so caught up in their success, nobody bothers to look at God's
Word to see how it would all end. After three and a half days, and with
the world's televisions viewing the event, the bodies began to stir. The
penetrating eyes of the prophets of God open. As they stand they stare
directly into the eyes of the world, striking the people with terror as
the full realization of what is happening hits home like thunder. As if to
emphasize their terror, a thunderous voice calls to His prophets to
"Come up here." And in full view of the world, the two prophets
are taken up to heaven in a cloud. As if in judgement, an earthquake kills
7,000 people in Jerusalem.
The
Seventh Angel and Third Woe
And then the seventh trumpet
blows heralding the third woe:
13"At
that very hour there was a severe earthquake and a tenth of the city
collapsed. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the
survivors were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.
14"The
second woe has passed; the third woe is coming soon. 15 The
seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven,
which said: 'The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord
and of his Christ, and he will reign for ever and ever.' . . . .
18
"'The nations were angry; and your wrath has come. The time has come
for judging the dead, and for rewarding your servants the prophets and
your saints and those who reverence your name, both small and great -- and
for destroying those who destroy the earth.' 19 Then God's
temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his
covenant. And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of
thunder, an earthquake and a great hailstorm." (Revelation 11:13-15,
18, 19)
With the acceptance by the Jews
of their Messiah, Christ's reign on earth begins. God's Judgement of the
nations is about to begin to be followed by rewarding His servants. But
first, God needs to explain a few things about Satan himself over the
broad sweep of time.
Satan,
the Red Dragon
Revelation 12:1-17
The
Woman, Revelation 12:1-5
When the two witnesses are
resurrected, the Antichrist's victory turns once again into defeat, and he
knows his time is short. As only a megalomaniac would do in such a
situation, he declares himself god by performing great miracles so as to
deceive even the elect if that were possible (Matthew 24:23-24). He
solidifies his religious and secular power over both Israel and the world,
symbolizing it by establishing a statue of himself in the Temple (Daniel
9:27; Matthew 24:15) and destroying the oppressive harlot church
(Revelation 17:15-18).
Enraged by being outwitted by
Christ once again, Satan begins his purge of God's chosen people. This
time he is determined to get rid of them from the face of the earth once
and for all. But those that had already accepted Jesus as their Messiah
and understood His warning "to flee to the Mountains"
(Matthew 24:16) were already fleeing to a place of safety in the desert
and mountains of Edom.
Right in the middle of this tense
drama, God inserts yet another flashback into history and a glimpse into
the future. This time, however, God views these past and future earthly
events from a spiritual perspective. In the first half of Chapter 12, we
step back into historical events to show how Satan has been outwitted in
the past:
1"A
great and wondrous sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun,
with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. 2
She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give
birth. 3 Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red
dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on his heads. 4
His tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky and flung them to
the earth. The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give
birth, so that he might devour her child the moment it was born. 5 She
gave birth to a son, a male child, who will rule all the nations with an
iron scepter. And her child was snatched up to God and to his
throne." (Revelation 12:1-5)
Expositors in the past have
described the woman as Mary Baker Glover Patterson Eddy, founder of the
Christian Scientist movement; Mary, the mother of Jesus, the church and
others. The views of the Christian Scientists have no basis whatsoever in
scripture. There is no scriptural evidence that Mary, while honored among
all women, had any special place in heaven. Finally, it is extremely
unlikely that the woman was the Church. Christ gave birth to the Church,
not the reverse.
The woman can be none other than
Israel with her twelve tribes. The sun and the moon may refer to Joseph's
dream of his father, mother, and brothers bowing down before him (Genesis
37:9-10). God faithfully affirms to John the promise God had given Abraham
-- the Messiah would come from his heirs and all the nations would be
blessed (Genesis 12:2-3; 22:18). The pregnant woman gave birth to a son,
who has to be Jesus Christ, the Messiah of the Jews, and the world. It is
Jesus, and Jesus alone who will rule the world with an iron scepter
(Revelation 19:15). Attempts to identify the male child as the church fail
completely. The Church is usually referred to in the feminine and she will
be the "bride of Christ."
The enormous red dragon with
seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns is, of course, Satan. There is
no disagreement on this interpretation among Bible scholars. The seven
heads and ten horns refer to the Ten Nation Confederacy described in
Daniel 2:41-43 and 7:7, 20, 24, of which three were subdued (Daniel 9:8)
leaving seven. The color red represents the blood from the multitude of
murdered victims he has been responsible for killing throughout history.
The dragon is seen waiting to devour the male child at birth. This
parallels the account of Herod, a hated Edomite (Ezekiel 36:1-7), who
attempted to kill Jesus by killing all children less than three years old
(Matthew 2:16-18). Herod was merely doing the biding of Satan who
attempted to kill Jesus before He had the chance to fulfill His ministry.
Satan's second attempt to defeat
God's plan was by killing Jesus on the Passover. This time it was Caiaphas,
the Jewish High Priest, and Pontius Pilot, the cowardly Roman procurator,
who were the front men for Satan. Satan was indeed successful in killing
Jesus through false accusations and deceit, but his victory was
short-lived. As will be duplicated by the two witnesses (Revelation
11:11-12), Jesus arose on the third day, and after a period of time during
which he was seen by thousands of people, he was taken into heaven on the
clouds (Acts 1:9-11; Ephesians 4:8-10) where He sits at the right hand of
God! (Mark 16:19)
The
War in Heaven, Revelation 12:6-12
With no apparent transition, the
text skips nearly 2,000 years from the crucifixion to the middle of the
Tribulation where John's prophecy continues:
6"The
woman fled into the desert to a place prepared for her by God, where she
might be taken care of for 1,260 days.
7"And
there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon,
and the dragon and his angels fought back. 8 But he was not
strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. 9 The great
dragon was hurled down -- that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan,
who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his
angels with him.
10"Then
I heard a loud voice in heaven say: 'Now have come the salvation and the
power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the
accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night,
has been hurled down. 11 They overcame him by the blood of the
Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so
much as to shrink from death. 12 Therefore rejoice, you heavens
and you who dwell in them! But woe to the earth and the sea, because the
devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury, because he knows that
his time is short.'" (Revelation 12:6-12)
Verse 6 has been difficult to
translate because it seems to fit the previous dialog. Yet, there is no
time in history in which Israel even remotely was protected for 1,260
days, or three and a half years. Nor is there any scriptural support for
Israel needing to escape to a place prepared by God during the first three
and a half years of the Tribulation. On the other hand, if verse 6 refers
to the second half of the Tribulation, there are many other Biblical
references to support it, including Matthew 24:15-16:
15 "So
when you see standing in the holy place `the abomination that causes
desolation,' spoken of through the prophet Daniel -- let the reader
understand -- 16 then let those who are in Judea flee to the
mountains." (Matthew 24:15-16)
If that is the correct
interpretation, it is likely the result of a great war in heaven between
Satan and the Archangel Michael. Daniel has already told us that Michael
will arise to protect the saints in the middle of the Tribulation in
Daniel 12:1. It is at that moment that Satan is hurled from heaven and can
no longer accuse the saints of all their wrongdoing. The Greek word for
devil is diabolos which has the meaning of "defaming"
or "slandering." He is indeed the master accuser of the
brethren. As the book of Job graphically illustrates, one of the main
purposes of Satan is to accuse those who are righteous before God.
Zechariah 3:1-10 provides a specific dialog on how Satan accuses and how
God deals with the accusations!
As if in fulfillment of
Zechariah, God then explains in Revelation 12:11 that the saints overcame
Satan by the blood of the Lamb! It is through salvation by Christ that our
sins are cleansed by the blood of Jesus. Although Satan will be a roaring
lion (1 Peter 5:8) until the end, his accusations will mean nothing as
long as we place our hope in Jesus, even if it means the death of our
bodies.
In the middle of the Tribulation,
Michael defeats Satan and throws him down to the earth, along with his
dark angels, where he no longer has standing to accuse the brethren before
the throne of God. This event likely marks the exact middle of the seven
year Tribulation, and the beginning of the Great Tribulation--the last
three and a half years.
Once again John's revelation
clearly shows that Christ assumes His reign in the middle of the
Tribulation: "Now have come the salvation and the power and the
kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ." If this is
the result of the Jews finally accepting Jesus as their Messiah, as
previously discussed, verses 10 and 11 of Revelation 12 have far greater
meaning than discussed above. The references to the brethren would be
specifically directed towards the Jews who have accepted Jesus as their
Messiah knowing that they will die a martyr's death! God's purpose for His
chosen people would be finally fulfilled and Satan could no longer accuse
them of disobedience! Christ's original purpose for coming to earth and
the cross would be made complete, and His eternal reign begun. This
interpretation fits perfectly with Ezekiel 39:22, Zechariah 3:1-10 and
12:10-11, Romans 11:25-27 and the events of the seventh trumpet in
Revelation 10:6-7 and 11:15-17.
Satan's
Attempt to Destroy the Jews,
Revelation 12:13-17
Although there is much rejoicing
in heaven over the defeat of Satan, the act has its own consequences on
earth. After being thrown down to earth, it is likely that Satan enters
the Antichrist with fury and kills the two witnesses. Although it seems
like a victory to Satan, the triumph turns sour when God raises them back
up to the clouds. The devil (the great deceiver) is furious because he has
lost again.
Satan now knows his time is short
and his options are few. His only hope is to "change the set
times and the laws" as detailed in Daniel 7:25. The only way he
can do that is to destroy God's people and deny God the victory for his
chosen people. Satan sets out with a vengeance to destroy every last Jew
on earth, especially those who have "given their lives to
Christ:"
13"When
the dragon saw that he had been hurled to the earth, he pursued the woman
who had given birth to the male child. 14 The woman was given
the two wings of a great eagle, so that she might fly to the place
prepared for her in the desert, where she would be taken care of for a
time, times and half a time, out of the serpent's reach. 15 Then
from his mouth the serpent spewed water like a river, to overtake the
woman and sweep her away with the torrent. 16 But the earth
helped the woman by opening its mouth and swallowing the river that the
dragon had spewed out of his mouth. 17 Then the dragon was
enraged at the woman and went off to make war against the rest of her
offspring -- those who obey God's commandments and hold to the testimony
of Jesus." (Revelation 12:13-17)
Satan's fury is vented on the
woman who had given birth to the male child, or Israel. But God sweeps her
up on the wings of eagles and takes her to a place of safety for three and
a half years. Most scholars interpret this verse as identical to that of
verse 6. Very likely this occurs as the Antichrist erects his abomination
that causes desolation in the Temple as is foretold in Daniel 9:27 and
Matthew 24:15. Jesus warned the saints of that day to flee to the
mountains when they see this happen! Many scholars believe the place they
will flee to is Bozrah and Petra (see Isaiah 62:1-9, and Obadiah 15-21).
There are two Bozrah's. One was
in Moab and was mentioned in Jeremiah 48:24. It was the capital of Arabia
through the second century AD. The other Bozrah was an important Edomite
mountainous city in old Testament history. Jeremiah 49:13-22 implies that
it will be destroyed and the people will flee from an "eagle."
Micah 2:12-13 infers that the sheepfold (also called Bozrah) for the
fleeing Israelites will indeed be Bozrah. Located in southern Jordan, it
is now called el-Busaireh.
Bozrah is on the road to Petra,
the old Edomite capital. Built into the red rock cliffs of narrow valleys,
the ruins of Petra lie in a basin surrounded by mountains. It had offered
excellent natural fortification from invading armies during the period of
300 BC to 105 AD, when it served as capital.
The locations for these safe
havens fit Daniel 11:40-41 perfectly:
40 "At
the time of the end the king of the South will engage him in battle, and
the king of the North will storm out against him with chariots and cavalry
and a great fleet of ships. He will invade many countries and sweep
through them like a flood. 41 He will also invade the Beautiful
Land. Many countries will fall, but Edom, Moab and the leaders of Ammon
will be delivered from his hand." (Daniel
11:40)
When the Antichrist invades the Holy Land
after Russia is destroyed by God, he will also invade many other nations,
including North Africa, but not present-day Jordan!
If indeed these areas will be the safe
haven for the new Messianic Jews, the cliffs of Bozrah and Petra would
offer no safe haven from modern armies. And there is no question but that
the Satanically lead Antichrist will throw everything he has at the
fleeing Israelites. But something happens, and the pursuing army is
swallowed up.
It is interesting to note that the fleeing
Israelites will have to cross into Jordan just south of the Dead Sea,
which is 1,290 feet below sea-level. It is possible to take verse
15 literally, if the Antichrist somehow blasts a channel from either the
Aqaba Sea (at the southern tip of Israel and Jordan) or the Mediterranean
Sea. The resulting flood would pour into the Dead Sea area just when the
Messianic Jews make their escape. If this is what happens, God
supernaturally intervenes and stops the flood, like he parted the Red Sea!
On the other hand, it may be that the word "flood" in Revelation
12:13 is symbolic. Either way, God supernaturally defends His people.
Failing in that attempt, and with eon's
worth of hatred and murder stored in his heart, Satan sends the Antichrist
to decimate the rest of God's chosen people. The Great Tribulation that
Daniel and Jesus warned of in Daniel 12:1 and Matthew 24:21-22 will begin.
There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the
beginning of time until then. But Daniel 12:1 also gives this hope: "But
at that time your people -- everyone whose name is found written in the
book -- will be delivered." And in Luke 21:28, Jesus offers this
encouragement: 28"When these things begin to take
place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing
near."
Although God's chosen are Satan's primary
target, anti-Semitism will also reach an all-time historic high as the
Antichrist seeks to eliminate all Jews from the face of the earth.
Tragically, however, they have no hope of any type of deliverance, and the
horror of the day will know no bounds.
The carnage will be enormous. Approximately
six million Jews live in Israel today. If the Antichrist were to come in
the next few years, it is likely that by the middle of the Tribulation the
Jewish population will double. Two-thirds of them will die:
8"In
the whole land," declares the LORD, "two-thirds will be struck
down and perish; yet one-third will be left in it. 9 This third
I will bring into the fire; I will refine them like silver and test them
like gold. They will call on my name and I will answer them; I will say,
'They are my people,' and they will say, 'The LORD is our God.'" (Zechariah
13:8-9.)
Indeed, the last three and a half years of
this age will test and refine the faith of the Jews like gold. The evil
that they will face is unlike anything the world has ever experienced
before.
1. Jeremiah, David. 1990. Escape
the Coming Night. Word Publishing, Dallas. 240 pages. pp 143.
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