Armageddon
In most of the presentations of the Battle of Armageddon which
occurs at Christ's Second Coming, we find a group of ten kings with their ten armies led
by a brilliant general who claims to be God. This One World Order conglomerate are
surrounding Jerusalem with intentions of eradicating it from the earth.
It is almost conceded by all that these ten nations are a coming to power of the
nations in the break-up of the old Roman Empire. I believe where the whole scenario
gets off on the wrong foot is to speculate that this fourth beast of Daniel 7 refers to
Rome. Notice the text:
Dan. 7:7 -- After
that, in my vision at night I looked and there before me was a fourth beast -- terrifying
and frightening and very powerful. It had large iron teeth; it crushed and devoured
its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all the
former beasts, and it had ten horns.
First of all this is not a good description of the Roman Empire.
They were merciless to any nation that rebelled against them but they were quite
benign if a nation cooperated with them, and they were able to live a fairly normal life
under their rule. Consider the Jews at the time of Christ, they had a fairly benign
set of rules to comply with. The Jews even intimidated their Roman governor (Pilate)
and insisted that Christ be crucified even though Pilate disagreed. But there is
much more serious reasons why this can't be speaking of Rome.
There are several prophecies in the Old Testament where this battle of Armageddon is
described with some of the participating nations listed so we should soon be able to
assemble the entire group and see how well it fits the nations from the break-up of the
Roman Empire. If not, then who is it speaking of? The best over-all
description of the Battle of Armageddon is found in the 38th and 39th chapters of Ezekiel.
Let us note the participants identified:
Eze. 38:2 -- Son
of man, set your face against Gog, of the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech
and Tubal.
Gog -- This is the general of this conglomerate who claims
to be "God" and who is successful in taking over the world. I believe we
will be able to show that he is Satan personified as a man.
Magog -- The notices of Magog would lead us to fix a northern locality: it is
expressly stated by Ezekiel that he was to come up from "the sides of the North"
(Eze. 39:2) from a country adjacent to that of Togarmah (Armenia) and not far from the
isles or maritime regions of Europe. -- Smith Bible Dictionary -- pg.
368.
Meshech -- A son of Japheth and the progenitor of a race frequently noticed in
Scripture in connection with Tubal and Magog (other sons of Japheth) and other Northern
nations... They are noticed as one of the remotest, and at the same time rudest
nations of the world. Both the name and the associations are in favor of the
identification of Meshech with the Moschi, a people on the border of Colchis and Armenia.
-- Smith's Bible Dict., pg. 398.
Tubal -- Is reckoned with Javan and Meshech among the sons of Japheth; the three
are again associated in the enumeration of the sources of wealth of Tyre (Ezekiel 27:13).
Meshech and Tubal are nations of the north... Josephus identifies the
descendants of Tubal with the Iberians ... which nearly corresponded to the Russian
province of Georgia. -- Ibid. pg. 712.
Eze. 38:5,6 -- Persia,
Cush and Put will be with them... Also Gomer with all its troops, and Beth Togarmah
from the far north with all its troops.
Persia -- This is conceded by all to refer
to Iran.
Cush -- The land of the Cushites generally called Ethiopia and included also the
western area of Arabia and sections of southern Arabia.
Put -- The few mentions of Put in the Bible clearly indicates a country of
people in Africa, and it must be added, probably not far from Egypt. -- Ibid.
p. 532. (Many references consider it to be referring to Libya.)
Gomer -- Another son of Japheth -- progenitor of branches of the Celtic
family and of the modern Gael. On the continent this is represented by the nation of
France.
Beth Togarmah -- Beth is prefix meaning the land of, or abode of, Togarmah --
a geographical term in connection with Armenia. Togarmah was also a son of Gomer.
I believe that Russia is a key player in the make-up of this evil Conglomerate. I
would like to present from Scripture one of the most vocal members in this evil
Conglomerate:
Joel 3:1-8 -- "In these days and at that time, when I restore the fortunes of Judah and
Jerusalem, I will gather all nations and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat (To
the Battle of Armageddon)
There I will enter into judgment
against them concerning my inheritance, my people Israel, for they scattered my people
among the nations and divided up my land.
They cast lots for my people and traded
boys for prostitutes; they sold girls for wine that they might drink.
Now what have you against me, O Tyre
and Sidon and all you regions of Philistia ? (These are the
Palestinians)
Are you paying me back for something I
have done? If you are paying me back, I will swiftly and speedily return on your own
heads what you have done. For you took my silver and gold and carried off my finest
treasures to your temples. You sold the people of Judah and Jerusalem to the Greeks,
that you might send them far from their homeland
See, l am going to rouse them out of
their places to which you sold them, and 1 will return on your own heads what you have
done. I will sell your sons and daughters to the people of Judah, and they will sell
them to the Sabeans, a nation far away." The Lord has spoken.
Ezekiel prophesies against the Palestinians:
Eze. 28:21-26 -- "Son of man, set your face against Sidon; prophesy against her and say:
This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
"I am against you, 0 Sidon...
I will send a plague upon her and make blood flow in her streets. The slain will
fall within her, with the sword against her on every side. Then they will know that
I am the Lord.
No longer will the people of Israel have
malicious neighbors who are painful briers and sharp thorns. (What a fitting
description!) Then they will know that I am the Sovereign Lord."
This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
"When I gather the people of Israel from the nations where they have been
scattered,... then they will live in their own land, which I gave to my servant
Jacob."
At the Battle of Armageddon the Lord enters into judgment against
all these nations because of His inheritance, His people Israel, for they scattered my
people among the nations and divided up my land.
We need to see when this event occurred that he is accusing them of. Ezekiel
prophesies concerning this Conglomerate and those who compose it, and then relates what
they will do in future years (time of the end).
Eze. 38:8-16 --
After many days you will be called to arms. In future years you will
invade a land that has recovered from war, whose people were gathered from many nations to
the mountains of Israel, (Israel today) which had long been desolate. They
had been brought out of the nations and now all of them live in safety.
You and all your troops and the many
nations with you will go up, advancing like a storm; you will be like a cloud covering the
land..."
This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
"Are you not the one I spoke of in former days by my servants the prophets of
Israel? At that time they prophesied for years that I would bring you against
them."
The time this is speaking of is prior to Armageddon. It is
the time when Israel is subjugated and sold as slaves and their land divided. This
initial encounter of Israel with this combine is best presented in Zechariah.
Zech. 13:8,9 -- "In the whole land" (Israel) declares
the Lord, "two-thirds will be struck down and perish; yet one-third will be left in
it.
This one-third I will bring into
the fire; I will refine them like silver and test them like gold."
Zech. 14:1,2 -- "A
day of the Lord is coming when your plunder will be divided among you.
I will gather all the nations to
Jerusalem to fight against it; the city will be captured, the houses ransacked, and the
women raped. Half of the city will go into exile, but the rest of the people will
not be taken from the city.
When this evil Conglomerate first surrounds
Jerusalem -- two-thirds of the population will be struck down and perish. Of
the remaining one-third 50% will be divided up among the involved nations as prisoners and
the remaining 50% will remain in Jerusalem to be trampled and brutalized. Possibly
this to be carried out by the Palestinians? This is the destruction of Jerusalem
that Christ was speaking of in Luke.
Luke 21:20-24 -- When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, you will know
that its desolation is near... for this is the time of punishment in fulfillment of
all that has been written...
There will be great distress in
the land and wrath against this people. They will fall by the sword (2/3) and will
be taken as prisoners to all the nations (50% of the survivors).
Jerusalem will be trampled (remaining 50%
of the survivors) on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
We are not left in doubt as to how long this
exiling and trampling occurs:
Rev. 11:1,2 --
Go and measure the temple of God and the altar and count the worshipers there.
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.
The Israelites had been given over to the Gentiles.
Remember the Lord states in Zechariah --
Zech. l4:2 -- I
will gather all the nations to Jerusalem to fight against it.
The Lord is bringing this punishment on Israel. In Daniel 7
he is describing this same conglomerate which he describes as the 4th beast --
terrifying and frightening and very powerful and the horn power which directs it (Gog
-- Antichrist).
Dan. 7:25 -- He
will speak against the Most High and oppress his saints... The saints will be handed
over to him for a time, times and 1/2 a time. (3-1/2 years)
We know for certain when the 3-1/2 years (42 months) of trampling
comes to an end because it is to end the trampling that Christ brings this conglomerate to
Jerusalem for the show-down at Armageddon. The Conglomerate is destroyed and the
prisoners and exiles are set free.
There are a few other nations plainly listed as members of this group. Note the
prophecy against Moab and Ammon (Jordan).
Zeph. 2:8,9 --
I have heard the insults of Moab and the taunts of the Ammonites, who insulted my people
and made threats against their land.
Therefore, as surely as I live, declares
the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, -- surely Moab will become like Sodom, the
Ammonites like Gomorrah...
The remnant of my people will plunder
them; the survivors of my nation will inherit their land.
This leaves no doubt that Jordan will be a participant.
Also Assyria (present day Iraq) is a major player it seems:
Isa. 30:30-33 -- The Lord will cause men to hear his majestic voice and will make them
see his arm coming down with raging anger and consuming fire, with cloudburst,
thunderstorm and hail. (the weapons used by the Lord at Armageddon)
The voice of the Lord will shatter
Assyria; with his scepter he will strike them down. Every stroke the Lord lays on
them in battle with the blows of his arm.
Topheth has long been prepared; it has
been made ready for the king. Its pit has been made deep and wide, with an abundance
of fire and wood; the breath of the Lord, like a stream of burning sulfur, sets it ablaze.
Isa. 31:8,9 -- "Assyria
will fall by a sword that is not of man, a sword, not of mortals, will devour them.
They will flee before the sword and their young men will be put to forced labor.
Their stronghold will fall because of
terror; at sight of the battle standard their commander will panic," declares the
Lord, whose fire is in Zion, whose furnace is in Jerusalem.
Isa. 14:24-27 -- The
Lord Almighty has sworn -- "Surely, as I have planned, so it will be, and as I
have purposed, so it will stand. I will crush the Assyrian in my land; on my
mountains I will trample him down. His yoke will be taken from my people, and his
burden removed from their shoulders." (The trampling will come to an end for the
Israelites).
This is the plan determined for the
whole world; this is the hand stretched out over all the nations. For the Lord
Almighty has proposed, and who can thwart him? His hand is stretched out and who can turn
it back?
We read earlier in Luke 21:22 -- where
Jesus tells why all this is happening to Israel when they are captured and brutalized.
"For this is the time of punishment in fulfillment of all that has been
written." Zephaniah through prophecy gives more of the reasons why:
Zeph. 3:1-8 -- Woe to the city of oppressors rebellious and defiled!
She obeys no one, she accepts no correction. She does not trust in the Lord, she
does not draw near to her God...
Her prophets are arrogant; they
are treacherous men. Her priests profane the sanctuary and do violence to the law...
I have cut off nations; their strongholds
are demolished. I have left their streets deserted, with no one passing through.
Their cities are destroyed; No one will
be left -- no one at all. I said to the city, "Surely you will fear me and
accept correction!" Then her dwelling would not be cut off nor all my punishments
come upon her. But they were still eager to act corruptly in all they did.
"Therefore, wait for me,"
declares the Lord,"for the day I will stand up to testify. I have decided to
assemble the nations, to gather the kingdoms and to pour out my wrath on them -- all my
fierce anger. The whole world will be consumed by the fire of my jealous anger...
(Armageddon)
Vss. 11-15 -- On that
day you will not be put to shame for all the wrongs you have done to me, because I will
remove from this city those who rejoice in their pride. (The 2/3 who were struck
down and perished)
Never again will you be haughty on my
holy hill. But I will leave within you the meek and the humble, who trust in the
name of the Lord. The remnant of Israel will do no wrong; they will speak no lies,
nor will deceit be found in their mouths. They will eat and lie down and no one will
make them afraid.
Sing, O Daughter of Zion; Shout
aloud O Israel!
Be glad and rejoice with all your
heart, O Daughter of Jerusalem! The Lord has taken away your punishment, he has turned
back your enemy. The Lord, the King of Israel is with you, never again will you fear
any harm..."
Vss. 19,20 -- At that time I will
deal with all who oppressed you; I will rescue the lame and gather those who have been
scattered, I will give them praise and honor in every land where they were put to shame.
At that time I will gather you; at that
time I will bring you home. I will give you honor and praise among all the peoples
of the earth when I restore your fortunes before your very eyes.
Now I would like to show the evidence that
convinces me that this general who insists that he is God is, in fact, Satan personified
as a man. We will need to present some of the battle scenes of Armageddon to set the
stage. Notice the picture as seen in vision by Ezekiel:
Eze. 38:18-22 -- This is what will happen in that day: When Gog attacks the land of Israel, my
hot anger will be aroused, declares the Sovereign Lord.
In my zeal and fiery wrath I declare that
at that time there shall be a great earthquake in the land of Israel. The fish of
the sea, the birds of the air, the beasts of the field, every creature that moves along
the ground, and all the people on the face of the earth will tremble at my presence.
The mountains will be overturned, the
cliffs will crumble and every wall will fall to the ground. I will summon a sword
against Gog on all my mountains, declares the Sovereign Lord.
Every man's sword will be against his
brother. I will execute judgment upon him with plague and bloodshed; I will pour
down torrents of rain, hailstones and burning sulfur on him and on his troops and on the
many nations with him.
Eze. 39:11 -- On that day I
will give Gog a burial place in Israel, in the valley of those who travel east toward the
Sea (Dead Sea). It will block the way of travelers, because Gog and all his
hordes will be buried there. So it will be called the Valley of Hamon Gog."
This leaves no doubt that this world leader who will take control
of the earth and claim to be God, will be killed and buried in the land of Israel.
At the demise of this evil Conglomerate which is called Babylon in these different
prophecies and this general is called the king of Babylon. Notice the scenario that
emerges in the prophecy of Isaiah:
Isa. 14:1-20 --
The Lord will have compassion on Jacob; once again he will choose Israel and will
settle them in their own land. Aliens will join them and unite with the house of
Jacob. (Gentile Christians)
Nations will take them and bring them
to their own place. And the house of Israel will possess the nations as menservants
and maidservants in the Lord's land. They will make captives of their captors and
rule over their oppressors.
On the day the Lord gives you relief from
suffering and turmoil and cruel bondage, you will take up this taunt against the king of
Babylon: (Gog)
How the oppressor has come to an
end! How his fury has ended! The Lord has broken the rod of the wicked, the
scepter of the rulers, which in anger struck down peoples with unceasing blows, and in
fury subdued nations with relentless aggression...
The grave below is all astir to meet you
at your coming; it rouses the spirits of the departed to greet you -- all those who
were leaders in the world; it makes them rise from their thrones -- all those who were
kings over the nations. They will all respond, they will say to you, "You also
have become weak, as we are; you have become like us."
All your pomp has been brought down to
the grave, along with the noise of your harps; Maggots are spread out beneath you and
worms cover you.
How you have fallen from heaven, O
Morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once
laid low the nations!
You said in your heart, "I will
ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on
the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. I will ascend
above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High." But you
are brought down to the grave, to the depths of the pit. (The grave)
All the kings of the nations lie in
state, each in his own tomb. But you are cast out of your tomb like a rejected
branch; You are covered with the slain, with those pierced by the sword, those who descend
to the stones of the pit. Like a corpse trampled underfoot, you will not join them
in burial, for you have destroyed your land and killed your people
I believe no other personage than Satan in human form could be
intended in this vivid description of the demise of Gog who claimed to be God.
Speaking of this same time, note the chapter heading of "Deliverance of Israel,"
for the 27th chapter of Isaiah.
Isa. 27:1 -- In
that day, the Lord will punish with His sword, His fierce, great and powerful sword,
Leviathan the gliding serpent, Leviathan the coiling serpent; He will slay the monster of
the sea. (This refers to the dragon -- Satan, slain at Armageddon.)
Now that we have taken a careful look at
this multinational force that is involved in destroying the land of Israel and destroying
the majority of her inhabitants; we find this conglomerate to be composed of the
surrounding nations who have been foremost in their hatred of the Jews down through the
ages. I see no basis whatever to list them as those nations that resulted from the
break-up of the old Roman Empire.
Now the question arises, is there any evidence that any process of this kind has any
legitimate basis in reality? Is there any evidence at hand to suggest that this very
scenario is very likely to take place? I believe the evidence is present and
strongly suggestive of an early fulfillment.
While I was in the process of putting this study together and having shared this with
no one, a close friend faxed me an article from Intelligence Digest which I will
include. My friend had no idea if his article had any end-time portent but it was a
perfect fit to the scenario I was studying.
19 September 1997
Russia brings Mideast war
closer
This could prove to be one of the most-important issues that Intelligence Digest has
published during its entire 60-year history, on a par with our famous reports in 1938
about the coming collapse of France, or with our world-exclusive scoop in 1949 about the
first Soviet atomic-bomb test (we were even ahead of the CIA on that one, according to
recently released CIA Memorandum 225). In view of the importance of what we have to
say we are happy to wave all copyright restrictions for this issue which we would urge you
to copy and distribute as widely as you can.
So what is so important?
We have always been deeply pessimistic about the prospects for peace in the Middle
East, but this pessimism has at least been tempered in recent years by our belief that the
Arab/Iranian war party would not or could not exercise its war option until the early
years of the new century -- and during the time remaining it was still possible
that American diplomacy could succeed in establishing a stable balance of power in the
region capable of maintaining the peace (or, at least, the absence of war) indefinitely
However, intelligence received in this office during the past few weeks points to a
greatly reduced time frame.
There is now evidence to support the view that the Middle East's moment of truth could
come as early as the second half of 1998 -- and the reason for this is as dramatic
as the news itself.
"Few would disagree that the danger of a new Arab-Israeli war has been brought
considerably closer by recent Russian actions"
There is every possibility that Moscow, for whatever reasons of its own, has taken a
decision to precipitate an Arab-Israeli war within that time frame.
The evidence for this conclusion is laid out in full in the first of this week's
Briefings. None of the evidence is conclusive (it would be strange if it were), and,
even if our assessment is correct, the point of no return has not been passed.
However, few would disagree on seeing the evidence that the danger of a new
Arab-Israeli war has been brought considerably closer by recent Russian actions.
The next, and final,
Arab-Israeli war
Intelligence received in this office during the past few weeks points to a greatly
reduced time frame in the Middle East. There is now evidence to support the view
that the next, and final, Arab-Israeli war could come as early as the second half of 1998.
There (are four main reasons why we have previously argued that the next Arab-Israeli
war is unlikely to occur before 2000.
The first of these is that there is no logic in going to war before every possible
concessions has been wrung out of the enemy by peaceful means -- and for all their
public opposition to the peace process, those in the Arab/Iranian war party have always
understood that negotiating a return of the Gaza Strip, West Bank, and possibly even the
Golan Heights made much more sense than fighting for them.
So, we have argued, war was never likely to come before the end of the peace process,
sometime after the year 2000.
Now, however, the feeling in the war camp is that most of the major concessions have
been gained. No one believes any longer that the Israeli army will come down off the
West Bank watershed, abandon the Jordan valley, or retreat from the Golan Heights --
all or any of which would be worth waiting for.
Israel's previous Labour government might have been moving in this direction, but it
lost the election last year by a 10% margin of the Jewish vote, and opinions have hardened
still further as a result of the recent suicide bombings. Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu might be unpopular, but there is no Jewish mandate for further territorial
retreat.
Although the gains achieved by the Arabs at the negotiating table are worth having
(there are 40,000 armed Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza), little more can now be
gained -- and much could be lost if pressure on Palestinian Authority (PA) leader
Yasser Arafat to crack down on the Islamist terrorists of Hamas and Islamic Jihad were to
lead to a Palestinian civil war.
The neutralization of Israel's
nuclear deterrent
The second brake on an immediate Arab-Israeli war has been the need for the Arab states
and Iran to neutralize Israel's nuclear deterrent. There are increasing indications
that this has, in effect, been done even without the acquisition of a major nuclear
capability by any of the Arab states or Iran.
Recent intelligence has shown that Syria has far more Scud C missiles (armed with
advanced-type chemical warheads) than previously thought. Most important, the latest
intelligence shows that Syria has an unusually high proportion of launchers to missiles
(2-to-1 instead of the usual 10-to-1). This will enable Syria to launch a barrage of
missiles at Israel in one go.
With such a capability, Syria might legitimately think that Israel would not dare use
its nuclear arsenal.
"Turkey is going to war
with Russia"
Third, since Israel signed a military pact with Turkey in early 1996 we have argued
that Syria cannot possibly go to war with Israel until Turkey is neutralized. There
are only two ways this can be achieved, and both are being tried.
The first is to change the nature of Turkey's government, and Ankara does face an
increasing threat from the fundamentalist trend, so much so, in fact, that our latest
information is that the Turkish army has been making preparations for an Algerian-style
Islamist uprising (see Intelligence pointers).
The second way of neutralizing Turkey is through Russia, and it is this prospect that
is most worrying.
There is now a distinct possibility (openly aired by Turkey's former prime minister
Tansu Ciller) that Turkey could find itself at war with Russia, over the supply of Russian
S-300 missiles to Cyprus, by the end of 1998.
Turkey has said delivery of the missiles would be a cause for war with Cyprus; Russia
has said it intends to deliver by the end of 1998; and now respected former Turkish prime
minister Tansu Ciller, who was also foreign minister in the last government, has warned
that unless there is a change in policy "Turkey is going to war with Russia."
But why would Russia want to provoke a war with NATO member Turkey'? It is
possible, we will put it no higher than that for now, that Russia has made a strategic
decision to make a last-gasp bid to regain its former superpower status by providing the
Islamic world with the means to defeat Israel and reconquer Jerusalem.
What is the evidence for this? We know already that Russia is actively arming
both Syria and Iran. We know that it is intentionally heading for a confrontation
with Turkey over the seemingly small issue (for Russia) of supplying air-defense missiles
to Cyprus. And there is something else.
The final reason why we have previously assumed that the final Middle-East showdown is
still some years away is because of America's support for Israel and the still-fresh
lessons of Saddam Hussein's ill-fated adventure into Kuwait. We have long argued
that the best way to neutralize America would be by using nuclear-armed terrorists to
blackmail the US into inaction, but we have also assumed that it is unlikely that any of
the Iranian-controlled terrorist groups yet has that capacity. Until now that is.
Lebed's coded threat
Former Russian security chief General Alexander Lebed has recently revealed that not
all of the 100 suitcase-sized nuclear bombs with which Soviet special forces were armed
have been accounted for. Of course, Lebed might be scare mongering for homegrown
political reasons; but then again he might just have been acting under orders when he let
this snippet drop into the public domain.
Whether or not any of these suitcase nuclear bombs have actually gone missing is now
almost irrelevant. After Lebed's statement, what American president is going to call
the bluff of a terrorist group that says it has one (or more) of these bombs (described by
Lebed as "ideal for nuclear terror") which it is going to explode in an American
city (or cities) in the event that the United States moves to protect Israel against an
Arab/Iranian assault?
And what of Israel while all this is going on around it? The more information
that leaks out about Syrian and Iranian unconventional capabilities, the closer Israel
comes to launching its own first strike.
With Turkey possibly heading for war with Russia; with Iran and Syria arming themselves
with deadly unconventional weapons and the means to deliver them; and with the
Palestinians moving towards an armed intifada in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, the
temptation to strike first will become intense, as has been openly hinted at by Prime
Minister Netanyahu.
At Netanyahu's 11 September meeting with U S Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, he
pointed out that Iran would have acquired enough ballistic-missile technology "within
a year to 18 months" so as not to require outside assistance. And because of
this, both in the meeting in private and outside the meeting in public, Netanyahu warned:
"There must be an appropriate response in the time that remains."
In other words, both Israel and Iran, and Turkey and Russia, are on an 18-month
countdown to war. 1998 is beginning to look like a year to fear.
|
If this scenario of a Russian-Arabic combine makes war on Israel as this article in Intelligence
Digest strongly suggests, we must consider the implications that this presents.
This ten nation conglomerate represents the beast that comes up out of the sea in Rev.
13. In verse 2 we note "the dragon (Gog) gave the beast his power and his
throne and great authority." This world was placed under the authority of the
Antichrist (Gog) when the censer was hurled on to the earth and the daily sacrifices and
the host of the saints were turned over to him. Daniel 8:12. His reign will be for
3-1/2 years.
Rev. 13:5 -- The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies and to
exercise his authority for 42 months.
Vs. 7 -- He was given power to make war against the saints and to conquer them.
The authority of the Antichrist (Gog) and of the first
beast which received its authority from him came to an end at the sounding of the Seventh
Trumpet which occurred 1260 days (42 months) after the censer was cast down. This
completed the time allotted for the authority of the Antichrist and this multinational
beast.
Rev. 11:15 -- 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.
Vs 16,17 -- And the 24 elders, who were
seated on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshipped God, saying:
"We give thanks to you, Lord God
Almighty, the One who is and who was, because you have taken your great power and have
begun to reign."
This world has now been placed under new
management. The 3-1/2 years allotted to the Lamb-like beast's authority has come to
an end. The kingdom and authority is now claimed by "our Lord and His
Christ." The 24 elders further state:
Vs. 18 -- The
nations were angry and your wrath has come.
The end of this "time of the end" is at the end of the
1335 days.
Dan. 12:12 -- Blessed
is the one who waits for and reaches the end of the 1335 days.
Therefore, from the time Christ begins his rule until his coming
will be 75 days. It is during this time that his wrath is poured out in the seven
last plagues.
Rev. 15:1 -- I
saw in heaven another great and marvelous sign: seven angels with the seven last
plagues -- last, because with them God's wrath is completed.
Even though the authority of the Antichrist (Gog) has been
terminated, he will continue to trample the Israelites and hold the exiles
prisoners. This punishment has been arranged by God and its termination He also has
arranged to take place; when this evil general and the multinational beast are killed at
Armageddon.
Dan. 11:36 -- The
king will do as he pleases. He will exalt and magnify himself above every god and
will say unheard-of things against the God of gods. He will be successful until the
time of wrath (Seven Last Plagues) is completed, for what has been determined must
take place. (The punishment).
If the punishment ends and Christ's coming occurs at the end of
the 1335 days, at Armageddon, and we know the trampling is to last for 42 months; then
Israel is destroyed by this conglomerate 75 days after the censer is cast down, and the
daily sacrifice and the host of the saints are turned over to this beast. This time
period of 1260 days during the rule of the Antichrist is the time of the great
tribulation. It is signaled from heaven to let us know when this all begins.
Rev. 8:5 -- Then
the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it on to
the earth; and there came peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning and an
earthquake.
Since this signal is a signal for the entire world, I believe the
earthquake and associated manifestations will be global. I believed we will have no
doubt that this is not an ordinary earthquake. I believe that it is this earthquake
that will come upon us as a surprise. Notice the prophecy of Christ concerning the
signs of His coming.
Matt. 24:36-39 -- No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the
Son, but only the Father.
As it was in the days of Noah, so it will
be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were
eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark;
and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away.
That is how it will be at the coming of the Son
of Man.
I believe it is when this earthquake, that signals the beginning
of the Great Tribulation, is the event that is associated with the world going about its
business as usual, making plans for the future; building, planting, marrying, etc.
Then suddenly destruction comes on them.
1 Thess. 5:1,2,3 -- Now,
brothers, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, for you know very well
that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.
While people are saying, "Peace and
safety," destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman,
and they will not escape.
It is the "Day of The Lord" that will come on
them totally unexpected. Can you imagine anyone after 75 days of going through the
seven-last plagues and be crying peace and safety? Will people be planning on
marriage, building and planting? Their goal will be surviving.
This "Day of The Lord" is the 1335 day time frame,
and it will start as a complete surprise as announced by the global earthquake and
immediately thereafter by the time of trouble such as there never was before, neither
shall there be thereafter. When that happens we will know His coming will be 1335
days later.
But when this earthquake and associated signs (which herald
the Great Tribulation) takes place, we have no method of figuring. We know from
events taking place that it must be soon, but it will still come as a surprise. We
are advised to be ready.
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