Armageddon - The Last Battle
The last battle of the Bible is popularly called the Battle of Armageddon because it occurs in Israel in the Jezreel Valley. The southwestern portion of this valley is known as the valley of Megiddo, after the ancient city of Megiddo, which was located there. Armageddon is a word derived from Megiddo. This battle occurs at the end of a seven year period of time known as the Tribulation, but more accurately is the Days of the Wrath of God (Rev. 6:15-17). The prophet Daniel prophesied this time in Daniel 9.
Dan 9:24 "Seventy weeks have been decreed for your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to make an end of sin, to make atonement for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy {place.}
Seventy weeks of years or 490 years are decreed until the transgression of the Jews against God is finished, until sin or the rebellion against God and His ways is ended, until all iniquity is atoned for, until everlasting righteousness is brought in, until all the prophecies of the Bible are completed, and finally until the most holy place or “the sanctuary” is anointed or cleansed. The Feast of Israel that is the prophecy of this cleansing is Hanukkah.
Dan 9:25 "So you are to know and discern {that} from the issuing of a decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until Messiah the Prince {there will be} seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; it will be built again, with plaza and moat, even in times of distress.
From the time the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem to the restoration was 49 years. After an additional 434 years, Jesus came into the world and was crucified.
Dan 9:26 "Then after the sixty-two weeks the Messiah will be cut off and have nothing, and the people of the prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. And its end {will come} with a flood; even to the end there will be war; desolations are determined.
After the 49 plus 434 or 483 years, Jesus was crucified. This leaves 7 more years to complete the prophecy of 490 years. It is interesting to note that using the date of 445 B.C. (Neh. 2:5) as the date the decree was issued, Jesus’ death occurred in 33 A.D.
We note here that the time between Jesus’ death and the start of the last week of years (7 years) is omitted. This is consistent in the O.T. as orthodox Jews consider this time, the time of the gentiles, as “no time”. We are currently living in this “time of the gentiles”. It began with Jesus’ resurrection and the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. It will end with the blast of the last trump when the dead in Christ are raised imperishable, and we who are alive are caught up with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air (1 Thes. 4:16-17, 1 Cor. 15:51-52).
Dan 9:27 "And he will make a firm covenant with the many for one week, but in the middle of the week he will put a stop to sacrifice and grain offering; and on the wing of abominations {will come} one who makes desolate, even until a complete destruction, one that is decreed, is poured out on the one who makes desolate."
With the completion of the time of the gentiles, God moves to fulfill His covenant promises to Israel (Rom. 11:25-29). At this time the last week of years begins. This last 7-year period is initiated by the signing of covenant or peace treaty by the Antichrist. This covenant is broken after 3 ½ years when the Antichrist puts a stop to the sacrificial system and stands in the holy place declaring himself to be God.
The prelude to these 7 years of the wrath of God is described in Rev. 6 with the breaking of the first 6 seals of the great scroll. Here we find war, famine, death, martyrdom, and with the 6th seal, a great earthquake. But it is only after the breaking of the 7th seal in Rev. 8:1-6 that we see the wrath of God poured out upon the earth. During the next 7 years there are judgments poured out upon the earth and upon mankind. The last of these judgments is called the seventh bowl of destruction. With it comes a great earthquake such has never occurred before, Jerusalem is split into three parts, cities of the nations fall, whole islands and mountains disappear, and in general, all nature is in turmoil. It is at this point that we come to the end of the 7 years of tribulation or trouble. In Rev. 19 we find the great pronouncements of the second coming of Christ. And in Rev. 19:17-21 we find that the armies of the Antichrist and of the kings of the earth gathered for the final battle.
Our quest in this study is to gain some understanding about this final battle, the Battle of Armageddon. We begin in Rev. 16:12-16 with the sixth bowl of judgment, the last judgment before the great earthquake of the seventh bowl.
Rev 16:12 The sixth {angel} poured out his bowl on the great river, the Euphrates; and its water was dried up, so that the way would be prepared for the kings from the east.
Here at the end of the 7 years of wrath, just before the great earthquake of the seventh bowl of wrath, we see that the kings from the east are coming into the Middle East over the river Euphrates.
Rev 16:13 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;
Great demons from Satan are being released on earth.
Rev 16:14 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.
These demons are sent out to gather the armies of the kings of the whole world for the war of the great day of God, the final battle.
Rev 16:15 ("Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his clothes, so that he will not walk about naked and men will not see his shame.")
This day, and this battle are the time of Jesus’ second coming.
Rev 16:16 And they gathered them together to the place which in Hebrew is called Har-Magedon.
The place of this last battle is the Valley of Magedon, or Armageddon.
What we know so far is the this battle will occur in the Valley of Magedon or Megiddo, that it will involve kings from the east, other kings from the “whole world”, and that it is all the work of demons and Satan. Remembering that in Daniel, the empires of Babylon, the Medes and Persians, and Greece were said to rule over “the whole world” when in fact they ruled only over the Middle East, we can safely presume that here again the phrase “over the whole world” references the kings and kingdoms that are referenced in the book of Daniel. This is consistent with the O.T. worldview. The O.T. prophets considered Jerusalem the center or navel of the whole earth and the “whole earth” to be the kingdoms surrounding Israel. Now, to discover more about this final battle we now turn back to the book of Daniel
To set the stage let’s go back to our studies of the Kingdom of the Beast. What we found was that the final form of the kingdom of the Beast or Antichrist was a ten-nation confederacy made up of the final form or the Macedonian Empire. Today these are essentially the Islamic nations of the Middle East that surround Israel. So at this point we have the armies of the kings of the Far East crossing the Euphrates, and the armies of the kingdom of the Beast (the Islamic kingdoms surrounding Israel) as participants in the final battle.
Daniel 11 will add much more to our understanding of this final battle. Daniel 11:1-35 is a wonderful prophecy of the history of Persia and Greece through the adventures of Antiochus IV, the Seclude King who desecrated the Temple and was in fact, the precursor of the Antichrist. History tells us that these prophecies were executed just as Daniel said and today are historical facts. They are of special interest to us today because just as Antiochus IV was a prophecy of the Antichrist, his adventures and wars are also probably prophecies of the wars of Antichrist and the last battle.
From Daniel 11:36 to 11:45 the view changes from Antiochus IV to the Antichrist and we find the prophetic description of the last battles of the Antichrist.
Dan 11:35 "Some of those who have insight will fall, in order to refine, purge and make them pure until the end time; because {it is} still {to come} at the appointed time.
First we note that from the time Antiochus IV desecrates the Temple until the end time there will be much trouble, a time of refining and purging, until the end time because it is still to come at its appointed time.
Dan 11:36 "Then the king will do as he pleases, and he will exalt and magnify himself above every god and will speak monstrous things against the God of gods; and he will prosper until the indignation is finished, for that which is decreed will be done.
Then at the end time, the king, the real Antichrist, will declare himself to be God and he will prosper until the very end.
Dan 11:37 "He will show no regard for the gods of his fathers or for the desire of women, nor will he show regard for any {other} god; for he will magnify himself above {them} all.
Satan, now personified in the Antichrist declares himself to be God.
Dan 11:38 "But instead he will honor a god of fortresses, a god whom his fathers did not know; he will honor {him} with gold, silver, costly stones and treasures.
Antichrist’s god is a god of war, force and destruction.
Dan 11:39 "He will take action against the strongest of fortresses with {the help of} a foreign god; he will give great honor to those who acknowledge {him} and will cause them to rule over the many, and will parcel out land for a price.
Dan 11:40 "At the end time the king of the South will collide with him, and the king of the North will storm against him with chariots, with horsemen and with many ships; and he will enter countries, overflow {them} and pass through.
Now, here at the end time, at the end of Daniel’s last 7 years, we find him in conflict with the king of the South, and the king of the North. North of Antichrist’s kingdom we find Russia and her allies. To the south we find the northern African kingdoms. Those named in Daniel are Libya, Egypt and Ethiopia or Sudan today. Perhaps these are the 3 of the 10 kings of the final kingdom that Antichrist puts down (Dan. 7:7-8).
Dan 11:41 "He will also enter the Beautiful Land, and many {countries} will fall; but these will be rescued out of his hand: Edom, Moab and the foremost of the sons of Ammon. Here we see Antichrist’s forces invading Israel. We note that Jordan and Saudi Arabia are rescued out of his hand, i.e. not invaded.
Dan 11:42 "Then he will stretch out his hand against {other} countries, and the land of Egypt will not escape. Here Antichrist’s forces attack Egypt.
Dan 11:43 "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. Antichrist overcomes or puts down Egypt, Libya, and the Sudan.
Dan 11:44 "But rumors from the East and from the North will disturb him, and he will go forth with great wrath to destroy and annihilate many. With his forces in North Africa, Antichrist learns of the attacking forces from the East and from the North and he retreats into Israel to meet the attacks.
Dan 11:45 "He will pitch the tents of his royal pavilion between the seas and the beautiful Holy Mountain; yet he will come to his end, and no one will help him.
As Antichrist and his forces take their stand in Israel in the Jezreel Valley, suddenly the Lord comes from the sky with His saints to end this, the final battle.
In summary then, this is what we have found. At the end of Daniel’s last week of years or 7 years of trouble, Antichrist and his forces (a 10 king coalition, 3 of which he must put down) have overcome many nations including Israel. However, Saudi Arabia and Jordan will not be among them. He will also have many enemies including the king of the North, the kings of the East, and there will be a rebellion of the king of the South. As Antichrist moves to put down the rebellion of Egypt, Libya and the Sudan, the kings of the East (China and its associates) attack across the Euphrates. At the same time, the king of the North, Russia and her associates, attack from the north. Antichrist pulls his forces back into Israel, making his stand in the Jezreel Valley, the valley of Armageddon where he meets his end at the hands of the returning Jesus, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords!
While these dramatic events are occurring in the Middle East, there is evidence that widespread destruction is also occurring around the world. Rev. 18 describes the destruction of Babylon the Great, the world’s economic systems including the great economic cities of the world. It is written that they are destroyed by fire in just one hour.
Rev 18:3 "For all the nations have drunk of the wine of the passion of her immorality, and the kings of the earth have committed {acts of} immorality with her, and the merchants of the earth have become rich by the wealth of her sensuality."
Rev 18:8 "For this reason in one day her plagues will come, pestilence and mourning and famine, and she will be burned up with fire; for the Lord God who judges her is strong.
Rev 18:9 "And the kings of the earth, who committed {acts of} immorality and lived sensuously with her, will weep and lament over her when they see the smoke of her burning,
Rev 18:10 standing at a distance because of the fear of her torment, saying, 'Woe, woe, the great city, Babylon, the strong city! For in one hour your judgment has come.'
We can also look to another great prophecy concerning the king of the North invading Israel. In Ezek. 39 we find this king called Gog, prince of Rosh, Meshech and Tubal, being drawn into Israel from the remotest parts of the north. Here on the mountains of Israel Gog and all his troops and the peoples with him are defeated and given as food to the predatory birds and beast of the field. Rev. 19:17-19 speaks to this.
Rev 19:17 Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and he cried out with a loud voice, saying to all the birds which fly in midheaven, "Come, assemble for the great supper of God,
Rev 19:18 so 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."
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 on the horse and against His army.
Eze 39:1 "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;
Eze 39:2 and I will turn you around, drive you on, take you up from the remotest parts of the north and bring you against the mountains of Israel.
The phrase, the remotest parts of the north, leads us to believe that this is a reference to Russia, i.e. a kingdom father north of Israel than the Islamic kingdoms immediately north of her.
Eze 39:3 "I will strike your bow from your left hand and dash down your arrows from your right hand.
Eze 39:4 "You will fall on the mountains of Israel, you and all your troops and the peoples who are with you; I will give you as food to every kind of predatory bird and beast of the field.
Eze 39:5 "You will fall on the open field; for it is I who have spoken," declares the Lord GOD.
Eze 39:6 "And I will send fire upon Magog and those who inhabit the coastlands in safety; and they will know that I am the LORD.
This is “fire” upon the remotest parts of the north or Russia. Those who inhabit the coastlands in safety could be a reference to any far distant nation with coastlands like China or the Far East, Europe, or the USA.
Eze 39:7 "My holy name I will make known in the midst of My people Israel; and I will not let My holy name be profaned anymore. And the nations will know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel.
Eze 39:8 "Behold, it is coming and it shall be done," declares the Lord GOD. "That is the day of which I have spoken.
Eze 39:29 "I will not hide My face from them any longer, for I will have poured out My Spirit on the house of Israel," declares the Lord GOD.
This is the day of restoration of Israel, the day the Lord returns to complete His covenant promises to Israel (Ezek. 37:9-14, Zech. 12:9-14, 13:1-2).
Ezek. 39:6 is the verse that indicates that this last battle will spill over into much of the world. There will be fire upon the land of Magog and on those who in habit the coastlands in safety. When combined with the verses from Rev. 18 concerning the fiery destruction of the great commercial cities or centers of the world, it seems that there is going to be great, fiery destruction in one hour. This could very well be picturing a nuclear holocaust. So great is this destruction that it is said that if the Lord did not intervene, the whole world would be destroyed.
2Pe 3:9 The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.
2Pe 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in 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.
2Pe 3:11 Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness,
2Pe 3:12 looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat!
The good news, our hope of glory, is that the Lord does come. The Antichrist and the False Prophet and the demons are thrown into the Lake of Fire, which is the second death. Satan is imprisoned in the Abyss for 1000 years and Jesus rules and reigns upon the earth for 1000 years as King of Kings!
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