ARMAGEDDON! Are We Close????

The more we see the news and read the Bible it feels as if we are on the edge of the Lst Days. In fact we are. We have been in the Last Days since Jeus was crucified.

Biblically speaking, there is NOTHING left to take place that will not take place as seen in the Revelation "After" the Rapture event takes place. Then and only then does it appear that there will be sever "Stages of Events" leading up to the final battle. I have endeavored to make a chronological order of those stages which seem to me to be in EIGHT (8) stages.

Stage 1: Gathering of the Armies of the Antichrist
The assembling of the armies begins at the same times as the divine judgement of the sixth bowl of the Revelation 16:12...............
"And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared."

At this time the Euphrates River will be dried up, making it faster and easier for the armies of the “kings from the east” to assemble. The armies joining him will be those of the seven remaining kings out of the ten described in Daniel 7:24-27 and Revelation 17:12, 13. Their goal will be the final destruction of the Jews. (See Revelation 16:12-16).

Today, God can wink HIs eye and dry up that river. By the way, the nation of Turkey has built SEVEN (7) dams on the river and by the puching of a button dry that river up also.

Revelation 9:16 ........
"And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them." = 200 million!

Today, with all of its reserves, China has a 200 million man army.

Stage 2: Babylon Destroyed
In this stage, the activity shifts from the gathering of the armies of the Antichrist to the destruction of Babylon. While the Antichrist is with his armies in Armageddon, his capitol will be attacked and destroyed.* Babylon will be a worldwide economic and religious center of activity during the tribulation. The warfare will be intense and the destruction will be massive. Although the Antichrist will be a world ruler, his control will not be so absolute as to prelude rebellion or opposition. He will try, but it will be tactically impossible. (Revelation 17-18; Daniel 11:41; Jeremiah 50-51; Isaiah 13-14)
* The location/true identity is unknown. Many have speculated Rome, Jerusalem, Babylon, New York, London however, no one knows for sure.

Stage 3: Jerusalem Falls
Although the Antichrist’s capital will have been destroyed in the second phase of the campaigning, his forces will not have been lost. The Antichrist will move south against Jerusalem. The Antichrist’s forces will sweep down to Jerusalem and the city will once again fall into Gentile control. (Zechariah 12:1-9 & 14:1-2; Micah 4:11-5:1)

Stage 4: The Antichrist Moves South Against Remnant
The campaign now shifts into the desert and mountains, probably to the location about 80 miles south of Jerusalem to the area of Bozrah/Petra. At the beginning of the second half of the tribulation, after the Antichrist breaks his treaty with Israel, pollutes the newly rebuilt Holy Temple, and issues a decree to kill the entire Jewish population. One third of the Jews will make it safely out of Jerusalem and flee into the desert. (Zechariah 13:8; Daniel 9:27; Isaiah 33:13-16; Jeremiah 49:13, 14; Micah 2:12; Matthew 24:15-31; Revelation 12:6, 14)

Stage 5: The Regeneration of Israel
Before Christ returns there must be a confession of Israel’s national sin and a pleading for the Messiah to return. This will come as the armies of the Antichrist are poised to destroy the Jews in the wilderness. Living in the rocks, holes and graves of the Petra/Bozrah area, the nation of Israel confesses repents and receives the Lord Jesus as their Savior with the words of Isaiah 53:1-9. (Leviticus 26:40-42; Deuteronomy 4:29-31; 36:6-8; Jeremiah 3:11-18; Hosea 5:15; Isaiah 64; Zechariah 12:10; Matthew 23:37-39; Isaiah 53:1-9; Romans 1:25-27; Joel 2:28-32;).

Stage 6: The Second Coming of Jesus Christ
The prayers of the Jews are answered as Jesus Christ will return to earth to defeat the armies of the Antichrist at Petra/Bozrah and begin the final portions of the campaign. He will return to earth in the clouds, in the same manner in which He departed. At His second coming, Jesus Christ, the Messiah, will enter battle with the Antichrist’s forces, fighting him without human assistance, with the word of His mouth. He will quickly and easily defeat them. According to Jude 14-15 and Revelation 19:11-16, Jesus will return with an angelic army and with the church of saints who had been raptured prior to the tribulation. (Isaiah 34:1-7; 63:1-6; Habakkuk 3:3; Micah 2:12-13).

Stage 7: The Final Battle
In this phase the Antichrist will be slain by the true Christ. Beginning at Bozrah and moving back to Jerusalem and the Kidron Valley (also known as the Valley of Jehoshaphat), Jesus, the Messiah and King of the Jews, will miraculously engage and destroy the Antichrist’s forces.
(Habakkuk 3:13; II Thessalonians 2:8; Joel 3:12, 13; Zechariah 14:12-15; Revelation 14:19, 20)

Stage 8: The Ascent to the Mount of Olives
With the destruction of the Antichrist and his forces complete, the campaign will be over and Jesus will go and stand on the Mount of Olives in a symbolic victory ascent. When this happens, there will be a number of cataclysmic events that will bring the tribulation to an end. As described in Zechariah and Revelation.,

The supernatural calamities that come upon the world at this time, including the greatest earthquake the world has known, correspond to the seventh bowl of judgement. As a result of the earthquake, Jerusalem will split into three areas and the Mount of Olives will split into two parts, creating a valley.

In addition to the earthquake there will be a tremendous hailstorm and a blackout with an eclipse or darkening of the sun and moon.

With subsiding of these events, the campaign of Armageddon and the tribulation will end. It is fitting that such worldwide catastrophes accompany the global judgement and Christ’s second coming. (Zechariah 14:3-5; Joel 3:14-16; Matthew 24:29; Revelation 16:17-21).

Discuss..................Thoughts?
 
It seems every generation thinks the end is nigh. It's bad now, but then it has always been bad. I doubt we'll see it any more than our grandfather's saw it.
There are a couple of things that make "today" different.

1.
Today, because of world wide communication ability, we have the ability to see Revelation 1:7 fulfilled.........
"Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen."

Until today, that was never possible.

2.
Nuclear weapons!

Revelation 6:14......
“And the atmosphere was pushed apart like a scroll when it is rolled together”.

Do you know what happens in a nuclear explosion? The atmosphere rolls back on itself! It’s this tremendous rush of air back into the vacuum that causes much of the destruction of a nuclear explosion. John’s words in this verse are a perfect picture of an all out nuclear exchange… The whole world will be literally shaken apart!

As we read the book of Revelation, we find John did not use terms like “nuclear weapons, ICBM’s, or fractional orbital bombs.”

Instead we find him describing things like “hail and fire,” “a great mountain burning with fire,” and “a great star… burning like a torch.” This is what we would expect of a First Century man, describing things he had no knowledge of in the only terms he knew to use. Could it be that what John was really witnessing in the Spirit, was an end of the age nuclear holocaust? The effects he describes certainly seem to bear this out.​
 
As we read the book of Revelation, we find John did not use terms like “nuclear weapons, ICBM’s, or fractional orbital bombs.”

Instead we find him describing things like “hail and fire,” “a great mountain burning with fire,” and “a great star… burning like a torch.” This is what we would expect of a First Century man, describing things he had no knowledge of in the only terms he knew to use. Could it be that what John was really witnessing in the Spirit, was an end of the age nuclear holocaust? The effects he describes certainly seem to bear this out.
It's possible, although it's also possible he saw something neither you nor I are able to explain either.

Regarding Revelation, this book describes the end-times. My fear is that Christians are predisposed to accept calamity as a result. For example, we may see war or other disaster as inevitable. Speaking of today, with the war in Gaza, we should be seeking a proper resolution. That ultimately means peace. It's difficult to think that's even possible if we imagine ourselves in the end times. I find such beliefs have capacity to cause a great amount of unnecessary suffering.
 
It's possible, although it's also possible he saw something neither you nor I are able to explain either.

Regarding Revelation, this book describes the end-times. My fear is that Christians are predisposed to accept calamity as a result. For example, we may see war or other disaster as inevitable. Speaking of today, with the war in Gaza, we should be seeking a proper resolution. That ultimately means peace. It's difficult to think that's even possible if we imagine ourselves in the end times. I find such beliefs have capacity to cause a great amount of unnecessary suffering.
It is totally acceptable to understand that what John saw, he was unable to understand.

He was "IN" the Spirit and was taken 2000 years into the future. He saw things and events and was told to then write down what he saw. The reason it appears so symbolic and confusing is that he could describe what he saw in his own understanding of the knowledge he actually possessed.

To say that the prophetic Word of God............"My fear is that Christians are predisposed to accept calamity as a result", IMHO and with all due respect, is a misguided thought.

When we read the Bible we are or should be encouraged by what it says to us, not depressed looking for War.

I hope that you realize that Every war in history should have been fought with seeking a proper resolution. The only resolution of any war is that one country kills more people or takes more land from their enemy until one side gives up. That results in peace.

I am not sure how that relates to the actual Biblical facts of what God has stated will take place in the last days.

All I did was give the chronological order of those last days events.
 
I'm sure I have seen the term "fractional orbital bombs" in the bible. :ROFLMAO:
If you have, I know I haven't!

However, In the book of Revelation we read of the poisoning of the oceans, the burning up of the grass and the trees, and the sun scorching people with great heat. The book also tells us that horrible plagues will afflict mankind, that there will be widespread wars and famines, and that the atmosphere will become so polluted as to reduce visibility by one third.

Actually there are three possible sources of the death and devastation so pointedly predicted by Scripture.

1) Supernaturally — First, it could be that the great and terrible destructions predicted will be brought about supernaturally by God Himself without any other possible explanation. Until the nuclear age this was the primary view, as it was hard to see how such a scenario could be brought about by natural human means. IF you recall, In the Old Testament we find God killing 185,000 of Israel’s enemies by one angel, without any natural explanation. If one angel can wipe out that many people, it should not be too much trouble for all the hosts of God’s angelic armies to destroy three quarters of the earth’s population.

2) Comet — Secondly, some of the judgments predicted could possibly come from the cosmic disturbances created by a comet whose path leads it uncomfortably close to the earth. Global earthquakes and tidal waves, resulting in famines on an unprecedented scale would almost certainly be the result. Some, but probably not all, of these judgments could be brought about this way.

3) Nuclear Weapons — The third, and in my mind, the most likely explanation for the terrible judgments which will empty the earth, has to do with nuclear weapons. Since the end of World War II, nuclear weapons have been proliferating all over the globe. At first limited to the United States, then produced by the Soviet Union, they are now in the hands of all sorts of second and third rate powers. It seems almost every year that new nations are added to the list of those countries with nuclear capabilities. Our capacity to destroy all life on earth has multiplied many times over. The fact that we have not yet seen a nuclear war since 1945 can be attributed only to the restraining hand of Almighty God! Surely it is His hand that has prevented us from destroying one another up until this point. How long that hand will continue to restrain us, only God knows.​
 
To say that the prophetic Word of God............"My fear is that Christians are predisposed to accept calamity as a result", IMHO and with all due respect, is a misguided thought.
How so?

My point is simply that we should seek ways to deescalate conflict, not expect it to increase.

For example, if prophesy says war will engulf the entire world in fire, and if I believe we are entering the time of prophesy, then it becomes impossible to seek resolution that does not include global conflagration. In other words we end up fulfilling prophesy. However, if we place prophesy aside for at least the moment, we may find a better resolution.

In other words, if you believe destruction is inevitable then you will inevitably destroy.
 
If you have, I know I haven't!

However, In the book of Revelation we read of the poisoning of the oceans, the burning up of the grass and the trees, and the sun scorching people with great heat. The book also tells us that horrible plagues will afflict mankind, that there will be widespread wars and famines, and that the atmosphere will become so polluted as to reduce visibility by one third.
HAHA.... my joke backfired..... OH DEAR.

I have NO problem with ANYTHING that God decides to do. I know personally in my own life... there are things that have happened to me or that I have experienced that I would NOT have chosen for myself.... YET.... God did something wonderful and beautiful with it. Suffering always seems to bring about a redeemed and healing experience for the believer.

I'm probably not on topic here.... but when talking of war... what is happening in Israel right now is puzzling to me ... but only because it's NOT possible (in my opinion to RID Israel of the HAMAS problem ). To me... it doesn't matter how many people they kill and even if they were successful in killing ALL of the HAMAS .... they will come back in full force... all the more equipped and with a vengeance to do more evil ).

Evil will always exist ( in this life )...and my comfort is in knowing the CREATOR of the HEAVENS... I don't have to know..... I serve and love the ONE who does know.

I'm sorry I tried to make a joke in a serious thread. Gotta love me... I'm your little sister.... HAHA.

Edit*... As for your three examples of potential scenarios.... YEP.... I agree 100% that all those things could be possible.
 
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HAHA.... my joke backfired..... OH DEAR.

I have NO problem with ANYTHING that God decides to do. I know personally in my own life... there are things that have happened to me or that I have experienced that I would NOT have chosen for myself.... YET.... God did something wonderful and beautiful with it. Suffering always seems to bring about a redeemed and healing experience for the believer.

I'm probably not on topic here.... but when talking of war... what is happening in Israel right now is puzzling to me ... but only because it's NOT possible (in my opinion to RID Israel of the HAMAS problem ). To me... it doesn't matter how many people they kill and even if they were successful in killing ALL of the HAMAS .... they will come back in full force... all the more equipped and with a vengeance to do more evil ).

Evil will always exist ( in this life )...and my comfort is in knowing the CREATOR of the HEAVENS... I don't have to know..... I serve and love the ONE who does know.

I'm sorry I tried to make a joke in a serious thread. Gotta love me... I'm your little sister.... HAHA.

Edit*... As for your three examples of potential scenarios.... YEP.... I agree 100% that all those things could be possible.
I agree. No matter how many Hammas terrorists are removed, there will allways be more to take their place. It is ingrained in the Muslim people to hate Jews.

Good point!
 
How so?

My point is simply that we should seek ways to deescalate conflict, not expect it to increase.

For example, if prophesy says war will engulf the entire world in fire, and if I believe we are entering the time of prophesy, then it becomes impossible to seek resolution that does not include global conflagration. In other words we end up fulfilling prophesy. However, if we place prophesy aside for at least the moment, we may find a better resolution.

In other words, if you believe destruction is inevitable then you will inevitably destroy.
I agree 100% with you! ..........."we should seek ways to deescalate conflict, not expect it to increase"...........Amen!

You said.......
"In other words, if you believe destruction is inevitable then you will inevitably destroy."

THAT I do not agree with. You see my brother, Bible prophecy can not be placed aside. All we can do is try to understand it because we cannot change it.

It seems to me that you are referring to what a man thinks and then does or does not do. What you are saying is more on the philosophical level which I am not talking about in this thread.

This thread was about what God has said will happen and all I did was place it into a "chronological time frame".

Thanks for yur input. Why not start a thread on what you are proposing?????
 
I agree. No matter how many Hammas terrorists are removed, there will allways be more to take their place. It is ingrained in the Muslim people to hate Jews.
The same discussion can be had regarding those who think a compassionate and loving God would NEVER send anyone to hell.

I never understood this kind of thinking. God is GOD... and there are simply some things ( perhaps even many things ) that we will never understand on this side of heaven. I know that God is JUST and so anything HE decides to do is His choice... good and necessary for His Will to be accomplished.

I think some believers think they know things that they don't actually know but simply cannot fathom a loving God to be capable of.
I tend to believe that in the end... things will be most VIOLENT... and very UGLY. I am ok with that.

Major ... sorry.... I quoted the wrong thing.... I meant to quote this... The below is what you said to Learning to Let Go.

THAT I do not agree with. You see my brother, Bible prophecy can not be placed aside. All we can do is try to understand it because we cannot change it.
 
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The same discussion can be had regarding those who think a compassionate and loving God would NEVER send anyone to hell.

I never understood this kind of thinking. God is GOD... and there are simply some things ( perhaps even many things ) that we will never understand on this side of heaven. I know that God is JUST and so anything HE decides to do is His choice... good and necessary for His Will to be accomplished.

I think some believers think they know things that they don't actually know but simply cannot fathom a loving God to be capable of.
I tend to believe that in the end... things will be most VIOLENT... and very UGLY. I am ok with that.

Major ... sorry.... I quoted the wrong thing.... I meant to quote this... The below is what you said to Learning to Let Go.

THAT I do not agree with. You see my brother, Bible prophecy can not be placed aside. All we can do is try to understand it because we cannot change it.

Thannk you for your post. You are spot on!!!!

The idea of anyone saying....."a compassionate and loving God would NEVER send anyone to hell" show a complete lack of Biblical understanding as well as the love of God.

There is not one single person in hell today because God sent them there. Instead, they are there becuase that is where they choose to be!

John 3:16........
" For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

Most everyone know that verse but we seem to forget verse 18.............
"He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God."

Now the facts Biblically is that YES......"things will be most VIOLENT... and very UGLY."
So bad that it is hard to even think about because e all have family and friends who are not saved.

Those last horrible SEVEN years are NOT for the children of God. They are for Israel and to turn them back to the Saviour which they rejected.

Today, those who are saved are members of the "Church" and it is the Church that will be removed before those last SEVEN years of Tribulation.

THAT is why it is so important for people to hear and believe and accept the Lord Jesus because that removal can take place AT ANY MOMENT!

Luke 12:40......
“You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him”.
 
Perhaps I read too much into this. Thank you for the clarification.

Maybe someday.
Brother, from what I understand from your posts, you are a well spoken, sincere Christian and I personally respect and honor your thoughts. I wish we had a 100 more people just like you here!

The only thing I would add is what "you" just said. "Perhaps I read too much into this".

You seem to be saying that it would be wonderful if we would stop the killing and death that comes from wars. I AGREE!

However.....that has not been the case and will never be the case. You see, ALL people are afflicted with the cancer of the sin nature!

We do what we know is the wrong thing to do even while we are in the process of doing it.

That manifests itself when men want more power, money or authority and drag us into one conflict after another. Here is the key......God know that, and He knows the future and prophecy is the future written down in advance so that we can be prepared for it.

We get prepared for the coming Last Days by being Born Again Today and missing all of the coming tribulation!

God bless you my dear friend!
 
You seem to be saying that it would be wonderful if we would stop the killing and death that comes from wars. I AGREE
That would indeed be wonderful but that wasn't what I meant. I was referring to your opening post. I had thought you implied that we were indeed living in the end times, I.e. the events of Revelation had already begun.
 
That would indeed be wonderful but that wasn't what I meant. I was referring to your opening post. I had thought you implied that we were indeed living in the end times, I.e. the events of Revelation had already begun.
NO sir, that is not what I said. It can however be just a little confusing!

However.....technically speaking, The “last days” is a term by which refers to that whole course of time between the ascension of Christ and His bodily return in His second coming.

In my opening paragraph I said........." We have been in the Last Days since Jeus was crucified."

Then I said.......
"there is NOTHING left to take place that will not take place as seen in the Revelation "After" the Rapture event takes place. Then and only then does it appear that there will be sever "Stages of Events" leading up to the final battle. I have endeavored to make a chronological order of those stages which seem to me to be in EIGHT (8) stages."

The EIGHT stages of the prophetic Word in the Revelation will not happen until the church is removed. THEN those events found in the Revelation will take place.

What is obvious to those who follow this is that all the pieces are now in place as never before in the history of humanity.

Example.....
Revelation 16:12 -
"And the sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up to prepare the way for the kings of the East."

That river is huge! It is 1700 miles long, 30 ft deep and up to a mile wide. in places. No one ever considered it being able to completely dry up, But now, the nation of Turkey has built several dams on the river in their mountains and can now by simply flipping a switch completely dry up that river thus fulfilling the prophetic Word.

Thanks for your comment.
 
One thing's for sure...we are at least seven years away from that event...and likely more since we know not the day nor the hour for the wonderous event that precedes Armageddon by at least seven years...

Sadly, however, the Armageddon event will culminate in the destruction of 2/3rds of all Jews before His glorious Second Coming.

MM
 
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