By Marv Rosenthal
The 2 Sides
Armageddon is the climactic battle of human history. It will also be the most devastating. The combatants will be the Lord Jesus Christ on one side and the unrepentant, rebellious armies of the world under the command of the Antichrist, empowered by Satan, on the other side.
The battle will be dramatically uneven – One against the armies of the world. The outcome is certain. The armies of the world will not stand a chance. The Lord will “break them with a rod of iron.” He will “dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel” (Psalm 2:9).
The Greek word Armageddon comes from 2 Hebrew words, Har and Megiddo, meaning “Mount Megiddo.” Actually, Mount Megiddo is a strategic hill on the southern rim of the Jezreel Valley, located in Central Israel.
Because this valley is the land bridge between 3 continents – Europe to the north and west, Asia to the north and east, and Africa to the south – its military value has always been recognized. Mount Megiddo was fortified by the pharaohs of Egypt when they controlled the region, then by King Solomon and later Jewish kings.
Napoleon, on his way to the fortified city of Akko in northern Israel where his army suffered defeat, called the Jezreel Valley the most natural battlefield in the world.
The valley itself is about 25 miles long and 14 miles wide. Today the valley, surrounded by mountains and amazingly fertile, is known as Israel’s breadbasket.
The armies of the world are going to converge on this valley for the purpose of destroying the nation of Israel and her King. But God has decreed that to destroy the nation of Israel you must first be able to destroy the sun, moon, and stars (Jeremiah 31:35-36).
As long as these heavenly bodies endure, so will Israel. An omnipotent, sovereign God has decreed it to be.
Fierce Wrath
The nations think they are fulfilling their own purposes. The reality is they are being drawn to the battle of Armageddon by the invisible hand of God. In the context of the end of the age, God said, “I will gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem” (Zechariah 14:2).
The center of the battle is the Jezreel Valley, but the conflict will spread out for approximately 200 miles, or 1,600 furlongs. The blood of the slain will reach to the height of the bridle of a horse – 4- to 4½-feet high (Revelation 14:20).
The imagery is that of a winepress and the treading or “crushing” of the grapes. So fierce will be the wrath of the Son of God against Antichrist and his armies attacking Israel that the blood of the slain will splash to the height of a horse’s bridle.
Some teachers suggest that the blood of the slain will flow like a river 4-feet high, but this appears excessive and inconsistent with the imagery of the treading of the grapes and the splashing of the blood to the horse’s bridle.
What will be done with the bodies of these slain? And, what of the sanitary conditions? An angel, crying with a loud voice, invites
… all the birds that fly in the midst of heaven, “Come and gather
together for the supper of the great God, that you may eat the flesh
of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of
horses and of those who sit on them, and the flesh of all people,
free and slave, both small and great”… (Revelation 19:17-18).
To the east of Israel is the Arabian Desert, to the west of Israel is the Mediterranean Sea. Because of this phenomenon, Israel is the largest bottleneck of migrating birds in the world.
From Africa, they fly north through Israel to Europe and Asia; from Europe and Asia, they fly south through Israel to Egypt and Africa. They will be summoned to eat the flesh of those slain at the battle of Armageddon. This is the most sanitary way of disposing of corpses.
The Opposing Leader
And what of the leader of this coalition of armies who dares to oppose the living God?
And I saw the beast, the kings of the earth, and their armies,
gathered together to make war against Him who sat on the horse
and against His army. Then the beast was captured, and with him
the false prophet who worked signs in his presence, by which he
deceived those who received the mark of the beast and those who
worshiped his image. These two were cast alive into the
lake of fire burning with brimstone (Revelation 19:19-20).
Of all the real estate on planet Earth, why do the armies of the world converge on Israel for the battle of Armageddon? The biblical answer is clear.
Jesus is the Son of David – the Lion of the Tribe of Judah. He is the legitimate King of Israel, and His capital is Jerusalem. The Antichrist wants to capture Israel and, from God’s holy city, rule the world. The Word of God is clear. He will not succeed.
If you are a child of God by the blood of Christ, things are looking more dismal by the day. But if you are a reader of God’s prophetic Word, then you know that our Lord Jesus will triumph in the end.
Hold just a little longer, believer, the King is on His way!
Marv Rosenthal, founder and President of Zion’s Hope, was an acclaimed international Bible teacher for almost 6 decades.
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