House of Hope Online

August 6, 2023

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Last time we discussed the Rapture, the glorious event to come when Jesus gathers us up from the onset of the Tribulation that is prophesied to visit our world.  We will be reunited with loved ones who have died in Christ, and we will be with the Lord Himself.  It will be a great day for us and our families.

Some question the timing of the Rapture, but we know from these scriptures that it comes either before the Tribulation begins, or it comes in the early stages as a rescue mission.  Dr. David Jeremiah, Pastor of Shadow Mountain Community Church in San Diego, CA, and author of “The Book of Signs,” thinks of the Rapture as the first phase of the Second Coming of our Lord, when He comes for His Church.   Then, following the seven-year Tribulation, Jesus comes with His Church to defeat evil and begin His 1,000-year reign of peace and righteousness with His saints (us) on the earth.

Revelation 3:

 10 ‘Because you have kept the word of My perseverance, I also will keep you from the hour of testing, that [hour] which is about to come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell upon the earth.

 11 ‘I am coming quickly; hold fast what you have, in order that no one take your crown.

Matthew 24:

 21 for then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever shall.

 22 “And unless those days had been cut short, no life would have been saved; but for the sake of the elect those days shall be cut short.

So, Jesus is saying for our sake those days will be cut short, and in Revelation 3, He promises the faithful Church at Philadelphia that He will keep us from the hour of testing.  While we will not know the exact timing of the Rapture, we know that it is imminent, which means nothing else has to happen for the Rapture to happen.  Therefore, Jesus is telling us to be ready.

Matthew 24:

 32 ¶ “Now learn the parable from the fig tree: when its branch has already become tender, and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near;

 33 even so you too, when you see all these things, recognize that He is near, [right] at the door.

I would love to know exactly when these things will take place, but it is God’s perfect plan that no one knows until He decides.  The great Prophet Daniel even asked the Lord to tell him.  Here’s what God said to him:

Daniel 12:

 8 As for me, I heard but could not understand; so I said, “My lord, what [will be] the outcome of these [events?]”

 9 And he said, “Go [your way,] Daniel, for [these] words are concealed and sealed up until the end time.

 10 “Many will be purged, purified and refined; but the wicked will act wickedly, and none of the wicked will understand, but those who have insight will understand.

I love that – those who have insight will understand.  We are to pray for that insight, so that even though we know not the exact time, we will understand the signs of our time and know Jesus is right at the door.  The Holy Spirit will help us be ready.

With that assurance as a backdrop, I would like to spend some time today discussing the events of the Tribulation period.  Most of these events we will be watching from our perch in Heaven, but it pays to ponder the things that we are being saved from by the mighty and precious blood of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!  This will show you the depth of His love for you, and will give us all some pointers to understand the current events of our world as it operates under the increasing influence of the antichrist spirit.

The Fig Tree and the Tribulation

Jesus told us to learn from the fig tree.  The fig tree is a reference to the nation of Israel, and Israel is central to the timing and events of the Tribulation.

Daniel 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.”

Daniel 9: 27 tells us about a firm covenant of one week that ends prematurely at mid-week.  The reference to one week is prophetic symbolism of 7 years in God’s timing, thus there will be a 7-year peace plan with Israel devised by the antichrist, that he will violate at its midpoint, or three- and one-half years in.  This sets the time frame of the Tribulation at 7 years. 

As a result of the covenant with the antichrist, Israel will find itself at peace for the first time in its history.  At the same time, an alliance of Israel’s enemies will form, believed to be led by Russia and including many Islamic nations.  Here is the word of the Lord as prophesied by Ezekiel:

Ezekiel 38:

 1 ¶ And the word of the LORD came to me saying,

 2 “Son of man, set your face toward Gog of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal, and prophesy against him,

 3 and say, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD, “Behold, I am against you, O Gog, prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal.

 4 “And I will turn you about, and put hooks into your jaws, and I will bring you out, and all your army, horses and horsemen, all of them splendidly attired, a great company [with] buckler and shield, all of them wielding swords;

 5 Persia, Ethiopia, and Put with them, all of them [with] shield and helmet;

 6 Gomer with all its troops; Beth-togarmah [from] the remote parts of the north with all its troops–many peoples with you.

 7 “Be prepared, and prepare yourself, you and all your companies that are assembled about you, and be a guard for them.

 8 “After many days you will be summoned; in the latter years you will come into the land that is restored from the sword, [whose inhabitants] have been gathered from many nations to the mountains of Israel which had been a continual waste; but its people were brought out from the nations, and they are living securely, all of them.

9 “And you will go up, you will come like a storm; you will be like a cloud covering the land, you and all your troops, and many peoples with you.”

10 ‘Thus says the Lord GOD, “It will come about on that day, that thoughts will come into your mind, and you will devise an evil plan,

 11 and you will say, ‘I will go up against the land of unwalled villages. I will go against those who are at rest, that live securely, all of them living without walls, and having no bars or gates,

 12 to capture spoil and to seize plunder, to turn your hand against the waste places which are [now] inhabited, and against the people who are gathered from the nations, who have acquired cattle and goods, who live at the center of the world.’

According to Dr. David Jeremiah’s “The Book of Signs,” the name “Gog” in verse 2 means “high” or “supreme.”  Some believe it refers to a title, such as “President.”  Gog is the leader of the nations that will invade Israel.  He is referred to in verse 3 as the prince of Rosh, and Dr Jeremiah maintains there is strong reason to believe that Rosh refers to Russia.  Language experts draw a connection between “Rosh” and  Russia, but more importantly, Daniel 11 refers to a leader who would lead an attack against Israel as the “king of the North.”

Daniel 11:

 13 “For the king of the North will again raise a greater multitude than the former, and after an interval of some years he will press on with a great army and much equipment.

Russia is north of Israel, and Ezekiel 38:6 refers to Gog coming with many armies from the north.  Here are some other connections of the nations  listed in Ezekiel 38 to modern day nations:

• Magog: Dr Jeremiah ties Magog to the states of the former Soviet Union (the states with “stan” at the end of their names), and possibly Afghanistan.
• Meshech and Tubal: Meshech could be referring to Moscow, but some scholars identify both these areas these as modern-day Turkey.
• Persia: Persia changed its name to Iran in 1935 and in 1979 became the Islamic Republic of Iran.
• Ethiopia: When Ezekiel made this prophecy, Ethiopia was the land south of Egypt.  Today, it is the modern country of Sudan, which along with Iran, is one of Israel’s fiercest enemies.
• Libya: Libya is west of Egypt and retains its ancient name. Today Libya, Iran, and Syria are Russia’s friends among the Islamic states.
• Gomer: Many believe Gomer represents Germany, which would link the European Union to this Russian alliance.
• Togarmah: Some commentators connect Togarmah with Turkey.

Dr. Jeremiah concludes from this that the northern armies of Russia and Turkey will lead the coalition, which will include Iran from the east, Sudan and Libya from the south, and possibly Germany from the west.  Ezekiel 38:9 says Gog’s armies will come like a storm, like a cloud covering the land with many troops and many peoples with them. 

Israel would not stand a chance against such a great army, especially since Israel will be at peace and according to Ezekiel, will put down its arms due to its peace treaty with the antichrist.  Ezekiel 38:11 says Gog will  think “… I will go up against the land of unwalled villages. I will go against those who are at rest, that live securely, all of them living without walls, and having no bars or gates,” 

Let’s continue with what the Spirit of God said to Gog in Ezekiel’s prophecy:

Ezekiel 38:

 14 ¶ “Therefore, prophesy, son of man, and say to Gog, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD, “On that day when My people Israel are living securely, will you not know [it]?

 15 “And you will come from your place out of the remote parts of the north, you and many peoples with you, all of them riding on horses, a great assembly and a mighty army;

 16 and you will come up against My people Israel like a cloud to cover the land. It will come about in the last days that I shall bring you against My land, in order that the nations may know Me when I shall be sanctified through you before their eyes, O Gog.”

 17 ‘Thus says the Lord GOD, “Are you the one of whom I spoke in former days through My servants the prophets of Israel, who prophesied in those days for [many] years that I would bring you against them?

 18 “And it will come about on that day, when Gog comes against the land of Israel,” declares the Lord GOD, “that My fury will mount up in My anger.

 19 “And in My zeal and in My blazing wrath I declare [that] on that day there will surely be a great earthquake in the land of Israel.

 20 “And the fish of the sea, the birds of the heavens, the beasts of the field, all the creeping things that creep on the earth, and all the men who are on the face of the earth will shake at My presence; the mountains also will be thrown down, the steep pathways will collapse, and every wall will fall to the ground.

 21 “And I shall call for a sword against him on all My mountains,” declares the Lord GOD. “Every man’s sword will be against his brother.

 22 “And with pestilence and with blood I shall enter into judgment with him; and I shall rain on him, and on his troops, and on the many peoples who are with him, a torrential rain, with hailstones, fire, and brimstone.

 23 “And I shall magnify Myself, sanctify Myself, and make Myself known in the sight of many nations; and they will know that I am the LORD.”‘

Ezekiel 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;

 2 and I shall turn you around, drive you on, take you up from the remotest parts of the north, and bring you against the mountains of Israel.

 3 “And I shall strike your bow from your left hand, and dash down your arrows from your right hand.

 4 “You shall fall on the mountains of Israel, you and all your troops, and the peoples who are with you; I shall give you as food to every kind of predatory bird and beast of the field.

 5 “You will fall on the open field; for it is I who have spoken,” declares the Lord GOD.

 6 “And I shall send fire upon Magog and those who inhabit the coastlands in safety; and they will know that I am the LORD.

And so, against all odds, little Israel will defeat this huge Russian-led alliance, and all the kings of the earth, (perhaps the G7 nations, the European Union), and especially the nations in the alliance, will know that God did it.  Ezekiel 39:4 says that Gog will fall in the mountains of Israel (in the north) and will be fed to the birds and beasts of the field.

The Antichrist (the first beast)

As we watch this from Heaven, we find ourselves at the midpoint of the Tribulation, and so I want to switch our focus to the activities of the antichrist in Revelation 13.  It is helpful to understand the counterfeit trinity in the Book of Revelation:

• The Dragon:  The dragon is Satan, who is anti-God.
• The Beast:  The beast is the antichrist, a man who rules the earth during the Tribulation.
• The False Prophet:  The false prophet, also referred to as the second beast in John’s vision, is a manifestation of Satan that is anti-Holy Spirit.  The false prophet gives false prophecy and misleads the people during the Tribulation by directing them to worship the image of the antichrist.

Also keep in mind that the Book of Revelation is John’s vision from God that he received while he was exiled on the Island of Patmos.

Revelation 13:

1 ¶ And he stood on the sand of the seashore. And I saw a beast coming up out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads, and on his horns [were] ten diadems, and on his heads [were] blasphemous names.

 2 And the beast which I saw was like a leopard, and his feet were like [those] of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave him his power and his throne and great authority.

So, Satan, the dragon, empowers the antichrist, the beast, and gives him a throne and great authority in the earth.

Revelation 13:

3 And [I saw] one of his heads as if it had been slain, and his fatal wound was healed. And the whole earth was amazed [and followed] after the beast;

 4 and they worshiped the dragon, because he gave his authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who is able to wage war with him?”

 5 And there was given to him a mouth speaking arrogant words and blasphemies; and authority to act for forty-two months was given to him.

 6 And he opened his mouth in blasphemies against God, to blaspheme His name and His tabernacle, [that is], those who dwell in heaven.

 7 And it was given to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them; and authority over every tribe and people and tongue and nation was given to him.

 8 And all who dwell on the earth will worship him, [everyone] whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who has been slain.

 9 If anyone has an ear, let him hear.

A lot to digest here:

• Verse 3:  The antichrist will be slain, and his fatal wound will be healed.  The death of the antichrist and his resurrection here has a connection in terms of timing to the death of Gog in Ezekiel 39:4. The antichrist is given 3.5 years of authority in Revelation 13:5, and the attack on Israel in Ezekiel 38 is the midpoint of the seven-year peace plan of the antichrist.  In addition, the cause of death in both cases is the sword.  Ezekiel 38:21 prophesied God will use the sword against Gog in the mountains of Israel, and later in Revelation 13:14 we will see that the antichrist will be brought to life from the wound of the sword.  In any event, Revelation 13:3 tells us his fatal wound will be healed and the whole earth will be amazed and will follow the antichrist.  This represents a false resurrection to mimic Jesus’ resurrection.
• Verse 4:  The dragon will be worshipped by the whole earth.
• Verse 5:  The antichrist will speak arrogant words and blasphemies against God.
• Verse 5:  The antichrist will be given authority to act for forty-two months, which is three- and one-half years, which is the second half of the Tribulation, following the Russian-led alliance’s attack on Israel.
• Verse 8: All who dwell on the earth will worship the antichrist, but what’s significant here is that all who dwell on the earth are those who names are not written in The Lamb’s book of life.  That means we are not on the earth during this time, but are watching from Heaven!

The False Prophet (the second beast)

Revelation 13:

 11 ¶ And I saw another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spoke as a dragon.

 12 And he exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence. And he makes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose fatal wound was healed.

 13 And he performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down out of heaven to the earth in the presence of men.

 14 And he deceives those who dwell on the earth because of the signs which it was given him to perform in the presence of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who *had the wound of the sword and has come to life.

 15 And there was given to him to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast might even speak and cause as many as do not worship the image of the beast to be killed.

Just as the Holy Spirit bears witness to Jesus Christ, and draws us to worship Him, so does the second beast cause those on the earth to worship the antichrist and to make an image of the antichrist who “has come to life.”  And get verse 15, the False Prophet even causes the image to speak.  Do I hear Artificial Intelligence (AI) here?  We are seeing technological advances today that could be laying the groundwork to program an image of the beast to speak.  Note verse 15 says those who do not worship the image of the beast will be killed.  That’s why we want raptured.

The Mark of the Beast

Revelation 13:

16 And he causes all, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free men and the slaves, to be given a mark on their right hand, or on their forehead,

 17 and [he provides] that no one should be able to buy or to sell, except the one who has the mark, [either] the name of the beast or the number of his name.

 18 Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for the number is that of a man; and his number is six hundred and sixty-six.

Verses 16-18 establish that the antichrist will rule the economic system by requiring a mark on the right hand or forehead to be able to buy and sell.    The technology exists today for the mark of the beast as we have identification implants for pets that can be read electronically.

The Seven Bowls of God’s Wrath

John foretells in Revelation 16 the release of God’s wrath on the earth as the people will be worshipping the antichrist in the second half of the Tribulation.  In John’s vision, this takes the form of angels pouring seven bowls of wrath as God directs them.

• 1^st Bowl:  Malignant, or cancerous, sores will come upon men who have the mark of the beast. (Rev 16:2).
• 2^nd Bowl:  Seas will turn to blood, killing all living things in the seas. (Rev 16:3).
• 3^rd Bowl:  Rivers and springs of water will become blood (Rev 16:4).
• 4^th Bowl:  The sun will scorch men with fire, and they will blaspheme the name of God and will not repent (Rev 16:8-9).
• 5^th Bowl:  Darkness will be poured out upon the antichrist’s kingdom, but the people again will blaspheme the name of God and not repent (Rev 16:10-11).
• 6^th Bowl:  The Euphrates River will dry up and demons will be released from the mouths of the Dragon, the beast, and the false prophet to cause the kings of the earth from the east to gather at Armageddon (Rev 16:12-16 below).

Revelation 16:

 12 ¶ And the sixth [angel] poured out his bowl upon the great river, the Euphrates; and its water was dried up, that the way might be prepared for the kings from the east.

 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;

 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.

 15 (“Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his garments, lest he walk about naked and men see his shame.”)

 16 And they gathered them together to the place which in Hebrew is called Har-Magedon.

• 7^th Bowl:  The great earthquake at Armageddon and more blasphemy from the people (Rev 16:17-21).

 Revelation 16:

 17 ¶ And the seventh [angel] poured out his bowl upon the air; and a loud voice came out of the temple from the throne, saying, “It is done.”

 18 And there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder; and there was a great earthquake, such as there had not been since man came to be upon the earth, so great an earthquake [was it, and] so mighty.

 19 And the great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell. And Babylon the great was remembered before God, to give her the cup of the wine of His fierce wrath.

 20 And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found.

 21 And huge hailstones, about one hundred pounds each, *came down from heaven upon men; and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, because its plague *was extremely severe. (NASB)

The pattern we are seeing here is, whenever God’s wrath is poured out, the people will not repent; instead, they will blaspheme God.

The Fall of Babylon and World Markets

Revelation Chapters 17 and 18 describe the fall of Babylon.  It is important to understand that the actual city of ancient Babylon played a significant role in the world’s commerce in biblical times.  According to The Book of Signs, an Old Testament scholar, Dr. Charles H. Dyer,  states in his book, “The Rise of Babylon”:

“For nearly two thousand years, Babylon was the most important city in the world.  Babylon was the commercial and financial center for all of Mesopotamia, the center of a geographical “X” that linked the Orient with the Mediterranean, and Egypt with Persia.  Its scribes and priests spread its cultural heritage throughout the known world.  The arts of divination, astronomy, astrology, accounting, and private commercial law all sprang from Babylon.”

Babylon today no longer exists as the cultural or financial center of the world.  Some give that title to New York City, but others believe that Babylon could be reborn and reclaim that role under the antichrist rule during the tribulation.  But references in the Book of Revelation to Babylon are also clearly referring to today’s sins of greed, sexual immorality, and excess luxury, coupled with a disregard for the poor.  So, God’s wrath will bring that all down during the tribulation.  Babylon itself could be reborn and then fall, or the scriptures may be referring to Babylon as the symbol of our financial and economic system.  Either way, Revelation 17 and 18 refer to Babylon the great as “the mother of prostitutes and of the abominations of the Earth.” Its collapse in Revelation 18 indicates a collapse of the world markets as part of the wrath of God.

Revelation 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.

 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,

 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.’

 11 “And the merchants of the earth weep and mourn over her, because no one buys their cargoes any more;

 12 cargoes of gold and silver and precious stones and pearls and fine linen and purple and silk and scarlet, and every [kind of] citron wood and every article of ivory and every article [made] from very costly wood and bronze and iron and marble,

 13 and cinnamon and spice and incense and perfume and frankincense and wine and olive oil and fine flour and wheat and cattle and sheep, and [cargoes] of horses and chariots and slaves and human lives.

 14 “And the fruit you long for has gone from you, and all things that were luxurious and splendid have passed away from you and [men] will no longer find them.

Verses 11-14 make clear the collapse of commercial markets as the merchants weep and morn because no one buys their cargoes of gold, silver, linen, spices, fruit, etc. and men will no longer be able to find these goods.

Marriage of the Lamb (Jesus) before He Goes Off to War

Meanwhile, in Heaven we are having the time of our lives.  We will be so far from the distress and torment of the Tribulation.  Revelation 19 describes tremendous worship of our Lord and Savior, and the preparation of a wedding feast.

Revelation 19:

 1 ¶ After these things I heard, as it were, a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying, “Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God;

 2 BECAUSE HIS JUDGMENTS ARE TRUE AND RIGHTEOUS; for He has judged the great harlot who was corrupting the earth with her immorality, and HE HAS AVENGED THE BLOOD OF HIS BOND-SERVANTS ON HER.”

 3 And a second time they said, “Hallelujah! HER SMOKE RISES UP FOREVER AND EVER.”

 4 And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sits on the throne saying, “Amen. Hallelujah!”

 5 ¶ And a voice came from the throne, saying, “Give praise to our God, all you His bond-servants, you who fear Him, the small and the great.”

 6 And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude and as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty peals of thunder, saying, “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns.

 7 “Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come and His bride has made herself ready.”

 8 And it was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen, bright [and] clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.

 9 And he *said to me, “Write, ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.’” And he *said to me, “These are true words of God.”

 10 And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he *said to me, “Do not do that; I am a fellow servant of yours and your brethren who hold the testimony of Jesus; worship God. For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

So, we, the Church, will marry the lover of our souls, Jesus, the Lamb who was slain for our sakes to save us from the Tribulation going on below on the earth.  The white linens to be given to us are symbolic of Jesus’ righteousness replacing the filthy rags of our self-righteousness.

Next in Revelation 19, the Bridegroom will be called to war, and we will go with Him.  It will be the great battle against the evil kings of the earth assembled at Armageddon, as well as the dragon (Satan), the antichrist, the false prophet, and their demons (see Revelation 16:14-16).

Revelation 19:

 11 ¶ And I saw heaven opened; and behold, a white horse, and He who sat upon it [is] called Faithful and True; and in righteousness He judges and wages war.

 12 And His eyes [are] a flame of fire, and upon His head [are] many diadems; and He has a name written [upon Him] which no one knows except Himself.

 13 And [He is] clothed with a robe dipped in blood; and His name is called The Word of God.

 14 And the armies which are in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white [and] clean, were following Him on white horses.

 15 And from His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may smite the nations; and He will rule them with a rod of iron; and He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty.

 16 And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”

 17 And 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;

 18 in order 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.”

 19 And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies, assembled to make war against Him who sat upon the horse, and against His army.

 20 And the beast was seized, and with him the false prophet who performed the signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image; these two were thrown alive into the lake of fire which burns with brimstone.

 21 And the rest were killed with the sword which came from the mouth of Him who sat upon the horse, and all the birds were filled with their flesh. (NASB)

We see in verse 20 that the beast (antichrist) and the false prophet (anti-Holy Spirit) will be seized and thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, and verse 21, the rest will be killed with the sword from Jesus’ mouth and fed to the birds.

But there is one more item of business regarding the defeat of evil.

Revelation 20:

 1 ¶ And I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand.

 2 And he laid hold of the dragon, the serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years,

 3 and threw him into the abyss, and shut [it] and sealed [it] over him, so that he should not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were completed; after these things he must be released for a short time.

Satan will be bound and thrown into the abyss for a thousand years, after which he will be released but only for a short time.

In closing, we will win the battle finally but not until we get behind Jesus and let Him do the heavy lifting.  The scriptures tell us we will be behind Him on white horses, but I think we are mostly watching.  It is His sword which kills the masses.

Many today are trying to win the battle against evil by their own strength.  They are going against the kings of the earth who are powered by the antichrist spirit, which is gaining in popularity due to the coming apostasy (falling away of the saints).  Instead of striving against evil, we should cry out to Jesus, rely on Him for protection, and intercede for His will to be done in Heaven and on the earth!  Vengeance belongs to the Lord!

The events of the Tribulation are traumatic as the wrath of God is poured out from the seven bowls.  But we need not fear, because we are not destined for wrath.

1^st Thessalonians 5:

 9 For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,

 10 who died for us, that whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with Him.

 11 ¶ Therefore encourage one another, and build up one another, just as you also are doing.

1^st Thessalonians 5:

 16 ¶ Rejoice always;

 17 pray without ceasing;

 18 in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

 19 Do not quench the Spirit;

 20 do not despise prophetic utterances.

 21 But examine everything [carefully]; hold fast to that which is good;

 22 abstain from every form of evil.

 23 ¶ Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

 24 Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass.

Let us pray.    

Father God, thank You for Your word, Jesus, and for the promises that will be fulfilled during the Tribulation.  Give us an understanding of these things as they unfold, and give us a patience as we await Your perfect timing.  In Jesus’ name we pray.  Amen.

Additional Sources:

1.  Dr. David Jeremiah, The Book of Signs, 31 Undeniable Prophecies of the Apocalypse (Nashville Tennessee: W Publishing, an imprint of Thomas Nelson, 2019), 155-167.
2. Dr. David Jeremiah, “The Revelation Prophecy Chart” (San Diego, CA: Turning Point Ministries, DAVIDJEREMIAH.ORG)
3. Charles H. Dyer, The Rise of Babylon (Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers, 2003), 21.