War of Gog and Magog

Ezekiel is a prophet of God that lived around 622 BC. He was among the Israelites that were exiled to Babylon during the reign of Nebuchadnezzar. When Ezekiel was in his thirties, he received his calling to be a prophet for God. He was given several visions one of which was the return of the Jews to Israel after they are dispersed throughout the world. This is detailed in Ezekiel 37, and as we saw this prophecy was fulfilled in 1948 with the reestablishment of the State of Israel and the subsequent return of the Jews from all over the world to their homeland. The next vision which Ezekiel details in chapters 38-39 happen after the events of chapter 37. Since the prophecy of chapter 37 has been fulfilled in its entirety we can say that the prophecy in the next chapters will come to pass too. 

Chapter 38-39 detail a coming war where Russia and her allies will launch an all out attack on Israel. Anti-Semitism is on the rise throughout the world

 ² “I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that sends all the surrounding peoples reeling. Judah will be besieged as well as Jerusalem. ³ On that day, when all the nations of the earth are gathered against her, I will make Jerusalem an immovable rock for all the nations. All who try to move it will injure themselves.   Zechariah 12:2-3

If you watch the news you see that Iran is trying to create a nuclear weapon and her main goal is to destroy Israel. Where is she getting the technology to create a nuclear weapon? From Russia, which leads us right into the prophecy of Ezekiel 38. 

Now the word of the Lord came to me, saying, ² “Son of man, set your face against Gog, of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh,^[a] Meshech, and Tubal, and prophesy against him, ³ and say, ‘Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against you, O Gog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal. ⁴ I will turn you around, put hooks into your jaws, and lead you out, with all your army, horses, and horsemen, all splendidly clothed, a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords. ⁵ Persia, Ethiopia,^[b] and Libya^[c] are with them, all of them with shield and helmet; ⁶ Gomer and all its troops; the house of Togarmah from the far north and all its troops—many people are with you. Ezekiel 38:1-6

Now let's identify the nations that are mentioned here. After the flood, Noah's descendants dispersed throughout the world. Magog was the son of Japheth, one of Noah's sons. Magog settled between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, according to many ancient writers these people became known as the Scythians who lived in what is now southern Russia. Gog is identified as being the prince of Rosh, Meshech and Tubal. Rosh would stand for Russia, in Ezekiel 39 Rosh is identified as being from the far north

“And you, son of man, prophesy against Gog, and say, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Behold, I am against you, O Gog, the prince of Rosh,^[a] Meshech, and Tubal; ² and I will turn you around and lead you on, bringing you up from the far north, and bring you against the mountains of Israel. Ezekiel 39:1-2

Meshech and Tubal are the fifth and sixth sons of Japheth who settled south of the black sea and also a part of Russia. Now the other nations that are allied with Russia are Persia, which would include Iran, Iraq and Afghanistan. Ethiopia which would include Sudan, Libya, Gomer which includes eastern Europe and Germany, Togarmah which would include Turkey, and any other nations that are allied with Russia.

Magog                     Russia

Meschech                 Russia

Tubal                       Russia

Persia                      Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan

Ethiopia                   Ethiopia, Sudan

Libya                       Libya

Gomer                     Austria, Germany, Eastern Europe

Togramah                 Turkey

⁷ “Prepare yourself and be ready, you and all your companies that are gathered about you; and be a guard for them. ⁸ After many days you will be visited. In the latter years you will come into the land of those brought back from the sword and gathered from many people on the mountains of Israel, which had long been desolate; they were brought out of the nations, and now all of them dwell safely. ⁹ You will ascend, coming like a storm, covering the land like a cloud, you and all your troops and many peoples with you.”
¹⁰ ‘Thus says the Lord God: “On that day it shall come to pass that thoughts will arise in your mind, and you will make an evil plan: ¹¹ You will say, ‘I will go up against a land of unwalled villages; I will go to a peaceful people, who dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates’— ¹² to take plunder and to take booty, to stretch out your hand against the waste places that are again inhabited, and against a people gathered from the nations, who have acquired livestock and goods, who dwell in the midst of the land. ¹³ Sheba, Dedan, the merchants of Tarshish, and all their young lions will say to you, ‘Have you come to take plunder? Have you gathered your army to take booty, to carry away silver and gold, to take away livestock and goods, to take great plunder?’”’
¹⁴ “Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say to Gog, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “On that day when My people Israel dwell safely, will you not know it?¹⁵ Then you will come from your place out of the far north, you and many peoples with you, all of them riding on horses, a great company and a mighty army. ¹⁶ You will come up against My people Israel like a cloud, to cover the land. It will be in the latter days that I will bring you against My land, so that the nations may know Me, when I am hallowed in you, O Gog, before their eyes.” ¹⁷ Thus says the Lord God: “Are you he of whom I have spoken in former days by My servants the prophets of Israel, who prophesied for years in those days that I would bring you against them? Ezekiel 38:7-17


This is a prophecy to Gog that in the latter years, after Israel is returned to her homeland, they would lead an attack on her. We can surmise that we are living in the latter years. Israel is returned to her homeland and there is nothing in Biblical prophecy that needs to happen before this event takes place. Russia and her allies will coordinate a strike on Israel in order to destroy her. Sheba, Dedan and the merchants of Tarshish and their young lions will not act to save Israel but will use diplomacy which will not work. Sheba and Dedan relate to Saudi Arabia. Tarshish which is represented by a lion is Great Britain, and all the young lions are her former colonies of which the United States is one. 
Russia will ignore the protests of the other nations since they are not backed by any kind of military threat. You may be confused and say has the United States not always backed Israel, are we not her friend and protector. At one time we were, but even here in the U. S. anti-semiticism is rising. Another reason is our economy, we don't have the money to spend on another war, especially one against so many countries. We are also a people that is tired of war. Since 2001 we have been involved in wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and we are tired of fighting wars that we can't win and losing so many of our soldiers. Another large reason that we will probably stay out of the war is oil. If we are threatened with having our oil cut off, we will not be quick to jump into any wars that would lead to that; economically we could not afford to lose our oil. Since there will be no one that will realistically stand against them, they will see this as the perfect opportunity to destroy Israel.


¹⁸ “And it will come to pass at the same time, when Gog comes against the land of Israel,” says the Lord God, “that My fury will show in My face. ¹⁹ For in My jealousy and in the fire of My wrath I have spoken: ‘Surely in that day there shall be a great earthquake in the land of Israel, ²⁰ so that the fish of the sea, the birds of the heavens, the beasts of the field, all creeping things that creep on the earth, and all men who are on the face of the earth shall shake at My presence. The mountains shall be thrown down, the steep places shall fall, and every wall shall fall to the ground.’ ²¹ I will call for a sword against Gog throughout all My mountains,” says the Lord God. “Every man’s sword will be against his brother. ²² And I will bring him to judgment with pestilence and bloodshed; I will rain down on him, on his troops, and on the many peoples who are with him, flooding rain, great hailstones, fire, and brimstone. ²³ Thus I will magnify Myself and sanctify Myself, and I will be known in the eyes of many nations. Then they shall know that I am theLord.”’Ezekiel 38:18-23


When Russia and her allies launch their attack against Israel, God will be furious and He will supernaturally protect Israel. There will be a huge worldwide earthquake, God will rain down torrential rains, hailstones and fire. The world will see God supernaturally protect Israel, and many people that are skeptics will finally believe in the true God. 

“And you, son of man, prophesy against Gog, and say, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Behold, I am against you, O Gog, the prince of Rosh,^[a] Meshech, and Tubal; ² and I will turn you around and lead you on, bringing you up from the far north, and bring you against the mountains of Israel. ³ Then I will knock the bow out of your left hand, and cause the arrows to fall out of your right hand. ⁴ You shall fall upon the mountains of Israel, you and all your troops and the peoples who are with you; I will give you to birds of prey of every sort and to the beasts of the field to be devoured. ⁵ You shall fall on the open field; for I have spoken,” says the Lord God. ⁶ “And I will send fire on Magog and on those who live in security in the coastlands. Then they shall know that I am the Lord. ⁷ So I will make My holy name known in the midst of My people Israel, and I will not let them profane My holy name anymore. Then the nations shall know that I am the Lord, the Holy One in Israel. ⁸ Surely it is coming, and it shall be done,” says the Lord God. “This is the day of which I have spoken.

⁹ “Then those who dwell in the cities of Israel will go out and set on fire and burn the weapons, both the shields and bucklers, the bows and arrows, the javelins and spears; and they will make fires with them for seven years.¹⁰ They will not take wood from the field nor cut down any from the forests, because they will make fires with the weapons; and they will plunder those who plundered them, and pillage those who pillaged them,” says the LordGod. Ezekiel 39:1-10

  

Ezekiel continues his prophecy on Gog. God will bring Gog against Israel, and then He will knock the weapons out of his hand and send him to fall on Israel with all his allies. God will supernaturally destroy the armies of Russia and her allies, none of their weapons will be viable against Israel. All the armies will be destroyed and the birds will eat their flesh and the animals will eat their remains. God will also punish the lands where these armies came from, living securely at home. God will send fire down on them to destroy them. Israel and the nations around the world will see God in action and will not be able to deny Him. Those in Israel will burn their weapons for seven years. Some people say that Russia is using lignostone to manufacture their weapons, with lignostone being a wood that is harder than steel. I don't know if this is true since their are conflicting reports about this. This passage could merely mean that Israel uses the fuel that is in the crashed weapons and that there is enough for seven years. We won't really know until the aftermath of the battle. 

¹¹ “It will come to pass in that day that I will give Gog a burial place there in Israel, the valley of those who pass by east of the sea; and it will obstruct travelers, because there they will bury Gog and all his multitude. Therefore they will call it the Valley of Hamon Gog.^[b] 12 For seven months the house of Israel will be burying them, in order to cleanse the land. ¹³ Indeed all the people of the land will be burying, and they will gain renown for it on the day that I am glorified,” says the Lord God. ¹⁴ “They will set apart men regularly employed, with the help of a search party,^[c] to pass through the land and bury those bodies remaining on the ground, in order to cleanse it. At the end of seven months they will make a search. ¹⁵ The search party will pass through the land; and when anyone sees a man’s bone, he shall set up a marker by it, till the buriers have buried it in the Valley of Hamon Gog. ¹⁶ Thename of the city will also be Hamonah. Thus they shall cleanse the land.”’ Ezekiel 39:11-16

The bodies of all the armies will be buried in a mass grave that will be called the Valley of Hamon Gog, and it will take seven months for Israel to finish this grisly burial. There will be so many dead bodies that Israel will have to hire people for the express purpose of searching for and burying all the bodies that will be strewn across the land. 

¹⁷ “And as for you, son of man, thus says the Lord God, ‘Speak to every sort of bird and to every beast of the field:

“Assemble yourselves and come;
Gather together from all sides to My sacrificial meal
Which I am sacrificing for you,
A great sacrificial meal on the mountains of Israel,
That you may eat flesh and drink blood.
¹⁸ You shall eat the flesh of the mighty,
Drink the blood of the princes of the earth,
Of rams and lambs,
Of goats and bulls,
All of them fatlings of Bashan.
¹⁹ You shall eat fat till you are full,
And drink blood till you are drunk,
At My sacrificial meal
Which I am sacrificing for you.
²⁰ You shall be filled at My table
With horses and riders,
With mighty men
And with all the men of war,” says the Lord God. Ezekiel 39:17-20

Now God calls all the animals and birds to come and feast on the mighty men and princes and all others. There will be so many bodies that the scavengers will be well fed.

²¹ “I will set My glory among the nations; all the nations shall see My judgment which I have executed, and My hand which I have laid on them.²² So the house of Israel shall know that I am the Lord their God from that day forward. ²³ The Gentiles shall know that the house of Israel went into captivity for their iniquity; because they were unfaithful to Me, therefore I hid My face from them. I gave them into the hand of their enemies, and they all fell by the sword. ²⁴ According to their uncleanness and according to their transgressions I have dealt with them, and hidden My face from them.”’
²⁵ “Therefore thus says the Lord God: ‘Now I will bring back the captives of Jacob, and have mercy on the whole house of Israel; and I will be jealous for My holy name— ²⁶ after they have borne their shame, and all their unfaithfulness in which they were unfaithful to Me, when they dwelt safely in their own land and no one made them afraid. ²⁷ When I have brought them back from the peoples and gathered them out of their enemies’ lands, and I am hallowed in them in the sight of many nations, ²⁸ then they shall know that I am the Lord their God, who sent them into captivity among the nations, but also brought them back to their land, and left none of them captive any longer. ²⁹ And I will not hide My face from them anymore; for I shall have poured out My Spirit on the house of Israel,’ says the Lord God.” Ezekiel 39:21-29


All the world will see this supernatural protection of Israel from the hoardes attacking her. Israel will finally turn back and believe in God again.

Imminence

I felt called by the Lord to do a blog about Revelation. I have always been fascinated by Revelation since I was a child. Many people are afraid of Revelation and are confused by the prophecies in it, so they stay away from it. I have always loved it and tried to read everything I could find on it. I hope my blog was able to help make it a little easier to understand and make it less scary for you. The explanations and commentaries that I have given come from many sources. I have done extensive research online and through books, so I hope I have given you the best explanations. 
I want to talk about what will happen before Revelation. I believe the Rapture of the church is imminent, let me tell you why. Jesus talked to His disciples about many things including His return. The disciples were curious and asked Jesus how they would know when He would be coming back. Jesus answered them:

³ As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. “Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”
 ⁴ Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. ⁵ For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. ⁶ You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. ⁷ Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. ⁸ All these are the beginning of birth pains. Matthew 24:3-8

⁷ “Teacher,” they asked, “when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are about to take place?”
 ⁸ He replied: “Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not follow them. ⁹ When you hear of wars and uprisings, do not be frightened. These things must happen first, but the end will not come right away.”
 ¹⁰ Then he said to them: “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. ¹¹ There will be great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven. Luke 21:7-11
Some people may write off the wars and rumors of wars, the earthquakes and famines, and say that these things have always been around. These people are correct, but these things are just the signs that the time is getting closer. The Bible clearly predicts certain events that needed to happen before the Rapture would take place. Let's go through a few of them.


Increase in Knowledge and Travel
⁴ But you, Daniel, roll up and seal the words of the scroll until the time of the end. Many will go here and there to increase knowledge.” Daniel 12:4
There has never been a time in history when knowledge has been at your fingertips. The internet has consolidated knowledge from every corner of the globe on any topic you can imagine. Things that people would have had to do years of research to find out now only take the time it takes you to type them into your browser. Travel, that once took months now only takes hours.


False Religions

⁴ Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. ⁵ For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. Matthew 24:4-5
There are over 3000 cults in the world today, and they all believe in something other than salvation through Jesus Christ.


Increase in Wickedness
¹ But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. ² People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, ³ without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, ⁴ treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— ⁵ having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people. 2 Timothy 3:1-5
Does this sound familiar? If you watch TV shows and the news this seems to be the prevalent theme. There have always been evil people in the world, but these days it seems like you can't turn around without hearing that someone killed another person for their possessions, or because they looked at them wrong. Kids killing their parents, husbands killing their wives. Women cutting open pregnant women to get the baby inside. The sexual scandals, Ponzi schemes, pornography, terrorism, genocide, the list of evil goes on and on.


Wars and Rumors of Wars
 ⁶ You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.⁷ Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom Matthew 24:6-7
There have always been wars, but the twentieth century has seen the deaths of more people during war than all the other centuries before it put together. Nation against Nation would indicate that two nations went to war with each other, but the kingdom against kingdom would indicate that these nations were soon joined by other nations of the world. The twentieth century saw the start of two world wars, which seem to fulfill this part of scripture. 


Earthquakes and Pestilences
¹¹ There will be great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven. Luke 21:11
The twentieth century has seen the rise of super viruses that seem to be antibiotic resistant. There are also the diseases that there is no cure for like AIDS and Cancers. There was the flu epidemic of 1918, bird flu and swine flu that have spread throughout populations. 
Earthquakes have been on the rise through the world, especially extremely large quakes. In the U. S alone, earthquakes in the central part of the country averaged around 21 up until 2009 where they doubled, currently the number has jumped to 134 as of last year. Then there was the 5.1 earthquake in Virginia that shocked the east coast in 2011. Let's not forget the 8.9 earthquake that struck Japan also in 2011. On April 11, 2012 there were three large earthquakes that struck around the same time. 8.6 off of Indonesia, 5.9 off the Oregon coast and a 6.5 off the Mexican coast. USGS claimed that this was an unprecedented event, and the largest earthquake ever for the particular kind of fault line. The top five largest earthquakes ever have occurred since 1950. 


Israel Restored
 ²⁴ “‘For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land. Ezekiel 36:24
No other country in the world once it was destroyed and its people scattered has ever kept their national identity and been restored to their previous homeland. Israel was a nation in 606 B.C. before Israel's captivity and rule by Babylon, Persia and Rome. Most of the Israelites were carried off into captivity by these nations. Israel came under Muslim rule for 1300 years and then under Turkish rule of the Ottoman Empire. Jews have yearned to return to Israel for many years and the movement became known as Zionism. Even scattered throughout the world, the Jews held on to their national identity and their belief in God. They were treated badly by many nations, some nations like Spain expelled the Jews, others like the Nazi party tried to exterminate them. Through all these trials, God protected the Jews and in 1948 their homeland was returned to them. Jews have been returning to Israel since 1948, at first from Arab countries, then from western Europe and in the 1980s from Russia, and finally from Ethiopia. ⁵ Do not be afraid, for I am with you; 
   I will bring your children from the east
   and gather you from the west.
⁶ I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’
   and to the south, ‘Do not hold them back.’
Bring my sons from afar
   and my daughters from the ends of the earth— Isaiah 43:5-6


These are all signs that the end is getting closer. All Biblical prophecy has been fulfilled up until this time. There is nothing else that needs to happen before the Rapture occurs. In fact there are only two events left before the rise of the Antichrist. The Rapture of the church and the War of Gog and Magog. There is no clear indication which of these events will occur first. In the War of Gog and Magog, Russia and her allies will attack Israel. I will go into more detail about this at a later time. I just have to say, if you see Russia and her allies go to war with Israel, be prepared for the Rapture will be coming soon. I have always believed that the Rapture would occur in my lifetime, and we have never had so much of Bible prophecy fulfilled and seen events lining up for the end time events to unfold, but I can't say for certain if it will come during my lifetime. No one knows but God and Jesus.
   ³⁶ “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son,^[f] but only the Father. ³⁷ As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. ³⁸ 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; ³⁹ 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. ⁴⁰ Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. ⁴¹ Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.
   ⁴² “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. ⁴³ But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. ⁴⁴ So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him. Matthew 24:36-44



Maranatha!

The End...the Beginning

We have reached the final chapter of Revelation. I will break it down into sections.

¹ Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb ² down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. ³ No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. ⁴ They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. ⁵ There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.


At the beginning of this chapter, we are still with John as the angel is showing him the New Jerusalem. John sees a river of the water of life flowing from God's throne. This is eternal life that comes from knowing God. There will be a tree of Life on each side of this river bearing twelve crops of fruit. Since we will no longer rely on the sun in the sky to show us the changing months of the year. The crops of the tree will designate the months. The leaves of the tree will be for the healing of nations, unlike the leaves Adam used to cover himself after eating from the original tree. No longer will there be any curse, the curse that Adam brought down on mankind is gone. All those in the city will serve God and reign forever.

John and the Angel

 ⁶ The angel said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God who inspires the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place.”   ⁷ “Look, I am coming soon! Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy written in this scroll.”
 ⁸ I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I had heard and seen them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who had been showing them to me. ⁹ But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I am a fellow servant with you and with your fellow prophets and with all who keep the words of this scroll. Worship God!”
 ¹⁰ Then he told me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this scroll, because the time is near. ¹¹ Let the one who does wrong continue to do wrong; let the vile person continue to be vile; let the one who does right continue to do right; and let the holy person continue to be holy.”


The angel speaks to John and tells him that these words are true and he has been tasked with showing John the events that would transpire soon. "Look, I am coming soon" Jesus will return. "Blessed is the one that keeps the words of the prophecy written in this scroll" this is a call to faithfulness. John, feeling overwhelmed, falls at the feet of the angel to worship him, but the angel stops him and directs him to worship only God. Unlike earlier, John is told not to seal up the words of prophecy written on the scroll. He is told that the time is near when the prophecies in the scroll will come to pass. He is also told that sinners will continue to sin and believers will continue to believe, even with the words of this prophecy available.

Epilogue: Invitation and Warning

    ¹² “Look, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to each person according to what they have done. ¹³ I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.   ¹⁴ “Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city. ¹⁵ Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.
   ¹⁶ “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you^[a] this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.”
 ¹⁷ The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say, “Come!” Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life.
 ¹⁸ I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this scroll: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to that person the plagues described in this scroll. ¹⁹ And if anyone takes words away from this scroll of prophecy, God will take away from that person any share in the tree of life and in the Holy City, which are described in this scroll.
 ²⁰ He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon.”
   Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.
 ²¹ The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s people. Amen.


Now we see the words of Jesus saying that He is coming soon. He will come in a blink of an eye
 ⁵¹Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— ⁵² in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed 1Corinthians 15:51-52
He will bring to each believer their reward, their crowns according to what they have done.
Crown of Righteousness 
⁷ I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. ⁸ Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing. 2 Timothy 4:7-8
Incorruptible Crown (Victor's Crown)
²⁴ Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. ²⁵ Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. 1 Corinthians 9:24-25
Crown of Life (Martyr's Crown)
¹⁰ Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor’s crown. Revelation 2:10
Crown of Rejoicing (Soul Winner's Crown)
¹⁹ For what is our hope, our joy, or the crown in which we will glory in the presence of our Lord Jesus when he comes? Is it not you? ²⁰ Indeed, you are our glory and joy. 1 Thessalonians 2:19-20
Crown of Glory (Shepherd's Crown)
 ¹ To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder and a witness of Christ’s sufferings who also will share in the glory to be revealed: ² Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care, watching over them—not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not pursuing dishonest gain, but eager to serve; ³ not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. ⁴ And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away. 1 Peter 5:1-4
Jesus then reiterates that He is the first and last, the Alpha and Omega, He is sovereign. 
Those that wish to enter the Holy city and have eternal life must wash their robes. They must become followers of Jesus and be made pure. Jesus tells John that He has sent the angel to give John this revelation. Jesus names Himself as the Jewish Messiah.
Now the reader is beckoned to become a believer and accept the gift of eternal life that has been paid for by the blood of Jesus for you.
Now there is a warning not to add or take away from the words written in this prophecy. Those who preach it or write commentaries or the readers themselves have a responsibility to keep the words of this prophecy whole. They are not to add things to it and they are not to take parts out. 
As a final exhortation to the reader, Jesus reminds them that He is coming soon. Amen or so be it. The writer ends with a plea to Jesus to return..."Come Lord Jesus" the Aramaic word is Maranatha. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with us all. Amen. 


Maranatha!

A New Heaven and a New Earth

The final judgment is over. Those that did not trust God for their salvation have been thrown into the Lake of Fire.
¹ Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,”^[a] for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. ² I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. ³ And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ⁴ ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’^[b] or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”
 ⁵ He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”
 ⁶ He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life. ⁷ Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children. ⁸ But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”


John now sees a new heaven and a new earth. The old earth is gone. You can tell that the new earth is not the same as the old earth because the new earth has no sea. The new Jerusalem descends from heaven and a loud voice proclaims that God's will now dwell among his people. There will be no more death or suffering. God says that He is making everything new and tells John to write down what He is about to say. God proclaims that "it is done" which inidicates that something has reached completion. Whether it is the events from the creation of Adam until now or whether He means the completion of the new heaven and earth. God proclaims that He is the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, which testifies to the sovereignty of God. He will give the thristy water from the spring of life. God will give those who follow Him eternal life. Those that followed Him will receive eternal life and be eternally children of God. Those that chose not to believe, and here is listed some things that would comprise the wicked of the earth, they will be thrown into the Lake of Fire, the second death.




The New Jerusalem, the Bride of the Lamb
 ⁹ One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” ¹⁰ And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. ¹¹ It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. ¹² It had a great, high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel. ¹³ There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south and three on the west. ¹⁴ The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. ¹⁵ The angel who talked with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city, its gates and its walls. ¹⁶ The city was laid out like a square, as long as it was wide. He measured the city with the rod and found it to be 12,000 stadia^[c] in length, and as wide and high as it is long. ¹⁷ The angel measured the wall using human measurement, and it was 144 cubits^[d] thick.^[e] 18 The wall was made of jasper, and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass. ¹⁹ The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, ²⁰ the fifth onyx, the sixth ruby, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth turquoise, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst.^[f] 21 The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of gold, as pure as transparent glass.
 ²² I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. ²³ The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. ²⁴ The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it. ²⁵ On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there. ²⁶ The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it. ²⁷Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.


Now one of the angels that had been in charge of one of the seven bowl judgments tells John to come with him and he will be shown the New Jerusalem; the bride of the Lamb. John is taken away in spirit to see the Holy City descending. His first impression is that it shines with the glory of God and it was brilliant like jasper but clear as crystal.  The city has twelve gates and there are twelve angels guarding the twelve gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel. There were three gates on each side of the city.The walls of the city had twelve foundations and on these were written the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
Now the angel brings out a measuring rod and gives John the measurements of the city. John describes the city, the walls are made of jasper and the city made of gold, the foundations of the city walls were decorated with precious stones; jasper, sapphire, agate, emerald, onyx, ruby, chrysolite, beryl, topaz, turquoise, jacinth and amethyst. The twelve gates were created out of a single pearl for each gate and the streets were made of gold. 
John says that he did not see a temple in the city because God and Jesus are its temple. The sun and moon do not need to shine on the city because the glory of God and the Lamb is its light.  The gates will never close indicates that the time will be of complete safety. No one that is wicked will ever enter it.

The Millenium and Judgment

Sunday was Easter, Resurrection Day, when we celebrate the fact that Christ rose from the dead. We should also celebrate Easter as the anniversary of our redemption from sin! Hallelujah! We are forgiven! All we need to do is accept the free gift of salvation that was paid for by Jesus death on the cross. Such a simple concept that so many people miss.

As we continue our study of Revelation we continue where we left off. The armies of the world are defeated and the Beast and False Prophet are thrown into the Lake of Fire.

¹ And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain. ² He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. ³ He threw him into the Abyss, and locked and sealed it over him, to keep him from deceiving the nations anymore until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be set free for a short time.
 ⁴ I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. They^[a] had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years. ⁵ (The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection. ⁶ Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years.




An angel descends from heaven with the key to the abyss and a huge chain. The angel binds Satan with the chain and imprisons him in the abyss for one thousand years. The purpose of this binding is so that he can't deceive the nations for the period of his binding. After the binding time is completed, he is let loose for a short time. 
Now John sees thrones and those that were seated on them given authority to judge.

¹¹ Here is a trustworthy saying:
   If we died with him,
   we will also live with him;
¹² if we endure,
   we will also reign with him. 2 Timothy 2:11-12
All those that did not receive the mark of the Beast and died or were raptured will reign over the survivors of the Tribulation that came to believe in Christ. Those that came through the Tribulation will live their lives under the rule of Christ from the New Jerusalem. They will marry and have children, but those that put their trust in Christ will live throughout the entire millenium period. Even living under the rule of the living God many people will still choose not to follow him. I believe Isaiah alludes to this
²⁰ “Never again will there be in it
   an infant who lives but a few days,
   or an old man who does not live out his years;
the one who dies at a hundred
   will be thought a mere child;
the one who fails to reach^[a] a hundred    will be considered accursed. Isaiah 65:20
I believe that the people living during this time will have until the age of 100 to make the decision to follow Christ. Those that choose not to follow him will die before 100 and will await the final judgment at the end of the millenium.
Those that died from the beginning of time will not be resurrected until after this millenial period is over. They will be raised at that time to face their final judgment. 

The Judgment of Satan

 ⁷ When the thousand years are over, Satan will be released from his prison ⁸and will go out to deceive the nations in the four corners of the earth—Gog and Magog—and to gather them for battle. In number they are like the sand on the seashore. ⁹ They marched across the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of God’s people, the city he loves. But fire came down from heaven and devoured them. ¹⁰ And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.


After the thousand years, Satan is released to once more go throughout the earth and try to raise up the nations against God. Many that had not chosen to follow Christ will follow Satan at this time and attempt to battle God. Fire comes down from Heaven and destroys them. Satan is finally judged and thrown into the Lake of Fire forever. 

The Judgment of the Dead

 ¹¹ Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. The earth and the heavens fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. ¹²And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. ¹³The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done. ¹⁴ Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. ¹⁵ Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.


The millenium is over, Satan has been judged and thrown into Hell. Now comes the final resurrection. All those that died without believing in Jesus are now raised to face their judgement. Since they did not accept the free gift of salvation that was offered to all with Christ's death on the cross they were judged according to their deeds. 
¹⁰ As it is written:
   “There is no one righteous, not even one;  Romans 3:10
Since they had not believed in Christ, their names had been blotted out from the book of life. Anyone who's name was not written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.




 ²¹ But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. ²² This righteousness is given through faith in^[h] Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, ²³ for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, ²⁴ and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. ²⁵ God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement,^[i]through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— ²⁶ he did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus. Romans 3:21-26