Nothing is known for certainty about the ancestry of Joel, or about him personally. There is even some uncertainty as to the precise time when he prophesied, although the prophecy itself provides a number of clues, as shall be seen.

Literal locusts?

Joel pictures an enormous locust invasion brought by God upon His land, as a punishment and a warning to His people (Joel 1:15; 2:11). The devastation wrought by the locusts brings the inevitable famine, and Joel chronicles the suffering of man and beast alike, in its wake (Joel 1:4,5,9-12,16-18).

Outline

1.	The locust plague as a foretaste of the Day of the Lord: Joel 1:1 – 2:17
	a)	The calamity: Joel 1:1-20
	b)	The scourge as the forerunner of the judgment day: Joel 2:1-17
2.	The averting of judgment and bestowal of blessings: Joel 2:18 – 3:21
	a)	The Lord’s restoration of Judah: Joel 2:18-27
	b)	The outpouring of the Holy Spirit: Joel 2:28-32
	c)	Judgment upon the nations: Joel 3:1-16
	d)	The blessings on God’s people: Joel 3:17-21

Historical application

But Joel has more in mind than a literal plague of locusts. Whether there was, in Joel’s day, a real such infestation, or whether the prophet is presenting an idealized picture merely based on the well-known phenomenon of such plagues… either way, he definitely also has in mind a real army, of men, not insects (Joel 1:6,7; 2:1-7).

What was this army which Joel saw sweeping down upon the Land of Israel? Most likely the Assyrians of Sennacherib, who first devastated most of the north of Israel, and then turned upon the south of Judah, besieging and capturing most of its fortified cities (2Ki 17; 18; Isa 36; 37). Assyria was joined in its onslaught upon Judah and its capital Jerusalem by the Arab nations of Tyre and Zidon, Edom and Egypt (Joel 3:4,19). Egypt was the natural enemy of Assyria, but that did not stop the Egyptians from using Judah’s misfortune as a chance to ravage their share of Judah’s south. Would the Assyrian hordes also destroy Jerusalem, along with Temple of the LORD? Or would God at last spare His own city? The answer lay in Israel’s reaction to this great invasion of human “locusts” (Joel 2:12-14). True repentance and faith would save Jerusalem from the Assyrians. Led by their fine king, Hezekiah, the people did repent, and the Assyrian confederation was destroyed by the Angel of the LORD (2Ki 19; Isa 38): “Then the LORD will be jealous for his land and take pity on his people” (Joel 2:18). “And everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved; for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will be deliverance, as the LORD has said, among the survivors whom the LORD calls” (Joel 2:32; cp Joel 2:20; 3:16).

Last Days application?

But this historical fulfillment is, as we have come to expect, only half the picture. The normal pattern of Bible prophecy, with few exceptions, is the presentation of a two-fold message:

• a contemporary reference to events in or near the days of the prophet (necessary to confirm his credentials as a true prophet: Deu 18:20-22), and
• a Messianic application, having to do with the first Coming or the second Coming, or — quite often — both. In this, Joel does not disappoint us. Seen in a first century application, the apostle Peter cites Joel as an explanation for the Holy Spirit being poured out on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:16-21). Peter used Joel’s prophecy as the basis for his appeal to the people to repent and be baptized, and so be saved (Acts 2:37-40). Seen in a Last Days perspective, every indication is that Joel envisions an attack by a great Arab confederacy upon a faithless nation of Israel. These Arab peoples were previously too weak, but now at last [because of continual arm supplies from the West, and/or from the former USSR?] they are finally strong enough to accomplish their goal (Joel 3:9,10). Such an attack will be initially successful (see Joel 3:1-7), destroying much of Israel’s livelihood and reducing God’s people to helplessness. It will then be only by a renewal of their faith, in the God of their fathers, that a remnant of Israel will be saved when — once again and to a far greater extent than ever before — “….the LORD will roar from Zion and thunder from Jerusalem; the earth and the sky will tremble. But the LORD will be a refuge for his people, a stronghold for the people of Israel” (Joel 3:16).

How do we know that this great alliance of the Last Days will be Arab? (a) In Hebrew, the words for “locust” (arbeh) and “Arab” (arbi) are practically identical. (b) The nations actually mentioned by Joel (the ones “on every side”: Joel 3:12) are Tyre and Zidon (Lebanon and Syria, in modern terms) and Philistia (exactly equivalent, linguistically, to the “Palestinians”!) in Joel 3:4; and Egypt and Edom (modern Jordan and/or Saudi Arabia) in Joel 3:19. In order to defeat Israel, these will line up with “Assyria” (modern equivalent: Iraq, or just possibly Syria, or even both). (c) The phrase “Prepare for [or make holy] war” (the literal meaning of Joel 3:9) suggests a jihad, or Moslem holy war. The first attack, in Joel’s day, by Assyria and its allies was seen by its leaders as a “holy war” — between Ashur the god of Nineveh and Jehovah (or Yahweh) the God of Israel (Joel 2:17; 2Ki 18:22,25,30-35; 19:14-19). And now, in our day, though the Arab “god” is called by a different name, the controversy is the same: whether “Allah” the god of Iraq, Syria, Jordan, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, et al is greater than Yahweh the God of Israel.

Temple Mount controversy

The controversy of the Last Days, between Arab and Jew, is preeminently about:

• Zion (Joel 2:1,15,23,32; 3:16,17,21),
• God’s holy mountain (Joel 2:1; 3:17),
• Jerusalem (Joel 2:32; 3:1,16,17,20), and
• the house of the LORD (Joel 3:18)….

…where, after Israel’s defeat and true repentance, a great Divine deliverance will come, and where the LORD God will dwell once again “in the midst of Israel… and my people shall never again be put to shame” (Joel 2:26,27).

A great deal of language in Joel (regarding sacrifices and services) suggests that the Last Days will see a resurgence of religion in Israel. It is possible that a revived Judaism will accelerate and exacerbate a controversy with the devotees of Islam — over their own “holy places” on Mount Zion, in the heart of the Old City of Jerusalem. To what extent such Temple worship may develop before Christ returns (even to the removal or destruction of the ancient “Dome of the Rock” to provide the site for a modern Jewish Temple), one cannot be certain. But many other Last Days prophecies point to a controversy in or over God’s holy place or mountain or Temple — so many, in fact, that this possibility must loom large: Eze 25:3; 36:2,3; Psa 79:1-4; 83:12; Rev 11:1-3; 2Th 2:3,4; Isa 14:13,14; Oba 1:16,17; Mal 3:1; Dan 9:24-27; 11:31,45; 12:11; Mat 24:15; Mar 13:14; and Luk 21:20-24.

Revelation parallels

There are numerous and striking correspondences between Joel 1,2 and Revelation 8,9:

Locusts	Joel 1:4	Rev 9:3
Like a nation?	Joel 1:6	Rev 9:4,7
Teeth like lions’ teeth	Joel 1:6	Rev 9:8
Trees, pasture burnt up	Joel 1:12-20	Rev 8:7
Destruction from God	Joel 1:15;	Rev 9:11
Fire	Joel 1:19; 2:3,5	Rev 8:7; 9:17
Rivers of water dried up	Joel 1:20	Rev 8:10; 9:14
Blowing of trumpets	Joel 2:1,11,15	Rev 8:6
Darkness	Joel 2:2	Rev 9:2,18
Horses	Joel 2:4	Rev 9:7,9
Chariots	Joel 2:5	Rev 9:9
Torment	Joel 2:6	Rev 9:6
Earthquake	Joel 2:10	Rev 8:5
Sun, moon, and stars are darkened	Joel 2:10,31; 3:15	Rev 8:12; 9:2
“Turn to me,” says God!	Joel 2:12	Rev 9:20,21
The “locusts” go back to the abyss	Joel 2:20	Rev 9:1
Day of Atonement	Joel 2:15-17	Rev 8:2-4
Deliverance for the faithful remnant	Joel 2:32	Rev 9:4

It is reasonable to conclude that Joel and Rev 8; 9 describe the same events. Therefore it is possible to deduce a Last Days application: a battle for Jerusalem and its holy places, fought by Jew and Arab, which ends with Christ returning to Israel to save the faithful remnant who call upon him (Joel 2:32; 3:20). This interpretation is supported by the observation that the sounding of the first six trumpets (Rev. 8; 9), with their sense of immediacy and urgency, culminates in the sounding of the Seventh Trumpet (Rev 11:15-19) and “the time for the dead to be judged”. And so Joel contributes his share of details to the ever-changing (and sometimes mysterious) mosaic of future events, a challenge and consolation for every student of Bible prophecy.

When did the prophet Joel speak and write? Understandably, on the answer to this question depends much of interpretation of his book. And yet a brief review of Christadelphian expositors shows a remarkable diversity on this question. Presented in chronological order, there are at least six views of the matter:

A. The reign of Jehoshaphat (approximate dates 860-860 BC) Edward Whittaker and Tony Benson in Testimony 46:387-392.

Reasons: No direct allusion to the great powers of Assyria and Babylon, who rose to prominence later. No direct reference to idolatry, again most appropriate for an early date. Two references to the valley of Jehoshaphat’ (3:2,12), which the authors equate with the valley of Berachah (2Ch 20:26) where Jehoshaphat and Judah won a miraculous victory over the locust-like invaders of Moab, Ammon and Edom. (The two ‘locust’ invasions in Scripture, they point out, were both Arabic in character (Jdg 6:3-6; Rev 9:1-11). It is suggested that the famine in Israel during Ahab’s reign, prayed for by Elijah (James 5:17; 1Ki 17:1), affect to some degree the adjacent kingdom of Judah (Joel 1).

Parallel passages: Joel 2:15-18 with 2Ch 20:3,4,11,13.

B. The early part of the reign of Jehoash (840-830 BC). Fred Pearce in The Christadelphian 112:263,264.

Reasons: Much the same as for (1) except that it is argued that the mention of the valley of Jehoshaphat refers to a past, though recently past, event. Since the four “Major Prophets” are unquestionably in chronological order, it is to be expected that the “Minor Prophets” follow a similar pattern, in which case Joel is seen to be quite early. In Joel the priests are still generally faithful and capable of repentance and reformation, which was not at all true toward the end of the kingdom. Suggested time: the regency of the faithful Jehoiada, while Jehoash was still a child (2Ki 11:17-20; 2Ch 23:16-18).

C. The first part of the reign of Uzziah (810-800 BC). T. Sutton in Testimony 5:407-409.

Again, the same arguments for a relatively early date as in (1) and (2).

Parallel passage: “His name spread far abroad; for he was marvelously helped” (2Ch 26:15). No other very precise evidence is offered.

D. The reign of Hezekiah (710-700 BC). WH Boulton in The Christadelphian 43:245-249.

Oblivious to much of the above evidence that would tend otherwise, WH Boulton lays great stress on the direction of the invasion — from the north (2:20). Thus it is suggested that the invasion of Sennacherib’s army (2Ki 18,19) is the fulfillment, and Assyria, though not directly mentioned, is the enemy of Israel. (JD Webster takes this same view in Dawn, Vol 19, pp 13-16, but offers no reasons. The same assumption is made by John Thomas in Eureka, Vol 1:44, where he refers to Joel’s vision of “the lions of Assyria, and others.)

E. Josiah’s reign (630-612 BC). EM Spongberg in Joel (Logos Publications), pp 7-12.

Most of the evidence offered for a later date consists of an attempt to dispute the various reasons for the earlier dates(as outlined above); and, it must be admitted, those proofs are all circumstantial. It is suggested that Josiah’s great reformation (2Ch 34,35) provides a fitting background for the prophecy.

F. The days of Jehoiakim or Zedekiah (612-586 BC). Carl Parry in Joel (Christadelphian Scripture Study Service), pp 3-7.

Here is something not otherwise stressed in any of the above: the Temple had already been sacked (3:5). [However, Whittaker and Benson do suggest in their exposition (No. 1 above) that Joel 3:5 was fulfilled by the Philistines and Arabians in the reign of Jehoshaphat’s successor Jehoram (2Ch 21:16,17). They see Joel 3:4-8 as a sort of ‘footnote’ added after the reign of Jehoshaphat. Such an interpretation of verse 5 well suits Fred Pearce’s exposition (2) also.] Parallels are suggested with Zephaniah (a contemporary with Josiah): Joel 1:10,11 with Zephaniah 1:2; Joel 1:18 with Zephaniah 1:3; Joel 1:15 with Zephaniah 1:7; Joel 2:1,2 with Zephaniah 1:14,15; Joel 3:2 with Zephaniah 3:8. The ‘lion’ of Joel 1:6 is taken as figurative of Babylon (Jer 50:17; Dan 7:4).

See also Fifield and Palmer, Testimony 46:224-228, where the book is specifically applied to Zedekiah’s reign on the grounds that Joel 1 describes a desolation which already existed, and which would fit the earlier desolation in the reign of Jehoiakim. Jer 4:5-8 is cited as parallel to Joel 1:6,13,14; and 2:1.

G. A seventh view is taken by Edgar Wille (The Christadelphian 104:317), who says:

“There (is) no doubt that the original northern army (v 20) was a terrible plague of locusts which brought Israel (ie, Judah) to their knees at some unspecified time in the past.”

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Of all the views outlined here, this last offers the least as to historical context, but then, let it be remembered, he has the least chance of being wrong!

Such views of the historical context drastically affect the possible primary fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy, as well as the potential secondary, or latter-day, fulfillment.

CONTEXT	PRIMARY FULFILLMENT	SECONDARY FULFILLMENT
1. Jehoshaphat	A period of drought during his reign, and a series of devastating locust plagues towards the end of that period (Joel 1). Then the impending invasion of the great Arab confederacy (Joel 2; 2Ch 20).	From Joel 2:18 onwards. An invasion from the north, but with a distinctly Arab flavor: the ‘nations round about’ (3:11,12, RV). Cp Joel 3:4-8 with Psa 83:6-8.
2. Jehoash	The four great Gentile oppressors of Judah -Babylon, Persian, Greece and Rome-depicted by four phases of a locust plague. (No immediate fulfillment).	The invasion of Gog and Magog… Rosh… etc (Eze 38), with emphasis on the composite character of the northern host (combining qualities of all four ‘world’ empires).
3. Uzziah	Assyria, Egypt, Babylon and Rome (No immediate fulfillment).	Much the same as #2 above.
4. Hezekiah	Sennacherib’s invasion from the north.	The northern host in its role as the latter day Assyrian.
5. Josiah	Four successive steps of the Babylonian captivity (2Ki 24:1,2,10-16; 25:1-11).	The great northern army, more or less synonymous with “Babylon”.
6. Jehoiakim and Zedekiah	Babylonian invasion, with four progressive stages, as in #5. (No literal locust invasion.)	The same as #5.

The above summary is intended only to give a basis for further study, and not to advocate one view above the others.

In conclusion, there is general agreement as to the latter-day counterpart of the locust or locust-like army of invasion. By common consent, it is seen to be the same host described in Ezekiel 38 and Zechariah 14. But it is worth noting that what we perceive as the immediate context of Joel affects our grasp of the details of the final fulfillment, one example being: Will there be Arab participation in the last great war in Israel? and if so, to what extent? And, another question: Are the valley of Jehoshaphat and Armageddon to be understood as identical (as in Eur 3:603)?

A final point: If so many can disagree as to the application of a prophecy of which the initial fulfillment is already past, then is it any wonder that they disagree on the future fulfillments of other prophecies? And if such disagreement has been tolerated on the interpretation of Joel without any noticeable dislocation of the Truth’s foundations, then why should it be thought a thing intolerable that brethren disagree, for example, on the interpretation of Revelation?

Why Jonah?

Of what significance was Jonah? Why would Jesus choose this rather obscure prophet as the only sign that he was Messiah? He tells them (and us): “As Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth” (v 40).

Jonah was God’s sign to the Ninevites of Assyria, a people who weren’t serving Him. If Jonah had not gone to Nineveh, how would its citizens have heard God’s message? By the LORD’s insistence, it was clear that this task belonged only to Jonah.

We must assume that God had a special purpose in ordering the proclamation of Himself to one of Israel’s enemies. If Nineveh, hearing the word of God, repented through fear of the judgment of heaven, then perhaps wayward Israel would be persuaded to take notice and follow their example, thus saving itself also from the wrath of God.

But Jonah tried to get out of his divinely-appointed task. He recognized that the growing might of Assyria was a threat to be feared. How long would it be before that rising tide of Assyrian expansion swept south to engulf his own land? Then why should he lift a finger or raise a voice to fend off the violent judgment of God upon such a nation?

So, rebellious, and with a certain feeling of self-righteousness and nationalistic pride, Jonah determined to have no part in preaching to Nineveh. In trying to evade his commission, Jonah took a ship and tried to flee from the presence of God (Jon 1:3). “Then the LORD sent a great wind on the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship threatened to break up” (v. 4). The sailors tried in vain to save the ship. Jonah was rousted from his sleep in the hold, and implored to explain the circumstances.

All were afraid when Jonah told them he was fleeing from his God, but there was nothing they could do — the ship was sinking. So after beseeching God to forgive them, “they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm” (v 15).

Jonah disappeared under the waves, went down to the bottom, and drowned (Jon 2:5-7). “But the LORD provided a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was inside the fish three days and three nights” (Jon 1:17).

No one ever expected to see him again. But “the LORD commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land” (Jon 2:10). Truly an amazing sign! But of what?

Why was Jonah saved?

Jonah was not delivered from this three days “grave” just to sit back peacefully and contemplate what had happened to him. He was delivered from death so that he could preach to the Ninevites. And finally (after a more circuitous and eventful journey than any other missionary ever took!), he reached his destination and went to work.

So, simply put, the worth of Jonah as a “sign” to an unbelieving generation was this: A man who had died was now alive! And empowered by God to preach to the Gentiles! What a sign for Israel, the would-be “people of God”. Jesus, the man like Jonah, would be killed by them; but God would raise him from the dead (Acts 2:22-24) — and the gospel which he preached to them, and which they refused, would be preached to the Gentiles (Act 2:39) — who would accept and repent!

That this was the intent of Jesus when citing the “sign” of Jonah is evident in his next words — as recorded by Matthew: Mat 12:41. And then, as if his lesson needed reinforcing, he referred also to another notable Gentile “conversion”: Mat 12:42. Nineveh repented; Jerusalem did not. The queen of Sheba sought wisdom; Jerusalem turned its back on the man who was the wisdom of God personified. Truly, one greater than Jonah, and greater than Solomon, was in their midst; and they were preparing to reject him! The sign of the prophet Jonah was more than a man dead and buried for three days, then resurrected. It was a contrast between the wise and the unwise, the repentant and the unrepentant — with warnings of destruction for those who refused to recognize the greatest prophet of God, Jesus Christ.

Paul’s commentary

Paul deals with this same theme: the repentance of the Gentiles as an object lesson, and as a means of provoking Israel likewise to repent: Rom 11:13-15,24,30,31).

A Last Days repentance

Scripture indicates that there will be a wholesale repentance of Israel in the Last Days (Lev 26:40-42; Deu 4:30; 30:1-7; Joel 2:12-20; Jer 31:17-20; 50:4,5; Mat 23:39; Act 3:19,20; Mat 6:10; Rev 22:17; Mat 24:22). This Last Days repentance will bring back their Messiah to save them from the latter-day “Assyrian”. The lesson from the prophet Jonah will finally have been learned!

(1)	Isa 25:7,8: the glorification of the saints will take place at Jerusalem/Zion. (“This mountain” can only be Zion: see Isa 24:23.) If the righteous will be given eternal life there, what is more reasonable than to conclude that the site of their judgment will be there also?
(2)	Also, Christ speaks repeatedly of Gehenna as the scene of punishment for the responsible wicked (many refs). Christadelphians have always been quick to show believers in “hell-torments” that Gehenna is a known locality, adjacent to Jerusalem, where the bodies of criminals, animal carcasses, and other garbage were burned. Is it fair to take Gehenna as literal when convenient, and figurative at other times, only to suit our preconceived notions? If Gehenna is indeed the literal place where the responsible wicked will be destroyed after the judgment by Christ, what does this tell us about the location of that judgment? Are we really prepared to argue that Gehenna is in the Sinai desert?
	Note also that twice in Christ’s earthly ministry, the temple area was the scene of his cleansing judgment against hypocritical professors of the Truth. And the fig tree which he cursed was also adjacent to Jerusalem!
(3)	Other passages favor Zion as the location of judgment, because it will be the scene of the saints’ reward: Psa 133:3 for one: “There (Mount Zion) the Lord commanded the blessing, even life for evermore.”
(4)	Psa 87:5: The Lord’s people are counted as having been born in Zion, because all their hopes and aspirations are centered upon that place. By a similar figure, their “mother” is Jerusalem (see Gal 4:26; Isa 54:1,11-13; cp Rev 21:2). What more beautiful than the completion of the process of “rebirth” in Zion? If the saints are “born” at baptism to be prospective children of Zion, then why not truly “born” after judgment in the glory of immortal bodies, again at Zion? Common sense would suggest that “children” should not be “born” hundreds of miles away from their “mother”!
(5)	Mat 25:31-34: A careful reading indicates that the separation of the “sheep” and the “goats” takes place at the same place where Christ’s “throne of glory” is located. Again, Christadelphians argue eloquently against those of other persuasions that the throne of Christ and David can only be in Jerusalem, and not in heaven (or Rome or Salt Lake City). If that is so for purposes of first principle arguments about the nature of the coming kingdom, then let us not shrink from the implication of such a passage as this in regard to the location of judgment. Are we really prepared to argue that Christ’s “throne of glory”, where he will sit as a King (Mat 25:34), will be set up for a time on Mount Sinai?
(6)	“His feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives” (Zec 14:4) — the same place where his feet last stood before his ascension into heaven (Act 1:9-12). Does it stand to reason that Christ will return first to the immediate locale of Jerusalem, and then immediately hustle off a couple of hundred miles to the southwest, for a special judgment at Sinai?
(7)	Other NT passages seem to call for the same interpretation: among them (a) Heb 12:18-24 (the context is certainly judgment: “Much more shall not we escape” — Heb 12:25); (b) Gal 4:24-28 (two covenants; Moses’ covenant at Sinai had to do with length of mortal days in the land, but Christ’s covenant at Jerusalem has to do with eternal life); and (c) Rev 5:6-10; 7:9-14; 14:1-5; and 19:1-9 (the scene of the saints’ reward is invariably the royal throne of Christ and Mt Zion).

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The location of the Judgment is called “an uncertain detail” by RR in Xd 35:185: “Where will Christ set up the judgment seat? Will it be in Palestine, or in Egypt, or in the Arabian peninsula, in the solitudes of Sinai? We cannot be sure… An uncertain detail must not be made a basis of fellowship. We must not insist upon a man believing the judgment seat will be set up at Sinai or any particular place so long as he believes that ‘Jesus Christ will judge the living and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom’.”

The traditional view that the resurrectional judgment will be at Sinai has been summarized by a number of writers. But the results are still far from conclusive. Only three passages, so far as I can determine, have ever been seriously advanced as “proof” of Sinai as the site of judgment: Deu 33:2,3; Psa 68:17; and Hab 3:3. Significantly, all three are in the Old Testament. Of course, we should interpret the Old by the New Testament, and by no means should Old Testament passages be ruled out in any study. But the resurrectional judgment, it must be admitted, is very much a New Testament doctrine otherwise — alluded to in the law and the prophets, but stated with clarity in all its particulars only in the New Testament. Then is it not a little strange that all the “evidence” for Sinai comes in the Old Testament?

First, a look at the three traditional “proofs”:

Deuteronomy 33:2,3: To Moses, Sinai was the place of God’s revelation to His people; he knew no other. The deliverance from Egypt and the wilderness trek were the focal points of his life. Therefore, when he speaks his final blessing upon the people, it is certainly fitting that “the Lord came from Sinai… with ten thousands of saints (certainly angels and not saints in this context! cp Psa 68:17)… and (with) a fiery law.” This same thing Yahweh had done before (Exo 19:16-19, etc)! So it would appear there are two reasonable interpretations of Deu 33:2,3: either (a) Moses is remembering what has already happened, or (b) the last revelation of God to Moses follows the patterns of the previous ones: ie, God coming out of the great fiery cloud atop Sinai.

Let us grant for a moment that, as some say, “the context calls for this to be a future blessing” — meaning, I take it, the distant future (from Moses’ day) of Christ’s return. (I would say this is possible, but not absolutely essential.) Then, since the words are addressed to the twelve tribes (just as Deuteronomy 28; 29, etc), is not the last-days fulfillment (if there is one) most likely to be a re-enactment of the Exodus and the giving of the Law for the remnant of the nation of Israel, imprisoned again in Egypt? To this Isaiah 11:11,15; 19:1,18-20; 63:11-19; and Micah 7:15 may well refer.

The other two passages quoted may be approached in the same way. Furthermore, as to Psalm 68:17: The context of the whole psalm is altogether concerning Zion! It was almost certainly written on the occasion of David’s bringing the ark of God to Zion at last (Psalm 24 is another with the same context). This was the culmination of an important phase in the Divine purpose which began with Israel’s deliverance from Egypt, proceeded to the giving of the Law at Sinai, and languished for several generations while the ark rested uneasily at a number of temporary locations. Now it was at last coming to its foreordained permanent dwelling place. With this background we now read Psalm 68:15-17:

* The “hill of God” is Zion (v 15), “… the hill which God desires to dwell in… forever” (v 16). These three verses contain two comparisons, ie:

* Zion is now (in David’s eye, and — prophetically — in the kingdom age) like the hills of Bashan (v 15), meaning majestic and towering and invincible. This is another way of saying that, when God dwells in Zion and His king (David or Christ) reigns there, Zion will be “lifted up”, first to rival and then to surpass the “mountains” (ie, kingdoms) of the Gentiles (Isa 2:2; Psa 48:2). This “lifting up” will be physical when Christ returns (Zec 14:4,8,10; Psa 48:2 again), but in David’s day the “lifting up” was just as real to him in the sense of Zion’s spiritual exaltation to the favor of God.

* Secondly, God is among the angels and the chariots (cherubim) there in Zion, like He was previously in Sinai (v 17). Zion is now (David’s day, and again of course with prophetic implications) like Sinai was — the scene of God’s glorious fiery manifestation.

With this understanding, v 17 may now be read, as it stands in the AV, with no need for modification: “The Lord is among them (the cherubim and angels), as (He had been) in Sinai, (but now) in the holy place (mount Zion!).” That this is the proper interpretation is borne out by such verses as 24 (“sanctuary” would be Zion) and 29 (temple at Jerusalem) and — as I have said — the whole of the psalm. So, if Psalm 68:17 proves anything in the matter of the location of the judgment seat, it proves that Zion and not Sinai will be the site!

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Habbakuk 3:3 may be prophetic, but again the effect of the mention of Sinai must be to draw an analogy between the mighty deeds of Yahweh in Moses’ day and the wonderful deliverance expected and prayed for by the prophet. However, where in all the chapter is the resurrectional judgment referred to — or even implied? It is not. We must make a far-reaching inference to use this passage as “proof” of the Sinai location. We must set up a dogmatic sequence of events, a sequence which may appear plausible, but about which we simply cannot be positive. It would be far more reasonable to interpret Scripture with Scripture, and surmise that the Sinaitic (and Egyptian) revelations of God in the last days will be for the purpose of saving the Jews out of Egypt (as the historical allusions imply), not for the judgment of the responsible out of all nations (see references in “1” above).

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Briefly, then, these are the scriptural reasons for the judgment seat of Christ being at Zion:

* Isaiah 25:7,8 states clearly that the glorification of the saints will take place in Jerusalem/Zion. (“This mountain” can only be Zion: see 24:23). If the righteous will be given eternal life there, what is more reasonable than to conclude that the site of their judgment will be there also?

* But this is not all: Christ speaks repeatedly of “Gehenna” as the scene of punishment for the responsible wicked (there are many references). Christadelphians have always been quick to show believers in “hell-torments” that “Gehenna” is a known locality, adjacent to Jerusalem, where the bodies of criminals, animal carcasses, and other garbage were burned. Is it fair to take “Gehenna” as literal when convenient, and figurative at other times, only to suit our preconceived notions? If “Gehenna” is indeed the literal place where the responsible wicked will be destroyed after judgment by Christ, what does this tell us about the location of that judgment? Are we really prepared to argue that Gehenna is in the Sinai desert? Note also that twice in Christ’s earthly ministry, the temple area was the scene of his cleansing judgment against hypocritical professors of the Truth. And the fig tree which he cursed was also adjacent to Jerusalem!

* Other passages favor Zion as the location of judgment, because it will be the scene of the saints’ reward: Psalm 133:3 for one: “There (Mount Zion) the Lord commanded the blessing, even life for evermore.“

* Psalm 87:5: The Lord’s people are counted as having been born in Zion, because all their hopes and aspirations are centered upon that place. By a similar figure, their “mother” is Jerusalem (Gal 4:26; Isa 54:1,11-13; Rev 21:2). What more beautiful than the completion of the process of “rebirth” in Zion? If the saints are “born” at baptism to be prospective children of Zion, then why not “born” after judgment in the glory of immortal bodies, again at Zion? Common sense tells us that “children” cannot be “born” hundreds of miles away from their “mother”!

* Matthew 25:31-34: A careful reading indicates that the separation of the “sheep” and the “goats” takes place at the same place as Christ’s “throne of glory”. Again, Christadelphians argue eloquently against those of other persuasions that the throne of Christ and David can only be in Jerusalem, and not in heaven or even elsewhere on the earth (Salt Lake City, Utah?). If that is so for purposes of first principle arguments about the nature of the coming kingdom, then let us not shrink from the implication of such a passage as this in regard to the location of Judgment. Are we really prepared to argue that Christ’s “throne of glory”, where he will sit as a King (v 34), will be set up for a time on Mount Sinai?

* Other New Testament passages seem to call for the same interpretation — among them (a) Heb 12:18-24 (the context is certainly judgment: “Much more shall not we escape” — v 25); (b) Gal 4:24-28 (two covenants; Moses’ covenant at Sinai had to do with length of mortal days in the land, but Christ’s covenant at Jerusalem has to do with eternal life); and (c) Rev 5:6-10; 7:9-14; 14:1-5; and 19:1-9 (the scene of the saints’ reward is invariably the royal throne of Christ and Mount Zion).

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One final point: We make a mistake if we elevate the location of the judgment to the status of a “first principle”, no matter which way we believe. In the first place, it was never intended so to be by our “pioneer brethren”.

[It might be well to note the following comment: “Where will (Christ) set (the judgment seat) up? Will it be in Palestine, or in Egypt, or in the Arabian peninsula, in the solitudes of Sinai? We cannot be sure… An uncertain detail must not be made a basis of fellowship. We must not insist upon a man believing the judgment seat will be set up at Sinai or any particular place so long as he believes that ‘Jesus Christ will judge the living and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom.’ ” — Robert Roberts, “True Principles and Uncertain Details”, The Christadelphian 35:185.]

And in the second place, there are no Scripture passages absolutely conclusive on the matter. We may think we know the exact order of future events, and exactly how and where each one will be fulfilled. But the true purpose of Bible prophecy is not to enable us to “bat 1,000” in our predictions, but to prepare us personally and as a body for the coming of Christ. Names and numbers and places and facts have a place in the study of prophecy, but they are only the framework. The heart of the matter is the love we hold for the Bridegroom and his appearing. But before he will be the Bridegroom, he must first be the Judge. It is not nearly as important where we will stand literally when he comes, as where we will stand spiritually in his eyes. “Depart from me” or “Come, ye blessed”? This we all know in theory, but it bears repeating, often and forcefully.

Addendum

A scarcely-explored thread runs through the whole of the Bible, which provides a further rationale for the basic premise of this article. This suggestion is certainly worth an entire study by itself, but we must be content here with the suggestion alone. There are some strong reasons for supposing that the garden of Eden was located at present-day Jerusalem. If this were so, then all sorts of Biblical allusions fall into place, many “loose ends” are surprisingly harmonized, portions of Genesis and Revelation fit together like pieces of a puzzle, and the coming judgment of the responsible — “where it all began” — appears the most reasonable thing in the whole world!

When President Reagan came to see Margaret Thatcher, she went to Heathrow Airport to meet him.

The Greeks and Romans had a similar custom. When a VIP came to visit some other dignitary, the local man was expected to travel outwards with his retainers until the two parties met. Then they would reform into one mass procession, with the local bigwig escorting his honored guest to his own provincial seat of government, in triumphal procession with great pomp.

There is a special Greek expression which was always (and only) used to describe this ceremony of meeting the incoming VIP. It occurs three times in the New Testament, thus:

1. “…We went towards Rome. And from thence, when the brethren heard of us, they came TO MEET [eis apantesin] us, as far as Appii Forum” (Acts 28:14,15).

Here, the Greek expression is used with its ordinary, earthly meaning. This shows that Luke and, presumably, the first-century church in general were familiar with the specialized use of this Greek phrase.

2. “The Lord himself shall descend from heaven… and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, TO MEET the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord” (1Th 4:16,17).

This presents us with a big problem that, as far as I am aware, has never been squarely faced. The Greek clearly indicates that the saints will be miraculously lifted up to meet the returning Lord at some point in the upper atmosphere, and then caused to escort him back, in joyful, triumphant procession, to the earth’s surface — there to be “ever with the Lord”. But wherever can we fit a literal judgment seat into this sequence of events? It can’t be before we are “caught up”, as this would then mean the “meeting in the air” would not be a “meeting” at all, in the sense of the Greek expression used. And it can’t be after we “meet the Lord in the air”, because there could be no joyful, triumphant meeting and procession if the wicked are still present and all concerned are still wondering whether they are destined for life or death!

3. “And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold the bridegroom cometh; go ye out TO MEET him… And while they [the five foolish virgins] went to buy, the bridegroom came, and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage…” (Mat 25:6,10).

This clinches the deduction made above from 1Th, that the unrighteous will not be present when the righteous meet their Lord. The invitation to “meet” him (in the special Greek sense of traveling outwards to meet an incoming potentate) went to both classes — but only the wise virgins were in a position to accept the invitation. The foolish virgins were left behind, and later found themselves locked out of the scene of rejoicing. It seems impossible to fit a literal judgment seat into this sequence, either.

So what are we to make of all this? Does Scripture intend us to regard the judgment seat as real in essence, but symbolic rather than literal in its nature? (Just as the Biblical devil is real enough in essence, but is a symbolic devil and not a literal one.) Or is there some other explanation that fits the facts better? (AH)

The Heb word “eretz” may signify either “earth” (ie the globe as a whole) or “land” (ie a country or territory, in a more restricted sense). [“The second major use of eretz is to designate a particular territory” (Laird, Archer, and Waltke, Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament, p 74).] This second meaning is most familiar, perhaps, in the phrase “Eretz Israel” (the Land of Israel). In the Greek, “ge” reproduces the same ambiguity found in “eretz” [see Footnote, at end of article].

The meaning attached to these two quite common words may have profound implications for the interpretation of prophecy, particularly in those books that deal most especially with the Last Days: Daniel in the Old Testament and Revelation in the New.

“Eretz” in Daniel

In Daniel, the word “eretz” is used about 40 times. [This total includes the Aramaic word “ara”, which is used in the Aramaic portions of Daniel (Dan 2-7), is cognate with the Hebrew “eretz”, and is considered by the authorities to be equivalent to “eretz”.] Does “eretz”/”ara” mean the whole world? Or does it mean some specific Land?

Obviously, a number of occurrences of “eretz” or “ara” in Daniel are, by themselves, ambiguous on this point — else, this would not be a matter for investigation! But some passages do give fairly clear direction as to how “eretz” should be read in Daniel:

• Dan 1:2: “These [articles from the temple of God] he [Nebuchadnezzar] carried off to the temple of his god in Babylon [lit, the ‘eretz’ of Shinar]…”: Plainly, “eretz” refers to a specific, and narrowly-restricted land, not to the whole globe.
• Dan 2:39: “Next, a third kingdom, one of bronze, will rule over the whole ‘ara’ (‘eretz’)…”: The Greek empire of Alexander the Great, big as it was, did not cover all the earth, not even all known civilization. But it did rule over the whole “Land of Israel” .
• Dan 4:1: “King Nebuchadnezzar, to the peoples, nations, and men of every language, who live in all the ‘ara’ “: But the Babylonian Empire covered only Mesopotamia and a part of the Middle East.
• Dan 4:10: “I [Nebuchadnezzar] looked and there before me stood a tree in the middle of the ‘ara’ “: By Daniel’s own interpretation, the tree represented Nebuchadnezzar (Dan 4:22). He was visible to the end of the “Land” (Dan 4:11,20) — ie, to the end of his own domain, not the ends of the globe! All in all, “ara” appears 10 times in this chapter, each instance plainly meaning the specific Land over which Nebuchadnezzar ruled.
• Dan 6:25: “Then king Darius wrote to all the peoples, nations, and men of every language throughout the ‘ara’ “: The same idea of “land” as Dan 4:1, except the restricted “Land” here is the Medo-Persian Empire, not the Babylonian.
• Dan 9:6: Daniel prays: “We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes and our fathers, and to all the people of the ‘eretz’ “: As the context (Dan 9:7) makes plain, the people to whom the prophets spoke were the people of the “Land” of Israel, not the people of the whole earth!

So, in Daniel, the “eretz” (or “ara”) is not the whole globe, but a particular part of it, occupied successively by the Babylonian, Medo-Persian, and Greek Empires of antiquity. Notice also the “Land (‘eretz’) promised to Abraham’s seed”, as defined in Gen 15:18: from the “river of Egypt” to the Euphrates; such a “land” was roughly equivalent to the “lands” of these empires.

Now see how this precise delineation of the “eretz”/”ara” of Daniel’s prophecy has significant effect on the interpretations of this Book:

(1) “The fourth beast is a fourth kingdom which will appear on the ‘ara’… It will devour the whole ara, trampling down and crushing it” (Dan 7:23). The fourth kingdom (Rome) was to be no more of a truly “world empire” than were the first three (Babylon, Medo-Persia, and Greece). Nor would it “trample down and crush” even the whole of its own domains; rather, the Romans most often brought law and order and peace to barbarian rabble.

But these words were especially true of Rome’s relations with the little province of Judea — the land (“eretz”) promised, Biblically, to Abraham and his seed (Gen 13:15-18), and thus to Christ and his brethren (Gal 3:16,27-29). Unable to tame the recalcitrant Jews who lived there, the Romans finally trampled down Jerusalem and its temple, plowed the rubble under, sold into slavery all survivors of the nation, and forbade their return to the land of their forefathers — all in fulfillment of Christ’s prophecy (Mat 23:36-38; 24:1,2; Mar 13:2; Luk 21:6,20-24).

(2) “He [the King of the North] will invade the ‘eretz’ [‘many’ is not in the original] and sweep through… like a flood. He will invade the beautiful ‘eretz’. Many [‘countries’ is not in the original here] will fall, but Edom, Moab and the leaders of Ammon will be delivered from his hand. He will extend his power over the ‘eretz’; Egypt will not escape… He will pitch his royal tents between the seas [Mediterranean Sea and Dead Sea] at the beautiful holy mountain [the Temple Mount, at Jerusalem]. Yet he will come to his end, and no one will help him” (Dan 11:40-45). What is plain here, by the context, is that the “King of the North” is particularly attracted to the “eretz” of Israel, and that this special Land encompasses also Edom, Moab, and Ammon (modern Jordan) as well as Egypt. This Land (“eretz”/”ara”) — controlled successively by the empires of Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome — is the “theater” in which God generally operates.

Also, “at that time” of Dan 12:1 links Dan 12 irrevocably with Dan 11. This indicates that “the time, times and half a time” (Dan 12:7), the 1,290 days (Dan 12:11), and the 1,335 days (Dan 12:12) — each a period of roughly 3 1/2 years — give the duration of the Last Days “trampling down” of the beautiful land (Israel) and the beautiful holy mountain (at Jerusalem). This period ends with the resurrection and judgment (Dan 12:1-4), and the “end of the days” (Dan 12:13). So the time period of 3 1/2 years, which also figures prominently in the Book of Revelation, obviously has to do with the “eretz” of Israel in the Last Days — not with Europe during the Middle Ages. The right definition of “eretz” in Daniel helps to determine the proper setting for such prophecies.

“Ge” in Revelation

In Revelation, does the word “ge” (used about 80 times) mean the whole world? Or does it mean some specific Land? [” ‘Ge’ may denote a country or territory” (WE Vine, Expository Dictionary of NT Words 2:13).] While the Apocalypse surely speaks of events that ultimately have a great effect on the whole world, there is good reason to believe that much of the action (like that of other Bible prophecies) takes place in the more restricted arena of the Middle East.

Once again, a number of occurrences of “ge” in Revelation are ambiguous on this point, or offer no evidence in the immediate context by which may be determined the extent of the territory involved. But some passages do give us fairly clear direction as to how “ge” should be read in Revelation:

• Rev 1:7: “Look, he is coming with the clouds; and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the ‘ge’ will mourn because of him.” This quotes Zec 12:10 — 13:1, where the peoples of the “eretz” are the tribes of Israel!
• Rev 6:13: “And the stars in the sky fell to ‘ge’, as late figs drop from a fig tree when shaken by a strong wind”: The stars falling to the ‘ge’ are compared to the fig tree (Biblical symbol of Israel) losing its fruit.
• Rev 7:1,2: “After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the ‘ge’, holding back the four winds of the ‘ge’ to prevent any wind from blowing on the ‘ge’ or on the sea or on any tree. Then I saw another angel coming up from the east, having the seal of the living God. He called out in a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to harm the ‘ge’ and the sea”: This is a quotation from Eze 7:2: “the four corners of the land (‘eretz’)” of Israel.
• Rev 7:3: “Do not harm the ‘ge’ or the sea or the trees until we put a seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God”: The servants who are sealed are out of the twelve tribes of Israel (Rev 7:4-8; cp Rev 14:3).
• Rev 9:3: “And out of the smoke locusts came down upon the ‘ge’ and were given power like that of scorpions of the ‘ge’ “: A clear allusion to Joel’s prophecy, of a great “locust” [the Hebrew word is closely related to the Hebrew for ‘Arab’] invasion of Israel.
• Rev 14:15: “Take your sickle and reap, because the time to reap has come, for the harvest of the ‘ge’ is ripe”: The subsequent treading of the “winepress” (cp Rev 14:16-19) causes blood to flow for 1,600 “stadia” (about 200 miles), which happens to be the very distance from the north to the south of Israel!
• Rev 20:8,9: “(Satan) will go out to deceive the nations in the four corners of the ‘ge’ — Gog and Magog — to gather them for battle… They marched across the breadth of the ‘ge’ and surrounded the camp of God’s people”: Very similar to Rev 7:1,2. The four quarters, or corners, of the whole world? (Literally, of course, there are no such things as four corners of the whole world!) Or the four corners of a particular “land”, THE Land? The geography of Eze 38; 39 (also about “Gog and Magog”) helps to limit and define the Land of Revelation: the allies of Gog are at the four corners of the Land promised to Abraham and his seed (Gen 13:15-18; 15:18): Libya at the west corner, Ethiopia/Sudan at the south corner, Persia at the east corner, and the others at the north corner.
• Rev 21:1: “Then I saw a new heaven and a new ‘ge’, for the first heaven and the first ‘ge’ had passed away”: This quotes Isa 65:17,18, where — by common Hebrew parallelism — “new heavens” = “Jerusalem a delight”, and “new eretz” = “its people a joy”.

Kings of the “Ge”

Another set of passages in Revelation links “ge” with certain kings. Who are these “kings of the ge”? Are they kings (and rulers) of all nations in the world? Or are they some subset thereof? If we can use Scripture to determine their identity, then we will have a good idea as to the limits (if any) of the particular “ge” in which the events of Revelation are played out:

• Rev 6:15: “Then the kings of the earth… .hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains”: This is a quotation from Psa 2:2, where the “kings of the earth” were, in the first place, the kings of Philistia, Moab, Syria, Ammon, and Edom (2Sa 8), who opposed the rule of David in Jerusalem.
• Rev 16:14: “They are the spirits of demons performing miraculous signs, and they go out to the kings of the earth… [The AV text uses ‘ge’ alongside ‘oikoumene’ (which signifies ‘the habitable world’); some texts (and consequently some versions) omit ‘ge’/earth altogether.] to gather them for the battle on the great day of God Almighty”: A quotation from Zec 14:2,3 — where “all nations” means “all surrounding nations” (Zec 14:14), and the only nations listed in the context are Egypt (Zec 14:18,19) and the Canaanites (Zec 14:21).
• Rev 17:2: “With her the kings of the earth committed adultery and the inhabitants of the earth were intoxicated with the wine of her adulteries”: Quoting Jer 51:7, where the nations have drunk of the golden cup of Babylon. What nations? All the “mixed”, or “mingled” [Heb ‘ereb’, the word for ‘Arab’!] nations (cp Jer 25:17-25)!
• Rev 21:23-26: This is the most decisive of the Rev passages in identifying the “kings of the ge”. These verses are an extended allusion to Isa 60: “Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn… Then you will look and be radiant, your heart will throb and swell with joy; the wealth on the seas will be brought to you, to you the riches of the nations will come… Your gates will always stand open, they will never be shut, day or night, so that men may bring you the wealth of the nations — their kings led in triumphal procession… the sun will no more be your light by day, nor will the brightness of the moon shine on you, for the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory…” The kings of the “eretz”, or “ge”, who bring their gifts into a glorified Jerusalem are plainly identified by Isaiah as Midian, Ephah, Sheba, Kedar, Nebaioth (Isa 60:6,7), and Lebanon (Isa 60:13) — all Arab peoples!

The thirty of so passages in the above surveys help, by their OT contexts, to define and limit the “ge” intended in the Apocalypse. They strongly suggest that the other 50 or so occurrences of “ge” might profitably be read and interpreted along the same lines.

Of these remaining passages using “ge”:

• 4 have to do with the seals (Rev 6);
• 9 have to do with the trumpets (Rev 8-10);
• 3 have to do with the vials or bowls (Rev 16);
• 5 have to do with the witnesses (Rev 11), who perish in Jerusalem (Rev 11:8);
• 5 have to do with the Dragon cast out of “heaven”; and
• 6 have to do with the Beast.

So this is strong evidence that the seals, trumpets, and vials all have to do with a specific Land — a Land bounded on all four corners by the key nations listed in Ezekiel 38; 39… a Land occupied by Israel and ten antagonistic kings… the Land described in Genesis 15:18.

This particular Land is also the arena, or “theater”, in which the witnesses and the Dragon and the Beast operate.

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Footnote:

Alfred Edersheim, the noted Hebrew scholar, has this to say about the Biblical use of “the land”:

“Palestine was to the Rabbis simply ‘the land’, all other countries being summed up under the designation of ‘outside the land.’ In the Talmud, even the expression ‘Holy Land,’ so common among later Jews and Christians, does not once occur. It needed not that addition, which might have suggested a comparison with other countries; for to the Rabbinist Palestine was not only holy, but the only holy ground, to the utter exclusion of all other countries, although they marked within its boundaries an ascending scale of ten degrees of sanctity, rising from the bare soil of Palestine to the most holy place in the Temple…

“But ‘outside the land’ everything was darkness and death. The very dust of a heathen country was unclean, and it defiled by contact. It was regarded like a grave, or like the putrescence of death. If a spot of heathen dust had touched an offering, it must at once be burnt. More than that, if by mischance any heathen dust had been brought into Palestine, it did not and could not mingle with that of ‘the land,’ but remained to the end what it had been — unclean, defiled, and defiling everything to which it adhered…

“It was to the extreme boundary tracts of ‘the land,’ that Jesus had withdrawn from the Pharisees, when they were offended at his opposition to their ‘blind’ traditionalism; and there he healed by the word of his power the daughter of the ‘woman of Canaan,’ the intensity of whose faith drew from his lips words of precious commendation (Mat 15:28; Mar 7:29).

“It was chiefly a heathen district where the Saviour spoke the word of healing, and where the woman would not let the Messiah of Israel go without an answer. She herself was a Gentile. Indeed, not only that district, but all around, and farther on, the territory of Philip, was almost entirely heathen. More than that, strange as it may sound, all around the districts inhabited by the Jews the country was, so to speak, fringed by foreign nationalities and by heathen worship, rites, and customs” (“Sketches of Jewish Social Life”).

1. A world buildup of crises — wars, famines (droughts), pestilence (epidemics, pollution), and earthquakes will become more prevalent and more frequent around the globe (Mat 24:6,7; Mar 13:7,8; Luk 21:10,11; Rev 6:2-8).
2. Chaos in world leadership — statesmen, corporation heads, economists, scientists, and strategists will find that they cannot cope with these “natural” and man-made disasters that pile one on top of the other. This is but the beginning of their total helplessness, with no available solution except the feeblest stop-gap measures (Luk 21:25,26; Isa 24:4-13; 13:6-13).
3. An increase in nationalism — where every nation looks more and more to its own interests during the economic slumps and crises, and where armaments also increase (Luk 21:10; Joe 3:9,10; Dan 2:41-43).
4. An attack on Israel — the culmination of intense anti-Semitic feeling around the world, particularly by the Arabs, who foster those feelings by oil market manipulation, self-serving propaganda, and “jihad” frenzy (Psa 83; Eze 35; 36; Oba; Zec 14; Luk 21:2-24; Rev 11:2).
5. Initial divine judgments on the world — because they have cursed God’s people and are filled with violence and wickedness, as in the days of Noah and Lot (Gen 12:3; Zec 2:8,9; Oba 1:15; Luk 17:26-30; Rev 8; 9).
6. Pockets of faithful witnessing — that God is forewarning mankind via these plagues (as He did through Moses in Egypt), that they should repent and be ready for the coming of Christ (Mat 24:14; Mar 13:10; Rev 11:4-6; 14:7,8).
7. Reactions of stubbornness and apostasy — few will heed the Gospel message, and many will leave the faith; false prophets will abound and mankind will become utterly degenerate, cursing God and His faithful few (2Ti 3:1-5; Mat 24:10-12,24; Rev 9:20,21; 11:7-10).
8. A great tribulation settles on Israel and the world — perhaps lasting 3 1/2 years (Luk 21:20-24; Rev 11:2,3; Jer 30:7)! It will be a time of total confusion and despair and misery; some countries will have totalitarian-type governments who suppress and oppress in order to have some semblance of control (Mat 24:21,22; Rev 13; 12:17; Dan 7:23-25).
9. The coming of “Elijah” — probably an Elijah-like prophet of the Last Days (Mat 17:11) — who will preach to the oppressed of Israel (Mal 3:1; 4:5,6) during the 3 1/2 years (Luk 4:25; Jam 5:17,18; Dan 12:7; Rev 11).
10. Repentance of the remnant of Israel, along with the faithful prayers of believers everywhere, will bring back Christ before the world destroys itself (Lev 26:40-42; Deu 4:30; 30:1-7; Joe 2:12-20; Jer 31:17-20; 50:4,5; Mat 23:39; Act 3:19,20; Mat 6:10; Rev 22:17; Mat 24:22).
11. Christ’s Return — visible, with clouds of glory, and with the angels, whom he sends to raise the dead and gather the faithful to himself (Mat 24:30,31; 1Th 4:16,17; Act 24:15; Joh 5:29; 1Co 15:51-54; Mat 25:31-46; Rev 20:4-6,11-15). He comes back to the Mount of Olives, initiating a tremendous earthquake (Act 1:10-12; Zec 14:3-5; Rev 16:17-21).
12. This will also involve, at the same time, the deliverance of faithful Israel — oppressed Jews in and around Jerusalem are delivered by the King of Glory (Joe 2:32; Luk 21:27,28; Zec 12:9-11; Mat 23:37-39; Psa 24:7-9). Jews who have been carried captive into Assyria and Egypt will be brought back to Israel by a “second exodus” (Isa 11:11-16; 19:20-25; 60:9; 63:11-14; Mic 7:15).
13. The wrath of God appears concurrent with Jesus’ coming, with total destruction being poured out on the enemies of Israel, and on other centers of evil (after the example of Sodom), and with wicked men being annihilated (2Th 1:5-9; Mat 13:41,42; Rev 11:17,18; 16:1-10; Dan 2:44,45; 7:11,26; Is 13:11 with Rev 6:12-17).
14. A last attempt to defeat Christ and his glorified saints will come from Gog and its allies (Eze 38; 39; Rev 19:11-21; 20:8-10). This rebellion will be speedily crushed.
15. The Millennium (ie 1,000-year reign of Christ on the earth) will fill the earth with the Glory of the Lord, and bring peace and righteousness to all (Num 14:21; Isa 11:9; Hab 2:14; Psa 72; Isa 2:2-4; Isa 35; Zec 14:16; Rev 20:6).
16. The effect of the Millennial Reign of Christ and his saints will be that all sin and death is removed from the earth, so that — finally — God will be “All in all” (1Co 15:24-28,54-57; Rev 21:3,4,22-27; 22:3-5).

Bible teaching about the “little horn”:

1. It arises after the ten horns…
2. …but out of their midst;
3. it uproots three of the ten; and
4. it has eyes like a man, and a mouth speaking boastfully (Dan 7:8), against God (Dan 7:25).
5. It is a king, but different from the other kings (Dan 7:24).
6. It fights against the “saints” (God’s people, or Israel in this case) and defeats them (Dan 7:21).
7. It rules over them (Israel) until Christ comes (Dan 7:22).
8. it continues for “time, times, and half a time”, or 3 1/2 years (Dan 7:25).

Consider the Arab nations in prophecy:

1. the ten nations of Psalm 83, avowed enemies of God and His nation in Bible times;
2. their modern-day Arab counterparts; and
3. ten Arab nations surrounding Israel: These nations were “born” in the same generation as was Israel — from 26 years before 1948 to 23 years after: Egypt (1922), Jordan (1949), Syria (1946), Lebanon (1943), Iraq (1932), Saudi Arabia (1932), Kuwait (16963), Bahrain (1971), Qatar (1971), and UAE (1971). They are “all the trees” in the Middle East, to which Jesus referred when he prophesied of the Last Days: Luk 21:29-31.

Along with these, there is also a possible eleventh “horn” that may arise considerably after the other ten. This may well be the “little horn” of Palestine, newly struggling to independence in 1993, whereas the other ten “horns” have been independent since 1922 (the earliest) through 1971 (the latest). Now, more than 20 years later, there comes on the Middle Eastern scene an eleventh independent (or almost independent!) Arab nation. Does Palestine fit the Bible description of the “little horn”?

1. It does arise after the other 10.
2. It does arise out of their very midst.
3. Will it uproot three others? There are presently sizeable contingents of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan. In Jordan, in fact, the Palestinians pose a serious threat to the stability of King Hussein’s government. In many ways, Lebanon has already been consumed, by the 1982 war and the subsequent takeover by Syria.
4. The leader of the Palestinians — at this time Yasser Arafat — has made a career of speaking “boastful” threats against Israel (and, by implication, against the God of Israel) — just as did Goliath, the Philistine (or “Palestinian”) enemy of Israel in David’s day. If Arafat and the PLO were displaced as the leadership of an independent Palestine by even more radical leaders out of Hamas or other Muslim fundamentalist groups, such “boastful”, threatening, blasphemous verbal attacks against Israel would escalate.
5. This “little horn” is different in the way it is established: it has been legitimatized by Israel, and it is not initially an official state.
6. This “little horn”, by its threats and bluster, will bring about the last great “holy war” against the Jewish infidels!
7. The war against, and victory over, Israel…
8. and a brutal oppression of 3 1/2 years… are, of course, yet future events. But who better than the Palestinians to trigger such a final Arab “holy war” against Israel?

The Beast of Rev 13: The “little horn” shares characteristics with the Beast of Rev 13:

The little horn (Dan 7)	The beast (Rev 13)
“Different” from the others (Dan 7:24)	“Different” from the others (Rev 13:8)
“A mouth speaking boastfully” (Dan 7:8)…	“A mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies” (Rev 13:5)…
“…against the Most High” (Dan 7:25)	“…to blaspheme God and to slander his name” (Rev 13:6)
“To wage war against the saints and defeat them” (Dan 7:21)	“To make war against the saints and conquer them” (Rev 13:7)

This leads to one of two conclusions: Either…

1. The “little horn” becomes the whole Beast — ie, assumes headship of the whole Arab confederation; or
2. The “little horn” works so closely with the Beast that their objectives and actions are interchangeable.

The characteristics and activities of the “latter day” “horn” described in Dan 8:9-12,23-25 reinforce this conclusion.

At the very least, the “little horn” takes precedence over the other horns and acts as a catalyst for the last great defeat of God’s people Israel.

The “Fatal Wound”

The Beast of Revelation will suffer a “fatal wound”, but will be healed “miraculously” (Rev 13:3,12). If the Beast and the “little horn” are equivalent, then what “fatal wound” has Palestine suffered? Possibly, the seemingly insurmountable defeats suffered by the PLO in the 1970s and 1980s should be considered the “fatal wound”, from which the “phoenix” Arafat has recovered (even literally rising out of a plane crash to resume leadership of the PLO). Some thought the PLO had been effectively destroyed by the Israelis’ 1982 invasion. Perhaps the “fatal wound” was the doldrums in which the whole of the Palestinian nation had fallen, with no real hope of statehood, until quite recently.

Or is the final “fatal wound” yet in the future for Palestine — one tremendous defeat from which the nation, with a special leader, rises up again, still speaking great and blasphemous words against Israel and Israel’s God?

Conclusion

It is obviously too early in the process for anyone to fully identify and explain all the details. Certainly no one has “all the answers”. However, it is possible that the PLO will be the primary candidate for the “little horn” of Daniel. By implication, the PLO is also a major factor in the interpretation of the Revelation beast.

Some questions to be considered in the upcoming months and years:

1. Will Arafat survive the challenges to his authority, or even the threats on his life?
2. Will Hamas supplant the PLO as the “legitimate” political arm of the Palestinian people?
3. Will the rich Arab gulf states support the “new order” financially?
4. Will the Palestinians continue to grow in power in Jordan?
5. Will the “peace treaty” inspire a militant Jewish backlash?
6. How will ongoing discussions about the fate of Jerusalem affect the total picture?
7. Will the U.S. continue to provide economic and military support to Israel?

Some areas to watch:

1. The Middle East in general, and Israel in particular.
2. Jerusalem’s Temple Mount, where the conflicting claims of Muslims and Jews will never be reconciled.
3. Arafat, the PLO, Hamas, and the Palestinian peoples in Gaza and West Bank!

Who is the “man of sin”, or “lawlessness”, referred to in 2Th 2:3? The pope? Garner Ted Armstrong? Jerry Falwell? Some Middle East demagogue yet to appear on the scene? The Bible text does not give a name. But there is much information given for us to consider.

Immediate context

The context concerns “the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our assembling to meet him” (v 1), a subject also discussed in 1Th 4:13 — 5:11. Paul tells the brethren “not to be quickly shaken in mind or excited, either by spirit or by word, or by letter purporting to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come” (2Th 2:2), a warning previously given by Jesus himself (Mat 24:4,5,10,11,23-27). Apparently, there was false and hurtful information being rumored in Thessalonica. So Paul was putting things straight, saying: “So then, brethren, stand firm and hold to the traditions which you were taught by us, either by word or mouth or by letter” (2Th 2:15), and Paul seems to have begun specially marking his letters so as to establish their authenticity (2Th 3:17).

Paul’s message was obviously immediately applicable to his readers (else why would he write it?); however, the subject matter also clearly refers to the Second Coming of Christ (2Th 2:8; 1:7,10). Therefore, both present and future situations were being discussed. For example, Paul writes that God “deems it just to repay with affliction those who afflict you” (a present happening to the Thessalonians: 2Th 1:4), “when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels” (still a future event: 2Th 1:10). So when the verb tenses in 2Th 2 are found to be both present and future (thus allowing both a first century and a Last Days interpretation), it is not surprising.

We should expect, therefore, that “the man of lawlessness” (1) refers to some wickedness in Paul’s day, and (2) also points forward to something similar in our own day.

Key Clue and Overall Context

“For that day [of the Lord’s coming] will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of perdition” (v 3). Since Judas is also called “the son of perdition” (Joh 17:12), we are given a key Bible clue as to the character of this man of lawlessness. Like Judas, he is outwardly a disciple, but in reality he is a betrayer, a thief, a “devil” (ie, liar), a false apostle, a “satan” (ie, adversary) against the truth (Joh 6:70; Luk 22:3). “The coming of the lawless one by the activity of Satan will be with all power and with pretended signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are to perish….” (2Th 2:9,10). 2Co 12:12 describes the work of a true apostle in terms almost identical with this verse, indicating that Paul is here exposing the work of a false apostle. This reinforces the idea that this “man of lawlessness” appears at first to be a powerful believer, but who is instead revealed to be a traitor.

This description is also a remarkable likeness to Jesus’ prediction in Mat 24:24 about false prophets arising and showing great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray even the elect. Jesus’ warning also emphasizes how important it is for us to understand these scriptures, lest we be led astray. At this point, what Paul wrote to the Corinthians is very relevant:

“And what I do I will continue to do, in order to undermine the claim of those who would like to claim that in their boasted mission they work on the same terms as we do… Such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ… No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light” (2Co 11:12-14). These words confirm that Paul was warning against a group of undermining brethren (not an individual) who were labeled “satan” (cp 1Th 2:18,16; 3:5). These deceivers are comparable to John’s “antichrist”, a group, not an individual (cp 1Jo 4:1,3; 2:18,19; 2Jo 1:7). Like Jesus and John, Paul is keen to warn the brethren and expose this false movement.

Further confirmation is found in Gal 2:4, where Paul laments the treacherous work of false brethren “secretly brought in, who slipped in to spy out our freedom in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage”. He did not yield for a moment, but strongly resisted the intrusion of these “Judaizers”, members of the “circumcision party” (Gal 2:12; cp Acts 11:2; 15:1,5), who were preaching a different gospel (Gal 1:6-9; cp 2Co 11:4,5). Paul was contending for the loyalty of the Galatians and against the circumcision party “that the truth of the gospel might be preserved for you” (Gal 2:5,14). He was now doing the same with the Thessalonians, declaring that “God chose you from the beginning to be saved through sanctification of the Spirit and belief in the truth. To this he called you through our gospel….” (2Th 2:13,14).

Summarizing so far, we started with the “son of perdition” clue, and have established an overall context of Paul’s writing, namely, his struggles against the false-brethren Judaizers. This provides a very helpful background to understand the terms and ideas next encountered in the 2Th 2 passage.

First-Century Application

“[He] opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God” (2Th 2:4). Understanding a few terms will help here. The “temple of God” often refers to the household of believers, and not necessarily to a physical building (Eph 2:21; Joh 2:19, 1Co 3:16). “Proclaiming himself to be God” is merely claiming divine authority, not divinity itself (this is the sense of the Greek text). Therefore this verse is confirming what was found to be characteristic of the Judaizing brethren: they proclaimed to know and teach the way to salvation (through circumcision) and openly opposed Paul on the matter (Acts 15:1-5), claiming they were also “apostles” (2Co 11:5; 12:11,12).

“Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you this? And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way” (2Th 2:5-7). Little is recorded in Acts 17:1-9 concerning what Paul said to the Thessalonians, but we do have his first letter to them. We can glean some clues from his words in 1Th 2:3-6,18, and especially 1Th 3:2-5. Timothy was Paul’s fellow servant sent to establish them in their faith and to exhort them to resist the Judaizing tempters (cp 2Co 11:3-5). The “mystery” or “secret” is now understandable in light of the foregoing. Men from within the ranks of believers were already assaulting the truth of the gospel. Paul was one of the few who perceived the treachery of these false apostles and was steadfastly restraining their pernicious work. When he died, however, their evil work would go unchecked.

This interpretation is verified by reference to Acts 20:29-31, where Paul warns the Ephesian elders: “I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves will arise men speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them. Therefore be alert….”

Last Days Application

“And then the lawless one will be revealed, and the Lord Jesus will slay him with the breath of his mouth and destroy him by his appearing and his coming” (2Th 2:8). Verse 8 really comes in thought immediately after v 3, for it speaks of when the lawless one will be revealed, and that exposure/destruction occurs with the Coming of Jesus. V 4 is just a descriptive elaboration upon the man of lawlessness, while vv 5-7 are actually an aside or parenthetical remark. Here in 2Th 2:8 the destruction of the man of lawlessness is the same as that mentioned earlier in 2Th 1:8-10: “Inflicting vengeance upon those who… do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They shall suffer the punishment of eternal destruction and exclusion from the presence of the Lord… when he comes on that day to be glorified in his saints…” The plural “they” illustrates that the “man of lawlessness” represents a group, not a single individual. Christ’s coming was obviously a future event, even in Paul’s time, although he would not guess that another 2,000 years would pass.

The “appearing and coming of the Lord” is a phrase similar to that in 2Ti 4:1, and entails the judgment of the living and the dead (cp 1Th 4:14,15), which means the reward of the faithful and the condemnation of the faithless (2Ti 4:8). “And with all wicked deception for those who are to perish, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. Therefore God sends upon them a strong delusion, to make them believe what is false, so that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness” (2Th 2:10-12). These are very sobering words. Thinking about Judas, it underscores how terrible it was to be a “son of perdition”. Clearly Judas chose to be a thief, a betrayer, and ultimately a man who could see no way for repentance; and so he hanged himself. Judas refused to “love the truth” (ie accept Jesus and his instruction); therefore, he could not be saved (Acts 4:12). Judas was a child of the devil, a man of sin, a man of lawlessness (1Jo 2:4-10) who “did not believe the truth” (Joh 8:44; Rom 1:25), and therefore placed himself outside, making his condemnation inevitable (Joh 13:30; Rev 22:15).

Think about people like Judas. They are those within the circle of disciples who “had pleasure in unrighteousness” (2Ti 3:1-5, a reference to the ecclesial world!). In 1Ti 6:3-10, it speaks of those within the church whose incessant controversial activity and base suspicions and slander label them as men “bereft of the truth”, and whose seeking to be rich (in status too?) caused them to “wander from the faith”. This is a “Last Days” sign (2Ti 4:1).

Who are candidates for the Last Days “man of sin”? Men who fit the description given in Scripture! That means looking within Christendom. It means whole organizations or sects could be involved. It suggests that no denomination is excluded. So the various accusations over the years — “it’s the Jesuits”, “it’s the World Council of Churches”, “it’s the Southern Baptist Conference liberals”, etc — may all be correct! But Scripture does not name anyone explicitly (how could it?). As Judas was not revealed until the last moment by Jesus, so the modern “men of sin” will not be revealed until Christ’s coming. Until then, wheat and tares (weeds) will be allowed to “grow together until the harvest”, and then Christ will have his reaper angels gather and burn the evildoers, leaving the righteous to shine in the kingdom (Mat 13:28-30,40-43).

Personal Application

2Ti 3:8-13 describes men “of corrupt mind and counterfeit faith, men who also oppose the truth” ; these “impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceivers and deceived….”. And 2Ti 4:3,4 describes people who “will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears will accumulate to themselves teachers to suit their own liking, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander into myths”. So “men of sin” inevitably and successfully attract a following, who are convinced in the “rightness” of their leader. How can a disciple not be deceived? By using the truth of Scripture (2Ti 3:14-16; 1Ti 4:1-5). The warning to us is plain: Understand and live God’s truth for yourself:

“Take heed to yourself and to your teaching; hold to that, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers” (1Ti 4:16). Recognize those in your midst who are manifesting the Judaizing beliefs and behavior, and resist/oppose them, with meekness and love, as did Paul and Timothy (2Ti 2:22-26; 4:5). The Lord will rescue such disciples from every evil and save them for his heavenly kingdom (2Ti 4:18).