An Elusive Warlord’s Deadly ‘Sleepers’: Osama Bin Laden Monday, September 17, 2001 By Peter Bergen

I met Osama Bin Laden on a frigid night in March 1997, deep in the barren mountains of eastern Afghanistan, a year after he first declared war on America. The mysterious Saudi multi-millionaire, a tall figure with an aristocratic demeanor, walked with the help of a cane. His calls for attacks on U.S. targets were delivered in a mild manner, belying the rage of his words.

A key to his holy war against America may be found in his childhood. His father, Mohamed Bin Laden, emigrated in 1930 from Yemen to Saudi Arabia, where he founded a construction company and became one of the richest men in Arabia. Mohamed combined business acumen with a deep religious faith, traits that he passed on to some of his 50 or so children. The family had the singular honour of renovating and maintaining Islam’s holiest sites, Mecca and Medina — contracts that are, coincidentally, some of the most lucrative in the Middle East. Bin Laden was 10 when his father died in a plane crash. He has said that his life today is a continuation of the religious devotion of his father.

For many Muslims around the world, the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan was a life-transforming event — the godless communists had invaded a sovereign Muslim nation. Within weeks of the invasion, 22-year-old Bin Laden was travelling to Afghanistan’s neighbour, Pakistan, to support the holy war against the Russians.

Bin Laden was already an expert in demolition from the family construction business. When he made his first trips into Afghanistan, he took hundreds of tons of construction machinery, bulldozers, loaders, dump trucks and equipment for building trenches that he put at the disposal of the Afghan guerrillas. The machinery was used to build roads, dig tunnels into the mountains for shelter and construct rudimentary hospitals.

In 1984 Bin Laden set up a guesthouse in Peshawar, Pakistan, for Muslims drawn to the jihad. It was called Bait ul Ansar, or “House of the Helpers”, and was a way-station for volunteers heading for training with one of the Afghan factions. Later Bin Laden formed his own military unit and set about recruiting Muslims worldwide.

The recruits came to be known as the “Afghan Arabs”, though they came from all over the Muslim world. Some were high school students whose visits were not much more than the equivalent of a summer camp. Others spent years fighting the communists. Nobody knows their exact number, but most estimates suggest the low tens of thousands. They received some sort of military training and were indoctrinated in the most extreme interpretation of jihad.

In 1986 Bin Laden founded his first camp inside Afghanistan. It was near the village of Jaji, a few miles from the border. With a force of about 50 Arabs, Bin Laden fought off a lengthy siege by Soviet forces, his baptism of fire. Arab journalists based in Peshawar wrote daily dispatches extolling his exploits, which were published in the Middle East and brought him a flood of new recruits.

“What we benefited from most was that the glory and myth of the superpower was destroyed not only in my mind, but also in all Muslims,” he told me in 1997.

With the withdrawal of the Soviet Union from Afghanistan in 1989, Bin Laden turned his attention to other jihads, founding Al-Qaeda, or “the Base”. Al-Qaeda’s main target is the United States.

Since the mid-1980s Bin Laden had advised friends to boycott American goods because of US support for Israel and Middle Eastern regimes, such as Egypt, which he regards as “un-Islamic”. His distaste for America mutated into hatred by 1990, when Iraq invaded Kuwait and American troops were dispatched to Saudi Arabia. Armed “infidels” of both sexes were trespassing on sacred Arabian soil. For Bin Laden, this defied the dying words of Mohammed: “Let there be no two religions in Arabia.”

Bin Laden’s war against the United States started with small operations. Bombs went off outside two hotels in Yemen housing US servicemen in 1992, killing an Australian tourist. He is implicated in the deaths of 18 US servicemen in Somalia in 1993 and the bombing of the World Trade Center in New York that same year. In 1995 men influenced by Bin Laden’s writings bombed a military facility in Saudi Arabia, killing five American soldiers.

On August 7, 1998, exactly eight years after American troops landed in Saudi Arabia, the American embassies in Kenya and Tanzania were blown up and more than 200 people died. Two years later, the bombing in Yemen of the USS Cole killed 17 American sailors.

Bin Laden’s foot soldiers are put through rigorous training for this war. L’Hossaine Kherchtou, a Moroccan who had been a student of catering in France in the late 1980s, traveled to Afghanistan to attend an Al-Qaeda training camp in 1991. On his first night he was awakened at 1 am by gunfire and was told: “Don’t think you are going to sleep in this camp.”

He was trained on the American M-16 rifle, the Russian AK-47 rifle and PK sub-machinegun, the Israeli Uzi sub-machinegun and anti-aircraft guns. He also took classes on grenades and was taught about the use of explosives such as C3, C4 and dynamite, anti-personnel mines, anti-truck mines and butterfly mines, which children sometimes mistake as a kind of toy. After graduating from his camp, Kherchtou moved to Peshawar, where he was inducted into Al-Qaeda.

Bin Laden is not involved in day-to-day dealings with his followers. He sets the general policies of Al-Qaeda, which are then relayed down a loose chain of command to lower members of the group, many of whom have had little or no contact with Bin Laden himself.

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Osama Bin Laden’s Motives

By Dean Brown

Compared to the professional analysts, we Christadelphians are completely unqualified as journalistic fact-gatherers on the world news scene. We don’t directly interview world leaders or investigate material facts.

But when it comes to analyzing the facts that these people gather, Christadelphians have the distinct advantage of approaching matters from a point of view that is radically different from everyone else in several important ways. This advantage allows us to analyze a situation in ways that others cannot possibly do, and if this advantage is used properly (and that can be a very big “if” !!) then it can help us to better understand the reasons why we are to act the way that God calls us to act.

The following is my own analysis of the situation, particularly relating to the motives of Osama Bin Laden and other militant fundamentalist Muslims.

I start by asking you to think about five dates in history: 586 BC, and 70, 1948, 1967, and 1973 AD.

You already know what I am referring to with regard to each date. The destructions of the Temple in 586 BC and again in 70 AD. The emotional response that we have to these dates is one of sadness and lamentation. Then comes 1948. The establishment of the modern state of Israel, and the miraculous victory of little infant Israel against the combined Arab armies. The hand of God working in the nations. The fig tree budding. What a wonderful prophetic sign. Then comes 1967. The miraculous Six Day War. Again the hand of God working, with Israel regaining control of full Jerusalem including the Temple Mount. And finally 1973. Israel’s miraculous recovery after nearly being annihilated in the surprise Yom Kippur War. Again we see the hand of God working.

But how do Muslims feel about these last three dates?

In the early years, and by that I mean roughly from the 1920s to the 1970s, most Muslims were adamantly opposed to the idea of the existence of a modern nation of Israel. They wanted to drive Israel into the sea, and to deny it any recognition of statehood.

But over time the attitude of many average Muslims softened, and they began to accept the notion of a modern nation of Israel in its present location. Militant Muslims therefore had a battle on two fronts. First was the Israelis, and they were certainly willing to attack them and anyone who supported the Israeli “right to exist”. Second were these “soft” Muslims. That is, Muslims who were willing to recognize Israel, in deed if not in word. Many of these “soft” Muslims also have had and continue to have a gradual adoption of and toleration for many Western societal mores.

Most Westerners have no appreciation for the amount of “domestic” terrorism that goes on within many Middle Eastern countries, where militant Muslims are adamantly opposed to the current “moderate Muslim” regimes. Egypt and Saudi Arabia in particular are beset with this problem, and it has been an important feature on the political scene of many other countries. For example Iran, which was “moderate” under the Shah, “fundamentalist” under the Ayatollah Khomeini, and is wrestling its way back to being “moderate” despite enormous internal pressure from the fundamentalists.

My point is that all of the politicians and journalists are talking about Bin Laden trying to scare or terrify the Western public, and how that’s not going to work because we are a better people than that, and that Bin Laden and his kind of people underestimate our courage, love, and resolve.

In doing so these Western leaders either don’t understand or are misrepresenting Bin Laden’s motives.

Bin Laden and other militant Muslims have one ultimate goal with two parts, and use the violence of terrorism as a two-sided tool.

The two sides of the tool are (1) to encourage and embolden their fellow Muslims, and (2) to get the United States and others to make a semi-rational determination that the cost of supporting Israel outweighs the benefits. The ultimate goal is to achieve a worldwide Islamic society, but as this is so far off it is far more important to concentrate on the two immediate steps or parts of this goal. They are (1) to replace the “moderate” Muslim leadership currently in place in many Middle Eastern countries, and (2) to eradicate Israel. This second part can be further broken down into two steps. First, get nations such as the United States to stop supporting Israel, because with American backing the eradication of Israel is considerably more difficult, and then the second step of the actual eradication of Israel.

I would like to deal with this issue of Bin Laden’s motives by asking: whose thinking is he trying to change and how?

His primary audience is NOT the people that he is attacking, but rather his fellow Muslims, most of whom are spectators. His hope is that these people will be emboldened and encouraged by his actions, and that every Muslim will become more fundamentalist. He knows that he can’t start with a big victory against Israel and the United States and others. What he wants right now is a small victory so that others will join his cause, thus making his organization and its allies strong enough to achieve a big victory in the future.

His SECONDARY audience is the “western” nations, and even here he knows that he is not going to scare us to the point that we are afraid to come out of our homes. He knows that we will never become this afraid. BUT he knows that we will demand more security, which costs much in the way of time, money, and sacrifice of the individual liberties that we cherish and have become so accustomed to. He is implicitly using a carrot-and-stick approach against Western society. “Support Israel, and I will attack your civilian population as much as possible. Abandon Israel, and I will leave you alone, which means that you can open up your society again and live a better life for yourselves.” I am setting aside the fact here that if we did as a society stop supporting Israel he would in fact not let up on his terrorism. He would simply continue to use terrorism to achieve the next step along towards his ultimate goal. I can set aside this fact because I am dealing here with his implicit approach at this time, and not with what he would actually do if his approach were to become “successful” (that is, help him to achieve his goals).

President Bush and Vice President Cheney and others have been all over television the last few days talking about Bin Laden’s hatred for the American way of life. Yes he does find the American way of life objectionable because in many ways it acts contrary to the Muslim ethic, but that has almost no relevance to the question of what fuels Bin Laden’s internal fire. He is far more upset about Muslims adopting Western ways than he is about Westerners having Western ways.

This also brings up an important point about what this war against terrorism might hope to accomplish. Bear in mind that just as he will not make “us” afraid but will impede our movements, any war against Bin Laden and other militant Muslims will at best accomplish the same thing. No amount of force will scare these people into rethinking their basic position. But it is possible to constrain their movements, to make it far more difficult for them to operate.

My own speculation that stems from this realization is that this will only delay the inevitable, as the relentless march of technology makes massively deadly weapons easier and easier to obtain. How long until a small group, operating underneath the “radar screens” of the nations, acquires nuclear, biological, or chemical weapons? Such a group need not even be Muslim. Certainly the Japanese sect that released nerve gas in the Tokyo subway system a few years ago was not Muslim. So at best we can eradicate and prevent the formation of large terrorist organizations who have at least some level of state support. But we can never stop the “lone madman” or the very small group.

There are terrorist groups out there that are not Muslim. But the Muslim ones are the ones that perpetrated this attack and that are the greatest near-term threat. And so while in theory we should be thinking about all of the terrorists that are out there, in practice we should concentrate upon understanding the thinking of these militant Muslims.

My note at the beginning regarding our unique perspective needs explaining here. Our world view is neither Ameri-centric or freedom-centric. Therefore, we can consider this situation not as the world does, but from the perspective that considers Bin Laden’s motives to be very much like the motives of Cain and his “seed” (that is, those who have persecuted and murdered the prophets of God, and God’s Son).

The Apostle Paul wrote that “as to zeal, [I was] a persecutor of the church” (Phi 3:6) and that he was also “a persecutor and violent aggressor” (1Ti 1:13). He was thinking that he was rendering service to God. He didn’t hate Christians because he envied their freedom and wealth. He thought that he was doing God a favor by eradicating these blasphemous followers of the blasphemous Nazarene. The motives of militant Muslims are similar.

My point is that when we hear President Bush or ANY commentator talk about this attack on the American way of life, they are avoiding the real issue. The real issue is nothing less than the veracity of Islam, and the question must therefore be asked of us: when we take a stand and say that Islam is false, what do we suggest is true? The American ideals of freedom and democracy? Christianity, as in Christendom? Or True Christianity? This is why we must realize that when we speak against what has recently happened we must be careful to point out that in doing so we are also standing against the false teaching of the world in all its forms. We speak against Islam because it is patently false, and while militant Muslims are certainly worse, this does not change the fact that all Islam is false. And so are the eastern religions, many of which by their fundamental nature do not breed militarism. And so is Christendom, which in the past has bred much militarism and today does so only occasionally. All of these are false regardless of whether they compound their error by adopting violence to promote their viewpoint.

We stand against all systems of thought that are false, including those who are militant as well.

At the same time we must be careful to note that we are not militant. We appeal to people’s intelligent reasoning and deliberation, and we never threaten force against anyone as a means of coercing them into adopting our way of thinking. We don’t even threaten people with eternal hell-fire torment. This of course is a byproduct of our theology, but nonetheless the fact remains that we do not threaten people at all in any way.

And so IF people start to become suspicious of us as a group because we are relatively small and quite fundamentalist, point this out to them. Being fundamentalist and being militant are two entirely different matters. All or virtually all militants are fundamentalist, but not all fundamentalists are militant.

“There are two great antichristian religious systems of deceit revealed in the book of Revelation. The ‘great western antichrist’ of Roman Catholicism (Rev 17; 18) and the ‘great eastern antichrist’ of Islam (Rev 9). This has been the majority position of historic Protestant interpretation (Historicism) for centuries (though later writers often see this with more clarity). Dr Lee gives us evidence of this in ‘Calvin and Islam’, citing Calvin as follows,

“In our own day, indeed [1550], very many people begin to waver — when they consider the long continued dispersion of the Church. As if this had not been regulated by the purpose of God!… The pretext of the Romanists which they make in extenuation of the tyranny of their idol [the Papacy] — is that it was not possible for Christ to forsake His bride. But here, the weak have an assurance on which to rest — when they learn that the disfigurement which they see in the Church, has long since been foretold. The impudence of the Romanists, on the other hand, is clearly exposed. Because Paul declares that when the World has been brought under the rule of Christ — a defection will take place….

“The minds of ancients were so bewitched — that they believed that Nero would be Antichrist! However, Paul is not speaking of one individual — but of a kingdom that was to be seized by Satan, for the purpose of setting up a seat of abomination in the midst of God’s Temple. This we see accomplished in Popery.

“The defection has indeed spread more widely! For, since Mohammed was an apostate, he turned his followers, the Turks, from Christ…. The sect of Mohammed was like a raging overflow, which in its violence tore away about half of the Church. It remained for [the Papal] Antichrist to infect with his poison the part which was left.”

Yet, in the words ‘the Lord Jesus shall slay’ in 2Th 2:8 — Calvin insists Paul “predicted the destruction of the reign of Antichrist… He will be annihilated by the Word of the Lord… Paul does not think that Christ will accomplish this in a single moment… Christ will scatter the darkness in which Antichrist will reign, by the rays which He will emit before His coming — just as the sun, before becoming visible to us, chases away the darkness of the night with its bright light.

“It does seem that the fourth iron kingdom was in fact both the pre-Papal and the pre-Islamic undivided Pagan Roman Empire, as well as the later Western-Roman Papal and the contemporaneous Eastern-Roman Islamic Empire into which it then subdivided. Indeed, both ‘Mahomet’ and ‘the Pope’ — as we have already seen — Calvin called ‘the two horns of Antichrist.’ Thus they correspond to the two legs of the later Roman Empire Islam and the Papacy.

In fact, when the classic historicist position is studied, the fulfillment in the case of Islam and Rev 9 is seen to be so striking and well attested that “‘even advocates of other approaches who are adamant in their rejection of the historicist system of interpretation have admitted the convincing nature of this particular identification’ (Steve Gregg, commenting on Rev 9:1-6 in ‘Revelation: Four Views’ 176).”

Since the Papacy (Roman Catholicism) and the powers of Islam are both blaspheming and agitating against Israel today, it surely does seem that we are still in the “two legs” interpretative section of the image of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream of future empires, and very, very close to the image’s feet becoming shattered by Christ’s return.

The Philistines are first mentioned in Gen 10:14. Apparently they came from Caphtor, or Crete, very early in Bible times (Deu 2:23; Jer 47:4; Amo 9:7). The land of Canaan received its other name — Philistia, or Palestine — from them (Psa 60:8; 87:4; Isa 14:29).

The Philistines ousted other peoples and settled initially on the Maritime Plain north of Gaza — a very fertile and desirable area. They seem to have lived in the region around Gerar and Beersheba as early as the time of Abraham (Gen 21:32,34; 26:1).

After the Exodus, the tribes of Israel were directed by God to journey to Canaan by a route that bypassed the coast of the Philistines (Exo 13:17,18), presumably because they were too strong for Israel at that time. When the Israelites began to settle the Land, the tribe of Judah captured Gaza, Ashkelon, and Ekron (Jdg 1:18), three of the five main Philistine cities; the other two were Gath and Ashdod. But a bit later, because of its idolatries, Israel was handed over into the hands of the Philistines (Jdg 10:6,7). It was delivered from them (Jdg 10:11,12), but soon fell under their dominion again, and remained so, off and on, through the times of Samson (Jdg 14-16), Eli (1Sa 4-6), Samuel, and Saul (1Sa 10:5: 12:9; 13:19-21; 14:52). After Saul’s army was defeated, and he and his sons slain by the Philistines (1Sa 28:4; 29:11; 31:1-13), king David overcame and repelled them on several occasions (2Sa 3:18; 5:17-25; 8:1; 19:9; 21:15-22; 23:9-17).

After David’s reign, the Philistines are mentioned less frequently, although they come in for threats of judgment by various prophets at later times because they invariably aligned themselves with Israel’s enemies (Babylon and Assyria) against their old foe Israel.

The Philistines are joined with other Arab nations confederated against Israel in the latter days was pointed out (Psa 83). This prophetic psalm undoubtedly had a historic fulfillment (possibly 2Ch 20 or 2Ch 32), yet it also points forward to a time when the combined enemies of Israel “know that thou alone, whose name is the Lord, art the Most High over all the earth” (v 18). Today, the modern counterpart to the ancient Philistine territory is what is now called the Gaza Strip, with its exploding Palestinian Arab population — nearly all of which are inflamed with the most intense hatred of their Israeli “oppressors”.

Bible prophecies about Philistia seem to fall into two main categories, with some natural overlapping: (1) first, the Philistines’ hatred toward Israel takes shape in despicable actions; and (2) then, the Lord Himself takes vengeance upon these enemies of His people.

“The Syrians before [to the north and east], and the Philistines behind [to the south and west]… shall devour Israel with open mouth… Therefore the Lord will cut off from Israel head and tail, branch and rush, in one day” (Isa 9:12-14). The initial fulfillment of this prophecy was in the days of Hezekiah, when the Jews found themselves squeezed in a wedge between their old enemies Syria and Philistia, and also facing the furious onslaught of the Assyrian (Isa 10:5,6,11-15,24,25). The immediate result was the fall of the Northern Kingdom of Israel, but the final result was that Assyria and its allies, including the Philistines, were themselves punished severely at the hand of God: “In that day the Lord will extend his hand yet a second time to recover the remnant which is left of his people, from Assyria, from Egypt… and from the coastlands of the sea. They [Ephraim and Judah] will swoop down on the slopes of Philistia to the west; together they will plunder the people to the east [Edom, Moab, and Ammon]” (Isa 11:11,14; cp Isa 10:12,25-27; 14:29-31).

That this prophecy is to be fulfilled yet again in the Last Days is evident from its connection with Isa 9:6,7 and all of Isa 11. The special child descended from David — Jesus Christ (Luk 1:32) — will bring judgments upon these Arab haters of Israel, recover the faithful remnant of Israel from captivity in Egypt and Assyria, and establish God’s glorious Kingdom in Israel.

If the nations mentioned in Isa 9-11 sound very much like those listed in Psa 83, then it is because that psalm could have initially applied to the Assyrian invasion in the reign of Hezekiah, and because it also has a Last Days application. There is an interesting verbal connection. The psalmist’s prayer in Psa 83:11 (“Make their nobles like Oreb and Zeeb” — Midianite princes slain by Gideon) will be fulfilled by Isaiah’s Last Days prophecy: “My indignation will come to an end, and my anger will be directed to their destruction. And the Lord of hosts will wield against them a scourge, as when he smote Midian at the rock of Oreb” (Isa 10:25,26).

Joel: The evil deeds of the Philistines and the subsequent retribution by God is aptly described by Joel: “What are you to me, O Tyre and Sidon, and all the regions of Philistia? Are you paying me back for something? If you are paying me back, I will requite your deed upon your own head swiftly and speedily. For you have taken my silver and my gold, and have carried my rich treasures into your temples. You have sold the people of Judah and Jerusalem to the Greeks, removing them far from their own border. But now I will stir them up from the place to which you have sold them, and I will requite your deed upon your own head. I will sell your sons and your daughters into the hand of the sons of Judah, and they will sell them to the Sabeans, to a nation far off; for the Lord has spoken” (Joel 3:4-8).

It is plain that Joel 3 is part of a Last Days prophecy (cp vv 14-17,20), when Judah shall be inhabited forever because the Lord dwells in Zion. Then “Jerusalem [shall] be holy, and no stranger shall pass through her any more”, for God says, “I will avenge their blood, and I will not clear the guilty.”

Amos: Philistia is listed among the oppressors of Israel in the prophecy of Amos, who wrote shortly before the time of the great Assyrian invasions of Israel: ” ‘For three transgressions of Gaza, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment; because they carried into exile a whole people to deliver them up to Edom. So I will send a fire upon the wall of Gaza, and it shall devour her strongholds. I will cut off the inhabitants from Ashdod, and him that holds the scepter from Ashkelon; I will turn my hand against Ekron, and the remnant of the Philistines shall perish,’ says the Lord GOD” (Amo 1:6-8; cp Amo 3:9).

This passage indicates assistance by the Philistines in taking the Jews into captivity (cp Joel 3 above). As a possible Last Days application, the phrase “for three transgressions and for four” could suggest several attempts to destroy Israel (1948, 1967, 1973?), only the last of which (it may be assumed) will be successful.

Obadiah: In his short vision, the prophet Obadiah sees a future time when “Edom” will be punished, for his violence against his “brother” Jacob, by being cut off forever (v 10). At a time called “the day of the Lord” (v 15), mount Zion — the Temple Mount in Jerusalem — will be the scene of deliverance and holiness (v 17), and the house of Jacob will possess their land. At that time (and not before), when “Saviours” will appear on mount Zion, and when the kingdom of Israel will truly belong to God (v 21), then “… they of the south shall possess the mount of Esau; and they of the plain the Philistines: and they shall possess the fields of Ephraim and… Samaria: and Benjamin shall possess Gilead” (v 19).

Some Bible students suggest that v 19 has already been fulfilled by the unbelieving nation of Israel, in winning the war of 1967 and occupying the West Bank and Gaza Strip. However, v 19 is “sandwiched” between verses 17 and 21, which clearly tell of Messiah’s kingdom. Only after Christ has returned will a redeemed and restored Israel truly possess her ancient land.

Ezekiel: During the ascendancy of Nebuchadnezzar and Babylon, the Philistines were still filling a similar hostile role, and thereby still threatened with a similar punishment from God: “Thus saith the Lord God; Because the Philistines have dealt by revenge, and have taken vengeance with a despiteful heart, to destroy it for the old hatred; Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will stretch out mine hand upon the Philistines, and I will cut off the Cherethim, and destroy the remnant of the sea coast. And I will execute great vengeance upon them with furious rebukes; and they shall know that I am the Lord, when I shall lay my vengeance upon them” (Eze 25:15-17).

Zephaniah: This prophet prophesied during Hezekiah’s reign, also pronouncing divine judgments upon the Philistines: “For Gaza shall be forsaken, and Ashkelon a desolation: they shall drive out Ashdod at the noon day, and Ekron shall be rooted up. Woe unto the inhabitants of the sea coast, the nation of the Cherethites! the word of the Lord is against you; O Canaan, the land of the Philistines, I will even destroy thee, that there shall be no inhabitant. And the sea coast shall be dwellings and cottages for shepherds, and folds for flocks” (Zep 2:4-6).

But the time of the Philistines’ (and the Assyrians’ — cp v 13) defeat will also be the time when Israel, redeemed from their last captivity, will finally dwell securely in their own land, under the benevolent hand of their Messiah (v 7; cp also Zep 3:14-20).

Jeremiah: In Jer 25, Jeremiah predicts vengeance upon the Philistines in the Last Days. He lists their cities (v 20) along with “all the mingled people” (vv 20,24 — the word is “ereb”, closely related to “Arab”) of Egypt, Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre, Sidon, Dedan, Tema, Arabia, Elam, and Media — all Muslim territories — and finally Babylon. God will cause all of these to drink of “the wine cup of this fury” (v 15). This figure of a “cup” of judgment being filled up to the brim, and given by God to the wicked, is common in the Bible, and is often used in regard to the great judgments of the Last Days (Psa 11:6; 75:8; Isa 51:17,22,23; Oba 1:16; and esp Rev 14:8,10; 16:19; 18:6).

Jer 47 also contains a reference to God’s vengeance upon the Philistines.

Zechariah: Finally, Zechariah also lifts up a burden against the Philistines: “Ashkelon will see it [the power of God] and fear; Gaza will writhe in agony, and Ekron too, for her hope will wither. Gaza will lose her king and Ashkelon will be deserted. Foreigners will occupy Ashdod; and I will cut off the pride of the Philistines” (Zec 9:5,6).

That this is a Last Days prophecy may be seen from the context: “I [the Lord] will encamp about my house… and no oppressor shall pass through them any more” (v 8; cp Joel 3:17). The king who will come in the name of the Lord “will speak peace to the nations, and his dominion shall be from sea to sea, and from the river to the ends of the earth” (v 10); he will also set free the “prisoners” from the waterless pit (the resurrection of the dead!) (v 11).

Conclusion

The “Philistines”, or Palestinians, will be among Israel’s enemies in the Last Days. Along with the nations of Syria and Jordan (“Edom”, “Moab”, and “Ammon”), they will be helped by the “Assyrian”/”Babylonian” to defeat their old nemesis. (This aspect, of duality — and repetition of fulfillment — in Bible prophecy, is much more common than many Bible readers realize.)

The Palestinians’ enjoyment of victory will be brief, however. The prototypical Philistine/Palestinian, the giant Goliath, was rendered powerless by David’s little stone (1Sa 17). Likewise, the Oppressor of the Last Days will be destroyed by another little stone, which strikes it on its feet (Dan 2:34) — feet, incidentally, of iron mixed with clay (vv 41,43: the word “mixed” is arab; cp “mingled” in Jer 25). That “little stone” which destroys the image in Dan 2 — ie Christ (Psa 118:22; Isa 8:14,15; 28:16; Mat 21:42-44; 1Pe 2:6-8) — will then become a great mountain and fill the whole earth with the glory of God (Dan 2:35,44).

The power of the Philistine against Israel will soon be destroyed forever, but the faithful remnant of Israel will (through the preaching of “Elijah”: Mal 3:1,2; 4:5,6) be blessed with the coming of Christ in the Kingdom of God.

The Bible has much to say about plagues and diseases in the Last Days. Just a few examples:

* Against Israel:

“I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt so that you would no longer be slaves to the Egyptians… But if you will not listen to me and carry out all these commands… I will bring upon you sudden terror, wasting diseases and fever that will destroy your sight and drain away your life… If you remain hostile toward me and refuse to listen to me, I will multiply your afflictions seven times over, as your sins deserve… If in spite of these things you do not accept my correction but continue to be hostile toward me… I will bring the sword upon you to avenge the breaking of the covenant. When you withdraw into your cities, I will send a plague among you, and you will be given into enemy hands” (Lev 26:13-25).

* Against the great enemy of Israel:

“I will execute judgment upon him with plague and bloodshed; I will pour down torrents of rain, hailstones and burning sulfur on him and on his troops and on the many nations with him” (Eze 38:22).

* Indeed, against all the enemies of Israel:

“This is the plague with which the LORD will strike all the nations that fought against Jerusalem: Their flesh will rot while they are still standing on their feet, their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongues will rot in their mouths” (Zec 14:12).

Jesus, in his Olivet prophecy, speaks of “great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places” (Luke 21:7-11). His words are echoed in the further prophecy of the Last Days which he gives to John (Rev 6:7,8; 16:8,9).

Diseases, Diseases Everywhere!

These days, there are rapidly appearing new strains of viruses and bacteria with previously unknown characteristics. Medical researchers had thought that most of the infectious diseases of mankind were now behind them. Most were treatable with the ever-growing arsenals of antibiotic compounds, or with vaccines which had been ingeniously contrived to prevent or cure them with great efficiency. Medical students in the 1960s were advised to avoid specializing in communicable diseases, for soon they would be a thing of the past.

It was an attitude of shallow and unwarranted arrogance.

1. Tuberculosis, long the scourge of man, was almost a thing of the past by 1980; now, new and highly-resistant strains of the disease are ravaging certain prison and medical populations.
2. AIDS is a disease caused by a virus that attacks the human immune system. It is transmitted by sexual contact, through almost all body fluids and blood products, and through shared hypodermic needles. It has sprung forth from nowhere during the past 15 years. Over 17 million people are infected worldwide, and no cure is anywhere in sight.
3. Necrotizing fasciitis is brought about by a mutated streptococcus, the so-called “flesh-eating bacteria”. Early and positive treatment within the first few hours may save a patient from its wildfire spread.
4. A virus know only as X arose from the primeval rain forests of southern Sudan in 1993, killed thousands of people, and then disappeared. Nobody knows when or where it may reappear nor how to treat it if it does return. The Ebola virus of Africa is being nervously monitored by scientists concerned with its virulence and lethality.
5. Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome was discovered and described in the US in 1993, only two years ago. It is a rodent-borne virus spread through droppings, saliva and urine. It is especially lethal; out of 99 cases, 53 have ended in death.
6. The so-called Legionnaires’ disease regularly threatens collections of people exposed to conditioned air under certain circumstances, eg, as when confined in the close quarters of a cruise ship — or a convention.
7. Cholera has lately grown into widespread epidemics in both India and Russia.
8. Diphtheria in Russia is growing again due to poor sanitation and shortages of vaccines.
9. Malaria, caused by protozoans injected into the blood stream by the bite of certain mosquitoes, was long ago wiped out in the US. But it still causes one million deaths worldwide each year.
10. Smallpox, thought to have been defeated worldwide in the past few decades, presently exists only as a purposefully-maintained viral culture at sites such as the Center for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta. Debate rages over whether to kill it off and have done with smallpox forever or keep it as a “museum piece” for future medical observation. As long as it exists anywhere in the world, it has to potential to be used in a terribly lethal form of “germ warfare”.

Reasons for Revival

There seem to be three main reasons for the revival of ancient diseases and the birth of new ones in the world today:

1. Cities are expanding to cope with the 97 million annual increase in the world population, and many city inhabitants (particularly in the “third world”) live in crowded and unsanitary conditions.
2. The increase in travel provides the potential for passing on diseases.
3. Excessive or incorrect use of drugs has encouraged bacteria to mutate and gain resistance. By a process of natural selection the stronger micro-organisms survive an unfinished course of antibiotics, and the next generation of organisms all become stronger, and possibly able to survive a full course of antibiotics. Antibiotic resistance has become widespread, and pharmaceutical companies are under mounting pressure to produce a new generation of drugs to combat infectious organisms. Some scientists fear that a crisis could occur unless urgent steps are taken to tackle the problem now.

God Controls Plague, Pestilence, and Disease

Modern medicine and science can do something to control some plagues and diseases. But the Bible teaches that the control of disease is truly the prerogative of God.

• When Pharaoh refused to let Israel go, the hand of the LORD brought a terrible plague on the livestock of Egypt (Exo 9:3,4).
• When God was angry with the report of the unfaithful spies who went into the land of Canaan, then He threatened to strike down all Israel with a plague and make a new nation from Moses alone (Num 14:12), a threat which Moses — acting as a mediator — turned aside.
• And when Israel turned its back on God, then He sent against them His “four dreadful judgments — sword and famine and wild beasts and plague” (Eze 14:21).

The pages of Scripture are filled with references to God’s wrath manifested in plague, pestilence, and disease.

Disease and world history

Great plagues have often affected world history.

• Influenza was a grievous plague for the large and growing cities at the beginning of the 20th century. A world war that had thrown millions together in awful squalor and the increasingly rapid movement of humans to all parts of the earth, together with an ancient malady of farm animals, all came together at the right — or wrong! — time. Various sorts of “flu” had been around for thousands of years. But it took the end of World War I, in the spring of 1918, for the pandemic to erupt. In scarcely 18 months over 59 million perished, more than three times the toll of the Great War itself.
• In the 18th and 19th centuries civilizations were devastated by the dreaded silent killer consumption, or tuberculosis. The reason: Many lived in filthy, overcrowded, damp conditions with poor air circulation. This was a fertile breeding ground for the chronic infectious disease.
• Major plagues are largely related to lifestyle issues. This was clearly the case when Columbus and his men returned from the New World with a New World venereal disease, syphilis. There it had been somewhat dormant and held in microbial balance, but when introduced to a Europe emerging from the ravages of the Middle Ages, it spread insidiously. In the beginning, syphilis infected the promiscuous from all walks of life. The introduction of syphilis into Europe was a biological swap with the American Indians for the smallpox virus. It is estimated that the “Great Dying” killed over 100 million in less than 100 years. The epidemic destroyed the Aztec and Incan cultures and created a wild, random dispersion of remaining natives.
• But all biological and viral disasters throughout history are dwarfed by the bubonic plague. Historians speculate that the main bacteria originated in Mongolia among rodents. Traveling Mongol traders carried the disease to India and China. From there it spread through a Europe primed for disaster by the stresses of population and overcrowding in squalid living conditions. Over a 300-year period, one half of the total population died in generational cycles. Several Biblical “plagues” bear a remarkable resemblance to the bubonic plague.

Other “plagues” of the Last Days

Other sorts of plagues and pestilences, threaten the modern world. The Tokyo subway nerve gas incident in April was masterminded by the cult leader Shoko Asahara, intent on precipitating his own personal Armageddon. Some experts speculate that the number of terrorist groups driven by religious zealotry will rise in the next few years, as a new millennium beckons. In addition to the well-publicized Islamic fundamentalists, Christian white supremacists (a la Oklahoma City) and messianic Jews (a la Baruch Goldstein in Hebron) pose growing threats. Nerve gases are readily available and easily manufactured. The United States is an especially fertile ground for strange millennial ideas — and mad prophets. Names like Jim Jones and Charles Manson and David Koresh come to mind. In the future, other “false prophets” may find the means, through chemical or biological agents, to fulfill their own prophecies of doom and destruction for their enemies in the Last Days.

There are other environmental threats for the Last Days:

• The accessibility of nuclear materials in the third world, among Muslim nations and others, continues to grow as the old USSR continues to crumble.
• Radioactive nuclear wastes are stored in fragile environments throughout the world, where leakage due to container defects or natural phenomena (ie, earthquakes, volcanoes) could lead to cataclysmic natural disasters.

“Fear not!”

The fears of scientists and political observers are not unfounded, and there can be little doubt that the problems being experienced today are harbingers of much worse to come, for those due to experience the wrath of God.

But the servants of God need not fear. Those who trust in God will be protected, and/or certainly delivered from the terrible threats of the Last Days prophecies:

“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty… Surely he will save you… from the deadly pestilence… You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday. A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you. You will only observe with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked” (Psa 91:1-8; cp Eze 9:4-6; Rev 7:2,3; 8:7-9).

When God brought a plague on Korah and the rebels in the wilderness, Aaron the high priest of God took a censer and put incense in it (symbolizing the prayers of the saints: Psa 141:2; Rev 5:8; 8:3,4), ran into the midst of the assembly, and “stood between the living and the dead, and the plague stopped” (Num 16:46-48).

So, when fears about the plagues of the Last Days come upon us, we must remember our High Priest, Jesus Christ, who stands between the living and the dead and protects us!

“When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near… Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man” (Luke 21:28,36).

About one-third of the Bible is prophecy. Much of it has more than one fulfillment. Are there any principles which help us in seeing how a prophecy might be fulfilled more than once? Here are three ways in which Bible prophecies can be fulfilled more than once:

1. A typical fulfillment first: Some Bible prophecies have their complete fulfillment in the long term, but in the short term there is a partial fulfillment in events which are types of the complete fulfillment. Example: The promises to David are quoted with reference to Solomon; cp 1Ch 17:12,13 with 1Ch 22:9,10. This is because Solomon’s reign was a type of Christ’s Kingdom; cp 1Ki 4:25 with prophecies of the Kingdom in Jer 23:6 and Micah 4:4. However, their complete fulfillment comes with Christ; see Luke 1:32,33 and Acts 13:33. Other examples. Mic 4; 5 was initially fulfilled by Hezekiah in relation to the Assyrian invasion, but will be more completely fulfilled by Christ setting up the Kingdom. Some features of Psa 72 were fulfilled by Solomon’s kingdom, but the psalm will be completely fulfilled in the future reign of Christ.
2. A typical fulfillment later: Some Bible prophecies are fulfilled completely initially but this fulfillment is typical of something greater to come. Example: Isa 17 was fulfilled in the Assyrian invasion in Hezekiah’s time, culminating in the destruction of the Assyrian host (v 14). Yet this fulfillment is also typical of the host which invades the land at the time of Christ’s return, and is destroyed. Other examples: Jer 50; 51 are prophetic of the overthrow of the kingdom of Babylon, but the extensive use of the language of these chapters in Rev 17; 18 shows that this overthrow was typical of the overthrow of another Babylon at Christ’s return. Psa 41 (not strictly prophecy) is about David’s experiences in the revolt of Absalom, but his betrayal by Ahithophel is typical of Judas’s betrayal of Christ (v 9, quoted in John 13:18).
3. Prophecies fulfilled on a number of occasions: Some Bible prophecies are fulfilled on several occasions because of situations which keep occurring. Example: Deu 28:49 prophesies of “a nation… from far” which God would send against Israel if they forsook Him. Note how the terms of this verse were fulfilled by Assyria (Isa 5:26; 33:19; Hos 8:1) and Babylon (Jer 4:13; 5:15) as well as Rome (Mat 24:28). Other examples: Cannibalism, prophesied in Lev 26:29, is recorded in both 2Ki 6:26-31 and Lam 4:10, and according to Josephus occurred in AD 70. The opposition to Christ by rulers foretold in Psa 2:1-3 occurred at his birth (Mat 2) and his crucifixion (Acts 4:25-28), and will occur at his Second Coming (Rev 17:12-14) and at the end of the Millennium (Rev 20:7-10).

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Examples of Bible prophecy with more than one fulfillment:

Isa 2:10-22: (a) earthquake in Uzziah’s day (Amo 1:1,2; Zec 14:5); (b) Last Days (2Th 1:9,19; Rev 6:16,19).

Isa 7:14: (a) birth of Hezekiah, son of Ahaz; (b) Mat 1:23.

Isa 34: (a) Edom and other nations hostile to Israel in Isaiah’s day; (b) Final judgment on the wicked (Rev 14:10,11).

Jer 50; 51: (a) Destruction of Babylon, the great enemy of Jeremiah’s day; (b) Destruction of “Babylon” in the Last Days (Rev 18; cp mg refs).

Hos 10:8 (and context): (a) Judgment on faithless Israel in Hosea’s time; (b) Destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD (Luk 23:30).

Mic 3:12: (a) Threatened fulfillment about 700 BC (Jer 26:18); (b) literal fulfillment in first century AD.

Psa 2: (a) David beset by enemies early in his reign (2Sa 8); (b) Hostility to Christ, the Son of David (Act 4:25-27; Rev 19:15).

“The prophet is a man who feels fiercely. God has thrust a burden upon his soul, and he is bowed and stunned at man’s fierce greed. Frightful is the agony of man; no human voice can convey its full terror. Prophecy is the voice that God has lent to the silent agony, a voice to the plundered poor, to the profaned rules of the world. It is a form of living, a crossing point of God and man. God is raging in the prophet’s words” (Abraham Heschel, “The Prophet”).

What manner of man is the prophet? The prophet is a man who feels deeply, very deeply, the sinfulness of sin. Sensing some fraction of the holiness and purity of the Almighty and the Eternal, the prophet is horrified — scandalized — at the petty and trifling shortcomings of his fellowmen.

The things that excite the indignation of the prophet are daily occurrences in every society in the world: “Hear this, you who trample the needy and do away with the poor of the land, saying, ‘When will the New Moon be over that we may sell grain, and the Sabbath be ended that we may market wheat?’ — skimping the measure, boosting the price and cheating with dishonest scales, buying the poor with silver and the needy for a pair of sandals, selling even the sweepings with the wheat” (Amo 8:4-6).

Allow for variations, from nation to nation and religion to religion, in the technicalities of worship (ie, substitute “Sunday church service” or “Ramadan” for “New Moon” and “Sabbath”) — the picture is the same; human nature is the same everywhere. Indeed, the sorts of “crimes” that fill the prophet with sadness and foreboding rarely go beyond what ordinary people regard as typical social interactions: people cheat in business, the rich exploit the poor, pleasure-seekers degrade themselves and others — it happens all the time. So what? But the prophet sees the grotesque shapes and dimensions of human pride and greed and lust in daily life, and he shudders. To his sensitive ears comes the rumble of distant thunder. The God of creation is not pleased, and the prophet warns of impending doom:

“Before them the earth shakes, the sky trembles, the sun and moon are darkened, and the stars no longer shine. The LORD thunders at the head of his army; his forces are beyond number, and mighty are those who obey his command. The day of the LORD is great; it is dreadful. Who can endure it?” (Joe 2:10,11)

The prophet makes us vaguely aware of the pettiness of our moral comprehension, of the depths of misery which we should feel (but don’t?) at our failures. Our eyes also witness the callousness and cruelty of man, but our hearts try to obliterate the memories and silence the whisper of conscience. The prophet does not let us off:

“Tremble, you complacent women; shudder, you daughters who feel secure! Strip off your clothes, put sackcloth around your waists!” (Isa 32:11).

“Will not all of them taunt him with ridicule and scorn, saying, ‘Woe to him who piles up stolen goods and makes himself wealthy by extortion! How long must this go on?’… Woe to him who builds his realm by unjust gain to set his nest on high, to escape the clutches of ruin!… The stones of the wall will cry out, and the beams of the woodwork will echo it. Woe to him who builds a city with bloodshed and establishes a town by crime!” (Hab 2:6,9,11,12).

“This is what the LORD says: ‘Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,’ declares the LORD” (Jer 9:23,24).

Those of us who claim to be believers in God can so easily “go with the flow”, praising and respecting those whom the world praises and respects: the builders of great cities, the hoarders of great fortunes, the accumulators of great power, the acquirers of great “wisdom”. But the prophet reminds us:

“Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket; they are regarded as dust on the scales; he weighs the islands as though they were fine dust. Before him all the nations are as nothing; they are regarded by him as worthless and less than nothing” (Isa 40:15,17).

The world is intoxicated with the here and now. The prophet takes a sober look at the inevitable end of the world:

“I looked at the earth, and it was formless and empty; and at the heavens, and their light was gone. I looked at the mountains, and they were quaking; all the hills were swaying. I looked, and there were no people; every bird in the sky had flown away. I looked, and the fruitful land was a desert; all its towns lay in ruins before the LORD, before his fierce anger” (Jer 4:23-26).

Just as the prophet sees the hideous evil in a world without God, so he also sees the sanctimonious hypocrisy in a religious community that puts God in a box of its own making, and hides its wickedness under a cloak of piety and ceremony and pretense:

“What do I care about incense from Sheba or sweet calamus from a distant land? Your burnt offerings are not acceptable; your sacrifices do not please me” (Jer 6:20).

” ‘Will you steal and murder, commit adultery and perjury, burn incense to Baal and follow other gods you have not known, and then come and stand before me in this house, which bears my Name, and say, “We are safe” — safe to do all these detestable things? Has this house, which bears my Name, become a den of robbers to you? But I have been watching!’ declares the LORD. ‘Go now to the place in Shiloh where I first made a dwelling for my Name, and see what I did to it because of the wickedness of my people Israel… what I did to Shiloh I will now do to the house that bears my Name, the temple you trust in, the place I gave to you and your fathers. I will thrust you from my presence, just as I did all your brothers, the people of Ephraim’ ” (Jer 7:9-15).

The prophet knows a God who will not shrink from punishing even His own people, calling their worst enemies down upon them to fulfill His own purpose:

“I send him [ie the Assyrian] against a godless nation, I dispatch him against a people who anger me, to seize loot and snatch plunder, and to trample them down like mud in the streets” (Isa 10:5,6).

” ‘I will summon all the peoples of the north and my servant Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon,’ declares the LORD, ‘and I will bring them against this land and its inhabitants and against all the surrounding nations. I will completely destroy them and make them an object of horror and scorn, and an everlasting ruin’ ” (Jer 25:9).

A God who would do such things is truly a God to be reckoned with!

The prophet is not entirely comfortable with the job which God has given him. His position is one of distinction, but also one of affliction. His mission can be distasteful, and can make him abhorrent to others:

” ‘You must speak my words to them, whether they listen or fail to listen, for they are rebellious. But you, son of man, listen to what I say to you. Do not rebel like that rebellious house; open your mouth and eat what I give you.’ Then I looked, and I saw a hand stretched out to me. In it was a scroll, which he unrolled before me. On both sides of it were written words of lament and mourning and woe. And he said to me, ‘Son of man, eat what is before you, eat this scroll; then go and speak to the house of Israel’ ” (Eze 2:7-3:1).

But once he has been called, the prophet finds it almost impossible to escape from the hand of his God: “But if I say, ‘I will not mention him or speak any more in his name,’ his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot” (Jer 20:9).

The prophet is a lonely man. He alienates the “religious” as well as the agnostic, the “believer” as well as the skeptic. He must not expect acceptance, but rather hostility:

“And you, son of man, do not be afraid of them or their words. Do not be afraid, though briers and thorns are all around you and you live among scorpions. Do not be afraid of what they say or terrified by them, though they are a rebellious house… But I will make you as unyielding and hardened as they are. I will make your forehead like the hardest stone, harder than flint. Do not be afraid of them or terrified by them, though they are a rebellious house” (Eze 2:6; 3:8,9).

But the prophet is responsible to speak to the people, whether they hear or not:

“But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet to warn the people and the sword comes and takes the life of one of them, that man will be taken away because of his sin, but I will hold the watchman accountable for his blood. Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me” (Eze 33:6,7).

The prophet cares deeply for the people and constantly prays for their welfare. He personally identifies with their plight and shares their affliction:

“O LORD, we and our kings, our princes and our fathers are covered with shame because we have sinned against you. The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him… therefore the curses and sworn judgments written in the Law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against you… Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant. For your sake, O Lord, look with favor on your desolate sanctuary” (Dan 9:8,9,11,17).

The prophet is unfailingly encouraging. His words of rebuke are never without words of exhortation. He makes the faithful strong:

“Return, O Israel, to the LORD your God… Say to him: ‘Forgive all our sins and receive us graciously… for in you the fatherless find compassion.’ [and God will say…] ‘I will heal their waywardness and love them freely, for my anger has turned away from them’ ” (Hos 14:1-4).

” ‘Even now,’ declares the LORD, ‘return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning.’ Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity. Who knows? He may turn and have pity and leave behind a blessing… 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” (Joe 2:12-14,32).

The prophet is certain of the ultimate outcome: God will redeem His people, rebuild His temple, and glorify His Name in all the earth:

“This is what the LORD Almighty says: ‘In a little while I will once more shake the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land. I will shake all nations, and the desired of all nations will come, and I will fill this house with glory,’ says the LORD Almighty. ‘The silver is mine and the gold is mine,’ declares the LORD Almighty. ‘The glory of this present house will be greater than the glory of the former house,’ says the LORD Almighty. ‘And in this place I will grant peace,’ declares the LORD Almighty” (Hag 2:6-9).

“For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea” (Hab 2:14).

As he leaves behind the world through which he is passing, and tastes the air and feels the bracing breeze on the mountain top of God’s presence, the prophet is elated:

“I heard and my heart pounded, my lips quivered at the sound; decay crept into my bones, and my legs trembled. Yet I will wait patiently for the day of calamity to come on the nation invading us. Though the fig tree does not bud… though the olive crop fails… though there are no sheep in the pen… yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior. The Sovereign LORD is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights” (Hab 3:16-19).

The prophet knows his own weakness and inadequacy, more so than the ordinary man or woman who never attempts to climb the “heights”. But he knows also, precisely because he has attempted to climb the heights, the awe-inspiring purity of the God of Israel. He has been touched with the divine fire, and he can never return, completely, to the man he was before:

” ‘Woe to me!’ I cried. ‘I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty.’ Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he touched my mouth and said, ‘See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.’ Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?’ And I said, ‘Here am I. Send me!’ ” (Isa 6:5-8).

By Scripture, the prophet communicates to the rest of us — setting before us the eternally relevant choices: death and life, cursing and blessing, the “here and now” and the hereafter, that which is seen and that which cannot be seen… as yet. He leans closer to us… he whispers softly:

“Don’t be taken in. Don’t judge by outward appearance. Don’t fall for the glitter and the glamour, the pomp and the pride. It’s all the brightness of whitewashed sepulchers and the rattle of dry bones. Look through my eyes… hear with my ears… know it all for what it really is… the choice is yours.”

Prophets were God’s inspired spokesmen. They spoke so that everyone — whether Jew or Gentile, king or peasant, master or servant, farmer or merchant, soldier or slave, man or woman, aged or youth — could hear the word of God and give heed. They also wrote so that their contemporaries and following generations, including our own and beyond, could read and obey.

“For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope” (Rom 15:4).

What the prophets said and wrote had an immediate and significant impact upon the people of their time. But inspired prophetic writings are not limited to local, historical significance. Bible prophecy is equally relevant today.

There are exciting prophecies which deal with the nation of Israel and the political powers of the Middle East. There are unnerving prophecies which predict religious apostasy, economic turmoil, and widespread violence. There are frightening prophecies which foretell worldwide war, famine, and pestilence. For us, however, the most immediately relevant prophecies are those which directly affect our lives now.

Consider first what the apostle Paul preached at Athens:

“The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all men everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed, and of this he has given assurance to all men by raising him from the dead” (Acts 17:30,31).

Since the judgment by Christ has yet to come, “all men everywhere” applies to us as well as to the men of Athens. The fact that God “has fixed a day” and “has given assurance” means that the judgment is certain.

Next consider a passage from Paul’s letter to the Romans:

“For Christ will render to every man according to his works: to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life; but for those who are factious and do not obey the truth, but obey wickedness, there will be wrath and fury” (Rom 2:6-8).

“Every man” applies equally to us in the twentieth century as it did to men and women of the Roman world. “Eternal life”, or “wrath and fury”….these are the outcomes of Christ’s judgment. These prophecies are unquestionably significant to us, for they speak about our eternal reward or punishment. What could be more personally relevant?

The purpose of Bible prophecy is to make people aware of the plans of God, so that they can take the appropriate action, while there is still time. When a prophet speaks for God:

• ignorant people are instructed in the Way of the Lord,
• wayward people are called to repentance,
• rebellious people are warned of the consequences of their sins, and
• faithful people are encouraged to continue firm in the Faith.

We are among these people.

The prophets predicted future events so that, when those events took place, we would know that God had spoken. Fulfilled Bible prophecy encourages us to pay attention to what God says. But God does not want us to be so fascinated by prediction that we miss the purpose of prophecy. He wants us to listen to His teaching and become one of His children:

“The prophets who prophesied of the grace that was to be yours, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when predicting the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glory. It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven… Therefore gird up your minds, be sober, set your hope fully upon the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed” (1Pe 1:10-13).

The woman of Rev 17:

To begin with, there is a plain connection with the woman of Rev 12, who can rather easily be identified with Israel:

• The sun, moon, and stars (12:1) are frequent Bible symbols of Israel (Gen 37:9,10; 22:17; Jer 31:35,36; Amos 8:9; Mic 3:6; Isa 60:20; Joel 2:10,30,31; 3:15; Psa 89:35-36).
• The son whom she bears, who rules the nations, is Jesus (Rev 19:15; cp Psa 2:9; 110:2)… not Constantine!
• The dragon’s attempts to kill the baby Jesus (Mat 2:1-6) are shown in Rev 12:4.
• After the birth of the special child, the “woman” (Israel) flees into the wilderness (Rev 12:6,14) = the dispersion of Israel.

Later, the same woman (or so it would seem) appears already “in the wilderness” (Rev 17:1-3), where she had fled earlier, but now she is a harlot, drastically changed!

And she is riding on a beast! At first glance, the beast seems to be “Babylon”, doesn’t it? Because the whole system described in Daniel, of which Babylon was the head, is easily equated with the 7 heads (the number of the heads of the 4 beasts in Dan 7), and ten horns (equates with 10 toes of image in Dan 2).

But it is the woman who has the name of “Babylon” written on her forehead (Rev 17:5). So will the real Babylon please stand up? Is it the beast, or the woman, or both?

I would suggest, it is both, in this sense: The beast is truly the Latter Day Babylon (read Iraq, or some similar Middle East coalition of Arab nations bent on the promotion of Islam, the conquest of Jerusalem, and the destruction of Judaism).

And the woman is “Babylon”, but in a different sense. She has the name of Babylon tattooed on her forehead! She is now the SLAVE of Babylon, being marked by him on her forehead (cp Rev 13:16). (By contrast, and by way of explanation, the servants, or slaves, of God are marked on their foreheads with the name of the Father and the Son: Rev 7:3; 2:17; 14:1; Eze 9:4).

But, from Rev 12, we have seen that the “woman” has a strong connection with Israel. And she is still Israel, but only the subset of Israel which has gone over to the enemy. She has given up being the handmaid of God, and has become the slave of Babylon. And now she is, along with Babylon proper, a fierce persecutor of the saints, apostles, and prophets of God (the revived witnesses among Israel in the Last Days — who are described in Rev 11 as perishing in Jerusalem).

How could this have happened? How could Israel be a party to the persecution of its own citizens? Perhaps like this: As a result of its defeat by Babylon and the 10 (Arab) kings in the Last Days, the nation of Israel has now become differentiated into two totally disparate elements: the faithful remnant who bear the mark of God and His Son, and the unfaithful harlot who bear the mark of Babylon — who see their main chance, their only chance in selling their birthright and allying themselves with the loathsome enemy so as to receive a share of the Beast’s power. These powers the harlot uses, to the best of her ability, to persecute her own countrymen, the faithful remnant, the true Jewish believers who have developed in her midst.

This scenario looks remarkably like two other familiar situations: (a) Israel in the first century, where the Jewish leadership (Herod and the high priest class) collaborated with the Roman overlords (Pilate, etc) to persecute the faithful Jewish believers in their midst; and (b) on a more secular level, the German-puppet Vichy government of occupied France during World War II.

So what happens to the Israel “woman” riding on the Babylonian “beast”? Things go well for her… but only for a while… then she loses her seat of power, is cast down to the ground, and devoured by the Babylonian beast: “The beast and the ten horns you saw will hate the prostitute. They will bring her to ruin and leave her naked; they will eat her flesh and burn her with fire” (Rev 17:16). Because she is, after all, only so many more detestable Jews… and Jewish collaborators are perhaps even more to be detested than other Jews by the Muslim Arabs after they have fulfilled some kind of initial usefulness.

It may be added that there is another interesting Scriptural connection along these lines, and it has to do with the harlot “Jezebel” introduced earlier in the Revelation (Rev 2:20-24). The original (OT) Jezebel was a Gentile (an Arab!) and an idolater and a false prophetess who married into Israel (king Ahab), and who used her high position to promote immorality and to persecute God’s true followers (like Elijah) among her “countrymen”! What better name, then, for an Arab-Israeli composite “harlot” persecutor of the righteous Jewish remnant in the Last Days? (Notice how clearly Elijah is delineated in Rev 11, for example.) (And notice, also, how the Last Days “Jezebel” is eaten by wild beasts just like her OT namesake was eaten by dogs!)

Suppose you were a believer in Ephesus in the first century, and your congregation has just received and read the book of Revelation. Would you not eagerly set about trying to understand the contents of the book? The document would be there to study at length. What background information and reference material might you bring to the study? Here are some suggestions:

a.	You belong to an established church, or ecclesia, founded by the apostle Paul. It was born in controversy and grew in the midst of adversity (Acts 19). So you have several experienced members to confer with.
b.	You have read the letter from Paul to the Ephesians, and therefore have been given insights into: the heavenly places with Christ, being saved by grace through faith, deliverance from the prince of the power of the air, the glorious opportunity for Gentiles, the need for unity, the conflict with darkness, the need to make the most of the time (for the days are evil), the need to pray for persecuted saints, the need to witness boldly (knowing that victory in Christ is certain).
c.	You have heard the report of the elders who last met with Paul (Acts 20:17-35), and you know about the price of witnessing, the warnings of apostasy, and the exhortation to hold fast.
d.	You have had Timothy as an elder for some time; you will have undoubtedly seen the results of Paul’s pastoral letters to him, eg: Stand up for your beliefs, Resist heretics, Serve the living Christ who is the Savior of the church, or ecclesia, Be warned of times of stress to appear in the ecclesial world in the last days, and Preach Christ.
e.	You would be aware of the spread of the Gospel in Asia, but also of the work of the Judaizers (eg, Gal 2:4,5), who were out to undermine Paul.
f.	You probably have a copy of some of the New Testament writings, especially the Mount Olivet prophecy by Jesus, and almost certainly a copy of the Septuagint (the Old Testament in Greek).
g.	You would be aware of the Jewish uprising against Rome (keenly so if the Revelation were written just before AD 70). Given the background information and reference material, you would be able to identify with much of the Revelation content, especially the basic conflict between Christ’s disciples and the many “enemies” of the Truth.

Now come to interpreting the Revelation itself. Would you not assume that the whole message was relevant, since Jesus had just sent it to you? In the first place, the message was explicitly sent to your church. Ephesus had held out against false teachers, but had also lost its first love. Is this true? Of course — Jesus said so. And if true of you personally, then you need to repent.

Next, there are messages sent to other churches. Can you learn from them? Of course. We can always learn from the mistakes of others, and be warned against making the same mistakes ourselves.

What about the visions (from Rev 4 onwards)? Many points are directly relevant to you and your church (see above): (a) Resist false prophets. (b) Hope for the tree of life. (c) Overcome through the blood of the Lamb. (d) Be ready for the Second Coming.

As to points pertaining to Israel: Assuming a date of writing prior to AD 70, you might guess that Israel was in for a very difficult time with Rome, and that a great tribulation would come upon that land as a result of the rebellion. However, according to your awareness of Old Testament prophecy (and the Olivet prophecy?), the ultimate outcome must be the oppressor’s destruction and the faithful remnant’s restoration in the Kingdom of God.

In the meantime, you must faithfully endure (like the martyred Antipas and the exiled John), for Jesus is coming soon.

“Hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

The message to the seven churches, or ecclesias:

1. is direct from Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
2. is urgent, as it deals with things soon to take place.
3. points to specific church activities and attitudes which need to be changed before Christ’s second coming, which is repeatedly said to be “soon”.
4. is clearly relevant and immediately applicable to believers in modern times, around the world.
5. has power to save: to save us from ourselves, and to save us from the big troubles that are coming on this world.

Many disciples are reluctant to read, much less study, the book of Revelation (sometimes called the Apocalypse, from the Greek word meaning “that which is unveiled, or revealed”). Some potential readers are simply daunted — they feel completely inadequate to understand all those symbols and prophetic sayings. Some have the impression they need an encyclopedic knowledge of history in order to properly interpret the text — and they have no inclination to become historians. Some have heard several different expositions of the book and find themselves totally discouraged — if different interpretations are going to cause turmoil, the best thing is to avoid getting into the fray. Finally, some rightly perceive that effort is required to come to a reasonable understanding of the book — and they basically don’t like studying.

Yet see the blessings missed by such reluctant students:

“Blessed is he who reads the words of the prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written therein; for the time is near” (Rev 1:3).

Because the book itself promises a blessing to the reader, and a double blessing to those hearers who keep (do) what is written (taught) in the Revelation, we encourage everyone to read and study the Bible text for him/herself. You will find the effort immediately rewarding. You will discover that the text often explains itself. You will perceive that the general struggle between the “good guys” (eg, the Lamb and his followers) and the “bad guys” (eg, the Beast and its followers) is similar to what the rest of the Bible talks about. Finally, you will be pleased to learn that at least the first three and last two chapters of the book (that’s almost 25%) are relatively easy to understand, and certainly quite relevant to your life of discipleship. So make the effort.

Take an initial or another first-hand look at the words, and absorb the teaching of the message.

Your reading of Revelation 2 and 3 is to begin the three-step process stated in the verse cited earlier:

“Blessed is…

• he who reads the words of the prophecy, and
• blessed are those who hear, and
• who keep what is written therein; for the time is near.”

Reading is the easy part. Hearing is more difficult; it implies that you are paying close attention to what the words actually say, with the intention to do something about them once they are understood. Keeping is the most difficult, since it means living out the teaching of Scripture in our daily lives. The daily doing of God’s commandments is the test of whether we truly love God (cf 1Jo 5:2,3), but it is made possible only by the help of God Himself.

The basic message of the Revelation is crystal clear: Jesus, the Lamb of God, has defeated Sin in his first coming, and will score the final victory over Sin (and the world of wickedness) in his second coming.

If you are one of the faithful, hang in there!

If you are one of the wayward, REPENT, and then hang in there!

If you are one of the opposition, you are not only going to lose, you are going to be destroyed — maybe you should think about switching sides?

So make sure you keep/get on Christ’s side before it’s too late!

Interpretation is generally straightforward. Take the first few verses in Rev 1. The opening verse tells us that it is “the revelation of Jesus Christ…”. Although the verse goes on to say that God gave it to Jesus, the emphasis seems to be on the glorified Christ, and how he has been commissioned by God “to show to his servants what must soon take place”. Thus Jesus “made it known by sending his angel to his servant John…”

When this angel speaks, it is like Jesus himself speaking. So the voice in Rev 1:10,12, and Rev 1:17 onwards, comes from a representative angel who is depicted as a glorified high priest (Rev 1:13-16) and asserts that he is the resurrected Lord (Rev 1:17,18). With this authority, the Jesus-angel claims to hold the seven churches in his right hand (Rev 1:20), to walk in their midst (Rev 1:13; 2:1), and to bring a specific message for each of the seven churches (Rev 1:11). So when the phrase “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches” is repeated seven times (Rev 2:7,11,17,29; 3:6,13,22), this is a matter that demands our attention!

Study, analyze, outline, and draw your own conclusions. The point is that anyone and everyone can do this kind of study and will profit from the work. If you are still doubting whether or not to make the effort, consider this: a disciple cannot “keep” the words of the book unless he/she first understands them. God’s blessing only comes to those who “keep the words of the prophecy of this book” (Rev 22:7).

You can bet your life on the trustworthiness of these words. They are certain. They come directly from the Lord. And they are urgent. Read them for yourself:

“These words are trustworthy and true. And the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, has sent his angel to show his servants what must soon take place. And behold, I am coming soon” (Rev 22:6,7).

General characteristics of the seven letters

1. Each letter begins with “To the angel of the church in ______ write: The words of him…”
2. Each introduces Christ by some description from Rev 1 appropriate to the particular church, and ends with a promise which agrees with this description.
3. Each has “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches”.
4. Each opens with “I know your works” or its equivalent.
5. Five churches are told to repent. The other two are promised a crown.
6. A coming of the Lord is referred to in five of the letters; “Satan” is mentioned in four.
7. Each church is unique, and despite serious sin in their midst, all still belong to Christ.

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Two interesting points that tie the letters together with the rest of the Book:

First, “These are the words of him who…” always introduces an aspect of the great One Like the Son of Man in Rev 1, or Christ:

• Rev 2:1: Seven stars, seven lampstands: see Rev 1:13,16.
• Rev 2:8: first and last: see Rev 1:8.
• Rev 2:12: sharp, 2-edged sword: see Rev 1:16.
• Rev 2:18: eyes of fire, feet of bronze: see Rev 1:14,15.
• Rev 3:1: Seven stars: Rev 1:16,20.
• Rev 3:7: The key of David, to open…: Rev 1:18.
• Rev 3:14: Amen, the faithful and true witness: Rev 1:5.

Secondly, “To him who overcomes, I will give/do…” always introduces a promise which has been developed in more detail in the body of the Book of Revelation, later…

• Rev 2:7: tree of life, in paradise of God: Rev 22:1,2.
• Rev 2:11: not hurt of second death: Rev 20:6,14; 21:8.
• Rev 2:17: hidden manna, white stone, new name: Rev 3:12.
• Rev 2:29: morning star: Rev 22:16.
• Rev 3:5: book of life: Rev 13:8; 17:8; etc.
• Rev 3:12: New Jerusalem: Rev 21:2.
• Rev 3:21: to sit on my throne…: Rev 5:6-8; 7:17.

Thus the message to the seven churches unifies the whole of Revelation… because in these messages the identity of the speaker AND the promises of God are tied together.