A Wrap-up of Endtime Events - Babylon is Destroyed

[0:00] In this moment, Gary is going to come and read scripture for us. And before he does, if you want to find a place, it will be Revelation chapter 17. If you will turn to that, he'll be reading some verses from chapter 17 and also chapter 18 because we are dealing this morning with the second of the eight stages that are involved in the campaign of Armageddon.

[0:26] And if you will just briefly take a look at your map that is included in your bulletin, you will note that item number two on the right-hand side of the page where Babylon is described is straight across from the area of Armageddon where the armies will be gathering in that circle that you see there.

[0:50] That is number one where the arrows are all focusing. That is Megiddo or Armageddon where the massive collection of armies is going to marshal themselves in preparation for the great battle that will follow.

[1:07] So that is item number one and we covered that in our last session. Item number two has to do with the destruction of Babylon. And if you will look at the parallel line that runs from the battlefield on the left to Babylon on the right, it is approximately 700 miles long.

[1:29] That's about how far ancient Babylon is from the battlefield that will be considered in connection with item number one that we've already looked at.

[1:45] And just looking ahead briefly will be the fall of Jerusalem. And it too will be terribly, terribly destroyed during this time of Armageddon, the campaign thereof.

[2:01] So destruction is going to be the order of the day. And this is going to be part and parcel of the seven-year tribulation period. In fact, what we are going to be considering now or are considering with all of these eight stages is at the very conclusion of the Armageddon.

[2:20] This is in preparation for the return of our Lord Jesus Christ. And if you will take your Bible now and Gary will come and read for us several verses from 17 and then from chapter 18.

[2:36] I really appreciate his doing this. He does it so well. And he and Carolyn have been coming over here from Brookfield for probably 30, between 30 and 40 years.

[2:50] And we've recruited and enlisted him in his reading. And he does an excellent job. I really appreciate that. So thanks, Gary, for being here again. You and Carolyn, come and read for us.

[3:01] And if I could, I'd like to share one thing with you before I read.

[3:17] I think it was Monday or Tuesday. I was walking Barney. And in our front yard, I had a daffodil up just the chute, about a half an inch.

[3:31] So spring isn't far away. Okay, you should be in Revelation chapter 17.

[3:44] And this morning we'll be looking at verses 1 through 5 in chapter 17. Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and spoke with me.

[4:01] Saying, Come here. I will show you the judgment of the great harlot who sits on many waters, with whom the kings of the earth committed acts of immorality.

[4:16] And those who dwell on the earth were made drunk with the wine of her immorality. And he carried me away in the spirit into a wilderness.

[4:28] And I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast, full of blasphemous names, having seven heads and ten horns.

[4:40] The woman was clothed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls, having in her hand a gold cup full of abominations and of the unclean things of her immorality.

[5:01] And on her forehead a name was written, a mystery, Babylon the great, the mother of harlots and of the abominations of the earth.

[5:18] Then if you'll turn the page over to chapter 18. And in chapter 18 we'll be looking at verses 1 through 10.

[5:31] After these things I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority.

[5:43] And the earth was illumined with his glory. And he cried out with a mighty voice, saying, Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great.

[5:55] She has become a dwelling place of demons, and a prison of every unclean spirit, and a prison of every unclean and hateful bird.

[6:09] For all the nations have drunk of the wine of the passion of her immorality. And the kings of the earth have committed acts of immorality with her.

[6:21] And the merchants of the earth have become rich by the wealth of her sensuality. I heard another voice from heaven saying, Come out of her, my people, so that you will not participate in her sins and receive of her plagues.

[6:43] For her sins have piled up as high as heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities. Pay her back, even as she has paid, and give back to her double according to her deeds.

[7:03] In the cup which she has mixed, mix twice as much for her. To the degree that she glorified herself and lived sensuously.

[7:17] To the same degree give her torment and mourning. For she says in her heart, I sit as a queen, and I am not a widow, and will never see mourning.

[7:32] For this reason, one day her plagues will come, pestilence and mourning and famine. And she will be burned up with fire.

[7:46] For the Lord God who judges her is strong. And the kings of the earth, who committed acts of immorality and lived sensuously with her, will weep and lament over her when they see the smoke of her burning.

[8:07] Standing a distance because of the fear of her torment, saying, Woe, woe, the great city Babylon, the strong city!

[8:19] For in one hour your judgment has come. There is so very much in these few verses just read that aptly describes this place Babylon and the influence that it has had upon the rest of the world.

[8:41] It is very fitting that the demise of Babylon is given such prominence. It is this very area that was so central to the earliest corruption of humanity.

[8:56] The evils generated in and by early Babylon are virtually unspeakable. And it is also fitting that this Babylon is referred to as the mother of harlots and abominations.

[9:14] Babylon was inventive of vice, debauchery, idolatry, and every obscene thing imaginable. And to be called the mother of, as she is here, simply means that she gave birth to these items as does a mother to a child.

[9:35] Babylon is the root, and the world's evils and vices are the fruit. Now that is quite a significant statement, and yet we may be absolutely sure that history will bear us out.

[9:51] This goes all the way back to the book of Genesis, and it involves Nimrod, who was described as a mighty hunter before the Lord. Nimrod wasn't a fellow who went out with bows and arrows and looked for elk or deer or anything like that.

[10:06] He was a recruiter, and what he recruited were people of like faith and like interests and desires and ambitions as his.

[10:19] He was evil through and through. He was an in-your-face, anti-God, rebel kind of a person. And he spawned so much of what the world is going to come to adopt as secularism, as paganism, as heathenism, as everything that we see in our world today.

[10:42] It all stemmed from this source. This was the beginning of worldwide evil. It originated here and spread out like tentacles all over the earth so that it has impacted every continent and every nation.

[11:03] This is the origin, the beginning of evil, of vice, of immorality, of debauchery, of idolatry, of adultery, of every evil thing that you can think of.

[11:18] She is referred to as the mother of abominations. In other words, this area, this geographical area called Babylon, is today's modern southern Iraq.

[11:36] And I don't know if you recall or not, but during the Iraq war that started in 1990, Saddam Hussein pictured himself as being the new Nebuchadnezzar.

[11:49] And he took it upon himself to begin rebuilding the ancient city of Babylon. He didn't get much further than rebuilding the Ishtar gates.

[12:00] I've never seen them in person. I've seen pictures of them. They are very elaborate, very ornate, and they claim to be a kind of carbon copy of what the original Nebuchadnezzar had built.

[12:13] And this was approximately 600 years before Christ was born. So it is really important to understand why this area is so significant.

[12:25] Babylon is not only a city. It is also a geographical area, kind of like New York is a city, and New York is also a state.

[12:36] So there is a city of Babylon, and then there is the general area that is referred to as Babylon. Another name that it goes by that is synonymous with Babylon is Chaldee, C-H-A-L-D-E-E, the Chaldeans.

[12:52] These people are essentially the same as the Babylonians. It's just a different name that is used in connection with the Chaldean language. And down through the years, it has been a major player, particularly regarding nations in the east.

[13:11] And you will recall that this is the area to which the children of Israel were carried in captivity when Nebuchadnezzar came against them in 586 B.C.

[13:22] and destroyed Jerusalem and led thousands and thousands of Jews into Babylonian captivity where they were forced to serve under the authority of the Babylonians for 70 years.

[13:37] And one of the principal captives of that that was a very strategic player in the plan and program of God was a young man by the name of Daniel. And if you want some additional history, I would just suggest that you read the book of Daniel.

[13:50] It's only 12 chapters and it will provide you with some information regarding this particular area. So why so much emphasis is placed upon Babylon and its destruction is because it was the source of the abominations and the evils that have permeated throughout the world.

[14:13] This was the seedbed of it. This is where it all began. These abominations were found in Babylon before they were exported to other areas of the world.

[14:28] And this is also, by the way, the same area where the Tower of Babel existed and the languages were confounded and people moved out from that area into various geographical locations throughout the Mediterranean world.

[14:43] And they took various languages with them and language families developed. But it all began here. And the point I want to make now and what I really want you to understand is since this was the beginning, the seedbed of worldwide evil, this is also where it's going to end.

[15:07] This will be the climax. And what is building here with the destruction of Babylon is something that obviously has been in the plan and program of God from time past.

[15:20] And all that was waiting for fulfillment is just for the ripeness to come in the time and the plan and program of God. So all of these things are going to be taking place.

[15:32] In order for this Babylon to be destroyed, and by the way, this is the seat. It isn't now, obviously.

[15:44] But it is going to be the seat for the world's economy and for the world's politics.

[15:56] It's going to be focused right here in Babylon. It is far from that now. If anything, the seat of world politics is probably Washington, D.C.

[16:10] with competition from Moscow and Beijing and London for supremacy. But it is generally considered that the United States is pretty much without competition insofar as being the world power is concerned.

[16:31] That's going to change. I do not know what elements are going to be involved to change it, but I do know this. The center of world power politically and economically is going to be Babylon.

[16:52] Now that might seem like a stretch for us to consider because we look at what's happening in the United States, we look at what's happening in Europe, in the nations of Europe, and then we look at what would be considered the geographical area of modern Babylon today.

[17:10] And what is it? Well, it is relatively nothing. It is relatively a waste place. But the time is coming when it is going to be very, very prominent.

[17:22] I don't know how far off that is, but I do know that there is a political and religious dynamic that is afoot now that seems to be gaining in power and ascendancy and influence more rapidly than perhaps anything since first century Christianity.

[17:44] And that is Islam. And to what degree Islam will be successful or be a major player with this Babylonian rise to power, I do not know, but I would not be one bit surprised if it is the very core of it.

[18:00] And insofar as Islam and things of that nature are concerned, the United States of America and Europe in general both seem to be committed to finding ways to help our enemies to hurt us.

[18:21] It is a very strange thing that we are dealing with today. But it is what is taking place here and it is even more pronounced in Europe. Germany and England and Sweden and all of these countries are having tremendous difficulty in dealing with the people whom they welcome into their country from Islamic countries because these people have no interest at all in assimilation.

[18:49] They want to remain exactly what they are and they have no interest in blending in and becoming Americans or Brits or anything else. They stand apart and it is entirely possible that this will be a major player in the final analysis.

[19:06] So if you will look at your map and see that it is number two, the destruction of Babylon and that is coming and it is going to happen in conjunction with the armies that are massing in Armageddon because while the Antichrist is marshalling his forces in Megiddo or Armageddon, that is when Babylon is going to be destroyed and I am not at all sure who these destroyers are going to be because we do know that all of those who are gathering together, the armies of the world that are gathering together in Armageddon are doing so with the intent of obliterating, annihilating the people of Israel and they are going to march south in order to do that.

[20:03] Yet at the same time there is going to be another world force militarily that is going to come against Babylon that is there in the Tigris-Euphrates complex rivers and while the Antichrist is in Megiddo or at Armageddon, Babylon is going to be destroyed and it is going to be in a very short period of time.

[20:32] I don't know about you but I have great difficulty in thinking that something that is going to be established as the number one economic political force in the world, that in itself is a stretch because what happens to us in the meanwhile, I do not know.

[20:58] All I know is this is what the prophetic picture sets forth and it also indicates that there is going to be another configuration of nations that are going to oppose the Antichrist and what he intends to do with Israel and they will come against Babylon and literally level it.

[21:22] Now that is going to be quite an undertaking for something that is established as the world's economic power and political power going to meet its demise in a day.

[21:35] And we are told from the passage that was just read in Revelation that it will literally be a day and it will be utterly destroyed. We do not know if that is going to be nuclear activity although that certainly could hasten things along because there is a great deal of destruction that can be wrought in a very short period of time when nuclear armaments are involved.

[22:02] And whether that is going to be the case I am not saying because I don't know but it is entirely possible. So we need to check some references and I don't have any on the back sheet of your map simply because there were too many and I didn't have room for them.

[22:18] We have got to consult a number of places in the Old Testament and the first one that I would ask you to turn to is Zechariah chapter 5. This is back in the Old Testament.

[22:29] Zechariah chapter 5. And by the way be advised if you will that these verses that we are looking at have been parked here in the Old Testament for well over a thousand years.

[22:45] Some of them much longer than that. And they have just been sitting there available for our reading and consideration and most of the time people just read over these verses and they just evoke a little bit of curiosity but usually don't attach any real significance to it.

[23:07] And we tend to think that well this is just old stuff you know much of which has already happened. And some of it of course has. But what we are going to be considering this morning in the time that we have in looking at the destruction of Babylon has to do with references we will be consulting that cannot possibly be pointed to as having already been fulfilled because they just do not fit the scene at all.

[23:39] So these things are yet future. They were very much in the minds of those who lived back then and the writers the prophets who wrote about them but then it's just as if they were almost non-existent for hundreds and hundreds of years.

[23:57] But be advised that time is not a factor so far as God is concerned. He has a plan and a program and it is right on schedule and all of these things are part and parcel of it. So first of all let us look if we may at Zechariah chapter 5 beginning with verse 5 down through the end of the chapter.

[24:14] Zechariah is recording what God has revealed to him in his vision the flying scroll. Verse 5 says Then the angel who was speaking with me went out and said to me lift up now your eyes and see what this is going forth.

[24:35] And I said what is it? And he said this is the ephah going forth. The ephah is a weight of measurement or a measurement of weight if you will.

[24:49] It is symbolical or speaks of economics. And if we were looking for something to be a counterpart to that that would help us to identify what this means I would suggest our dollar sign.

[25:07] You know the S with the two vertical lines drawn through it speaks of what? Speaks of money dollars economy and everybody knows that.

[25:18] When you see the dollar sign you know it has something to do with money. Here it is an ephah going forth again he said this is their appearance in all the land and behold a lead cover was lifted up and this is a woman sitting inside the ephah then he said now this is all the vision that God is giving Zechariah and he's writing down what he sees in the vision then he said this is wickedness and he threw her down into the middle of the ephah and cast the lead weight on its opening then I lifted up my eyes and looked and there were two women were coming out with the wind in their wings and they had wings like the wings of a stork and they lifted up the ephah between the earth and the heavens and I said to the angel who was speaking with me where are they taking the ephah in other words where is this economic symbol going what's it all about where is it going to land and then he said to me to build a temple for her in the land of

[26:43] Shinar and by the way if you research this you will find that Shinar along with the name Chaldee along with the name Babylon all refer to the same geographical area this is referred to as the plains of Shinar and when it is prepared she will be set there on her own pedestal she will be installed and she will have a great deal of influence and authority this is part and parcel of the mystery Babylon this is the harlot this is going to be the economic aspect of it and we've already seen from Revelation the immorality of it so there is going to be a combination and configuration of economics and of political aspect that will be saturated with immorality and idolatry and everything that is opposed to who and what

[27:51] God is this is going to be the seat of world wickedness even as it was the origin of it it is going to flourish here once again now if you will please we need to check some references in Isaiah so come back if you will to Isaiah Isaiah was written approximately 700 years before Christ was born and in Isaiah chapter 13 Isaiah 13 and beginning with verse 1 down through verse 5 prophecies about Babylon the oracle concerning Babylon which Isaiah the son of Amoz saw lift up a standard on the bare hill raise your voice to them wave the hand that they may enter the doors of the nobles I have commanded my consecrated ones

[28:53] I have even called my mighty warriors my proudly exalting ones to execute my anger a sound of tumult on the mountains like that of many people a sound of the uproar of kingdoms of nations gathered together the Lord of hosts is mustering the army for battle for they are coming from a far country from the farthest horizons the Lord and his instruments of indignation to destroy the whole land and what is the land that they are going to be destroying it's going to be Babylon these are not forces of antichrist these are forces that are opposed to the antichrist we do not know exactly who these are except I guess we would look at the text and say they got to be the good guys the text makes that quite clear in verse 3

[29:55] I have commanded my consecrated ones I have even called my mighty warriors my proudly exalting ones to execute my anger who these are are not further identified except to say they are taking this action and they are coming against Babylon at the behest of God almighty and he is going to use them to absolutely destroy them and then as you move on down through the whole passage he talks about the day of the Lord in verse 6 the day of the Lord is near we already identified that and we tried to spell that out quite somewhat and in verse 1 all possibility of confusing this with someone else I think is gone it is the oracle concerning Babylon some translate it the burden of Babylon means the issue the item the thing that God has in mind in connection with this

[30:55] Babylon and by the way I don't know if you are aware of it or not but insofar as the Bible as a whole is concerned the name Israel sometimes referring to the nation Israel sometimes referring to the man Israel whose name originally was Jacob and it was changed to Israel is mentioned some 2500 times in the Bible you can take your Strong's Concordance or Young's and look it up and you will find column after column that is page after page that is just indicating the reference where the name Israel is found and after looking at many pages and counting them and I gave up counting I think I dropped out at something like 2300 and I estimated the rest of them a couple hundred more so it was about 2500

[31:59] Israel is mentioned in the Old and New Testament guess what geographical area comes in second Babylon that is not a coincidence and the mere fact that it is only mentioned about 10% of the times that Israel is mentioned about 260 times but that is quite significant Babylon is mentioned 260 times in the Bible that is very significant and apart from the nation of Israel that name Babylon is found in the Bible more than any other geographical location that too I think assigns some prominence to it so let us consider this reference if we may and in chapter 13 let's also look at verses 19 through 22

[33:02] I've got several references here and I don't want to confuse the issue but it's important that we get all of these in verse 19 and Babylon the beauty of kingdoms the glory of the Chaldeans pride will be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah it will never be inhabited or lived in from generation to generation nor will the Arab pitch his tent there nor will shepherds make their flocks lie down there but desert creatures will lie down there and their houses will be full of owls ostriches also will live there and shaggy goats will frolic there and hyenas will howl in their fortified towers and jackals in their luxurious palaces her fateful time also will soon come and her days will not be prolonged this is a picture of utter complete devastation and leaving it in such a way that it will be unfit for human habitation this is what is coming upon this place called

[34:17] Babylon in chapter 14 of Isaiah and verse 22 let's turn to that if we may please and I will declare and I will rise up against them declares the Lord of hosts and will cut off from Babylon name and survivors offspring and posterity declares the Lord I will also make it a possession for the hedgehog and swamps of water and I will sweep it with the broom of destruction declares the Lord of hosts this has never been fulfilled in any way in the past that could possibly be connected with this passage this is all future and I realize that it is quite a stretch for us to realize that something like this could be future when it was actually written 700 years before

[35:21] Jesus was even born in Bethlehem add another 2000 to that this was 2700 years ago is it possible that a prophecy could be given and not fulfilled for 2700 years well absolutely the first prophecy that was ever given regarding the coming of a Messiah a redeemer to provide salvation for mankind as found in Genesis chapter 3 and verse 15 the seed of the woman would crush the head of a serpent the promise of a Messiah was given in Genesis 3 and it wasn't fulfilled for 4,000 years think of it 4,000 years of human history from the time the Messiah was promised until the time he showed up so if anybody thinks that we've waited a long time for the second coming we've only waited 2,000 years

[36:24] Israel waited 4,000 years for the first coming so keep that perspective in mind here in Isaiah chapter 14 and verse 22 I will rise up against them declares the Lord of hosts will cut off from Babylon name and survivors offspring and posture this is speaking of the totality of the destruction it is going to be breathtaking it's going to leave nothing by way of survivors and while we are in the area let's come over please to Jeremiah Jeremiah is a little later than Isaiah Jeremiah was the prophet that warned the people of Israel that God was going to bring the Babylonians against them if they did not repent and of course they just considered him a crazy old man and discounted what he had to say made light of it made fun of it and everything else but of course it all came to pass just exactly as he said it would in

[37:28] Jeremiah chapter 50 here is the prophecy against Babylon the word which the Lord spoke concerning Babylon the land of the Chaldeans through Jeremiah the prophet declare and proclaim the nations proclaim it and lift up a standard do not conceal it but say Babylon has been captured Bel has been put to shame Marduk has been shattered these are their false idols and false gods her images have been put to shame her idols have been shattered for a nation has come up against her out of the north it will make her land an object of horror and there will be no inhabitants in it both man and beast have wandered off they have gone away in those days and at that time declares the Lord the sons of Israel will come both they and the sons of Judah as well they will go along weeping as they go and it will be the Lord their God they will seek they will ask for a way to Zion turning their faces in its direction they will come that they may join themselves to the

[38:37] Lord in an everlasting covenant that will not be forgotten my people have become lost sheep their shepherds have led them astray they've made them turn aside on the mountains and so on and the text goes on and Isaiah I'm sorry Jeremiah 50 and look at you will at verse 21 through 27 against the land of Marathame go up against it and against the inhabitants of Pechod slay and utterly destroy them declares the Lord and do according to all that I have commanded you the noise of battle is in the land and great destruction how the hammer of the whole earth has been cut off and broken how Babylon has become an object of horror among the nations I set a snare for you and you also were caught O Babylon while you yourself were not aware you have been found and also seized because you have engaged in conflict with the

[39:38] Lord the Lord has opened his armory oh my that's quite an awesome statement nations have their armories it is where their cache of weapons and implements of warfare are found and they are bad enough when man opens his armory but when God opens his armory brought forth the weapons of his indignation for it is a work of the Lord God of hosts in the land of the Chaldeans come to her from the farthest border open up her barns pile up her like heaps utterly destroy her let nothing be left to her and this is what is coming upon ancient Babylon in chapter 51 Jeremiah chapter 51 well I'm sorry we probably should stay in 50 let's just take a couple of more references in

[40:41] Jeremiah 50 and verse 41 I've got so many references here in the time constraint so we have to be selective Jeremiah 50 and verse 41 behold a people is coming from the north and a great nation and many kings will be aroused from the remote parts of the earth this is this is that this is that anti this is the anti antichrist element that is coming against Babylon the antichrist is marshaling his forces in Armageddon and while he is there this is what's going to be taking place in the land of which he is actually ruler it is the antichrist who will be installed as the absolute dictator of much of the world he'll have those ten underlings under him they will be geographically assigned geographical areas and these by the way will comprise the ten toes that

[41:45] Daniel describes on the image that he told Nebuchadnezzar what it was about these are the ten toes those ten nations and how many of these will be involved in coming against the antichrist we do not know but they are going to destroy Babylon and we read in verse verse 41 a people is coming from the north a great nation many kings and by the way these do not have to be kings with crowns on their heads like we think of kings the king of England or the queen of England or whatever it may simply mean heads of state these will be either presidents prime ministers their authority generals under their jurisdiction or whatever but a great nation and many kings will be aroused from the remote parts of the north they seize their bow and javelin they are cruel and have no mercy their voice roars like the sea and they ride on horses marshaled like a man for the battle against you oh daughter of

[42:52] Babylon the king of Babylon has heard the report about them and his hands hang limp now it's really significant that the king of Babylon has heard why didn't he know because he wasn't there he's not in Babylon he's in Megiddo he is preparing to march against Israel when he gets word that his Babylon over which he has complete authority and jurisdiction is no more it has been absolutely annihilated the king of Babylon has heard the report this king of Babylon is the Antichrist he has heard the report about them and his hands hang limp this is a picture of helplessness distress has gripped him agony like a woman in childbirth he has really met his comeuppance behold one will come up like a lion from the thicket of the

[44:16] Jordan to a perennially watered pasture for in an instant I shall make them run away from it and whoever is chosen I shall appoint over it for who is like me and who will summon me into court and who then is the shepherd who can stand before me so he is going to receive this word while he is in Armageddon or while he is in the area of Armageddon chapter 51 just over the page verses 31 and 32 one courier runs to meet another these are message bearers and by the way we have no idea what is going to be taking place militarily when this comes about there is a possibility that many of the earth's weaponry will have been neutralized through some means that we cannot now identify

[45:16] I do not have any speculation well I do have some speculation but that's all it is it is just speculation and part of the speculation has to do with the possibility of a global EMT attack that's the electromagnetic pulse and I have heard some of our leading generals and political dignitaries talk about the kind of havoc that this would wreak upon the earth and that already we know that that that little guy can't think of his name in Korea with the bad haircut already has the possibility of launching a missile that could release the electromagnetic pulse and should that ever be realized it would render virtually ineffective every kind of conventional item of warfare and implements that we have this would the electromagnetic pulse would virtually fry all electronics and electrical magnetic forces your car wouldn't start your refrigerator wouldn't run your furnace wouldn't work

[46:45] ICBMs that would be normally launched against an enemy will not work nothing that is electronic or electrical will work it would have the effect of reducing the entire culture to a 19th century existence we would all become Amish overnight think of it no electrical power or energy no cars will work there won't be any gasoline because you couldn't get it out of the pump and your car wouldn't run if you did tanks won't work planes won't work jet planes won't fly nothing will work but man has never let something like that stop him from wreaking his violence and hatred upon his fellow man he will find other ways to do it and I do not know if we are going to be reduced to some of the most primitive kind of warfare when time comes or anyway that's just speculation it is something to think about

[47:50] I know I know it sounds very far fetched but actually what we are dealing with now what we have now by way of modern technology all of that was very far fetched to the people who just lived 100 years ago was it not of course it was so it's all a matter of perspective and ours of course is greatly lacking and there will be Jewish people who are in this area of Babylon who are going to flee and they are going to flee from Babylon before the destruction they'll be warned and they are going to flee from Babylon and they will head for Israel and for Jerusalem which one might well expect but the thing that you need to know is that the utter total destruction of

[48:57] Jerusalem is the third stage in the eight stages that are listed and that we will take up in our next session Antichrist is going to march southward and as soon as he gets the word as soon as he gets the word that Babylon his headquarters the economic political center of the world at that time has been laid waste he is intent on destroying those whom he will probably feel is the cause of it and that will be Israel he will march on Israel and will succeed in utterly destroying and leveling Jerusalem when

[49:59] Titus the Roman general invaded Israel and threw up a siege around Jerusalem that lasted for a long time there were approximately one million Jews that were slaughtered by Titus men and probably the greatest reason that they were is because when Titus who later by the way would become the Roman emperor but when he was a commanding general I think of the 10th legion and assigned the responsibility of destroying Jerusalem had they peaceably surrendered probably the city would have been spared and many of the people would have been spared but Titus was angered so much by the Jewish people because they put up one hell of a fight and they cost the

[51:03] Roman army a lot of good men and when they finally broke through the barrier and got into the city Titus lost complete control of his men and he could not keep them from taking revenge on the inhabitants because they had lost a lot of buddies due to the efforts of the Jews who were holed up there and it is estimated that there were one million Jews that were slain many of them just slaughtered and those that were not were led into Roman captivity and they were sold abroad as slaves and you see pictures of it even in the arch of Rome that depicts the victors returning from Israel with the items of furniture from the Jewish temple and all of the rest of it and the slaves and everything that went with it so it's a very very significant time and this is what is coming when

[52:08] Jerusalem is attacked by the Antichrist he will be successful in destroying Jerusalem and these will be the carnage will be incredible some will have already fled according to Matthew chapter 24 when Jesus said when you see the abomination that desolates stand in the holy place then head for the hills and there will be a number of Jews who will leave Jerusalem when the Antichrist tips his hand and shows himself declares himself to be God and demands that people worship him there will be a number of Jews that will slip out of the city and make their way to the hills in the south and that is where Petra is Basra is one of the principal cities there and that's where they're going to be hold up until Christ returns and when he does they will be the remnant that will welcome their Messiah and

[53:08] Zechariah says then they will look upon him whom they pierced and they shall mourn and Romans 11 tells us and so all Israel will be saved that will be Israel in national repentance and what a breakthrough it's going to be when those remaining Jews understand that Jesus of Nazareth really was the Messiah and our ancestors demanded his crucifixion 2,000 years ago and we are told they will look upon him whom they pierced and they will mourn bitterly embracing him as their Messiah and then in fulfillment of what Isaiah says in his prophecy who is this that comes from Basra with his garments stained with blood it's none other than Yeshua HaMashiach the Messiah he will have returned he will meet the armies Antichrist coming south from Jerusalem and their destruction there and he will absolutely devastate them by treading out the winepress of the wrath of God all by himself he'll need no angels help he'll need no human help he will care for his enemies himself and so all Israel shall be saved well this has been a very rapid overview of what is involved and this is stage two of the eight stages that are yet ahead and next week we will look at the sacking and the destruction of

[54:49] Jerusalem and it isn't a pretty picture but it is the ugliness of humanity and what is going to transpire would you stand with me please father we recognize the heaviness of this material and yet we do not apologize for it because you've seen fit to incorporate it into your word and it is put here for our enlightenment and that we should be advised that you are a God who is utterly committed to keeping your word and fulfilling all that you have promised to us to Israel and to everyone else to whom you have made promises thank you that you have a plan in the program part of which you have allowed us to see part of which still remains mystery because the Lord has kept some of the secret things unto himself and we recognize your right to do that so we ask that as we engage this material you will use it to show us what manner of men and eyes ahead we look to you for an ability to understand it and the significance of it in

[56:02] Christ's name Amen