THE BATTLE OF THE DAY OF GOD

Rev.16:12….

14 For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.

16 And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon”…

19 And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army” (Rev 16:12-16, 19:19)

Just as we have seen, the prophecies of the scriptures clearly show that the “Day of the Lord” is the same thing as the “Battle of Armageddon”.

That time and period associated with the dealings of God, in which God’s kingdom, under Christ and through the Sons of God, is to be gradually established in the earth. It is the time when the kingdoms of this world are passing away and Satan’s power and influence over the hearts of men (Eph.2:1-2) are being bound.

The “Battle of the Great day of God”, or, the “Battle of Armageddon”, therefore it is a picture of that time of struggle and fierce conflict, which God’s elect and the whole world must pass through. It is that moment by which, this present evil world system (Gal.1:4) is actually brought to an end and the new day is inaugurated in righteousness and glory.

Don’t miss this fact; “Armageddon” is a Hebrew word that signifies the “mount of Megiddo” or “the mount of Destruction”.

As mentioned in part 1 of these series.

The physical town of Megiddo in Bible days occupied a very marked position on the southern edge of the Plain of Esdraelon, and commanded an important pass into the hill country.

And this area was the great battleground of Palestine, where so many famous battles of Old Testament history were fought.

Gideon and his little band of armies fought here and defeated the Medianites , as they destroyed one another in their flight (Judges 7:19-23).

Judges 4 and 5, Deborah, fought here and God sent deliverance to Israel…

1Sam, 31:22-25, this is where King Saul was defeated by the Philistines.

There also king Josiah was slain by Pharaoh-Necho in one of the most disastrous conflicts in the history of Israel (II Chron 35:22-25).

This is where King Ahab and Jezebel died (II Kings 9:30-37).

It is said that because of its strategic position, many other nations, according to secular history, warred around Megiddo – like the Jews, Gentiles, Saracens, Crusaders, Egyptians, Persians, Druses, Turks and Arabs have all pitched their tents on the Plain of Esdraelon one time or the other.

Dealing with Symbols

It should be noted that the Bible uses symbolisms that are very similar in nature to those that the world is familiar with.

Take for instance, the Bible makes use of beasts to represent kingdoms, or governments; and so does the world.

Have you notice that always nations uses one animal or the other in their flags or National emblems?

The Nigerian Coat of arms uses two white horses supporting a black shield.

The coat of arm of Ghana carries two eagles, South Africa has Elephant tusks in their coat of arms which speaks of wisdom and strength , they also represent for that nation moderation and eternity , they have the Ears of wheat that represent fertility. Germination and growth, which speaks of the development of that nation to achieve an unlimited potential.

So we found that the Bible uses certain battle fields of the world to convey some basic Biblical truth for use to see.

Again, in the language of man, when you say that an army meet its “Waterloo”, it simply means that it has been victorious for a while; and all of a sudden it met his defeat.

And this came about because Napoleon was defeated at Waterloo.

And this is what made men to attach such great significance to that particular battleground.

Even so it is with Armageddon. So that when you read of Armageddon in the Book of Revelation, you must begin to see the meaning as used symbolically, taking its root from the battle ground where Israel of old fought her wars.

Therefore, to understand the full meaning of Armageddon, you have to be acquainted with the features of the wars that Israel fought on this ground, knowing fully well also that they did not have the victory in these battles all the time.

Now one major characteristic of the wars of Israel was that God was always involved, where he either caused them to be victorious or allowed them to be defeated especially when they have sinned against Him. In either way He was involved and yet keeping with His own great plan of the ages.

“Battle of the Great day of God”,

So once you understand these facts, just like the battle of waterloo, then the battle of Armageddon which is the battle of the great Day of the lord begins to take on a great significance.

Can you see it yet?

So, you begin to see it’s true as a revelation of a struggle in which God is specifically interested and in which HE will totally and completely direct the issues. This is His battles in which He definitely guarantees the final and glorious victory for the forces of His kingdom.

This is God’s own battle in which He has vested interest and commitment.

It is the battle for ages for the permanent defeat of error, unrighteousness, carnality, darkness, antichrist, and all the agencies of Satan. Thereby opening up the full manifestation of God through His Sons (Rom.8:19-23) to bless all the families of the earth.

This is why it is described as “the battle of THAT GREAT DAY OF GOD ALMIGHTY”. It is Gods own battle and not of natural nations or that which is against natural Israel.

That’s a wrong focus, hence all those with natural predictions are always failing because It’s a spiritual battle symbolized by that battle ground of Israel of old, ‘Armageddon’ the ‘Mount of Megiddo’.

To be continued…