Military Invasions in God's End-Time Plan - Bible Verse Handbook

Session 6 Military Invasions in God's End-Time Plan

1Blow the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in My holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble; for the day of the LORD is coming, for it is at hand: 2a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness, like the morning clouds spread over the mountains. A people come, great and strong, the like of whom has never been; nor will there ever be any such after them, even for many successive generations. 3A fire devours before them, and behind them a flame burns; the land is like the Garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; surely nothing shall escape them. 4Their appearance is like the appearance of horses; and like swift steeds, so they run. 5With a noise like chariots over mountaintops they leap, like the noise of a flaming fire that devours the stubble, like a strong people set in battle array. 6Before them the people writhe in pain; all faces are drained of color. 7They run like mighty men, they climb the wall like men of war; every one marches in formation, and they do not break ranks. 8They do not push one another; every one marches in his own column. Though they lunge between the weapons, they are not cut down. 9They run to and fro in the city, they run on the wall; they climb into the houses, they enter at the windows like a thief.   (Joel 2:1-9)

I. MOSES' PREDICTIONS OF TROUBLE IN ISRAEL

A. Moses prophesied that horrifying things would come to Israel if they rebelled against God. He spoke of locust plagues that would be sent by God

28  The Lord will strike you with madness and blindness and confusion of heart. 29  And you shall grope at noonday, as a blind man gropes in darkness; you shall not prosper in your ways; you shall be only oppressed and plundered continually, and no one shall save you.

30  “You shall betroth a wife, but another man shall lie with her; you shall build a house, but you shall not dwell in it; you shall plant a vineyard, but shall not gather its grapes. 31  Your ox shall be slaughtered before your eyes, but you shall not eat of it; your donkey shall be violently taken away from before you, and shall not be restored to you; your sheep shall be given to your enemies, and you shall have no one to rescue them. 32  Your sons and your daughters shall be given to another people, and your eyes shall look and fail with longing for them all day long; and there shall be no strength in your hand. 33  A nation whom you have not known shall eat the fruit of your land and the produce of your labor, and you shall be only oppressed and crushed continually. 34  So you shall be driven mad because of the sight which your eyes see. 35  The Lord will strike you in the knees and on the legs with severe boils which cannot be healed, and from the sole of your foot to the top of your head.

36  “The Lord will bring you and the king whom you set over you to a nation which neither you nor your fathers have known, and there you shall serve other gods—wood and stone. 37  And you shall become an astonishment, a proverb, and a byword among all nations where the Lord will drive you.

38  “You shall carry much seed out to the field but gather little in, for the locust shall consume it. 39  You shall plant vineyards and tend them, but you shall neither drink of the wine nor gather the grapes; for the worms shall eat them. 40  You shall have olive trees throughout all your territory, but you shall not anoint yourself with the oil; for your olives shall drop off. 41  You shall beget sons and daughters, but they shall not be yours; for they shall go into captivity. 42  Locusts shall consume all your trees and the produce of your land. (Deut. 28:28-42)

This occurred in Joel's day.

47  “Because you did not serve the Lord your God with joy and gladness of heart, for the abundance of everything, 48  therefore you shall serve your enemies, whom the Lord will send against you, in hunger, in thirst, in nakedness, and in need of everything; and He will put a yoke of iron on your neck until He has destroyed you. 49  The Lord will bring a nation against you from afar, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle flies, a nation whose language you will not understand, 50  a nation of fierce countenance, which does not respect the elderly nor show favor to the young. 51  And they shall eat the increase of your livestock and the produce of your land, until you are destroyed; they shall not leave you grain or new wine or oil, or the increase of your cattle or the offspring of your flocks, until they have destroyed you. (Deut. 28:47-51)

Moses prophesied that Israel would give way to cannibalism during the sieges

52  “They shall besiege you at all your gates until your high and fortified walls, in which you trust, come down throughout all your land; and they shall besiege you at all your gates throughout all your land which the Lord your God has given you. 53  You shall eat the fruit of your own body, the flesh of your sons and your daughters whom the Lord your God has given you, in the siege and desperate straits in which your enemy shall distress you. (Deut. 28:52-53)

B. The Lord warned Israel that He would scatter them across the nations.

64“The LORD will scatter you among all peoples [all nations], from one end of the earth to the other…65And among those nations you shall find no rest…but there the LORD will give you a trembling heart, failing eyes, and anguish of soul.” (Deut. 28:64-65)

C. This prophecy by Moses will see its ultimate fulfillment in the end times

20  To hear the groaning of the prisoner, To release those appointed to death. (Ps. 102:20)

11  It shall come to pass in that day
That the Lord shall set His hand again the second time
To recover the remnant of His people who are left,
From Assyria and Egypt,
From Pathros and Cush,
From Elam and Shinar,
From Hamath and the islands of the sea.

12  He will set up a banner for the nations,
And will assemble the outcasts of Israel,
And gather together the dispersed of Judah
From the four corners of the earth.
13  Also the envy of Ephraim shall depart,
And the adversaries of Judah shall be cut off;
Ephraim shall not envy Judah,
And Judah shall not harass Ephraim.
14  But they shall fly down upon the shoulder of the Philistines toward the west;
Together they shall plunder the people of the East;
They shall lay their hand on Edom and Moab;
And the people of Ammon shall obey them.

16  There will be a highway for the remnant of His people
Who will be left from Assyria,
As it was for Israel in the day that he came up from the land of Egypt. (Isa. 11:11-14, 16)

1 For the Lord will have mercy on Jacob, and will still choose Israel, and settle them in their own land. The strangers will be joined with them, and they will cling to the house of Jacob. 2  Then people will take them and bring them to their place, and the house of Israel will possess them for servants and maids in the land of the Lord ; they will take them captive whose captives they were, and rule over their oppressors. 3  It shall come to pass in the day the Lord gives you rest from your sorrow, and from your fear and the hard bondage in which you were made to serve, 4  that you will take up this proverb against the king of Babylon, and say:

“How the oppressor has ceased, the golden city ceased! (Isa. 14:1-3)

23  In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrian will come into Egypt and the Egyptian into Assyria, and the Egyptians will serve with the Assyrians. (Isa. 19:23)

13  So it shall be in that day:
The great trumpet will be blown;
They will come, who are about to perish in the land of Assyria,
And they who are outcasts in the land of Egypt,
And shall worship the Lord in the holy mount at Jerusalem.
(Isa. 27:12-13)

11  He will feed His flock like a shepherd;
He will gather the lambs with His arm,
And carry them in His bosom,
And gently lead those who are with young. (Isa. 40:11)

7  To open blind eyes,
To bring out prisoners from the prison,
Those who sit in darkness from the prison house.

16  I will bring the blind by a way they did not know;
I will lead them in paths they have not known.
I will make darkness light before them,
And crooked places straight.
These things I will do for them,
And not forsake them.

22  But this is a people robbed and plundered;
All of them are snared in holes,
And they are hidden in prison houses;
They are for prey, and no one delivers;
For plunder, and no one says, “Restore!” (Isa. 42:7, 16, 22)

14  Thus says the Lord : “The labor of Egypt and merchandise of Cush
And of the Sabeans, men of stature,
Shall come over to you, and they shall be yours;
They shall walk behind you, They shall come over in chains;
And they shall bow down to you.
They will make supplication to you, saying, ‘Surely God is in you,
And there is no other;
There is no other God.' ” (Isa. 45:14)

9  That You may say to the prisoners, ‘Go forth,'
To those who are in darkness, ‘Show yourselves.'

“They shall feed along the roads,
And their pastures shall be on all desolate heights.
10  They shall neither hunger nor thirst,
Neither heat nor sun shall strike them;
For He who has mercy on them will lead them,
Even by the springs of water He will guide them.
11  I will make each of My mountains a road,
And My highways shall be elevated.
12  Surely these shall come from afar;
Look! Those from the north and the west,
And these from the land of Sinim.”

21  Then you will say in your heart,
‘Who has begotten these for me,
Since I have lost my children and am desolate,
A captive, and wandering to and fro?
And who has brought these up?
There I was, left alone;
But these, where were they?' ”

24  Shall the prey be taken from the mighty,
Or the captives of the righteous be delivered?

25  But thus says the Lord :

“Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away,
And the prey of the terrible be delivered;
For I will contend with him who contends with you,
And I will save your children.
26  I will feed those who oppress you with their own flesh,
And they shall be drunk with their own blood as with sweet wine.
All flesh shall know
That I, the Lord , am your Savior,
And your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.”
(Isa. 49:9-12, 21, 24-26)

10  “The sons of foreigners shall build up your walls,
And their kings shall minister to you;
For in My wrath I struck you,
But in My favor I have had mercy on you.

And their kings in procession.
12  For the nation and kingdom which will not serve you shall perish,
And those nations shall be utterly ruined.

14  Also the sons of those who afflicted you
Shall come bowing to you,
And all those who despised you shall fall prostrate at the soles of your feet;
And they shall call you The City of the Lord ,
Zion of the Holy One of Israel. (Isa. 60:10, 12, 14)

“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me,
Because the Lord has anointed Me
To preach good tidings to the poor;
He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to the captives,
And the opening of the prison to those who are bound;

5  Strangers shall stand and feed your flocks,
And the sons of the foreigner
Shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers. (Isa. 61:1, 5)

3  For behold, the days are coming,' says the Lord , ‘that I will bring back from captivity My people Israel and Judah,' says the Lord . ‘And I will cause them to return to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it.' ”

8  ‘For it shall come to pass in that day,'
Says the Lord of hosts,
‘ That I will break his yoke from your neck,
And will burst your bonds;
Foreigners shall no more enslave them.

10  ‘Therefore do not fear, O My servant Jacob,' says the Lord ,
‘Nor be dismayed, O Israel;
For behold, I will save you from afar,
And your seed from the land of their captivity.
Jacob shall return, have rest and be quiet,
And no one shall make him afraid.

17  For I will restore health to you
And heal you of your wounds,' says the Lord ,
‘Because they called you an outcast saying:
“This is Zion;
No one seeks her.” ' (Jer. 30:3, 8, 10, 17)

16  Thus says the Lord :

“Refrain your voice from weeping,
And your eyes from tears;
For your work shall be rewarded, says the Lord ,
And they shall come back from the land of the enemy.

23  Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: “They shall again use this speech in the land of Judah and in its cities, when I bring back their captivity: ‘The Lord bless you, O home of justice, and mountain of holiness!' (Jer. 31:16, 23)

23  The Gentiles shall know that the house of Israel went into captivity for their iniquity; because they were unfaithful to Me, therefore I hid My face from them. I gave them into the hand of their enemies, and they all fell by the sword. 24  According to their uncleanness and according to their transgressions I have dealt with them, and hidden My face from them.”

25  “Therefore thus says the Lord God : ‘Now I will bring back the captives of Jacob, and have mercy on the whole house of Israel; and I will be jealous for My holy name— 26  after they have borne their shame, and all their unfaithfulness in which they were unfaithful to Me, when they dwelt safely in their own land and no one made them afraid. 27  When I have brought them back from the peoples and gathered them out of their enemies' lands, and I am hallowed in them in the sight of many nations, 28  then they shall know that I am the Lord their God, who sent them into captivity among the nations, but also brought them back to their land, and left none of them captive any longer. 29  And I will not hide My face from them anymore; for I shall have poured out My Spirit on the house of Israel,' says the Lord God .” (Ezek. 39:23-29)

11  They shall come trembling like a bird from Egypt,
Like a dove from the land of Assyria.
And I will let them dwell in their houses,”
Says the Lord . (Hos. 11:11)

“For behold, in those days and at that time,
When I bring back the captives of Judah and Jerusalem,
2  I will also gather all nations,
And bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat;
And I will enter into judgment with them there
On account of My people, My heritage Israel,
Whom they have scattered among the nations;
They have also divided up My land.
3  They have cast lots for My people,
Have given a boy as payment for a harlot,
And sold a girl for wine, that they may drink.

8  I will sell your sons and your daughters
Into the hand of the people of Judah,
And they will sell them to the Sabeans,
To a people far off;
For the Lord has spoken.” (Joel 3:1-2, 8)

14  I will bring back the captives of My people Israel;
They shall build the waste cities and inhabit them;
They shall plant vineyards and drink wine from them;
They shall also make gardens and eat fruit from them. (Amos 9:14)

12  “I will surely assemble all of you, O Jacob,
I will surely gather the remnant of Israel;
I will put them together like sheep of the fold,
Like a flock in the midst of their pasture;
They shall make a loud noise because of so many people.
13  The one who breaks open will come up before them;
They will break out,
Pass through the gate,
And go out by it;
Their king will pass before them,
With the Lord at their head.” (Mic. 2:12-13)

6  “In that day,” says the Lord ,
“I will assemble the lame,
I will gather the outcast
And those whom I have afflicted;
7  I will make the lame a remnant,
And the outcast a strong nation;
So the Lord will reign over them in Mount Zion
From now on, even forever. (Mic. 4:6-7)

6  They shall waste with the sword the land of Assyria,
And the land of Nimrod at its entrances;
Thus He shall deliver us from the Assyrian,
When he comes into our land
And when he treads within our borders. (Mic. 5:6)

12  In that day they shall come to you
From Assyria and the fortified cities,
From the fortress to the River,
From sea to sea,
And mountain to mountain. (Mic. 7:12)

19  Behold, at that time
I will deal with all who afflict you;
I will save the lame,
And gather those who were driven out;
I will appoint them for praise and fame
In every land where they were put to shame.
20  At that time I will bring you back,
Even at the time I gather you;
For I will give you fame and praise
Among all the peoples of the earth,
When I return your captives before your eyes,”
Says the Lord . (Zeph. 3:19-20)

“As for you also,
Because of the blood of your covenant,
I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit.
12  Return to the stronghold,
You prisoners of hope.
Even today I declare
That I will restore double to you. (Zech. 9:11-12)

10  I will also bring them back from the land of Egypt,
And gather them from Assyria.
I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon,
Until no more room is found for them.
11  He shall pass through the sea with affliction,
And strike the waves of the sea:
All the depths of the River shall dry up.
Then the pride of Assyria shall be brought down,
And the scepter of Egypt shall depart. (Zech. 10:10-11)

8  And it shall come to pass in all the land,”
Says the Lord ,
“ That two-thirds in it shall be cut off and die,
But one -third shall be left in it:
9  I will bring the one -third through the fire,
Will refine them as silver is refined,
And test them as gold is tested.
They will call on My name,
And I will answer them.
I will say, ‘This is My people';
And each one will say, ‘The Lord is my God.' ” (Zech. 13:8-9)

Behold, the day of the Lord is coming,
And your spoil will be divided in your midst.
2  For I will gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem;
The city shall be taken,
The houses rifled,
And the women ravished.
Half of the city shall go into captivity,
But the remnant of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
(Zech. 14:1-2)

24  And they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. (Lk. 21:24)

Jesus will free Jewish captives from Egypt and Assyria (parts of Iraq, Syria, and Jordan)

11  It shall come to pass in that day
That the Lord shall set His hand again the second time
To recover the remnant of His people who are left,
From Assyria and Egypt,
From Pathros and Cush,
From Elam and Shinar,
From Hamath and the islands of the sea.

12  He will set up a banner for the nations,
And will assemble the outcasts of Israel,
And gather together the dispersed of Judah
From the four corners of the earth.

16  There will be a highway for the remnant of His people
Who will be left from Assyria,
As it was for Israel
In the day that he came up from the land of Egypt. (Isa. 11:11-12, 16)

13  So it shall be in that day:
The great trumpet will be blown;
They will come, who are about to perish in the land of Assyria,
And they who are outcasts in the land of Egypt,
And shall worship the Lord in the holy mount at Jerusalem. (Isa. 27:13)

10  “They shall walk after the Lord .
He will roar like a lion.
When He roars,
Then His sons shall come trembling from the west;
11  They shall come trembling like a bird from Egypt,
Like a dove from the land of Assyria.
And I will let them dwell in their houses,”
Says the Lord . (Hos. 11:10-11)

6  They shall waste with the sword the land of Assyria,
And the land of Nimrod at its entrances;
Thus He shall deliver us from the Assyrian,
When he comes into our land
And when he treads within our borders. (Mic. 5:6)

12  In that day they shall come to you
From Assyria and the fortified cities,
From the fortress to the River,
From sea to sea,
And mountain to mountain. (Mic. 7:12)

10  I will also bring them back from the land of Egypt,
And gather them from Assyria.
I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon,
Until no more room is found for them.
11  He shall pass through the sea with affliction,
And strike the waves of the sea:
All the depths of the River shall dry up.
Then the pride of Assyria shall be brought down,
And the scepter of Egypt shall depart. (Zech. 10:10-11)

II. PROPHETIC VOICES DECLARING MILITARY INVASION

A. Military invasions and conflicts are a part of God's plan to shake and judge nations.

43“For days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side, 44and level you, and your children within you, to the ground…because you did not know the time of your visitation.” (Lk. 19:43-44)

6“And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars…7For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom…8All these are the beginning of sorrows.”  (Mt. 24:6-8)

B. Jesus prophesied of a future military invasion of Israel, which happened at the hands of the Roman Empire in 70 AD, but also has a double fulfillment at the end of the age.

20 “When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, you will know that its desolation is near. 21 Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those in the city get out, and let those in the country not enter the city. 22 For this is the time of punishment in fulfillment of all that has been written. 23 How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! There will be great distress in the land and wrath against this people. 24 They will fall by the sword and will be taken as prisoners to all the nations. Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.   (Lk.21:20-24)

2I will gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem; the city shall be taken…half of the city shall go into captivity…3Then the LORD will go forth and fight against those nations… 4And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives… (Zech. 14:2-5)

C. John prophesied military invasions in God's end-time plan.

4It was granted to the one who sat on it [red horse] to take peace from the earth, and that people should kill one another; and there was given to him a great sword…   (Rev. 6:4)

8Power was given to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword…   (Rev. 6:8)

D. Paul warns us of end-time military conflicts, saying that when the nations say, “Peace and safety,” then sudden destruction will come

3For when they say, “Peace and safety!” then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape. (1 Thes. 5:3)

III. THE END-TIME MILITARY INVASION

IV. BLOW THE TRUMPET! LET ALL THE INHABITANTS TREMBLE

1Blow the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in My holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble; for the day of the LORD is coming, for it is at hand: 2A day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness, like the morning clouds spread over the mountains.   (Joel 2:1-2)

A. The Lord introduced a terrifying military invasion with a cry to sound the alarm and blow the trumpet on Mt. Zion in Jerusalem.

12  “Now, therefore,” says the Lord ,
“Turn to Me with all your heart,
With fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.”
13  So rend your heart, and not your garments;
Return to the Lord your God,
For He is gracious and merciful,
Slow to anger, and of great kindness;
And He relents from doing harm.
14  Who knows if He will turn and relent,
And leave a blessing behind Him—
A grain offering and a drink offering
For the Lord your God? (Joel 2:12-14)

B. This command to sound the alarm has an application today in God's servants raising their voices, so that all the inhabitants in the land would hear and tremble.

6If there is calamity in a city, will not the LORD have done it? 7Surely the Lord GOD does nothing, unless He reveals His secret to His servants the prophets. (Amos 3:6-7)

3. If God gives a warning of coming judgment to a prophetic watchman and the watchman does not blow the trumpet, then the blood of the people is on the hands of that watchman.

6“If the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, and the people are not warned, and the sword comes and takes any person, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at the watchman's hand.” (Ezek. 33:6)

V. A DAY OF DARKNESS

2A day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness…  (Joel 2:2)

VI. THE COMING ARMY: LIKE MORNING CLOUDS

2…like the morning clouds spread over the mountains. A people come, great and strong…   (Joel 2:2a)

VII. A PEOPLE GREAT AND STRONG

2Like the morning clouds…a people come, great and strong, the like of whom has never been; nor will there ever be any such after them, even for many successive generations.   (Joel 2:2)

A. Joel continues to describe the army that would attack Jerusalem.

2“I will also gather all nations, and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat  [near Jerusalem]   and I will enter into judgment with them there.”   (Joel 3:2)

12  “Let the nations be wakened, and come up to the Valley of Jehoshaphat;
For there I will sit to judge all the surrounding nations. (Joel 3:12)

3  And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples; all who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it. (Zech. 12:3)

2  For I will gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem;
The city shall be taken,
The houses rifled,
And the women ravished.
Half of the city shall go into captivity,
But the remnant of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
(Zech. 14:2)

8  “Therefore wait for Me,” says the Lord ,
“Until the day I rise up for plunder; My determination is to gather the nations
To My assembly of kingdoms, To pour on them My indignation, All My fierce anger;
All the earth shall be devoured With the fire of My jealousy. (Zeph. 3:8)

4  I will turn you around, put hooks into your jaws, and lead you out, with all your army, horses, and horsemen, all splendidly clothed, a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords
(Ezek. 38:4)

13  And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs coming out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. 14  For they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty. (Rev. 16:13-14)

17  Then I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the birds that fly in the midst of heaven, “Come and gather together for the supper of the great God, 18  that you may eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and of those who sit on them, and the flesh of all people, free and slave, both small and great.”

19  And I saw the beast, the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against Him who sat on the horse and against His army. 20  Then the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who worked signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image. These two were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone. 21  And the rest were killed with the sword which proceeded from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse. And all the birds were filled with their flesh.

17  Then he measured its wall: one hundred and forty-four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of an angel. 18  The construction of its wall was of jasper; and the city was pure gold, like clear glass. 19  The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with all kinds of precious stones: the first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald, 20  the fifth sardonyx, the sixth sardius, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst. 21  The twelve gates were twelve pearls: each individual gate was of one pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass. (Rev. 19:17-21)

C. The army will be strong—strong in military sophistication, advanced technology, and the highest levels of biological and chemical warfare.

1. They will have economic strength

17That no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark…  
(Rev. 13:17)

2. Their strength will also be in occult power.

13He (Antichrist) performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men. 14And he deceives those who dwell on the earth by those signs which he was granted to do…   (Rev. 13:13-14)

D. The Antichrist will use demonic signs and wonders.

E. Joel describes this force as the northern army coming from Babylon

20“I will remove far from you the northern army, and will drive him away into a barren and desolate land…his stench [from so many of his dead soldiers] will come up, and his foul odor will rise, because he has done monstrous things.”   (Joel 2:20)

Jeremiah prophesied that an army would come from the north

18  “In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I have given as an inheritance to your fathers. (Jer. 3:18)

15  but, ‘The Lord lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north and from all the lands where He had driven them.' For I will bring them back into their land which I gave to their fathers.
(Jer. 16:15)

‘As the Lord lives who brought up and led the descendants of the house of Israel from the north country and from all the countries where I had driven them.' And they shall dwell in their own land.” (Jer. 23:8)

8  Behold, I will bring them from the north country, and gather them from the ends of the earth, among them the blind and the lame, the woman with child and the one who labors with child, together; a great throng shall return there. (Jer. 31:8)

A coalition of evil nations led by the Antichrist will come against Israel from the north (Ezek. 38-39)

F. They will be a people the like of whom the world has never seen

2  A day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness, l ike the morning clouds spread over the mountains. A people come, great and strong, t he like of whom has never been; n or will there ever be any such after them, e ven for many successive generations. (Joel 2:2)

G. An invasion and attack on Israel of this magnitude would not be seen again for many successive generations, in other words, not until the millennial rebellion

7  Now when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison 8  and will go out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle, whose number is as the sand of the sea. 9  They went up on the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city. And fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them. (Rev. 20:7-9)

VIII. A FIRE DEVOURS BEFORE THEM

3A fire devours before them, and behind them a flame burns; the land is like the Garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; surely nothing shall escape them.   (Joel 2:3)

D. The condition of the desolate cities of Europe and Asia after WWII gives us a graphic picture of many desolate cities at the end of the Tribulation

31  I will lay your cities waste and bring your sanctuaries to desolation, and I will not smell the fragrance of your sweet aromas.

32  I will bring the land to desolation, and your enemies who dwell in it shall be astonished at it. (Lev. 26:31-32)

8  Come, behold the works of the Lord ,
Who has made desolations in the earth. (Ps. 46:8)

6  Wail, for the day of the Lord is at hand!
It will come as destruction from the Almighty.

9  Behold, the day of the Lord comes,
Cruel, with both wrath and fierce anger,
To lay the land desolate;
And He will destroy its sinners from it. (Isa. 13:6, 9)

Behold, the Lord makes the earth empty and makes it waste,
Distorts its surface
And scatters abroad its inhabitants.
2  And it shall be:
As with the people, so with the priest;
As with the servant, so with his master;
As with the maid, so with her mistress;
As with the buyer, so with the seller;
As with the lender, so with the borrower;
As with the creditor, so with the debtor.
3  The land shall be entirely emptied and utterly plundered,
For the Lord has spoken this word.

6  Therefore the curse has devoured the earth,
And those who dwell in it are desolate.
Therefore the inhabitants of the earth are burned,
And few men are left.

12  In the city desolation is left,
And the gate is stricken with destruction.

16  From the ends of the earth we have heard songs:
“Glory to the righteous!”
But I said, “I am ruined, ruined!
Woe to me!
The treacherous dealers have dealt treacherously,
Indeed, the treacherous dealers have dealt very treacherously.”
(Isa. 24:1-3, 6, 12, 16)

2  For You have made a city a ruin,
A fortified city a ruin,
A palace of foreigners to be a city no more;
It will never be rebuilt. (Isa. 25:2)

10  Yet the fortified city will be desolate,
The habitation forsaken and left like a wilderness;
There the calf will feed, and there it will lie down
And consume its branches. (Isa. 27:10)

2  For the indignation of the Lord is against all nations,
And His fury against all their armies;
He has utterly destroyed them,
He has given them over to the slaughter.

10  It shall not be quenched night or day;
Its smoke shall ascend forever.
From generation to generation it shall lie waste;
No one shall pass through it forever and ever. (Isa. 34: 2, 10)

15 I will lay waste the mountains and hills,
And dry up all their vegetation;
I will make the rivers coastlands,
And I will dry up the pools.

24  Who gave Jacob for plunder, and Israel to the robbers?
Was it not the Lord ,
He against whom we have sinned?
For they would not walk in His ways,
Nor were they obedient to His law. (Isa. 42:15, 24)

26  Who confirms the word of His servant,
And performs the counsel of His messengers;
Who says to Jerusalem, ‘You shall be inhabited,'
To the cities of Judah, ‘You shall be built,'
And I will raise up her waste places; (Isa. 44:26)

8  Thus says the Lord :

“In an acceptable time I have heard You,
And in the day of salvation I have helped You;
I will [ h ] preserve You and give You
As a covenant to the people,
To restore the earth,
To cause them to inherit the desolate heritages;
9  That You may say to the prisoners, ‘Go forth,'
To those who are in darkness, ‘Show yourselves.'

“They shall feed along the roads,
And their pastures shall be on all desolate heights.

17  Your sons shall make haste;
Your destroyers and those who laid you waste
Shall go away from you.
18  Lift up your eyes, look around and see;
All these gather together and come to you.
As I live,” says the Lord ,
“You shall surely clothe yourselves with them all as an ornament,
And bind them on you as a bride does.

19  “For your waste and desolate places, a nd the land of your destruction, will even now be too small for the inhabitants; a nd those who swallowed you up will be far away.

26  I will feed those who oppress you with their own flesh, a nd they shall be drunk with their own blood as with sweet wine.
All flesh shall know t hat I, the Lord , am your Savior,
And your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.”
(Isa. 49:8-9, 17-19, 26)

3  For the Lord will comfort Zion,
He will comfort all her waste places;
He will make her wilderness like Eden,
And her desert like the garden of the Lord ;
Joy and gladness will be found in it,
Thanksgiving and the voice of melody.

19 These two things have come to you;
Who will be sorry for you?—
Desolation and destruction, famine and sword—
By whom will I comfort you? (Isa. 51:3, 19)

12  For the nation and kingdom which will not serve you shall perish,
And those nations shall be utterly ruined.

18  Violence shall no longer be heard in your land,
Neither wasting nor destruction within your borders;
But you shall call your walls Salvation,
And your gates Praise. (Isa. 60:12, 18)

4  And they shall rebuild the old ruins,
They shall raise up the former desolations,
And they shall repair the ruined cities,
The desolations of many generations. (Isa. 61:4)

4  You shall no longer be termed Forsaken,
Nor shall your land any more be termed Desolate;
But you shall be called Hephzibah, and your land Beulah;
For the Lord delights in you,
And your land shall be married. (Isa. 62:4)

16  ‘Therefore all those who devour you shall be devoured;
And all your adversaries, every one of them, shall go into captivity;
Those who plunder you shall become plunder,
And all who prey upon you I will make a prey. (Jer. 30:16)

2  Therefore behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord ,
“That I will cause to be heard an alarm of war
In Rabbah of the Ammonites;
It shall be a desolate mound,
And her [ b ] villages shall be burned with fire.
Then Israel shall take possession of his inheritance,” says the Lord .

13  For I have sworn by Myself,” says the Lord , “that Bozrah shall become a desolation, a reproach, a waste, and a curse. And all its cities shall be perpetual wastes.”

20  Therefore hear the counsel of the Lord that He has taken against Edom, And His purposes that He has proposed against the inhabitants of Teman: Surely the least of the flock shall draw them out; Surely He shall make their dwelling places desolate with them. (Jer. 49:2, 13, 20)

3  For out of the north a nation comes up against her, w hich shall make her land desolate, And no one shall dwell therein. T hey shall move, they shall depart, b oth man and beast. (Jer. 50:3)

15  “When I make the land of Egypt desolate, a nd the country is destitute of all that once filled it, When I strike all who dwell in it, t hen they shall know that I am the Lord. (Ezek. 32:15)

28  For I will make the land most desolate, her arrogant strength shall cease, and the mountains of Israel shall be so desolate that no one will pass through. 29  Then they shall know that I am the Lord , when I have made the land most desolate because of all their abominations which they have committed.” (Ezek. 33:28-29)

1 ‘Thus says the Lord God : “Behold, O Mount Seir, I am against you; I will stretch out My hand against you, a nd make you most desolate; 4  I shall lay your cities waste,
And you shall be desolate.
Then you shall know that I am the Lord .

14  ‘Thus says the Lord God : “The whole earth will rejoice when I make you desolate. 15  As you rejoiced because the inheritance of the house of Israel was desolate, so I will do to you; you shall be desolate, O Mount Seir, as well as all of Edom—all of it! Then they shall know that I am the Lord .” ' (Ezek. 35:4, 14-15)

10  ‘Thus says the Lord God : “On that day it shall come to pass that thoughts will arise in your mind, and you will make an evil plan: 11  You will say, ‘I will go up against a land of unwalled villages; I will go to a peaceful people, who dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates'— 12  to take plunder and to take booty, to stretch out your hand against the waste places that are again inhabited, and against a people gathered from the nations, who have acquired livestock and goods, who dwell in the midst of the land. 13  Sheba, Dedan, the merchants of Tarshish, and all their young lions will say to you, ‘Have you come to take plunder? Have you gathered your army to take booty, to carry away silver and gold, to take away livestock and goods, to take great plunder?' ” (Ezek. 38:10-13)

27  Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week;
But in the middle of the week
He shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering.
And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate,
Even until the consummation, which is determined,
Is poured out on the desolate.” (Dan. 9:27)

7  Then I heard the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand to heaven, and swore by Him who lives forever, that it shall be for a time, times, and half a time; and when the power of the holy people has been completely shattered, all these things shall be finished. (Dan. 12:7)

20  “But I will remove far from you the northern army, a nd will drive him away into a barren and desolate land, w ith his face toward the eastern sea a nd his back toward the western sea;
His stench will come up, a nd his foul odor will rise, b ecause he has done monstrous things.” (Joel 2:20)

19  “Egypt shall be a desolation,
And Edom a desolate wilderness,
Because of violence against the people of Judah,
For they have shed innocent blood in their land. (Joel 3:19)

11  “On that day I will raise up
The tabernacle of David, which has fallen down,
And repair its damages;
I will raise up its ruins,
And rebuild it as in the days of old;

14  I will bring back the captives of My people Israel;
They shall build the waste cities and inhabit them;
They shall plant vineyards and drink wine from them;
They shall also make gardens and eat fruit from them. (Amos 9:11, 14)

13  Yet the land shall be desolate
Because of those who dwell in it,
And for the fruit of their deeds. (Mic. 7:13)

8  For thus says the Lord of hosts: “He sent Me after glory, to the nations which plunder you; for he who touches you touches the apple of His eye. 9  For surely I will shake My hand against them, and they shall become spoil for their servants. Then you will know that the Lord of hosts has sent Me. (Zech. 2:8-9)

Behold, the day of the Lord is coming,
And your spoil will be divided in your midst.
2  For I will gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem;
The city shall be taken, t he houses rifled,
And the women ravished.
Half of the city shall go into captivity, b ut the remnant of the people shall not be cut off from the city.

3  Then the Lord will go forth a nd fight against those nations, a s He fights in the day of battle.
4  And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives,
Which faces Jerusalem on the east.
And the Mount of Olives shall be split in two, f rom east to west, m aking a very large valley;
Half of the mountain shall move toward the north a nd half of it toward the south.

5  Then you shall flee through My mountain valley, f or the mountain valley shall reach to Azal.
Yes, you shall flee a s you fled from the earthquake i n the days of Uzziah king of Judah.

Thus the Lord my God will come, a nd all the saints with You.

The people shall dwell in it;
And no longer shall there be utter destruction,
But Jerusalem shall be safely inhabited. (Zech. 14:1-5, 11)

7  But when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city. (Mt. 22:7)

43  For days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side, 44  and level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation.” (Lk. 19:43-44)

20  “But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is near. 21  Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those who are in the midst of her depart, and let not those who are in the country enter her. 22  For these are the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled. 23  But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! For there will be great distress in the land and wrath upon this people. 24  And they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. (Lk. 21:20-24)

9  And a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed. (Rev. 8:9)

16  And the ten horns which you saw on the beast, these will hate the harlot, make her desolate and naked, eat her flesh and burn her with fire. (Rev. 17:16)

19  “They threw dust on their heads and cried out, weeping and wailing, and saying, ‘Alas, alas, that great city, in which all who had ships on the sea became rich by her wealth! For in one hour she [ i ] is made desolate.' (Rev. 18:19)

IX. THEIR APPEARANCE LIKE HORSES

4Their appearance is like…horses; and like swift steeds, so they run. 5With a noise like chariots over mountaintops they leap, like the noise of a flaming fire that devours the stubble, like a strong people set in battle array. 6Before them the people writhe in pain; all faces are drained of color.   (Joel 2:4-6)

A.  Speed and appearance: 

2. This same swiftness will characterize the Antichrist's army. In a time when men say, “Peace! Peace!” suddenly this evil empire will arise in fierceness

3  For when they say, “Peace and safety!” then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape. (1 Thes. 5:3)

D. The sheer sight and sound of their enemy sent them into utter dread.

26“…men's hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of heaven will be shaken.”   (Lk. 21:26)

X. MEN OF WAR

7They run like mighty men, they climb the wall like men of war; every one marches in formation, and they do not break ranks. 8They do not push one another; every one marches in his own column. Though they lunge between the weapons, they are not cut down. 9They run to and fro in the city, they run on the wall; they climb into the houses, they enter at the windows like a thief.   (Joel 2:7-9)

XI. ALL CREATION WILL BE IMPACTED BY THE TERRORS OF THIS DAY

10The earth quakes before them, the heavens tremble; the sun and moon grow dark, and the stars diminish their brightness. 11The LORD gives voice before His army, for His camp is very great; for strong is the One who executes His word. For the day of the LORD is great and very terrible; who can endure it?   (Joel 2:10-11)

B. Why does God speak of cosmic signs in the same passage as the evil army in Joel 9

(Joel 2:1-9 See Session #1 Bible Verse Handbook )

The message God is giving through these wonders is that He is in full control.

19 I will show wonders in heaven above
And signs in the earth beneath:
Blood and fire and vapor of smoke.
20  The sun shall be turned into darkness,
And the moon into blood,
Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord .
(Acts 2:19-20)

12  I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood. (Rev. 6:12)

29  “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. (Mt. 24:29)

24  “But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; (Mk. 13:24)

25  “And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; (Lk. 21:25)

E.Evil nations can be used as a rod in His hand to discipline other evil nations

5  “Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger a nd the staff in whose hand is My indignation. (Isa. 10:5)

F. Why does God use these cosmic signs? With these extraordinary manifestations, God will declare to those who love Him, “Do not fear, I am in total control!”

25  “And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; 26  men's hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 27  Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. 28  Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near.” (Lk. 21:25-28)

2. The Church will be assured of His power on their behalf.

25“To whom then will you liken Me…”26Lift up your eyes on high, and see who has created these things, who brings out their host  [stars]  by number; He calls them all by name, by the greatness of His might and the strength of His power… (Isa. 40:25-26)

3. It is easy for God to overpower all earthly armies, whether they are from ancient Babylon or the armies of the Antichrist.

15The nations are as a drop in a bucket, and are counted as the small dust on the scales…17All nations before Him are as nothing, and they are counted by Him less than nothing and worthless.   (Isa. 40:15-17)

XII. GOD IS WORKING OUT HIS GREAT PLAN ON EARTH

11The LORD gives voice before His army, for His camp is very great; for strong is the One who executes His word. For the day of the LORD is great and very terrible; who can endure it? (Joel 2:11)

•  Joel asks, “Who can endure this intense drama?” or “Who can survive this Day in God's favor?” The answer is, we can!

12  “Now, therefore,” says the Lord ,
“Turn to Me with all your heart,
With fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.”
13  So rend your heart, and not your garments;
Return to the Lord your God,
For He is gracious and merciful,
Slow to anger, and of great kindness;
And He relents from doing harm.
14  Who knows if He will turn and relent,
And leave a blessing behind Him—
A grain offering and a drink offering
For the Lord your God?

15  Blow the trumpet in Zion,
Consecrate a fast,
Call a sacred assembly;
16  Gather the people,
Sanctify the congregation,
Assemble the elders,
Gather the children and nursing babes;
Let the bridegroom go out from his chamber,
And the bride from her dressing room.
17  Let the priests, who minister to the Lord ,
Weep between the porch and the altar;
Let them say, “Spare Your people, O Lord ,
And do not give Your heritage to reproach,
That the nations should rule over them.
Why should they say among the peoples,
‘Where is their God?' (Joel 2:12-17)

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