Sermon Tone Analysis

This morning we saw that persecution will arise and that there will be 144,002 witnesses during the tribulation after the Church is raptured and the Gospel will be spread around the world and some will become believers and most who do will be killed as a result.

Then we briefly met a man named Antiochus IV Epiphanes who partially fulfilled Daniel’s prophecy on the abomination of desolation but we did not get to any of the details.

Unlike previous kings Antiochus did not allow the Jews to practice their religion: In an act of brazen disrespect, Antiochus raided the temple in Jerusalem, stealing its treasures, setting up an altar to Zeus, and sacrificed pigs on the altar.

When the Jews expressed their outrage over the profaning of the temple, Antiochus responded by slaughtering them and selling others into slavery.

He issued decrees such as ‘performing the rite of circumcision was punishable by death’, and Jews everywhere were ordered to sacrifice to pagan gods and eat pig flesh.(GotQuestions).

It was over 6 years before the temple was purified and sacrifices to God could resume.

When the Jews saw this they revolted against Antiochus in what is called the Maccabean Revolt.

By the way, Antiochus also enforced the Greek culture and language throughout his empire and this prevailed in Israel at the time of Jesus and His disciples.

As a result it made it possible for the whole Roman Empire to hear the Gospel within a short period of time.

But Antiochus was extremely antisemitic and tried to exterminate the Jews.

He was at least as bad as Hitler.

He duped the Jews into a peace treaty but we are told in their history in

So, we see that he very much is a forerunner to the actual Antichrist and this should serve as a warning to Israel, especially as every year they celebrate the defeat of Antiochus by the Maccabees with the Feast of Hanukkah, also known as the Festival of Lights.

But history will repeat itself and they will be deceived again by the Antichrist.

He will set himself up as God in the temple and this will cause desolation.

And this desolation comes in the form of judgements and in the comparative passage we are told by:

This attack is still future as the context makes clear.

It comes as a direct result of the Antichrist setting himself up as God and king of the world.

He is he, according to Paul in:

The abomination bit is the Antichrist making himself out to be God.

Antiochus put a statue of Zeus in the Temple and this was an abomination.

Worse, the Antichrist will put an image of himself in the Temple.

The half way point is delineated by the man of peace revealing himself to be the Antichrist and setting himself up as god to be worshipped.

Satan has always craved worship when he used to be the worship leader in Heaven.

And it was his downfall:

As a result things are going to get even worse:

And it is here that this time really comes into its real name: the time of ‘Jacob’s Trouble’:

And we also find Daniel speaks of it:

The first half of the tribulation is based around Revelation 6:1-11 and the seal judgements.

The next 3.5 years are going to be when those birth contractions are coming thick and fast and the pain will increase exponentially.

And the halfway point is when the abomination of desolation is put into the temple.

This is when the Antichrist declares himself to be God and demand worship in a massive betrayal of the people of Israel for the one they trusted will turn to slaughter them.

Indeed we are told about him again in

42 months is 3.5 years and it is at this point that Satan really captures the heart of this man of sin and he will seek to destroy the Jews after his self-declaration of being God.

We see the result in

Two-thirds of those who trusted the Antichrist in Israel will die.

Two-thirds.

And as I’ve said before the tribulation will be a time of judgement on the Gentiles and a time of the purification of the Jews and Zechariah continues:

When it comes to the calling and choosing of God we cannot transfer the promises made to Israel to the Church.

These are made to Israel and Israel alone.

And this Romans 11 makes abundantly clear.

Israel will be saved in the end but it will be at the cost of many lives.

Indeed Zechariah again tells us:

They will finally recognise the true Messiah and put their trust in Him.

How will they look on Him, how will they see Him?

Not until they bless Him:

But before all that happens the whole world will worship the beast aided by the false prophet revealed in Revelation 13 and Revelation 17 because it will appear that the Antichrist will die but get resurrected.

It is interesting to see Satan copy Jesus.

The world will marvel that he is still alive - we don’t know how any of this will happen but there will be signs and wonders done, perhaps aided by technology and there will something like a statue made of the Antichrist that will come to life and also do signs and wonders.

Whilst Satan does have power my suspicion is that these are counterfeit signs and wonders in that it will be like a sleight of hand.

But maybe not.

It will God’s judgement that people will come under the power of this man.

By the way we are also told that once the false prophet has done his bit the Antichrist will kill him.

Going on in Matthew 24:16-20 we are told that as soon as the Antichrist goes into the Temple then run for your lives.

This is plainly to the Jews of the time.

And we can read into this that the religious Jews are in charge for it speaks about praying it is not on a Sabbath for there will be strict rules in place for travel and there will not be anyone working the transport system or taxis - so this is a run on foot time.

Not only that, if you are pregnant or have young kids then you are likely to be overtaken and killed just as with Herod, just as with Pharaoh.

History repeats itself.

Remember, that even now forewarned, two-thirds will die trying to escape.

Jesus has already said when you see the Antichrist proclaim he is god in the temple then run for your lives.

There is a parallel passage to this also in Revelation 12. Whilst 2/3rds die in the aftermath of this we find in Revelation that God is not looking to destroy Israel but purify them.

Briefly, as we are looking specifically looking at Revelation now: The woman is Israel, the twelve stars are the tribes of Israel, the child is the Jew Jesus.

Satan tries to kill Jesus once He is born but this is the one who is destine to rule the nations but beforehand He has ascended back to His Father.

When Antichrist arises a remnant of Israel will be able to flee and those who are left will escape to the desert to a special place where God will protect them from the Antichrist for 1260 or 42 months or as put here a time, times and half a time - a time is a year, times is two years, and a half - making 3.5yrs or as it says elsewhere 1260 days.

Very specific as Scripture is confirming over and over the length of time left after the Abomination of Desolation.

But any Jew or Christian anywhere else in the world will be in mortal danger.

We find the survivors in:

Even during these incredibly turbulent times a third of the Jews will live protected in the desert by God just as Elijah did when he was on the run from Jezebel.

God looks after the people who turn to Him.

They will then be looking expectantly for the day of Christ when He shall return to rule on the throne of David, the throne of Israel for a thousand years.

I’ll let you know!

All this is to bring all things to consummation.

All this is to bring true worship to the living God.

There is only One God and He will destroy any impostors.

And His name is Jesus, King of kings and Lord of lords!

Benediction

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