Article 8
By Steven J. Hogan
These are tumultuous days, for there’s conflict and terrorism all over the globe, where safety and security are increasingly becoming vital concerns. As we approach the end of this age, it is imperative to take note of ongoing global events, and to know how to process these events in line with God’s prophetic word. What is happening? Why is it happening? Where is it leading to? The correct understanding about world events will not come from politicians, the news media or even religious leaders, but only from the Bible. It is God’s Word that rightly frames the issues, the events, the times we live in, and then instructs us how we are to live. Might we be diligent to know what God tells us will be taking place in these years leading up to the return of His Son, and might we be excitedly living for Him. In Mark 13:23, a prophecy passage, Jesus tells us, “But take heed: behold, I have told you everything in advance.” 1 Chronicles 12:32
My desire is to summarize what God has told us will happen in the end-times, leading up to the end of this present evil age (Galatians 1:4), to the coming of Christ, and to the end of the next age, Christ’s millennial kingdom. But before I give you a prophetic overview of the future, what God predicts is going to happen in the years ahead, I need to give you an overview of the Biblical and historical past, and events that have led up to this present day.
It was about 2050 BC when God chose Abram to be the father of the Jewish people. He promised him a multitude of descendants and a large and great piece of land – land that stretched from Egypt on the south to Lebanon on the north, from the Mediterranean Sea on the west to the Euphrates river on the east. And God also gave him a new name, Abraham. Genesis 15:18-19
Abraham had a son named Isaac, the son according to God’s promise. But he also had a son named Ishmael, a grandson named Esau, and a nephew named Lot. And herein lies much of the problems we see today in the Middle East. The descendants of Isaac are Jews and the descendants of Ishmael, Esau and Lot are for the most part Arabs, and most Arabs believe they are the rightful heirs to this land God had promised to Abraham. But the Bible, and no other book, tells us the truth, that Isaac was the rightful heir. Therein lies this great conflict between the Jews and the Arabs over this piece of property, and for 1000’s of years, there’s been this continual, intense, and at times, bloody conflict between these two groups. Genesis 16:11-12, Psalm 83
Now Isaac had a son named Jacob, and Jacob had a son named Joseph. But due to some extremely difficult, but providential circumstances, Joseph settled in Egypt, and eventually his whole family came there to live. To make a long story short, over a period of about 400 years, Joseph’s family of 75 grew to a family of over two million people. Acts 7:11-40, Nehemiah 9
It was about 1400BC, and the time came for God to bring His people to the land He had promised to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Through many miracles, signs and wonders, God used Moses to deliver the Israelites out of slavery, out of Egypt, and then into the desert, where they lived for 40 years. But it was Joshua who was God’s man to lead the Jews out of the desert and into the promised land. Exodus, Joshua
Then for about 340 years, God raised up Judges to rule over rebellious Israel, and to deliver them from their enemies. After the Judges, God raised up Samuel, then Saul, and then a king named David, who helped Israel become the most powerful nation in the world at that time. Then God made an amazing promise to David, that one of his own descendants would be the future and eternal king over the entire world. This promise, referring to the Messiah, to Jesus Christ Himself, would not come true at Christ’s 1st coming but at His 2nd coming. 2 Samuel 7:12-17, Psalm 89
As time went on, the Israelites kept rejecting God, worshiping idols and other man-made gods. And God was righteously angry, but yet was very, very patient with them over the years. But there came the time when God had enough. His holiness and justice prevailed, and He rightfully rejected them, and punished them by bringing Israel’s enemies, the Assyrians and Babylonians into their own land to judge them. The books of the Prophets summarize this 350 year period of sin and rebellion by the Jews, and of God’s holy wrath, His punishment upon them.
Many Jews were exiled at that time, but one person who was taken to the Babylonian kingdom was a teenager named Daniel, and he was a godly man, a wise leader, and an interpreter of dreams. To summarize, these dreams spoke of the short-lived kingdoms of men, and the eternal kingdom of God. As time went on, Daniel predicted many things concerning these future kingdoms, and particularly and most importantly some things relevant to the nature of the world in the “time of the end”, that time period, relevant to both Jews and Christians, leading up to the return of the Messiah, the coming of Christ. Daniel 12:4, 9
One very important prediction was found in Daniel 9 in which Daniel prophesied that there would be exactly 490 years of judgment upon Israel for their sin. But after 483 years, the one who was to be the future ruler and King of the world, this coming Messiah, the one called Jesus Christ, would be killed. Daniel also predicted that at the beginning of the last 7 years there would arise a cruel and powerful ruler who would confirm a peace treaty with Israel. This ungodly ruler, this “little horn”, would come to be known as the Antichrist. He would lead this mighty multi-nation kingdom that would be the power base by which he, as a global leader and evil dictator, would rule the entire world. Daniel 7
About 550 years after Daniel, the Son of God, the Messiah, the Christ, became the Son of man. This descendant of David literally came to earth, being born of the virgin Mary, and God became Man. This Jesus lived a perfect life, loving people, teaching people, healing people, casting out demons, and encouraging people to repent of their sins and believe in Him, so as to receive forgiveness of their sins and eternal life. Mark 1:15, John 5:24
But for God to spiritually pardon us of our sins and give us eternal life, Jesus Christ had to die on the cross. And it was on the cross that Christ took our sins upon Himself, thereby paying the penalty that we should have paid. Jesus Christ died in our place and God punished Him, His own Son, instead of punishing us ( Romans 3:23, 2 Corinthians 5:21, John 3:16, John 5:24, 1 Peter 3:18). Three days after Jesus died, God miraculously raised Him from the dead and gave Him a glorified and immortal body. Jesus then appeared to His disciples, continuing to teach them, and finally commissioning them to go make disciples of all the nations until the end of this age. Then Jesus ascended into heaven to be with His Father, where He is now reigning with Him and building His church on this earth (Matthew 28:19-20). After Jesus’ departure, His disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit, and became powerful witnesses and preachers of the life of Jesus Christ and the truth of His gospel.
The church age started, but God was not nullifying, but only suspending His promises and plans for the Jews. It was in 70 AD, according to Jesus’ predictions in Luke 19, 21, and 23, that God again was punishing the Jews for their rejection of Him, and specifically of Jesus Christ. This time the wrath of God was being carried out by the Romans, and subsequently the Israelites were scattered to cities and countries all over the world. During this time the church was rapidly growing and being greatly persecuted. And through all the years up until this 21st century, the church has continued to grow, being built by Jesus Christ, Himself. Yes, it has been attacked by the devil but God has continually been faithful to build His church. Then there were the Jews, trampled upon and scattered and suffering and being killed all over the world, with the worst coming in the middle of the 20th century. It was the tragedy of all tragedies, the terror of all terrors, when during World War II, Adolph Hitler and his evil and diabolical regime mercilessly and systematically killed over 6,000,000 Jews. Luke 21:20-28
God used this terrible tragedy to move in the hearts of world leaders; and miracle of miracles, in 1948, God gave back to the Jewish people their own country. God’s promise, God’s prediction from 2500 years before this time finally came true (Ezekiel 37:21). Jewish people from all over the world, from the United States, South America, Europe, Russia and Africa, had been moving back to their land, to Palestine, since the late 1800’s. Then in 1948 they officially became the nation of Israel. Amazingly and miraculously they retained their unique identity, language, culture and religion, and now at this time, in 2020, there are close to 6.6 million Jews in the land of Israel. In spite of much opposition from neighboring Arab countries since that time, the Jews have physically and wonderfully restored and rejuvenated the land so that the nation of Israel is once again a very prosperous country. Ezekiel 36-37, Isaiah 11
The fact that the Jews are back in Israel is the single major event, I repeat, the single major event that tells us that we are in the end-times, that time period predicted by Daniel, that leads us to the return of Jesus Christ. But what does the Bible predict will take place before the end of this age? More specifically what is the next major prophetic event to take place before the coming of Christ and the resurrection and rapture of the Christians? Remember Daniel’s prophecy of 490 years of judgment for the Jews? Well, 483 years have already passed and the last week, Daniel’s 70th week is still to come. There are seven years in this one last week that relate directly to these end times, seven, long, critical and difficult years that have not yet begun. But they will begin, and prophecy will be fulfilled, and then they will end, and Christ will begin His reign over this world. Daniel 9:24
This 70th week will be a 7-year period of time in which the spiritual forces of God and the spiritual forces of the devil will battle each other like never before, but as we know, the devil will be no match for God. It will be both a time of great salvation and a time of great judgment. It will be a time when we witness the coming of the Antichrist and then the coming of Christ. It will be that time when the Lord’s prayer and our prayers are finally answered,“Thy kingdom come, thy will is now being done on earth, as it is in heaven.” Matthew 6:10, 2 Thessalonians 2
Let me specifically point out to you some of the major events of this 7 year time period: The peace treaty that was predicted in Daniel 9:27, or as Isaiah calls it, the “Covenant of Death” (Isaiah 28:15), will be signed. There are a number of things to know about this treaty. It is the next major event on the prophetic calendar that needs to take place. It will be signed at the very beginning of this 7-year time period spoken of by Daniel. It will be confirmed or signed by an individual who will later be revealed as the Antichrist. It will be needed in the Mideast. In fact, at this time it is obvious that there is tension and conflict between Israel and surrounding nations surrounding them. This treaty will be the answer that many people and leaders of the world will be looking for, but remember, it is man-made.
One of the conditions of this treaty will most likely be that the Jews will be able to rebuild their temple, and once again offer their Jewish prescribed sacrifices. This treaty will result in only a temporary and pseudo peace for the Jews, for the Jews will not be trusting in God, but will be putting their hope in a man, and in a very bad man, for one of the initiators of this treaty will later be revealed as the Antichrist. This treaty is destined not to work, and as we will see, it will soon be broken. After this peace treaty is signed, a number of events will occur on this earth in rapid succession. They are spoken of in Matthew 24, Mark 13, Luke 21 and Revelation 6. These events, though all happening in the world at this time, will continue to increase in both intensity and frequency. There will be more false christs, more wars, more earthquakes, more famines and more plagues around the world. In addition to all this, there will be major global economic problems. Matthew 24 tells us that these events, like the birth pains of a mother, will come quicker and quicker, becoming stronger and stronger, and millions of people will be dying. But during this time, there will also be the formation of a 10-nation empire, the Antichrist being the ruler of this kingdom of man, this power base by which he will rule the world. Daniel 7
This will be a most anxious, disturbing, unsettling and conflicting time in the world. With our advanced communication system, with TV, internet and smart phones, we’ll know a lot of what is going on around the world; we’ll be hearing about it and watching it, for it will be brought home to us loud and clear. Yes, artificial intelligence may make us look smart in this world, but the intelligence, the wisdom to bring peace, where can that be found? I must say, these first few years of Daniel’s 70th week will be a very difficult time to be alive. Don’t you think that people will be looking and longing for some type of savior to lead them out of the mess that the world is in? Don’t you think that conditions on the earth will be ripe for a sharp and smart dictator who they hope will deliver them from the problems in the world? You bet they will.
The next major event, taking place at the midpoint, at the 3½ year point of this 7-year period is when the Antichrist desecrates the Jewish temple (Daniel 9, Matthew 24). Both Jews and Christians will know for certain the identity of this one we call the Antichrist. Then this most wicked man, this Antichrist, this anti-Christian man, this beast, this man of lawlessness, will begin great tribulation against the Jews in Israel, which then spreads out against Jews and Christians all over the world. This time of great tribulation will be without question the greatest persecution Jews or Christians have ever encountered and experienced on this earth. Revelation 12:17
But the unbelievers won’t know the Antichrist’s true nature, that he is filled with the devil himself. They will be greatly deceived. They will be in awe of this new leader and more than willing to follow him. And they’re happy, for he’s bringing peace, the economy is getting better, and he is getting rid of those despicable Jews and Christians. But these unbelievers are led astray by this powerful and charismatic leader and by his partner, the man called the false prophet, the man who will do many amazing miracles. The false prophet will use these miracles to authenticate the purpose, position and power of the Antichrist, his purpose being to deceive, to fake out the people of the world.
It is at the midpoint of this seven-year period that the Antichrist consolidates his control over the world. It is at this time that the unbelievers will be worshiping the Antichrist through an image, probably through the internet and smart phones. They will also be swearing allegiance to this beast by taking his mark, called the mark of the beast, which when placed on, or embedded in a person’s hand or forehead, will be the only way a person can do business, to either buy or sell. What is so amazing is that the technology the Antichrist will need to do this is very likely now or very close to being developed and ready for use. Revelation 13
Please understand that this Antichrist, this world dictator, will be a very wicked man. He will be in charge of the world militarily, politically, economically and spiritually. At this time all religions will have been abolished, and it will be the religion of the Antichrist, for he alone, the devil’s man on earth, will be worshiped. But the true Christians and a remnant of Jews will not take this mark and will not worship the Antichrist, and many will then be persecuted for their refusal to do so.
Then suddenly, sometime during the last half of this 7-year period, at an unknown time to us, there will be a great earthquake, and great signs in the heavens, for the sun will turn black and the moon will turn red. Then there will be a great and brilliant light in the skies, this being the Shekinah glory of Christ. This is immediately followed by the shout of Christ heard round the world, then a loud trumpet blast and then a supersonic command given by an angel.
At this time, Jesus Christ returns in the clouds and is visibly seen all over the world. The dead in Christ, those who have previously died, will be resurrected. Immediately after that, the Christians still on earth will be raptured, gaining relief from great tribulation, being rescued from God’s wrath that will be poured out on the earth, and caught up together with the just resurrected believers. All believers from all time and from all over the world, will then suddenly be glorified and then gathered together and taken to with Christ, and then from there to heaven. 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18
Shortly after the rapture, and in fact, exactly 30 minutes later (Revelation 8:1), God will judge the unbelievers on earth, pouring out His wrath on them. This time period is called the Day of the Lord, His righteous wrath on earth. But just before this, God had supernaturally sealed 144,000 Jews, for His desire is to physically protect these Jews during this time of judgment on earth. It will be at the end of Daniel’s 70th week that these Jews, along with another remnant of Jews, will be redeemed, spiritually saved, and they will all be with Jesus Christ in Jerusalem. Daniel 9:24
The first part of the Day of the Lord, God’s judgment on earth, is given in Revelation 8-9, and this speaks of six separate trumpet judgments. It is marked by fire, darkness and destruction, and by demonized locusts inflicting five months of pain and torture on every person on the earth. But the worst judgment is the sixth judgment, when 1/3 of the people in the world are suddenly and righteously killed. Then these trumpet judgments are finished, marking the end of the 7-year period spoken of by Daniel. Then this great number of Jews who have physically been saved from God’s wrath are now spiritually saved. They recognize Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, and they repent of their sins, believe in Him for mercy, and begin to worship Him. Romans 11:26-27, Isaiah 53
But Christ is not yet done with His judgments of the people and nations of the earth, and it is Revelation 16 that tells us about the next set of judgments, the bowl judgments. Painful sores break out on people, water is turned to blood, fire is scorching the people, and total darkness covers the land. Can you imagine what this is like? Then God’s enemies are gathered to a place called Armageddon in Israel. It’s there that the Antichrist and his armies are finally and completely defeated by Christ and His heavenly armies. Then, the Antichrist and the false prophet are cast into the lake of fire, where they will never die, but will forever be separated from God and His glory, and forever tormented for their terrible sins against a holy God. Hallelujah!
It is at this time that Christ’s enemies are now completely gone from earth, and so begins His reign on the earth during what is called the millennial kingdom. He will rule with a rod of iron. He will bring justice to every square inch of this planet. He will continually display true wisdom, mercy and love. There will be “peace on earth, good will towards men,” the most wonderful and prosperous time on earth since the beginning days of Adam and Eve. Genesis 1-2; Psalms 47, 67, 72
Even then, not all the people will bow to Christ. In fact, at the end of this 1000 years, Satan will be let loose and will deceive many people on the earth. But God will quickly capture this devil, and cast him into the lake of fire. Then there will be the most sobering time in all of human history, the great white throne judgment. All unbelievers from all time will be gathered together before the Lord Jesus Christ, the most holy and honorable Judge in the entire universe. There they will be judged for all their sins, declared guilty and worthy of eternal judgment, and they will be thrown into the lake of fire, where they will be forever, painfully and deservedly punished for their sinful crimes against a holy and just God. Revelation 20
Indeed, Jesus Christ is coming back soon to take up the saints, take out His enemies, and take over the world. But if you are to understand the truth of Christ’s second coming then it is essential that you understand the truth of Christ’s first coming. You need to know why Christ came the first time, that He came to die, to be crucified on the cross, to be punished by His Father for the sins of man. Have you repented of your sins? Do you believe that Jesus Christ died for you? Do you know that your sins are forgiven? Do you know if you have eternal life, an everlasting relationship with God the Father, Jesus Christ His Son, and the Holy Spirit? To be honest, the main issue is not what is going to happen to the world, but what is going to happen to you? When Jesus Christ comes back, will you go to be with Him, and then go up to heaven, or will you stay on this earth and be inundated by God’s punishing wrath? Will you be in Hades, a most terrible, terrifying and painful holding place for 1000 years, awaiting final judgement? And will you then face Jesus Christ at the great white throne judgment with nothing to say to Him, except “I am guilty Your Honor,” and then be cast into the lake of fire for all eternity?
The most serious issue in your life is whether you will pay for your sins by being punished forever in hell, or whether you will repent of your sins and believe that Jesus Christ died in your place, being punished for your sins.. If you have not yet been saved, then may today be the day of your salvation. Turn from your sins, sincerely telling God that you are sorry that you sinned against him, and admitting to Him that you have rebelled against Him. Believe that God loved you by having His own Son, Jesus Christ, die for all your sins, and that the debt you owed God for your sin was paid in full by Christ. Do not trust in yourself or in anything you have done, but place your trust fully and only in Jesus Christ for salvation, for forgiveness, for eternal fellowship with God and Christ, and for your future in heaven, and on earth, with Him and all the other angels and saints. Romans 6:23, Ephesians 2:8-9, 1 Peter 3:18