According to Revelation, God’s wrath will one day be poured out upon the enemies of His people as they gather to fight in a place called Armageddon. The verse explicitly states that Armageddon is a Hebrew word (see Rev 16:16).
Magiddon (as it is known in Zechariah 12:11) was once a Canaanite city southeast of Mount Carmel (modern-day Haifa). It was originally conquered by Joshua (Joshua 12:21) and assigned to the tribe of Manasseh (17:11), son of Joseph, as its perpetual inheritance in the land. Since that time, this valley has been a place of numerous military conflicts. King Solomon’s cavalry was once stationed there, ready to be dispatched to defend Israel’s northern borders from foreign invaders. When you visit Israel you can see this very place!
The entire region of ancient Israel connected various trade routes between Europe, Africa and Asia. Whoever controlled Israel had a powerful upper hand in the world economy of that time. In fact, the word for “road” in Hebrew is directly related to the Hebrew root word meaning, “to conquer.” Hebrew is a very physical language.
The word “Armageddon” is actually two Hebrew words combined and then transliterated into Greek (har and magido). First word is הר (har) which means “mountain.” The second word, מגידו (Magido), has an uncertain meaning but probably comes from the Hebrew root גדד (gadad), which carries the basic meaning of “invasion.”
The powerful Jewish imagery of Armageddon in Revelation foreshadows a time when Gentile kings of the world (as represented by the first-century Roman Empire) will be defeated by Israel’s God through His Jewish Christ. Through this judgment of God, the Great Roman Empire and all subsequent enemies of God’s people will be no more. There are even more hidden treasures just waiting to be unearthed when you begin to read the Scriptures from a Jewish perspective.
Is the story of Naboth's vineyard a foretelling of the last battle in the valley of Jezreel, as spoken of in Revelation? Does the fact Naboth is unwilling to forfeit his inherited land have a connection to Esau who so easily sold his birthright? Very interesting. Can you please explain this further?
So it has come to pass -Armageddon was fulfilled on the day Constantine declared Christianity to be the state church of the Roman Empire. Please don't confuse his declaration with a personal conversion. Constantine was baptised on his deathbed - he never converted himself, and was too ill to object when the priests baptised him. You will read a lot to the contrary, written by later propagandists bolstering the Roman Catholic spiritual and political status during the period 500 through to 1600. History was written by the victors. Constantine was never a Christian, his move was purely political. I am always hesitant to declare someone for sure a Christian (I am sure you mean born again believer). I think we should be more careful about things like this. We are glad that you are finding our articles enlightening. You’ve already started your path into Scripture, but there’s so much more that awaits you! Consider enrolling in our immersive online courses: The Story of Our Hebrew Fathers: Abraham and Isaac or Revelation in a Jewish Context II : Discovery. We guarantee that they will deepen your understanding of Scripture and enrich your faith experience.
I am afraid history disagrees with you. Constantine declared Catholsism to be the national religion of Rome. Unless of course you think he did that on his deathbed..... lol Please stop trying to confuse serious honest people! Babylon in the end-times is related to the offspring of pagan Rome namely, the Roman Catholic Church and her daughters which are the Protestant denominations which are not totally free from her influence especially concerning its anti-Jewish teachings such as Replacement Theology and so-called Christian supersessionism which states that all the promises that God made to Israel are invalidated due to her unfaithfulness and are transferred to the Christian Church, the new Israel. It also shows how politics and religion are mixed together so as to prepare the stage for Armageddon. You talk about "Protestant denominations" as if they were monolithic, like the Roman Church. In fact, they are not. The Catholics taught replacement theology for centuries. However, among Protestant sects, some of which are very new and vary all over the map, "replacement theology" is not invariably a good phrase. Mainstream Protestants tend to believe in the "grafted in" statement by St. Paul. We are grafted into Israel, not the other way around, and we remain Gentiles despite drawing nourishment from the Hebrew root. I have no idea where you get you theology from but it certainly are not from any Christian church I know! The Christian church accurately teaches that the Jews are still under persecution but will be restored in the final days. They are the ones to rule with Christ in the thousand years. And they are the 144000 spoke of in Revelations! With what you believe please don't speak for the Christian church. Actually it is Islam that will conquer the world not the Pseudo-Rise of the Roman Empire which was conquered by Muslims .The Greek Empire 4 horns plucked by the Roman Empire .The Roman Empire 1 horn plucked by the Islamic Empire .Islam conquered Rome never to rise again .What is rising in the world ? Islam .The Ottoman Empire ( the head wounded to death ) has come back a live under Erdogan .
No history has so much involvement as Israel has of God. Thank you. Other histories are there but they are human histories. Dr. Eli may I ask why you are hesitant to declare someone for sure a Christian? Simple... I am not God :-). Why should I? I have seen "true Christians" do wicked things and apostates/unbelievers do incredible deeds of humility, service and sacrifice. So... after a while I started to do what Jesus said long time... stop judging. Would not the judge of the whole earth judge justly? Israel Bible Center equips you with the tools you need to enter into the Jewish world of Scripture. We provide first-rate teaching, and the opportunity to learn from some of the world’s top scholars. As a student, you will be able to interact personally with our teaching faculty, and gain access to hundreds of hours of Bible courses, including The Jewish Apostle Paul I: His World and Revelation in a Jewish Context II : Discovery. Become a part of the community of teachers and students at Israel Bible Center today!
Dr Eli, Have you considered that the word might be made up of three Hebrew words? Arema (heap) Ge (valley/canyon) Don (judgment, inf. abs.)? - I don't think Har-Megiddon actually fits the language or the geography. I think this makes more sense: Arema Gei Don The Valley of the Judgment of the Harvested Heap (Sheaves) - This is all going to happen in the valley of Jehoshaphat. Blessings! Shalom, Doug, wonderful to hear from you. No I have not seriously considered it, but this is indeed very interesting. The main problem with Har Maggido is that HAR makes sense, while Magiddo does not :-). Thank you very much for your contribution to this discussion.
You will know them by their fruit and I believe we are called to be each other’s fruit inspectors? You should be able to tell whobis a Christian. As for where Armageddon is do you need to know if you don’t plan on being here to see it? :-)
I thought that the shoresh root of Har Megiddon was from gadad - the (Har) mountain of slaughter or destruction....a perfect description of the the armies gathering against Jerusalem and the Jews. The word is not given to judge if others are correct but to show us ourselves and our need to let go of trying to be our own creator. As He said He did not come to judge but to save... there is one who judges and none of us are Him. We must be content to seek justice, love mercy and walk humbly. What controversy this lesson has prompted! You Say that God will defeat the armies that invade Israel through his Jewish "Christ". I like Jewish Messiah or Ha Maschiach better. But I think you say it this way because some Christians would not understand the other. I doubt I will live till this comes to pass but I am pleased to see Israel doing well in thier own land again. It is sad that so many are working against them. Shalom Yes :-) Jewish Christ is much more thought provoking although it SOUNDS not Jewish, but the IDEA of Christos (Christ) is FULLY JEWISH AND EXClUSIVELY JEWISH IDEA :-). So yes there is a method behind the madness.
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