My notes on Armageddon#
Where does Armageddon come from?
It is a Greek translation of har-megiddo
Har means hill or mountain.
the the Valley of Jezreel is what lies near
HISTORY
Megiddo controlled a narrow strategic stretch of road called the Via Maris, “the Way of the Sea,” a major international highway in the ancient world. This road stretched from Egypt in the south to Babylon in Mesopotamia, linking the major empires and trade routes of the day. Megiddo’s position on this highway made it a prime mercantile city. Whoever controlled Megiddo controlled access to trade all along this road. Megiddo was a choke point, therefore, for the empires of the ancient world. Control of Megiddo was crucial to controlling any regional empire. 1
Megiddo as a city went into decline during the Babylonian and Persian periods. However, in modern times the site continued to see battles. Both Napoleon (1799) and the British General Allenby (1918) defeated Turkish forces here. The area has never lost its significance as a battleground for control over this crucial crossroad of empires.1
Rev 16:14 for they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them together for the war of the great day of God, the Almighty.
Rev 16:15 (“Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his clothes, so that he will not walk about naked and men will not see his shame.”)
Rev 16:16 And they gathered them together to the place which in Hebrew is called Har-Magedon.
It is the sixth bowl that deals with the gathering of forces at Megiddo. “Then the sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up, so that the way of the kings from the east might be prepared. And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs coming out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. 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… And they gathered them together to the place called in Hebrew, Armageddon” (verses 12-14, 16).1
Armageddon is a place#
Ezekiel 39:2 (NAS95)#
2 and I will turn you around, drive you on, take you up from the remotest parts of the north and bring you against the mountains of Israel.
Armageddon is a battle#
This will be the culminating event of the Day of the Lord.
“battle of that great day of God Almighty.” Revelation 16:14
Zechariah 14:1-3 (NAS95)#
1 Behold, a day is coming for the LORD when the spoil taken from you will be divided among you.
2 For I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem to battle, and the city will be captured, the houses plundered, the women ravished and half of the city exiled, but the rest of the people will not be cut off from the city.
3 Then the LORD will go forth and fight against those nations, as when He fights on a day of battle.
Ezekiel 38:15 (NAS95)#
15 “You will come from your place out of the remote parts of the north, you and many peoples with you, all of them riding on horses, a great assembly and a mighty army;
Armageddon is an event
Is Zechariah 6:1-8 talking about Armageddon?#
Zec 6:1 Now I lifted up my eyes again and looked, and behold, four chariots were coming forth from between the two mountains; and the mountains were bronze mountains.
Zechariah 1:8 in a ravine - two mountain implied?
bronze NECHOSHETH: Deuteronomy 8:9 a land where you will eat food without scarcity, in which you will not lack anything; a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills you can dig copper (NECHOSHETH).
Zec 6:2 With the first chariot were red horses, with the second chariot black horses,
Zec 6:3 with the third chariot white horses, and with the fourth chariot strong dappled horses.
Zec 6:4 Then I spoke and said to the angel who was speaking with me, “What are these, my lord?”
Zec 6:5 The angel replied to me, “These are the four spirits of heaven, going forth after standing before the Lord of all the earth,
Zec 6:6 with one of which the black horses are going forth to the north country; and the white ones go forth after them, while the dappled ones go forth to the south country.
country is ERETS. Translated country 44x. Ground 119x. This could take place anywhere north of Jerusalem.
The mountains of Megiddo are north of Jerusalem. In fact Har (mountain) Megiddo is an event Revelation speaks of in Chapter 16.
Zec 6:7 “When the strong ones went out, they were eager to go to patrol the earth.” And He said, “Go, patrol the earth.” So they patrolled the earth.
Zec 6:8 Then He cried out to me and spoke to me saying, “See, those who are going to the land of the north have appeased My wrath in the land of the north.”
The nations are gathered#
Megiddo is merely the gathering place for the forces. Other scriptures tell us this is not the actual place of the battle. That takes place in Jerusalem, several miles to the south. The broad flat plains of the Jezreel Valley are only the staging area for this climatic confrontation.1
Joel 3:9-12, 3:2
Jer 50:9 “For behold, I am going to arouse and bring up against Babylon A horde of great nations from the land of the north, And they will draw up their battle lines against her; From there she will be taken captive. Their arrows will be like an expert warrior Who does not return empty-handed.
Babylon is destroyed
Jeremiah 50Armageddon sets up for the final battle in Jerusalem…
.then the Kingdom.
The idea that Megiddo or the Jezreel Valley should be the site of the world’s final battle is not in keeping with the eschatological outlook of the Hebrew Bible, in which Jerusalem is always the scene of the final battle between God and his enemies (compare [Psa 48:1–8](https://biblia.com/bible/esv/Ps 48.1–8); [Isa 24:21–23](https://biblia.com/bible/esv/Isa 24.21–23); [29:1–8](https://biblia.com/bible/esv/Isa 29.1–8); [Joel 3:1–16](https://biblia.com/bible/esv/Joel 3.1–16); [Mic 1:11–13](https://biblia.com/bible/esv/Micah 1.11–13); [Zeph 3:8](https://biblia.com/bible/esv/Zeph 3.8); [Zech 12:1–9](https://biblia.com/bible/esv/Zech 12.1–9); [14:1–5](https://biblia.com/bible/esv/Zech 14.1–5)).2
Order of Events#
From Revelation, Joel, Zechariah and Jeremiah,
It seems that the God sends spirits to cause the nations to unite at Har-Meggido (Rev 16:13-16) go to destroy babylon. Rev 17:16-18:2