Builders of Faith

Builders of Faith Explorer II:  Exploring End-Time Prophecy

Lesson 14—The Battle at Armageddon

1.    How often and where is the word "Armageddon" found in the Bible?

“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 dragon, 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 in the place called in Hebrew, Armageddon.”  Revelation 16:12-16.

Answer:  The word Armageddon is found only in Revelation 16:16 as part of the language of the sixth plague discussion.  It appears no other place in Scripture.


2.    How do most conservative Christian scholars generally understand the battle of Armageddon?

Answer:  Generally, they take a fairly literal approach to this entire sixth plague.  They understand that God will miraculously dry up the literal Euphrates River in order that a confederacy of Eastern, or Oriental, nations can eventually reach the area of Palestine.  Chinese armies are almost always included in these “kings from the east” without necessarily excluding other armies from the East.  There are differences among these scholars as to the reason for the eastern armies coming to Palestine, but most view this as a military campaign against Israel.  Demonic spirits lead them to Palestine.  At some point many Western nations enter the same region to defend Israel by engaging the Eastern armies in battle, particularly in the Plain of Megiddo (also called Esdraelon).  Eventually, the war gets out of hand, and God directly intervenes in the seventh plague against both sides, who end up uniting to fight Jesus in the battle for the millennial kingdom at the Second Coming of Jesus (see Revelation 19:11-21)—a battle in which Jesus is victorious.


3.    Are the events described in Revelation 16:12-16 actually literal military events?

“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.”  Revelation 16:12.  “And on her forehead a name was written:  MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.”  Revelation 17:5.  “Then he said to me, ‘The waters which you saw, where the harlot sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues.’”  Revelation 17:15.

Answer:  In ancient times, the city of Babylon sat over the Euphrates River, which was its major life support.  In Lesson #10, we learned that in Revelation, Babylon is symbolic of false religion led by the Papal Antichrist.  Therefore, reference to the Euphrates River in Revelation 16:12 means that it represents the nations and peoples who support end-time spiritual Babylon.  Moreover, if we were to interpret this passage literally, then why is there no mention of the Tigris River, which literal Eastern armies would have to cross first in order to get to the Euphrates River?  Thus, the evidence in Revelation is that this passage cannot accurately describe literal military events.


4.    Who then are the “kings from the east” in this prophecy?

“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.”  Revelation 16:12.  

Answer:  First, the “kings from the east” are distinctly named in contrast to the “kings of the earth and of the whole world” in verse 14.  Surely, the latter phrase would include the kings from the east and would be redundant if the kings from the east were human forces from one or more nations on earth.  This is evidence that the kings from the east are not earthly kings at all.  Second, the direction of east is often associated with heaven and its glory, according to texts such as Ezekiel 43:1-2 and Revelation 7:2.  Finally, Revelation 16:12 definitely calls our attention to the defeat of the ancient city of Babylon by the Medes and Persians in 539 B.C.  Cyrus the Great damned up the Euphrates River north of the city so that soldiers could walk on the river bed under the river gates and take the city in one night.  Cyrus then was the first Persian leader to allow the Jews to return to Jerusalem and Judea, thus freeing them from the Babylonian Captivity.  Therefore, the kings from the east in this prophecy, like Cyrus and his armies, represent the Holy Trinity coming at the Second Coming of Jesus to free His people from captivity to Satan and his evil forces!


5.    When do the events of Revelation 16:13-16 take place?

“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.  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.”  Revelation 16:13-16.

Answer:  Though not mentioned in the sixth plague, spiritual Babylon is clearly the object of this plague, in which she loses political and popular support.  Therefore, the gathering to battle in support of Babylon must have taken place before this time.


6.    How does the prophecy in Daniel 11 help us determine more precisely when this gathering for a battle occurs?

“But news from the east and the north shall trouble him [King of the North, that is, spiritual Babylon, verse 40]; therefore he shall go out with great fury to destroy and annihilate many.  And he shall plant the tents of his palace between the seas and the glorious holy mountain….”  Daniel 11:44-45.

Answer:  Just as in Revelation 16:12-16, at some point, the forces allied with spiritual Babylon go out and symbolically camp near the faithful saints of God (the glorious holy mountain).  Review Lesson #11 for our discussion of Daniel 11-12.


7.    What disrupts spiritual Babylon’s plans against God’s faithful Christian saints?

“At that time Michael shall stand up, The great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people; And there shall be a time of trouble, Such as never was since there was a nation, Even to that time.  And at that time your people shall be delivered….”  Daniel 12:1.  “Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvelous:  seven angels having the seven last plagues, for in them the wrath of God is complete.”  Revelation 15:1.

Answer:  The final time of trouble that God sends against the wicked will be the 7 Last Plagues.  Therefore, the gathering of the wicked forces occurs before the beginning of the 7 Last Plagues, when they are still united against God’s people.


8.    Where is Armageddon located?

“And they gathered them together to the place called in Hebrew, Armageddon.”  Revelation 16:16.

Answer:  First, the unusual manner in which Revelation 16:16 introduces the name Armageddon—“the place called in Hebrew…”—suggests that its true meaning is in understanding the compound Hebrew word rather than looking for a specific place on a map.  Textual evidence is for the reading, Harmageddon, which means Mount or Mountain of Megiddo.  Second, a problem is that Megiddo was a city in northern Palestine, not a mountain.  In fact, the city is located in the Plain of Esdraelon, sometimes also called the Plain of Megiddo.  But there is no Mount Megiddo anywhere in the world.  In any case, since the other places, Euphrates and by implication Babylon, are symbolic, we should expect that Armageddon is also a symbolic name.  But since spiritual Babylon and her allies are gathered against God’s people, then we must conclude that Armageddon is wherever God’s faithful saints are—just about everywhere in the world.


9.    What is the key issue in the final crisis over the mark of the beast?

“So they worshiped the dragon who gave authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast….”  Revelation 13:4.  “All who dwell on the earth will worship him, whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.”   Revelation 13:8.  “…and worship Him who made heaven and earth, the sea and springs of water.”  Revelation 14:7.

Answer:  As we have learned in several of our lessons already, false worship versus true worship will be the major issue in the final crisis over the mark of the beast.


10.    What does the word “megiddo” mean?

“In that day there shall be a great mourning in Jerusalem, like the mourning at Hadad Rimmon in the plain of Megiddo.”  Zechariah 12:11.

Answer:  In the Greek translation of the Old Testament called the Septuagint, the “plain of Megiddo” is translated as the “plain of slaughter [destruction]”.  In turn, the Greek word used there for slaughter has language connections to “assembly, rendezvous, to crowd as to gash, cut, or attack”.


11.    Since the final crisis will lead to a showdown over worship, to what famous Old Testament story does the meaning of the word for “slaughter” also lead us?

Answer:  All of these elements of worship showdown and the Greek word for slaughter and its related meanings point us to the famous story of Elijah on Mount Carmel against the prophets of Baal, recorded in I Kings 18.  Even the closest famous mountain to the Plain of Megiddo is Mount Carmel.  Elijah the prophet was calling Israel back to the worship of the true God by having both sides build an altar on the mountain, and then see whose God answers the prayer to send fire from heaven to consume the sacrifice.  Elijah allowed the prophets of Baal to go first.  They spent most of the day in frenzied dancing, cutting themselves, and so on until Elijah said it was his turn.  By the time Elijah had finished praying, God sent a fire that consumed not only the sacrificial animal, but also the entire stone altar and the water that he had poured on the sacrifice and built up in a trench around the altar!  Then he ordered the slaughter of the prophets of Baal.


12.    To what spiritual lessons or conclusions does the Mount Carmel story point us?

Answer:  First, the false prophets and their political allies on Mount Carmel were part of the visible, organized people of God; they were all Israelites.  So too, spiritual Babylon professes to belong to God and even to represent Him as a Christian church.  Second, King Ahab had married Queen Jezebel, a pagan queen who brought paganism into the organized people of God.  Likewise, spiritual Babylon has even boasted that it has the authority to bring in pagan customs and practices and cloak them as Christian practices.  Finally, like at Mount Carmel, the final crisis will separate the faithful of God from the pretenders over the issue of worship.  That is the reason that so many Christians will be deceived, because they are looking for the Antichrist to be a pagan, atheistic individual who will be openly hostile to God and anyone who professes to belong to Him.  How tragic that most will be lost!


13.    During what event is spiritual Babylon badly divided?

“Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air….”  Revelation 16:17.  “Now the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell.  And great Babylon was remembered before God, to give her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of His wrath.”  Revelation 16:19.

Answer:  Babylon’s three parts undoubtedly refer to the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet (see Revelation 16:13).  In Lesson #13, this is when we said that the wicked will turn against Babylon the harlot—during the seventh plague.


14.    When is the Battle at Armageddon finished?

“Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse.  And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war.”  Revelation 19:11.  “And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written:  KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.”  Revelation 19:16.  “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.”  Revelation 19:19.  “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.”  Revelation 19:21.

Answer:  As we learned in Lesson #13, the fall of spiritual Babylon will begin in the fifth plague of darkness, which will prevent God’s people from being slaughtered.  Then the effect of seeing that darkness even over the capital of spiritual Babylon (Vatican City) will lead to the sixth plague, which is the loss of political and popular support for her.  Then the wicked actually attack spiritual Babylon themselves during the seventh plague, when they see that they have been deceived.  Finally, the presence of Jesus and all His holy angels approaching earth at His Second Coming must reunite all of the wicked forces in one last desperate effort to defeat Jesus Himself.  But they are decisively defeated in this final battle in a great slaughter like on Mount Carmel.  Praise the Lord!  Jesus wins!

 

Quiz for Lesson 14—The Battle at Armageddon
 

 

1.  The word “Armageddon” appears only once in the Bible, and that is in Revelation 16. (1)

  True

  False

 

2.  Which of the following statements describe how most conservative scholars understand the battle of Armageddon? (3)

  They believe that God will miraculously dry up the Euphrates River to enable a confederacy of Eastern nations to eventually reach the area of Palestine.

  They believe the Eastern nations certainly include China.

  Eventually, they believe that Western nations will do battle with the Eastern nations in the Plain of Megiddo.

  They believe that God will intervene just before the close of probation.

 

3.  Which of the following statements help prove that these events are not literal, but symbolic. (2)

  The Euphrates River points us to the name Babylon since that literal river ran through the literal city of Babylon—but that Babylon in Revelation is symbolic.

  Everything in the book of Revelation is symbolic.

  The Eastern nations’ armies would have to cross the Tigris River before it reached the Euphrates River, yet the prophecy says nothing about the Tigris.

 

4.  Who are the “kings from the east” in this prophecy? (3)

  They represent an alliance of Muslim nations who attack Israel at the end-time.

  Since this prophecy is symbolic, the direction of east would point us toward heaven, one of the two compass directions (the other one is north) associated with heaven in Scripture.

  Like the Persian King Cyrus dried up the Euphrates River to defeat Babylon and allowed the Jewish people to return to Jerusalem, the kings from the east here also liberate God’s faithful Christian people in order to take them to the New Jerusalem.

  The kings from the east then represent the Holy Trinity coming to rescue His people.

 

5.  When does the gathering of all the nations of the world against God’s Sabbath-keeping people in this prophecy take place? (2)

  It takes place during this 6th plague.

  Since spiritual Babylon’s support dries up in the 6th plague, the gathering of the nations against God’s people must occur sometime before the 6th plague.

  The gathering of the nations occurs just before the close of probation, as pictured in Daniel 11:44-45.

 

6.  Which of the following statements about Armageddon are true? (4)

  The correct translation is actually “Harmageddon” and means Mount of Megiddo.

  It refers to a famous Old Testament battlefield, the Plain of Megiddo.

  There is no such mountain as the Mount of Megiddo; rather, it’s a city and a plain.

  The closest mountain near that city and plain is Mount Carmel, which reminds us of the famous story of the showdown over worship with the prophet Elijah.

  Armageddon is not a specific location, but it is symbolic of wherever God’s faithful people are all over the earth.

 

7.  What is the key issue in this final “battle” against God’s faithful saints? (2)

  The key issue is over true versus false worship.

  The key issue is Islamic worship versus Christian worship.

  The key issue is the Bible Sabbath (Saturday) versus the Papal Sunday.

 

8.  Which of the following statements about the Mount Carmel story are true? (3)

  It was a showdown between Israel and the heathen nations around them.

  The showdown over worship involved only God’s professed people in Israel.

  Israel’s King Ahab had married the pagan Jezebel, which represents spiritual Babylon’s uniting of pagan beliefs and practices with certain Christian teachings.

  The crisis on Mount Carmel separated the faithful people in Israel from the pretenders over the issue of worship.

 

9.  Spiritual Babylon will be badly divided under the 5th plague. (1)

  True

  False

 

10.  When is the Battle at Armageddon actually finished? (1)

  During the 7th plague

  At the Second Coming of Jesus

  During the 6th plague