"Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ"
-Titus 2:13
Your Roadmap to Eternity
with Gary Stearman & Billy Crone
with Gary Stearman & Billy Crone
"Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ"
-Titus 2:13
Is it Crazy to Believe a Third Temple Will be Built?
I had the opportunity recently to engage with a wonderful pastor who is out each week sharing the gospel. He loves God, loves the Word, but is convinced that most of the prophecies of the New Testament concerning the 2nd coming of Jesus were fulfilled in AD 70. This view is known as partial preterism and has been refuted quite often through the years. Nevertheless, because of the internet, it is growing in popularity again. Jesus told us in Mark 13:37 to “Watch!” and unfortunately many of His followers today believe there isn’t much to watch for. Yet we know there are many things to watch for and one of them is quite evident and easy to evaluate.
I am referring to the prophetic marker of the current preparations to build the third temple in Jerusalem on the Temple Mount. Is this just fanciful make believe or is there a solid reason we should be anticipating the building of a third temple? This might not be new to many of you, but I want to give the rationale for why we anticipate the future temple to be constructed and also answer some objections from those who reject this idea.
The Bible does not always give us the absolute complete picture or details of how prophecy is to be fulfilled. For example, consider the prophecy that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem of Judea, “But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days” (Micah 5:2). All it reveals is the location of where the Messiah would come from. It does not reveal the how or the when. As we come to the gospels, we learn how God moved a pagan Roman emperor (Proverbs 21:1) to issue a census to get Joseph and Mary to travel to their ancestral home from Nazareth (80 miles away) in order to be registered. It was at this time that Jesus was born in Bethlehem, as we learn in Matthew 2. Thus, Micah 5:2 was fulfilled in a literal, but unexpected way.
Prophecy is most often a “snapshot” of the circumstances in a particular time and place. The prophet is given a word or a dream or a vision of this time period. When it comes to understanding why prophecy watchers expect a third Temple, we see a snapshot into the future by several different prophets. Each one of them gives us an insight concerning the final “day of the Lord” which includes what is called the “tribulation period” or the “70th week of Daniel.”
The Biblical Evidence
Let’s begin in the Old Testament with the prophet Daniel. We do not have space to cover the entire 70 weeks of Daniel, but what concerns us is the last verse of chapter 9, which describes the events of the last week that are yet to be fulfilled. Daniel writes, “And he shall make a strong covenant with many for one week, and for half of the week he shall put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall come one who makes desolate, until the decreed end is poured out on the desolator” (Daniel 9:27).
From this passage, we learn that at the “half” point of the week (the 3.5-year mark out of the 7 years), the antichrist will put an end to sacrifices and offerings. Which sacrifices? Which offerings? The Temple was destroyed in AD 70, and there have not been sacrifices in Jerusalem on the Temple Mount for over 1900 years. Let’s go back to the concept that Daniel is getting a snapshot of a future time period. What he sees in this future end-time scenario are sacrifices and offerings taking place. This can seem very confusing because there is no temple today for those sacrifices and offerings to take place. So, what should we conclude? We could say that Daniel was possibly speaking figuratively or symbolically (some people take this position). It does not make much sense, because as soon as you begin to spiritualize interpretations, there is no solid or consistent conclusion. It is almost completely subjective to the reader. Secondly, we could say that it was already fulfilled as other Bible teachers claim. This does not make much sense either because the purposes of the 70-week prophecy as found in Daniel 9:24-27 are clearly not completely fulfilled. The third alternative is that even though we do not see a temple today, in order for this prophecy to be fulfilled, a temple must be built sometime in the future. The third temple will at least be built and in operation for sacrifices by the midpoint of the tribulation period. It could be finished one day before the midpoint, or years prior, but we know that at the specific midpoint, the sacrifices and offerings which were happening are stopped.
The interpretation that a temple will be rebuilt in the future is based on a logical deduction from the text itself and is grounded on the conviction that when God gives a prophecy, it absolutely must come to pass – or else God is a liar. Even though we might not understand the how nor think it is possible, God cannot fail. Notice what God says about prophecy in Isaiah 46:9-11, “Remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,’ calling a bird of prey from the east, the man of my counsel from a far country. I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass; I have purposed, and I will do it.” God will bring His words to pass regardless of whether we can perceive how He will see it done.
We must always take Scripture in a straightforward way when we interpret it. It is especially true when it comes to prophetic passages. Many Bible teachers in the past doubted that Israel would ever become a nation again. Instead of reading prophecy in a straightforward way, they chose to spiritualize, symbolize, or outright ignore the prophetic passages. However, those that did take it in a literal way, ended up becoming vindicated. I gave a presentation and wrote an article on this methodology that helps defend why we should approach prophecy in a literal/normal way. Since it was true of the prophecies concerning the first coming of Jesus, why not His second coming? You can find this article and presentation here: https://prophecywatchers.com/watching-israel. Or you can simply go to our Prophecy Watchers website and look under the “Articles” tab.
Before continuing the topic of the coming third temple, let me give you one more example of using logical deductions in order to understand end time prophecy. For the last 50 years, prophecy teachers have made the claim that they believed a cashless society would be coming in the end times. Why would they make such a claim? The Bible never explicitly says a cashless society is coming. Yet we have these two well-known verses, “Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name” (Revelation 13:16-17). Bible teachers deduce that in order for this to be implemented, most likely it would require a cashless or digital type currency in order to track or prevent people from buying or selling.
When this was first discussed back in the 70s, computer technology was in its infancy. Most people did not own a personal computer. Today, they are ubiquitous around the world. We call them smartphones. They are minicomputers far more advanced and sophisticated than the government computers of the 70s and 80s. Most Americans might not realize this, but there are already dozens of cashless communities in China. These are 100% cashless and digital communities. If you do not have the proper app, you cannot buy or sell in these cities. You can read more about how extensive and advanced the Chinese government is in these areas in two excellent books. One book, written in 2018 by Kai Fu Lee, is called, Ai Superpowers: China, Silicon Valley, and the New World Order. The other, published in October 2022 by Martin Chorzempa, is entitled, The Cashless Revolution. Most of what is coming as cashless will come through business endeavors and not necessarily government legislation. Some Starbucks and other stores have gone completely cashless across many of their stores. This change is just the beginning for those living in America and the rest of the Western world. All this digital technology will help make Revelation 13:16-17 come true. Bible teachers understood this over 50 years ago because they made a logical deduction from the straightforward reading of the text of Revelation. This is also true for the third temple and the red heifer.
We already saw that Daniel 9:27 gives us proof that a third temple will be in existence in the time of the end. A second passage is given by Jesus, Himself, in the Olivet Discourse. In two places, He says something similar. Here is the Matthew version, “So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand)” (Matthew 24:15; also Mark 13:14). The underlined phrase has two similar occurrences in the Greek New Testament (Acts 6:13; 21:28). Both of these references in the book of Acts refer to the physical temple on the Temple Mount platform expanded by Herod the Great. Therefore, Jesus, as a prophet, is giving us a snapshot of a future time period when an abomination will occur in the temple. Even though there is no temple today, we know that one will be built in a future time in which the abomination of desolation will occur. The “abomination of desolation” phraseology appears in Daniel 9:27; 11:31; 12:11 and in the apocryphal book of 1 Maccabees 1:41-59. The Daniel 11:31 and Maccabees passages refer to an event that can only be interpreted as a real physical event that happened in the 2nd century BC. The Seleucid king Antiochus IV entered the sanctuary in 167 B.C. and desecrated it by putting an idol on the altar mixed with pig’s blood (Josephus, Antiquities 12:253; 1 Maccabees 1).
According to Josephus: “Now it came to pass, after two years, in the hundred forty and fifth year, on the twenty-fifth day of that month, which is by us called Chasleu, and by the Macedonians Apelleus, in the hundred and fifty-third olympiad, that the king came up to Jerusalem, and, pretending peace, he got possession of the city by treachery;… And when the king had built an idol altar upon God’s altar, he slew swine upon it, and so offered a sacrifice neither according to the law, nor the Jewish religious worship in that country.” (Antiquities Book 12, Ch. 5, Par. 4)
According to Maccabees:
“On the fifteenth day of the month Chislev, in the year one hundred and forty-five, the king erected upon the altar of holocausts the abomination that causes desolation, and pagan altars were built in the surrounding towns of Judah.” —1 Maccabees 1:54, emphasis added
Both Daniel 9:27 and 12:11 are prophecies which will be fulfilled at the end of the age. Jesus intimates that what happened during the Maccabean period was a prototype of what will happen again at the end of age during the 7-year tribulation period. In order for the words of Jesus to be fulfilled, a third temple must be rebuilt. This is a logical deduction from the text of Scripture.
The third passage which gives solid reasoning for the future building of a third temple is found in 2 Thessalonians 2. Paul taught the Thessalonians extensively about the coming 7-year period (“day of the Lord”) and the events leading up to its arrival. They were confused and most likely had read a false letter, allegedly from Paul, trying to convince them that the day of the Lord had arrived. Paul writes to them his 2nd letter in order to remind them of the order of events that he previously had taught them while he was with them, “Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not be present, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God. Do you not remember that when I was still with you, I told you these things?” (2 Thessalonians 2:3-5). He reminds them that the day of the Lord (the 7-year tribulation period) will start with the rebellion (apostasy) and the man of lawlessness (antichrist) being revealed. What is evident from the text is that Paul is teaching is that the apostasy and the revealing of the man of lawlessness is what actually starts the day of the Lord (cf. John 5:43; Isaiah 28:15). For the Thessalonians, neither of those events had happened, so they could not be inside the day of the Lord.
Paul continues to give descriptions of what the antichrist will do once the day of the Lord starts. He will take his seat in the temple of God proclaiming himself to be God. This desecration by the antichrist is often considered to be synonymous with the abomination of desolation.
This prophetic snapshot was given to Paul at a time when the temple was still standing. Yet it was destroyed in AD 70. Many people probably wondered what to make of Paul’s prophecy since it was not fulfilled in the 1st century and becoming unable to be fulfilled without a temple standing. We have been waiting 1900 years, but again, we must let the text mean what it says in a normal, straightforward, literal way. Now, at the end of the age we are watching the situation in Israel change right in front of our eyes. Jerusalem is now under the sovereign control of Israel. The embassy of the United States was moved to Jerusalem on May 14, 2018. The religious and political attitudes have changed dramatically in the last 15 years. We are seeing a convergence of various factors applicable to the building of the Third Temple which were not present even 20 years ago.
The final passage giving reason to believe that a physical third temple will be rebuilt in the last days is found in Revelation 11:1-2, “Then I was given a measuring rod like a staff, and I was told, “Rise and measure the temple of God and the altar and those who worship there, but do not measure the court outside the temple; leave that out, for it is given over to the nations, and they will trample the holy city for forty-two months.” John is catapulted in the Spirit (Revelation 1:10; 4:2; 17:3; 21:10) to see the future. He was given several visions of the day of the Lord (7-year tribulation) which the Lord Jesus instructed him to write down and send to the seven churches of Asia minor (Revelation 1:11).
The snapshot that John saw in this section was of a physically rebuilt temple. The angel also is a witness that there is a temple, altar, and outer court in the city of Jerusalem which is existing during the future day of the Lord. John was told to measure the temple of God and altar. This same Greek word (for measuring) is used in other portions of the book of Revelation to measure something real and physical (Revelation 21:15, 16, 17). Since the temple of God exists in the future day of the Lord, we deduce that it must be built prior to that time. It is quite reasonable to expect to see preparations to rebuild the coming temple as we see the end of the age approaching quickly.
We have the privilege of seeing it come to fruition and to strengthen our faith. But as Jesus said, “Blessed are those who do not see and believe” (John 20:29). I think of William Blackstone who, in 1878, wrote his book, Jesus is Coming. You can find it free online. He had tremendous faith and believed that the prophecies concerning the return of the Jews to the land and the rebuilding of the third temple should be taken in a normal and literal way.
Addressing Objections to a Physical Third Temple
The prophetic teaching that a third temple will be rebuilt is rejected far more than you might think. The typical objection is based on a narrow selection of New Testament verses which use “temple” verbiage in a metaphorical way. Let’s examine our options and allow the context and common sense to influence what the proper interpretation should be for each of these alleged interpretations.
The first thing we should do is simply examine the data. There are two main Greek words used for “temple” in the New Testament. The first is the Greek word hieron and the second is naos. The Greek word hieron is a general word for the physical temple building and refers to the entire complex including the outer courts. However, the Greek word naos is specific and refers to the temple building itself which contains the holy place and the holy of holies.
The texts that were covered above (2 Thessalonians 2:4; Revelation 11:1-2) both use the Greek naos. The Daniel 9:27 passage is an inference to a temple being in existence due to the mention of sacrifices and offerings. The use by Jesus in which He speaks concerning the abominatio of desolation, “standing in the holy place” refers to the Greek naos (temple).
The Greek word naos is used around 40 times total in the New Testament. There are only few places in the New Testament where the Greek word naos is used in a metaphorical way. Let’s address those.
If we summarize all the various nuances of the 40 times it appears, we see that the Greek word naos is used 3 ways in the New Testament. The first (#1) is a literal/normal use and is referring to the physical temple building. The second (#2) is metaphorical and refers three times to the church as the people of God and the figurative temple of God. The third (#3) is also metaphorical and refers twice to the human physical body. These are all of our options.
When it comes to the four passages referring to a future third temple as spoken of by Daniel, Jesus, Paul, and John, we need to ask the question of how is the Greek word naos used in these contexts? Actually, we only have two. Daniel is in the Old Testament and does not use the word. Jesus speaks about the abomination of desolation “standing in the holy place” which is clearly a reference to the physical temple. That should be enough to settle the issue, but for the sake of being thorough let’s address the final two uses by Paul and John.
Paul says that during the day of the Lord the man of lawlessness will “take his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God” (2 Thessalonians 2:4). We have three options based on the Greek word naos. This could be read straightforward and literal in reference to a newly rebuilt physical third temple on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem in the future (use #1). This makes great sense based on the context and most common use of the word. But, let’s plug in the metaphorical use #2 here in which it means the church. I am not sure exactly how the antichrist figure will take his seat “in the church.” Which seat? Which church? How will he declare himself to be god in the church? This use is very convoluted and you have to be quite creative to find a way to make this fit. When we compare the sitting of the antichrist in a physical third temple with what Jesus said as an abomination in the holy place, these two line up quite nicely. The abomination of desolation that Jesus refers to could very well be the arrival of the antichrist sitting in the holy place of a newly rebuilt third temple declaring himself to be god. If we try and plug in use #3 which is referring to the human physical body, this gets even more ludicrous. How could the antichrist figure sit in the “temple of the human body” and declare himself to be god? This would require some very fanciful speculation and interpretation. It seems quite obvious that the use #1 is the most straightforward. The antichrist will sit in the physical rebuilt temple of God in Jerusalem and commit an abomination by declaring himself to be god.
What about the use in Revelation 11 by John? He writes, “Then I was given a measuring rod like a staff, and I was told, “Rise and measure the temple of God and the altar and those who worship there, but do not measure the court outside the temple; leave that out, for it is given over to the nations, and they will trample the holy city for forty-two months” (Revelation 11:1-2). Use #1 of a physical temple makes perfect sense here. Especially, since we are given other physical elements like the physical altar, and the physical court outside the physical temple. He also brings up another physical description that this newly rebuilt temple is in the holy city which we know is Jerusalem (see Daniel 9:24-27). Was John asked to measure the local church (use #2) or the human body (use #3)? Clearly, these metaphorical uses are quite foolish.
Evidence of the Church Fathers
There are some who make the assertion that the idea of a future physical temple in Jerusalem at the end of the age was NOT the teaching of the early church up until the time of the early 19th century and began with Jonathan Darby. This is simply not true.
Amazingly, we see evidence in the early church (approximately AD 30-1200) that at least some of the church fathers read these texts in a normal, literal way. They recognized these passages as demonstrating that a new Third Temple must be rebuilt in the future in order to see these passages fulfilled.
Jeffrey A.D. Weima in the Baker Exegetical Commentary on 2 Thessalonians 2:4 writes: “Some have understood Paul’s reference here to the Jerusalem temple as grounds for believing that, in light of this temple’s destruction in AD 70, it must be rebuilt at some time in the future so that it will be possible for the apostle’s prediction about the man of lawlessness’s blasphemous actions to take place. Thomas in the Expositors Bible Commentary (1978: 322), for example, states: ‘This [‘the temple of God’] is evidently a Jewish temple to be rebuilt in Jerusalem in the future’ (this interpretation goes back all the way to Hippolytus in his Treatise on Christ and Antichrist, 25, paragraphs 6 and 63; and Cyril of Jerusalem in his Catechetical Lectures, 15.15).” – (2014, 522.)
Hippolytus of Rome lived between 170— 236 AD. He was a disciple of Irenaeus which I will discuss below. He lived very early and believed and taught that the Antichrist would rebuild a temple of stone in Jerusalem and seek to rule from there.
He writes:
“Now, as our Lord Jesus Christ, who is also God, was prophesied of under the figure of a lion [Apoc. 5:5; cf. Gen. 49:8], on account of His royalty and glory, in the same way have the Scriptures also aforetime spoken of Antichrist as a lion, on account of his tyranny and violence. For the deceiver seeks to liken himself in all things to the Son of God. Christ is a lion, so Antichrist is also a lion; Christ is a king [John 18:37], so Antichrist is also a king. The Savior was manifested as a lamb [John 1:29]; so he too, in like manner, will appear as a lamb, though within he is a wolf. The Savior came into the world in the circumcision, and he will come in the same manner. The Lord sent apostles among all the nations, and he in like manner will send false apostles. The Savior gathered together the sheep that were scattered abroad [John 11:52], and he in like manner will bring together a people that is scattered abroad. The Lord gave a seal to those who believed on Him, and he will give one in like manner. The Savior appeared in the form of man, and he too will come in the form of a man. The Savior raised up and showed His holy flesh like a temple [John 2:19], and he [antichrist] will raise a temple of stone in Jerusalem. And his seductive arts we shall exhibit in what follows.” (Treatise on Christ and Antichrist, paragraph 6.)
Also from Treatise on Christ and Antichrist, Chapter 54, Hippolytus describes how Antichrist gathers and deceives people, specifically promising restoration to the dispersed Jews.
He writes, “For he will summon all the people to him out of all the territory of the diaspora, claiming them as his own, like his own children, announcing to them that he is restoring the territory and raising up their kingdom and temple so that he will be worshiped by them as God, as the prophet says: ‘He will gather all of his power from the East until the West, those whom he had called and those whom he had not called will go forth with him.'”
Cyril of Jerusalem lived AD 313–386 and taught the same idea that another temple would be rebuilt similar to that which was destroyed in AD 70 (Catechetical Lectures, 15.15).
Cyril writes,
“And again he says, Who opposes and exalts himself against all that is called God, or that is worshipped; (against every God; Antichrist forsooth will abhor the idols,) so that he seats himself in the temple of God. (2 Thessalonians 2:4) What temple then? He means, the Temple of the Jews which has been destroyed. For God forbid that it should be the one in which we are! Why say we this? That we may not be supposed to favour ourselves. For if he [antichrist] comes to the Jews as Christ, and desires to be worshipped by the Jews, he will make great account of the Temple, that he may more completely beguile them; making it supposed that he is the man of the race of David, who shall build up the Temple which was erected by Solomon. And Antichrist will come at the time when there shall not be left one stone upon another in the Temple of the Jews, according to the doom pronounced by our Saviour ; for when, either decay of time, or demolition ensuing on pretence of new buildings, or from any other causes, shall have overthrown all the stones, I mean not merely of the outer circuit, but of the inner shrine also, where the Cherubim were, then shall he come with all signs and lying wonders, exalting himself against all idols;”
Notice specifically that Cyril rejects the idea that 2 Thessalonians 2:4 is referring to the church as the temple. Instead he comments that the antichrist will seek to trick the Jews, but when he comes he will seek to win the favor of the Jews by focusing on rebuilding the temple for them.
Irenaeus of Lyons, France was a 2nd-century Greek bishop and a theologian known for his role in combating Gnosticism and for his influential writings, particularly “Against Heresies,” which helped shape early Christian doctrine.
He speaks much about the end times and teaches a pre-tribulational rapture while embracing a futuristic approach to the eschatalogical passages of the Bible. His book “Against Heresies” was written around 180AD which was over a hundred years after the temple of Jerusalem was destroyed in 70AD.
Irenaeus describes the Antichrist as an apostate who seeks to be worshipped as God, quoting 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4. “For he (Antichrist) being endued with all the power of the devil, shall come, not as a righteous king, nor as a legitimate king, [i.e., one] in subjection to God, but an impious, unjust, and lawless one; as an apostate, iniquitous and murderous; as a robber, concentrating in himself [all] satanic apostasy, and setting aside idols to persuade [men] that he himself is God, raising up himself as the only idol, having in himself the multifarious errors of the other idols. This he does, in order that they who do [now] worship the devil by means of many abominations, may serve himself by this one idol, of whom the apostle thus speaks in the second Epistle to the Thessalonians: Unless there shall come a failing away first, and the man of sin shall be revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he sits in the temple of God, showing himself as if he were God.” (Book 5, Chapter 5, Section 1)
In Book 5, Chapter 5, Section 2, Irenaeus clarifies that this temple is the one in Jerusalem, built by God’s direction (referencing the historical Jewish temple), and ties it to Jesus’ prophecy in Matthew 24:15 about the “abomination of desolation.” “Moreover, he (the apostle) has also pointed out this which I have shown in many ways, that the temple in Jerusalem was made by the direction of the true God. For the apostle himself, speaking in his own person, distinctly called it the temple of God. Now I have shown in the third book, that no one is termed God by the apostles when speaking for themselves, except Him who [truly] is God, the Father of our Lord, by whose directions the temple which is at Jerusalem was constructed for those purposes which I have already mentioned; in which [temple] the enemy shall sit, endeavouring to show himself as Christ, as the Lord also declares: But when you shall see the abomination of desolation, which has been spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place (let him that reads understand), then let those who are in Judea flee into the mountains; and he who is upon the house-top, let him not come down to take anything out of his house: for there shall then be great hardship, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, nor ever shall be.” This explicitly identifies the temple as being in Jerusalem, where the Antichrist (the “enemy”) will sit.”
In Book 5, Chapter 5, Section 4, Irenaeus further describes the Antichrist moving his kingdom to Jerusalem and sitting in the temple to deceive others. “The Lord also spoke as follows to those who did not believe in Him: I have come in my Father’s name, and you have not received Me: when another shall come in his own name, him you will receive, calling Antichrist the other, because he is alienated from the Lord. This is also the unjust judge, whom the Lord mentioned as one who feared not God, neither regarded man, to whom the widow fled in her forgetfulness of God — that is, the earthly Jerusalem, — to be avenged of her adversary. Which also he shall do in the time of his kingdom: he shall remove his kingdom into that [city], and shall sit in the temple of God, leading astray those who worship him, as if he were Christ.” The “city” here is Jerusalem, and the Antichrist’s act of sitting in the temple is tied to his deceptive reign.
Later in Book 5, Chapter 30, Section 4, Irenaeus outlines the duration of the Antichrist’s rule and his location in Jerusalem’s temple before Christ’s return. He writes, “But when this Antichrist shall have devastated all things in this world, he will reign for three years and six months and will sit in the temple at Jerusalem; and then the Lord will come from heaven in the clouds, in the glory of the Father, sending this man and those who follow him into the lake of fire.” This reinforces the idea of the Antichrist sitting in the temple during his 42-month reign, with Jerusalem as the setting.
Lactantius of Algeria (c. 250-325 AD) in his The Divine Institutes (Book 7, Ch. 17) wrote,
“But that king will not only be most disgraceful in himself, but he will also be a prophet of lies; and he will constitute and call himself God, and will order himself to be worshiped as the Son of God; and power will be given him to do signs and wonders, by the sight of which he may entice men to adore him. He will command fire to come down from heaven, and the sun to stand and leave his course, and an image to speak; and these things shall be done at his word—by which miracles [Apoc. 13; 2 Thess. 2] many even of the wise shall be enticed by him. Then he will attempt to destroy the temple of God, and persecute the righteous people; and there will be distress and tribulation, such as there never has been from the beginning of the world. As many as shall believe him [antichrist] and unite themselves to him, shall be marked by him as sheep; but they who shall refuse his mark will either flee to the mountains, or, being seized, will be slain with studied tortures. He will also enwrap righteous men with the books of the prophets, and thus burn them; and power will be given him to desolate the whole earth for forty-two months.” (Chapter 17)
Victorinus of Pettau, Slovenia (d. A.D. 303/304) in his Commentary on the Apocalypse (c. A.D. 270), interprets Revelation 13 as the Antichrist placing an image in the temple at Jerusalem, implying a rebuilt one for end-time desecration.
He writes on Revelation 13:13-15: “He shall [cause] also that a golden image of Antichrist shall be placed in the temple at Jerusalem, and that the [apostate] angel should enter, and thence utter voices and oracles.”
On Revelation 13:13-15 (referencing Daniel 11:45 and Matthew 24:15): he writes, “And he shall place, says he, his temple within [Samaria], upon the illustrious and holy mountain that is at Jerusalem, an image such as Nebuchadnezzar had made.”
Ephrem the Syrian who lived 306 to 373AD, in his work called, On the Antichrist and the Consummation, wrote about end time events.
He writes,
“In that day in which the son of perdition shall come upon the earth, there shall be great confusion throughout the whole world, and bewilderment shall come upon the earth…Rulers shall cease from judgment, and priests tremble in the sanctuary. The power of the strong shall collapse. There shall be stupor upon the earth; the hands of all shall be undone. The man of evil will prepare, and coming he will enter Jerusalem; he will build up and establish Sion, and will make himself God, and entering he will sit in the temple, as the Apostle has written: “as if he were God.”
St. Ephrem the Syrian, M.F. Toal and Henry Burgess, trans., Eschatological Hymns and Homilies (Florence, AZ: Sagom Press, 2019), 138-139.
Hilary of Poitiers, France (c. 310-c. 367) in his commentary on Matthew wrote about the antichrist returning and presenting himself in Jerusalem where the previous temples stood. Chapter 25, Section 3.
He writes,
“Then there follows a sign of his [Christ’s] future advent. When they see the “abomination of desolation” standing in the holy place [Matt. 24:15], we should understand his glorious return. Concerning this matter, I think that our comment is superfluous given the teaching of the most blessed Daniel [Dan. 9:27] and Paul [2 Thess. 2:4]. That which is spoken by each writer concerns the times of the Antichrist. He is an “abomination” because he rises up against God by claiming for himself the honor due to God. As the “abomination of desolation,” he is going to render the earth desolate by war and bloodshed in keeping with its sacrilege. Because the Antichrist was received by the Jews, he will stand in the holy place [Matt. 24:15; Dan. 11:31-32] where God used to be invoked by the prayers of his saints and where the Antichrist is received by unbelievers with the same honor with which they venerated God.”
St. Hilary of Poitiers, D.H. Williams, trans., The Fathers of the Church, Vol. 125: St. Hilary of Poitiers, Commentary on Matthew (Washington, DC: The Catholic University of America Press, 2012), 250.
Jerome of Stridon (c. 342/347-420) which is near the border of Croatia. In his writings, Letter 121: To Algasia he wrote about the arrival of the antichrist and quotes Paul’s letter of 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4. In section 11, Jerome writes,
“The apostle remedies this error [thinking the Antichrist was about to appear] and explains the things which are to be expected before the arrival of the antichrist, so that, when they see that these things have happened, then they will know that the antichrist is about to come, that is, the man of sin and the son of perdition, “who is opposed and is raised above everything that is called God or that is worshiped” and who “sits in the temple of God.” “Unless,” he says, “revolt comes first,” which in Greek is called apostasia, so that all nations, which are subject to the Roman Empire, may withdraw from them—“and he will be revealed”—that is, he will be shown, whom the words of all the prophets announce in advance—“the man of sin”—in whom lies the spring of all sins—“and the son of perdition”—that is, the devil; for he himself is the destruction of everything—“who is opposed” to Christ and for that reason is called the antichrist “and he is raised above all that is called God,” so that he might trample with his foot the gods of all nations or every approved and true religion and “in the temple of God”—or in the temple of Jerusalem, as some think, or in a church, as I think more correctly—“he might sit and show himself,” as if he were Christ and the son of God.”
Notice that even though Jerome interprets 2 Thess 2:4 as the church, he mentions that others think it is the physical temple of Jerusalem which would logically have to be rebuilt for this to happen.
Apollinarius of Laodicea (died 382) has few writings that have been preserved. However, he is quoted word for word in Jerome’s commentary on Daniel. In this, Apollinarius interprets 2 Thess 2 as a literal rebuilt temple.
Jerome quotes Apollinarious as follows,
“And then the Antichrist shall come, and according to the Apostle [reading apostolum for apostolorum] he is going to sit in the temple of God (II Thess. 2) and be slain by the breath of our Lord and Savior after he has waged war against the saints. And thus it shall come to pass that the middle of the week shall mark the confirmation of God’s covenant with the saints, and the middle of the week in turn shall mark the issuing of the decree under the authority of Antichrist that no more sacrifices be offered. For the Antichrist shall set up the abomination of desolation, that is, an idol or statue of his own god, within the Temple. Then shall ensue the final devastation and the condemnation of the Jewish people, who after their rejection of Christ’s truth shall embrace the lie of the Antichrist.”
The original text of Jerome’s commentary on Daniel can be found here:
https://www.tertullian.org/fathers/jerome_daniel_02_text.htm
Theodore of Mopsuestia, Turkey (c. 350-428) wrote some important items in his commentary on 2 Thessalonians, specifically 2:4.
He writes,
“And he calls him “the adversary” [“who opposes”], inasmuch as he does things adverse to the divine will and strives to draw all people over to himself. And he is the one “highly exalting himself above everything that is said to be god or that is worshiped,” because by persuading all people to depart from their own sect, he will make them worship him, saying that he is himself Christ, to whom he will claim the honor of God should be bestowed by all, as is right. For in this way even “in God’s temples,” that is, even in the houses of prayer, he will enter and take his seat as though he were Christ and for this reason should be worshiped in the rank of God by all.” The context in 2:4 is about sitting in the temple of God and this is clearly a reference to the temples which were in Jerusalem. Theodore notes that the text teaches a future instance in Jerusalem and not a reference to the church.
Theodore of Mopsuestia, Rowan A. Greer, trans., The Commentaries on the Minor Epistles of Paul (Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2010), 507.
Even “Saint” Augustine of Hippo, Algeria (354-430), who was more allegorical in his hermeneutics, recognized the weight of the text of 2 Thessalonians 2:4. He dismisses a literal approach, but still considers it as an option. He wrote in his book, City of God (Book 20, Ch. 19),
“No one can doubt that he wrote this of Antichrist and of the day of judgment, which he here calls the day of the Lord, nor that he declared that this day should not come unless he first came who is called the apostate—apostate, to wit, from the Lord God. And if this may justly be said of all the ungodly, how much more of him?
But it is uncertain in what temple he shall sit, whether in that ruin of the temple which was built by Solomon, or in the Church; for the apostle would not call the temple of any idol or demon the temple of God. And on this account some think that in this passage Antichrist means not the prince himself alone, but his whole body, that is, the mass of men who adhere to him, along with him their prince; and they also think that we should render the Greek more exactly were we to read, not “in the temple of God,” but “for” or “as the temple of God,” as if he himself were the temple of God, the Church.”
John of Damascus (c. 675/76-749) in his Exposition of the Orthodox Faith (Book 4, Ch. 26) notes that the coming antichrist will be sitting in the temple of the Jews once again.
He writes,
“And the apostle says: “Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God” (2 Thess. 2:3-4); “in the temple of God” he said; not our temple, but the old Jewish temple. For he will come not to us but to the Jews: not for Christ or the things of Christ, wherefore he is called Antichrist.”
Thomas Aquinas of Sicily (1225-1274 AD), in his Commentary on 2 Thessalonians writes about the opinions of various people, but notes that some certainly believed in a rebuilt temple in Jerusalem. In Chapter 2, Lecture 1, 24 he writes,
“When he says “so that he sits in the temple of God, showing himself as if he were God,” he gives the sign of this wrongdoing. For the Antichrist’s pride is greater than the pride of all who came before him. So as it is written of Gaius Caesar that he wanted to be worshiped while he was still alive, and put statues of himself in every temple, and as Ezekiel says of the king of Tyre, “I have said that I am God” (Ezek. 28:2), so it is quite believable that the Antichrist will act as they did, saying that he is both God and man. And as a sign of this he will sit in the temple.
But in what temple? Was it not destroyed by the Romans? This is why some say that the Antichrist is from the tribe of Dan, whose tribe is not named among the other twelve in Revelation (Apoc. 7:5). Because of this, the Jews will accept him at first, and will rebuild the temple in Jerusalem, and thus Daniel will be fulfilled: “an abomination and an idol will be in the temple” (Dan. 11:27). “But when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel the prophet standing in the holy place, let him who reads understand” (Matt. 24:15).
But some say that neither Jerusalem nor the temple will ever be rebuilt, but that their desolation will last until the final consummation. And even some Jews believe this. So this text is explained to mean “in the temple of God,” i.e., in the Church, since many from the church will accept him. Or according to Augustine, “he sits in the temple of God,” i.e., he rules and governs as though he himself with his messengers were the temple of God, as Christ is the temple with his adherents.”
St. Thomas Aquinas, F.R. Larcher, OP, trans., Latin/English Edition of the Works of St. Thomas Aquinas, Vol. 40: Commentary on the Letters of Saint Paul to the Philippians, Colossians, Thessalonians, Timothy, Titus, and Philemon (Lander, WY: The Aquinas Institute for the Study of Sacred Doctrine, 2012), 219.
For further details of many of these quotes, see the following link: https://eternalchristendom.com/becoming-catholic/quote-archive/end-times/
In conclusion, the Bible teaches that truth should be established by two or three witnesses (Deuteronomy 19:15; Matthew 18:16; 2 Corinthians 13:1; Hebrews 10:28). God has given us four separate prophets (Daniel, Jesus, Paul, and John) to teach us that a future physical temple will be in existence at the time of the day of the Lord. In addition, there are many church fathers who believed the temple would be rebuilt in Jerusalem at the end of the age in order for prophecy to be fulfilled.
But it will not be built in one day. We should not be surprised that it will be a process that involves many layers, people, money, steps, etc. to see it all accomplished. The era of the Lord’s return has arrived. Each area of prophecy is converging as we watch. I expand more on this in my book, The Mystery of the Red Hiefer.
You can find that here.
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And our NEW 2026 Calendar with some outstanding pictures can be found HERE
Many of you have asked for metal prints of our heavenly images. They can be found HERE
We have three articles so far in the Psalm 19 Project series and a full length podcast interview. The first article is down below and gives the background for this project.
For the other articles in this series see these links.
Part 2- Addressing Flat Earth Claims
https://prophecywatchers.com/psalm-19-project-addressing-flat-earth-claims/
Part 3- What is the Expanse/Firmament (Raqia)?
https://prophecywatchers.com/psalm-19-project-what-is-the-expanse-firmament-raqia/
Part 4- What Can we Learn from Eclipses and Signs in the Heavens?https://prophecywatchers.com/eclipse/
PODCAST– For a full length discussion on the various facets of the flat earth theory, please check out the following link (https://prophecywatchers.com/flat-earth/) where I discuss the reality of the expansive heavens and an examination of the flat earth model compared with our Psalm 19 Project observations. I also addresses what the Bible does and doesn’t say about the shape of the earth.
https://prophecywatchers.com/flat-earth/
As we continue to make known the excellent teachings of many Bible prophecy experts for the sake of reaching people with the gospel and the truth of God’s Word, God is creating other opportunities to promote and defend the gospel. As many of you know and have seen, we are continuing to use archaeology to share the amazing truths of how archaeology demonstrates the reliability of the Bible. Like fulfilled prophecy, God has used archaeology to equip His people to reach many with the saving gospel of Jesus Christ. What many might not know is that in the last year God has been opening doors not only to discuss archaeology, but also to do archaeology. Our archaeological “arm” of Prophecy Watchers involves several behind the scenes projects which require much care and caution. We are in the process of receiving funds in order to purchase a Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) system which will be used in our efforts. We are almost there and look forward to seeing how God uses this advanced technology to strengthen our ministry goals. Maybe we call this the Job 12:8 Project. 😊
This brings us to another project God has been stirring in our hearts since 2021. Gary and I have many common interests and one of the first ones that we enjoyed discussing and dreaming about was astronomy. Gary is a pilot and used to write the technical manuals for Cessna aircraft. His brain is wired as a scientist and so he has long been drawn to study the scientific nature of the Bible. I took astronomy in college and have owned several small to medium sized telescopes through the years. On a side note, I will combine this with my archaeology background and we will do further work in what is called Archaeoastronomy. This is a field which examines the ways in which archaeological monuments and structures are aligned with the stars, sun, and moon (think Stonehenge at the winter/summer solstices or spring/fall equinoxes). This is consistent with our desire to research and evaluate “fringe” topics that often are not addressed by many pastors or scholars. Even though the Bible doesn’t give us all the answers we would like in assessing these other subjects, we do believe that the Bible is the supreme authority and gives us sufficient knowledge to make preliminary evaluations.
As Gary, myself, and Bob have been discussing, we know that the opportunity is there to be on the cutting edge of watching prophetic events unfold. This certainly includes astronomical events. With our love for the gospel and astronomy, God has been guiding us to pursue advanced methods of research and teaching as we watch prophesied events begin to unfold. This is a multi-pronged endeavor which we are calling the Psalm 19 Project.
This project will have several layers to it, but the primary goal is to fulfill the admonition that Peter gives us, “…in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to give a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect” (1 Pet. 3:15). We want everyone to see all of God’s creation be seen for what it does… it gives and proclaims His glory (Psalm 19:1).
The first facet will be to simply share the majesty and glory of all of God’s creation through astrophotography and biblical teaching. God is the creator and Paul teaches us that, “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So, they are without excuse” (Rom 1:18-20). This is a sobering passage of Scripture. It tells us that God’s wrath against sin is real and those that are not yet believers are under God’s wrath and need the gospel (John 3:36). Additionally, Paul explains that the creation itself reveals His invisible attributes, namely, God’s power and nature. How powerful is God? What does the creation inform us about God’s nature and qualities? Further, Paul says that mankind is without excuse because God has plainly revealed to all of mankind that He exists. We simply want to remind all of humanity of what God has already shown them, He exists and is amazing in His attributes! God is worthy of our worship and His love for us has been clearly demonstrated through His Son Jesus Christ and His creation (Romans 5:8; John 14:9; Psalm 103:11).
God’s creation is extensively majestic. The Bible is not an astronomy textbook, but God Himself makes reference to certain constellations that have a long history. One of them mentioned, the Pleiades (an asterism known colloquially as the Seven Sisters) appears in Job 9:9; 38:31; and Amos 5:8. God sought to humble Job and asked Him, “Can you bind the cluster of the Pleiades, Or loose the belt of Orion?” These cluster of stars are scientifically proven to be currently gravitationally bound together. How did the writer of the book of Job know this thousands of years before it could be scientifically proven? We know the answer. The Scripture is true and God provides these little nuggets of information to show that the Bible is inspired and trustworthy. This is a picture of the Pleiades star cluster that a friend of mine took recently with his telescope from his backyard in western Idaho (countryastronomer.com). Isn’t it beautiful?
Below is a picture that we took with our new 7″ refractor telescope over a period of 11 hours. Because we spent more time on the object, we were able to see even more detail and the reddish color come through which is from Hydrogen gas which often glows red. The colors look like paint brush strokes. (Click for larger image)
We are going to be spending more time on this topic and also showing the wonders of God’s majestic universe. Why did He make it so big? How large is it? How many stars are there? And how many galaxies? Astronomers still have no idea how extensive God’s universe is. Just when humanity thinks we have answer, we realize that our technology isn’t grand enough to keep up. Back in 1995 Hubble spent 10 days taking a time exposed photo of a dark spot about 1/10 the size of the full moon in the Ursa Major constellation (“Hubble Deep Field”). They figured that since this was one of the darkest places in the heavens, they would simply confirm there was nothing there. They could not have been more wrong! In this extremely small section, they found over 3,000 galaxies. They decided to take another similar sized image again in 2003-4 in the constellation Fornax calling it the “Hubble Ultra Deep Field.” In this so called “dark spot” they found over 10,000 galaxies!
They have continued to use updated information and exposure times to gain more accurate renditions. The “Hubble eXtreme Deep Field” was put together in 2012 which was even smaller, at 80% the size of the Ultra Deep Field (1/32 millionth part of the sky). In the following image they estimate 5500+ galaxies are in view. And even this is limited by the size of Hubble and its exposure time! There are even more recent updates which we will share in upcoming articles. Additionally, the James Webb Telescope is now in orbit and conveys to us that these are exciting times to see the grandeur of God’s creative handiwork.
The second facet recognizes Jesus’ prophetic words that as we get closer to the end of the age, astronomical and cosmic signs will increase in frequency and intensity. Jesus says, “there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress of nations in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves, 26 people fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world. For the powers of the heavens will be shaken” (Luke 21:25-26). The book of Revelation is replete with evidences that during the tribulation period the very nature of the heavens will be used by God to unequivocally reveal that the judgments occurring in the heavens and on earth are of His orchestration. God is judging rebellious mankind and giving them one final opportunity to repent and trust Jesus. As the wrath of God begins when Jesus opens the first seal of Revelation 6:1, the events unfold and the people of the earth clearly recognize that they are in the wrath of God (Rev 6:12-17). The Bible is full of examples of astronomical events happening during the 7-year tribulation period (Isaiah 13:9-13; 24:17-23; Matt 24:29; Rev 8:12; Joel 2:10-11).
At the same time, we also know that there are some Bible teachers that believe there will be cosmic signs in the heavens before the tribulation begins. Arnold Fruchtenbaum writes, “The first of these five blackouts is clearly prophesied to occur before the Tribulation in Joel 2:31. ‘The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible day of the LORD comes.’ Again, the term the Day of the LORD is used, which is always a name for the Tribulation. The first blackout is to take place beforehand. So, at some point before the Tribulation, one of these worldwide blackouts will occur” (Footsteps of the Messiah, 130). Not everyone agrees with his perspective, but if he is correct, we need to be ready to document and explain these cosmic signs as the final warning of the impending arrival of the Day of the LORD.
This second facet also involves the recent information being presented by Tom Horn concerning the orbit of the asteroid Apophis which NASA has confirmed will come near earth on April 13, 2029 (as well as 2036 and 2068). Tom Horn is convinced that NASA is not being honest about how close Apophis will come to the earth in 2029. He believes that Apophis will actually make impact with the earth and possibly be the fulfillment of the Wormwood prophecy as found in Revelation 8:11. His documentary, Ragnarök, explains his reasons for believing that Apophis will strike the earth. Amateur astrophotographers are already photographing Apophis. As the asteroid gets even closer, we will be able to photograph it with our Psalm 19 Project equipment and bring some verification to its orbit. We are not in the habit of making predictions, but we are commanded by Jesus to keep watching and to always be ready (Mark 13:37). This we will continue to do by the Lord’s grace.
The Third facet to our new project will also be evangelistic in nature. With access to the internet, the theory that the earth is flat is becoming increasingly pervasive in our culture. You might be asking, “Really? People actually believe the earth is flat?” It is very true as we have people consistently writing in or posting on our social media outlets that we are not “enlightened” since we affirm the earth is a globe. For the most part, these people mean well. Many of them believe the earth is flat based on their interpretation of the Bible. Often, these are people who love Jesus, are saved, but who have become convinced through well produced videos on the internet. One of their assertions is that most pictures you see of the universe, planets, Hubble pics, etc. are fabrications and lies put out by NASA and other global conspirators.
Obviously, we cannot verify 100% every last picture that NASA (or Hubble) publishes, but we can do our own astrophotography to confirm whether those images are true. And this is exactly what we plan on doing. Our new telescope is a state of the art 6” refractor sitting on a superb tracking mount and housed in a permanent observatory. In addition, we are working towards a variety of astrophotography cameras and other imaging scopes. Some of the beautiful pictures you see accompanying this article from my friend Micah in Idaho were taken with a 5” refractor and ours should provide even greater resolution. Since those images were taken, our Psalm 19 Project partner, Micah, has upgraded to a 6″ Stellarvue refractor. He has very dark skies and we are excited to share some of his photos (see below).
In addition, we have another Psalm 19 Project partner, Brad, who lives in Virginia. He is currently building an enlarged dome with a 6″ Stellarvue refractor, a 60mm Lunt Solar scope, and a 10″ Meade SCT. He will be giving us even more opportunities to collect amazing pictures of God’s creation which we look forward to sharing with all of you. Now, getting back to some cool stuff about our own Solar System…
Did you know that the planet Jupiter rotates in just under 10 hours? This means that with our own Psalm 19 Project equipment, we will be able to photograph the Great Red Spot of Jupiter rotating through one evening session? If Jupiter is spherical, then why not Earth? We will have the opportunity to avoid the accusations that NASA’s images are fake by producing our own. Our hope is to help as many people as possible move beyond the misinformation and reconnect with the scientific truths that bring glory to God in His creation. We have already seen fruit from people who after seeing our images and examining the evidence are now rejecting the well-intentioned but erroneous flat earth theories.
The Fourth facet to our project will be to continue to research and examine the idea of a “Gospel in the Stars” concept. Ever since Frances Rolleston’s book, Mazzaroth, was published in 1862, there has been an increasing focus on understanding the 12 Zodiac signs. These are not meant to give credence to astrology which claims that the stars have direct influence in the lives of humans or are used to make predictions of the future. We reject that as being unbiblical and specifically forbidden and associated with the occult (Isaiah 47:13-15; Daniel 1:20; 2:2, 27; 4:7; 5:11; Deuteronomy 18:9-14; 4:19; 2 Kings 23:5).
On the other hand, we recognize that for thousands of years there has been a consistency of names, stories and images which are associated with the 12 signs of the Zodiac (Hebrew word is Mazzaroth). Notice what God asks Job, “Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades or loose the cords of Orion? 32 Can you lead forth the Mazzaroth in their season, or can you guide the Bear with its children? 33 Do you know the fixed laws of the heavens? Can you establish their rule on the earth?” (Job 38:31-33).
God is reminding Job that He is the all-knowing and all-powerful Creator and has demonstrated these in His creation work. Job’s previous challenges and accusations against God (7:17-21; 9:21-24; 10:1-7; 13:15-25; 19:23-27; 24:9-12; 27:1-4; 28:12-23; 29:1-6; 32:1; 33:8-12; 35:1-3, 14; 36:15-23) are arrogant and will be answered by God Himself. God is the one who has brought out the Mazzaroth in its seasons, not Job. This reveals to us that God has set up these constellation sign posts and no one else (Genesis 1:14-16). Does this mean that everything today written about the gospel story in the stars is true and accurate? Definitely not, but as we continue to share this information, there is a source history and consistency that reveals God’s intentionality. It is similar to what we see in the flood stories found throughout the whole world. Did you know that there are over 200 flood stories from the various cultures around the world? They certainly have variations, but there are also some major commonalities among them all. This is similar to the 12 Mazzaroth signs. There is amazing consistency and when we compare these with the biblical narrative, we see a story that shines through about God’s redemptive plan written by God Himself in the stars of the heavens.
We are excited where God is taking us with our new Psalm 19 Project. We appreciate your prayers!
Lots of pictures below!
Psalm 19:1 “To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
After spending some time with equipment, we realized that these two scopes were not the most efficient way to get the images we were seeking to acquire. God blessed us with several people who believe strongly in the mission of the Psalm 19 Project, so we sold these two scopes and replaced them with a 7″ Stellarvue refractor and Celestron C11 SCT. Our new setup is below:
Our main central observatory is not in the darkest of skies and so we spent some time creating a portable setup which can be taken to real dark skies. Yet we also use it to capture very wide field photography that the bigger scopes are not capable of obtaining. The technology available to the lay person today is astounding.
Let me give you one example about the current technology available to the amateur astronomer or astrophotographer. The image below contains a picture of the Orion Nebula on the left by the Hubble Space Telescope which cost around $16 billion. Obviously, our observatory did not cost even a small fraction of this, but the quality of our image is very nice. Now, granted, I like Hubble’s picture better, but ours did pretty good.
The picture above is our portable wide field setup. This is a Takahashi FSQ-85mm on a ZWO Harmonic drive mount with an ASI2400MC one shot color camera. The top telescope is a William optics 61mm Guidestar guide scope with it’s own ASI174MM camera for star guiding. It’s all operated through an ASI AIR PLUS mini computer connected to a tablet through WIFI.
Below is a behind the scenes video of how we take and produce these amazing images.
Below is a video of drone footage of our Roll Off Roof observatory which included our initial setup.
In mid 2026 we moved some of our best equipment (Stellarvue 7″ refractor and 85mm Takahashi refractor) to a super dark site in New Mexico at the Howling Coyote Remote Observatory (https://hcronewmexico.com/). Greg provides outstanding customer service, loves Jesus, and phenomenal dark skies. Here are a couple of pics of the setup.
Above is a 12.5 hours of exposure time on our 6″ refractor of the Triangulum Galaxy from 2022. This galaxy is the farthest thing someone can see with their naked eye in a dark site. Over 2.7 million light years away. It is about half the size of our own Milky Way galaxy.
Click on image to enlarge. This was one of our earlier pictures and so we are getting more used to the equipment and taking better pictures now.
We took another picture of the Triangulum with our 180mm (7″) refractor below.
This is our new picture of the mighty Triangulum Galaxy with 33 hours of exposure time with our 7″ refractor. You can see the better quality between the two identical targets by simply adding extra time. (Click to enlarge and see the detail)
Above is Messier 13- The Hercules Cluster. 6 hours of exposure with our CDK12.5″ The Hercules has 300,000 stars in its 145 light year diameter at a distance of 22,000 light years away.
(click for higher resolution)
Below is another image we took of the Hercules cluster with our 7″ refractor from our brand new super dark sky site in New Mexico. We have our equipment at the Howling Coyote Remote Observatory which we highly recommend (https://hcronewmexico.com/). This was an 11 hour LRGB exposure of M13. (click for higher resolution and then zoom in!)
Below is another globular cluster in the constellation Hercules. This one is known as M92 and is 6 hours of exposure with our CDK 12.5″. There are over 330,000 stars in this cluster at 26,000 light years away and a 109 light year diameter. (click to enlarge)
Below is a third globular cluster called the Rose Cluster (Messier 5). These are unique objects which are located above and below the plane of our Milky Way Galaxy. This one has over 500,000 stars and is 22,500 light years away. The diameter of this cluster is around 165 light years! This image below was taken with our 7″ refractor for only a 3.6 hours exposure.
(Click to enlarge and zoom in!)
Above is the Pinwheel Galaxy (M101) taken over 19 hours withour CDK12.5″ (click for larger image)
Above is the Dumbbell Nebula in the constellation Vulpecula and is made up of 18 hours worth of exposure time. (Click to enlarge)
Above is the Elephant’s Trunk nebula in the constellation Cepheus. It is made up of 25 hours of exposure time. Taken with our 6″ refractor from the skies of Oklahoma. Below is an up close image of the specific “Elephant’s Trunk.” (Click to enlarge)
Above is the Whirlpool Galaxy in the constellation Canes Venatici made up of 51 hours of time exposure with our 7″ refractor from Oklahoma. (click to enlarge)
The picture below is of the Helix Galaxy (NGC 2685). It is around 40 million light years away and resides visually near the Big Dipper. I call it the Light Bulb Galaxy. It is known as a lenticular or polar ring galaxy. These types are pretty rare. (click to enlarge)
Above is an up close image of our sun with a Hydrogen Alpha eyepiece filter. Notice the prominences on the left launching up off the surface tens of thousands of miles.
The following image below was a pleasant surprise. I set out to image a target known as Stephan’s Quintet. A beautiful grouping of galaxies which look like they are getting ready to collide. Our astrophotography camera is a gigantic 62 megapixel. Plus the sensor is huge producing a 9500×6400 pixel frame. What this means is that it can image a large portion of the sky. Many of the targets we go after are quite small and dim which is why we try to get 15 or 20 hours of exposure time.
Well, after spending 17 hours targeting Stephan’s Quintet I noticed that there were all these little “smudges” in the full picture. (See below). But after zooming in, I realized that these were all galaxies! I counted over 50 of them in this single image. Can you find them all?
(click on the image to open high resolution quality and then you can zoom in and count the galaxies)
The image below is a zoom in on Stephan’s Quintet. A beautiful collection of almost colliding galaxies. So incredible! 16 hours of exposure time.
(Click on image for higher resolution)
After looking at the larger field of view image as seen above, I noticed the absolutely stunning galaxy on the right side of the image. What is amazing is that when we image we record the celestial coordinates. I can tell the computer to plate solve the coordinates and then annotate the image. It then identifies all the galaxies found in the image as compared to modern star catalogs. This image is called the Deer Lick galaxy group.
Remember that God simply created all these on a Wednesday (Genesis 1:14). Our God is truly beyond all powerful comprehension.
Deer Lick galaxy group below. (click image for higher resolution)
Below is a picture from the newly installed Stellarvue 6″ refractor in Idaho from our Psalm19 Project partner, Micah (countryastronomer.com for more of his pictures). This is nicknamed the Tadpole nebula (officially IC 410). You can click on this for a high resolution. Isn’t God an amazing Creator. His creativity is unlimited and there are billions of these objects. Truly His glory is on display for us to see. We just have to go out and take a picture of them! Wow!
Above is the Lion’s Head Nebula (also known as Sh2-132) by Micah Nowack from Idaho with over 21 hours of exposure.
This image above is the reflection Embryo Nebula (NGC 1333) in the constellation Perseus. This was taken with our 7″ refractor highlighting rich cloud fields of gas and also beautiful colors. What I find interesting and beautiful in its own way is the dark nebula which blocks out any star light from coming through. (click on image for higher resolution)
The Crab Nebula above is in the constellation Taurus. This is from a star exploding and going supernova. It is believed that the Chinese astronomers noted in their records that a star exploded which expanded outward producing this gaseous cloud. Taken with our 7″ refractor of 25 hours of exposure time. (click on image for higher resolution)
The winter in Oklahoma is cold, but we now have the observatory set up to be run remotely. This means that I can sit inside where it is warm and instruct the computer and telescope where to point and it will do as I command. We are living in amazing times with the technology that we have available to us.
The image above is the Andromeda Galaxy and took us 13 hours of exposure for this image. It is the closest galaxy to our own Milky Way galaxy and approximately 2.5 million light years away. It is around 150,000 light years wide and estimates are that it contains 1 trillion stars. The Milky is around 90,000 light years wide and contains approximately 100-400 billion stars. (Click on the image to enlarge)
The image above is known as the Double Cluster in the constellation Perseus. Have you wondered, “how many stars are there really in the sky?” In a dark site, you can see between 3-5,000 stars, but if you take a telescope and focus on one spot for 2 hours like we did in this image, you can see that every part of the sky is simply filled with stars. It is practically unlimited. (click on the image to enlarge)
The above image might look familiar. It also is the Orion Nebula, but a wider field of view than the picture shared way above. The original picture was taken with our 6″ refractor at 2 hours. This image here is from our 7″ refractor and was 3.75 hours. The extra size of the scope and time revealed even more fine structure and colors! Make sure to click on the image to see the details. Our cameras provide extremely high levels of resolution (64 megapixels) and this was an even larger field of view showing us even more beautiful structure.
The above reflection nebula is officially known as IC 2118 and is located just to the west of the massive star Rigel which is in the Orion constellation. It took us 20 hours to get all the pretty colors and its nickname is the Witch Head nebula… can you see why?
The image above is of the Pleiades star cluster, also known as the Seven Sisters in the constellation Taurus. This picture took 11 hours and is a unique rendition because the increased exposure time brought out the reddish gas on the left versus the typical blue only around the main stars in other pictures. We took this with our 7″ refractor. (Click for a larger image)
Spring is considered galaxy season where much of the larger and colorful nebulae are behind the sun, but galaxies abound in the night sky. It’s fun to wait for a dark, moonless long night and point the telescope at a relatively dark spot in the Virgo constellation. Depending on how big the telescope is and how long you take pictures of the same spot will determine how many galaxies show up in your picture. This area of sky below contains the Virgo cluster of galaxies which numbers around 1500. In this picture below, taken with our 7″ refractor, I counted over 70 and the few prominent galaxies here form part of what is called Markarian’s chain. Simply beautiful. Make sure and zoom in on the high resolution picture.
(Click on image to enlarge)
Below is another wide field of view picture that we took with our 7″ refractor. There are over 40 galaxies in this image. We are blown away that every one of these galaxies has hundreds of billions of its own stars (suns) like our own. Is it possible that God created life on any of these star systems? It is possible, but the Bible does not speak anything specific, but it is fun to wonder. This wide field image contains the Sombrero galaxy.
Below is a close up of the stunning Sombrero Galaxy (also know as M104- Messier 104). It was discovered in 1781 and is over 30 million light years away toward the Virgo constellation. This is 23 hours worth of exposure time and the picture rotated.
The Rosette Nebula above was an excellent December long night project in Oklahoma. This is 59 hours with our 180mm refractor. We usually aim for 25-30 hours, but since we did 59 this one has excellent, rich colors.
(Click for high resolution image.)
This picture above is the Helix Nebula (NGC 7293), sometimes called the “eye of God” in the constellation Aquarius. It is a planetary nebula which means a giant star “exploded” its outer shell and the gases become ionized into the various colors. Quite beautiful! This is a 28 hour exposure from the heavens above Oklahoma. (click to see full resolution and zoom in!)
This picture above is an 18.6 hour image which has several objects. You can see the dark nebula called the Horsehead nebula. Down to the left is the Flame nebula. All of these are in the constellation Orion from the skies of central Oklahoma.
(Click the picture for full resolution)
The image below is incredible! It is called the Bubble Nebula and was captured by our Psalm 19 Project partner out in Idaho. He has a 6″ refractor and this was 43 hours of exposure time. Make sure and zoom in to see the bubble!
The image above of the Western Veil Nebula was taken with our Stellarvue SVX152T (6”) refractor, RGB and narrowband filters, and a ZWO ASI6200MM monochrome camera. It was composed of 254 images for a total exposure time of 38 hours from our Idaho observatory. The rich colors are the result of a supernova explosion, with its glowing filaments of ionized hydrogen and oxygen creating intricate, wispy structures. (Click for high resolution)
The picture above is the Pelican Nebula, cataloged as IC 5070, and is a large, ionized gas region in the constellation Cygnus, resembling a pelican’s head and located about 1,800 light-years from Earth. This was 42 hours of exposure from central Oklahoma with our 7″ refractor. (Click for high resolution)
The image below is called the The Soul Nebula (Sh2-199) is found in the constellation Cassiopeia, about 6,000 light-years from Earth. This pictures was taken from our observatory in Idaho by our Psalm 19 Project colleage, Micah, with our Stellarvue SVX152T (6”) refractor, narrowband filters, and a ZWO ASI6200MM monochrome camera. It was composed of 145 images for a total exposure time of 24 hours. (click on the image for high resolution)
In addition to telescopes, a good old fashioned DSLR camera works wonders for comets. The image below is named Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS). This image was taken near our Idaho observatory
with a Nikon D5300 camera and a 15-second exposure. (click on image for high resolution)
The picture below is an oustanding picture of the nebula known as Melotte 15, (also known as the Heart Nebula Cluster) located approximately 7,500 light-years away in the constellation Cassiopeia. This image was taken by Micah in Idaho with our Stellarvue SVX152T (6”) refractor, narrowband filters, and a ZWO ASI6200MM monochrome camera. Itwas composed of 208 images for a total exposure time of 34 hours. (click for high resolution image)
This picture above is called the Angel Nebula (NGC 2170) and is in the constellation of Monoceros, not too far from the Orion Constellation. It is a reflection nebula located around 2400 light years away.
This took 45 hours of exposure time on our 7″ Stellarvue refractor with a 6200MC one shot color camera. (click on it for a high resolution picture)
The Thor Nebula (NGC 2359) above is a cosmic masterpiece blazing in the constellation Canis Major. Shaped like a winged helmet, this dramatic bubble of gas is carved by fierce stellar winds from a rare Wolf-Rayet star at its core. Located about 12,000 light-years away, it glows with ionized hydrogen and oxygen, sculpted by shockwaves that ripple through surrounding space. This was taken from central Oklahoma skies with a ZWO 6200MC one shot color camer on our 7″ refractor over a period of many nights. This was 60 hours total exposure time! (click on it for a high resolution picture)
The picture above is the amazing Trifid Nebula (Messier 20) nestled in the constellation of Sagittarius. This area of gaseous nebulosity is around 5,000 light years away towards the center of our galaxy. The reds and pinks are ionized hydrogen gas and the beautiful blue color is scattered light from the nearby stars. This is only a 12 hour exposure with our 7 inch refractor from the skies of Oklahoma. (Click on the picture for high resolution)
Below is the The Cave Nebula. It is a diffuse emission, reflection, and dark nebula that is located in an HII region where new stars are actively formed. It is cataloged as Sh2-155 and Caldwell 9. The distinct cave structure of the nebula is about 10 light-years wide, and it is located roughly 2,400 light-years from Earth in the constellation Cepheus. This picture was taken with our Stellarvue SVX180T (7”) refractor in Oklahoma and ZWO 6200MC color camera for a total of 30 hours of exposure. (Click on the picture for high resolution)
Below is the amazing reflection nebula known as the The Ghost Nebula. Found in the constellation Cepheus, it is located about 1,470 light-years from Earth, and spans over 2 light-years across. The nebula shines with a faint, ghostly, yellowish-brown luminosity that comes from the dust scattering light of embedded stars. The Ghost Nebula is formed within a dense, collapsing cloud of gas known as a Bok Globule. This picture was taken with our Stellarvue SVX180T (7”) refractor in Oklahoma and ZWO 6200MC color camera for a total of 27 hours of exposure. If you look closely zoomed in on the middle, it looks like a person riding a nebula wave lifting his hands in praise to God the majestic creator! (Click on the picture for high resolution)
Below is the The Eagle Nebula (also known as M16). It is an emission nebula and open star cluster located 7,000 light-years away in the constellation Serpens, and spans roughly 70 x 55 light-years. This picture was taken with our Stellarvue SVX180T (7”) refractor in Oklahoma and ZWO 6200MC color camera for a total of 33 hours of exposure. (Click the image for high resolution)
The absolutely stunning image below is called the Fox Fur Nebula. It is an emission and reflection nebula that glows red from ionized hydrogen and blue from reflecting dust near hot, newborn stars. It is catalogued as NGC 2264 and Sh2-273. The Fox Fur Nebula is 30 to 50 light-years wide and is located 2,700 light years away in the constellation Monoceros (the Unicorn). This image was taken with our SVX152T (6”) Stellarvue refractor from our Psalm 19 collaborator Micah in the dark skies of western Idaho. It was captured with an ASI 6200mm camera, and was made from 278 exposures for a total of 46 hours exposure time. (Click image for high resolution)
Below is the The Crescent Nebula. It is an emission nebula and stellar wind bubble located in the constellation Cygnus. It is catalogued as NGC 6888 and Caldwell 27. The cosmic bubble spans about 25 light-years across, and is located roughly 5,000 light-years from Earth. The Crescent Nebula is energized by a massive, dying Wolf-Rayet star, and will eventually end in a supernova explosion. This image was taken with our SVX152T (6”) Stellarvue refractor by Micah in Idaho, with narrowband Antlia filters, and a ASI 6200mm camera, and was made from 283 exposures for a total of 47 hours exposure time. It looks kinda like a brain! God is amazing in His creativity. (Click picture for high resolution)
Articles in the Psalm 19 Project series:
Part 1- What is the Psalm 19 Project
https://prophecywatchers.com/the-psalm-19-project/
Part 2- Addressing Flat Earth Claims
https://prophecywatchers.com/psalm-19-project-addressing-flat-earth-claims/
Part 3- What is the Expanse/Firmament (Raqia)?
https://prophecywatchers.com/psalm-19-project-what-is-the-expanse-firmament-raqia/
Is Daniel 9:27 a Peace Agreement or Something else?
By Mondo Gonzales
I also include here a two part video series that I presented at our Norman, Okalahoma conference. The first video I discuss the nature of current spiritual state of the nation of Israel and the second video I share more about Daniel 9:27 and the connection to the apostasy of 2 Thessalonians 2:3.
(SCROLL ALL THE WAY TO THE BOTTOM OF THIS PAGE AFTER THE ARTICLE FOR THE VIDEOS)
Before delving into this fascinating topic, I offer up these questions to all of us:
Is there anything more to learn about the end times? Have we run out of new insights in the text of Scripture? I believe we should hold the gospel of Jesus Christ close and tight, but keep our views on eschatology loose and flexible. I believe there are more things to learn. This is especially true in the book of Daniel where the angel revealed to Daniel that the book of prophecy would be sealed until the time of the end when understanding would increase (Daniel 12:4). It would not be surprising that God’s people will come to understand more and more as the time of the end continues to unfold. Similar to what I present below.
Introduction
Ever since 1948 and the establishment of the state of Israel, the world of prophecy has been laser focused. We realize that the prophecies predicting the restoration of the Jewish people would also signify that the end of the end of the age would have arrived. It is for good reason that Israel has earned the moniker, “God’s prophetic time clock.” Hal Lindsey published his book, The Late Great Planet Earth in 1970 right after the Six-Day War in which Israel regained sovereignty of the Temple Mount after 1897 years. He understood that we were living in the times of the signs.
Fifty-five years later, prophecy watchers are keeping their eyes open for signs and current events to further reveal the maturation of the coming beast system and arrival of the 70th week of Daniel. This brings with it the need to be very careful in how we interpret the Bible. Those who are seeking to understand the times often get accused of what is known as “newspaper exegesis.” This accusation is often made by those who aren’t prophecy watchers, but at the same time, this criticism has shown itself to sometimes be justified. We need to be careful not to allow current events to disproportionately influence our interpretation of the Bible, especially prophetic texts.
How do we know what to look for? If we get our interpretation of a biblical text incorrect, it can lead us to look in the wrong place among current events. Also, we could end up attributing meaning to a current event that actually ends up being misplaced.
I believe we are seeing some of this right now. Recently, it’s been in the news that President Trump is trying really hard to bring more Middle Eastern countries into the Abrahamic Accords framework with Israel. Back in 2020, Trump secured agreements and normalization between Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, and Sudan (in motion to be ratified). Now, he is looking to bring in Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, and Syria with Egypt (1979) and Jordan (1994) as candidates to reaffirm their previous peace agreements with Israel under the new banner of the Abrahamic Accords. In addition, Trump is in the midst of solidifying a temporary truce (peace?) between Hamas and Israel being backed by most of the Arab coalition.
This has led many people to write into us or make comments on social media that because Trump is seeking to bring a comprehensive peace agreement to the Middle East, they are asking if it is possible that Trump is the antichrist. Why would they think this?
It has been the traditional viewpoint that the antichrist will burst on the scene and make a peace agreement with Israel and her surrounding neighbors. This signing of a peace agreement will be the start of the 70th week of Daniel. This idea comes primarily from Daniel 9:27 which reads, “And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate” (KJV).
This traditional viewpoint has been around a long time and it can be difficult for people to think outside the box. This includes me. A few years ago, for fun, I began to question the accuracy of many points of eschatology. I wanted to give a fresh evaluation of various traditional viewpoints. Daniel 9:27 and the peace agreement idea was one of them. I had taught that Daniel 9:27 was a peace agreement for 25 years as this was what I learned as a young Christian. It’s healthy to deconstruct theological viewpoints at times and ask whether it can fully be defended from the text itself. At that time, I was also looking at the traditional meaning of 2 Thessalonians 2:3 surrounding the debate of the word “apostasy.” During my research, I came across a very well-done exegetical commentary.
The book is titled, Daniel: Evangelical Exegetical Commentary and is written by Dallas Theological Seminary graduate and Hebrew scholar J. Paul Tanner (published in 2019 by Lexham Press). In this commentary, he asked a simple question about Daniel 9:27. Where in the entire context of Daniel 9 does the word “peace” appear? It does not. The word peace (Hebrew shalom) only appears 3x in the entire book of Daniel (4:1; 6:25; 10:19) and none of them have any connection to the covenant of Daniel 9:27.
Others have attempted to force a “peace” treaty or covenant concept on Daniel 9:27 in appealing to Daniel 8:25 as a reference to the future antichrist. The KJV says, “And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand.” The Geneva Bible of 1560 also uses the word “peace” in this verse.
The Hebrew word is not the typical shalom, but shalvah which is rarely translated as peace. In fact, if you look at Daniel 8:25 in most any recent English major translation, none of them use the word peace (For example, note the ASV, ESV, NASB, NKJ, NET, NIV, etc.). Most use the words: ease, prosperity, security, etc. I think most people would agree that our understanding of the nuances of Biblical Hebrew is far greater than from 1560 for the Geneva Bible or 1611 for the KJV. Even the New King James translates it differently from the KJV. It reads, “And he shall exalt himself in his heart. He shall destroy many in their prosperity.”
Here are few examples of Daniel 8:25 in various English translations with the Hebrew word shalvah underlined in its English rendering:
“and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and in their security shall he destroy many” (ASV).
“By his cunning he shall make deceit prosper under his hand, and in his own mind he shall become great. Without warning he shall destroy many” (ESV).
“And he will magnify himself in his heart, And he will destroy many while they are at ease” (NASB).
“He will have an arrogant attitude, and he will destroy many who are unaware of his schemes” (NET).
There are two items that argue against seeing Daniel 8:25 as contributing to the antichrist peace covenant idea. The first is that the linguistics simply don’t support such an idea. Here is an example from the KJV of Psalm 122:7 which reads, “Peace (shalom) be within thy walls, and prosperity (shalvah) within thy palaces.” In this verse, the 1611 translators chose the more typical word for shalvah meaning prosperity. The idea that antichrist will destroy many by “peace” doesn’t really fit the flow of the argument in Daniel 8:25. The better flow is what is reflected in all the other translations. The prophecy is stating that the person in view in 8:25 will destroy people who are unaware, or who feel confident or secure in their prosperity or those who are at ease. This is far more accurate than doing this through a peace agreement.
Secondly, even if “by peace” was the best linguistic choice (which it clearly is not), the context makes it clear that the prophecy of Daniel 8:25 does not refer to the future antichrist anyway. This clearly refers to the person we know as Antiochus Epiphanes who was a Greek Seleucid king (ruled 175 to 164 BC). In Daniel 8, he is given the vision of the ram and goat. The ram refers to the Persian kingdom and the goat to Alexander the Great. Notice the flow of the verses leading up to Daniel 8:25,
20 “As for the ram that you saw with the two horns, these are the kings of Media and Persia.
21 And the goat is the king of Greece. And the great horn between his eyes is the first king.
22 As for the horn that was broken, in place of which four others arose, four kingdoms shall arise from his nation, but not with his power.
23 And at the latter end of their kingdom, when the transgressors have reached their limit, a king of bold face, one who understands riddles, shall arise.
24 His power shall be great– but not by his own power; and he shall cause fearful destruction and shall succeed in what he does, and destroy mighty men and the people who are the saints.
25 By his cunning he shall make deceit prosper under his hand, and in his own mind he shall become great. Without warning he shall destroy many. And he shall even rise up against the Prince of princes, and he shall be broken– but by no human hand.” (8:20-25 ESV)
The king of bold face who comes on the scene to destroy many (v.25) appears not at the end of the age (future antichrist), but at the latter end of “their” kingdom. Who is the “their” in this passage? It is clearly the four kingdoms which arise after Alexander the Great dies, but who lack his power (v.22). We know this is exactly true from history that Alexander’s four generals divided his kingdom. Ptolemy I Soter controlled Egypt; Seleucus I Nicator ruled Syria, Mesopotamia, Persia, and parts of Anatolia and Central Asia; Antigonus I Monophthalmus controlled parts of Anatolia and some parts of Macedon; Cassander reigned over Macedon and most of Greece.
It is not tradition that causes people to believe that this king of bold face is Antiochus Epiphanes from the Seleucid empire, but the facts of history. Therefore, even if we demanded a “peace” idea of Daniel 8:25, it does not refer to the future antichrist at all. Linguistically and contextually, it is clear that Antiochus caused great havoc on the Jewish people in the early 2nd century BC and this does not refer to the actions of the future antichrist. The idea of a peace agreement concept in 8:25 or any part of Daniel 9 does not hold up exegetical analysis.
Should this matter? Shouldn’t we get our interpretation from the text of Scripture itself and not read into it? Does context matter? I hope all of us would say “YES!” From that point on I began to analyze the covenant of Daniel 9:27 within the context of the book of Daniel itself. How does Daniel use the word “covenant” and what other contextual indicators are there that can help us properly understand what Daniel was referring to? If there is no “peace agreement/covenant” in Daniel 9:27 made by the antichrist, then this understanding should certainly influence what we are looking for in the geopolitical context.
If there is no peace agreement, then anything that Trump (or another world leader) does in trying to make a comprehensive security (or peace) agreement with Israel and its neighbors has no specific prophetic fulfillment related to Daniel 9:27. Any advancement in the Abrahamic Accords or some other peace accord might have other prophetic ramifications (cf. Rev 6:1-4; 1 Thess 5:3?; Ezekiel 38:8, 11, 14), but it is not necessarily or directly related to Daniel 9:27.
Secondly, it removes the temptation to call Trump the antichrist by citing Daniel 9:27 as proof. Anyone that does this because of an association with an alleged peace agreement is misinformed and their prophetic conjectures should be ignored and rejected.
In the rest of this article, I want to share with you the data from the Bible and how we can simply let the authoritative text of Scripture speak for itself. We will also examine how arriving at a proper understanding of the covenant of Daniel 9:27 provides some interesting correlations with what Paul discusses as the “rebellion and the man of sin” in 2 Thessalonians 2:3.
Let me add one more bit of helpful reasoning when it comes to Biblical hermeneutics (how to interpret the Bibe). Hermeneutics 101 guides us to the concept that each book of the Bible is to be first understood in its own context. For example, I shouldn’t have to read the book of Revelation to understand the book of Daniel. There might be some correlations, but I should always allow the primary book to speak for itself without forcing other passages from other Biblical books onto the meaning of the passage immediately under consideration.
Understanding the Background to Daniel 9:27
No doubt there are many opinions and thoughts on the entire 70th week of Daniel (9:24-27). As I was pondering this entire passage I was reminded that Jesus in the Olivet Discourse gave us the key to understand what was happening. He said, “So, when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), then let those in Judea flee to the mountains” (Matthew 24:15-16). What we find interesting in this passage is that Jesus makes a direct correlation to a historical event which is mentioned in the book of Daniel. Yet He says that this event is going to happen again in the future time of the tribulation period. The key event is what Jesus calls the abomination of desolation. This incident is mentioned specifically in the book of Daniel as Jesus said. We read, “And forces shall be mustered by him, and they shall defile the sanctuary fortress; then they shall take away the daily sacrifices, and place there the abomination of desolation” (Dan 11:31; also 9:27 and 12:11).
As you can see when we compare Daniel 9:27, Matthew 24:15 and Daniel 11:31, there are many similarities. We see in Daniel 9:27 and 11:31 that sacrifices are stopped. In Daniel 9:27, 11:31 and Matthew 24:15 all make reference to the abomination of desolation. Combining all three of these verses together we recognize that the abomination of desolation occurs in the middle of the tribulation after the antichrist stops the sacrifices and offerings.
This brings up the question, What was the First Abomination of Desolation?
– It was a desecration of a holy place.
– The first historical fulfillment is widely associated with Antiochus IV Epiphanes.
– In 167 BC, he desecrated the Second Temple in Jerusalem by stopping the Mosaic sacrifices, erecting an altar to Zeus, sacrificing a pig on it, and banning Jewish law and rituals (detailed in 1 Maccabees 1:21-59 and 2 Maccabees 6:1-7). This event led to the Maccabean Revolt and is also chronicled by Josephus (Antiquities of the Jews, 12:246-256; 320-322; Wars 1:31-35).
– After the altar and temple were cleansed, the feast of Hannukah was established.
This first instance of the abomination of desolation happened around 200 years before Jesus spoke His words on the Mount of Olives. The Holy Spirit said, “let the reader understand” which should point us to a major truth. A key which unlocks the mystery so to speak. He tells us to pay attention to the historical figure of Antiochus Epiphanes. It is well known that most prophecy teachers recognize that the Antiochus Epiphanes is a type or pattern of the final antichrist.
In the following chart, I list out the comparisons between these two figures.
Antiochus Epiphanes’ actions revolve around his hatred for the Jews and their devotion to the Mosaic covenant of God (temple sacrifices, circumcision, sabbath, and other Mosaic Laws).
Notice the following verses describing his antics related to the covenant of Moses:
Daniel 11:28: “…his heart shall be moved against the holy covenant.”
Daniel 11:30: “…and return in rage against the holy covenant.”
Daniel 11:30: “…and show regard for those who forsake the holy covenant.”
Daniel 11:31: “…then they shall take away the daily sacrifices, and place there the abomination of desolation.”
Daniel 11:32: “Those who do wickedly against the covenant he shall corrupt with flattery…”
My approach when interpreting a text is to first look at the individual words in any passage and then make an inventory of a specific word as it is used in the rest of the book. In this case, the word “covenant” (Hebrew b’riyt) occurs a total of 7x in 6 verses in the book of Daniel (Dan 9:4, 27; 11:22, 28, twice in 11:30, 32). When you look at the six other occurrences outside of Daniel 9:27 it is apparent that the covenant in view is the Mosaic covenant that God made with the people of Israel through Moses (Exodus 24:7-8; 34:27).
It’s also evident looking at the various occurrences that sometimes the word holy is attached and other times it is not. There is no overt explanation for this, but even without the word holy the clear intended meaning of covenant is to the Mosaic covenant in the various instances.
Since the word b’riyt references the Mosaic covenant in the rest of the book of Daniel, it is reasonable to at least begin with the possibility that the remaining occurrence in 9:27 is also a reference to the Mosaic covenant. I think when we examine the context of this verse, it becomes quite clear that it indeed is a reference to the covenant of Moses also.
Before diving into the text of 9:27, we can learn a few more characteristics of the antichrist figure when comparing the information in the chart above between Antiochus Epiphanes and the future antichrist. We learn that Antiochus was a master blasphemer, desecrated the temple, setup the abomination, persecuted God’s people and sought to disrupt and change the Mosaic covenant (Dan 8:9-14; 11:21-35). In similar fashion, the future antichrist will seek to do all these and more (Dan 7:25; 11:36-45; Rev 13; 2 Thess 2:3-10).
If this is the destiny of the future antichrist why would we be surprised that he is going to be determined to help arrange, promote, and secure the rebuilding of the third temple and the reinstitution of the Mosaic covenant for the Jewish people? The reason he will be very eager to help the Jewish people is because he needs it to be built so that he can perform the most blasphemous acts possible on the most sacred place in the world; Jerusalem and the temple mount itself, and the inner portion of the temple. Jesus said the abomination of desolation would be “standing in the holy place” of the temple (Matt 24:15; Mark 13:14).
Understanding the Text of Daniel 9:27
Before trying to seek the interpretation, let’s just examine the parts of the passage itself. The most important section of the entire verse for us is the first sentence in which you will find it has a few variations depending on the English translation you use. Of course, it is best to operate from the original Hebrew. I learned Hebrew 20 years ago and took two years of Hebrew in seminary and this passage is not overly complicated. I share that only so the readers can understand the offering of my own literal translation which will hopefully bring out some of the nuances. Nevertheless, you will see that if you look at various English translations, my summary translation will be mostly evidenced in the different English versions.
Two of the most literal translations in English are the King James Version and the New American Standard Bible. Let’s focus on the first part of Daniel 9:27.
The King James reads, “And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease.”
The New American Standard Bible reads, “And he will make a firm covenant with the many for one week, but in the middle of the week he will put a stop to sacrifice and grain offering.”
The New English Translation Septuagint is an English translation of the Old Testament Greek which was published in 2007. It reads, “And the covenant will prevail for many, and it will return again and be rebuilt broad and long.”
If I were to offer up a more literal translation, it would read, “And he shall cause the covenant to prevail for the many for one week, and in the middle of the week he shall put an end to sacrifice and offering.”
The Hebrew verb for “confirm” or “make strong” or “cause to prevail” is gabar and is what is known in Hebrew grammar as being in the hiphil form (the causative). This specific form of this verb only occurs twice in the entire Bible. It also occurs in Psalm 12:4 which reads as follows in the KJV and ESV. “Who have said, With our tongue will we prevail; our lips are our own: who is lord over us?” (KJV). And also, “those who say, “With our tongue we will prevail, our lips are with us; who is master over us?” (ESV). Both of these render the Hebrew verb as “prevail” which fits very nicely in the flow of Daniel 9:27.
We have already discussed the occurrences of the Hebrew word for covenant in the book of Daniel above which will help put together the meaning of this verse in context.
Understanding the Interpretation of Daniel 9:27
So now that we have covered some of the important textual elements in the verse, what does it mean? How should we interpret this passage? Based on the background of the Antiochus Epiphanes connection who violated the Mosaic covenant and its future connections to the coming antichrist we can make some straightforward conclusions. Going back to my translation which has other corroboration we can understand what this text is saying.
The future antichrist is going to arrive on the scene at the end of the age. We do not know exactly what his political position will be just prior to the start of the 70th week of Daniel. He doesn’t receive full unlimited tyrannical authority until the midpoint of the tribulation where the Bible says he will then rule for 42 months during the second half (Daniel 7:25; 12:7; Rev 13:5).
Daniel writes, “And he shall cause the covenant to prevail for the many for one week, and in the middle of the week he shall put an end to sacrifice and offering.”
So, this brings up the question we brought up at the beginning of this article. What exactly is the covenant? Is it the Mosaic covenant which is caused to prevail or is it a comprehensive peace agreement between Israel and other nations which is caused to prevail (strengthened)? As I said at the start, the traditional interpretation is that it is some type of a peace agreement or covenant which secures their ability to ostensibly rebuild the temple (since sacrifices and offerings are mentioned). There are different variations of this traditional viewpoint, but the typical idea is that the covenant is a peace agreement. Some think that it is a pre-existent agreement in which the antichrist simply “confirms” or reaffirms it by using his authority to make it strong. You can see that some English versions use the word “confirm” and others simply say “make” a covenant. The Hebrew doesn’t specifically say confirm, but has more of the idea of “prevail” as we see from the similar wording in the Psalm 12:4 English translations.
Two details stand out against the viewpoint of a peace agreement. The first is what we have already discussed. The word “covenant” in the book of Daniel always refers to the sacred Mosaic covenant of Daniel’s day. It seems out of place that Daniel would suddenly use this word to refer to an external “peace” agreement involving the antichrist with Israel and/or others.
Historically speaking we know that Israel as a nation was mostly kicked out of the land of Israel in 70 AD and finally in 135 AD. They roamed the nations of the world until immigration increased in the late 1800s culminating in 1948 when the state of Israel was established. Yet we also know that it was not established as a theocratic nation with the Mosaic covenant and the temple services at the forefront. In fact, it was established predominately by secular atheists/agnostics. This is why there was and still is some resistance by orthodox religious Jews to the establishment of the state of Israel. If they had their way, they would immediately reestablish the Mosaic covenant (Torah) throughout the land and also rapidly rebuild the temple in order to fulfill the various commandments (mitzvot). In other words, the religious Jews have a deep desire to “cause the Mosaic covenant to prevail over the entire land of modern Israel.” When the false messiah (antichrist) comes on the scene and is in a position to “cause the covenant to prevail for the many for one week” he will be received with open arms.
The second detail which stands out against Daniel 9:27 being a peace agreement is simply the context of the entire chapter. Paul Tanner in his excellent Daniel commentary writes,
“The problem with this view is that there is nothing in the context to support the idea that a peace treaty or covenant of protection is in view, nor is this thesis taught elsewhere in Scripture. Yet the context of Dan 9:27 does support an alternative view. The fact that he eventually “puts an end to sacrifice and offering” suggests that this covenant has something to do with the ancient Mosaic law. If the antichrist’s purpose is to masquerade and deceive the Jewish people into thinking he is the real Messiah, then it makes sense that this covenant in Dan 9:27 is related to the Mosaic law. In light of the contextual clue about “sacrifice and offering,” the words “make a covenant” are best understood to mean that the antichrist will pose as a false messiah who dupes Israel (at least initially) and causes the Mosaic covenant to prevail in the land (i.e., he enforces it). Actually, the expectation in orthodox Jewish eschatology is that Messiah will uphold the Mosaic law and usher in an age of righteousness.” (p. 592; emphasis mine).
Chabad is one of the largest orthodox Jewish groups in the world. According to their website about “what is the Jewish belief about the Messiah?” They write:
“Moshiach will first rebuild the Temple and then gather in the exiles. Jerusalem and the Temple will be the focus of divine worship, and “from Zion shall go forth Torah, and the word of the L‑rd from Jerusalem. The Sanhedrin—the supreme Jewish law court of 71 sages—will be re-established and will decide on all matters of law. At this time, all Jews will return to full Torah observance and practice.”
According to the Jewfaq.org website (written from an orthodox Jewish perspective), their expectations of the Messiah are similar:
It is quite evident that when the false messiah appears and causes the Mosaic covenant to prevail in the land of Israel, the religious Jewish people will accept it wholeheartedly.
These details align very nicely with the idea that Daniel 9:27 refers to the re-establishment of the covenant of Moses (Torah) in the land of Israel and not a peace covenant. Those that think it might be a comprehensive peace agreement often appeal to the phrase, “the many” in 9:27 as a peace covenant not with Israel directly but with surrounding nations. According to this view, the antichrist is going to come in strong and enforce a peace covenant with the many surrounding enemy nations and allow Israel to rebuild their temple. This sounds attractive and has been the traditional idea, but it lacks contextual support as we have already demonstrated.
Secondly, the phrase “the many” or “with many” is interesting also. The phrase in Hebrew reads, “לָֽרַבִּֽים” or “la’rabiym” and this exact phrase occurs in Daniel 11:33 referring to the Jewish people, not other nations. The “la” on the front is a preposition meaning “for the” and when connected with rabiym means “for the many” or interpreted “for the Jews.” This agrees with 11:33 and also makes great sense that the antichrist will cause the Mosaic covenant to prevail for the Jewish people which had been absent for centuries as they lived outside the land.
Dr. Tommy Ice agrees that this phrase always refers to the Jewish people in the book of Daniel. He says, “Now the phrase, “the many,” is used seven or eight times in the Book of Daniel. This is where if you don’t study the Book of Daniel in its totality, you don’t realize that the phrase “the many” is always a term referring to the Jewish people, either the remnant, or the nation as a whole. So this covenant’s going to be made with the Jewish people for one week of years – seven years” (source is HERE).
As I noted, the current religious orthodox Jews are super eager to reestablish the law of Moses throughout the land of Israel. Right now, there are very few Mosaic covenantal elements that are mandatory in the land. The rabbis desire full compliance to the Mosaic system, including the temple services and sacrifices.
Some people who have held to the peace agreement idea try to connect Daniel 9:27 to 1 Thessalonians 5:4 which reads, “While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.” They will take the word peace from this passage and then connect it to Daniel 9:27. Obviously, Paul describes that, at the beginning of the day of the Lord, many people who are unaware will be caught by the sudden arrival and destructive stages of the day of the Lord. This is in complete agreement with what Jesus described in Luke 17:22-37 in comparing the days of Noah and Lot with the days of the Son of Man. People will be living in a relatively normal phase of casual living being unaware that once the rescue takes place (the rapture), then destruction will arrive relatively quickly.
Instead of inherently tying this to Daniel 9:27 where the word “peace” does not appear, there is another place where indeed we are told explicitly that there will be “peace” before destruction. And that is found in Revelation 6:1-4. The first rider on the white horse is generally considered to be the beginnings of the arrival of the antichrist system, not necessarily the person of the antichrist (even though there is some obvious connection and certainly could denote his personal arrival; I lean this way). We know that the antichrist is involved in the beginning of the 70th week of Daniel from Daniel 9:27 and 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4. The latter passage says the day of the Lord will start “first” with the rebellion (apostasy) and the man of sin being revealed (2 Thess 2:3).
What we are not told is the gap of time between the opening of the first seal (white horse) and the second seal (red horse). Revelation 6:4 reads, “And out came another horse, bright red. Its rider was permitted to take peace from the earth, so that people should slay one another, and he was given a great sword.” Note that we do have in this context peace being specifically mentioned followed by a ¼ of the earth being killed by the 4 plagues (destruction).
So, Paul’s description of peace and safety followed by sudden destruction as evidence of the start of the day of the Lord fits very well with Revelation 6:1-4 (compare with 1 Thess 5:2-3). The gap of time between the riding of the first horseman and the second could be right on top of one another.
Another angle that helps contribute to the understanding of Daniel 9:27 to some degree is pondering the question of the ethnic heritage of the coming antichrist. We will now discuss briefly this debate.
Is the Antichrist Jewish or a Gentile?
This is a topic that involves much discussion in the prophecy world. There are many who think that the antichrist will be Jewish. The main reasons are that it seems inconceivable that the Jews would accept or receive someone as Messiah who is not Jewish. John in his gospel wrote that Jesus revealed His Messiahship to the woman at the well (John 4:26). In the very next chapter, John writes in which Jesus said,
“I have come in my Father’s name and you do not receive Me [as Messiah],
if another comes in his own name, you will receive him [as Messiah].” (John 5:43).
Jesus speaks in classic Hebrew parallelism in this verse. It is quite reasonable that the rejection that Jesus mentions is in regard to His Messiahship, especially based on the fact that John writes fresh from the previous chapter one of the most overt claims by Jesus to be THE Messiah. In the next phrase of John 5:43, the acceptance by the Jews of someone else is also in regard to that person’s Messianic claim.
Therefore, since the Jews will receive someone (antichrist) as Messiah, it is unlikely that he would be a Gentile. This also matches up with the chronology of the Olivet Discourse in that the first warning that Jesus gives of the end of the age is this, “And Jesus answered them, “See that no one leads you astray. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and they will lead many astray” (Matthew 24:4-5). In addition to the antichrist himself, there will be others that are successful in deceiving many.
Another interesting nugget of information comes from the book of Daniel describing the person of the future antichrist. Daniel 11:37 reads in the KJV, “Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers, nor the desire of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all.” This bolded phrase is very important. Most English versions read, “gods of his fathers” conveying that the antichrist will not follow the pagan gods of his Gentile fathers. However, the KJV doesn’t translate it this way (nor the NKJV). They both translate as a singular, “God of his fathers” which provides a connection to the Jewish heritage of the antichrist. Ultimately, what does the Hebrew text read?
Hebrew can be tricky in that the word Elohim is technically a grammatically plural word (gods), but it almost always is the word used for Yahweh God. This is very well known in Hebrew studies. However, it is not simply just the word Elohim which occurs here. It is a very specific phrase.
Paul Tanner, a Hebrew scholar, examines all the places this phrase, “God of his fathers” from Daniel 11:37 appears in the Old Testament. He writes,
“This is a common expression in the OT (used at least forty-five times) that is always for Yahweh God of the Bible. The expression of אֱלֹהֵ֤י אֲבֹתָיו֙ (ʾĕlōhê ʾăḇōṯāyw), “the God of his fathers” appears 45× in the OT: Exod 3:13, 15, 16; 4:5; Deut 1:11, 21; 4:1; 6:3; 12:1; 26:7; 27:3; 29:24; Josh 18:3; Judg 2:12; 2 Kgs 21:22; Dan 11:37; Ezra 7:27; 8:28; 10:11; 1 Chr 5:25; 12:18; 29:20; 2 Chr 7:22; 11:16; 13:12, 18; 14:3; 15:12; 19:4; 20:6, 33; 21:10; 24:18, 24; 28:6, 9, 25; 29:5; 30:7, 19, 22; 33:12; 34:32, 33; 36:15. In addition, we find “the God of his father (sg.)” (אלֹהֵ֤י אָבִיו֙, ʾlōhê ʾāḇîw) three times: Gen 46:1; 2 Chr 17:4; 34:3; and “the God of your father” (אֱלֹהֵ֣י אָבִ֔יךָ, ʾlōhê ʾāḇîkā) four times: Gen 46:3; 50:17; Exod 3:6; 1 Chr 28:9. Cf. Gen 32:9 (“the God of my father”). The expression also occurs in the New Testament for the God of the Bible: Acts 3:13; 5:30; 7:32; 22:14; and 24:14” (p. 699).
Notice clearly what Tanner discovered. This phrase in Daniel 11:37 always refers to the Yahweh God of the Bible in all other 45 instances! One perfect equivalent to Daniel 11:37 is found in 2 Kings 21:22 where it discusses the wickedness of king Amon and says, “he forsook the LORD God of his fathers (אֱלֹהֵ֣י אֲבֹתָ֑יו, ʾĕlōhê ʾăḇōṯāyw).” This is the exact same phrasing referring to the antichrist in Dan 11:37. Clearly, Amon was a wicked ethnic Jewish leader who forsook Yahweh and embraced pagan religious ideals. The antichrist will be just like this.
At the same time, other solid prophecy teachers see the antichrist as being a Gentile ruler. There are several compelling biblical reasons for seeing the antichrist as a Gentile. The antichrist emerges from the sea which many interpret as symbolizing Gentile nations in Revelation 13:1; The Greek Antiochus Epiphanes as a Gentile type of the antichrist. The “Times of the Gentiles” implies Gentile dominion as found in Luke 21:24. The “Prince Who Is to Come” from Roman (Gentile) Descent in Daniel 9:26-27. The little horn of the Roman Empire in Daniel 7:24 implies Roman Gentile descent.
Tanner responds to this last point by saying, “Yet even if someone insists the antichrist must be in some way “Roman” because of Dan 7:24, that still does not prove he is a Gentile. He could be ethnically Jewish and yet politically part of the revived Roman Empire of the future. Finally, one should observe that the New Testament never asserts that the antichrist will be a Gentile, which should elicit an ounce of caution. Gleason Archer admits that the antichrist’s connection with the ancient Roman Empire still leaves latitude for his place of origin: “the historical Roman Empire was mainly centered around the Mediterranean, with its capital in Italy, and so there is a good possibility that ‘the ruler who will come’ will be from Europe rather than from the Near East” (p.699-700).
I have long considered that the antichrist could absolutely be the leader of the Revived Roman Empire and live or be born in a non-Israel location and still have Jewish ethnic heritage.
In this regard, both groups are correct. Those that see in Scripture a Jewish false Messiah and also others who see in Scripture a Gentile type connection.
This is not unprecedented. Let me give you a Biblical example. Paul the Apostle was clearly an ethnic Jew (Acts 22:3) and a Hebrew from the tribe of Benjamin (Philippians 3:5). At the same time, we know that he was a Roman citizen born in Tarsus. The Biblical evidence for Paul’s Roman citizenship is primarily found in Acts 16:37-38, Acts 22:25-29, and Acts 23:27, with the clearest statement in Acts 22:27-28, where Paul, the Jew, declares he was also born a Roman citizen.
We read, “So the tribune came and said to him, “Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?” And Paul said, “Yes.” The tribune answered, “I bought this citizenship for a large sum.” Paul said, “But I am a citizen by birth.”
Additionally, a cursory investigation shows that there were at least 9 Roman emperors who were not ethnic Romans or Italians.
Here are some notable examples:
If we allow the Bible to speak and examine the history of the Roman Empire, it is not a problem to see that the future antichrist could indeed be politically “Roman” and yet have a different ethnic background by birth. I suspect that he will have his Roman “beast” political alliances, but yet appeal to the religious orthodox Jews by being able to quietly claim that he indeed has a Jewish ethnic background.
Conclusion
We have examined the various evidence that the covenant of Daniel 9:27 is not a peace agreement, but instead a reference to the Mosaic covenant. The 70th week of Daniel and the Day of the Lord begins when the antichrist uses his political influence to cause the covenant of Moses to prevail for the Jewish people. They will receive him as a messianic figure (John 5:43).
From this day forward, they will begin to rebuild their temple, start temple services and sacrifices in Jerusalem and see the Torah be established throughout the land of Israel.
The antichrist has a desire to see this in order to make his move to blaspheme the God of heaven similar to his predecessor Antiochus Epiphanes. We know the antichrist stops the sacrifices and sits in the temple of God and desecrates this holy place through the abomination of desolation (Matthew 24:15). He blasphemes the God of heaven by declaring himself to be God in the very place where the previous holy temples existed. The antichrist has a great desire to blaspheme God from this very holy spot. In order to make this happen, he knows that he needs to deceive the Jewish leadership and help them start the path to rebuilding their Jewish temple.
This coincides very nicely with the start of the day of the Lord as beginning with the Jewish rebellion (apostasy) and revealing of the man of sin as referenced in 2 Thessalonians 2:3. Paul writes that first events which start the day of the Lord is a rebellion which is connected with the man of sin being revealed. When the antichrist comes on the scene, in addition to deceiving the Jews and reinstituting the Mosaic covenant, he also has at least one certain stipulation. 1 John 2:22 reads, “Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Messiah? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son.” When the religious Jews are offered to receive the antichrist as their Messiah knowing it will bring about the temple, this new generation of leaders will formally be rejecting the Messiahship of Jesus. This is outright rebellion against the Lord Jesus and His claims to being the Messiah of Israel. It will not be an accident.
It will be a repeat of what happened in the first century when the Jewish religious leadership rejected the Messiahship of Jesus (cf. John 5:43) and ended up being judged and exiled in 70 AD.
The new leadership of a modern Sanhedrin is being established in the current times. They will be given an opportunity to embrace Jesus or another who will be the antichrist.
The Bible teaches that Elijah will once again be sent by God BEFORE the great and terrible day of the Lord (Malachi 4:5-6). Will his ministry to the Jewish people and leadership be spurned by the Jewish Sanhedrin? We know that Elijah will not be preaching Moses, but instead Jesus. But won’t the Sanhedrin accept Elijah returned? Let’s not forget that the 1st century Sanhedrin had the Son of God and thousands of miracles to attest that the Father sent Him, but they not only rejected Jesus, but killed Him. Let’s not assume that when Elijah shows up preaching Jesus along with the two witnesses (with their miracles) and the 144,000 that the Jewish leadership will instantly believe. They will not.
Could it be that there is a clear witness prior to the arrival of the antichrist to the preaching of Jesus as Messiah to the Sanhedrin and yet they give a full and decisive rebellious rejection of Jesus and then embrace the antichrist? We don’t have all the pieces of the puzzle, but this certainly is possible. If they did this, then this would be THE rebellion associated with the man of sin spoken of by Paul in 2 Thessalonians 2:3 which is the FIRST event which begins the day of the Lord.
The Daniel 9:27 enforcement of the Mosaic covenant for the Jewish people might also be the rebellion of 2 Thessalonians 2:3.
Below are the presentations where I go into more detail on the connection of Daniel 9:27 to 2 Thessalonians 2:3 connection.
Video #1 Israel’s Road to Ruin and Restoration Power Point slides Click HERE.
Video #2 (Daniel 9:27/2 Thess 2:3) Power point slides click HERE.
It seems that many Christians have short memories. It was less than two years ago when a large portion of the prophecy community endured the Solar Eclipse sensationalism of April 8, 2024. This was based on that solar eclipse being the second one in 7 years; the first being August 21, 2017. The path of the shadow of these two eclipses made an “X” over the continental USA and people proceeded to make all kinds of sensational claims and predictions. All of which have come to nothing as this type of hype harmed the body of Christ, especially the prophecy community and evangelistic efforts.
As 2023 progressed into early 2024, some people began to analyze the cities which experienced the path of totality from 2017 and then also looked for those which would be a part of the path of totality in 2024. The most thorough book which examined all of these was investigated by AC Katz. I was able to do an interview with her and see an advanced copy of her manuscript as she was finalizing the book. One of the benefits of her data and analysis was that she was simply presenting the information and not making any predictions. During January through April 8 of 2024, the eclipse hysteria began. Not everyone, but the internet and YouTube provided opportunities for people to make videos and outlandish claims which included predictions of the rapture and other judgments of God. It was quite challenging to find videos which had accurate information. I kept pointing people back to AC Katz’s book because she did the homework and approached it carefully and cautiously.
The other common occurrence which continuously bubbled to the surface was the common refrain, “This can’t be a coincidence. God doesn’t believe in coincidences.” This is a good opportunity to discuss what the Bible says about “coincidences” and how the theology of the Scripture should guide our thoughts and expectations as we “see the day approaching” (Hebrews 10:25). If we do not truly understand what the Bible says about coincidences, then the church is going to suffer even more misguided but well-intentioned confusion.
I have no interest in discussing the full sovereignty of God in this article. That would be impossible. Especially when it’s extremely complex and the inclusion of the free choices of humans can lead down many rabbit holes. However, Jesus said, “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father” (Matt 10:29). Some versions add the word “will” as to say “apart from your Father’s will” but that word is not in Greek and even if it is, it doesn’t change the meaning of what Jesus is proclaiming. I find it amazing the depth to which Jesus brings in to focus the sovereignty of the Father in something as seemingly insignificant as the death of a sparrow. He is not saying that the Father causes the death of the sparrow, but that the death of the sparrow is not outside of the scope of God’s sovereignty. That brings me great comfort when I see or experience adversity in the world.
Jesus continues His admonition that we are not to fear anything in this life by saying, “But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows” (Matt 10:30-31). The point Jesus is making is that even the number of our hairs, which seems extremely insignificant on a daily basis, is under the sovereignty of the Father’s hands. This leads to the conclusion that in the mind of Jesus, there is nothing coincidental in God’s universe.
We have something similar from Isaiah concerning the sovereignty of God’s plans. He writes, “I am God, and there is none like me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.’ From the east I summon a bird of prey; from a far-off land, a man to fulfill my purpose. What I have said, that I will bring about; what I have planned, that I will do” (Isaiah 46:9-11). Another helpful verse is Proverbs 16:33 which reads, “The dice (or casting of lots) are thrown into the lap, but their every decision is from the LORD” (Prov. 16:33 NET).
So, what can we learn from these handful of verses? I truly believe there are no coincidences in God’s universe. He is in charge and all things that happen are for a reason which He alone has determined. However, and this is the most important element in all of this discussion…. God alone knows what He means or intends through these events.
The problem in our Christian culture today is that we have the right theology in recognizing that nothing is coincidental, but we often lack the humility or wisdom to avoid assigning meaning to these events. I don’t speak this from a pedestal of being judgmental. I have made this mistake many times in my own Christian walk with the Lord over 30 years. I have seen God’s hand move in amazing ways and then I have erroneously injected into these events my interpretations of the events. In hindsight, I realize that 99.9% of the time, I was wrong in my assumptions. I am constantly reminded of another passage from Isaiah 55:8-9, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
There certainly are times in Scripture where God reveals His intentions through circumstances or events. He will bring about a certain happening and then reveal what He meant through it (e.g. Ex 29:46; Jer 16:21; Ezek 39:6, 28). These are written in Scripture and so we can know 100% what God meant by these because He reveals it to us. This is safe and we can take these certain interpretations to the bank so to speak. This is similar to interpreting dreams. All of us have dreams every week and some of them are quite interesting. We have people sending us their dreams on a regular basis asking for our interpretation. My response is always the same… “I am not Daniel or Joseph.” 😊 Any interpretation I might offer is pure speculation and can have no weight of authority which is what people are looking for. The key here in all of these endeavors is looking for an authoritative answer to what a dream or other event might mean.
Throughout the years, I have come across people who have spent hundreds of hours bringing various data points together and have concluded who the antichrist is or the date of the rapture. How did they come to this conclusion? “All these different connection points certainly cannot be a coincidence!” How wrong they were in making assumptions at what the meaning of those connecting points meant. Now that I have been at Prophecy Watchers for 5 years, I receive at least 1-2 new letters or emails per month wanting to show me their calculations about the date of the return of Jesus and every time they write, “God is not a God of coincidences.” However, this is not an argument that we can just pull out anytime we want to try and make our preconceived ideas fit a narrative.
What about a solar or lunar eclipse? Can we be certain or even give a good guess as to what God means from one of these astronomical events? Many people recently are saying Yes to this question. They were claiming that the X of the 2017 and 2024 solar eclipses over America was a warning and even some were saying it was pointing to the rapture. Others were looking at the names of the cities which the shadow of the path of totality crossed. Sadly, many Christian leaders created online videos in which they were very loose with the actual data. Some were claiming that there were 7 cities named Nineveh in the path of totality and to quote one person, “of course 7 means completion, so this is no coincidence.” Yet this clearly was not the case if one was to consult AC Katz’s book. When these erroneous facts were pointed out, many just dismissed these and moved on to the other “amazing” claims. Or they said, “Well, it’s close, how many Ninevehs do we need?” The point is that there were statements of fact being made and when shown otherwise, they were dismissed.
These other “amazing” claims involved a series of other “coincidences” that they asserted were clear evidence that God was speaking a warning through these 2 eclipses. One very influential pastor posted a video which received almost 4 million views. I want to examine exactly what the Bible does and doesn’t say about the meaning of eclipses, but first we need to briefly remember how people making predictions or alluding to predictions cause harm to the church and the evangelizing of the lost.
Now, let me say upfront, that I make no judgment concerning the motives or intentions of these people. I don’t read hearts. All I can say is that based on the very careful language used by many of these people, they are intentional not to predict or prophesy something directly. Yet they will often do everything they can to lead you down a path to believing what they are saying, but always allowing themselves a path of deniability when what they say does not come to pass.
Do you remember the book, “88 Reasons Jesus will come Back in 1988” or “1994” by Harold Camping? Or Harold’s prediction of the rapture on May 21, 2011 and then switching it to October 21, 2011? These are obvious rapture prediction failures. The current crop of prognosticators is far wiser and so they will make sure to have some levels of vagueness to what they are claiming. I find it fascinating also that many of those that comment on these videos are quite defensive of the claims being made by the teacher. Even when the speaker ends up being incorrect, they will come to the defense saying there was nothing specifically being predicted.
Again, I would agree that often nothing specific was being predicted, but you can see for yourself the way in which the April 8 eclipse was being presented. Here is the verbatim description of the video (capital letters are their emphasis, not mine):
“This solar eclipse could be THE SOLAR ECLIPSE that unleashes one of the seals of Revelation. I wasn’t a believer at first, but after hundreds of hours of research, I am literally in awe of all the “coincidences.” DO NOT miss this, whatever you do! Along with dozens of INCREDIBLE CONNECTIONS and patterns, I will also be revealing a MAJOR PROPHETIC CONNECTION of how the eclipses of 2017 and 2024 tell us EXACTLY where the Gog/Magog war will start and WHEN the temple sacrifices will begin.
When this happens, it will start the time clock for the revealing of the Antichrist! I have truly been in shock as to the mathematical impossibility of all the events that I will be showing you, all happening at the same time! I will be detailing the prophetic implications of how the last 4 sets of blood-red tetrads that land on biblical holidays coincide with world-changing events and how they have set the stage for this monumental “X-marks-the-spot” moment on April 8, 2024.”
As you can see from the description, there certainly is a lot of hype and sensationalism going on. The major claim is that all these isolated connections and patterns certainly could not be a coincidence. So, here again, we have arrived back at the idea that all these cannot be coincidence and the speaker has come to their own conclusion about what all these events could mean or probably mean. They are making broad assumptions about what God might mean, but ultimately their assumptions are based on a host of errors and this sets a bad tone for other Christians who end up getting caught up in this type of poor thinking.
Ultimately, I have a heart for the people in the church and it is frustrating to see them get hoodwinked into bad theology, bible interpretation, and then disappointment when what was suggested to come to pass does not. I have seen too many become burned out by all the prophecy hype. Biblical prophecy is exciting enough that we do not need to sensationalize or misrepresent the facts in order to promote erroneous or ideas filled with assumption.
If we look at recent history, this isn’t the first time people have sought to use astronomical events to indicate that something major was intended by God. Do you remember the blood moons hysteria of 2014-2015? This also was claimed to mean something ominous or monumental, but in fact all of the historical events connected with the blood moons were a desperate reach to try and show some level of connection. If you examine the data you will notice that the blood moons happened after dates on the Jewish calendar and two of them (1493-1494 and 2014-2015) had no discernible or reasonable connections to the Jewish people at all. Some try to make a connection to the Jewish expulsion of Jews from Spain in 1492, but the persecution of Jews in Spain started a full century earlier. If you pick a date any time in the last 2000 years, it is relatively easy to find something evil that happened in the world (or to the Jews living somewhere worldwide) and seek to connect it to that date. This is cherry picking information to make it fit a pre-conceived belief.
Let me take a break for a moment to share why I am writing this article. I love prophecy. I love the rapture. I am eagerly waiting for the Lord’s return. Jesus told us to “Watch!” in Mark 13:37 and this is exactly what we should be doing!
At the same time, I want to encourage us to watch for the signs Jesus specifically told us to watch for and not to run the risk of sensationalizing signs that He did not tell us to watch for. As we continue to get closer to the Lord’s return, there is going to be the temptation to speak publicly and assign meaning to events that possibly don’t have any biblical authority to mean something. That is what has happened with the eclipse. Some people have gone public and now that the eclipse has come and gone and the rapture or some other judgment didn’t happen, this has provided opportunity for people to mock the Bible and Christians who claim to be prophecy watchers.
I have no desire to win the approval of the world. That is not the goal. The world will always hate us as it also hated Jesus first (John 15:18-19). However, when we make claims or allusions that all these events are not coincidences and then we end up making public proclamations, the church loses some level of credibility in its evangelism.
Here is an example. I have a close relative who is not a believer, but is a very strong mocker. When the Harold Camping prediction came and went, he mocked me and became even more unwilling to hear the gospel even though I never embraced those predictions. The same thing happened with the blood moons hysteria. Every time something like this happens, it pushes him away from hearing the genuine message of Bible Prophecy.
But didn’t Jesus say, “And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress of nations in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves, people fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world. For the powers of the heavens will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory” (Lk. 21:25-27)?
Yes, He did! We must read this in context and recognize that what Jesus was describing are those absolutely unnatural cosmic events which happen inside the 7-year tribulation period. Nowhere are we told to look for these prior to the tribulation period. I will address this further below.
But didn’t God say, “And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night (#1). And let them be for signs (#2) and for seasons (#3), and for days (#4) and years (#5)” (Gen. 1:14)?
Yes, He did! I have seen this verse quoted the most in all the various videos as proof that the April 8 solar eclipse can be used as a warning mechanism from God. The same was being said with the Blood Moon hysteria and the Lunar eclipse “blood moon” of March 3, 2026.
However, this is clearly out of context. There are five purposes for the lights in the heavens that God wanted to make (noted above). We know from the summary of verse 16 that these lights were the sun, the moon, and the stars. We must remember that the 5 purposes were all given in the context before evil was in the world. He created all of these and called them good (1:18). What this means is that the primary meaning of the 5 purposes must be able to be understood in the original context of something good and not as a warning of judgment. Let’s quickly examine each purpose, but I will do them out of order so I can discuss #2 in more detail last.
Clearly, the sun’s great light is used to separate the day from night (#1). We also know that our orbit around the sun produces a yearly/annual calendar (years, #5). The moon has a 29.5 day lunar cycle and was later adopted by the Hebrews as a monthly lunar calendar which allowed them to keep track of Sabbaths and Feasts (#4). We also know that the starry constellations reveal the various seasons of the 365-day solar year. The orientation of the asterism of the Big Dipper can be used to tell you the arrival of the equinoxes and solstices (i.e. seasons, #3). So far, all of these purposes have a good purpose and none of them are meant to be understood in a context of warning or judgment.
What about #2 (signs)? How were the luminaries created by God in the original creation used as good signs?
What I have been hearing for the last 6 months before the eclipse is focus on Genesis 1:14 in which God created the Sun, moon, and stars for signs (the Hebrew word is ōt)? People then have run with this and claim that a solar eclipse is a sign of judgment or often used as a warning for nations. They have made this claim without a single verse to back this up. Let me speak clearly. There is not a single time in the entire Bible in which God said that a normal and periodic solar or lunar eclipse was to be interpreted as an omen or sign of judgment or warning. Not once.
The best lexicon used by OT scholars is The Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament (HALOT) and it lists 9 different nuances of the Hebrew word for sign (ōt). It isn’t relevant to list all nine, but I will reference two of the nuances because they apply to our text in Genesis 1:14. In the context of that which is good and not evil, one of the main nuances for the word “sign” in Hebrew is that it is used to refer to an object lesson as a remembrance or memorial for God’s goodness and kindness. This Hebrew word is used in the book of Joshua as they just crossed over the Jordan river as the conquest of the promised land begins.
It reads, “And Joshua said to them, ‘Pass on before the ark of the LORD your God into the midst of the Jordan, and take up each of you a stone upon his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the people of Israel, that this may be a sign among you. When your children ask in time to come, ‘What do those stones mean to you?’ then you shall tell them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD. When it passed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. So these stones shall be to the people of Israel a memorial forever’” (Jos. 4:5-7; see also Exodus 13:9 where sign and memorial are used together again).
When God says that the starry skies would be used for a sign/memorial, it makes great sense that from the beginning of the creation the constellations or what God calls the mazzaroth (zodiac) would be seen as a memorial of His creative power (Job 38:32). We know that God makes reference to the various constellations as a memorial to His creative genius (Job 9:9; 38:31; Amos 5:8). Some people go as far as to describe the mazzaroth as a gospel in the stars idea which has some interesting possibilities based on Romans 10:17-18. No matter a person’s opinion on that topic, we see that the constellations were created specifically to reveal the glory of God and are a memorial/sign to the creation (Gen 1:14). There is nothing inherent in the word “sign” in Genesis 1:14 that even hints at the idea that God intended the heavenly hosts to be seen or used to point to a warning or judgment.
The other nuance of the Hebrew word ōt that applies to our discussion according to this lexicon can be “omen or foretelling the future.” Is it true that Genesis 1:14 “sign” can be an omen? They list 11 passages in which this word can mean “omen or foretelling the future.” Three of the 11 passages are in reference to heavenly bodies and should be examined for our purposes (Genesis 1:14; 2 Kings 20:8-11 and the parallel passage of Isaiah 38:6-8). They listed Genesis 1:14 as a possible “omen” interpretation, but as noted above , it is clear from that context in the original creation week where everything was good that the sun, moon, and stars were not given at that time as an omen or even foretelling of the future.
What about the other two passages? This is one of the most amazing stories in the entire Bible as it relates to a supernatural event involving the Sun. Most of us probably remember the long day of Joshua in which God delayed the setting of the Sun to give Joshua more time to conquer God’s enemies (Joshua 10). Yet there is another similar type of story involving the good king Hezekiah. He became very sick and yet God promised to heal him. This story appears in two parallel passages and used the Hebrew word ōt (sign) as a foretelling of the future while involving a heavenly body (the sun).
“And Hezekiah said to Isaiah, “What shall be the sign that the LORD will heal me, and that I shall go up to the house of the LORD on the third day?” And Isaiah said, “This shall be the sign to you from the LORD, that the LORD will do the thing that he has promised: shall the shadow go forward ten steps, or go back ten steps? “And Hezekiah answered, “It is an easy thing for the shadow to lengthen ten steps. Rather let the shadow go back ten steps. “And Isaiah the prophet called to the LORD, and he brought the shadow back ten steps, by which it had gone down on the steps of Ahaz” (2 Kings 20:8-11). “I will deliver you and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria, and will defend this city. “This shall be the sign to you from the LORD, that the LORD will do this thing that he has promised: Behold, I will make the shadow cast by the declining sun on the dial of Ahaz turn back ten steps.” So the sun turned back on the dial the ten steps by which it had declined” (Isaiah 38:6-8).
What can we learn about how the Bible uses the word “sign” from these passages? No doubt something amazing happened in which God provided a supernatural miracle to reaffirm the prophecy that God would heal Hezekiah. This was not a natural event. It was not a normal periodic eclipse, but instead something outside of the natural order that God instituted in His universe in Genesis 1:14-16.
This is very important to remember as we seek to understand the future 7-year tribulation period and the abundance of supernatural astronomical (cosmic) events during that time frame. A solar eclipse happens on average every 18 months somewhere on earth. This means that they are rare, but not super rare. Many solar eclipse aficionados travel constantly to the various eclipses around the world to enjoy them. As mentioned earlier, God created our solar system perfectly to allow these beautiful and majestic events to happen at a normal predictable rate. Not a single time does God ever say that a solar or lunar eclipse is to be interpreted as an omen or sign of judgment or warning.
In fact, we know from the Ancient Near Eastern archaeological literature that the Babylonians and Assyrians worshiped the host of heaven. Not only did they worship the heavenly bodies, but they lived in fear of them. One of the ancient tablets was called Enuma Anu Enlil and contains dozens of tablets with 1000s of omens related to the sun, moon, eclipses and other stars. What God intended for good, Satan has corrupted by using it for fear and trepidation. This is why God continually commanded Israel not to be like the nations around them in worshiping or fearing the host of heaven (Deut 4:19; 17:3). Later, in the time of Jeremiah, God once again reminds the Jewish people that they were not to fear the heavens. “Thus says the LORD: “Learn not the way of the nations, nor be dismayed at the signs of the heavens because the nations are dismayed at them” (Jeremiah 10:2).
If we take these truths from Scripture and apply them to the current eclipse hysteria of March 2026, we can see how anyone promoting the idea of a normal and periodic eclipse being interpreted as a sign of judgment or even a warning is actually committing the same sin as the heathen nations. They are promoting the false idea that the natural phenomenon of an eclipse should be used as an ominous sign to bring dismay to people. Let me reiterate that not a single time in Scripture does God ever promote the idea that the natural comic order of events which includes a solar or lunar eclipse is portending judgment or warning.
What then should we say about the words of Jesus saying there will be signs in sun and moon and stars? We know that these will occur inside the 7-year tribulation, but they are definitely not natural or periodic in the normal sense. What happens during the tribulation is quite unprecedented. Jesus said it will be a time period that has never existed prior in the entire history of the creation (Mark 13:19). Remember, not a single time ever in the Bible does God point His people to looking at the normal course of heavenly host as being indicators of warnings, judgments, or omens. We saw that this is what Satan encouraged the pagan nations to do. God forbid this type of fear mongering when observing the normal course of cosmic events such as eclipses.
Throughout the 7-year period preceding the return of Jesus in great glory with the angels, there will many astronomical and cosmic events which are not natural. They will be 100% supernatural and will not be able to be dismissed by NASA or any other astronomers living at that time. What I mean by this is that they will not follow the normal order of things that humanity has experienced in the past.
Joel made reference to some of these events when he wrote, “And I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and columns of smoke. The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes” (Joel 2:30-31). This cannot refer to the normal lunar eclipse (blood moon) because the moon turns copper red because of sunlight bent around edges of the earth producing the color. If God turns the sun to darkness, there would be no light to bend around the earth to turn the moon blood red. Once again, this is not a natural occurrence. It is 100% supernatural and will happen during the tribulation period.
When we examine the astronomical judgments as mentioned in the book of Revelation, it becomes obvious quickly that these are not natural/normal events. Jesus gave a preliminary understanding of the ways in which God’s judgment during the 7-year tribulation will affect the entire universe. We saw in Luke 21:25-27 above the powers of the heavens will be shaken and people will faith with fear because of this. One of the last events of the tribulation period happens just before Jesus returns. Matthew writes, “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken” (Matt. 24:29). Isaiah also prophesies about this time, “For the stars of the heavens and their constellations will not give their light; the sun will be dark at its rising, and the moon will not shed its light” (Isaiah 13:10).
Think about this. The entire universe will go dark! None of this is normal, it is 100% supernatural in its fulfillment. When we see the sun turning dark and the moon to blood and the stars falling from the heavens, we recognize that we have no way to comprehend these events as they are completely unprecedented (Rev 6:12; 8:8, 10, 12; 16:8-9). What does it mean that “something like a mountain burning with fire fell into the sea” (Rev 8:8)? Is this an asteroid? A comet? We cannot be sure about the exact mechanisms of these judgments. Either way, we recognize that all these events in the heavenly bodies inside the 7-year tribulation are unprecedented and outside of the normal course of astronomical understanding that we can observe at the present time.
In summary, my overarching goal in writing this article is to encourage others (including myself) who are super excited about the return of Jesus to avoid the temptation of making interpretative leaps of conclusions in regard to the natural phenomena that we are privileged to see (solar and lunar eclipses, comets, etc.). These are natural normal events which God never describes as warnings or judgments. As we do this, we will avoid inviting mockers to scoff at Bible prophecy which we know is worthy of being heeded on its own.
I hope you enjoyed the eclipse and the next one also! We just shouldn’t take away from the awesomeness of these events by claiming they have some specific meaning which no one can prove.
(This is an excerpt from my book, “The Red Heifer Ritual” where I go in to much more detail on this topic. You can find that book HERE.)
The title of this section is very carefully nuanced. I am talking about National Israel. Think of it as a corporate group like we find in the OT. Even when God sent National Israel into exile in the Babylonian captivity for their sin, there were faithful individuals like Daniel, Ezekiel, Jeremiah, and others who simply got caught up in the judgment of the entire nation. The leadership was wicked, and God most often judged the nation according to its leadership. We often don’t understand this theological principle because today we are so individualized, but this was the way it was in the OT. Remember when David sinned by having a census in 2 Samuel 24? David was the one who sinned, but as a result of his sin, judgment came and 70,000 people died through a plague (1 Chronicles 21:14). David himself was not killed, but many of the people were. This is similar to when in the first century the Jewish leadership rejected Jesus and judgment came upon that entire generation (Matthew 11:16; 12:39, 41, 42, 45). Jerusalem and the Second Temple were destroyed, and hundreds of thousands were killed by the Romans.
Even during the destruction of Jerusalem, we know there were individuals who were saved, including some of the apostles, disciples, and others. It is the same today with National Israel. The Jewish leadership of Israel (including the religious Jews) does not embrace Jesus as Messiah, but there are individual Jews who are saved. So, as we discuss the following state of National Israel, let’s remember that even though the people may be judged according to their nation, there are individuals who have become followers of Jesus the Messiah and are saved. It’s also important to remember that even in the first century, Paul loved his Jewish brethren (Romans 9:1-5), but was still bold enough to call them lost and in need of salvation (Romans 10:1-5). This is still true today.
To further illustrate this thought, I receive questions from people all over the country every single day. Recently, I received the following question from a woman named Linda. She wrote, “I have some friends who go to a national denominational church. When I talk to them about prophecy and the nation of Israel, they say that the remaining promises to Israel were given to the church because of Israel’s disobedience and murder of Jesus. They also point out that the modern nation of Israel is far from perfect. It is socialistic, secular, promotes LGBTQ, and is unfriendly to messianic Christians. They ask me how I can support such a godless nation that rejects Jesus and hinders Christian evangelism. What can I say?”
Here was my response:
There are two ways to respond to this question. One is theological and the other is prophetic. First, it is wise to simply acknowledge the truth of the assertions of your friends about the modern state of National Israel. It is well known that it was founded by secularist socialists who flirted with communism. If you study the history, many of the religious Jews were against the founding of the state of Israel because the founding fathers of modern Israel were so secular and atheistic. This was blasphemous to the religious Jews of the 19th and 20th centuries.
Second, we might ask the question, “In some ways how is this any different than the original founding of the nation in the book of Exodus?” Notice what God says to Israel through Moses as they were about to enter the promised land, “Do not say in your heart, after the LORD your God has thrust them out before you, ‘It is because of my righteousness that the LORD has brought me in to possess this land,’ whereas it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the LORD is driving them out before you. Not because of your righteousness or the uprightness of your heart are you going in to possess their land, but because of the wickedness of these nations the LORD your God is driving them out from before you, and that He may confirm the word that the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. “Know, therefore, that the LORD your God is not giving you this good land to possess because of your righteousness, for you are a stubborn people. Remember and do not forget how you provoked the LORD your God to wrath in the wilderness. From the day you came out of the land of Egypt until you came to this place, you have been rebellious against the LORD. Even at Horeb you provoked the LORD to wrath, and the LORD was so angry with you that he was ready to destroy you” (Deuteronomy 9:4-8).
Theologically, we learn that God did not give the land to Israel in ancient times because they were righteous, but to keep His promises to the patriarchs. Prophetically speaking, Israel today does not deserve the land any more than they did in ancient times. God did not bring back the people of Israel to the land in 1948 because they earned it (Ezekiel 36:24; 38:8). He brought them back into the land so He can fulfill His prophetic promises of the 70th week spoken of by Daniel (9:24-27), among other prophecies. He is going to judge them for their rebellion against His Son Jesus, purge and discipline them, but save the remnant as they call out on the name of Jesus at the end of the tribulation (Jeremiah 30:7; Hosea 5:15; Matthew 23:37-39; Zechariah 12:10; 13:8-9).
Why do we support the state of Israel today? We do not endorse everything they do. They are far from perfect as a government and a people. We support and love the state of Israel indirectly in a sense. Indirectly because we do not approve of them implicitly. More accurately, we support and endorse the Word of God, which contains promises to the nation of Israel that are still unfulfilled. Not a single time in Scripture are the promises to Israel ever transferred to the church. These promises will be fulfilled literally. Ultimately, we support and affirm the prophetic promises of God to and about Israel. God does not fully approve of Israel’s actions today and neither should we, but God has not forsaken nor abandoned Israel (Jeremiah 31;35-37; Amos 9:8; Romans 11:25-29) and again, neither should we.
It is absolutely true what Jesus said that no one can be saved apart from faith in Him (John 14:6; Acts 4:12). It is pretty obvious that secular Jews anywhere in the world today are not saved. What about religious Jews who pray, read the Bible, and are waiting for the Messiah? Paul writes with great sorrow that any Jew who does not embrace Jesus is lost and unsaved (Romans 10:1-3). Today, many religious Jews (especially in Israel) hate Jesus and Christians, sometimes aggressively.
That is how I answered Linda’s question, but it fits perfectly into how we Christians who follow Jesus as the Messiah and final sacrifice should address the prophetic developments of the red heifer and building of the Third Temple.
I get asked often about those religious Jews who read and believe the Old Testament. They claim to pray to God the Father and also believe that His promises are true, but they reject Jesus as Messiah. We should always be friendly and loving and kind, and never are we ever to persecute or speak evil of anyone that does not embrace Jesus as Messiah. This is especially true of Jewish people because of church history which had much “Christian” persecution of Jews. This was wrong then and is wrong today.
At the same time, we need to interact with a few questions:
These are all very good questions, and the New Testament speaks quite boldly on these issues. In fact, as we have seen, Jesus speaks clearly on this issue. He said to the apostles and to Israel in the first century, “I am the way, the truth, and the life, no one comes to the Father, except through Me” (John 14:6). Peter said, “And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). These are powerful and crystal-clear verses which answer the above questions. As difficult as it may be for some to accept, all of the answers to the 4 questions above are an unequivocal “NO.”
A true and genuine religion is one that provides salvation, and any religion that does not embrace Jesus is false and cannot provide or secure salvation. I don’t intend this to sound harsh, but it is true. Judaism, as a religion, does not nor cannot provide salvation because it rejects Jesus. Therefore, all the efforts by the religious Jews to fully reestablish Judaism and the Third Temple sacrifices are all fruitless efforts and do not honor the Son. Therefore, God cannot lie and accept their efforts when they reject His one and only Son whom He gave to die.
So, when a religious Jew prays, his prayers are not accepted by the Father unless they are prayed in the context of having a relationship with Jesus which they clearly do not. Jesus said, “Whatever you ask in My name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son” (John 14:13; see also 15:16; 16:23, 24, 26). Notice the consistent theme of the following verses:
John 5:23 “That all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.”
John 15:23 “Whoever hates Me hates My Father also.”
Luke 10:16 “Whoever listens to you listens to Me, and whoever rejects you rejects Me, and whoever rejects Me rejects the one who sent Me.”
1 John 2:23 “No one who denies the Son has the Father; everyone who confesses the Son has the Father also.”
John 5:45-46 “Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father. There is one who accuses you: Moses, on whom you have set your hope. For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote of Me.”
1 John 2:21-23 “I write to you, not because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and because no lie is of the truth. Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Messiah? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father. Whoever confesses the Son has the Father also.”
John 15:18-21 “If the world hates you, know that it has hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will also keep yours. But all these things they will do to you on account of My name, because they do not know Him who sent Me.”
As you can observe from the above verses, these present a very stark and clear picture of the situation in the first century as well as today. It is impossible to honor the Father through prayer, Torah study, sacrifices, or building a Third Temple if it does not include honoring Jesus the Son. In addition, if anyone rejects Jesus, they reject the Father who sent Jesus. If someone hates Jesus, they hate the Father. Even more bold, the above Scripture is saying that anyone who denies Jesus as the Messiah is a liar and is associated with the spirit of the antichrist. When the antichrist comes on the scene to deceive the Jews in making a covenant (Daniel 9:27), I believe that part of his covenant message will be to encourage the Jewish leadership to reaffirm a denial of Jesus as the Messiah.
When Paul was outlining the plan of God in seeking to reach the Gentiles, he writes, “As far as the gospel is concerned, [the Jews] are enemies for your sake; but as far as election is concerned, they are loved on account of the patriarchs, for God’s gifts and his call are irrevocable” (Romans 11:28).
This concept is important. Paul says that any Jewish person who rejects the gospel is an enemy in one sense, but God still loves them and has a plan for them in the future. We should love them also and pray for their eyes to be opened to God’s only plan of salvation. This plan includes coming to faith in Jesus, but just because God loves them doesn’t mean that God is going to allow a separate way to come to Him. Jesus is the only WAY. If we have these truths in the back of our mind, we can begin to formulate some solid Biblical answers to the questions that were asked in the previous chapter.
July 6, 2025
Job 1:1-42:17
Big Idea- Suffering and evil happen in the world, even to the ‘righteous’. We are to recognize our limited understanding of God’s ways and trust Him in submissive humility. We can have hope in trials knowing that God will show up at the proper time and ways.
“Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the endurance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord– that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful. (James 5:11; Also see Romans 15:4)
LESSON 1– We can have hope in adversity knowing that the Lord has the POWER
(Job 1:6, 12; 2:1, 6; Luke 8:33; 1 Corinthians 10:13; Luke 22:31)
B. The power that the Lord has is shown in God controlling the EXCHANGE
(Interestingly, God is the one who takes the initiative in bringing up Job)
LESSON 2– We can have hope in adversity knowing that the Lord has PATIENCE
Eliphaz, Bildad, Zophar- “wicked suffer, righteous prosper. Job needs to repent of his sin.”
(Suffering can occur: fallen world, discipline, strengthen, comfort, teach, produce fruit, sanctify, etc.; James 1:5)
(Matt 12:36; Job 7:17-21; 9:21-24; 10:1-7; 13:15-25; 19:23-27; 24:9-12; 27:1-4; 28:12-23; 29:1-6; 32:1; 33:8-12; 35:14; 36:15-23)
LESSON 3– We can have hope in adversity knowing that the Lord has a PURPOSE
(Job 38-41; Can Job explain, oversee, and subdue God’s creation?)
B. The purpose of the Lord is to be trusted through our HUMILITY
(Job 40:3-5; 42:1-6; blessed only AFTER he prayed for his friends)
(Notice a major LESSON in Job 42:11 where God is deemed the cause)
“In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith–of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire–may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.”
(1 Peter 1:6-7)
Is the Red Heifer Ceremony Imminent?
By Mondo Gonzales
We are living in exciting times when considering the quick movement that has been happening over the last 25 years in the Third Temple movement. I have written much about this in my book, The Red Heifer Ritual: The Last Piece of the Third Temple Puzzle.
You can get this book and a bonus DVD presentation HERE for $25.00 (includes shipping). You can also see all the chapter headings and the detailed information I cover in this book at that link.
The increased interest in the upcoming red heifer ceremony is good in that it is drawing more people into understanding that we are living at the end of the age. The negative part of this is that various misinformation seems to be ubiquitous on the internet. There also is carelessness or even intentional misleading by so-called journalists when covering the red heifer news. One of these was back in March 2024 when CBS news correspondent Chris Livesay went to Israel to report on the red heifers who now are in Shiloh. He interviewed Yitzhak Momo (a rabbi affiliated with the Temple Institute) who owns a piece of property on the Mount of Olives where the ceremony most likely will take place. In the interview, he intimated that Yitzhak and other red heifer proponents were the reason for the October 7 Hamas attack. It seemed quite obvious in the video accompanying his article that he was providing incendiary material with a Palestinian bias.
Further, in the video he made the statement that the Jews had built an altar which was just about ready to be used by the Jews in a red heifer slaughter. They showed the following image at the 2 minute 6 second mark in the video. You can see it HERE.
There are at least three things wrong with this report. First, this altar is in the West Bank and is not on the Mount of Olives which is the required ceremony according to the rabbinic tradition of the Mishnah. Secondly, the ceremony does not involve an altar. An altar in the Third Temple system only exists on the Temple Mount. The red heifer is not sacrificed as those only happen on the Temple Mount. It is killed and then burnt in whole on a pyre with other elements as described in Numbers 19. Third, this altar has been torn down and is no longer used for rehearsals. Yet the CBS report intentionally makes it look like this altar is currently being built for the very purpose of the red heifer ceremony. This was a deliberate lie and disinformation seemingly meant to enflame the situation with the Arab population and to foment increased hostility against the Jewish people.
The red heifers were brought into the news again recently with some over exaggerated fanfare by some. This involved a rehearsal ceremony with a picture of a cow by a rabbi and priest with a few others. The following picture was tweeted by Yinon Magal on August 6, 2024. Yinon is a journalist and former politician in the Israeli Knesset. He wrote in his Hebrew tweet, “Towards Tisha B’Av: Temple worshipers are now practicing the mitzvah of a red cow in front of the Temple Mount, which will enable the return of purity and the observance of all the temple mitzvahs.” There was nothing wrong with his report and he included the following picture.
There are several things to note in this picture. I find it humorous that the red heifer paper cutout in the background is not even fully red! Secondly, we can observe that the rabbi on the left is the research director at the Temple Institute organization. His name is Rabbi Azaria Ariel and is the son of the founder of the institute. Third, this practice rehearsal is taking place in the old city not far from the western wall and the Temple Mount. You can clearly see the Mount of Olives in the background and the Dome of the Rock on the Temple Mount. So, this practice ceremony is clearly not happening on the required location of the Mount of Olives.
I do not put any fault of insincerity in those involved in this rehearsal. They are simply practicing with what looks like a young priest. However, many people ran to social media and began to say that this was part of a new red heifer ceremony taking place right now in Israel! This is a complete lie and pure exaggeration. Nothing of the sort is true. We need to always make sure and do the research to vet the information before passing it along as much of what is being presented right now is complete error.
At the same time, we realize that even though there has been a delay in performing the ceremony on the Mount of Olives, those involved in the process are not sitting around doing nothing. They are practicing and keeping the ceremony very much in their current thinking. The various groups of rabbis are working out all the details and trying to gain as much consensus as possible between the various religious orthodox groups.
Now that Trump has been elected, the “buzz” in Israel among the rabbis is an increase in excitement and anticipation that Trump will be more friendly to Israel. This has already come to pass in that Trump has allowed weapons which Israel purchased to finally be delivered. Even though they were purchased legally by Israel, Biden put a hold on the delivery of these weapons.
One rabbi in Israel says quite clearly that Trump will be the one who brings about the building of the third Temple. You can read it HERE.
The rabbi said, ““Trump’s election is a necessary element of the geula (redemption) and a sign that the moshiach (messiah) is imminent,” Rabbi Berger said. “That is why Donald Trump in Gematria (Hebrew numerology) equals 424, which is the same as Moshiach ben David (Messiah from the house of David),” Rabbi Berger pointed out. “This certainly does not mean he will be the Messiah, but it indicates that he will play a role in preparing the way for the arrival of the Messiah. He clearly has this inclination.”
This connection was so evident in Trump’s connection with Jerusalem that in 2018, the Sanhedrin minted a coin with the profile of Trump superimposed on the image of Persian King Cyrus, who facilitated the building of the Second Temple in Jerusalem that ended the Babylonian Exile in 538 BCE. Cyrus was not Jewish and either is Trump.”
All of this buzz and hype is leading many rabbis in Israel to believe that others will recognize that the era of the Messiah’s arrival has come and with Trump’s assumed protection, they will be able to perform the ceremony of the Red Heifer as soon as possible.
One last item to note is that there was an interview in December 2024 with Byron Stinson. You can find it HERE.
Byron made mention that 2 of the cows have been officially disqualified leaving only three left who still maintain some level of preliminary qualification. The two female cows which have been disqualified are being artificially inseminated in order to continue the Israeli breeding program for red heifers in case these 3 from Texas eventually become diqualified.
The rabbis are quick to say that the cows cannot be fully qualified until the moment before the ceremony takes place. Until then, it is only preliminary as they will need to do a fresh evaluation right before the ceremony takes place. We are living in exciting times as there hasn’t been even a preliminarily qualified red heifer in 1900 years!
Jesus is coming soon and He will fix the world and all its mess and the world will be filled with the glory of the Lord. God’s presence will not be in the shadows any longer and the whole world will give Him the rightful glory He deserves.
Is the apostasy of 2 Thessalonians 2:3 referring to a spiritual rebellion of the Church? Is it a rebellion of the Jewish people? Or is it in reference to the physical departure of the rapture? Check out the video and article below to further investigate this important topic.
SLIDES FOR THE PRESENTATION- CLICK HERE
This topic has been on my mind for quite some time. There are various ramifications that come from getting this section of Scripture accurately interpreted. It contributes to our understanding of the timing of the rapture, the nature and start of the Day of the Lord (DOTL), the arrival of the antichrist, the coming apostasy, and navigating the waters of potential pre-tribulational church persecution. In addition, there are some technical details in the Greek that contribute to where someone lands when understanding the transition between the church age and the start of the tribulation. Before jumping into 2 Thessalonians 2, it would be good to review the context and history of Paul’s interactions with the church at Thessalonica in order to have confidence in the interpretation of this section.
After Paul was beaten and imprisoned in Philippi, he departed and came to the city of Thessalonica (Acts 17:1-12). He preached for only 3 sabbaths. So, this could be as little as 15 days or as much as 27 days of teaching the Thessalonians about the gospel which included prophecies related to Jesus’s second coming. The important element here is to recognize that after Paul founded the church, he was not there very long. Even in the short time Paul was sharing the fundamentals of the gospel, he believed teaching eschatology was so vital that he taught them many complex details of the nature of the antichrist and the future tribulation period (2 Thess 2:5). This should speak volumes to those pastors that do not feel eschatology is important enough to teach new believers.
Understanding the frame of mind of the Thessalonian believers is important. The founding of the church was surrounded by controversy and resistance from the beginning. Paul, having just been physically assaulted and imprisoned in Philippi, came to the synagogue at Thessalonica preaching about Jesus. Many of the Thessalonians who came to believe did it under the threat of persecution themselves, which they eventually suffered. We know this is true because not long after Paul left Thessalonica, he wrote his first epistle to them. Paul writes, “And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit” (1 Thess 1:6). We learn also that Paul was concerned about their new faith and sent Timothy back to check on them. Paul reminded them to stay true in the midst of trouble. He instructs, “that no one be moved by these afflictions. For you yourselves know that we are destined for this. For when we were with you, we kept telling you beforehand that we were to suffer affliction, just as it has come to pass, and just as you know” (1 Thess 3:3-4; see also 2:14; 3:7).
When we come to his second epistle, we learn that their afflictions and persecutions were still happening. Paul says, “Therefore we ourselves boast about you in the churches of God for your steadfastness and faith in all your persecutions and in the afflictions that you are enduring” (2 Thess 1:4). It is fair to say that two of the biggest themes in these two epistles are understanding the prophetic end times and also how to persevere in suffering/affliction. This leads us to understanding specifically the background of 2 Thessalonians 2.
It would be helpful to outline the section that interests us for the purpose of this article (2:1-12). Before we do that, it is wise to remember that Paul addressed the theological truth that the church will not be subject to the eschatological wrath to come (1 Thess 1:10; 5:9). The wrath in context is clearly a reference to the “day of the Lord” (from now on I am going use DOTL as an abbreviation) which is also known as the 7-year tribulation (1 Thess 5:2-9). This is one of the many reasons that we believe in a pre-tribulational rapture. Paul teaches believers to, “wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come” (1 Thess 1:10).
After encouraging the Thessalonians that they did not need any more instruction about the times and seasons, he again comforts them (5:1, 11). He tells them that the unbelieving world which is saying “peace and safety” will not escape judgment. He specifically says that this judgment will come upon them (the wicked) which denotes that it will not come upon the church.
Since we are children of the light, we will always be ready for His return. It is with this encouragement that we know, in addition to being delivered from the wrath to come (1:10), we are saved from the future 7-year tribulation DOTL as Paul writes, “But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation. For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thess. 5:8-9). It is no surprise then to acknowledge that Paul wrote about the details of the rapture in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 which is clearly before discussing the DOTL in chapter 5.
Think back to when you were a new believer. You were learning about the many doctrines of the Bible. Now, add on some persecution and affliction because of your new faith. It is a lot to take in. This was the situation with the Thessalonians. In addition, Paul had been teaching them about the rescue of the rapture prior to the DOTL, the arrival of the antichrist and his coming to the temple in Jerusalem, the increased worldwide trouble and affliction. Things were getting even more intense for them, and this led to much confusion. For example, in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, Paul clarifies some issues concerning the rapture. They thought their loved ones who were believers and died would miss out on the rapture. They were grieved over this. Instead, Paul taught them that those that died would not miss out on the rapture at all, but in fact be raised from the dead first.
This same type of confusion was happening again. Paul got news that they were confused about some of the details concerning the rapture and the start of the DOTL. Since the persecution was continuing, they began to hear rumors from an unknown source that the DOTL had started and that they were in it. Naturally, this would have confused the Thessalonians since Paul taught them that they would be raptured prior to the start of the DOTL. Paul chose to write them another letter of encouragement (2 Thessalonians) to remind them of details that he had already taught them (2 Thessalonians 2:5).
The summary of the section could be like this. In 2:1-3 the main point is that Paul seeks to correct the confusion about the end of the age scenario. In verse 1, he brings up the rapture (“our gathering together to Him”) letting them know that he understands why it was possible for them to be confused. He also asks them not to be shaken or alarmed that the day of the Lord was already present (2:2). In verse 3, he reminds them not to be deceived and that the DOTL cannot be present because the apostasy and the revelation of the antichrist had not occurred. In verse 4, he discussed the very act of the antichrist declaring himself to be god in the temple itself. He then reminds them in verse 5 that he had already explained these things to them. Verses 6-8 discuss the work of the restrainer and how the antichrist will be revealed. Verses 9-12 discuss the supernatural arrival and work of the antichrist and the deception that will ensue because people reject the gospel and the truth.
Now that we have covered the background and introduction, it will be helpful to zoom in on some specifics in 2:1-3. If we do not see the flow of these verses, we will be confused as we discuss the details of verse 3 concerning the meaning of the apostasy. Let’s do this one verse at a time with some commentary.
2 Thessalonians 2:1
“Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers…”
Just prior to this Paul had been speaking in general terms about the revealing of Jesus and the day of His coming (1:7, 10). It is in 2:1 that he transitions to specifics about the relationship between the rapture and the day of the Lord’s arrival. As we see in 2:5, all these things in verses 1-4 had already been taught by Paul previously. This was either in written form (the epistle of 1 Thessalonians) or in person or both. It is crystal clear in 2:1 that Paul brings up the topic of the rapture. This intimate language of “being gathered together to Him” is reminiscent of John 14:1-3 (“receive you to myself”) as well as “and so we shall always be with the Lord” (1 Thess 4:17). Both of these passages are a clear reference to the rapture concept. The final thing to note that comes from this verse is that Paul is going to ask something of the Thessalonian believers which connects with the rapture.
2 Thessalonians 2:2
“…not to be easily shaken from your composure or frightened neither by any kind of spirit nor message nor letter allegedly from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord is already present.”
The first phrase is what Paul begins to ask in the previous verse. He is asking the Thessalonians not to be shaken or frightened to the effect that the day of the Lord (DOTL) was already present. Why would they think the DOTL was already present? There are two things which could have contributed to this error. The first is that a rumor had come to Thessalonica that the DOTL was already present. Paul was not sure whether this rumor began through someone claiming a spiritual revelation or whether it was an oral message or through a written letter allegedly sent by Paul. The second thing which could have contributed to their being misled and becoming frightened was that they were still experiencing affliction. These two items caused the Thessalonians to become worried, frightened, and alarmed. Paul writes to them and asks them not to lose their composure nor to think that the DOTL was already present. They were “scared out of their mind” that they were inside the day of the Lord and he wanted to encourage them that this was not the case. In fact, they should know better based on his previous teachings (cf. 2:5).
Before moving on from verse 2, there is an extremely important phrase that must be addressed, and it has to do with the last words of the verse. The ESV and NASB says, “to the effect that the day of the Lord has come.” A more literal translation which is found in most exegetical commentaries says, “to the effect that the day of the Lord is already present.” The NET version reads, “not to be easily shaken from your composure or disturbed by any kind of spirit or message or letter allegedly from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord is already here.”
The Greek word here for already “present” is enesteken. If we compare this with other Pauline writings it becomes crystal clear that the best translation for this Greek word would be the English word “present” (Rom 8:38; 1 Cor 3:22; 7:26; Gal 1:4; Heb 9:9). Paul writes, “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers…” (Rom. 8:38). Also, “whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future– all are yours” (1 Cor 3:22). Paul later writes, “I think that in view of the present distress it is good for a person to remain as he is” (1 Cor 7:26). For completeness, let me quote the last two instances. Galatians 1:4, “who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father.” Finally in Hebrews 9:9, the writer says, “(which is symbolic for the present age). According to this arrangement, gifts and sacrifices are offered that cannot perfect the conscience of the worshiper…”
Robert Thomas, in his article, “The Rapture and the Biblical Teaching of Imminence” which is in the book, Evidence for the Rapture (editor Dr. John Hart), discusses the importance of this word in interpreting 2 Thessalonians 2:1-3. He writes, “The issue involved in his [Paul’s] correction of the false information to which the readers [Thessalonians] had been exposed is not the future coming of the day of the Lord; it is rather the current non-presence of that day at the time he writes and they read his words. If that day were not present, then they could not be in that day. For example, suppose I say, ‘In the northern states, the fall season will not come unless the weather gets colder first and the tree leaves change their colors.’ This sentence might imply that the weather gets colder and the tree leaves change their colors before the fall season comes. But this is not true. These changes do not occur before the fall but are part of the fall season. But if I say, ‘The fall season is not present (is not here) unless the weather gets colder first and the tree leaves change their colors,’ this implies something different. The cooler weather happens first, and then the colors of the leaves change. These two factors take place within the fall season and indicate its arrival. They do not occur before the fall season arrives” (emphases mine).
To summarize this important phrase, we are going to be discussing the apostasy (rebellion) coming first and the man of lawlessness being revealed (2:3). What this means is that the apostasy which arrives first and the man of sin being revealed happens within the 7-year tribulation period (DOTL) and does not precede or come before it as many people think. Robert Thomas gives more grammatical evidence and parallels (John 7:51; Mark 3:27) in his article as to why these two items are considered to be within the tribulation period and not outside of it in any way.
Let me belabor this point a little further. Some people interpret that the apostasy and man of sin must come before the arrival of the DOTL. This is unfortunate because the word “before” or “precede” does not appear anywhere in these verses. This erroneous interpretation leads some people to embrace a pre-wrath rapture view. For them, the rapture cannot happen until the apostasy and man of sin are revealed before the arrival of the DOTL. They have made a serious mistake. Paul never says that these two events happen before the arrival of the DOTL. He says that they are the first events which kick off the DOTL.
In closing this section, it might be helpful to say that this translation of “already present” is not so unconventional. FF Bruce, Robert Thomas, Charles Wanamaker, Ernest Best, among others, recognize that this is the best translation. The NET translation, from the scholars at Dallas Theological Seminary have something very close in words, but the exact same meaning.
To summarize, Paul is saying that the Thessalonians should not be worried about the rumor that the DOTL was present. The day of the Lord could not be present because the first events of the DOTL had not happened yet which he will then explain in the following verse.
2 Thessalonians 2:2-3
“…not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord is already present. 3 Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day is not present, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction.”
One comment should be noted right up front which will help blunt the assertion that 2:1-3 is evidence of a pre-wrath rapture. Some people recognize that the rapture is being discussed in verse 1 and since verse 2-3 say that “that day cannot come unless the apostasy comes first and the man of sin revealed,” they think this proves a mid-tribulation or pre-wrath position. But “that day” does not refer to the day of the rapture of verse 1, but instead very specifically to the “day of the Lord” as found in verse 2. Paul introduces the topic of the rapture as noting the topic of end time events in verse 1, but then in verse 2 he specifically transitions to the topic of the 7-year tribulation and the DOTL. This makes great sense that he would introduce the topic of the rapture prior to discussing the DOTL and its beginning because the rapture precedes the start of the DOTL.
In verse 3, Paul is saying that the first events which start the DOTL are the apostasy and the man of sin being revealed. I always like to take complex Greek sentences and put them in the same order, but in English. For example, the Thessalonians were worried that they were already inside the DOTL. Paul said that this was not true because they have not seen the rebellion happening nor the man of sin being revealed. The two specific events which are first inside the DOTL.
In a modern sense, let’s say that someone was at a football party and they were distracted by various things and then started to freak out thinking they were missing out on the football game. I would say to them, “Do not be freaking out thinking that the game has already started, for the game cannot be here (present) unless the referee blows the whistle first and the kickoff happens.” No one is going to say that the whistle occurs BEFORE the game begins or that the kickoff PRECEDES the football game. These two events are exactly the very FIRST events inside the game. They are part of the game, not something that happens before the game. In the same way, the apostasy and man of sin being revealed do not happen before the DOTL starts, they are the first events which kick off the DOTL.
So, what is the apostasy mentioned in 2:3 which is said to be the first event of the day of the Lord? There are basically three options for what the Greek word apostasia might refer.
Let’s begin with #3 which has been most prominently promoted by Dr. Andy Woods. He wrote a book back in 2018 entitled, “The Falling Away: Spiritual Departure or Physical Rapture? A second Look at Thessalonians 2:3.” In it he gave 10 reasons for why he believes the first thing to happen is the physical departure of the church (the rapture) at the start of the DOTL. Dr. Woods also wrote an article in 2017 for the Prophecy Watcher magazine on this subject. One of the points he made in the article was addressing the probability of the Greek word apostasia as referring to a Church apostasy. When I first read his comments criticizing the view of it referring to a church apostasy I found it quite compelling and still do.
He wrote, “Spiritual departures are not abnormal. In fact, spiritual departures regularly transpire in Scripture going all the way back to the Fall of man as recorded in Genesis 3. The Apostle Paul in his day even predicted a spiritual departure after he left (Acts 20:28-31).” He then went on to provide many passages of Scripture showing various types of church apostasy at different times as listed in the New Testament.
Later in the article he discusses why he believes apostasia refers to a physical departure of the church (rapture). He commented, “There is a definite article in front of the noun “apostasy.” Second Thessalonians 2:3 says, “Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition” (NKJV). Notice the definite article translated “the” in front of both “falling away” and “man of sin.” By providing these two definite articles, essentially Paul is indicating that the apostasy will be something that has specific, time-bound qualities just like the man of sin’s coming has such qualities. In other words, just like the advent of the man of sin will be a specific and instantaneous event in future history, the coming apostasia, or departure, will similarly be specific and time bound.”
His argument here is that the definite articles are making a specific point about the apostasia being something definite and not a nebulous church apostasy which would be hard to prove even happened as it would not be a singular time bound event. If this was the case, how would we even know it happened. There is not one single person who speaks for the entire worldwide church. Maybe if we were Catholics and the Pope gave an announcement that the Catholic church was embracing Islam or something that heretical, but we don’t follow the authority of the Pope anyway.
Dr. Woods continues, “The advent of the coming lawless one or Antichrist will take place at a specified point in time and instantaneously, with the opening of the first seal judgment (Rev. 6:1-2). The definite article, also before the apostasia, indicates that in the same way the apostasia will also take place instantaneously. Such an instantaneous manifestation does not fit well with the notion of a spiritual departure, which typically transpires gradually over an elongated process. Spiritual departures are not instantaneous events. After all, it took the church at Ephesus three decades to spiritually depart from Christ by leaving its first love (Rev. 2:4-5). However, unlike gradual, spiritual departures, the rapture of the church will be an instantaneous event that will take place “in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye” (1 Cor. 15:51). Thus, the use of the two definite articles indicates that the apostasia will take place just as instantly as the coming forth of the lawless one. This understanding better harmonizes with interpreting “the apostasia” as the instantaneous removal of the church through the rapture rather than a gradual doctrinal erosion.”
I think Dr. Woods makes a compelling argument against the idea that the apostasia of 2 Thessalonians 2:3 can refer to a church apostasy. Not long after reading his comments, I came across a book by Lee Brainard in which he did the most extensive linguistic study and full refutation of the various arguments put forward by Dr. Woods. Lee Brainard’s book is called Apostasia in 2 Thess. 2:3: Rapture or Apostasy? After reading Lee’s book, I found it quite persuasive in showing why the word apostasia does not mean physical departure (rapture).
Here I was in a conundrum. Dr. Woods proved that apostasia could not refer to a church apostasy/rebellion and Lee Brainard proved that apostasia could not refer to the rapture. This only left one main alternative which was seeing that the apostasy (spiritual rebellion) in this passage referred to a spiritual rebellion involving the Jewish people.
The title of this article and the question before us remains: Is this the spiritual apostasy of the church or of the Jews/Israel? The context from verse 2 and into verse 3 immediately preceding the apostasy is about the Day of the Lord’s arrival (also known as the 7-year tribulation period).
Here are some questions to ponder as we dive a little deeper about the DOTL.
I think it would be helpful to interact with the above questions one by one.
1) What is the focus of the Day of the Lord? All dispensational prophecy teachers believe that the primary focus of the DOTL is Israel. It is known as the time of Jacob’s trouble (Jer 30:7). Indeed, the whole earth is involved and being judged (Rev 3:10; Isaiah 24:21), but we also know that the tribulation is the 70th week of Daniel which is labeled specifically to apply to the Jewish people and the holy city of Jerusalem (Daniel 9:24-27). It is important to note that the day of the Lord includes the 7-year tribulation period also known as the 70th week of Daniel.
What is the purpose of the 7-year tribulation for Israel? There are two main purposes. The first purpose involves the truths found in Daniel 9:24-27.
The second purpose of the 7-year tribulation for Israel is that God is going to use this time in order to bring them to salvation by the end of the period in order to fulfill His promises. The list below describes some of the ways how God will accomplish this.
As we meditate on Paul’s words in 2 Thessalonians 2:1-4 and specifically the context of the DOTL, it brings up some potential objections. Some people might object and say that Paul is giving information about the apostasy of the future end time church to the Thessalonian church. This is possible, but it interrupts the flow from what he started in verse 2, the DOTL. The church is not in the DOTL so why would the apostasy be about the church? In fact, after introducing the two items which are the beginning stages of the DOTL, he proceeds to describe the future activities of the antichrist as polluting the temple of God which we know is in Jerusalem (2:4). This is clearly a Jewish context and not a church context.
Others might object to a Jewish apostasy because they define apostasy in a very narrow sense in English. The Heritage English dictionary gives three basic definitions. The first definition is: an abandonment of one’s religious faith, a political party, one’s principles, or a cause. The second definition is: an abandonment of what one has voluntarily professed; The third is: a total desertion of departure from one’s faith, principles, or party; esp., the renunciation of a religious faith. All of these in English have a similar flavor. When someone commits apostasy, they are departing from what they at one time professed. So, some will object and say, “How could the Jews commit apostasy when they have never embraced Jesus?” I would agree with this statement, but that is not the essence of what is written in Greek.
Notice the statement by NT scholar Gordon Fee in his commentary. He writes, “Furthermore, the several occurrences of the cognate verb usually refer to a “turning away” that amounts to “apostasy,” a deliberate and antagonistic rejection of Christ. Therefore, this noun, which was rendered “falling away” in the KJV, in more recent English translations has been correctly rendered “rebellion.” In secular Greek, in fact, the word was used to refer to a political or military revolt, not in the sense of “falling away” from a position once held, but of a rebellion against a power or deity to whom one was not committed” (NICNT).
This is the proper nuance as found in Greek. Another way to express the sense of committing apostasy is making a statement of defiance against something or against someone to whom one was not committed. In this case, the Jews would be making a defiant statement against Jesus and the gospel. I will explain more of this later, but let me give another example. Today, most Muslims will call Christians apostates. Yet we are not those who once held on to Islam and then “fell away” but instead we defiantly reject the truth claims of Islam and it is accurate to call us apostates in this sense.
If we understand apostasy as Gordon Fee describes from the Greek language, then it becomes quite clear the Jewish nation could be who commits apostasy which is the first event of the DOTL (2 Thess 2:3). This brings up another interesting connection question #2 which we will now turn.
2) What is the tell-tale sign that the 7-year tribulation has begun and is present? According to 2 Thessalonians 2:3, it is THE apostasy. However, it we answer this question based on Daniel 9:27, we know that the beginning of the 70th week of Daniel (DOTL) is the making or establishing of a covenant. We do not have all the details of this covenant, but it says, “he will confirm a covenant with (the) many for one week.” The underlined phrase appears only twice in Daniel (9:27; 11:33) and is the same in Hebrew and the Greek Septuagint. The 11:33 passage refers to the people of Israel historically. So, the tell-tale sign is an agreement or covenant that is confirmed by the antichrist with the Jewish people. There were some people on the internet in the last few years saying that Daniel 9:27 was speaking in reference to the United Nations making agreements with the “many” nations of the world involving the Agenda 2030 goals. This clearly cannot be the case. The Hebrew is specific that it will be the antichrist making a covenant with the many which is a reference to Israel (Dan 11:33).
The question that arises based on Daniel 9:27 is, “what is the content and makeup of this covenant made with the antichrist?” Is it a peace covenant? Does the antichrist provide military protection for Israel? What kind of covenant is this? If we read the rest of the verse in context, some descriptive markers immediately jump out for us. For example, the very next phrase after the word “covenant” involves a time marker (“in the middle of the week”) and then immediately discusses the ceasing of sacrifices and offerings. The context of this verse involves sacrifices and offerings and a covenant.
The Hebrew for covenant in 9:27 is the word b’riyt. It occurs 5 other times in the book of Daniel. The first is in the beginning part of this chapter when Daniel prays, “I prayed to the LORD my God and made confession, saying, “O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments” (Dan 9:4). This language of Daniel comes directly from Deuteronomy 5:10 and 7:9 which is the recounting of the Mosaic Covenant. The other references are all in chapter 11 (vv. 22, 28, 30, 32) and also all are in reference to the Mosaic Covenant. This is important to keep in mind as we seek to understand the covenant of Daniel 9:27. I find it unlikely that right in the middle of this chapter, Daniel would introduce a covenant that is completely foreign to the context and the rest of the book. To try and force modern “peace agreement” language for covenant on Daniel 9:27 is problematic. I am not the only one to pick up on this inconsistency.
Paul Tanner comments on Daniel 9:27 in his Evangelical Exegetical Commentary on Daniel. He writes, “The problem with this view is that there is nothing in the context to support the idea that a peace treaty or covenant of protection is in view, nor is this thesis taught elsewhere in Scripture. Yet the context of Dan 9:27 does support an alternative view. The fact that he eventually “puts an end to sacrifice and offering” suggests that this covenant has something to do with the ancient Mosaic law. If the antichrist’s purpose is to masquerade and deceive the Jewish people into thinking he is the real Messiah, then it makes sense that this covenant in Dan 9:27 is related to the Mosaic law.”
In connection with the Hebrew verb of Daniel 9:27, “He will make a covenant” Tanner highlights some helpful background. Tanner says, “The Hipʿil of gāḇar in Dan 9:27, then, might mean something like “he will cause a covenant to be strong or great for the many.” This does not seem to lend support to the idea that the covenant itself is “strong,” much less that he “confirms” the covenant. Rather, the idea seems to be that he strongly establishes a covenant with the many, or perhaps that he enforces a covenant (he causes it to prevail or be binding).
He continues, “In light of the contextual clue about “sacrifice and offering,” the words “make a covenant” are best understood to mean that the antichrist will pose as a false messiah who dupes Israel (at least initially) and causes the Mosaic covenant to prevail in the land (i.e., he enforces it). Actually, the expectation in orthodox Jewish eschatology is that Messiah will uphold the Mosaic law and usher in an age of righteousness.”
These comments are quite helpful in that the provide great understanding for the nature and substance of the covenant made between the antichrist and Israel. The rabbinic Jews are very desperate to enforce the Mosaic covenant on all the various sectors of modern Israeli society. In fact, there has been much push back by the secular demographic in Israel against the Mosaic Covenant elements such as Sabbath restrictions for businesses and public transportation. The rabbis are not happy that the full Mosaic system is not in place in all of Israeli society. Therefore, if the time came for a strong leader t arise and make good on enforcing the Mosaic covenant across the entire land of Israel, the religious Jews would be very open to this person. Jesus reveals that in the future the Jewish leadership will receive a person just like this. See next section.
3) Who is Jesus is talking about in John 5:43? “I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me. If another comes in his own name, you will receive him” (John 5:43). If we follow the flow of the narrative in the gospel of John, we see that John writes that Jesus admits that He is the Messiah to the woman at the well (John 4:25-26). This admission was quite rare in His public ministry and sets the stage for John’s writing in the following chapter (ch. 5).
Jesus says another will come in his own name and they will receive that person. What does it mean for the Jews to receive this other person? It shouldn’t be that difficult because the fact that they didn’t receive Jesus as Messiah is obvious. So, the Jewish people, who in the first century rejected Jesus as Messiah will receive another who comes in his own name as Messiah or Christ… AKA… the antichrist.
The question before us in understanding John 5:43 is when does this receiving event happen? I imagine most prophecy teachers would agree that the reception of this antichrist most likely happens at the time when the covenant is arranged between the Jewish people and the antichrist (cf. Daniel 9:27).
It is my contention that this event of the Jews confirming a covenant with the antichrist is the Apostasy as spoken of in 2 Thessalonians 2:3 which we have seen already as the first event of the 7-year DOTL. The timing, context, and the parties involved all match up perfectly.
Most prophecy teachers associate the first seal of Revelation 6:2 as a reference to the antichrist. A large consensus also sees the start of the tribulation period (DOTL) as beginning in Revelation 6:2 also. The 7-year tribulation DOTL begins with the advent of the antichrist and we also know that he is involved in the confirming of the covenant. This fits perfectly with what I see Paul saying in 2 Thessalonians 2:3. The DOTL cannot be present unless the apostasy comes first (the Jews agreeing to the covenant) and the man of sin be revealed as the one who strengthens the covenant. These two items happen simultaneously as we match up Daniel 9:27; John 5:43; Rev 6:1-2; and 2 Thess 2:3.
4) When will the Jews receive this other person as Christ? We have already answered this in that they receive the one coming in his own name (John 5:43) when they receive his authority and establishment of the Mosaic covenant throughout the land of Israel (Dan 9:27) at the beginning of the 70th week (7-year tribulation). The reestablishment of the Mosaic covenant in the land of Israel also must include the reinstatement of sacrifices and offerings which require a Temple to be built in order to fulfill the commandments of the Law of Moses concerning the Temple rituals. All this would presuppose that the red heifer ritual has already been accomplished so that the ashes could be mixed with water and purify the Temple Mount and the people.
5) In 2 Thess 2:3 it says THE apostasy. If this is the apostasy of the church, how will we know exactly when it happens? As mentioned above, the definite article causes much confusion when trying to connect this to the church, but poses no problem when connecting it with a Jewish apostasy. Robert Thomas does not address the nature of the apostasy specifically in his article. This makes sense since his article was focused on the teaching of imminency. In his Thessalonians commentary in the Expositors Bible Commentary, he does not get specific about what the apostasy involves. He suggests it could be a rebellion by those who professed Christianity but were left behind in the rapture. Based on his clear understanding of the text, he says that whatever the apostasy involves, it happens within the DOTL. Therefore, Thomas knows that this cannot be an apostasy of the church. The church is removed in the rapture prior to the DOTL. This apostasy happens within the DOTL and must be some other group which he surmises might be professing Christians who were left behind. This is plausible but doesn’t fit the context of the DOTL specifically when we see it bleed over into verse 4 discussing the temple which is very Jewish in context as all would agree.
6) If 2 Thess 2:3 is in reference to THE apostasy of the Jews, how will we know exactly when it happens? It will be easy for the post rapture people to recognize this singular act of apostasy by the Jewish leadership as they make a covenant with the antichrist. Charles Wanamaker, in The Epistles to the Thessalonians: A Commentary on the Greek Text, sees the apostasy as a Jewish rebellion. He writes, “In the apocalyptic context of 2 Thessalonians 2, the rebellion referred to is a religious one directed against God. In all probability we may identify those whose rebellion is mentioned in v. 3 with those who are to be deceived in vv. 10–12. While Paul may have thought of certain Christians being involved (elsewhere he questioned the bona fides of some who purported to be Christians: cf. Gal. 2:4; 2 Cor. 11:12–15; Phil. 1:15–18), the reference to the temple in v. 4 suggests that he is working with a traditional apocalyptic understanding in which it was maintained that many of the people of God, that is the Jews, would rebel against God and the Law at the time of the end (cf. Jub. 23:14–23; 2 Esdr. 5:1–13; 1 Enoch 91:3–10; 93:8–10; 1QpHab 2:1ff and Mk. 13:5f.)” (p. 243-245).
What is the Message or Talking Points of the Antichrist?
This is an interesting question and is amazing in that we do not have to guess about some of the things that the antichrist will say and do. We know that he will speak blasphemous tirades against God (Daniel 11:36; 7:25; Rev 13:6). Additionally, and more specifically, John tells us exactly what one of his lies will be. “Children, it is the last hour, and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come. Therefore, we know that it is the last hour… Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ [Messiah]? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son.” (1 John 2:18, 22). This is an amazing passage in that it reveals that one of the main selling points of the coming antichrist is specifically to deny that Jesus is the Messiah! Instead, he take the title of Messiah on himself and deceive the Jews into believing he is the Messiah.
John also makes note that the antichrist once against has specific blasphemies to speak against Jesus. He writes, “For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess the coming of Jesus Messiah in the flesh. Such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist” (2 Jn. 1:7).
We also know that when he comes he will speak flattery (Dan 11:21, 32, 34) and also demonstrate his false authority by producing miraculous signs and wonders which will help accomplish his deception (Rev 13:13; 2 Thess 2:9).
When the antichrist comes on the scene, he will have the authority and position to offer to the Jewish people a certain level of security and the ability to enforce the Mosaic covenant on the entire land of Israel. The rabbinic Jews will embrace this wholeheartedly. In fact, their views on eschatology believe that when the Messiah comes, he will uphold the Mosaic Law in the land of Israel and will be involved in rebuilding the Third Temple. They will believe him to be their Messiah. He will require them to repudiate Jesus as Messiah which they will be glad to do. This fresh act of rebellion against Jesus and embracing this false Messiah will be a blatant act of apostasy and will kick off the 70th week of Daniel (the day of the Lord).
Let’s compare all the elements that we have examined so far and put them together on the left side of this chart and then see what is being spoken of in Daniel 9:27 and 2 Thessalonians 2:3. Notice that the events and characteristics which start the tribulation period line up quite nicely in both texts.
Let me add one more piece of information as we wrap up this article. Today in Israel the demographics are quite astounding. It is estimated that 80 percent of the population are secular or atheists while the other 20 percent are religious. Most of the secular people today do not care about religion, the rebuilding of the temple or the Mosaic Law. In fact, there is much tension in Israeli society between the religious and the secular. When it comes time for the antichrist to arrive on the scene and offer to the Jewish people the ability to reinstate the Mosaic Law and rebuild the temple why will the 80% secular even care? This is something I have pondered. We know that some event must take place which causes a change in the 80% secular people. This event has to be monumental to get them to become theists and turn towards God.
I believe there is one future event that could possibly be the catalyst for this to happen. The Gog and Magog war of Ezekiel 38-39. During this war, Israel is completely alone with no one (including the USA) to help her. She is up against the wall of a very large contingent of super powerful armies (Russian, Iran, Turkey, etc.). Israel is about ready to lose this war and be annihilated, but God does something earth shattering from heaven.
Ezekiel writes, “But on that day, the day that Gog shall come against the land of Israel, declares the Lord GOD, my wrath will be roused in my anger. For in my jealousy and in my blazing wrath I declare, On that day there shall be a great earthquake in the land of Israel. The fish of the sea and the birds of the heavens and the beasts of the field and all creeping things that creep on the ground, and all the people who are on the face of the earth, shall quake at my presence. And the mountains shall be thrown down, and the cliffs shall fall, and every wall shall tumble to the ground. I will summon a sword against Gog on all my mountains, declares the Lord GOD. Every man’s sword will be against his brother. With pestilence and bloodshed I will enter into judgment with him, and I will rain upon him and his hordes and the many peoples who are with him torrential rains and hailstones, fire and sulfur. So I will show my greatness and my holiness and make myself known in the eyes of many nations. Then they will know that I am the LORD” (Ezek. 38:1-23).
God supernaturally intervenes in this war in a way that is undeniable by the world and Israel. All of Israel’s enemies will be supernaturally destroyed in a short time. We do not know the exact timing of this event. Imagine this scenario that the rapture has just taken place and immediately after this, God leads his hordes in an attack on Israel. God saves Israel in a dramatic way. Notice also what God says in the following chapter.
Ezekiel writes, “And I will set my glory among the nations, and all the nations shall see my judgment that I have executed, and my hand that I have laid on them. The house of Israel shall know that I am the LORD their God, from that day forward” (Ezek 39:21-22). Some people assume that because Israel comes to know that the LORD is their God that this equals salvation. It doesn’t have to be the case. What it could do is turn the 80% secular people into theists and they will then turn to the rabbis for spiritual guidance. The rabbis will embrace this newfound attention and will seek to guide them into following Moses which is all they know.
Imagine also at this exact time, the antichrist (false Messiah) shows up on the scene and performs miracles and begins to speak for God while promising the Jews the freedom to reinstitute the Mosaic Law throughout the land of Israel and rebuild their temple. All they have to do is repudiate Jesus as Messiah and put their trust in him. APOSTASY occurs and this begins the day of the Lord and 70th week of Daniel. No one knows exactly how this will play out, but this conjectural narrative is quite plausible.
In Conclusion
It is important to say that there is no doubt that we are currently living in the age of the Laodicean church (Rev 3:14-22) which has become apostate. We also know that 1 Timothy 4:1 says, “Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons.” This is undeniable, but we do know that it did not happen in a singular specified event as 2 Thessalonians 2:3 requires. It began in the mid-1800s when the seminaries and Christian universities began to embrace theologically liberal doctrines. We have watched as it has become more pervasive over the last century and now all the mainline denominations have become almost totally corrupt.
If we take this understanding of the apostasy into consideration, we will not be looking for some specific singular instantaneous apostasy of the church, but rather recognizing that the apostasy refers to the Jewish reception of the antichrist and their entering into a covenant with him.
Christians in England, Canada and America are entering into a time of increased hostility, censorship, harassment, ostracization, arrest and potential physical persecution. Just like with the Thessalonians, none of this should convince us that we are in the tribulation period (day of the Lord). We know that the day of the Lord cannot be present because the Jewish Apostasy and the revealing of the antichrist have not occurred. Praise the Lord that we have the promises of being rescued prior to the arrival of the day of the Lord (Luke 17:22-37; Luke 21:34-36; Rev 3:10). In the meantime, we are to remain watching (Mark 13:37) and to be busy about the kingdom (Luke 19:13) appreciating that God is allowing more time for people to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). Amen and Amen!
PODCAST– https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zVjFcTf5rQ
The podcast link above from the Bennis the Menace podcast explores the Psalm 19 Project, which uses telescopes to capture images of the universe and showcase God’s creation. The guest, Mondo Gonzales, shares stunning pictures of heavenly objects highlighting the beauty and complexity of the universe. The discussion also touches on the flat earth theory and the importance of interpreting the Bible accurately. The conversation emphasizes that the exploration of God’s creation through telescopes can deepen our understanding of His glory and creativity. The conversation explores the topic of the flat earth theory and its relation to biblical interpretation. Mondo Gonzales, shares his passion for astrophotography and presents evidence of the round earth through his own telescope observations. The hosts discuss the rise of the flat earth theory and its divisive nature within the church. They also address the idea that the theory may be a tool of division and deception. The conversation highlights the importance of observing the natural world and appreciating the glory of God’s creation. In this part of the conversation, the speakers discuss the belief that the earth is flat and covered by a solid dome. They explore the biblical references to the firmament and the idea of the earth being set on pillars. They also examine the concept of genre in interpreting the Bible, highlighting that many of the verses used to support a flat earth are from poetic and figurative passages. The speakers emphasize the importance of context and caution against hyper-literalizing these verses. They also address the limitations of the flat earth model and the need to consider scientific evidence. In this final part of the conversation, the hosts discuss various passages from the Bible that are often used to support the idea of a flat earth and a solid firmament. They analyze the language and context of these passages and argue that they should be understood figuratively rather than literally. They also address the concept of the ice wall at antarctica and the idea that the earth is turned or changed like clay. The hosts emphasize the importance of considering genre, context, and linguistic tools when interpreting biblical texts.
Ever since August 2017, when I had the chance to view a partial eclipse from my location in the Pacific Northwest, I was super excited to see the one coming in 2024. The last full one I remember learning about was February 1979. I was just under 5 years old, but I became fascinated by the whole phenomenon. For the April 2024 eclipse, 3 others and I were making big plans. We wanted to document as much as possible for the Psalm 19 Project. We had intended to make our base camp in central Texas with a backup plan to go to northern Arkansas. The eclipse was on a Monday afternoon, so we would look at the weather forecast Sunday morning and then make a decision. At the last minute, we realized that the weather forecast for Texas was inferior to the Arkansas location. So, off we went to Fairfield Bay, Arkansas. Our Psalm 19 Project eastern US observatory team member, Brad Brady brought his solar telescope with high tech Hydrogen alpha filters. We also were able to bring another 85mm refractor telescope with a standard solar filter sitting atop a tracking mount. The weather ended up being perfect as the eclipse began around noon. Slowly, we tracked and imaged the moon taking incremental bites out of the sun’s disk. We even had the opportunity to do a live Facebook post of our adventure prior to totality.
It was predicted that totality would last a very generous 4 minutes and 8 seconds. Just for comparison, the August 2017 totality was 2.5 minutes. When totality arrived, all of us were in awe of the majesty of God’s handiwork in creating the circumstances which allow a solar eclipse to happen. The angular size of the sun and moon in the sky as we observe them are virtually identical. This is because the sun is 400x wider than the moon, but is also 400x further away from us than the moon. The moon is around 240,000 miles from us and the sun is 96 million miles away. I find it interesting to hear astronomers talk about the inconceivable odds of these circumstances, but still maintain that it must be coincidence. Sadly, they fulfill the Scripture which says, “professing themselves to be wise, they have become fools” (Romans 1:22).
When the last bright rays of the sun disappeared behind the moon, it became obvious that something changed. From the beginning of the moon starting to slowly cover the sun to the full totality takes about 70 minutes. Even though it was getting dimmer as the moon began its interruption of the sun’s light to our eyes, it still was relatively bright out. The special nature of a full solar eclipse is that even if you get 99% you cannot look at the sun without special glasses. That last 1% of light creeping around the side of the moon is enough to spoil a total eclipse experience. You either have 100% totality or nothing at all in a relative sense. However, once 100% totality begins, your special glasses can come off. In fact, you can even look at the sun through binoculars or telescopes unaided by any filter at all. And what a sight it is! We were able to see the corona in stunning glory. The corona is the outermost layer of the sun’s atmosphere which is extremely hot. The sun’s surface is around 10,000 degrees Fahrenheit, but the corona can reach upwards of 2 million degrees. Astronomers still have no idea why there is such a temperature difference. Even though the corona is so hot, it is also dim in comparison to the normal sun disk. Therefore, the only way to see it naturally (without special equipment) is during a solar eclipse, which we did.
During this particular total eclipse, there was another special event occurring. The planets were all lined up on the ecliptic (the imaginary line of the sun’s normal path of travel). We were able to see Venus and Jupiter during the eclipse. Saturn was also able to be seen, but it was hidden behind trees from our vantage point further down towards the horizon. After we enjoyed the 4+ minutes of totality, our group sat down to share our thoughts. We all agreed that it was truly a spiritual experience to observe the beauty and artistic genius of God that He created especially for humanity. Nowhere else in the solar system does this occur. God created solar and lunar eclipses for our enjoyment and for us to be awed by His power. During totality, it gets much darker. Almost as much as dusk. Plus, it becomes so obvious that totality has occurred as the temperature drops upwards of 15 degrees from normal. The other interesting phenomena which others have noted is that it becomes super quiet. Birds, squirrels, etc. stop and ponder as their normal instinctual habits have become unnaturally interrupted. Even though we had over 4 minutes, we all agreed it was not long enough. The longest solar eclipses can last over 7 minutes. What a treat that would be! The next eclipse to grace the contiguous United States is not until August 2044 where it will only be visible in Montana and North Dakota. However, another one which crosses the US will occur the following August 2045. It will pass through 15 states and continue southeast into the Caribbean.
Eclipse Hysteria?
Not only did the April 2024 eclipse provide opportunities for seeing God’s majesty, interestingly it provided occasion for those who watch prophecy to seek meaning in what it might portend. For many, the meaning of a normal and periodic eclipse was not a big deal, but because it occurred seven years after another eclipse in August 2017 some believed God was sending a message of warning to the people of the United States. There was not much attention given to the 2017 eclipse which crossed the entire US territory. Yet as attention was turned to the arrival of the 2024 eclipse, people began to focus on what this might possibly foretell for the future of America. One of the main reasons this even came to be of interest is that if one examined the two paths of the shadows of the total solar eclipses, it created a proverbial X over the US centered in the southern area of Illinois. Was this an X which marked the spot of something good or did it mark something ominous or foreboding that God was speaking to America?
As 2023 progressed, some people began to analyze the cities which experienced the path of totality from 2017 and then also looked for those which would be a part of the path of totality in 2024. The most thorough book which examined all of these was investigated by AC Katz. I was able to do an interview with her and see an advanced copy of her manuscript as she was finalizing the book. One of the benefits of her data and analysis was that she was simply presenting the information and not making any predictions. During January through April 8 of this year, the eclipse hysteria began. Not everyone, but the internet and YouTube provided opportunities for people to make videos and outlandish claims which included predictions of the rapture and other judgments of God. It was quite challenging to find videos which had accurate information. I kept pointing people back to AC Katz’s book because she did the homework and approached it carefully and cautiously.
The other common occurrence which continuously bubbled to the surface was the common refrain, “This can’t be a coincidence. God doesn’t believe in coincidences.” This is a good opportunity to discuss what the Bible says about “coincidences” and how the theology of the Scripture should guide our thoughts and expectations as we “see the day approaching” (Hebrews 10:25). If we do not truly understand what the Bible says about coincidences, then the church is going to suffer even more misguided but well-intentioned confusion.
I have no interest in discussing the full sovereignty of God in this article. That would be impossible. Especially when it’s extremely complex and the inclusion of the free choices of humans can lead down many rabbit holes. However, Jesus said, “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father” (Matt 10:29). Some versions add the word “will” as to say “apart from your Father’s will” but that word is not in Greek and even if it is, it doesn’t change the meaning of what Jesus is proclaiming. I find it amazing the depth to which Jesus brings in to focus the sovereignty of the Father in something as seemingly insignificant as the death of a sparrow. He is not saying that the Father causes the death of the sparrow, but that the death of the sparrow is not outside of the scope of God’s sovereignty. That brings me great comfort when I see or experience adversity in the world.
Jesus continues His admonition that we are not to fear anything in this life by saying, “But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows” (Matt 10:30-31). The point Jesus is making is that even the number of our hairs, which seems extremely insignificant on a daily basis, is under the sovereignty of the Father’s hands. This leads to the conclusion that in the mind of Jesus, there is nothing coincidental in God’s universe.
We have something similar from Isaiah concerning the sovereignty of God’s plans. He writes, “I am God, and there is none like me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.’ From the east I summon a bird of prey; from a far-off land, a man to fulfill my purpose. What I have said, that I will bring about; what I have planned, that I will do” (Isaiah 46:9-11). Another helpful verse is Proverbs 16:33 which reads, “The dice (or casting of lots) are thrown into the lap, but their every decision is from the LORD” (Prov. 16:33 NET).
So, what can we learn from these handful of verses? I truly believe there are no coincidences in God’s universe. He is in charge and all things that happen are for a reason which He alone has determined. However, and this is the most important element in all of this discussion…. God alone knows what He means or intends through these events.
The problem in our Christian culture today is that we have the right theology in recognizing that nothing is coincidental, but we often lack the humility or wisdom to avoid assigning meaning to these events. I don’t speak this from a pedestal of being judgmental. I have made this mistake many times in my own Christian walk with the Lord over 30 years. I have seen God’s hand move in amazing ways and then I have erroneously injected into these events my interpretations of the events. In hindsight, I realize that 99.9% of the time, I was wrong in my assumptions. I am constantly reminded of another passage from Isaiah 55:8-9, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
There certainly are times in Scripture where God reveals His intentions through circumstances or events. He will bring about a certain happening and then reveal what He meant through it (e.g. Ex 29:46; Jer 16:21; Ezek 39:6, 28). These are written in Scripture and so we can know 100% what God meant by these because He reveals it to us. This is safe and we can take these certain interpretations to the bank so to speak. This is similar to interpreting dreams. All of us have dreams every week and some of them are quite interesting. We have people sending us their dreams on a regular basis asking for our interpretation. My response is always the same… “I am not Daniel or Joseph.” 😊 Any interpretation I might offer is pure speculation and can have no weight of authority which is what people are looking for. The key here in all of these endeavors is looking for an authoritative answer to what a dream or other event might mean.
Throughout the years, I have come across people who have spent hundreds of hours bringing various data points together and have concluded who the antichrist is or the date of the rapture. How did they come to this conclusion? “All these different connection points certainly cannot be a coincidence!” How wrong they were in making assumptions at what the meaning of those connecting points meant. Now that I have been at Prophecy Watchers for 3 years, I receive at least 1-2 new letters or emails per month wanting to show me their calculations about the date of the return of Jesus and every time they write, “God is not a God of coincidences.” However, this is not an argument that we can just pull out anytime we want to try and make our preconceived ideas fit a narrative.
What about a solar or lunar eclipse? Can we be certain or even give a good guess as to what God means from one of these astronomical events? Many people recently are saying Yes to this question. They were claiming that the X of the 2017 and 2024 solar eclipses over America is a warning and even some were saying it was pointing to the rapture. Others were looking at the names of the cities which the shadow of the path of totality crossed. Sadly, many Christian leaders created online videos in which they were very loose with the actual data. Some were claiming that there were 7 cities named Nineveh in the path of totality and to quote one person, “of course 7 means completion, so this is no coincidence.” Yet this clearly was not the case if one was to consult AC Katz’s book. When these erroneous facts were pointed out, many just dismissed these and moved on to the other “amazing” claims. Or they said, “Well, it’s close, how many Ninevehs do we need?” The point is that there were statements of fact being made and when shown otherwise, they were dismissed.
These other “amazing” claims involved a series of other “coincidences” that they asserted were clear evidence that God was speaking a warning through these 2 eclipses. One very influential pastor posted a video which received almost 4 million views. I want to examine exactly what the Bible does and doesn’t say about the meaning of eclipses, but first we need to briefly remember how people making predictions or alluding to predictions cause harm to the church and the evangelizing of the lost.
Now, let me say upfront, that I make no judgment concerning the motives or intentions of these people. I don’t read hearts. All I can say is that based on the very careful language used by many of these people, they are intentional not to predict or prophesy something directly. Yet they will often do everything they can to lead you down a path to believing what they are saying, but always allowing themselves a path of deniability when what they say does not come to pass.
Do you remember the book, “88 Reasons Jesus will come Back in 1988” or “1994” by Harold Camping? Or Harold’s prediction of the rapture on May 21, 2011 and then switching it to October 21, 2011? These are obvious rapture prediction failures. The current crop of prognosticators is far wiser and so they will make sure to have some levels of vagueness to what they are claiming. I find it fascinating also that many of those that comment on these videos are quite defensive of the claims being made by the teacher. Even when the speaker ends up being incorrect, they will come to the defense saying there was nothing specifically being predicted.
Again, I would agree that often nothing specific was being predicted, but you can see for yourself the way in which the April 8 eclipse was being presented. Here is the verbatim description of the video (capital letters are their emphasis, not mine):
“This solar eclipse could be THE SOLAR ECLIPSE that unleashes one of the seals of Revelation. I wasn’t a believer at first, but after hundreds of hours of research, I am literally in awe of all the “coincidences.” DO NOT miss this, whatever you do! Along with dozens of INCREDIBLE CONNECTIONS and patterns, I will also be revealing a MAJOR PROPHETIC CONNECTION of how the eclipses of 2017 and 2024 tell us EXACTLY where the Gog/Magog war will start and WHEN the temple sacrifices will begin.
When this happens, it will start the time clock for the revealing of the Antichrist! I have truly been in shock as to the mathematical impossibility of all the events that I will be showing you, all happening at the same time! I will be detailing the prophetic implications of how the last 4 sets of blood-red tetrads that land on biblical holidays coincide with world-changing events and how they have set the stage for this monumental “X-marks-the-spot” moment on April 8, 2024.”
As you can see from the description, there certainly is a lot of hype and sensationalism going on. The major claim is that all these isolated connections and patterns certainly could not be a coincidence. So, here again, we have arrived back at the idea that all these cannot be coincidence and the speaker has come to their own conclusion about what all these events could mean or probably mean. They are making broad assumptions about what God might mean, but ultimately their assumptions are based on a host of errors and this sets a bad tone for other Christians who end up getting caught up in this type of poor thinking.
Ultimately, I have a heart for the people in the church and it is frustrating to see them get hoodwinked into bad theology, bible interpretation, and then disappointment when what was suggested to come to pass does not. I have seen too many become burned out by all the prophecy hype. Biblical prophecy is exciting enough that we do not need to sensationalize or misrepresent the facts in order to promote erroneous or ideas filled with assumption.
If we look at recent history, this isn’t the first time people have sought to use astronomical events to indicate that something major was intended by God. Do you remember the blood moons hysteria of 2014-2015? This also was claimed to mean something ominous or monumental, but in fact all of the historical events connected with the blood moons were a desperate reach to try and show some level of connection. If you examine the data you will notice that the blood moons happened after dates on the Jewish calendar and two of them (1493-1494 and 2014-2015) had no discernible or reasonable connections to the Jewish people at all. Some try to make a connection to the Jewish expulsion of Jews from Spain in 1492, but the persecution of Jews in Spain started a full century earlier. If you pick a date any time in the last 2000 years, it is relatively easy to find something evil that happened in the world (or to the Jews living somewhere worldwide) and seek to connect it to that date. This is cherry picking information to make it fit a pre-conceived belief.
Let me take a break for a moment to share why I am writing this article. I love prophecy. I love the rapture. I am eagerly waiting for the Lord’s return. Jesus told us to “Watch!” in Mark 13:37 and this is exactly what we should be doing!
At the same time, I want to encourage us to watch for the signs Jesus specifically told us to watch for and not to run the risk of sensationalizing signs that He did not tell us to watch for. As we continue to get closer to the Lord’s return, there is going to be the temptation to speak publicly and assign meaning to events that possibly don’t have any biblical authority to mean something. That is what has happened with the eclipse. Some people have gone public and now that the eclipse has come and gone and the rapture or some other judgment didn’t happen, this has provided opportunity for people to mock the Bible and Christians who claim to be prophecy watchers.
I have no desire to win the approval of the world. That is not the goal. The world will always hate us as it also hated Jesus first (John 15:18-19). However, when we make claims or allusions that all these events are not coincidences and then we end up making public proclamations, the church loses some level of credibility in its evangelism.
Here is an example. I have a close relative who is not a believer, but is a very strong mocker. When the Harold Camping prediction came and went, he mocked me and became even more unwilling to hear the gospel even though I never embraced those predictions. The same thing happened with the blood moons hysteria. Every time something like this happens, it pushes him away from hearing the genuine message of Bible Prophecy.
But didn’t Jesus say, “And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress of nations in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves, people fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world. For the powers of the heavens will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory” (Lk. 21:25-27)?
Yes, He did! We must read this in context and recognize that what Jesus was describing are those absolutely unnatural cosmic events which happen inside the 7-year tribulation period. Nowhere are we told to look for these prior to the tribulation period. I will address this further below.
But didn’t God say, “And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night (#1). And let them be for signs (#2) and for seasons (#3), and for days (#4) and years (#5)” (Gen. 1:14)?
Yes, He did! I have seen this verse quoted the most in all the various videos as proof that the April 8 solar eclipse can be used as a warning mechanism from God. However, this is clearly out of context. There are five purposes for the lights in the heavens that God wanted to make (noted above). We know from the summary of verse 16 that these lights were the sun, the moon, and the stars. We must remember that the 5 purposes were all given in the context before evil was in the world. He created all of these and called them good (1:18). What this means is that the primary meaning of the 5 purposes must be able to be understood in the original context of something good and not as a warning of judgment. Let’s quickly examine each purpose, but I will do them out of order so I can discuss #2 in more detail last.
Clearly, the sun’s great light is used to separate the day from night (#1). We also know that our orbit around the sun produces a yearly/annual calendar (years, #5). The moon has a 29.5 day lunar cycle and was later adopted by the Hebrews as a monthly lunar calendar which allowed them to keep track of Sabbaths and Feasts (#4). We also know that the starry constellations reveal the various seasons of the 365-day solar year. The orientation of the asterism of the Big Dipper can be used to tell you the arrival of the equinoxes and solstices (i.e. seasons, #3). So far, all of these purposes have a good purpose and none of them are meant to be understood in a context of warning or judgment.
What about #2 (signs)? How were the luminaries created by God in the original creation used as good signs?
What I have been hearing for the last 6 months before the eclipse is focus on Genesis 1:14 in which God created the Sun, moon, and stars for signs (the Hebrew word is ōt)? People then have run with this and claim that a solar eclipse is a sign of judgment or often used as a warning for nations. They have made this claim without a single verse to back this up. Let me speak clearly. There is not a single time in the entire Bible in which God said that a normal and periodic solar or lunar eclipse was to be interpreted as an omen or sign of judgment or warning. Not once.
The best lexicon used by OT scholars is The Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament (HALOT) and it lists 9 different nuances of the Hebrew word for sign (ōt). It isn’t relevant to list all nine, but I will reference two of the nuances because they apply to our text in Genesis 1:14. In the context of that which is good and not evil, one of the main nuances for the word “sign” in Hebrew is that it is used to refer to an object lesson as a remembrance or memorial for God’s goodness and kindness. This Hebrew word is used in the book of Joshua as they just crossed over the Jordan river as the conquest of the promised land begins.
It reads, “And Joshua said to them, ‘Pass on before the ark of the LORD your God into the midst of the Jordan, and take up each of you a stone upon his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the people of Israel, that this may be a sign among you. When your children ask in time to come, ‘What do those stones mean to you?’ then you shall tell them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD. When it passed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. So these stones shall be to the people of Israel a memorial forever’” (Jos. 4:5-7; see also Exodus 13:9 where sign and memorial are used together again).
When God says that the starry skies would be used for a sign/memorial, it makes great sense that from the beginning of the creation the constellations or what God calls the mazzaroth (zodiac) would be seen as a memorial of His creative power (Job 38:32). We know that God makes reference to the various constellations as a memorial to His creative genius (Job 9:9; 38:31; Amos 5:8). Some people go as far as to describe the mazzaroth as a gospel in the stars idea which has some interesting possibilities based on Romans 10:17-18. No matter a person’s opinion on that topic, we see that the constellations were created specifically to reveal the glory of God and are a memorial/sign to the creation (Gen 1:14). There is nothing inherent in the word “sign” in Genesis 1:14 that even hints at the idea that God intended the heavenly hosts to be seen or used to point to a warning or judgment.
The other nuance of the Hebrew word ōt that applies to our discussion according to this lexicon can be “omen or foretelling the future.” Is it true that Genesis 1:14 “sign” can be an omen? They list 11 passages in which this word can mean “omen or foretelling the future.” Three of the 11 passages are in reference to heavenly bodies and should be examined for our purposes (Genesis 1:14; 2 Kings 20:8-11 and the parallel passage of Isaiah 38:6-8). They listed Genesis 1:14 as a possible “omen” interpretation, but as noted above , it is clear from that context in the original creation week where everything was good that the sun, moon, and stars were not given at that time as an omen or even foretelling of the future.
What about the other two passages? This is one of the most amazing stories in the entire Bible as it relates to a supernatural event involving the Sun. Most of us probably remember the long day of Joshua in which God delayed the setting of the Sun to give Joshua more time to conquer God’s enemies (Joshua 10). Yet there is another similar type of story involving the good king Hezekiah. He became very sick and yet God promised to heal him. This story appears in two parallel passages and used the Hebrew word ōt (sign) as a foretelling of the future while involving a heavenly body (the sun).
“And Hezekiah said to Isaiah, “What shall be the sign that the LORD will heal me, and that I shall go up to the house of the LORD on the third day?” And Isaiah said, “This shall be the sign to you from the LORD, that the LORD will do the thing that he has promised: shall the shadow go forward ten steps, or go back ten steps? “And Hezekiah answered, “It is an easy thing for the shadow to lengthen ten steps. Rather let the shadow go back ten steps. “And Isaiah the prophet called to the LORD, and he brought the shadow back ten steps, by which it had gone down on the steps of Ahaz” (2 Kings 20:8-11). “I will deliver you and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria, and will defend this city. “This shall be the sign to you from the LORD, that the LORD will do this thing that he has promised: Behold, I will make the shadow cast by the declining sun on the dial of Ahaz turn back ten steps.” So the sun turned back on the dial the ten steps by which it had declined” (Isaiah 38:6-8).
What can we learn about how the Bible uses the word “sign” from these passages? No doubt something amazing happened in which God provided a supernatural miracle to reaffirm the prophecy that God would heal Hezekiah. This was not a natural event. It was not a normal periodic eclipse, but instead something outside of the natural order that God instituted in His universe in Genesis 1:14-16.
This is very important to remember as we seek to understand the future 7-year tribulation period and the abundance of supernatural astronomical (cosmic) events during that time frame. A solar eclipse happens on average every 18 months somewhere on earth. This means that they are rare, but not super rare. Many solar eclipse aficionados travel constantly to the various eclipses around the world to enjoy them. As mentioned earlier, God created our solar system perfectly to allow these beautiful and majestic events to happen at a normal predictable rate. Not a single time does God ever say that a solar or lunar eclipse is to be interpreted as an omen or sign of judgment or warning.
In fact, we know from the Ancient Near Eastern archaeological literature that the Babylonians and Assyrians worshiped the host of heaven. Not only did they worship the heavenly bodies, but they lived in fear of them. One of the ancient tablets was called Enuma Anu Enlil and contains dozens of tablets with 1000s of omens related to the sun, moon, eclipses and other stars. What God intended for good, Satan has corrupted by using it for fear and trepidation. This is why God continually commanded Israel not to be like the nations around them in worshiping or fearing the host of heaven (Deut 4:19; 17:3). Later, in the time of Jeremiah, God once again reminds the Jewish people that they were not to fear the heavens. “Thus says the LORD: “Learn not the way of the nations, nor be dismayed at the signs of the heavens because the nations are dismayed at them” (Jeremiah 10:2).
If we take these truths from Scripture and apply them to the current eclipse hysteria of 2024, we can see how anyone promoting the idea of a normal and periodic eclipse being interpreted as a sign of judgment or even a warning is actually committing the same sin as the heathen nations. They are promoting the false idea that the natural phenomenon of an eclipse should be used as an ominous sign to bring dismay to people. Let me reiterate that not a single time in Scripture does God ever promote the idea that the natural cosmic order of events which includes a solar or lunar eclipse is portending judgment or warning.
I have heard numerous people say that the sign of Jonah was a solar eclipse that happened in Nineveh in 763 BC which was followed by the proclamation of Jonah that in 40 days judgment would arrive. This is another example of how people are making assumptions in order to tie together their preconceptions. There is absolutely no way to prove that Jonah preached at a specific time in history and after a solar eclipse. This is pure speculation based on a desired outcome and making note of the city of Jonah, Texas being in the path of totality before the other two cities of Nineveh. This is sloppy and sensationalistic and contradicts the clear words of Jesus that the sign of Jonah to the Ninevites was being in the belly of the great fish for 3 days and 3 nights and most likely being resurrected like Jesus was (Matthew 12:40).
What then should we say about the words of Jesus saying there will be signs in sun and moon and stars? We know that these will occur inside the 7-year tribulation, but they are definitely not natural or periodic in the normal sense. What happens during the tribulation is quite unprecedented. Jesus said it will be a time period that has never existed prior in the entire history of the creation (Mark 13:19). Remember, not a single time ever in the Bible does God point His people to looking at the normal course of heavenly host as being indicators of warnings, judgments, or omens. We saw that this is what Satan encouraged the pagan nations to do. God forbid this type of fear mongering when observing the normal course of cosmic events such as eclipses.
Another consistent application of this same principle is in connection with the ministry of Jesus. We know that God sent the star of Bethlehem at the time of the birth of Jesus. If you analyze the details of the movement of the star, it becomes quite obvious that this was not a natural event nor was it a conjunction of planets. The way that the Bible describes the star, it is impossible that this was a normal or natural phenomenon. The star first appeared and the Magi headed west to Jerusalem. Sometime after they departed the star disappeared and when the Magi arrived in Jerusalem, they went to Herod and the scribes to get more information about the prophesied birth of the Messiah. They were told He was to be born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2) and then left Jerusalem and headed south. At this time, the star once again reappeared and led specifically to the place where Jesus was abiding. Matthew writes, “After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was” (Matt 2:9). I am out almost every clear night observing the heavens and taking photographs. It is absolutely impossible for a star up in the sky to be used to point to a single house or location. Anyone who constantly observes the heavens knows this. This star was not a natural phenomenon and God brought the shining “star” low enough to rest above the exact house where Jesus was.
Additionally, when Jesus was crucified, we are told that there was darkness over the land for 3 hours (Matt 27:45). This was also not a natural event. As we mentioned earlier, solar eclipses only last maximum 7.5 minutes and when there is a new moon. Jesus was killed on Passover which always entails a full moon. So, we have two facts showing us that the darkness was a supernatural event in which God showed His power. The Jewish or Roman astronomers of that day could not dismiss the darkness as a normal or natural event. God made it undeniable. We are told that in addition to the 3 hours of darkness there was an earthquake and this created such a stir that the centurion responded. “When the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!” (Matt 27:54).
The fact that these events were supernatural are exactly the point of the words of Jesus when it comes to the time of the tribulation period. Throughout the 7-year period preceding the return of Jesus in great glory with the angels, there will many astronomical and cosmic events which are not natural. They will be 100% supernatural and will not be able to be dismissed by NASA or any other astronomers living at that time. Joel made reference to some of these events when he wrote, “And I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and columns of smoke. The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes” (Joel 2:30-31). This cannot refer to the normal lunar eclipse (blood moon) because the moon turns copper red because of sunlight bent around edges of the earth producing the color. If God turns the sun to darkness, there would be no light to bend around the earth to turn the moon blood red. Once again, this is not a natural occurrence. It is 100% supernatural and will happen during the tribulation period.
When we examine the astronomical judgments as mentioned in the book of Revelation, it becomes obvious quickly that these are not natural/normal events. Jesus gave a preliminary understanding of the ways in which God’s judgment during the 7-year tribulation will affect the entire universe. We saw in Luke 21:25-27 above the powers of the heavens will be shaken and people will faith with fear because of this. One of the last events of the tribulation period happens just before Jesus returns. Matthew writes, “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken” (Matt. 24:29). Isaiah also prophesies about this time, “For the stars of the heavens and their constellations will not give their light; the sun will be dark at its rising, and the moon will not shed its light” (Isaiah 13:10).
Think about this. The entire universe will go dark! None of this is normal, it is 100% supernatural in its fulfillment. When we see the sun turning dark and the moon to blood and the stars falling from the heavens, we recognize that we have no way to comprehend these events as they are completely unprecedented (Rev 6:12; 8:8, 10, 12; 16:8-9). What does it mean that “something like a mountain burning with fire fell into the sea” (Rev 8:8)? Is this an asteroid? A comet? We cannot be sure about the exact mechanisms of these judgments. Either way, we recognize that all these events in the heavenly bodies inside the 7-year tribulation are unprecedented and outside of the normal course of astronomical understanding that we can observe at the present time.
In summary, my overarching goal in writing this article is to encourage others (including myself) who are super excited about the return of Jesus to avoid the temptation of making interpretative leaps of conclusions in regard to the natural phenomena that we are privileged to see (solar and lunar eclipses, comets, etc.). These are natural normal events which God never describes as warnings or judgments. As we do this, we will avoid inviting mockers to scoff at Bible prophecy which we know is worthy of being heeded on its own.
In closing, our Psalm 19 Project continues to photograph God’s heavens. Included here is a 13-hour exposure of the great Andromeda Galaxy taken this past winter. This galaxy is 2.2 million light years away and is the farthest thing away from earth than can be seen with the naked eye. God’s handiwork is amazing. Over 1 trillion stars in this one giant galaxy and He calls them all by name (Psalm 147:4).
1) There is much confusion today about modern Israel and whether the people living in the state of Israel are the real Jews from ancient times. Some claim that Hebrews are different than Jews which are also different than Biblical Israel. I address these false assertions in the article below “Who are the Hebrews…?”
2) Another theory deals with the erroneous idea that the modern state of Israel is made up of non-ethnic Jews who descended from the Khazars. Provided at this link is a short video followed by the well-written article from Dr. Tommy Ice refuting the Khazarian theory. You can access that page here: https://prophecywatchers.com/are-modern-israeli-jews-true-jews/
3) Following along this line are those that say that the Israeli population living in the land of Israel today are not true Jews through genetic studies. These following studies show this to be false:
Bennett Greenspan gives a full presentation HERE which is entitled, “Are Modern Jews Descended from the Biblical Israelites?”
Two other genetic studies are HERE and HERE.
More peer reviewed studies are the following:
Key Papers Proving Jewish Genetic Continuity
A. Behar, D. M., et al. (2010).
The genome-wide structure of the Jewish people. Nature, 466(7303), 238–242.
Read on Nature (PDF)
B. Atzmon, G., et al. (2010).
Abraham’s children in the genome era: Major Jewish diaspora populations comprise distinct genetic clusters with shared Middle Eastern ancestry. Am J Hum Genet, 86(6), 850–859.
Read on Cell Press
C. Rootsi, S., et al. (2013).
Phylogenetic applications of whole Y-chromosome sequences and the Near Eastern origin of Ashkenazi Levites. Nature Communications, 4, 2928.
Read on Nature Communications
D. Haber, M., et al. (2017).
Continuity and admixture in the last five millennia of Levantine history from ancient Canaanite and present-day Lebanese genome sequences. Am J Hum Genet, 101(2), 274–282.
Read on ScienceDirect
E. Waldman, Y. Y., et al. (2016).
The genetics of Bene Israel from India reveals both substantial Jewish and Indian ancestry. PLOS ONE, 11(3), e0152056.
4) Has the church replaced ethnic Israel? What does Romans 9-11 teach? What does it mean when God says those who bless Israel will be blessed (Gen 12:3)? I address this fully in a response to Kirk Cameron which can be found HERE.
5) In addition, many ask how or should we support modern Israel. I address that in another article etitled, “What is the Spiritual Condition of National Israel Today?” That can be found HERE.
Let me summarize something upfront. Ezekiel 36, 37, 38 all teach that God Himself will bring back His people Israel to the land of Israel in the latter times which is where they are now since the establishment of Israel in 1948.
In fact, Ezekiel 38:8 reads, “In the latter years you will go against the land that is restored from war, the land whose people were gathered from many peoples upon the mountains of Israel, which had been a continual waste. Its people were brought out from the peoples and now dwell securely, all of them.” God’s word is true in that from around 150 AD until 1920 AD, the mountains of Israel were a continual waste. Even Mark Twain comments on this in his book Innocence Abroad written in 1869. As recently as his 1867 visit to Israel, he saw that the land was desolate. In chapter 56 of his book, Mark writes:
“Of all the lands there are for dismal scenery, I think Palestine must be the prince. The hills are barren, they are dull of color, they are unpicturesque in shape. The valleys are unsightly deserts fringed with a feeble vegetation that has an expression about it of being sorrowful and despondent. The Dead Sea and the Sea of Galilee sleep in the midst of a vast stretch of hill and plain wherein the eye rests upon no pleasant tint, no striking object, no soft picture dreaming in a purple haze or mottled with the shadows of the clouds. Every outline is harsh, every feature is distinct, there is no perspective–distance works no enchantment here. It is a hopeless, dreary, heart-broken land…. Palestine sits in sackcloth and ashes… Palestine is desolate and unlovely.”
The fact that the people of Israel right now are dwelling again on the mountains that were a waste shows clearly that God knows who the real Jews are. The real Jews are the ones living in the land of Israel after a 1878 year exile. The exact ones God Himself brought back.
We see a similar truth from Zechariah 10:9:
“Though I scatter them among the nations, they will remember in far-off places– they and their children will sprout forth and return.” Since God is doing the gathering together, we can have confidence that God means what He says.
By Mondo Gonzales
Ever since the October 7, 2023, terrorist attack against Israel and their justified war to eradicate Hamas, the increase of antisemitism worldwide has skyrocketed. Now, I have believed that there will always be a certain level of antisemitism in our cultures until Jesus returns. Yet I was surprised to see how the latest murderous rampage of Hamas has allowed a far more pervasive antisemitism than believed to be exposed. There have been dozens of well attended pro-Hamas rallies around the world espousing the genocidal rant “From river to the sea, Palestine will be free.”
Think of it… this chant is being picked up by people of all types which of course is rooted in blatant hypocrisy. These crowds believe that Israel is an apartheid state committing genocide against the Palestinians. These are ridiculous claims for many reasons, but they are unable to see that the exact crimes they accuse Israel of perpetuating, their mantra is publicly endorsing. I read the entire Hamas charter last week and it is crystal clear what they want. The hate filled rant undeniably has its roots in the Hamas charter. They are fully committed to removing ALL Jews from the promised land. From the Jordan river in the east all the way west to the Mediterranean Sea.
I watched a public forum question and answer at Oxford that featured Ben Shapiro answering questions from a hostile crowd. That forum can be found HERE.
Over and over, he asked each antagonist, “How much of the land of Israel do you consider occupied territory?” Each one of them answered, “All of it.” He responded with the only logical conclusion to the questioners, “Thank you for being honest. Then you are definitely not for a Two state solution and most likely for genocide of all Jews living in the land of Israel.”
Many brought up the idea that Israel is an apartheid state. Yet he responded and reminded them that there are almost 2 million Arabs who have FULL Israeli citizenship living within the borders of Israel and then asked them how many Jews are allowed to live in Gaza. The answer is ZERO. And when it comes to many areas in Judea and Samaria (a.k.a. the West Bank), there are signs which I have seen personally which warn that any Jews which cross over into these areas put their own lives at risk. Wouldn’t that be the definition of apartheid? Yet the people raging against Ben Shapiro were unable or unwilling to acknowledge that the true apartheid and hypocritical actions are clearly being perpetrated by the various Palestinian leadership groups.
Unfortunately, the modern evangelical church has done a poor job of defending the Biblical promises of God granting the land of Israel to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob forever. This often is the result of creative hermeneutics and neglecting to interpret the Bible in a normal, literal, grammatical, historical method. It also is the fruit of replacement (a.k.a. fulfillment) theology which espouses that all the OT promises have been fulfilled in Jesus and therefore, there is nothing more expected in relation to the future of national Israel among other end time prophetic events.
This brings up the assertions that come in various forms that the modern state of Israel has nothing to do with biblical Israel. In addition, others try to say that biblical Israel is not the same as the Jews. Therefore, the Jews of today are not biblical Israel. These are fair questions when they are brought up in an attitude of humility wondering how to correlate the various biblical nuances of who is a Hebrew, Israelite, and Jew. When dealing with the increasing antisemitism foisting itself upon our society, it would be helpful to speak with a greater level of precision in these important matters. There are a lot of opinions, but if we simply go back to the biblical evidence, we can see that all three terms refer to the same group of people. In short, the Hebrew, Jew, and Israelite terms all refer to all the ethnic descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
This article will examine all the evidence in the Old and New Testament Scriptures.
Who is a Hebrew?
If you really want to go deep into the various names, I encourage you to check out the articles found in the Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament. It is a 15-volume lexical dictionary that covers thoroughly every major Hebrew word. Altogether, the noun “hebrew” or “hebrews” occurs 43 times in the entire Bible.
The first place that the word Hebrew (in the Hebrew language it is transliterated ivriy) appears is in Genesis and reads, “Then one who had escaped came and told Abram the Hebrew, who was living by the oaks of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol and of Aner. These were allies of Abram” (Gen 14:13).
Early on Abram is designated a Hebrew. There are various theories as to the origination (etymology) of the word Hebrew, but there isn’t a complete consensus. Exactly how or where it came from is actually irrelevant when examining the biblical data. Clearly Abram is called a Hebrew which is a good start for understanding how this designation is passed on to his specific descendants.
The next time we see the word is 5 times in connection with the story of Joseph being in Egypt and resisting the advances of Potiphar’s wife. We read, “…she called to the men of her household and said to them, ‘See, he has brought among us a Hebrew to laugh at us. He came in to me to lie with me, and I cried out with a loud voice’” (Gen 39:14; see also 39:17; 40:15; 41:12). What we gain from these verses is that Joseph, a son of Jacob, grandson of Isaac and great grandson of Abraham is called a Hebrew. In addition, we observe that the entire family group of Jacob’s sons are called Hebrews as distinct from the Egyptians. The biblical text affirms, “They served him by himself, and them by themselves, and the Egyptians who ate with him by themselves, because the Egyptians could not eat with the Hebrews, for that is an abomination to the Egyptians” (Gen 43:32).
The next 13 occurrences all are contained within the Exodus story and concern the Hebrew midwives, Moses watching an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, and Moses describing Yahweh as the God of the Hebrews to Pharoah (Exodus 1:15, 16, 19; 2:6, 7, 11, 13; 3:18; 5:3; 7:16; 9:1, 13; 10:3).
An important connection is made between the designation Hebrew and the people called Israel. Notice, “And they will listen to your voice, and you and the elders of Israel shall go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us; and now, please let us go a three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the LORD our God’” (Exodus 3:18). This passage connects that the “Hebrews” and “people of Israel” names are synonymous with no distinctions.
The last two instances in the Pentateuch/Torah appear as parallel texts and describe that once again the people of Israel are called Hebrews by God, “”If your brother, a Hebrew man or a Hebrew woman, is sold to you, he shall serve you six years, and in the seventh year you shall let him go free from you” (Deuteronomy 15:12; Ex 21:2).
The book of 1 Samuel has much to say about the connection between the terms Hebrew and Israelite. Notice the quote of the Philistines, “And when the ark of the covenant of the LORD came into the camp, all Israel shouted so loudly that the earth shook. Now when the Philistines heard the noise of the shout, they said, “What does the sound of this great shout in the camp of the Hebrews mean?” Then they understood that the ark of the LORD had come into the camp” (1 Samuel 4:5-6).
Two more examples will suffice to show that not only in the time of Joseph and the Exodus, but in the time of the judges, Israel and Hebrews as names were synonymous. “And Jonathan attacked the garrison of the Philistines that was in Geba, and the Philistines heard of it. Then Saul blew the trumpet throughout all the land, saying, “Let the Hebrews hear!” Now all Israel heard it said that Saul had attacked a garrison of the Philistines, and that Israel had also become an abomination to the Philistines. And the people were called together to Saul at Gilgal” (1 Sam 13:3-4).
“Now there was no blacksmith to be found throughout all the land of Israel, for the Philistines said, “Lest the Hebrews make swords or spears. But all the Israelites would go down to the Philistines to sharpen each man’s plowshare, his mattock, his ax, and his sickle” (1 Sam. 13:19-20; see also 14:11, 21; 29:3).
Over 500-600 years later from the time of the Judges, we get another helpful piece of information in the biblical text referencing the designation Hebrew, but this time it is with the word Jew (the Hebrew word Yehudi). Jeremiah writes, “The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, after King Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people in Jerusalem to make a proclamation of liberty to them, that everyone should set free his Hebrew slaves, male and female, so that no one should enslave a Jew, his brother” (Jer 34:8-9).
In summary, the OT clearly associates the Hebrews, the Israelites, and the Jews as synonymous terms and speaking of the ethnic descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. When we come to the New Testament it is confirmed again. We will discuss more specific details about the term Israel or Israelite in the next section, but notice what Paul says, “Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they the seed of Abraham? So am I” (2 Corinthians 11:22).
It is interesting that Paul does not buy into the concept that Israel could not be called Israel simply because much (not all) of the 10 tribes of the northern kingdom were exiled by the Assyrians in 722 BC. The so called “lost tribes of Israel” theory. The idea of Israel still being a conglomerate of all the various tribes was still maintained in the 1st century. We see that Anna knew she was from the tribe of Asher (Luke 2:36). More on this in the next section.
Paul once again uses the term Hebrew in connection with the name and people of Israel. He writes about his ancestry, “though I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh also. If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee” (Philippians 3:4-5).
When it comes to understanding the use of the word Hebrew in the entire Bible, we see quite clearly that whether in the Old or New Testaments, the word is connected synonymously with Israel and Jew. This makes perfect sense in that anyone who has the genetics of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob could be called a Hebrew, Israelite, or Jew.
Who is an Israelite?
The word Israel appears over 2500 times in the Old Testament and so we obviously cannot cover all the occurrences. However, it will be good to share a few examples of how the name is used in various categories. The first place in the Bible where it appears is when Jacob wrestles the angel and his name gets changed from Jacob to Israel. We read, “Then he said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with men, and have prevailed” (Gen 32:28; also 35:10). So, the first way in which Israel is used is in reference to the person of Jacob, son of Isaac.
After this and the children are born to Jacob/Israel, his sons become known as the twelve tribes of Israel as we read, “All these are the twelve tribes of Israel. This is what their father said to them as he blessed them, blessing each with the blessing suitable to him” (Gen 49:28). This refers to ethnic descendants of Jacob and those that continue to grow into a nation during their time living in the land of Egypt. We observe this newer language in the Exodus story (Exodus 4:22) where we have God describing Himself as the “God of Israel” as a designation for the people group. Often times, we have the phrase “sons of Israel” or “children of Israel” depending on English translations. These refer to the 12 tribes of Israel and all their clans.
It is not until we come to the time and book of 1 Samuel that we see a distinction between Israel (the 10 northern tribes) and the southern distinction of the tribe of Judah (often associated to also include the tribe of Benjamin). After Saul was dead, David (from Judah) ruled over the southern “kingdom” of Judah and then eventually became king over all Israel (10 northern tribes). We read, “At Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months, and at Jerusalem he reigned over all Israel and Judah thirty-three years” (2 Sam 5:5).
After the united monarchy (Saul, David, Solomon) dissolved, we know from history that Assyria came and took most (not all) of the 10 northern tribes into exile in 722 B.C. (2 Kings 17-18). The southern kingdom of Judah remained faithful to the Lord until they were exiled in 586 B.C.
Now, this is super important to notice that even after most of the northern kingdom of Israel was exiled into Assyria, there were still some Israelites from the various 10 tribes living in the land of the northern kingdom (2 Chron 31:6). After most of the northern kingdom of Israel was exiled, Hezekiah decided to have a Passover feast in which he invited all of the southern kingdom of Judah and any of the remnant of northern Israel who had escaped exile.
We read, “So couriers went throughout all Israel and Judah with letters from the king and his princes, as the king had commanded, saying, ‘O people of Israel, return to the LORD, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, that he may turn again to the remnant of you who have escaped from the hand of the kings of Assyria’” (2 Chr. 30:6). Notice the progression of the narrative, “And the people of Israel who were present at Jerusalem kept the Feast of Unleavened Bread seven days with great gladness, and the Levites and the priests praised the LORD day by day, singing with all their might to the LORD” (2 Chr. 30:21, also 30:18). There were still people of the northern kingdom of Israel (10 tribes) living in the land of Judah. We observe, “The people of Israel and Judah who lived in the cities of Judah also brought in the tithe of cattle and sheep, and the tithe of the dedicated things that had been consecrated to the LORD their God, and laid them in heaps” (2 Chronicles 31:6).
Later, after the returning descendants of Jacob arrived in the land of Israel from the Babylonian captivity, this returning group of people are called Israel once again. “Now on the twenty-fourth day of this month the people of Israel were assembled with fasting and in sackcloth, and with earth on their heads. And the Israelites separated themselves from all foreigners and stood and confessed their sins and the iniquities of their fathers. And they stood up in their place and read from the Book of the Law of the LORD their God for a quarter of the day; for another quarter of it they made confession and worshiped the LORD their God” (Nehemiah 9:1-3). Also, “As soon as the people heard the law, they separated from Israel all those of foreign descent” (Neh. 13:3 and 13:15-18). We have further evidence of the ways in which “Israel” is used to describe all the remaining tribes of Jacob after their return from Babylon. “These are the chiefs of the province who lived in Jerusalem; but in the towns of Judah everyone lived on his property in their towns: Israel, the priests, the Levites, the temple servants, and the descendants of Solomon’s servants” (Neh 11:3).
We can learn from these passages that even though many of the 10 northern tribes were exiled to Assyria, they have never been truly lost. Also, even after the Babylonian exiles returned, the 12 tribes were still called Israel and not simply “Judah.”
When we come to the New Testament, Jesus ministered only to the house of Israel (Matthew 10:6, 23; 15:24). All of the people living in the land of Israel were called Israel by Jesus. Even further, Peter preached to the leaders and called them Israel (Acts 2:22, 36; 3:12; 4:10; 5:31, 35). Paul referred to the unbelieving leadership and people living in the land as Israel (Acts 13:16, 23, 24). Let’s put this in context. Paul was calling these Jewish Hebrews “Israel.” They had already rejected Jesus as Messiah, but they didn’t lose their “Israel” designation even as unbelievers. The idea of “Israel” was not transferred to the church in the time of Paul. This is the exact situation we live in today. God has brought Israel back to the land as a nation. National Israel is currently in a state of unbelief, similar to time of the early apostles in the book of Acts.
In summary, in the first century during the time of unbelieving national Israel, we can see that the people living in the land who were descendants of Jacob were all called Israel. This becomes important as we move to the next section and examine the phraseology of the word Jew or Jews.
We can conclude that even though there are some specific nuances of the word Israel or Israelite, the overarching meaning is that anyone who is an ethnic descendant of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is considered an Israelite or Israel. Jesus and the apostles affirm this is true and that is good enough for me. This is especially true as found in Romans 9 and 11.
Who is a Jew?
The noun “jew” or “jews” occurs 258 times in the entire Bible. The first place that the word Jew appears in the canonical text of Scripture is found in the book of 2 Kings 25:25 in reference to those living in the land of Judah. Daniel, writing somewhere between 600 B.C. and 535 B.C. uses the Aramaic word “Jew” in reference to the exiled people living in Babylon (Daniel 3:8, 12).
The Aramaic word “Jew” (Yehuday) appears throughout the book of Ezra in reference to those living in the land of Israel after they left Babylon (approximately 458 B.C.). The word Jew appears often in the book of Esther 2:5 (approximately 475 B.C.)
Even though Mordecai is called a Jew in Esther 2:5, the word actually appears earlier historically in the book of Jeremiah. He writes this section around 575 B.C. and says, “The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, after King Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people in Jerusalem to make a proclamation of liberty to them, that everyone should set free his Hebrew slaves, male and female, so that no one should enslave a Jew, his brother” (Jer. 34:8-9).
The Hebrew word for Jew is Yehudiy and is a reference to a person. The word Yehudah is a different word in reference to the land of Judah which is the area around Jerusalem or the tribe or original son of Jacob (Genesis 29:35). What we know is that the word “Jew” stems from the son of Jacob and the tribe of Judah. Eventually, because of the prominence of the tribe of Judah and the southern kingdom of Judah returning after the Babylonian exile, the people of Israel were often called Jews. However, as we saw in Jeremiah and 2 Kings, the people were called Jews even before the return of the people of Israel from the exile of Babylon.
Around 500 B.C., the prophet Zechariah uses the term “Jew” in reference to anyone descending from the 12 tribes of Israel. He writes concerning the future messianic kingdom, “Thus says the LORD of hosts: In those days ten men from the nations of every tongue shall take hold of the robe of a Jew, saying, ‘Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you’” (Zech 8:23).
Later in Nehemiah’s time (approximately 446 B.C.), he uses the word Jews in reference to the returning group of people living in the land of Israel who have returned from Babylon. Once again, we know from previous passages in Chronicles that the southern kingdom of Judah which was exiled included people from all the 12 tribes of Israel. Therefore, the Jews (12 tribes) who were exiled to Babylon are the ones that came back to the land of Israel.
When we come to the New Testament we see the three words, Hebrew, Israel, and Jew come together to be used synonymously. Jesus was a descendant of Jacob (Israel) through Judah and David and Mary (Matthew 1), but allowed Himself to be called a Jew from the Samaritan woman (John 4:9). Additionally, Jesus told her that salvation was of the Jews and this clearly is in reference to the people living in the land of Israel whom He calls the “house of Israel” in Matthew 10.
The challenge we have in the New Testament is the general usage of the word “Jew” (Greek word is Ioudaios). This can either be in reference to the people living in the south (Judeans as opposed to those in Galilee to the north) or to Jews in the sense of the 12 tribes of the house of Israel. Context will determine which is the appropriate usage.
When studying the book of Acts, we see something immediate in that the word Jews is in reference to those who are of the tribes of Israel. In other words, ethnic descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. We read, “Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven” (Acts 2:5). Clearly, these were not simply Judeans, but ethnic Jews from various parts of the world who were living in Jerusalem.
Paul calls himself a Jew, “I am a Jew, from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no obscure city. I beg you, permit me to speak to the people” (Acts 21:39, 22:3). He also writes that he was a Jew according to his ethnic genetics and birth, “We ourselves are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners” (Gal 2:15).
So, what can we summarize? A Jew began as one who was of the tribe of Judah, but eventually this word was associated with anyone who was a descendant of Jacob or an Israelite. Paul called himself a Jew, but also that he was an Israelite and a Hebrew.
“Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they offspring of Abraham? So am I” (2 Corinthians 11:22).
“For we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh– though I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh also. If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee” (Phil. 3:3-5).
Additionally, Paul connects that the Jews living in the land of Israel during the 1st century are connected all the way back to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. These were his physical ethnic brothers and Jesus was born from that heritage. The 1st century Jews are Israelites and Hebrews and are descendants of the patriarchs who received the covenants.
“I am speaking the truth in Christ– I am not lying; my conscience bears me witness in the Holy Spirit– that I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen according to the flesh. They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises. To them belong the patriarchs, and from their race, according to the flesh, is the Christ, who is God over all, blessed forever. Amen” (Rom. 9:1-5).
Based on the full testimony of Scripture and especially the New Testament, we can see that Paul is the perfect example. He was a Jew, an Israelite, and a Hebrew according to his own testimony.
Conclusion
Today, people are claiming that a biblical Jew is different than a biblical Hebrew and even different than a biblical Israelite. What we have observed from the evidence of Scripture is that these claims are absolutely false.
When we examine the Jews living today, especially in the land of Israel, their genetics and DNA go back to the people living in the land of Israel from ancient times. On our Prophecy Watchers website under the articles tab in the menu, we have other documentation refuting the assertions that modern Jews living in the land of Israel are not real Jews. According to the Bible (as seen in this article) and also modern genetic data, it is clear that the Jews living in the modern state of Israel are some of the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Not all of Jacob’s descendants live in the modern state of Israel. Many live in the USA and Europe and other parts of the world. Needless to say, we need to do our best to speak loud and clear that the accusations and antisemitism against modern Israel should be refuted with facts and evidence.
We know that that God has brought the nation of Israel back into existence in 1948 in order to redeem them once they repent and receive Jesus as their Messiah (Matthew 23:37-39; Zech 12:10; Hosea 5:15). What a glorious day that will be for the entire world.
“Now if the Gentiles were enriched because the people of Israel turned down God’s offer of salvation, think how much greater a blessing the world will share when they finally accept it. I am saying all this especially for you Gentiles. God has appointed me as the apostle to the Gentiles. I stress this, for I want somehow to make the people of Israel jealous of what you Gentiles have, so I might save some of them. For since their rejection meant that God offered salvation to the rest of the world, their acceptance will be even more wonderful. It will be life for those who were dead!” (Rom. 11:12-15). Let us continue to pray for their salvation through Jesus their Messiah as it will bring blessings to the entire world!
Other insights into understanding the Modern State of Israel and Biblical Jews
Recently we have seen many people make the claim about the words of Jesus in Revelation 2:9 and 3:9 and believe that these apply to modern Israel. Here is a question we answered in a recent magazine.
James asks:
I keep hearing the Jews living today are not real Jews and people quoting Jesus when He says, “I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich) and the slander of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan” (Rev 2:9). Also, “Behold, I will make those of the synagogue of Satan who say that they are Jews and are not, but lie– behold, I will make them come and bow down before your feet, and they will learn that I have loved you” (Rev 3:9). They also use these verses to say the Jews in Israel are not true Jews. Can you please comment?
Mondo answers:
This has been a common misunderstanding. Firstly, the context shows that this slander was being fulfilled in the 1st century. Secondly, this was in the actual location where ethnic Jews (physical descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob) living outside the land of Israel were persecuting Christians in Asia Minor (modern Turkey). This is well known in history. When Jesus says they are not Jews, He is alluding to the truth that began in the Old Testament. Moses revealed that the most important factor for a Jewish person was to move beyond physical circumcision only and to have their hearts circumcised (Deut 10:16; 30:6).
Paul appeals to this line of thinking in his letter to the Romans around 56 A.D. He says, “Then he who is physically uncircumcised but keeps the law will condemn you who have the written code and circumcision but break the law. For no one is a Jew who is merely one outwardly, nor is circumcision outward and physical. But a Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter. His praise is not from man but from God” (Rom 2:27-29). Therefore, Paul concludes that a true Jew is one who is an ethnic Jew (circumcised outwardly), but also one who is circumcised inwardly through faith (Romans 4).
Jesus said that the Jewish synagogues in the land of Turkey contained unbelieving Jews who were not living up to the spirituality they SHOULD have had through Jesus their Messiah. Because of that they are not genuine or complete Jews. Since they were not a true follower of God and His Son, they are of their father the devil as Jesus already taught in John 8:36-47 (see also 1 John 3:8-10). Revelation 2:9 and 3:9 have nothing to do specifically with true ethnic bloodlines of modern Jews today, either inside the land of Israel or outside.