Zechariah 12: The Second Coming and The Mourning :: By Mark A. Becker

Zechariah 12:1-9 is a portion of Scripture that has at least a couple of different interpretations available to the Bible student. We will present one of those interpretations in this study, while the other interpretation (and I am sure there are others) will be left to those who wish to debate it.

As far as the alternative interpretation that I am aware of – that of a future attack on Judah and Jerusalem in the latter days that will be thwarted by the nation of Israel herself – I absolutely understand how they get there. Many believe Psalm 83 is prophetic in nature versus an exclusive imprecatory prayer and/or a prophecy that was fulfilled in Israel’s early years as a nation when she was routinely attacked by her neighbors following her reestablishment in 1948. I suspect that because some view Psalm 83 as intrinsically linked with Zechariah 12:1-9, this is generally where this interpretive concept of a future attack on Judah and Jerusalem, with Israel destroying these enemies, originates.

Yet, for me, I really do see Zechariah 12 as a tie-in with Zechariah 13 and 14, essentially making Zechariah 12-14 a blended end-times prophecy related to the timeframe beginning with the Abomination of Desolation (mentioned in Zechariah 14:1-2) through to the Second Coming and subsequent Messianic Millennial Kingdom. As with most prophecies in the Bible, the content is not given in a precise chronological format, but the information in these three chapters is, in my view, confined to this time period, with a parenthetical on Messiah Yeshua’s First Advent found within Zechariah 13:7 and the bringing forth of the Israeli remnant through the Tribulation in Zechariah 13:8-9.

Underlined Scripture passages are my own emphasis.

“The burden of the word of the Lord for Israel, saith the Lord, which stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him.” – Zechariah 12:1

The LORD opens this chapter with a declaration of Him as Creator who “stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him.” This critical truth is foundational to not only the saving gospel of Jesus Christ (Revelation 14:6-7) but to the credibility of the Word of God itself and the Bible’s creation narrative.

“Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem.

“And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it.” – Zechariah 12:2-3

The “siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem,” in my estimation, will come in three stages in this blended prophecy, with the final stage primarily in view.

The first stage we are seeing today is the world coming against the nation of Israel through the auspices of the United Nations, academia, and an explosion in worldwide antisemitism, including many nations’ collective desire to give the so-called Palestinians a state of their own, thereby dividing God’s land (Joel 3:2).

The second stage will occur when Antichrist’s UN forces surround Jerusalem and Judea, enforcing the covenant between Antichrist, Israel, and other nations (Daniel 9:27), which will result in the Abomination of Desolation (Matthew 24:15-21Mark 13:14-19Luke 21:20-24).

The third stage will occur as Antichrist, what is left of the world’s armies, and all who have taken The Mark of The Beast will surround Jerusalem, going into southern Judah, and wrapping around the Dead Sea to Bozrah (Zechariah 14:1-2Joel 3:9-16Revelation 19:11-21).

The Antichrist and the enemies of God that are left at the end of the Tribulation will indeed find Jerusalem to be “a cup of trembling” as they know the King of kings and Lord of lords is on His way to destroy them (Revelation 16:12-1416). All these enemies of God – “all the people round about” Jerusalem –  will be in a “siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem,” for Judah in general and Jerusalem in specific is where they know the Lord will be coming to deliver His Holy City and Israel’s Promised Land for His chosen people, so that the people of Israel will once again inhabit their God-given land forever, never to be uprooted again.

This “siege” against Judah and Jerusalem is not against the people living in the Promised Land and the Holy City at this time – for those living there during the Great Tribulation after Israel is exiled following the Abomination of Desolation will be those who will have taken The Mark of The Beast and are in allegiance to Antichrist – but is in an attempt at keeping the returning King of Creation out of the Promised Land and the Holy City and preventing Messiah Yeshua’s ensuing Messianic Millennial Kingdom from ever taking place.

Ever since Israel’s rebirth, “all people” have “burdened themselves” with the Holy City, but as the Tribulation comes to a close, and because they know the Lord is at hand, they “shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it.”

[We will address the Hebrew word translated “against” in Zechariah 12:9.]

All, of course, will be futile and attempted in vain by “the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, [who are] gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army” (Revelation 19:19).

“In that day, saith the Lord, I will smite every horse with astonishment, and his rider with madness: and I will open mine eyes upon the house of Judah, and will smite every horse of the people with blindness.” – Zechariah 12:4

In that day” can be synonymous with “the day of the Lord” when the wrath of God is poured out following the resurrection/rapture of the church, including the ensuing Tribulation and the Second Coming of Jesus when He comes to destroy His enemies (Isaiah 24:21Zephaniah 3:8Zechariah 14:4613), or of judgment in general. But the phrase is also commonly applied to the glories of the Millennial Kingdom when God will fulfill His promises to Israel.

In our contextual estimation, “In that day” in Zechariah 12:4 is speaking exclusively of the Second Coming.

[For why the enemies of the Lord will have reverted back to ancient days of fighting on horses and other animals, please see The Mark of the Beasts.]

How will the animals be smitten “with astonishment and the rider with madness”? By seeing the Lord and His heavenly armies descending to Earth!

The Lord begins His campaign in Bozrah in modern-day southern Jordan (Isaiah 63:1-4), near to where many of the remnant Israelites will have been supernaturally protected by God in the mountain wilderness of Petra/Mt. Seir, and then makes His way to Judah, as the Lord will “open His eyes upon the house of Judah” when He enters the Promised Land. God then declares that He will “smite every horse of the people [the animals on which Antichrist and what is left of the armies of the world are riding upon] with blindness.” Here is how Zechariah 14 describes this “plague” of “blindness” that will not only fall on the animals but on the enemies of God as well.

“And this shall be the plague wherewith the Lord will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes, and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth…

And so shall be the plague of the horse, of the mule, of the camel, and of the ass, and of all the beasts that shall be in these tents, as this plague.” – Zechariah 14:1215

[For more details on “the plague” in the above passage, please see A Study of Zechariah 14:12-21.]

“And the governors of Judah shall say in their heart, The inhabitants of Jerusalem shall be my strength in the Lord of hosts their God. In that day will I make the governors of Judah like an hearth of fire among the wood, and like a torch of fire in a sheaf; and they shall devour all the people round about, on the right hand and on the left: and Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in her own place, even in Jerusalem.” – Zechariah 12:5-6

Here again is another blended prophecy.

First, Israel was immediately attacked by her neighbors after her establishment as a nation in 1948, with several other attacks in the ensuing years, eventually to take back Jerusalem in the Six-Day War of 1967. And indeed, even up to today, we see the leaders of Israel and especially the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) “like an hearth of fire among the wood, and like a torch of fire in a sheaf.” This initial prophecy is obviously fulfilled in our time.

The final fulfillment of this prophecy, however, will be when Israel comes back into her land with their returning Messiah from their 1,260-day exile following the Abomination of Desolation at the end of the Tribulation!

“Governors” in Hebrew is 441 אַלּוּף “alluwph” and means captain, duke, chief friend, governor, guide, ox. Or (shortened) talluph {al-loof’}; from ‘alph; familiar; a friend, also gentle; hence, a bullock (as being tame; applied, although masculine, to a cow); and so, a chieftain (as notable, like neat cattle) — captain, duke, (chief) friend, governor, guide, ox.

Because the “governors” (or captains/leaders) “of Judah” (which would include Jerusalem) – along with all the exiled citizens from Judah and Jerusalem – will have been hiding in the mountains of Petra/Mt. Seir in southern Jordan for the duration of the Great Tribulation (1,260 days), we have every reason to believe they will follow the Messiah on His white steed and His heavenly armies on His path from Bozrah to Judah and ultimately into Jerusalem. As the Lord destroys His enemies, He will also allow the people of Judah and Jerusalem to fight with Him against those same enemies, “devour[ing] all the people round about, on the right hand and on the left,” especially in Judah and Jerusalem, before His feet touch down on the Mount of Olives. [A Study of Zechariah 14:1-11 and A Study of Zechariah 14:12-21]

Of prime importance in this passage, God says that after Israel will “devour all the people round about, on the right hand and on the left” that “Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in her own placeeven in Jerusalem.” This would seem to be another confirmation that we are dealing with the Lord’s Second Coming and indicates that Jerusalem and Judah have not been recently inhabited by the Lord’s people as a final fulfillment of this prophecy.

There has never been a time in Israel’s history in the Promised Land where Judah and Jerusalem did not have at least a small remnant of Israelites living in her midst. This includes the Babylonian (Jeremiah 39:1040:1-6) and Roman conquests and dispersions.

When it comes to the Second Coming, Israel, following Messiah on their way back from the wilderness mountains to which they escaped after the Abomination of Desolation – reminiscent of God leading Israel through the wilderness into the Promised Land after the Exodus – will “devour all the people round about, on the right hand and on the left,” as they enter into their homeland that was violently taken from them at the Abomination of Desolation three and one-half years earlier (1,260 days). This idea of both the Messiah and the returning remnant of Israel taking vengeance on their accumulative enemies is abundant in the Tanakh as God often fought with Israel against their enemies (e.g.2 Samuel 5:22-25).

Some may get caught up in the phrases “the inhabitants of Jerusalem” and “the governors of Judah” and conclude that Israelis will be living in Jerusalem and Judah at this time. Consider, however, that anyone who visits a foreign country will always be the citizen or the inhabitant of the country and/or city where they live. For instance, even though I may be visiting a foreign country, I will always be referred to as an inhabitant of the United States.

In just the same way, “the inhabitants of Jerusalem” and “the governors of Judah” – representatives of God’s chosen people who once lived there – will, at the time of the Great Tribulation, be exiled away from their homeland, yet they are still, and will always be, “the inhabitants of Jerusalem” and “the governors of Judah.”

Do we have another example of this concept in Scripture? We sure do.

Daniel, in his elegant intercessory prayer to God on behalf of the exiled Israelites and himself, said the following:

“O Lord, righteousness belongeth unto thee, but unto us confusion of faces, as at this day; to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and unto all Israel, that are near, and that are far off, through all the countries whither thou hast driven them, because of their trespass that they have trespassed against thee.” – Daniel 9:7

Notice that Daniel refers to the exiled Israelites as “the men of Judah,” “the inhabitants of Jerusalem,” and “all Israel” who were “near, and far off, through all the countries whither Thou hast driven them.” These people, though exiled from their homeland for decades when Daniel offered his prayer, were still called by Daniel “the men of Judah,” “the inhabitants of Jerusalem,” and “all Israel,” just as God, through Zachariah, says the same concerning “the inhabitants of Jerusalem” and “the governors of Judah,” as they will come back to their homeland along with Messiah Yeshua at His Second Coming, only 1,260 days after they were driven away.

“The Lord also shall save the tents of Judah first, that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem do not magnify themselves against Judah.” – Zechariah 12:7

On this campaign, and as mentioned above, Messiah’s divine path of wrath begins at Bozrah – Bozrah being near the location where Israel will have been hiding in the wilderness mountains – and will go through Judah before they finally get to Jerusalem, where Yeshua will finally plant His feet on the Mount of Olives, just as prophesied.

We learn of Messiah’s initial wrath beginning at Bozrah in ancient Edom – with Him alone destroying His enemies as He saves His remnant people in this location where they have been hiding out and supernaturally protected – from the prophet Isaiah:

Who is this that cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah? this that is glorious in his apparel, travelling in the greatness of his strength? I that speak in righteousness, mighty to save.

“Wherefore art thou red in thine apparel, and thy garments like him that treadeth in the winefat?

“I have trodden the winepress alone; and of the people there was none with me: for I will tread them in mine anger, and trample them in my fury; and their blood shall be sprinkled upon my garments, and I will stain all my raiment.

“For the day of vengeance is in mine heart, and the year of my redeemed is come.” – Isaiah 63:1-4

In the second phase, Messiah Yeshua and the armies of heaven, along with remnant Israel following closely behind Him, will enter into Judah and then proceed on to Jerusalem while God allows them to fight their enemies:

“And Judah also shall fight at Jerusalem; and the wealth of all the heathen round about shall be gathered together, gold, and silver, and apparel, in great abundance.” – Zechariah 14:14

And, finally, the third phase is when Messiah Jesus’ “feet shall stand in that day upon the Mount of Olives”:

Then shall the Lord go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle.

“And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.” – Zechariah 14:3-4

This event was prophesied by the two angels at Christ’s ascension into heaven:

“And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, [Jesus] was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.

“And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.

“Then returned they unto Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is from Jerusalem a sabbath day’s journey.” – Acts 1:9-12

“In that day shall the Lord defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the Lord before them.” – Zechariah 12:8

Again, Israel will have been hiding in the wilderness mountains and protected by God (Revelation 12:14), and at the Lord’s Second Coming He will “defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem,” and even the weakest among them will have strength “as David, and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the Lord before them,” as they follow the Lord into Judah and Jerusalem to take vengeance on their enemies.

Might these returning Israelites, who have been supernaturally protected in the mountainous wilderness/desert of Petra/Mt. Seir and have been saved by accepting Yeshua as their Messiah, be the first in the universe that Messiah will regenerate and rejuvenate to live through the 1,000-year Messianic Kingdom when Yeshua begins His campaign in Bozrah, near to where the Israelites will have been hidden for the last half of the Tribulation? Again, “… he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the Lord before them.”

These “inhabitants of Jerusalem,” with their newfound strength – and most importantly with the defenses of Messiah Himself, as He defends them from their enemies – will battle those who killed their families and friends and had seized their possessions and inhabited their properties after the Abomination of Desolation until the Second Coming. Undoubtedly, these people that will live in Judah and Jerusalem (in addition to the Arab population currently living in Israel), ultimately possessing and inhabiting the fleeing Israelite properties and material wealth, will be represented by all of Israel’s surrounding enemy nations that will immediately flow into the Promised Land following the Abomination of Desolation.

The Lord in the past often elected to fight His enemies with His chosen people, Israel, and the Second Coming appears to be no exception!

“And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.” – Zechariah 12:9

The parallels between Zechariah 12 and 14 are truly amazing and, when taken together, give us a very clear rendition of what the Second Coming will look like with the exiled people of Judah and Jerusalem coming back with the Lord to defeat their enemies.

As promised above, we wanted to highlight that the Hebrew word translated “against” in this passage and Zechariah 12:3 is the preposition 5921 עַל “al” and can mean, depending on context, uponon the ground ofaccording toon account ofon behalf ofconcerningbesideamongin addition toaftertogether withbeyondaboveoverbyon totowardstoagainstas againstandasatagainst, and is translated in many different ways in the Tanakh.

Therefore, as we observed in Zechariah 12:2-3, it is not that God’s enemies come against Jerusalem as in an attack on the people living in the land and Holy City during the Great Tribulation who are on their side, but rather they come against Jerusalem in the sense that they come over to or come at or come on to or come on the ground of or come to Jerusalem from their respective homelands because they know that this is where the conquering King of kings and Lord of lords will be returning to.

As noted in Zechariah 12:3, this “siege” at the end of the Tribulation is not meant to destroy the people within the city, as all the people living in Jerusalem and Judah will be those who have taken The Mark of The Beast and are in allegiance to Antichrist, but rather to keep the returning King out, and from the chosen people, Israel and her Messiah, of possessing again the Promised Land and the Holy City.

How do they know the Lord is coming back to destroy them? Because the three spirits from Satan, the Antichrist, and the False Prophet called them all together for this event!

“And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.” – Revelation 16:13-14

“And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army.” – Revelation 19:19

[For more on this topic, please see The Kings of the East: Mission Impossible and The Valley of Jehoshaphat and ‘Armageddon.’]

Moreover, everyone left on Earth at the Second Coming will be eagerly looking for the returning King as all of God’s wrath will have been poured out at this point in history. There is no surprise to our Lord’s Second Coming to a ravished and desolate world and universe!

“And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.” – Zechariah 12:10

When Israel is gathered back into her land following the Messiah’s Second Coming, the families of Israel will find the Lord showering them with “the spirit of grace and of supplications,” just as He did when they were waiting for Him from the wilderness mountains and the other nations of Earth to where they had been scattered during the Great Tribulation. When Israel finally receives her Messiah in faith at this time and going forward, the Lord will indeed shower them with His “spirit of grace and of supplications.

Then “they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn,” as Israel has the time to fully comprehend and consider their national rejection of the Creator and Savior of the world that had just saved them, as they collectively finally come to the end of themselves.

This mourning and bitterness can only be equated to that of a parent who experiences an untimely death of a child. The emotional experience of the Israeli survivors of the Tribulation, who come to realize that Yeshua was their once-rejected Messiah, will be unequalled.

“In that day shall there be a great mourning in Jerusalem, as the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of Megiddon.” – Zechariah 12:11

Here is what we said of this verse in The Valley of Jehoshaphat and ‘Armageddon’:

While Zechariah 12:9-10 are prophetic future, the reference to the Valley of Megiddo in verse 11 is a reminder of what happened in a past event and is not future. The event this passage refers to is when good King Josiah was killed in battle and “Hadadrimmon” was a town in the Valley of Megiddo:

“Nevertheless Josiah would not turn his face from him, but disguised himself, that he might fight with him, and hearkened not unto the words of Necho from the mouth of God, and came to fight in the valley of Megiddo. And the archers shot at King Josiah; and the king said to his servants, Have me away; for I am sore wounded. His servants therefore took him out of that chariot, and put him in the second chariot that he had; and they brought him to Jerusalem, and he died, and was buried in one of the sepulchres of his fathers. And all Judah and Jerusalem mourned for Josiah.” – 2 Chronicles 35:22-24 

As we can see, Zechariah 12:11, “In that day shall there be a great mourning in Jerusalem, as the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of Megiddon” is using this past event as an analogy to the mourning that the people of Jerusalem will experience when she is regathered after Christ’s Second Coming and recognize Him as their Messiah, and nothing else. There is no end-time prophecy here regarding Megiddo.

“And the land shall mourn, every family apart; the family of the house of David apart, and their wives apart; the family of the house of Nathan apart, and their wives apart; The family of the house of Levi apart, and their wives apart; the family of Shimei apart, and their wives apart; All the families that remain, every family apart, and their wives apart.” – Zechariah 12:12-14

In Zechariah 13: A Contextual Study of Yeshua and Israel, where we tied in Zechariah 12:10-14 with Zechariah 13:6, we made the following observations:

The families of David and Levi are obvious. However, the families of Nathan and Shimei are a little difficult to identify.

Our best estimate on the family of Nathan could be either Nathan, the son of David and Bathsheba (1 Chronicles 3:5), or Nathan, one of God’s prophets to David, who ironically was the prophet God used to confront David’s sin concerning Bathsheba and Uriah (2 Samuel 12:1-14).

Taking into account that David’s son, Nathan, was given in the genealogy of Jesus Christ in the gospel of Luke (Luke 3:31), it would seem that if this Nathan was the family God had in mind in Zechariah 12:12-14, there could very well be a subtle prophetic allusion to the Messiah in view.

As far as Shimei, a viable candidate is Shimei, the son of Gershon, who was the son of Levi (Exodus 6:17Numbers 3:1821). Though not of the priestly line of Kohath, Gershon’s family did minister as Levites for the Tabernacle and Temple. Of Shimei’s notable descendants was Asaph who wrote some of the Psalms and was in charge of music during the reign of King David (1 Chronicles 6:39-43). 

Another possible candidate, interestingly enough, is Shimei or Semei who is also mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus Christ in Luke 3:26. If this Shimei or Semei is in view, this would be an additional confirmative prophetic allusion to the Messiah in this passage, along with Nathan, the son of David.

Captivatingly, when considering that David, Nathan, and Shimei could represent the kingly line of Judah and Levi being in the line of the priesthood of Israel, we perceive these families as pointing to Messiah as both eternal King and high Priest. Even more fascinatingly, if the families of David and Shimei represent the kingly line of Judah, the families of Levi the priestly line, and the families of the prophet Nathan representing the prophets of Israel, then we can see Messiah as all three – eternal Prophet, high Priest, and coming King!

The final verse – “All the families that remain, every family apart, and their wives apart” – would cover the rest of the families of the tribes of Israel who will “mourn, every family apart” when they are brought back from captivity into the Promised Land following the return of their once rejected Messiah who will have delivered them from their enemies and fulfill the promises of God to His chosen people, Israel, for the duration of the glorious Messianic Millennial Kingdom.

Conclusion

As we said at the onset, we do understand how others can come to the alternative interpretation that Zechariah 12:1-9 is generally speaking of an attack on Judah and Jerusalem that is repelled by the Israelites in the latter days before the Tribulation, especially if one believes that Psalm 83 is a yet fulfilled future prophecy and that Psalm 83 is intrinsically linked to Zechariah 12:1-9.

Nevertheless, we have come to the conclusion that Zechariah 12:1-9 – though a blended prophecy in many respects, as we have outlined within this study – is speaking primarily to The Second Coming.

Therefore, because we interpret Zechariah 12:1-9 in the way that we have, we really do not see any corroborating Scriptural evidence of such an attack on Judah and Jerusalem. The only other overt Biblical prophecy regarding an invasion of Israel in the latter days is the Gog/Magog invasion of Israel. However, the Gog/Magog invasion of Israel never even mentions Jerusalem, let alone an attack on the Holy City.

An attack on Judah and Jerusalem will evidently be reserved for the Antichrist and his UN forces that represent the nations at the midway point of the Tribulation that will exile God’s chosen people out of her land one last time during the Great Tribulation (1,260 days), with Jerusalem and Judah setting the stage for the final battle between Antichrist and the enemies of God as they await the returning King, His heavenly armies, and the returning remnant of Israel who will follow their Messiah into the Promised Land.

Moreover, as we noted in Zechariah 12:6, “Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in her own place, even in Jerusalem.” This appears to be an emphatic statement of rebirth and of perpetuality, which will only exist after Messiah Yeshua’s Second Coming and the destruction of the Lord’s and Israel’s enemies when He leads His people through Judah and into Jerusalem, as His chosen people, Israel, will once again inhabit the Holy City and their God-given and God-sworn Promised Land forever.

I do believe we have presented logical, rational, and textual lines of reasonings for believing that Zechariah 12 is giving us some details of the Second Coming that fit together rather nicely with the narratives found within the ensuing chapters of Zechariah 13 and 14. Taken together, these three chapters really do seem to present a prophetic account directly related to the Second Coming and Israel’s mourning for their once rejected Messiah (with the Abomination of Desolation narrative found in Zechariah 14:1-2).

***

May we all keep Answering the Call of The Great Commission, and giving an answer to every man and woman who so desperately needs Jesus and asks us, “Why Am I Here and What Is It All About?

Love, grace, mercy, and shalom in Messiah Yeshua, and Maranatha!

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Latest Significant Developments: Like an Incoming Flood :: By Ron Ferguson

The Flood Is Rising – The Last Days – The Pope Blesses Ice! – The New Anglican Archbishop – A Baptist Comment On Charlie Kirk (October 2025)

The Introduction

There is so much written by Christians in the analysis of their faith, in current events, and about News items in the world.  More and more opinions are coming out, and we could almost call this “a writer’s fest” even “a pen-talk fest.”

The whole problem with that is that we are in the last days of the church age, and opinions are everywhere.  Very sadly, in all that passes now in Christendom, very little is conservative, that is, biblical.  There are some good Christian blogs around and some large sites that maintain conservative values.  That is one reason I like RaptureReady.

One issue I have with all that is being written – and I relate this to myself – is that words may come along and filter into the world community, but how are the facts affecting the writers themselves?  We do not deal in academics.  We deal with truth, and God’s word, and the testimony of Christ.  We don’t approach those matters light-heartedly.

I have tried to study current affairs and world events, as they might pertain to prophetic development, for 65 years.  It is quite astounding in that time to see the different waves of directions that washed in and then washed out.  For example, there were some (very foolish in my opinion) who were maintaining that the Rapture was going to happen in 1988; then, in September 2025, with the Feast of Trumpets.  Well, we are still here!

The expression, “will come in like a flood” has its origin in this verse – Daniel 9:26 “Then after the sixty-two weeks the Messiah will be cut off and have nothing, and the people of the prince who is to come, will destroy the city and the sanctuary, AND ITS END WILL COME WITH A FLOOD – even to the end there will be war.  Desolations are determined.”

I don’t have the time to analyze that verse, as it is not the main focus, but it pertains to the 70 weeks of Daniel’s prophecy.  The 62 weeks and Messiah being cut off is the death of the Saviour.  “The people of the prince who will come” pertains to Rome in AD 70 BUT/AND “the prince who will come” is the Antichrist who comes from the region of the old Roman Empire.  He will attack Jerusalem on the eve of Armageddon – Zechariah chapters 12 and 14.

However, when all these things are approaching towards the end of the 7-year Tribulation, the END COMES VERY QUICKLY.  Things pick up pace very dramatically.  It is like the incoming flood.

We are not in the Tribulation because the Rapture has not happened yet, BUT let us not miss the point that the flood waters are gathering and starting to flow with a certain rapidity.  What is happening in the world today is gathering momentum very fast, and I am actually surprised at how quickly things have happened, this year especially.

I know some who don’t believe in a Rapture (actually, some oppose it quite heatedly) but think things continue until the Second Coming.  That is not a debate for now – I have written at length about that matter.  Nevertheless, even those ones must see the great advancement towards the end.  The one thing I ask is that you will be open-minded about the scriptures I will share.

THE PROPHECY OF THE LAST DAYS (OF THE CHURCH AGE)

God does not share a whole lot about the world in the final days of our Church era, but evil leaven has done its evil work and has produced destruction in the world.

Let me ask this: “Have you seen how hateful many non-Christians are becoming, and more intolerant?  Have you noticed how money is now king, and the world and its people have become greedy for money?  Have you noticed how violent and ruthless many parts of the world have become, and don’t exclude the USA in that?  Have you noticed how faith is falling away and how the Bible seems irrelevant to many Denominations?  Have you noticed the rioting in the USA over recent years, and in other nations protests especially coming now from satanic Islam?  Have you noticed the great distortions these days with sexuality and gender and WOKE and demonic activity in films and literature and so much more?”

I think most people must be aware of all this happening, and happening so fast, we can say it is like a flood beginning.  Well, if you have, then you are acknowledging scripture.  Here is a passage explaining the conditions we see, probably the most revealing we have about the last days of the Church age:

2 Timothy 3:1-5 “Realise this, that IN THE LAST DAYS DIFFICULT TIMES WILL COME, for men will be lovers of self, LOVERS OF MONEY, boastful, ARROGANT, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, UNHOLY, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, HATERS OF GOOD, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, [and] HOLDING TO A FORM OF GODLINESS, ALTHOUGH THEY HAVE DENIED ITS POWER.  Avoid such men as these.”

2 Timothy 3:12-13 “Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.  EVIL MEN AND IMPOSTORS WILL PROCEED FROM BAD TO WORSE, DECEIVING AND BEING DECEIVED.”

There is so much in those verses that they are a bright mirror on our societies.  I want to share a few thoughts on various subjects.

[1].  THE MIDDLE EAST CONFLICT

As I write this, there is a proposed “peace solution” in the Israel/Gaza/Hamas war.  Some agreement here might be reached, but it will not be lasting.  Peace will only come when the Lord Jesus returns in His Kingdom.

*** NOTE – I wrote this a week ago at least, but the exchange of prisoners has happened.  Did you see the speech Donald Trump gave to world leaders?  He spoke about peace often, a lasting peace.  I could not help thinking of these verses – 1 Thessalonians 5:2-4 “For you yourselves know full well that the day of the Lord will come just like a thief in the night.  While they are saying, ‘PEACE AND SAFETY!’ then destruction will come upon them suddenly like birth pangs upon a woman with child, and they shall not escape. BUT YOU, BRETHREN, ARE NOT IN DARKNESS, THAT THE DAY SHOULD OVERTAKE YOU LIKE A THIEF.”

The words of Donald Trump are almost prophetic.  That is what the world is saying: peace and safety!  How close the Rapture and Day of the LORD must be!

Do note this, though.  Daniel 9:27 “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, and on the wing of abominations will come one who makes desolate, even until a complete destruction, one that is decreed, is poured out on the one who makes desolate.”  The verse speaks about the Antichrist/World Ruler who appears after the Rapture, and the first thing he will do is solve the Middle East conflict to bring peace to the region.  In the verse “with the many” is Israel.  This will be a peace that will last just 3.5 years until about the start of Revelation 11.

What I want to say about this is that we are in the days of the call for peace.  That is how close I think we are to the end of the Church age.

[2].  CLIMATE CHANGE!  AGAIN!

This hoax will not go away.  Why is it a hoax?  I am not going to repeat the many, many good people/scientists on YouTube who refute this hoax, but it is a DELUSION brought on nations in the Paris Agreement by the UN Marxist controllers and the WEF.  You remember it used to be called “Global Warming,” but the name changed because there is no global warming.

The once great National Geographic Magazine I have been getting since 1975 because I am one of the few life members remaining – since Disney has practically taken it over, it has been all about climate change in nearly every article.  There are catastrophic predictions about great sea rises, and ecosystems being destroyed, and starvation sweeping the planet.  It is so sad that the credibility of this once great magazine is being forced into propaganda by Disney, which is a WOKE and strong left (Marxist) organization today.  Walt Disney would be horrified.  There are no sea rises.  All is a manipulated delusion.  They own the ABC – Go figure!

Puny Australia, that produces about 1% or less of world emissions (and don’t trees like that carbon dioxide!), tries to take the lead in destroying its remaining coal power stations and is flooding the country with windmills and solar, especially windmills.  All this comes from China, and Australia is making communist China rich because the Marxist Government in Australia, under a communist Prime Minister, loves China and hates the USA.  And hates Israel and Jews and Christians.

The great irony of all this is that because the Marxist Government hates fossil fuels (Australia is blessed with some of the world’s best resources of coal and gas and uranium), then it buys windmills from China made with coal-fired powered plants USING AUSTRALIAN COAL.  When a man or a nation turns from God, it is capable of the greatest stupidity.  So much more can be cited about world stupidity and gathering wickedness, but I want to turn to more serious issues for Christians.

[3].  HOW DO BLESS A BLOCK OF ICE?

Right at the beginning of October 2025, there were videos of the Pope blessing a block of ice.  He was in company with a pagan group of environmentalists, and he actually placed his hand on the block of ice, somewhere around one ton or less, and blessed it.  Can you believe that?

Yes, you can believe that if you believe this verse – 2 Timothy 3:5 “HOLDING TO A FORM OF GODLINESS, ALTHOUGH THEY HAVE DENIED ITS POWER.  Avoid such men as these.”

We have men (AND women now!) who have ascended to ecclesiastical positions who do not believe God and almost certainly are not converted.  They belong to the kingdom of darkness.  The Bible to them is not inspired.

The Pope is no better than the previous one, Francis.  He is an environmentalist, meaning he accepts pagan teachings on the environment.  Pope Leo slammed Vice President Vance in a statement.  Is this Pope a socialist/Marxist?  He is a universalist and greatly opposes the cleaning up of America’s migration mess, opposes the death penalty, and seems sympathetic to abortion.

One made a comment I thought was clever.  He said, “It’s a pity the Pope did not bless ICE rather than ice.”

Let’s leave the Pope there and move to a surprising reaction involving Baptists.

[4].  BAPTISTS, WAKE UP AND GET BACK TO THE BIBLE

I have a post on what Charlie Kirk’s wife said after his death.  (I have yet to post it to RaptureReady.)  It mentioned the despicable things the enemy is doing.  They are rejoicing over the assassination of Charlie and mocking him.  The nearest I can get to that is the hatred of the crowd here – Matthew 27:29-31 “And after weaving a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and a reed in His right hand; and they kneeled down before Him and MOCKED HIM, saying, ‘Hail, King of the Jews!’ They spat on Him, and took the reed and began to beat Him on the head. And after they had mocked Him, they took His robe off and put His garments on Him, and led Him away to crucify Him.”

The unsaved man hates God but may not say it.  Jesus said that those who were not for Him are against Him.  There is no middle ground.  There is no sitting on the fence.  Some of the hatred from the left, the homosexual community, MSNBC, and the Democrats is so despicable that we wonder now in what age we live.  Actually, we know that, for I said it earlier – at the end of the Church age.

I want to quote Dr. Phil here.  A clip on his channel revealed three horrible people who are rejoicing over Charlie’s death.

QUOTE“Some of what we have seen is nothing short of twisted, nothing short of hateful.  There are people in our country, people you know, that I know, people that we work with, ride public transit with, that are actually celebrating his death, cheering on that someone shot him in the neck with a high-powered rifle.”

One of the three Dr. Phil cited was a hateful woman who was raving on about Charlie Kirk being a Nazi.  It was sick.  Another example was a medical worker who posted a video on TikTok saying, “I’m glad he got shot.  I hope he dies.  I don’t care.”

Now this is the disturbing one Dr. Phil spoke about.  “A coach at Baylor University posted, ‘This makes me giggle,’ in response to the breaking news report.  What is horrifying is that Baylor University is a Baptist-based University.” Dr Phil said, “It is based on Christian doctrine, religious doctrine, and so we have someone who has at least some intelligence, and another, a coach leading our young people at a Christian University, that can celebrate this” (Charlie Kirk’s assassination).

One expects a high standard from American Baptists, but I have been very disappointed at what the American Baptists now represent.  I know there are many good Baptists and pastors, but the trend is there, and it is WOKE, inclusive, and liberal.  The last days’ Apostasy is catching up all denominations.

[5].  LOOKING AT A VERSE MORE IN DEPTH

2 Timothy 3:5 “HOLDING TO A FORM OF GODLINESS, ALTHOUGH THEY HAVE DENIED ITS POWER.  Avoid such men as these.”

We are living in those days Paul penned to Timothy.  Our current age is that of Laodicea, and I would calculate it began in earnest in the 1950s.  It was then that places of higher learning AND some Seminaries and Denominational Colleges were adopting German higher criticism and Freudian psychology.  People in professorships and lecturers began to question the Bible’s accounts, especially from Genesis, and the miracles.

Churches appointed liberals to important positions, and the whole structure was weakened.  One denomination I know of describes the Bible as “contains the word of God,” having changed it from “The Bible is the word of God.”

You reap what you sow, and now we are doing the reaping.  Homosexuals are ministers in churches, and the socialist gospel is preached and is all-inclusive of gender, sexuality, politically correct language, and all other aberrations.

God has a remnant people in the Denominations, and it is imperative in these days of strengthening evil that we keep the faith very tenaciously.  It is very close when the Lord says, “ENOUGH,” and removes His people (the Church) out of this scene before His great wrath falls from Revelation 6 onwards.

[6].  ONE LAST EVIL TO CLOSE WITH

The Church of England in Britain has done the unthinkable and appointed a woman to the position of head of the church, the Archbishop of Canterbury.  Personally, I don’t hold to ecclesiastical positions as found in Anglicanism and Catholicism, but my observations are that the women trying to gain those positions are often feminists, WOKE, and certainly liberal.

Feminism has stormed all positions of men in leadership.  It is the world’s way with CEOs, judges, Governors, Heads of Departments, Heads of Inquiries, and the list now is endless.  I know some will call me a misogynist, but God does have a divine order.  Adam was the federal head of creation, as Christ is the federal Head of the Church, His Body.

We either accept the Bible’s teaching on this or we reject it.  Those on God’s side believe what the Bible says.  The reason why we see the professing church in such a mess is because we have abandoned the scriptures.  Certain Denominations have appointed women to positions the New Testament forbids.  There are three I can name straight away, but the only one I will mention, because it is relevant here, is the Church of England. And I know the argument, “There are not enough men.”  Even if there were, these feminists would still be storming the doors.

How many of us have already forgotten the disgraceful performance of the woman Bishop who conducted Donald Trump’s inauguration service?  I have an article on that, which I have not posted here yet.

[7].  WHAT SAY THE SCRIPTURES:

Any woman who vaunts herself into any church leadership OVER A MAN for whatever reason, usually of power, has offended the scriptures.

1 Timothy 2:11-15 “Let a woman quietly receive instruction with entire submissiveness. BUT I DO NOT ALLOW A WOMAN TO TEACH OR EXERCISE AUTHORITY OVER A MAN, BUT TO REMAIN QUIET. For it was ADAM who was first created, and then Eve.  It was not Adam who was deceived, but the woman, being quite deceived, fell into transgression. But women shall be preserved through the bearing of children if they continue in faith and love and sanctity with self-restraint.”

The appeal is to creation.  Two things are as plain as day.  (1) A woman is not to teach regarding the scriptures (this in the context of “over a man”).  (2) A woman is NOT to have spiritual authority over a man.  The Bible is so clear on this matter.

What of this new head of the Church of England?  Her name is Sarah Mullally, now the Archbishop of Canterbury.  She is a strong supporter of Black Lives Matter (BLM), of Abortion, and of same sex marriages, a follower and promoter of liberal theology. [In particular, she voted for the introduction of same-sex blessings (liturgical blessings for same-sex couples) into the Church of England and “has repeatedly promoted unbiblical and revisionist teachings regarding marriage and sexual morality.” Mullally led the Living in Love and Faith project, a dialogue process on sexuality questions that created havoc in the English church.]

One has written – “But for Anglicans globally, about two-thirds of whom live in countries like Nigeria, Kenya and Uganda, the appointment of the first female Archbishop could further highlight their difference with the mother church in England.”  The Sydney Anglicans, a strong body and the most evangelical in the world, will have nothing to do with this.  It is a disease in Britain, and Britain is starting to melt into a mess in many ways, especially because of Islam and a WOKE King, and now an immoral, liberal Head of its Church.

“The Guardian,” – a strong left-wing British newspaper and supporter of organizations like the Democrats, and Prime Minister Starmer – said this about Mullally: “Sarah Mullally is known to be wise, intelligent, courageous and compassionate. That should serve her well in the battles ahead.”  That is what you’d expect from the Guardian.

I will leave the closing comment regarding this topic to The Gospel Coalition – If we leave aside the provocative appointment of a woman (which is disturbing enough in itself to those who hold to complementarian theology), Mullally’s record as a bishop, and in the General Synod of the Church of England, demonstrates how unfit she is for this role.  As Archbishop Laurent Mbanda of Rwanda, the chair of the GAFCON Primates Council that represents by far the majority of Anglicans across the globe, has put it, she “has failed to guard the faith and is complicit in introducing practices and beliefs that violate both ‘the plain and canonical sense’ of Scripture and ‘the Church’s historic and consensual’ interpretation of it.”

[8].  TOBIAH THE INFILTRATOR

When Nehemiah returned to Jerusalem as Governor, he was appalled at what he discovered in the Temple.  Tobiah was there, a man who mocked God, threatened Nehemiah, and was an enemy.  Here is the record of what Nehemiah did:

Nehemiah 13:3-9 “It came about, that when they heard the law, they excluded all foreigners from Israel.  Now prior to this, Eliashib the priest, who was appointed over the chambers of the house of our God, being related to Tobiah, had prepared a large room for him, where formerly they put the grain offerings, the frankincense, the utensils, and the tithes of grain, wine and oil prescribed for the Levites, the singers and the gatekeepers, and the contributions for the priests.

But during all this time I was not in Jerusalem, for in the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes king of Babylon I had gone to the king.  After some time, however, I asked leave from the king, and I came to Jerusalem and learned about THE EVIL THAT ELIASHIB HAD DONE FOR TOBIAH, by PREPARING A ROOM FOR HIM IN THE COURTS OF THE HOUSE OF GOD. And it was very displeasing to me, so I threw all of Tobiah’s household goods out of the room.  Then I gave an order, and they cleansed the rooms, and I returned there the utensils of the house of God with the grain offerings and the frankincense.”

The enemy was actually in the Lord’s House.  All over the world today, the enemy has infiltrated God’s people and in high positions as well.

I must draw this to a close as it is getting long.  Christians, wait on the Lord.  Be not deceived, for many antichrists have gone out among the churches.

RF