God’s Word came to Ezekiel and informed him that he was appointed a watchman unto the house of Israel (Ezek 33). A watchman’s duty is to warn of imminent danger or else be guilty of the blood of those he failed to warn. Ezekiel was then given the task of warning the children of Israel by saying whatever he received from God in hopes that they would hear, repent, and thereby live. Once the people were warned, failure to turn from sin meant death to the wicked, which God takes no pleasure in (Ezek 33:11).

Though this message was to Ezekiel and Israel, this same principle could be applied to all who see the sword coming upon the land. Perhaps this is why, everywhere you look, watchmen are warning of the coming Day of the Lord. In which, once the rapture takes place, those left on earth will enter into the darkest period ever to come upon mankind. Those who watch are warning because this period will be extremely difficult to live through.

Obviously, the best way to live through this time, referred to as the Tribulation, is to repent right now and be absent from the earth during this awful time. Fortunately, God has already indicated a lack of pleasure in judging the wicked, as demonstrated by the fact that He provided a way for the Israelites to escape death by heeding His Word through the prophet Ezekiel.

Likewise, He has made a way for those who now inhabit the earth to repent after hearing His Word from the body of Christ, which has been commissioned to preach the gospel to people of all nations until the end of the age (Matt 28). Therefore, as the warnings of the watchmen increase, the gospel message should also increase as the bad news of coming judgment is best followed by the good news of salvation.

The Bad News

Those who watch are keenly aware that the signs of the Tribulation are in view. Each day another piece of the end-time puzzle is assembled, and soon, like a thief in the night (1 Thess 5:2; 2 Pet 3:10), Jesus will retrieve His bride, and the Day of the Lord, otherwise known as the Tribulation, will commence. Many great works have demonstrated that the Day of the Lord is a period of time rather than a single day. With this in mind, this article will assume the position that the Day of the Lord is synonymous with the seven-year Tribulation period.

In regard to the nearness of this very consequential time, my wife, who is also keenly aware of the imminency of the Tribulation, has often said, “The Tribulation is so near that the rapture is pressing up against it and bending it backward.” ^[1] Her evaluation is based upon the fulfillment of many prophetic signs including the spiritual condition of mankind. Indeed, this generation is perhaps the most selfish to ever live. Paul spoke of this selfishness as a sign of the perilous times of the last days (2 Tim 3).

Once the Day of the Lord arrives, knowing what to do will become very difficult. Think about this for a second: because of the rapture, all righteous people (those made righteous by faith in Christ) will be gone, leaving only those who reject God. This means the people often turned to in difficult times — because they are the only ones who seem to always have their life in order, a side effect of loving Jesus — are nowhere to be found. Oh my, the sheer panic of it all.

This is perhaps akin to what happened when Enoch was taken. He walked with God, which means he would have been wise beyond belief, and one day, no one could find him (Gen 5:24; Heb 11:5). Ironically, Enoch was taken before the flood, which came as a result of God’s seeing that “the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually (Gen 6:5).” ^[2] Enoch’s departure from earth, when men were becoming very wicked, is surely a typification of the rapture. Therefore, the destruction that followed, by way of the flood, is also meant to foreshadow the coming judgment, which is also global in scale. The devastation of this time period will be so complete that it should be avoided at all costs.

Indeed, seven short years will be so full of havoc that men’s hearts will fail simply for what is coming upon the earth (Luke 21:26). Matthew chapter 24 and Luke chapter 21 are filled with information about the enormity of the coming, cataclysmic Day of the Lord. However, the book of Revelation tops the proverbial cake by relaying specific details of the coming judgments that God will impose on the unrepentant.

Keep in mind, God is still holding out hope that some will repent as the seal, trumpet, and bowl judgments ravish the earth and all its inhabitants. This is made clear by the following passage:

Revelation 9:20-21

“And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk: Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts.” (emphasis mine)

If things weren’t bad enough, in the midst of the Tribulation, Satan will lose the war in heaven and be cast down to the earth where, in great wrath, he will empower the antichrist to do his evil bidding. During this time, the slaughter of the dark ages will blush at the severity of the persecution on earth. ^[3] The false prophet will make sure of that as he directs those who reject Christ to mishandle those who come to know Jesus as the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). ^[4] Oh, by the way, this is all followed by eternal separation from God while suffering in the lake of fire (2 Thess 1:8-9; Rev 20:15).

With all of this in mind, it is crucial to understand that this period is meant to end the reign of man on earth and usher in the reign of Christ. Therefore, trusting in anything other than Jesus is futile. Said another way, during this time, every known system, including the religious, will be vanquished and started anew under the leadership of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, Jesus Christ. He will come to the earth at the very end of the Tribulation period to begin His millennial reign. This is where the good news comes in.

The Good News

Since this article is written before the rapture, the good news represents the gospel of Jesus Christ, which proclaims that Jesus paid the price for the salvation of any who believe in Him (Eph 1:7; Rom 8:1). The resultant loss of condemnation is the ice cream on top of the cake of salvation since the new believer instantly becomes part of the bride of Christ who awaits the bridegroom. ^[5]

Sharing this good news is the job of the watchmen. You might be saying, at this very moment, that sharing the gospel is the job of every Christian. You are correct. The idea being presented here is that every Christian is called to the task of the watchman. Since every Christian is indwelt by the Holy Spirit, every Christian is part of the same body of Christ here on earth. Therefore, God has developed the greatest early warning system to ever exist. He has placed members of the body, as salt and light, throughout the entire world and in every facet of society.

Over the last two millennia, God has utilized the body of Christ as the heralds of the spiritual kingdom of God, which is entered into by belief in the Son, Jesus Christ. As stated before, this great commission will not end for the church until the rapture. Now consider this.

Because the church/bride is in tune with God through the Holy Spirit, she has a keen sense of where she is in terms of the end of her time on earth, for Scripture says:

1 Thessalonians 5:4

“But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.”

Therefore, the entire bride is awakening to the fact that Jesus is coming very soon to take her to the Father’s house. Accordingly, in addition to sharing the gospel, she is now warning of the coming sword like never before. You see, for the bride, the coming sword means departure from the earth in the rapture. At the same time, it means the beginning of the Day of the Lord/Tribulation for those who refuse the gospel.

The purpose of the Great Commission has always been the same as indicated by Jesus when He said He was sending the Apostle Paul in order to:

Acts 26:18

“Open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.”

The mission assigned to the church/watchmen has never been more crucial, as it is no longer just the approaching death of an individual that prohibits future hearing of the Word of God; it is now also the rapture that is increasingly imminent. Once this takes place, the watchman’s task of sharing the gospel while warning of the impending judgment of the coming Tribulation will cease, and those who rejected the truth will, over time, realize just what they missed. If you happen upon this article after the rapture, read the article “Open Letter to Those Who Miss the Rapture.” ^[6]

If you have missed the rapture, you have now become the watchman and witness of your day, and the good news shifts to the fact that Jesus is coming again, to the earth, at the end of the Tribulation:

Revelation 19:11-16

“And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.

“And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”

As previously stated, the time until Crist’s return will be most difficult to navigate. You will not be alone, as the two witnesses will be present in the first half of the Tribulation, and many will come to know Jesus during this time. The Bible will be your greatest physical resource. Finding one will be much easier in the very beginning stages of this time; just go to the home of the raptured; they will have left behind Bibles and study materials. While these physical resources are invaluable, there is one thing that is even more crucial, and that is listening to the Holy Spirit. He will lead you into all truth and tell you what is to come (John 16:13).

Some would argue this last point because they equate the removal of the restrainer with the removal of the Holy Spirit at the very beginning of the Tribulation. However, the simplest way to understand this is to realize that while the Holy Spirit will stop restraining evil, He will not leave the earth, else none would be saved during the Tribulation, and Scripture clearly indicates that many will be saved during this period:

Revelation 7:9

“After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands.”

Revelation 7:13-14

“And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.”

Revelation 15:2

“And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God.”

Watch and Warn Until Departure

Long ago, the Army used the following proclamation during bayonet training: “Stay Alert – Stay Alive.” This ensured the soldier remained on high alert when the battle was close. This same attitude is most appropriate for this moment in history. Soon the Son of Man will come for His bride, and we want to be very sure we are ready. In fact, the Lord said when we see the things we are seeing begin to happen, we are to look up, for our redemption is drawing nigh (Luke 21:28).

Meanwhile, we also want to make sure we are sharing the gospel with as many as possible and warning those within our spheres of influence about the coming sword of the Day of the Lord. Their only hope stems from our doing what the Lord has commissioned us to do, and that is to share Him. After all, faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of the Lord (Rom 10:17).

Conclusion

Watchmen are watching and warning like never before. This is good because it means the church is awakening to the fact that Jesus is about to snatch her away. This is causing the church to assume an alert posture, which means greater attentiveness, which invariably means more warning. The best part about this is the most faithful are also, like God, the most concerned about those who have not accepted Him as of yet. Therefore, the watchmen are not only warning; they are sharing Christ in hopes that some will repent.

As you live out the remainder of your days on earth, assume the role of a watchman, and warn while sharing the gospel for the purpose of winning souls. You never know; the next person you encounter may be the last one God is waiting for before sending the Son for His bride. With this in mind, follow the admonition of the Apostle Paul to the Colossians:

Col 4:5-6

“Walk in wisdom toward those outside, redeeming the time. Let your speech be always in grace, having been seasoned with salt, to know how it behooves you to answer each one.”

Website: In His Commission

April 23rd, 2022

[1] For greater understanding, see the blog written by Rapsodie Adams, “Our Time is Short.”

[2] “Unless otherwise noted, all biblical passages referenced are in the King James Version.”

[3] Free online, Foxe’s book of Martyrs, “https://www.biblestudytools.com/history/foxs-book-of-martyrs/.”

[4] For greater understanding, see the article, “Only the Ready are Raptured.”

[5] For greater understanding, see the articles, “While we Wait” and “The Five W’s of the Rapture.”

[6] For greater understanding, see the article, “Open Letter to Those Who Miss the Rapture.“

 

This article results from numerous questions I replied to on the Gog/Magog postings a few months ago, but it is easier now to make it a posting. I am posting the relevant passage for this discussion, and sorry it is a bit long, but necessary.

{{Ezekiel 39: ⁷ “My holy name I shall make known in the midst of My people Israel; and I shall not let My holy name be profaned anymore. And the nations will know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel. ⁸ Behold, it is coming and it shall be done,” declares the Lord GOD. ‘That is the day of which I have spoken.

Ezekiel 39: ⁹ ‘Then those who inhabit the cities of Israel will go out, and make fires with the weapons and burn them, both shields and bucklers, bows and arrows, war clubs and spears and for seven years they will make fires of them. ¹⁰ They will not take wood from the field or gather firewood from the forests, for they will make fires with the weapons; and they will take the spoil of those who despoiled them, and seize the plunder of those who plundered them,’ declares the Lord GOD.

¹¹ ‘It will come about on that day that I shall give Gog a burial ground there in Israel, the valley of those who pass by east of the sea, and it will block off the passers-by. So they will bury Gog there with all his multitude, and they will call it the valley of Hamon-gog [of his defeat]. ¹² For seven months the house of Israel will be burying them in order to cleanse the land. ¹³ Even all the people of the land will bury them; and it will be to their renown on the day that I glorify Myself,’ declares the Lord GOD”}}

Following the three-part series on the Gog/Magog war that was posted on RaptureReady around March 2022, so many questions got asked of me. That is good; it means a lot of people read RR. One of the most common questions was the timing of this battle, and a lot of readers saw it as happening during the Tribulation but not at the end of the Tribulation. That was because they saw problems with the wood and the bodies in the verses above.

(a). So many asked about why the Jews would need firewood.

(b). So many have a problem with dead bodies and army items all over the place at the start of the Millennium if the Gog war was part of the Armageddon campaign.

(c). In the past, I have been asked how can it be that weapons are made of wood.

I want to say that all these questions have arisen from people carefully reading these two Ezekiel chapters and having problems with the matters I mentioned above.

I want to make it abundantly clear that I am not the expert who can answer all these things, and I am prepared to say no one is. We do the best we can with God’s help, with the proviso that none of us knows exactly how these things will pan out, except the physical conditions resulting from the Gog war. I am being forthright with you that in the past, and even now, I wondered/wonder about these matters ((a)-(c)) and still have no definite solution to them. I am going to speak on them in this article.

I hope it causes readers to go to the scriptures and examine them.

[1]. Let us again examine this verse which I have done in the past – {{Ezekiel 39:7 “My holy name I shall make known in the midst of My people Israel; and I shall not let My holy name be profaned anymore. And the nations will know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel.”}}

This verse introduces all the verses which follow in the sense that all succeeding verses depend on this one. They flow out of it. Gog/Magog have just been defeated supernaturally by God, and immediately the LORD makes that declaration that He will never again allow His holy name to be profaned – no more cursing, no blasphemy, no taking His name in vain.

All those who read Revelation know that the whole world blasphemes, and keeps doing it, right up until the Second Coming. Just look at this verse that must be only a matter of weeks away or a few months at the most, from the Second Coming – {{Revelation 16:11 “and they blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and they did not repent of their deeds.”}}

The conclusion from that is that there can be no Gog war before the Second Coming, else there would be no more blasphemy or profanity, but there is, right up until the Second Coming. That must be conclusive proof that the Gog war cannot be before the Rapture or anywhere during the Tribulation. It has to be right at the end when Jesus returns to defeat Gog (and all the other Armageddon forces) to set up His Millennial Kingdom.

The second truth coming from verse 7 is that the nations will know that God is the LORD and that He is the holy One IN Israel, not the holy One of Israel. That means when He is reigning IN Jerusalem, and it is in line with Zechariah 14. Again, that is conclusive proof that the Gog war is on the eve of the Second Coming.

[2]. There is a small matter in this verse – {{Ezekiel 39:8 “Behold, it is coming and it shall be done,’ declares the Lord GOD. ‘That is the day of which I have spoken.”}}

All through the Old Testament, the prophets write about the DAY of the LORD, over and over. I did a 12-part series on that which is on RR, and that is the DAY that the Lord openly pours out His wrath on the world because of the unrepentant sin and wickedness.

It happens after the Rapture and not before because it relates to all the prophecies concerning Israel. The signs the Lord gave for His coming in Matthew 24 are DAY of the LORD signs.

WOOD AND FIREWOOD

[3]. We come now to a difficulty I mentioned earlier on. {{Ezekiel 39: ⁹ “Then those who inhabit the cities of Israel will go out, and make fires with the weapons and burn them, both shields and bucklers, bows and arrows, war clubs and spears and for seven years they will make fires of them. ¹⁰ They will not take wood from the field or gather firewood from the forests, for they will make fires with the weapons and they will take the spoil of those who despoiled them, and seize the plunder of those who plundered them,’ declares the Lord GOD.”}}

The most important word in that passage above is “Then,” and it continues the narrative following the beginning of the reign of the King/Messiah in Israel in verse 7. It is so important in 39 verses 7 to 10 to see the progression. We now understand the following from chapter 39 – Gog is defeated; God’s holy Name will never be profaned again; Messiah is reigning in Jerusalem; THEN verses 9 and 10 continue the narrative.

Honestly, I cannot provide arguments or reasons for verse 9, the burning of the weapons, but before that, I need to speak on a question I was asked over and over. That question was, “How can this stuff like cleaning up the land for seven years happen after the Second Coming? Surely that sort of thing can’t happen in the Millennium?” They are very valid questions. I can understand why they would be asked.

Firstly, in considering this, it must be said that the Millennium is not an instant fix of a totally new set of conditions. That will not happen until the new heavens and new earth.

Activities keep happening in the Millennium; the seed is sown, the reaper does his work, only that the sower will outstrip the reaper because everything is so abundant. Isaiah 11 gives more.

It is not strange that the land of Israel would be cleansed from war. If a conflict happened now, there would be haste to make mass graves and just use front-end loaders to sweep the debris and bodies away (sorry if that sounds crude). However, in the Millennium, they will be slow and fastidious. That shows it is a different era then, with different methods and values – another reason why the Gog war can only be on the eve of the Second Coming.

We come now to a question skeptics like – “What is this weapons of wood stuff? Surely the Bible is wrong and that Gog thing was way in the past?”

The only way I can answer that is like this. There would have been something wrong if Ezekiel was speaking of modern weapons of steel and other materials unknown to him. He was only able to explain it in terms known to him. I believe we have the liberty to transfer that understanding to our own time, and that means we don’t take the wood necessarily literally.

I am a literalist through and through, but there are times we have to “look through the expression” as we do in the Lord’s statement, “This is My body.”

I have tried searching a lot for some extra thoughts on the burning of the weapons, and this is all I got. If fact, no one can answer satisfactorily.

Pulpit Commentary – “Kliefoth appears nearest the mark, in suggesting that the emphasis lies upon the length of time the burning should continue; and that this was intended, by conveying an idea of the vastness of the spoil, to represent the thoroughness of Gog’s destruction and of Israel’s deliverance. That the whole delineation is symbolical, appears from the number of years the weapons are said to serve for fuel, viz. seven.”

Smith’s Bible Commentary – “Translated into modern warfare, they will be burning the oil supplies, no doubt, that have been brought in in this massive invasion. And they will have their energy needs taken care of for a period of seven years. [NOTE: As this battle is the same time as Armageddon, then there will be extra supplies from the Antichrist’s armies and the kings of the east.] So that they will not have to cut wood out of the field, neither cut down any of the forests; for they shall burn the weapons with fire: and they shall spoil those that spoiled them, and rob those that robbed them, saith the Lord GOD. It shall come to pass in that day, that I will give unto Gog… (Ezekiel 39:10-11).”

There are those who say Israel will take the uranium from the weapons and use that for fuel (power). I am not sure about that. We must be careful not to get too speculative.

There is one aspect here I find very, very interesting. Ezekiel says they will not need to take wood/trees from the forest/field for fuel for 7 years. The quotes above mention oil and uranium. The left-wing environmentalists are trying to trash all fossil fuels (and they include uranium). We know the great scream is on today to abolish fossil fuels and drag the western nations into ruin, all because of the hoax of climate change, and if there is any climate change, there is no link whatever with fossil fuels. God thinks fossil fuels are okay, so much so that they will be used in the Millennium.

The weapons can be recycled and used in Israel. Construction and life continue in the Millennium.

God laughs at the fools who are trying to destroy nations through the climate change hoax. Why did God give these fuels if they were not meant to be used? The Marxist climate-change activists would dismiss that as they rage against God, but Christians who accept climate change should take note.

Just before the Second Coming, maybe less than a few months, the bowl judgments are poured out in quick succession.

These are severe, and they end the Tribulation judgments. Just notice one of those judgments – {{Revelation 16:8-9 “The fourth angel poured out his bowl upon the sun, and it was given to it to scorch men with fire, and men were scorched with fierce heat; and they blasphemed the name of God who has the power over these plagues, and they did not repent so as to give Him glory.”}} They talk up global warming – God will give them global warming.

DISPOSING OF THE BODIES

[4]. The next point concerns the burial of the enemy hordes that intended to wipe out Israel. NASB {{Ezekiel 39: ¹¹ “It will come about on that day [of Gog’s defeat] that I shall give Gog a burial ground there in Israel, the valley of those who pass by east of the sea, and it will block off the passers-by. So they will bury Gog there with all his multitude, and they will call it the valley of Hamon-gog.

¹² ‘For seven months the house of Israel will be burying them in order to cleanse the land. ¹³ Even all the people of the land will bury them; and it will be to their renown on the day that I glorify Myself,’ declares the Lord GOD.”}}

What can we now take from the verses above?

(a). “On that day” is always indicative of The DAY of the LORD and the time right at the end (of the age – Matthew 24:3).

(b). Gog will meet his demise in the very land Satan brought to defeat.

God will annihilate Gog along with all the Armageddon forces.

(c). Hamon-gog. One Jewish etymology site gives the meaning as “Multitude of The Rooftop denoting a large group of noisy people.” Nearly all biblical commentaries point it out as being a burial place for the Gog/Magog armies. The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia says this – “HAMON-GOG: ha’-mon-gog (hamon-gogh, “the multitude of Gog”): The name of the place where “Gog and all his multitude” are to be buried (Ezekiel 39:11, 15). By a change in the pointing of Ezekiel 39:11, ha-`abharim for ha-`obherim, we should read “valley of Abarim” for “valley of them that pass through.” In that case, it would seem that the prophet thought of some ravine in the mountains East of the Dead Sea.”

(d). The land will be carefully cleansed of defilement, and that will take 7 months.

(e). God glorifies Himself at the Second Coming, for it is the coming in glory. The Day that Messiah-Jesus glorifies Himself will be when He delivers His people by destroying Gog and then establishing Himself in Jerusalem as King.

FINAL THOUGHT. The people with narrow vision might say, as many do, “The Gog war must be before the Rapture, or straight after because it takes 7 years to clean up.” This is one of the prevailing ideas used to place the war very early (and very wrongly), as no mess must be there when Messiah comes to the Mount of Olives. That is so wrong, however.

Armageddon happens with the Second Coming. The Lord descends from heaven on the white horse and does battle with all the Armageddon forces, and THEN descends to Olivet. The debris from Armageddon is there right at the start of the Millennium. Don’t use that illogical argument for Gog and yet overlook all the war machinery and dead bodies from Armageddon. The same principle of clean-up will apply in the Millennium from Armageddon.

ronaldf@aapt.net.au