The Messiah's Return Series

This verse portrays the exceeding distress of Jerusalem and it appears that the city and all its inhabitants are hopelessly doomed. Four statements give us the dire straits to which the city and its inhabitants are reduced.

Notice the type of people these anti-Christ armies are and see if you do not agree with God that they deserve the wrath He has in store for them.

First, "the city will be captured." They conquer by hate, aggression, and physical power. They will tolerate any who will not worship their leader.

Second, "the houses plundered." They steal that which is not theirs indication the insatiable greed to possess.

Third, "the women raped" - violated. Their uncontrollable lust and licentiousness show they are the worst of villains.

Fourth, "and half the city exiled." They make slaves out of people whose ideologies differ from their own.

Yet "the rest of the people," the remnant (yether from yather) are not killed. They may well be awaiting execution.

As these nations converge in an attempt to annihilate Israel, the Lord will return and physically fight for Israel, the people He cares about so deeply. Verse 3, "Then the LORD will go forth and fight against those nations as when He fights on a day of battle."

Here is given the reason for the terrible and desperate condition which the Jewish remnant will encounter. Their dire extremity becomes the Lord's opportunity. God often stretches our faith by waiting till the seriousness of the crisis is upon us before He answers. Here He stretches their faith to the absolute limit.

It is a time of terrible horror when the enemy seems brutally triumphant and the future of even the remnant of God's ancient covenant people is in danger of total extinction and the covenants and promises made to the fathers in peril of being unfulfilled forever. "Then the LORD will go forth and fight." In this hour of apparent triumph of the anti-God and anti-Christ forces bent on removing all remembrance of the name YHWH from this earth, "The LORD will go forth and fight." When all seems hopeless, when all the previous victories of refinement seem lost in defeat, the Lord Himself appears as the divine warrior (2 Sam. 11:1; Isa. 26:21; Ex. 15:3).

This is the battle of Armageddon mentioned in Revelation 16:16. As the nations converge around Jerusalem, a series of wars occur culminating in the valley of Megiddo, or Armageddon. God has gathered His enemies together (including evil spirits) as a great horde in one place to deal with them in the sight of His people. Read Ezekiel 38:14-23.

The words "go forth" are employed of a king going out to war at the head of his troops (1 Sam. 8:20; Judges 4:14; 2 Sam. 5:24). The Lord has fought for His people before, [Ex. 14:13f; Josh. 10:14; Jud. 4:15 2 Chron. 32:21,] but never with the finality of this battle. This day is the day of the Lord when He takes vengeance on all "those nations" that have done His people harm (Ezek. 38 & 39).

II. THE PHYSICAL RETURN OF THE MESSIAH, 14:4-7.

Verses 1-3 provide a fitting introduction by presenting the drastic need which only the omnipotent God can handle. When the nations are ready to annihilate Israel and destroy Jerusalem, Jesus will return as verse 4 promises. "(4a) "And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives which is in front of Jerusalem on the east;"