Feast of Trumpets - 2004

Fred Coulter - September 16, 2004

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Greetings, brethren, to the Feast of Trumpets, 2004. And here we are with the time going by. We’re at the fourth holy day of the year. The first holy days of the year apply directly to the church. The last four: Trumpets, Atonement, Tabernacles, and the Last Great Day apply to the world, and also to the church. And in this, this Feast of Trumpets, as we come down through Leviticus 23, it lists all the holy days. All the holy days are important to God, and they tell the plan and the story that God wants us to know so we can understand why we’re here, where we’re going, what God is doing, how He’s doing it, approximately when He is going to do it so we can have understanding, faith, and hope. That’s why we have the holy days.

Now the Feast of Trumpets is an unusual feast inasmuch as that it pictures being a war-feast from this point of view. Let’s go to Leviticus 23, which we always do, and here we have the Feast of Trumpets. It says in verse 23, “And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall ye have a sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation” (Lev. 23:23-24). Now the “memorial of blowing of trumpets” means that the trumpets were to be blown all day long. So this is a feast where then it incorporates everything that it talks about what the trumpets are used for in Numbers 10. We’re going to see this as we go through the explanation of the day.

Let’s come over here to Numbers 10 and let’s go back and review the use of the trumpet. There were two special trumpets that were made. One, Numbers 10:2 - the calling of assembly. Verse 5, and this is calling of assembly, as we will see. God is going to gather all nations there at Armageddon. And then it’s blown for an alarm or a warning, which this day is. And then it’s also, verse 9, if you go to war. So this is a war feast. But also, after the war is over you have the recovery of it, so you also have the trumpet here. “…In the day of your gladness, and in your solemn days, and in the beginnings of your months, ye shall blow with the trumpets over your burnt offerings, and over the sacrifices of your peace offerings;…” (Nu. 10:2, 5, 9-10). So the trumpet had a lot to do with the ceremony at the temple. And of course, as we will see as we already have leading up to Pentecost, that the trumpet plagues in Revelation 8 and 9 have an awful lot to do with the fulfilling of God’s plan and the carrying out of what He’s doing leading up to the return of Jesus Christ.

Now in Leviticus 23 it says that on this day we are to offer an offering made by fire unto the Lord. And of course we always take up an offering on the holy days. An offering is something that you need to determine, something that you need to plan for, something that reflects your thankfulness to God for the blessings that He has given you, and it has to be from your heart.

And so God expects us to do that and then we in turn use this money to help the brethren. Everything that you send in is used to produce books, booklets, tapes, CD’s, pay for mail, pay for office help, and all of these things. So if you appreciate receiving the tapes, if you appreciate receiving the things then you can express it back in an offering, which will then be honored by God because you give from a willing heart and attitude. So at this time we’ll pause and take up the offering.

(Pause)

Now as we saw leading up to Pentecost and including Pentecost, that the return of Jesus Christ is a spectacular event. And it’s something that is not just done in an instant, and it’s something the whole world will understand when the time comes. And it will be something that no one is going to be able to avoid. It’s not going to be a secret rapture. It’s not going to be a secret coming. It is going to be known in power and strength and glory, and especially as we will see for the Feast of Trumpets, because the Feast of Trumpets caps off the return of Jesus Christ to this earth.

Now when Jesus was talking to His disciples on the Passover night, He said, “If I go I will come again and receive you to Myself, so that where I am you may be also.” So Christ is going to receive us to Himself. But many people don’t believe in the return of Jesus Christ anymore. We’re going to find that that is going to be more and more of a problem. And also that people are so deceived with the Rapture, even to the point that some of them say, “Well, you can receive the mark of the beast and still go to heaven.” Well I don’t read that in the Bible. The Bible says you have to have victory over the beast and over his mark, and over his number, and over his name. But nevertheless they are not going to believe it because there is going to be, as we’ll see a little later, a false messiah, a false prophet and they are going to deceive the whole world under the spiritual power of Satan and the demons.

Now the apostle Peter wrote of this in II Peter 3, so let’s turn there. And while you’re turning there remember this: that Jesus even said when He comes will He find faith in the earth? Of course there will be some with His church. But even then, the quality of faith is in question. Now here in II Peter 3 is what Peter wrote. He said, “Now, beloved, I am writing this second epistle to you; in both, I am stirring up your pure minds by causing you to remember in order for you to be mindful of the words that were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of the Lord and Savior, spoken by us, the apostles; knowing this first, that in the last days there will come mockers, walking according to their own personal lusts, and asking, ‘Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the forefathers died, everything has remained the same as from the beginning of creation’ ” (II Peter 3:1-4, FV). And so they have ignored the facts of history, as he says there in verse 5. They have ignored the facts in the geological table of the earth. They have believed in evolution. They don’t believe in God. They don’t believe in the second return of Jesus Christ. And so when Jesus Christ comes, you wait and see, He is going to be counted as an alien. He and His angels and all the saints with Him. We’re going to see this.

Let’s look at some of the prophecies which tell us about the setting up of the kingdom of God on earth at the return of Jesus Christ in power and in glory, and in a scope that is going to be awesome indeed. Far greater than even most of us in the church have ever assumed or ever thought of. It is going to be something else.

Now here, let’s go back to the book of Daniel. And of course the whole book of Daniel tells us some of the things here about the return of Christ and when these things will be, and how they are going to happen, and what it is going to be like. Let’s come to Daniel 2 because here is a promise that was given to Nebuchadnezzar in the interpretation of the dream that he had, which Daniel interpreted for him. Now I’m not going to go through the whole thing, but we’ll just come here to Daniel 2:44. We’re going to see how this fills in, in the book of Revelation a little later.

“And in the days of these kings…” So there’s coming a time when all of these things will be. And they’re going to be done on time according to God’s schedule, according to His plan as outlined by the holy days, and God has predetermined all of this. You know, the apostles wanted to know, “Are You at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” And He said, “No, you go your way and you preach. That’s given into the hands of the Father and that’s under His authority.”

It talks about it. “And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed:…” Notice how it’s going to come. “…And the kingdom shall not be left to other people,…” It’s going to be given to the saints and we’re going to rule, and we’re going to reign. And we’re going to help straighten out this whole earth. You see, the Protestants focus in on having sin forgiven so they can be right with God, and they can be saved, and they can go to heaven. And they never get past beginning. God wants us to grow in character, grow in knowledge, grow in understanding. He wants us to develop the character so that we can rule and reign with Jesus Christ, because it’s not going to be left to other people, it’s going to be for the saints. And this whole civilization of this world is going to come to a destructive end. And that’s what this feast pictures – the destruction of the civilizations of this world. And it’s pictured right here.

“…It shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever. Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure” (Dan. 2:44-45). Now all of the details are not given here.

Some of the details are given a little later in chapter seven. Let’s come over here and see this. This is quite a thing. Brethren, God has called us to the greatest calling, to the greatest event, to be able to be partakers of it, to be able to be part of it, to be able to help solve all the problems of this world. And know for sure they’re going to get worse.

Daniel 7:13, “I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven,…” That’s how He’s coming. That’s how He left. That’s how He’s returning. And the book of Revelation says every eye shall see Him. “…And came to the Ancient of days, and they brought Him near before Him. And there was given Him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve Him: His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.” Now you see, this is going to bring the beast, the false prophets, the nations of the world into a head-on confrontation with the return of Jesus Christ and the saints of God. But as we are going to see, they are going to lose. And they are going to lose big time.

Now when we come to verse 27, again we’ll see that dominion was given to Christ, and then He gives some of that dominion to us to rule and reign with Him. “And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey Him” (Dan. 7:13-14, 27). But the thing that is profound and important is the way this is going to happen and how big an event this is going to be. It is going to be almost beyond the scope of our imagination. So maybe we can help expand that a little more today, to understand that we are called to the greatest most significant and most profound event to ever occur since the creation of the world. And that’s what this Feast of Trumpets is all about.

Now let’s look and see a little bit more here. We’ll come back to chapter 8 when we get to the feast a little bit later on. But let’s come over here to Daniel 12:1. “And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people [so this is going to rescue the physical tribes of Israel]: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time Thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.” Now we saw that. We saw how the first resurrection takes place on Pentecost. And we’re going to look at the events that take place after we are on the sea of glass leading up to the literal return of Christ and the saints on the earth.

Now let’s come to Jeremiah 25 and let’s see what a tremendous event this is going to be. This is going to be something just affecting the whole world. Jeremiah 25:12, “And it shall come to pass, when seventy years are accomplished,…” Now, it finishes off with the seventy year captivity of the Jews in Babylon, but then it extends out way beyond to the end. So this prophecy begins here and then projects to the return of Jesus Christ. “…I will punish the king of Babylon, and that nation, saith the LORD, for their iniquity, and the land of the Chaldeans, and will make it perpetual desolations. And I will bring upon that land all My words which I have pronounced against it, even all that is written in this book, which Jeremiah hath prophesied against all the nations.” Now you go back and you read Jeremiah 50, 51, and 52 and you see how profound this is going to be. He’s going to bring to pass all His words. “For many nations and great kings shall serve themselves of them also: and I will recompense them according to their deeds, and according to the works of their own hands. For thus saith the LORD God of Israel unto me; Take the wine cup of this fury at My hand, and cause all the nations, to whom I send thee, to drink it. And they shall drink, and be moved, and be mad, because of the sword that I will send among them.” So then Jeremiah said, “Then took I the cup at the LORD’S hand, and made all the nations to drink, unto whom the LORD had sent me:…” And He starts right at Jerusalem. Then it lists all the nation.

Now come over here to verse 26 and let’s see how far this goes. “And all the kings of the north, far and near, one with another, and all the kingdoms of the world,…” So when we come to the end-time and we’re talking about the return of Jesus Christ, we are talking about world-wide events. And we are living in a time when all of these things are possible. They weren’t possible 25 years ago, 30 years ago, 100 years ago, 500 years ago, 1000 years ago. But now they are possible. “…All the kingdoms of the world, which are upon the face of the earth:…” Now that’s very inclusive, isn’t it? That’s quite a thing to understand.

Now notice what it’s going to be. Verse 29, “For, lo, I begin to bring evil on the city which is called by My name,…” Now God is saying, “I want you to understand something very important. If I start correcting and bringing evil upon the city that is called by My name, the rest of you are not going to escape.” And we’re going to see the thing at Jerusalem is going to key these end-time events as never before. And we can see how that is coming more, and more, and more, and more, can’t we? Now notice, He says, “…Which is called by My name, and should ye be utterly unpunished? Ye shall not be unpunished: for I will call for a sword upon all the inhabitants of the earth, saith the LORD of hosts.” Now how all encompassing is that? That’s profound. Remember Jesus said, “It is a time of trouble that has not been since there was a nation on earth, nor no ever shall be.” And unless God had not limited that time all flesh should be destroyed. So we need to get our thinking caps on and we need to think big. We need to think huge. We need to use the Spirit of God to understand as greatly as possible, as much as we can, what God is going to do.

Now what you need to do is understand this: because these events are coming this way – do not be fearful! Do not be cowardly. Do not run and try and hide in a corner. God wants us to be courageous. God wants us to stand for the truth. God wants us to understand one thing very important – we are on God’s side and there is nothing that anyone can do to us to turn back what God has promised for us and to turn back the hand of God.

Just like He told Jeremiah when He said, “I want you to go.” He said, “I’m going to give you a forehead of flint so you will speak the words that I want you to speak, and don’t be afraid of them, don’t be afraid of their faces, don’t be afraid of their threats. So likewise with the events that are coming here at the end-time, don’t be afraid. But you know, as Luke wrote, “Look up and rejoice for your salvation is near.”

Verse 30, “Therefore prophesy thou against them all these words, and say unto them, The LORD shall roar from on high, and utter His voice from His holy habitation; He shall mightily roar upon His habitation; He shall give a shout, as they that tread the grapes, against all the inhabitants of the earth.” That’s why the book of Revelation is so profound because it shows how this is going to happen worldwide. “A noise shall come even to the ends of the earth; for the LORD hath a controversy with the nations, He will plead with all flesh; He will give them that are wicked to the sword,…” When we read the book of Revelation, the deaths are going to be astounding. It’s going to be something. “Thus saith the LORD of hosts, Behold, evil shall go forth from nation to nation, and a great whirlwind shall be raised up from the coasts of the earth. And the slain of the LORD [we’re going to see this in Revelation 16 a little later] shall be at that day from one end of the earth even unto the other end of the earth: they shall not be lamented, neither gathered, nor buried; they shall be dung upon the ground” (Jer. 25:12-17, 26, 29-33). Then He lays it all at the feet of the pastors and the shepherds. So there we have quite a situation with this as it is coming.

Let’s come back here to Revelation 13. Let’s see how all of this is going to develop. Now after seeing the events that have been taking place in Iraq, seeing the events that are transpiring with the United Nations, I’m more convinced in my own mind – so this is my own opinion – but I’m more convinced in my own mind than ever before that the United Nations is going to have to be reformed and reconstituted. And I think that it will probably take place in Europe. Now there are a lot of scandals coming out concerning how the U.N. has been run. There are some books coming out which are going to expose it, so that means that it’s going to have to be reformed. Which means that we have more time than the end coming just next year or the year after, or however long it will be. But you see, there is one thing we need to do: we need to always be ready. And as it says in the King James - we need to occupy. That means we need to be doing. And as we see the day coming closer we need to put forth the effort, we need to draw close to God, we need to be filled with His Spirit.

Now, Revelation 13 tells us how this whole world-wide system is going to develop. And it’s going to be awesome indeed. And there is going to come out of it the false Christ, the false messiah who is called the beast. And the world is being set-up for it. Part of it has to do with the movie “The Passion”, part of it has to do with The Da Vinci Code and the holy grail, and the movie that is coming out. Part of it has to do with how everything is being organized worldwide. Part of it has to do with the mark of the beast. Part of it has to do with the other events that are taking place, but they are all focusing together on fulfilling Revelation 13 to an absolute “t.”

Now let’s begin in Revelation 13:1. John saw this prophecy taking place. “And I stood on the sand of the sea; and I saw a beast rising up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns,…” - the signs of Satan the devil. This is his system. And it’s going to be his grandest most glorious system. “…And on his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.” Now this is going to be an unusual political set-up because it’s going to amalgamate and bring in the best of all the civilizations in the past, so that it is going to look like this is a wonderful and a magnificent thing.

“And the beast that I saw was like a leopard [so it’s going to have swift military], and his feet like the feet of a bear [it’s going to have power], and his mouth like the mouth of a lion; and the dragon gave him his power, and his throne and great authority.” So all of this comes from Satan the devil. God is going to let Satan the devil rise to where he’s going to be convinced in his own mind that he’s going to fulfill Isaiah 14 and finally have the forces, and finally have the ability, and finally have the capacity to rise and usurp the throne of God. And we will see how he’s going to try and convince the nations to do that. And it’s going to be quite a deception indeed.

Now let’s continue on. Verse 3, “And I saw one of his heads as if itwere slain to death, but his deadly wound was healed; and the whole earth was amazed and followed the beast.” And you can see how quickly this will take place. You can see what a fantastic thing this is going to be. So here we have, if the prophecies are correct back there in Daniel 9, which they are. All the prophecies are correct. It’s just a matter of our interpretation. So when we come to a final seven year period we’re going to have the first three and a half years be some of the most astounding things with false prophets, with miracles, with calling fire down from heaven, with nations giving their power and authority to the beast, with peace coming on the earth. And yet the prophets of God and the ministers of God are going to be saying, “Don’t be deceived. This is a deception and it’s not going to work because this is not of God – this is of Satan the devil.” And there are going to be some fanatics. Now we don’t know who they are but maybe they’re going to be fanatical Jews who will come and try and assassinate the beast so he receives a deadly wound, but his deadly wound is healed.

Now notice what happens after the deadly wound is healed. We’ll see this here. “And they worshiped the dragon,…” That’s why every vestige of Christianity must be destroyed in this plan that they’re bringing about, so that Satan-worship, and witchcraft, and all of these things will be the predominant form of worship. And that’s the only way that they are going to bring in a whole one-world religion, which will be an amalgamation. It will have parts of all the religions of the world just like the civil authority here has parts of all the great kingdoms of the world. But just like all the kingdoms of the world are going to give their power to the beast, all the religions of the world are going to give their power and authority to the second beast.

Now here’s what they’re going to do. “And they worshiped the dragon, who gave his authority to the beast. And they worshiped the beast, saying, ‘Who is like the beast? Who has the power to make war against him?’ And a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies was given to him; and authority was given to him to continue for forty-two months.” So after the deadly wound is healed he continues for forty and two months. The same exact time that it talks about in Revelation 11 that Jerusalem is trodden down of the Gentiles. So one of the first moves that he makes, as we find in Daniel 11, is he’s going to come against the king of the south, and he’s going to go into the holy land and stand in the temple and he is going to say that he is God. Now won’t that be interesting and profound if the beast power claims that he is of the Monrovian king line of Europe. And then everybody’s going to be convinced (because of the movie “The Da Vinci Code”, and other movies, and the book and so forth, that’s coming out) that he actually has the genes of the physical Christ through Mary Magdalene. Isn’t that something?

Now here’s what’s going to happen when he’s possessed of Satan the devil, when he is raised up from that. “And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme His name, and His tabernacle, and those who dwell in heaven.” You can put in your notes there II Thessalonians 2, that he goes into the temple of God and says that he himself is God. Well you know that’s not going to stand. Now notice, “And he was given power to make war against the saints,…” So here is something that God always allows the wicked to do: to think that they are winning. And that’s what happens – “…given power to make war against the saints, and to overcome them; and he was given authority over every tribe and language and nation.” So here’s the great counterfeit kingdom. Now notice, “And all who dwell on the earth will worship him, whose names have not been written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. If anyone has an ear, let him hear.” So there we have it. That’s how it’s going to be.

Now he’s going to have a partner and that partner is going to be another beast. And that partner is going to be the false prophet. And he is going to do great signs and great wonders. Let’s read it here, verse 11. “And I saw another beast rising out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, but spoke like a dragon; and he exercises all the authority of the first beast before him; and he causes the earth and those who dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. And he performs great wonders, so that he even causes fire to come down to the earth from heaven in the sight of men.” Now you know the old saying: seeing is believing. And if he says “I am from God” and people see this they’re going to say he’s from God. But the question needs to be: which God? The God of heaven, or the god of this world? Because Satan is called the god of this world.

“And he deceives those who dwell on the earth by means of the wonders that were given to him to perform in the sight of the beast, saying to those who dwell on the earth that they should make an image for the beast, which had the wound by the sword, yet was alive. And he was given power to give life to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast also could speak; and he causes everyone who will not worship the image of the beast to be killed.” And that’s when (how shall we say, the qualifying exam to receive the mark of the beast), to show that you are loyal to this new world government is going to be whether you will make the image, and fall down and worship the image. That’s why it’s absolutely profound that in every Catholic catechism the second commandment concerning idolatry is removed from the Ten Commandments. Yet, in their own Bibles, to show the gall, the hypocrisy, and to show how confident they are in their lying ability to change the Word of God, right in their own Bible they leave in the second commandment. So we’re going to make that one of the first things on Biblical Truth Ministries: “Lies From the Pulpit”, which by the time you view this video it will be up and going for quite a while, and I think you’re really going to like it.

Now let’s continue on here. “And he…” Now this “he” refers back to the first beast. And the second beast, undoubtedly the false prophet, is undoubtedly going to be the pope. It can’t be anyone else. And all the religions of the world will acknowledge him just like they do the first beast. And they say, “Ah, now we have a wonderful system. We have cultural diversity. We have all of the good things that we have here: multi-culturalism and every one loves each other and accepts each other, except for those people who won’t go along with this system and receive the mark of the beast, so they’re going to be killed.”

“And he causes all, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor,…” See, because it has to be a government edict to do it, to make it a requirement. “And he causes all, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free and the bond, to receive a mark in their right hands, or in their foreheads; so that no one may have the ability to buy and sell unless he has the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name” (Rev. 13:1-9, 11-17, FV). You can see how that is coming. I’m going to bring some sermons on the mark of the beast, which I hope to have out before the Feast of Trumpets. But it’s going to be something. It’s going to be everywhere, and in everything – this whole system, until the final thing is the mark of the beast in the right hand or in the forehead. Now it’s going to be quite a thing that’s going to take place.

Now let’s come over here to Revelation 15 and 16, and let’s see what’s going to happen because this fills in the gap from Pentecost up to Trumpets. And it’s going to be quite a thing. Let’s ask the question: as we saw on Pentecost first there’s the sign of the Son of man in heaven that shines like the light of day. And apparently it comes closer and closer, and closer, and closer, and closer to the earth. Everyone is going to see that. Everyone is going to know that something profound has happened, because as we saw on Pentecost the heavens are rolled back as a scroll. And God shakes the heaven and shakes the earth and shakes the sea and the dry land and everything that there is. It’s going to be an awesome time indeed. Then the resurrection takes place and every one meets Christ in the air on the sea of glass. Now how big will the sea of glass be when it finally comes down to the earth close enough in the clouds? And I think it’s going to be plenty close enough so that the people of the world are going to be able to see it, and that they are going to figure that this is an alien invasion, which is actually true from this point of view: we, and Christ, and the angels are the aliens. Not these silly looking things they depict in the movies. Those are not aliens. Those are silly things for people to be deceived.

Now how big will the sea of glass be? How high will it be? It’s going to be in the clouds. Now the highest clouds are 60,000 feet. So maybe it’s going to be like 10,000 or 15,000 feet, but every eye is going to be able to see it. Now when the saints are resurrected on Pentecost does the sea of glass move around the earth in accordance with the sun, and the dead are raised and brought up to the sea of glass all during the time that it makes it’s trip around the earth? And then does it stop and hover over Jerusalem? Now that’s a very distinct possibility. How big will this be? Well it’s going to be enough to accommodate all the saints, right? Yes, it will be. So let’s read that again.

Let’s review here in Revelation 15. “Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and awesome: seven angels having the seven last plagues,…” And this is going to lead up to the finality of Trumpets which will cap it off. “…For in them the wrath of God is filled up. And I saw a sea of glass mingled with fire, and those who had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, standing on the sea of glass, having the harps of God.” So how big is this sea of glass going to be? We’ll just review it here. They sing the song of Moses, they sing the song of the Lamb and then it says, verse 4, “ ‘Who shall not fear You, O Lord, and glorify Your name? For You only are holy; and all the nations shall come and worship before You,…’ ” Now that won’t take place right away. That’s a prophecy – shall. “ ‘…For Your judgments have been revealed’ ” (Rev. 15:1-4, FV). And then right after that we’ll take a look at what happens.

Part 2

Let’s set the stage and see what the world is going to be like, and then bring it altogether in Revelation 16. First of all let’s go to Isaiah 13:6. Let’s see where it talks about the day of the Lord, and this is theday of theLord, which He is going to execute upon the earth. Now it talks about the burden of Babylon in verse 1. So this is Babylon the great, as it’s called there in Revelation 18. Babylon the great.

Verse 6, “Howl ye; for the day of the LORD is at hand; it shall come as a destruction from the Almighty. Therefore shall all hands be faint, and every man’s heart shall melt: and they shall be afraid: pangs and sorrows shall take hold of them; they shall be in pain as a woman that travaileth: they shall be amazed one at another; their faces shall be as flames. Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate: and He shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it.” As we have seen before this is going to be so fantastic that, like it confirms here in verse 10, “For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine. And I will punish the world…” Now I want you to understand and grasp that all of this is a world-wide setting. “…I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and I will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease [and that is personified in the beast and the false prophet], and will lay low the haughtiness of [men] the terrible. I will make a man more precious than fine gold; even a man than the golden wedge of Ophir. Therefore I will shake the heavens, and the earth shall remove out of her place, in the wrath of the LORD of hosts [the wrath of God is contained in the seven last plagues], and in the day of His fierce anger” (Isa. 13:6-13). And so God is going to execute His wrath.

Now as we’ve talked about, let’s come here to Joel 2 and let’s see where it describes the armies of Revelation 8 and 9, and then that leads up to where we will be in Revelation 15 and 16 again. So we need to set the stage so we know what is going on here. But notice the warning that is given. Joel 1 talks about the Day of the Lord. And the Feast of Trumpets is the Day of the Lord to execute His vengeance.

Joel 1:15, “Alas for the day! for the day of the LORD is at hand, and as a destruction from the Almighty shall it come.” This is from God. This is not from man. But this is from God. We saw how men have their armies, how the things take place in Revelation 6. Then Revelation 8, it’s the angels of God against Satan and the demons. And now here, God set’s His hand. That’s what it’s going to culminate in. Now then, it talks about this army that comes from the east - the army of 200 million.

Now it talks about the Day of the Lord. Joel 2:1, “Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in My holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand;…” And that’s why we have to have the Feast of Trumpets so that we know, we understand that Christ is going to return. The Day of the Lord is coming, and it needs to be a warning for us that we get our lives right. And a warning for the world that they are going to know that it is God Who’s intervening. The very God they rejected, the very one that they have despised, the very one that they figure is going to be a nice meek little lamb is coming and returning in power and glory and authority such as the world has never, never seen in the most awesome and profound way that will ever be. There will never be another day like this. We need to understand it, brethren. God has called us to participate in some awesome things.

Now let’s continue here in Joel 2. “…A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations” (Joel 2:1-2). That means all the way down through the millennium. Of course when Christ is here ruling during the millennium nothing like this is going to happen. This is the culmination and the end of the rule of man and Satan the devil, and it is coming in such a way that it is literally going to destroy almost everything on the earth. You see, the great cities of the nations need to be destroyed. All their temples, all their idols, everything that men have made is going to be destroyed. And so we’re going to have quite a job rebuilding this earth. It is going to be something. I want us to have a little broader scope and understanding of what’s going to take place. This is going to be God directly intervening and doing it.

Now then it talks about the army. And it’s very interesting, the army comes and runs upon the walls and climbs in the houses. You know they have uniforms right now that they are developing for soldiers that will actually give medication to their bodies instantly when they are wounded so they can keep on going and fighting. And it sounds much like what they have here. And who knows what will happen. Will they develop an army where they implant chips? Will they put it into them and program them to go fight a battle and the generals are back there and the commanders are back there running all of these by remote controls? You know, all of these things are possible. We need to think about these things. This is going to be something.

Now let’s ask the question: where will the sea of glass finally come and be stationary? That’s going to be over the area of Palestine. How big will it be? I’ve asked the question before, and I’ve asked it to myself many times because I’ve been thinking on this. Now Ben Ambrose wrote a very wonderful paper. He got together with a mathematics instructor and figured out the math of what it would take for every eye to see the return of Jesus Christ; how far out it would have to be when the sign of the Son of man is first seen; and how close it comes to the earth, and so forth. And he has the question: how big will the sea of glass be? Well it’s going to have to be big enough to accommodate all the saints down through all the history of the world. So who knows how big that is going to be. Is it going to be fifty by fifty miles? Now that’s pretty big. And what is the world going to think when they look up there and see this? And how do we know that it’s going to be over Palestine? Right over Jerusalem? Well Joel 3 tells us.

Joel 3:2, “…I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for My people and for My heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations,…” He’s going to bring them down to the valley of Jehoshaphat. That is in the land of Palestine. We also will see a little later that that is called Armageddon. And it shows in other prophecies that the blood is going to run up to the horses bridle. You can figure blood being six to eight feet deep in the valley of Jehoshaphat. God is going to bring about a slaughter that is going to be just almost unreal. But that’s the only way that God is going to be able to conquer this earth, get rid of Satan the devil, get rid of the demons, get rid of the armies, get rid of all of the things that man has done against God.

Now let’s come here to Revelation 15. Now when they see the sea of glass up there and they begin to experience some of the things that God is doing to them, we’re going to see what they’re going to do. Now if you haven’t seen the movie “Independence Day” you be sure and see that, because that shows how that in the midst of aliens from outer space coming to this earth, that all the nations get together and rescue the earth.

Let’s come back to Revelation 15 and see how this is going to happen. Now we’re going to change views. Now we’re going to be looking at it from God’s point of view down on the earth, rather than on the earth just seeing what is here. We’re going to see it all and we’re going to see how God is going to do it. This is going to be something. And this is going to fulfill another promise that God has given to all the saints where God has said, “Vengeance is Mine, says the Lord.” And He’s going to execute it.

Before we get into Revelation 15 let’s come back to Psalm 149. This is quite a verse when you understand what it’s saying here. And I believe this is talking about the time being on the sea of glass. Psalm 149:1, “Praise ye the LORD. Sing unto the LORD a new song, and His praise in the congregation of saints.” Well, when is the congregation of the saints going to be all congregated together? At the resurrection. And where is that? On the sea of glass. “Let Israel rejoice in Him that made him: let the children of Zion be joyful in their King. Let them praise His name…” And isn’t that what it says we do back in Revelation 15? We sing the song of Moses, the song of the Lamb, and here’s another one we’re going to sing. “Let them praise His name in the dance: let them sing praises unto Him with the timbrel and harp. For the LORD taketh pleasure in His people: He will beautify the meek with salvation.” And that salvation is to be in glorified form, isn’t it? And we receive that and we’re on the sea of glass. “Let the saints be joyful in glory:…” You’re going to look at your new body, you’re going to look at your new self and we’re going to be joyful in that. God is going to give us something marvelous. “…Let them sing aloud upon their beds. Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a two-edged sword in their hand; to execute vengeance upon the heathen, and punishments upon the people; to bind their kings with chains, and their nobles with fetters of iron; to execute upon them the judgment written: this honour have all His saints. Praise ye the LORD” (Psa. 149:1-9). So we’re going to do it.

Now let’s go to Psalm 2 and let’s look down on the earth and God’s perspective and see what’s happening. “Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing?” To even imagine that they can fight against God and win - is anything more vain than that? “The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against His anointed,…” So they’re going to say, “Look, if we can turn back these aliens, which are up here on whatever kind of apparatus this is,…” And I imagine that they’re trying to shoot rockets up there, they’re trying to shoot off other things to try and destroy it and it just bounces off as if it’s nothing. They are really going to be really raging. This is going to be something indeed.

“…Saying, Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us. He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision. Then shall He speak unto them in His wrath, and vex them in His sore displeasure. Yet have I set My king upon My holy hill of Zion. I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto Me, Thou art My Son; this day have I begotten Thee. Ask of Me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel” (Psa. 2:1-9).

Now let’s come back to Revelation 15 and see how that’s going to be, because that’s exactly what we’re looking at here. Viewing now from the sea of glass, here’s what’s going to take place. Verse 5, “And after these things I looked, and behold, the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in heaven was opened.” So here the saints are going to see all of that. “And the seven angels who had the seven last plagues came out of the temple; they were clothed in linen, pure and bright, and girded about the chest with golden breastplates.” Quite a thing, isn’t it? Here are these angels to do the will of God. This is how God is going to fight against them - directly from Him. Right out of His temple. “And one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden vials, full of the wrath of God, Who lives into the ages of eternity. And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from His power; and no one was able to enter inside the temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels were fulfilled” (Rev. 15:5-8, FV).

Then Revelation 16:1, “Then I heard a loud voice from the temple say to the seven angels, ‘Go and pour out the vials of the wrath of God onto the earth.’ And the first angel went and poured out his vial onto the earth; and an evil and grievous sore fell upon the men who had the mark of the beast, and upon those who were worshiping his image.” Now, it’s going to be something because the mark of the beast is not just an accounting system, and buying and selling system. It is for total control. And so when these people give up their free moral agency to Satan the devil they are going to pay the price. And so this grievous sore, whatever it’s going to be … I don’t know if it’s going to start where the mark of the beast is and spread to the whole body – on their hand or on their forehead - it doesn’t tell us. But that is their just punishment. Probably most of them will die.

Verse 3, “And the second angel went and poured out his vial into the sea; and it became blood, like that of a dead man; and every living soul in the sea died.” The whole ocean is going to become a petrifying stench of dead fish, and dead whales, and dead men, and sunken ships. It’s going to be awesome. See, when Satan and men get together and defy God, and think that they can turn back the hand of God then God has to intervene and let them know Who is in charge. And notice all of these weapons God can use at any time. These are the same weapons that He used back when He fought against Pharaoh, right? Remember in the book of Exodus? Yes, indeed.

Verse 4, “And the third angel poured out his vial upon the rivers, and into the fountains of waters; and they became blood.” Now what’s this going to do to all the eco-freaks out there? Environmental Nazis. You see, God is going to destroy it. We need to understand that. We need to understand this: the only thing worth saving on this earth will be Israel, and the people that repent. Otherwise God would utterly destroy it all. But because He says He won’t, He’s not going to.

Now, how did the angels view this? How should we view this kind of destruction? There are going to be some people who say, “Well, that’s not the Jesus that I worship.” Well let me tell you something. If the Jesus you worship is not Almighty and can’t do these things, he is not the true Jesus Christ of the Bible.

Here’s how the angels view it. “Then I heard the angel of the waters say, ‘You are righteous, O Lord, Who are, and Who was, even the Holy One, in that You have executed this judgment. For they have poured out the blood of saints and of prophets, and You have given them blood to drink; for they are worthy.’ ” So there is the complete vengeance of God. “And I heard another voice from the altar say, ‘Yes, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are Your judgments.’ ” True and righteous – that God says, “Yes, the men on this earth deserve this.” This is His judgment. Well, that’s why Jeremiah said that the dead are going to be strewn from one end of the earth to the other end of the earth, as far as the eye can see.

“And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given to it to scorch men with fire.” And notice the attitude of all these things coming. You would think that they would repent. You would think that they would have some fear of God, wouldn’t you? No, they don’t. What happens? “…They blasphemed the name of God, Who has authority over these plagues, and did not repent to give Him glory.” That’s quite a thing.

Now then, to show how profound and evil that the beast, and the false prophet, and Satan are, “…the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the throne of the beast; and his kingdom became full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues because of the pain,…” So can you imagine having the mark of the beast, the grievous sore, having blood to drink instead of water, having been scorched by the sun, and now it’s so dark, probably just like it was back there in Egypt, that they felt the darkness. Back then they stayed in bed for three days. Couldn’t go out. And yet, it says, “…they did not repent of their works.”

Now here’s the last ditch effort that’s going to take place. You talk about Satan deceiving to the very end, and men being gullible to believe it. Let’s read it here. “And the sixth angel poured out his vial into the great river Euphrates; and its waters were dried up, so that the way of the kings from the rising of the sun might be prepared.” So the armies are still there. You see, God hasn’t done this to everybody, everywhere. The armies are still going to come. “Then 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 spirits of demons working miracles, going forth to the kings of the earth, even of the whole world, to gather them together to the battle of that great day of the Almighty God.” So they’re all being gathered for this battle. And this is the final climactic battle of all the disasters and wars and holocausts that have taken place in the great tribulation. This is the finality, and that’s what this day of Trumpets pictures – the final battle, the final war, the final end of these things.

And then He gives a little warning here. “Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is the one who is watching [now this is a warning for us] and is keeping his garments, so that he may not walk naked and they may not see his shame.” In other words, here’s a warning to the Laodiceans when they’re reading these things that they better get their lives squared around. Instead of being lukewarm and ho-hum, and all glad-handing and all socializing and all of this thing, brethren, we have got a tremendous mission ahead of us. We’ve got the greatest thing to look forward to that has ever been since the creation of the world, and we are going to be a part of all of these events that are going to culminate in the end of the rule of man and Satan the devil. Now that’s something. And when you read back there in Romans 8, the world is waiting for the manifestation of the sons of God. That’s us. The first thing they’re going to do though, is fight against God.

Now verse 16, “And he gathered them together to the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon [valley of Jehoshaphat].” Now they’re all there. They’re all ready to fight, and God ends it quickly. “Then the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and a loud voice came out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, ‘IT IS FINISHED.’ And there were voices and thunders and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were on the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great.” That’s something. You read through the book of Revelation – this earth is going to be shaken, and shaken, and shaken, and shaken, and shaken, over and over again all during that last three and a half year period. And here’s the greatest earthquake that has been.

“And the great city was divided into three parts; and the cities of the nations fell;…” All their buildings are going to collapse. Everything in these big cities is going to be utterly ruined and destroyed. “…And Babylon the Great was remembered before God to give her the cup of the wine of the fury of His wrath. And every island disappeared, and no mountains were found;…” So there’s no place to go hide. God is going to make it: you either repent and get right with Him or the end is here. “…And great hail, each stone the weight of a talent [180 pounds], fell down from heaven upon men; and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, for the plague was exceedingly great” (Rev. 16:1-21, FV). What an awesome thing that this is. That’s how Christ is going to return. It is going to be something. It is going to be absolutely just the most fantastic thing that we could ever imagine.

Now let’s come to Revelation 19 and we’ll see the finale. Verse 1, “And after these things I heard the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven,…” That is on the sea of glass, up in the clouds, in the first heaven – not the third heaven. But Christ is coming down. God the Father will come down, perform the marriage and the time of giving rewards to the saints and all of this sort of thing, so we understand what we’re going to do and how we’re going to do it and so forth. And after the seventh last plague is poured out the great multitude in heaven saying, “ ‘…Hallelujah! The salvation and the glory and the honor and the power belong to the Lord our God [now this is the hymn we’re going to sing]. For true and righteous are His judgments; for He has judged the great whore, who corrupted the earth with her fornication, and He has avenged the blood of His servants at her hand.’ And they said a second time, ‘Hallelujah! And her smoke shall ascend upward into the ages of eternity.’ ” In other words that smoke is going to go up and go out into the vastness of the universe and there will be specks of it just going on clear out through the whole galaxy and the universe.

“And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God, Who sits on the throne, saying, ‘Amen. Hallelujah!’ And a voice came forth from the throne, saying, ‘Praise our God, all His servants, and all who fear Him, both small and great.’ And I heard a voice like that of a great multitude, and like the sound of many waters, and the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, ‘Hallelujah! For the Lord God Almighty has reigned. Let us be glad and shout with joy; and let us give glory to Him; for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready.’ ” Now this is the beginning of the salvation of the world. So know and understand this: when God sets His hand to save the world He’s going to save it. But in order to save it, it’s going to have to be nearly destroyed.

“And it was granted to her that she should be clothed in fine linen, pure and bright; for the fine linen is the righteousness of the saints. And he said to me, ‘Write: Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb.’ And he said to me, ‘These are the true words of God.’ ” So they are going to take place. They are going to come to pass. And see, the world won’t know this because they don’t keep the feasts of God. They don’t keep the Sabbath, the Passover, Unleavened Bread, Pentecost, Trumpets, Atonement, Tabernacles, or the Last Great Day. They don’t know what God is doing. But God has revealed that to us – His mystery and His secret plan that He has proposed in Himself. And we are an intricate part of this. So brethren, see, these words are the true Words of God.

“Then I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said to me, ‘See that you do not do this! I am a fellow servant of yours, and of your brethren, who have the testimony of Jesus. Worship God. For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.’ And I saw heaven open; and behold, a white horse; and He Who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He does judge and make war.” Now the final battle comes. This is going to be awesome indeed.

“And He eyes were like a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns; and He had a name written that no one knows except Him. And He was clothed with a garment dipped in blood; and His name is The Word of God.” Now that goes right back to the beginning of the Gospel of John. “And the armies in heaven were following Him on white horses;…” That’s going to be us. So we’re going to be given a spiritual horse. We’re going to get on it and we’re going to go. “…And they were clothed in fine linen, white and pure.” Now Christ is going to do the fighting. “And out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He might smite that nations; and He shall shepherd them with an iron rod; and He treads the winepress of the fury and the wrath of the Almighty God.” See, God is saving up all of this for one last final battle. And it’s going to be something.

“And on His garment and on His thigh He has a name written: King of kings and Lord of lords. Then I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried out with a loud voice, saying to all the birds that fly in the midst of heaven, ‘Come and gather yourselves together to the supper of the great God so that you may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of chief captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of those who sit on them, and the flesh of all, free and bond, and small and great.’ And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies, gathered together to make war with Him Who sits on the horse, and with His army.” So here John was looking down and seeing that. That’s what we’re going to see when we start coming down off the sea of glass, and we’re on those white horses and we’re coming down with Christ and here are the birds flying, circling, coming for all this flesh that is going to be. And here we’re coming down out of the clouds with Christ on our horses. And so that’s going to be quite a thing.

Let’s go back to the book of Zechariah now and let’s pick up some more, as Paul Harvey would say “the rest of the story.” Now let’s see what’s going to happen to those that fight against Christ. This is going to be quite a thing. There’s no defense for this. It doesn’t matter what kind of army that you think you have. It doesn’t matter what weapons you think you may have. No one’s going to be able to fight against this. Zechariah 14:12 (hold your place there when we’re done with it because we’ll come back there again in a minute), “And this shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem;…” That’s where He’s gathered them, right? Yes. “…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.” In other words the flesh is just going to fall off their bodies, and the flesh is just going to collapse and the skeletons fall over, and that’s the end of the enemy. Now you tell me what man has any power against God to stop that? No man has.

Now let’s come back to Revelation 19. The first thing that needs to be done is you need to get rid of the leaders. Verse 20, “And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet who worked miracles in his presence, by which he had deceived those who received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image. Those two were cast alive into the lake of fire, which burns with brimstone;…” So God preserves them alive. Their flesh doesn’t fall off them like the others. But they just look at their armies and see all of this going on and all of their soldiers just becoming like crumpled heaps of rotten flesh and bones, and blood spewing everywhere, and guts spewing everywhere. You know, this is going to be an awesome sight. “And the rest were killed by the sword of Him Who sits on the horse, even the sword that goes out of His mouth; and all the birds were filled with their flesh” (Rev. 19:1-21, FV).

Now back to Zechariah 14. Here’s what’s going to happen, because we are coming back to this earth. Christ is going to stand on the Mount of Olives. Now remember, when Christ ascended into heaven, from where did He ascend? From the Mount of Olives. So He’s coming right back to the Mount of Olives. And what did the angels say when the apostles were looking up and wondering what was happening to Him? He said, “Why are you gazing up into the heavens? This same Christ is going to return in the same way” (Acts 1:11, paraphrased). Yes, and to the same place. Amazing, isn’t it?

Now let’s pick it up in verse 3. “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;…” So the whole geography is going to change, isn’t it? Yes indeed. So much for the Temple Mound. That’s going to be utterly destroyed, isn’t it? Yes indeed. “And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with Thee.” We’re going to put our feet on the mount of Olives with Him. Now notice verse 9, “And the LORD shall be King over all the earth:…” (Zech. 14:3-5, 9). That’s what it’s going to be.

Now the rest of the story is continued with the next holy day – the Day of Atonement, because there is yet one more judgment that needs to be taken place, and that is to get rid of Satan the devil.