| Chapter 13 The Image of the Beast–The Siege of Jerusalem |
The Antichrist will sign a peace treaty with Israel, guaranteeing the nation’s peace, but at midway three and a half years later in the middle of the 7 year tribulation is when Jerusalem comes under siege.
Simultaneously with the Antichrist setting up his image in the Jewish Temple, or after the Antichrist’s declaration, armies will surround Jerusalem. No one will anticipate this event even though many will be aware of the construction of the “image” because sometime towards the middle of the Tribulation, the Antichrist suffers his fatal wound and survives and the false prophet commissions the building of the image, but no one expects what will occur at its completion or Jesus would not have issued so many warnings regarding this image. Believers living during the Tribulation should be able to piece together the signs and the 144 thousand witnesses will be preaching about the times as a warning along with teaching the Gospel.
When the image is launched in the Jewish Temple, and the Antichrist gives his speech and proclaims his deity, he will already have arranged for armies to surround Jerusalem to destroy the Jews and he takes Jerusalem as his headquarters. Daniel 11:45 predicts and affirms,“And he shall plant the tents of his palace between the seas and the glorious holy mountain, yet he shall come to his end, and no one will help him.”
Jesus describes the suddenness of the siege, and the severity of it. The abomination of desolation, with the image of the beast placed in it, is the marker.
Jesus warned in Matthew 24:16-22
15 “Therefore when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’[c] spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place” (whoever reads, let him understand), 16 “then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 17 Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house. 18 And let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes. 19 But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! 20 And pray that your flight may not be in winter or on the Sabbath. 21 For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. 22
Here we see the marker of the Abomination of Desolation, i.e. the avatar like robot presented in the temple as the timing of the siege of Jerusalem. So severe is the attack that Jesus tells the Jews living in Jerusalem to flee to the mountains, and if they are on the rooftop they are not go after any of their belongings and if they are in a field they are not to even run back and get their clothes. In Matthew the armies surrounding Jerusalem are not mentioned, just the timing of the forces, We get the detail of the army in Luke 21:20-38 Which reads:
20 “But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is near. 21 Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those who are in the midst of her depart, and let not those who are in the country enter her. 22 For these are the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled. 23 But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! For there will be great distress in the land and wrath upon this people. 24 And they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
In Luke we see Jesus also tell the Jews to flee to the mountains, and for those who are in Jerusalem to not enter the city and those in it to leave. We also see the woe to those who are pregnant or nursing because fleeing the war will be much more difficult for young mothers or mothers to be. Matthew adds an interesting verse, “And pray that your flight may not be in the winter or on the Sabbath.” What is first to be noted is that Jesus tells them to pray that their flight not be in the winter or on the Sabbath, this tells us that these particular Jews know the prophecy and are aware they are in the Tribulation and that the abomination of desolation, siege of Jerusalem and Mark of the Beast are coming. Concerning their flight in winter, Israel has mild winters of about 40 to 65 degrees, but with little belongings, the nights can be cold and uncomfortable without blankets and sufficient clothing and in the mountains where Jesus tells them to flee, it can get as cold as 34 degrees at night.
On the Sabbath Israel shuts down and many of the stores are closed, which would make it easier for an invading army to capture those fleeing, and to take over the City.
With the setting up of the avatar or image of the Beast in the Jewish Temple, and the Antichrist’s proclamation of his deity, he will launch a surprise attack and surround the City with troops to overtake it and make it his headquarters.
Daniel 11:31states, And forces shall be mustered by him, and they shall defile the sanctuary fortress; then they shall take away the daily sacrifices, and place there the abomination of desolation.”
Daniel 8:12, Because of transgression, an army was given over to the horn to oppose the daily sacrifices; and he cast truth to the ground. He did all of this and prospered.
Zechariah 13-9-10 tells us “That two-thirds in it shall be cut off and die, But one-third shall be left in it: I will bring the one-third thought the fire, Will refine them as silver is refined And test them as gold is tested. They will call upon my name, And I will answer them. I will say, “This is my people; And each one will say, The Lord is my God.”
Broken Peace Treaty with Israel
The following verses speak of the broken covenant with Israel, the Antichrist who promised the nation peace has now taken it siege and set up his headquarters and expanded his empire to Israel. The following verses are also Biblical prophecies regarding the siege.
Isaiah 33:7-22
7 Surely their valiant ones shall cry outside,
The ambassadors of peace shall weep bitterly.
8 The highways lie waste,
The traveling man ceases.
He has broken the covenant,
He has despised the cities,[a]
He regards no man.
9 The earth mourns and languishes,
Lebanon is shamed and shriveled;
Sharon is like a wilderness,
And Bashan and Carmel shake off their fruits.
The ambassadors of peace shall weep bitterly.
8 The highways lie waste,
The traveling man ceases.
He has broken the covenant,
He has despised the cities,[a]
He regards no man.
9 The earth mourns and languishes,
Lebanon is shamed and shriveled;
Sharon is like a wilderness,
And Bashan and Carmel shake off their fruits.
Psalm 55:20-21
20 He has put forth his hands against those who were at peace with him;
He has broken his covenant.
21 The words of his mouth were smoother than butter,
But war was in his heart;
His words were softer than oil,
Yet they were drawn swords.
He has broken his covenant.
21 The words of his mouth were smoother than butter,
But war was in his heart;
His words were softer than oil,
Yet they were drawn swords.
Within these passages we also see the outcome of the attack, the ambassadors of peace weeping bitterly’ signifying the wailing of great loss, “the highways lie waste” meaning it will look like a war zone, “the traveling man ceases” meaning that it is in such a state no one will dare travel to it, the Antichrist is referred to as breaking the covenant by this act, as hating the cities because he destroys them and regarding no man meaning he has no regard for human life. The disaster is so great that the earth itself is depicted as mourning and languishing and the city becomes a wilderness. Psalm 55 relays this as an act of war. In Revelation 12:15 the attack is compared to the force of a flood.
Joel 1:6 might also fit this invasion especially with the reference to the teeth of a lion, the Revelation describes the Antichrist as having the mouth of a lion.
Joel 1:6 to 7,
For a nation has come up against My land, Strong and without number; His teeth are the teeth of a lion, He has laid waste my vine, And ruined my fig tree; He has stripped it bare and thrown it away; Its branches are made white.
While the Antichrist attacks Israel a good part of the world worships the Image of the Beast, while the Mark of the Beast and his police state is instituted. It is possible that at the setting up of the avatar and the accompanying speech, which the Bible refers to as the mark of the beast that his plans for that technology to be instituted are laid out and he lets the populace know what to expect. He will also launch his campaign against all religions and seek to destroy them along with the Jews.
It will be at this time that internet censorship of all that has to do with Jesus Christ, the Bible, and Christianity and all that the Antichrist feels opposes him will be censored from the internet and anyone posting anything contrary to his empire will be arrested.
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