[Biblemat] A) "ARMAGEDDON" AND "HELL"

[J5827Sasser at wmconnect.com]

Brethren and Friends, Jim Sasser here.  A very good Wednesday
morning to each and everyone.  May God bless you and yours.
Here is an article from my files:

"ARMAGEDDON" AND "HELL"

     Today, many believe and teach that there will be one last
horrific battle fought here upon the earth between good and
evil known as the battle of Armageddon.  It is a battle that will
occur just prior (or subsequent) to the 1000 year reign of 
Christ on the throne of David in the Temple in Jerusalem.
Interestingly enough, like the 1000 year reign, Armageddon 
is mentioned specifically in only one chapter of the Bible, Rev. 16:13-16.  
This reference describes a scene in which
frogs come forth from the mouths of creatures to do battle
for the devil, the result of which is a war in which there are
200,000 horsemen and a river of blood 200 miles long.  Sounds ridiculous 
doesn't it?  Well, it is.

     To begin with, we must remember that while most view the
Book of Revelation as a book of prophecy, it is in reality, a
book of history, for it deals with "things which must shortly
take place" (Rev. 1:1).  Not only so, these events that were to
happen in the lives of first century Christians masked in a
cloak of figurative language.  Understanding this, the langua-
ge of Rev. 16 describes a real conflict between good and evil
that existed in the first century as Rome persecuted faithful
disciples of Christ.

     Exactly what is Armageddon (Har-Magedon)?  The Hebrew
word "har" was used loosely to refer to "hill" or "hill country."
The hill of Megiddo was approximately 70 fee high in John's
day in the vicinity of the Carmel range.  It was here, in the 
Valley of Jezreel where a number of famous battles were fought that 
historically stood as a battleground between the
forces of good and evil.  It was here that Deborah and Barak
defeated the Canaanites (Jdgs. 4:15), and Saul was defeated
by the Philistines (1 Sam. 31:8).

     It needs to be recognized, however, that in speaking of
Armageddon, or the hill of Megiddo, that John is not alluding
to a literal place.  Instead, Armageddon stands symbolically
for the battleground where Satan and his army are destroyed
and overcome by Christ.  The entire message of Revelation
was intended to encourage Christians of the first century to
remain faithful in the midst of enormous pressures to worship
the emperor of Rome.  John wrote to inspire first century dis-
ciples to endure horrific persecution intended to force them
into emperor worship.  Armegeddon describes thsi battle.  So
when Rome fell and false emperor worship ceased, the battle
of Armageddon was over.

     To understand this, consider that the use of geographical
points to emphasize spiritual truths is a common Biblical phenomenon.  For 
instance, the word "hell" (gahenna in Greek) relates to the Hebrew gehinnon, 
which was the valley
of Hinnom just south of Jerusalem.

     It was in this valley the Jews offered their children as burnt 
sacrifices to pagan gods.  Because of its connection 
with such events, Hinnom eventually became the city dump
of Jerusalem in which fires burned constantly in an attempt
to destroy the refuse.  Consequently, because of its connect-
ion with suffering and pain and constant burning, gahenna
became a symbol for the final punishment of hell.

     It is just as absurd to believe that there will be a literal 
battle of Armageddon fought in the Valley of Jezreel as it is to
believe that on the Day of Judgment God will cast the wicked
into the literal valley of Hinnom just south of Jerusalem.  The
fact is, those fires went out centuries ago.   ---- Clark Dugger
via Gospel Power, Vol. 13, No. 48, Nov. 26, 2006.

     (Concerning the return of Christ to the earth to reign on
the literal throne of David in Jerusalem for a thousand years,
the Bible, nowhere, says that Christ will ever set foot upon
this earth again.  To the contrary, we are told that when He
comes in Judgment that He will be in the air and the dead in
Christ will rise from the dead first, then those alive in Christ
will be changed in a twinkling of an eye and they both will be
caught up into the air to ever be with the Lord.  (1 Thes. 4:13-
18).  JWS).
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