Monday, December 10, 2012

"THE FINAL BATTLE"

Zechariah 14

 
 Behold, a day of the Lord is coming when the spoil [taken from you] shall be divided [among the victors] in the midst of you.
2 For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle, and the city shall be taken and the houses rifled and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go into exile, but the rest of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
3 Then shall the Lord go forth and fight against those nations, as when He fought in the day of battle.
4 And His feet shall stand in that day upon the Mount of Olives, which lies before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall be split in two from the east to the west by a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north and half of it toward the south.
5 And you shall flee by the valley of My mountains, for the valley of the mountains shall reach to Azal, and you shall flee as you fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah; and the Lord my [Zechariah’s] [a]God shall come, and all the holy ones [saints and angels] with Him.
6 And it shall come to pass in that day that there shall not be light; the glorious and bright ones [the heavenly bodies] shall be darkened.
7 But it shall be one continuous day, known to the Lord—not day and not night, but at evening time there shall be light.
8 And it shall be in that day that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem, half of them to the eastern [Dead] Sea and half of them to the western [Mediterranean] Sea; in summer and in winter shall it be.
9 And the Lord shall be King over all the earth; in that day the Lord shall be one [in the recognition and worship of men] and His name one.
10 All the land shall be turned into a plain from Geba to Rimmon, [the Rimmon that is] south of Jerusalem. But Jerusalem shall remain lifted up on its site and dwell in its place, from Benjamin’s gate to the place of the First Gate, to the Corner Gate, and from the Tower of Hananel to the king’s winepresses.

11 And it shall be inhabited, for there shall be no more curse or ban of utter destruction, but Jerusalem shall dwell securely.
12 And this shall be the plague wherewith the Lord will smite all the peoples that have warred against Jerusalem: their flesh shall rot away while they stand upon their feet and their eyes shall corrode away in their sockets and their tongue shall decay away in their mouth.
13 And in that day there shall be a great confusion, discomfiture, and panic among them from the Lord; and they shall seize each his neighbor’s hand, and the hand of the one shall be raised against the hand of the other.
14 And Judah also shall fight at Jerusalem, and the wealth of all the nations round about shall be gathered together—gold and silver and apparel in great abundance.
15 And as that plague on men, so shall be the plague on the horse, on the mule, on the camel, on the donkey, and on all the livestock and beasts that may be in those camps.
16 And everyone who is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles or Booths.
17 And it shall be that whoso of the families of the earth shall not go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, upon them there shall be no rain.
18 And if the family of Egypt does not go up to Jerusalem and present themselves, upon them there shall be no rain, but there shall be the plague with which the Lord will smite the nations that go not up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.
19 This shall be the consequent punishment of the sin of Egypt and the consequent punishment of the sin of all the nations that do not go up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.
20 In that day there shall be [written] upon the [little] bells on the horses, holy to the lord, and the pots in the Lord’s house shall be holy to the Lord like the bowls before the altar.

21 Yes, every pot in all the houses of Jerusalem and in Judah shall be dedicated and holy to the Lord of hosts, and all who sacrifice may come and take of them and boil their sacrifices in them [and traders in such wares will no longer be seen at the temple]. And in that day there shall be no more a Canaanite [that is, any godless or unclean person, whether Jew or Gentile] in the house of the Lord of hosts.
 
 
Luke 21
 
 Looking up, [Jesus] saw the rich people putting their gifts into the treasury.
2 And He saw also a poor widow putting in two mites (copper coins).
3 And He said, Truly I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them;
4 For they all gave out of their abundance (their surplus); but she has contributed out of her lack and her want, putting in all that she had on which to live.
5 And as some were saying of the temple that it was decorated with handsome (shapely and magnificent) stones and consecrated offerings [[a]laid up to be kept], He said,
6 As for all this that you [thoughtfully] look at, the time will come when there shall not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.
7 And they asked Him, Teacher, when will this happen? And what sign will there be when this is about to occur?
8 And He said, Be on your guard and be careful that you are not led astray; for many will come in My name [[b]appropriating to themselves the name Messiah which belongs to Me], saying, I am He! and, The time is at hand! Do not go out after them.
9 And when you hear of wars and insurrections (disturbances, disorder, and confusion), do not become alarmed and panic-stricken and terrified; for all this must take place first, but the end will not [come] immediately.
10 Then He told them, Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.
11 There will be mighty and violent earthquakes, and in various places famines and pestilences (plagues: [c]malignant and contagious or infectious epidemic diseases which are deadly and devastating); and there will be sights of terror and great signs from heaven.
12 But previous to all this, they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, turning you over to the synagogues and prisons, and you will be led away before kings and governors for My name’s sake.
13 This will be a time (an opportunity) for you to bear testimony.
14 Resolve and settle it in your minds not to meditate and prepare beforehand how you are to make your defense and how you will answer.

15 For I [Myself] will give you a mouth and such utterance and wisdom that all of your foes combined will be unable to stand against or refute.
16 You will be delivered up and betrayed even by parents and brothers and relatives and friends, and [some] of you they will put to death.
17 And you will be hated (despised) by everyone because [you bear] My name and for its sake.
18 But not a hair of your head shall perish.
19 By your steadfastness and patient endurance you [d]shall win the [e]true life of your souls.
20 But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know and understand that its desolation has come near.
21 Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, and let those who are inside [the city] get out of it, and let not those who are out in the country come into it;
22 For those are days of vengeance [of rendering full justice or satisfaction], that all things that are written may be fulfilled.
23 Alas for those who are pregnant and for those who have babies which they are nursing in those days! For great misery and anguish and distress shall be upon the land and indignation and punishment and retribution upon this people.
24 They will fall by [f]the mouth and the edge of the sword and will be led away as captives to and among all nations; and Jerusalem will be trodden down by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled (completed).
25 And there will be signs in the sun and moon and stars; and upon the earth [there will be] distress (trouble and anguish) of nations in bewilderment and perplexity [[g]without resources, left wanting, embarrassed, in doubt, not knowing which way to turn] at the roaring ([h]the echo) of the tossing of the sea,
26 Men swooning away or expiring with fear and dread and apprehension and expectation of the things that are coming on the world; for the [very] powers of the heavens will be shaken and [i]caused to totter.
27 And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with great (transcendent and overwhelming) power and [all His kingly] glory (majesty and splendor).

28 Now when these things begin to occur, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption (deliverance) is drawing near.
29 And He told them a parable: Look at the fig tree and all the trees;
30 When they put forth their buds and come out in leaf, you see for yourselves and perceive and know that summer is already near.
31 Even so, when you see these things taking place, understand and know that the kingdom of God is at hand.

32 Truly I tell you, this generation ([j]those living at that definite period of time) will not perish and pass away until all has taken place.

33 The [k]sky and the earth ([l]the universe, the world) will pass away, but My words will not pass away.
34 But take heed to yourselves and be on your guard, lest your hearts be overburdened and depressed (weighed down) with the [m]giddiness and headache and [n]nausea of self-indulgence, drunkenness, and worldly worries and cares pertaining to [the [o]business of] this life, and [lest] that day come upon you suddenly like a trap or a noose;
35 For it will come upon all who live upon the face of the entire earth.
36 Keep awake then and watch at all times [be discreet, attentive, and ready], praying that you may have the full strength and ability and be accounted worthy to escape all these things [taken together] that will take place, and to stand in the presence of the Son of Man.
37 Now in the daytime Jesus was teaching in [[p]the porches and courts of] the temple, but at night He would go out and stay on the mount called Olivet.

38 And early in the morning all the people came to Him in the temple [[q]porches or courts] to listen to Him.
 
 

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