Location of the Coming Messiah

The Location of the Coming of the Messiah According to the Hebrew Scriptures

The purpose of this study is to show where the Second Coming of the Messiah will take place.  This subject is often misunderstood by even the most noted scholars. There is much confusion concerning the timing of the Second Coming and the Rapture of the Church, and the term Battle of Armageddon is also an event that is often misunderstood.  This will detail the scriptures indicating the return of the Jewish Messiah, Yeshua (Hebrew for Jesus).

The main error about the Valley of Armageddon is that it is incorrectly named. From the Hebrew Har-Meggido or Mount Meggido. Meggido is an ancient city near the Valley of Jezreel. There is no battle here only a gathering of the Gentile armies of the Anti-Messiah against the nation of Israel. This gathering is very much like the gathering of the Allied Forces in Ryad, Saudi-Arabia in Operation Desert Storm 1 in the early 1990's.  Bozrah is not the same Bosera in southern Iraq. (Both meaning sheep pen but are different locations.)

The armies are gathered, and Israel will learn of the passage:

Matthew 24:15-16, "Therefore when you see the 'abomination of desolation,' spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place" (whoever reads, let him understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains."

They heed this prophesy and flee to the mountainous wilderness in Southern Jordan (Edom) to a city called Bozrah. Bozrah is an Old Testament city in Edom whose name translates as sheep pen. The city that closely resembles a sheep pen in Southern Jordan is the ancient Roman city called Petra. A rock fortress that is highly defendable with the surrounding mountains. The remnant of Israel flees Jerusalem as foretold in Isaiah.

The allure of the Nabatean city of Petra in Jordan tempted young Israelis to sneak across the border for a visit in the 1950s and 1960s, some loosing with their lives for the attempt. Several were killed by Bedouin Nomads or Jordanian Military.  There was no peace with Jordan at the time. The Hebrew song Ha-Selah Ha-Adom, the Red Rock, referring to mysterious Petra, was even banned from the radio for a time for fear that it would incite young men to make the hazardous journey.  Click here to listen to a version of this alluring song.  

Click here to hear the mp3 of the song: Ha-Selah Ha-Adom.

HASELA HAAdom words.pdf

Today, this monument marks the place of their attempted crossing. Perhaps during the Great Tribulation, the monument will mark the way to Petra for the Jews of Jerusalem who will flee from the advancing armies of the antichrist.

Isaiah 33:16-17 "He will dwell on high; His place of defense will be the fortress of rocks; Bread  will be given him, His water will be sure. Your eyes will see the King in His beauty; They will see  the land that is very far off."  

The LORD will provide for the remnant just as He did for the Israelites during the Exodus from Egypt. A clear passage of the remnants gathering as prophesied by Micah.

Micah 2:12-13 "I will surely assemble all of you, O Jacob, I will surely gather the remnant of Israel; I will put them together (in Bozrah) like sheep of the fold, Like a flock in the midst of their pasture; They shall make a loud noise because of so many people. The one who breaks open will come up before them; They will break out, Pass through the gate, And go out by it; Their king will pass before them, With the LORD at their head."

One way in and one way out of the city.

The term sheep of the fold is the Hebrew name for the city of Bozrah. The phrase should read  ...I will put them together in Bozrah... when a city is not well known the translators often usually  translate the meaning of the name instead of the name itself. For example Jerusalem is well  known and is usually never "the city of peace" which is what the name translates. The passage that clearly shows the battle which is to take place is clearly written in Isaiah 34:6 " The sword of the LORD is filled with blood, It is made overflowing with fatness, With the blood of lambs and goats, With the fat of the kidneys of rams. For the LORD has a sacrifice in Bozrah, And a great slaughter in the land of Edom."

Isaiah 34

Judgment on the Nations

The LORD's Wrath upon the Nations
¹ Come near, you nations, to hear;
        And heed, you people!
        Let the earth hear, and all that is in it,
        The world and all things that come forth from it.
        ²For the indignation of the LORD is against all nations,
        And His fury against all their armies;
        He has utterly destroyed them,
        He has given them over to the slaughter.
        ³Also their slain shall be thrown out;
        Their stench shall rise from their corpses,
        And the mountains shall be melted with their blood.
        ⁴All the host of heaven shall be dissolved,
        And the heavens shall be rolled up like a scroll;
        All their host shall fall down
        As the leaf falls from the vine,
        And as fruit falling from a fig tree.


        ⁵"For My sword shall be bathed in heaven;
        Indeed it shall come down on Edom,
        And on the people of My curse, for judgment.
        ⁶The sword of the LORD is filled with blood,
        It is made overflowing with fatness,
        With the blood of lambs and goats,
        With the fat of the kidneys of rams.
        For the LORD has a sacrifice in Bozrah,
        And a great slaughter in the land of Edom.
        ⁷The wild oxen shall come down with them,
        And the young bulls with the mighty bulls;
        Their land shall be soaked with blood,
        And their dust saturated with fatness."


        ⁸For it is the day of the LORD's vengeance,
        The year of recompense for the cause of Zion.
       

Isaiah 62
¹¹Indeed the LORD has proclaimed
        To the end of the world:
        "Say to the daughter of Zion,
        "Surely your salvation is coming;
        Behold, His reward is with Him,
        And His work before Him."'
        ¹²And they shall call them The Holy People,
        The Redeemed of the LORD;
        And you shall be called Sought Out,
        A City Not Forsaken.

Isaiah 63


¹ Who is this who comes from Edom,
        With dyed garments from Bozrah,
        This One who is glorious in His apparel,
        Traveling in the greatness of His strength?--


        "I who speak in righteousness, mighty to save."


        ²Why is Your apparel red,
        And Your garments like one who treads in the winepress?


        ³"I have trodden the winepress alone,
        And from the peoples no one was with Me.
        For I have trodden them in My anger,
        And trampled them in My fury;
        Their blood is sprinkled upon My garments,
        And I have stained all My robes.
        ⁴For the day of vengeance is in My heart,
        And the year of My redeemed has come.

       
"Who could this be? Only the Messianic Person, the only one who is capable to save. The garments are dyed with blood, and not His blood. The blood is from the war with the armies of the Anti-Messiah who have chased the Jewish people from Jerusalem to Bozrah or Petra. The following passage is often thought to be the Messiah's blood, but it is clear that the Messiah was given glorified clothing at the resurrection.

Revelation 19:11-13 Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. His eyes were like a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one knew except Himself. He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God.

Something happens in this city to cause such judgment that it will like that of Babylon a perpetual wasteland. Jeremiah 49:13-16 "For I have sworn by Myself," says the LORD, "that Bozrah shall become a desolation, a reproach, a waste, and a curse. And all its cities shall be perpetual wastes." I have heard a message from the LORD, And an ambassador has been sent to the nations: "Gather together, come against her, And rise up to battle! "For indeed, I will make you small among nations, Despised among men. Your fierceness has deceived you, The pride of your heart, O you who dwell in the clefts of the rock, Who hold the height of the hill! Though you make your nest as high as the eagle, I will bring you down from there," says the LORD.

Jeremiah 49:22 Behold, He shall come up and fly like the eagle, And spread His wings over Bozrah; The heart of the mighty men of Edom in that day shall be Like the heart of a woman in birth pangs.

These passages collectively show that something takes place at the Second Coming of the Messiah. The initial return will not be in Armageddon, or on the Mount of Olives. A summary sequence of the events are as follows:

1. At the close of the tribulation all Gentile nations gather in the Valley of Jezreel near the Mountain of Meggido.
2. The Jewish remnant will flee Jerusalem and run south because the armies of the Anti-Messiah are in the north in Meggido.
3. They will flee the land of Israel and somehow end up in Southern Jordan (Edom) in the city of Petra or ancient Bozrah.
4. Out of desperation the Jewish remnant will call upon the Messiah while in Petra or  Bozrah. They will say;"Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD." All of Israel will be Saved (Romans 11).
5. The Messiah will return with the great sacrifice of the Gentile armies in  Bozrah. Bozrah will be made into a  total burning wasteland through out the millennial kingdom.
6. The Sword of the Lord will smite the Gentile Armies until there is blood up to the horses neck for 200 miles back to Jerusalem.
7. The movement will be northward to Jerusalem where He will make the victory assent to the Mount of Olives.
8. There will be a gathering of all surviving Gentiles where the Messiah will divide them according to their helping Jesus' brethren the Jews. The pro-Semitic sheep gentiles will be allowed into the Kingdom and the anti-Semitic goat gentiles go into everlasting punishment.
9. The Davidic throne will be established in Jerusalem and the earth will be renovated for the Messianic Kingdom that will last one thousand years.

Bozrah is the locations of Messiah's initial Second Coming in Petra, Jordan

Messiah will then make His way to Jerusalem to the Mount of Olives, then to the Temple Mount.

Bible Gateway search results for the word "Bozrah"

Bozrah is also called Sela (Rock)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Sela (from Se'lah, rock) was the capital of Edom, situated in the great valley extending from the Dead Sea to the Red Sea (2 Kings 14:7). It was near Mount Hor, close by the desert of Zin. It is called "the rock" (Judg. 1:36). When Amaziah took it he called it Joktheel(q.v.) It is mentioned by the prophets (Isa. 16:1; Obad. 1:3) as doomed to destruction.
Sela is identified with the ruins of Sela, east to Tafileh in Jordan (identified as biblicalTophel) and near Bostra, all Edomite cities in the mount of Edom.

Old Sela

Sela appears in later history and in the Vulgate Version of the Bible under the name ofPetra. "The caravans from all ages, from the interior of Arabia and from the Gulf of Persia, from Hadramaut on the ocean, and even from Sabea or Yemen, appear to have pointed to Petra as a common centre; and from Petra the tide seems again to have branched out in every direction, to Egypt, Palestine, and Syria, through Arsinoe, Gaza, Tyre, Jerusalem, and Damascus, and by other routes, terminating at the Mediterranean." (See Edom [2].)
Sela in Saudi Arabia is also an abandoned Jewish city, just north of Medina, the city of Prophet Mohammad north of Mecca.

The Life Of Enoch Part Four

Sheol


Now let’s talk a bit about the temporary place named Sheol. According to Scripture, it is divided into two different compartments. In the Gospel of Luke 16:19-31, we are told the two compartments “hold the righteous believers and the unbelievers.” The writer of Luke revealed to us the two compartments are not only a distance apart from each other, but there is a chasm between the two.

Verse 23, “And being in torment in Hades, he looked up and saw Abraham a long way off, with Lazarus at his side.” Then in verse 26, “Besides all this, a great chasm has been fixed between us and you, so that those who want to pass over from here to you cannot; neither can those from there cross over to us.”

This Sheol is the one which Jesus Christ went down into for three days and three nights. ( “For Jonah was in the belly of the huge fish three days and three nights, so the Son of Man will be in the heart of the earth three days and three nights,” Matthew 12:40.) Now, compare that verse from Matthew with Jonah 1:17, “Now the Lord appointed a huge fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the fish three days and three nights.” We find that the Messiah actually did go into the heart of the earth. There is no way around this proof. 1 Peter 3:19, “In that state He also went and made a proclamation to the spirits in prison who in the past were disobedient when God patiently waited in the days of Noah while an ark was being prepared.”

The text of Matthew 12:40, gives us important clues to solve the answer of why the Messiah went into Hell. First of all, let us begin to find out who these “spirits” are that Peter is telling his listeners about. 1 Peter 3:19, “In that state He also went and made a proclamation to the spirits in prison who in the past were disobedient…” The first initial clue Peter has given us is this: (He also went), this meaning is referring to Sheol. But in which part of Sheol was Jesus Christ located? He was with the wicked. After entering Hell, His second event was that He preached. In other versions of the Bible, it mentions He proclaimed. The Greek definition of the word “kerugma” states: 1. That which is promulgated by a herald or public crier, a proclamation by a herald; 2. In the N.T. the message or proclamation by a heralds God or Christ. This is from Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament, Page 346, Strong’s Number 2782.

The Messiah was in Sheol with the wicked who rejected the message of Noah. Inside Genesis 6:1, (“Their days will be 120 years”) I take this to account that Noah preached 120 years before the actuality of the flood. The book of Genesis gives an account of how men fell away from God. Noah, a preacher of righteousness preached to his generation, but that particular generation was waxed cold. In Genesis 6:11, “Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight, and the earth was filled with wickedness.” Verse 12 states: “God saw how corrupt the earth was, for every creature had corrupted its way on the earth.” This is that generation to whom the Messiah made a proclamation. (Those who believed in YWHW) YOD HAY VAV HAY.

Since they would not listen to Noah, they now have to listen to Jesus Christ in Sheol, the place of the wicked. Let us not get off track scripturally. The Messiah did not make a proclamation to the Niphilim Giants nor did He go into any particular region of Sheol where the Niphilim Giants dwelled in judgment. Why I make this statement is quite clear in the scripture, 2 Peter 2:4, “and delivered them to be kept in chains of darkness until judgment.” Peter tells us of the temporary judgment they are in, but this passage also speaks of a future judgment for the Niphilim Giants, waiting for them.

In these four Chapters, we discussed Enoch’s genealogy, who Enoch was, what Enoch did on earth, where Enoch went, and lastly the two chambers of Sheol for the wicked and the righteous. In the next several installments, the topic we will be discussing is if Enoch could be a candidate to be one of the two witnesses spoken of in Revelation. Then, we will be closing out our final chapters about Elijah and Moses. We will be detailing the account of Moses as one of the true witnesses with Elijah in Revelation.

SALT COVENANT –Part 2

Written by Michael Jones

As believers, we should realize the spiritual error when we do not truly follow the Messiah with our whole heart. In turn, it will affect the salt that we have in our spiritual man, and our sin will slowly erode the spiritual salt we already have.

In unity, Satan and his Demons (fallen angels) are trying to destroy God’s children who have a personal relationship with our Creator. The evil one hates the very fact that we worship Jesus Christ, and give glory unto Him, and Satan is very jealous of God’s splendor. Lucifer wishes our very worship were directed to him. John 10:10 says, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.” Jesus told us through His word that He has given us authority over the Demonic realm. If Jesus has given us this type of authority then we should realize this is part of the “armor of God” Paul speaks about.

Jehovah will not leave us without His authority for us to exercise and use. His armor will never leave us wanting and spiritually naked. He is faithful enough to keep us equipped with His Word. By studying and praying each day we are clothed with the armor of God. With it, comes His wisdom and knowledge of how the enemy operates. In turn, it also shows us how God operates.

As long as we are in communion with Jesus Christ, the prayers we pray are a salt offering, which is a sweet aroma for God. Our every word, our every thought, which comes from the heart, is a salt sacrifice that we should give to Jesus our Lord when praying.

As you see, our Creator will preserve our spiritual nature through the act of salt. We draw nearer to Him because of the refining process that works within us. Through our prayers, our sins are blended together with the salt of God. What does this mean to us as Christians? In time, the salt He graciously sprinkles over us will begin to purify us. Before we go further, it is important for us to know the facts about “living in sin” and being “born into sin.” There is a clear distinction between the two. When a person defies God and purposely lives in his or her sin, it is known as habitual sin. Thus, they are “living in sin.” A person may be bound by their sin and cannot be set free from it until they give it over to the Creator’s hand. Adversely, everyone here on earth is “born into sin.” As Christians, we may not have a physical bondage with a certain sin. However, the fact is that we were born into sin. We are in need of Jesus’ sacrificial blood that He once shed on the tree in order for us to have forgiveness of sin.

When we are getting our lives back in order with Jesus Christ, the spiritual salt starts immediate healing in our spiritual man. We begin to shift from the worldly system of Satan, and we begin to transition our lives into the hands of Jesus. Through time, our sin will not have the power over our flesh. The salt pulverizes our sin so our prayer life can be free from any restraint.

If we continue to stray from Him, as Cain did, with self-centered prayers and impure motives, we should be prepared that God will not honor our prayers. Cain had given God a less-than-worthy offering to Him and he purposely short-changed Him of the offering by not giving his best to his God.

What Is The Prophetic Significance of Jerusalem’s Eastern Gate?

February 20th, 2011

by Dr. David Reagan

The Eastern Gate in the old walled city of Jerusalem has a very special place in my heart, for it was that gate which God used to open my eyes to His Prophetic Word.

The year was 1967. The occasion was the Six Day War. As the fate of the new state of Israel hung in the balance, I searched the newspapers daily for any information I could find about the war. The turning point came on June 7 when the Israeli army broke through the Lion’s Gate and returned control of the ancient city of Jerusalem to the Jewish people for the first time in 1,897 years.

A Mysterious Remark

The next day I read a fascinating news account about one of the Jewish commando groups that had been involved in the assault on the city. The article stated that some members of the group had suggested catching the Jordanian defenders of the city off guard by blowing open the sealed Eastern Gate. But the leader of the group, an Orthodox Jew, had vehemently protested the idea, stating that “the Eastern Gate can be opened only when the Messiah comes.”

That statement caught my eye. I wondered what the fellow was talking about. I knew nothing about the Eastern Gate except that it was the only gate of the city that led directly onto the Temple Mount. I was not aware that it was sealed, nor did I know that its opening was in any way Biblically linked to the return of the Messiah.

A Remarkable Prophecy

I decided to do some research on the matter, and that decision initiated my study of Bible prophecy. I had been attending church for 30 years, but like most Christians, I knew nothing about Bible prophecy. The topic was generally ignored by the preachers in the church I grew up in.

My concordance quickly directed me to the passage that the Orthodox Jew had alluded to. I found it in Ezekiel 44. The context is a supernatural tour the Lord is giving Ezekiel of the future Millennial Temple (40:1-3).

In chapter 43 the Lord gives Ezekiel a vision of God’s glory entering the Millennial Temple from the east, through the Eastern Gate. The Lord then says to Ezekiel:

“Son of Man, this is the place of My throne and the place of the soles of my feet where I will dwell among the sons of Israel forever” (43:7).

The Lord then reveals to Ezekiel that the Eastern Gate will be closed for public use and will be available only to a person who is described as “the prince” (44:3).

The identity of this prince is one of the mysteries of Bible prophecy. He certainly is not the Messiah, for he offers a sin offering for himself (45:22), and he has sons (46:16). Some have speculated he might be King David, but David will have a glorified, sinless body during the Millennium and thus would not need a sin offering. Most likely, he is a regent of King David, a prince in the flesh who is a descendant of David.

A Pre-fillment in Type

Bible prophecies often have a pre-fillment in symbolic type before their actual fulfillment in history. A good example is Antiochus Epiphanes who was a symbolic type of the Antichrist. Another example would be the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD, which was a symbolic type of the destruction Jerusalem will experience during the Great Tribulation.

In like manner, I believe the prophecy of Ezekiel 44:1 was pre-filled symbolically almost 500 years ago in 1517 when the Turks conquered Jerusalem under the leadership of Suleiman the Magnificent. He commanded that the city’s ancient walls be rebuilt, and in the midst of this rebuilding project, for some unknown reason, he ordered that the Eastern Gate be sealed up with stones.

Legends abound as to why Suleiman closed the Gate. The most believable one is that while the walls were being rebuilt, a rumor swept Jerusalem that the Messiah was coming. Suleiman called together some Jewish rabbis and asked them to tell him about the Messiah. They described the Messiah as a great military leader who would be sent by God from the east. He would enter the Eastern Gate and liberate the city from foreign control.

Suleiman then decided to put an end to Jewish hopes by ordering the Eastern Gate sealed. He also put a Muslim cemetery in front of the Gate, believing that no Jewish holy man would defile himself by walking through a Muslim cemetery.

Another Prophecy

The Jews believe the Eastern Gate will remain shut until the Messiah returns. I think they are correct.

Psalm 24:7-10 contains a prophecy about the Lord’s return. It reads as follows:

“Lift up your heads, O gates,
And be lifted up, O ancient doors,
That the King of glory may come in!

Who is the King of glory?
The Lord strong and mighty,
The Lord mighty in battle.

Lift up your heads, O gates,
And lift them up, O ancient doors,
That the King of glory may come in!

Who is this King of glory?
The Lord of hosts,
He is the King of glory.”

This is clearly Second Coming imagery. The Lord is returning as a King ready for battle. And when He returns, the doors of one of the gates of the Old City of Jerusalem will open to receive Him. I believe this is speaking of the Eastern Gate which is now closed, for the Messiah is always pictured in Second Coming prophecies as returning from the east. For example, in the Second Coming passage in Isaiah 63:1-6 the Messiah is portrayed as coming to Jerusalem from the direction of Edom and Bozrah — areas to the east.

A Prophetic Symbol

The Eastern Gate has remained sealed now for almost 500 years, and the Muslim cemetery still blocks the entrance. The old walled city has eight gates, and the Eastern Gate, and it alone, is sealed — just as prophesied in Ezekiel 44. The world would call that an “amazing coincidence.” I call it a “God-incidence.”

I believe the Eastern Gate is proof positive that the Bible is the Word of God. Its sealing is clear evidence that we are living in the end times. The Gate awaits the return of the Messiah. Then and only then, will it be opened.

An Exciting Vision

I have a vision of what that glorious day will be like. It is related to the Lord’s First Coming. I believe Jesus is going to replay His triumphal entry into Jerusalem when He returns.

When He came the first time, Jesus rode a donkey from the Mount of Olives down into the Kidron Valley and up to the Eastern Gate where He entered the Temple Mount for His last days of teaching. As He made that ride, the Valley of Kidron was filled with thousands of admirers who had heard about the resurrection of Lazarus. They waved palm branches and chanted, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” Within a few days that same fickle crowd was shouting, “Crucify Him!”

We are told in Revelation 19 that when Jesus returns He will come as a victorious military conqueror, riding through the air on a supernatural white horse. In Isaiah 61 we are told that He will come from the east, and in Zechariah 14 we are told that he will touch ground on the Mount of Olives.

Revelation 19:14 says that all the Redeemed will come with the Lord. Think of it! You and I will be there to witness the Lord’s return. Zechariah 14 says He will speak a word that will supernaturally destroy the Anti-Christ and his forces.

Then, I believe we will witness a replay of the Lord’s triumphant entry into Jerusalem. With angels hovering above and millions of the Redeemed filling the Kidron Valley, Jesus will ride up to the Eastern Gate on His white horse, and as He approaches the Gate, it will blow open. He will then enter the City of David, and to the triumphant shouts of “Hosanna to the Son of David,” He will be crowned the Kings of kings and the Lord of lords.

by Dr. David Reagan