Is Armageddon imminent? Yes, but not now and in a different way

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Armageddon, the “great final battle,” is imminent. In light of the looming, expanding theaters of war on this earth, calls for an impending Armageddon are growing louder. This is a scaremongering that completely ignores biblical prophecy.

Cobbled together piecemeal work

A new “wave of panic” is spreading. After images of the drying Euphrates River were shown on social media a few months ago, and in the meantime, images of blood-red rivers were seen, the increasingly loud cries of impending “Armageddon” are now being heard. The reason for the impending “doom” is the renewed hostilities in the Middle East and the threat of an attack on the United States. Whatever the outcome.

Armageddon is the great, final battle in which all things will be decided. This is now imminent, according to the panicky cries.

Well, it’s a familiar patchwork, though. Like the drying Euphrates River and the blood-red waters, Armageddon is also mentioned in some form in the Bible. However, such key phrases are simply extracted and sent out into the world as a warning message, without considering any context. “Red River? Yes, there’s something about that in the Bible.”

When will Armageddon come? What does the Bible say?

The term Armageddon (also called Armageddon) appears once in the Bible, in Revelation 16:16:
“And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon.“

To learn who, why, where, and when the people are gathered, one is immediately forced to read the verses before and after to understand the context. Verse 12 in chapter 16 already makes it clear that before Armageddon, an angel pours out the “sixth bowl of wrath.” This means that there must have been five other bowls of wrath before. In fact, there are seven bowls of wrath in total, and these are the last seven plagues of God. It is therefore obvious that humanity must have been struck by a total of six plagues before Armageddon.

The first plague causes nasty and painful sores on people; the second plague turns the (entire) sea red, and all(!) marine life dies. With the third plague, rivers and springs also turn blood red. The third plague causes scorching heat from the sun. The fifth angel, with his bowl of wrath, causes a darkening of the kingdom of the beast, and its inhabitants are particularly plagued by the pain of the boils. With the sixth plague, the great river Euphrates dries up. Only then does Armageddon become a topic.

If Armageddon were now on the horizon, it would completely dismiss all the previous plagues. Firstly, the red river here and the blood-red water there, as has just been reported in the media, are nothing compared to the impending plagues, and secondly, they are entirely explainable natural phenomena, some of which even attract tourists because of their predictable appearance. The drying up of the Euphrates River, which clears the way for the “kings of the East,” is clearly an antitype, for which in ancient times the Medo-Persians actually diverted the Euphrates River so that they could march into the city of Babylon on dry land. This was the foretold downfall of Babylon within one night. Daniel chapter 5 reports this.

Origin of the term Armageddon

The word Armageddon comes from the Hebrew and means “Mount Megiddo.” In front of it lies a small valley, a historical scene of several battles that Israel had fought with its adversaries (Zechariah 12:11; Judges 5:19; 2 Chronicles 35:22; 2 Kings 23:29). Also nearby is the famous Mount Carmel, where the prophet Elijah, along with 250 Baal priests and the assembled people of Israel, provided proof of the true Creator God (1 Kings 18)..

Battle of Armageddon is symbolic

Revelation 16:13-16 explains that “demonic spirits” will cause the kings of the earth to gather at Armageddon, on that “great day of God Almighty.” If we take these passages literally, that the kings of the earth would gather with their armies for the “great final battle,” what would that actually look like?

How would that even work if some 190 countries concentrated their armies in a small valley, and what would they do? Therefore, the gathering at Armageddon is clearly symbolic of the “final battle.” Babylon is on the verge of certain destruction. The battle is being waged against the last people of God: those who continue to obey God’s commandments and have the testimony of Jesus. Because they are precisely the target of the great adversary (Revelation 12:17).

Armageddon is the final call to wipe out the “rebellious” people from the face of the earth—those who disobey the legislation against God’s commandments and thus do not participate in the rebellion against God. The deception of the “kings,” as well as that of the common people, will be so powerful that they will accept persecution in the belief that they are doing God a favor, and will not even realize that they are fighting against Jesus Christ (Info).

The time for Armageddon has not yet come

The event of Armageddon will certainly occur, as will the blood-red seas and waters. But the time for that has not yet come. Should further wars escalate, even leading to a world war, then that will be a terrible further step to prepare humanity for a promised “saving hand.” This “saving hand,” which promises peace and security, is, however, the very hand that seeks to mislead humanity through deception and thus lead it to ruin.

The loud cries of “fulfillment of prophecies, here and now” based on isolated natural phenomena and horror scenarios are essentially a misleading representation of prophecy fulfillments, postponing them to an earlier date. The widespread misconception about a coming Antichrist, the (secret) pre-rapture of Christians, also describes a coming Christ who will ensure the 1,000-year Kingdom of Peace on Earth (Info). However, Satan will appear and act as an “angel of light” (2 Corinthians 11:14), posing as the “great savior.” The consequences are correspondingly fatal.

Be sure to study the Bible yourself!!!

Therefore, it’s essential to study the Bible yourself. Whether what you’ve heard and read is even legitimate. Reading individual quoted verses, regardless of their context, should always encourage you to turn to the corresponding passage in the Bible and also consider the context surrounding the verse. Often, the statement appears in a completely different light. This also applies to this post above. When Revelation 16:16 is mentioned, open the Bible and, ideally, read the entire chapter 16 to understand what it’s all about.

Scaremongering and fear have always been poor guides to sensible and rational thinking and action. Therefore, don’t be misled by panic-stricken calls, but rather soberly examine what the Bible says about this. Yes, things will get unsettled and truly uncomfortable, but what do those who have God or Jesus Christ on their side have to fear?

Bible verses from King James Version (1611)