Well, we are in Joel. Joel chapter 3 this evening. Joel chapter 3 verses 1 through 9. And we began this last week, the first two verses at least. I think as we look at this, this makes it pretty clear that the book of Joel is more than about a locust invasion. As you know, chapter 1 was a locust invasion. We would say that's probably during the time of Joel and the people's response to that locust invasion, but it projected into a coming invasion, which would be a military invasion. And that gives us the impression, or at least I was saying, that there's going to be the northerner is going to invade. Chapter 2, a military is coming in on the people. This potentially could involve some kind of demonic activity in the end time through a military that's coming in. Some would say this chapter 2 is just another statement of the locust invasion because it describes them as if they were a military, but they could be actually a locust invasion. That's worth considering that both chapter 1 and 2 are locust invasions. I don't think so. But now in chapter 3, we start talking about the nations and the nations being judged on the day of the Lord. So we draw a line right here very clearly. This is now talking about military and the Lord bringing judgment. And so what you would see right here is a locust invasion of Joel's day and then the idea that the people are going to be go into Israel is going to go into exile because of their disobedience there's going to be then while they're in exile there's going to be a repentance and the repentance is going to lead to a restoration of the people of Israel and with the restoration is going to come the day of the Lord which is going to be the nations are going to be judged by the Lord because the nation's gonna be brought in to invade a restored Israel Israel will be delivered, the day of salvation. The nations will be judged on that day. And so you've got the whole flow of the exile. And this exile, this whole system of people going into exile in other countries, other nations, they're repenting, being restored, brought back to the land for the end times. That's even explained in Deuteronomy by Moses. So I think what we see here is very clearly some of those things being portrayed. So here we go. Chapter... uh... to verse twenty-eight going down to the end of verse thirty two it says and after the poor of my spirit all people your sons and daughters will prophesy your old middle dream dreams young they'll see visions even on my service with men and women i'll pour out my spirit in those days and that is god report at a spirit on a people that has been restored brought back in the fellowship and that spirit gives them insight revelation they have a one-on-one relationship with god that's what all the dreams vision prophecy that's not talking about you just you know miraculous things but as much as they're in fellowship with god seeing and understanding god's purpose because they're restored and when that takes place with the people are restored following that i'll show wonders in the heavens and on the earth blood and fire bills of smoke the subtle turn to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming in great and dreadful day the lord meeting once there's a restoration There's now going to be a turmoil of the nations causing war and the Lord coming out in judgment. And when that takes place, when that judgment begins to take place, verse 32, and everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. And that's why we see Peter using these verses on the day of Pentecost, is the Spirit was poured out on Israel. It was first a restoration of Israel. uh... through their messiah their messiah came in many believed on him and the spirit as she said we report out on them and the key part ford for peter is he's doesn't just get very verses thirty and thirty one are talking about some kind of a war and some kind of eschatological events but the key that he was looking for was verse thirty two when they would call on the name of the Lord which they now know in Acts chapter 2 is Jesus and they can call him Paul uses this Peter uses this in the New Testament for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will be deliverance and that was taking place on the day of Pentecost in Acts chapter 2, but yet it's looking to a whole long period of time of this taking place until it ultimately is fulfilled in the end times. There will be deliverance, as the Lord has said, among the survivors whom the Lord calls. And that's kind of where we left off because in Zechariah the Lord is going to return to Mount of Olives and the mountain will be split in two forming a great valley and uh... the survivors that have survived the attack of this all the nations come against jerusalem in zachariah chapter fourteen and uh... some of them are going to be survivors and some of them are going to escape they're going to escape by running out this valley that is form but notice of valley is formed when the lord descends on the mount of olives And that's out of Zechariah. And it's just the very fact it says, survivors whom the Lord calls and talks about those that are delivered, they're going to be escaping because of the Lord's return. Now, chapter 3, verse 1. in those days or in the hebrew you can see on the notes both in the english standard version and in the uh... transliteration or translation of the hebrew uh... in it says it begins chapter three begins for so all this stuff has been said and then it says for which means this is a continuation In the NIV it just says, in those days and at that time, almost like it just continues. But in the Hebrew and in the English Standard 4, this is what's going on. Why is all this taking place? Because here's more details of what's actually happening. and I'll read, well I'll just read the NIV down through verse, I'll read down to verse 9 beginning to verse 10 then we'll come back and talk about it in the NIV. In those days and at that time when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, see here there's the restoration, I will gather all nations. Notice God is gathering all nations. Now they may not know why they're being gathered They're going to be thinking one thing, but the Lord is doing another thing. They're thinking they're going to war, maybe for the Lord's purpose. But the Lord is bringing them for judgment. So you can see that throughout the Bible. Someone like Judas may think they're doing it this reason, but God is doing it for another reason. Pharaoh may respond this way, but God is doing it for this reason. Again, not overriding their free will they just have their own idea. I'm going to do this for this reason well Yeah, you're going to do this, but your reasoning is not correct God is going to allow you to do it because he's got his purpose Anyway, I will gather all nations and bring them down to the valley of Jehoshaphat Which again we just had a great valley formed here that may be that very valley that's being formed when the Lord returns and There I will enter into judgment against them concerning my inheritance, my people Israel. So now he's judging the nations on how they treated Israel. For they scattered my people among the nations. Moses said that was going to happen. and divided up my land. Now when you say scattered my people, I think that begins in 722 BC when northern Israel was scattered and never fully restored. Many of them fled to Judah and then were scattered in the Babylonian dispersion of 586, but they all returned, or a good portion, a remnant returned and were in Jerusalem until 70 AD when they were dispersed again. So I think the 722 dispersion is still out there those of Judah that fled the Judah were sent into captivity many of them came back as a remnant only to be sent out again in seventy eighty so i think you get some that have still been out there and totally uh... in seventy eighty they were dispersed and so we are waiting for even in the book of joseph they're waiting for this restoration of this this dispersion in seven twenty two and then uh... complete dispersion in seventy eighty And those dispersions have not been restored. We're waiting for this. All the prophets say it's going to happen. Even the book of Joel is talking about this restoration. For they scattered My people among the nations and divided up My land. they cast lots for my people and traded boys for prostitutes and sold girls for a wine that they might drink verse four now what have you against me old tire inside and that's the phoenician and all you regions of philistia that would be the gaza strip today lebanon or gaza strip today now what we do what timer we talk about we talking about joel's day Are we talking about throughout history? Are we talking about something in the end times? We don't know this. These are things that you've got to lay each of them out. Joel could be talking about something in his particular day, some crime that they committed. Or he could be talking about something that happened with maybe in the Antiochus Epiphanes Day, the Greeks when they were ruling, maybe the Roman dispersion, or maybe sometime in eschatology. You've got to lay all those on the table when you read this and consider them all. Not that they're all right, but you can't just say, well, run it down, force something, and you're going to get stuck. Are you repaying me for something I have done? If you are paying me back, I will swiftly and speedily return on your own heads what you have done." Now, in this verse, the Lord is speaking to Phoenicia and Philistia. for you took my silver and my gold." Now here's their crimes that they committed. You took my silver and my gold. You carried off my finest treasures to your temples. You sold the people of Judah and Jerusalem to the Greeks. So they were sold to the Greeks. Now again, we've got to talk about Greek. What do you mean? They were sent over to the Greeks. Greece is rising in this time during Joel's day. is that again what what is this mean we'll talk about it that you sold my people to of Judah and Jerusalem to the Greeks that you might send them far from their homeland now sending them far from the homeland would mean they're gonna move in and occupy the land to get rid of them so you can have the land See, I'm going to rouse them out of the places to which you sold them. Now, where you sent them into the nations, I'm going to rouse them and bring them back. Now, this is God saying, the time is going to come where I'm going to restore them. And again, that hasn't happened yet. It's going to take place in the future. Now, you may want to consider 1948, when Israel became a land and the Jews are continuing to go back. Is that part of it? Yeah, I don't know. I mean, people have opinions, but I'd hate to have an absolute opinion on something that's eschatological. We don't know all the facts yet. We don't have all the history happening. We've got prophecy. See, I'm going to rouse them out of the places to which you sold them, these Jews, and I will return on your own heads what you have done. What they did, they sold the Jews, so what he's going to do is, I'm going to do the same thing to you. I will sell your sons and daughters to the people of Judah, and they will sell them to the Sabeans, a nation far away. In other words, I'm going to have them do the same thing to you that you did to them. the lord has spoken and that in a sense ends that part but now verse nine i just want to do so now begins a a poetic set of verses and again it's a different section but on the same thing proclaim this among the nations prepare for war rouse your warriors let all the fighting in drawn near an attack will beat your plowshares in the swords in your pruning hooks in the spears let the weakling say I'm strong come quickly all you nations from every side and assemble there so God right there is calling the nations and this is not this is not a victorious thing that we should celebrate like all great this is God's calling the nations get ready for war come on and he draws them in assemble for war and they're going to this place for war now the nation's may be thinking they're going to maybe the nation's think they're following God or maybe they're thinking or hearing or following an actual God quote got a little G a demonic power are and they're gonna follow their God God's allowing it to happen and they're going to go to war they think they're going to go to war and attack Jerusalem and so they're getting these to get ready to get all your assembly all your weapons assemble all your troops and come on in and they're gonna come to jerusalem for war but when they get there the lord is gonna have them in one place and he's gonna bring judgment on so they're coming for war the Lord is bringing judgment on them. So indeed, God is calling these nations, maybe even having demonic forces draw them in. And now we'll look at Revelation. You know what verse we're thinking about. We're looking at the sixth plague where the demons go off and gather the kings of the world to Armageddon for the final battle. And the Lord has them assembled, and then He's going to bring judgment. So this is parallel with those verses. So that's what we're looking at here, and we'll get more into that next week. With that being said, let's go to the notes. and uh... lay some things out here chapter pick page one chapter three verse one being at the top of page in the english standard for behold in those days and at that time when i restore the fortunes of judah and jerusalem so again the word for means why all these things he's just got them saying i'll pour out my spirit on all flesh those who call the name of the lord will be saved he says four what when that begins happen when israel is restored that takes place uh... anything very clearly when i restore the fortunes of israel at that same time verse chapter three verse two i will gather the nations see he's saying i will gather the nation's just like it says in chapter three verse nine proclaim this among the nations prepare for war What is chapter 3 verse 9? That is chapter 3 verse 2, God saying, I will gather all nations. And all the nations are going to be gathered by God to come against this restored Jerusalem. And the nations are thinking, they're just revealing their hearts. now we know in Matthew 24 that Jesus Jesus refers to this when we talk about what Jesus says when the Son of Man comes in glory and is seated on his throne he'll he'll assemble all the nations are all the people gather them together for judgment like a shepherd gathers his sheep and he'll judge them based on what they did he says what you've done to the least of these my brethren and in israel or in joel this is all about how the nations treated the jews so the nations are not going to be forced to act evilly they're just gonna be gathered together for war and they could end up helping israel but they're going to come to war against israel thinking they're going to gain a benefit and that's what they're going to be judged for is their their attitude of their heart way that takes place when they're restored i've got these things written down very quickly number one for indicates jules now going to explain in detail what he just introduced point to when god restores israel in the distant future and this has not happened yet unless you want to somehow argue nineteen forty eight is the beginning but i mean that's i don't want to say that's losing its momentum uh... but is that we're getting further and further away from you know a generation in and seventy years and all this israel is going to be even in in israel's gonna be there in the in the in Israel, the promised land, when the Antichrist arises, and that may be the 1948 restoration there, but when the Antichrist arises, what's he going to do? He's going to drive them away. They're going to be driven out again. They're going to flee. And that's where they're going to be gathered again, brought back to Mount Zion. So there's an ultimate greater restoration coming, because this Israel, if you call 1948 a restoration, is just setting the stage for the Antichrist to drive them out again. They're going to flee to the mountains. Point three. Restoration is Israel returning from 722 and the Roman dispersion of 770 AD. And I wrote Deuteronomy 30 right here. 30 verse 3. Moses says, When all these blessings and curses I have set before you come on you and you take them to heart wherever the Lord your God disperses you among the nations. And when you and your children return to the Lord your God and obey Him with all your heart and with all your soul, according to everything I command you today, then the Lord your God will restore your fortunes." Now, the wording in Joel, restore your fortunes, or restore the fortunes of Israel, is exactly the wording Moses used. and what it is saying is the people are going to be dispersed moses said he gives them the ten commander did the law he ten commandments the law all of uh... all of uh... uh... exodus and deuteronomy and in deuteronomy tells them what's going to happen is you're going to disobey when the lord fills fulfills this covenant which you're going to break you're going to be dispersed you're not going to do it and he tells a basic you're going to fail we get into the land and you fail you're going to be dispersed but because of this covenant god is going to bring you back or because the abrahamic covenant This is then the Lord will restore your fortunes. You see the similar thing in Ezekiel 39 verse 25. I wrote that down. Therefore, this is what the Sovereign Lord says, I will now restore the fortunes of Jacob and will have compassion on all the people of Israel and I will be zealous for my holy name. So this again, this restoration is the beginning of the beginning of the day of the Lord. and this day of the lord is going to be a day of restoration but also of judgment and notice what paul writes uh... addressing this issue in romans chapter eleven verse fifteen and he's talking about israel he's saying they've been set aside but they're not finished god is going to bring them back and then he says this He says, for if their rejection, meaning when they rejected the gospel, and then God rejected them in 70 A.D. Now realize, when Paul's writing Romans, he's writing in 57 A.D. the jewish wars are gonna start in sixty six a d and jerusalem will burn in seventy a d so paul is in fifty seven a d he's what would that be nine years before takes place and paul's gonna die probably in sixty eight spring of sixty eight a d as the jewish wars have begun but in fifty seven a d he's talking about for their rejection means reconciliation to the world by the jews rejecting jesus and then being dispersed That means the gospel is going to go to the world. So if their rejection means reconciliation for the whole world, they're being brought in with the gospel. He writes, what will their acceptance mean? He says if they're rejecting the gospel and God dispersing them for that last time, means the world is going to hear the gospel and God is bringing the Gentiles to faith. what will it mean if all of a sudden israel accepts the gospel and god accepts or god restores them like jules talking about he's what does that mean except this he says if their acceptance mean but what else can i mean but life from the dead meaning we're going to have the resurrection and the resurrection is going to be the day of the lord israel's restored The Lord comes in judgment, judges the nations, and there is a resurrection, and we enter the kingdom age. So Paul is talking about the same line in 57 A.D. of a dispersion of the Jews, which is going to result in the gospel going to the world. but there's a day coming where they're going to be accepted. And when they are accepted, what other day is that going to be other than the day of the resurrection? Okay. Chapter 3, verse 2 on page 1. God says, I will gather all the nations to bring them down to the valley of Jehoshaphat. Now, we talked about the valley of Jehoshaphat last week. the Valley of Jehoshaphat. Just in review, Galilee, Jordan, Dead Sea, here's Jerusalem. The Kidron Valley runs right here and then kind of branches off and runs down towards the Jordan River. Jehoshaphat marched down into this area here and it could be this valley where Jehoshaphat was marching against the enemies in his day where he got a great victory. That could be the Valley of Jehoshaphat. There's the Kidron Valley runs on the east side. There's a tomb that some have called Absalom's Pillar and different things. Some have called it the Tomb of Jehoshaphat. Traditionally, it's supposed to be there. And it's not historically accurate, but some have called that. that it's the Valley of Jehoshaphat, Kidron Valley, so that's where the judgment would take place. But it's not really ever called the Valley of Jehoshaphat anywhere. In fact, if you look on that first note, this is again from last week, point one on page two, Valley of Jehoshaphat means literally Yahweh judges. So it would mean, literally it means the valley where Yahweh judges that is what that says if you'd read that just literally instead of translating it valley of jahasa fat which could be correct which may be accurate but it throws you into the position where you're jahasa fat oh king jahasa fat uh... how's that tie into king jahasa fat you've got that battle he had he fought maybe his tombs there But the Kidron Valley is never called the Valley of Jehoshaphat, except if you're going to say this is talking about the Kidron Valley. But that's your only connection is you're just making it mean the Kidron Valley. So the Valley of Jehoshaphat, it doesn't even exist. It does not exist. The wording means valley where Yahweh judges. So wherever this valley is, if you read in Revelation, either the king they're gonna the demons are gonna go out and gather the kings for battle of all the nations and they're gonna gather in that place called Armageddon or Hey, Margito Jezra McGettin make it city of Megiddo is here the hill of Megiddo The would be right in here this area that where the hills where they can see the Armageddon if that's if that's where it's gonna be Even if that's correct, it could be. This is where a lot of the world battles have taken place in the Valley of Armageddon or the Valley of Megiddo. The valley where Yahweh judges could then be the Megiddo Valley where he's gonna judge here when he brings the nations together. Except he's gonna come back on Mount Olive and the Mount of Olives is gonna be split in two as we got written down right here. Where have I got? Do I have it? Oh, page 2. I've got to turn the page. Do I have it written down here? Yeah, point 4 on page 2. Because there is no valley of Jehoshaphat, it means the valley where Yahweh judges, it is possible If you want to even say Valley of Jehoshaphat that that valley doesn't exist yet that it's going to be formed right here in Zechariah 14 4.4 on page 2 on that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives east of Jerusalem and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west forming a great valley with half the mountain moving north half the mountain moving south there's going to be a great valley form the people will escape down out of that valley but that potentially could be the valley of Jehoshaphat that could that's where the Lord returns and thus that's where the Lord where the valley where Yahweh judges that could be the best i'm not trying to slam dunk this was like that that makes it is is is no valid jahasa that the valley were lord judges is it armageddon is it the kid run valley or is it this valley that is formed when the Lord returns where he judges the nations because that's what that that's exactly is all about the nations have all come against Jerusalem and the Lord goes out on that day after half the city's been taken he comes back and judges the nation so Zachariah 14 Phil I mean it's it's it's this these verses it ties into these verses again I'm just putting that out there gonna go back to page one and read the rest that verse i will gather all the nations and bring them down to the valley of jahasa fat where if this valley we're just gonna we got two locations right here god is gonna bring them down to jerusalem to attack jerusalem he's bringing them there and that's where he'll return and where he'll judge him in revelation they go out and gather them in will read that verse to the gather the place called armageddon harm our gato that would be here if that is the exact location they're talking about or is this armageddon is this is that we put it up here in the valley but could the kid run valley or this valley that is form in the lord returns were yaoi judges is that where the demons are gathering the nations because in joel they're being gathered here apparently in Revelations they're gathering them at Armageddon. We'll read that verse. Could this be Armageddon down here? Not discounting that this is called the Valley of Armageddon or the Valley of Jezreel, the Valley of Megiddo. just throwing that out there. We'll look at that and see if it makes sense. And I will enter into judgment, this is what the Lord says, and I will enter into judgment with them, the nations, there in the valley where Yahweh judges. And He'll judge them, right here, on behalf of My people and my heritage Israel, because they have scattered them among the nations and have divided up my land." He's wherever this is at, Yahweh will enter into judgment against these nations because of two things. They scattered my people but yet understand here it is that tension again who scattered the people yall way scattered the people because they disobeyed him and he used the nations to do it but the nations willingly wanted to scatter israel or bring judgment on israel or destroy israel for their own desires god is just using their perversion and their sin nature that they want to accomplish his purpose It's what he does with Nebuchadnezzar. Nebuchadnezzar wasn't given this noble command, go forth therefore and punish my people. God says it's time to punish Israel. I'm going to use Nebuchadnezzar because, yeah, he's got the babylon is ready to go to war and he's he's right he's building it this great kingdom for himself and god is allowing him to expand his sin nature and he's going to lead himself to judgment unless he repents unless he changes and i think that because himself came to know the lord but as we saw last night in jeremiah jeremiah says gives him three generations he uses it'll be nebuchadnezzar his son and his grandson continue and at that point I'll give his people over to the nations and they'll be sold as slaves and that's when Belshazzar comes in after Naboditis. They were judged for what they did because they acted with their own sin nature but God used their sin nature to accomplish his purpose. God does that throughout history. God is using Satan. to accomplish his own purpose judas wanted to be trade jesus for his own advantage god says i can use that betray the christ he didn't make him do it it just we need christ to go to the cross someone's gotta be tram why don't you do what you feel like doing i'd feel like betraying christ perfect it'll work out nebuchadnezzar i feel like invading judah perfect it will work out but judah pays the price babylon pay the price they were sold into slavery by the persians and here these these nations have come down throughout history and brought judgment on judah or jerusalem because they rebelled against god but they themselves are now it's time to pay them back and this is the day of the lord's judgment Point two on page two. Valleys are often places of judgment. Verse 214 also calls this the Valley of Decision. This very place is called the Valley of Decision. Instead of the valley where Yahweh judges, it's called the Valley of Decision. And whose decision is it? Is it the people like Billy Graham's magazine, the Decision Magazine? You know, make a decision for Christ. That's what Billy Graham would say. And that's a good thing to say. Make a decision. But I think this word decision is not referring to the nations getting down there and then trying to make a decision. It's the nations getting down there and the Lord Judging or making a decision from the judges bench on the nations because he's deciding How they treated his people Israel and so the valley of decision is the same thing as the valley where Yahweh judges So that's again another name for it is the valley where Yahweh judges some say Jehoshaphat or it's the valley of decision where Yahweh is entering in a decision on the people and 0.5 on page 2 and again we've referred to this before Jesus refers this verse in his account of the final judgment when the Son of Man comes in his glory and he says Jesus said himself when the Son of Man comes in his glory and all the angels with him then he will sit on his glorious throne before him will be gathered all the nations they're all right there and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats uh... and that it says on how they treated the lease of these my brother in which would be the jews in context in hit when he's saying it and also in when he's quoting it from joel now chapter joel chapter three verse three the n english standard version on bottom page two the people is these are the sins the nations did I I didn't finish because they've scattered among the nations and have divided my land and then and have cast lots for my people and have traded a boy for a prostitute and sold a girl for wine and have drunk it let's go back to page And let's just go to page three. I wrote somewhere where it lists the sins, but here it is. What they're doing, the nations, and it could have been with Antiochus Epiphanes. It could have been some event in Joel's day that we are unfamiliar with, that he's referring to. Remember, we're talking about two groups here. We're talking about Phoenicia and Philistia specifically. There would be Lebanon and the Gaza Strip. But we're also talking about the nations. so there's two things going on here specifically they're mentioned and it may be something from joel's day that they did or some historically vent uh... for example when uh... uh... alexander's marching through these people may have taken advantage of the situation kinda like when nebuchadnezzar comes down and and destroys judah The whole book of Obadiah is judgment on Edom for them taking advantage of what Nebuchadnezzar was doing. So the Phoenicians and the Philistines may be taking advantage of a greater power because there's no mention of, in these verses, surprisingly there's no mention of Egypt, Babylon, Assyria, Persia. I mean, where are the great nations? Where are the great powers? They're not even mentioned. But We have a reference to Greece, the Greeks, but nothing like the Greeks are in the land. It's these people, the Phoenicians and the Philistines, are taking the Jews and shipping them over to Greece for a profit. So Greece is involved in this, but only as kind of the recipients. These people are doing the activity. So it could be some power, and these people are taking advantage of it, maybe in Joel's day. But at the same time, they may be representation of the nations. And it's not unusual. And this is what kind of becomes not confusing. But the prophet is sometimes talking on two levels. They're talking about eschatologically, here's what's going to happen. It's kind of like what's going to happen to Phoenician and the Philistines because of what they just did last week. They're going to be judged for that. But we're actually talking about the future. Like, here's the locust invasion eating our crops this summer. It's just like the northerner who's going to invade the land someday in the future. So you need to repent because these locusts are sent from God, just like you're going to need to repent for the northerner. So it's like, what are you talking about? It's like Phoenician and the Philistines. What is this? Then all of a sudden it's the Lord coming back on the Day of Judgment. The Lord is judging these people in time. He's judging these groups as a whole in a similar way eschatologically. So some of that, again, I'm not trying to make an excuse or something, but sometimes it's like it's hard to pin it down. Nonetheless, they sold the jews were so valued so little a slave a boy a slave boy was equal to the price of a night with a prostitute that that's the boy how how valuable is this jewish boy they've been taking captive it's the same price as a night with a prostitute or a slave girl was equal to wine you know here you know you can have this slave girl for wine and again it doesn't say how much one was that a glass of wine a bottle wine or, you know, the night's bar tab. But the whole point there is the Phoenicians and the Philistines, like the nations, considered the captive Jews as a price. And the price was equal to a prostitute or wine. That's how they're treating God's people. They're like currency, like a coin. And God is not happy with that. I write this down here, point two, this was partially fulfilled in the 300s by Antiochus Epiphanes, but this is talking about something bigger and eschatological. It may include Rome. Rome would have done something similar. uh... they'd in fact you know this the the romans took the jews back to rome and sold on the slave market and they became they were so inexpensive so cheap i mean they're like a dollar a slave i mean they just they had so many of them that they were the slave market is income it was part of the collapse of rome and so many slaves they had to carry out a freedom they have put him in the coliseum stood for entertainment purposes and of course it will include the anti christ who's going to be pursuing the jews and of course zachariah fourteen where half the city is going to be taken and the people are already going to be to be in shipped off into exile in zachary you remember in zachary fourteen on that day the lord will go out and fight but not until The city's been ransacked. The women have been raped. The people have been taken and sold. And then he's going to come back. The valley's going to be formed. And the rest of them are going to escape from that battle. So again, it could be the Phoenicians and the Philistines are doing it, maybe in Joel's day for some event. Rome is going to do it in the future. Antiochus Epiphanes is going to do it. The Antichrist will do it. Well, you throw Nazi Germany in there. But anyway, that's what's taking place there. Chapter 3, verse 4 of Joel. What are you to me, O Tyre and Sidon? Again, those are the Phoenician cities. Lebanon today. And all the regions of Philistia. That is the Gaza Strip. Are you paying me back for something? Meaning, why are you doing this? Now, stop and remember this. Always keep in mind, and this is something I've been studying. I'm going to spend more time studying it, looking into it. That verse about the northerner in Joel chapter 2 and the mountains of Fon, which was the place where the assemblies of gods met, which is also Mount Hermon, was also a place where the assemblies met. the Canaanite religions and all that stuff, going back to the Meso... I talked about it last night after class a little bit. I'm going to be looking into that because all of these events are not just human armies, although there are humans involved. You got that verse where God says, or you know, Paul says, "...put on the armor of God, or battles not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers and authorities in heavenly places." And if it's the armor of God, His battle is not against flesh and blood. His battle is against rulers and authorities in heavenly places. So when you read all of these things, what are you to me, O Tyre and Sidon and all the regions of Philistia? Are you paying me back for something? He's talking to the people, the leaders per se, up the human leaders but he's also talking to the rulers and authorities that he's at war with and what they got to keep that in mind because jesus on the cross destroyed the rulers and authorities he made a public spectacle of them When you talk about Satan in Ezekiel 28 and Isaiah 14, they talk about the king of Tyre, they talk about the prince of Persia and Greece in the book of Daniel. Those are all spiritual beings represented by kings on the earth, and God is dealing with, speaking to these beings who are manifesting through these humans. and so there's there's multiple things the place I want to get to revelation read a few verses there so he's talking a tire inside in in the regions the Felicity are you paying me back for something if you're paying me back I'll return your payment on your own head swiftly and speedily other words I'm gonna bring punishment to you I'm return the page here in page 4 all here here's the bullet point three at the top the their sin against god is mentioned in the next verse they've taken the lord silver and gold carried the lord's treasures in their own pagan temples they sold the lord's people to the greeks and remove the lord's people from the promised land so they could occupy it and that's where it says joel three verse five for you have taken my silver and my gold have carried by rich treasures into your temples so whoever is invaded they've they've taken probably the silver and gold out of the temple which could be Zerubbabel's temple if it's the Greeks and they did it could be the Temple of Herod which would be the Romans which they did they built It's it's now verified the Colosseum in Rome was built with the gold They took from Jerusalem. There was finance with the gold taken from the temple. They've even found Inscriptions attesting that fact so Rome built up their Colosseum with the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple of Herod Antioch's Epiphanies and had gone in and took gold out of the temple, or the Greeks did, at least using the priests to do it. So you've taken away my silver and my gold and have carried my rich treasures into your temples. Rome had a temple, was it the Temple of Peace? What was it called? That's where, like Josephus and others record, that's where the temple curtains were hung in the Temple of Peace in Rome and other things, just like Nebuchadnezzar took the gold goblets to Babylon. They took these things and put them in their own temples. The Greeks would have done the same thing. Chapter 3, verse 6, You've sold My people Judah and Jerusalem to the Greeks in order to remove them far from My land. Page 5. Chapter 3 verse 7 behold I will stir them up from the place to which you have sold them wherever the people have gone in talking about going to the Greeks in slavery God's gonna raise his people up and I will return your payment on your own head now that makes it clear he's gonna restore his people right where they're at and i'll return your payment on your own head somehow the jews are going to pay the nation's back uh... for what they've done to the jews and god is gonna be the one doing that there's adverse hanging right there and i will return your payment on your own head chapter three verse eight how well he is he says i will sell your sons and your daughters into the hand of the people of judah And they will sell them to the Sabeans, to a nation far away, for the Lord has spoken." They're going to send them down towards Africa or to the East, lands far away. And that's what's going to happen to your people. That's what the Lord is saying. And again, that's hard to understand. And I wonder when that took place historically. You can see some of that taking place in the Hasmoneans when they began to rise up as a nation in power and began to do their own invading. Ultimately, it's going to be fulfilled somehow eschatologically. Then we began this. We'll start in chapter 3, verse 9 next week. And here's that poem. Kind of beginning repeating what began in chapter 3, verse 2. Now it says, Proclaim this among the nations. Remember in chapter 3, verse 2, I will gather all nations to the valley of Jehoshaphat, or I'll gather all nations to the valley where Yahweh judges. Now chapter 3, verse 9, here's the public proclamation. Proclaim this among the nations. Consecrate for war. Stir up the mighty men. And that's an interesting line, mighty men. let all the men of war draw near let them come up so they're all coming to to battle we talk about mighty men that can be warriors but it could also refer possibly to the underworld experiences let them come up and I've got this verse written down here in fact let's go to Revelation 16 and particularly Revelation 16 verse 13 but I want to read all the way to verse 21 and I think you can see you're here some familiar themes in this revelation 16 beginning in verse 12 and these are the the seven plagues are the seven bowls that are poured out we're talking about the 6th and the 7th And when we read these, I want you to remember the nations gather, nations for battle. That's what Joel said, chapter 3, verse 2, and chapter 3, verse 9. And then remember here remember the uh... zachariah fourteen where you've got the uh... mod of olives splitting and the valley being formed in the model of all the splits into remember that right here again not making a slam dunk i'm just studying and putting these things together and here's richard here's chapter six remember revelation seems strange and awkward you try to figure it out but many of these things express we're talking about the day of the Lord the eschatological events they've been talked about by the prophets repeatedly There's more detail in Revelation, but there should be some overlap. There should be some parallels. There's going to be information in Revelation that you're seeing for the first time, but it cannot be brand new. It's like, well, throw the Old Testament away. Now that we've got Revelation, wait a minute. The Old Testament in St. Moses said it. The prophets repeatedly said it. We know the Psalms recount it. It's being said. It's just now Revelation is now presenting it again, maybe giving you more detail, especially after the resurrection of Jesus Christ. So see if you can see a parallel here. a chapter 16 verse 12 again we've already had the first second third fourth and fifth angel pour out their bowl on the kingdom of the beast and on the waters and on the sea different things take place but now a chapter 16 verse 12 the six angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates and its water was dried up to repair the way for the kings of the east now There are, in Revelation, in Daniel, Revelation end times, there are a variety of kings. You're going to have the Antichrist, which maybe is coming from the West, because he's going to have to do battle with the king of the South. He's going to have trouble with the king of the North. And now you've got the kings of the East. The Antichrist will make his place in the promised land. He will easily defeat the King of the South, but will also have to face the King of the North. And here comes the King of the East. In fact, reports from the East concern him. So the Antichrist is trying to take over, and these are battles. Now, here we go. I'll just read this. It says, Okay, the Euphrates is dried up making a way for the kings of the east to get over to the promised land apparently. Then I saw, watch this, then I saw, John, three evil spirits that looked like frogs. I've always wondered why, what that means. And again, it can't just be descriptive. It can't just be entertaining. There's a meaning to it, I would think. They came out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. so there's your satanic trinity and each of them speaks apparently sending out a demon not just words but spiritual infested words or commands out of the mouth of the false prophet they are spirits of demons performing miraculous signs and i i don't want you to get too far away from what we're talking about last night we talk about in the modern age science ruled and science tried to discredit in many cases discredit the spiritual uh... but they didn't you just try to everything we just major if you can't measure it doesn't exist that's where that's where they made a mistake although side the modern age began because of uh... the reformation the scripture revelations like there is order in the universe it's not just mystical magical pre-modern so there's science Science now is beginning in the 1940s, late 40s, gave way to the modern age, gave way to the postmodern age, which began in 48, 50s. It's gaining momentum, and it's full throttle now, where there's no absolute. We're talking about this in the 70s. But now it's legal. It's law. Iowa today, what was the town over there in eastern Iowa? Linmar, right? Did you guys see this? I don't want to. Tony, are you out there? What'd she say? Yeah. Linmar, right, Tony? Linmar. You correct me if I'm wrong. It was on KCCI, right? Tony? she's gonna get okay Linmar made a ruling I said 20 tell it to you but made a ruling that in their schools now if you feel like your girl you can use a boy's restroom if you feel like you're a boy you can use a girl's restroom that is school policy am I correct that's not the only thing what else is there on an overnight field trip On an overnight field trip, they can stay in a room, whatever they feel is their gender. So if there's a group of boys, there's three boys, and a girl feels like she's a boy, she can stay in the boys' room because she is a boy. This is Linmar in your state of Iowa. This is them. Right. parents acknowledgment or knowledge they don't sign a waiver if your child thinks they're a girl they can stay in the boys room they can use the boys restroom now i don't know about all boys on field trips but if there's three girls need a roommate they may be willing to feel like a girl for the evening i'm just saying now again i don't want to be too perverted but it's like it doesn't take to it doesn't take too sharp of a cookie to figure out all i gotta say is what and i get a stay in the girls room that's that's that's what i've been taught what that's post modern that's no longer yet do you see modern age the scientific age would do a test They would have absolutes. And they would say, you can't prove there's a God. We can't measure it. So there's no spiritual. Where now, they're leaving science and going into the postmodern age, which we've been developing this since 1948. We're now in this postmodern age where you can test these people and say, this is a boy and this is a girl. but they don't feel that way they're going to need the post modern age is going to need a source of authority to back up their empty claims and they cannot use science because science is a real they've got this thing over here unsubstantiated there's no proof you're not a girl they feel like a girl or whatever and that's just one area we don't want this medicine so what are you going to do you get you can't just keep claiming in canceling you're gonna have to have some authority that authority is going to come from There's going to be demonic support of these things. You can't, because when it comes, crunch time comes, you're going to be able to measure this is genetically a boy, but they feel like a girl. So when crunch time comes, science is going to override the postmodern age every time. so the postmodern age if it's going to survive is going to need uh... some source of authority and it's going to become supernatural i'm telling you it's going to become it's already demonic it's just needs the demonic support and once you see that you're right back into the pre-modern age And that's where you see these things right here. That's why you're going to have a man that's going to claim to be Christ or claim to be God, and the world is not going to laugh at him. you remember in the sixties and seventies we talk about these things it it's like uh... who's gonna believe uh... that this man is god what what a stupid bible verse the whole world will follow him and say he is god what seventies eighties nine that's stupid but we are going to get to a place in this postmodern age where it's gonna make complete sense that this man is god And you can kind of see how far we've got to go. I'll read this quick. to verify to give authority to the postmodern age again or whatever you know if we're gonna make that apple today and they go out to the all kings of the whole world to gather them for battle that's joel chapter three verse two joel chapter three verse nine the lord is gathering and he's using demons and i got a never do that he always does that he's always he called in in in in the days of I Isaiah Jeremiah he would call the assembly when the assembly of the angels would meet that includes Satan see the book of Job all the angels that's the assembly of the gods all the fallen angels all the righteous angels uh... called the battle on watch we watch this the the the call gather them for battle all the kings on the great day of god almighty uh... verse sixteen then they gather the king's together to the place that in the hebrew is called armageddon or har mcgee dole the hill of mcgee dole which would be there's not really any hill there's just the tell the remains of the city so you know that's kind of questioning the hill of mcgee dole The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and out of the temple came a loud voice from the throne saying, it is done. Then came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, which indicate a theophany of the Lord entering the atmosphere, and a severe earthquake. No earthquake like it has occurred since man has been on the earth. It sounds pretty severe. So tremendous was the quake. Now again, this quake is a result of a theophany. That's God appearing in the atmosphere. the great city jerusalem split into three parts now if this ties into that graph fourteen that's the lord coming on the mount of olives not just floating down like you know some aside like figure it's a theophany like the lightning like rumbling like smoke and that the mountain splits a valley is formed the city splits into three parts the mountains are a split into two parts there's another parts gonna be splitting and the cities of the nations collapsed god remembered babble on the great gave the cup filled with the one of his for his theory every island flood away it goes on talks like that i've got a quick because route time but that's where i think this ties directly into those things those events We'll keep going through that. We'll pick up chapter 3, verse 9 next time. There's a lot of questions I've got in these verses, like who are the Greeks? What age was this? Why Phoenicia and Philistia? Is it an event in Joel's day? Is it just a typical type of all the nations? But I think we're definitely talking about Joel's day, some events. We're talking eschatological. And then we've got things taking place in between there, which could include Antiochus Epiphanes, the Romans dispersion of the Jews. All these things are combined in there somehow. I don't have it all figured out. And again, even the commentaries, they would just kind of like give you dates and situations. Um, and that's good. But at least we study at least we know it and as we can use those verses to plug in other places that we draw it together And I think revelations is picking up on all those things. I'll pray and we're done father Do thank you again for the chance to look into these things We thank you for our country that we have the freedom to study and to share and gather together We ask that we would use this opportunity to prepare our own souls to help encourage others And that we may stand firm in in the days to come in jesus name. We pray amen Hey, thank you for being here