Ping!
Many good points made here, the first being the most important because is is the Gospel of the Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ: we, the church, have been washed from ALL of our sins by the blood of Jesus and stand righteous before God, not by our own good works or righteousness but by His good work and righteous. Therefore, my righteousness is a gift from God (Romans 5:17). There's nothing more for me to do. I AM FREE! IT IS FINISHED!
Another point made here is also the theme of II Thessalonians: to COMFORT the church - they need not be afraid of the coming Day of Wrath. It's kind of funny to me in a way how some Christians almost seem to want to go through the seven-year Tribulation.
You know, there's two parts to this tribulation period. In Matthew 24, Jesus called the first part "the beginning of sorrows" and the last part "the end...great tribulation." What's funny is some Christians think that they'll be able to get through the first part ("not the great tribulation yet"). According to Revelation 6:8 and 9:15, HALF of the whole world is DEAD by the end of the first 3 1/2 years (the beginning of sorrows). And except for the remnant of Israel hiding in the mountains (probably Petra in Jordan) the rest of the world is dead by the end of the seven years. As the author indicates, this is not redemptive work, this is God's judgment.
The miraculous salvation and protection of (part of) Israel during "Jacob's trouble" is another fascinating theme.
Define the “Great Tribulation”. Do you consider it to be just the 7 bowls of wrath, or does start earlier?
BTW, another good passage that explains six reasons in Israel and the world for the pre-crucifixion diaspora as well as the tribulation is found in Daniel 9:24:
Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city,
[1]to finish the transgression,
[2]and to make an end of sins,
[3]and to make reconciliation for iniquity,
[4]and to bring in everlasting righteousness,
[5]and to seal up the vision and prophecy,
[6]and to anoint the most Holy.
This verse lays it out clearly. People ask: Where is America in End Times ?
shalom b'SHEM Yah'shua HaMashiach
Another wonder of the Gospel of God's Grace is that although many Christians hold on to some form of their own righteousness, not knowing or accepting their total freedom from the law, their death to sin, and the free gift of righteousness, they are righteous anyway (their faith in Christ the Savior saves them regardless) and will go up with us to meet the Lord in the air.
I think not only is the battle of Ezekiel 38 & 39 before the Great Tribulation (the last 3 1/2 years) but may very well be the kickoff to the whole seven-year enchilada so to speak. After studying Ezekiel 38 & 39 and Revelation, I believe that sometime around the time of this battle is when the rapture of the church takes place and the tribulation begins.
Ezekiel 39:9 indicates a seven-year period after the war and 39:22 says, So the house of Israel shall know that I am the Lord their God from that day and forward. This seems to map with Revelation Chapter Seven (part of the sixth seal) when 144,000 of Israel are "sealed" (saved) after the rapture of the church (Rev 4:1) and after "the fourth part of the earth" is killed (Rev 6:8). (I never thought of this until now, but maybe the battle of Ezekiel 38 & 39 is included in the fourth seal when 1/4 of the world is slaughtered - interesting thought.)
There is no such thing as a seven year tribulation! It does not exist.
RE: Daniel's 70th week from Daniel 9:27
But in the middle of the week He shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering.
The week is a seven year time period. The patterns were set down in the Torah in the form of shemita cycles.
Leviticus 25:4 But in the seventh year the land is to have a sabbath of rest, a sabbath to the LORD. Do not sow your fields or prune your vineyards.
Two witnesses, every matter must be established by at least two witnesses.
John 8:17 In your own Law it is written that the testimony of two witnesses is true. 18 I am one who testifies for myself; my other witness is the Father, who sent me.”
Now two witnesses from Revelation
Revelation 1:19 Write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after this. (Yeshua)
Revelation 4:4 After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven. And the first voice which I heard was like a trumpet speaking with me, saying, “Come up here, and I will show you things which must take place after this.”
After Jochanan's (Johns) vision, after the crucifixion, after the resurrection and after the ascension!
Notice there are no references to a seven year time period in Revelation, you'll find time, times and half a time, three and a half days (years actually) and 42 months, all equal three and a half years. So what happened to the other half?
Back to Daniel...
Daniel 9:7 He will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven.’ In the middle of the ‘seven’ he will put an end to sacrifice and offering.
In the middle of the 'seven' He (Yeshua) will put an end to sacrifice and offering. (It is finished John 19:30).
Now for some fun, that is determining the 'middle of this week'.
This current year on the Hebrew calendar is 5773. The next shemita year is 5775. How do you determine a shemita year? Multiply (or divide) by seven. 7 x 825 = 5775. Now get yourself a Hebrew calendar.
http://www.hebcal.com/hebcal/
The Hebrew year begins on Rosh Hashanah (1 Tishri) so to go to the middle of a week (shemita cycle) count three and a half years and come to Pesach, 15 Nisan (Passover) to arrive at the middle of a week.
Lets start off with the year of the crucifixion, 3790 (30 C.E.).
15 Nisan 3790 is the middle of a/the week here.
3787 is a shemita year, 541 x 7 = 3787, that's 1 Tishri. Add three and a half Hebrew years and you arrive at 15 Nisan 3790. Here's more evidence for you.
From:
http://www.outreachjudaism.org/articles/red-ribbon.html
Why Didn’t the Red Ribbon on the Head of the Scapegoat Turn White in 30 C.E.?
Question:
I was wondering about a story that a “Hebrew-Christian” told me recently. He said that there was a scarlet cloth which would turn white every year when the high priest atoned for the sins of the people. When Jesus died, around 30 A.D., the cloth would no longer turn white when the priest atoned for sins because Jesus was the final atonement. I’ve read this story in other sources, and I wondered what you have to say about it.
Answer:
This assertion with which you were confronted has, in the last decade, attracted wide interest in the evangelical world. In fact, I am somewhat surprised that it has taken this long for one of our website visitors to write in with this question.
Despite the popularity this issue has gained in the Christian world in recent years, this contention stands out as one of the most bizarre arguments used by Christian apologists.
What makes this line of reasoning so strange is that it seeks to use the Talmud to prove that Jesus is the messiah. While most are simply surprised to learn that missionaries would depend on the Talmud in order to prove the validity of the Christian religion, in reality, this misuse of rabbinic literature is widespread...
Anyway here's the meat of this article.
Nevertheless, it is essential that we examine this well-worn argument with which you were confronted. In Tractate Yoma 39b, the Talmud quotes a Baraisa1 that discusses numerous remarkable phenomena that occurred in the Temple during the Yom Kippur service. More specifically, the Talmud states that there was a strip of scarlet-dyed wool tied to the head of the scapegoat2 which at times would turn white in the presence of the large crowd gathered at the Temple on the Day of Atonement. When this phenomenon occurred, the Jewish people perceived this miraculous transformation as a heavenly sign that their sins were forgiven. The Talmud relates, however, that 40 years before the destruction of the Second Temple the scarlet colored strip of wool did not turn white. The text of the Talmud which missionaries quote states,
The Rabbis taught that forty years prior to the destruction of the Temple the lot did not come up in the [high priest’s] right hand nor did the tongue of scarlet wool become white... (Talmud, Tractate Yoma 39b).
Citing the above statement, missionaries contend that the year the scarlet ribbon ceased to turn white coincides with the time that Jesus was crucified. After all, they argue, 40 years prior to the destruction of the Second Temple corresponds to the year 30 C.E,3 which is approximately the time of Jesus’ crucifixion. They conclude, therefore, that the cessation of the whitening of the scarlet ribbon clearly indicates that God was no longer accepting animal sacrifices, and the Jewish people, therefore, needed to turn to Jesus as their only avenue for atonement. Ultimately, this argument asserts that the reason why the scarlet strip of wool did not turn white in the year 30 C.E. was due to the fact that the sins of the Jews were not forgiven because they did not accept Jesus as their messiah...
End:
Or you could just go to The Encyclopedia Judaica to see the reference Jesus died 30 C.E. Your main library should have a copy.
Now, this makes finding the identity of the ruler (anti-Christ) that much easier.
Next!