Tribulation Outtakes

[Olde Tymer]

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● Rev 16:13-15 . . Then I saw three evil spirits that looked like frogs; 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. They are spirits of demons performing miraculous signs, and
they go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them for the battle on the
great day of God Almighty.

. . . Behold, I come like a thief! Blessed is he who stays awake and keeps his
clothes with him, so that he may not go naked and be shamefully exposed.

There is much disagreement in our day as to signs indicating the extraction
described by 1Thess 4:16-17, but the events depicted in Revelation are neither
vague, typical, nor debatable. When all that stuff begins coming to pass, smart
ones will be on the lookout for a really big surprise.

● Matt 24:27 . . For just as the lightning comes from the east, and flashes even to
the west, so shall the coming of the Son of Man be.

WHAM; on scene, locked and loaded.
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[Olde Tymer]

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Rev 16:17-18 predicts a global earthquake so powerful on the Richter scale that
cities all over the world will collapse at once.

Something like 2,829 lost their lives when the World Trade Center was demolished
by a terrorist attack in 2001. Well that was only a few acres of New York City. Just
imagine the body count when all of Manhattan comes down at once. along with
other major cities like Los Angeles, San Francisco, Mexico City, Paris, Moscow,
Beijing, Tokyo, et al. The carnage will be beyond belief; and a great many of the
dead will be infants and underage children.

* The Bible says that we should consider not only God's benevolence, but also His
severity. (Rom 11:22) Folks in the tribulation will be dealing with a someone in
control far more terrifying than even the tyrants of North Korea, Communist China,
Russia, Saudi Arabia, Iran, and the awful regimes in Africa.

● Heb 12:29 . . For our God is a consuming fire.

That's a quote from Deut 4:24 which, in context, doesn't describe God's physical
characteristics, rather, it's a figure of speech illustrating rage: defined by Webster's
as violent and uncontrolled anger. It's hard to imagine Christianity's divine patron
ticked off to that extent, but there it is.

A consuming fire is one that cannot be extinguished, i.e. once it gets going, there's
no stopping till all that's aflame is utterly destroyed, viz: an unquenchable
conflagration.
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[Olde Tymer]

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● Rev 16:21 . . And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone
about the weight of a talent: and men blasphemed God because of the plague of
the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great.

* Talents were gross units of gold weighing from 75-100 pounds. That would be a
preposterous amount of gold to own in our day when it's current market value is
nearly $1,900 an ounce US, but not so bad back there when it was strictly money
instead of traded as a commodity. Gold coins were common, but try to find one in
somebody's pocket today.

Dropping lumps of ice that size from the sky all over the globe will be like a deadly
implosion smashing, bashing, and crushing most everything it touches: homes,
barns, super markets, strip malls, sports arenas, theaters, forests, pastures, crops,
vehicles, etc. Noah's rainfall was likely pretty destructive too, but not like this. That
was at least liquid; this will be solid.

The natural world will surely experience significant damage among the critters who
live above ground, e.g. hogs, deer, elk, ducks, geese, turkeys, cows, mustangs,
monkeys, gorillas, lions, tigers, hyenas, elephants, giraffes, butterflies, moths,
tortoises, etc.

Just imagine being caught out in the open when that hail starts. Finding adequate
shelter from such a bombardment of ice will be very difficult and no doubt
frightened people will be shrieking and screaming in mortal panic.

Curiously, numbers of people will know the hail is from God but it won't persuade
them to consider making peace with Him, instead; the hail will just make 'em
angry.
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[Olde Tymer]

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● Rev 19:19-21 . .Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies
gathered together to make war against the rider on the horse and his army. But the
beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who had performed the
miraculous signs on his behalf. With these signs he had deluded those who had
received the mark of the beast and worshiped his image.

. . .The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur. The rest
of them were killed with the sword that came out of the mouth of the rider on the
horse, and all the birds gorged themselves on their flesh.

The potent weapon proceeding from that person's mouth is speech; which causes
me to wonder why more people weren't afraid of Jesus back in his day because if
by speech he could cure leprosy then by speech he could've caused someone to
come down with leprosy; and if by speech he could energize a crippled man's legs,
then by speech he could've put somebody in a wheel chair; and if by speech he
could restore someone's corpse to life, then by speech he could've made people
drop dead to the floor; and if by speech he could cure blindness, then by speech he
could've put people's eyes out; and if by speech he could multiply loaves and
fishes, then by speech he could've caused famine; and if by speech he could calm a
storm, then by speech he could've caused a hurricane, a typhoon, and/or a
tornado.

David's combat with Goliath was an encounter that was possible for David to win;
but I see no chance of anybody's success in a fight with Christ when he has at his
disposal all the miraculous abilities of the supreme being who, according to the
book of Genesis, created a fully functioning cosmos-- all its forms of life, matter,
and energy --by nothing more than His voice.
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[Olde Tymer]

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God's patience is long-suffering. However, He's wise enough to know when to say
when and to stop throwing good money after bad, so to speak. For example:

● 2Thess 2:11-12 . . God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe
the lie, that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had
pleasure in unrighteousness.

In other words: there's coming a time when God's patience will reach its reasonable
limits, and He will purposely, willfully, and deliberately make sure that a certain
category of people during the Tribulation have no chance whatsoever to be spared
the wrath of God.

Back when Noah was preparing the ark, no doubt his neighbors all mocked and
poked fun at him as if he were a deranged soul going around with a sandwich board
that reads: Repent; The End Is Near! But when the rain started, I bet those very
same neighbors panicked and tried to get Noah to open up and let them in. But
even had Noah wanted to; he couldn't. The hatch of the ark was sealed from the
outside: and God was the only one on earth who could open it-- He chose not to.

● Rev 1:18 . . I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive
forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death.

● Rev 3:7 . .These are the words of him who is holy and true: who holds the key of
David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open.
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[Olde Tymer]

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● Rev 19:11-16 . . I saw heaven opened; and behold, a white horse, and He who
sat upon it is called Faithful and True; and in righteousness He judges and wages
war. And His eyes are a flame of fire, and upon His head are many diadems; and
He has a name written upon Him which no one knows except Himself. And He is
clothed with a robe dipped in blood; and His name is called The Word of God.

. . . And the armies which are in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean,
were following Him on white horses. And from His mouth comes a sharp sword, so
that with it He may smite the nations; and He will rule them with a rod of iron; and
He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty. And on His robe
and on His thigh He has a name written, "King of Kings, and Lord of Lords."

* The winepress mentioned in that verse appears in Isa 63:1-6, and again in Rev
14:19-20.

The fierce wrath of God is interesting. For example:

● Isa 13:9 . . Behold, the day of The Lord comes-- cruel; with both wrath and fierce
anger

The Hebrew word for "wrath" in that statement is pertains to an outburst of
passion. In other words: the wrath of God won't be weeping big wet crocodile tears
while it's slamming the dead at the Great White Throne event depicted at Rev
20:11-15; no, they will be terminated with extreme prejudice; viz: their judgment
will be administered with choler.

Webster's defines "fierce" as a behavior exhibited by humans and animals that
inspires terror because of the wild and menacing aspect of fury in attack. Ferocity is
an aspect commonly seen among carnivorous beasts savagely attacking prey.
There's neither sportsmanship nor sympathy in ferocity; only sheer terror, brutality,
and blood lust.

"cruel" is defined as: disposed to inflict pain or suffering; viz: devoid of humane
feelings

● Heb 10:27 . . A certain fearful expectation of . . . fiery indignation

"fiery indignation" is quite a bit more severe than ordinary indignation. It speaks of
someone who is seriously ticked off; and so angry that they're actually red in the
face.

There are people out there in pews all around the world who have been so coddled
by sappy versions of Christianity that they have no concept of the magnitude of the
lethal tsunami of rage and violence coming their way to get them.
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[Olde Tymer]

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● Luke 21:25 . .There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth,
nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea.

I'd imagine that folks obsessed with climate change would find the roaring and
tossing of the sea a useful political advantage. But of course down the road when
that actually takes place, climate change will likely lose much of the popularity it
currently enjoys as people will no doubt be far more interested in survival than
politics.

● Luke 21:25 . . Men will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the
world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken.

That will be a very dangerous time for elder citizens as anxiety attacks can be fatal
to folks in advanced age.
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[Olde Tymer]

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Matt 3:29 is often said to be "the" unpardonable sin. There are others; for example
the mark of the Beast is lethal too.

● Rev 14:9-11 . . And another angel, a third one, followed them, saying with a loud
voice: If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives a mark on his
forehead or upon his hand, he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which
is mixed in full strength in the cup of His anger; and he will be tormented with fire
and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb.

. . . And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever; and they have no
rest day and night, those who worship the beast and his image, and whoever
receives the mark of his name.

The world saw a sort of "mark of the beast" during the pandemic. In some areas
folks risked the loss of their jobs, their careers, and their licenses to practice for
refusing to accept a Covid vacc, and shoppers had to show proof of inoculation
before they could even enter a store to purchase basic necessities. So we can be
fairly certain the passage below is at the very least a strong possibility.

● Rev 13:16-17 . . And he causes all, the small and the great, and the rich and the
poor, and the free men and the slaves, to be given a mark on their right hand, or
on their forehead, and he provides that no one should be able to buy or to sell,
except the one who has the mark, either the name of the beast or the number of
his name.
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[EclipseEventSigns]

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● Rev 13:5c . . and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.

Prophetic months aren't the same as calendar months. Prophetic months are thirty
days each; so that forty-two such months add up to 1,260 days, i.e. 3½ prophetic
years, e.g. Rev 11:2 & Rev 12:6

Prophetic months are sort of like a baker's dozen. Though a baker's dozen isn't a
dozen of twelve; it's nonetheless a dozen in its own right: the same with mean
solar time vs sidereal time, and true north vs magnetic north.

* Scripture introduces prophetic months in Genesis relative to the Flood where a
period of five months adds up to exactly 150 days.
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There is a lot of misinformation in this thread. Much that is commonly taught - but it is absolutely wrong. Revelation is a book that refers back to the Old Testament in hundreds of places. Without understanding Jewish culture, religion and idioms, Revelation will never be understood properly. And the absolutely wrong statements about the Jewish calendar made in this comment is very significant. There is NO SUCH thing as a "prophetic year". Jewish years are not 360 days long. It's just a fact.

For the proper way to interpret the time periods, see my post where this is all laid out:

https://berean-apologetics.community.forum/threads/the-timeline-of-the-great-tribulation.977/

 

[Olde Tymer]

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● Rev 12:1 . . A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the Sun,
with the Moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars.

That sign is sometimes interpreted to indicate Jesus' mom; and I guess that's okay
if the Bible reader happens to be a Catholic. But it's far more likely the sign is taken
from Joseph's dream (Gen 37:9) which Jacob interpreted as a reference to his clan,
a.k.a. the people of Israel.

"When he told it to his father and his brothers, his father reproved him and asked:
What is the meaning of this dream of yours? Can it be that I and your mother and
your brothers are to come and bow to the ground before you?" (Gen 37:10)

As the family's prophet, Jacob's inspired intuition instantly caught the dream's
message; although it did make him a bit indignant. However, the olde boy didn't
brush the dream aside because his prophetic insight told him there just might be
something to it

The mother element of the family of Israel consists of a composite unity consisting
of four biological moms-- Rachel, Leah, Bilhah and Zilpah. So the logical conclusion
is that the Moon's identity included all four women rather than limited to Joseph's
mom alone; who at the time was already deceased.

Anyway: I'm guessing that what we're told by the sign is that in spite of the
Dragon's best efforts, he has thus far failed to stop Christ from taking the reins. In
other words: Christ is still on track to return and no one can stop him.

"She gave birth to a son, a male child, destined to rule all the nations with an iron
rod." (Rev 12:5a)

That would be a reference to the 2nd Psalm wherein Christ's opponents are soundly
mocked as air heads; so to speak.

NOTE: I was baptized an infant into Roman Catholicism; and in time sat thru
enough catechism to complete First Holy Communion and Confirmation.

Well; I must've been either asleep or absent the day when the nuns spoke of
Christ's return to conquer the world because I cannot remember ever once hearing
of it till I was 24 years old. The news was a shock not only because I was taken by
surprise, but also because I instinctively knew that were I to stand before Christ for
a face-to-face it would not go well for me because I had a lot to answer for.
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[Olde Tymer]

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Down at the end of all with which we are familiar, the announcement below will be
made.

● Rev 22:11 . . Let the evildoer still do evil, and the filthy still be filthy, and the
righteous still do right, and the holy still be holy.

In other words: the people to whom those words pertain, will be stuck with who
and what they are with no chance of ever being any different. That's good news for
the righteous and/or holy, whereas really bad news for folks who end up on the
wrong side of things. The ones in the lake of fire will be forever unfit for anyplace else.
_