Armageddon.The word sends shivers up my spine. It is full of doomsday imagery, of the end of the world.
Even non-religious media recognize the potency of the term. A few years back, for example, Bruce Willis starred in a movie about an asteroid hurtling toward earth, threatening our planet’s very existence. The title? Armageddon. In 2003, Basic Books published Avoiding Armageddon by public policy analyst Martin Schram, which details the nuclear, biological, chemical, and terrorist threats facing America—and offers a few suggestions for how to defeat them.
Of course, religious media use the term more promiscuously. One of the volumes of Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins’s bestselling Left Behind series is titled Armageddon. There is even a “dramatic audio CD” of the book, complete with theme music, explosions, war sounds, and character actors voicing the parts.
Interestingly, the Bible mentions Armageddon only once, here in Revelation 16.16, and scholars are not even sure what it refers to. A common interpretation is that it refers to “the mountain of Megiddo,” a rather wooden translation of the meaning of the Hebrew terms har (mountain) and mageddon (of Megiddo). Megiddo is a city in northern Israel with a very long history, situated in a broad plain where many important battles of antiquity were fought. There is no mountain there, however. Other interpretations try to find alternate etymologies for the word: “mountain of assembly,” “destroying mountain,” “fruitful mountain,” etc. Grant Osborne throws up his hands in despair over all these interpretations, concluding: “All these attempts to find a specific meaning for ‘Armageddon,’ whether literal or symbolic, fail to convince. It is more likely that a more general reference is intended, building on the OT connection of Megiddo with warfare.”
And that’s what Armageddon is really about, not so much a place but a great confrontation between the forces of evil and the Son of God, a battle described in Revelation 19.11–21. Where it takes place is, in my opinion, far less important than its outcome, namely, the complete triumph of Jesus Christ over the devil and all evil.
Revelation 16.12–16 make several interesting points about the battle of Armageddon. First, it takes place under God’s providential hand. When the sixth angel pours out his bowl of wrath, the Euphrates River dries up, making it possible for the kings of the east to cross westward, on their way to Jerusalem, Rome, or both. Their intent is to annihilate God’s people.
Second, it takes place at the devil’s instigation. Three demonic spirits, we are told, go abroad to gather the kings of the earth into an alliance with the kings of the earth to make war against the saints. Poor devils! They do not seem to know that their evil designs will result in their own destruction.
Third, Armageddon requires watchfulness on the part of believers. “Blessed is the one who stays awake, keeping his garments on, that he may not go about naked and be seen exposed.” In this life, the Christian faces danger. Although we know that God is firmly in control of history, nevertheless, we must also be prepared to play our role.
There are thus three basic actors in the Armageddon drama: God, the devil, and us. God will accomplish his plan despite the devil’s best (and ultimately futile attempts to thwart it). The only real question is whose side we will be on.
GeorgePWood.com 