THE ATOMIC WAR ENDS THE TRIBULATION!--As Proved by Rev.14 & 17-19! 8/11/84 DO 2165 ET# 23
1. OUR LATEST OPINION & INTERPRETATION IS THAT THE ATOMIC WAR WILL NOT COME & THE WHORE WILL NOT BE DESTROYED UNTIL TOWARD THE END OF THE TRIBULATION PERIOD. We came to the conclusion that the Atomic War is going to destroy America when the Ten Kings of Europe get together with the Antichrist. (See No.1528) The 14th Chapter of Revelation gives a kind of a forward review, a flash-forward, showing that the destruction of Babylon is connected with the Endtime & associated with the Coming of the Lord as occurring immediately before the Coming of the Lord, & if you take the sequence of Chapters 17, 18 & 19, it gives the same picture. 17 is the description of the Whore, 18 is the story of her destruction, & 19 you're getting into the Wrath & the Battle of Armageddon.
2. HASN'T IT BEEN CLEAR TO YOU THAT WE REVISED OUR INTERPRETATION ON THAT?--That we now believe that it is the Great Crash, the economic collapse of the World that's largely going to put the Antichrist in power, rather than the final Great War? In other words, according to our latest interpretation, the destruction of the Whore--America & the Western Capitalist System--doesn't come until the end of the Tribulation. The Crash could easily come any time & probably will put the Antichrist in power rather than an Atomic War, & that's been a major change in our doctrine & interpretation.
3. OF COURSE, THERE ARE ABOUT FIVE ANTICHRIST WARS DURING HIS REIGN ANYHOW BEFORE THE LAST ONE. In fact, I think the big Atomic War at the end of the Tribulation is apparently the fifth. (See No.1528, 1904:25 & 2124:2) But the Antichrist is running here & running there during the various rebellions that occur during the Tribulation, engaged in wars with the people that don't like his reign. It says in Chapter 13, "And all the World wondered after the Beast", & the preachers used to say that means the whole World is going to worship him. Well, generally speaking you'd probably say that at one time the known World sort of was the Roman Empire, but that didn't mean they all agreed with the Caesars! They had quite a few rebellions!--And his is like a revival of the Roman Empire & he's like a Caesar. Obviously, from Daniel the 11th Chapter, he has a number of major rebellions, major wars which occur during his reign, but not the Big One!--Until the very End!
4. THE BIBLE SAYS THIS BIG ONE IS JUST GOING TO LAST ONE DAY, IN FACT EVEN ONE HOUR! (Rev.18:8,10) I thought we brought that out pretty clearly, that after re-study, it sounded like the Atomic War would be the final great War of the Tribulation period.--Not the final war, there are two more big ones, Armageddon & Gog/Magog, but it would be the final war of the Tribulation period which destroys Babylon & in several places is associated with the Coming of the Lord.
5. SEE, THAT'S THE WORST THING THAT COULD POSSIBLY HAPPEN TO THIS WORLD WHICH WILL JUST ALMOST DESTROY IT & MAKE CONDITIONS ALMOST UNBEARABLE & UNLIVABLE, OUT OF WHICH THE LORD HAS TO TAKE HIS OWN! Savvy? (Maria: Yes Sir, that makes a lot more sense.) We completely revised our predictions & our interpretation of that. At one time we even thought the War could be at any moment to put the Antichrist into power at the beginning of the Seven Years. Well, from the looks of the way things are going now & from the looks of the kind of bombs & how many they've got now, there isn't going to be very much left after that!--There will be some, but there wouldn't be much glory in ruling over a ruined, devastated Earth.
6. NOW I DON'T LIKE TO BE DOGMATIC ABOUT THINGS, especially when it's still in virtually a theoretical form & I was in a sense surmising, but I thought I brought out quite a few points which seemed to be contrary to some of our earliest opinions, which were still when we were in the United States & a little after. Because of all the things we'd gotten from the Book of Jeremiah, we thought the War was imminent & impending & was going to destroy America, but the Lord is amazingly patient & He waits a lot longer than we expect sometimes!
7. THIS IS SOMETHING I NEVER COULD QUITE RECONCILE UNTIL THIS FINALLY CAME CLEAR. According to Revelation 14 & 18, if the Great Whore is not destroyed in that one hour of one day until just before the Coming of the Lord--& both passages make that very clear--how could the Atomic War occur any sooner than just before the End, or at the end of the Tribulation, out of which the Lord rescues His Own? It would be the ideal time to rescue them when life gets almost unbearable.
8. WE'VE TRIED TO MAKE IT PRETTY CLEAR THAT WE NOW THINK THE MAJOR ATOMIC WAR WILL BE AT THE END! There may be other wars & there probably will be--there are wars right now & there have always been wars! As Goldwater said, "There have been wars every two years for the last 7,000 years!" Well, I would have agreed with him if he'd said 6,000 years. So there can still be some major light conventional wars, but it doesn't look like the almost total destruction of America, the Great Whore & the Capitalist Western System is going to occur until the end of the Tribulation period.
9. THAT WOULD BE THE BIGGEST, MOST CATACLYSMIC & DESTRUCTIVE EVENT OF THE WHOLE PERIOD, & if it occurred even at the beginning of the Tribulation there wouldn't be much left to tribulate! If it occurred at the beginning of the Antichrist's reign, there wouldn't be much glory to his reign. If some of the best & richest parts of the World were all wiped out, what's his reward?--What's his booty, his loot, his spoils of war? It doesn't look like he manages to finally get the cooperation of the Ten Kings & everything completely under his power until the very end, then apparently as a last resort he destroys the Whore with the cooperation of the Ten Kings.
10. AS FAR AS I NOW CAN SEE & FROM ALL PRESENT INDICATIONS, IT LOOKS LIKE THE CRASH IS ONE OF THE MAIN THINGS THAT'S GOING TO BRING THE ANTICHRIST TO POWER--I think that's the way they're trying to manipulate it--& it may be the Atomic War that pretty well almost brings him down! Because immediately after that, according to both Revelation 14 & 19, the Lord comes! It's a pretty clear sequence. It's the grand, final, climactic catastrophe at the end of the Tribulation in which Babylon is destroyed just before the Coming of the Lord!
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(A Later Discussion with John:)
11. IN OUR LATEST REINTERPRETATION OF THE ORDER OF MAJOR EVENTS TO COME, WE MADE A MAJOR SHIFT OF ONE MAJOR EVENT, DO YOU RECALL WHAT IT WAS? (John: The Atomic War.) Right. And we shifted it from where to where? (J: From before the Seven-Year Covenant.) We shifted it from the beginning of the Seven Years, as no longer taking the Atomic War to put the Antichrist in power. I explained it a lot in the Eden Series & went into great detail on that. It was a major shift of interpretation because the Lord made that a lot clearer, that it wasn't going to take an Atomic War to put him in power, but what instead? (J: Peace.) Well, peace, yes, but first something else. (J: The Crash.) Right! Not the Atomic War, but the Crash is going to put him in power. (See Nos. 1518-1520)
12. THEN WHERE DID WE DECIDE THE WAR BELONGED?--THE BIG ONE, THE ATOMIC WAR THAT'S GOING TO WIPE OUT A LOT OF THE WORLD, PARTICULARLY WHO & WHAT? (J: America & Russia.)--The Great Whore. Well, possibly Russia, but particularly the West. The Great Whore is particularly the West, but you can also include Russia. Russia really is a Western country, it's actually a European country. But anyhow, the Great Whore, whoever she includes--whether it's both Western Capitalism & Russian Communism--the War is obviously going to wipe out Western Capitalism mostly, because the Ten Kings of the Antichrist cooperate with him to do the dirtywork & to destroy the Whore.
13. I THOUGHT I MADE IT QUITE CLEAR THAT IT MEANT THAT RUSSIA & EUROPE WERE GOING TO UNITE TO DESTROY AMERICA. Didn't I make that clear? It says very clearly at the end of the 17th Chapter that they're going to unite with the Little Horn, the Antichrist, to destroy her & devour her & burn her with fire! (Rev.17:12-17) Now that doesn't mean destroying themselves. There could be some destruction, but it's more like a victory for them & the destruction of America, the Great Whore, & I thought I made it very clear. I gave several Scriptures which previously had sort of befuddled me & puzzled me because it sounded like the War was not at the beginning of the Seven Years. Where did we conclude, therefore, the War would occur? (J: At the end of the Great Tribulation.)--Right! The last great event of the Tribulation, & that's exactly the way it sounds in Revelation 14 where it associates the fall of Babylon & the Angel preaching the Gospel from the Heavens with the Coming of the Lord.
14. IN THE 14TH CHAPTER YOU'VE GOT THE GOSPEL PREACHED TO ALL THE WORLD, THE FALL OF BABYLON & THE COMING OF THE LORD ALL ROLLED TOGETHER ALMOST LIKE THEY'RE ONE EVENT! Then after that comes this outline of all the events of the Wrath in the 15th & 16th Chapters, then the 17th Chapter goes back to describe what? (J: The destruction of the Whore.) No, not yet. The very end of the Chapter does, but most of the 17th Chapter is taken up with describing the Whore, her luxury & her dominance over the kings of the Earth & all that sort of thing. Only at the very end of the Chapter does it talk about how the Ten Kings get together with the Antichrist & destroy her. Up till that time she'd ridden on their backs & had been running the show, like the U.S. is today.
15. THEN WHAT IS IN THE VERY NEXT CHAPTER, THE 18TH CHAPTER? (J: HER DESTRUCTION.)--The detailed description of her destruction in one hour of one day! Here's Babylon in the 17th Chapter, here's her destruction in the 18th Chapter, & what happens in the 19th Chapter? You say, "But Dad, wait a minute! Those Chapters come after 15 & 16 & we've already had the Wrath of God in the 15th & 16th Chapters!" Well, what have I told you about Revelation?--It's not always in exactly the same order.
16. EACH SEVEN CHAPTERS ACTUALLY WIND UP WITH THE END EACH TIME! The second seven end with Chapter 14 & you'd think that was the end of everything, the Coming of the Lord, then followed by 15 & 16, the Wrath of God. But what does 17 do? (J: Describes the Whore.) Right. But it covers a period of time of how long?--Which shows it's not just America but it's the general World System, materialism etc.! She rides on the back of what? (J: The people.) Well, she rides on the sea, the multitudes, yes, but she rides on the back of something. On the back of something, Son, 17th Chapter! You need to refresh your memory of Revelation! She rides on the back of this great red dragon with seven heads! For goodness sake, have you forgotten that?--And each of the seven heads represent what? (J: Seven World governments.) Exactly! Because she's been around a long time! So it's not all America, but it's just as though America's the final manifestation of the Whore, the same materialism & the same kind of religious system that's been riding the governments of the World for centuries!
17. WHAT I'M TRYING TO SAY IS THAT THE 17TH CHAPTER THEN GOES CLEAR BACK & STARTS HISTORY ALL OVER AGAIN WITH EGYPT, SO IT'S A FLASHBACK, IT'S A PICTURE OF THE WHORE & HER WORK FOR MILLENNIUMS, THOUSANDS OF YEARS! So although the Lord has already come in 14, & then we have 15 & 16, the Wrath of God following the Coming of the Lord, 17 is a flashback that goes back & shows a picture of the Whore & her ministry for all those centuries, & that in her final manifestation & her final form, the U.S.A. & the Western Capitalist System, she is destroyed by the Antichrist & his Ten Kings of Europe, Russia & Europe together. In other words, it sort of goes back. Here in the 14th Chapter you're told Babylon is fallen, it's destroyed & Jesus has come, 15 & 16 are the Wrath of God, then all of a sudden here we go back to Babylon again, telling about her ruling & all her power & glory in 17, she's not even fallen yet! It's a definite flashback to explain in detail what happened to her, & 18 gives exactly how she fell.
18. SO IN CHAPTER 18 SHE FALLS IN ONE HOUR OF ONE DAY, & WHAT COMES IN 19? You've got the Celebration Up There & the Saints Up There while all this is going on, but this is just to show more or less where they're at & is an indication that the Rapture has taken place, if you're following the chronology. Then what do you have in the last half of the 19th Chapter? (J: The Wrath?) Well, yes, it's a part of the Wrath of God, it's the end of the Wrath of God before the Millennium. It's got a famous name, even World-famous! (J: The Battle of Armageddon!) Yes, in the last of the 19th Chapter.
19. SO HERE WE HAVE A FLASHBACK DESCRIPTION OF BABYLON IN THE 17TH CHAPTER, 18th a detailed description of how she's destroyed, 19th you've got a picture of the Saints already raptured & in Heaven & glorying over their rescue etc. & the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, all that going on Up There--which obviously means that this is the time when the Wrath of God is going on down below. Because right at the end of that Supper, we suddenly ride down on white horses through the sky, as the song goes, & we attack in the Battle of Armageddon & do what? (J: Defeat the Antichrist & his forces.) Right! So obviously that is at the end of the Wrath of God, at the very end of the time the Antichrist is in power.
20. CHAPTER 14 IN A NUTSHELL DEFINITELY LINKS THE FALL OF BABYLON WITH THE IMMEDIATE COMING OF THE LORD. 17 is a flashback, 18 is a description of the fall of Babylon in one hour & one day with the World mourning over her destruction because she made'm rich & all that. But immediately you then go into 19 which shows the Saints were already raptured & in Heaven & the Marriage Supper of the Lamb is taking place, while obviously the Wrath of God is going on downstairs. Then at the end of it we ride down & win the Battle of Armageddon.
21. WELL, I'M JUST ABOUT CONVINCED THAT THIS DESTRUCTION OF BABYLON IS THE GREAT ATOMIC WAR, because what could be greater destruction than that, in one hour of one day? It could hardly be anything else but the Atomic War! They saw the whole country burning from afar, ships at sea, great burning, great destruction, & obviously it was happening to Babylon & not to the Antichrist & his Ten Kings! He did it! They did it! It says they devoured her--devoured her flesh & burned her with fire, destroyed her! They finally turn on her at what appears to be pretty close to the end of the Antichrist reign. And in both the 14th Chapter & in the relationship of those other Chapters, 18 & 19, it sounds like the Coming of the Lord occurs right about that time of the Atomic War, or the end of it or after it.
22. IN OTHER WORDS, THE WORST POSSIBLE TIME THE WORLD COULD EVER HAVE IS THE ATOMIC WAR! If it happened now before the Antichrist's reign, there wouldn't be much left for him to reign over!--Even if it was just the destruction of Babylon. You can't quite fit that in any other way, like having Babylon destroyed now before the Antichrist takes over & for the Antichrist to rise to power through the Atomic War, because there wouldn't be too much glory in ruling over the ruins!
23. THE LORD BEGAN TO REVEAL THAT TO US DURING THAT SUMMER WHEN WE WERE WORKING ON THE EDEN SERIES, THAT THE WAR JUST DIDN'T FIT AT THE BEGINNING OF THE ANTICHRIST REIGN. (See #1119:18.) As much as it looked like War was imminent & would be very soon, look how they've put it off & put it off, & to me, it looks like the Crash is far more imminent. There's every sign of the Crash!--It's already begun, in fact it's here! It would be a lot easier for him to pick up the pieces after the Crash than after the War & he would be hailed as a saviour on two counts: He prevented the Atomic War & he rescued the World Economy, which is a lot more logical than having him come to power on the Atomic War & pick up a World in ruins--the economy, the World & everything ruined!
24. SO AS I STUDIED THAT & BEGAN TO GO BACK OVER THE SCRIPTURES, IT WAS PRETTY CLEAR THAT BABYLON IS NOT DESTROYED UNTIL THE END OF THE ANTICHRIST REIGN, THE END OF THE TRIBULATION PERIOD. Didn't I make that clear? I said, "Well, it looks to me that instead of the Atomic War putting the Antichrist in power, the Great Crash is going to put the Antichrist in power, & the Atomic, or Nuclear War is not going to occur until the end of his reign." (See #1518 & 1528)
25. WHILE IN THE U.S. WE'D GOTTEN THE MESSAGE OF JEREMIAH IN WHICH THERE'S SO MUCH DESTRUCTION OF AMERICA, SO WE GOT TO THINKING THAT IT WAS GOING TO HAPPEN ANY MINUTE! Well, we're not the first people of God who've ever been a little mistaken about some things! Saint Paul thought the Lord was coming any minute, & obviously some of the rest of them thought so. The Lord sometimes lets you perhaps even be mistaken so you will think so, like the "40 Days", so you'd get a hustle on & get out! He sort of tricks you once in awhile just to make you move!
26. NOW LET'S GET THOSE WARS DISTINCT, SHALL WE? THE BATTLE OF ARMAGEDDON IS NOT THE ATOMIC WAR! The Atomic War occurs at the end of the Tribulation with the destruction of the Whore, Babylon, apparently followed immediately by the Coming of the Lord to rescue His children out of this horrible mess! By that time life has become almost intolerable for everybody, so He rescues His children, followed by the Wrath of God while we're having the Wedding Supper Upstairs, followed by us coming down to finish up the Wrath of God in the Battle of Armageddon.
27. THE ATOMIC WAR IS THE LAST MAJOR EVENT OF THE TRIBULATION PERIOD, & the worst & most horrendous event of all, which makes life on Earth almost intolerable. So the Lord rescues His Saints & pours out His Wrath on the sinners, & then we come back down to finish the job in the Battle of Armageddon.
28. SOMEBODY THOUGHT THAT WHEN THE SACRIFICE BEGINS IT'S THE BEGINNING OF THE LAST SEVEN YEARS.--But it's not necessarily the beginning of the Last Seven Years! (J: No, it's the middle.) Not the middle, no, the sacrifice is stopped in the middle. (J: Oh I see, after the building of the Temple the sacrifice begins.) Yes, & that takes some time. (J: Yes, 8 months.) Somewhere around 8 or 9 months. Anyway, the Antichrist is already in power when that happens, so that doesn't begin the Seven Years.
29. I'LL TELL YOU, IT LOOKS LIKE SOME OF THESE PEOPLE ARE STILL PRETTY SCREWED-UP ON THE ORDER OF EVENTS! The Sacrifice probably begins during the first year. The Antichrist has to get in power first & he has to make the Holy Covenant & then they have to build the Temple before the sacrifice begins!
30. THAT ENDTIME CHART, "THE REVELATION OF THE END", IS REALLY PRETTY ACCURATE, IT'S PRETTY GOOD. I don't recall whether it pinpoints the Atomic War or not, it may have avoided that controversial point, so I'll have to check that out. I've been over that with a finetooth comb just recently & it's accurate, very good. It sticks strictly just to the Scriptures, so it's still as good today as it ever was--except that we now have a few more details on exactly what happens etc.
31. WELL, THAT WAS HOW I STARTED OUT THIS LITTLE LESSON, I JUST INTENDED TO ASK YOU IF IT WAS CLEAR TO YOU THAT THAT HAS BEEN ONE OF OUR MAJOR CHANGES OF DOCTRINE & INTERPRETATION.--That now, instead of the Atomic War bringing the Antichrist to power, what is most likely to bring him to power? (J: The Crash.) Yes, the Crash & prevention of the Atomic War, in a sense, but possibly some conventional war.
32. SEE, THESE ARE THE TWO MAJOR WORLD WIDE DISASTERS THAT COULD OCCUR TO THE WORLD: ONE IS THE CRASH, ECONOMIC, THE OTHER IS MILITARY, THE ATOMIC WAR!--And it certainly looks pretty clear now from all we've seen & heard & read in the Scriptures that it's going to be the Crash that comes first & the War comes at the End of his reign.--But apparently that's not too clear to some people & we need to straighten them out.
33. SO WHAT MAJOR EVENT IS GOING TO HELP PUT THE ANTICHRIST IN POWER? (J: The Crash or preventing the War.) Well, both, the Crash & the Peace. He brings about the solution of both, & apparently that's why they all worship him, because he's such a superman & he's solved all these problems of both war & peace.
34. SO THEN THE NEXT QUESTION IS: "WHEN DOES THE ATOMIC WAR OCCUR?" Well, when does the destruction of Babylon occur?--Because the Atomic War obviously brings about the destruction of Babylon. It seems very clear that the destruction of Babylon is associated with the Coming of the Lord in Chapter 14. Also in the 18th Chapter occurs specifically the fall of Babylon, & very soon following that you find the Saints in Heaven riding out to the Battle of Armageddon. So it obviously must have occurred just before the Rapture or somewhere around that time. It could even have occurred after the Rapture, except that in Chapter 14, Verse 8, it says, "Babylon is fallen, is fallen", & then the Rapture occurs in Verses 14-16, & in this Chapter the verses are pretty much in sequence. That's the strongest Scripture against it happening after the Rapture, because of the sequence of events in Chapter 14!
35. IT SOUNDS LIKE PREACHING THE GOSPEL TO THE WHOLE WORLD & THE FALL OF BABYLON IMMEDIATELY PRECEDE THE COMING OF THE LORD. Then the sequence of events, the Chapters subsequent to that, uphold that same idea. In the 18th Chapter she's destroyed.
36. OBVIOUSLY BABYLON IS DESTROYED IN THE 18TH CHAPTER, & soon after that in the 19th Chapter, the Saints are in Heaven & we ride out to the Battle of Armageddon. So obviously the Rapture has occurred & the Wrath of God has occurred, because Armageddon is the last event of the Wrath before the Millennium. I think the Scripture bears it out & it makes the Scripture clear & that order of events looks pretty clear now. That was sort of a major shift in our interpretation, shifting the War from the beginning of the seven years or just before it, to the end of it, or just before the end of it.
37. I THINK THERE'S PRETTY STRONG EVIDENCE THAT IT'S THE ATOMIC WAR THAT DESTROYS BABYLON IN ONE HOUR & ONE DAY! It talks about the Ten Kings, it says they destroy her, devour her flesh & burn her with fire! It sounds like total fiery destruction, & in the 18th Chapter it makes it real clear. It sounds like nothing less than Atomic War could do it!
38. AGAIN, WHAT HELPS TO PUT THE ANTICHRIST IN POWER FROM ALL WE CAN NOW SEE? (J: THE CRASH & PREVENTING OF THE WAR.)--Yes! I mean, he can hold the World hostage by saying, "Well, I'm going to stop the War & stop wars! Put me in power & I'll stave off the War!" Then when do we think the Atomic War is going to be? (J: At the end of the Tribulation, at the end of the Antichrist's reign.) How are we trying to prove it? (J: By the destruction of Babylon.) And when is Babylon destroyed? (J: By the Atomic War be-fore the Rapture.) To play it safe, it looks like it occurs at the end of the Tribulation!
39. WE CAN'T REALLY ABSOLUTELY PROVE THAT IT OCCURS BEFORE OR AFTER THE RAPTURE, IT COULD POSSIBLY OCCUR EITHER WAY, but the point is, it does not occur at the beginning of the Seven Years or in the middle of the Seven Years, but somewhere around the end of the Seven Years as far as we now see. And what is the main reason we think that? (J: Because Babylon is destroyed at the end of the Seven Years.) Yes, & why do we think it's an Atomic War that destroys her? (J: Because it happens in one hour.)--In one hour, one day!--Through the cooperation of whom?--By whom? (J: The Ten Kings & the Antichrist & Russia.)--Russia & Europe, apparently. It would be funny if they get ahold of all those American missiles & turn'm around & point'm the other way! The joke's on the U.S.!
40. ONE MORE TIME! I BELIEVE IN REPEAT, REPEAT, REPEAT! WHAT MAJOR EVENT IS PROBABLY GOING TO HELP PUT THE ANTICHRIST IN POWER? (J: The Crash & his power to prevent the War.) Right! In other words, to solve two of the World's major problems, its economic Crash & the threat of Atomic War. So if the Atomic War does not occur then at the begin-ning of his reign or before it, when are we pretty sure it occurs? (J: At the end of the Tribulation, at the end of his reign.) It looks like it occurs somewhere near the end of his reign. Don't pinpoint it too exactly, it's apparently somewhere at the end of his reign.--And why do we place it there? (J: Because the destruction of Babylon is probably the Atomic War, because it happens in one hour & in one day.)
41. AND ACCORDING TO WHAT PASSAGE DOES THE DESTRUCTION OF BABYLON OCCUR JUST BEFORE THE COMING OF THE LORD OR AT THE SAME TIME? (J: The description is in 17, the destruction is in 18, which is just before Chapter 19 when the Saints are in Heaven.) Right. And what other Chapter associates the fall of Babylon with the Coming of the Lord or at the same time? (J: Chapter 14.) Just 14. Don't go beyond 14, because 15 & 16 are the Wrath. So there you are! I hope that helps you get the beads on the string & straightens that out.
42. SO WHAT TWO MAIN CHAPTERS SHOW US THAT THE DESTRUCTION OF BABYLON, WHICH IS THE ATOMIC WAR, OCCURS ABOUT THE TIME OR JUST BEFORE OR AFTER THE COMING OF CHRIST?--Chapter 14 & the association of 18 & 19. According to Chapter 14, Babylon is destroyed just before the Coming of Christ, & according to Chapter 18, Babylon is destroyed just before the Coming of Christ, which apparently has already occurred in Chapter 19, because then Chapter 19 closes with the Battle of Armageddon.
43. ALL RIGHT, LET'S REVIEW AGAIN. WE NOW BELIEVE THAT WHAT EVENT IS GOING TO PROBABLY BRING ON THE ANTICHRIST? (J: The Crash & his prevention of the Atomic War.)--Right. So if the Atomic War isn't going to happen at the beginning of his reign, when is it going to happen? (John: Somewhere at the end of the Tribulation, at the end of his reign.) Right, at the end of the Seven Years, not the beginning. And why do we think that? (John: Because the destruction of Babylon is obviously an Atomic War--it happens in one hour, in one day.) But why do we think that it occurs just before the Coming of the Lord? (J: Because it says in Revelation 14, "Babylon has fallen," & then comes the Rapture--the Reaping. Also the association of Chapters 18 & 19. It gives the description of the fall of Babylon in 18, & then the Saints have been raptured...) And are already in Heaven in 19. It seems to make it very clear in both those Chapters that the destruction of Babylon occurs just before the Coming of the Lord, or at the time of the Coming of the Lord.
44. WELL, IF THAT WAS EVEN A LITTLE UNCLEAR IN YOUR HEAD, IT MIGHT BE A LITTLE UNCLEAR IN A LOT OF PEOPLE'S HEADS!--So maybe after this little lesson it won't be unclear! This was a major shift in our doctrine, because a wise man is wiser tomorrow than he was yesterday. In our early days we believed that the Atomic War was going to bring on the Antichrist, but now we realise, in a way, that it's going to take him off instead of bring him on!--Well, not entirely, but it's going to be the beginning of the end for him, followed by the Wrath of God & the Battle of Armageddon!
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