Prophecies of Joel Looking  Back,  Looking  Ahead  

Joel  means  a  Worshipper  of   יהוה  )YHVH(  Joel’s  father,  Pethuel,  expressed  his  own  faith  when  he  named  his  son  Joel.    

Joel,  undoutably,  because  of  his  personal  faith,  

was  chosen  to  express  the  words  of  ( (יהוה  YHVH.  

       YO  -­‐  EL יואל  

Who  is  the  God  we  Worship?  •  Is  He  a  God  of  wrath  by  contrast  to  the  Lord  Jesus?  

Is  He  out  to  catch  us  in  error  and  punish  us?  

Gold  is  not  put  in  the  fire  to  destroy  it  …but  rather  to  refine  it,  to  purify  it.  

Who  is  the  God  we  Worship?  •  Is  He  a  God  of  wrath  by  contrast  to  the  Lord  Jesus?  

He  is  the  "God  of  the  widows  and  fatherless,"      

James  commends  this  quality—this  aJtude—to  care  for  those  who  cannot  care  for  themselves.  

He  is  the  God  who  loves  us  and  asks  us  to  love    our  neighbor  as  ourselves.  

Is  He  out  to  catch  us  in  error  and  punish  us?  

So,“…while  we  have  opportunity,  let  us  do  good  unto  all  people,  and  especially  those  who  are  of  the  household  of  faith.”  NAS  

The  LORD’S  Words  in  Joel  

   

1  -­‐  Sounding  of  the  Shofar  (Ram’s  Horn)  announcing  the  words  of  the  LORD.  

The  LORD’S  Words  in  Joel  

2  -­‐  Alarm  Alerts  Israel  of  devastaZon  on  the  land    and  ulZmately  on  crops  and  animals  as  well.            -­‐  All  will  be  in  lamentaZon  

   

1  -­‐  Sounding  of  the  Shofar  (Ram’s  Horn)  announcing  the  words  of  the  LORD.  

The  LORD’S  Words  in  Joel  

2  -­‐  Alarm  Alerts  Israel  of  devastaZon  on  the  land    and  ulZmately  on  crops  and  animals  as  well.            -­‐  All  will  be  in  lamentaZon  

   

1  -­‐  Sounding  of  the  Shofar  (Ram’s  Horn)  announcing  the  words  of  the  LORD.  

-­‐  Priests  Appeal  for  the  LORD’S  Mercy  -­‐  LORD  urges  Israel’s  Repentance  

-­‐  The  LORD’S  promise  of  restoraZon  of  all  lost  3  -­‐  Spirit  poured  out  on  All  People  4  -­‐  The  Ba)le  of  the  Last  Day—Valley  of  Jehoshaphat  

Joel 1 ~ Prophecy of ruin by the invading locusts

Joel 2a ~ The blowing of the shofar, sounding alarm ~ Description of the destroyers

Joel 2b ~ Call to repentance — shofar to sound, sanctify a fast, a solemn assembly

~ Promise to restore the rains and all that was lost~ Spirit poured out upon all flesh

Joel 3 ~ Judgment of Nations who went against Israel~ Proclaim to the nations “Sanctify (kaddeshu) War”

Joel’s  IniZal  Prophecy—Chapter  1  

2 “Hear this, you elders; give ear, all inhabitants of the land! Has such a thing happened in your days, or in the days of your fathers?

3 "Tell your children of it, and let your children tell their children, and their children to another generation.

4 "What the cutting locust left, the swarming locust has eaten. What the swarming locust left, the hopping locust has eaten, and what the hopping locust left, the destroying locust has eaten."

palmer worm = “to shear” — The Chaldeans locust = “a swarm” — The Medes & Persians canker worm = “to lap up” — The Macedonian Greeks caterpillar = “the finisher” — The Romans

Terms  Defined  

Prophecies  of  Joel  

End of the Age View of the LORD'S Great Army “The Lord, by his overruling providence, will take a general charge of this great army of discontents—patriots, reformers, socialists, moralists, anarchists, ignorants and hopeless —and use their hopes, fears, follies and selfishness, according to his divine wisdom, to work out his own grand purposes in the overthrow of present institutions, and for the preparation of man for the Kingdom of Righteousness.

“For this reason only it is termed ‘The LORD'S great army.’

“None of his saints—one who are led by the spirit of God as sons of God are to have anything to do with that part of the ‘battle.’” The Battle of Armageddon, p. 550

Broad Sweeping View of the LORD'S Great Army “The Lord, by his overruling providence, will take a general charge of this great army of discontents—patriots, reformers, socialists, moralists, anarchists, ignorants and hopeless —and use their hopes, fears, follies and selfishness, according to his divine wisdom, to work out his own grand purposes in the overthrow of present institutions, and for the preparation of man for the Kingdom of Righteousness.

“For this reason only it is termed ‘The LORD'S great army.’

“None of his saints—one who are led by the spirit of God as sons of God are to have anything to do with that part of the ‘battle.’” The Battle of Armageddon, p. 550

“The Lord, by his overruling providence, will

take a general charge of this great army

of discontents—patriots, reformers, socialists,

moralists, anarchists…[ect.]….None of his

saints—one who are led by the spirit of God

as sons of God are to have anything to do

with that part of the ‘battle.’”

Part  4  

The  Ba)le  of  the  Last  Day—Valley  of  Jehoshaphat  

“‘Holy War’ Against God” Joel  3:9  &  10  

Joel  3:1-­‐3  

1 - "In those days and at that time, when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, 2- "I will gather all nations and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat.There I will put them on trial for what they did to my inheritance, my people Israel, because they scattered my people among the nations and divided up my land. 3 – "They cast lots for my people and traded boys for harlots; they sold girls for wine to drink."

Who did those things?

Joel  3:1-­‐3  

1 - "In those days and at that time, when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, 2- "I will gather all nations and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat.There I will put them on trial for what they did to my inheritance, my people Israel, because they scattered my people among the nations and divided up my land. 3 – "They cast lots for my people and traded boys for harlots; they sold girls for wine to drink."

palmer worm = “to shear” — The Chaldeans locust = “a swarm” — The Medes & Persians canker worm = “to lap up” — The Greeks caterpillar = “the finisher” — The Romans

Terms  Defined  

Prophecies  of  Joel  

Joel  3:2  “I will put them on trial for what they did to my inheritance, my people Israel, because they scattered my people among the nations and divided up my land.”

Triumphal Arch of Titus

Rome's  Pride  of  Robbery  

Sacred  Candle  SZck  

Joel  3:2  “I will put them on trial for what they did to my inheritance, my people Israel, because they scattered my people among the nations and divided up my land.”

Joel  3:9,10    YLT  

Strong’s  #6942  “consecrate,  dedicate,  sancDfy”    

•  “Proclaim  ye  this  among  naZons,  Prepare   [qodesh‐­-קדשקדש]  war,  sZr  up  the  mighty  ones  .  .  .  Beat  your  ploughshares  to  swords,  And  your  pruning-­‐hooks  to  javelins,  Let  the  weak  say,  ‘I  [am]  mighty.’    

Joel  3:9,10    YLT  

Strong’s  #6942  “consecrate,  dedicate,  sancDfy”    

•  “Proclaim  ye  this  among  naZons,  SancDfy   [qodesh‐­-קדשקדש]  a  war,  sZr  up  the  mighty  ones  .  .  .  Beat  your  ploughshares  to  swords,  And  your  pruning-­‐hooks  to  javelins,  Let  the  weak  say,  ‘I  [am]  mighty.’    

“‘Holy War’ Against God”

The  Jihads  of  the  7th  to  the  17th    Centuries    

The  Holy  Wars  (the  Crusades)  of  the  11-­‐13th  Centuries    

The  reacZon  of  the  Christan  West  

Where  Muhammad  Began  

Where  Islam  Spread  within  50  years  

A  

B  

C  

C  B  

ISLAMIC  EXPANSION  BY  SWORD    A.  Expansion  under  Muhammad,  622–632    B.  Expansion  during  the  Rashidun  Caliphs,  632–661    C.  Expansion  during  the  Umayyad  Caliphate,  661–750  

C  

C  

ISLAMIC  Expansion  Islam  was  stopped  in  France  in  AD  732  at  Tours  and  PoiZers,  Romanian  Transylvania  in  the  mid  1400s  and  Spain  by  1492.  

Reconquista  of  Espania    and  withdrawal  of  Islam  to  North  Africa  

ISLAMIC  Expansion  UnZl  September  11,  1683  Finally,  on  September  11,  1683,  King  Jan  Sobieski  of  Poland  came  with  30,000  Hussars  to  turn  back  the  Armies  of  Islam  at  the  Gates  of  Vienna.  

Jan  III  Sobieski  stops  Islamic  forces  at  the  Gates  of  Vienna  Sept  11  &  12,  1683  

•  “The  organizaDon  calling  itself  the  Islamic  State  has  risen  from  the  fog  of  war  in  Syria  and  Iraq  in  recent  months  and  drawn  the  asenZon  of  the  world  with  major  victories  on  both  sides  of  the  Euphrates  River  that  have  claimed  swaths  of  territory  for  its  declared  caliphate,  or  Islamic  State.”  

   •  “Now  in  the  organizaDon's  new  

English  language  publicaDon,  Dabiq,  aimed  at  young  Muslims  in  western  states,  the  extremist  organizaZon  declared,  ‘Islamic  State  will  do  everything  within  its  means  to  conDnue  striking  down  every  apostate  who  stands  as  an  obstacle  on  its  path  towards  PalesDne.’”  

CLAIMED  TERRITORY  OF  THE  NEW  CALIPHATE  ISIS  

What  does  the  world    not  understand  about    Jihad  and  conquest?  

Where  ISIS  has  gained  control  so  far…    Islamic  State  of  Iraq  and  the  Levant  declared  January  3,  2014    Caliphate  declared  June  29,  2014  under  Caliph  Abu  Bakr  al  Baghdadi  

 

IRAQ  

SAUDI  ARABIA  

JORDAN  

LEBANON   SYRIA  IRAN  

I  S  R  A  E  L  

Kurdish  Region  

Controlled  By  Iraqi  Government  

What  should  ChrisZans  do?  •    “My  Kingdom  is  not  of  this  world,  else  would  my  servants  fight.      John  18:36.  

•  A  ChrisDan  Family  Network:    “How  a  ChrisDan  naDon  should  respond  to  ISIS  threat?”    1)  Give  asylum  to  persecuted  ChrisDans  in  Muslim  lands,  2)  Make  Israel’s  border  our  red  line,  3)  Immediately  suspend  further  Islamic  immigraDon.  

•  “Catholic  and  Orthodox  Patriarchs  Seek  InternaDonal  Response  to  ISIS”  “Catholic  and  Orthodox  patriarchs  of  the  Middle  East  denounced  asacks  on  ChrisZans  and  called  upon  the  internaZonal  community  to  work  to  eradicate  terrorist  groups.”                      America—The  NaAonal  Catholic  Review  

Pope  Francis  calls  for  response  to  stop  ISIS  —clarifies  that  it  is  not  a  call  for  Crusade  

Isaiah  8:12  &  13  

•  “Say  ye  not,  A  confederacy,  to  all  them  to  whom  this  people  shall  say,  A  confederacy;  neither  fear  ye  their  fear,  nor  be  afraid.  SancDfy  the  Lord  of  hosts  himself;  and  let  him  be  your  fear,  and  let  him  be  your  dread.”    

Our  response  to  ChrisDans  fears:  

Genocide  of  ChrisZan  Armenians    an  Historic  example  from  the  19th  &  20th  Centuries  – Armenians  mark  the  date  April  24,  1915,  when  several  hundred  Armenian  intellectuals  were  rounded  up,  arrested  and  later  executed  as  the  start  of  the  Armenian  genocide  and  it  is  generally  said  to  have  extended  to  1917.  However,  there  were  also  massacres  of  Armenians  [in  Islamic  Turkey]  in  1894,  1895,  1896  [see  Volume  4:  pp.  86,89],  1909,  and  a  reprise  between  1920  and  1923.  

•  The  University  of  Minnesota’s  Center  for  Holocaust  and  Genocide  Studies  has  compiled  figures  by  province  and  district  that  show  there  were  2,133,190  Armenians  in  the  empire  in  1914  and  only  about  387,800  by  1922.  

In  the  1890s  Br.  Robert  Seklemian’s  father  fled  Armenia  located  in  the  Osoman  Turkish  Caliphate  

To  Whom  does  a  Rising  Islamic    Caliphate  Pose  the  Greatest  Threat?  

•  All  MinoriZes—men,  women  &  children  •  OpposiZon  groups  such  as  Al  Queda    •  Shia  Muslims,  Kurdish  Muslims,  ChrisZans    •  Foreigners  of  virtually  any  status  •  Jews  and  of  course  Israel.    However.  .  .what  role  may  Islam  be  playing?      

   “This  [“the  worst  of  the  heathen”]  may  be  understood  to  signify  that  the  uprising  of  the  masses  of  Christendom  in  anarchy…Or  it  may  signify  an  uprising  of  the  peoples  of  India,  China  and  Africa  against  Christendom—a  suggesDon  already  made  by  the  public  press  anent  the  revival  of  Turkey  and  the  uprising  of  the  millions  of  Mahometans.  [sic]    Our  [Br.  Russell’s]  opinion,  however,  is  that  ‘worst  of  the  heathen’  are  those  in  Christendom  who  are  ‘without  God’.  .  .  .”    D549,  550  

Are  they  the  Worst  of  the  Heathen?      

Is Islam “The Match”?

“The social system, ‘the earth,’ ‘the elements,’ ‘the course of nature,’ cannot be set on fire until the Lord permits the match to be struck: the great decisive battle cannot begin until the great ‘Michael,’ ‘the Captain of our salvation,’ stands forth and gives the word of command (Dan. 12:1), even though there will previously be frequent skirmishes all along the lines.” D548

Islamic Terrorism, (a “match”

to cause or a “catalyst” which

will enable)

(D548)

Nominal Church “heavens” “rolled together as scroll” cooperating with

governments to stabilize the

world and suppress all peoples

(D551,552)

Lord’s Great Army from within

Christendom will finally devour it

(D550; & Joel 1:4; Rev. 17:16)

Is  Islam  the  Match  .  .  .  ?    

“Some  think  they  are  the  spark…"  

“The  Return  of  the  Khilafah  unZl  it  Burns  the  Crusader  Armies  in  Dabiq”  

-­‐  Abū  Mus’ab  az-­‐Zarqāwi    

ISIS  Claims  It  Will  Fly  Its  Flag  Over  The  VaZcan    

“The  spark  has  been  lit  here  in  Iraq,  and  its  heat  will  conZnue  to  intensify  –  by  Allah’s  permission  –  unZl  it  burns  the  crusader  armies  in  Dābiq*.”    -­‐  Abū  Mus’ab  az-­‐Zarqāwi      

*DABIQ  =  the  Islamic  equivalent    of  Armageddon  

   •  “But  in  the  Scriptures  there  are  also  inZmaZons  that  there  

may  be  others  beyond  the  revolDng  hosts  of  Christendom  who  will  also  form  a  part  of  the  Lord’s  great  army.    And  the  Lord,  through  the  Prophet  Ezekiel,  referring  to  this  same  Zme,  and  to  the  approaching  calamiZes  of  Christendom,  says:  ‘And  I  will  give  it  into  the  hands  of  the  strangers  for  a  prey,  and  to  the  wicked  of  the  earth  for  a  spoil;  and  they  shall  pollute  it.  .  .the  city  [Babylon,  Christendom]  is  full  of  violence.    (D  549,550)  

•  “Wherefore  I  will  bring  the  worst  of  the  heathen  and  they  shall  possess  their  houses;  I  will  also  make  the  pomp  of  the  great  to  cease,  and  their  honored  places  [sacred  places  their  religious  insZtuZons,  etc.]  shall  be  defiled.’”  Ezk.  7:13-­‐24  

Islam:  A  Catalyst  to  acDvate  or  enable  the  Forming  of  the  Lord’s  Great  Army  

What  Islamists  think  of  the  USA,    Israel  .  .  .  as  well  as  Great  Britain  &  Europe  

•     

Britain’s  Prime  Minister’s    Concerns  about  BriZsh  youths.  

•  “But  it  is  abhorrent  that  people  who  declare  their  allegiance  elsewhere  are  able  to  return  to  the  United  Kingdom  and  pose  a  threat  to  our  naZonal  security.  

•  “We're  clear  in  principle  that  what  we  need  is  a  targeted  discreZonary  power  to  allow  us  to  exclude  BriZsh  naZonals  from  the  U.K.”  

Britain’s  Prime  Minister  David  Cameron’s  on  Terrorism  

•  'If  you  say  violence  in  London  isn't  jusDfied,  but  suicide  bombs  in  Israel  are  -­‐  then  you  are  part  of  the  problem.’    Monday,  July  20,  2015  

What  is  the  face  of  ISIS?  

The  Islamic  Caliphate  ISIS  was  declared  as  an  Islamic  State  (Jan.  2014)  It  has  validated  the  noZon  that  what  the  Koran  teaches  is  actually  a  violent  ruthless  brand  of  religion.  Sharia  or  Islamic  Law  actually  requires  conversion  to  Islam  or  the  payment  of  tax—jizyah—the  alternaDve  is  Death.  There  are  no  other  opDons.    

Abu  Bakr  al-­‐Baghdadi  

Islamic  State  vows  to  reach  'PalesDne'  [sic]    and  'kill  the  barbaric  Jews'  

 

BBC  claims  Iran  has  not  threatened  Israel  for  a  “very  long  Zme”  

The  Peoples  of  All  NaDons  will  Come    to  be  Blessed  by  Israel  

 •  Isaiah  60:14  “The  sons  also  of  them  that  afflicted  thee  shall  come  bending  unto  thee,  and  all  they  that  despised  thee  shall  bow  themselves  down  at  the  soles  of  thy  feet;  and  they  shall  call  thee,  The  city  of  the  LORD,  the  Zion  of  the  Holy  One  of  Israel..  .”    

 •    Zechariah  8:23    “Thus  says  the  LORD  of  hosts,  'In  those  days  ten  men  from  all  the  naDons  will  grasp  the  garment  of  a  Jew  saying,  ‘Let  us  go  with  you,  for  we  have  heard  that  God  is  with  you.’”    

The  LORD’S  Great  Army  •  The  LORD’s  Great  Army  of  Joel  appears  to  have  three  levels  of  interpretaDon:    

•  [1]  historic  applicaDon  to  the  four  waves  of  GenDles  which  came  against  Israel  during  the  Times  of  the  GenDles;    

•  [2]  gathering  forces  coming  against  this  present  evil  world  at  the  present;    

•  [3]  climacDc  assault  at  the  end  of  the  Age.    

“ChrisZan  Government”  Desired  

•  How  “The  Nominal  Systems  of  the  World”  may  “Rise  to  Great  Prominence”—”42  Points  of  AffirmaZon  and  Denial.”  (Dr.  Jay  Grimstead)  

•  The  rise  of  a  poliZcal  movement  with  legiZmate  concerns  

•  Links  to  and  support  from  Churches  •  Designs  on  the  ConsZtuZon  LEFT  and  RIGHT  

InformaDve  and  useful  resources:  

 •  IsraelNaAonalNews.com  •   ALSO:  •  ClarionProject.org  

• HonestReporAng.com      

If  not  to  fear,  and  not  to  join,    what  is  our  role?      We  do  have  a  responsibility  to  share  the  truth  we  know—but  what  to  say?  

Do  we  see  our  role  as  that  of  Jeremiah  as  in  Jeremiah  1,  to  preach  fearlessly,  or  Isaiah  as  in  Isaiah  6,  to  preach  unZl  there  is  someone  yet  to  preach  to?  

Above  all  remember  Psalm  46  .  .  .  

Psalm  46:1-­‐3  

•   “God  is  our  refuge  and  strength,  A  very  present  help  in  trouble.  Therefore  we  will  not  fear,  though  the  earth  should  change  And  though  the  mountains  slip  into  the  heart  of  the  sea;  Though  its  waters  roar  and  foam,  Though  the  mountains  quake  at  its  swelling  pride.  Selah.”  NAS    

Psalm  46:4-­‐7  

•   “There  is  a  river  whose  streams  make  glad  the  city  of  God,  The  holy  dwelling  places  of  the  Most  High.    (5)  God  is  in  the  midst  of  her,  she  will  not  be  moved;  God  will  help  her  when  morning  dawns.    (6)  The  naAons  made  an  uproar,  the  kingdoms  to^ered;  He  raised  His  voice,  the  earth  melted.  (7)  The  Lord  of  hosts  is  with  us;  The  God  of  Jacob  is  our  stronghold.”                                  NAS    

ISAIAH  62:6  &  7  

“I   have   set   watchmen   upon   thy   walls,   O  Jerusalem,   which   shall   never   hold   their  peace  day  nor  night:  ye  that  make  menDon  of  the  LORD,  keep  not  silence,  

“And  give  him  no  rest,  Dll  he  establish,  and  Dll  he  make  Jerusalem  a  praise  in  the  earth.”  

Amen.  .  .  .  

Amen.  .  .  .