Is this Armageddon?

When I was really young, my parents gave me a Bible for Christmas. It was a children’s paraphrase, but I read it thoroughly. When I came to the book of Revelation, I really didn’t understand much of it, so I searched for more information. I lived in a tiny town with a small library, and so I was limited to what I could find after riding my bike across town. Then one day I noticed, in my grandfather’s living room, a small book about prophecy. I . . . well, I’ll be honest: I took it without asking. What I found between its covers was exciting to be sure: At some point Jesus would immediately take the church out of this world, leaving behind a Jewish nation that would have to deal with the antichrist. 

The story was better than anything I’d seen on Star Trek. There was just one problem with it: I couldn’t find any of it in my Bible. The experience made me skeptical of the whole scheme. I wasn’t completely certain it wasn’t true, but I strongly suspected it.

So what should we make of the expanding hostilities in the Middle East? I don’t quite know. I suspect we should be slow with pronouncements. We are just in the opening days of this conflict, and the fog of war usually means that few people really know what’s actually going on. Social media might show us the immediate aftermath of a strike, but many of the voices behind those images are waging a propaganda war designed to make the other party look guilty. 

Should we assign prophetic significance to it? Not when it comes to Armageddon. The ominous language found in Revelation 16 is designed to remind us of the fall of literal Babylon, when the Persian general Cyrus dried up the Euphrates and marched in under the city’s walls. The word “Armageddon,” which literally means “the mountain of Megiddo,”[*] evokes memories of a literal valley in the north of Israel that is bordered by three prominent mountains: (1) Carmel, where Elijah confronted the priests of Baal, (2) Gilboa, near where Saul attended a séance in En-dor, and (3) Tabor, which tradition suggests is the location for the Transfiguration on the Mount.

John is using the past to show us something important about the future. If we’ve got the mountains correct, they certainly do hint at last-day themes: a final showdown with false religion on Carmel, the problem of latter-day spiritualism at Gilboa, and of course, Christ revealed in His glory on Tabor, with someone who was resurrected (Moses) and someone who was translated (Elijah)—a glimpse of the Second Coming. If Armageddon refers to just one of these hills, I suspect it would almost certainly be Carmel, the site of a final showdown between truth and error, where fire comes down from heaven.

But one thing seems certain: It is not describing a literal battle with tanks and planes. Revelation 16:14 tells us that the entire world is involved, and while that could be true of a single valley in an age in which drones can fight for armies by proxy, it seems unlikely to be the best interpretation. The valley of Megiddo is roughly 146 square miles (380 square kilometers); it could become a theater for a major global conflict, but it just doesn’t seem likely.

I’ll admit: I tend to watch world events keenly, because I want to see Jesus come. Like you, I continually look for evidence that we’re getting close. But I’ve also learned that prophecy is not so much about predicting the future in detail as about recognizing it when it happens.

Instead, it’s important to remember that John often uses the literal past to reveal something important about the ultimate battle being fought behind the scenes: the great controversy. For example, he references the fall of ancient, literal Babylon (the drying of the Euphrates River in Revelation 16:12) to shape our understanding of what will happen to last-day spiritual Babylon. Revelation 19:11-16 reveals Christ leading the armies of heaven to defeat the kings of the earth arrayed against Him: “And I saw the beast, the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against Him who sat on the horse and against His army” (Rev. 19:19).

The real issues are spiritual, not martial. It’s not at all inconceivable that we will see a major conflagration erupt in the Middle East before the end; and it’s not impossible that it will drag most of the world into the fight. Given the region’s volatility, it’s not hard to imagine how it might happen. But will it be the Great Battle? No. Will it be prophetic? Sure: 

1. We have Jesus’ words that international conflict will grow toward the end (see Matt. 24:6, 7).

2. Daniel 7 shows the waters of humanity being wind-whipped until the very end; international conflict will be a regular feature of the world’s nations.

3. Some people with both a dispensationalist perspective and access to power are seeing this as a potential Armageddon and definite precursor to the Second Coming. That might propel some bad thinking.

4. There will, at some point, be a counterfeit Second Coming, hinted at in 2 Thessalonians 2:9, where the man of sin is said to have a parousia, a word that is elsewhere used in the New Testament to describe the coming of Christ. It’s entirely possible that the forces of darkness will use a serious conflict to pull humanity closer to seeking the “peace and safety” mentioned in 1 Thessalonians 5:3. Any major turning point in history has the potential to help pave the way for the final deception, in which frightened people living in chaos seek the wrong leadership.

5. And, of course, another serious problem is that misreading prophecy will prove to be a distraction from the truth of Scripture, keeping people blind to the real issues at play in the great controversy.

I’ll admit: I tend to watch world events keenly, because I want to see Jesus come. Like you, I continually look for evidence that we’re getting close. But I’ve also learned that prophecy is not so much about predicting the future in detail as about recognizing it when it happens. Forecasting is almost always a losing game—we have many decades of misplaced excitement behind us.

But I am thankful for this: We don’t seem to have to change our minds anywhere near as often as the dispensationalists, who virtually have to play pin-the-tail-on-the-antichrist with every new global development. Meanwhile, we haven’t really had to change our historical understanding of prophecy, because it holds true to the bigger picture.

While the war rages, our primary responsibility hasn’t changed: The gospel commission remains our chief task. Pay attention to the unfolding of world events, but don’t let it become a consuming passion. Don’t let it distract you from seeking and saving the lost. And whatever you do, remember Jesus’ words when He pointed forward to the Second Coming: “Let not your heart be troubled” (John 14:1).

In the weeks ahead you may hear voices telling you to be very afraid. You should be concerned for loved ones who are in harm’s way. We will mourn the incredible cruelty of war, and rightly express deep dismay that humanity cannot seem to solve its worst problems—but fear about last-day events should be off the table. If you don’t believe me, grab a Bible and search for the phrase “fear not.” 

“Now when these things begin to happen,” Jesus told us, “look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near” (Luke 21:28).

Yes, I’ve got the news on. Yes, I’m skeptical of just about everything I’m hearing in the opening moments of this conflict. No, I don’t think it’s Armageddon—and for sure, I’m certainly not going to let it derail my role in the mission of the church.

[*] Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament.