(Disclaimer: This transcript is auto-generated and may contain mistakes.)

We love you, in Jesus' name we pray, Amen. Amen. Alright, well we've been making our way through the book of Ezekiel on Wednesday nights, and we find ourselves here in Ezekiel chapter number 30, and if you could just turn me up just a hair. I just, sometimes I need to be able to hear myself or I won't be able to do this. Ezekiel chapter 30, that's good, that's great. And I want you to notice there, in Ezekiel chapter 30, if you look at verse 1, the Bible says this, and the word of the Lord came again unto me, saying, Son of man, prophesy and say thus saith the Lord God, how ye, notice these words, woe worth the day. And if you see that phrase there, woe worth, that word worth is a past tense of an Anglo-Saxon word that is worth it, it's not a word we use in our modern English, but it means to become. And he's saying, how ye, and he says, woe worth the day, he says, woe the day that is going to become, or the day that is becoming. Notice what he's talking about in verse 3, he says, for the day is near, even the day of the Lord. He says, even the day of the Lord is near. A cloudy day, it shall be the time of the heathen. Notice verse number 4, and the sword shall come upon Egypt, and great pain shall be in Ethiopia, and the slain shall fall in Egypt, and they shall take away her multitudes and her foundation shall be broken down. What we have in this chapter is a pronunciation of the judgment of God upon Egypt, and as you read through the chapter, and as we just read through it a few minutes ago, that should have been fairly clear, that Ezekiel is pronouncing a judgment upon Egypt, but like most prophecies in scripture, there is a dual meaning in this chapter, and what we find in this chapter is there's a theme that runs through this chapter, and we get a glimpse of a coming day of judgment. So though Ezekiel is talking about the day that's coming, when Egypt and the king of Egypt, Pharaoh, will suffer punishment from God, he gives us these glimpses, and he gives us these terms that are used, that are used specifically for a coming day of wrath. So what I'd like to do tonight is I'm going to show you several things in this chapter that have to do with a coming judgment. Now I think I'm just a little too loud, so you just turn me down just here, I'd appreciate that, thank you. And I want you to notice that there's terminology here that kind of shows us of this coming day, and of course, the main one is there in verse 3, if you look at it, it says, for the day is near, even, I want you to notice this phrase, and if you're not familiar with this phrase, maybe you can underline it in your Bible, but he talks about the day of the Lord, the day of the Lord. Now the day of the Lord is a very well-known day in scripture, maybe many Christians don't know exactly about the day of the Lord, but it's referenced a lot throughout the Bible because it is the day of judgment. I'd like you to keep your finger there in Ezekiel 30, that's obviously our text for tonight, but go with me to the book of 1 Thessalonians in the New Testament, you can find the T-books, they're all clustered together, 1 Thessalonians, 1 Timothy, and Titus, 1 Thessalonians chapter 5, and let me say this, that throughout the Bible, you will find references to the day of the Lord, and there are multiple days of the Lord in the sense that God brought his judgment upon many different kings, many different nations, many different people, and many of them are referred to as the day of the Lord, whenever God brought his judgment, it was adequate to call that the day of the Lord, but all of those were looking forward to the major day of the Lord, or the coming day of the Lord, which is when God will judge the world, when God will judge the entire earth, and again, we see the day of the Lord coming for Egypt in Ezekiel 30, but then we get these glimpses of the coming, the future day of the Lord. I want to show that to you from 1 Thessalonians chapter 5, if you look at verse 1, the Bible says this, but of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you, for yourselves know perfectly, notice what he says, that the day of the Lord, that the day of the Lord, he says, so cometh as a thief in the night. Now what's interesting is that those who believe in the pre-tribulation rapture, and our church does not believe in the pre-tribulation rapture, that is a false teaching, and I'm going to show that to you from scripture tonight, but those who believe in the pre-tribulation rapture, I don't think they do this much anymore, they changed a lot of their terminology ever since the after tribulation documentary came out, but there used to be a day when everyone used to talk about the rapture coming as a thief in the night, but what's funny is that they will say that the day of the Lord and the rapture are not the same event, that they don't happen at the same time, and the Bible does teach that the day of Christ is a rapture, and the Bible teaches that the day of the Lord is the coming of the wrath of God. He says, for yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night, notice verse 3, for when they, the they there is referring to unsaved people, when they shall say peace and safety, then sudden destruction cometh upon them. Sudden destruction cometh upon who? Upon the unsaved, as travail upon a woman with child, and they, unsaved people, shall not escape. Now what I'm going to show you tonight is that though the day of the Lord is used to reference the wrath of God, the day when sudden destruction comes upon the world, and the day of Christ, we don't have time to look at those references, you can study that out on your own, but the day of Christ is referring to the rapture, these two days actually happen basically at the same time, because they are both having to do with the rapture. The pre-tribbers are all confused about this because they'll say the day of the Lord is not the rapture, but the rapture cometh as the thief in the night, and there's even a famous movie called A Thief in the Night, teaching the pre-tribulation rapture. The problem with that is when you look at the passage, notice who it says that the day of the Lord is going to catch off guard, because that's what the idea, when he says it's coming as a thief in the night, the idea is that it's coming and you're not expecting it. It's coming and you didn't see it, you weren't prepared for it, it's coming and it's just like someone broke into your house in the middle of the night, you didn't invite them, you weren't expecting them, you didn't think they were going to be there. And notice what he says in verse four, he says, but ye, because remember in verse three he says when they, talking about unsaved people, right, he's writing to believers, the church at Thessalonica, he says when they shall say, verse three, peace and safety, then said its destruction cometh upon them as travail upon a woman with child, and they shall not escape. But then notice the transition, verse four, but ye, brethren, so now he's talking to saved people, he said are not in darkness, that that day, that what day? The day of the Lord, the day he just talked about, should overtake you as a thief. So here's what's interesting. Number one, they're wrong. The day of the Lord is connected to the rapture, they're wrong about that. And number two, the day of the Lord is mentioned as coming as a thief in the night to those that are not saved. Not to believers. They'll say, oh, well, he's coming like a thief, we don't know when it's going to happen. No, but ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Look, the rapture and the coming of the Lord and the wrath of God, none of these end times events are supposed to overtake us as though we're in darkness because of the fact that the Bible spells these things out. So I want you to notice that the first thing I want you to understand about the day of the Lord is that the day of the Lord is the day of God's wrath, and it is connected to the rapture because the day of God's wrath begins the day of the rapture. Once we are removed from this earth, then God's wrath is poured out upon the earth, and we'll talk about that more in a little bit. But go back to Ezekiel chapter 30, and let me just give you, I'm going to give you seven different characteristics about the day of the Lord. The first one, if you're writing down some notes, I'd encourage you to jot these things out, is that the day of the Lord is the day of God's wrath. Maybe you're not familiar with that concept, the day of the Lord, you're not sure what that is. The day of the Lord is the day of God's wrath. When you see that term throughout scripture, the day of the Lord, it is a reference to the day of God's wrath. But I'd like you to notice, secondly, in Ezekiel chapter 30, look at verse 3, notice another characteristic of the day of the Lord, and that is this, that the day of the Lord is a day of darkness. The day of the Lord is a day of darkness. Notice verse 3, for the day is near, even the day of the Lord is near. Notice these words, a cloudy day, it shall be the time of the heathen. So he calls it a cloudy day. He says the day of the Lord is going to be a cloudy day. It's going to be a day with limited visibility. It's going to be a day when the sun is not shining. It's going to be a day when it is dark. And then if you skip down to verse 18 of the same chapter, he goes into more detail about that. Notice what he says in Ezekiel chapter 30 and verse 18. He says, as to happen is also, notice what he says, the day shall be darkened. When I shall break there the yokes of Egypt and the pomp of her strength shall cease in her as for her, notice a cloud shall cover her and her daughters shall go into captivity. Now you might be asking yourself, well, is this just the day that God brings the judgment upon Egypt? It happened to be a cloudy day. A cloud shall cover her. The day shall be darkened. But here's what I want you to understand. Yes, I'm sure it was on the day that God brought judgment to Egypt that this was a cloudy day. But the day of the Lord in general is known as a dark day. It is a day of darkness. Let me show you some references. Go to Amos chapter five. You're there in Ezekiel. If you just keep going forward, you'll have the book of Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Amos chapter five, and look at verse number 18. I want you to notice that the day of the Lord has this theme throughout scripture that it is the day of God's wrath, but it's also a day of darkness. It's a cloudy day. It's a day that the clouds shall cover. It's going to be a dark day. Amos chapter five, verse 18, notice what it says, woe unto you that desire the day of the Lord. So notice the context is the day of the Lord, and he's talking about people who are desiring the day of the Lord. They're saying, God, bring it on. You know, go ahead and bring the day of the Lord. He says, no, this is not a good day. Woe unto you that desire the day of the Lord. To what end is it for you? Notice the day of the Lord is darkness and not light. So here in Amos, we're told again, the day of the Lord is darkness and not light. It's a dark day. Verse 19, as if a man did flee from a lion and a bear met him or went into a house and leaned his hand on the wall and a serpent bit him. Verse 20, shall not the day of the Lord be darkness and not light? Even very dark and no brightness in it. So I want you to notice that the Bible is clear that the day of the Lord, it's a dark day. It's a day of limited visibility. It's a day that is a cloudy day. Now you say, well, why is that? The reason for that is because the day of the Lord, go to the book of Acts. Do me a favor, keep your place there in Amos. We're going to come back right around that area, but go to the book of Acts in the New Testament. Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts, we're talking about the day of the Lord. What is it? It is a day of God's wrath. What is it? It's a day of darkness. What is it? It is a day. Thirdly, for those of you taking notes, it is a day. The day of the Lord is prompted by the rapture. The day of the Lord begins after the rapture happens. It begins with the rapture. It's prompted by the rapture. And by the way, because of the rapture, that is why it is a day of darkness. Because remember we read those references out of Ezekiel and Amos where it says that the day of the Lord is darkness and not light. The day of the Lord be darkness and not light, even very darkness and no brightness in it. He said it's a cloudy day. He said it's a day of darkness. Are you there in Acts chapter 2? Notice what the Bible says. Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts. Acts chapter 2. Look at verse number 19. Acts chapter 2 and verse 19 says this, and I will show wonders in heaven above and signs in the earth beneath. God says I'm going to show wonders and signs, blood and fire and vapor of smoke. Notice verse 20, the sun shall be turned into darkness and the moon into blood before that great and notable day of the Lord comes. Do you see that? So the Bible tells us in Acts chapter 2 that when the day of the Lord comes, God is going to turn the sun into darkness and the moon into blood. That's why all of the references to the day of the Lord always refer to it as a dark day, as a cloudy day, as a day that the clouds shall cover, as a day of darkness and not light, as a day that's very dark and no brightness in it. You say why? Because on the day of the Lord, because the Bible says that the sun shall be turned into darkness and the moon into blood before the great and notable day of the Lord is come. So we know that the day of the Lord, see, this is why it's not going to catch you off guard. This is why as a New Testament believer who reads the Bible, who reads God's Word, who goes to church and listens to preaching, you're not going to be caught off guard. It's not going to overtake you like a thief in the night. You say why? Because you're probably going to notice when the sun is darkened and the moon is turned into blood. You're probably going to realize, hey, something's going on, the Bible has talked about it. So the Bible says that on this day, the earth is going, it's a day of darkness and the reason is because the sun shall be turned into darkness and the moon into blood. Now here's what we know. The day that the sun is turned into darkness and the moon is turned into blood is the day of the rapture. Go to Matthew chapter 24, you're there in Acts, just flip back to the first book in the New Testament, Matthew 24, and look at verse number 29. Matthew chapter 24, and we're going to look at a lot of references and we're just going to be flipping back and forth a lot. It's Bible study night, so I expect you to study the Bible, but let's look at this. Matthew chapter 24, look at verse number 29. Now Matthew 24 is that famous Olivet Discourse, right? The Lord Jesus Christ is teaching on end times prophecy and on the coming, the rapture and the second coming, all those things. Look at verse 29. Matthew 24, verse 29. Immediately after the tribulation of those days, I want you to notice the chronology here. It's after the tribulation. Tribulation's already happened. Immediately after the tribulation of those days, notice, shall the sun be darkened and the moon shall not give her light. And that doesn't sound familiar, we just read it in Acts chapter 2 and verse 20. Now according to Acts 2, 20, the sun shall be turned into darkness and the moon into blood before the great and notable day of the Lord. So when Jesus says that after the tribulation, immediately after the tribulation of those days, the sun, of those days, shall the sun be darkened and the moon shall not give her light, okay, we're referring to the day of the Lord here. But notice, Jesus is referring to the rapture because he says, the sun shall be darkened and the moon shall not give her light and the stars shall fall from heaven and the powers of heaven shall be shaken and then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven. I want you to notice the characteristics of what he's talking about. He's saying, then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven. You're gonna see the Son of Man, the Lord Jesus Christ, he's gonna appear in heaven and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn and then, and they shall, notice, see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. People say, oh, the pre-tribbers say, well this isn't the rapture, this is the second coming of Christ. This is not the rapture, okay, well look at verse 31, and he shall send his angels with the great sound of a trumpet and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds from one end of heaven to the other. Okay, he says, look, he's gonna come in the clouds, he's gonna send his angels and they're gonna gather together his elect. Do a word study of the word elect, we don't have time to do that tonight, but do a word study of the word elect and you're gonna come up with one answer and it's believers. It's gonna be God's people. Who's he gathering together? He's like, I think it's the anti-Christ Jews. You didn't learn that from the Bible, okay? You learned that from Darby, you learned that from dispensationalism, you learned that from Bible college, but you didn't get that from the word of God. The elect are God's people and the New Testament is the New Testament of believers, and look, he says he's gonna send the angels and gather them up. Now go to 1 Thessalonians, go back there, I don't know if I told you to keep your place there or not, but let's look at the most well-known rapture passage, 1 Thessalonians, excuse me, not 1 Thessalonians, 2 Thessalonians. You know what, I'm sorry, 1 Thessalonians, I'm telling you the wrong thing, 1 Thessalonians chapter 4, we were just in 2 Thessalonians, 1 Thessalonians chapter 4. Look at verse number 15, 1 Thessalonians chapter 4 verse 15. Now here's the thing, nobody argues, nobody, pre-tribber, dispensationalist, no matter how messed up they are doctrinally, nobody argues that 1 Thessalonians chapter 4, and the verses we're gonna read, specifically verses 16 through 18, are the rapture. Nobody argues that. Now the dispensationalist, they wanna argue with us that Matthew 24 is not the rapture. They'll say, well, it is a rapture, but it's like the special rapture just for the Jews or whatever. But I want you to notice what the Bible says here in 1 Thessalonians chapter 4, and look at verse 15, 1 For this we say unto you, by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain, notice these words, unto the coming of the Lord, shall not prevent them which are asleep. The pre-tribbers will say, oh, the coming of the Lord and the rapture, those are two different events. Well, look, you didn't get that from the word of God. Because he says, look, for this we say unto you, by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the, he says, look, those of us that are going to be alive at the rapture, that's what we're gonna get to in a second, and he calls it unto the coming of the Lord. So in Matthew 24, when he says, then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven, and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of Man coming, all right, Matthew 24, 30, does that match 1 Thessalonians 4, 15? They both said coming, the coming of the Lord, notice verse 16, for the Lord himself shall descend from heaven, does that match, Matthew 24, when it says that he shall see the sign of man in heaven, and they shall see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory, look at verse 16, for the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump, you see that, with the trump of God. Does that match? Matthew 24, 31, when it says, and he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, notice verse 17, then we which are alive and remain shall be, excuse me, verse 16, for the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, and with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God, and the dead in Christ shall rise first, this is the rapture, then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, remember he's coming in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air, I don't know how you can say that these two events are not the same thing, Matthew 24 says he's coming in the clouds, he sends his angels together in his life so they can be with him, he's coming again, then verse 24 says he's coming in the clouds, they get caught up, they meet him in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air, and so shall we ever be with the Lord, wherefore comfort one another with these words, here's the point, this is the rapture, and the rapture happens according to Matthew 24, it happens when the sun is darkened and the moon shall not give her light, and that's exactly what is also referred to as the day of the Lord, you say why? Because the day of Christ and the day of the Lord, they're the same day, say well why call them two different things, here's why, because it's really good for some people and it's really bad for other people, for those of us who are saved, who have the hope of the coming of the Lord, hey that's the day of Christ, that's a great day, for those who are not saved, those who are going to be caught unawares, those who are not looking for the coming, that's the day of the Lord, and it's a bad day, it's a day of pouring out of God's wrath. You're there in 1 Thessalonians 4, go back to 1 Thessalonians chapter 5, look at verse 9, 1 Thessalonians chapter 5 and verse 9, and here's the point, and this is why it's important to understand, because remember, Acts 2.20 says that the sun shall be turned into darkness and the moon into blood before the great and notable day of the Lord, so the sun is turned into darkness and the moon into blood before the day of the Lord. So basically when the sun is turned into darkness, then the day of the Lord happens, right? That's the day of God's wrath. What also happens when the sun is turned into darkness and the moon is turned into blood is the rapture. But according to Matthew 24, it says immediately after the tribulation of those days, the sun shall be darkened and the moon shall give her light. So I want you to understand this, you've got the tribulation, after, immediately after the tribulation, the sun and moon is darkened, you have the cloudy day, the dark day, and then according to Acts 2.20, then those things happen before the great and notable day of the Lord. So look, you cannot, you cannot say that the day of the Lord and the tribulation are the same thing. One happens before the sun and moon is turned into darkness, the other one happens after. You say, why is that important? Here's why. Because the pre-tribbers today and those who teach dispensational theology will say, oh well the tribulation, that's the wrath of God. Well you know what, the Bible says, and they'll say, well the Lord has not appointed us to wrath. Yeah, you're right. First Thessalonians 5, 9, notice what it says. For God has not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by the Lord Jesus Christ. Nobody's disagreeing with the fact that God has not appointed us to wrath, but what we are disagreeing with is that the tribulation is not the wrath of God. The tribulation is the wrath of the antichrist. The tribulation is a time of persecution, it's a time of great trouble, it's a time when believers are going to be persecuted, and look, believers have been persecuted from the beginning. Right? It's not something new, it's going to get worse and worse, it's going to get harder and harder, like a woman in travail, the pain starts at lower intensity and it gets harder and harder and harder. Yes, it's going to be a time of great tribulation, such as the world has never known, but that's all it is, is tribulation, persecution. We're not, look, those who are alive and remain will have to go through tribulation, because the sun and moon are not darkened until after the tribulation, and the sun and moon are darkened on the day of the rapture, and then begins the day of the Lord. So let's go back to Ezekiel chapter 30, we're talking about the day of the Lord. What is it? Well, it's a day of God's wrath. What is it? It's a day of great darkness. What is it? It's a day that is prompted by the rapture. That's why it's a day of great darkness, because the sun is turned into darkness, and the moon is turned into blood, and it becomes a cloudy day. Let me give you a fourth characteristic we see in Ezekiel 30 about this day of the Lord. Notice verse four, it says, and let me make sure I'm looking at the right one. You know what? No, I'm sorry. Look at verse three. Let me show you one more thing in verse three, Ezekiel chapter 30 verse three. For the day is near, even the day of the Lord is near, a cloudy day, it shall be, once you notice this phrase, these words, you might want to underline these, notice what it says, the time of the heathen. The time of the heathen. The day of the Lord is also coming during what the Bible calls the times of the heathen, or in the New Testament it calls it the times of the Gentiles. I want you to remember that phrase, the time of the heathen. He says when the day of the Lord comes, it'll come during the time that's known as the time of the heathens. Let's go to Luke chapter 21, Matthew, Mark, Luke. Luke chapter 21 and look at verse number 20. Luke chapter 21. Actually, you know what, let's look at verse 24 real quick. Luke chapter 21 and look at verse 24. So remember Ezekiel 30 and verse three said that it shall be, talking about the day of the Lord, it shall be the time of the heathen. In Luke chapter 21 and verse 24, the Bible says this, and they shall fall by the edge of the sword and shall be led away captive into all nations and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, notice what it says, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. Now, I don't have time to develop this, you can study this out on your own, but in the Bible, the word Gentiles and heathens is used interchangeably. When the Bible refers to heathens, it's referring to Gentiles. And what it's referring to, it's referring to anyone who doesn't follow the God of the Bible. And so in the Old Testament, they're called heathens, in the New Testament, well, they're called Gentiles in the Old Testament too. But those phrases are used interchangeably. So when Ezekiel chapter 30 and verse three says the times of the heathen, that's the same time that Luke refers to as the times of the Gentiles. Now, there's a lot of confusion in regards to what is the times of the Gentiles. And let me just explain to you what that is. And it's real simple if you just read the passage. If you get rid of all sorts of preconceived ideas and wrong things you've been taught and just read the Bible, it'll make things a lot easier to understand. Sometimes I think we get so confused, we've got all these things and we look at things and we're like, I'm just not sure, and we try to think it's something deeper than it is. If you just look at the Bible, look, if you've got a King James Bible and you've got the Holy Spirit of God, you'll be fine, you'll be able to figure it out. Notice what it says, Luke 21 verse 20, notice what it says, because remember, verse 24 said the times of Gentiles. What is that? Because the dispensationalist, man, they're going to tell you all sorts of crazy stories about the times of the Gentiles. But what is the times of the Gentiles? Just look at it in its context, Luke 21 verse 20. And when, this is Jesus speaking, if you've got a red letter edition Bible, these words ought to be in red, and when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the, I want you to notice this word, desolation, remember that word, desolation thereof is not. He says, when you see Jerusalem, the city of Jerusalem, it's compassed about with armies. There's armies all around Jerusalem. Just know that this desolation thereof is nigh. The desolation of it is going to happen soon. Verse 21, then, he says, when you see Jerusalem compassed about and you know that the desolation is nigh, then let them which are in Judea flee to the mountains and let them which are in the midst of it depart out, and let not them that are in the countries enter therein to. For these be the days of vengeance that all things which are written may be fulfilled, but woe unto them that are with child and to them that give suck in those days, for there shall be great distress in the land and wrath upon this people. What people? The people living in Jerusalem. Verse 24, and they shall fall by the edge of the sword and shall be led away captive into all nations, that sounds exactly like Ezekiel 30, notice, and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. So what is the times of the Gentiles? It's a time when the armies of the Gentiles, they surround Jerusalem and then they make it desolate. They attack it, they destroy it, and verse 24 says that Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles until the time of the Gentiles be fulfilled. Now as we were reading that, there should have been some things that kind of stuck out to you as phrases that you've maybe heard before, like desolation, like which are in Judea flee to the mountains, like woe unto them that are with child and to them that give suck in those days. Those things might have sounded familiar to you because we've read them in other gospels about the end times. What is it? You're there in Luke, go to Matthew 24, let's go back to Matthew 24, look at verse 15. Remember Luke 21, 20 says, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh. When ye see Jerusalem compass with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh. Matthew 24, verse 15. When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh. Here he says, when ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken up by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, whoso read it, let him understand. I don't have time to get into all this. I've preached sermons on this and you can look up all sorts of things, but what is this? This is the day that the antichrist builds an image, places the image in the temple, the false prophet declares him God, he sits in the temple of God as if he is God, all those things. This is that day. The abomination of desolation is a reference to that image that people are going to have to worship in order to receive the mark of the beast. When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken up by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, whoso read it, let him understand. Then let them which be in Judea flee into the mountains. Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take anything out of his house. Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes, and woe unto them that are with child and to them that get stuck in those days. But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the Sabbath day, for then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world, to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And what happens during the time of great tribulation? Christians are persecuted. The abomination of desolation is set up. You have to worship it in order to receive the mark of the beast. Why would you want to receive the mark of the beast? Because you're not allowed to buy or sell without it. The whole purpose is to make, because look, all these unbelievers, they're just gonna take it. Who's not gonna take it? You and me. You and I, if you're saved, right? And it's gonna be persecution. It's gonna be meant to bring great tribulation upon believers. And people get confused. They're like, wait a minute. So it's persecution against believers, yeah, great tribulation. Read Revelation. All the saints are being killed because they're not worshiping the mark, they're not worshiping the beast and his image. But you say, but in Luke 21, it's not about Jerusalem being trodden underfoot. What's that about? And let me just explain that to you quickly. Go back to Ezekiel chapter 30. Here's what you need to understand, okay? And I don't have time to develop this. I'm not preaching on end time. Oh, I mean, I am preaching on end times. I shouldn't say that. I'm not preaching an outline of end times prophecy, but let me just explain a couple things to you in regards to the anti-Christ, all right? There are two different rises or raises. I don't know if I'm saying the right word there. To the anti-Christ, his first rise is a political rise. He comes on the scene, remember we read in Revelation chapter 6, and he's going forth conquering and to conquer. He just comes on the scene as a political figure. As a political figure, as a political leader, he unites the world in a one-world government. The Bible is very clear about this in the book of Revelation chapter 13. He unites the entire world under a one-world government, and he does that with the help of Babylon, which we're going to talk about here in a minute. And I believe that Babylon is the United States of America. And we'll talk about it in this sermon, and we've got DVDs that you can watch and sermons you can listen to if you're curious about that. He's going to do it with the help of Babylon. Wouldn't it make sense that it's the United States of America? I mean, if you're going to form a one-world government, you kind of need the United Nations, right? The backing of the USA. So he's going to do it with the help of America, but he's going to do it with the help of Israel, of the Jews. Remember, his headquarters is in Jerusalem. He builds a temple, right? And look, up until that day, during that political rise, the Jews, they're loving the Antichrist. I mean, they're thinking, this is our Messiah. And he rebuilds a temple for them, and they're excited, and they're happy. And here's what you need to understand about the false Antichrist Jews of today. I'm talking about the religion, the synagogue of Satan. They do not believe that their Messiah is deity. This is why they were so offended with Jesus, right? Wherefore the Jews sought the more to kill him, because he not only had broken the Sabbath, but said also that God was his Father, making himself equal with God. They killed him because they did not want their Messiah to be God in the flesh. When they think of a Messiah, they think of another David, like a King David, a human being who's just a political figure who's going to come and bring the glory days back. He's going to come, and he's going to bring Israel back to its former glory. So look, when the Antichrist shows up, and he's just this political leader, he's just helping the Jews out, he's just rebuilding a temple. They love it. They're loving it. They're like, yeah, this is our Messiah. But listen, the Jews are not interested in worshiping any God. Look, they're not interested in worshiping the God of the Bible. They'll say, oh, well, you guys have Jesus, and we have the God of the Old Testament. No, you know what? They worship the God of bunny. They worship the God of themselves. And you say, you shouldn't say that. I can't believe you had to say that. The Jewish religion of today is an Antichrist religion. And they're not interested in God. And when the false, because remember, the Antichrist has a political rise. But after he unites the world under a one-world government, then he has to unite the world under a one-world religion. How does that happen? Well, the Bible tells the book of Revelation, I don't have time to go there. You can study it out. He receives a deadly wound to his head, right? He recovers from that. He basically imitates Christ. He dies and resurrects as the son of perdition. Then the false prophet shows up and says, this isn't just a political leader. This is God. And then they set up the abomination of desolation in the temple. They declare him God. And now they make everyone have to worship him in order to receive the mark. This is how they set up the one-world religion. Here's the problem with that. When he sets up the abomination of desolation in order to have the mark of the beast, the Jews are not going to go for that. We don't want a God. We just want a good economy. We don't want a God. We just want protection. Man, it was all good. When you were uniting the world and your headquarters was here and you were rebuilding the temple, all that was great. But I don't know about you being God. And here's what I want you to say. When the Antichrist sets up the abomination of desolation, the reason it's called the abomination of desolation is because when he sets that up, he actually makes Jerusalem desolate. He turns on the Jews and destroys them. You say, why would the Antichrist do that? Go back to Luke 21. Look at verse 22. Why would he turn on the Jews? Here's why. Because God is just. And look, the Jews, they killed Christ. They said, let his blood be upon us and our children. They've been a force against true New Testament beliefs and doctrines. They've been corrupt. And look, they have to be judged. And God, if we've learned anything from Ezekiel, it's that God will use the kings of this earth to judge other nations. He's using Nebuchadnezzar to judge the king of Egypt. He's using Nebuchadnezzar to judge the king of Tyre. Later he's going to use the kings of Medo-Persia to judge the Babylonians. And he uses these kings. Notice verse 22, Luke 21, 22. For these be the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled. You say, why does he turn on them? Why does God orchestrate this? Here's why. Because the Jews need to be punished. And when the abomination of desolation goes up, it's called that because he makes Jerusalem desolate. He encompasses Jerusalem. He makes it desolate. What does he do with the Jews? What does he do with them? Verse 24, and they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem shall be trodden down to the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. You say, why is it called the time of the Gentiles? Or why is it called the time of the heathens? Here's why. Because it is a time that Jerusalem and the temple is actually under the control. And they have a system of worship instituted, but it's with the Gentiles. It's with the Antichrist and his Gentile army. So that's the reference to the Gentiles. Now go back to Ezekiel chapter 30, look at verse 3. When the day of the Lord happens, it happens during this time. It happens during the times, look at Ezekiel 30 verse 3, for the day is near, even the day of the Lord is near, a cloudy day, it shall be the time of the heathen. Because remember, the abomination desolation goes up, the Jews in Jerusalem are made desolate, they're killed, they're sent away captive, the great tribulation happens, Christians begin to be persecuted as well because they're not willing to worship the beast in his image. And then 75 days later, the sun is turned into darkness, the moon is turned into blood, and the Lord Jesus Christ comes, and the day of the Lord begins. So all of these things are connected. I hope that makes sense, but all these things are connected. So we see that the day of the Lord is a day of God's wrath, we see the day of the Lord is a day of darkness, we see that the day of the Lord is a day prompted by the rapture, we see that the day of the Lord happens during the times of the Gentiles because of the fact that the tribulation happens is what kicks off the times of the Gentiles where Jerusalem is being trodden down of the Gentiles and it's all connected. Number five, you're there in Ezekiel 30, let me give you the fifth point. The day of the Lord comes upon end times Babylon, right, because the Jews, they've already had their judgment, the Antichrist took care of that, he made Jerusalem desolate. So the day of the Lord happens, and look, the day of the Lord is not one day, it's not one 24-hour period, it's the entire time that God's pouring out his wrath in the book of Revelation, but that primarily comes upon the one world government that's set up, which is the Babylonian government or what we know as the end times Babylon. You say, how do you know that it happens during the end times Babylon? Well, notice the descriptions that were given in Ezekiel 30, look at verse four, and the sword shall come upon Egypt, and look, Egypt throughout the Bible pictures the world. You go down into Egypt, you're in bondage in Egypt, Moses pictures Christ, he brings you out of Egypt, okay, so Egypt is always a representation of the world. The sword shall come upon Egypt and great pain shall be in Ethiopia when slain shall fall in Egypt and they shall take away her multitudes and her foundation shall be broken down Ethiopia and Libya and Lydia, and of course some of this is about the actual Egypt at the time of Ezekiel. There's dual meanings here in all of these prophecies, notice what he says. And I want you to notice this phrase, all the mingled people and all the mingled people and Chub and the men of the land that is in league shall fall with them by the sword. I want you to notice that when it happens, it happens to all the mingled people and it happens to the men of the land that is in league, all right? It happens to the mingled people and the men of the land that is in league. Now go to Daniel, Daniel chapter number two. You're there in Ezekiel, just one book over, Daniel chapter two. Remember Daniel talks about the time that the evening sacrifice was removed when basically they make a big league or a covenant with the nations, right? Because they all unite under a one world government. In Daniel chapter two, you have that great image of Nebuchadnezzar, remember the image represented all the world powers that were coming. I'm not going to take the time to go through all those world powers ahead represented Babylon, the arms, the Middle Persian empire, you have the Greek empire, you have the Roman empire, but then as you go down into the legs and the feet, you have the representation of the antichrist government. You got the ten toes that coincide with the ten kings in Revelation, I don't have time to go into that, you'll have to study that out later. Daniel chapter two verse 42, I want you to notice what it says. And as the toes of the feet were part of iron and part of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly broken, and whereas thou saw is iron mixed with miry clay, notice they shall mingle, you see that word? They shall mingle themselves with the seed of men, but they shall not cleave one to another even as iron is not mixed with clay. I want you to notice that one of the things that, it's a characteristic of the kingdom of the antichrist, that Babylonian end times kingdom, is that they mingled themselves, say what does that mean, well, with the seed of men, meaning it's a nation or a city or a kingdom that is mingled, the seeds of men are mingled. There's a lot of diversity, it's multiracial. This is one of the reasons, go to Jeremiah chapter 50, Jeremiah chapter 50, you're there in Daniel, just go backwards, past Ezekiel, Lamentations of Jeremiah, just one of the reasons we believe that Babylon is the United States of America, because look, if you go to Japan today, you're gonna find primarily Japanese people there. If you go to Mexico, you're gonna find primarily Mexican people there. You go to Russia, you're gonna find primarily Russian people there. If you go to the United States of America, man, you're gonna find a mingled people. Say, oh, isn't it primarily white people? Look around, is it? Man, white people are outnumbered, at least in California, right? But it's a mingled people, and often America's referred to as a melting pot of cultures, why? Because this is a place that has people from all over the world. Jeremiah chapter 50 and 51 are both chapters dealing with the judgment of end times Babylon, and notice what it says about the end times Babylon. It's dealing with the judgment coming to Babylon of Nebuchadnezzar's day, but it's also a prophecy of end times Babylon. Notice what it says, Jeremiah chapter 50 verse 37, a sword is upon their horses and upon their chariots, and upon, don't miss this, all the mingled people that are in the midst of her, and they shall become as women. A sword is upon her treasures, and they shall be robbed. Go to Jeremiah 51 verse 9, Jeremiah 51 verse 9, we would have healed Babylon, but she is not healed, forsake her, and let us go, notice what it says, let us go everyone into his own country. The people in Babylon are migrants. When things start going bad in Babylon, they're like, man, we're trying to help Babylon. We would have healed Babylon, but we're not able to heal her, so you know what, forsake her, let us all go into our own country. When things start going bad for Babylon, all the migrants are like, man, let's go back to Mexico. You better hope Trump doesn't build that wall, because there's going to be people going back the other way. There's going to be all these mingled people, because they mingled themselves. This is one of the characteristics. So in Ezekiel 30, when he talks about the mingled people, he's talking about end times Babylon. Notice also, go to Ezekiel 30, Ezekiel 30 verse 12, Ezekiel chapter 30 verse 12, and I will make the rivers dry, and sell the land into the hand of the wicked, and I will make the land waste, and all that is therein by the hand of strangers, I the Lord have spoken it, thus saith the Lord God, I will also destroy, notice what it says, the idols, and will cause their images to cease out of naught, and there shall be no more a prince of the land of Egypt, and I will put fear in the land of Egypt. So notice, it's also a land filled with idols, well this is also true of end times Babylon. Go to Revelation chapter 9, last book in the New Testament, it should be fairly easy to find, Revelation chapter 9. We're almost done, I want to show you this passage, then I'll give you a couple more thoughts, and we'll finish up. Revelation chapter 9, he said that it's a place of idols, and look, Egypt, when it was destroyed, was definitely a place of idols, it's definitely referring to Egypt, but there's also a dual meaning here about end times Babylon, because end times Babylon will be a nation, will be a kingdom that is full of idols, and the best clue to that is the fact that all these people are going to be worshiping the abomination of desolation, right? They're going to make up a huge image of the beast, and worship it, so that's going to be a great idol that they're going to be worshiping. Revelation 9 verse 20, notice what it says, and the rest of the men, which were not killed by these plagues, now we're into the day of the Lord, we're into the judgment of God, God's judging the earth, it's after the rapture. Notice repented not of the works of their hands, look, God is bringing judgment and plagues upon these people, and they are not repenting, they are not giving in, they're just getting their hearts harder, you say, why is that? Because they worship the beast in his image, they're reprobates, this is how reprobates react to the chastisement of God, that they should not worship devils, they would not repent of the fact that they were worshiping devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood, which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk. I know that in the US we don't have a lot of idols as far as American culture, but during the end times Babylon period, there's going to be a revival of idol worship. Now that's not going to be hard for the Hindus, and the Buddhists, and the Catholics, but the Bible says they're going to be worshiping that beast in its image, and they're going to have their little images, and they're not going to give up their idols, and God is going to be judging them for their idols. Go back to Ezekiel, Ezekiel chapter 30, let me give you a couple more, and we got to wrap this thing up. We're talking about this day of the Lord, and just kind of the glimpses that we see of the day of the Lord in Ezekiel 30, we saw that it's the day of God's wrath, we saw that it's a day of darkness, we saw that it is prompted by the rapture, we saw that it's called the times of the Gentiles, or the time of the heathen, we saw that it happens to end times Babylon, which is the mingled people that are worshiping idols. Number six, the day of the Lord comes with the coming of the terrible of the nations. I want you to notice what it says in verse 11. Ezekiel chapter 30 in verse 11 says this, he and his people with him, now the primary application is Nebuchadnezzar, but this is picturing another king, because remember we've already seen in the book of Ezekiel how Nebuchadnezzar pictured Christ. Remember when we were looking at the destruction of Tyre, and how the destruction of Tyre matched end times Babylon? Remember it said that the king of kings, referring to Nebuchadnezzar, was coming on a horse to kill the king of Tyre? And we saw how that pictured Christ in the book of Revelation, the king of kings coming in his horse. Well here we have Nebuchadnezzar, and he's referred to as the terrible of the nations. Notice he and his people with him, the terrible of the nations, shall be brought to destroy the land, and they shall draw their swords against Egypt and fill the land with the slate. So the terrible of the nations, what is that referring to? Well go to Isaiah chapter 25, you're there in Ezekiel? Just head backwards, Lamentations, Jeremiah, Isaiah, Isaiah 25, look at verse 1. Remember he said, he called Nebuchadnezzar the terrible of the nations? And when you read that, you might think like terrible of the nations, that's a bad guy, right? Terrible is not a bad word in your King James Bible, or it's not a bad word in general. Someone that's terrible is someone that brings terror or fear, now that might be a bad person, but that's also God. Because when God pours out his wrath, it's going to be terrible. He's going to bring terror upon this earth. In fact, while you're going to Isaiah 25, let me read to you some passages that prove that. Psalm 67 in verse 2 says this, for the Lord Most High is terrible. He is a great King over all the earth. Psalm 66 in verse 5 says, come and see the works of God. He is terrible in his doings towards the children of men. Psalm 68 verse 35 says, oh God, thou art terrible out of thy holy place. The God of Israel is he that giveth strength and power unto his people, blessed be God. So those are just three examples and there's multiple more examples where God is called terrible. So the word terrible is not necessarily a bad word. God, the Bible says, oh God, thou art terrible. God, he is terrible. The Lord Most High is terrible. So let's look at this terrible of the nations. Are these good people or bad people? Are they Isaiah 25? Look at verse 1, oh Lord, thou art my God. I will exalt thee. I will praise thy name. For thou has done wonderful things, thy counsels of old are faithfulness and true. For thou is made of a city in a heap, of a defense city, a ruin, a palace of strangers to be no city, it shall never be built. Verse 3, therefore the strong people shall glorify thee. So notice, the strong people, these good people are bad people, these are good people. They're glorifying thee, the Lord who's God, right? The Lord shall the strong people glorify thee, the city of the terrible nations shall fear thee. So I want you to notice that the terrible nations are good people. In fact, the terrible nations are us. It's those who follow God, who are saved, who believe God. We're the terrible nations. And then in Ezekiel 30, it says, he and his people with him, the terrible of the nations. Yeah, that's referring to Nebuchadnezzar coming, but it's referring to another king of kings coming, the Lord Jesus Christ. So when the Lord Jesus Christ comes with the terrible of the nations, that's us riding upon horses with him, because God, he is terrible. The Lord most high is terrible. God thou art terrible. When he comes, he comes during the day of the Lord. He comes during the day of his, because look, what kicked off the day of the Lord was his coming. And that entire time of God's wrath being poured out, that whole thing is referred to as the day of the Lord. It's referred to as the second coming of Christ. The second coming of Christ begins with the rapture, but it doesn't end with the rapture. It's wrath being poured out upon the earth, the vials, the trumpets, all those things that you read in Revelation. Let me give you one last one, Ezekiel chapter 30 verse 21. The day of the Lord is the day of God's wrath. The day of the Lord is the day of darkness. The day of the Lord is the day prompted by the rapture. The day of the Lord is the day of the times of the Gentiles. It's end times Babylon. It's the mingled nations with the idols. It comes with the coming of the terrible, the nations. Here's the last one, and we'll finish up. The day of the Lord culminates with the destruction of the king of this world. Because what ends the time of God's wrath, the day of the Lord? It's the battle of Armageddon, right? Jesus comes down in his white horse, the king of kings, the word of God, and he battles against the beast and the false prophet at the battle of Armageddon. And he takes the beast and the false prophet, and they're cast into the lake of fire. And then he takes Satan, and he throws him into the bottom of his pit, and then we go into the millennial reign. Well, notice how Ezekiel 30 ends. Verse 21, son of man, I have broken the arm of Pharaoh, king of Egypt. Remember, Egypt pictures the world. He says, look, I've broken the arm. He said, I broke the arm of the leader of the world. That happens at the day of the Lord for Egypt, but you know what? That happens at the day of the Lord for the world. He's going to take the king of the world, the Antichrist, and he's going to whoop him. He's going to, notice the description here. I mean, it's kind of a, the description of the battle here, it's not a very kind description. He says, I have broken the arms of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and lo, it shall not be bound up to be healed. But I broke it, and the break is permanent. There's no healing it. There's no getting his arms back. Look, to put a roller to bind it, to make it strong to hold the sword, he said, no one's going to bind it up. It's not going to regain his strength where he can hold a sword. Therefore, thus saith the Lord God, behold, I am against Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and will break his arms, the strong and that which was broken, and I will cause the sword to fall out of his hand. He said, I'm going to break his arm to the point where he can't even hold a sword. There's going to be no binding this up. There's going to be no fixing this, to the point where I will cause the sword to fall out of his hand, verse 23, and I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations and will disperse them through the countries, and I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, right? That's picturing Christ. And put my sword in his hand, and I will break Pharaoh's arms, and he shall, I mean, look at the description. Imagine two kings battling in the midst of a battle. They're fighting with swords, and within that battle, the arms of one of them is broken to the point where they can't even pick up a sword. Notice verse 25, excuse me, verse 24. And I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon and put my sword in his hand, and I will break Pharaoh's arms, and he shall groan before him with the groanings of a wounded man, but I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, and the arms of Pharaoh shall fall down, and they shall know that I am the Lord, when I shall put my sword into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall stretch it out upon the land of Egypt, and I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations and disperse them among the countries, and they shall know that I am the Lord. And this is how the day of the Lord ends, with the destruction. It culminates with the destruction of the king of the world. And I just think this is interesting, let me just share this with you. It's interesting that he says, notice in verse 21, he says, I have broken the arms of the Pharaoh king of Egypt. In verse 22, he says, and will break his arms. In verse 24, he says, and will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon. He says, I will break Pharaoh's arms. Verse 25, I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon. He said, I'm going to break his arms, I'm going to break his arms, I'm going to break his arms, I'm going to break his arms. It's interesting to me that a world that denies God and denies the power of God, you know what nations, when they want to fortify themselves, do? You know what the nations of the world will do when they want to fortify themselves against the Lord Jesus Christ at the Battle of Armageddon? You know what they're going to do? They're going to build up their arms. Right? You know what they call it? Two nations are, you know, the Cold War, and they're kind of clashing, and war might break out. What do they call that? An arms race? Right? Whenever they make a treaty and they're going to get rid of all their weapons, what do they call that? An arms treaty? Right? You know, it's funny that God says, there's coming a day when I'm going to break their arms. I'm going to destroy their weapons. They're not going to be able to hold up their weapons because the great and terrible day of the Lord is come, the wrath of God. This is the God we serve. So look, whatever you're going through, whatever you're dealing with, whatever ups and downs we have, just realize this. We've literally read the end of the book, and we win. We've literally read the end of the book, and it ends with us triumphantly victorious with Christ. Let's bow our heads and have a word of prayer. Heavenly Father, thank you, Lord, for your word. Thank you for the Bible. Thank you for Ezekiel 30 and just these glimpses of the day of the Lord that we see, and we of course know that this was a literal day for the King of Egypt when your judgment came upon him, but it gives us insight into a coming day, when you will break the arms of the kings of this world, and when you will show yourself powerful, and Lord, we just thank you for allowing us to be part of your nation, allowing us to be part of your people, and Lord, I pray you'd help us to get busy reaching people in the gospel of Jesus Christ, trying to get as many people on your side because the day of the Lord, the day of judgment is coming. We love you. In the matchless name of Christ, we pray, amen.