Armageddon

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The evangelist John of Patmos writes the Book of Revelation. Painting by Hieronymus Bosch (1505).

For other uses, see Armageddon (disambiguation).

Armageddon (Greek αρμαγεδδων; also spelled Har-Magedon in some modern English translations) is a climactic battle between good and evil mentioned in the Book of Revelation in the Christian New Testament, or more generally, an apocalyptic catastrophe.

The word Armageddon in Scripture is known only from a single verse in the Greek New Testament^[1], where it is said to be Hebrew, but it is thought to represent the Hebrew words Har Megido (הר מגידו), meaning "Hill of Megiddo". Megiddo was the location of many decisive battles in ancient times (see Battle of Megiddo).

Before the Second World War, the First World War was commonly referred to in newspapers and books as "Armageddon", in addition to "the Great War".

1 Armageddon in the Bible
2 Bahá'í Faith
3 Jehovah's Witnesses
4 Rastafari movement
5 Seventh-day Adventists
6 References
7 See also

[edit] Armageddon in the Bible

In Revelation, angels pour "seven bowls of the wrath of God" upon the Earth.^[2] Armageddon follows the pouring of the sixth bowl:

“

The sixth angel poured his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up in order to prepare the way for the kings from the east. And I saw three foul spirits like frogs coming from the mouth of the dragon, from the mouth of the beast, and from the mouth of the false prophet. These are demonic spirits, performing signs, who go abroad to the kings of the whole world, to assemble them for battle on the great day of God the Almighty. And they assembled them at the place that in Hebrew is called Harmagedon.^[3]

”

Resurrection of the Dead. Based on Revelation 20:4-6. Stained glass, Sainte-Chapelle, Paris, ca. 1200

This passage is ambiguous whether any event actually takes place here, or whether the gathering of armies is only to be seen as a sign.

In fact, a gathering of the Roman army occurred at this place as a staging ground for one of their assaults on Jerusalem in AD 67. This is consistent with the preterist interpretation that seventh bowl of wrath^[4] refers to events culminating in the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70. However, one indication that the book predicts a future event is the mention of an army from the east of 200 million, a number that would not have been possible in any battle of that period.

Another interpretation is that the sudden death of Josiah, a religious reformer in his early 30s who showed great promise of renewing a theocratic Jewish state, resulted in myths of his triumphant return. Josiah is said to have died at the hands of the Egyptian pharoah Necho II just as the Davidic monarchy was in ascendancy after a period of disarray and corruption. His death precipitated the decline of a strongly monotheistic faction in Judea in the years prior to the Babylonian captivity. The idea that a Davidic king would return someday to fight and win at Megiddo is an example of the myth of eternal return.

Megiddo is mentioned various times in the Old Testament. The Book of Kings and Chronicles describe a battle that took place there in 609 BC.^[5]This resulted in the death of Josiah, a young and charismatic ruler whose quick and untimely death precipitated the decline of the dynasty of David and may have inspired stories of the return of a Messiah from this lineage. The valley is marked by the presence of the archaeological mound or tell, representing the accumulated ruins of Bronze Age and Iron Age settlements that flourished between 5,000 years ago and 650 BC. Some would argue that the word "Armageddon" is an early example of a mondegreen.

[edit] Bahá'í Faith

As part of the overall theology of the Bahá'í Faith, Bahá'í literature and research interprets the fulfillment of the expectations surrounding the Battle of Armageddon in three ways, all of which have passed. See Catastrophe, Armageddon and Millennium: some aspects of the Bábí-Bahá'í exegesis of apocalyptic symbolism for an extended review of the material.

The first deals with a series of Tablets Bahá'u'lláh, Founder of the Bahá'í Faith, authored to be sent to various kings and rulers. The very act of the Promised One addressing temporal powers with criticisms is a thunderous event.

The second relates to the detailed events near the end of WWI of the Battle of Megiddo (1918) ("Armageddon") - a kind of literal fullfillment where in World Powers were in battle. Specifically, General Allenby's victory at Megiddo, which prevented the Ottoman Empire from crucifying 'Abdu'l-Baha, then the head of the Baha'i Faith, is viewed by Baha'is as having been the literal Battle of Armageddon.

The third reviews the whole progress of the World Wars (though they can be viewed as one process in two phases), and their derangement of the means and norms of the world before and after.

[edit] Jehovah's Witnesses

See also: Christian eschatology

Jehovah's Witnesses believe that Armageddon is the battle when Satan unites the kings of the Earth against God's appointed King, Jesus. Thus, Revelation says it is the war of the great day of Jehovah Almighty. Unlike many Christian groups, Jehovah's Witnesses do not believe an individual 'Antichrist' will be involved. Satan himself will move the kingdoms of the world to wage war on God's chosen people. Revelation says that "expressions inspired by demons" cause the kings of the entire inhabited Earth to gather together for the war of the great day of God the Almighty (Revelation 16:14). But then, the "King of Kings and Lord of Lords" because of his righteousness will defeat them for the glory of the Almighty God. (Revelation 17:12-14) - The Witnesses believe it is evident from this text that this war is not one of nation against another with nuclear, biological, or other weapons of mass destruction, since it says that the kings of the Earth "gather together" against Christ. It is also evident that there is no way that all of the armies of the world could gather around the relatively small area that is Megiddo in modern-day Israel. Finally, Revelation 16:16 calls Har-Mageddon (Mountain of Megiddo)(mountain of the assembly of troops), "the place" where these kings are gathered for this final showdown.

Since the Mountain of Megiddo is not a literal place, they feel it is fitting the Bible uses Megiddo as the "symbolic" place of gathering of all the kings of the Earth where they will try to do battle against God and his forces. This action on the part of the kings of the Earth is provoked by expressions and signs inspired by demons. (See Revelation 16:13)

Jehovah's Witnesses believe the collective action to persecute God's chosen on Earth is what finally triggers this war. Chapter 38 of the book of Ezekiel has a prophecy in which a certain Gog from the land of Magog collects an army of many nations to attack God's people, believing them to be unprotected. God responds by causing them to fall one against another's swords; he strikes them with pestilence, floods, hailstones, fire, and sulphur. The chapter ends with God declaring that the nations "will have to know that I am Jehovah".

Armageddon is followed by the establishment of God's Kingdom over the earth — a period commonly referred to as "Christ's Millennial Reign", when "Satan is bound for a thousand years" (See Rev. 20:1,2).The final judgement and purification of the Earth's sin occurs at the end of the Millennium, when Satan is "loosed for a little season" (20:3, 7-9)and allowed to "go out to deceive the nations ... and gather them to battle" against "the camp of the saints and the beloved city". When Satan loses this battle he is finally cast into the "lake of fire and brimstone" (representing complete, eternal destruction Rev 20:14). Those who join him will likewise be destroyed eternally.

[edit] Rastafari movement

Main article: Rastafari movement

According to Rastafari, it is Haile Selassie who appears in the Book of Revelation. Armageddon (or rather "Amagideon") is a slightly different theological concept, meaning not so much a specific battle, but rather the general state the entire world is in now, and has been getting progressively deeper in since 1930, and especially since 1974. However, Selassie's role in the Second Italo-Ethiopian War is in many ways seen as a fulfillment of some prophecies.

[edit] Seventh-day Adventists

Seventh-day Adventists have a different interpretation — the final battle of Armageddon will take place after the thousand-year period mentioned in the Book of Revelation, where the righteous dwell with God in heaven and the wicked are judged. According to this account, Christ and his saints (and the Heavenly kingdom they now reside in) will come down to Earth, shielded from the wicked. Christ will raise the wicked dead, and Satan will prepare them to engage in one final battle between good and evil. Satan and his followers will attempt to overthrow Christ's followers, but will be overcome by the power of Christ. Under His command, God destroys Satan and the wicked once and for all with an overwhelming fire. The Earth will be cleansed by fire, purged of all evil, then, according to the final two chapters of Revelation, will be made new and restored to its original state before sin entered into the world. Then Christ and His redeemed saints will be declared victorious. As is the norm with interpretations of Biblical prophecy, it is debated whether or not the Seventh-day Adventist interpretation is adequately supported by the Bible.