Book of Joel Chapter 3 Vs. 15

The Lord Judges the Nations

 

The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining. Joel 3:15

The sun and... This will be a literal happening at the second coming of Christ (Joel 2:30-32; Mat. 24:29-31).

and the stars... Anti-Christian princes and nobles in the civil state, and the clergy of all ranks in the church state, shall lose their glory.

Mat. 24:29 "Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:"

As in earlier passages (cf. Joel 2:10, 2:31) the darkening of the heavenly bodies (Joel 3:15) serves as an ominous sign of the approaching day of the Lord (Joel 3:14). Both the politic and ecclesiastic state of antichrist shall be ruined and destroyed.

Gospel of Matthew Chapter 4 Vs. 9

The Temptation of Jesus

 

Matthew 4:9 “And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.”

will I give... Satan is the “ruler of this world” (John 12:31; 14:30; 16:11), and the “god of this world” (2Cor. 4:4). The whole world lies in his power (1Jhn. 5:19). This is illustrated in Dan. 10:13, where demonic power controlled the kingdom of Persia, so that a demon is called the prince of the kingdom of Persia.

fall down and... An expression of complete surrender, submission, and adoration.

If only Jesus would bow down and worship him. Satan was saying, “I can accomplish the will of God for You and You can have the kingdoms of this world right now.” This of course would have meant Jesus would never have gone to the cross. He supposedly could have been the King of kings without the cross. However, this would have thwarted God’s plan for salvation and would have meant Jesus was worshiping an inferior.

Book of Joel Chapter 3 Vs. 14

 The Lord Judges the Nations

Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision. Joel 3:14

Multitudes, multitudes in... An innumerable host will be assembled in the valley of decision (also called the Valley of Jehoshaphat, Joel 3:2, 3:12). Here the divine Judge’s verdict will be executed on the nations.

for the day... These multitudes are the heathen armies of many nations that are judged in the valley, and found guilty as charged. God, Himself, destroys them.

valley of decision...This location is the same as the valley of Jehoshaphat where the sentence of judgment will be carried out (3:2, 12).

This is synonymous with the valley of Jehoshaphat (verse 2). The scene is not one where the multitudes are in the midst of making a decision in favor of the Lord and repenting of their sin. Rather, the decision is made by God, a decision to judge the multitudes for their treatment of Judah and Jerusalem!

This judgment will be meted out against them in the Day of the Lord that takes place in the Great Tribulation.

An innumerable host will be assembled in the valley of decision (also called the Valley of Jehoshaphat, Joel 3:2, 3:12). Here the divine Judge’s verdict will be executed on the nations.

Gospel of Matthew Chapter 4 Vs. 8

 The Temptation of Jesus

Matthew 4:8 “Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and showeth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;”

all the kingdoms... Satan is the present usurper of man’s dominion—the prince and god of this world’s system (John 8:44; 12:31; 14:30; 2Cor. 4:4; Eph. 2:1-3; 1Jhn. 5:19).

This third temptation takes place on an exceeding high mountain. The mountain is clearly real in the text, though its exact location is unidentified. Despite the grandeur of this temptation, nothing in the passage itself indicates that these temptations were only in the mind of Christ.

Clearly, they are depicted as real experiences that actually occurred in the human life of the Messiah. That Satan, the usurper, would attempt to give the kingdoms of the world to Jesus, the Messiah, the rightful King, is the height of absurdity!

Satan’s final test related to God’s plan for Jesus. It was and is God’s design that Jesus Christ rule the world. Satan showed Jesus the kingdoms of the world with all their splendor. These kingdoms presently are Satan’s, as he is “the god of this Age” (2Cor. 4:4) and “the prince of this world” (John 12:31; cf. Eph. 2:2). He had the power to give all these kingdoms to Jesus at that time.

Book of Joel Chapter 3 Vs. 13

 The Lord Judges the Nations

Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe: come, get you down; for the press is full, the fats overflow; for their wickedness is great. Joel 3:13

Put ye in... In Joel 3:13-16 we have a reference to the battle of Armageddon and the destruction of the many armies of the nations of the Antichrist, by the Lord, in fulfillment of Isa. 63:1-5; Eze. 38-39; Zec. 14:1-21; Rev. 19:11-21. These verses (Joel 3:12-13) plainly indicate that the judgment mentioned in this chapter will actually take the form of divine warfare against Israel’s enemies. So the event described here is to be equated with Armageddon (cf. Rev. 14:14-20; 16:16; 19:11-21), rather than the judgment of the nations prophesied in Mat. 25:31-46.

the sickle, for... The sickle in His hand suggests judgment. And this is supported by the messages of the three angels (Rev. 14:15-20). The sickle in His hand suggests judgment. And this is supported by the messages of the three angels (Rev. 14:15-20).

An angel called out to Christ to reap, because the harvest of the earth is ripe. The ripeness is in the sense of withered or overripe (exēranthē). What follows is judgment as the sickle is swung… over the earth.; Rev. 19:15.

for the press... Christ is also described as the One who treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty (cf. Rev. 14:19-20; and cf. Almighty in Rev. 1:8; 4:8; 11:17; 15:3; 16:7, 16:14; 19:6; 21:22). This scene is a dramatic indication of the awfulness of the impending judgment. Mat. 24:30 indicates that those on earth will be witnesses of this impressive scene.

The first command (Swing the sickle, for the harvest is ripe) probably compares judgment to harvesting grain (cf. Isa. 17:5; Rev. 14:15). The second (Come, trample the grapes) compares the annihilation of the enemies to treading grapes in a winepress (cf. Isa. 63:1-6; Rev. 14:18-20). The underlying reason for the nations’ demise is that their wickedness is great.

Gospel of Matthew Chapter 4 Vs. 7

 The Temptation of Jesus

Matthew 4:7 “Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.”

In verse 7, we see the correct way to talk to the devil.

It is written... Christ replied with another verse from Israel’s wilderness experience (Deut. 6:16), recalling the experience at Massah, where the grumbling Israelites put the Lord to the test, angrily demanding that Moses produce water where there was none (Exodus 17:2-7).

Thou shalt not... not tempt the LORD your God. Exo. 17:7; Num. 14:22; Mat. 4:7. Quoted from Deut. 6:16. Jesus could have thrown Himself headlong from the temple to show a sign or wonder of who He was. God calls people who have to have signs and wonders, before they will believe, a wicked and perverse generation.

You see, God is not interested in convincing us through our mental capacity. He wants us to believe from our hearts.

Not every sign and wonder is from God. The devil is a counterfeiter. Mat. 24:24 is printed in red, because it is the words of Jesus Himself.

“For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.”

You see, we must know the Word so well that we will be able to discern the truth from a lie.

Jesus responded, again from Deuteronomy (Deut. 6:16), that it would not be proper to test… God and expect Him to do something when one is out of His will.

Book of Joel Chapter 3 Vs. 12

 The Lord Judges the Nations

Let the heathen be wakened, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat: for there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about. Joel 3:12

Let the Heathen... That is, let the enemies of Christ and his church be aroused from that state of security in which they are, and prepare for their own defense. For in such a state the antichristian powers will be before their destruction (see Rev. 18:7).

and come up... Let them bestir themselves, and exert all the rigor and strength they have. Let them come in high spirits against the people of God; let them invade the holy land, and come even to the valley of Jehoshaphat. And, when come thither, let them, descend into the place appointed for their ruin.

The land of Judea being said to be higher than other countries, going to it is generally expressed by going up to it. Otherwise it is more usual to say that men go down to a valley than come up to it; and mention being made again of this valley, shows that the same thing is referred to here (as in Joel 3:2).

These words are said in answer to the petition (in Joel 3:11); for they are spoken by the Lord, as appears by what follows.

there will I... This not only refers to Armageddon, but to the judgment of the nations (Mat. 25:31-46). There gathered together from all parts. The allusion is to a judge upon the bench, sitting to hear and try causes, and pass a definitive sentence. And here it signifies the execution of that sentence; such a pleading the cause of his people, as to take vengeance and inflict just punishment upon their enemies (see Psm. 9:4).

This is the same battle where 2/3 of Gog in the land of Magog will die in battle. So many die in this battle, that people on the Mediterranean Sea must put clothes pins on their noses to stop the death odor. All Israel will be 7 months burying the dead.

Ezekiel 39:12 "And seven months shall the house of Israel be burying of them, that they may cleanse the land."

This plainly says that the deaths in this great battle are a judgment of God against the heathen people.

The Lord Himself now repeated the summons of the preceding verses, instructing the nations to enter the Valley of Jehoshaphat (cf. Joel 3:2). Employing agricultural imagery, He then commanded His warriors to destroy His enemies.