Fleeing to
Redemption!
                                                                                             By Pastor F. M. Riley
                                                                                             May 12, 2019
     "When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, [whoso readeth , 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 give suck 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 except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened."
                                                                              Matthew 24:15-22
Introduction
     These Scriptures were a warning given to the Jewish people by the Lord Jesus, now some 2000 years ago.  They speak of a time of trouble coming upon Israel, and upon all mankind, worse than any trouble ever seen or known previously in the entire history of mankind, and which once fulfilled, nothing similar will ever occur again in the future.  
   These Scriptures, verses 15 thru 20, were first of all, a prophecy of the future Roman invasion of the land of Judea in 70 A.D.  The Roman invasion typified this future time of trouble the Lord prophesied to come in 24:21-22.  We know this to be true, because......
    [1]  of the Lord's statement about the timing; "pray that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day," 24:20.  Sure enough, history records that the Roman invasion in 70 A.D. did not take place in the winter, nor on the Jewish Sabbath Day.  
     [2]   Because the Lord told His disciples, that when they saw "the abomination of desolation," they were to "stand in the holy place" [the place just in front of the Temple].  The Lord's disciples took this statement literally.   The Roman army completely surrounded the city of Jerusalem, then erected a statue of Jupiter [the favored god of the Romans] in the courtyard of the Temple.  When the Lord's disciples saw this, they took the Word of the Lord literally, and immediately sent out word for every Christian believer in Jerusalem to meet together just in front of the Temple.  Within minutes of the call, all Christian believers in Jerusalem had gathered.  For some reason, the Roman army temporarily withdrew their guards from the gate in the wall in front of the Temple, giving those gathered Christian believers the opportunity to escape from the city.  The Lord takes care of His people.  Not one  Christian believer died in the seige of Jerusalem.  
     From these two examples, we then know that the seige of Jerusalem by the Roman army typified the terrible time of trouble that is coming following the "abomination of desolation" prophesied in Daniel 9:27, 12:11, Matthew 24:15-21, and Revelation 13:14-15.  
    But when the Roman invasion did take place, the Jewish people were forced to flee from the whole land of Judea, in order to save their lives.  The Jews left the holy land desolate and empty, and they were scattered all over the world, where thousands remain today.  A "remnant" returned to the holy land in 1948 to establish the present nation of  Israel.   
     This study is about the FUTURE flight of the Jewish people as referred to  several places in the prophetic  Scriptures.  Join us for a hopefully informative and enlightening study.......
The Present World Situation
     Right now as I write, the whole world is like a powder keg, just ready to explode into War.   I suspect that the nations in the Middle East will provide the "spark" that sets it all in motion.  
    For the past several months, the so-called "Palestinians" have been firing rockets into Israel, for no other purpose than to kill and maim Israel's civilian population.   What the "Hamas" military arm of the Palestinians has done, is to motivate Israel to prepare for all out war against the PLO.  Go on the Internet and check out Netanyahu's speech given on May 6th.   Glory!  What a speech!  
      At this same time the civil war  in Syria continues, with the Syrian dictator taking swipes at Israel in between fighting with his own people.  The government of Syria is also supported by the nations of Russia and Iran, among others.  America has been warned by Russia, not to attack Syria,  in defense of Israel.   But even as I write, it has been reported that one of our American ambassadors asked a Russian military commander what the Russian military is preparing for?  As reported, his answer was, "We are preparing for Armageddon!"  Hello!
     Again, as I write, Iran is moving vast quanities of war materials into the Muslim dominated nations surrounding Israel.   In response, American warships are being sent to the coastal areas nearest to Iran.  It doesn't take a whole lot of "smarts" to figure out that a red hot war is imminent, and could begin at any moment.  
The Peacemaker
     However, according to the inspired prophecy of Daniel 9:27, a "peacemaker" will come on the scene at just  any moment now.   He will "confirm" [strengthen] a covenant with Israel for a seven year period.  This "peacemaker" will be none other than the anti-christ, plainly prohesied in many Scriptures, to come in the "last days," the very time in which we are living right now!  
      The arrival of the anti-christ on the world scene, "strengthening" a covenant of peace between Israel and her neighbors, will supposedly give the nation and people of Israel "peace" for a seven year period.  This will cause the people of Israel to rejoice, as after years of conflict and war, they finally cry out, "Peace and safety," 1 Thessalonians 5:3.  
But their sense of "peace and safety" will only last three and a half years, for in the middle of the seven year period, the anti-christ himself will violate the covenant he "strengthened" with Israel.  
     It appears to me that the first indication of his violation is that the anti-christ will go into the rebuilt Jewish Temple, set down on the mercy throne in the Temple, and publicly declare himself to be "God," 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4.  Then he will follow his public declaration, by erecting a huge image of himself, in the courtyard of the Tribulation Temple, Rev. 13:14-15.  He will then demand that himself and  his "image" be worshiped by every person on the earth, Rev. 13:8; 13:15.  The penalty for refusing to worship him and his "image" will be death by being beheaded, Rev. 13:7-8; 20:4.
     This indicates to me that the anti-christ has some connection to the Islamic religion, for the favored method of execution among the Muslim people is beheading.  
     It is this action of the anti-christ and his followers that the Lord and His inspired Word refers to as "the abomination that maketh desolate," Daniel 12:11; Matthew 24:15.   And the Lord's warning to His Jewish disciples, was, that when they see this abomination erected, they are to abandon everything and  flee for their lives.  
Israel's Past
     For many centuries in the past history of Israel, the Jewish people turned away from the Law of God, and the true God of Israel, and engaged in the worship of heathen  idols and gods.  This was plainly a violation of the Law of God, Exodus 20:3-6; Deuteronomy 7:25-26.  Notice in the latter passage that God says that the worship of idols is "an abomination" to Him.  The Jewish people  paid a terrible price for their apostasy, their idolatry, and their worship of heathen gods.
     Finally, the Lord God had enough!  God raised up prophets who explicitly told the Jewish people, that because of their unfaithfulness to Him, and their idolatry, they would be removed from their land, and would become slaves in the land of Babylon for 70 years.   They were removed, and they did serve as slaves in  Babylon for 70 years, exactly as prophesied.     
    But the careful Bible student can see that their servitude in Babylon was for their own spiritual benefit.   The truth set forth in Romans 8:28 was already at work centuries ago, even though that Scripture was not placed in God's Word until centuries later.  God permitted  the Jewish people to be taken into captivity in Babylon, for their own spiritual learning and growth.  After being held as captives in Babylon for 70 years the Jewish people have never worshiped idols and false gods again.  Never!  Their Babylonian experience convinced them, as God's chosen people, that the only true God is Jehovah God, and they as a people, totally repudiated heathen idolatry.  Praise the Lord!
Israel's Future
     Therefore, when the anti-christ demands that all of mankind still alive on the earth at the middle of the Tribulaion, worship him and his "image" under penality of death for refusing to do so, the Jewish people will have no choice but to flee in order to save their lives.  
     This is exactly what the Lord Jesus tells them to do in Matthew 24:15-22.  And FLEE is exactly what they will do!  
The Sign
     Notice that the Lord explicitly said, "When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation....."  The "image" of the anti-christ erected in the courtyard of the Tribulation Temple will be a visible "sign" to the Jewish people to "flee."  See the wording of  Mark's account in Mark 13:14.  So when they "see" that "image" erected and standing in the courtyard of their Temple, many of them will remember this warning given to them by the Lord Jesus, and will  obey the Lord's admonition to flee.    
 Their Flight
     How did the Lord know that many modern Jewish homes would still be designed like the ancient homes of the Jews?   How?  Because the Lord Jesus is God incarnate, exactly as He claimed to be.  Modern Jewish homes are built with a flat reinforced roof, and a stairway leading up to the roof on the outside of the home, so that people can work or relax on the roofs of their houses.  Notice that the Lord told them to not even take the time to go back into their homes for anything, but rather to flee.
       Likewise for those working in the fields.  They are told not to even go back for their clothes.  Just forget about their clothes and flee.  Obviously, seconds will mean the difference between saving their lives or being killed.  
     Can our readers even imagine the heartache and sorrow; the emotional pain of those fleeing Jews.  They will be leaving their homes, their land and country, their posssessions; everything that is dear to them in this present world, thinking that they may never again be able to return to their homes and their beloved "promised land."  
The Death and Restoration of Satan's Man
     Some readers do not yet understand that the anti-christ will be a man; likely a powerful and ambitious politician or religious leader.  He will arise out of the "sea" of humanity, Rev. 13:1; 17:15, and during the first half of the Tribulation, will be engaged in his rise to a position of
power and  rulership over the whole earth.
     But near the middle of the Tribulation, he will be assassinated by a group of Jews,  who will  obviously know the Old Testament prophetic Scriptures,  and who will recognize the anti-christ for who he really is.
At an opportune time, they will then assassinate him, Rev. 13:3; 13:14; Zechariah 11:17.    
     But the anti-christ will rise again, this time by the power of Satan, in a counterfeit of the resurrection of Christ, Rev. 13:2-3.  When the anti-christ is restored to life by the spirit of Satan entering lnto his body, he will have an intense hatred for the Jewish people, and will immediately begin attempting  to totally exterminate the Jews from off the face of the earth.  Immediately after his "image" is erected, he and his followers will begin a systematic slaughter of every Jew they can find.  This is why the Lord  emphasized urgency in fleeing to the Jewish people in Matthew 24:15-20.   
     Those Jews who follow the Lord's instructions will abandon their homes and lands, their businesses and occupations, and even their personal possessions, in a mad rush to escape from being slaughtered by the anti-christ and his followers.  But those of the Jewish people who refuse to believe the Lord's warning, will be killed by the anti-christ and his followers.   From the statement made by the Lord in 24:19, it is obvious that Jewish women who are heavy with an expected child, and those who are caring for a newborn baby will be in grave danger.  
     But the Lord God will not have forgotten His chosen people.......

     The Jewish Resurrection
     All readers who are true believers know that there is going to be a bodily resurrection of the dead, John 5:28-29.  Yet some believers have missed the truth that all believers are not resurrected at the same time.  We know that the resurrection of all New Covenant believers, saved during this present Dispensation of Grace will occur just preceding the beginning of the Tribulation Period, as recorded in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18.  But that is not when the resurrection of Old Testament believers will occur.
     In Daniel 11: 36-45 an extremely  powerful "king of the north" is being described. I personally believe this "king of the north" will also be the future anti-christ.  Compare Isaiah 14:13 noticing that Satan's "man" fervently desires to set "upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north.   He is going to invade the land of Israel.  Daniel 11:45 explicitly tells us that he will set his palace "between the seas in the glorious holy mountain."  This statement will place him in the city of Jerusalem, located between the Mediterranean Sea to the west, and the Dead Sea to the East, and explicitly upon the Temple Mount. From carefully studying the prophecies, it appears that he will set up his residence in Jerusalem on or near the middle of the Tribulation Period.  
      Then the very next statement made in Daniel 12:1-2 says, "And at that time.......thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.  And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt."  Dear readers, this places the resurrection of Old Testament believing Jews at the middle of the Tribulation, the same time when the anti-christ sets his palace on the Temple mount in Jerusalem.  
The Arrival of King David
     Why is this so important?  Because King David will be one of those Old Testament believers resurrected as prophesied  in Daniel 12:1-2.  
     Now carefully notice  Psalm 89:3-4 and 89:20-23.  Both of these Scriptures make it very plain that, long after the death of King David, he will live again.  At what time?  The timing is clearly indicated by the statement, "The enemy shall not exact upon him; nor the son of wickedness afflict him."  The "son of wickedness" is obviously a reference to the anti-christ.   So King David will be among those resurrected at or near the middle of the Tribulation Period.  
     But why is King David so important?   Because the Lord God promised King David that he would rule over the house of Israel "for ever."  Read it for yourself in 2 Samuel 7, 1 Chronicles 17, and Psalm 89:3-4.  
    Therefore, when the anti-christ sets up his "image"on or near the middle of the Tribulation, and the Israelites flee, it will be King David who will be leading them through the mountain wilderness, and into the natural rock fortress; the ancient city of Petra, located in the mountains of what is today southern Jordan.  King David is well acquainted with the ancient rose red rock city of Petra.  He once took shelter there from King Saul, who was trying to kill him.  King David has already lived in Petra, and knows the city  intimately.  He also knows the easiest, fastest way to get there.  And the inspired Word plainly indicates that David will lead the Israelites into Petra, in  his God given position as Israel's King, Micah 2:13.   
      We  know that today the nation and people of Israel are not ruled by a King, but rather are a democracy.  But during the coming Tribulation Period, their present democracy will totally collapse, or be destroyed, and they will once again revert to a kingdom, ruled over by none other than King David himself.  Glory to God!      
      King David will lead the people of Israel to safety in the ancient city of Petra, and watch over them there throughout  the last half of the Tribulation.   And when the time comes, He will lead them out and back to Jerusalem.   But this isn't all of the story.......
The City of Petra
     The city of Petra is usually referred to in the Bible as either "Sela," or as "the rock."  The word "Petra" never occurs in the Bible.  This was a name given to this city later in history.  However, the word "Petra" means "rock."  
     Petra is a city located in a valley in the center  of a gigantic sandstone mountain, sitting in the desert wilderness, to the south and east of Jerusalem located in the present nation of  Jordan.  In ancient times this wilderness area belonged to the Edomites, and later to the Moabites.  Over the centuries thousands of residences were literally carved out in the soft sandstone rock cliffs of the valley, which rise straight up from the valley floor some 1,200 feet.,   It has been estimated by archeologists that the city is capable of holding and housing up to three or four MILLION people.  In ancient times this city was the southern capitol of ancient Edom.  Bozrah was the northern capitol of that same ancient nation.  Now read Micah 2:12.  
     This gigantic sandstone mountain is literally shaped similar to a shoe.  
Read Psalm 60:8 and 108:9, and marvel at the wisdom and grace and knowledge and majesty of our God!  The term, "casting off a shoe," symbolizes the "redemption" of a purchased possession, as illustrated in Ruth 4:6-8.  And in this valley in the city of Petra is where the nation and people of Israel will finally be "redeemed" by the Lord Jesus Christ.
    In the center of this huge sandstone mountain is a large valley completely encircled by the mountain. The valley itself is large and long, being about 1 1/2 to 3 miles in width, and several miles long..  There are springs of water in the valley, plus many cisterns which the ancient inhabitants carved out of the rock for water storage.  
     The only entrance into the valley of Petra is a narrow opening; a crevice or split in the mountain about one and a half miles in length.  Literally a "cleft in the rock," Songs 2:14. The entrance is in the desert wilderness, and is appropriately referred to as "the gate."  The width of this split in the mountain leading into the valley of Petra, is at the very widest, only 12 feet wide, and in some places much narrower.  The cliffs on each side of this crevice go straight up from the floor for some 300 feet.  It is easy to understand how just a few armed men could prevent an entire army from entering into the city located in the valley; the valley itself being what we today call a "box canyon."  Only one way in, and one way out.  
       This ancient city of Petra has been deserted for several hundred years, just waiting for the time when the Lord God will use it for the safety and security of His chosen Israelite people.   Now read Revelation 12 and take special note of 12:6 and 12:14.  Notice that 12:6 explicitly states that the woman flees into the wilderness, where she has "a place prepared of God," where she will be kept safe and fed and taken care of for 1,260 days; the last half of the Tribulation Period.  This tells us that it was the Lord God who moved on the minds of the ancient Edomites and Moabites,  the sworn enemies of the Jewish people, to carve out the thousands of dwelling places in the valley of Petra.  Thus the Lord God over 3,500 years in advance was preparing the place where His chosen people will be kept  safe and will ultimately be "redeemed."  Oh, glory  to God!
    Adding to this, I once had an article in my files, reporting that  some
Christian group had traveled to Petra, and had placed thousands of New Testaments under rocks and in crevices throughout the city of Petra.  These New Testaments were carefully wrapped and sealed to prevent them from being ruined by the desert heat or by moisture.   This happened in the late 1800's, before laws were passed which would have prevented this group from distributing God's Word in such a manner.  I can't find the article in my files, and I don't remember the exact dates.   But the group of Christians who did this obviously knew that the orthodox Jews are forbidden by their religious leaders to read the New Testament.  But during their stay in Petra, perhaps many of them will find the concealed Scriptures and read them.  Praise God!

God's Tender Care For Israel
     The Lord God made a covenant with Abraham some 4,000 years ago, promising him, that his descendants would be given the holy land as their "everlasting possession," Genesis 15:18;  17:7-8.  And God is faithful who promised, Hebrews 10:23.  
    Yet in the future Tribulation Period, the Jewish people will be forced to flee from their ancient homeland for the second time in history, leaving the land desolate and empty. Their first flight was in 70 A.D.  Their homes, cities, fields, and personal possession,  will be left behind, abandoned in their haste  to save their lives.  
     This does not mean that every single Jew will flee.  Some will ignore the Lord's warning to Israel, and will be killed by the anti-christ and his followers.  And a few may hide themselves in other places.   
     There is no question in my mind that many, or even most,  of those fleeing Israelites will be weeping bitterly as they flee.  The religious Jews will be crying out to the God of Israel for His mercy upon them, and His intervention.  
     Can our readers even imagine the emotions which will sweep through the hearts and minds of the fleeing Jews?   The unbelieving Jewish people, not yet having a personal relationship with the Lord God,  do not yet understand the truth of Hebrews 4:15.  The Lord God is "touched" with the suffering and crying of  all of His  people, both Jews and Gentiles.  And He will hear the cries of His chosen people, as they flee from the wrath of the anti-christ.   Dear readers, never forget this truth.   
      Now let't take up again where we left off.......
The Regathering of Israel
     What the fleeing Jews do not yet know, is that their being forced to flee,  will be the most important flight in their entire history as a nation and a  people.  
    King David, by the Spirit of the Lord, will lead the fleeing Jewish people into the ancient city of Petra.  Those Jews who flee will be the unbelieving Jews living in the land and nation of Israel today.  But they are  by no means all of the Jewish people.  As I write, there are still thousands of Jews scattered in various nations throughout the world.  What those fleeing Jews will not yet know, is that they are fleeing to meet and assemble with  their dispersed brethren from all over the world.    
      At or near this same time that the Jews in Israel have to flee,   the "great trumpet" will be blown, and every living Jew on earth will be gathered back to the land of Israel, and to the city of Petra, during the last half of the Tribulation Period.  Read Psalm 107:2-3, Isaiah 11:11-12, 27:12-13, 56:8, Ezekiel 28:25, and 39:27-28.  Carefully notice that this last Scripture reference clearly states that none of the Jewish people, not one,  will be left in any Gentile country on the earth.  They will all be gathered back to Petra to join their brethren, who will already be there.
       I do not know how these dispersed Jews will be gathered from the far countries of the world.  Perhaps the angels of God will be used to miraculously, bodily, transport some of the Jewish people back to Petra.  Then it is possible that the Lord God just places a sudden urgency in the hearts and minds of every living Jew on earth to return to their ancient home-land and people.   The inspired Word does record the regathering and return of some of the dispersed Jews in many different Scriptures.   Read Isaiah 11:11-12, 43:5-6, 54:7-8, Jeremiah 23:3, 29:14, 31:8, 31:10-11, 32:37-38, Ezekiel 11:17, 20:33-35, 20:41-42, and many other prophetic Scriptures which also speak of the regathering of all of the Jewish people.  Regardless of how it will be accomplished, every unbelieving living Jew on earth will be gathered into Petra during the last half of the Tribulation Period.   
    Then, near the end of the Tribulation, when every living Jew on earth has been gathered back into the city of Petra, suddenly the Lord Jesus Christ will appear right in the midst of the whole assembly of the Jewish people.  And there, as the Scriptures state, the Lord will "plead with them face to face," Ezekiel 20:34-35.   
       A type of this sudden instant appearance of the Lord Jesus to His people is seen in John 20:19-23 and 20:26-28.   The Lord Jesus, just like He did in His appearance to His disciples in John 20:20, will show the Jews the scars from the holes in His hands where He was nailed to the cross, and the scar where His side was pierced, and just like Thomas so long ago in John 20:28, every Jew in Petra will see and believe and be "redeemed."  Every living Jew on earth, in true repentance and faith, will receive the Lord Jesus Christ that day as their long awaited Messiah and Savior.  So just as Paul wrote in Romans 11:26, "And so all Israel shall be saved....."  Glory to God!  Hallelujah!  Praise the Lord.
A Nation Born in a Day
     Dear readers, think about this!  The entire covenanted Jewish people shall all receive Christ as their Savior in one single day.   Significantly, the prophetic Scriptures speak of this event, saying, "Who hath heard such a thing?  who hath seen such things?  Shall the earth be made to bring forth in one day?  Or shall a nation be born at once?  For as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children," Isaiah 66:8.  Yes, that very day every presently unbelieving Jew on earth will experience a "new birth," as they acknowledge the Lord Jesus as their personal and national Lord and Savior.  Glory to God!  
 Mourning and Rejoicing
     What has just been stated was also prophesied in Zechariah 12:10-14.  When the Lord reveals Himself to the Jewish people, there will be a great mourning of the Jews.  Imagine for yourself the emotions that will flow through the hearts and minds of those dear  Jewish people, as they come  to realize that Israel as a nation and a people,  could have been saved 2,000 years ago, at the first coming of Christ, if they had only believed on and received the Lord Jesus as their Messiah and Savior.  Instead they rejected and crucified Him.  For the past 2,000 years their people have perished in their unbelief.  What a mourning there will be,  as realization comes to the hearts and minds of those Jewish people gathered together there in Petra, exactly as prophesied in Zechariah 12.  
      Think for a moment, about the emotional condition of these fleeing Jews when they come to Petra.  As they  enter into the city of Petra through the narrow "cleft in the rock," there is no doubt in my mind that they will be weeping and crying, some of them hysterically, disappointed, discouraged, frightened, and in a state of despair and defeat, fearful of what will happen to them next.  This is the way they will enter into Petra.  
    But as they leave Petra, to return "home," following their Savior and "Redeemer," and their King, their hearts and minds  will be filled with great joy and rejoicing.  They will be happy, and singing, and praising, and worshiping their Lord.  They will be overjoyed, as they will be indwelt by the Holy Spirit, and will leave singing the praises of Him who has brought  them to  "redemption."   
Conclusion
     When they were forced to flee, three and one-half years earlier, they had no idea that they were fleeing to their "redemption."  Dear reader, isn't our Lord wonderful?    Let every true believer praise and honor Him daily with your prayers and dedication to His will for your life.  
     And pray for our yet unbelieving and unsaved "brethren" to be, the dear Jewish people.   
     Now, dear readers,  you have this message the Lord so graciously laid on my heart.  What you do with it is between you and the Lord.  May God bless and guide every reader is my prayer.  

"Even so, come, Lord Jesus," Revelation 22:20.   
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     My personal contact information:
POSTAL.......Pastor F. M. Riley, 14275 Co. Rd. 8120, Rolla, MO 65401
EMAIL.........francismriley34@gmail.com
PHONE.......573-202-6493
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     Praise and honor to God our Father, and to the Lord Jesus Christ, our wonderful Savior!