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'Holy War'
Holy war is war waged in support of a religious cause or war initiated by divine
command. One account of holy war can be found in the Book of Joshua in the Bible.
Various Jewish prophets imagined that the wars of conquest conducted by Assyria,
Babylon and Persia were sanctioned by Almighty God.
In many parts of the world there are Islamic fighters that believe they are engaged in
holy war. Jihad, which means battle or fight, is a religious duty imposed on Muslims.
Individuals engage in an internal battle to submit to the will of God. Jihad can also
be waged to force societies to function in agreement with the principles of Islam.
Islam believes the Qur'an is a guide for the human race and that Shari'ah is a way of
life commanded by God. Muhammad is seen as the last in a line of prophets which
included Noah, Abraham, Moses, David and Jesus. Muhammad's message is seen as
the perfected message of the prophets who preceded him.
Judaism, Christianity and Islam look forward to a day of judgement. Judaism expects
the enemies of Israel to be defeated on judgement day. Muslims believe the last day
will involve the end of the world followed by a resurrection in which the good will
enjoy eternal delight while the wicked suffer eternal hellfire. Christians await a new
heaven and a new earth.
Several Jewish prophets have said Israel would face an enemy that would come from
the north. Ezekiel predicted Israel would be attacked by a group of nations, which
would be led by Gog and Magog from the north. One Islamic tradition maintains that
the Mahdi, who will announce the end of the world, will fight against Yajuj and
Majuj. Yajuj and Majuj come from the north. In 'The Revelation of St John the
Devine' the war of Gog and Magog is the final war. It will be fought against the Beast
and the allies of the Beast. Those allies will be the kings of the world and their armies.
The battle of Gog and Magog is brought about by the activity of Satan after he is
released from his one thousand years in prison. Satan is an English equivalent of the
Hebrew term for adversary. Satan has no part in the Bible stories of Adam and Eve,
Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, or Moses. When Satan does appear in the Bible it is not
as the embodiment of evil, but as a cynic (amongst the sons of god) who believes Job
is not as wonderful as Yahweh imagines him to be. In Zechariah, Satan features as an
adversary to the high priest. The information about Satan contained in Job and
Zechariah does not prove Satan is real.
According to Islamic teaching Satan (Shaytan or Shaitan) refused to bow before the
first man when God commanded him to do so. He tempted Hawwa (Eve) to eat of the
tree of immortality. Satan will continue to tempt mankind until the end of the world
comes. Islam also refers to Satan as Iblis - the terms Iblis and devil probably come
from the Greek term diabolos, which means accuser or slanderer.

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Jewish tradition says it was the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil that
Eve became involved with. In all likelihood the fruit in the story of Adam and Eve is
the opium apple.
Satan has a significant role in 'The Revelation of St John the Devine'. Satan is
described as a great red dragon with seven heads, ten horns and seven crowns. It is
the old serpent called the Devil and Satan, which deceives the entire world.
At some point Satan is bound and cast into the bottomless pit for a thousand years.
When the thousand years end Satan is released. Satan then works to deceive the
nations and assemble them for the battle of Gog and Magog.
The beast that comes out of the bottomless pit had existed in the past, did not exist
when Revelation was composed, but would come back into existence at some time in
the future. It is this entity that Revelation identifies as Satan (the adversary or
accuser).
Eight kings are listed in part of the puzzle concerning the beast. Two of those kings
are the beast: number eight and number one. The beast is a country, a political entity,
a kingdom with kings. Five of those kings had fallen: Israel, Assyria, Babylon, Persia
and Greece. One of the kings still existed: Rome. One more was expected: the
kingdom of Antichrist. Number eight would be Israel: the beast that would come
again from the bottomless pit.
In various ways John identifies Israel as the beast. He also gave the beast a number
(666). When this number is counted up it becomes the ninth letter of the Greek
alphabet (I). It stands for Israel, the name God gave to Jacob (Genesis 35).
Israel's lost tribes are described as ten horns that are ten kings who will reign with the
beast for one hour. The beast and these kings, plus the kings of the world and their
armies will make war against 'The Word of God' (Jesus). It is only after the beast
comes back from the pit that the war takes place. Put another way, the war takes
place after Israel is reconstituted - that happened in the late 1940s.
Israel is the beast and the unfaithful woman is Jerusalem. No other city can be
substituted. Jerusalem, being the city where God lives, is the city that rules over the
kings of the earth. Jewish prophets labelled Jerusalem an adulteress and unfaithful
wife to Yahweh.
A character who appears to be like Jesus, but who is dishonest brings about the
kingdom of anti-Christ; a kingdom of international scope. This character is the false
prophet who, along with the dragon and the beast, gathers the kings of the world to
the battle of that great day of God Almighty.
This character can be identified in two ways. He works to establish an image of the
beast that will be a great power in the world and he apparently has the ability to make
fire from heaven visible to the sight of men. These clues identify Paul. His followers
were encouraged to think of themselves as children of Abraham, the circumcision
which worship God in spirit, or the Israel of God.

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Paul says a great light from heaven shone round about him and was seen by those
with him on the road to Damascus (Acts 22). John knew that the light from heaven
did not behave as Paul claimed.
Fire from heaven and light from heaven refer to the same thing. It is central to
Christian teaching: it appears in the cloven tongues of fire experience documented in
Acts and as the gift of the morning star in Revelation; in the last chapter of Revelation
Jesus is the 'bright and morning star.'
Through his own experience John knew that light from heaven did not act like
sunshine. It did not shine on or around anything. It could not have been seen by
people with Paul. John knew that Paul's claim was impossible and, therefore, false.
Revelation links the beast and the false prophet (Israel and Paul) to the battle of the
day of God Almighty. The dragon also plays a part in gathering the forces for the
same battle. Other terms used to describe the dragon are, old serpent, Satan and the
Devil. Jesus says the devil fathered the Jews, and that the devil was a murderer and a
liar (John 8).
Talk of the old serpent may suggest the serpent in the Adam and Eve story. But, the
serpent described in Revelation is many-headed and there is nothing in the Genesis
story to say the serpent encountered there had more than one head. Rahab and
Leviathan are names for a many-headed serpent that had power in the sea - Psalm 74
and Isaiah 27.
Many-headed serpents never existed. Nevertheless there are many traditions in which
dragons, serpents and many- headed serpents feature. Stories of conflict between
gods and dragons are known from ancient writings. Babylonian myth, for example,
states that Babylon was built after the god Marduk defeated Tiamat. Sometimes a
dragon or serpent can be associated with a plant. Greek myth says a dragon (Ladon)
guarded golden apples in the garden of the daughters of Hesperus. Mesopotamian
sources record that a serpent stole a special plant from a hero.
Shipping was an activity that was important around the Mediterranean in ancient
times. Egypt, Crete, the Phoenicians and others conducted trade in the area. David
and Solomon had an interest in merchant shipping. Seafaring had been an activity in
the area for a very long time and it may be that tales of a many-headed sea serpent are
related to that activity.
The serpent portrayed in Revelation is not a many-headed sea serpent. John uses the
image of a seven-headed serpent to represent successive rulers over Israel. He made
use of a myth concerning conflict between a god and a many-headed sea serpent to
depict Israel as an old enemy of God. John names the great dragon in Revelation,
'that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan'.
Devil and Satan are terms that mean accuser, slanderer and adversary. John does not
expect his readers to picture Satan as a supernatural being. He wants them to see
Israel as the Devil who, day and night, accuses the followers of Jesus before God.
Clearly, the devil described by John could not appear as an angel of light.

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John says three unclean spirits come out of the mouth of the dragon (old Israel), out of
the mouth of the beast (reconstituted Israel) and out of the mouth of the false prophet
(Paul). What they say brings about the battle of that great day of God Almighty.
They talk the kings of the earth and of the whole world into a conflict that leaves the
world changed. The assembly point for the forces involved is Armageddon.
It is customary to associate Armageddon with Megiddo, an important town in ancient
Palestine. First built in the early 4th millennium BC and rebuilt as a military centre
by Solomon, Megiddo controlled an important road connecting Mesopotamia and
Syria with the Jordan valley, Jerusalem and Egypt. Many battles were fought there.
In the Hebrew language the term Armageddon is understood as 'Hill of Megiddo'.
The beast, the kings of the earth and their armies oppose the armies in heaven, which
are led by 'The Word of God.' Doctrine appears to play a part in the conflict. False
information connected to the beast and its allies must be overcome by the leader of
the armies in heaven. A sharp sword comes out of his mouth. It is his truth against
the lie of his enemies - the truth given to the world by Jesus versus the teachings of
Judaism and Paul.
Ezekiel's prophecy of Gog and Magog and John's prophecy of Armageddon describe
the same event. The events predicted in the prophecy made by Ezekiel are also
predicted in the prophecy made by John - the feast of the fowls, the great hailstones,
the fate of the mountains and the shaking in the land of Israel (John's earthquake).
John does not refer to Armageddon as Gog and Magog. He introduces the topic of
Gog and Magog after dealing with Armageddon. John's second treatment of the
subject is brief. The enemy is defeated by fire sent down from heaven by God. In
this instance fire from God is probably synonymous with light from God and could be
an allusion to Jesus as the light which came into the world.
Both prophecies say many corpses will result from the battle of Gog and Magog.
However, John's prophecy seems to point to a new understanding brought about by
The Word or 'true Light' (John 1).
Some Muslims may believe Yajuj and Majuj will appear in the last days. The forces
of Yajuj and Majuj will, it is said, come from the northeast and head for Israel. They
will drink the rivers dry, and bring death and destruction to the area before being
defeated.
John employs material from the prophets to construct Revelation. Several images
from Ezekiel appear in Revelation. The river of life and the tree of life of Revelation
are based upon images found in the penultimate chapter of Ezekiel. John and Ezekiel
do not say the same thing. Ezekiel expects the restoration of Israel to take place after
the battle of Gog and Magog. John expects the everlasting throne of God and Jesus to
be established, along with the understanding that God is light.
Ezekiel writes about the glory of God, the brightness of which is like a rainbow. He
says it will enter into the new temple, the throne and footstool of God, where God will
dwell in the midst of the children of Israel for ever.

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After the battle of Gog and Magog the devil (Satan) that deceived the nations is cast
into the lake of fire and brimstone. The lake of fire is the second death. Anyone not
found written in the book of life is cast into the lake of fire - death and hell end up
there too.
John's lake of fire and brimstone, the second death, is based on images used by the
prophets and images which appear in some psalms. These images are of burning and
melting.
Isaiah says the inhabitants of the earth will burn and predicts certain areas of the
Middle East will become burning pitch forever. He would like to see the mountains
flow down at the presence of God and melted by the blood of defeated armies. Amos
says the land of Israel will melt. Nahum says the hills melt and the earth burns at the
presence of God. Micah says the mountains will be molten under God. Psalm 46
says the earth melted when God spoke. Psalm 97 says the hills melted like wax at the
presence of God.
These images of melting land, hills and mountains gave rise to John's lake of fire
burning with brimstone.
Behind the images of melting mountains is the idea that God will make a physical
appearance on earth: a belief generated by the Exodus story in which Yahweh came
down in fire onto Mount Sinai to convince the people to believe Moses. This event,
or scam, supposedly took place about three months after the tribes of Israel left Egypt.
Bible stories make God responsible for the destruction of the first world and its people
because they had become wicked; in another time God destroyed Sodom and
Gomorrah because their people had become wicked. Seen from this angle God
appears to be the supreme holy warrior, destroying cities, worlds and people whose
behaviour is deemed inappropriate.
The prophets depict God as a kind of warlord, holding a sword, leading chariots and
using fire as a weapon. Various prophets insist God will use a sword to punish the
Jewish people in all the countries to which God sends them. Isaiah says God will use
fire and sword to plead with all flesh. One claim made is that God will gather all
armies in order to destroy or slaughter them.
Zephaniah has God declare that his intention is to gather the nations and kingdoms to
endure his fierce anger - the earth will be devoured by the fire of God's jealousy.
According to the prophets God is at war with the world and means to destroy some of
it or all of it and many of the people on it. In Revelation Jesus is seen as a warrior
leading the armies in heaven. He also brandishes a sword, but a sword that comes
forth from his mouth: it is his words. The prophets predict a conflict in which many
people will die. Revelation foretells a conflict in which people will be 'killed' by
words.
Major Prophets forecast Israel will benefit from the conflict. The kingdom of David
will be established for ever and God will live in the midst of the people or in the new
temple. Revelation says Israel will not benefit from the conflict: it will be defeated.

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Judaism, Islam and Christianity predict a final conflict. The three religions expect
different outcomes to the conflict. Old Testament prophets say God will defeat the
enemies of Israel and live with Israel forever; Islam maintains every one will die on
doomsday, be resurrected, judged according to information held in two books (good
deeds and bad deeds) and then conveyed to hell or paradise; John, in Revelation, says
death and hell will be destroyed along with those souls whose names are not found in
the Lamb's book of life; then God will live with man in a new creation, where there
will be no more pain, crying or death.
Gog, from the north, with a multitude of nations will attack Israel and be destroyed.
Yajuj and Majuj, from the north east, kill and destroy as they head south towards
Israel - another enemy involved in the Islamic story is Ad-Dajjal; this character has
similarities to the 'vile person' in Daniel. In John's Christianity the enemies of Christ
and God are Israel and its allies: the kings of the world and their armies.
All three religions envisage a conflict in which many people die, but in traditions
linked to John words and light play a part. At Armageddon words are important those left, the remnant, are slain by them; the battle of Gog and Magog is ended by
fire from heaven - fire from heaven and light from heaven are the same thing.
However, references to fire and brimstone are not allusions to fire or light from
heaven.
In his first letter John says Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil. Israel is the
devil unveiled in the writing ascribed to John. The Gospel of John has Jesus tell the
Jews that they are not of God. He maintains that their father is the devil. John, in
several ways, identifies Israel as the devil in Revelation. One example is the head
wound suffered by the beast - a reference to Amos (chapter 9).
John says Israel is the great dragon, the old serpent, called the Devil and Satan, which
misleads the world. It is the work of this entity that Jesus came to destroy, and it is
this entity supported by its friends that Jesus and the armies in heaven will fight
against at the battle of Gog and Magog.
Holy war is fought to determine the truth of religion, the truth of a teaching or
message originating with God. In his first epistle John says the message received
from Jesus is: God is light.
God is experienced as light, a supernatural light. It is this light that was spoken of in
the promise Jesus made about the Holy Ghost. This light is the fire which made up
the cloven tongues like fire. The same light is described as the morning star in
Revelation. It can be given to people. Jesus is called the morning star. Morning star
and cloven tongues of fire describe the phenomenon experienced during the descent
of the Holy Ghost. It is the mechanism by which Jesus shares himself. It is a light
that originates in heaven. It is not fire. It is not seen with the eyes. It is seen in the
forehead.
The gift of the morning star or cloven tongues of fire is proof of Christ's victory over
death. At the last supper Jesus promised his disciples the Holy Ghost. This promise
was kept even though Christ had been crucified and his dead body placed in a tomb.

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Jesus, in the Gospel of John, refers to himself as a light that has come into the world
and as the light of the world; at one point he tells his listeners to believe in the light so
that they may be children of the light. Jesus says he has come to try to save the world,
nevertheless, he feels it necessary to censure the world for its aversion to the light.
Near the beginning of John's Gospel Jesus is described as the Word and as the Light.
In Revelation Jesus is depicted riding a horse whilst killing people with a sword that
comes out of his mouth. This picture suggests words and teaching. John's Gospel has
Jesus declare people will be judged by his teaching in the last day. It would be a
mistake to think Jesus will appear on a horse to fight at the battle of Gog and Magog.
The teaching he delivered to the world will be as valid on the last day as it was on the
day when it was first announced.
Just as it would be wrong to imagine Jesus will appear on a horse to fight at the battle
of Gog and Magog, it would be a mistake to believe God will send fire down from
heaven to destroy the armies involved in the conflict. It could be that the forces
defeated at the battle of Gog and Magog (Armageddon) are defeated by light from
heaven. Because it is legitimate to identify Jesus as the Word and the Light, it is
possible to say the forces involved in the final battle will be defeated by Jesus: the
word and light sent down from heaven.
A little light from heaven goes a long way. The light from heaven is the fire in the
cloven tongues of fire experience. Cloven tongues of fire and morning star describe
the same phenomenon. To receive the morning star is to receive light from heaven. A
recipient of the morning star would have power over the nations; the recipient should
be in a position to influence the world.
The morning star (Jesus) or light from heaven only needs to illuminate one individual
to bring about a transformation in the way the world understands God. Furthermore, a
corporal return to the material world for Jesus is unnecessary: his appearance as the
morning star would be enough to realize prophecy about his second coming.
Jewish religion, Islamic religion and Christian religion predict a final conflict
involving Israel and Jerusalem. Islamic tradition mentions the forces of Yajuj and
Majuj, who come from the northeast and march south towards Israel. The Jewish
prophet Ezekiel wrote about Gog (the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal) and the
land of Magog. According to Ezekiel, Gog and the forces with him will come from
the north and be destroyed on the mountains of Israel. Christian tradition speaks
about the battle of Gog and Magog, where the devil (Satan) that deceived the nations
is thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone.
Christian tradition about Gog and Magog is founded on the work of John, the author
of Revelation. In that book Satan is another name for that old serpent, the Devil.
John expected his readers to identify Israel as the Devil, old serpent or Satan. In his
writing Gog and Magog is a future battle fought between Israel (the beast that was,
was not, and is again) with its allies (the kings of the world and their armies) and
Jesus and the armies in heaven.
John's prediction of Gog and Magog is different to Ezekiel's and to the Islamic Yajuj
and Majuj. John sees a task for the Word (teaching) and fire (light) from heaven.

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Holy war can be described as a war being waged by God. The Bible has it that God's
plan is to gather his enemies together in order to destroy them. In Revelation those
enemies are said to include the beast (Israel), the false prophet (Paul), and the kings of
the world and their armies. Israel is the enemy of God because it did not accept Jesus
and his message. Paul is the enemy because he created a false religion; a new model
Israel (image of the beast).
The predicted conflict of Armageddon or Gog and Magog is a battle between God and
earthly powers. It is not a battle between Almighty God and other supernatural
beings. John makes Israel Satan. Satan cannot disguise himself as an angel of light,
although Paul maintains otherwise in his second letter to the Corinthians. John
teaches one thing about Satan, Paul teaches something completely different. Paul's
teaching is false.
John says the world has been deceived. The deception has been perpetrated by the old
serpent called the Devil and Satan, and by the false prophet. When Satan is set free
from the pit he will deceive the nations in the run up to the final battle. Israel is
Satan. It returned from the pit in 1948. The inference in Revelation is: when Israel
returns as a political entity it will fool the world into preparing for the final war. In
that war Jerusalem is destroyed.
The nations have been deceived by the sorceries performed by Jerusalem and by
describing the merchants of Jerusalem as the great men of the world John associates
the merchants of Jerusalem with the misdeeds of Jerusalem. The merchants of the
earth will be distraught when Jerusalem is destroyed because the destruction of that
city will signal the end of much business.
Jerusalem's devastation is facilitated by the ten horns on the beast. Those ten horns
represent the ten tribes of the northern kingdom of Israel that were taken away by
Sargon II of Assyria. The tribes of Benjamin and Judah remained in the kingdom of
Judah in the southern part of ancient Palestine. Saul, the first king of all Israel, came
from the tribe of Benjamin. David, the second king over a united Israel, came from
the tribe of Judah. It is this that allows John to say the ten horns are kings that have
received no kingdom thus far.
Prophecy has these lost tribes returning from the north. These restored tribes will
bring about the destruction of Jerusalem and make war with Jesus. Jesus will defeat
them. John is predicting that a reconstituted Israel (all twelve tribes) will behave in a
manner that will ensure the destruction of Jerusalem. He is also saying that a
reconstituted Israel will make war, unsuccessfully, on Christianity - it appears to be a
matter of teaching: the message Jesus delivered to the world will overcome the
teaching of Judaism.
After the battle of Gog and Magog another Jerusalem is established. Ezekiel
predicted there would be a new temple after the war of Gog and Magog. John sees no
temple in the Jerusalem that descends from heaven. That Jerusalem is a city of light,
which is illuminated by Jesus and the glory of God. It is where the throne of God and
Jesus is. It is the city of God. In this city the servants of God have his name in their
foreheads.

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The descent of the city of God began with the cloven tongues of fire or morning star
experience. This experience is the experience of being sealed in the forehead. John
says that in part of his vision he heard that one hundred and forty four thousand
Israelites were sealed in their foreheads - twelve thousand from each tribe. Strange
things can happen in a vision, but in reality the sealed could not have been made up of
twelve thousand Israelites from each tribe as ten tribes were lost. John's sealed
Israelites constitute the church that developed from the activities of the apostles.
It is this community that has the Father's name written in their foreheads. Only this
group had the correct message (song). Other Christian communities, groups or
churches did not have the right understanding. The original church is the community
that, in John's vision, worship in the temple. His reference to Gentiles treading the
outer court of the temple under foot is an allusion to the activities of the Gentile
churches.
Towards the end of Revelation the original community is described as part of the wall
of the city of God. John indicates them by the number one hundred and forty-four
(cubits on this occasion). The wall is built upon twelve foundations which hold the
names of the twelve apostles.
John's city of God or 'new Jerusalem' is constructed from individuals who have
received the Holy Spirit. It is a city made up of people who have had the name of
God and the name of his city written on them. New Jerusalem is the community that
received the Holy Spirit as light in their foreheads - the white stone containing a new
name which no one else could know.
A Person who experienced the light in their forehead became one with the light. They
entered a union with Jesus and God. They became part of the city of God. Jesus
promised his followers that they would be baptised with the Holy Spirit. That
baptism, the descent of the Holy Spirit, is experienced as light in the forehead. It is a
real event.
In John's vision only the first fruits, the original Christian community, understood the
experience. The Gentile churches generated by Paul did not experience the light from
heaven and did not become part of the city of God. The Gentile churches grew into
the image of the beast. There was no light (Holy Spirit) in them. They accepted the
false message put forward by Paul.
The message John received from Jesus was 'God is light, and in him is no darkness at
all.' In other words the intelligence traditionally known as God, Almighty God or
God the Father can be experienced as light (cloven tongues of fire or morning star).
This light is the spirit Jesus promised would be sent from heaven when he got there.
Light from heaven and fire from heaven are synonymous terms. In spite of this, no
actual fire is involved in the descent of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is
experienced as light.
John mentions two kinds of light. He writes about white light (white stones, pearls,
white apparel, throne of God) and rainbow light (around the throne, on the head of an
angel, ark of God's testament in his temple in heaven).

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Other phenomena associated with the gift of the Holy Spirit are mentioned by John.
These include the sea of glass mingled with fire, the precious stones that adorn the
foundations of the city of God and the crystal clear water of life. These phenomena
are experienced in the forehead after the main event and continue to be experienced as
part of a permanent change brought about by the gift of the Holy Spirit.
The Christian experience should be one in which a union with Jesus and the Father
takes place. Jesus and the Father make their home with those who keep the
commandments of Jesus. This modification is achieved by Jesus and the Father
appearing as a (star-shaped) light in the forehead of those who keep the words of
Jesus. Christians who experience the light become one with the light: they become
one in God.
Christians born of the light are born of God. God lives in them. They are part of the
temple of God. God gives them light and, according to John, they shall reign for ever
and ever.
In simple terms, Jesus told the world that God is real and can manifest as light. Jesus
promised that when he got to the Father he would petition him to send the light to his
apostles. The light came. It was experienced by many. The promise Jesus made was
kept. Everlasting life is bestowed upon the individuals that the light enters: they
become children of the light, children of God, when the true light shines within them.
All the wicked and misguided forces involved in the battle of Gog and Magog will be
defeated through the truth delivered by Jesus and by the true Light (fire) sent down
from heaven.
Experience of the light which is God is missing from churches initiated by Paul.
There is no record or history of members of those churches undergoing the cloven
tongues of fire or morning star experience. John's work and work linked to Peter (his
second epistle) refer to this experience - the day star that can arise in the heart, the
morning star and cloven tongues of fire are one and the same. The morning star
experience is unknown in churches founded by Paul. Paul has deceived the
inhabitants of the earth with his 'private interpretation' of prophecy.
John says the original Christian community was persecuted by the dragon (Jewish
authorities) so fled into the wilderness for a period of time. He claims the original
community was given two wings of a great eagle in order that it could fly into the
wilderness for a period of time. In other words, the whereabouts or location of the
genuine church will be unknown for some time. The two wings of a great eagle
represent that spirit which elsewhere is described as like a dove.
One thousand two hundred and sixty days (or a time, times and half a time) is the
period of time the genuine church spends in the wilderness. This theme is revisited in
John's prediction that the two witnesses will prophesy for one thousand two hundred
and sixty days wearing mourning clothes.
After that time the beast (Israel) that comes back from the pit will make war against
the Christian religion and appear successful. Celebrations over its demise will begin
then true Christianity, which has been in the wilderness, is seen to be victorious.

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Holy war can be seen as discord between the forces in heaven and the forces on earth.
The earth is ruled by the very rich. Their rule is imposed by the use of their armed
forces: armies, police, etc. Where and what is heaven is not as obvious.
Some religions imagine heaven to be beyond the stars, others expect to find it located
in the sky. Judaism came to understood heaven to be a place where the righteous
waited to be resurrected to live with Yahweh. Christianity imagines heaven to be a
delightful place - or a state of being. Islam views heaven as a place of pleasure and
plenty.
John says that neither the heaven nor the earth is permanent. God can make and
remake them. John maintains that the existing heaven and earth will be replaced and
that there will be no sea in the new creation: the sea John is talking about is the 'sea of
glass (like crystal) mingled with fire' that appears to separate earth from heaven; he
implies that in the new reality there will be no separation between heaven and earth.
In Revelation the great white throne of God is more important than heaven or earth: it
exists when heaven and earth do not exist. Heaven and earth come into being through
the activity of that intelligence, traditionally called God, which occupies the great
white throne. God is light and his throne is light. The throne of God is not located in
heaven; it is not located in the sky and does not depend upon heaven for its existence.
From this angle heaven is seen as insignificant when compared to the great white
throne of God.
According to John after the battle of Gog and Magog the light will descend as the
holy city, new Jerusalem, from the new heaven that God will establish. The throne of
God and Jesus will be there. They will be the light of the new city. The nations that
survive the battle of Gog and Magog and the second death (the lake of fire burning
with brimstone) will walk in the light of the new city, but only those written in the
Lamb's book of life will gain entrance to the city.
The servants of God will have his name in their foreheads - this is a reference to the
Holy Spirit, which manifests as actual light (cloven tongues of fire or morning star) in
the foreheads of those who become one in God and Jesus. God (the light) is coming
to live with humanity, and there is nothing the rich and powerful can do to stop that
event taking place.
Holy war is war between God and the rulers of the Earth. Gog and Magog is the final
battle in the holy war. It is the battle in which the rulers of the Earth are defeated.
The beast and the false prophet, or the influence of Judaism and the perverted form of
Christianity founded by Paul, will be destroyed - along with all other false teaching.
Part of that destruction is accomplished by a sword made of words (the word of Jesus)
and the fire (light) from God out of heaven.
Various ideas about the final battle exist: for Jewish prophets it involves the setting up
of David's kingdom; Islam expects it to lead to the end of the world; John predicts the
defeat of Israel (the foiling of its ambition) and its allies, along with the destruction of
all the armies on earth. After the final battle there will be no more holy war (or war of
any other description).

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------- Bibliography: books consulted during the production of this guide: Authorized King James
Version of the Bible, Encyclopaedia Britannica (1999), The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt edited
by Ian Shaw (Oxford University Press 2000), The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt
by Richard H Wilkinson (Thames and Hudson 2003), How to read Egyptian Hieroglyphs by Mark
Collier and Bill Manley (The British Museum Press 1998).
Author: Patrick Duffy

October 2012