7
January, 1934
T H E K I N G ' S B U S I N E S S
THE (Mount o f 0 L IN HISTORY AND PROPHECY lives^
B y H. V. ANDREWS Western Springs, 111.
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while conversing with His loyal followers and blessing them, that He was parted from them and ascended to the Father who sent Him. His mission fulfilled, His work of redeeming men finished, He returned to receive the Fa ther’s welcome. Then it was that heaven lifted up its gates, even its everlasting doors, to receive the King of Glory, the conquering Hero. A t ' th e L ord ’ s R eturn There is a very significant fact about this sacred moun tain, one that should bind it closely to every follower of Him who crowned it with many sacred memories, and one that should fill the thoughts with joyful anticipation. It is th is: The Mount of Olives was the last place to feel the pressure erf the feet of Him who walked its pathway, and it will be the first place His feet will touch when He comes again, all His holy ones with Him, for “his feet shall stand in that day on the Mount of Olives.” The prophet Zechariah has given us a foreview of the last battle to be fought before the coming of Him who shall cause all wars to cease. This battle is to be fought at Jeru salem (Zech. 14). We read and hear much about the bat tle of Armageddon, which, as many believe, will be the final battle of this age. The only place in Scripture where the name is found is in Revelation 16:14-16. The Revised Version uses the word “war” instead of “battle” as in the Authorized Version. The word “war” suggests a campaign rather than a battle, and is evidently the correct word, for the passage refers to Armageddon simply as the place where the armies will be assembled. Nowhere in Scripture is this place referred to as the place of the last battle. The armies of the nations are to be gathered together there, on the plains of Esdraelon, a famous battle ground of ancient times, with the definite purpose of fighting against God, of carrying to a finish Russia’s present threat and boast, that of dethroning God. From this great plain, the armies will move south, spreading over the land and concentrating on Jerusalem, where the great battle described by Zechariah will be fought. This is in full accord with Ezekiel 38 and. 39. In these chapters, little is said about the battle, but much about the coming of Gog and all his hordes against the land of Israel, and the falling and burial of this great host on the mountains of Israel. The two accounts should be studied together. The great army will not fall until it has fought the bat tle foretold by the prophet. It will come against Jerusalem with all the equipment of modern warfare. Its big guns from the rear will rain shells, death, and destruction on the city, then the armed men will rush forward and take the city. While they are rejoicing over the all but complete vic tory, and gloating over the spoil, suddenly a blaze of great brilliancy will light up the sky toward tbe east. The figure of the descending Son of God, followed by a great host of glorious beings, will soon become discernible. Every eye will turn to behold. The revelry will be stayed in an instant. The warriors will forget their lust, their prey, and in terror [Continued on page 15]
O T U N T I L Jesus came and hallowed it, d id the M o u n t o f Olives have any place of note in the h is to r y of God’s people, nor any spiritual sig nificance to give it p rom inence. Being on the east side of Jerusa lem, it was away from the march of commerce and of war. Men of
J er u sa lem from t h e M o u n t of O lives trade and men of war usually came from the north or south. The road east ward from the city was not traveled sufficiently to warrant much protection from thieves and robbers. I n O ld T estament H istory ' The Mount of Olives is a ridge rather than a mountain. It extends for about two miles across the eastern side of Jerusalem, and is separated from Mount Zion, on which the city is built, by a deep ravine, called “the brook Kidron,” but known later as “the valley of Jehoshaphat.” It rises 300 feet above the temple site, its total height being 2,700 feet above sea level. When David fled from Absalom to the country east of the Jordan, he and his loyal followers left by the eastern gate of the city, crossed the brook Kidron, and ascended the Mount of Olives, a sad, weeping army of men (2 Sam. 15). This is the only incident mentioned in Old Testament history connected with this mountain. I n the D ays of O ur L ord Jesus was a frequent visitor in Bethany, a town just over the top of Olivet. There He raised Lazarus from the dead. During the passion week, He spent His nights there, descending in the morning to the city, and climbing its slope on His return in the evening. From its brow, He viewed the city that had killed the prophets, and that was about to kill H im ; and as He gazed, He wept over it, knowing its doom, and over its “house” now left desolate by the rejected Lord of the house. Here also, during the passion week, He delivered the advent messages, called “the Olivet dis courses.” On the side of Olivet is the garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus frequently resorted, where He spent a part of the last night before departing for the city that knows no night, where He fought His greatest battle as the God- Man, and where He submitted to the kiss of the traitor and the rough hands of His captors. It was from this mountain, back from the brow far enough to be hidden from the gaze of the wicked city,
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