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Clyne W. Buxton
When
foretelling the future holocaust brought on by the Great Tribulation, Christ
told the Jews that when a certain thing happens, flee to the mountains.
What
mountains did our Lord have in mind? Surely not the ones of the Holy Land, the
country so populated, there is no place to hide.
Here is
what Christ said: “When you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination
that causes desolation’ spoken of through the prophet Daniel — let the
reader understand — then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains”
(Matthew 24:15, 16).
One
enters ancient Petra through a long, narrow gorge with cliffs 250 feet high on
either side.
Both
sides of the gorge are decorated by nature with variegated colors of red, brown,
purple, and yellow sandstone.
Then
the scene widens to an ancient multistoried city hewn out of sandstone.
Though
now covered with much sand and fallen rock, the architecture hewn in the
sandstone cliffs is still indeed remarkable.
Petra
is located in biblical Edom, and that ancient country is discussed at length
(not Petra) in Scripture.
Esau,
son of Isaac, was the father of the Edomites.
By the
seventh century A.D., Petra had ceased to exist as an occupied city and no
longer appeared on maps.
With an
annual rain fall of only six inches, the ingenious people had contrived pools
and dams in the cliffs to hold enough rain water to last throughout the year.
Petra,
a popular site on Holy Land tours, is one of the striking archaeological ruins
of the world.
When
Christ spoke of the beleaguered Jews rushing out of Israel to the mountains, He
probably had in mind the many square miles of mountainous area around Petra.
There
the Jews would exist three and a half years (the last half of the worldwide
Tribulation) until Christ’s Second Coming, when the Jews will wholeheartedly
accept Him as Messiah.
The
apostle Paul spoke of that event: “Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way,
for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of
lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction.
“He
opposes and exalts himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped,
and even sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God” (2
Thessalonians 2:3, 4).
Notice
that Paul said the Antichrist will seat himself in the Jewish Temple, the place
of worship which Israel highly reveres.
This
gross sacrilege will fulfill the prediction of the “abomination of
desolation,” which is a desecration of the Temple by a Gentile entering the
Holy Place, a section of the Temple that only an authorized priest was allowed
to enter.
Jesus,
addressing the Jews, said that when they see the Antichrist desecrate the
Temple, “let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains” (Matthew
24:16).
Of
course, the reason for fleeing will be to escape the wrath of the
Satan-directed Antichrist.
Petra
is located in Biblical Edom, and the Scriptures state that the land of Edom “will
be delivered from his [Antichrist’s] hand” (Daniel 11:41).
The
Lord will assist the Jewish people with their escape to the mountains (Revelation
12:6, 13, 14).
And
when Antichrist sets out to destroy them, a great earthquake will wipe out that
portion of his forces (Revelation 12:16).
This is
another example of God protecting His chosen people.
(
Column 8 of a series on
the Holy Land)
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