A plain sense reading of the Bible informs us there will be a Jewish Temple during the 7yrs preceding the return of Jesus:
- Daniel, writing about 2600yrs ago, described the yet future world ruler we call the antichrist. He will enter the Holy of Holies and declare that he is God and demand to be worshipped.
- Jesus quoted Daniel, reiterating the actions of the antichrist in the future Temple.
The 2nd Temple was destroyed around 70AD. A Muslim Mosque sits on the Temple Mount.
Or does it?
Modern archaeology suggests at least two other sites on the Temple Mount that are the true location of the Temple. The Temple could be rebuilt without disturbing the Al Aqsa Mosque.
If they received permission to worship on the Temple Mount, the Jews could quickly set-up a Tabernacle like they had in the wilderness. It was a large tent 45’ long, 15’ wide, and 15’ feet high. Inside it there were two rooms separated by a thick fabric curtain:
- The larger room (30’ by 15’ by 15’)was known as the Holy Place. It contained an altar on which incense was burned, a golden lampstand, and a wooden table overlaid with gold for the Bread of the Presence – twelve loaves, intended to represent the twelve tribes of Israel.
- Behind the curtain there was the smaller of the two rooms. It was a perfect cube, 15’ by 15’ by 15.’ It was called the Most Holy Place, or the Holy of Holies. It contained the ark of the covenant and its lid, the mercy seat.
In 1987 the Temple Institute was founded with the purpose of making all the implements needed for Tabernacle worship and sacrifice. They used DNA to identify the priests. Everything has been ready for some time, except for one thing. In the OT Book of Numbers God specified that the sacrifice of a perfect red heifer was needed in order to use the ashes to ‘purify’ everything.
Red heifers who meet all the requirements are extremely rare:
- Since Moses established the original Tabernacle, there have been only 9 red heifers.
- The odds of finding one are 1 in 50,000.
Right now, today, there are four that qualify.
They came from the ranch of a believer in Texas.
There is chatter that the Jews are planning to sacrifice a red heifer this Passover season. A few weeks ago I quoted a top Hamas leader who, in a speech condemning Israel, mentioned that their plans to sacrifice the animal indicates their blatant disregard for non-Jews. He said the red heifer was one of the reasons Hamas attacked Israel.
Argentina has a new president, Javier Milei. He is beyond being a supporter of Israel. Though not a convert, he is obsessed with Judaism and has his own rabbi. He often entered campaign events to the sound of a shofar blowing, and he spoke about the Maccabees during his inaugural speech, which took place on Hanukkah.
Visiting Jerusalem was one of the first things he did after winning the election. He has promised to move the Argentine Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, recognizing it as Israel’s true capital. He prayed at the Western Wall where he genuinely wept among a crowd of supporters.
He told a Jewish apocalyptic story about several rabbi’s who see God’s Temple destroyed. One of them laughs. His colleagues asked how he could possibly laugh in the face of such a tragedy. He answered: “There is a prophecy about the destruction that says a fox will break into the Holiest of Holies. There is another prophecy that says the same place will be rebuilt. Now that I see with my own eyes the first prophecy come true, I laugh in joy and full of hope as the second prophecy will surely come true.”
The Arab world was incensed by the remarks and is accusing him of calling for their mosque to be destroyed.
Temple talk is a strong indicator that we are living just before the beginning of the 7yr Great Tribulation predicted in the Bible. You can read all about it in chapters 6-19 of the Revelation.
Jesus promised His Church, “I… will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth” (Revelation 3:10).
He keeps us entirely out of those 7yrs by raising deceased Church Age saints, then rapturing “we who are alive and remain.”
The return of the Lord for us is imminent. It could happen any time. Nothing needs to occur before Jesus can come for us.
Are you ready for the rapture? If not, Get ready; Stay ready; Keep looking up.
Ready or not, Jesus is coming!