The Biblical Concept Of Armageddon -- By: Hans K. Larondelle

Journal: Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society
Volume: JETS 28:1 (Mar 1985)
Article: The Biblical Concept Of Armageddon
Author: Hans K. Larondelle


The Biblical Concept Of Armageddon

Hans K. Larondelle*

With regard to the study of unfulfilled prophecy in Scripture, most Christians seem to realize the need for and the indispensability of a responsible hermeneutic as the guideline for applying prophecy to our modern time. They agree that such a hermeneutic must be derived from Holy Scripture itself and should not be construed from any dogmatic philosophical or religious a priori. Our hermeneutic seems to be nowhere of such crucial importance as in the application of the final holy war in John’s Apocalypse, popularly rendered as “Armageddon” (Rev 16:16).

The fact that basically conflicting interpretations of Armageddon are found among orthodox Christians, even within the same denomination, shows that a more concerted theological effort is needed to arrive at a basic unity of understanding among Christians. How can we expect politicians and the secular world to know what “Armageddon” means in the Bible if we ourselves are confused about the matter at issue?

The purpose of this study is to investigate the meaning of “Armageddon” in Rev 16:16 from a Biblical perspective—that is, from both the immediate context and also from its Hebrew types or prefigurations in the OT.

I. The Structural And Thematic Correlations Of Armageddon
Within John’s Apocalypse

Rev 16:16 reads in the NIV: “Then they [the spirits of demons, v 14] gathered the kings together in the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon.”

Our first observation is that this prophetic statement concludes a vision that belongs to the judgment series of the seven last plagues (Revelation 16). The Armageddon vision is described as follows:

Then I saw three evil spirits that looked like frogs; they came out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet. They are the spirits of demons performing miraculous signs, and they go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them for the battle on the great day of God Almighty (Rev 16:13–14 NIV).

From this literary context it appears that the Armageddon war is motivated by demonic spirits who come forth from three apocalyptic bodies, described symbolically as the dragon, the beast and the false prophet. The rise of this satanic trinity was presented earlier in the Apocalypse in chaps. 12–13 and...

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