High God Jehovah has granted to the nations freedom of religion and worship, from the days of ancient Babylon till today. Soon now their freedom of practicing false worship will end with the destruction of these nations by God’s Messianic kingdom, for which true Christians pray in the Lord’s Prayer. (Matt. 6:9, 10) Then in the new order under God’s kingdom there will be full, unhindered freedom for the worship of the true God through Jesus Christ. This true worship will give obedient men the liberty of the earthly sons of God, forever!

Can This World’s Armageddon Be Avoided?

ARMAGEDDON is a Bible word and in that book it is mentioned only once, but so strong has been the impression upon the minds of the people that it has become almost a household word. Many politicians have used it when they thought that the world was at a crisis. It has been considered something to be feared and to be avoided. Generally, it has been viewed by men as a final war to be fought by worldly forces. Today, politicians and statesmen feel that with the development of nuclear weapons, guided missiles and other scientific developments that could result in mass destruction, Armageddon, as they see it, is possible. Fear of starting such a war, which would result in loss to all and gain to none and might even result in the destruction of all mankind, has caused the politicians to make many moves and plans to avoid such a terrible holocaust.

Is such a feared war among the world powers really Armageddon? and can politicians by means of their peace talks, maneuverings, concordats, compacts and leagues avoid the Bible Armageddon? Can we rely upon them to steer us safely around it? The way to find out is to turn to the book that is the source of the term and see what it says about this battle and the forces involved. The word is found in the Bible, in Revelation, chapter 16, in connection with the pouring out of the sixth of seven plagues of the bowls of God’s anger on the earth. (Re 16 Vss. 12-16) Where is Armageddon to be located? Not on the Euphrates at Babylon, for Revelation 16:16 says: “And they gathered them together to the place that is called in Hebrew Har–Magedon.” This is after the mention of the drying up of the Euphrates. The name seems to mean “Mountain of Megiddo,” not only because the name is Hebrew, but also because it appears to contain the name of the Hebrew fortress city of Megiddo. The place named is to be associated with Hebrew territory.a It is reported that, near here, Heaven fought for the victory of Jehovah’s people under Judge Barak and the prophetess Deborah. In their victory song they sang:

“Kings came, they fought; it was then that the kings of Canaan fought in Taanach by the waters of Megiddo. No gain of silver did they take. From heaven did the stars fight, from their orbits they fought against Sisera. The torrent of Kishon washed them away.”—Judg. 5:19-21.

Says The International Standard Bible Encyclopædia, Volume 2, page 1340: “These low hills around Megiddo, with their outlook over the plain of Esdraelon, have witnessed perhaps a greater number of bloody encounters than have ever stained a like area of the world’s surface.” The name Megiddo enters very nicely into the matter, not merely because of its historical associations, but because, as Gesenius’ Hebrew-Chaldee Lexicon (1859 edition) suggests, the name may mean “the place of crowds” (locus turbárum).

WHAT ARMAGEDDON IS

Actually, in Revelation the name Har–Magedon does not refer to a geographical location. As a matter of fact, on no geographical map does a place named Har–Magedon (Armageddon) appear.b In Revelation 16:16 this name does not literally refer to the neighborhood of Megiddo in the plain of Esdraelon. It symbolizes the place where, within the realm of Jehovah’s witnesses’ experiences on earth, this final war is fought out. At exactly the right point of time and circumstances, when the great preaching work “in all the inhabited earth” has gathered in the “great crowd” who respond to the Kingdom message, the attack will come. The issues will be clear. God will doubtless give his people a very strong message to proclaim just before the enemy attack.—Matt. 24:14; Dan. 11:44, 45.

Armageddon is to be fought on the earth, which is shown by the fact that the earthly kings and their armies are said to be gathered together there. (Rev. 16:14) They are fighting against God’s kingdom. Of course, they cannot touch the heavenly, invisible kingdom of Jesus Christ, but they can fight those who represent his kingdom here on earth, namely, the remnant of Christ’s spiritual, anointed brothers. So the earthly kings under demon influence invade the holy estate that these Christian witnesses have in relationship with their God Jehovah and they try to destroy it, getting in an indirect way at Jehovah God and his Messiah. These kings are not gathered against one another for the purpose of killing one another off, but they are gathered against God. There they will come into collision with Jehovah’s holy, royal interests.

Jehovah’s people on earth will have no part in the fight and the destruction. It will be Jehovah’s invisible forces under his Field Marshal Jesus Christ who will come into violent conflict with his enemies and defeat them in a final, decisive war that will need no repeating. God will gain an everlasting victory, just as he did over the ancient “kings of Canaan” by the waters of Megiddo. Satan and his invisible forces, which are now cast out of heaven and down into the vicinity of this earth,