Let us read vs.14-18 of this most important prophecy: But when you see the Abomination of Desolation, standing where it should not be, let the reader understand, then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains. The one who is on the housetop must not go down, or go in to get anything out of his house; and the one who is in the field must not turn back to get his coat. But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! But pray that it may not happen in the winter.
An urgency has now developed; Yeshua says that when one sees the Abomination of Desolation, not to wait, not to tarry for even a moment, they are not even to grab their cloak but instead, they are to flee to the mountains.
But what is this Abomination of Desolation that will trigger this crucial moment? This term is mentioned 3 times in the Book of Daniel. In prophecy, it is associated with the Temple and its desecration. The first time we see this term used is in Daniel 9:24-27 where the Spirit of God situates the Abomination of Desolation right in the middle of the 7-year Tribulation.
This is what the Lord asks the believer who will undergo these things, mainly Jewish believers in Israel during the time of the Tribulation, to be looking for. In His mercy, God gives this timing to be known in advance. Forty-two months also equals 1260 days. The Spirit of God also uses this figure to warn the elect. This figure is found in Revelation 12:6 where it is explained that the remnant of Israel at the time, will be protected for this specific period, leading to the Second Coming of Yeshua.
There we read: Then the woman fled into the wilderness where she had a place prepared by God, so that there she would be nourished for one thousand two hundred and sixty days. Yeshua told the woman, who is Israel, to flee to the mountains, which is here the wilderness, however He also prepared a place for her where He will nourish her for 1260 days.
How would the Abomination of Desolation be realized so that they can flee in time? Paul throws light to this in 2Thessalonians 2:3-4 and says: …for that Day [of The Lord] will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God. Here then is explained to us what the Abomination of Desolation is. He is the man of sin, the son of perdition; the coming world leader, called by John, the Antichrist, who will come into the Temple and sit there and proclaim himself as God.
This is then what is behind the words Abomination of Desolation that Yeshua is asking the believers at the time of the Tribulation, to be watchful for. This is specific to those during the Tribulation times who will live in Jerusalem especially and across all Israel. So fierce would this time be that Yeshua gives many details about it.
One of those signs will be that he will confirm a covenant with many for 7 years. In the middle of the seven years, he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. That means that by the beginning of the 7 years, the Temple should be up and functioning but after 3.5 years, this man of sin will stop it from functioning.
This signing of this false covenant, is what Isaiah calls and twice over, a covenant with death Isaiah 28:15,18. This is also why we see the opening words of the Tribulation times found in Revelation 6:2 as, I looked, and behold, a white horse, and he who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer.
But there is one more sign that Yeshua gives us, this time through the Gospel of Luke. But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is near. “Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains… Luke 21:20-21
Here 3 main signs are given for the people to flee to the mountains.
- The taking away of the daily sacrifice.
- The Abomination of Desolation
- Armies surrounding Jerusalem
And when Yeshua asks the remnant of Israel to flee to the mountains, which mountains should they be fleeing to? Surely not up north where we find the Mountains of Israel where the battle of Gog and Magog will take place and where Armageddon will also take place. The prophecies from the Hebrew Scriptures indicate south of Jerusalem, the Mountains of the Negev. The prophets Isaiah, Micah and Habakkuk give us the direction they will need to flee to, and all these prophets associate the Second Coming of the Lord with Bozrah which mean sheepfold, or Petra which mean rock. This is why so many believers go to Petra and put Bibles in between of the rocks with the hope that they will serve the remnant of Israel when God will hide them from the devil as it is written in Revelation 12.
And so, Yeshua says that when these things occur, not to wait but to head for cover in the mountains. And He adds: “But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! “But pray that it may not happen in the winter. Why not in winter?” Surely because in winter, the flight will be much more difficult, because of the cold and especially because of flooding. During the winter, the wadis or riverbeds can become impassable and very dangerous. This is perhaps why the Feasts of Israel begin in March April after the rainy season, so the Jews can come from all over to Jerusalem.
And in Matthew, Yeshua adds, pray that it will not occur on the Sabbath. In Israel, and increasingly so today, there is no activity on the Shabbat because of the power of the religious who close many areas on the Sabbath – and we have seen that the influence and power of religion in Israel will grow during the Tribulation. The Shabbat is mentioned, perhaps because it will make the flight even more difficult. They will readily spot those who are running away and for the religious unbelievers, they would not know all this is a sign of the end. We see how Yeshua is so adamant in how He tells the remnant of Israel to leave northern Israel and Jerusalem at the first sign.
Today there are many Christian ministries who are working very hard to bring as many Jews as possible back to Israel, with the belief that the more Jews in Israel, the faster Jesus will come back. They are under the false belief that we have entered the beginning of the Messianic Times and so they spend a lot of money to bring Jews from all over the world to Israel. There is nothing wrong at all for Jews to go back to Israel, but not under such a false premise. They use the Scriptures of Isaiah 11:12, to say that biblical prophecy is being fulfilled today as they gather the Jewish exiles “from the four corners of the earth.” This is opposed to what Yeshua Himself prophesied, telling Jews to leave Israel when they see the signs. And they even quote on their website, that the eternal state of Revelation 21 is happening right now. They believe, based on Roman 11:11 that salvation came to the Gentiles to make Israel jealous and it is the task of the Gentiles to bring Jews back to the land.
But it is Yeshua who will bring all the Jews back to Israel. As for these ministries the government of Israel loves them. Why? Because they do not preach salvation to these Jews. They believe that all Jews will come to believe in the end. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told a Christian media summit in Jerusalem last year, “Israel has no better friends, I mean that, no better friends in the world than the Christian communities around the world.” But he would never say such thing to a ministry who proclaims Yeshua as the Savior of the World and for the many Jews and sound ministries which do just that.
The Israeli government will never support a work of evangelism; however, these ministries who are taking a lot of money from the churches, are acting on false premises and directing Jews to the land when Yeshua warns Jews about escaping from there, especially during the last three and half years. Every Jew is free to go or not to the land of Israel, but they should be warned about Yeshua’s prophecies to come.