Armageddon!? 

This passage, Revelation 16:16, is the only place in Scripture that this term occurs. Today, this is a popular image of a great climatic battle—WW III and the end of all things. But is this what it really means? Most people do and if you do, you are wrong! 

This is actually an image or metaphor of command and control! It means extreme conflict and judgment, a representation of the overthrow of Satan and evil by God; thus, it is not necessarily a geographic reference. 

In the first century, it was a Hebrew transliteration (Har-Magedon) meaning “the gathering place of the crowd” for the “mount of Megiddo,” which was actually a plane near Jerusalem’s southern border, with a small up-rise that was a lookout and later became a fort. This was significant in ancient times as it was the key intersection for a small corridor that was the main road near the coast as an alternative to a more difficult road through the mountains and desert. It was also the “Road to Damascus.” This was the key junction of trade among Egypt, Europe, Mesopotamia, and the rest of the East and Africa, all coming through this narrow passageway. This mount overlooks the valley of Jezreel, called the “Plane of Esdraelon” in John’s time, where massive armies would converge and battle it out, as they did when the Barbarians and others engaged Rome’s interests in Israel. Thus, this image was well known and experienced. This is a key military outpost; whomever controlled this mount controlled the valley and thus controlled trade and wealth of the then known world! 

So the real issue of this term in this context is this: Who has command of you and your church? Is it pride, trends, and agendas, or is it God and His preeminence? This was the prime message to the Seven Churches (Judges 5:19; 6:33; 1 Sam. 31; 2 Kings 9:27; 2 Chron. 35:20 -25; Is. 24; Joel 3:2; Zech. 12:8-14; Rev. 13:1; 17:1-9; 16:16; 19:11-21)!