Four Blood Moons by John Hagee

church. Many are now asking what signs must be fulfilled before the church can be raptured from the earth. The answer is
zero
! The Rapture of the church of Jesus Christ is imminent; it could happen before you finish reading this page.
    The theological opinions about Matthew 24 are as numerous as the stars in the sky. I am presenting Matthew 24 from the position of a premillennialist, which means I believe Jesus Christ will come for His church in an event called the
Rapture
before the seven years of the Great Tribulation, led by the Antichrist.
    Following the Great Tribulation will be the second coming of Christ according to Revelation 19:11–16. Christ will return to this earth followed by the armies that are in heaven. He will destroy the enemies of Israel that have come against them in the Battle of Armageddon. He will return to the Mount of Olives, then cross the Kidron Valley and enter the Eastern Gate of the city of Jerusalem, where He will set up His eternal kingdom onthe Temple Mount, and of His kingdom there shall be no end.
    Jesus was giving the Spine of Prophecy primarily to the Jewish people. I am presenting Matthew 24:1–14 as general signs of His return; remember, this is a
Jewish
rabbi speaking to twelve
Jewish
disciples about the future of the
Jewish
people. Matthew 24:15 and the verses following record specific signs of His second coming.
R OMAN D ESTRUCTION OF J ERUSALEM
    Jesus looked into the bewildered faces of His disciples and warned them that in the immediate future an invading army would surround and destroy the sacred city of Jerusalem.
    So when you see standing in the holy place “the abomination that causes desolation,” spoken of through the prophet Daniel—let the reader understand—then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.
    (M ATTHEW 24:15–16 NIV )
    The disciples thought on the words of the prophet Daniel who prophesied about Jerusalem’s coming desolation (9:27). He also foretold of Jerusalem’s attack by four world empires: the Babylonians, the Medo-Persians, the Greeks under Alexander the Great and, lastly, the Romans (Daniel 2:31–45).
    I can only imagine what this horrific news meant to the disciples. These men were looking at a thriving city where theTemple was the focal point of their society. How could this beautiful city be destroyed?
    However unbelievable; Jerusalem’s destruction came to pass.
J OSEPHUS — THE H ISTORIAN
    Josephus was a priest, a soldier, and a historical scholar who was born in Jerusalem in 37 CE, a few years after the time of Jesus and during the time of the Roman occupation of the Jewish homeland. Josephus, a witness to the destruction of the city of Jerusalem and the Holy Temple, chronicled the events of the war.
    In his writings Josephus recorded horrific scenes such as mothers eating their infant children who had died of starvation. The list below notes some of the entries made in Josephus’ account of the siege and destruction of Jerusalem from March through September AD 70:
    â€¢ After the Roman siege began, Jewish citizens sold their possessions for gold and then swallowed the gold coins to hide them as they escaped the Romans. The rumor spread that all deserters were filled with gold. Arabs and Syrians cut open all who escaped the city. “In one night no less than two thousand were ripped up.”
    â€¢ The Romans captured escapees from the city, as many as 500 a day. Prisoners were tortured, crucified, andkilled to intimidate the populace. Titus is quoted as saying, “So great was their number, that space could not be found for the crosses nor crosses for the bodies.”
    â€¢ Titus blockaded the city to prevent food supplies from entering. With all hope of escape cut off, the famine within the city intensified. Burials were neglected and the bodies piled up.
    â€¢ Prisoner Mannaeus ben Lazarus was assigned by the Romans to watch a city gate. He counted 115,880 bodies carried