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It is prophesied that a remnant of Israeli Jews will flee from Jerusalem and Judea when the armies of the Antimessiah (Antichrist) overtake Israel in the last days, according to Revelation 12:6. Some Christian theologians believe this passage refers to the Christian church. It does not. Many modern day theologians, who understand that Revelation 12:6 refers to the remnant Jews of Israel, believe they have discovered the place where the Jews will flee to and then hide from the Antimessiah (Antichrist): the ancient city of Petra in Jordan. Swiss explorer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt discovered the ancient city of Petra in his travels and made its whereabouts known to the Western world in 1812. Some years later, in the 1940s, an American named W.E. Blackstone became convinced that Petra would be the secret hideout for the Jews escaping from the Battle of Armageddon. This theory was adopted by Joseph Hoffman Cohn of the American Board of Missions to the Jews and was published in a small pamphlet titled The Man from Petra.[i] Since then, many Christian prophecy theologians have accepted and proclaimed that Petra will be the secret hiding place for the remnant Jews of Israel in the last days. This article will refute the idea of Petra being the refuge place of safety for the Jews by showing that it is unscriptural and impractical for the Jews to flee to Petra. This article will also properly decipher Scripture prophecy regarding the remnant Jews of Israel and will reveal the location of where the Jews will flee to in the last days.
REVELATION 12:6 (NKJV):
Then the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, that they should feed her there one thousand two hundred and sixty days.
Is the wilderness where the woman (Israeli Jews) flee to in Petra, Jordan?
The Scriptures do not proclaim that the Jews will flee from the Antimessiah (Antichrist) and be sheltered in a secret hiding place in Petra, Jordan. The Antimessiah (Antichrist) will know the location of the Jews who have fled from him. By openly declaring Petra to be a “secret hiding place” for the fleeing Jews of Israel, it would therefore no longer be a secret.
The great tribulation will occur, which will be followed by the seven year reign of the Antimessiah (Antichrist). During the last 42 months of the Antimessiah’s (Antichrist’s) reign, a large remnant of Israeli Jews will flee from the Antimessiah (Antichrist) and his armies. Petra may have been a fortress in ages past, but it would literally be a death trap for the Jews, militarily speaking, in this age.
The Scripture verses used to identify Petra as the place where God will send the Jewish remnant are misinterpretations of Scripture that have been misapplied to Petra.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCE PSALM 60:8-12
Psalm 60:8-12 are not prophetic verses, but are the writings of King David when he led Israel in war and in fighting various battles. This is stated at the beginning of Psalm 60, which reads:
A Michtam of David. For teaching. When he fought against
Mesopotamia and Syria of Zobah, and Joab returned and
killed twelve thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt.
PSALM 60:6,8-12 (NKJV) [WITH INTERPRETATION]:
God has spoken in His holiness:
“Moab [ANCIENT JORDAN] is My washpot; over Edom I will cast My shoe; Philistia, shout in triumph because of Me.” Who will bring me [KING DAVID]
to the strong city? Who will lead me [KING DAVID] to Edom? Is it not You,
O God, who cast us off? And You, O God, who did not go out with our armies?
Give us [ISRAELITES] help from trouble, for the help of man is useless.
Through God we will do valiantly, for it is He who shall tread down our enemies.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCE HOSEA 2:14-23
HOSEA 2:14-23 (NKJV) [WITH INTERPRETATION]:
“Therefore, behold, I will allure her [ISRAEL], will bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfort to her [ISRAEL]. I will give her [ISRAEL] vineyards from there, and the Valley of Achor [IN JERICHO, A CITY IN THE WEST BANK] as a door of hope; She [ISRAEL] shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, as in the day when she came up from the land of Egypt. “And it shall be, in that day,” says YHWH (the Lord), “That you will call Me ‘My Husband,’ And no longer call Me ‘My Master,’ for I will take from her mouth the names of the Baals, and they shall be remembered by their name no more. In that day I will make a covenant for them with the beasts of the field, with the birds of the air, and with the creeping things of the ground. Bow and sword of battle I will shatter from the earth, to make them lie down
safely. I will betroth you to Me forever; yes, I will betroth you to Me in righteousness and justice, in lovingkindness and mercy; I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness, and you shall know YHWH (the Lord). It shall come to pass in that day that I will answer,” says YHWH (the Lord); “I will answer the heavens, and they shall answer the earth. The earth shall answer with grain, with new wine, and with oil; they shall answer Jezreel. Then I will sow her [ISRAEL] for Myself in the earth, and I will have mercy on her who had not obtained mercy; Then I will say to those who were not My people,
‘You are My people!’ And they shall say, ‘You are my God!’”
The Hosea 2:14-23 passages are prophetic references to the return of Messiah (Christ) and the establishment of His Millennial Kingdom. There are no indications from these verses, at all, that the remnant of Israeli Jews at the end of the age will flee to Petra. Hosea 2:14 states that the Jews will be brought into the wilderness, not far from the Valley of Achor, but nothing about the wilderness being the ancient city of Petra.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCE ISAIAH 42:11-13
ISAIAH 42:11-13 (NKJV) [WITH INTERPRETATION]:
Let the wilderness and their cities lift up their voice, the villages that Kedar inhabits. Let the inhabitants of Sela sing, let them shout from the top of the mountains. Let them [THE INHABITANTS OF THE WORLD] give glory to YHWH (the Lord), and declare His praise in the coastlands. YHWH (the Lord) shall go forth like a mighty man; He shall stir up His zeal like a man of war. He shall cry out, yes, shout aloud; He shall prevail against His enemies.
The Isaiah 42 passages have nothing to do with the remnant Jews fleeing to Petra. They are a reference to righteousness, justice, His law, and the gospel going out to the Gentiles to all the ends of the earth.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCE ISAIAH 26:20-21
ISAIAH 26:20-21 (NKJV):
Come, My people, enter your chambers, and shut the doors behind you; hide yourself, as it were, for a little moment, until the indignation has past. For behold, YHWH (the Lord) comes out of His place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity; the earth will also disclose her blood, and will no more cover her slain.
Is Isaiah 26:20-21 applicable to Petra? No. There are three significant problems with attempting to link these verses to the Jews fleeing from the Antimessiah (Antichrist) and going to Petra.
1. National Israel and the Jewish people are the historic chosen people of God, but they have rejected their Messiah. Until national Israel and the Jews following Judaism accept Yeshua Messiah (Jesus Christ) as their Lord and Savior, they are not yet His people.
HOSEA 2:23 (NKJV) [WITH INTERPRETATION]:
“Then I will sow her [THE JEWISH PEOPLE] for Myself in the earth, and I will have mercy on her [THE JEWS] who had not obtained mercy; then I will say to those [JEWS] who were not My people, ‘You are My people!’ And they shall say, ‘You are my God!’”
2. The ancient city of Petra has many chambers, but it does not have any doors. The archways and entrances of Petra are huge and it would be impractical to even attempt to install doors on them, if anyone desired to do so. Petra is a city without operational doors that open and close, so Isaiah 26:20 is not a reference to Petra. Petra was built by the Moabites who were giants of a rich and powerful nation, which was afterward cursed by God (Genesis 6:4). The remnant of Moab, modern day Jordan, is a very small people and feeble nation by comparison (Isaiah 16:13-14).
3. The Jews will not be hiding from the Antimessiah (Antichrist). The Antimessiah (Antichrist) will know exactly where the Jews are, but he will not be able to get to them, as God will be protecting the Jews from him. Petra has become a well-known tourist destination and has been named as one of the seven wonders of the world. Hollywood has made numerous movies using Petra’s unique backdrop scenery. Petra cannot be considered a secret hiding place for the Jews if the world knows about this place and theologians have been openly declaring that the Jews of Israel will be hiding there during the latter part of the seven year reign of the Antimessiah (Antichrist).
For these three reasons, Isaiah 26:20-21 is not an applicable reference to the Jews of Israel fleeing from the Antimessiah (Antichrist) to the ancient city of Petra. The true interpretation of Isaiah 26:20 is far more spectacular than Petra being a secret hiding place for the Jews.
It will not be the left behind Jews of Israel that Yeshua (Jesus) will hide from the Antimessiah (Antichrist) and his armies. Yeshua (Jesus) will rapture His saints in three measures and hide them from the world during the seven year reign of the Antimessiah (Antichrist).
PARABLE OF THE LEAVEN:
THREE MEASURES OF MEAL = THREE MAJOR RAPTURES
MATTHEW 13:33 / LUKE 13:20-21 (NKJV) [WITH INTERPRETATION]:
Another parable He [YESHUA (JESUS)] told them: “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven [THE RIGHTEOUS SAINTS], which a woman [YESHUA (JESUS)] took and hid [RAPTURED TO MOUNT ZION AND THEN TO THE CLOUDS] in three measures of meal [THREE MAJOR RAPTURES: THE 144,000 MESSIANIC JEWISH ISRAELI RAPTURE, THE AMERICAN RAPTURE, AND THE WORLD RAPTURE] till it [THE RAPTURED SAINTS] was all leavened [EXPANDED THROUGH CHILDBEARING IN THE MILLENNIUM KINGDOM].”
When Yeshua (Jesus) raptures His saints, the saints will not be dangling around aimlessly in the clouds.
ISAIAH 26:20 (NKJV) [WITH INTERPRETATION]:
Come, My people, ender your chambers, and shut your doors behind you; hide yourself [FROM THE WORLD], as it were, for a little moment, until the indignation [SEVEN YEAR REIGN OF THE ANTIMESSIAH (ANTICHRIST)] is past.
The raptured saints will be on some kind of heavenly spacecraft, with chambers and doors, and will remain hidden from the world in the clouds with Yeshua (Jesus) until the reign of the Antimessiah (Antichrist) concludes.
OTHER SCRIPTURAL REASONS THAT THE ISRAELI JEWS WILL NOT FLEE FROM THE ANTIMESSIAH (ANTICHRIST) AND HIS ARMIES AND THEN ESCAPE TO PETRA
LUKE 21:20-24 (NKJV) [WITH INTERPRETATION]:
“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, let those who are in the midst of her [JERUSALEM] depart, and let not those who are in the country enter her. For these are the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled. But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! For there will be great distress in the land and wrath upon this people [OF ISRAEL]. And they [ISRAELI JEWS] will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.”
When the remnant of Jews, those who are not killed and those who have not been captured, flee from Jerusalem and Judea they will do so at a time when Jerusalem is surrounded by the armies of the world that will come against Israel. The remnant of surviving Jews who are able to escape will flee to the Judean Mountains with little or no possessions.
MATTHEW 24:15-20 (NKJV) [WITH INTERPRETATION]:
“Therefore when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ [IMAGE OF THE BEAST] spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place [REBUILT TEMPLE IN JERUSALEM]” (whoever reads, let him understand), “then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house. And let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes. But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! And pray that your flight may not be in winter or on the Sabbath [AS MANY ORTHODOX TALMUDIC JEWS WILL NOT USE AUTOMOBILES ON THE SABBATH]. ”
MARK 13:14-18 (NKJV) [WITH INTERPRETATION]:
“So when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ [IMAGE OF THE BEAST] spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing where it ought not [AT THE REBUILT TEMPLE IN JERUSALEM]” (let the reader understand), “then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let him who is on the housetop not go down into the house, nor enter to take anything out of his house. And let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes. But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! And pray that your flight may not be in winter. ”
The remnant Jews of Israel who flee Jerusalem and Judea in the last days will be abruptly fleeing the Antimessiah (Antichrist) with few possessions, if any. Petra is located 274 miles (441 kilometers) south of Jerusalem. Petra proponents believe that the Dead Sea and Jordan River may dry up in the last days, cutting 100 miles (161 kilometers) off the Jews’ journey to Petra, making it a 174 mile (280 kilometer) trip IF they can theoretically cross the dried up Jordan River to go into Petra.
Scripture prophecy does not indicate that the Dead Sea or Jordan River will dry up, but it does say that the Euphrates River will dry up.
REVELATION 16:12 (NKJV):
The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up, so that the way of the kings from the east might be prepared.
The idea of the Jews fleeing the Antimessiah (Antichrist) and his armies by journeying to Petra is logistically, navigationally, and Scripturally not feasible.
The armies of the world will have Jerusalem surrounded. It is prophesied that the remnant Jews will flee from, not flee through, the armies that surround Jerusalem. In order for the Jews to flee to Petra, without resources, they would have to flee through the Antimessiah (Antichrist) and the world’s armies that will have Jerusalem overtaken and surrounded.
Excerpts from a NOW THE END BEGINS article:
“THE REAL PROPHETIC MEANING OF THAT MYSTERIOUS WORD SELAH AS FOUND WITHIN THE PAGES OF YOUR KING JAMES BIBLE WILL ASTOUND YOU,”
– September 20, 2015:
The amazing buildings in the ‘lost city’ of Selah Petra in Jordan will really make you think. This is where the Bible says that God will hide the Jews after they are forced to flee Antichrist as we see in Matthew 24 and in Revelation 12. God has promised that once the Jews were restored that they would never again be driven out. But the onslaught that the Antichrist whips up against them is so fierce and so terrible that God moves them out of the way, He hides them, in a place where Satan cannot get them. We believe in this red rock city of Selah Petra is where God will hide the Jews while the Antichrist installs himself in the rebuilt Temple as if he was very God himself.
ANTIMESSIAH (ANTICHRIST) KNOWS WHERE THE JEWS ARE, BUT GOD WILL PROTECT THEM FROM HIM AND HIS ARMIES
Revelation 12:13-17 is written using strong metaphoric prophetic language. The dragon, Satan, is a spirit being and as such he does not control the waters of the earth, so he cannot spew water out from his mouth to flood the Jews of Israel.
REVELATION 12:13-17 [WITH INTERPRETATION]:
Now when the dragon [SATAN] saw that he had been cast to the earth, he [SATAN] persecuted the woman [ISRAEL] who gave birth to the male Child [YESHUA (JESUS)]. But the woman [REMNANT JEWS OF ISRAEL] was given two wings [PLANES AND HELICOPTERS] of a great eagle [ISRAELI DEFENSE FORCES] that she might fly [AERIAL EVACUATE] into the [ISRAELI MOUNTAIN] wilderness to her place [THE JUDEAN MOUNTAINS], where she is
nourished for a time and times and half a time [THREE AND A HALF YEARS], from the presence of the serpent [SATAN]. So the serpent [SATAN] spewed water out of his mouth like a flood [LAUNCHED A MASSIVE MILITARY ATTACK] after the woman [REMNANT JEWS OF ISRAEL], that he [SATAN] might cause her [THE JEWS] to be carried away [OVERWHELMED] by the flood [MILITARY ATTACK]. But the earth helped the woman [ISRAEL], and the earth opened its mouth [THROUGH A GREAT EARTHQUAKE – REVELATION 11:13] and swallowed up the flood [7,000 TROOPS] which the dragon [SATAN] had spewed out of his mouth [COMMANDED TO ATTACK THE REMNANT JEWS OF ISRAEL]. And the dragon [SATAN] was enraged with the woman [REMNANT JEWS OF ISRAEL], and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Yeshua Messiah (Jesus Christ) [PERSECUTE (BEHEAD) THE LEFT BEHIND SAINTS OF THE WORLD WHO REFUSE THE MARK OF THE BEAST – REVELATION 12:11, 14:12-13].
The Jews will never again flee their homeland Israel. The Jews will not be hiding from Antimessiah (Antichrist) during the latter part of his seven year reign, as he will know where the Jews are. The Jewish civilian population will evacuate Jerusalem and Judea and the Israeli military will tactically retreat to the Israeli mountain wilderness. The nation of Israel, though outmanned and outgunned by the armies of the world, will protect themselves as best they can from atop their wilderness retreat. God will also protect the Jews by slowing down the advancing armies that pursue after them through a great earthquake, which will kill 7,000 people (Revelation 11:13, 12:16).
“It is said some things never change, but I can tell you what has changed. We the Jewish people have changed. At the time of the holocaust the Jews were homeless, stateless, defenseless, begging others to protect us – no longer. Today we are firmly rooted in our ancient land, free and strong in our independent state. As Prime Minister of the country that was reborn after the holocaust, the country that provided a homeland, a state that rose from the ashes, a state in which the Jewish people regained their sovereignty and independence, I vow never to forget the tragic past and never to allow the Jewish people to once again be defenseless against the forces that seek our destruction. ‘Never Again’ isn’t a slogan, this is our policy and this is our mission and we will always carry it out.”
– Benjamin Netanyahu, Prime Minister of Israel, January 27, 2021
Theologians and others who believe that the remnant of Jews who escape from Antimessiah (Antichrist) will flee from their homeland in Israel to Petra in Jordan do not understand the ‘never again’ mindset of the Jews of Israel.
REASONS WHY PETRA IS NOT THE PLACE OF REFUGE FOR THE JEWS
* Petra is a city in ruins that was built by giants thousands of years ago. The Jews will flee to the wilderness, where a place has been prepared for them by God.
– Revelation 12:6
* Petra has no food and no resources. The Jews will be fed for one thousand two hundred and sixty days (three and a half years) at a place prepared by people of God. – Revelation 12:6
* Petra proponents proclaim that the Jews will be hiding from the Antimessiah (Antichrist), in a place with chambers with doors, according to Isaiah 26:20. Petra has chambers, but no doors.
* The Jews will never again flee their homeland Israel, but they will tactically retreat to the Israeli mountain wilderness. The Jews will not be hiding from the Antimessiah (Antichrist) during the latter part of his seven year reign, as he will know where the Jews are. God will protect the Jews by slowing down the advancing armies that pursue after them. – Revelation 11:13, 12:13-17.
* Petra is now a well-known tourist location and has been named as one of the seven wonders of the world. It cannot be considered a ‘secret’ hiding place for the remnant Jews of the last days. The Jews will flee from the Antimessiah (Antichrist) and his armies to the Israeli mountain wilderness, not flee through them to a place of ruins that is 174 miles (280 kilometers) south of Jerusalem. – Luke 21:20
PETRA IS AN ANCIENT STONE CITY IN RUINS WITH NO FOOD OR RESOURCES, MADE BY MOABITE GIANTS FOR MOABITE GIANTS, NOT A PLACE THAT HAS BEEN PREPARED BY GOD FOR THE JEWS
Petra is located in southern Jordan in a valley basin, surrounded by mountains, not on a mountain top. There are no food supplies or resources in Petra. Petra was a place prepared by giants for themselves, not by people of God for the Jews of Israel. The remnant Jews of Israel are fleeing into the Israeli mountain wilderness to a place that has been prepared by God, through God’s people, via the Holy Spirit, to be fed and cared for when they flee from the Antimessiah (Antichrist) and his armies.
DANIEL 12:4,9 (NKJV):
“But you, Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book until the time of the end; many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase.” …
“Go your way Daniel, for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.”
The theory that Petra would serve as the place to where the Jews would flee from the Antimessiah (Antichrist) and be fed for three and a half years, during the latter part of the Antimessiah’s (Antichrist’s) reign, was first proposed in the 1940s. The 1940s were not the time of the end. The actual place to where the end time Israeli Jews would flee to did not yet exist in the 1940s.
THE LOCATION OF WHERE THE JEWS WILL FLEE TO: REVEALED!
REVELATION 12:6 (NKJV) [WITH INTERPREATION]:
Then the woman [JEWS OF ISRAEL] fled [FROM THE ANTIMESSIAH (ANTICHRIST) AND HIS ARMIES] into the [MOUNTAIN] wilderness, where she [THE JEWS OF ISRAEL] has a place prepared by [THE PEOPLE OF] God, that they [THE PEOPLE OF GOD] should feed her [THE JEWS OF ISRAEL] there one thousand two hundred and sixty days [THREE AND A HALF YEARS].
The Joseph Project, appropriately named, is a humanitarian aid distribution center in Israel. Joseph, as recorded in Genesis 41, prepared the land of Egypt for the seven years of famine that were foretold to come to the land of Egypt. The Joseph Project’s massive central warehouse will one day serve as the base headquarters that will house, feed, and care for the needs of the Jewish people who flee from the Antimessiah (Antichrist).
The Joseph Project was prepared by the people of God from around the world who have donated money, food, and charitable items to bless the people of Israel. It started as a small facility in 1996 and has grown exponentially since then. It will continue to grow in the decades to come, as God continues to prepare this place for the remnant Jews who will flee from the Antimessiah (Antichrist) in the last days.
Logistically the Joseph Project’s central warehouse is strategically located in the heart of the country, adjacent to highways connecting Israel’s southern and northern-most points, high atop the Judean Mountains of Jerusalem.
The reason that the Joseph Project is situated high atop the Judean Mountains of Jerusalem, and not in the city itself, is due to the high real estate costs of operating a massive sized warehouse in Jerusalem. Many Jews in Israel live at or below the poverty line due to the high cost of living and because much of the nation’s economy is spent on national defense. The Joseph Project currently offers humanitarian aid to over 200,000 Israeli Jews annually.
The Joseph Project’s main distribution warehouse contains tents, showers, beds, furniture, food, water, shelter, clothing, medical equipment, and much more.
The Joseph Project, which began as a charitable organization to feed the impoverished Jews of Israel with truckloads of humanitarian aid flowing down from atop the Judean mountains, will one day become a refuge for the remnant Jews of Israel who will flee up the Judean Mountains and find shelter and food in a place prepared for them by the people of God.
Anyone who wishes to take part in the Scripture prophecy of Revelation 12:6 can donate to the Joseph Project in Israel by visiting their website, calling their toll free phone number, or by sending them a check by mail.
Yeshua (Jesus) is returning to Jerusalem to save the Messiah-denying Jews from annihilation when they accept Him and call on Him. He is returning to the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem without first making a stop in Petra to pick up the Jews to return them to their homeland Israel. The Jews of Israel, after having heard the testimony of the two witnesses who will declare to them that Yeshua (Jesus) is their Messiah and there is no other and after being driven out of their homes and fleeing to the Israeli wilderness, will finally call on Yeshua (Jesus) to save them from annihilation in their darkest hour.
MATTHEW 28:38-39; LUKE 13:35 (NKJV) [WITH INTERPRETATION]:
“Your house [NATION] is left to you [ISRAELI JEWS] desolate; for I say to you [JEWS], you [JEWS] shall see Me no more till you [JEWS OF ISRAEL] say, ‘Blessed is He [YESHUA THE MESSIAH] who comes in the name of [YHWH] (the Lord)!’”
[i] NABATAEA.NET, “IS PETRA IN BIBLICAL PROPHECY?” https://nabataea.net/explore/biblical_studies/biblicalhistory/is-petra-in-biblical-prophecy/
