JEWISH ESCHATOLOGY

A brief look at what the Jewish people believe about the end time shows us the foundations of the Christian beliefs of the end time.

Jewish eschatology is concerned with Mashiach (the Jewish Messiah) the continuation of the Davidic line, and Olam Haba (Hebrew for "the world to come"; i.e. the afterlife). Olam Haba - the afterlife and the world to come. Although Judaism concentrates on the importance of the Earthly world (Olam Ha'zeh — "this world"), all of classical Judaism posits an afterlife. Jewish tradition affirms that the human soul is immortal and thus survives the physical death of the body. The Hereafter is known as Olam Haba (the "world to come"), Gan Eden (the Heavenly "Garden of Eden", or Paradise) and Gehinom ("Purgatory").

 

Gehenna - There are stories of fires that were kept burning via the adding of brimstone (sulfur). Light a match and one knows what sulfur dioxide smells like. Smith’s Dictionary of the Bible Volume I, explains,

“It became the common lay-stall [garbage dump] of the city, where the dead bodies of criminals, and the carcasses of animals, and every other kind of filth was cast.”

It was a truly unpleasant place, full of rotting garbage, where spontaneous combustion sometimes took place, and maggots and bacteria sent up a stench that could be smelled for miles.

Jesus used the word Gehenna, not hell, and his audience understood quite well that gehenna meant a place of everlasting torment, where Jews cast aside the worship of the true God to defile themselves by committing abominations. Human garbage, sinners, would be destroyed forever.

 

Acharit Hayamim (end of days), end of the world

According to Jewish tradition, the end of the world will see:

• the ingathering of the scattered Jewish exiles to geographic Israel,
• the defeat of all of Israel's enemies,
• the building of the third Jewish Temple in Jerusalem and the resumption of the sacrificial offerings and Temple service,
• the Revival of the Dead (techiat hameitim), or the Resurrection,
• the Jewish Messiah become the anointed King of Israel.
  He will divide the Jews in Israel into their original tribal portions in the land. During this time Gog, king of Magog, will attack Israel. Who Gog and the nation Magog are is not known yet. Magog will fight a great battle, in which many will die on both sides, but God will intervene and save the Jews. This is the battle referred to as Armageddon. God, having vanquished this final enemy once and for all, will accordingly banish all evil from human existence. After the year 6000 (in the Jewish calendar), the seventh millennium will be an era of holiness, tranquility, spiritual life, and worldwide peace, called the Olam Haba ("Future World"), where all people will know God directly. It is worth noting that the Talmud, in the tractate Avodah Zarah, page 9A, states that this world as we know it will only exist for six thousand years.
  
  
  The end of the world is called the acharit hayamim (end of days), when tumultuous events will take place in the world overturning the old world order and creating a new order where God is recognized by every single individual as the God who rules over everyone and everything in the Universe. One of the sages of the Talmud says that "Let the end of days come, but may I not live to see them", because they will be filled with so much conflict and suffering.
  
  The Messiah
  The Hebrew word Mashiach (or Moshiach) refers to the Jewish idea of the Messiah. Like the English word Messiah, Mashiach means anointed.
  The Jewish messiah refers to a human leader, physically descended from the Davidic line, who will rule and unite the people of Israel and will usher in the Messianic Age of global and universal peace.