What will it be like on earth in the Last Days? There are various novels and movies that have come out in the past few years which paint a picture of the End Times, however, what will it really be like on earth before the Messiah comes again?

Fire and Ice

There is a famous American poet named Robert Frost who wrote a poem which he called Fire and Ice. In this poem Frost contemplates the effects of fire and ice as the defining elements which will one day destroy the world in which we live: 

Some say the world will end in fire,

Some say in ice.

From what I’ve tasted of desire

I hold with those who favor fire.

But if it had to perish twice,

I think I know enough of hate

To say that for destruction ice

Is also great

And would suffice.

Frost is dialoguing with himself about which way is best to see this world destroyed. As much as humans think that we are in control of the final outcome in this world, it is ultimately God who will make this decision.

I am not certain about the depth of Robert Frost’s theology, however, fire and ice will play a significant role as destructive elements in the Last Days. We see fire and ice used together in a destructive manner for the first time in the Scriptures when the LORD unleashed His ten plagues on Pharaoh and the people of Egypt. This week’s Torah Portion contains the plague of fire and ice.

The Plagues in Egypt

God sent Moses to Pharaoh in order to demand that Pharaoh release the Israelites to worship the LORD in the desert, a three-day journey from Goshen. We know that God could have struck Pharaoh and his people instantly in order to release the Israelites from their cruel bondage, however, the LORD had a global message that He wanted everyone to know:

Then the LORD said to Moses, “Rise up early in the morning and stand before Pharaoh and say to him, ‘This is what the LORD, the God of the Hebrews says: “Let My people go, so that they may serve Me. For this time I am going to send all My plagues on you and your servants and your people, so that you may know that there is no one like Me in all the earth. For had I now put out My hand and struck you and your people with plague, you would then have been eliminated from the earth. But indeed, for this reason I have allowed you to remain, in order to show you My power and in order to proclaim My name throughout the earth. Still you exalt yourself against My people by not letting them go…’ – Ex. 9:13-17 

God’s main goal was to have His people worship Him in freedom, however, in the process of setting them free He also desired to show His power and exalt His great Name in all of the earth. God used Pharaoh and Egypt to exalt His Name. The LORD alone is God and He alone is to be worshiped.

Each time that God sent Moses and Aaron to Pharaoh, He demanded that Pharaoh release the Israelites. If Pharaoh denied this request, which he always did, God promised to strike Pharaoh and his people with various plagues and God did exactly what He said He would do. Each of the ten plagues was unique and demonstrated the power of God in a manner that Pharaoh and his magicians could not deny (Ex. 8:19). 

The Uniqueness of The Seventh Plague

The seventh plague appears to be similar to the previous plagues, however, there are a couple of details which are unique to the seventh plague, including a warning to the Egyptians enabling them to escape the coming plague:

Behold, about this time tomorrow, I will send a very heavy hail, such as has not been seen in Egypt from the day it was founded until now. So now, send word, bring your livestock and whatever you have in the field to safety. Every person and animal that is found in the field and is not brought home, when the hail comes down on them, will die. Everyone among the servants of Pharaoh who feared the word of the LORD hurried to bring his servants and his livestock into the houses; but everyone who did not pay regard to the word of the LORD left his servants and his livestock in the field. – Ex. 9:18-21

The seventh plague would bring forth heavy hail raining down from the sky and would bring great destruction to whatever was in the field. God promised death to any person or animal left in the field but life to those who would heed his warning by leaving the field and taking shelter.  

The LORD is merciful and He desires all people of the earth to repent and fear His Name above every other name and authority, including Pharaoh. God gave the people of Egypt a choice: fear the LORD and take shelter in the house or stay in the field and die. There were some who chose to heed the warning of God while others ignored this warning and were killed by the hail.

The Plague of Hail: Fire & Ice

At first glance, the plague of hail seems like any other plague which is described in the book of Exodus, however, it is worth mentioning that the Hebrew word for hail, ברד – Barad, appears for the first time here in Exodus 9:18. 

Hail is composed of balls of ice that fall from the sky, however, this hail was unique when it fell upon the land of Egypt 3500 years ago; the balls of ice were described as “heavy” and they were also mixed with fire:

Now the LORD said to Moses, “Reach out with your hand toward the sky, so that hail may fall on all the land of Egypt, on every person and animal, and on every plant of the field, throughout the land of Egypt.” So Moses reached out with his staff toward the sky, and the LORD sent thunder and hail, and fire ran down to the earth. And the LORD rained hail on the land of Egypt. So there was hail, and fire flashing intermittently in the midst of the hail, which was very heavy, such as had not occurred in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. The hail struck everything that was in the field through all the land of Egypt, from people to animals; the hail also struck every plant of the field, and shattered every tree of the field. – Ex. 9:22-25

God rained down hail upon the land of Egypt and with the hail came thunder and fire. 

The word for “fire” in the above verses is not the word for lightning, ברק – Barak, which would have been used if it was simply lightning, but rather, in these verse we read the word אש – Esh which is the Hebrew word for fire! As confirmation that it was really fire that was mingled with the hail that rained down upon the land of Egypt, we read the following verse which is one of several verses used in the retelling of the ten plagues in the book of Psalms:

He gave them hail for rain, and flaming fire in their land. – Ps. 105:32

The seventh plague was a mixture of hail and fire which rained down upon the land and on the people of Egypt.

The power of God thundered down from heaven bringing loud rolls of thunder, heavy balls of icy hail, and consuming fire. It was a display of nature never seen before and never seen since. It was such a supernatural powerful force in the sky which rained down upon the earth and destroyed everything in the fields that Pharaoh literally humbled himself and confessed his sin, if only for a brief time:

Then Pharaoh sent for Moses and Aaron, and said to them, “I have sinned this time; the LORD is the righteous one, and I and my people are the wicked ones. Plead with the LORD, for there has been enough of God’s thunder and hail; and I will let you go, and you shall stay no longer.” Moses said to him, “As soon as I go out of the city, I will spread out my hands to the LORD; the thunder will cease and there will no longer be hail, so that you may know that the earth is the LORD’s. But as for you and your servants, I know that you do not yet fear the LORD God.” – Ex. 9:27-30

The seventh plague of judgment in the land of Egypt brought Pharaoh to his knees but, as Moses said, Pharaoh was not yet truly broken. Pharaoh continued in his arrogance against the LORD until the very end.

Hail & Fire in The End Times

God takes no pleasure in destroying human life, however, God is holy and must judge sin and wickedness. Just as God judged Pharaoh and the people of Egypt for resisting His voice in the days of Moses, even so God will judge all the people of the earth in the Last Days before the return of the Messiah. 

In the book of Revelation we read of a second time when God will rain down hail mixed with fire from heaven after the breaking of the seventh seal and at the sound of the first trumpet:

The first sounded, and there was hail and fire mixed with blood, and it was hurled to the earth; and a third of the earth was burned up, and a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up. – Rev. 8:7

During the final days of the Great Tribulation, God will pour out His wrath upon this earth and one of the judgments during those days will be hail and fire mixed with blood. 

The time of the Great Tribulation will be even more devastating than the ten plagues that destroyed the land of Egypt. We know this by the testimony of our Messiah, Yeshua:

For then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will again. – Matt. 24:21

The devastation of the Last Days will not be limited to one country but will be global in nature and will be devastating beyond comprehension. 

The Final Plague – The Seventh Bowl of Wrath

In the book of Revelation we read about many of the details which will unfold in the End Times including the breaking of the seven seals, the seven trumpets, and the seven bowls of wrath. Ironically, the seventh bowl of wrath will once again bring hail upon the earth in the concluding days of the Great Tribulation:

Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl upon the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple from the throne, saying, “It is done.” And there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder; and there was a great earthquake, such as there had not been since mankind came to be upon the earth, so great an earthquake was it, and so mighty. The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell. Babylon the great was remembered in the sight of God, to give her the cup of the wine of His fierce wrath. And every island fled, and no mountains were found. And huge hailstones, weighing about a talent each, came down from heaven upon people; and people blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, because the hailstone plague was extremely severe. – Rev. 16:17-21

Just before the Messiah returns, the wrath of God upon the earth will be concluded with great hailstones from heaven.

Object of God’s Wrath

There are some pastors and Bible teachers who teach that believers in Yeshua are rescued from the time of the Great Tribulation according to the Pre-Tribulation Rapture Theory, however, it must be noted that this is just a theory of man and is very weak in its biblical support. For those interested in a more detailed study of the timing of the Great Tribulation, the gathering together of the believers, and the Second Coming of Messiah I recommend my book titled: The Third Temple: A Sign of The Coming Messiah

The majority of the 3.5 years of the Great Tribulation will be a time of great suffering for believers in Yeshua who are on the earth. The persecution of believers at that time will not be from God but from the antichrist and from those who worship the beast (Rev. 13:7,10; 14:12). God’s wrath, which will come at the end of the Great Tribulation, will be poured out on those who are living on the earth, however, God’s wrath will specifically target those who take the mark of the beast and who worship his image:

So the first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth; and a harmful and painful sore afflicted the people who had the mark of the beast and who worshiped his image. – Rev. 16:2

God’s wrath will not be indiscriminately poured out on the earth but focused in such a manner so as to bring judgment on those who oppose Him.

Protection of God’s People

Suffering and persecution of believers will come from those who are loyal to the antichrist and who worship the beast (Rev. 13). God will dispense His wrath on those who oppose Him and fail to heed His warnings in the Last Days. At the same time, God is able to protect His people on this earth. 

The LORD has already demonstrated His sovereign ability to judge certain people while protecting others as detailed in Exodus chapter nine when God first rained down hail and fire upon the Egyptians: 

“Only in the land of Goshen, where the sons of Israel were, was there no hail.” (Ex. 9:26)

God sovereignly protected the Israelites in the land of Egypt during the seventh plague and He is able to do so on a global scale as well in the days leading up to the return of the Messiah! We will then all be gathered together to the Messiah at His Second Coming (Matt. 24:29-31).

God’s Final Warning

The seventh plague is a reminder of the wrath of God that will be poured out upon this earth with hail and fire, however, it is also a reminder of the mercy of God who chooses to warn humanity of the wrath to come and to take shelter in His Name:

The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not willing for any to perish, but for all to come to repentance. – 2 Peter 3:9

Just as God warned the Egyptians to fear Him, heed His warning, and choose life by obeying His word, even so He continually offers mercy to humanity by calling us to repent from our sins and to believe on His Son to save us from the wrath to come! The physical wrath to come should put the fear of God in each one of us but more importantly, the eternal wrath of God should be the greatest motivation to believe in Yeshua:

He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him. – John 3:36

Hail and fire are physical elements to remind us of God’s coming judgment upon this world. That hail and fire will be temporary during that Last Days but the eternal wrath of God for those who do not believe in the Son of God is an eternal fire which burns for ever and ever

But for the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death. – Rev. 21:8

Escape from this eternal fire is only obtained through faith in Yeshua! God has warned us and we must seek shelter in Him!

Shabbat Shalom!

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*All Scripture take from NASB Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation

**The Hebrew name “Yeshua” is used in the biblical quotations in place of the English name “Jesus” to give emphasis to the meaning of this name, salvation. The word “Messiah” is also used in place of the word “Christ” to bring clarity to the office of Yeshua.

Torah Portion: Ex. 6:2-9:35

Haftara: Ezekiel 28:25-29:21 

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