The Northern Army of Joel 2: 20
"And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit. 2. And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit. 3. And there came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth: and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power." Revelation 9: 1-3
When the bottomless pit is opened locust-scorpions pour out of it. The locust-scorpions are the army of false prophets seen in Matthew 24: 11, "And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many."
There are also demon spirits who come out of the bottomless pit to inspire the army of false prophets.and one of these is named. "And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon." Revelation 9: 11
The false prophets who are inspired by the demons out of the bottomless pit take away understanding and faith in the absolute truth of the word of God. The truth is replaced by the false prophets with a set of false doctrines to which the deceived cling with great zeal.
Joel 2:1 "Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand; "
Joel 2:2 "A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations. "
Joel 2:3 "A fire devoureth before them; and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them. "
Joel 2:4 "The appearance of them is as the appearance of horses; and as horsemen, so shall they run."
Revelation 9:16: " And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them." .................... "And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, and of jacinth, and brimstone: and the heads of the horses were as the heads of lions; and out of their mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone........19.For their power is in their mouth, and in their tails: for their tails were like unto serpents, and had heads, and with them they do hurt." Revelation 9: 17-19
Ezekiel 38:3: "And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal."
Ezekiel 38:4 "And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws, and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords:"
Gog-Magog is the army of false teachers that invade Invade Israel, that is, born again or New Covenant Israel, the Israel of God (Galatians 6: 16).
"That which the palmerworm hath left hath the locust eaten; and that which the locust hath left hath the cankerworm eaten; and that which the cankerworm hath left hath the caterpiller eaten........... 6. For a nation is come up upon my land, strong, and without number, whose teeth are the teeth of a lion, and he hath the cheek teeth of a great lion. 7. He hath laid my vine waste, and barked my fig tree: he hath made it clean bare, and cast it away; the branches thereof are made white." Joel 1: 4-7
The palmerworms, the cankerworms and the locusts are metaphoric for the army of false prophets who have eaten up new Covenant Israel's spiritual substance and have taught them lies. These false prophets are called the "Northern Army."
"But I will remove far off from you the northern army, and will drive him into a land barren and desolate, with his face toward the east sea, and his hinder part toward the utmost sea, and his stink shall come up, and his ill savour shall come up, because he hath done great things." Joel 2: 20
Why are the false prophets called the Northern Army and not the Southern Army or Eastern Army? It might have something to do with the geographical location of the land of Israel. But do not take this possibility to mean that Old Covenant Israel still exists. The New Covenant is Old Covenant Israel remade in the remnant of Israel (Romans 11: 1-5).
"And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpiller, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you. 26. And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed."Joel 2: 25-26
The army of false teachers is taken out of the way. The years of damage their false doctrines have done to the spiritual substance of New Covenant Israel will be healed according to Joel. In a sense this is like the deadly wound in Revelation 13: 3 which is healed.
"And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit. 2. And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit. 3. And there came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth: and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power." Revelation 9: 1-3
When the bottomless pit is opened locust-scorpions pour out of it. The locust-scorpions are the army of false prophets seen in Matthew 24: 11, "And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many."
There are also demon spirits who come out of the bottomless pit to inspire the army of false prophets.and one of these is named. "And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon." Revelation 9: 11
The false prophets who are inspired by the demons out of the bottomless pit take away understanding and faith in the absolute truth of the word of God. The truth is replaced by the false prophets with a set of false doctrines to which the deceived cling with great zeal.
Joel 2:1 "Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand; "
Joel 2:2 "A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations. "
Joel 2:3 "A fire devoureth before them; and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them. "
Joel 2:4 "The appearance of them is as the appearance of horses; and as horsemen, so shall they run."
Revelation 9:16: " And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them." .................... "And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, and of jacinth, and brimstone: and the heads of the horses were as the heads of lions; and out of their mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone........19.For their power is in their mouth, and in their tails: for their tails were like unto serpents, and had heads, and with them they do hurt." Revelation 9: 17-19
Ezekiel 38:3: "And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal."
Ezekiel 38:4 "And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws, and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords:"
Gog-Magog is the army of false teachers that invade Invade Israel, that is, born again or New Covenant Israel, the Israel of God (Galatians 6: 16).
"That which the palmerworm hath left hath the locust eaten; and that which the locust hath left hath the cankerworm eaten; and that which the cankerworm hath left hath the caterpiller eaten........... 6. For a nation is come up upon my land, strong, and without number, whose teeth are the teeth of a lion, and he hath the cheek teeth of a great lion. 7. He hath laid my vine waste, and barked my fig tree: he hath made it clean bare, and cast it away; the branches thereof are made white." Joel 1: 4-7
The palmerworms, the cankerworms and the locusts are metaphoric for the army of false prophets who have eaten up new Covenant Israel's spiritual substance and have taught them lies. These false prophets are called the "Northern Army."
"But I will remove far off from you the northern army, and will drive him into a land barren and desolate, with his face toward the east sea, and his hinder part toward the utmost sea, and his stink shall come up, and his ill savour shall come up, because he hath done great things." Joel 2: 20
Why are the false prophets called the Northern Army and not the Southern Army or Eastern Army? It might have something to do with the geographical location of the land of Israel. But do not take this possibility to mean that Old Covenant Israel still exists. The New Covenant is Old Covenant Israel remade in the remnant of Israel (Romans 11: 1-5).
"And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpiller, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you. 26. And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed."Joel 2: 25-26
The army of false teachers is taken out of the way. The years of damage their false doctrines have done to the spiritual substance of New Covenant Israel will be healed according to Joel. In a sense this is like the deadly wound in Revelation 13: 3 which is healed.