Verse 2
The Lord would gather all the nations against Jerusalem to fight against her (cf. Revelation 16:16-21, Armageddon). They would capture the city, plunder the houses, and rape the women. Half of the Jewish residents would depart as exiles, but the other half would remain. This would be one-half of the portion of the one-third of the Jewish population that would be in Jerusalem that had not died during the Tribulation (Zechariah 13:8). This has never yet happened.
"The only [?] explanation is that this is an ideological conflict to remove a non-co-operative element that blocked the way to an international world order." [Note: Baldwin, p. 200.]
"This eschatological verse alone-with its statement that ’the city will be captured’-is sufficient to refute the notion popular in certain circles that ’the times of the Gentiles’ (Luke 21:24) were fulfilled as of the rebirth of the modern state of Israel. According to Lucan theology, after ’the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled,’ Jerusalem will be trampled on no more. Since Zechariah 14:2 clearly indicates that Jerusalem will be ’trampled on’ again in the future, the ’times of the Gentiles’ would seem to extend to the Messiah’s second advent, when those ’times’ will be replaced by the final, universal, everlasting kingdom of Daniel 2:35; Daniel 2:44-45." [Note: Barker, p. 689.]
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