Book Reviews

Following are reviews and testimonials about Joe Ortiz' two books, The End Times Passover and Why Christians Will Suffer Great Tribulation. Joe’s books outright refute a Pre-Tribulation escape to heaven and also debunk the Left Behind doctrines The End Times Passover Joe Ortiz Author House ISBN: 9781425969623 Reviewed By Dominique Sessons Official Apex Reviews Rating: February 6, 2008 The End Times Passover is the result of over 20 years of painstaking research and analysis, presented by author & scholar Joe Ortiz in a masterfully seamless way. Not the typical mash up of "fire-and-brimstone" doomsday prophecy, Ortiz’s tome is an informative, enlightening dissertation on the contemporary applications of ancient scripture. Compiled from the study of – amongst many other resources – various biblical translations, The End Times Passover is quite the heavy read; certainly not recommended for naïve graduates of "cookie-cutter" Sunday School theology. Fans of the Left Behind series (fictionalized narrative accounts of the events in the biblical book of Revelation) will find Ortiz rather detailed in many areas that Jenkins & LaHaye treat with relative ambiguity. His comprehensive descriptions of the true intentions of the architects of the bible are eye-opening, and his fearless accostal of the tenets of traditional dogma are both inspiring and refreshing. Ortiz even delves deeply into the often overlooked area of misinterpreted scripture, revealing the lasting, damaging effects that the basic "clerical errors" have left on the mindsets of millions of believers in the faith community over the years. Most impressive about The End Times Passover is its reliance on sound factual support from numerous historical, archeological, and concordance sources. As previously mentioned, Ortiz invested over 20 years researching, analyzing, and compiling the foundation of his points, and his arguments present a formidable challenge to even the most seasoned, skeptical theological scholar. The ending/beginning of new millennia are typical settings for the emergence of "End Times" hysteria and hype, and it’s often difficult to distinguish between the serious and the surreal; thankfully, The End Times Passover is a clear representation of the former, which offers those disillusioned with the latter a sound alternative, as well as a perfect 1

opportunity to embrace the realistic prospects of an unknown world & time soon to come. Why Christians Will Suffer "Great Tribulation" by Joe Ortiz Author House ISBN: 9781425984861 Reviewed By Dominique Sessons Official Apex Reviews Rating: February 6, 2008 The sequel to The End Times Passover, Why Christians Will Suffer "Great Tribulation" sees author & scholar Joe Ortiz picking up right where he left off: presenting thoroughly researched, cogent counterpoints to the standard arguments of biblical traditionalists. Just as with his first offering, readers will find Ortiz’s follow up tome quite informative – if not somewhat distressing. The "tribulation" to which Ortiz refers, of course, is, according to the Christian religion, the time of great suffering that precedes the return of Jesus Christ. Traditionally, theologians and scholars have posited that followers of the Christian faith will be spared when the times of tribulation emerge. Supposedly, all true believers will be instantaneously removed from the earth in a flash, an event commonly known as the "Rapture." Following their deliverance, the world left behind will experience years of agonizing toil and torment, setting the stage for Armageddon (the ultimate battle between good and evil), the defeat of Satan and his armies, and the subsequent eternal reign of the true biblical Kingdom. In "Tribulation", though, Ortiz presents convincing evidence that followers of the Christian faith will not be so conveniently spared, and he also expounds on the disturbing reasons why. Relying on sound scriptural analysis and well-researched conclusions, Ortiz offers airtight, meticulous explanations regarding the true meanings behind biblical references to the "End Times" – even if such explanations provide little comfort. In recent times, countless individuals from all walks of life have sought to cast off the stranglehold of traditional religious dogma, instead seeking to learn the truth of all things for themselves. Why Christians Will Suffer "Great Tribulation" is a highly recommended starting point for such disillusioned souls, offering sound, factual interpretations of many previous legends & fables heretofore mistakenly applied. Though it sometimes gets a bit deep for the average casual reader, the strength & power of Ortiz’s arguments make his book required reading for believers and non-believers alike. - Review of THE END TIMES PASSOVER by Dave MacPherson 2

Do you know why “The End Times Passover” by Joe Ortiz is riveting and enjoyable? He travels behind the scenes from Greek word to Greek word and skillfully shows how far removed from Scripture some faulty prophetic views, such as pretribulation rapturism, truly are. As one who has been eminently successful in various occupations (as a radio and television talk show host, news reporter and newspaper columnist, public relations expert, and teacher on the college level – only a fraction of his talents), Ortiz, named as one of the “100 Most Influential Hispanics in The US,” is equally accomplished in his handling of the Bible. On more than 500 pages he sifts facts from fiction and comes up with a classic work on every important aspect of the end times that every child of God will be privileged to own. My stamp of approval is on it! (10-08-07, Dave MacPherson author of “The Rapture Plot”) Review of WHY CHRISTIANS WILL SUFFER “GREAT TRIBULATION” by Dave MacPherson There is a double-barreled assault these days on the 178-year-old, British-invented end time doctrine labeled the "pretribulation rapture" (or, briefly, the "rapture"), a view that has been obsessively promoted by some leading evangelical writers including John Walvoord, Hal Lindsey, Jerry Falwell, and Tim LaHaye. The first barrel, as you may have already guessed, focuses on the relatively short (and rather strange) history of this novel interpretation. The other barrel deals with the theology behind it - whether it is truly Biblical or whether it rests on ideas that are unBiblical or extra-Biblical. Standing head and shoulders above many other books adopting the theological approach is a fascinating book authored by scholarly prophecy writer Joe Ortiz that has an intriguing title: "Why Christians Will Suffer 'Great Tribulation.' " Hardly a superficial work, this Ortiz production examines the Greek foundation of the New Testament and convincingly reveals the actual meaning of words and phrases over which there has been much disagreement in the past. The "Why" in his book title is fully explained as much as the "Will" is firmly established. If you desire a book that isn't a rewrite of a rewrite of a rewrite - what readers have observed endlessly in pretribulation marketing (I almost said "trafficking") - Joe Ortiz' new and refreshingly different book is waiting for you to pick it up. Prolific author Joe Ortiz has penned a sequel to his earlier book “The End Times Passover.” His newer work has a title reading “Why Christians Will Suffer ‘Great Tribulation’” – and, believe me, it doesn’t suffer from lack of proof for its thesis! As an average American who loves junk food, is overweight, and doesn’t even like to watch when a nurse has to draw blood from his arm, I naturally shrink back when I see a Christians-will-suffer-something sort of book title. But when I look around and observe individuals in our seemingly suicidal nation trying to outdo each other in insane violence, in unparalleled perversion, and even nonchalantly belittling and blaspheming the Christ who has blessed us above all other nations, I wonder how soon the Holy One will be forced to schedule the destruction of entire cities, a la Rev. 16:19. This newer work by 3

Joe Ortiz is only for serious, reasoning, and Bible-following Christians. All others can continue their “Gethsemane” sleeping (Mark 14:37) instead of watching. (10-08-07) Dave MacPherson is the author of The Rapture Plot, The Incredible Cover Up, The Great Rapture Hoax, Unbelievable Pre-Trib Origin, and Late Great Pre-Trib Rapture. ~ “The reader will find The End Times Passover and Why Christians Will Suffer Great Tribulation to be a scholarly sound and profound works that will straighten out a lot confusion surrounding biblical issues related to end times prophecy. They will cause many teachers and students of the Bible to rethink much of what they have accepted as ‘fact’ concerning the end times. Joe Ortiz has done a magnificent job of researching and writing these two important books. These are books I wish I would have written, and I’m sure there are a few others who will wish they had written them as well,” Bill Somers, May 28, 2004. Bill Somers is the host of the End Time Prophetic Vision web site. http://www.etpv.org ~ “It definitely rattled my cage and exposed a lot of misunderstanding of legitimate faith issues. Joe Ortiz is anointed with a fresh, if not controversial, understanding of scripture that I find fascinating and inspiring! I challenge all of my friends who consider themselves Christians or agnostics or atheists to take a fresh look at what he is saying (in his book, The End Times Passover). It could be a life changing event. It certainly will take away a lot of the silly images of what we think is church/religion and substitute a better impression of WHO God considers His people or children of promise. You have been warned- take an hour and test your faith or lack of it. You may go through life misunderstanding the scriptures without benefit of Joe's etymological insights. Read the books, you will not feel your time was wasted!” (April 18, 2007) ~ Roger W. Hubbard, Ph.D is a Consultant and Formerly Directorate Director, Environmental Pathophysiology Directorate, U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine, Natick, MA. ~ I just finished your 2nd book (Why Christians Will Suffer Great Tribulation) yesterday. Wow! The 10th chapter on the Passover Symbolism was the best I have ever read. Maybe 4

you should go one step further and make slides and notes for teachers and Pastors to use, I'd buy it! Great job! The next thing you know, some of the "Stars" will be appropriating your insight as their own. It happened to me in science arena. Greatest form of flattery there is. As the current trend lines play out, however, people will one day look back and say you were way out in front on many, many issues. I really think your insights are so important that I am going to order your books for my kids to read. NO ONE is teaching what you are saying so thoughtfully and thus, we are vulnerable and unprepared for end-time events. This, I am sure, is not what God wants and so He has used you to further reveal what has been hidden from the Christian community at large. We are a people who love myths, traditions, Easter eggs and Santa Claus. This is not great preparation for understanding and preparing for the great "Tribulation" or an "End-times Passover." People need to read your books- now! (February 14, 2008) Roger W. Hubbard, Ph.D is a Consultant and Formerly Directorate Director, Environmental Pathophysiology Directorate, U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine, Natick, MA. ~ "Why Christians Will Suffer Great Tribulation" is one of the best short books on end times prophecy, and is an excellent rebuttal to the prevalent pre-tribulation rapture teaching. The text is written in an easy to read style, yet cites the relevant scriptures to back up its interpretations. The book has changed the way I look at some end times events, and has clarified my picture of the end times. It is highly recommended reading for those interested in end time's interpretations." (March 27, 2007) Richard Deem is a volunteer with GodAndScience.Org, an Internet web site that believes there is harmony between the Bible and science, and is also employed as a Researcher/Specialist in the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center ~ Mr. Ortiz was saved in 1975, and was “indoctrinated” with the Pre-tribulation Rapture doctrine; but after a few years of study he realized that the Pre-trib position was only substantiated by inaccurately translating certain Greek words. So, with a background as a teacher, school administrator, and broadcast journalist, he spent over 20 years researching and writing in order to unlock the mysteries of eschatology; resulting in what would 5

become this book, and the second volume. He believes the various eschatological positions today do not fully reveal God’s true redemption plan for mankind. This is not just another book on bible prophecy, it presents unique insights and exegesis, some of which is found in no other book. The author studied all the end time views, he studied Hebrew and Greek word definitions, and many different commentaries in order to better understand what God intended to say in his Word. He goes into great detail explaining the word meanings and how this view or that one errors in this or that point, in this or that verse. Because of the length of this book, actually two volumes, everyone that reads it will find things they disagree with, but they will also find much to enrich their understanding of specific passages and their overall knowledge of Bible prophecy. This book is not a casual read for the beginner, but is more like a commentary and reference work that deals mainly with the Rapture, the Millennium, the Great Tribulation, and who the Church and the Bride are. As a result of his research, he does not completely agree with any of the existing camps. He believes we will go through the tribulation, but we will be protected like Moses and the Israelites at the first Passover when the plagues of Egypt were poured out. Many bible teachers have their minds already made up, so they will ignore this book, but they do so to their detriment. Everyone who plans to spend time doing an in-depth study of Bible prophecy should read this book. Your study will be incomplete without it. Be aware, however, that he is wordy, probably because he wants to provide lots of evidence to backup his views. Sometimes a lot of evidence is required to overcome long established, but wrong view points. I too spent over 20 years doing the very same in-depth study and came to many of the same conclusions that Mr. Ortiz did. If I had this book to read at the start it would have saved me a lot of time and effort. I just published my own similar conclusions in Apocalypse Fire, but it also covers all the end time prophecies, seals, trumpets, etc. Michael D. Fortner has a BA in Communications and a minor in History. He is the founder and administrator of the Apocalypse Fire web site. His new book, Apocalypse Fire; the Great Tribulation and Wrath of God, was published by Great Plains Press in May 2007 ~ I want to let you know that I carried End Time Passover with me during my recent two-week trip across the Caribbean. I read it on every flight. It is an awesome work! You confirm many things the Holy Spirit has taught me, although I haven’t done the extensive research that you completed on the meaning of specific words. For example, the Lord revealed to me years ago that New Jerusalem is the bride of Christ. I want to commend you on the excellent research. We need to have you back on the (TruNews.com) program in the near future. (Rick Wiles 6/13/07) Rick Wiles is the founder of TruNews.com, and is a pioneer in the field of alternative news. Rick has been 6

alerting his listeners to significant events that relate to end times prophecy since 1999. Basically, Rick has been podcasting since before there were pods. His professional career has been in media marketing. Previously, he held marketing management positions with the Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN/Family Channel) and Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN). ~ Following is the entire Second Review by Dave MacPherson concerning Joe Ortiz’ books, The End Times Passover and Why Christians Will Suffer Great Tribulation (Author House Publishers) Second Review By MacPherson (January 1, 2009). I just finished reading Joe Ortiz’ two great books again (The End Times Passover and Why Christians Will Suffer Great Tribulation), and had to make additional comment on them again. Everyone has heard of the "rapture." (Its full name, in theological circles, is the "pretribulation [or "pre-trib"] rapture.") Many are aware of the record-breaking "Left behind" book series and are also intrigued by "The Rapture Index" (even if they don't realize that the RI's "precursors" are actually fulfilled only AFTER the point in time when its "rapture" is supposed to happen and point to only a coming that's much later!). If someone were to ask me if I believe in the pre-trib view, I would say "Which pre-trib view?" because there seem to be almost as many pre-trib views as there are pre-trib teachers! Many such teachers place the start of the "day of the Lord" at the tribulation's start even though earlier teachers including Darby and Scofield placed the start of it at the trib's end! Hal Lindsey sees a pre-trib rapture in Matt. 24's "one shall be taken" while his mentors including Pentecost and Walvoord do not! Lindsey says that John was literally raptured away in Rev. 4:1, but Scofield and Walvoord disagree with him! Lindsey claims that the 24 elders (Rev. 4) represent the church while Ironside states they represent OT as well as NT saints! Lindsey asserts that Rev. 13's second beast will be a Jew, but Walvoord disagrees with him! Walvoord sees a pre-trib rapture in Luke 21:36 while Pentecost disagrees with Walvoord! Lindsey sees the tribulation in Rev. 3:10's "hour" while Walvoord writes that Lindsey's interpretation is debatable! Lindsey views the tribulation in chapters 4-19 in Revelation while Scofield sees it in chapters 11-18! In my book "The Incredible Cover-Up" has a whole chapter entitled "A House Divided" which proves with quotation that pre-trib teachers disagree with each other on many crucial points in their 178-year-old prophetic theory! If Christians are tired of a contradictory and splintered end-time view that was never a part of any official Christian theology book before 1830, then they are undoubtedly ready for a sensible, down-to-earth, and thoroughly Scriptural presentation that can be found in two books on Bible prophecy authored by long-time media personality Joe Ortiz. I refer to "The End Times Passover" and "Why Christians Will Suffer 'Great Tribulation.' They 7

are truly unique books that I obtained some time ago - books that you and your friends will treasure forever! Not far from my home in the Four Corners area of the western US are two standing rock formations close together called the "Navajo Twins." Well, noted author Joe Ortiz has two outstanding books I view as the "Prophecy Twins. I can do no better than employ "smorgasbord" and "encyclopedia" when attempting to portray the combined effect these two prophetic works have had on me. Take his "Passover" first of all. When Ortiz discusses the finer points of Biblical prophecy, he answers any question that can conceivably enter the mind of any inquiring reader, and does so in intriguing ways. Like characters that enter one by one on to a stage during a play until the audience gets a complete picture, Ortiz will take key words and phrases such as "blessed hope," "caught up," "meet," "taken," and "left" and give a world of information about each one including its definition, the actual meaning in the Greek, how it is related to other thoughts, and so on. Why is Ortiz so serious and thorough in his research and presentation? As he states so well in a chapter on today's popular "rapture" craze, he is concerned about "the pervasive and incessant promulgation of these 'left behind' mythologies that permeate the Christian publishing and video markets of today, which are deluding millions of Christians into a false sense of security, motivated more so by profit and temporal fame." Having established in his weighty work "The End Times Passover" that there will be no pretribulation rapture, Ortiz' sequel "Why Christians Will Suffer 'Great Tribulation' " reminds us that Christians since the days of Christ have expected and endured persecution, and also warns us that the future will be no bed of roses. Exhibiting the marks of an accomplished wordsmith, Ortiz asks: "Will the heart that rests its hope on the blood pumping mythology of a secret escape to heaven doctrine be able to withstand the cardiac attack of intense tribulation? Or will the returning Christ find a comatose soul whose heart has been clogged by the arterial sclerosis of the Pre-Tribulation escape to heaven doctrine?" In this era of "rapture rush jobs" and prophetic rewrites of rewrites, it's refreshing to find these two unique books by Joe Ortiz! Over the years I've had shelves of Bible prophecy books in my library. But there's a current prophecy book I obtained that's a far cry from the usual dime-a-dozen pop prophecy rewrites designed only to produce goose bumps in prophecy-oriented groupies who are often found on internet message boards and chat rooms. The author of the unusual prophetic production, Joe Ortiz, chose "The End Times Passover" as the title of his monumental work dealing with Christian theology and especially various millennial and "rapture" doctrines. The word "passover" in his title is explained in the last sentence of the following paragraph on p. 117: "Even more disconcerting is the pervasive and incessant promulgation of these left 8

behind mythologies that permeate the Christian publishing and video markets of today, which are deluding millions of Christians into a false sense of security, motivated more so by profit and temporal fame. The author makes no apologies to these writers and preachers in regards to this matter. While there exists much love by the author for all those who claim to speak God's gospel truth about who is taken and who is left, claiming that those taken are Christians and those left behind are the heathen, it is inexcusable to persist in this folly when the word of God clearly states His children of promise are left (Gr. aphiemi, forgiven) alone, passed over, when He returns with great wrath!" When one goes through Ortiz' scholarly masterpiece, he marvels at his tenacious task of taking original Greek NT words and translating them into English. If the reader wants light on the various "rapture" and millennial views, heaven, hell, Middle East, Israel, church, and almost every other topic bearing on the author's focus, "The End Times Passover" is the one book no one can afford to pass over! Because of recently uncovered data that had been forgotten or covered up for more than a century, the Christian public now knows that the famous (or infamous) pretribulation rapturescape is actually only 178 years old, that John Darby (long credited wrongfully with either pretrib rapture origination or its basic development) wasn't original on any aspect of pretrib dispensationalism, and that pretrib rapturism since its birth in 1830 has been utterly riddled with dishonesty (rampant plagiarism, the subtle changing of primary documents, the deliberate cover-up of contexts in Biblical passages, the flaunting of non- existent or non-accredited academic degrees, etc.)! While Ortiz' focus is only on the theology (and not history) of end time views, he does lament on p. 194 that "This great secret pre-tribulation "Rapture" scheme has gone on long enough. The development of theories to fit the needs of those who have yet to develop complete and total trust in God's promises is not only destructive to the growth and maturity of the Christian Church, it impedes the Spirit of God from working in and through his called out ones, the ecclesia of God, which needs to be used by God to bring as many more sinners to Jesus before greater tribulation than in past times comes upon mankind." If readers are exhausted by all of the speculative sensationalism that characterizes today's rapture hysteria, then they are ready for Joe Ortiz' unique resource entitled "The End Times Passover" which is a one-volume library all by itself that no home should be without! (Dave MacPherson, January 1, 2009) Dave MacPherson (author of "The Rapture Plot") 9

Book Reviews

by JoeOrtiz41 on Aug 12, 2009

Accessibility

Upload Details

Usage Rights

Statistics

Book Reviews — Document Transcript