*Israeli government may divide Jerusalem
*Iran vows to liberate all of Palestine
*President Bush warns Iran that U.S. may defend Israel
*Michael Savage calls Iran's president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad the Antichrist but...
*U. S. Comptroller General warns that America parallels the fall of the Roman Empire
*Russia will sell Jets to Iran
[October 10, 2007] - ISRAELI GOVERNMENT MAY DIVIDE JERUSALEM - Top Israeli government officials have indicated that they might be willing to give parts of Jerusalem to the Palestinians in exchange for a peace agreement. It seems that Israeli Prime minister Ehud Olmert is determined to reach a peace accord with the Palestinians no matter what the cost. (Israel Signals Shift on Jerusalem Split) If such a concession is granted to the Palestinians then the consequences may be disastrous. For 1800 years the Jews ended their Passover seders with the phrase "Next year in Jerusalem". In 1948 the Jews returned to Israel and in 1967 regained control of Jerusalem. Their dreams were realized. Now in the futile hope of achieving "peace" with the Arabs they might be willing to abandon their dream. The problem is that history has shown that when the Israelis give concessions to the Palestinians it emboldens the Muslim terrorists to seek more. Their stated goal is the destruction of Israel. If Jerusalem and its holy sites are abandoned to the Palestinians this will escalate the violence and terror even further. The terrorist organization Hamas would then have access to the Temple Mount from which they could launch further aggression on the Jews. Terrorist groups such as Hezbollah and Iranian-backed groups would be given full access to the center of Jerusalem. Who would keep them out? Such a scenario could lead to catastrophic consequences for the state of Israel. I find it hard to believe that the Israeli government would actually relinquish sovereignty over the Temple Mount and the Western Wall. However, if they do the events that follow may have biblical implications. In any event, this concession or any other concession will not lead to peace. Peace with the Israelis is not the goal of the Islamic-terrorist organizations.
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[October 5, 2007] - IRAN VOWS TO LIBERATE ALL OF PALESTINE - In a speech made on the observance of the Islamic-political "Al Quds Day" (i.e. Jerusalem Day), Iran's President Ahmadinejad stated, "The Palestinian people are standing firm. The Iranian people and other peoples will not stop until all of Palestinian territory is liberated." (Ahmadinejad in new tirade against Israel) Since there never has been a country created named Palestine, one could interpret his words in different ways. He was apparently misinterpreted in a 2005 speech where the media claimed he said, "Our dear Imam said that the occupying regime must be wiped off the map and this was a very wise statement." The phrase "wiped off the map" was trumpeted around the world and Internet in news stories. Since then others have claimed that the translation of the speech was incorrect and should have read "'This regime that is occupying Qods [Jerusalem] must be eliminated from the pages of history.' This sentence is very wise." Their reason for pointing out this clarification is to resist the apparent momentum in parts of the U.S. and world to attack Iran. The same analysis of his Al Quds Day speech could possibly lead to a seeming misinterpretation of his words again. Is Ahmadinejad referring to not only "liberating" the West Bank and East Jerusalem from Israeli hands but also the rest of Israel? It is historically noteworthy that Arab League formed the Palestine Liberation Organization in 1964. At that time the Arabs had control of the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip. It wasn't until three years later in the 1967 Six Days War that Israel gained control of the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip. This then begs the question, "What part of Palestine were the Arabs trying to liberate in 1964?" If President Ahmadinejad's intentions toward Israel are not aggressive then he should make that clear. Instead his ambiguity could lead to disaster as recent events have made clear. The Bible does declare that one day an alliance between Iran and its neighboring countries will indeed invade the land of Israel. The results for this alliance will be devastating. Only God knows the timing for this event and whether the current regime in Iran will participate in it.
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[October 4, 2007] - PRESIDENT BUSH WARNS IRAN THAT U.S. MAY DEFEND ISRAEL - President Bush warned Iran that if they are serious about destroying Israel then he believed the United States would defend Israel. The actual quote in the article is, "My belief is that the United States will defend our ally Israel." (Bush: US will 'defend its ally Israel') I find the word belief to be an interesting choice of words by the President. In the past the United States has defended Israel's interests many times. However, this time the President used the word belief instead of saying "The United States will defend". I'm not sure if any hesitancy on his part was intended but that is the way it sounds. I believe that one day the U.S. will either be unable or unwilling to defend Israel. This scenario would lead to an invasion of Israel as predicted in the Bible (See my article: The Coming Invasion of Israel'). It is difficult to say what the Presidential elections in 2008 will bring to the global arena. What the new President's policies toward Israel and the Middle East will be are unknown and are worthy of careful observance.
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[September 24, 2007] - MICHAEL SAVAGE CALLS IRAN'S PRESIDENT MAHMOUD AHMADINEJAD THE ANTICHRIST BUT... - Columbia University invited the president of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, to speak at the college in a public forum. The controversy surrounding this invitation was the subject of many news and radio programs. Talk show host Michael Savage also discussed this event on his national radio program. Many commentators referred to Ahmadinejad as Hitler jr. and other such epithets. Mr. Savage took it a step further and called him the Antichrist. He also said that he thought that Ahmadinejad would be assassinated by his own people in Iran. Indeed Ahmadinejad has called for the destruction of the nation of Israel. He is an anti-semite of the first degree and as such does follow in the footsteps of Adolph Hitler in his desire to exterminate the Jews. However, his rhetoric leaves nothing to the imagination. Just as Hitler laid out his plans for the domination of Europe and its inhabitants so too Ahmadinejad has discussed openly his wish to see Israel and the Jews destroyed. This is where the Antichrist analogy breaks down. The Bible makes it clear that the Antichrist is going to deceive the world through a false message of peace. The prophet Daniel declared concerning the Antichrist, "And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand." (Daniel 8:25) The apostle Paul stated that in the End-Times the world would be fooled by these peaceful overtures, "For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape." (1 Thessalonians 5:3) Unless Ahmadinejad changes the threatening tone of his message he would not fit the description of the Antichrist. As far as an assassination attempt, the Book of Revelation does indicate that the Antichrist (or beast as John refers to him) will suffer a fatal wound from which he will be resurrected, "And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy. 2 And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority. 3 And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast. 4 And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?" (Revelation 13:1-4) I don't know who the Antichrist is but when he does arrive on the world stage, he will come across as a peaceful messianic figure but actually will be the most evil man ever to walk the earth. He will hunt down the followers of the God of the Bible and persecute them mercilessly. The world will follow after him and he will lead them down the path of destruction.
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[August 22, 2007] - MADELEINE ALBRIGHT STATES THAT ANYBODY WHO CAN SOLVE THE PROBLEM OF JERUSALEM IS A SOLOMON; [IT WON'T BE SOLOMON BUT A MAN MUCH MORE EVIL] - In an interview with CNN, former Clinton Secretary of State Madeleine Albright discussed the importance of religion in foreign policy. (Albright: Ignore religion 'at our own peril') During the course of this interview Ms. Albright was asked about the problem of the religious divisiveness over the city of Jerusalem. She responded by saying "Anybody that can really solve that issue is a Solomon. With this being holy to all three of the Abrahamic religions, it's very difficult. And religion, rather than bringing people together on this, is driving them apart, which ... I don't think [is] what is intended. It's so interesting; we're talking about the whole issue of sovereignty here. Because the parties both believed that God gave them that little piece of land, we started playing with a term, which was that it belonged to God. Divine sovereignty." On September 13, 1993, my wife and I watched the Prime minister of Israel Yitzhak Rabin and Yasser Arafat shake hands in front of President Clinton on the White House lawn. They had just concluded a peace agreement that hopefully would settle the problems between their two peoples. Several issues were supposed to be resolved through this agreement. However, the future of Jerusalem would be determined at sometime in the future. After listening to Mr. Rabin's and Mr. Arafat's speeches conducted on the lawn that day I turned to my wife and told her that this peace agreement was a sham. Both men within a few minutes of speaking had declared Jerusalem to be their people's undivided capital. This meant that there had been no solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Ms. Albright now seems to understand the importance of Jerusalem in resolving the Arab-Israeli problem. She stated that it would take a man with the wisdom of Solomon to solve this dilemma. Actually, the man who seemingly solves this issue is going to be a world leader whom Christians refer to as the Antichrist. In the Book of Revelation God revealed the future to one of his servants named John. One of the events God showed to him was the rising of a man whom John called the beast and Christians call the Antichrist. John's description of him explains how this evil leader is going to deceive the world: "...and all the world wondered after the beast. And they worshipped the dragon [i.e. the Devil] which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?... And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world."(Revelation 13:3-4,8) The prophet Daniel spoke of this man and declared; "And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand."(Daniel 8:25) The Antichrist will come with a peace initiative which will include the rebuilding of the Third Temple on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. For the Muslims to allow this they too will have "wondered after the beast". The apostle Paul states that this Antichrist will then sit in the rebuilt Temple and commit the greatest blasphemy, "Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God."(2 Thessalonians 2:3-4) So it would seem that the Antichrist will have finally solved the problem of Jerusalem but just a short time late the true problem-solver, Jesus Christ, will return. He will destroy the Antichrist and reign from Jerusalem as the King of Kings.
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[August 15, 2007] - JERUSALEM POST ARTICLE SPEAKS OF THIRD TEMPLE BEING REBUILT IN JERUSALEM WHICH WAS NOT POSSIBLE FOR 1800 YEARS - An article in the Jerusalem Post discusses whether a Third Jewish Temple should be built. (Should Jews build the Third Temple?) The author gives a history of the previous two Temples and gives reasons as to why he doesn't think that the rebuilding should take place. The Jewish groups who support building it have already made all the utensils and articles of clothing that will be used in this Temple. The Third Temple will be rebuilt! The Bible declares that it will have a prominent place in the Tribulation Period or time of trouble that is coming upon the whole world before Jesus comes again. The amazing aspect to all this is that for 1800 years the Jews have been dispersed from Israel throughout the world. Yet in 1948 that changed and the Jews once again resided in their land. Here in 2007, the rebuilding of the Temple is the subject of a major world newspaper. (To see the preparations that the Jews have made for the Third Temple go to: The Temple Institute
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[August 14, 2007] - U.S. COMPTROLLER GENERAL WARNS THAT AMERICA PARALLELS THE FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE - The director of the Government Accounting Office for the U.S.A. declared to the Financial Times that America "is on a 'burning platform' of unsustainable policies and practices with fiscal deficits, chronic healthcare underfunding, immigration and overseas military commitments threatening a crisis if action is not taken soon." (Article: Learn from the fall of Rome, US warned) The article goes on to say, "Drawing parallels with the end of the Roman empire, Mr Walker warned there were “striking similarities” between America’s current situation and the factors that brought down Rome, including “declining moral values and political civility at home, an over-confident and over-extended military in foreign lands and fiscal irresponsibility by the central government”. I have no doubt that Mr. Walker's warning will come true. The Bible declares that in the last days military alliances will be formed which will attack Israel. These alliances are occurring at the present time such as the one between Russia and Iran. However, America has been the protector of Israel since its rebirth in 1948. No one outside of the surrounding Arab countries would dare attack Israel knowing full well that they would have to fight America also. Russia considered intervening militarily in the 1967 Six Day War but refrained from doing so after the American Fleet pulled up off the coast of Israel. Thus, for biblical prophecy to come true, America has to either be out of the way or its power and influence greatly reduced. What the Comptroller General warned of may actually be part of God's plans for the consummation of His End-Times plans.
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[July 30, 2007] - RUSSIA WILL SELL JETS TO IRAN - The Jerusalem Post is reporting that Russia will sell 250 long-range fighter jets to Iran (Reports: Iran to buy jets from Russia). Russia has already had other military business dealings with the Iranians as the article points out, "Despite Israeli and US opposition, Russia recently supplied Iran with advanced antiaircraft systems used to protect Teheran's nuclear installations. At the time, Moscow said it reserved the right to sell Iran weapons, such as the antiaircraft system, that were of a defensive nature." The prophet Ezekiel declares that in the end the enemies of Israel will form many military alliances. These alliances will include Russia, Persia (i.e. Iran), Turkey and other Islamic states in the Middle East. They will then attack Israel albeit unsuccessfully which in turn may set in motion God's plans for the final stage of the current age we are living in.
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[July 7, 2007 - PETRA IN JORDAN NAMED NEW 7TH WONDER OF THE WORLD; IT IS ALSO A POSSIBLE END-TIMES REFUGE FOR THE JEWS - On July 7 the non-profit New Open World Corporation declared that participants in their effort had chosen the ancient rock city of Petra as one of the new Seven Wonders of the World (Petra Chosen as New Wonder of the World). Why is this significant? Outside of archaeologists and their students, I'm sure the majority of the world has never heard of Petra (although Hollywood chose to use it for a backdrop to the 1989 movie "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade"). For prophecy students however, Petra may play a significant role in the End-Times. A man whom Christians refer to as the Antichrist is going to rise to a position of global leadership. He is going to deceive the world into thinking he is a benevolent leader. Once in power though, he is going to persecute the followers of God. He also will persecute God's chosen people, the Jews. Jesus said that when this occurs, the Jews are to flee into the wilderness. This wilderness is thought to be in the ancient area of Moab which is modern-day Jordan and Petra the ancient city known as Sela in Biblical times. The prophet Daniel states that the Antichrist will be unable to assault the area of Jordan, "He [i.e. the Antichrist] shall enter also into the glorious land (Israel), and many countries shall be overthrown: but these shall escape out of his hand, even Edom, and Moab, and the chief of the children of Ammon."(Daniel 11:41) God will supernaturally protect His chosen people in Jordan where they fled and thus the Antichrist will fail in his efforts to destroy the Jews.
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