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Politics, Israel, and “declaring the end from the beginning”

Monday, May 31st, 2010

(May 31, 2010) I started writing a draft of this post more than a week ago. The subject is the importance (or lack thereof) of contemporary news events in relation to God’s overall prophetic plan for the world. Earlier today a still developing story occurred when Israeli forces boarded a supposed peace activist Gaza aid ship before it reached the shores of the Gaza Strip and injuries and deaths were incurred by the combatants.

Before addressing that issue I want to say that the idea for this post occurred to me after reading a blog article on the liberal Christian website maintained by the Sojourners organization. The majority (if not all) the posts on their God’s Politics blog are sympathetic to the Palestinians’ cause at the expense of the Israelis as the following linked article demonstrates: Christian Zionism: Theology that Legitimates Oppression

God has a global, eternal plan for the world and the universe, “9 Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like Me, 10 Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure.” (Isaiah 46:9-10) God is also interested in every individual soul and has a plan for every human being but that too is part of His universal plan as the apoatle Paul wrote, “3 For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour; 4 Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. 5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; 6 Who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.” (I Timothy 2:3-6) Contemporary politics of any era have little meaning except as to how they play a role in God’s overall plan. Israel is part of that plan and regardless of one’s worldview Israel was prophesied to become a nation again before the end and then all Israel (i.e. the Jews) will be saved.

Groups like Sojourners don’t seem to grasp that the rebirth of modern Israel could only happen as part of God’s prophetic plan for the world. The Bible makes it clear that the God Himself decides when the Jews live in the land of Israel:

The prophet Daniel declares that it is God who sets up kings and thereby countries for them to rule over: “Daniel answered and said, Blessed be the name of God for ever and ever: for wisdom and might are His: And He changeth the times and the seasons: He removeth kings, and setteth up kings: He giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding: He revealeth the deep and secret things: He knoweth what is in the darkness, and the light dwelleth with Him.” (Daniel 2:20-22) The apostle Paul also spoke of God’s role in setting up governments: “1 Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. 2 Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation.” (Romans 13:1-2) Thus, it was God’s will for the modern state of Israel to be created.

In the Old Testament God declared that it is His decision when the Jews live in the promised land and when they don’t. He tells Moses to warn the Israelites that if they obey Him they will be blessed in the land of Israel. However, if they disobey Him, He will remove them from the land:

“And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth: And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God. Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field…And it shall come to pass, that as the LORD rejoiced over you to do you good, and to multiply you; so the LORD will rejoice over you to destroy you, and to bring you to nought; and ye shall be plucked from off the land whither thou goest to possess it. And the LORD shall scatter thee among all people, from the one end of the earth even unto the other; and there thou shalt serve other gods, which neither thou nor thy fathers have known, even wood and stone. And among these nations shalt thou find no ease, neither shall the sole of thy foot have rest: but the LORD shall give thee there a trembling heart, and failing of eyes, and sorrow of mind.” (Deuteronomy 28:1-3,63-65)

Notice in this passage that it is the LORD who scatters the Jews from the land.

Later in Israel’s history, God removed the Jews from the land for their disobedience. He used the Babylonian Empire to perform His judgment. However, He tells them that He will return them to the land after seventy years:

“Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, unto all that are carried away captives, whom I have caused to be carried away from Jerusalem unto Babylon…For thus saith the LORD, That after seventy years be accomplished at Babylon I will visit you, and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place. For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.” (Jeremiah 29:4,10-11)

Again God states that He is the one who caused the Jews to be carried away to Babylon and He will be the one to cause them to return to Israel. In the book of the prophet Amos God promised to bring the Jews back to the land forever:

“And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel, and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; they shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them. And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, saith the LORD thy God.” (Amos 9:14-15)

God declares that He is always watching Israel:

“But the land, whither ye go to possess it, is a land of hills and valleys, and drinketh water of the rain of heaven: A land which the LORD thy God careth for: the eyes of the LORD thy God are always upon it, from the beginning of the year even unto the end of the year.” (Deuteronomy 11:11-12)

God emphasizes throughout His word that He is always interested in what is going on in the land of Israel and that He determines when the Jews live in the land. Thus the Jews couldn’t have returned to the land of Israel unless it was God’s will for them to do so.

The Bible also makes it clear that Israel would play a central role in fulfilling End-Times prophecy. God made a promise concerning the Jews and the nation of Israel:

“33 But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put My law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be My people. 34 And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know Me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more. 35 Thus saith the LORD, which giveth the sun for a light by day, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by night, which divideth the sea when the waves thereof roar; The LORD of hosts is His name: 36 If those ordinances depart from before Me, saith the LORD, then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before Me for ever.” (Jeremiah 31:33-36)

It should be clear to any Bible-believing Christian that the modern state of Israel exists because of the will of God. News events like the one involving the “peace” activist Gaza aid ship today will continue because the world, including the U.S., is turning against Israel. The world is in the process of condemning Israel for today’s incident. Criticism of Israel, deserved or not, will likely increase the closer we get to the End-Times. Christians should generally be standing up for and with the nation of Israel regardless of contemporary political events because we know that God has created it as part of His overall prophetic plans.

Tags: Amos 9, Israel, Jews, Rebirth of Israel, Sojourners
Posted in Archives 2010, Israel | No Comments »

Gog and Magog vs. Gog and Magog

Monday, May 31st, 2010

(May 30, 2010) Recently a commenter on one of my blog articles brought up the issue of the War of Gog and Magog mentioned in the Books of Ezekiel and Revelation. They were of the opinion that the prophesied War of Gog and Magog in Ezekiel chapters 38-39 is the same prophetic event as the one John saw at the end of the Millennium in Revelation chapter 20. Are the two Gog/Magog passages speaking of a single event or two separate ones?

An interesting question which has called for little discussion amongst prophecy students. I think the best way to answer it is to look at the Ezekiel prophecy of Gog and Magog separately from the Revelation prophecy and see if they are indeed separate prophetical events.

The only biblical references to the name Gog are found in the Books of 1 Chronicles, Ezekiel, and Revelation. The reference in 1 Chronicles chapter 5 is of a minor genealogical nature and irrelevant to the Gog of our discussion. It is in Ezekiel we discover that Gog is a name or title of a ruler:

“1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, 2 Son of man, set thy face against Gog, the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him, 3 And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal.” (Ezekiel 38:1-3)

It is in this same verse that we see Gog is a ruler over the land of Magog. Genesis chapter 10 tells us that the land of Magog refers to lands settled by the descendents of Noah’s grandson Magog:

“1 Now these are the generations of the sons of Noah: Shem, Ham, and Japheth: and unto them were sons born after the flood. 2 The sons of Japheth: Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras…5 By these were the isles of the Gentiles divided in their lands; every one after his tongue, after their families, in their nations.” (Genesis 10:1-2,5)

Generally, Western prophecy students believe various regions of the former Soviet Union constitute the land of Magog. The First Century Jewish historian Josephus wrote that the Scythians inhabited the land of Magog in the regions of what is now Russia and the various Islamic countries that were formerly part of the Soviet Empire. Therefore, some prophecy students believe that the Gog invasion of Israel mentioned in Ezekiel will be led by a leader from this region.

Ezekiel also lists an alliance of nations that will accompany Gog in this invasion. They consist of several Middle Eastern countries which are now governed by Islamic leaders. Many Western prophecy students believe this invasion will occur prior to the Battle of Armageddon.

Eastern prophecy commentator Walid Shoebat has a different perspective on Ezekiel’s Gog and Magog prophecy. He believes that Magog includes Turkey and the southern Islamic countries of the former Soviet Union but not Russia proper. Mr. Shoebat also believes that the leader Gog is actually the Antichrist and that the prophesied invasion of Israel is part of the Battle of Armageddon. You can find his reasoning for this belief in his excellent book God’s War on Terror (my article Islam and End-Times Prophecy is a synopsis of this book and contains a section on Gog and Magog).

I believe the difference between the Gog and Magog prophecy of Ezekiel and that of Revelation can be ascertained by looking at the circumstances surrounding the invasion of Israel and the results from it.

Ezekiel gives a limited list of nations that will invade Israel. They all seem to be located in the Middle East and Northern Africa. It appears that countries north of Israel will begin the invasion and then the other countries in the alliance will join in: “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: 5 Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet: 6 Gomer, and all his bands; the house of Togarmah of the north quarters, and all his bands: and many people with thee…14 Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say unto Gog, Thus saith the Lord GOD; In that day when My people of Israel dwelleth safely, shalt thou not know it? 15 And thou shalt come from thy place out of the north parts, thou, and many people with thee, all of them riding upon horses, a great company, and a mighty army: 16 And thou shalt come up against My people of Israel, as a cloud to cover the land; it shall be in the latter days, and I will bring thee against My land, that the heathen may know Me, when I shall be sanctified in thee, O Gog, before their eyes.” (Ezekiel 38:4-6,14-16) Conversely, in Revelation God’s servant John saw that the Battle of Gog and Magog will involve all the nations of the world: “7 And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be loosed from his prison 8 and will come out to deceive the nations which are at the four corners of the earth, that is, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle; their number is like the sand of the sea.” (Revelation 20:7-8) Thus, the Millennial armies of Gog and Magog will arrive from the four corners of the earth whereas Ezekiel’s invasion limits the number of countries involved. Although the Millennium will be a kind of Utopia on earth for a thousand years with Jesus reigning from Jerusalem, there are prophetical passages that allude to sin as still being part of the human experience during that time, “19 And I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in My people: and the voice of weeping shall be no more heard in her, nor the voice of crying. 20 There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed.” (Isaiah 65:19-20) This may seem strange that God would allow sin to exist during His Millennial reign but it is consistent with God’s creation of the first Edenic Utopia. In the Garden of Eden Adam and Eve in the midst of God’s paradise on earth still had the capacity for sin, one which they exercised a the behest of the Devil. Likewise, this Millennial army of Gog and Magog will consist of those humans who are still intent upon rebelling against God. After being loosed from his chains, Satan will rally these men and women for one final battle against God.

The description of Ezekiel’s Battle of Gog and Magog sounds extremely similar to God’s judgments that are to occur during and at the end of the Battle of Armageddon:

“18 And it shall come to pass at the same time when Gog shall come against the land of Israel, saith the Lord GOD, that My fury shall come up in My face. 19 For in My jealousy and in the fire of My wrath have I spoken, Surely in that day there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel; 20 So that the fishes of the sea, and the fowls of the heaven, and the beasts of the field, and all creeping things that creep upon the earth, and all the men that are upon the face of the earth, shall shake at My presence, and the mountains shall be thrown down, and the steep places shall fall, and every wall shall fall to the ground. 21 And I will call for a sword against him throughout all My mountains, saith the Lord GOD: every man’s sword shall be against his brother. 22 And I will plead against him with pestilence and with blood; and I will rain upon him, and upon his bands, and upon the many people that are with him, an overflowing rain, and great hailstones, fire, and brimstone. 23 Thus will I magnify Myself, and sanctify Myself; and I will be known in the eyes of many nations, and they shall know that I am the LORD.” (Ezekiel 38:18-23)

The Bowl or Vial judgments of Revelation chapter 16 occur at Armageddon. They include a great earthquake (Ezekiel – “great shaking in the land of Israel”), fish and animals dying from the ecological devastation (Ezekiel – “the fishes of the sea…”), Armageddon ends with “flashes of lightning, voices, peals of thunder, and a great earthquake such as had never been since men were on the earth, so great was that earthquake…and great hailstones, heavy as a hundred-weight, dropped on men from heaven” (Ezekiel – “and great hailstones, fire, and brimstone”).

Chapter 39 of Ezekiel continues describing the results of the Gog and Magog invasion:

“1 Therefore, thou son of man, prophesy against Gog, and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal: 2 And I will turn thee back, and leave but the sixth part of thee, and will cause thee to come up from the north parts, and will bring thee upon the mountains of Israel: 3 And I will smite thy bow out of thy left hand, and will cause thine arrows to fall out of thy right hand. 4 Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of Israel, thou, and all thy bands, and the people that is with thee: I will give thee unto the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured.” (Ezekiel 39:1-4)

Notice that God declares that He will leave a remnant of the invasion force (“and leave but the sixth part of thee”). In Revelation God destroys the entire enemy force and casts the Devil into Hell for eternity (“9 And they marched up over the broad earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city; but fire came down from heaven and consumed them, 10 and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulphur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night for ever and ever”). Also, Ezekiel mentions that the birds of the air will devour Gog’s defeated army. This parallels the description of the aftermath of the Battle of Armageddon:

“17 Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and with a loud voice he called to all the birds that fly in midheaven, “Come, gather for the great supper of God, 18 to eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all men, both free and slave, both small and great…21 And the rest were slain by the sword of Him who sits upon the horse, the sword that issues from His mouth; and all the birds were gorged with their flesh”. (Revelation 19:17-18,21)

There is one parallel between the Gog and Magog prophecy of Ezekiel and and that of Revelation which does match, “6 And I will send a fire on Magog, and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles: and they shall know that I am the LORD. 7 So will I make My holy name known in the midst of My people Israel; and I will not let them pollute My holy name any more: and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel.” (Ezekiel 39:6-7) Revelation states, “9 And they marched up over the broad earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city; but fire came down from heaven and consumed them.” (Revelation 20:9) However, I don’t think it would be unusual for God to use the same form of fiery judgment in separate events. The bible makes it clear that fire is a purifying agent and that “God is a consuming fire”. (Hebrews 12:9)

Ezekiel states that after the Gog and Magog invasion Israel will be burying the dead for seven months:

“12 And seven months shall the house of Israel be burying of them, that they may cleanse the land. 13 Yea, all the people of the land shall bury them; and it shall be to them a renown the day that I shall be glorified, saith the Lord GOD. 14 And they shall sever out men of continual employment, passing through the land to bury with the passengers those that remain upon the face of the earth, to cleanse it: after the end of seven months shall they search. 15 And the passengers that pass through the land, when any seeth a man’s bone, then shall he set up a sign by it, till the buriers have buried it in the valley of Hamongog.” (Ezekiel 39:12-15)

The Gog and Magog uprising in Revelation occurs at the end of the Millennium. There is no more Israel after that because John declares what he saw next:

“10 and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulphur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night for ever and ever. 11 Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it; from His presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them.” (Revelation 20:10-11)

One final observation on the difference between the two prophecies concerns the salvation of Israel. After Ezekiel’s prophesied invasion, the nation of Israel knows who the true God is:

“7 So will I make My holy name known in the midst of My people Israel; and I will not let them pollute My holy name any more: and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel.” (Ezekiel 39:7)

The salvation of the Jews occurs at the second coming of Jesus Christ:

“1 The burden of the word of the LORD for Israel, saith the LORD, which stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him. 2 Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem. 3 And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it…9 And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. 10 And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon Me whom they have pierced and they shall mourn for Him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.” (Zechariah 12:1-3,9-10)

There will be no more chances for salvation after the Millennial defeat of Gog and Magog because the Great White Throne judgment occurs after its over.

I believe there are obvious differences between the prophesied events of Ezekiel chapters 38-39 and Revelation chapter 20. The fact that the terms Gog and Magog are used in both instances can be confusing. Whether or not Ezekiel’s Gog is the Antichrist, it is the Devil who wants to destroy the Jewish nation of Israel hoping to defeat the Lord’s plans. The Bible refers to the Devil by various names throughout (i.e. “Prince of Tyre, King of Babylon etc.) and so it may be that the title/name of Gog is just another appellation describing the diabolical force which has fought against the Lord since the Garden of Eden and will continue to fight Him until the culminating Battle of Gog and Magog at the end of humanity’s history on the earth.

May 30, 2010

[Update: June 4, 2010] - (Rabbis: Flotilla Clash Similar to Gog and Magog Prophecy) – “The Rabbinical Council of Judea and Samaria issued a statement Thursday in which it said that the results of the incident in which Israel intercepted a flotilla trying to break the naval blockade of Gaza seem like the Biblical description of “the beginning of the Gog and Magog process where the world is against us, but which ends with the third and final redemption.”

Tags: Ezekiel 38-39, Gog and Magog, Invasion of Israel, Millennium, Revelation 20
Posted in Archives 2010, Website Articles: evenatthedoors.com | 2 Comments »

President Obama pledges new “international order”

Sunday, May 23rd, 2010

(May 23, 2010) In a speech before West Point cadets President Obama declared that the world needs a new international order. (At West Point, Obama offers new security strategy – Washington Post) This article reports, “In a commencement speech to the graduating class at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, the president outlined his departure from what Bush had called a ‘distinctly American internationalism.’ Instead, Obama pledged to shape a new “international order” based on diplomacy and engagement.”

It is worth remembering that in 1991 President George H. W. Bush also called for a New World Order:

Former Nixon Secretary of State Dr. Henry Kissinger spoke of the New World Order in 2007:

and again in January 2009 of President Obama’s role in helping to further the creation of a New World Order:

Western prophecy students have long stated the Bible implies that during the End-Times there will be some type of global governmental entity in place. This government will be ruled by an evil leader whom Christians call the Antichrist. It appears his ascendancy will come at a time of world financial and military crises.

According to this article President Obama recognizes that the world is indeed interconnected and something needs to be done because the world is headed towards global disaster, “In his speech — the ninth wartime commencement in a row — the commander in chief, who is leading two foreign wars, expressed his faith in cooperation to confront economic, military and environmental crises. ‘The international order we seek is one that can resolve the challenges of our times,’ he said in prepared remarks. ‘Countering violent extremism and insurgency; stopping the spread of nuclear weapons and securing nuclear materials; combating a changing climate and sustaining global growth; helping countries feed themselves and care for their sick; preventing conflict and healing its wounds.’”

How soon the rest of the world is willing to cooperate will most likely depend on when global events intensify to the point where a charismatic leader will be able to seemingly have the answers to the world’s problems.

From an Eastern prophetical perspective the Antichrist will be the Islamic messianic figure Muslims call the Mahdi. He will rise to rule over a revived Islamic caliphate. Muslims too, like Christian prophecy students who believe the Antichrist will come in the midst of worldwide crises, believe the Mahdi’s ascendancy will occur at a time of globl chaos. In my article Islam and End-Times Prophecy concerning Walid Shoebat’s 2008 book God’s War on Terror I wrote:

“President Ahmadinejad of Iran opened his 2005 United Nations address with a prayer: “From the beginning of time, humanity has longed for the day when justice, peace, equality, and compassion, envelop the world. All of us can contribute to the establishment of such a world. When that day comes, the ultimate promise of all Divine religions will be fulfilled with the emergence of a perfect human being who is heir to all prophets and pious men. He will lead the world to justice and absolute peace. O mighty Lord, I pray to you to hasten the emergence of your last repository, the promised one, that perfect and pure human being, the one that will fill this world with justice and peace.” President Ahmadinejad is not the only one calling for the return of Al-Mahdi. According to Mr. Shoebat, the Iranian Hojjatieh Society (considered a lunatic fringe by mainstream Shi’a Muslims) believes they can hasten the return of the Twelfth Imam (The Mahdi) by creating a period of chaos on earth. He says they are so extreme that the Ayatollah Khomeini banned them in 1983. He quotes Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu as saying the cult of Mahdi in Iran is why it will be very dangerous if Iran acquires nuclear weapons. The cult of Mahdi is not limited to Iran alone as Mr. Shoebat states there are several Mahdi sects in Iraq. He believes that many Muslims will rise up as claimants to the position of Mahdi in fulfillment of Jesus’ last days warning, “Watch out that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many…23 At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. 24 For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect—if that were possible. 25 See, I have told you ahead of time. 26 So if anyone tells you, ‘There he is, out in the desert,’ do not go out; or, ‘Here he is, in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it.” (Matthew 24:4-5,23-26)”

Mr. Shoebat also mentions the “international order” in his book:

“A Caliphate would not have to be entirely successful for it to present a serious challenge to the international order. This scenario underlines the saliency of the cross-cultural ideological debate that would intensify with growing religious identities…The IT revolution is likely to amplify the clash between Western and Muslim worlds…The appeal of a Caliphate among Muslims would vary from region to region, which argues for Western countries adopting a differentiating approach to counter it. Muslims in regions benefiting from globalization, such as parts of Asia and Europe may be torn between the idea of a spiritual Caliphate and the material advantages of a globalized world. The proclamation of a Caliphate would not lessen the likelihood of terrorism and in fomenting more conflict, could fuel a new generation of terrorists intent on attacking those opposed to the Caliphate, whether inside or outside the Muslim world. The nation-state will continue to be the dominant unit of the global order, but economic globalization and the dispersion of technologies, especially information technologies, will place enormous new strains on governments. Growing connectivity will accompany the proliferation of virtual communities of interest, complicating the abilities of states to govern.” ["God's War on Terror: Islam, Prophecy and the Bible, by Walid Shoebat, p. 452; Top Executive Media, 2008]

A new international order is in the world’s future. Whether it is of a Westernized or an Islamic nature remains to be revealed.

Tags: Antichrist, Caliphate, global economy, global government, globalism, Mahdi, new international order, new world order, President Obama
Posted in Archives 2010, global government | No Comments »

The Revived Islamic Caliphate

Sunday, May 16th, 2010

(May 15, 2010) Three months ago I wrote an article for my website titled Islam and End-Times Prophecy and also posted it to this blog. The article is a synopsis of Walid Shoebat’s 2008 book God’s War on Terror: Islam, Prophecy and the Bible. In this book Mr. Shoebat shows how Islam could fulfill many of the prophetic descriptions the Bible reveals of End-Times events. I believe he makes many compelling points to support his position on Islam’s possible role in fulfilling God’s apocalyptic plans. Today I read a headline on the Drudge Report that illustrates precisely what Mr. Shoebat wrote in his book two years ago.

In his book God’s War on Terror Mr. Shoebat compares the Islamic messiah called the Mahdi with the description of the biblical Antichrist. He points out that both the Antichrist and the Mahdi will seek to change God’s laws (Daniel 7:25). In this case the Mahdi will institute Shari’a Law as much as he can. In another parallel, according to Islamic scholars, the Mahdi will occupy the Temple Mount and reign from there (Matthew 24:15; II Thessalonians 2:4). Mr. Shoebat makes forty-three comparisons overall between the Antichrist and Islam’s future ruler, the Mahdi.

One of the most interesting insights he offers concerns the revival of the Islamic Ottoman Empire in the End-Times. This Turkish Empire began in 1299 A.D. and was ruled by a sultan. In the early 1500s the Ottoman Empire’s sultan also assumed the title of Caliph of Islam. The Empire eventually spread over three continents. On March 3, 1924 the Turkish government formally abolished the Islamic Caliphate. Concerning this event Mr. Shoebat states in his book:

“Biblically, the Empire of the Antichrist will not be a new empire; rather it will be the revival of a previously great empire that will have suffered what the Bible calls a ‘fatal head wound’. (Revelation 13:3) But the wound will be healed and the empire will be revived from the dead as it were: ‘And the beast [Antichrist Empire] which I saw was like a leopard, and his feet were like those of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave him his power and his throne and great authority. And I saw one of his heads as if it had been slain and his fatal wound healed. And the whole world was amazed and followed after the beast.” (Revelation 13:2-3)

“Today the Caliphate exists only in the desires of hundreds of millions of Muslims worldwide who want to revive this beast that was slain March 3, 1924. The last Caliphate–the Ottoman Caliphate–was officially abolished by the first President of the Turkish Republic, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. The abolition of the Caliphate is profoundly significant for our study. For it was on this day that the Islamic Empire, led by a sitting Caliph for over fourteen hundred years suffered a fatal head wound. The position of “head of state” of the Islamic Empire was severed.” ["God's War on Terror: Islam, Prophecy and the Bible, by Walid Shoebat, p. 81; Top Executive Media, 2008]

Thus, Mr. Shoebat believes that the Islamic Empire will rise again and be governed under Shari’a Law in the form of a Caliphate. The ruling sultan and caliph of this revived empire will be the Islamic messianic figure called the Mahdi. That is why this headline on the Drudge Report caught my attention: “Iranian cleric urges creation of ‘Greater Iran’; caliphate would rule Middle East, central Asia…” The link led to an AP news story (Iranian cleric wants creation of ‘Greater Iran’) which reports:

“A radical cleric called Saturday for the creation of a “Greater Iran” that would rule over the entire Middle East and Central Asia, in an event that he said would herald the coming of Islam’s expected messiah…He also said its formation would be a prelude to the reappearance of the Mahdi, a revered ninth-century saint known as the Hidden Imam, whom Muslims believe will reappear before judgment day to end tyranny and promote justice in the world. ‘The Islamic United States will be an introduction to the formation of the global village of the oppressed and that will be a prelude to the single global rule of the Mahdi,’ the Hezbollah newspaper quoted him as saying.”

I would strongly recommend that any student of Bible End-Times prophecy read Mr. Shoebat’s book for a perspective that many Western prophecy commentators may have missed.

Tags: Antichrist, Caliphate, Islam, Islamic Empire, Mahdi, Revelation 13, Walid Shoebat
Posted in Archives 2010, Revelation 13 Antichrist | 3 Comments »

Whale off Israel’s coast, Jonah and End-Times animal behavior

Wednesday, May 12th, 2010

(IMMRAC) (May 13, 2010) A grey whale was spotted off the coast of Israel. (Scientists stunned as grey whale sighted off Israel ) According to this article, “The whale, which was first sighted off Herzliya in central Israel on Saturday, is believed to have travelled thousands of miles from the north Pacific after losing its way in search of food. ‘It’s an unbelievable event which has been described as one of the most important whale sightings ever,’ said Dr Aviad Scheinin, chairman of the Israel Marine Mammal Research and Assistance Center which identified the creature. A population of grey whales once inhabited the north Atlantic but became extinct in the 17th or 18th centuries and has not been seen there since. The remaining colonies live in the western and eastern sectors of the north Pacific.”

Of course the most famous “great fish” incident occurred when a whale or some other large sea creature swallowed and then vomited the prophet Jonah onto the shores of Israel:

“15 So they look up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea: and the sea ceased from her raging. 16 Then the men feared the LORD exceedingly, and offered a sacrifice unto the LORD, and made vows. 17 Now the LORD had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights…10 And the LORD spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land.” (Jonah 1:15-17,2:10)

God had wanted Jonah to pronounce His coming judgment upon the Assyrian capital Nineveh unless they repented. Jonah hated the Assyrians because of the way they treated Israel and the Jews. Therefore, he did not want the Ninevites to repent because he knew God was merciful and would not judge them if they did repent. God had a great fish swallow Jonah in order to get Jonah’s attention and ultimately his obedience. After leaving the fish Jonah did preach God’s judgment to the Ninevites and they repented and God mercifully spared them.

The article cited above indicates this is a very bizarre incident which caused the whale to end up in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Israel. It reminds me that during the Tribulation Period God’s judgment will also change animals’ behavior towards human beings. God chose to show the End-Times to His servant John. What John saw was a series of judgments that were going to come upon the earth. The first series constituted seven seals of a scroll which after each one is opened a judgment occurs. The opening of the Third Seal leads to famines (it indicates that food will cost a days wages because of shortages caused by famine) which Jesus confirmed as one of the apocalyptic signs in chapter 24 of the Gospel of Matthew:

“6 And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine.” (Revelation 6:6)

Next John sees the Fourth Seal judgment begin:

“7 And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see. 8 And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth.” (Revelation 6:7-8)

Jesus again confirms the End-Times revelations which John observed:

“7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in various places. 8 all this is but the beginning of the labor pains.” (Matthew 24:7-8)

Famines, pestilences, earthquakes, and wars are going to devastate the earth and its natural processes. Scarcity of food will cause even the animals to start attacking and killing humans. For the most part animals are afraid of human beings as their behavior illustrates whenever they encounter people. However, because of God’s judgments upon the world, animals’ behavior will change as John witnessed, “to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth.” Billions of Humans will die during the Tribulation Period including many deaths caused by animal attacks. Tragically as Jesus declares, “this is but the beginning of the labor pains” that the earth and its inhabitants will endure.

Tags: Apocalypse, famine, fourth seal, Grey Whale, Jonah, Matthew 24, third seal, Tribulation Period
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Technology, Government Monitoring, Economic Crisis

Friday, May 7th, 2010

(May 6th, 2010) There have been several news stories recently that may be prophetically related to the global government and economic devastation John saw in the Book of Revelation:

“1 And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast [i.e. the Antichrist] 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 [i.e. the Devil] 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? 5 And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months. 6 And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven. 7 And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. 8 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. 9 If any man have an ear, let him hear…11 And I beheld another beast [i.e. the False Prophet] coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon. 12 And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. 13 And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men, 14 And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live. 15 And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. 16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: 17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. 18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.” (Revelation 13:1-9,11-18)

God revealed the End-Times to His servant John and told him to write down the things he saw occurring on the earth (Revelation 1:11). In chapter 13 of Revelation John wrote that he saw a man ascend to power out of the sea (of humanity). This man channels the full authority and might of the Devil to mesmerize the world to follow after him. He will use the forces of Hell to gain dominion over a large part of the earth. He will be so powerful that the world will ask “Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?” A religious leader will rise at the same time and cause the world to worship the Antichrist. This False Prophet will develop a global economic system where no business transactions can take place unless the participants have pledged their allegiance to this evil leader and received his mark of identification. Of course, a military and economic system of of this magnitude would require the constant monitoring of the people who will make up his empire. Modern technology has made this scenario that John witnessed feasible for the first time in human history. Recent headlines demonstrate that the technology needed to carry out such an endeavor either has been or will be developed in the near future to allow this man to fulfill the prophetic vision that John saw.

One other event which God showed to John was the circumstances under which the world would unquestionably follow the Antichrist and allow him to take on the mantle of global savior or false messiah as Jesus called him in chapter 24 of the Gospel of Matthew. John wrote:

“5 And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand. 6 And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine.” (Revelation 6:5-6)

John saw a series of events that took place on the earth during the End-Times. The first part of this series included the opening of seven seals which begin the seven-year Tribulation Period or time of trouble that is coming upon the whole earth. The opening of the Third Seal speaks of an economic crisis that occurs on a global scale. He sees that people have to spend the equivalent of a day’s wages just to purchase food. In the End-Times teaching of Jesus he declared that there would be famines in the earth (Matthew ch. 24). The Antichrist will seemingly have the answer to this economic devastation and all he will require of the world to solve the problem will be allegiance to himself and his empire. It is worth noting that Adolph Hitler rose to power when Germany experienced terrible economic distress immediately following their defeat in World War I. The German people were so desperate (There is a famous photo of a German taking a wheelbarrow full of money to buy food) that they swore allegiance to Hitler and looked to him as the savior of Germany. Instead he led them to worse destruction and ruin than they had experienced after the first World War. Likewise, the people of the world will look to the Antichrist as the savior of the world and this time it will lead to the destruction and ruin of the earth. Some Western Bible scholars believe that he will come out of Europe while others like Walid Shoebat think he will come out of Turkey. Either way for him to rise to power and fulfill biblical prophecy the technology has to be in place for him to control his earthly empire.

Financial Times – US prepares to push for global capital rules – This article illustrates the interconnectedness of the economies of the various countries of the world and the desire for international regulations governing these economies.

Washington Times – Bank bill could help feds snoop, GOP warns - This concerns a congressional financial regulations bill. This article states, “The consumer protection bureau, to be part of the Federal Reserve, and the financial research office, proposed within the Treasury Department, could gather information on financial transactions right down to consumers’ loans, according to critics, who said this is the first time the government would cast such a wide net. “They both have sweeping authority to collect information about financial transactions, and there’s little to ensure they aren’t going to collect detailed information, personal financial transactions,” said Jim Harper, director of information-policy studies at the Cato Institute.“ The point is that the technology is available to keep track of private citizens financial transactions.

Reuters – Many possible triggers for wider euro debt crisis - This article discusses the dire economic straits of the European Union. One day economic chaos will lead to the rise of the Antichrist.

London Daily Telegraph – New speed cameras trap motorists from space – A new type of speed cameras use satellites to measure average speed over long distances are being tested in Britain. The article reports, “The company said in its evidence that the cameras enabled number plate capture in all weather conditions.” This technology would allow governments to track individual’s movements.

Philly.com – Lower Merion report: Web cams snapped 56,000 images- Philadelphia school district uses free laptops with active webcams to take photos inside students’ homes. Government uses technology to intrude into citizens’ personal lives.

British Technology website The Register – Google Street View logs WiFi networks, Mac addresses - This story relates, “Google’s roving Street View spycam may blur your face, but it’s got your number. The Street View service is under fire in Germany for scanning private WLAN networks, and recording users’ unique Mac (Media Access Control) addresses, as the car trundles along. Germany’s Federal Commissioner for Data Protection Peter Schaar says he’s “horrified” by the discovery. “I am appalled… I call upon Google to delete previously unlawfully collected personal data on the wireless network immediately and stop the rides for Street View,” according to German broadcaster ARD. Spooks have long desired the ability to cross reference the Mac address of a user’s connection with their real identity and virtual identity, such as their Gmail or Facebook account.”

Agence France-Presse (AFP) - Police cameras to flood Manhattan to prevent attacks - The article states, “The high-tech system, modeled on the “ring of steel” in London’s financial district, is already in service in lower Manhattan, where Wall Street and the World Trade Center reconstruction site are located. Headquartered at 55 Broadway, the Lower Manhattan Security Initiative goes far beyond the traditional hodgepodge of police cameras, such as the 82 devices installed around Times Square. Instead, an integrated system maintains an unblinking eye, not just watching, but constantly collecting license plate numbers and video of pedestrians and drivers, as well as detecting explosives and other weapons. An important component of the program is coordination between the police network and private businesses’ cameras, something that has not been established in Times Square, causing detectives significant extra work.”

The Washington Examiner - New recycling bins with tracking chips coming to Alexandria - “That cash — roughly $180,000 collected from 19,000 residents– will pay for new larger recycling carts equipped with computer microchips, which will allow the city to keep tabs on its bins and track resident participation in the city’s recycling program. “If you know who’s participating in the programs, you can focus your education and outreach to those who are not participating,” said Stacy Herring, Alexandria’s recycling coordinator.” Notice the phrase about keeping track of those who are not participating. The Antichrist and his government will also track those who have not sworn their allegiance to him and participate in his global society.

The Pennsylvania Department of Taxation put out an interesting video in order to recoup lost tax revenue:

Though this is just an advertisement one day such governmental monitoring may be used during the Tribulation Period. As you can see by the headlines above and many others like them, technology is available to implement the global economic and religious systems John saw in Revelation. All that is needed is for the Antichrist to rise on the world scene and exploit the technology to achieve global dominance.

Tags: Antichrist, mark of the beast, monitoring, Revelation 13, technology, third seal, Tribulation Period
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Noah’s Ark and the Rapture

Tuesday, April 27th, 2010

(April 28, 2010) Noah’s Ark may have been found according to the London Newspaper The Sun (‘Noah’s Ark’ found in Turkey) and Fox News (Has Noah’s Ark Been Found on Turkish Mountaintop?). The Fox News article reports, “A group of Chinese and Turkish evangelical explorers say wooden remains they have discovered on Mount Ararat in eastern Turkey are the remains of Noah’s Ark. The group claims that carbon dating proves the relics are 4,800 years old, meaning they date to around the same time the ark was said to be afloat. Mt. Ararat has long been suspected as the final resting place of the craft by evangelicals and literalists hoping to validate biblical stories. Yeung Wing-Cheung, from the Noah’s Ark Ministries International research team that made the discovery, said: ‘It’s not 100 percent that it is Noah’s Ark, but we think it is 99.9 percent that this is it.’” The Sun article includes video footage of the find. Christian archaeologist Dr. Randall Price, who was with this team of explorers when they made the find in 2008, considers this event to be a hoax (Statement of Dr. Randall Price on the Alleged Discovery of a Wooden Structure on Mt. Ararat). In any event, the story of Noah does have End-Times prophetic implications.

The Days of Noah

Jesus said, “30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And He shall send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. 32 Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh: 33 So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors. 34 Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled. 35 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but My words shall not pass away. 36 But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but My Father only. 37 But as the days of Noe [Noah] were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, 39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.” (Matthew 24″30-39)

How was it in the “days of Noah” ? The Book of Genesis answers this question: “5 And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6 And it repented the LORD that He had made man on the earth, and it grieved Him at His heart. 7 And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth Me that I have made them. 8 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.” (Genesis 6:5-8)

Except for Noah and his family the human race had turned from God and thought to do evil only. Because of the sinfulness of man a case could be made that every generation since Noah has thought to do evil only. Is the time we are living in any different than all the previous generations? It is interesting that five chapters later in Genesis (after a partial repopulation of the earth) an event occurred which I do believe has a modern-day parallel:

“1 And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. 2 And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there. 3 And they said one to another, Go to, let us make brick, and burn them thoroughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for morter. 4 And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth. 5 And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded. 6 And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do. 7 Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech. 8 So the LORD scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city. 9 Therefore is the name of it called Babel; because the LORD did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the LORD scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth.” (Genesis 11:1-9)

The people once again started to turn from God by trying to “make us a name” and unify apart from the will of God who said they were to fill the earth. In our day the people of the world are turning away from the God of the Bible and His Son and trying to unite as a global community. Instead of worshipping God the world wants to worship “Mother Earth”. This global desire will culminate in the cult of the Antichrist when he appears on the world stage:

“1 And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast [Antichrist] 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? 5 And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months. 6 And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven. 7 And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. 8 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 13:1-8)

For the first time in history technology has made the possibility of a global community a reality. This time however, God won’t destroy the world with water but will allow mankind under the leadership of this evil world ruler to begin the destruction themselves. God will add His judgments to the those of man and they will only cease with the second coming of Jesus Christ.

The Ark and the Rapture

There is one other parallel to the story of Noah and End-Times prophecy. Christians who believe in the Pre-Tribulation Rapture use the example of God saving Noah before His flood judgment came upon the world as prophetic type of how God will remove His followers before He judges the world in the End-Times. God called Noah, his family, and His creatures into the ark before the flood began. The wording used in Genesis is interesting:

“1 And the LORD said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before Me in this generation. 2 Of every clean beast thou shalt take to thee by sevens, the male and his female: and of beasts that are not clean by two, the male and his female. 3 Of fowls also of the air by sevens, the male and the female; to keep seed alive upon the face of all the earth…15 And they went in unto Noah into the ark, two and two of all flesh, wherein is the breath of life. 16 And they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God had commanded him: and the LORD shut him in.” (Genesis 7:1-3,15-16)

Notice that the LORD called His people and He shut them safely inside the ark. Thus, Pre-Tribulationists believe that before God begins His judgments upon the earth He will call His people to heaven with the Rapture. God seems to confirm this principle in the prophetic Book of Isaiah:

“20 Come, My people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast. 21 For, behold, the LORD cometh out of His place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain.” (Isaiah 26:20-21)

It may be that our days are like the days of Noah. If so, God’s judgment may not be far off. Only He knows exactly when it will begin.

Tags: Ark, Mount Ararat, Noah, The Rapture, Tribulation Period, Turkey
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“And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke”

Saturday, April 24th, 2010

(April 24, 2010) Today is the twentieth anniversary of the Hubble Space Telescope launch. In commemoration of that event NASA released this photo:

“Mystic Mountain”
Credit: NASA, ESA, and M. Livio and the Hubble 20th Anniversary Team (STScI)

This extraordinary display of God’s creation brings to mind a prophecy from the Book of Joel:

”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…27 And ye shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am the LORD your God, and none else: and My people shall never be ashamed. 28 And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out My Spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: 29 And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out My Spirit. 30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. 31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible day of the LORD come. 32 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call.” (Joel 2:1,30-32)

The apostle Peter applied this passage in Joel to God’s pouring out His Holy Spirit on the disciples on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-21). Although Peter’s Spirit-filled application of these verses did apply to that day it is clear from the context of the entire passage in Joel that the Day of Pentecost was only a partial fulfillment of this prophecy. Some might say that these prophetic verses which refer to the “wonders in heaven” could have spiritual connotations and therefore were fulfilled at that time. For example, Jesus declared that He saw Satan fall like lightning when the disciples preached the kingdom of God throughout Israel (Luke 17:1-18). However, God declares that there will also be signs on the earth which did not happen on Pentecost. The New Testament harmonizes with the eschatological interpretation of this passage in Joel:

”21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. 22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened. 23 Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not. 24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. 25 Behold, I have told you before. 26 Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not. 27 For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 28 For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together. 29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: 30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And He shall send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.” (Matthew 24:21-31)

“12 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; 13 And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. 14 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. 15 And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains.” (Revelation 6:12-15)

Although the glory of God can be seen in His creation as the photo above reveals, one day there will be other wonders in the heavens that will reveal the righteous judgment of God: “For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be”. (Matthew 24:21)

Tags: Jesus Christ, Matthew 24, Prophecy of Joel, Sixth Seal, Tribulation Period
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President Obama, like every other President, is wrong on Israel

Saturday, April 17th, 2010

(April 17, 2010) The New York Times reports that President Obama is initiating a “far-reaching shift in how the United States views the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and how aggressively it might push for a peace agreement.” (Obama Phrase Highlights Shift on Middle East) The article states, “Mr. Obama said conflicts like the one in the Middle East ended up “costing us significantly in terms of both blood and treasure” — drawing an explicit link between the Israeli-Palestinian strife and the safety of American soldiers as they battle Islamic extremism and terrorism in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere.” It also notes that both General Petraeus and Condoleezza Rice shared a similar position on the Middle East conflict with the Obama administration. The article does point out that Israelis themselves question the efficacy of any peace agreement with the Palestinians, “The sense of urgency in Washington comes just as many Israelis have become disillusioned with the whole idea of resolving the conflict. Mr. Netanyahu’s right-wing coalition government has long been skeptical about the benefits of a peace deal with the Palestinians. But skepticism has taken root in the Israeli public as well, particularly after Israel saw little benefit from its traumatic withdrawal from Gaza in 2005.”

The issue that stands out to me is that every U.S. administration looks for a political solution to solve this dilemma. The problem is that the basis for the Arab-Israeli conflict is not political but religious in nature. What is the truth about the Arab-Israeli conflict?

Religious Jews

The Jews’ sole claim to the land comes from the Bible where God promised them the land of Israel forever. He did help the Jews conquer the land from the Canaanites and they lived there for the next eleven centuries. The United Nations, a political organization, did authorize their return to the land but only because their biblical history claims this as their land. The modern Zionist movement and its founder Theodor Herzl suggested Madagascar, Uganda, Cyprus, or Argentina as possible future homelands for the Jews. Yet they had no significant historical connection to any of these countries. The religious Jews declared that only the biblical land of Canaan/Israel would suffice as a homeland for the Jews. In the eyes of religious Jews the legitimacy of the Jews’ claim to the land of Israel does not come from the United Nations authority but from God’s promises in the Tanakh or Old Testament.

Religious Muslims

The Muslim prophet Muhammad was born in the 6th Century A.D. The Islamic religion began with him and in the following centuries the Muslims conquered many lands including the land of Israel. They continued ruling the land of Israel (with a few exceptions) until 1948 when the modern nation of Israel was created. Since then they have battled the Israelis for control of the land. Just like the religious Jews believe God gave them the land, so too the fundamentalist Muslims believe that Allah gave them the land. There are two religious concepts in Islam that have a tremendous if not the sole impact on the Arab side of this modern conflict. They are Dar al-Harb and Dar al-Islam. I discussed these two concepts in my article Why There will never be peace in Israel until the Messiah returns:

“There are two concepts in Islam that will never allow Israel to have peace until the Messiah returns. The first is Dar al-Islam which means House of Islam or House of Submission. Its adherents are made up of Muslim extremists. Dar al-Islam refers to countries where the law of Islam prevails and an Islamic government rules. Non-Muslims may live there under subjugation. Dar al-Harb means House of War and refers to those countries that are not under Islamic rule. It also refers to those lands which were once Islamic but were conquered by non-Muslims. The lands that are not Muslim are not legitimate because they are not under the authority of Allah. In the case of Israel those Muslims who subscribe to Dar al-Harb believe that the Jews are living on land that Allah gave to Islam. Therefore it is a disgrace to Islam and can only be rectified by Israel returning to Islamic rule. The Muslims riot over cartoons depicting their prophet Muhammad because it is a dishonor to him. How much more will they fight to regain Israel since it is a dishonor to Allah. No matter how many moderate Muslims may want peace with Israel the Islamic hardliners can never allow Israel to exist. Under Dar al-Harb treaties and truces may be made but only with the goal of eventually retaking the land that once was under Islamic rule. Since Israeli soldiers swear an oath declaring “Never again” will they be brought under the power of another government, they will never stop fighting to keep Israel.”

The Political Solution

There is a belief among a lot of world leaders that if the Israelis give up enough land they can achieve peace with the Palestinians. Some of these leaders think the Israelis should withdraw to the pre-1967 borders that were politically drawn up after the 1949 armistice to end Israel’s War of Independence against the Arab armies. This means that Israel would give up the Golan Heights to Syria, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem including the Temple Mount and the Western Wall. The Jews waited more than 1800 years to return to Jerusalem. Every one of those 1800 years they ended the Passover seder with the words “Next year in Jerusalem”. In 1967 they finally realized that dream and to expect them to give it up now is ludicrous.

From the Arab point of view the return of the “occupied” territories would not suffice to meet their religious requirements. They believe Allah gave them the entire land of Israel and therefore will accept nothing less: “As long as Hezbollah exists, it will never recognise Israel.” – leader of Lebanon’s Islamist Hezbollah movement, Hassan Nasrallah March 14, 2009.” (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7943357.stm) Under Dar al-Harb they have no choice but to acquire all of the land of Israel in order to restore honor to Allah. The history of the Palestinian Authority (PA) will prove this to be the case.

The Palestinian Authority was formed after the Oslo Peace agreement of 1993. Previously it had been known as Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) which was created in 1964. Why is this of the utmost significance? Because in 1964 the Arabs occupied the West Bank, the Golan Heights, the Gaza Strip, and East Jerusalem. They didn’t lose these lands until three years later during the 1967 Six Day War. This then begs the question: “What lands were they trying to liberate in 1964?” The obvious answer is they were eventually hoping to liberate all the land of Israel from the Jews. This of course falls in line with the religious concept of Dar al-Harb.

Political leaders who try to force a peace agreement on Israel with the Palestinians by causing them to give up more land are engaging in a futile endeavor. The Israelis unilaterally withdrew from parts of Gaza in 2005. The terrorist organization Hamas moved in and began firing rockets into Israel. There is no political solution to the Arab-Israeli conflict.

The Religious Solution

There is no temporal religious solution because both the Jews and Muslims claim the land of Israel was given to them by Jehovah and Allah respectively. In 1993, on the White House lawn, both Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO leader Yasser Arafat proclaimed Jerusalem as the eternal capital of their people. I told my wife that day this meant the Oslo Peace Accord was a sham because the status of Jerusalem would not be solved by this agreement. However, at some point in the future a global leader will arise and seemingly solve the Arab-Israeli conflict in general and the Jerusalem situation in particular. How he accomplishes this feat is not entirely clear. The Bible indicates that this man will be a great orator and have some kind of supernatural powers or at least the appearance of them. He will deceive the world with a false agenda of peace and the world will follow after him. Once he reveals his true nature global chaos will ensue. The chaos will end with the second coming of Jesus and at that time He will solve the Arab-Israeli conflict by setting up His kingdom in Jerusalem and ruling the world from there. Both Arabs and Jews will then know that He is the Messiah and follow Him. Until that time though, American presidents will continue to try and force peace on Israel and they will fail.

Tags: East Jerusalem, Israel, Jerusalem, Jesus Christ, Messiah, Middle East, Palestine, President Obama
Posted in Archives 2010, Israel | No Comments »

America: “Curiouser and curiouser”

Saturday, April 10th, 2010

(April 10, 2010) A friend of mine recently forwarded an email to me titled “Budget in Wonderland” written by Bill Miller who is the Senior Vice President and National Political Director of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. The email stated, “‘Curiouser and curiouser,’ Alice exclaimed after falling into Wonderland and suddenly growing to nine feet tall. Forgive us if we feel the same way about President Obama’s latest budget proposal. Because only in Wonderland would record spending increases equal a smaller deficit. Yet that’s what the White House would have us believe. Back up the rabbit hole we go to find the truth about the budget: tax hikes and deficits as far as the eye can see.”

American Economic Policy

I know of no Federal agency that has ever decreased government spending. I believe the Healthcare legislation will severely hurt the U.S. economy over the next few years. Taxes will have to increase in order to pay for millions of uninsured citizens and non-citizens. The problem is that Healthcare is not the end of President Obama’s political agenda. He wants Congress to pass environmental legislation which will impose new financial burdens on American companies and thereby the American people (Who Pays for Cap and Trade?). He wants to follow that with Immigration reform which will further burden the average American taxpayer. I cannot see a positive economic result from any of these legislative acts. To the contrary I believe that America will dissolve into economic ruin. The Washington Post had an article on its website titled Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke sounds a warning on growing deficit which said,

“Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke warned Wednesday that Americans may have to accept higher taxes or changes in cherished entitlements such as Medicare and Social Security if the nation is to avoid staggering budget deficits that threaten to choke off economic growth. ‘These choices are difficult, and it always seems easier to put them off — until the day they cannot be put off anymore,’ Bernanke said in a speech. ‘But unless we as a nation demonstrate a strong commitment to fiscal responsibility, in the longer run we will have neither financial stability nor healthy economic growth.’”

American Defense Policy

President Obama announced a change in America’s nuclear strategic policy and signed a nuclear weapon reduction agreement with Russia. A New York Times article (Obama Limits When U.S. Would Use Nuclear Arms) states, “Discussing his approach to nuclear security the day before formally releasing his new strategy, Mr. Obama described his policy as part of a broader effort to edge the world toward making nuclear weapons obsolete, and to create incentives for countries to give up any nuclear ambitions. To set an example, the new strategy renounces the development of any new nuclear weapons, overruling the initial position of his own defense secretary. Mr. Obama’s strategy is a sharp shift from those of his predecessors and seeks to revamp the nation’s nuclear posture for a new age in which rogue states and terrorist organizations are greater threats than traditional powers like Russia and China. It eliminates much of the ambiguity that has deliberately existed in American nuclear policy since the opening days of the cold war. For the first time, the United States is explicitly committing not to use nuclear weapons against nonnuclear states that are in compliance with the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, even if they attacked the United States with biological or chemical weapons or launched a crippling cyberattack.” [Bold type mine]

It would be great if we could live in a world without wars and human tragedy but we don’t. We live in a sinful, fallen world where evil has designs on those who would seek peace. From a biblical point of view governments have a responsibility to protect their citizens from evil, “3 For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same: 4 For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil.” (Romans 13:3-4) With evil on the rise in the world any reduction in America’s deterrent capabilities may not be the wisest course of action and could invite attacks by rogue nations as the N.Y.Times article points out.

American Foreign Policy Towards Israel

Our relationship with Israel continues in a downward spiral. I noted this fact in a recent article on this blog (The Decline and Fall of America Redux and Ezekiel 38-39):

U.S.-Israeli Ties in ‘Historic’ Crisis – “Top U.S. officials have lined up in recent days to condemn the Israeli plan to build 1,600 apartments in east Jerusalem, the sector of the holy city that the Palestinians claim for their future capital. The project caused a storm in Washington because it was announced during Vice President Joe Biden’s visit to the region last week, badly embarrassing the U.S. and complicating its efforts to restart Israeli-Palestinian peacemaking. The Palestinians immediately threatened not to join upcoming U.S.-brokered talks meant to jumpstart negotiations after a 14-month breakdown…”

US envoy cancels Mideast trip, Israel feud deepens – “A U.S. envoy’s postponement of his Mideast trip appeared Tuesday to deepen one of the worst U.S.-Israeli feuds in memory – even as Israel’s foreign minister signaled his government had no intention of curtailing the contentious construction at the heart of the row…”

It appears as though America is in a transitional period in our policy towards Israel and our historical alliance with them. We seem to be turning our backs on our friends in Israel in favor of the Arab world who has tried to do damage to our nation over the last few decades through terrorism and oil manipulation.

Curiouser and curiouser

I cannot see any logic behind America’s current economic policies, defense policies, or foreign policies. It’s as though no matter how obvious the right course of action may be it seems as though America is on an express train to global and national impotence. Liz Cheney echoed my beliefs at the Southern Republican Leadership Conference last Thursday. A CBS News website article reports, “Cheney told the roughly 3,500 conservative activists and donors gathered for the conference that there are three prongs to the president’s foreign policy: ‘apologize for America, abandon our allies and appease our enemies.’ ‘The Obama administration is putting us on the path to decline,’ added Cheney, the daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney. She criticized the administration for the “shabby reception” given Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu when he visited Washington recently, which she deemed “disgraceful.” ‘President Obama is playing a reckless game if he continues down the path of diminishing the United States’ ties to Israel,’ she said, deeming the world safer when there is “no daylight” between the two countries.” (Liz Cheney: Obama Putting America on Path to Decline) [Bold type mine]

Conservative radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh said on his show last Thursday “We have his budgets. We have seen the deficit. We know the underemployment and employment numbers. We know tax increases are coming. It’s clear Obama is not serious about developing domestic energy supplies. We know that the public sector is expanding at the expense of the private sector. We know that our relationships with allies very deteriorated. We know we aren’t safer. We know the country is more divided. We know the State-Controlled Media has no intention of practicing journalism ever again. We have enough hard evidence to make sound judgments about Obama, his czars, and the regime. Either Obama hopes we fail or is unintentionally causing failure. This is not speculation. That’s fact. What isn’t known is the extent of the damage. But I’m going to make some predictions about that which are not pretty coming up soon on this program. We don’t know the exact date of our country’s future bankruptcy, but we just know that it is a certainty under Obama’s direction and the help of Democrats in Congress and the government-run media. America is being administered statist-assisted suicide.” (Obama Performs Statist-Assisted Suicide on the American Economy)

According to a recent Fox News poll the majority of Americans also think the future is bleak for the United States, “A majority of voters think life for the next generation of Americans will be worse than life today…The poll also finds that three-quarters of voters think the United States is weaker today than it was 10 years ago. Moreover, almost all consider the current economic and unemployment conditions a “crisis.” The 74 percent that thinks the country is weaker today includes sizable majorities of Democrats (61 percent), Republicans (87 percent) and independents (78 percent). Overall, far fewer voters — about one in five — believes America is stronger than a decade ago (19 percent). Democrats (31 percent) are three times more likely than Republicans and independents to feel that way.” (Fox News Poll: 57% Think Next Generation Will Be Worse Off)

It makes one wonder “Why is this happening? Curiouser and curiouser.”

I believe the answer lies in End-Times prophecy. As I stated above, Romans ch. 13 declares that God ordains governments to exist. It may be His will that America declines in order to fulfill the prophetic invasion of Israel declared by the prophet Ezekiel. Although it seems national and world events sometimes randomly spiral out of control this may not be the case with what is happening in America under the present Administration.

No matter how illogical and “curious” the decisions which America is making at this time I believe it is very possible that God’s unseen hand is ordering current events. His unseen hand caused the Roman Emperor Augustus Caesar to decree a census in order to fulfill the prophecy that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem. The world one day will be in a position to fulfill all of God’s End-Times prophecies. How soon that occurs is also in God’s hands. As I’ve told my wife many times, “I would rather be in God’s hands than anywhere else in the universe.”

Tags: decline of America, Ezekiel 38, Israel, Liz Cheney, President Obama, Rush Limbaugh
Posted in America, Archives 2010, Economic watch, Israel and Ezekiel | 1 Comment »

Even at the Doors blog

Archive for the ‘Archives 2010’ Category

Politics, Israel, and “declaring the end from the beginning”

Gog and Magog vs. Gog and Magog

President Obama pledges new “international order”

The Revived Islamic Caliphate

Whale off Israel’s coast, Jonah and End-Times animal behavior

Technology, Government Monitoring, Economic Crisis

Noah’s Ark and the Rapture

The Days of Noah

The Ark and the Rapture

“And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke”

President Obama, like every other President, is wrong on Israel

Religious Jews

Religious Muslims

The Political Solution

The Religious Solution

America: “Curiouser and curiouser”

American Economic Policy

American Foreign Policy Towards Israel

Curiouser and curiouser

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