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World News Today and How it Relates To Bible Prophecy
Sept 28/08
The Liberal Media and the 2008 Election
It’s been a long time since I wrote a "Nearing Midnight" article about the liberal media. So many troubling issues have constantly been in the news, it’s difficult to maintain a running commentary on any single one.
With the presidential election coming up in less than 35 days, now is the best time to highlight the destructive influence the press has on the political process.
Years ago, I realized the liberal media is one of Satan's most effective tools for corrupting human society. The devil uses them to form and shape public opinion. On Judgment Day, I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that Lucifer and company spent more time New York and Hollywood than in the centers of political power in Washington D.C.
Here is a list of polling data that shows the liberal nature of the people who cover world events:
90% agrees strongly with a pro-abortion position
75% believes the West harmed the Third World
57% thinks America’s use of resources is immoral
15% regards adultery as morally wrong
90% of reporters voted for Clinton
67% opposes prayer in public schools
83% agrees that homosexuals should be accepted by society
I firmly believe that the 2008 election is going to be one of the most important elections in our nation’s history. If Obama should win in November, I plan to issue the most dire warning I've ever issued during the history of this ministry.
It is infuriating to think that the liberal media has its thumb on the political scale to manipulate the balance of power. Here are some examples that show the pervasive bias one finds in the news today:
In prior elections, members of the liberal media would commonly say they are registered independents. This time around, the press is more open about its favoritism for a Democratic candidate. In January, NBC reporter Lee Cowan admitted that “it’s almost hard to remain objective” in covering Obama because of the “infectious” energy of his campaign. In March, Cowan confessed that “when NBC News first assigned me to the Barack Obama campaign, I must confess my knees quaked a bit."
Katie Couric recently did a profile of Democratic vice presidential candidate Joe Biden. Newsday dubbed him "gaffe-a-minute Joe" because he has a habit of saying things that are not true. Couric and the rest of the media let the following flub by Biden slide: “When the stock market crashed, Franklin Roosevelt got on the television and didn't just talk about the princes of greed. He said, 'Look, here's what happened.'”
For the record, FDR was not the president in 1929, and the first major television broadcast by a sitting president didn’t occur until the 1950s.
On the flip side, everything Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin says has been put under a microscope. When she became the VP nominee, 30 reporters were assigned to find dirt on her. At the same time, only two newshounds were looking into Obama’s business.
In an interview with Charles Gibson of ABC News, Palin was asked the meaning of the Bush doctrine. When she couldn't produce an answer, Gibson looked down at her like a displeased schoolmaster. The truth is, there is no single meaning of the Bush doctrine. In fact, there have been four distinct meanings, each one succeeding another over the eight years of this administration -- and the one Charlie Gibson cited is not the one in common usage today. ABC never corrected this error.
The same bias can by found with the presidential candidates. In an interview with ABC’s “This Week” host George Stephanopoulos, Obama tried to suggest that FOX News and Republicans are spreading lies about him. Asked about McCain's possible involvement, Obama said, “Let’s not play games. What I was suggesting — you’re absolutely right that John McCain has not talked about my Muslim faith. And you’re absolutely right that that has not come…”
Stephanopoulos immediately interrupted Obama, saying he meant “Christian faith.” I don’t recall a Republican ever getting such assistance from the press. When John Edwards was running as Democratic presidential candidate, the liberal media banned reports from going anywhere near the subject of his extramarital affair. It took the “tabloid” National Enquirer, not a “respectable” major media outlet, to expose the truth that Edwards had been cheating on his cancer-stricken wife. Instead, the press chose to go after McCain with thinly sourced allegations of improper sex--statements that quickly had to be retracted.
Sarah Palin's religious beliefs have attracted the interest of the press. She comes from a rock-solid Pentecostal/evangelical background, which for the godless media is as irresistible as red meat is to a starving dog. If Palin becomes the VP, I’m certain the press will continually dog her about her faith.
Liberals discovered a video of Palin receiving a prayer blessing, and because of their unfamiliarity with intercession to a higher power, they thought it was some bizarre ritual. Here is the transcript of the prayer of Pastor Thomas Moothey of the Wasilla Assemblies of God: “We are asking you as the body of Christ in this valley, make a way for Sarah even in the political arena. Make a way, my God. Bring finances her way even for the campaign in the name of Jesus, and above all give her the personnel, give her men and women that will buck her up in the name of Jesus. In the name of Jesus, every form of witchcraft is what we rebuke in the name of Jesus. Father make a way now, in the name of Jesus.”
Keith Olbermann of the very liberal MSNBC had this reaction, "This is stuff that makes you say, ‘You know, that Jeremiah Wright, he seems mainstream in comparison to people who are going out on anti-witch crusades."
What?! The Jeremiah Wright who believes that the government injected AIDS into the African-American community? The Jeremiah Wright who believes the U.S. knew about the attack of Pearl Harbor before it happened? Or that America deserved 9/11?
I would offer that Mr. Olbermann and his fellow liberals are the witches from whom Palin needs protection. Witches were condemned by the Bible because they had power over people through demonic forces. Because people fail to see them as a threat, their power grows all the stronger.
"Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places" (Ephesians 6:11-12).
This generation of passengers on Planet Earth is passing through a corridor John the apostle and prophet called “the last time” (1 John 2:18). More to the point, we are somewhere near the very end of that corridor, and signs the size of billboards are on either side of the broad way that leads the world’s inhabitants toward Armageddon. The only way to miss those gargantuan signs, for the true child of God, is to deliberately ignore them, choosing instead to focus on things of this world that perspective hides in the distant blackness.
We are, as my good friend Chuck Missler says, in the time of the signs. They are signs so dramatic, so blatant, that the whinnying and violent snorting of the four horses of the apocalypse can almost be heard as they angrily paw the earth with rage, straining to burst to full gallop, determined to carry their death-dealing riders on their missions of globe-shattering devastation.
Jesus Christ, the Creator of all things and the One who holds all of creation together (Colossians 1:16-17), gave the signs that would be most prevalent at the time just before His return to earth. These primary signals are found in three of the Gospels: Matthew 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21. We will first look at the Matthew account of the signs He gave for the final generation of human history, just before His second advent.
Sign 1: Deceivers who Claim Christ
Jesus was directly asked by His disciples: 1) When would the things Jesus prophesied be? 2) What would be the signs of His second coming? and 3) When would be the end of the world?
He gave the following answer: "...Take heed that no man deceive you, For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many” (Matt. 24:4-5).
Jesus gave “deception” as the first major sign that will alert the spiritually attuned believer that His second coming is near. Jesus, as recorded a few verses later, amplified His words on “deception” that would be manifest at the very end of the age:
”And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many” (Matt. 24:11).
The Lord begins by saying that Many will come in His name. This means, I think, that these end-times deceivers will claim to come as true believers in Jesus Christ. They will use His holy name to convince the undiscerning that the individuals making the claim are of the Church, the body of Christ. These are those who will be among the individuals Jesus condemned, as recorded in the following Scripture: “But he shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence ye are; depart from me, all [ye] workers of iniquity” (Lk. 13:27).
However, this prophecy that Jesus gave as the first sign of the very end of the age goes, I’m convinced, much deeper. These deceivers will be declaring that they, themselves, will be Christ-like, not in the sense of being a true Christian who is a Spirit-filled follower of Jesus Christ, but in the sense that they have powers and abilities like Jesus himself. They will claim to be the special conduit from God, used by the Almighty to read minds, receive special telepathic words from Him upon command, and even to raise the dead.
But, it will all be smoke and mirrors. There will not be a single validated case of any of these supposed miraculous activities direct from the portals of heaven to the mortals of Planet Earth.
The question to ask, then, while considering the time of the signs and whether we are indeed at the very end of the age as predicted by Jesus is: Do we see today any sign, any indicator, that there are such “deceivers” among us?
There have always been deceivers and those specifically claiming to be Jesus Christ. Some have been certifiable lunatics, some have been proven charlatans, and have faded into the darkness of the exposed and deposed. Today, it seems to me at least, they are announcing their Christ-like powers from the very billboards mentioned earlier–the ones lining either side of that broad way that leads to destruction during these troubling days.
We see many of them as glitzy, projected TV images calling the gullible to give their money to special programs they proclaim God has told them about, which can make the members of their audiences healthy, wealthy, and wise beyond their wildest imaginations.
These promote the outward turning message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ only in a minimal way, their messages designed to turn thoughts inward to the feel-good message that God wants them to materially prosper. Viewers are deceived, because they can see, through glazed, mesmerized eyes, that the wealth message certainly works for the rich and famous purveyors of the prosperity gospel. Their desire to obligate the God of heaven to provide overflowing wealth and health, based upon the TV magicians’ special formulas for success, make the deluded open their wallets with glee.
Paul the apostle’s prophetic words ring true for our time: “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables” (2 Tim. 4:3-4).
Others, appearing more sophisticated and high-minded, claim to have Christ within their pontificating, but are turned far from truth found in God’s Word. These ecclesiastical elitists fit the mold of false prophets/teachers found in forewarnings of Paul and Peter:
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“This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come…For men shall…[Have] a form of godliness, but [deny] the power thereof…” (2 Tim. 3:1, 5).
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“But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction” (2 Pet. 2:1).
These, though under the guise of Christian clergy, join the ecumenists who proclaim that there are many ways to God and heaven. By this heresy, they deny the Lord Jesus, who said: “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh to the father, but by me” (Jn. 14:6).
Sign 2: Wars and Rumors of Wars
The second sign of the very end of the age given by Jesus is in His declaration: “And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: See that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet” (Matt. 24:6).
"What is so different about hearing of wars and rumors of war?" one might ask. Such has been part of the human condition since history first began to be recorded. The key to what makes this profoundly different is found in Jesus' words in Matthew 24:21: “For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.”
The Lord himself said that the time of the end will be worse than any in history. This declaration, by its very nature, makes the “wars and rumors of wars” He predicts well beyond the norm. We see just how far beyond the norm they will be, as recorded in His next statement: “And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened” (Matt. 21:22).
Christ’s words indicate something of humankind-ending power. This statement follows His warning of wars and rumors of wars for the very end of the human history timeline that immediately precedes His second advent. All flesh will die if Jesus doesn’t return upon His divinely scheduled appointment time!
The question naturally emerges: Do we see any such power upon the world scene today? I, perhaps, don’t even need to go into answering that–at least not very deeply. That power to destroy all flesh has been on the scene as a major sign of where we are on God’s prophetic timeline since 1945. The first atomic bomb test at Alamogordo, New Mexico, flashed that sign across the night desert sky in a stupefying instant. Soon "Little Boy” and “Fat Man” incinerated and blew apart almost 200,000 Japanese citizens of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
The hydrogen bomb tests, coupled with intercontinental ballistic missile developments, made the whole world aware that the planet’s inhabitants could well be living on borrowed time. These weapons, yielding unfathomable power to destroy, continue to scream from the billboard of forewarning while this generation nears the denouement of the age. Weapons of such horrific magnitude must certainly be the subject of and reason for Jesus’ “wars and rumors of wars” sign being issued for the terminal generation. And this prophetic sign must, it follows because of that world-destroying weaponry being ubiquitous today, refer to our present generation of earth dwellers.
Third World powers and terrorist organizations lust after weapons of mass destruction. Potential for developing atomic weaponry is on the agenda of governments. North Korea, Iran and other nation-states race forward with nuclear programs, defying the international community as the G-8 and others try to prevent World War III.
Sign 3: Nations and Kingdoms in Distress
The most obvious category given by Jesus that we are in the time of the signs is that involving the geopolitical disposition of nations. No observer of the world scene today who believes that God has told the end from the beginning can look at the way countries are prophetically juxtaposed and not see the end times are upon this generation. Let’s look more closely at this third end-times prophecy Jesus put forth while on top of the Mount of Olives, overlooking the Jerusalem of His time while still in His flesh body: “Then said he unto them, Nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom” (Lk. 21:10).
The Lord forewarned tremendous ethnic upheaval at the time just before His second advent. We’ve looked many times at the Greek term used here, translated into the KJV as “nation.” The Greek term is ethnos, meaning “ethnic” in English. Jesus said that the end times would be marked by ethnic hatred and strife. “Kingdom” against “kingdom” can be interpreted nation-state entities or countries will be at war or about to go to war. These wars and rumors of war will present unprecedented levels of danger to the peoples that inhabit the “kingdoms,” is the implication. We have looked at why this is so. The nuclear and other threats from weaponry of mass destructive capability brings our time to this level of concern.
Jesus, when considering the Luke account of His Olivet Discourse, goes on to express this fact in expanding upon the time of the signs: “And there shall be…upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity…” (Lk. 21:25b).
Threat of calamitous destruction, should there be all-out nuclear war, is obvious.Worry about such potential catastrophe certainly fits Jesus’ prediction of end times perplexity and distress among the nations. The causes of this Armageddon-like potentiality, however, seems to be now coming into focus.
During the Cold War, there seemed little rhyme or reason why kingdom should rise against kingdom and want to destroy each other and the rest of the world with thermonuclear warfare. The unofficial doctrine termed "Mutually Assured Destruction" (MAD), in fact, kept the superpowers, with their potentially world-ending nuclear stockpiles, from doing the unthinkable–attacking each other just for the sake of empire building or stopping empire building. Again, there was no rhyme or reason–at least not enough--that convinced the leaderships of the superpowers to pull the nuclear trigger. Warfare on such a horrific scale was absolutely a no-win scenario for all concerned.
The Catalyst
Now, in this, our generation’s time of the signs, a reason to go to Armageddon-like war might just be in view. The catalyst that just might be a large part of galvanizing the nations of the world into a collective mindset that throws MAD out the window of sanity, thus bringing all into the valley of Jehoshaphat (Joel 3:2), isn’t so far fetched to contemplate.
The thirst, thus the lust, for petroleum looks more and more like a potential reason to cause all to gather at Megiddo on the plain of Jezreel. The nations in distress, with perplexity, exactly describes the industrialized nation-states of Planet Earth while they scramble to secure for themselves the black liquid gold that can fire their engines of wealth production.
While there is talk of alternative fuels, none of practical development and implementation looks to be in view for decades ahead. The oil-rich Middle East is the logical place to look first in the attempt to secure energy producing fuels. Oil in the region surrounding God’s chosen nation, Israel, is the quickest, most accessible such arena of supply.
The Nations in this Time of the Signs
The alignment of the nations pertinent to Bible prophecy, as they are presently positioned and are dynamically rearranging, are eerily similar to the configuration Jesus and the Bible prophets forecast for the time just before Christ’s return to put a stop to Armageddon, and to prevent the end of all flesh on Planet Earth.
Rosh (Russia) sits due north of Jerusalem. The nation who will produce the evil leader called “Gog,” those of us who hold to pre-trib rapture eschatology believe, struggles internally and externally to become again a superpower to rival the United States. To do this, that prophetic nation will need energy to fire the engines of its industrial base.
Iran, the area where ancient Persia largely sat, is in the throes of international turmoil while it seems inalterably determined to produce nuclear weapons. At the same time, it is allying in many ways with Russia, in keeping with the Ezekiel 38 and 39 prophecy that foretells its joining forces with Gog to attack over the mountains toward Israel. All the while its leader declares his desire is to erase all Jews from the Middle East.
Nations of the area of the ancient Roman Empire have put aside centuries of disputes and warring to form a reviving Roman Empire. The EU looks more and more to fit the prophetic Daniel 9: 26-27 template in a way that can be denied only by those who refuse to acknowledge that Bible prophecy is to be interpreted as literal.
The great dragon nation, China, is perhaps the oil-thirstiest of all of the industrial giants. The prophetic scenario is not difficult to embrace that this behemoth, which by itself could field the astonishing, prophetically stipulated 200-million-troop force, will move toward the Middle East at some point yet future.
Despite recent attempts to slow the use of petroleum a degree, this emerging industrial titan, with its one-and-a-half-billion people, looks to be developing into becoming the king of the kings of the East of Revelation 9 and 16.
Modern Israel, the greatest sign in this time of signs, is positioned almost precisely where the prophet Zechariah foretold, as recorded in Zechariah 12:1-3. Most all of the distressed, perplexed nations of the world seem focused on God’s chosen people as the key to war and peace in the Middle East, thus the key to world peace. Again, modern Israel sits at the center of the region where the planet’s greatest pools of petroleum reside beneath what the world calls the Holy Land. It is a land destined for man’s most destructive war, then to become the heart of Christ’s glorious 1,000-year kingdom.
JULY 6/2008
God’s Barometer
While we are not to know the exact time or season of Christ’s coming in the rapture,we are indeed commanded to be aware of the approach of His second coming back to earth. Jesus chided the pious Judaizers for wanting a precise sign rather than being spiritually attuned to conditions around them that proved the Messiah’s coming among them.
“The Pharisees also with the Sadducees came, and tempting desired him that he would shew them a sign from heaven. He answered and said unto them, When it is evening, ye say, It will be fair weather: for the sky is red.
And in the morning, It will be foul weather to day: for the sky is red and lowring. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?” (Matt. 16:1-3).
God’s great eschatological clock is really more like a supernatural barometer that gives prophetic weather reports. Like in the case of the earthly barometers forewarning the approach of a massive hurricane by presenting predictive atmospheric pressures, God’s prophetic barometer presents the end-times issues and events that are the signs of the times for this late Church Age era. We know the birth pang-like times by the prophesied signs that press upon this generation. We know the rapture is near because the Great Tribulation storm approaches, and Christ will call His Church to be with Him before that storm begins (John 14:1-3; Rev. 4:1).
So, What Time Is It?
The signs of the times presented at this present hour are unmistakable to the Christian who is truly faithful to the Lord’s command, “What I say unto one, I say unto all, watch” (Mark 13:37). “When you see all these things begin to come to pass, then look up and lift up your head, for your redemption draweth near" (Lk. 21:28).
We who feel it our commission to study God’s prophetic Word as our life’s work, as well as Bible prophecy students in general who study from a premillennial, pretribulation rapture position, are constantly amazed at the issues and events that are gushing upon our world today. Such a flood of turbulence was prophesied by Daniel the prophet: ”And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined” (Dan. 9:26).
What a flood we are in these days!
Seas and Waves Roaring
No matter what network or channels we look to for weather, the meteorologists and news pundits time and time again use words like “worst ever,” “record-breaking,” “unprecedented,” “unbelievable,” and other phraseology to express astonishment at the weather-related matters they report.
Record numbers of tornadoes, floods, droughts, and fires have happened in record-breaking fury. They continue to occur simultaneously in America and around the world.
Nations in Distress with Perplexities
The economies of America and the world are in disarray while petroleum in the Middle East seems to be the catalyst pushing mankind toward the prophesied showdown at Armageddon. Meanwhile, prices per gallon for gasoline and the spin-off stresses that incubate conflicts within and between nations at every level continue to rise, and appear unstoppable.
Earthquakes, Famines, Pestilence
Most every day, earthquakes of increasing magnitudes are reported from all over the globe. The U.S. is suffering temblors from every section of the nation. Loss of life in the world’s major population centers mounts quickly with each new quake and aftershocks.
The United Nations has issued reports that project food shortages on a worldwide scale. That organization calls for immediate action that, if it does not come, might mean the death of entire nations for the most destitute peoples on the planet.
Plague-like diseases threaten to inundate these most afflicted regions because of lack of nutrition and safe water sources. It’s almost as if the third rider of the apocalypse is already galloping across earth’s surface upon his black horse.
God’s Timepiece
The hour of this Age of Grace is late. The child of God spiritually attuned to Christ’s exhortation to be watchful has a sure sign in these troubling though exciting times.
Israel is that supernatural timepiece by which we can know just what time it is on God’s prophetic timeline.
The tiny Jewish state has already become the “cup of trembling,” and the “burdensome stone” predicted by Zechariah 12:1-3. Most nations of the U.N. always look to blame Israel rather than its angry, blood-vowed enemy neighbors, whose concentric religion is Islam.
The analogy has been made that Israel is God’s prophetic clock, and Jerusalem is the minute hand. It is not much of a stretch to believe that the second hand of that prophetic clock might be the current Mid-East peace process.
Daniel’s end-of-days foretelling about a peace covenant that will be confirmed by the world’s last and most wicked tyrant, Antichrist, might well now be in view. The “Prince that shall come” who will confirm the seven-year peace covenant will set in motion the last seven years of human history immediately preceding the second advent of Jesus Christ. (Read Daniel 9:26-27.) Jesus said the following about that time: “For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be” (Matt. 24:21).
The “Roadmap to Peace” is on the table in the Middle East process of searching for how to avoid nuclear Armageddon. Few, even among Christianity, understand the profound importance of this fact. The second hand of God’s prophetic clock is ticking.
What Time Is It?
It looks to be the closing seconds of this Church Age. The rapture can strike like a thief in the night with the next click of that second hand.
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May 1st, 2008
Not-So-Distant Hoofbeats
One doesn’t have to listen too hard to hear the distant hoofbeats if attuned to issues and events of our time in a biblically prophetic way. The horsemen of apocalypse outlined in Revelation chapter 6 are mounted. The world can’t yet see them upon looking across terrain littered with the hills and valleys of everyday life. But the spiritual ear can hear them rumbling beyond the immediacy of these quickly waning days of the age.
The first horseman is riding forward and will be in position to dismount and take over the reins of world government sometime after the disappearance of those who are living at the time of rapture. He will step from his white steed of prestige and promise to sign the covenant of peace that apparently will already be in place. Israel will believe this “prince that shall come,” and sign on to the covenant with the thought that now there will be peace and safety.
The rider on the second horse canters not far behind the self-aggrandizing prince on the first. This rider, on his red horse, will await his time for only a brief moment. Already, he makes noisome saber-rattling that tells us he and his war horse are chomping at the bits to inflict violence upon the earth like that which was present in Noah’s day, during the antediluvian era leading up to the worldwide flood.
Behind the second rider is a skeletal rider beneath a black hood, his fleshless grin foreshadowing his plans for the inhabitants of Planet Earth. The black horse of famine snorts its determination to carry his balances-and-scales-wielding rider to his destination. That destination is the last seven years of human history leading up to the second advent of Jesus Christ. The rider is called famine; his intention is to destroy through starvation.
The not-so-distant hoofbeats are heard coming at this generation as an agglomerate rumble of portentous news. We will try to isolate one particular set of thundering, pounding hooves--that of this third rider. Actually, this horse of the apocalypse has within the last few weeks been rather easy to detect. Some of us who watch and analyze issues and events we think might have prophetic relevance have for years believed that petroleum–particularly oil in the Middle East—might be the catalyst that will bring the world powers to conflict at Armageddon. God himself has said He would put hooks in the jaws of one leader to draw him into the Middle East. He will then, prophecy tells us, bring all nations into the region for the final battle of man’s most horrendous war: “I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land” (Joel 3:2).
Petroleum is in the news as never before, as we know. The price per barrel has topped anything even the most pessimistic economists might have projected. The gas pump prices reflect the price-per-barrel rises in America, with more than $4 per gallon not far distant as the national average. Some are predicting much worse.
Within the past weeks, the skyrocketing oil prices have brought home the troubling reality that is already affecting the most basic need of man: food supply. Regions of the world such as the Sudan, Ethiopia, and many others have long since heard the rider of the third horse of apocalypse approaching. But, the most blessed nation on earth--in terms of material goods, which includes hosting the breadbasket of the world—can, without listening too carefully, here the black horse’s hoofbeats. The beast that will carry its deadly rider of starvation, it seems, has broken from its cantering gait into a gallop.
The stories of the petroleum-based food problems are anywhere one cares to look. An example involves some quite familiar names that have contributed to America’s lifestyle of relative luxury, compared to the rest of the world: “Top retailer Wal-Mart's Sam's Club unit said Wednesday it is limiting the amount of rice individual shoppers could buy at one time, as rice prices hit new records around the world” ("Wal-Mart unit limits rice purchases," Breitbart.tv, April 23, 2008).
Wal-Mart sources assured that other commodities were “currently” in no danger of being affected. Despite the attempt at reassurance, this is a most profound matter. Only in war time has food been rationed to any extent. Rumbling from the hooves of the black horse of apocalypse might be detectable in the following:
The U.N. chief warned Sunday that the world must urgently increase food production to ease skyrocketing prices and pledged to set up a task force on a crisis threatening to destabilize developing nations. The cost of food has increased by around 40 percent since mid-2007 worldwide, and the strain has caused riots and protests in countries like Cameroon, Burkina Faso, Haiti and Egypt. "We must make no mistake, the problem is big. If we offer the right aid, the solutions will come," U.N. Secretary-General Ban K-Moon said at the opening of a five-day U.N. conference on trade and development in Ghana's capital, Accra. "One thing is certain, the world has consumed more than it has produced over the last three years," he said. Ban blamed a host of causes for the soaring cost of food, including rising oil prices, the fall of the U.S. dollar and natural disasters ("U.N. chief warns world must urgently increase food production," www.news.yahoo.com, April 25, 2008).
May 1st, 2008
The secretary general mentioned, but didn’t dwell specifically upon, the rise in oil prices, but blamed, in large part, the dollar’s falling value. Make no mistake, however, that devaluation is linked inextricably to oil in the Middle East.
The black horse and its rider with the balances and scales in his hand will one day be at full gallop upon an incorrigibly wicked world of earth dwellers. From the tide of events inundating the news today, that time cannot be far distant.
Washington, D.C., January 8, 2007) -- Politically, Americans are focused today on the New Hampshire primaries. But geopolitically, the eyes of the nations are fixed on Israel and her neighbors, the epicenter of the momentous events that are shaking our world and shaping our future.
President Bush leaves today for Israel and the West Bank where he will spend two days meeting with Prime Minister Olmert and President Mahmoud Abbas. He will then fly to Sharm el-Sheik, Egypt for meetings with President Hosni Mubarak. From there, he heads to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Kuwait. I suspect he will also make an unannounced visit to Baghdad.
The trip comes at an important time for the Bush administration. On the positive side, violence in Iraq has plummeted dramatically in the wake of the U.S. military "surge." Violence in Israel is at a seven-year low. Lebanon has not imploded, as has been feared for much of the past year. Syria has not retaliated against Israel for the fall airstrike that took out a North Korean nuclear facility under construction. Severe internal divisions are surfacing within Iran's government, and there are fresh reports that President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad may be losing favor with the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
That said, the big question is: What will 2008 hold?
The recently-released National Intelligence Estimate on Iran notwithstanding, top Israeli officials I have spoken with are convinced Iran most certainly is pursuing a nuclear weapons program, and could have a workable device by 2010. President Bush is saying publicly that he is convinced Iran remains a serious threat to U.S. and allied interests in the Middle East, and that a nuclear-armed Iran could lead to another Holocaust.
"If I were an Israeli, I would take the words of the Iranian president seriously, and as President of the United States I take them seriously," Bush said yesterday during an interview on Israeli army radio. He also vowed to defend Israel if Iran were to attack the Jewish state.
In one of the most dangeorus provocations by the Iranian regime of late, "five armed Iranian speedboats approached three United States Navy warships in international waters in the strategic Strait of Hormuz on Sunday, then maneuvered aggressively as radio threats were issued that the American ships would be blown up," reported the New York Times. "The confrontation, which ended after just under 30 minutes without damage, shots fired or any injuries, took place during daylight on Sunday as the three American ships were entering the Persian Gulf....Defense Department and military officials said that as the Iranian boats neared the American vessels, a radio threat was issued that the American ships would explode. The verbal warnings broadcast over the internationally recognized bridge-to-bridge radio channel said, 'I am coming at you, and you will explode in a few minutes,; an American official said."
Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin has clearly chosen to ally himself with the radicals of the region, notably Iran, Syria and Sudan, and is selling these and other regimes billions of dollars worth of advanced weapons systems. And, of course, the 60th anniversary of Israel is coming May 14th, raising the possibility that Islamic jihadists and/or their state sponsors may be planning new attacks for this year.
Given that Psalm 122:6 instructs us to "pray for the peace of Jerusalem," let us pray faithfully that President Bush's peace mission to the region is fruitful and effective. Let's pray that he is able to strengthen the resolve of the Reformers in the epicenter to become even more unified in fighting the Radicals. Let's pray that he is able to encourage the Israeli people who feel very much alone in a dangerous neighborhood right now. Let's pray that moderate forces within the Palestinian society feel strengthened to find a peaceful coexistence with the Israelis and have the courage to oppose the Hamas extremists. Let's pray for Christians in the region to be strong and courageous amidst intense persecution (seven churches and Christian sites were attacked in Iraq over the weekend) and to find practical ways to show the love of Jesus Christ to their neighbors and their enemies. Let's also pray for the President Bush's safety, as jihadists would love to make him the next Benazir Bhutto.
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Sept. 12/2007
An unnamed senior Palestinian official has told Israel Radio that Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas have drafted a statement of principles ahead of the November Middle East peace summit to be hosted by the US.
Although both governments deny any document has been signed sources say it is on a fast track to being approved. The Israeli government had this to say in response to the report. "No agreement or draft has been written, and when one will exist it would be brought to the government for approval." http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1189411387834
The denials of the existence of a document of this magnitude is standard procedure and probably won't be fully disclosed until after the November peace summit. But in an exclusive by Ma'an News Agency, they claim they have received a copy of the statement of principles written in Hebrew. The following is an exact translation of the 1 page document:
"The Israeli leadership and the PLO leadership must immediately get involved in an operation which once completed will lead to the establishment of two states – Israel and Palestine. Relying on a basic declaration of principles and understandings as follows:
1. Israel to end its occupation of the West Bank within an greed period of time. Gradual withdrawal and evacuation of Israeli settlements. Each evacuated area will be turned over to the Palestinian Authority where law and order will prevail. And law and order will be established in Gaza as part of the process which will enable Israel to see the West Bank and the Gaza Strip as one political entity.
2. An unarmed Palestinian state within the 1967 borders. The specific details of the borders will be determined according to security needs, demographic developments and humanitarian requirements. This will pave the way for an equal territorial exchange. Israel will keep some settlement blocs and maintain geographic contiguity in Palestine and horizons for economic prosperity.
3. There will be two capitals in Jerusalem, one for Israel and one for Palestine. The Israeli neighbourhoods will be under Israeli sovereignty and the Arab neighbourhoods under Palestinian sovereignty. There will be cooperation between both authorities which will allow for better administration of people's lives.
4. Special arrangements will be prepared to secure access to Holy places for all religions. A special administrative authority will be established to organise access of both people to Holy places in the Old City of Jerusalem.
5. Palestine to be declared a national homeland for the Palestinian people and Israel to be declared a national homeland for the Jewish people.
6. A just solution to be agreed on for the problem of the Palestinian refugees with recognition of their suffering and understanding of their individual right within the framework of a comprehensive solution.
7. Both sides to declare the end of conflict and endeavour to gain public support as much as possible and both sides to do their best to cooperate against any aspect of terrorism and violence from either of the two states against the other.
8. Both sides to consider this agreement as being in accordance with the principles of the peace initiative proposed by the Arab League. Both will call the Arab League to positive steps towards full implementation of that initiative. They will also call on the international community and the International Quartet to intervene and provide aid in different ways to push the agreement forward.
This agreement which is based on the 8 principles must be reached before the US-sponsored autumn peace summit. It will then be proposed and documented as international resolutions, the statement read.
Immediately after the international summit and simultaneously with ongoing negotiations to reach a detailed agreement, Israel will start to withdraw its forces and evacuate settlements from territories in the West Bank. Completion of the stages of evacuation will be done in tandem with the completion of the negotiations, the statement added.
However, the PLO's chief negotiator, Saeb Erekat denied that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert have drafted any agreement on final settlement issues. He said that the appointed teams of both sides are to draft the agreement. http://www.maannews.net/en/index.php?opr=ShowDetails&ID=25282
Certainly, this could be the seven-year agreement the Bible has prophesied for thousands of years (Daniel 9:27). But it could also be the pre-agreement that brings down the Russian-Islamic alliance prophesied in Ezekiel 38:1-23 & 39:1-12. If you remember, Ezekiel writes, just before the attack, Israel would be living under peace and safety (Ezekiel 38:8-14) in their own land. So far, that day (peace & safety) has not come to Israel, but if all goes as planned, following the summit, that day may arrive.
Theory #1: Even though this agreement may have a seven-year (?) timeline attached to it, it will be cut short by the invading armies of the North. And as Iranian President Ahmadinejad unknowingly prophesied they will come upon Israel as a great storm (Ezekiel 38: 9), but will be miraculously defeated by God Almighty.
Following this great war and defeat, a leader out of the European Union will come on the scene and bring peace to the Middle East confirming the peace plan the Israelis and the Arab nations started (Daniel 9:27). Included in this agreement will likely be a guarantee of Israel's security and may even allow for them to become full members of the EU. But halfway through the seven-year plan he (antichrist) to will betray Israel.
Theory #2: Israel and the Palestinian Authority go to the November peace summit, and either on that day or sometime in the near future, agree to a Middle East peace plan. A leader out of the European Union will be given credit for making peace a reality.
The plan will call for Israel and the Palestinian Authority to accomplish all written articles within the seven-year timeframe of the agreement.
Within one year, Russia and host of Islamic nations will break the peace and attack Israel. But as the Bible predicted over 2000 years ago ( Ezekiel 38 & 39) these invading armies will be soundly and miraculously defeated.
Following this great defeat, the antichrist will restore calm to the Middle East and reassure Israel of his future protection. World peace will prevail for another 2-3 years, but at the halfway point of the peace agreement, the antichrist will betray Israel and declare himself to be God.
Both Theories Sound Identical
You may say, both theories seem to sound the same. They do seem to be the same but with these differences. In theory #1 the original agreement will be signed without the involvement of the antichrist. He will not get involved until after the Russian-Islamic alliance attacks Israel. But following the war, he will restore calm to the Middle East and guarantee Israel's safety from that point on. He will confirm the peace treaty that the Islamic nations made with Israel and from that time on will begin the seven-year tribulation period.
In theory #2 the antichrist is involved throughout the Middle East peace process and will be given credit for making it a reality. But, shortly into the agreement, the Russian-Islamic alliance will attack Israel. Following the defeat of Russian-Islamic alliance the antichrist will restore calm but no new agreement will be made. He will, however, take measures that will assure the world that the Middle East peace agreement is still in tact and unaffected. Miraculously, Middle East peace will go forward for another 2-3 years until the antichrist breaks it himself.
Truthfully, whether either of these theories play out as scripted would be a miracle, but at least this will give you a guide as to what the future could hold.
Either way, Jesus is coming soon and Bible prophecy will be fulfilled.
Are you ready to meet the Lord? If not, your time is running out!
Terry Malone
August 1st, 2007
Oil and Bible Prophecy
Oil prices are nearing all-time highs. The news of faster-than-expected economic growth had light, sweet crude for September trading at $77.02 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The price was a penny shy of the highest-ever settlement price for a front-month contract that was set July 14, 2006. As troubling as the short-term price of oil has become, the long-term price looks far more menacing.
Jeffrey Currie, a London-based commodity analyst, says $95 crude is likely this year unless OPEC unexpectedly increases production, and declining inventories are raising the chances for $100 oil. Jeff Rubin at CIBC World Markets predicts $100 a barrel as soon as next year.
``We're only a headline of significance away from $100 oil,'' said John Kilduff, an analyst in the New York office of futures broker Man Financial Inc. ``The unrelenting pressure of increased demand has left the market a coiled spring.'' "New disruptions of Nigerian or Iraqi supplies, or any military strike against Iran , might trigger the rise," said Kilduff.
Oil prices could triple in three months to more than $200 a barrel, given the right circumstances, according to Matthew Simmons, chairman of Simmons & Co., a Houston investment bank.
We are a long way from 1998-1999 price crash when oil briefly fell below $10 a barrel. It seems hard to imagine that crude is now up 8 fold. In just the past 6 months, this precious commodity has risen 51 percent.
The key reason for the dire predictions is the simple fact that demand is up a million barrels a day. The demand increase is being led by the booming economies of India and China , which means more cars and trucks and more factories that burn oil and gas.
Another area that is putting upward pressure on oil prices is the decline in production on the part of major oil companies. The supply of oil is down by a million barrels a day. Most of the major oil firms reported their earnings last week, and every one of them reported a decline in their ability to bring oil to market:
British Petroleum said oil and gas output fell 5.3 percent to 3.804 million barrels per day in the second quarter of 2007 compared with a year earlier.
Exxon Mobil said the company's production dipped 1 percent on an oil equivalent basis. It saw the most weakness in fields that produce natural gas.
ConocoPhillips' daily production for the quarter averaged 1.9 million barrels of oil equivalent per day, down from 2.1 million barrels a day in the year-ago period. The company attributed the decrease to normal field declines, planned maintenance in the North Sea and its exit from Dubai , among other factors.
Occidental Petroleum Corp. said in its latest report the daily oil and natural gas production averaged the equivalent of 583,000 barrels of crude a day during the quarter, down from 609,000 a year ago.
Royal Dutch Shell - Production slipped 2% to 3.18 million barrels of oil equivalent, hurt as violence in Nigeria has halted onshore production, and the country has moved to restrict offshore output to meet OPEC targets. Due to what Shell calls the "security situation," 195,000 barrels of oil a day were shut in.
Venezuela's national oil company -- a major supplier of fuel to the United States -- has seen oil production fall to 2.37 million barrels a day, down from 2.6 million barrels a day a year ago.
Bible prophecy makes no direct mention of oil, but I strongly believe it will be a major catalyst for several key end-time events. Any type of oil shock will draw the world’s focus towards the Middle East.
In the coming days, we may see the oil shock forecasted by all these commodity analysts. Israel is facing a series of conflicts with several of her Arab neighbors, and any type of war-related disruption of oil will send prices soaring.
The Antichrist's primary role in the final peace agreement may have a more practical purpose. Instead of seeking after the Noble Peace Prize as some prophecy writers have predicted, the real reason for his involvement may be to simply create a stable environment for the flow of oil.
-- Todd Strandberg, Rapture Ready
July 11, 2007
Israeli sources are saying that the meeting with the Arab League delegation scheduled for tomorrow has been postponed until later this month.
On occasion, I will go to the website of prophecy expert Jimmy DeYoung (Prophecy Today). Like myself, from time to time, he will write commentaries regarding the end times. Yesterday, he wrote a commentary on Middle East peace envoy Tony Blair and the ten EU nations request that he put the pressure on Israel to make further concessions. I have to admit, he really pointed out some things that I completely missed. Certainly, this could be a coincidence or a random observation, but at the least, it's very interesting. Below is his analysis of the news headline in question:
"A call by ten EU FMs for progress in the road map peace plan looks like a page right out of Bible prophecy for the Last Days.
Tony Blair is on the job in Jerusalem as the new Middle East peace envoy for the Quartet and what looks like his first order of business as directed by the ten member-sates of the EU is to put together an international peace conference to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The road map to peace proposal offered by the Quartet in the year 2000 has gone nowhere. It is right now dead in the water. Tony Blair's new assignment with the Quartet and his instructions to make something happen to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict follows the script exactly of that scenario for the Last Days that can be found in Bible prophecy.
Daniel 7 records the prophetic scenario that will come to pass at the Time of the End. There will be a revived Roman Empire, i.e. the EU, that will direct a world leader, i.e. the Antichrist, to establish peace, howbeit a short-lived peace during the seven year Tribulation Period, Daniel 9:27.
The ten EU member-states and the new peace envoy working for peace between the Israelis and their enemies in the Middle East is indeed evidence that Bible prophecy will be fulfilled." http://jimmydeyoung.gospelcom.net/pp/news/
The connection between the ten EU nations calling for Tony Blair to step up the pressure in his peace efforts is quite remarkable. Whether or not it has any validity remains to be seen.
Certainly, any time a prophetic number of this magnitude surfaces in connection with the EU we tend to run with it. I would definitely keep my eyes on how this situation develops.
An IDF assessment has estimated that Iran will be able to produce nuclear weapons within six months. NATO in turn has told Israel if that's the case they are on their own. The assessment also revealed that the withdrawal from Lebanon (2000) and Gaza (2005) did not promote peace but exactly strengthened terrorist belief that Israel could be destroyed within this generation. What a surprise!
Minister of Strategic Affairs Avigdor Lieberman, who has been commissioned specifically to deal with the Iranian threat, says that after meeting with NATO officials he is convinced that Israel will not be able to depend on the international community to deal with Iran.
“Israel should prevent the threat, herself, and should not expect support of other countries,” Lieberman reported as the conclusions reached at the meeting. “NATO is stuck in Afghanistan and European and American troops are wallowing in the Iraqi quagmire, which is something that is going to prevent the leaders of countries in Europe and America from deciding on the use of force to destroy Iran's nuclear facilities,” he said.
"Winds of Chamberlain are blowing in Europe," Lieberman told Army Radio, referring to that leader’s conciliatory policy toward the Nazis in WWII. "When I hear from a respected prime minister like [Italian Prime Minister] Romano Prodi that Israel should agree to a peaceful Iranian nuclear program, it seems like something surreal. The political situation is such that they are trying to turn this into our problem alone." http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/123037
This is nothing new. For years I have been saying that in the end the whole world including the US would abandon Israel in their time of need. I highly question whether the US will ever bomb Iranian nuclear facilities no matter how many carriers they station off their coast. You can bet when the Russian-Arab Alliance comes calling they will be on their own just as the Bible has predicted (Ezekiel 38 & 39).
Is this the last generation? The terrorists seem to think it is in their assessment of the destruction of Israel.
As things continue to come together I can see Bible prophecy being fulfilled very soon.
Are you ready to meet the Lord? If not, your time is running out!
June 4
The Arms Race Round II
There are growing signs that the Cold War arms race between Russia and the U.S. is back on. Russia generated headlines last week when it successfully tested a new ballistic missile capable of carrying multiple nuclear warheads and a new cruise missile. The world media was suddenly asking the question, "Is this a new arms race?"
Russian President Vladimir Putin compounded worries when he launched a series of scathing attacks on the West, accusing Washington of imperialism and of starting a new arms race. Putin said, "There is no need to fear Russia's actions: They are not aggressive. Our partners are stuffing eastern Europe with new weapons," he said. "What are we supposed to do? We cannot just observe all this."
Putin must have been in a particularly grumpy mood. He ended the week by threatening to target Europe with missiles, potentially including nuclear weapons. In an interview with the Globe and Mail, Putin went deeper into his Cold War talk, saying, "It is obvious that if part of the strategic nuclear potential of the United States is located in Europe, and according to our military experts will be threatening us, we will have to respond," he said. "What kind of steps are we going to take in response? Of course, we are going to get new targets in Europe," added the Russian President.
The "new weapons" that have Moscow so alarmed is a plan by the U.S. to deploy elements of its global missile defense system in Poland and the Czech Republic. Washington says it wants to avert attacks from "rogue states," but Russia sees a threat to its own security.
In the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, the U.S. became very concerned about the growing possibility of missiles being able to reach Europe and on our own soil. In the near future, several nations will have multi-stage rockets that can cross vast distances.
Iran has a very active missile program. Its Shahab-3 was the first intermediate-range ballistic missile that was built by Iran's military. Its first model, also known as Shahab-3A, has a range of 1300km. The Shahab-3B has a range of 2000km, and can carry a heavier warhead. The soon coming Shahab-3D will have a range of 2200km. In a few years, the Shahab is projected to have a range of 4000 km. This type of reach would allow Iran to target any city in Europe.
China is another good example of a nation that is steadily modernizing its ballistic missile arsenal. Although limited in number and capability, China's ballistic missiles are being improved in a several of key ways, making them a growing threat to the United States. The newly developed DF-31 is capable of targeting the west coast of the U.S. Its longer-range follow-on, the DF-31A, once deployed, may be able to reach most of North America.
As much as we would like to make the world safe from a missile attack, I don't think there is any realistic hope of ever developing a workable system. Russia recently proved that it can defeat a missile shield by designing a missile with the "ability of wide maneuver." America's current technology is based only on hitting missiles that maintain a steady flight path. If you add the factor of dummy warheads, you end up with a defense plan that simply won't work.
Despite Russia and the U.S. having stated in a number of treaties that they wish to reduce global conflict, both nations have been in the business of arming the world. Money has long been the chauffeur driving the arms race. Russia is in the arms trade because it desperately needs to bring in foreign credit. America's interest in selling arms is about big defense companies being able to turn a profit.
Russia has sold S-300 missiles to Iran. According to defense intelligence officials, joint Russian crews are manning two S-300 units just outside of Tehran and Iranian Army soldiers are now undergoing operational training on the advanced missile system in Moscow. The Russians have also been helping Iran build its nuclear program.
The US has sold a package of F-16s to Pakistan. At the same time, in order not to alienate India, it provided that country with “the next generation of sophisticated, multirole combat aircraft, including upgraded F-16 and F-18 warplanes, as well as develop broader cooperation in military command and control, early detection, and missile defense systems.” Being that Pakistan and India are traditional foes, it's an arms merchant's dream to be able to arm both sides of a conflict.
Pride is another factor driving the arms race. Third-world nations want to gain international fame by joining the nuclear club. Russia has long been no more than a large third-world nation with an economy the size of Italy. Besides maybe having a good Olympic team and being the largest nation by land mass, Russia doesn't much else going for it. The need to stand out and be noticed is one explanation for why Putin has been thumping his chest.
In recent years, Russia has been feeling very insecure from its inability to keep up with America's growing military resources. In February, Mr. Putin suffered a huge personal embarrassment when he took part in military exercise that was intended to show the West that Russia is still a major power. Putin was smartly attired in his Naval uniform on the deck of a submarine. He was there to watch the launch of three missiles from a nearby submarine. To the embarrassment of him and the Russian General Staff, two of the sub-launched missiles never left their launch tubes. A third ICBM veered off course after 98 seconds of flight and self-destructed.
The return of the arms race has "prophecy" written all over it. The military hardware being developed today will eventually find its way onto the field of battle in the Middle East. The desire to become a major player on the world stage could be the reason Russia leads the Gog invasion against Israel.
"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? 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: 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 38:14-18).
by Todd Strandberg, Rapture Ready.Com
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by Michael G. Mickey
(3-2-07)
Is it just me or is there a dark cloud forming over Damascus, Syria?
Isaiah 17:1: The burden of Damascus. Behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap.
Damascus is considered by most historians to be the longest continuously-inhabited city on the planet earth, but will it remain so? As we look at Isaiah's prophecy above, the news of today doesn't bode well that it will.
On February 19, Haaretz reported that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Iran and Syria would "form an alliance against what they referred to as U.S. and Israeli conspiracies against the Islamic world."
The Jerusalem Post reported recently that Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert instructed the IDF to prepare for war with Syria.
The Jerusalem Post is reporting that Syria has spent the past few months constructing and moving infrastructure to its southern border that could be used to launch a war against Israel.
Haaretz is reporting that "Syrian armed forces are being strengthened in an unprecedented way in recent memory with the help of generous funding from Iran." Not only that, the Haaretz report indicates "there has been a redeployment of forces along the front lines. It appears that the Syrians have moved forces closer to the border with Israel on the Golan Heights."
Top Palestinian intelligence officials are indicating that Israel this week conducted military training exercises in a Palestinian city for a possible war scenario against Syria or Iran, according to WorldNetDaily.com.
And now the clincher, which could demonstrate how Isaiah 17:1's fulfillment could be in the wings - a dark cloud of judgment forming over Damascus. Israel National News is reporting the following (emphasis mine):
Israeli security officials said if any war breaks out involving Iran, they expect Syria, Hizbullah and terrorist groups in Judea, Samaria and Gaza to join the fray and attack Israel. This assumption is echoed by terrorist leaders from several groups.
The security officials told WorldNetDaily.com that the greatest threat Syria poses to the Jewish state are the country's missiles. They noted that Syria recently test-fired two Scud-D surface-to-surface missiles, which have a range of about 400 km., covering most Israeli territory. The officials said the Syrian missile test was coordinated with Iran and is believed to have been successful. It is not known with what type of warhead the missiles were armed, but Syria is known to possess weapons of mass destruction.
All it is going to take, in a Syria-Israel war footing, is for Syria to roll out ONE WMD missile and fire it at Israel! Just one!
Guess what comes next in that scenario? Quite possibly, the fulfillment of Isaiah 17:1.
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January 19, 2007
How Vexed Are You?
A friend e-mailed the other day with a statement I found quite interesting. The
