Regional MidEast War Appears Imminent

09 October 2012 (also UPDATED): It now seems obvious that due to the deteriorating military situation in Syria the Iranian mullahs, string-pullers for the puppet government of Bashar al-Assad, have decided to engage Israel in war through their HAMAS proxy in the Gaza Strip. This grossly ill-advised military action may have consequences far beyond anything the Ayatollah or his equally apocalyptic sock puppet have envisioned and without the mythical al-Mahdi to come riding to their eschatological rescue.

A cross-border artillery war between NATO ally Turkey and Syria is nearly a week old and a seventh day of rest looking highly unlikely and having the potential to lead to a ground war in northern Syria, the Iranians and their forward-deployed allies of Hezbollah this week upped the ante and launched a drone aircraft on a photographic reconnaissance mission over the Negev whose apparent strategic target was the nuclear facility at Dimona.  The Israeli Air Force tracked the drone for the better part of a half-hour before directing F-16 fighters to shoot it down in the area of the Yatir Forest on the southern slopes of Mount. Hebron.

The failure of the Iranian reconnaissance mission resulted in orders to HAMAS and Islamic Jihad in Gaza to launch a massive rocket barrage into Israel in the midst of the Simchat Torah holiday (7-9 October 2012). Israel's response according to multiple Israeli news reports is that a large scale invasion of Gaza by the IDF is imminent. The Iranian drone utilized for this mission was the recently unveiled Shahed-129, itself a close copy of the Israeli-made Elbit Hermes-450 UAV. The speed with which Iran transferred the Shahed-129 into an operational role out of Lebanon is remarkable. It's only a matter of time before another new and more lethal Iranian drone targets Israel. That vehicle is the Unmanned Combat Air Vehicle (UCAV) known as the Karrar ("Striker") which is powered by a subsonic turbojet engine. This vehicle bears an uncanny resemblance to the Nazi V-1 "buzz bomb" of WWII. The resemblance does not end there as its mission appears to be identical. A fully armed Karrar UCAV launched from a point north of the Litani River in Lebanon has the speed and range to strike Dimona approximately 45 minutes later. Israel will have no choice but to destroy the Karrar UCAV in mid-flight over populated areas.

The failed Iranian reconnaissance of Dimona also appears, via breaking news this morning, to have been an element in fast-tracking a joint US-Israeli series of strategic strikes on Iranian nuclear enrichment facilities. While these strikes might last from just hours to a couple of days, there is no media mention at this point of the inevitable retaliation which could certainly range from Iranian missile strikes against US bases throughout the region to Syrian or Hezbollah missiles and their WMD warheads falling on Israel. The new deployment in the past day or so of Patriot PAC-3 air defense batteries in northern Israel are not intended to shoot down little UAVs coming out of Lebanon. These systems are to defend Israel against missiles from Hezbollah and/or Syria.

UPDATE 10 October 2012: What remains uncertain at this point is whether a US-Israeli precision joint strike on an Iranian nuclear target is related to the Obama re-election campaign or an effort to buy-off a unilateral Israeli strike prior to November 6th.  Nevertheless, Israeli media continue to report on the possibility of a US-led "surgical strike" prior to November 6th citing sources close to the Pentagon and the White House. Two such articles appear in YnetNews.com today here and here.  The assessment regarding the second window of low observability for a unilateral Israeli strike put forward here in late August remains plausible. If the US leads the strike any day between October 15th and 30th would also be plausible. In fact, a long-postponed "exercise" named "Austere Challenge" (AC12) will commence on October 21st with large numbers of US troops arriving in Israel beginning this Sunday, October 14th.

UPDATE 17 October 2012: An accurate count of the number of terrorist rockets and missiles being fired into southern Israel from Gaza in just the past week is difficult to know, but a good estimate would be between 75 and 100. At least seven were fired in a barrage aimed at Sderot in the past 12 hours. IDF soldiers returned fire with reports from inside Gaza revealing that their fire was accurate. The IAF was also in action with attack helicopters targeting missile launch sites in northern Gaza.

Multiple reports indicate that American  air power is prepping a strike for somewhere in the Middle East; the exact point of attack is unknown but could occur anywhere from Libya to Iran.

In Syria, the Free Syrian Army (FSA) has captured (and killed) members of Hezbollah from the region of Baalbek. According the Lebanese media the FSA has issued an ultimatum that they will expand the war into Hezbollah strong holds in Lebanon, including southern Beirut, unless Hezbollah's forces immediately withdraw from Syrian territory. The FSA ultimatum to Hezbollah includes a direct threat of assassination to Hassan Nasrallah.

UPDATE 22 October 2012: The assassination of Lebanese Brigadier General Wissam al-Hasan, a Sunni intelligence and security chief, by the apocalyptic Shi'a of Hezbollah on Friday, 19 October further pushes Lebanon to the precipice of renewed civil war that has been raging in Syria for months. A Sunni retaliation, possibly against Hassan Nasrallah (as noted above) or one of his key lieutenants is a virtual certainty.

That this assassination occurred just as a large US-Israeli exercise was beginning was probably no accident. At the minimum it provides the exercise with a real-time, real-world vignette to include among the nodes of the exercise's preplanned aspects, along with the active low-intensity conflict occurring in southern Israel, Gaza and along the Sinai frontier with Egypt. At the maximum current events are a boon to Israeli war planners on what the tactical map of a multi-front war will look like and how Israel can shape that map to its strategic benefit.

UPDATE 23 October 2012: Two weeks after the first OSINT mention of  "a joint US-Israeli series of strategic strikes on Iranian nuclear enrichment facilities" mentioned in the fourth paragraph above, it is still the hot scuttlebutt among US military forces in the Middle East and elsewhere. Something, no one is really sure what, is in progress towards an execute order. This observation is based upon various service members in the region, and who are not necessarily involved in the executable, are seeing indications and warnings (I&W) of its existence.

UPDATE 25 October 2012: As the update directly above was being posted to Eschatology Today the Yarmouk weapons factory just south of Khartoum, Sudan (see Eschatology Today reference: Kuwsh) was in flames and spewing exploding live ordnance over a nearby residential area. The weapons factory had just been struck, most probably by stealthy Israeli F-16I Sufa aircraft. Eyewitnesses to the attack have perfectly described F-16I strike aircraft in a ground attack role as they were maneuvering in the sky overhead; I recognized these descriptions because I am an eyewitness to similar F-16 maneuverings just about every weekend in the sky over the Warren Grove ground attack test range in the Pine Barrens of southern New Jersey. What is important about this is that it proves that Israel is more than capable of striking any similar factory or bunker complex located in Iran, sites like like Fordow, Esfahan, Arak, Natanz. How can I be so sure of this? Simply because the distance in air miles between Tel Aviv and Khartoum is 1,148 miles and the distance between Tel Aviv and Tehran is 987 miles. All of the probable target sites in Iran are closer to Israel than 987 miles. Intellectually honest military planners have probably taken notice of this now established fact as well.

UPDATE 04 November 2012: Do not overlook the fact that this long-range strategic strike by Israel into  Sudan (Kuwsh) occurred with thousands of American troops deployed in the Holy Land in preparation for the official start of "Austere Challenge 2012," or "AC12," the largest joint exercise ever between the two nations. The original start date and the deployment of American troops into Israel was postponed indefinitely from last spring due to the fever pitch of rhetoric coming from the Netanyahu government regarding a unilateral Israeli strike on Iranian nuclear facilities and the Obama Administration's opposition against a strike at that time along with official statements that the U.S. would not support Israel if it initiated a war with Iran over its nuclear weapons program.

Exercise "AC12" is classified 'TOP SECRET' and only the slimmest margin of details on the type of scenario being exercised will be made public. However, I personally have no doubt that the scenario being exercised regards the defense of Israel and American bases in the kind of regional Middle Eastern war that this nearly month-long blog topic is about. Make a special note of this: the American Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (C-JCS), General Martin Dempsey, arrived in Tel Aviv this morning along with the top American general for the European Command, Admiral James Stavridis, to officially launch this top secret, $38 million dollar exercise just 48 hours before presidential election day in these United States. The presence of an American C-JCS at any exercise is extremely unusual. The message to Iran found in the Yarmouk strike in Sudan and the launch of the AC12 exercise is unmistakable as are the blatant political calculations of Barack Hussein Obama (see the update above for October 10). Concurrently with the start of AC12 the Islamic Republic of Iran announced this morning that it has suspended its uranium enrichment program at the 20% level, just a short step from achieving nuclear weapons grade enrichment. Coincidence? I think not.

UPDATE 11 November 2012: The full-scale, no-holds barred IDF engagement I've been forecasting for almost a full month against the terrorists in Gaza is getting harder for Bibi Netanyahu to not execute as the order of the day. The longer he waits the more Israel voters in this region will turn against him. Netanyahu's credibility is on the line with a promised "escalation" of his own against the terrorists. Israeli's don't want an   escalation of violence, they want a thoroughly vanquished enemy and they want it now.

This morning Gaza terrorists escalated their attacks with barrages of Katyusha rockets and 120mm mortars against civilian targets. These are likely the heaviest weapons in the enemy arsenal and may well be the continuing response coming out of Gaza for the destruction for the Yarmouk weapons factory in the Sudan. The good news is that no more supplies of these weapons will be forthcoming from the Sudan.

The question we are all waiting for an answer to is whether Bibi Netanyahu's bite is more than his bark; whether he will cease being the Jewish politician in order to become the Israeli Commander-In-Chief.

UPDATE 14 November 2012: Today we see the answer to the question posed above just three days previously with the full-scale execution of the IDF's Operation Amud Anan (English: Operation Pillar of Cloud) against the terrorists in control of Gaza. The stated objective of the Israeli Defense Forces operation against Gaza terrorist organizations is to completely cripple them. Israeli special forces are already inside Gaza's borders and IDF armored and infantry units are poised to invade. The full statement by IDF spokesperson Lt. Col. Avital Leibovich was as follows:

“The foremost goal of this operation is to protect Israeli civilians, who have been living under fire for past 11 years. Only this year, the citizens of southern Israel have suffered over 760 rocket attacks. The second goal is to cripple the terrorists’ capabilities. As you heard, our first target was a vehicle in central part of Gaza. Inside the vehicle was Ahmed Jabari, born in 1960, the head of the Hamas military wing who was involved in numerous terror attacks on Israelis, as well as Gilad Shalit’s kidnapping. This is a man who has a lot of Israeli blood on his hands. 

The second phase of the operation was an aerial attack which targeted 20 different targets, all underground, which served as launching pads for various kinds of rockets. Among these rockets were Fajr-5 rockets, Iranian-made weapons which can reach a lot further than the ordinary Grad missile. This was the second phase. 

IDF General Staff is currently assessing the progress of the operation and according to its findings, will decide how to continue. All options are on the table, including a ground operation.”

We shall see what transpires tomorrow, 15 November 2012, 1 Kislev 5773.

The potential for a rapidly escalating regional war throughout the Middle East continues to evolve and intensify more than has ever been seen in this region in history. The prophetic implications are simply staggering to contemplate. Expect a plethora of updates to continue.

Heads Up: Watch Greece

26 September 2012: Given Greece's important role in the prophecies Gabriel imparted to Daniel regarding the rise of both the precursor and ultimate last days Antichrist, watch Greece in the coming days/weeks for the enigmatic rise from obscurity of a pseudo-miracle working leader who will solve that government's (and then Europe's) abysmal financial crisis and imminent bankruptcy. 

 

The Greek crisis has the recently created coalition government completely stumped and has all but paralyzed the economy. Nationwide the transportation and public service sectors are basket cases. There is not a single major Greek city that is unaffected by the ongoing general strike. Given the season and the depth of the current crisis it would seem that conditions are quite favorable for an epic hero to arise.

Yom Kippur 1973, 2012 and Beyond

19 September 2012: There is much talk in the media as well as in Christian circles that America is abandoning or has abandoned Israel. Is this a fact? As I see it, no, it is not an established, manifest fact.

I am of the opinion that many of our current political leadership including our elected president have abandoned Israel or have made plans to do so.  However, the real-world fact-of-the-matter is that the resident Bride of Christ and very significant portion of the American people have not abandoned Israel and demand that this nation continue to honor and support the only true ally we have in the Middle East. Yes,  I believe that it is because of the resident Bride of Christ in America indwelt by the Holy Spirit that Israel has not been abandoned and American military equipment and personnel remain stationed inside Israel in her defense. However, I also believe that this Spiritually-empowered dynamic will change when the Harpazo occurs. 2 Thessalonians 2:1-5.

I also believe that we and our nation are a part of the manifest will of God. America, due to our founding as a believing Judeo-Christian nation was born and bred, so to speak, to be here for Israel at this point in history. We were blessed from our founding through revolution against tyranny to become a great nation for this very purpose. It seems to me that God allotted an approximate 170-year span of time for us to become a  superpower, just in time for Israel to rise in a single day per Isaiah's prophecy on 14 May 1948. This occurred for both America and Israel between the utter chaos and destruction of World War II and the Korean War and the wars that have occurred ever since then. It has been about American military support for an unbelieving Israel as she has been involved in the ongoing fulfillment of Asaph's Psalm 83 - a war which since Israel's creation has been about one thing and one thing only, the destruction of the State of Israel by the Arab Muslim countries around her.

There is also some relatively recent history some may be unaware of.  Just 39 years ago, during Yom Kippur 1973, something very much like the prophetic Battle of Gog of Magog of Ezekiel 38/39 might well have occurred were it not for a superpower America holding off by conventional and nuclear means a military invasion of Israel by the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and her allies. 

For all of the year 1972 there was the threat of renewed full-scale war by Israel's Arab neighbors, a renewal of the so-called 'Six Day War' of 5-10 June 1967 which was halted only by Israel's miraculous battlefield victories and the decision not to press on less a world war develop through the threatened intervention of the Soviet Union. Those decisive Israeli victories had resulted in Cairo, Damascus and Amman being virtually defenseless before Israel's American-supplied war machine. 

Russia could not abide with the conquering of her Arab allies and a ceasefire was quickly arranged and agreed upon by all parties. But it was only a ceasefire and renewed warfare appeared to be inevitable throughout 1971-72. Egypt's President Anwar Sadat said he was ready to sacrifice one million Egyptian soldiers in renewed war with Israel.  Iraq's President Abdur Rahman Aref and Jordan's King Hussein were allied with Egypt's Sadat and Syrian President Hafez al-Assad, father of the current Syrian president facing Islamist rebellion, who were both committed allies of the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union was a confederacy of communist-ruled nations led by Russia (Magog) that was created and held together only by the massive force of arms.  Yet despite all of this Israel's intelligence analysts believed that the Arab would not risk another war and overwhelming defeat as had occurred just 6 years previously. They would be proven very wrong in that assessment.

Urged on by their Russian allies the military forces of 9 Arab nations supported by 4 non-Arab nations attacked Israel on Yom Kippur, 6 October 1973. Israel's enemies had at their disposal a military force that, on paper, rivaled that of the NATO alliance in Europe. For example, one the first day of the war in the Golan just 180 Israeli tanks held off 1,400 Syrian tanks, a force more than 7 times as powerful as Israel's defenders, and in the Sinai just 436 Israeli soldiers were overwhelmed by 80,000 Egyptian soldiers, or more than 183 Egyptian soldiers for each Israeli soldier to defend against. Israel was in renewed war with its Arab neighbors as well as substantial military forces from Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Sudan, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, and Lebanon. There were even 4 thousand Cuban troops deployed to Syria in the fight against Israel as well as North Korean pilots. All of these forces were supplied and re-supplied via air and sea by the Soviet Union. Yet Israel recovered, and re-supplied by America by the order of President Richard Nixon in the largest military airlift in history, all of its early battlefield losses of the first two days were quickly reversed in such a miraculous way that once again by the third week of October the Arab capital cities of Cairo, Damascus and Amman were left virtually undefended. Anwar Sadat's well-founded fears prompted him to call Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev for Soviet military intervention.

To this day the world does not believe that God had a hand in Israel's victory. Some Israeli's do not truly believe this or have forgotten about it. Yet one day soon they will see His hand in their defense, Bible prophecy assures us of that future reality.

It was during the evening of 24-25 October 1973, during ongoing UN mediation efforts and in the midst of the Watergate Scandal, that Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev informed President Nixon in an ultimatum that he was about intervene militarily on the Arab side if the US did not force Israel to unilaterally halt their overwhelmingly successful combat operations. President Nixon was totally indisposed and unable to respond at that time, so Nixon's national Security Advisor "Henry" Kissinger and the White House Chief of Staff, retired general Alexander Haig, took the lead from the indisposed CInC. They responded in Nixon's name to Brezhnev in a conciliatory manner yet raised the American DEFCON to Level 3 (one step from readiness for thermonuclear warfare) and communicated to Sadat that if the Soviets intervened for the Arab side America would intervene on Israel's side.  The Soviets became aware of this American posture and immediately placed 7 airborne divisions on pre-deployment alert and sent 40,00 Soviet marines into the Mediterranean Sea. By morning on 25 October the Soviets realized the American commitment to go to war in defense of Israel as did Anwar Sadat who promptly cancelled his request for Soviet intervention. World War III in the midst of the Cold War was avoided; Brezhnev turned out not to be Gog of Magog and the fulfillment of Ezekiel 38/39 has been left to an irrevocable appointment in the near future.

Yom Kippur occurs this year on 25-26 September, next week as of this writing, the 39th anniversary of what nearly occurred in the last great Arab-Israeli war. This is the date on which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has very recently set as the "red line" before which Western military action against the Iranian nuclear program must occur or Israel will be forced to act unilaterally against the same. We shall see in very short order what transpires in the wake of this very deliberate and timely ultimatum.

Given what our current leadership and president hold up as their anti-Israel agenda only time and the enfranchised will of the American electorate are to determine when this nation will pull its protective umbrella away from Israel. In the meantime, the prophetic Psalm 83 War continues along with American beneficence towards the State of Israel. It should also go without saying that the Harpazo could occur at any moment according to the will of God the Father and the current Spiritually-empowered dynamic in this world would change in the twinkling of an eye.

Marana'tha!

An American's Civic Duty: See This Film

15 September 2012: I have just returned from watching the motion picture documentary "2016: Obama's America" in my local theater. With just 51 days to go until the November 6th American Presidential Election, I come away from this film fully convinced that it is every American citizen's civic duty to also pay the price of admission (I paid $11.00) in order to receive the essential education that this film will provide to you. I believe viewing this film could be the most important thing an American citizen could do in the next 51 days, and the sooner the better. Not withstanding world events that might come to pass between right now and November 6th, this film will make your choice on election day a very simple decision to make, a no-brainer in fact, in order to save this nation from those whose intent it is to destroy it.

Ezekiel's Confirmation of Psalm 83

14 September 2012:  There is a passage in Ezekiel 38:10-12 that defines the real-world situation that will exist for a disbelieving Israel just prior to the attempt by "Gog of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech and Tubal" to invade and conquer the land God has given to the descendants of Jacob. In fact, it is this very situation which is the catalyst for Gog's evil plans.

‘Thus says the Lord God: “On that day it shall come to pass that thoughts will arise in your mind, and you will make an evil plan: You will say, ‘I will go up against a land of unwalled villages; I will go to a peaceful people, who dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates’— to take plunder and to take booty, to stretch out your hand against the waste places that are again inhabited, and against a people gathered from the nations, who have acquired livestock and goods, who dwell in the midst of the land."

Many words have been written by Bible eschatologists in identifying the events which will create that situation for Israel. We know those many words as sound exegesis on the Psalm 83 war. But how many of us are aware that the prophet Ezekiel was also given a prophecy by God which confirms the singing prophet Asaph's Divinely inspired psalm? Yes, the Lord told Ezekiel that judgments would come against all those nations who despise the regathered house of Israel living in the land of Israel. Clearly, this judgment against Israel's neighboring adversaries occurs prior to the pre-70th Week prophetic events described in Ezekiel 38/39.

Ezekiel 28:24-26 has the prophetic confirmation of the coming Psalm 83 war.

“And there shall no longer be a pricking brier or a painful thorn for the house of Israel from among all who are around them, who despise them. Then they shall know that I am the Lord God.” ‘Thus says the Lord God: “When I have gathered the house of Israel from the peoples among whom they are scattered, and am hallowed in them in the sight of the Gentiles, then they will dwell in their own land which I gave to My servant Jacob. And they will dwell safely there, build houses, and plant vineyards; yes, they will dwell securely, when I execute judgments on all those around them who despise them. Then they shall know that I am the Lord their God.”

Israel's Technological Breakthrough: Nanofiltration + Solar Energy = Abundant Water

Posting this report exactly as I received it today via Email. I am absolutely not surprised that there's zero media coverage of this breakthrough simply because good news from Israel is the last thing the global corporate media will publish. Great news from Israel as this information imparts has to be suppressed as much as possible less the agenda of de-legitimizing of the State of Israel in some manner be harmed.

Nevertheless, God's will is being done and His prophetic word is coming to pass.

Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a release on August 9, 2012, "Freshwater from the sun," detailing a new development in nanotechnology paired with the use of solar energy that could help solve water shortages in under-developed and under-resourced regions including Africa. The research was undertaken at the Zuckerberg Institute for Water Research at Ben Gurion University of the Negev and central Arava R&D.

Ynet News covered the subject as did The Algemeiner, writing:

The new innovation uses solar energy panels to power the pumps of a desalination unit that generates clean water for crops. More importantly, the technology utilizes unique nanofiltration membranes that enable farmers to decide which minerals should be retained from the water to feed various types of crops, a method which requires much less energy.

According to experts, water is going to be an increasingly scarce resource. Bloomberg quotes Dow Chemical Chief Executive Officer Andrew Liveris saying "Water right now is a strain on this planet more than carbon. We mismanage water terribly. It's going to be a big issue."

Even so, few in the media have seen fit to report on Israel's breakthrough technology. A Google News search for "Zuckerberg Institute for Water Research" turned up only five mentions -- and none of them in a mainstream media outlet.

Though criticism of Israel is ubiquitous in the media, including on the front pages of America's leading newspapers, when it comes to good news about Israel… Where's the coverage?

This report immediately brought to mind the following prophetic chapter from Isaiah. Some folks are fond of saying "It doesn't get any better than this!" On the contrary, it does get better than this for God has said so.

Isaiah 35 (NKJV)

The Future Glory of Zion

The wilderness and the wasteland shall be glad for them,
And the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose;
It shall blossom abundantly and rejoice,
Even with joy and singing.
The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it,
The excellence of Carmel and Sharon.
They shall see the glory of the Lord,
The excellency of our God.

Strengthen the weak hands,
And make firm the feeble knees.
Say to those who are fearful-hearted,
“Be strong, do not fear!
Behold, your God will come with vengeance,
With the recompense of God;
He will come and save you.”

Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened,
And the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.
Then the lame shall leap like a deer,
And the tongue of the dumb sing.
For waters shall burst forth in the wilderness,
And streams in the desert.
The parched ground shall become a pool,
And the thirsty land springs of water;
In the habitation of jackals, where each lay,
There shall be grass with reeds and rushes.

A highway shall be there, and a road,
And it shall be called the Highway of Holiness.
The unclean shall not pass over it,
But it shall be for others.
Whoever walks the road, although a fool,
Shall not go astray.
No lion shall be there,
Nor shall any ravenous beast go up on it;
It shall not be found there.
But the redeemed shall walk there,
And the ransomed of the Lord shall return,
And come to Zion with singing,
With everlasting joy on their heads.
They shall obtain joy and gladness,
And sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

Timing of Iran Strike

22 August 2012:  I would assess that a decision by Israeli PM Netanyahu to launch a preemptive strike against the Iranian nuclear weapons program before the US election on November 6, 2012 will boil down to the final two 7-day optimum windows of low observability: 13-19 September and 11-18 October 2012.

The Extinction of Islam

IMPORTANT UPDATE 24 August 2012:  It's "official" yours truly has been banned from making any further comments to "Joel Richardson's" blog items.  This banning came as a result of my attempt to post on "Joel's" (his real name is Richard) blog the same basic information I had posted to this Eschatology Today blog three years ago.  That information comes directly from "Mr. Richardson's" beloved Quran, Sura 18 ("The Cave"), verses 83-99 which inform the reader that the land of Magog (from whence comes Gog of Magog) is north of the Caucasus Mountains, i.e. modern-day Russia.  Here then is my truth-be-told, ban-inducing comment which "Joel Richardson's" readers, followers, supporters and acolytes dare not be informed of lest their erstwhile mentor be revealed to be the eisegetical prevaricator that he is.

"Anyone who thinks that Gog of Magog will be the “Islamic Antichrist” is committing the grave error of eisegesis.

Now, mind you, I care not one iota what the Quran says, but any Muslim will tell you that Sura 18 Al-Kahf (The Cave) presents a story of the person of Alexander III of Macedon (Alexander the Great).

The Quran’s Sura 18 story relates how Alexander pushed his empire to the west and saw the sun set. Then Alexander pushed his empire to the east and saw the sun rise. Then Alexander pushed his empire to the north, to the Caucasus Mountains and beyond, where was found the people of Gog-Magog.

The Quran (Edit: borrowing heavily from Ezekiel 38/39) tells you in plain text that Gog of Magog lies NORTH OF THE CAUCASUS.

Richard, I suggest you read your beloved Quranic source, Sura 18:83-99 to see what Muslims believe regarding Gog and Magog; how Alexander built a wall to keep the Magogians (“the corrupters of the earth”) out of the lands that lie to the south. (Edit: i.e. out of Asia Minor/Turkey and the rest of the Middle East to the south)

Interestingly enough, Alexander’s encounter with the Magog peoples (the Scythians) north of the Caucasus is also noted by Falvius Josephus. The Wars of the Jews, VII, vii.

Seems you have some re-calibrating to do, doesn’t it?"

Indeed, not only would a recalibration of the entire Islamic Antichrist theory be in order, but a wholesale flushing of it would be more appropriate. The islamic Antichrist theory is rubbish and it has been exposed as such for the second time since 10 September 2009. Game over Richard.  

20 August 2012: One of the looniest ideas I have ever come across is the idea that the results of an agenda-driven secular survey can trump the Word of God.  Yes, the idea that the sheer demographics of Islam will reign supreme over the State of Israel is laughable at best, so it should come as no surprise dear readers that once again "Joel Richardson" is the source of this ill-timed good humor.  The problem is that he really believes it, he really, really fears it, and he's doing his best, along with WorldNetDaily.com, to make the Bride of Christ fear it.

The attempt this time to to say that Muslim demographics trumps the Word of God, that Muslim demographics assure an islamic victory, which assures an islamic antichrist, which assures an islamic world conquering empire... yada, yada, yada. If I were to do a parody of this latest idea it would have to be titled "The Muslims Are Coming, The Muslims Are Coming!" Yes, indeed, "Emergency, everybody to get from street" is what we're being told in so many words, and like I've said, when compared to God's Word, this is almost roll-on-the-floor laughable.

If you've not read it yet, the Gary Stearman article linked below provides all the Scripture references required to clearly see the loon factor of such ridiculous fear mongering. Islam is soon to become extinct. If that article should prove insufficient, then perhaps the Biblical account of 2 Kings 19 and 2 Chronicles 32 regarding the hand of God dispatching 185,000 Assyrian soldiers while they slept might provide the proper perspective. Or perhaps we should more appropriately consider the repeated miracles in the wars Israel has fought over the past six decades against this Arab Islamist enemy as a forerunner of what will occur in the near future, bearing in mind that the archangel Michael will personally rise to Israel's defense (see Daniel 10:21 and 12:1). Yes, the snake oil salesmen would have you believe the false god of Islam prevails over Michael and his angels; that Michael and his angels win in Heaven but loose on earth; that Israel wins every battle against Islam except for Isaiah 17, Psalm 83 and Ezekiel 38/39.

You know it and I know it, this is latest idea is pure contrary to the Word of God nonsense.

Daniel 7: The Key Prophecy Confirming a Roman Antichrist

INTRODUCTION: Daniel 7 contains the inerrant, prophetic account of world history from 553 BC to the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. Remember this year, its importance will be made clear shortly. Within this exceptional chapter of the Holy Bible can be found the eschatological truth that the Roman Empire was the last of the world empires of ancient times and it will again be in existence as the final world empire at the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. Daniel 7, among other prophetic passages, is a key chapter of the Bible which puts the lie to all of the theories of an Islamic Antichrist or of a final Islamic world empire under him. Daniel 7 is the cipher key that unlocks the other prophetic chapters of Daniel as well as the Revelation of Jesus Christ.

LESSON: The first words of Daniel 7 inform us that his God-breathed vision came in the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon. That would equate to the year 553 BC when the reigning king of Babylon, Nabonidus made his eldest son, Balshazzar, his co-regent in Babylon. Nabonidus then departed with most of the Babylonian army for Temâ in the deep western recesses of the Babylonian Empire to build a temple of worship to a moon god he called Ehulhul and whose symbol was an eclipse of the moon – the crescent moon. The full Old Testament-based historical account can be found at Livius.org.

Daniel then informs from his vision that he wrote down the head, or chief words (re’sh millah) derived from the vision, and which in English is expressed as the “main facts.” Therefore, Daniel 7 is a prophecy based upon both historical and future facts direct from God that had been sealed until these last days!

The text begins with Daniel explaining that he saw the “four winds of heaven stirring up the Great Sea.” This is a metaphor meaning that God would throughout history of the “times of the Gentiles” bring forth (giyach: stir up) great nations from among them. These great gentile nations are the four great beasts which rise from the sea of gentile nations, each one different from the one which follows.

The first of these beast empires is the metaphorical winged lion representing the Babylonian Empire. With 553 BC firmly given as the year of this prophecy, the end of the Babylonian Empire is a mere 14 years into the future when the Medo-Persian king Cyrus the Great would take the whole of Babylon in 539 BC with a surprise attack on the lightly defended Babylon as referenced in paragraph two above.
 

The second beast empire is the metaphorical bear with three ribs in its mouth representing the Medo-Persian empire. Note that Babylon is the key city in both of these empires. Cyrus needed only to secure the capitol of Babylon to take the whole of the Babylonian Empire which was inclusive of the entire Middle East, from ancient Elam north through Assyria and south to Egypt and what we know today as the western half of Saudi Arabia. Cyrus took one city with a minor military skirmish over the course of a single day in order to secure an entire empire.

The third beast empire is that of Macedon-Greece led by Alexander the Great which has been metaphorically presented as a leopard with four wings and four heads and to which complete dominion over the previous two beast empires was given. The 22-year old Alexander the Great’s conquest of the Persian Empire began in 334 BC with the Battle of Granicus in which 25,000 Macedonians and 14,600 Greeks, Thracians and Illyrians commanded by Macedonian officers overwhelmed and equally sized army of Persians (20,000) and Greeks (20,000) who had defected to Persia after the defeat of Philip II at Chaeronea four years earlier in 338 BC.

This action was followed the by the great Battles of Gordium and Issus followed by the sieges of Tyre and Gaza on the Mediterranean coast, all of which resulted in triumphant victories by Alexander’s army. After this the whole of Egypt out rightly surrendered to Alexander in 331 BC. Receiving major reinforcements from Europe at Tyre on the Lebanese coast, Alexander then set out for Babylon.
 

After securing all the lands between the Euphrates and Tigris rivers in Mesopotamia, it was on the plain of Gaugamela near modern-day Irbil, Iraq that the army of Alexander found the main Medo-Persian army of Darius on October 1, 331 BC. Darius had command of a great Asiatic army that was composed of Medes, Persians, Bactrians, Sogdians, Indians, defected Greeks, and even Albanians from the Caucasus. According to ancient historians Darius’ army numbered over one million men in battle array. A single charge of Alexander’s cavalry resulted in Darius forces fleeing the battlefield and in Alexander's conquering of Babylon, the Persian imperial capital at Susa (the former Elamite capitol) and the burning of the Persian capital at Perseopolis. Alexander the Great was proclaimed king of Asia within a couple of months of the Battle of Gaugamela. Alexander continued his march to the east conquering Bactria, Sogdia and Indian Punjab as far as the Indus River by 326 BC. To this day the Macedonian-Greek (original Javanites) and other European bloodlines run in the veins of the populations of these Asian nations - from the Dardanelles to the Middle East to India as far as the Indus River due to the fact that Alexander’s army intermarried with the local female population. All totaled these children numbered approximately 40,000 at the conclusion of Alexander's campaign.

The wings and heads of the leopard, itself a metaphor for the speed of Alexander's Asian conquests, are also metaphorical representations of the division of Alexander’s Empire among his four primary Macedonian generals (diadochi) after Alexander’s death at Nebuchadnezzar’s palace in Babylon on June 10, 323 BC. To this point we have covered 230 years real-world history and three empires in just the first six verses of Daniel 7.

Now we come to verse 7 for a look at the fourth and final beast of Daniel’s God-breathed vision. There is no other gentile empire of importance on this earth mentioned by God after the four-fold division of Alexander’s Empire except for that of the Roman Empire. The final beast empire is an empire which has mutated over the past 2,000-some odd years only to re-emerge in the very last days as a 10-nation confederacy among whom the single metaphorical horn of the Antichrist is to rise up. But first we look at Rome’s rise.

Rome began its rise as a republic, eventually becoming a world empire by over-running Greek colonies on the Italian mainland and Sicily in 272 BC. A few decades later Rome humiliated the fore-runner of the Antichrist who attempted to invade Egypt in 168 BC. The result was the Roman consul threatening war which sent to self-proclaimed god Antiochus IV Epiphanes of the Seleucid Empire fleeing northward to commit the fore-runner of the future 70^th Week ‘Abomination of Desolation’ at the Temple in Jerusalem. Rome had largely culminated its rise to world domination by 149 BC with the conquest of the whole of Greece at the Battle of Corinth. Within the next 16 years the entirety of the Mediterranean Sea comes under total Roman control (133 BC) when Pergamum is taken whole by the will of its king Attalus. In 64/63 BC Rome took all of Aram-Syria and ancient Israel. This in sum is the context of Daniel 7 verse 7 wherein Rome was prophesied to devour, break into pieces and trample underfoot all the nations it conquered. To this point the vision prophecy of Daniel has been fulfilled to the exact detail which the “re’sh millah” expressed them.

It is of paramount eschatological importance to note at verse 8 that there is no end to the Roman Empire from God’s expressed viewpoint to Daniel in the vision until the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. There are no subsequent world empires to the end of the current age not of just gentiles, but of all mankind. There is a “fast-forward” to the last days between the very last sentence of verse 7 and the beginning of verse 8 which launches directly into a detailing of the rise of the Antichrist from within the fourth beast empire and the return of Jesus Christ as the “Son of Man” at the end of the 70^th Week! There is also no doubt to whom and what the angel Gabriel was referring in Daniel 9:26b.

Here, brothers and sisters, is the point at which the eisegetical and thoroughly shoe-horned last-days Islamic Antichrist/Islamic Empire theory was euthanized by God Himself 2,545 years ago (553 BC to 2012 AD). That theory was null and void long before any of our greatest grandparents were even born. Therefore its relevance to today amounts to what exactly? Exactly zero!

From verse 8 the perspective of God speaks to the rise of the Roman Antichrist, the return of Jesus to the Earth, the killing of the Antichrist and the destruction of his physical body and the eternal burning of its black soul in the eternal flames.

At verse 15 begins the interpretation of Daniel’s vision by what is obviously an angelic being in the service of God. It is with this exegesis that I pray you will gain a solid understanding of both history and the coming future events, even though at some unknown point the Bride of Christ will be snatched away from this earth to a secure place for the duration of the final 7 years of history as we have known it.

Psalm 83 Verse 8: Assur - Syria or Iraq?

Assyria also has joined with them;
They have helped the children of Lot.
Asaph, Psalm 83:8

19 July 2012: Although this may seem redundant to some readers, we're going to look at Psalm 83:8 once again with the intent to firmly affiliate the modern-day nation that God inspired the Levite priest Asaph to include as the tenth of the confederated enemy peoples and regions who have come against Israel in these last days.  As essential backgrounders for this topic I invite the reader to also take the time to review "All these things be fulfilled... Part I and Part II" posted in 2009 as well as "The Psalm 83 Inner Ring Solidifies" posted 2010 to this blog.

In revisiting the subject of Psalm 83 I have learned that according to a commentary by Matthew Henry and the article "Who was Asaph?" (an excellent "must read" study) written in 2005 by Richard Thompson, what we know as Psalm 83 is the last of the total of twelve Psalms that bear Asaph's name as the composer. We know that Asaph lived circa 1020-920 BC, and that Psalm 83 was most likely composed near to Asaph's 100th year during the reign of king Rehoboam and following the twin disasters of the rending of Israel into Israel and Judah and the invasion by Egypt's pharaoh Shishak. These historical details date Psalm 83's composition to about 925 BC.

What was Asshur's (Assyria's) situation circa 925 BC? At this specific point in Assyria's history the king was a man by the name of Ashur-dan II. Ashur-dan II's reign endured for all of 23 years, from 935 to 912 BC, wherein the year of 925 BC pretty much falls smack dab in the middle.  Now, for the previous hundred years Assyria had been subject to Aramean invasions to such an extent that by the end of those 100 years Ashur-dan II was completely preoccupied with securing the Assyrian heartland against these Aramean invasions. His primary task was in "rebuilding Assyria within its natural borders" according to Assyrian historian Peter BetBasoo. The British ancient history website historyfiles.co.uk concurs, saying  of the same time period "Recent Aramean migrations into Mesopotamia increase to the point where Assyria is seriously weakened and begins a decline and a century of total obscurity, reduced to its heartland." Reduced to its heartland, which means there was no such thing an an Assyrian Empire during this time. Total obscurity.

So the totally obscure Assyrian heartland was geographically located where? In the north-central part of modern-day Iraq, as seen in this Goggle Earth satellite image below and in the image at the top of this post. This region is also known as the Assur-Nineveh-Arbela triangle which survive to this day, respectively, as the modern Iraqi cities Qala'at Sherqat, Mosul and Erbil.  Assur in Psalm 83:8 is Iraq.

That issue settled, we now move into a more detailed analysis of what Iraq actually is, and what it is likely to become in the days ahead.

Iraq is an artificial, man-made construct that is geographically divided between the Sunni populated northern and western three-fourths of the country and the Shi'a southeastern quadrant. Ancient Assur lies wholly within in the northern Sunni section; the remainder is Shi'a dominated and closely tied to Shi'a Iran and ancient Elam.

We are informed in verse 8 that Assur helps Lot's progeny. Lot's children constitute modern-day Jordan, and there are real-world ethnic and tribal links that cross over the equally artificial Iraqi-Jordanian frontier. In fact, as mentioned in earlier posts referenced above as an essential part of this post, the help (zĕrowa`) provided by Iraq dates back to the 1948 war and every war since then in which Israel squared off on the battlefield against Jordanian forces there were Iraqi battalions and their commanders also in the fight.

It would seem that something also needs to occur respective to the cohesion of the present Iraqi nation. Perhaps that something is related to Jeremiah 49:34-39, or perhaps to the Sunni-Shi'a civil war that is ongoing in Aram-Syria at this time, or both. In any event, the Lord specifically identified Assur in verse 8 and the expected paradigm-shifting events are likely more widespread that we currently are able to envision.

  

Syria: At The Tipping Point of a Regional War

18 June 2012: Big power jostling has moved the current focus of the Syrian civil war to the Russian Naval Base located at Tartus, Syria (image above).  The Russian sector consists of the top half of the northernmost pier, the northern breakwater/jetty and the several large buildings and grassy area to the immediate right.  The bulk of the port facilities to the south are under the control of the regime under Bashar Al-Assad. The Russian Naval Base is the focal point of Russia's military support for the Al-Assad regime and the finger-in-the-eye of all Western/NATO/UN/Islamist attempts to shape the future of Syria in their image according to their agenda. These are the events occurring the real-world that all watchmen take keen note of. 

However, students of Bible prophecy should be aware that Syria (ancient Aram) is completely absent from even so much as a single mention in the sequence of prophetic wars between Psalm 83 (which began the process of fulfillment in Damascus during November 1947) and Ezekiel 38/39. Therefore, the fulfillment of Isaiah 17 most likely should be viewed as a parenthetical prophecy to the full sequence and, possibly as being the catalyst for the final fulfillment of Psalm 83 (and its related prophecies) and Jeremiah 49:34-39 as a matter of immediate consequence. These prophetic fulfillment's over the course of a very few years will lead to the fulfillment of Ezekiel 38/39 and shortly thereafter to Israel's prophesied 70th Week.

15 June 2012: During the last great World War Winston Churchill said that "truth is so precious that she should always be attended by a bodyguard of lies." That's a true statement when faced with fanatical enemies. However, blatant disinformation is something else again.  I have come to learn that the attack helicopters Hillary was crowing about are in reality just spare parts to keep Al-Assad's existing choppers airborne and in the fight against a growing Al-Qaeda insurgency. Secondly, the divisions of Russian troops said to be planning for deployment to Syria is actually just a part of a brigade of Russian naval SPETZNAZ that will be relieving their fellows who have been securing their port facilities at Tartous and Latakia for month now. This is normal rotation. Our forces do it all the time as well. My eyes are open for further developments.

13 June 2012: Within the past 24 hours two developments have occurred and both involve Russian military intervention in the Syrian civil war.  In the first development US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton went public yesterday with intelligence information that Russia was in the process of transferring attack helicopters to increase the combat capabilities of Al-Assad's forces. For its part Russia has not issued a denial to Clinton's statement. There are as yet no verified details to report on which type of attack helicopters are being transferred to Syria, but a good guess is that the export version Mi-25/35 Hind the Syrian Arab Air Force pilots are well familiar with are the type being supplied. According to a 2011 Jane's Defense Information Group report the Syrians already have 48 of these attack helicopters (Mi-35 Hind seen below) in their inventory.

The second development of note is a widely circulated report dated 12 June from the independent Russian newspaper Nezavisimaya Gazeta. The report details how Russian President Vladimir Putin has directed the Russian general staff to plan for a Russian intervention of combat forces into Syria with or without United Nations Security Council approval. The Russian forces are to include the 76th Airborne Division, the 15th Army Division and a brigade of Black Sea Fleet special forces. Details of the deployment are also being coordinated with working groups from the Shanghai Bloc and the post-Soviet CTSO which most former Soviet Republic are members of. These forces are to deploy in support of Al-Assad forces. According to the secretary-general of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CTSO), Nikolai Bordjusha, “the task in Syria is likely to be to impose peace—primarily against the insurgents.”

10 June 2012: The image at the top was taken from an INN news report dated today by Chana Ya'ar which is headlined as "Heavy Fighting Reported on Streets of Damascus." It is proof positive that Syria's civil war pitting the regime of Bashar Al-Assad and his Alawite/Shi'a minority against a coalition of heavily armed Islamist Sunni militias has been brought by those militias into Damascus itself. This reality highlights the fears of both the West, Israel and the Iranian-led alliance which includes Iran, Syria and Hezbollah of Lebanon.  The West fears the loss of Syrian missiles and their biological and chemical weapons warheads (WMDs) to Sunni Islamists aligned with Al Qaeda's brand of jihadist Islam. Israel fears such a development as well because its would be the most likely target of these weapons. Most of all Iran, Hezbollah and the Al-Assad regime fear their loss because it would definitively tip the military balance of power in favor of the Sunni Islamist militias.

For their part the Iranians, who some time ago stood up a joint Iran-Syria-Hezbollah warfighting command post (CP) in Iran, have no intention of allowing a Sunni victory of this magnitude, nor will they allow a Western military or Israeli intervention to secure or destroy the Syrian WMD weapons. These fearful facts were not lost on the Sunni militias. Five days ago in a Rapture Forums discussion thread I predicted that these Anti-Assad militias should be expected to exacerbate the situation for the Al-Assad regime and would bring the war directly to Damascus and these weapons depot sites.  As of this date the militias have begun attacking Damascus and the electrical power infrastructure necessary for Assad's still loyal forces to defend the capital and the WMD weapons depots (click here for a related report and updates). We should now reasonably expect an even more direct intervention in the Syrian civil war by Iranian/Hezbollah military forces to reverse the rebels gains and to establish an on-the-ground fact to further complicate Western or Israeli interventions.

At this point I am sure all of us are aware of the various prophecies (Isaiah 17, Psalm 83, Joshua 13:1-7, Jeremiah 49:34-39, and Ezekiel 38-39 among others) yet to be fulfilled in these pre-70th Week years, as well as which of the aforementioned nations are mentioned and which are not, and at what juncture within a given prophecy. All of that notwithstanding, it certainly seems to my way of thinking that events in Syria will be the focal point, the catalyst if you will, of setting in motion these sequential pre-70th Week wars. That said, and while it is hard to imagine an even higher ratcheting up of the tensions now present in the region, anything is possible including a significant preemptive attempt to draw Israel into the ongoing warfare.

Latter Days Prophecy Being Fulfilled: Say Hello to "Sheba and Dedan"

Update 15 May 2012: New details are emerging from the 32nd GCC Summit. What is taking place is actually the creation of a federation among the Gulf Arab countries, modeled more or less on the European Union but with the Sunni Islamic model of the United Arab Emirates. It will most realistically be brought into existence as a federation of tribal monarchies founded upon the "creed of Islam."

This "Federation of Arab States of the Arabian Peninsula," for lack of an offical name, is being born with a Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of $1 Trillion and 35% of the world's proven oil reserves. It is being armed primarily by the United States with over $60 billion in military sales to the Saudi Arabians alone. Even tiny Bahrain has acquired over $1.5 billion of new US warfighting hardware in the past ten years. Efforts are underway to also include Yemen within this federation which would give this new Arab peninsular superstate a total population of more than 85.5 million people and make it a dominant power in the region, even over the Islamic Republic of Iran.

14 May 2012: The 1979 fundamentalist Shi'a revolution in Iran which resulted in the establishment of the Persian Twelver-Hojjatieh regime of the Islamic Republic of Iran. The subsequent 33 years of that rule has brought the Middle East to the precipice of a truly horrific war. 

Unbeknown to some the Iranian revolution was followed by an economic alliance among the Sunni Gulf Arab states that we know as the Gulf Cooperation Council or GCC. The GCC, established in May 1981 is composed of seven Sunni Arab states:Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Oman. 

Until very recent Iranian subversion and destabilization activities that began in 2011 and which centered upon the few Shi'a who live in these majority Sunni Arab states, the GCC concerned itself with economic and commercial and financial issues in common among themselves. The reaction of the GCC governments was to create a rapid reaction military force composed of military units from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the UAE to put down Iranian-fomented revolution within Bahrain.

This has led to the morphing of the GCC nations into a militarily confederated bloc of nations known as the Peninsula Shield Force to defend themselves against Iranian aggression which in turn is based upon Shi'a Twelver apocalyptic eschatology.

Christians should take note of the emergence of this new military alliance in the Middle East and recognize it for what it very probably represents - the real world emergence of what Ezekiel prophesied would exist in the latter days. Ezekiel 38:13 tells us, "Sheba, Dedan, the merchants of Tarshish, and all their young lions will say to you, ‘Have you come to take plunder? Have you gathered your army to take booty, to carry away silver and gold, to take away livestock and goods, to take great plunder?’”’

Yes, in these latter days I believe we are eyewitnesses to and should recognize the emergence of GCC as a type of NATO for the Arabian Peninsula, just as Ezekiel said they would be, and in close association with the Western nations (Europe and the Americas) prior to the start of the 70th Week, and whom Ezekiel referred to as "the merchants of Tarshish, and all their young lions (European powers and former European colonies in the Americas)."

Jeremiah 49: Will a Coalition of Nations Move Against Iran? (Yes, They Will!!)

27 April 2012: At this point, some 19 months since first posting this "work in progress," there exists for the first time very strong evidence for the existence of a coalition of nations prepared to move militarily against the nuclear weapons aspirations of the Islamic Republic of Iran in what I believe will be a highly probable literal fulfillment in our day of Jeremiah 49:34-39. (Please read the original posit on this interpretive theory down below for a refresher if that is necessary.)

Israel Defense Forces Chief-of-Staff Lientenant General Binyamin "Benny" Gantz informed the world yesterday of the existence of a coalition of nations who are prepared to execute offensive, preemptory military strikes on Iranian military targets should it become necessary to do so. While not specifying which nations would join Israel in striking Iran, LTG Gantz was completely unambiguous in the words he used:

 "The military force is ready, not only our forces, but other forces as well. We all hope that there will be no necessity to use this force, but we are absolutely sure of its existence."   

 There is no doubt in my mind that the Shi'a Twelver regime in Iran hold that the acquisition of an indigenous nuclear weapons and delivery capability as the key to achieving a chaotic and apocalyptic scenario in order to self-fulfill their own eschatological beliefs about an Islamic messianic figure known as the al-Mahdi. In this context it is simply not possible for the Iranian regime to abandon its eschatological beliefs any more than it would be for the Bride of Christ to abandon the blessed hope of the Harpazo. Therefore, it does appear that full-scale regional warfare in the Middle East and Southwest Asia is a very near inevitability given the closeness of Iranian technological success in achieving nuclear weapon capability. As has been have stated often times before, for Israel "Never Again" means Never Again. The Lord's will be done for His Divine purposes.

     

21 October 2011: It has been a full year since this article was posted here, and an awful lot has changed. Across the Arab-Islamic fundamentalist world there has occurred a sea change, particularly in the past 10 months of this year. Rod-of-Iron dictators who had held Arab Islamic fundamentalists at bay since the Iranian (Persian) revolution of 1979 have been removed from power by popular uprisings or are teetering on the brink of being ousted in the face of armed rebellion, to the killing of key fundamentalist leaders in the Islamic jihad movement. The world has focused on this so-called "Arab Spring."

But another key event has occurred this year which I have mentioned previously in this blog, and that is the ongoing armed clash between the Arab ruling House of Saudi Arabia and the apocalypse-minded Persian Shi'ite Twelver regime of the Islamic Republic of Iran. These armed clashes between Iranian-funded and inspired Shi'a have occurred on Yemeni soil, on Saudi soil and on Bahrani soil. With the recent revelation by the United States of an Iranian plot to assassinate the Saudi Ambassador to the US and to attack the Saudi and Israeli embassies in Washington, DC this Arab-Persian war nearly arrived on US soil. Understandably, the Saudi's are livid; they are demanding that action be taken against Iran, particularly the ending of its nuclear weapons program by force of arms.

This new paradigm finds the Saudi king and the Israeli leadership in agreement on what needs to be done with respect to the Iranian nuclear program, and the US is voicing its pledge that Iran will be held accountable for the assassination and embassy bombing plot. In Israel there has been conservative opinion expressed which holds that PM Netanyahu and his cabinet agreed to renounce their key principles in dealing with the terrorists of HAMAS to free Gilad Shalit from captivity in order to "clear his desk" for Israel to confront Iran head on. On Tuesday evening, October 11th Prime Minister Netanyahu spoke to his countrymen about a "window of opportunity that is about to be closed and connected it to geostrategic developments."

Is Iran now facing the prospect of a "perfect storm" coming from all directions external to its own borders? Are the words of the prophet Jeremiah below relative to this new situation? I tend to think they are, and I tend to think we may see their fulfillment to the letter as Bible prophecy is always fulfilled. Not only does Iran have this external threat to deal with as the prophecy details, but should the Ayatollah's regime be subjected to the right kind external non-nuclear military action then the door opens for the Iranian regime to see revolt from within its own borders as the second to last verse appears to indicate (emphasis added): "‘And I will send the sword after them Until I have consumed them. I will set My throne in Elam, and will destroy from there the king and the princes' says the Lord."

15 September 2010: Jeremiah 49:34-39

The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah the prophet against Elam, in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, saying, “Thus says the LORD of hosts:

‘ Behold, I will break the bow of Elam, The foremost of their might. Against Elam I will bring the four winds From the four quarters of heaven, And scatter them toward all those winds; There shall be no nations where the outcasts of Elam will not go. For I will cause Elam to be dismayed before their enemies And before those who seek their life. I will bring disaster upon them, My fierce anger,’ says the LORD; ‘ And I will send the sword after them Until I have consumed them. I will set My throne in Elam, And will destroy from there the king and the princes,’ says the LORD. ‘ But it shall come to pass in the latter days: I will bring back the captives of Elam,’ says the LORD.”

Although this is a work in-progress, I'd like to propose an interpretation whereby this prophetic "Judgment on Elam" from Jeremiah, which self-dates to the beginning of the reign of King Zedekiah, or circa 595 BC, will be fulfilled in the near future, possibly prior to the final fulfillment of Psalm 83, and definitively prior to Ezekiel 38/39. I'm anchoring this future fulfillment upon the historical fact that the Elamite Kingdom ceased to exist during the ten year process of the Assyrian conquest led by King Ashurbanipal which was completed in 639 BC. Since Before Christ dates count downward, the gap of time between these years places the prophetic "Judgment on Elam" as being given to Jeremiah by the Lord approximately 44 years after the Assyrian conquest of Elam, and thus providing a strong context for latter days fulfillment.

There is also the related issue of a clear distinction in those ancient times between the Elamites and the Pä·ras'/Persians (old Persian: Pārsa) of Ezekiel 38:5. The Persian's originated in the region east of Elam defined by the natural boundary created by the Zagros Mountains, and the eastern most extent of the Elamite Kingdom at the city of Anshan/Anzan (modern-day Tepe Maylan, Iran). With the collapse of the Elamite Kingdom the Persians slowly took control with the Medes of what we know today as modern Iran.

According to several maps I've studied, the ancient Elamite Empire could well be considered to constitute the core territory of the present day Iranian nuclear effort (i.e. the uranium mines and yellow cake processing facilities at Saghand and Ardekan, near Yazd; the Uranium Conversion Facility (UCF) at the Esfahan; the Natanz uranium enrichment facility, and the nuclear crown jewel at Bushehr). The Iranian nuclear weapons program is fully integrated with the Iranian ballistic missile delivery vehicles, and which together could well be interpreted as the the arrows of "Elam's" bow, "the foremost of their might" of verse 35 which is precisely the greatest strength of the current Iranian military.

In the next verse we read that the judgment comes in the form of "the four winds" (i.e. all points on the compass and intimating many nations) as being the "sword" the Lord sends after them. Also looking at the map of Iran, it does appear that Arab nations, the principle of which is Saudi Arabia, would be among those coming against Elam from the southern "wind" along with many other nations constituting the other three directions. This includes Israel and many other nations such as the NATO alliance, and clearly invokes the modern day notion of a warfighting coalition of nations such as we saw in the early 1990s Operation Desert Storm against Iraq and the present day Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan.

Some current context for this interpretive theory.

19 months ago (FEB 2009) there were more than a few highly qualified nuclear weapons experts at the Herzliya Conference in Israel - one of whom was Russian Major-General Vladimir Dvorkin - who said that the Islamic Republic of Iran already had already achieved a nuclear weapons capability.

This was reported world-wide by Bill Gertz in his "Inside the Ring" column. General Dvorkin was quoted saying, “Iran has developed the capability to produce and fire nuclear weapons.”

General Dvorkin told the Hezliya Conference Iran had acquired most of the components for building its nuclear weapon by 2003, and "The only way I see the problem being resolved is by military action.”

Former U.S. Speaker of the House of Representatives Newt Gingrich told this same conference three years ealier that three Iranian nuclear weapons constituted a nuclear holocaust for Israel, and if used against the United States would result in the loss of two to three American cities, and the direct result of such an attack would be that "freedom as we know it will disappear, and we will become a much grimmer, much more militarized, dictatorial society."

It is a standing premise of this interpretive theory that while the "Global Oligarchists" are creating a hideous system of world governance ready-made for the coming Western Antichrist to usurp, they are not even close to being the suicidal maniacs of Jihadist Islam - such as the Shi'a Islamic Republic of Iran has created. I think it reasonable to expect them to act in concert - in a grand military coalition which they most certainly do control right now - to defend the world system they're creating from the Iranian al-mahdist apocalypse.

Arriving at a point-of-no-return regarding Iranian nuclear development, a point possibly defined by an Iranian nuclear test detonation, possibly occurring in North Korea instead of Iran, a coalition of nations attacking these many above ground nuclear sites might release radiation and necessitate the need for the population to seek refuge in distant places, as intimated in verse 36c: "There shall be no nations where the outcasts of Elam will not go." The Bushehr plant particularly meets this criteria.

The Truth About Islam From Iran

UPDATE 24 FEBRUARY 2012: Iran (MNN) ― Sources in Iran say an execution order for Christian Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani has been signed. According to Present Truth Ministries (closely connected with Nadarkhani), this is grim news. Todd Nettleton, a spokesman for Voice of the Martyrs USA, confirms the news. "Apparently, that execution order has not been delivered to his family or his attorneys, but the report is that it has been signed. That means that at any time, he could be executed."

Let us pray for our dear Brother in Christ in Jesus Name; let His will be done.


UPDATE 12 OCTOBER 2011: After persistent reports of the past two days that Pastor Nadarkhani's case had been placed in the hands of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, new information has come out of Iran indicating that the Ayatollah wants no part of this international hot potato and that Nadarkhani's case was to be returned by the Iranian Supreme Court back to the Gilan Provincial court for yet another re-trial after certain technicalities and concerns about the initial investigation were cleared up.

This news comes as the American government announced that the Iranian government via the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps/Qods Force engaged in yet another act of war against the United States with an active plot to assassinate the Saudi Arabian Ambassador on US soil and to attack the Saudi and Israeli Embassies in Washington, DC. Given this completely disheveled state of affairs just about anything is possible, including the possibility that we might be one step closer to a literal fulfillment of Jeremiah 49:34-39, a fulfillment where a non-nuclear EMP assault upon Iran could lead the way.

UPDATE 02 OCTOBER 2011: Pastor Yousef Nadarkhani's problem may be approaching closure. This is irregardless of the fact that it seems obvious the Islamic Republic of Iran is intent on killing Pastor Nadarkhani. The Shi'a Twelver government in Iran appears to have scrapped the apostasy charges in favor of new false charges of Yousef being "a Zionist, a traitor [who] had committed security crimes" according to Gholam-Ali Rezvani, deputy governor general of Gilan Province.

It is not immediately clear if these new charges carry a death sentence. The reason the Iranian Supreme Court sent the case back to the court in Rasht (the capital of Gilan Province) was to convict Pastor Nadarkhani of apostasy, and have him renounce Christianity in favor of Islam. Pastor Nadarkhani steadfastly has refused, denying that he was ever a Muslim, and thereby defeating the religious charges against him. This is why the new government charges were whipped up out of nothing.

Here's where the rubber meets the road. The court in Rasht has not been trying Pastor Nadarkhani on political charges and by the end of next week at the final hearing the court could well decide to set Yousef free. The court magistrates in Rasht have heard Pastor Nadarkhani's abundant testimony about our Messiah Jesus Christ and according to his lawyer they are very likely convinced at this point that he is an innocent man. Let us maintain our prayer vigil for Brother Yousef, his family and the Christian Church of Iran.

08 July 2011: 32-year old Yosef Nadarkhani (seen above) is a Christian evangelical pastor from Gilan Province in Iran, along the southern shore of the Caspian Sea. Yosef has been a Christian since age 19, and is married with children. In October 2009 authorities arrested him after he objected to Islam being taught to Christian children in Iranian schools. The indictment levied against Yosef accused him of organizing Christian evangelical meetings, preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ, asking others to invite Jesus into their hearts, using his house as a church and for "denying Islamic values." Yosef was put on trial, convicted of the indictments and has been sentenced to death by hanging under the charge of apostasy from Islam.

After his conviction Yosef appealed to the Iranian Supreme Court. That court has ruled that Yosef will have to return to the convicting court and face questioning. If the questioning determines that he does not believe in Islam, if he is not a Muslim, then he must renounce his faith in Jesus Christ before the court or be hanged by the neck until dead.

Brothers and Sisters, we have two tasks before us. The first is to pray for our Brother Yosef Nadarkhani, his family and his church. Pray that God's will is done; spare Yosef from a martyrs death and provide them all with the safety of His protection.

The second task is to correctly teach others who have been deceived by what Western media says about the "peaceful religion of Islam." We need to inform them that Islam (Submission) is in reality the total submission of the will of the individual human being to an utterly false god who has nothing to do with our God YHWH, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of Israel, the Father of whom our Lord Jesus Christ was born to take away the sins of the whole world.

For the past 1,380-some odd years Islam has been an earthly manifestation of the powers we struggle against while wearing he whole armor of God according to Ephesians 6:10-18.

"Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; ¹⁸ praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints."

Clues to the Timing of Ezekiel 38/39 and other Insights

1 February 2012: I was immersed in serious Ezekiel 38/39 study into the wee hours this morning when new insights began to emerge that I'd not noticed previously.

Firstly, Ezekiel is the only prophet recorded in the Holy Bible to which God directly revealed the details about "Gog, of the land of Magog, prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal, and prophesy concerning him."

None of the other prophets - Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel or Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi wrote so much as a single prophetic word about Gog of Magog. Zippo, Nada, None. The fact that the angel Gabriel said nothing to Daniel about Gog of Magog speaks volumes in my opinion. I would say the purpose of God the Father is inherent in this blatant omission. More on that in just a moment.

Secondly, when the angel Gabriel told Daniel (Ch. 11) about the kings of the south and north, that particular prophecy was fulfilled in the several wars between the Hellenic empires of Ptolemaic Egypt (south of Israel) and the Seleucid Empire of southwest Asia (north of Israel). These wars were fought over a period of 106 years (274-167 BC) and which culminated in the fulfilled prophecies about the precursor antichrist Antiochus IV Epiphanes.

There is no mention of the Antichrist or of Jerusalem or any existing Temple in Ezekiel 38/39. I believe these are indicators that the attempted invasion by Gog's confederation occurs during a period of time when Israel is dwelling securely (after Psalm 83, Isaiah 17 for example) but has not yet rebuilt the Temple. Like a time between right now and the start of Daniel's 70th Week and the revealing of the Antichrist with his 7-year "covenant among many."

Finally, getting back to the Lord's purpose in His prophetic word to Ezekiel. This is a really crucial point for us to consider. This coming great slaughter upon the mountains of Israel in Ezekiel 38/39 is not just to bring Israel back into faithfulness to God, but also, as the Lord declares in verse 16: (NKJV - emphasis added) "And thou hast come up against My people Israel, As a cloud to cover the land, In the latter end of the days it is, And I have brought thee in against My land, IN ORDER THAT THE NATIONS MAY KNOW ME, IN MY BEING SANCTIFIED IN THEE BEFORE THEIR EYES, O Gog."

Do you see that? God declares to Ezekiel - and to all of us living right now - that He will supernaturally reveal Himself to the gentile nations of the world through the overwhelming slaughter of Gog's entire confederated military forces and the fire He sends on the land of Magog.

First question: What purpose would there be to this for all of the gentile nations if it were not prior to the Harpazo?

And what does Ezekiel say occurs after the burial of Gog's confederate armies?

Israel builds the Temple.

Current Events: Russia and Iran

15 January 2012: The current conditions in Israel do not merit talk of the imminent fulfillment of Ezekiel 38/39. There is much to be fulfilled prior to those conditions being met.

In fact, one need not bother to ask the residents of Sderot, Be'ersheva, Ashdod or anywhere in Judea or Samaria if any of the five following conditions are true as they are plainly evident as untrue:

1.) All Israel is not dwelling securely (yashab betach) at the present time;

2.) Israel is not a land of unwalled villages ('erets pĕrazah);

3.) Israel is not at undisturbed rest, dwelling without walls, bars or gates (shaqat yashab chowmah bĕriyach deleth) (Ez. 38:11);

4.) With no one to make them afraid (charad) (Ez. 39:26);

5.) Nor is Israel yet in possession of the valley of the passengers east of the sea (gay' `abar qidmah yam) (Ez. 39:11).

When ALL 5 of the above prophetic conditions are plainly evident, then talk about the imminence of Ezekiel 38/39 fulfillment will be appropriate.