As I was writing The Spirit of Prophecy, like so many other authors, I was focused on who is involved, and what is the outcome of the Psalm 83 war. I think I got it right, and I also think I got the timing right. One thing I didn’t focus on is a small verse near the end of the chapter. (Note: verse 16 is the verse I have in mind, but 15 gives the context)
15 So persecute them with thy tempest, and make them afraid with thy storm. 16 Fill their faces with shame; that they may seek thy name, O LORD.
The nations of the Psalm 83 confederation have had a long association with Christianity, but for some of them, like Saudi Arabia, Christians have been persecuted for 1,400 years, since the advent of Islam. For the others the “Arab Spring” is resulting in tremendous persecution against the followers of Jesus Christ, to the point that, by the time this war occurs there are not likely to be any Christians in those countries.
The rebels in Syria are already imposing Sharia in the areas they control.
Today we regularly hear of beheadings in Saudi Arabia, when Muslims find Jesus Christ as Savior!
Asaph, the psalmist, inspired by the Holy Spirit, stated his desire that the nations that attack Israel will be so ashamed of their behavior, that the shame of defeat will lead them to seek the name of the Lord. I think this is a prayer that God would love to answer in the affirmative! I think He will!
War is terrible, but God can take something man has meant for evil, and turn it into something good.
If I am correct, there will be a window of opportunity for missionaries to go to those nations, in the aftermath of the Psalm 83 war. You can’t go to Saudi Arabia today in that capacity. That would be to invite disaster. Kind of like saying “Throw me in jail, I don’t want to live!”.
God, however, wants the gospel to go to the whole world. The world includes the Arab nations, and God can ensure that the gospel gets there. The question is “Who will go for Him?”
And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come. Matthew 24:14
Israeli president Shimon Peres, in a CNN interview, is saying that time is out for Iran to make concessions. If they don’t stop enrichening uranium within days they will suffer an attack on their nuclear installations, he is implying.
I don’t think Iran will stop the enrichening process, because their eschatology says that they must create chaos in order to bring out the Imam Mahdi, the twelfth Imam. The Iranian leadership is composed of true believers in the twelfth Imam. They are as committed to him, as Christians should be committed to Jesus Christ. The difference is that Jesus doesn’t command us to hurt anyone, but “love your neighbor”.
Since most of the world’s leadership is composed of humanists, I don’t think they understand the passion the Iranian leadership has for their “messiah”. Humanists are equally committed to the idea that people are basically “good” despite six thousand years of history saying otherwise.
So the humanists, like Obama, continue to negotiate with people who follow a book that says it is OK to lie to infidels, so long as Islam gains in the end!
Still, I think there is every possibility that the US, and maybe some parts of Europe, will go together with Israel to stop Iran’s enrichment process. They will have to, or Iran will get the bomb. It is not a matter of if, but when. And when they do get it they will use it! They have already stated as much.
If I were a betting man, I would bet that either Israel alone, or with help, will put an end to Iran’s nuclear ambitions, and I would bet it would occur this year.
While visiting my dad on father’s day, I watched a few minutes of Jack Van Impe with him.
One thing I noticed is that Jack is confusing the Psalm 83 war with the Ezekiel 38-39 war, and with Armageddon itself! He is not alone, as I have seen other Christian scholars do this, and even some Jewish scholars as well.
For the life of me I can’t understand how a scholar can do this. The details of these three wars are so different that you can’t confuse them unless you only focus on generalities. It appears that these scholars are ignoring the details!
Scripture actually gives many specifics of each war. The nations of the Psalm 83 war do not appear in the Ezekiel war, except as entities who protest the invasion, i.e. Sheba, Dedan and Tarshish. Each of these three entities represents an Arab nation or group of nations.
The Gog and Magog war of Ezekiel 38-39 describes the invading armies attacking an Israel that is at peace. This peace is a direct result of the Psalm 83 war, and their victory over the Arabs.
The leader of the Russo-Iranian alliance in Ezekiel 39 will die in the attack and will be buried in Israel on the East side of the sea.
And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will give unto Gog a place there of graves in Israel, the valley of the passengers on the east of the sea: and it shall stop the noses of the passengers: and there shall they bury Gog and all his multitude: and they shall call it The valley of Hamon–gog. Ezekiel 39:11
Contrast the end of Gog to the end of the Antichrist in Revelation 19;
“And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.” Revelation 19:20
When it says that the Antichrist is thrown alive into the Lake of fire, it does not mean that he dies and his spirit is thrown into the lake of fire. It means what it says, he will be picked up bodily, raptured, and taken alive to that lake, where he shall remain for all eternity.
Hell and the lake of fire are often spoken of synonymously, but these really are different places. Hell is like death row. There is torment there, but it is not as bad as the lake of fire. Everyone in hell will be resurrected and will stand before God at judgment day. The Antichrist will not be there at judgment day, as his judgment occurs at the end of Armageddon. He will already have been in the lake of fire for a thousand years before he is joined by the rest of the lost. Just him and the false prophet. Even Satan won’t be with them for that period.
Gog is not the Antichrist. He is a leader of the Russo-Iranian coalition, and could be from Russia, or one of the former states of the Soviet Union, like Uzbekistan, Dagistan, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Turkmensitan, etc. These latter nations are the people the bible identifies as Magog.
As I noted in The Spirit of Prophecy:
“The “valley of the passengers” is likely the same as “the Valley of
the Travellers”, a valley that runs from mount Moab toward the Dead
Sea. In the past this valley was a part of Moab, and is today a part
of Jordan, yet the prophet identifies this land as “the Mountains of
Israel”. Something must happen in the mean time for this land to
become possessed by Israel. That question is answered by the war
of Psalm 83.” (The Spirit of Prophecy, p. 169)
The first two of these wars are rather limited. The first one is only in the Middle East. The second involves a larger number of nations, but does not include the whole world. There is a likelihood that Gog/Magog might be referred to as World War 3, but it really won’t include everyone.
Only Armageddon itself will actually include the whole world.
Jeremiah 25:15 begins a list of the nations who will be judged by God at Armageddon, and ends with “and all the kingdoms of the world, which are upon the face of the earth” in verse 26.
We know that this war is not the last war, which will occur at the end of the millennial reign of Christ, for the Judgment of God at this war begins with Jerusalem, whereas at the end of the millennium everyone of Israel will be saved.
The only war that includes the entire world, including Israel, is Armageddon.
Why are these scholars confusing these three wars? I’m afraid it is because they have misinterpreted the idea that the rapture of the Church is imminent. They are not looking for fulfillment of major prophecies during the Church age.
The rapture of the Church cannot occur until the conditions specified in Scripture are met. Jesus spelled out those conditions in Matthew 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21. The evidence is that the “wars and rumours of wars” he spoke of actually include both the Psalm 83, and the Ezekiel 38-39 wars. This means that both of these wars are Church Age wars, and will most likely occur while the Church is still on the earth. Logically then, because the rapture will occur before the tribulation, the Tribulation itself won’t start until after these wars, plus the rapture!
I am looking for a soon fulfillment of Psalm 83, and then the Gog and Magog war a few years later. These wars constitute signs of Jesus’ soon return for the Church.
Unfortunately, I’m afraid that people who have spent too much time listening to Jack Van Impe, will see these wars and mistake them for the Tribulaton. Making that mistake could lead them to look for the return of Christ at the precise moment the Antichrist is set to rise!
This is a problem, and is one of the main reasons I wrote The Spirit of Prophecy. An incorrect interpretation of prophecy can lead you to affirm the Antichrist, and be left behind at the rapture! In other words the only correct interpretation of prophecy is the one that comes from God! All others have another source, or at least the variations that have been introduced did not come from God!
What did Jesus say would be the signs of the times? Are they occurring today?
In Matthew 24 Jesus and the disciples were talking about the Temple, and Jesus said that not one stone would be left upon another, of the complex. Their immediate response was “when shall these things be?”
His response to their question was to give them signs of the end times. He did not state that the Temple would be destroyed some 2,000 years before the end. In fact Jesus implies that the statement, about one block not being upon another, is actually an event of the End Times. There is one wall of the old Temple complex still standing, and I think its destruction will likely occur soon, during one of the late Church-age wars.
Jesus’ next statement was “Take heed that no man deceive you”, strongly implying that deception would be characteristic of the End Times. Just to emphasize this idea, He repeats it again in verse 11 “And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.”
So, one of the characteristics of the End Times is a proliferation of false teachers. They are everywhere. Paul also says the same thing:
For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Acts 20:29
For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect. Mark 13:22
There is one problem with this idea, and it can be found in the book of Daniel, where the angel said to him;
And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end. Daniel 12:9
So, we have a situation where there is a proliferation of false teachers, at the same time as there is an unsealing of the words of the book of Daniel. How are we to know if what is being said about this book is true, or is another in the series of false End Times teachings?
I can hear someone say; “What about you, Daniel Knezacek? How are we to know if the things you have said about the book of Daniel are true or not?”
I’m glad you asked.
The bible gives us guidelines to use to determine if a teacher is true or false. Some judge teachers by their Christian traditions. If what they say is not traditional then they are judged as a false teacher. Jesus, on the other hand, had this to say about traditions;
Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye. Mark 7:13 (See also Matthew 15:2-6)
And Paul:
Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. Colossians 2:8
And Peter:
Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; I Peter 1:18
No. Just as Jewish tradition, in Jesus’ day, had been corrupted by man-made traditions, so too has Christian teaching been corrupted by man-made traditions. I am not only referring to traditions held by liberal Christians, but also to many held by Christian fundamentalists. “lean not unto thine own understanding.” Proverbs 3:5
There is a standard that is unchanging, that you and I can go to to determine whether what we are being told is the truth, or not. That standard is the Word of God.
All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: II Timothy 3:16
For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. II Peter 1:21
Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. John 5:39
(The Bereans) were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so. Acts 17:11
“… the scripture cannot be broken;” John 10:35
For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope. Romans 15:4
The Scribes and Pharisees often came to Jesus and challenged Him with one verse or another. What they were doing was taking Scripture out of context. You can make Scripture say many things if you take it out of context. The Antichrist will actually use Scripture to validate his claim to be the messiah, or Christ! He will do this by taking it out of context!
The only way to be sure that your understanding is correct is to read the whole bible, from Genesis to Revelation! Compare Scripture with Scripture. There is no short-cut to spiritual knowledge.
Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. I Corinthians 2:13 (The bible is the only spiritual book)
The only way to be sure that I am not teaching you something false, in the pages of The Spirit of Prophecy, is to check out the Scriptures. I have tried to make this easier for you by providing a table of Scriptures used, as well as by referencing every quote throughout the book.
I have begun the book with a challenge to the reader: If you think that what I am saying is incorrect, you are free to prove me wrong by the Scriptures. If someone can do that, I will either change the book, or withdraw it from publication. A couple of people have said that they think I am wrong, but both have failed to provide scriptural proof of their contentions. Just because what I am saying is not traditional does not make me wrong.
Today (June 11) Jimmy De Young of Prophecy Today is reporting:
“Iran’s supreme Islamic leader says Moslems must kill Jews and annihilate Israel and they can do that in just nine minutes”
Most of Mr. De Young’s article is pretty good, but there are a couple of errors that I think need to be corrected;
Near the end of the article he reveals that he believes the Gog and Magog coalition are the same group of nations found in the Psalm 83 attack. I can understand his confusion, since the nations in both attacks are primarily Muslim today, but that is where the similarity ends.
Ezekiel lists the nations in the Gog and Magog war as “Meshech and Tubal, Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya, Gomer, Togarmah of the north quarters, and many people with thee“.
Since Moscow was not in existence at the time Ezekiel wrote, he could not name it, but named the founder of the tribe that founded it, Meshech, a grandson of Noah. Tubal was another grandson of Noah, as was Gomer. Tubal was likely another founder of the tribes of Russia living around the Tubal river in the area around Tobolsk.
Persia is Iran.
Ethiopia is most likely Sudan.
Gomer is a tricky one, and has variously been identified as Eastern Europe, or southern Asia. I tend to think it is more likely the latter as there are a wide variety of variations of this name in the area of Cambodia and Viet Nam, Khmer being one of many.
Togarmah is likely the Turkmen tribes, represented today by nations like Turkey, Turkmenistan, and Azerbaijan. Using a term like “north quarters” would seem to indicate “north of Israel, but fairly close in proximity”.
Magog is the nations to the west of China such as Dagistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, etc.
What about the phrase “and many nations with thee”? Couldn’t that indicate the Arab nations?
No. The reason is that the Arab nations are actually named in the Gog and Magog account, not as combatants, but as protesting the war;
Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish, with all the young lions thereof, shall say unto thee, Art thou come to take a spoil? hast thou gathered thy company to take a prey? to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to take a great spoil? Eze 38:13
Sheba, Dedan, and Tarshish are Old Testament Arab entities. Tarshish is likely Tartus, the Syrian port, which will replace Damascus as Syria’s capital, after it is destroyed during the Psalm 83 war. (see Isaiah 17:1) These Arab entities are protesting the invasion of Israel because they made peace with Israel after losing the Psalm 83 war.
The Arab nations would not protest an invasion of Israel today, but would join with enthusiasm. This war will happen after the Arabs have had a taste of peace and prosperity, living at peace with Israel.
There is other evidence that these wars are separated by several years, which I have examined more thoroughly in The Spirit of Prophecy. In spite of the fact that the Iranian drive for nuclear weapons is dominating the news today, the next major attack on Israel will come from the Arab nations surrounding her, and Iran will sit it out!
The coalition of the Psalm 83 war will include Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and the Palestinians. It may also include smaller Arab nations like the U.A.E., Yemen, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, etc, but it will NOT include any of the nations of the Gog/Magog war.
The Psalm 83 war is being set-up even as we speak. This is what is going on with the Arab Spring uprisings. They are not making the world better, they are aligning for a major attack on Israel, and their own destruction!
Al Arabiya is reporting that Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood candidate for president, Mohammed Mursi, is campaigning on a platform of making Jerusalem Egypt’s future capital!
After over 30 years of peace with Israel, it appears that Egypt is now heading down the road to war. Hmm? I thought democracy was supposed to be good for Egypt and the region? Israel gave back the Sinai to Egypt in exchange for peace. So much for the word of an Egyptian!
I’m reminded of the remarks the Jewish high priest said of a certain Jewish Rabbi, Jesus of Nazareth (or Yeshua):
And one of them, named Caiaphas, being the high priest that same year, said unto them, Ye know nothing at all, Nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not. John 11:49-50
Caiaphas, though an unbeliever, was used of God to make a prophesy regarding the role of Jesus. He meant it for evil, but God meant it for good!
In the same vein, I think Mohammed Mursi, and Safwat Hagazy, may actually be prophetic in what they are saying! We are seeing the nations beginning to prepare for the Psalm 83 war. Egypt is one of the nations involved in that war. In the prophecy Egypt is represented by the tribe of Amalek, who are the inhabitants of the Sinai peninsula.
The Psalm doesn’t give the result of that war, but it can be seen in other places;
In that day shall five cities in the land of Egypt speak the language of Canaan, and swear to the LORD of hosts; one shall be called, The city of destruction. Isaiah 19:18
We don’t know exactly when this prophecy will be fulfilled, but it appears to be drawing very close.
“Our capital shall not be Cairo, Mecca or Medina. It shall be Jerusalem with God’s will. Our chants shall be: ‘millions of martyrs will march towards Jerusalem’,” prominent cleric Safwat Hagazy said, according to the video aired by Egypt’s religious Annas TV on Tuesday. (http://english.alarabiya.net/articles/2012/06/07/219272.html)
Wow! Did you see the name of the TV channel that carried that broadcast? Annas TV! In the passage from John, quoted above, Caiaphas’ father-in-law was named Annas! Is it possible that God is playing a joke on the Egyptians? The same kind of joke He played on pharaoh?
It’s not a very funny joke, but then again, I don’t think God thinks it funny when people invoke His blessing on their plans to annihilate His people!
I’m afraid Hagazy is right! Millions of men will march toward Jerusalem, and they will die in the process! I also think he is correct that after this war Egypt will become a puppet state, controlled from Jerusalem! Hebrew will be one of the main languages spoken in Egypt!
Then, after Egypt submits to Israel, they will have peace and prosperity! Yes! At that time they might actually become richer than Sweden! (In case you didn’t get the joke, the primary meaning of “Islam” is “submission”!)
It shall be interesting to watch the results of these elections!
Something has been bothering me for a long time. Years actually. You know, how sometimes someone will make a statement, and you think to yourself “that’s not right! I know it’s wrong, but I just can’t quite place my finger on it”. That’s what it was like for me.
It concerns a small phrase that a demon said to Jesus Christ, some 2,000 years ago.
And, behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? art thou come hither to torment us before the time? Matthew 8:29
I have heard pastors, and recently Brannon Howse, of Worldview Weekend say “Satan doesn’t know when the End Times are, so he always has to have an Antichrist waiting in the wings.”
The problem with this statement is that the demons do know approximately how much time they have, which is very apparent in this statement from Matthew 8. There is no way the demon could have made this statement to Jesus, if he didn’t have a pretty good idea of how much time he had left.
If the Son of God had come to torment him, then it must be the time! Unless, God had already indicated approximately how much time they have. He knew he had some two thousand years to go, so why was the Son of God interfering with him now?
I am so surprised at how so many Christians read this and it just doesn’t register. I shouldn’t be, I guess, since it took so long to register with me.
Hosea said something totally relevant to this subject;
I will go and return to my place, till they acknowledge their offence, and seek my face: in their affliction they will seek me early. 6:1 Come, and let us return unto the LORD: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up. 2 After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight. Hosea 5:15-6:2
Jesus left this planet some forty days after he was raised from the dead. Hosea here is telling us that His return is based on the time he left. He will return two days from when He left, not two days from the time Israel calls for Him, as some have tried to say. The “affliction” in verse 15 is the Tribulation period.
Will Israel live for only one 24 hour day in God’s sight? No, they will live and reign with Him a thousand years, along with the Church! The third day is the third thousand-year-day after the ascension! He is saying that Jesus won’t return for Israel until after the first two “days” are over.
Peter, referring to Psalm 90:4, told us that the statement “A day with the lord is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day” is a direct reference to Jesus’ return, and to the days of Hosea 6:2;
3 Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, 4 And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation. 5 For this they willingly are ignorant of… 8 But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 2 Peter 3:3-5, 8
If Hosea is telling us that Jesus’ return won’t occur until 2,000 years are over, and it appears this is what he is saying, then His return is not imminent until that time. If the demon in Matt 8:29 knew that he had at least 2,000 years to go, then it stands to reason that Satan doesn’t have to have an Antichrist waiting until the End Times. What were men like Nero, Dioclesian, Napoleon Bonaparte, Hitler, Stalin, and Mao, then? Practice runs, dress rehearsals, and attacks on the gospel, but none of these men were ever intended to be the real Antichrist. I also think that he will produce another before the real Antichrist shows up.
The author of Hebrews also speaks of the reign of Christ as if it is a Sabbath, or seventh day, rest.
4 For he spake in a certain place of theseventh day on this wise, And God did rest the seventh day from all his works. 5 And in this place again, If they shall enter into my rest. 6 Seeing therefore it remaineth that some must enter therein, and they to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief: 7 Again, he limiteth a certain day, saying in David, To day, after so long a time; as it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts. 8 For if Jesus had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day. 9 There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. Hebrews 4:4-9 (Note: the Jesus here is Joshua)
The day of the Lord is a thousand-year-day which begins with the Tribulation, and Armageddon, and goes on throughout the millennial reign of Christ. This is the seventh day of the earth’s history. This is why God gave Israel the sabbath as a day of rest. It is a picture of the coming reign of Christ.
When Christians changed the Sabbath to Sun-day they changed the picture God gave us and made it meaningless. It is true that we can, and should, worship Christ every day of the week, but it is wrong to say the command has been changed to Sun-day. There is no place where Scripture says the command has been changed from the Sabbath to Sun-day. It was changed because the pope claims to have the authority to change the commands of God. This is another reason why the protestants are daughters of the Harlot.
Getting back to my point; If the whole of earth’s history will be wrapped up in one week, then it is wrong to say that Jesus could have returned at some point before the end of the second thousand years after the ascension. It is still true that no man knows the day nor the hour of His return, but we do indeed know the season, and we will see the signs shortly before the time. It is important that we are watching for those signs.
As I have stated several times in the past, it really appears that we are in the early stages of the nations aligning themselves for the Psalm 83 war. I have dubbed this conflict Asaph’s war, in honor of the psalmist.
The belligerent parties in this war are made up of the Arab nations surrounding Israel, including Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Egypt. It may also include some of the smaller nations of the Arabian peninsula, like Kuwait, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Yemen, and etc. This war does not include the nations of the Ezekiel 38-39 account of the Gog and Magog war. Notable by their absence are Turkey, Libya, and Iran. Nations who have a long history of animosity toward Israel.
As I have explained before, the Sunni/Shi’ite split appears to be largely responsible for the reason these last nations abstain from this war. This leaves us with the problem of the Assad regime in Syria, and Hezbollah in Lebanon, both Shi’ite sympathizers.
The Syrian government has been battling a rebellion for well over a year now, which has left upwards of 15,000 Syrians dead. The death toll has spurred many in the west to call for action against Assad, but I question the wisdom of interfering. While Assad is a bad guy, I can guarantee that he will be replaced by something worse! Under Assad people of different faiths have been able to live together, however, once he is replaced by the Muslim Brotherhood, the only faith allowed will be Islam, or those of other faiths who pay the dhimmi tax.
Today, June 2, Debka file is reporting that Turkey is now abandoning the Syrian rebels, after supporting them for 14 months. Turkey is now joining Russia and Iran, in support of Assad.
This is interesting. We now have three members of the Gog/Magog alliance siding with Assad, against Saudi Arabia, who are actively supporting the rebels.
This is really a no-brainer; I can predict the outcome with my eyes closed. Assad will be forced out, and Syria will join the Sunni alliance. I can’t say when, but this will be the ultimate outcome of the current conflict. Assad may be able to hold on for some months, or even years, but it is looking more and more likely that some outside interference will take place to assist the rebels, and end his tenure.
Once Assad is gone, Hezbollah will lose their major partner and will have to join with Saudi Arabia, which is unlikely, or they too will be forced out.
One question remaining is what will happen in Iraq? The current government is friendly toward Iran, but the people there are Arabs. Once Assad is toppled, I think we will see the rebellion move from Syria, and Lebanon, to Iraq.
Another is “What about Libya?” It appears to me that one of three scenarios will occur with this country; either they will be too bogged down with internal struggles to be involved with an Arab attack on Israel, they will side with Iran, or they will come to some sort of temporary peace with Israel. I can’t say which, but it will be interesting to watch.
Once these occur, the Psalm 83 coalition will be in place. The only remaining piece of the puzzle is the Iranian nuclear question. I expect 2012, or early 2013, will see some resolution to that question. Iran is producing more and more enriched uranium every day, and has no intention of stopping. They are using the negotiations as a stalling tactic. It’s too bad our leaders aren’t bright enough to see this.
Israel has gone alone against Iraq’s, and Syria’s, nuclear programs with outstanding success. Should they go against Iran’s nuclear installations, they have a much more difficult task. Iran has spread out their nuclear facilities in well fortified sites, deep underground, and in residential areas. This is in contrast to Iraq and Syria, which only had one site each, in remote locations.
I’m sure Israel would prefer to have the help of either Europe or the USA in this venture, but I have to ask, “At what cost would that help arrive?” There is no doubt that if they were to help Israel out militarily, they will want more concessions, in land for peace exchanges with the Palestinians. As the last several concessions have proven, such exchanges always lead to more attacks by the Arabs. Furthermore, if the west does help Israel in this venture, it will appear as weakness to the Arabs.
If this were the case, the Arabs will reason “It was because they couldn’t do it by themselves!” This will not help Israel’s long term security but will actually encourage an all-out attack by the Arabs, once they are sure that neither Europe, nor the US, would assist Israel. The Psalm 83 war scenario would be accelerated.
One remote possibility is that the Arabs could attack Israel while the Israeli Air Force is in the middle of an attack on Iran. With the majority of the Israeli Air Force engaged, 1,000 miles away in Iran, Israel would be vulnerable to an Arab attack. For this reason Israel should not cooperate with Saudi Arabia in an assault on Iran, as tempting as that might be.
The prophecies of the bible are inevitable. It is impossible to stop God from doing what He has declared. On the other hand, there are no definite times given in Scripture, so this tells us that these events might be delayed. If the world would repent of the evil it is up to, and turn to the God of the bible, He could delay these events for a generation or more. While I wish they would, I don’t think it’s likely they will. This world is on a collision course with its creator. I think it is more probable that the Psalm 83 war will occur in less than a decade, perhaps even within a year or two.
Petrus Romanus, The final pope. Could he be the false prophet of Revelation 13-19?
A prophetic list of popes, attributed to St. Malachy, was supposedly rediscovered and released in 1595. This list begins with Pope Celestine II, and ends with Petrus Romanus, the next pope after the current pope, Benedict XVI. You can find the list on Wikipdia. Interestingly enough, it is apparently quite accurate with regard to the details of pre-1590 popes, but after that one must lean a little more heavily on allegory.
Should Christians take this, and other Catholic prophecies, seriously? Some have, and there has even been a book written on the subject by Thomas Horn & Chris Putnam, “Petrus Romanus: The Final Pope Is Here.”
The part of the prophecy related to the last pope reads as follows;
112 Peter the Roman, who will nourish the sheep in many tribulations; when they are finished, the city of seven hills will be destroyed, and the dreadful judge will judge his people. The end.
I submit to you that Satan has the ability to manipulate history, in ways that can have the appearance of fulfillment of prophecies, both biblical and extra-biblical. This is why I think this prophecy is very dangerous. I doubt that the next pope will take the name “Peter”. He would have to be suicidal to do that. I do however, think that some of the details of his reign will start to look very much like the reign of the false prophet of the book of Revelation.
I did not take much stock in this story as I wrote The Spirit of Prophecy, but as I now look back on this book, I see that this idea of the next pope being the last, fits in perfectly with my idea of a decoy, or pseudo, Tribulation period.
Satan is too smart to bring his Antichrist out in the open, when so many are looking for him. He has to produce a decoy, or patsy, of an Antichrist, who will divert attention away from the real thing! The same goes for the false prophet! I would say that the entire Catholic Church is an elaborate counterfeit Satan has been working on for some 1700 years.
The German philosopher Georg Hegel, born in 1770, in his Science of Logic wrote about a “dialectic” as the way ideas and philosophies change. The original state, or status-quo he called “thesis” and the opposite he called “antithesis”. When two opposite ideas clash they struggle back and forth until they combine to form a new idea, which he called “synthesis”. Hegel argued that if you control the debate, you can control the direction of society. You can lead society to your way of thinking by continuously introducing “antithesis” ideas into the conversation.
I don’t think Hegel originated this idea, he just observed it in operation. I think the originator is Satan himself.
Satan wants to be worshiped like God. Therefore he must make an appearance of being like God. In order to do this he has to create a scapegoat. He has to set up someone so evil that when Satan’s Antichrist shows up, he will appear very good in comparison! In order for the world to accept the Antichrist, as Christ, Satan has to make them think they have gone through the Tribulation! In order to do that he has to duplicate most of the major events of the Tribulation, and Armageddon!
As I have studied the End Times prophecies in Scripture, I have discovered that there are just such events prophesied! There are major End Times events and there are other End Times events that show a remarkable similarity to the major events. The Psalm 83, and Ezekiel 38-39 wars, are a series of wars that appear to be in a cause-and-effect relationship, with the Psalm war occurring several years before the Ezekiel war.
I expect the first of these wars to be so bad that Israel will be forced to use nuclear weapons to defend herself, and the European leader, with the assistance of the pope, will step in to broker a peace treaty. This peace treaty will ensure that Israel gives up her nuclear weapons, with a guarantee that Europe will come to her aid if attacked.
The Arabs will also be forced to disarm, and both they and Israel will prosper by keeping this treaty. It is this peace that is referred to in Ezekiel 38:8 and 12, a peace that is in effect when Iran and Russia attack. I am convinced that it will be this same treaty that will be reinstated in the aftermath of the Ezekiel, Gog/Magog war, the very same “covenant” that the Antichrist will confirm.
This leads me to the conclusion that there will be approximately seven years from the end of the Psalm 83 war until either the beginning, or ending, of the Gog/Magog war.
A great many scholars, both Jewish and Christian, have identified the Gog/Magog war as being the same conflict as Armageddon of Revelation 19. This is incorrect, and actually plays into the hands of the devil’s deception.
There are a number of differences between these wars, as well as events that don’t fit the Armageddon account. For one thing, Gog is killed and buried in Israel, but at Armageddon the Antichrist and false prophet are taken alive and thrown into the Lake of Fire. This is their rapture.
And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will give unto Gog a place there of graves in Israel, the valley of the passengers on the east of the sea: and it shall stop the noses of the passengers: and there shall they bury Gog and all his multitude: and they shall call it The valley of Hamon–gog. Ezekiel 39:11
And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone. Revelation 19:20
Interestingly enough, Isaiah speaks about the fate of the Antichrist, the abominable branch, in chapter 14 verses 18-20;
18 All the kings of the nations, even all of them, lie in glory, every one in his own house. 19 But thou art cast out of thy grave like an abominable branch, and as the raiment of those that are slain, thrust through with a sword, that go down to the stones of the pit; as a carcase trodden under feet. 20 Thou shalt not be joined with them in burial, because thou hast destroyed thy land, and slain thy people: the seed of evildoers shall never be renowned.
The Antichrist will not go to Hell, the waiting place of the lost, but goes directly to the Lake of Fire. There are numerous other differences between these two passages, which I have already elaborated on in the Spirit of Prophecy, but this should be enough to show that Armageddon and the war of Ezekiel 38-39, are different wars, at different times.
So, how is this related to the last pope, Petrus Romanus? I think he will be a stand-in for the false prophet, just as the European Union leader will be a stand-in for the Antichrist. As the St. Malachy prophecy states, the city of seven hills (Rome) will be destroyed when this man is pope.
Now, what if the events of the Psalm 83 war, as I have described them above, are correct? After that war the Arabs will live at peace with Israel, and both will prosper. Israel and the Arabs will depend on Europe for security, and the leaders of the Iran-Turkey-Russian alliance know this. Wouldn’t it make sense that this alliance needs to neutralize Europe before attacking Israel? Therefore the best guess as to the destruction of Rome would be shortly before, or right at the start of, their attack on Israel.
By destroying Rome, the city of seven hills, the Russo-Iranian coalition will ensure that Europe will be in such shock and disarray, that they will fail to come to the aid of Israel during their attack. As a result God will have to personally intervene on behalf of Israel, which He will do to the shock of the attacking armies.
A great many professing Christians who are looking for allegory, will see this as fulfilment of Revelation 17-18. A careful study of the details should ensure that one would see the differences, but because many Christians are looking for generalities only, they will get sucked into the deception.
During this attack Turkey will close the dams on the Euphrates river, and its flow will slow to a trickle, to allow the armies of Turkey, Iran and Russia to cross into Israel. This will be interpreted as fulfilment of Revelation 16:12.
And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared.
If you go back just a few verses you will see that the Euphrates will be dried up because of a drought, not because some dam worker pushes a button!
Who are the “kings of the east”? It must include China and Japan, for the original says “of the rising sun”. If China and Japan are not a part of this war, you know it isn’t Armageddon! Armageddon will involve the armies of the whole world, including North and South America!
The Gog/Magog war will include the former nations of the USSR such as Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, etc. and might also include Malaysia, Indonesia, South East Asia, and perhaps even India, but these are not the “kings of the east”, they are only some of the kings of the east!
Another difference is that the remnants of Israel will return to the land after the Gog/Magog war, Ezekiel 39:25, but they are already in the land at the start of the Tribulation! This is why it is called “the time of Jacob’s trouble”. It is about the descendants of Jacob, and their relationship with their God! It won’t happen while there are large numbers of them living in relative safety among the nations.
All these things fit in perfectly with Paul’s statement;
For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. I Thessalonians 5:3
Why are they saying “peace and safety”? Simply because they think it’s over, when in fact it hasn’t yet begun!
Jesus refers to the same thing;
Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh. Matthew 24:44
Be ye therefore ready also: for the Son of man cometh at an hour when ye think not. Luke 12:40
The old English word “ye” and “you” are plural forms of “thee” and “thou”. The “ye” here is a reference to those who are reading the bible at that time! Why would they think Jesus would not come back? The word “think” is a verb. It is an action word. This does not mean that they are not thinking about His return, but rather they THINK He won’t return, because they think He’s already here!
They think the Antichrist is Christ!
Rather than reading what the bible says about Jesus, and believing it, most professing Christians create a Jesus in their own mind. A Jesus who is remarkably like them! Their Jesus thinks like them, and has the same likes and dislikes as them! He even follows their idea of morality. In fact their Jesus likes them… a lot!
When the Antichrist shows up he will fit their idea of what Jesus should be like, consequently if He’s here on earth, he can’t come down from the sky!
In the aftermath of the Gog and Magog war, after Rome is destroyed, the religions of the world will join together in ecumenical unity. Where might they locate their headquarters? I think it will be Babylon (Zechariah 5:5-11). They will reason that “since the Harlot has been destroyed there is no more danger.” And they will also reason that they must unite to prevent more destruction, but this unity will bring down God’s judgment on them!
Where am I going with this? What I’m saying is that a prophecy may come true and still not be of God. This Malachy prophecy may indeed appear to be true, but it still isn’t of God. Moses himself said that a prophecy can come true even though its origin is suspect;
If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder, And the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve them; Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the LORD your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul. Deuteronomy 13:1-3
It does indeed appear that God does sometimes allow Satan to bring his own prophecies to fulfillment. The key is not the fulfillment of prophecy itself, but does it line up with the whole context of the Word of God. Does the prophet deny the plain teaching of the Word of God in some place? Does he deny salvation by grace alone, through faith alone, in the shed blood of the Son of God? Does he add something to Scripture, that God did not add?
The Catholic popes do deny salvation by grace alone, through faith alone, and add works as being necessary for Salvation. Therefore if a Catholic prophecy does come to pass, you don’t need to worry about it. It’s not from God!
Jesus has the last word;
18 For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: 19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book. Revelation 22:18-19
I don’t regularly post other author’s work, but Jack Kinsella’s article “The Error” is one that hit the nail on the head. I addressed this subject in The Spirit of Prophecy, and Jack is saying much the same thing in a different way. I’m so glad to see I’m not alone…
I am always surprised when I meet bona-fide dyed-in-the-wool born-again Christians to whom Bible prophecy is either irrelevant or is something they have written off as sensationalism. Many mainstream teachers and preachers write off the study of Bible prophecy as fodder for crackpots.
Students of Bible prophecy are routinely presented as unbalanced, suicidal, genocidal lunatics yearning for the judgments of a vengeful Lord culminating in the near-extermination of the human race.
I recall once when I managed to score an on-camera interview with former CIA Director William Colby. (Colby was known as a “media-friendly CIA director.”)
Colby was an ordinary-looking little man with thinning hair and big glasses who at first glance looked like an accountant.
It was only his eyes that betrayed the fact he was a trained and experienced assassin who once led the CIA’s Vietnam war as Saigon station chief. About halfway through the interview, Colby recognized where the line of questioning was headed and asked me, “who are you guys, anyway?”
Our producer answered, “TWIBP”.
“What does that stand for?” he demanded. “This Week in Bible Prophecy,” I replied.
“I’m outta here,” Colby said as he jerked the microphone from his lapel.
As he stormed away, I heard him say to an aide; “Bible prophecy! You ever do that to me again, you’re fired!”
It isn’t like Colby had a reputation for being a Christian — he didn’t. But his reaction was typical of how the subject of Bible prophecy is viewed by skeptics, whether inside or outside the Church.
Rick Warren is the pastor of one of America’s biggest churches, the “Saddleback Church” in Lake Forest, California. His book, “The Purpose-Driven Church”, published in 1995, has become something of an unofficial Bible for pastors and ministers eager to emulate Warren’s success.
Over 400,000 pastors and church leaders from around the world have attended a seminar or conference led by Warren and other pastors and based on the five “purposes” which Warren enumerates as worship, fellowship discipleship, ministry and evangelism.
Warren advocates a softer tone by evangelicals on issues like abortion and same sex marriage, signed a statement endorsing the global warming hoax and is an elected member of the Council of Foreign Relations.
The man sometimes called “America’s Pastor” is also author of “The Purpose-Driven Life” and a darling of both the media and the Christian ‘mainstream’. Warren argues in his book that an interest in Bible prophecy is a distraction from both living a Christian life and fulfilling the Great Commission.
“It is easy to get distracted and sidetracked from your mission because Satan would rather have you do anything besides sharing your faith. He will let you do all kinds of good things as long as you don’t take anyone to heaven with you. But the moment you become serious about your mission, expect the Devil to throw all kinds of diversions at you. When that happens, remember the words of Jesus: “Anyone who lets himself be distracted from the work I plan for him is not fit for the Kingdom of God.”
And then, Warren makes this astonishing statement:
“When the disciples wanted to talk about prophecy, Jesus quickly switched the conversation to evangelism. He said in essence, “The details of My return are none of your business”
The New Testament is literally filled with details about His return. Indeed, as He ascended into heaven, the Book of Acts tells us that two angels were standing nearby as they watched Him ascend into the clouds and out of sight.
“Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven.”
If the details of His return are none of our business, we need to scrap Matthew 24, Luke 21, Mark 13, part of the books of Acts, parts of both epistles to Timothy, parts of Hebrews, James, and all of the Book of the Revelation, just for starters.
What Bible does he use?
“Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation. For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water: Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished:” (2 Peter 3:3-6)
The Apostle Peter’s second epistle was written as he was awaiting his martyrdom. Generally speaking, when a man knows he is about to die, there are two things that are universally accepted. The first is that he will share what is most important to him. The second is that he is telling the truth.
Even secular courts give great weight to a deathbed confession, on the grounds that a person who is about to die has no motive or reason to lie.
What was most important to Peter? Warning of what he called a “willing ignorance” about the approach of the last days, the return of Christ and the reclamation of the world.
There is no question that Bible prophecy can become a playground for liars and lunatics. Just look how many times Harold Camping has predicted the date of the Rapture. Then look how many times he was wrong and yet he STILL had people believing him.
Look how many false prophets claim to have direct revelation from God that either changes or adds to the Biblical record.
And yet they have no shortage of followers. It requires a “willing ignorance.”
Bill Koenig makes the point in his excellent “World Watch Daily” that roughly 100 million American church members have no understanding of Bible prophecy before pinpointing what I believe is one of the two main reasons why.
Koenig notes that of the twenty-five largest American church denominations, at least fourteen of them are supersessionist, meaning they adhere to the doctrine of replacement theology.
They believe that God abandoned the Jews after they rejected the Messiah and the covenant promises to the Jews were then transferred to the Church.
By this view, Israel is just another country in the Middle East. The Jews of Israel are not the Jews of the Old Testament, and even if they were, they are rejected by God and therefore worthy of rejection by the Church.
If the restoration of Israel is not a fulfillment of Bible prophecy (and it cannot be, according to supersessionism) then the entire prophetic timetable collapses, since all Bible prophecy for the last days centers around a restored Jewish state called “Israel.”
Since Israel is Jewish, is restored where God said it would be and follows the prophetic script to the letter (right down to being “born in a day”) arguing it is irrelevant to Bible prophecy is willing ignorance of the highest order.
The second reason that so many Christians deny Bible prophecy is fear. If Bible prophecy is true, then it means that the Lord will come back sometime within the lifetime of those who witnessed Israel’s restoration sixty-four years ago.
That would mean that time is rapidly running out. Unless it is all in the imagination of a bunch of Jew-loving crackpots who take some kind of demented joy out of believing in doomsday, which is evidently their preferred scenario.
This baffles me. The world is clearly on the brink of chaos and collapse. The probability of a global, total war is high and getting higher every day. Unless something happens to prevent total war, the result will be the annihilation of the human race.
Bible prophecy, by its very existence, establishes beyond question that the Bible is true, that the Lord remains on His Throne, that what appears to be chaos is really part of the Divine Plan and that everything is under control.
If Bible prophecy is true, then the Middle East crisis is explained. The resurgence of Russia and its alliance with the Muslim world is explained. The economic and political chaos gripping the EU is explained.
The growing economic and military might of Asia is explained as are the two hundred million Chinese bachelors seeking a home in the Chinese military.
Bible prophecy explains the income gap between rich and poor, the global warming hoax, sunspots, Iran’s nuclear drive, the “Palestinian problem” and the rapidly collapsing moral codes that underpin Western civilization.
Remove Bible prophecy and there is no pattern, no explanation, no blessed assurance and no hope.
Israel is the centerpiece of Bible prophecy. Its existence and history are proof positive of the accuracy of Bible prophecy. To this point in the historical record, Bible prophecy — where it can be proved at all — has proved to be 100% accurate, 100% of the time.
The same God that predicted what has already occurred with such unerring accuracy will continue to perform His Will until His Purpose is accomplished. Bible prophecy proves God is still on His Throne and is intimately concerned with the affairs of men.
“Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:” (Isaiah 46:9-10)
That promise has no expiration date. God’s blueprint for the future will continue to unfold with the same accuracy in the days ahead as it has in millennia past.
It is why what terrifies the world is what gives us hope. It’s why the world thinks we’re a more than a little bit nuts.
The Lord doesn’t work in ‘mysterious’ ways; He works according to His will. He has a purpose for everything that He does. Whether we understand that purpose is irrelevant — it is enough to know that HE does.
“So shall My Word be that goeth forth out of My Mouth: it shall not return unto Me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.” (Isaiah 55:11)
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