Prophecy Update: Jerusalem in Bible Prophecy
The city of Jerusalem was founded by David in 2Samuel 5 for the nation of Israel. The Jebusites had been ruling the city and David captured the city and called it the city of David. How did they do it? They entered the city through one of the shafts that brought water to the city from the Gihon Springs. 2Samuel 5:4-5 says, “David was thirty years old when he became king and he reigned forty years. At Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty three years over all Israel and Judah.” Jerusalem means city of peace, but there has been little peace in that city. According to Eric H. Cline, the city has been “destroyed at least twice, besieged 23 times, attacked an additional 52 times, and captured and recaptured 44 times” (as quoted in “Do We Divide the Holiest Holy City?” Moment, March/April 2008).
David took the city around the year 1000B.C. and Israel ruled the city until it was conquered by the Babylonians in 586 B.C. God made a promise through the prophet Jeremiah that the captivity of Jerusalem would only last 70 years. Jer.29:10 says, “For thus says the LORD, ‘When seventy years have been completed for Babylon, I will visit you and fulfill My good word to you, to bring you back to this place.” When the 70 years were up from the first deportation, God raised up Cyrus King of Persia to declare that the Jews were to go back to Israel and build the temple in Jerusalem. (Is.44:28-45:7, Ezra 1:1-4) They did rebuild the temple and it was in the midst of much opposition. The problem was that the Jews were now back in their land but under the sovereignty of a Gentile power. That power over Israel was Persia, then it was the Greeks, then it was the Romans. When Jesus came, the Jews still were under the sovereignty of Rome. Jesus predicted the fall of Jerusalem again, and that happened in 70 A.D.
The first time Jews came back to the land to rebuild the temple, the things that they faced mirrors the day in which we live. It was opposed then and now! The prophet Zechariah told us of the desire of God and His plan.
“Through the pen of Zechariah the prophet, God revealed His deep love for the city of Jerusalem and His intent that Jerusalem was and would be a special place to Him in the future (Zechariah 1:14, 17; 2:12).”
God uses some very graphic language to describe His attitude: 1:14, “So the angel who was speaking with me said to me, “Proclaim, saying, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, “I am exceedingly jealous for Jerusalem and Zion.” God is clear that He is exceedingly jealous, meaning that He has a very large amount of desire to protect and fulfill His promises to this city. God made some very large promises that seem almost impossible to fulfill. One of them is in 1:17 of Zechariah–“Again, proclaim, saying, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, “My cities will again overflow with prosperity, and the LORD will again comfort Zion and again choose Jerusalem.” Imagine that, God will bring His people back to His land and establish the ancient cities once again. For almost 2000 years, Jerusalem was a desolation and was under Gentile rule. God described this time period in Luke 21:24, “and they will fall by the edge of the sword, and will be led captive into all the nations; and Jerusalem will be trampled under foot by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.”
Until 1948, the Jews did not have a state of their own. God promised that one day He would bring back His people and He did it. Isaiah 62 describes for us what God is doing in the world today. I will take them verse by verse so that you can see the awesome way God is working.
Is.62:1 says, “For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent, And for Jerusalem’s sake I will not keep quiet, Until her righteousness goes forth like brightness, And her salvation like a torch that is burning.” This admonition is for those who understand and believe in the importance of the promises of God regarding His capital city. One day the righteousness and salvation of Jerusalem will go out to the whole earth. Isaiah 2 talks about a time when Messiah Jesus will sit on His throne in Jerusalem and all the nations will stream to Him!
Is.62:2 says, “The nations will see your righteousness, And all kings your glory;
And you will be called by a new name which the mouth of the LORD will designate.” One day when all of the nations are gathered to Jerusalem, it will be given a new name. No one knows that name except the Lord. Kings who today hate Jerusalem, will come and bow down.
Is.62:3 says, “You will also be a crown of beauty in the hand of the LORD, And a royal diadem in the hand of your God.” 128 nations voted against the declaration of President Donald Trump that Jerusalem is the eternal capital of Israel. This decision of the president is of biblical proportions. God loves Jerusalem and holds it in His hand as a crown of beauty! Notice, that God holds Jerusalem in His hand—it is His city.
Is.62:4 says, “It will no longer be said to you, “Forsaken,” Nor to your land will it any longer be said, “Desolate”; But you will be called, “My delight is in her,” And your land, “Married”; For the LORD delights in you, And to Him your land will be married.” On May 14th 1948 the land of Israel was married to the people of Israel. They became a nation in one day as the prophet Isaiah predicted. At that time Israel was not in possession of all their land. Four big wars later, they have much more of their land with more to come. They took possession of Jerusalem in June of 1967 and have not relinquished sovereignty over the city. For Jews, this has been their capital city for 3000 years. Islam is only 1400 years old and the Koran does not speak of Jerusalem. The Bible speaks of Jerusalem and Zion over 1000 times! The Lord delights in His people going back to the land which He set aside for them. The land is being married again, it is a beautiful picture that Satan is set on destroying.
Is.62:5 says, “For as a young man marries a virgin, So your sons will marry you;
And as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, So your God will rejoice over you.” The land of Israel was desolate while the people of Israel were out of the land, when they return, the land returned to its health. Amos 9:13-15 talks of this promise, “Behold, days are coming,” declares the LORD, “When the plowman will overtake the reaper And the treader of grapes him who sows seed; When the mountains will drip sweet wine And all the hills will be dissolved. “Also I will restore the captivity of My people Israel, And they will rebuild the ruined cities and live in them; They will also plant vineyards and drink their wine, And make gardens and eat their fruit. “I will also plant them on their land, And they will not again be rooted out from their land Which I have given them,” Says the LORD your God.
Is.62:6-7 says, “On your walls, O Jerusalem, I have appointed watchmen; All day and all night they will never keep silent. You who remind the LORD, take no rest for yourselves; And give Him no rest until He establishes And makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth.” The key word is ‘establishes’ and the Lord is in the process of doing just that. When Pres. Trump declared that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel and would move the embassy there, the nations flipped out. The UN called a special meeting to deal with it, the European Union met to demand that Trump take it back. Mahmoud Abbas also attacked the US. He said recently, Abbas told the Security Council: “The United States has contradicted itself and contradicted its own commitments and has violated international law and the relevant resolutions with its decision regarding Jerusalem.” The Arab delegation – called the Delegation of the League of Arab States on Jerusalem, which was set up after US President Donald Trump’s decision in December to recognize the holy city as Israel’s capital – included the foreign ministers of Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Morocco the United Arab Emirates and the Palestinian Authority. The delegation also included Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit. “What brought us here, the ministers of the League of Arab states and the ministers of the European Union, is this concern we have about any false step on the Middle East peace process and on Jerusalem in particular,” Mogherini said. The EU is adamantly opposed to Trump’s decision on Jerusalem, as is the Arab League.”
The world is committed to two states with a divided Jerusalem. This is not going to happen because God has told us what will happen. Israel will take the city and the land of Israel and the world will oppose her, but will be unable to stop her. This will lead to war and Israel will win again, only this time, their eyes will be opening to the God of Israel who is protecting them and making these things happen at this time. Trump is working on a peace plan, this is dangerous. The only peace plan that will be accepted eventually will be the one put forward by the Anti-Christ.
Unfortunately for the world, this will be the time that the prophecies will be in full swing. I wish that I can have a heart to heart with the president and tell him to forget the peace deal. Let Israel deal with her neighbors, while we support Israel with all we have. The only smart policy is a one state solution! Every time the USA gets involved with dividing the land of Israel, it will go bad for us.
In the meantime, there are going to be some fireworks in and around the month of May. The President of the United States will be going to Jerusalem to celebrate with Israel the 70th year anniversary of the start of the state of Israel. The enemies of Israel will try to stop the embassy from opening in Jerusalem. It is time to pray for our president and the Israelis that they will stop any evil attempts by Iran and all of her proxies to disrupt this beautiful occasion. May God bless Israel and the United States!
This coming April, “Iran will host its first-ever International Hourglass Festival, dedicated exclusively to counting down to the “imminent collapse of the Zionist regime.” As you can see, the tension is so large with what Pres. Trump did, Iran is angry enough to start a festival dedicated to the destruction of Israel! The Jerusalem post said, ‘The themes of the festival include the following: the Quds-occupier regime (Israel) and human rights, oppression, Islamophobia and terrorism promotion; the Zionist child-killing regime; Israel, a cancerous tumor; and Israel, a fake, racist and colonialist regime.’ The festival is before May and will be a stirring of the pot, an attempt by Iran to encourage attacks on Israel. Iran will fail because Bible Prophecy is being fulfilled in our day. Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.
