Prophecy Update: War in Israel Aug.30, 2019
Joel 3:1-2, “For behold, in those days and at that time, When I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, I will gather all the nations And bring them down to the valley of Jehoshaphat. Then I will enter into judgment with them there On behalf of My people and My inheritance, Israel, Whom they have scattered among the nations; And they have divided up My land.”
This passage tells us about the end times in some specific ways. First, it says that ‘in those days and at that time’ this is a clue to us that we can know historically when God is moving in the end times. It tells us that the time is linked to ‘when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem.’ We live in the time that God is restoring Judah and Jerusalem on the earth. Israel is getting her land and Jerusalem was established as the eternal capital of Israel. (Declared in 2017 and made official in 2018) Israel has been growing in riches and wisdom to share with and bless the world. Honduras just announced the move of her embassy to Jerusalem.
I will focus on stories this week that highlight the fact that as God is restoring Israel to the land, many nations are preparing for war with Israel. Namely, Iran, Syria, Lebanon, Gaza, and Jordan.
“Palestinian Territories” Disappear from State Dept. Website As If They Never Existed. The U.S. does not recognize the State of Palestine and therefore officially maintains no diplomatic exchanges nor consular services with Palestine and since the closure of the Palestine mission in October 2018, Palestine has no diplomatic representation in the U.S. The PA will no longer adhere to the Oslo Accords and their illegal building in regions under Israeli control with the help of European funding. The State of Palestine is recognized by 137 UN members and since 2012 has a status of a non-member observer state in the United Nations. It is a member of the Arab League, Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, and the International Olympic Committee. Palestine is not recognized as a state by Israel, the United States, Switzerland, Canada, Japan, South Korea, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, and most of the European Union. Since the Palestinian territory is claimed as the West Bank by both Jordan and the PA, they want to kick all Jews out of this land. The USA is making a bold assertion that will lead to war in the near future.
The GCC wants to improve ties with Israel because of Iran. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), is a political and economic alliance of six Middle Eastern countries—Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, and Oman.
It is important to recall that even if GCC leaders are positive about improving ties with Israel and have decided the Palestinian problem is no longer a roadblock, their local populations still feel animosity toward Israel. Public opinion is not yet interested in changing the relationship. For instance, Saudi Arabia is in a war with Yemen. This war is with Iran through the Iranian proxy war machine called the Houthi’s. Saudi Arabia wants Israeli help with beating Iran but they do not want Israel to even exist. There is a disturbance in the Muslim force you might say. This is fulfilling Biblical prophecy.
Tensions are running high in the Gaza Strip and in Judea and Samaria and the slightest incident could cause things to spiral out of control. If Hamas, despite signals to the contrary, is fanning the flames, it will give Israel little choice but to mount a forceful response. Here is a headline highlighting the tension: The Fighting Dramatically Escalates As Both Sides Prepare For “The Final War” Between Israel And Iran. Are we about to see World War 3 erupt in the Middle East? Over the past several days, Israel has attempted to prevent attacks by Iranian forces and their allies by striking targets in Syria, Gaza, Lebanon and Iraq. Political leaders in both Lebanon and Iraq are now accusing Israel of a “declaration of war”, and Hezbollah is pledging to strike Israel back extremely hard.
“Israeli forces openly claimed attacks over the weekend in Syria and the Palestinian-administered Gaza Strip and were blamed for two more operations in Lebanon and Iraq. As reports of what occurred across the region emerged, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hinted at his country’s ongoing efforts abroad, telling a Monday planning meeting that “we will deepen our roots and strike at our enemies.”
The attacks on Lebanon the last few days have made very clear that Israel regards the government of Lebanon as part of the Iranian tool to destroy Israel. Earlier this year, Israel declared to the Lebanese that they no longer distinguished between Hezbollah and the government of Lebanon they saw them as one. This was a game changer. Iran controls the capitals of Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon for military reasons. Israel struck in these three countries this week.
Joel 3:9-10 says, “Proclaim this among the nations: Prepare a war; rouse the mighty men! Let all the soldiers draw near, let them come up! Beat your plowshares into swords And your pruning hooks into spears; Let the weak say, “I am a mighty man.”
We know that from Ezekiel, Joel, and Revelation that the end times will be a time of war. The nations are preparing for some big wars, those who are paying attention to this are warning that WW3 is imminent. God says in Joel that He is working in the nations to cause war. God does this to judge the nations! America withdrew from the arms treaty of 1987 and this has caused an arms race. The reason we withdrew was that Russia never kept their word. Many nations are trying to keep up with Russia and China developing hypersonic weapons. Revelation 6 is very clear that the Tribulation period starts with world war. The second seal will be broken and the red horse will ride out to take peace from the earth and men will slay each other. All of the wars prior to the tribulation and in the tribulation lead eventually to Armageddon.
One big game changer in the war making ability is the deployment of the F-35 plane that Israel is using to execute bombing runs across the Middle East. Israel has caused a rift in the Muslim world and also in the Russian alliance with Iran and Turkey. The mystery to me the last few weeks is that the Bible is very clear that Russia and Iran will attack Israel together. Since Russia has been siding with Israeli bombing runs against Iran they are not exactly in full support of Iran attacking Israel –they are not in a position to fulfill Ezekiel 38-39 yet. I see Putin becoming more and more hateful to Israel or he will be removed and God will raise up a GOG from Russia. Here is an article that bears on this problem:
Putin, Erdogan, Meet on Deterioration of Syria Understandings. Both Russia and Ankara (in cooperation with Iran) have set up a demilitarized zone in Idlib, but Syrian troops supported by Russian warplanes have advanced in recent weeks against the rebels’ last major enclave in northwestern Syria, and in the process. according to Deutsche Welle, have encircled a Turkish military post. The problem is that Turkish troops have been killed as Russian supported troops attack in the Aleppo area. Sometime in the future the alliance of Turkey, Russia, and Iran will turn their attention to Israel and not rebels in Syria. That day is coming soon. The reason is that Israel has been very successful to attack Iranian and Syrian troops to stop attacks on Israel. The US has declared again this week that Israel had the right to attack Syria and all nations in the Middle East who threaten Israel.
“A powerful bloc in Iraq’s parliament has called for the withdrawal of US troops from Iraq, following a series of air raids targeting Iran-backed Shia militias in the country that have been blamed on Israel. The Fatah Coalition said on Monday that it holds the United States fully responsible for the alleged Israeli aggression, “which we consider to be a declaration of war on Iraq and its people.” Friday Benjamin Netanyahu spoke about the problem: “Dir balak,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in public remarks directed at Lebanon, using the Arabic for “watch out,” after the IDF published what it said were details about an extensive Iranian-sponsored campaign to provide Hezbollah with the means to produce precision-guided missiles.”
It is Friday morning and I am putting the final touches on this update. It has been a wild week in the Middle East and the pressure has been building like a volcano waiting to explode. This headline tells us about the pressue mounting: As tensions spike in north, IDF cancels leave for combat brigades — ‘After Hezbollah threat of reprisal for Israeli strikes, Northern Command chief warns, ‘If an IDF soldier is so much as scratched, our response will be harsh.’
The Muslim world is in a pickle, the Shia part is determined to destroy Israel and the Sunni part is divided in how and when. Turkey is all in on destroying Israel while Saudi Arabia is not—at least not until they destroy the Shia first. God has protected Israel from a united Muslim assault because His wrath is against the ungodliness and idol worshipping in the Middle East. God is determined to raise up Israel in the last days to fulfill all that the prophets have said. It is when Israel is in the land and under assault that they will turn to the Lord and thus all Israel will be saved.
The elections are coming up in Israel and Iran wants to make war with Israel. The Trump team has again delayed releasing the so-called peace plan. I pray they never present the peace plan because God has a peace plan and no one wants to use His plan. I like God’s peace plan, a plan that requires people to come to Him in faith and trust. If God said that He is going to bring all of the nations to fight in Israel, Russia and Iran in the Gog Magog war, and all nations in Armageddon, don’t you think you should repent and turn to Him for forgiveness of all of your sins? Jesus said that He would give us a peace that will surpass all comprehension (Phil.4:6-7) that blows my mind because I have that peace. I hope you will believe and have the peace of God today!
