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“And it will come to pass at the same time, when Gog comes against the land of Israel, says the Lord God, that My fury will show in My face. For in My jealousy and in the fire of My wrath I have spoken: Surely in that day there shall be a great earthquake in the land of Israel, so that the fish of the sea, the birds of the heavens, the beasts of the field, all creeping things that creep on the face of the earth, and all men who are on the face of the earth shall shake at My presence. The mountains shall be thrown down, the steep places shall fall, and every wall shall fall to the ground.
“I will call for a sword against Gog throughout all My mountains, says the Lord God. Every man’s sword will be against his brother. And I will bring him to judgement with pestilence and bloodshed; I will rain down on him, on his troops, and on the many peoples who are with him, flooding rain, great hailstones, fire, and brimstone. Thus I will magnify Myself and sanctify Myself, and I will be known in the eyes of many nations. Then they shall know that I am the Lord.” Ezekiel 38:18-23 Much of what Ezekiel describes in these passages mirrors the vision John saw with the opening of the sixth seal in the book of Revelation. “I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood. And the stars of heaven fell to the earth, as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind. Then the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place. “And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains, and said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?” Revelation 6:12-17 I think both prophets are describing the same event. I think the Rapture occurs and Gog views this as his opportunity to take advantage of the chaos to destroy Israel. With the Christians removed, God begins the seven-year tribulation in which he unleashes his wrath on the Earth. The world already reeling from the chaos of the disappearing Christians, is then devastated by a supernatural calamity that encompasses everything described by Ezekiel and John. The result is the utter devastation of the armies invading Israel. It almost sounds like some kind of massive asteroid passing close enough to Earth to upset our gravitational balance and cause a cataclysmic shifting of the tectonic plates while at the same time breaking off pieces that rain down in a horrific storm of fire and brimstone. The Jews will view it as divine intervention from God. This will lead them to become a fully-fledged religious state and prompt the building of the Third Temple. The aftermath of all this chaos will also see the rise of the Antichrist. He will provide answers to calm the world and he will make a treaty with Israel that enables them to build their temple in exchange for refusing to claim any additional territory from the vanquished Muslim nations. This brief calm after the storm which sees the Antichrist first peacefully consolidating power and Israel returning to God is described by John: “Then I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God. And he cried with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it was granted to harm the earth and the sea, saying, Do not harm the earth, the sea, or the trees till we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads. And I heard the number of those who were sealed, One hundred and forty-four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel were sealed.” Revelation 7:2-4 Thus even as the Antichrist signs his false covenant with Israel, God renews his true covenant with his chosen people. He will protect them even as he unleashes greater horrors on Earth. The safety of Israel will stand as a stark contrast to the nightmare that will become the Antichrist’s realm. This will set up his betrayal of Israel three and a half years later. I believe current Christians will not have to endure any of the horrors described in the visions of Ezekiel and John. I believe the Rapture of the Church will occur before God unleashes his wrath. I will discuss the Rapture in my next post.
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The recent passage of the Alabama bill banning abortion in all cases except for the life of the mother has not only caused an uproar among those advocating for abortion but has caused some in the Pro-life movement to suggest that it has gone too far. There are some who argue that exceptions should have been carved out for rape and incest.
The rape and incest exception on its surface is a compelling argument. Who would presume to tell a woman who has endured the horror of rape to prolong her mental anguish through a nine-month pregnancy? Who would want to explain to a child conceived in incest the origins of their parentage? These are terrible things to contemplate. But there is one thing worse than these situations and that is ending the life of a child. We in the Pro-life movement must ask ourselves why we are Pro-life. The name of our movement should answer that question. We are for life. And if we are to be effective in our argument for eliminating abortion, must hold to the belief that life begins at conception. We must claim that it begins at that moment when a unique DNA code is created. It is upon that basis that we can seek legal standing for the child in the womb. DNA has already been established in our legal system as a means for incriminating or exonerating individuals accused of crimes. DNA eliminates the absurdity of women claiming that the child in their womb is a part of their body akin to a tumor. An objective autopsy of a child killed in an abortion would identify it in a court of law as a unique being, not a biological piece of the mother. Life as defined by human DNA created at conception removes all debate about viability, cognitive ability, or the soul. It is the only way to achieve the decisive victory that is necessary to fully end the horror of abortion. But if we are to take our stand on personhood at conception, we must remain consistent. Our legal system does not hold children guilty for the crimes of their parents. But the exceptions many who claim to be Pro-life are advocating would go even further than that. We don’t execute rapists, yet many would issue a death sentence to the child of rape. We don’t execute those who engage in incest, yet we would kill a child created under such circumstances. But what do you tell the woman who was raped? The problem is that our society has devalued life to the point where abortion has become the natural decision in this case. In past generations, it would be unthinkable for a woman to kill her unborn child, even if it was conceived in rape. It would not even enter her mental calculus. We have bought into a narrative constructed by those who have made abortion mainstream that has made bringing a child conceived in rape to term a greater emotional horror for the mother than the horror of killing her own child. And let us not forget that the child is only half the product of the rapist. The other half is from the mother. But what about the potential for severe mental and physical deformities for a child conceived in incest? Should we not end that potential before it even manifests? That line of thinking opens the door for abortion in cases of any kind of deformity or disability detected during the course of a pregnancy. It leads us to issuing death sentences to human beings who we deem incapable of having a proper quality of life. We claim it as an act of mercy, but who are we to judge what the future would hold for them if given the chance to live? What medical and technological breakthroughs could occur in their lifetimes to heal such disabilities or provide functionality? But what of the mental state of the child upon learning that they are the product of rape or incest? We immediately resign ourselves to a worst-case scenario where the individual immediately commits suicide upon learning of their infamous parentage. Or we assume they will have a miserable life marked by depression and addiction as they grapple with their origin. Sadly, this does happen. But it also happens with legitimately conceived children whose parents achieve some level of infamy through either crime or scandal. There are also plenty of instances where children rise above their dark lineage and have happy, successful lives. The fact is, those in the abortion movement have overplayed their hand. In our modern age of effective and readily available birth control, rape, incest, and the health of the mother should be the only possible points of discussion for abortion. The fact that they are advocating inhuman policies like abortion up to the point of birth or leaving children who survive abortions to die without any medical care points out just how insincere they are when they attempt to trap Pro-lifers in a rape/incest moral conundrum. They have gone all in on abortion. If they can convince themselves that a child moments from birth is not a human being with all the rights afford to a human being, you will never when any argument with them regarding viability, cognitive ability, or the soul. They will always side with whatever is most expedient for the woman carrying the child. Therefore, we must be the advocates for the child. And we must be unwavering advocates, regardless of how that child is conceived. We have science on our side. We have the law on our side. There can be no compromise because any compromise means death for innocent human beings. And besides, what would compromise look like? The abortion activists have moved so far to the extreme, that they would have us convinced that going back to unlimited first trimester abortions with regulations for second and third trimester abortions is a victory. Those are the very conditions that the Pro-life movement had been fighting against for decades prior to the recent radical push for late-term abortions. Those are the very conditions that have led to millions of dead children. We must stand for life. We must do so firmly and unapologetically. We will be called extremists, but that is only because death has become commonplace in our country. Let us be extremists for life now, so that the day will come when our children and grandchildren will view choosing life as the natural choice. “Now the word of the Lord came to me, saying, ‘Son of man, set your face against Gog, of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meschech, and Tubal, and prophesy against him, and say, Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against you, O Gog, the prince of Rosh, Meschech, and Tubal. I will turn you around, put hooks into your jaws, and lead you out, with all your army, horses, and horsemen, all splendidly clothed, a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords.
“Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya are with them, all of them with shield and helmet; Gomer and all its troops; the house of Togarmah from the far north and all its troops – many people are with you. Prepare yourself and be ready, you and all your companies that are gathered about you; and be a guard for them. “After many days you will be visited. In the latter years you will come into the land of those brought back from the sword and gathered from many people on the mountains of Israel, which had long been desolate; they were brought out of the nations, and now all of them dwell safely.” Ezekiel 38:1-8 This prophetic vision revealed to Ezekiel describes a coalition of nations attacking Israel in the “latter years” or End Times. This prophecy further affirms the fact that Israel would be restored as a nation. It speaks of those “brought back from the sword”, meaning the nation driven into exile by Roman swords in 70 A.D. Israel had indeed been long desolate before Jews started to return during the Zionist movement of the late 1800’s and then in greater numbers following World War II. And as history has shown, the Jews were literally brought out of the nations to resettle in Israel. And while they are surrounded by enemies that have attacked them more than once, they do dwell in safety from the perspective that they have a very highly trained and well-equipped army to protect them – a level of protection they never had during the centuries in which they dwelled as strangers in strange lands, often leading to terrible persecution. The level of detail to which this portion of the prophecy has been fulfilled would seem to validate the other elements, and so it is important that we understand what else Ezekiel is saying. He speaks of “Gog, of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal”. There are two primary lines of thought as to whom this is referring. The first, is Russia. Scholars have linked Meshech with Moscow and Tubal with the Russian city Tobolsk. They refer to Meshech as the 6th son of Japheth (the son of Noah). His descendants occupied the territory from the shores of the Black Sea to the south of the Caucasus. They became the Rossi and Moschi tribes who occupied much of what is now Russian territory. The second possibility is Turkey. Some scholars point out that Meshech and Tubal are the Moschi/Mushki and Tubalu/Tibareni tribes that occupied portions of modern Turkey. It could be that both are right, in that tribes originating in Turkey migrated into Russia. Therefore, Gog could be either a leader of Russia or Turkey. We are certainly seeing an increase in Russian involvement in the Middle East in recent years due to the Syrian civil war. We are also seeing Russia play an active role in bringing together several of the nations described in Ezekiel’s coalition. Russia, Turkey, and Iran (modern Persia) have had several high-level meetings in recent years. Again, much of this due to their alliance in assisting Syria in their fight against ISIS and other rebel elements. As a side note, I would like to point out that the goal of ISIS was not to win their fight to maintain a caliphate. Their stated goal was to draw the major powers into a World War that would usher in the Mahdi (their version of the leader of a Messianic Age). One has to wonder how close they have come to fulfilling this goal, as there have been some tense exchanges between Russia and the United States over the course of the Syrian war. In one instance, American forces actually killed Russian contract soldiers who attacked a US/Kurdish base. There have also been tense moments between Israel and Russia as Israel has been launching airstrikes into Russian-protected Syria to destroy Iranian forces moving into the region. The fact is, Russia is actively extending its influence among the nations listed in Ezekiel’s coalition. They have been fostering military ties with Libya, Ethiopia and Iran. They recently caused a controversy by selling weapon systems to NATO ally Turkey. But what would Russia’s interest be in the Middle East and with attacking Israel in particular? Russia’s economy is based on three things – oil, natural gas, and weapons sales. Arming the nations of the Middle East provides a good revenue stream for Russia. They do not care that these weapons are all being trained on Israel. Influencing the Middle East also allows Russia to influence oil production. Any conflict in the Middle East that disrupts oil production (for instance, Iranian proxies sabotaging oil tankers and pipelines) raises oil prices and enriches Russia. Lastly, Russia is Europe’s main supplier of natural gas. The stranglehold Russia holds over NATO nations in this regard has tempered any reaction against Russian attempts to rebuild the Soviet Empire in places like Georgia, Crimea, and the Ukraine. Israel has been actively working to develop and exploit its natural gas reserves. They have now reached the point where they have discovered enough natural gas to become an exporter. They have formed a partnership with Greece and Cyprus to create a pipeline that would tie in to the Poseidon pipeline that feeds natural gas throughout Europe. This, in my opinion, makes Israel a growing threat to Russia from both an economic and a geo-political stance. Note that Ezekiel’s prophecy talks of Gog being turned around by God and led into the conflict. This could have two meanings. The first, is that the Soviet Union had been very active in the Middle East during the Cold War, but then seemed to retreat and give way to American influence in the region following the fall of the Soviet Empire. Vladimir Putin revived Soviet-style global ambitions and one could say has been drawn back into the region in a big way following the chaos of the Arab Spring and the rise of ISIS. Another possibility is that under Donald Trump, America’s support of Israel will become so overwhelmingly apparent that any thought of a successful attack against Israel will be deemed unrealistic and Russia will back away from any schemes to foster a war in the region (at least anything that could be traced back to them). But an event like the Rapture (which I will describe in a future post) where Christians are taken to Heaven in the blink of the eye, would cause immense chaos in a Christian nation like America and create an opening for Russia to lead an attack on Israel without fear of American involvement. This truly would be God creating an opportunity that would be too good for Gog to pass up. Getting back to the Russia/Turkey question, it should be noted that Vladimir Putin has claimed to be a Christian. Whether that is true or just an attempt to use his Kremlin training to psychologically disarm America’s Christian leaders, is unclear. If he is a true Christian, he will be taken up in the Rapture, in which case either some other Russian will step in to lead the coalition, or perhaps the prophecy really is referring to a leader of Turkey, like the increasingly despotic President Tayyip Erdogan who has spoken of re-establishing a caliphate and retaking Jerusalem. Regardless who the leader is, it is clear the coalition of nations described by Ezekiel is forming. The only thing standing in their way is the will of America to defend Israel. If they perceive any weakness in America’s ability or resolve to defend Israel, they will attack. This weakness could come from the Rapture as I described, or if President Trump were to lose the 2020 election and be replaced by a Democrat President who is not committed to defending Israel. Based on much of the rhetoric now coming from Democrat politicians, Israel’s enemies would probably view the transition to a Democratic President as a good time to strike. One thing Ezekiel makes clear is that Israel will win the war and they will do so through miraculous intervention by God. I will discuss this in my next post. There is further evidence that links the rebirth of Israel to the return of Jesus and places the return within our lifetime. This evidence comes from the words of Jesus:
“And they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.” Luke 21:24 In this passage Jesus is referring to the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 A.D. followed by the centuries of Jewish exile and occupation of their land by Gentile (non-Jewish) nations. The land of Israel was indeed trampled by Gentiles. It was turned into a desolate battleground that changed hands many times from the days of the Crusades all the way up until World War I when it fell under British control. The times of the Gentiles refers to a break in God’s appointed timeline for the nation of Israel. It is also referred to as the Church Age, marking the spread of the Gospel throughout the world. The angel Gabriel explained the remaining years appointed to the nation of Israel to the prophet Daniel as follows: “Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the command to restore and build Jerusalem until Messiah the Prince, there shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublesome times. And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for himself; and the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end of it shall be with a flood, and till the end of the war desolations are determined. Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week; but in the middle of the week he shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate, even until the consummation, which is determined, is poured out on the desolate.” Daniel 9:25-27 The weeks referred to by Gabriel are actually groups of seven years. This is based on the Biblical passage that a year is as a day for the Lord. The command to rebuild Jerusalem was given by Artaxerxes in the month of Nisan (March/April) in 444 B.C. based on a request by his Jewish cupbearer, Nehemiah. This was actually a reaffirmation of a decree issued by King Cyrus years earlier that had not been completed. The first seven weeks (49 years) represent the time it took to rebuild Jerusalem. The rebuilding did indeed take place in troublesome times, so much so that Nehemiah ordered the men to build with weapons at their sides, for there were adversaries that did not want to see Jerusalem rebuilt. The second 62 weeks represents the remaining time until the Messiah is cut off. Using the Jewish calendar, which is lunar based, not solar based, you end up with the first 69 weeks (483 years) ending in the month of Nisan (March/April) in the year 33 A.D. This puts the time of Messiah being cut off right at the time of the crucifixion of Jesus. As Gabriel stated, the Messiah would be cut off (killed) but not for himself. Jesus died as a sacrifice to save the human race from sin. He died for our sake, not his own. And just as Gabriel foretold, after this event the temple and Jerusalem would be destroyed by the people of the prince who is to come. As mentioned earlier, the Romans destroyed the temple in 70 A.D. This line of prophecy leads to the commonly held thought that the Antichrist (the prince who is to come) will be the leader of some kind of revived Roman Empire. The cutting off of the Messiah marks a pause in the Jewish seventy-week timeline and the beginning of the time of the Gentiles. The final week of the appointed years will begin when the time of the Gentiles comes to an end, and more precisely, when the prince who is to come confirms the one-week (7 year) covenant. The question then becomes, how close are we to the time of the Gentiles coming to an end? The year 1948 saw the rebirth of Israel. The year 1967 saw Israel reclaim control of the Temple Mount of Jerusalem in the Six Day War. However, despite the fact that Israel now controls all of Jerusalem, their holiest site is still occupied by Gentiles in the form of the Muslim Dome of the Rock and Al Aqsa Mosque. Indeed, as a gesture of peace, Israel granted Jordan administrative control over the Muslim holy sites on the Temple Mount. It should also be noted that even though Israel reunified Jerusalem in 1967 and named it their capitol, the world did not acknowledge it. That changed last year, the year of Israel’s 70th anniversary of returning as a nation, when President Donald Trump formally recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capitol by moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem. Since then, other nations have followed suit. However, there are still many nations that do not recognize Israel’s claim on all of Jerusalem and the Gentile Muslim presence still occupies the Temple Mount, standing in the way of the rebuilding of a third Jewish temple, which is crucial to the fulfillment of prophecy. So the time of the Gentiles has not quite come to an end, but it is drawing close. There are a few scenarios that could see the Jews take complete control over the Temple Mount and rebuild their temple. The first would be as part of the seven-year treaty they confirm with the Antichrist. This would involve full international recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capitol, the building of a Jewish temple, and perhaps the continued presence of the Muslim Holy sites as a compromise, but under the complete control of Israel. The second possibility is that a coming war between Israel and the surrounding Muslim nations (most likely the Gog/Magog war prophesized by Ezekiel) will see the destruction of the Muslim holy sites on the Temple Mount, clearing the way for the rebuilding of the Jewish temple. The third possibility is that Israel will continue to pursue its national interests regardless of world opinion and build their temple on the Temple Mount alongside the existing Muslim structures. The razor-thin margin of victory in the most recent election for Prime Minister of Israel has seen the conservative religious faction gain critical political influence and they may exert this influence to push for the building of a temple. I personally believe that it will be a combination of the first and second possibilities. I think the Gog/Magog war (I will describe this war more fully later) will see the destruction of the Muslim holy sites on the Temple Mount, ironically most likely from a barrage of missiles fired by Muslim forces haphazardly into Israel. In the aftermath of the war, the Antichrist will emerge to broker what he will describe as a lasting peace for the region. Building the temple will be a priority for the Jews, because as Ezekiel describes, it will be very clear that they will owe their victory in the war to God. This will turn Israel from a largely secular nation to the full-on religious state it was back when Nehemiah rebuilt Jerusalem and began the final seventy weeks appointed to Israel. As part of the deal, Israel will forgo exerting further territorial claims to expand to their full Biblical borders in exchange for the removal of any Muslim claim to the Temple Mount. After having been completely devastated by the war, the Muslims will have no choice but to accept these terms. This will remove the Gentile presence from Jerusalem, thereby ending the time of the Gentiles and ushering in the final seven years before the return of the Messiah Jesus. In the next post I will discuss the Gog/Magog War and point out just how close we could be to seeing it unfold. At midnight on May 14, 1948, one of the most amazing events in world history occurred. The nation of Israel was officially reborn. In 70 A.D., the Romans, after having grown tired of Jewish rebellions, sacked the city of Jerusalem. They burned the temple, causing all the gold ornamentation to melt and seep between the stones. In order to recover the gold, the soldiers toppled the entirety of the stone structure, fulfilling the following prophesy Jesus made regarding the temple:
“Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone shall be left upon another, that shall not be thrown down.” Mark 13:2 The Jews were driven from Israel and thus began their long years of exile in foreign lands. They prospered financially wherever they went, but this success made them objects of envy and the distinct religious and cultural practices they maintained made them targets of persecution. Returning home to re-establish a nation was not an option. After the fall of Rome, the territory of Israel became the battlefield of the Crusades, changing hands between Christian and Muslim powers. And yet they never fully relinquished the hope of one day seeing their nation reborn. For you see, the prophet Ezekiel foretold that it would happen: “Thus says the Lord God: Surely I will take the children of Israel from among the nations, wherever they have gone, and will gather them from every side and bring them into their own land; and I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountain of Israel; and one king shall be king over them all; they shall no longer be two nations, nor shall they ever be divided into two kingdoms again.” Ezekiel 37:21-22 When Israel reformed in 1948, the ancient divisions of the southern kingdom of Judah and northern kingdom of Samaria were forgotten. Israel returned as one unified nation, as God had proclaimed to Ezekiel. And just as Ezekiel foretold, Jews came from all over the world to live in Israel. They have come from Europe, America, Africa, and India. The fall of the Soviet Union saw a massive migration of Jews from lands where they had been persecuted. But beyond the incredible nature of a prediction of a nation returning from complete desolation coming true, there is something else that makes this event particularly noteworthy. It is found in a parable from Jesus: “Now learn this parable from the fig tree: When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near. So you also when you see all these things, know that it is near – at the doors! Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place.” Matthew 32-34 Jesus is referring to all the events he describes in the prior verses that will lead to his Second Coming. I will discuss those events in future posts. He is saying that when you see those events transpire, know that he is returning soon. But there is a second layer to the parable. The fig tree represents the nation of Israel. The putting forth of leaves represents the rebirth of Israel. The conclusion that most prophecy scholars have drawn from this is that the generation that sees the rebirth of Israel is the generation that will see his return. Therefore, there is a strong case to be made that the generation born in 1948 will see the return of Jesus. The Bible refers to the length of a human lifespan as follows: “The days of our lives are seventy years; and if by reason of strength they are eighty years.” Psalm 90:10 According to the World Health Organization, the average global life span was 72 years as of 2016. So if you go by the Biblical range, that would place the return of Jesus somewhere between 2018 and 2028. But you must factor in the seven-year tribulation period (which I will describe in greater detail later). This time period begins with the Antichrist signing or somehow confirming a seven-year treaty with the nation of Israel. Since that event has not yet occurred, we cannot place the return of Jesus any sooner than seven years from the signing of that treaty. However, it is reasonable to think that this treaty will be confirmed no later than 2021 so that the seven years can be completed by 2028. I will expand further on the significance of the rebirth of Israel in the next post. |
Joseph Blaikieis a Christian writer whose books include "Why You Don't Believe in God and Why You Should" and "You are Never Too Far Gone for God". To learn more about Joseph Blaikie visit: Amazon.com: Joseph J. Blaikie: Books, Biography, Blog, Audiobooks, Kindle 
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