The curses to come upon Israel as a result of the Arab invasions are described in terms which are extremely befitting to modern warfare. The plagues to come upon Israel as a result of the invasions are almost impossible to identify with anything presently known: " a consumption... a fever... an inflammation... an extreme burning... blasting... the burning ague that shall consume the eyes" (Dt. 28:22; Lev. 26:16) all seems to echo the language of nuclear fall-out. " They shall be burnt...and devoured with burning heat, and with bitter destruction" (Dt. 32:24) is similar.
The release of complex chemical weapons, as well as nuclear detonation, would explain why rainfall patterns will be interrupted during this holocaust (Dt. 28:23). The fall-out from such weapons would create the murderous rain of dust upon the land which Dt. 28:24 speaks of: " The Lord shall make the rain of thy land powder and dust: from heaven shall it come down upon thee, until thou be destroyed" .
It is twice emphasized that those in the land would suffer blindness (Dt. 28:28,29). This has not yet happened; the context invites us to read this as literal rather than figurative. We know that the Arabs who attack Jerusalem will both fight each other and have their eyes rot in their sockets (Zech. 14:12), the implication being that they use their nuclear missiles against each other as well as against Israel.
Their earlier use of these weapons would account for this blindness coming upon Israel, and again we see the principle that what the Arabs do to Israel will be inflicted upon them. As Israel were punished with the curse of infighting (Is. 9:19), so the Arabs will be.
As Israel will experience a great earthquake (Ez. 38:19), so will their enemy Babylon (Rev. 16:18,19); indicating that 'Babylon' will then be present in Israel? For other instances of the punishments upon Israel coming upon her latter day enemies, see Joel 3:6,8; Ez. 6:5 cp. 39:15.
- " Pillars of smoke" (Joel 2:30) is literally 'palm trees' of smoke (Hebrew)- an allusion to the mushroom cloud?
- The invading " northern army" will be driven " into a land barren and desolate" (Joel 2:20). The Hebrew root for " desolate" means to be stunned or numbed. A nuclear wilderness somewhere in the Middle East could certainly be called a numbed and stunned land.
- The latter day Assyrian will be destroyed with " fire will consume you; the sword will cut you down-- they will devour you like a swarm of locusts" (Nah. 3:15).
- " The Lord shall make the rain of thy land powder and dust: from heaven (the sky) shall it come down upon thee" (Dt. 28:24) has never yet been fulfilled. Nuclear fallout would exactly fit the bill. Likewise Is. 29:6, describing the invasion of latter day Babylon / Assyria, has yet to be accurately fulfilled: " Thou shalt be visited of the Lord of Hosts with...great noise, with strom and tempest, and the flame of devouring fire" .
- The latter day invasion from the Euphrates (i.e. geographical Babylon) will result in men being killed by fire, smoke and brimstone (Rev. 9:14,18)- nuclear language?
