Russia's Destiny Assured in the Collapse of Ukraine

As American military aid to Ukraine is put in Jeopardy, the scripture is clear that Russia will gain the ascendancy.

American financial support for Ukraine was stripped from the US budget this past week, but that is only the tip of the iceberg for Ukraine. The decline of its population and simply running out of soldiers is causing its ability to defend itself to collapse. Even the world's media must concede the battle is all but lost. The Bible has clearly stated Russia will be supreme in Europe at the time of the end. We are witnessing the angelic hand at work in bringing about God's purpose with the world in leading it to Armageddon, where it will be humbled. 

The Bible is clear that eventually, Russia will triumph in the conflict in Ukraine, and go beyond to bring all Europe (except Britain) under its control. Ezekiel describes the host that will come in the latter days, and it includes the geographical areas of Europe stretching to the English channel.

“Son of man, set thy face against Gog, the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him,” (Ezekiel 38:2 RSV)

Rosh is identified by historians as Russia. Meshech and Tubal equate with the Muscovites who settled into the area of Moscow and those dwelling in the Tobolsk  region of Russia. The land of Magog has been identified by historians dating back to Ezekiel’s time to cover the area from the river Don (the Donbass region) to the River Danube. This incorporates Ukraine, Modova, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia, Czechi, Poland and much of Germany.

“Gomer, and all his bands; the house of Togarmah of the north quarters, and all his bands: and many people with thee. Be thou prepared, and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and be thou a guard unto them.” (Ezekiel 38:6–7)

Gomer and his bands describe the populations that migrated from Turkey across Europe, settling eventually in France and Germany. Togarmah is the area of the Caucuses.

We can expect then, from the scriptural definition of the host that comes down with Rosh, that Europe will fall under Russian dominion. Especially when the prophet Daniel states:

“Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.” (Daniel 2:35)

All the metal empires that formed the Image, golden Babylon (Iraq), the silver Medo-Persia Empire (Iran), the brazen Greek Empire (including Syria), the iron Roman Empire which spread across Europe, and the fractured iron/clay European Union of today to be united in order to be “broken in pieces together”.

Russia’s Domination Assured.

The Bible has spoken, and Russia’s domination of Europe is assured.  When we turn to the news, we see the situation in Ukraine has grown increasingly dire as Russia is gaining the upper hand. While sources outside the “mainstream media” have been pointing out the obvious collapse of Ukraine’s military, the official line has been that all is well on the western front. However, even the mainstream media is now having to acknowledge the inevitable. The Guardian Newspaper reported on October 5, 2023:

Ukraine’s counteroffensive, launched this summer, has garnered lackluster results. Russia has actually gained more territory in this calendar year than Ukraine has, despite the immense quantity of advanced weaponry that the US and Europe have supplied to Ukrainian forces.

In the absence of progress on the battlefield – Ukraine’s army has not made a breakthrough since last autumn – ever more strident demands for ever more aid, doled out indefinitely and regardless of circumstances, make the war look potentially endless and fruitless.

US Congress Removes
Funding for Ukraine from Budget

It is interesting to see the hand of the angels at play. Now that Ukraine has had the life beat out of it, America’s support is collapsing.

Many American politicians to start questioning the wisdom of continuously supporting Ukraine’s military. Republican Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri attended a meeting with Zelensky during his visit to the USA on September 23^rd. He was asked whether the meeting with Zelensky changed his mind on funding for Ukraine. He stated:

“What the meeting revealed to me is that, in the words of President Zelenski, that “the conflict is a total stalemate,” that’s what he said, “totally frozen.” I believe was what his words were. Which is also what the administration told us yesterday. The Administration told us yesterday, “They want to spend 100 billion dollars more. Our money, more, over the next year, in the hopes that it will remain a stalemate.” Which leads me to ask, “what is the goal here, for the United States. I mean, what is it this administration wants to do?” I honestly have no idea. They used to say, “Victory, Victory, Victory.” Now it is “Stalemate for ever”. In fact, yesterday, Milly said, “there will be no military victory.” Ok, so what are we doing? I have no idea!”

Even CNN acknowledged the shift of American popular support for Ukraine with the mounting crisis on the home front. A CNN poll from August stated:

A a majority of Americans oppose sending additional funding to support Ukraine. If Trump were to return to the White House in 2025, it seems all but guaranteed that American support for Ukraine would be slashed. The potential for European governments to fill the gap if American support recedes is low.

The crisis in American government brought funding for Ukraine to the forefront when the US congress removed funding for Ukraine from the budget in order to pass it and avoid a government shutdown this past week. The Guardian Newspaper reported:

Scrambling to avoid a government shutdown, the US Congress last week refused to approve a new $6bn aid package for Ukraine. Nearly half of the Republicans in the House of Representatives also voted to strip Ukraine money from a must-pass military spending bill.

The crisis led to an unprecedented vote to remove Rep. Kevin McCarthy as speaker of the US Speaker House on Tuesday. This is the first time this has ever happened.  Eight republicans and all democrats supported the removal. This has brought the US Congress to a halt until a new speaker is voted in.

Running out of Ammo

The situation in Ukraine is dire. Euro News reported on October 3:

Ukrainian troops could soon run out of ammunition and equipment if hard-right officials in Washington succeed in cutting US funding, experts warn.

If funding was halted, “it would be devastating for the Ukrainians,” warns Mark Cancian, an advisor to the Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank in Washington.

“Ukrainian troops would be weakened and could even possibly collapse,” although he believes they could “continue to be able to remain on the defensive.”

Far from the front lines, the end of US aid could also weaken Ukrainian air defences, which need to be continually resupplied with munitions.

The warehouses used for the resupply of armaments are at a critically low state: The Voice of America reported Admiral Rob Bauer, chair of the NATO military committee as stating at the Warsaw Security Forum:

"We now give away weapons systems to Ukraine, which is great, and ammunition — but not from full warehouses. We started to give away from half full or lower warehouses in Europe. And therefore, the bottom of the barrel is now visible, and we need the industry to ramp up production in a much higher tempo. We need large volumes. It takes on average between two and four years to set up a new production line for high-intensity military equipment that you need in Ukraine. Same thing goes for munitions. We're talking about hundreds, potentially thousands of people who need to have very, very niche skill sets to be employed in this undertaking."

CNN Reported on October 4^th:

“An inability to ensure timely procurement and deliveries could undermine essential Ukrainian operations to retake additional territory or defend against potential future Russian offensives,” US Undersecretary of Defense Michael McCord wrote in a letter to congressional leadership on Friday as the spending bill that ultimately eliminated aid for Ukraine was being negotiated.

“Without additional funding now, we would have to delay or curtail assistance to meet Ukraine’s urgent requirements, including for air defense and ammunition that are critical and urgent now as Russia prepares to conduct a winter offensive and continues its bombardment of Ukrainian cities,” McCord wrote.

Finding Funds

With Biden’s hands tied to find funding in the US, he is promising to find other methods. Politico reported:

President Joe Biden hinted at this strategy on Wednesday, saying “there is another means by which we may be able to find funding for that.” He declined to comment further.

As of Sept. 21, the U.S. had roughly $650 million remaining out of $4.6 billion in foreign military financing that Congress appropriated across two supplemental packages for Ukraine and “countries impacted by the situation in Ukraine,” according to the State Department.

There are $300 billion in Russian central bank assets are currently frozen in democratic countries. The USA holds $38 Billion in its jurisdiction. Biden could mount an international campaign to transfer Russia’s frozen assets to Ukraine to fund its military.

Cracks are appearing throughout the alliance of nations once supporting Ukraine to the end. Slovakia has voted in a pro-Russian government who campaigned on a promise to withdraw military support for Ukraine and to stop sanctioning Russia.

Poland, which share boarders with both Russia and Ukraine has been in an ongoing dispute with Ukraine over grain. It has been one of the biggest supporters of Ukraine. However, this past week it stated it was halting weapon supplies to Ukraine, and focussing on its own armed forces. Poland is facing an election in the middle of October, and ongoing support for Ukraine is a major issue.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has maintained close relations with Moscow during the war and argued against supplying arms to Ukraine or providing economic aid. Hungary is also a member of NATO.

While Europe as a whole remains committed to supporting Ukraine, they have been happy to do so as long as America is footing the majority of the bill. With American support being stifled, Europe will have to decide if it is willing to put its money where its mouth is.

Money is not Enough

However, money is not enough. Andrew Micta, a writer with the The New Atlanticist wrote a column describing the lessons learned from Ukraine so far. He stated:

The overarching lesson from the unfolding war in Ukraine is simply the scale of what’s required to fight a modern state-on-state war. No Western military has prepared for such levels of weapons and munitions consumption and force attrition. No NATO ally today—save for the United States—has the armor or munitions stocks that could last longer than a few weeks or months at best on Ukraine-like battlefields.

This war has brought into focus an enduring truth in warfare: In a state-on-state conflict, mass trumps precision. The impact of mass is immediate and registers at the point of contact, while precision strikes on enemy forces concentrated in the rear, on ammo depots, or on logistical chains will only register over time, perhaps after the decision on the battlefield has already been reached.

Russia has the mass for these kinds of conflicts, but the West does not. The writer went on to observe:

The war in Ukraine has shown that one needs mass to counter mass. When it comes to numbers, you need to match or, better still, outmatch what your enemy can field. During World War II, for example, Germany had tanks that were in many ways superior to US tanks in design, but in the end those Tigers and Panthers were outmatched by the sheer number of the Shermans the United States could field.

While technology gives Western forces an edge, that edge will only go so far when confronted with sheer numbers. If NATO ends up at war with Russia or if the United States and its allies in Asia end up in a war with China, then the decisive factor may be manpower and production elasticity when it comes to weapons and munitions. In a protracted conflict, the decisive factor could be the capacity to reconstitute forces—both personnel and equipment—to compensate for those that have been attritted on the battlefield.

The West is facing a revanchist Russian state intent on relitigating the outcome of the Cold War and restoring its imperial sphere of influence. Russia has already effectively reabsorbed Belarus and has its sights firmly set on Ukraine—and possibly beyond. Hence, the conflict in Ukraine carries with it a high risk of horizontal escalation that could spark a wider war in Europe.

This observation is reminiscent of the description of the Gogian invasion of the Middle East that is soon to take place. The prophets all describe an overwhelming flood sweeping through the Holy Land:

“the king of the north shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over.” (Daniel 11:40)

An overwhelming force is what is depicted by Daniel. Mass that trumps technology. The same picture is painted by Ezekiel:

“Thou shalt ascend and come like a storm, thou shalt be like a cloud to cover the land, thou, and all thy bands, and many people with thee…. And thou shalt come from thy place out of the north parts, thou, and many people with thee, all of them riding upon horses, a great company, and a mighty army: And thou shalt come up against my people of Israel, as a cloud to cover the land; it shall be in the latter days, and I will bring thee against my land, that the heathen may know me, when I shall be sanctified in thee, O Gog, before their eyes.” (Ezekiel 38:15–16)

While mass might trump western technology, it certainly will not trump the power of Almighty God who will overwhelm it with divine intervention.

Running out of Soldiers

Ukraine is simply running out of bodies to put into the meat grinder. Ukraine no longer has the ability to hide the number of casualties. While neither Ukraine, nor Russia will release casualty figures, even conservative, such as CBC put Ukraines death toll at approximately 70,000 with at least 100,000 – 120,000 casualties. Putin has claimed that Ukraine has had more than 90,000 casualties in the last four months alone. Turkish media, which is neutral in the conflict, Turkey being a member of NATO, while at the same time friendly to Russia, put Ukrainian military casualties at about 157,000 as of February of this past year. The numbers are very murky, but regardless… they are high.

War has always been a numbers game, as the Lord pointed out in his parable:

“Or what king, going to make war against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand? Or else, while the other is yet a great way off, he sendeth an ambassage, and desireth conditions of peace.” (Luke 14:31–32)

There seems to be no wisdom, and no desire to seek conditions of peace in Ukraine.

Not only this, but Ukraine’s ability to repopulate itself is impossible. Frances Newspaper Le Monde reported on September 28:

Ukraine is fighting an existential battle against an enemy with a population four times larger, while at the same time hemorrhaging part of its own population. Women and children are fleeing to safer locations. The country's population was estimated to be between 38 and 42 million on February 24, 2022. Since then, between 5 and 8 million people have emigrated. A significant proportion of them are likely to settle abroad permanently. Some countries have offered attractive prospects for integration. It is mainly women and children who are emigrating, as martial law prohibits able-bodied men between the ages of 18 and 60 from leaving the country.

In 1991, Ukraine ranked 22nd on the list of the world's most populous countries. It is now 41st. "We've already lost 10 million people in three decades.

The director of the Ptoukha Institute in Kyiv  stated, "fertility had already fallen to 1.2 children per woman by 2021. This is a long way from the replacement rate (2.15 children per woman), given Ukrainian mortality rates." The war has accelerated the fall in fertility: It was 0.9 in 2022 and Libanova estimates that it will be 0.7 in 2023 and 2024.

The numbers in this article only deal with migration, and not war casualties. Ukraine is known to have put on an aggressive recruiting push, using nefarious means to bring people into the military. There have been multiple news articles citing 18 Century press-gang tactics to recruit, including kidnapping and coercion.

Back in 2022, the government had suspended the draft of women for one year, this suspensions has now expired. The Voice of America reported on September 26 in an article about women’s uniforms:

Forty-two thousand women serve in the Ukrainian military, and the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense recently officially approved a female uniform.

The dire situation in Ukraine speaks of its coming collapse against Russia as CNN reported on October 5^th.

Senior Biden administration officials privately believe only weeks remain before a lack of additional Ukraine funding starts to become a serious battlefield concern — a scenario they are trying to avoid with public warnings and a major speech from President Joe Biden himself.

 In the end, the Bible is clear that Russia will dominate Europe. It is fascinating to watch how the Angels are at work in preparing the nations to fulfill God’s will. We know that we have approached the end of all things. Israel is the beacon of light, telling us plainly the Lord is about to appear, as we read in the Psalms:

“Thou shalt arise, and have mercy upon Zion: For the time to favour her, yea, the set time, is come. For thy servants take pleasure in her stones, And favour the dust thereof. So the heathen shall fear the name of the Lord, And all the kings of the earth thy glory. When the Lord shall build up Zion, He shall appear in his glory. He will regard the prayer of the destitute, And not despise their prayer. This shall be written for the generation to come: And the people which shall be created shall praise the Lord.” (Psalm 102:13–18)

The world is about to go through one of the most difficult times in its history, and our prayer has to be in earnest for Christ’s return who will redeem his people Israel, who will call his saints to him, and save this planet from destroying itself.  

Horrific Invasion and Pogrom By Hamas Terrorists

A wave of Antisemitism after a true modern day pogrom. Will peace ever come?

In the 21st century on October 7th, 2023 our world witnessed a horrific pogrom where. Israeli men, women, children, and elderly were brutally murdered in the most grotesque manner.  The devastating count of those killed is reported to be over 1300, with thousands more injured.  Not since the Holocaust have so many Jews been massacred in one day.  And whereas the Nazis did much to hide their crimes some Hamas members streamed their rampage live for the world to see.  

And yet there are voices of support and marches of celebration in cities around the world.  In Sydney Australia a protest group was filmed chanting ‘gas the Jews’; a lecturer at Stanford University asked all the Jews to stand in a corner while berating them; many Jewish schools were closed for fear of attacks, not in Israel but in New York, Chicago, and London; The BBC, CBC and other outlets are openly refusing to call the Hamas terrorists what they are, terrorists.  Instead they are militants, gunman, or other less condemning names; in Toronto pro Palestinian demonstrators were mocking playing the sound of Israel’s air raid sirens and cheering, and the list goes on.  Utterly sickening.

At a moment such as this one can see the true colours of so many.  And what makes it so outrageous is that much of this noise began before Israel had even had a chance to respond.  Truly, Anti Zionism is Anti Semitism.

The age old hatred of the Jews that has led to many pogroms, massacres, and the Holocaust itself, was once again on full display.  In scriptural language Hamas is displaying the spirit of Edom that we read of in Ezekiel 35:5

“Thou hast had a perpetual hatred (or enmity – R.V.) and hast shed the blood of the children of Israel by the force of the sword in the time of their calamity.”

It is with great sadness that we look upon the mourning of Zion at this time.  In Lamentations she asks “Behold, and see if there be any sorrow like unto my sorrow, which is done unto me.”  We pray and long for the salvation of Israel and echo the words of Psalm 79 –

 “Wherefore should the heathen say, where is their God?  Let him be known among the heathen in our sight...” and from Psalm 33—“Oh that the salvation of Israel were come out of Zion!”

Of this we do not doubt, that the Lord is at work bringing about His purpose.  The words of Psalm 121:4 give us confidence: “Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.”  

The Enemy of Peace

The surprise attack seems to be a response to the expected growth of the Abraham Accords that looked set to bring Saudi Arabia into the fold.  Iran who backs Hamas, Hezbollah, and many of the other terrorist organizations in the Middle East, has been hotly opposed to the Abraham Accords. The idea of Saudi Arabia normalizing relations with Israel was a red line for the Ayatollah and every other anti Semite.  The following headlines detail this impression:

Iran’s support for Hamas fans suspicion it’s wrecking Israel-Saudi deal (Politico, October 7, 2023).

Why Hamas Tried to Sabotage Arab-Israeli Peace Prospects With a Massive Unprovoked Attack (Time, October 8, 2023).

Netanyahu knew there was a danger the enemies of Israel would try to thwart the progression of peace.  On September 22, 2023 Netanyahu spoke of this at the UN General Assembly.  The following were the opening words of that speech:

“Over three millennia ago, our great leader Moses addressed the people of Israel as they were about to enter the Promised Land. He said they would find there two mountains facing one another: Mount Gerizim, the site on which a great blessing would be proclaimed, and Mount Ebal, the site of a great curse. Moses said the people’s fate would be determined by the choice they made between the blessing and the curse.  That same choice has echoed down the ages not just for the people of Israel but for all humanity.

We face such a choice today. It will determine whether we enjoy the blessings of a historic peace of boundless prosperity and hope or suffer the curse of a horrific war, of terrorism and despair.”

Israel’s enemies have chosen a horrific war of terrorism and despair.  But will it stop the arrival of peace?

Without Walls, Bars, and Gates

God is very clear in Ezekiel 38—at the time of the end when the northern confederacy of nations comes “against my people of Israel” they are living peacefully.  The situation is described in detail in verse 11:

“And thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates...”

In Russia, the Vatican, and the Invasion of Israel, Graham Pearce writes the following in 1970:

“These words of Ezekiel have not yet been fulfilled, and they most certainly will be fulfilled.  We must accept God’s words with child like disposition... It is debasing the sense to apply these phrases to a past or present situation.”  He continues “How will this unlikely change come about?  By now we will have realized that Christ is at this time in the earth, not revealed to the world, but associated with his saints influencing the affairs of the earth, just as now he works with the angels of heaven to the same end...

It is also possible that the presence of Tarshish powers (Primarily Britain and the US) in the land at this time will help in bringing about some Great Power stability in the area...”

This situation may seem impossible today.  However just as peace did come with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain so too it will come with Saudi Arabia, and most importantly with the Palestinians.

US Response

Surprising to many is the response of Joe Biden who has come out forcefully with deep throated support for Israel.  He spoke for ten minutes describing the horrors and Israel’s right to defend itself along with the support the US would provide.  He genuinely seemed disgusted and closed with the following:

“Let there be no doubt, the United States has Israel’s back.  We will make sure the Jewish and democratic State of Israel can defend itself today, tomorrow, and as we always have.  It’s as simple as that.  These atrocities are sickening.  We’re with Israel.  Make no mistake.”  

With that Biden walked out of the room with reporters calling out why he had provided Iran with a deal worth $6 billion.  Regardless, Israel it seems has a level of US support, at least for the very near future.

Going further than words alone the US began to airlift weapons and supplies to Israel. Also, in an even more significant move the US has moved the pride of the US fleet, the USS Gerald R. Ford carrier strike group to the Eastern Mediterranean.  Will this Tarshish presence bring about stability?  We wait to see.

Russian Response

From Bible prophecy we expect Russia to turn hostile against Israel and it seems we are witnessing that in these events.  The following is from Israel Hayom, October 11:

“Ever since the attack took place, Russia has assumed a neutral posture, which has been manifested through its calls for a ceasefire that would have taken place practically before Israeli planes had a chance to fly its first bombing sortie. According to independent Russian journalists, the coverage in Russia has followed a similar line, trying to strike a middle ground at best. But this began to change on Saturday. 

As Israeli casualties mounted, former President Dmitry Medvedev (and currently the deputy chairman of the Security Council of Russia) found the culprit: the US. "The start of the hostilities between Hamas and Israel, 50 years after the Yom Kippur War, was expected; the conflict has been going on for decades and the US is a key player there. One could have easily dismissed these comments if it weren't for the fact that two days later it turned out that diverting attention to the US – rather than condemning Hamas and showing solidarity with Israel – is actually the predominant stance among Russian policymakers. For example, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov expressed "deep concern over the deaths of hundreds of Israelis and Palestinians' and stated that "taking women and children hostage by both sides [!] is unacceptable," but then went on to blame the US for trying to avoid the establishment of a Palestinian state and undermining the efforts to resolve the problems between Israel and Gaza. 

Eventually, three days after the horrendous massacre, President Vladimir Putin himself articulated the stance. "I think that many people will agree with me that this is a vivid example of the failure of US policy in the Middle East," Putin said. "Washington had sought to monopolize efforts at forging peace and failed to seek workable compromises. The US had ignored the interests of Palestinians, including their need for their own independent Palestinian state." There was not a single word of solidarity with Israel, nor was there mention of its right to defend itself or any condemnation of Hamas' atrocities.”

Israeli Response

In Israel the realization that Hamas has been able to commit a pogrom in our times has left the nation in shock and disbelief.  Netanyahu said that “Differences that have deeply divided the nation over the last months have for the moment been largely put aside with the formation of a “national emergency government.”  

As for the war dubbed “Operation Iron Swords” Israel has a resolve possibly not seen since 1973.  Netanyahu has claimed that “every member of Hamas is a deadman” and vowed to “change the Middle East.”  The Defence Minister, Yoav (Joab) Gallant, put it into his own words —“Hamas, Daesh of Gaza will be wiped from the face of the earth… There’s no situation in which you kill Israeli kids and we go about our business”

How long US support will continue for remains to be seen, however as Graham Pearce wrote, based on scripture we expect a change in the Middle East, and specifically in Israel’s relationship with the Palestinians.  Will this be the catalyst that brings this change about?

In one of Netanyahu’s first televised addresses to the nation in Hebrew on October 7th he ended with the following–

“With the help of God, the forces that we have in common and our faith in the Eternal One of Israel, we will win.”

Israel to Increase

For almost two thousand years the Jewish people were scattered through the world with their lives ‘hanging in doubt.’  However the down treading of the Jewish people was a temporary position:

“And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled” (Luke 21:24).

With the Jewish people back in control of Jerusalem we are certainly in the era of the redemption.  And yet, we are still witnessing the horrors of antisemitism.

Israel’s original conquering of the land under Joshua was not instantaneous— “By little and little I will drive them out from before thee, until thou be increased, and inherit the land” (Exodus 23:30).

In Judges 3 God further reveals the purpose for leaving peoples surrounding the Jewish people:

“Now these are the nations which the Lord left, to prove Israel by them, even as many of Israel as had not known all the wars of Canaan;

Only that the generations of the children of Israel might know, to teach them war, at the least such as before knew nothing thereof;

Namely, five lords of the Philistines, and all the Canaanites, and the Sidonians, and the Hivites that dwelt in mount Lebanon, from mount Baalhermon unto the entering in of Hamath.

And they were to prove Israel by them, to know whether they would hearken unto the commandments of the Lord, which he commanded their fathers by the hand of Moses.”

God has a purpose with this people, he says in Exodus 19:6 “And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation.” In the past as God worked with this nation He saw that the experience of war would shape them.  Further to this, it cannot escape us that in that list of nations, other than the Canaanites, those left are to the north of Israel, and in the Gaza Strip.

This does not mean that God is unmindful of the treatment of his people, quite the opposite.  Speaking of Israel  we read “...for he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye.” – Zachariah 2:8

Ultimately, it is the terrible treatment of God’s people that brings on his anger (Ezekiel 38:14-21).  It is after this that Israel will be restored to their glorious position in the Kingdom Age.  However, we expect the period of peace before the invasion from the north. In this time Elijah will turn the hearts of the people (Malachi 4:5-6; Matthew 17:10-11).  This fits in with Isaiah 59:20 –“And the Redeemer shall come to Zion, and unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob, saith the Lord.”

Is it a coincidence that a strange time of peace proceeds Armageddon at the same time that Elijah is expected?  In fact, it is most appropriate that a time of peace and stability coincides with a time of teaching.  For that teaching to proceed, the resurrection of those teachers will be necessary.  What an incredible thought! 

Where does this leave us?

Firstly, although the enemies of Israel will do everything they can to destroy peace, it will come.  It may be a rough road, but it will come.  The Abraham Accords are just the beginning. Surely peace between Israel and her neighbours is one of the greatest signs of the nearness of our Lord’s return.  However, when peace is achieved so that walls, bars, and gates are coming down, it is likely the resurrection has taken place and judgment of the household has already begun.

Secondly, through all the experiences of tragedy and war a nation is being shaped.  As our Lord “learned obedience by the things which he suffered” so too will the nation of Israel.

Thirdly, and importantly for us is the question posed in 2 Peter 3:11,12 – 

“What manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God …Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless.”

Psalm 125:5 – “As for such as turn aside unto their crooked ways, the Lord shall lead them forth with the workers of iniquity: but peace shall be upon Israel.”

May we use the time remaining preparing ourselves to meet the Lord.

Lastly, the nation should be in our prayers as it was for the Prophet Daniel in chapter 9.  God wants to hear us in this regard – 

“I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night: ye that make mention of the Lord, keep not silence,

And give him no rest, till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth.” – Isaiah 62:6,7

Captives in the Coasts of Palestine

 

The relevance of the war in Gaza to Bible prophecy

The war between Israel and the Hamas terrorists is capturing all of the headlines again this week.

In this episode of Bible in the News, we dive deep into what some of the recent developments mean in the light of Bible prophecy.

The coasts of Palestine

There is an interesting prophecy about the territory of Gaza in Joel chapter 3. Joel 3 is all about the time after the Jews have returned from their captivity (v1). This is our time - post 1948 when the independence of the Israeli state was declared and post 1967 when Jerusalem came again into Jewish hands. 

The prophecy is about a great war which takes place when God will “gather all nations” to be judged at the battle of Armageddon.

A detail about the reaction of the local peoples to this gathering of the nations is hinted at in verse 4:
“Yea, and what have ye to do with me, O Tyre, and Zidon, and all the coasts of Palestine?”

Tyre and Zidon are located North of Israel in Lebanon. The location of the terrorist group Hezbollah. This group have been reported this week as firing rockets into Israel. Israeli villagers in the North have left their homes fearing an invasion from Hezbollah who are certainly fulfilling the requirements of the prophecy along with Hamas in Gaza who would answer to the reference to “the coasts of Palestine?” in the prophecy,

According to the prophecy God is going to judge these areas. He says “I return your recompense upon your own head;”. There is a reason given:

“Because ye have taken my silver and my gold, and have carried into your temples my goodly pleasant things: The children also of Judah and the children of Jerusalem have ye sold unto the Grecians, that ye might remove them far from their border.” Joel 3:5-6

Although no news has been heard of Hamas selling captives they have non-the less taken them in the horrific attacks on Israel on the 7th of October. On October 20th, Reuters reported that “An estimated 200 people, including 30 teenagers and young children and 20 people over the age of 60, are being held hostage in Gaza, Israel's public broadcaster Kan said on Thursday, citing military sources.” 

The spirit of hatred that these groups - located in the areas condemned by the prophecy are a sure sign of the times.

Media Bias Exposed

At the time of this episode, Israel ’s army, the IDF is poised to enter the Gaza strip to take back their hostages. After advising civilians to leave the northern area, Israel has been bombarding Hamas strongholds from the air.

The Western media has had a full week reporting on the conflict and on the whole has now turned against Israel. Major media outlets have been exposed as swallowing and then reporting wholesale Hamas propaganda. 

One such event was an incident on the evening of Tuesday 17th October where an explosion occurred in what was recorded to be at the al Ahli Hospital in Gaza. It turns out it this was not a hit on the hospital itself but on a nearby car park. Hamas was quick to blame Israel. However it turns out the blast was caused by a rocket fired from within Gaza. 

Even after audio evidence of a recording of two Hamas fighters discussing the incident and saying the missile belongs to the PIJ and was fired from a cemetery behind the hospital and video evidence from the IDF showing this to be true the media have still continued to report the story as if this was up for interpretation. As an example of the bias being promoted in parts of the media listeners are encouraged to listen to a heated interview between Sky's Anna Botting, and Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev. Mark Regev calls out the biased reporting of Anna Botting who was reporting without question figures that Hamas had released. He also insisted Israel did not target hospitals, were trying to avoid innocent civilians and that there was no evidence that Israel attacked the hospital. Watch the interview here »

It reminds us of the prophecies about the people of Israel fulfilled in the spirit antisemitism which is at large in the world today. Deuteronomy says of the Jews that they would “become an astonishment(“appalment, horror” OBU) a proverb, and a byword, among all nations” Deuteronomy 28:37.

No doubt these events which are causing protests against Israel in many nations will eventually build up to the great battle of Armageddon which will see the armies of the nations of the world come against the Jews on the “mountains of Israel” as prophesied in Ezek 38:8.

Shebah, Dedan, Tarshish, her young lions and 

Ezekiel 38 is a prophecy related to Joel 3. It too is about the time when the Jews have returned again to their land (see v8 and v12). The list of nations who come against Israel is given in verses 1-9. Amongst others, it is an alliance of nations which includes Russia and Iran - listed by their ancient names of the Rus and the Persians respectively.

Its therefore of interest that both Russia and Iran have spoken very favourably of the attack on Israel by Hamas and that it’s no secret that Iran have been shipping arms and supplies to Hezbollah. Many experts suspect that the attack by Hamas was orchestrated by Iran to try to put a stop to Israel doing a peace deal with Saudi Arabia.

In verse 13 of Ezekiel 38 we read of “Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish, with all the young lions thereof” who seem to feebly challenge the invading nations. “Art thou come to take a spoil?” they ask. They are clearly not on the side of the aggressors.

Dedan is the ancient name for the peoples living in the territory now known as Saudi Arabia. Tarshish has been identified as the ancient name for Britain. Her young lions being independent colonies like the US. It’s therefore been interesting that this week has seen American President Joe Biden fly to Israel. The Whitehouse recorded that:
“Today, President Biden traveled to Israel to stand in solidarity with the people of Israel in the wake of horrific terrorist attacks by Hamas that killed more than 1,300 innocent civilians, including at least 31 U.S. citizens. As the President made clear during the trip, Israel is not alone – and with U.S. support it will remain a safe, security, Jewish, and Democratic state today, tomorrow, and forever.”

Also this week British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak visited Israel. The New York Times reported on the 19th of October: “Speaking alongside Mr. Netanyahu on Thursday, Mr. Sunak said he was proud to stand with the Israeli leader in “Israel’s darkest hour.” He added that Britain “will stand with you in solidarity, we will stand with your people and we also want you to win.”

We can see then the nations forming into the groups the prophecies tell us they will be in.

The Peace of Jerusalem

As Bible students we know that ultimately a great time of trouble is coming to the people of Israel. We read of this in Jeremiah 30: “Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob's trouble; but he shall be saved out of it.”

We know God has a plan and a purpose. To humble his people. To bring them to him. To give them a new covenant (Jer 31:31) and that this will be fulfilled by their Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ when he returns to save them and then to sit on the throne of his father David in Jerusalem. In that day he will reestablish God’s Kingdom on the earth and restore again the Kingdom to Israel.

Therefore, as we watch and we wait for Christs return, although saddened by the horrors of war we know that God is in control and will bring that time of peace to the earth when he eventually fills it with His glory. We will end this weeks episode looking forward to that time through the prophetic words of Psalm 122:

[[A Song of degrees of David.]] I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the LORD. Our feet shall stand within thy gates, O Jerusalem. Jerusalem is builded as a city that is compact together:  Whither the tribes go up, the tribes of the LORD, unto the testimony of Israel, to give thanks unto the name of the LORD. For there are set thrones of judgment, the thrones of the house of David. Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee. Peace be within thy walls, and prosperity within thy palaces. For my brethren and companions' sakes, I will now say, Peace be within thee. Because of the house of the LORD our God I will seek thy good.”

A Religious War against God's People

 

Palestinians and Hamas have a joint desire of death to the Jews

Hamas is an organization dedicated to the destruction of the Jews so that the land of Israel might be theirs alone, from the river to the sea.  The Palestinian Authority in the West Bank celebrates in Hamas' horrific pogrom against Jews and calls on its people to join in the bloodshed.  The "innocent civilians" have voted these bloodthirsty people into power, and call for the wrath of God to measure out their destruction.  He who touches Israel touches the apple of His eye.  God will soon bring peace to Israel, and when Russia comes with the nations, "to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates, To take a spoil, and to take a prey..."  God will send his Son to save His people and judge those who have come against them.

And when these things begin to come to pass,then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.  Luke 21:25

As Israel’s existential war enters its fourth week, the world this week is indeed full of turmoil, protest, and violence.  The divide along the north-south alliance of Daniel 11 is ever apparent and the nations of the final battle of Ezekiel 38 are lining up in opposition over events in Israel. Welcome to this week's Bible in the News.

Since the Hamas attack President Biden has shown verbal and tangible support for Israel’s right to protect itself, but still calls for a two-state solution.  The US also has an increasing number of assets in the area, the US is attempting to contain the conflict and warn away the likes of Iran from joining in.  But we must consider that this week the President has also had the Pope on the phone nudging him along to consider “humanitarian relief.”  The Pope has reportedly called for a ceasefire on at least six occasions, but how long the US continues to support what Israel needs to do, remains to be seen. 

Meanwhile in Russia, Putin is taking up his position on the opposite side of the board.  This week also saw him playing the host to both Hamas and Iran in Moscow.  And the nations of the world, wholly unable to jointly condemn Hamas at such a time are following the Arabs at the UN’s General Assembly demanding for a ceasefire.  The will to support Israel was so weak that only 14 nations voted against the resolution.  The whole world is indeed against Israel, as prophesied.

To understand how much the world is against Israel, we must understand that calls for a ceasefire are really calls to preserve Hamas and to maintain the thorn in Israel's side.  There is no way any meaningful peace will come that way as recent history bears out.

Let's consider for a moment some events closer to Israel.  While protests around the world call for Palestine to be free from the river to the sea, is the Palestinian Authority an innocent bystander to these atrocities? 

In fact, no.  Not at all. The Palestinian Authority this week instructed mosques across the area to preach death to the Jews, declaring a religious war against them and celebrating in the sickening brutality of Hamas.  Not only at a governmental level, but even individual "innocent" civilians joined a mass rally in the streets of Tulkarem waving Hamas flags and chanting in support of them.

The conflict, contrary to every rational thought, seems to have raised aggression against the victim.  Jews around the world are facing reprisals for the fact that Israel is fighting for its existence against a cruel, uncivilized enclave mere miles from it's most populous cities.  In the UK alone, antisemitic incidents are up 641.

When we look to the Bible, God says that the Nations of the earth will pay for their hatred.  God judges the nations based on their behaviour.

“9 Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Tyrus, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they delivered up the whole captivity to Edom, and remembered not the brotherly covenant . . . 11 Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Edom, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because he did pursue his brother with the sword, and did cast off all pity, and his anger did tear perpetually, and he kept his wrath for ever . . . 13 Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of the children of Ammon, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they have ripped up the women with child of Gilead, that they might enlarge their border:”
Amos 1:9, 11, 13

If we can imagine the sensitivity of the pupil of our eyes, this describes the very visceral reaction that God will have against those who dare to attack Israel.  It is like a poke in His eye.

“For thus saith the LORD of hosts; After the glory hath he sent me unto the nations which spoiled you: for he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye.” – Zechariah 2:8

God is by no means silent about what will happen to those Incensed Against Israel:

(Isaiah 41:8, 11, 14-15, AV) “8 But thou, Israel, art my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend . . . 11 Behold, all they that were incensed against thee shall be ashamed and confounded: they shall be as nothing; and they that strive with thee shall perish . . . 14 Fear not, thou worm Jacob, and ye men of Israel; I will help thee, saith the LORD, and thy redeemer, the Holy One of Israel. 15 Behold, I will make thee a new sharp threshing instrument having teeth: thou shalt thresh the mountains, and beat them small, and shalt make the hills as chaff.”

There is also a unity within Israel that is seen as a feature of the latter days.  They become one in His hand.  We expect this to have a much greater fulfillment, but current events are drawing them together.  The left seems to be beginning to understand that there is no peace to be had with the Palestinan Arabs, the Hareidi Ultra Orthodox Jews are lining up to help in army and other forms of National Service.  In general, the nation is drawing close to each other in this time of bitter trouble.

(Ezekiel 37:19, AV) “19 Say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his fellows, and will put them with him, even with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in mine hand.”

What does prophecy say will happen from here?  What does the Bible have to say about Gaza?  A place we can find an answer for this is in Zephaniah 2:

“For Gaza shall be forsaken, and Ashkelon a desolation: they shall drive out Ashdod at the noon day, and Ekron shall be rooted up. 5 Woe unto the inhabitants of the sea coast, the nation of the Cherethites! the word of the LORD is against you; O Canaan, the land of the Philistines, I will even destroy thee, that there shall be no inhabitant. 6 And the sea coast shall be dwellings and cottages for shepherds, and folds for flocks. 7 And the coast shall be for the remnant of the house of Judah; they shall feed thereupon: in the houses of Ashkelon shall they lie down in the evening: for the LORD their God shall visit them, and turn away their captivity.” 
– Zephaniah 2:4-7

One more verse that makes this clear:

(Jeremiah 30:16, AV) “16 Therefore all they that devour thee shall be devoured; and all thine adversaries, every one of them, shall go into captivity; and they that spoil thee shall be a spoil, and all that prey upon thee will I give for a prey.”

How can there ever be peace in the land?  We know it must come, but with such blood-thirsty nieghbours, how will it come about?
The Bible gives us a very descriptive and particular picture of the Israel that Gog comes against at the time of the end,  in Ezekiel 38 

8 After many days thou shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.9 Thou shalt ascend and come like a storm, thou shalt be like a cloud to cover the land, thou, and all thy bands, and many people with thee.
10 Thus saith the Lord God; It shall also come to pass, that at the same time shall things come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought:
11 And thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates,
12 To take a spoil, and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land.
13 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?
14 Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say unto Gog, Thus saith the Lord God; In that day when my people of Israel dwelleth safely, shalt thou not know it?
15 And thou shalt come from thy place out of the north parts, thou, and many people with thee, all of them riding upon horses, a great company, and a mighty army:

The peace that is achieved in the land is not a peace that makes the world happy.  On the contrary, the verse says that when this peace comes, the reaction is to gather them.  To bring them for judgement into the land of Israel where they will meet their end.  What must we who are living at such a time do?

(Zephaniah 2:3, AV) “3 Seek ye the LORD, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought his judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the LORD’S anger.

The Olivet Prophecy Parallels

 Part 2 - Parallels 1 We will try to avoid hypotheses in our study of the main features of prophecy. One of the principal tools will be parallelism. 2 Prophetic Parallelism is, in principle, similar to the rugby photos in the Dominion (fable, above). 3 Start with the Olivet Prophecy: (a) To us it is not unnatural to divide the disciples’ questions (Mark 13:4, Matthew 24:3): (i) Herod’s temple was destroyed in AD 70. (ii) Jesus’ return was certainly not to be until after 2000. (iii) These imply that maybe the questions were addressing two different events in two different eras. (b) But: (i) The disciples had no idea that Jesus was going away. OHP 1: Latter-Day Agendas. ¾ The Son of man is delivered into the hands of men, and they shall kill him; and … he shall rise the third day. But they understood not that saying, and were afraid to ask him (Mark 9:30-32; see also Luke 9:44, 45, 18:31-34, etc) ¾ The disciples, like other first-century Jews, expected the Messiah to come immediately (Luke 3:15, 19:11, John 10:24, Acts 1:6, etc); Jesus’ departure was simply not on their “latter-day” agenda. ¾ So Jesus’ “coming” in Matt 24:3 must mean his “coming to power” - as in Luke 23:42 - and there is really only one question in Matt 24:3. ¾ Like them, we have trouble adjusting to Bible teaching that is not on our agenda. There is a warning here! (ii) “Thy coming” must have meant “coming to reign” as in the thief’s request (Luke 23:42). So disciples would not have any idea of dividing Jesus’ answer - the Olivet prophecy - into parts. To them the answer was one. Therefore the question is one. (iii) Mark has two questions (Mark 13:4) yet only one subject (“these things”). (c) The Olivet Prophecy has 97 verses; yet it only answers the disciples’ question with three specific prophetic statements contained in 5 verses (Matt 24:15, 21, 29-31). 61 verses (24:37 - 25:46) are lessons for disciples so that they will be prepared - Jesus’ real concern. (d) The prophetic outline begins from the desecration of a temple and ends with the Lord’s triumphant return from heaven. (i) The question is, which temple does he mean? (ii) We usually think of the obvious - Herod’s temple, Israel’s second (Herod’s temple had simply taken over Zerubbabel’s without any hiatus and so is called the second temple). Page 19 (iii) I shall point out that prophecy as a whole indicates a third temple - to be set in operation before the Lord’s return. On that basis, Ezekiel’s temple of the kingdom will be the fourth.

OHP 2: Matthew 24: Christ’s Coming ¾ 4-13: Conditions to be expected and endured as disciples in all ages wait for the Lord to come. ¾ 14: Preliminary sign that the end is near. ¾ 15: Only specific sign of the end - a defiled holy place. ¾ 16-20: How Judean disciples must react to the sign of vs 15 ¾ 21, 22: A never-to-be-repeated time of trouble – greater than any before it since the beginning of the world ¾ 23-28: How disciples should think and act during the time of trouble ¾ 29-31: Christ returns immediately after the tribulation 

OHP 3: Olivet’s Three Main Statements ¾ So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’ spoken of through the prophet Daniel - let the reader understand - then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. (Matthew 24:15, NIV) ¾ For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now - and never to be equaled again. (Matthew 24:21, NIV) ¾ Immediately after the distress of those days ‘the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’ [Isaiah 13:10; 34:4] At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth (or land - Zechariah 12:12) will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory. (Matthew 24:29, 30, NIV) 

 

Peace And Safety

1 Thessalonians 5

For many years this familiar passage has been expounded as a prophecy that there will come a time when the nations of the world will either be seized by an overmastering anxiety to get together and rid themselves of the threat of war, or will feel at some political juncture that at last they have actually devised a scheme by which war has been finally abolished. At such a time “sudden destruction cometh upon them”; it will overtake them “as a thief in the night.” This will be the final cataclysm at the coming of the Lord.

Interpreted in this fashion, the Peace and Safety cry has been regarded as one of the outstanding signs of our times. U.N.O. and, before it, the League of Nations and also nearly every other twentieth century effort to patch up the quarrels and bickerings of the nations have in turn been hailed as the fulfilment of Paul’s prophecy, with the logical (sic!) conclusion that the coming of the Lord is just round the corner.

It cannot be too strongly emphasized that the value of this long-standing interpretation is only in direct proportion to its degree of Biblical support. For too long interpretation of these Bible signs has been by means of politics instead of by means of Bible. Thus the elucidation of Bible prophecy has been brought down to the level of a semi-political game, valid for those who are forbidden to take part in politics in any other way.

A FRESH APPROACH

The present approach will be on somewhat different lines.

A not unimportant feature of Paul’s two letters to Thessalonica is the number of allusions, which it contains to the Lord’s Olivet prophecy. This is specially true in the section 1 Thessalonians 4: 15-5:10 (the chapter division here is unfortunate):

1 Thessalonians	Matthew
4: 15 This we say unto you in a word of the Lord (i.e. what I am now reminding you of is what Jesus himself said).
4: 16 the Lord himself shall des- cend from heaven with a shout,	24: 30 they shall see the Son of man coming ... with power and great glory.
with the voice of an archangel, and with the trump of God.	24: 31 he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they
4: 17 we which are alive and re- main	shall gather together his elect.
shall be caught up in clouds to meet the Lord.	24: 30 coming in the clouds of heaven.
	Luke
5: 1 the times and seasons,	21: 24 the times of the Gentiles.
	Matthew
5: 2 the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.	24: 43 if the good man of the house had known in what hour the thief would come.
5: 3 when they shall say, Peace and safety,	24: 48 my lord delayeth his coming.
then sudden destruction cometh upon them,	24: 43, 51 his house broken up ... shall cut him asunder.
as travail upon a woman with child .	24: 8 these are the beginning of travail.
5: 5 Ye are all children of light.	25: 1-13 the wise virgins with lamps lit.
5: 6 let us not sleep, but	25: 5 they all slumbered and slept.
let us watch,	24: 42; 25: 13 Watch therefore.
and be sober.	24: 49 eat and drink with the drunken.
5: 9 God hath not appointed us to wrath.	24: 51 appoint him his portion with the hypocrites.
5 :10 whether we wake or sleep ... ... live together with him.	25: 1-13 the virgins.

It is doubtless true that several of these correspondences occurring by themselves could hardly be recognizable as allusions to the Lord’s discourse, but the fact that they come together in the space of a few verses makes the probability of close connection a near-certainty. Those accustomed to tracing this kind of allusiveness in the inspired writers of Scripture will more readily perceive the character of this paragraph in 1 Thessalonians.

SLUMBERING VIRGINS

Once the fore-going parallel is recognized the conclusion becomes inevitable that those assuring themselves of peace and safety are not the nations of the world but the Lord’s own unprepared servants. It is to them that the Lord comes as a thief in the night.

A further argument, readily educible from this passage, leads to the same conclusion. Paul continues: “sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child.” This figure of speech needs to be pondered. A pregnant woman knows that her travail is inevitable. Also, she knows roughly when it will come. But she never knows the precise time. Almost always she is at length taken by surprise.

All these aspects of Paul’s simile are marvellously appropriate to the waiting church. She knows that the Lord will come. From the signs of the times she has a fair idea that the present epoch will see his coming. But “of that day and hour knoweth no man.”

On the other hand, to attempt to apply Paul’s figure to the nations of the world is to make nonsense of it. They do not know that the day of crisis is inevitable. All their planning is based on the assumption that it can be staved off by their own scheming. In any case the entire context of Paul’s exhortation disallows the possibility of reference to godless nations. In this epistle the apostle is concerned first and last with the well-being of this newly-founded ecclesia in Thessalonica.

A SECRET ADVENT?

A further conclusion to be drawn from this re-examination of 1 Thessalonians is that the idea of a preliminary secret thief-like advent of Christ before his open manifestation in glory to the nations of the world loses all its Biblical support.

Not only here but also in every other place where the same figure is used; it has reference to the condition of the Lord’s servants. It is to certain of the7n that the manifestation of the Lord will be like the stealthy depredations of a thief: “Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments ... “ (Revelation 16: 15). “If therefore thou (Sardis) shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief ...” (Revelation 3: 3). “The Lord is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. But (to some who are unrepentant) the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night” (2 Peter 3: 9, 10).

On the other hand Christ himself warned pointedly against being misled by those who teach that the second coming will be stealthy and secret. In effect the churches teach this when they try to persuade that the Lord’s coming is to the heart of the believer, or mystically in the “Real Presence” in the sacramental bread. Jehovah’s Witnesses teach the same thing when they affirm an invisible “spiritual” presence of the Lord since 1914.

“BELIEVE IT NOT”

To all these the answer of Scripture is: “Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not. For there shall arise false Christs and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. Behold, I have told you before. Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not. For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be” (Matthew 24: 23-27). This passage is so clear and emphatic, it should make those pause and consider who have been in the habit of thinking (and teaching) in terms of a secret coming of Christ to his people assembled to meet him in some remote uninhabited part of the world.

It is not in this sense that the Lord comes as a thief. The point of this simile is different. When a burglar has broken into a home and slipped away with all the money and the choicest items of wealth it contains, the householder suddenly awakes to the fact that what he deemed to be his most treasured possessions are gone, they are his no longer.

The Lord’s coming will be like that. For all, and especially for the unprepared, there will suddenly dawn a day of stark self-awareness when with a flash of honest insight such as is rare even with the most mature and spiritual, it is realized that those things which have counted for so much in life — cars, clothes, homes, gardens, holidays, social standing, professional or business status —are seen to be of very little value in the presence of the Lord. It will be as though they have all been suddenly snatched away by a thief.

The Day Of The Lord

 

15) The Day Of The Lord

Zephaniah 1-3

The prophecy of Zephaniah is very evidently connected closely with the events of the prophet’s own time — the reign of Josiah. Two possibilities present themselves. Either the prophet is foretelling events soon to happen, and the prophecy is so framed as to have reference also to events of the Last Days (much in Jeremiah and the early part of Isaiah is like this); or, recent events are being used (as in the later chapters in Isaiah) to provide prophetic pictures of bigger events in the time of the end. It is difficult to say with any confidence which of these modes of interpretation is correct, but the pointed allusions to Josiah’s Passover in 1: 7, 8, 12 suggest the second.

A FUTURE FULFILMENT

Apart from the language of the prophecy itself, there seem to be two clear reasons for a Last-Day application of it. First, there are the quotations from the prophecy of Joel: “The great day of the Lord is near, it is near ... a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness, a day of the trumpet and alarm” (1: 14-16). This is Joel 2: 1, 2. Some of the phrases are quoted word for word. If Joel may be applied with confidence to the Last Days, then surely Zephaniah also.

The concluding section of the prophecy (3: 14 20) reads very convincingly as a picture of events still future. But there is also this: in John’s account of Christ’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem, the familiar quotation from Zechariah 9:9 is prefaced with two phrases from Zephaniah: “Fear not, daughter of Zion” (3: 16, 14)—the words are not found in Zechariah. And the context in Zephaniah 3 is: “the king of Israel, even the Lord, is in the midst of thee ... The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will Jesus thee” (vv. 15,17). The triumphal entry of Jesus was, of course, a kind of dress-rehearsal of the kingdom. The Lord was asserting his right to come to Jerusalem one day as its eternal king.

The shape of Zephaniah’s picture of judgement and blessing in the Last Days is worth noting. Chapters 1, 3 are, in the main, pronouncements of wrath against “Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem.” Chapter 2: 4-13 is against neighbouring enemies: the Philistines, Moab, Ethiopia, Assyria. The prophecy ends with the lovely picture of the kingdom, already referred to.

HEEDLESS ISRAEL

The prophet describes Israel as given over to idolatry and the pursuit of material prosperity. They have no mind for anything else. Making due allowance for the fact that Zephaniah necessarily has to use the language of his own day, the description is appropriate to the Jews now in the Land: “them that are turned back from the Lord, and those that have not sought the Lord, nor enquired for him ... that say in their heart, The Lord will not do good, neither will he do evil.” Today the Jews in Israel are, for the most part, godless in outlook. There is little acknowledgement of the blessing of God in the building of their vigorous new state, and little thankfulness to Him for the victories they have won. Instead, there is a rather cocksure dependence on their own powers and a glorifying of their own admittedly remarkable achievements. “She obeyed not the voice; she received not correction; she trusted not in the Lord; she drew not near to her God” (3: 2). Princes, judges, prophets, priests are all castigated as unworthy of their office (3: 3, 4). Yet “the just Lord is in the midst thereof,” unrecognised; “morning by morning (through the signs of the times?) doth he bring his judgement to light” (3 :5), but these men who are skilful in “discerning the face of the (political) sky, cannot discern the signs of the times.”

Soon God will rise up early, sending His prophet Elijah among them, but the nation will continue to “rise early, and corrupt their doings” (3: 7). The appeal is made, therefore, to the faithful remnant “before the fierce anger of the Lord come upon you, before the day of the Lord’s anger come upon you” (2: 2); “Seek ye the Lord, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought his judgement; seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the Lord’s anger” (2: 3).

Appeal is made to the nation to see God’s hand in the events of their own time: “I have cut off the nations (Egypt, Jordan, Syria): their towers are desolate; I have made their streets waste, that none passeth by: their cities are destroyed, so that there is no man” (3: 6). Yet still the lesson that God controls the affairs of His ancient people goes unlearned: “I said, Surely thou wilt fear me, thou wilt receive instruction” (3: 7). But no! Israel appears impervious to true wisdom.

However, inexorably the day draws near when the lesson will be learned: “In that day shalt thou not be ashamed for all thy doings...for then I will take away out of the midst of thee thy proudly exulting ones, and thou shalt no more be haughty upon my holy mountain,” as Israel has certainly been since June 1967.

The enemy nations round about will also be involved in this dramatic transformation. Judgement and desolation will come upon them who have been used to bring desolation and judgement on Israel (2: 4, 9, 13-15; 1:17,18). All this because “they have reproached and magnified themselves against the people of the Lord of hosts” (2: 10). Up to the present day there has been “reproach” in plenty. But until Arab utterly defeats Jew in battle, there is little ground for “magnifying themselves.”

A GREAT TRANSFORMATION

During the evil time referred to here, “the time of Jacob’s trouble,” when the Arabs—with formidable Russian help—are able to gloat in triumph over a people they know to be their superiors in everything except barbarism, there will be a faithful remnant who will be saved through their repentance and faith in God: “I will leave in the midst of thee an afflicted and poor people and they shall trust in the name of the Lord” (3: 12).

Then the Lord will “take away thy judgements” and “cast out thine enemy”; from this time on “the king of Israel, even Jehovah, is in the midst of thee: thou shalt not see evil any more” (3: 15). Retribution will be visited on the enemies of this nation beloved for their fathers’ sakes. Jews who have endured affliction and dispersion yet again will once more be gathered to their homeland. Now for the last time in all their fantastic history they will come from all parts to inherit the Land, this time forever. No contempt, opposition or hatred now, for God has “made them a name and a praise among all the people of the earth” (3: 20). Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in person will beckon them back to a Land lately associated in their minds with fear and horror. “Sing, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel; be glad and rejoice with all the heart, O daughter of Jerusalem” (3: 14). The exhortation to indulge in unrestrained gladness will be needed, for the startling change which will then come over the fortunes of this stricken people will surely reduce them to stupefied silence and awe.

“Then will I turn to the peoples a pure lip, that they may all call upon the name of the Lord, to serve him with one consent” (3: 9). The words have often been interpreted as a prophecy of the reversal of Babel, the institution of one common language (Hebrew?) in the kingdom of God. That this will assuredly happen may be taken as axiomatic. But whether that language will be Hebrew and whether this passage is a prophecy of that much-to-be-desired achievement is doubtful.

This famous Zephaniah passage is more fundamental than any of these considerations. Here, as in a great many other Old Testament passages “the peoples” are the tribes of Israel; and the “pure lip” is not so much the language they will speak as the ideas they will express — “calling upon the name of the Lord” and “serving him with one consent” — a condition which has never been achieved in Hebrew history since the days of Abraham. Now, at last, Israel will not only say: “All that the Lord hath spoken we will do,” but they will do what they say.