Editions

 Edition 198. March 12^th 2014

World War Three arising:

The peace treaty:

World War Three arising:

The peace treaty:

Introduction:

See edition 74 for more on the nations of WW111.

►In this edition, apart from the main subject, I will also share with you some interesting new developments and factors about the coming peace treaty, (Daniel 9:27)

Due to the current situation in the Ukraine, I feel it’s necessary to have another look at the war of Gog and Magog, also referred to as World War Three (WW111), which is found primarily in Ezekiel 38 & 39. It is also inferred in a few other places in the Bible.

I have shared on this war in numerous editions, but right now things are heating up and the stage is being set.  Yes the current situation may fizzle out, that’s okay...the lessons still stand as I haven’t shared much of this material before.

The current Ukraine /Russia situation has nothing to do with Israel, and WW111 has everything to do with Israel, so are we barking up the wrong tree?

No not at all!

If the current situation does develop into WW111, Israel is in the wings awaiting her entrance onto the stage.

How the Ukraine situation may play out.

Can Russia cripple the US without firing a shot? Russia could easily crash the US financial system by dumping the billions of dollars worth of treasury bonds which they hold. Nations outside of the US hold some $16 trillion in liquid assets, which could be turned into a weapon against the dollar very quickly.

The US economy is only as strong as international confidence is. When your economy is built on such enormous debt, it is like a house of cards and can come down on a simple shift in sentiment.

The US and some European nations are talking of sanctions against Russia. This would infuriate the “bear.”

The dollar is already out of favour with China, Russia and others. It would take a light squeeze on the trigger to create dollar- selling and an economic collapse in the US. So Russia in fact does have a powerful weapon in this regard.

In 2008 the US saw the biggest financial crisis in a long time. The Fed came in to save the system, but the hang-over is a slow fragile recovery. Any new or similar financial catastrophe now would again bring the Fed in, but the results would end up being hyperinflation and a crashing economy.

One thing we must be aware of is that these things can happen very quickly.

Few people are aware that there is a large Jewish population in Ukraine. They are under threat right now as neo-Nazi groups gain strength. This may be one of the issues that brings Israel into the picture.

The name Ukraine means, “The edge”.

Right now Russia’s state owned Gazprom, an enormous oil and gas company, is close to bankruptcy. European nations are amongst Gazprom’s biggest customers. Russia gets 40% of its gas-revenue from Europe. Gazprom charges Europe a premium two and a half times more than US gas.

Some of the gas pipelines run through Ukraine. Ukraine is also a strategic nation in that it offers Russia an entrance to the Black Sea and through a small channel into the Mediterranean and Israel.

Many people in Ukraine want to become part of Europe and many want to return to the fold of Russia. If Russia cuts off gas to Europe, as she has threatened to do, it would put extra economic pressure on Gazprom and “ignite” the situation further. Russia has used oil-supply as blackmail before. In 2009 Gazprom shut off oil supply to Ukraine. Coming trade sanctions against Russia will corner Putin.

Russia desperately wants to keep these lines of commerce open especially now that a big, new threat to its dominance of oil and gas supply in the region has emerged from Israel. Europe is a huge consumer of natural gas and Israel is now making inroads into this.

Enter Israel and its Leviathan! 100 trillion cubic feet of gas and some oil fields were recently discovered off the Israeli coast.  The two main fields are called Leviathan and Tamar. A few months ago production and sales began.

 Israel is a small consumer of gas leaving the majority of its production available for export. Numerous new contracts have already been signed between Israel and Europe, severely cutting into Russia’s dominance of the market.

Gas and oil prices will go higher in the face of trade sanctions against Russia from the West. The Russian stock market crashed by 12% the day the Ukraine crisis began, and their currency, the rouble, has fallen dramatically.

Analysts are now calling Russia’s GDP down from 2.6% to 1%. That’s a very big fall for GDP in one move and all due to the Ukraine crisis.

 These factors combined are going to put enormous pressure on Putin. But he is notorious for not handling pressure well. In fact he has many characteristics of a psychopath!

There are rumours floating around that Russia is bankrolling the environmental lobby to slow down the oil-fraking process in the US and other nations, so that Russia can keep its oil and gas dominance.

The culmination of conflict could see the US become a more significant ally of Europe. If Russia swallows up Ukraine we would end up with the players perfectly aligned for the great war of Gog and Magog in Ezekiel 38 &39. This would identify more clearly the “young lions” and the allies of Israel in WW111 on the one hand and the great bear (Russia) on the other.

All of this could speed up the formation of the final Roman Empire of the book of Daniel.

The timing of this crisis is not coincidental. If we are heading for a tribulation start later this year or even next year, the Gog and Magog war must occur first. We are also awaiting the Isaiah 17 war in which Syria is completely destroyed, which also needs to occur before the tribulation begins.

Bear in mind that Russia has interests in keeping Assad in power in Syria.

Today as I write, I am hearing I am being given news of a US / Israeli offensive soon to be launched against Assad’s Syria. This would bring in Iran and Saudi Arabia!

China is in the wings very much on the side of Russia, Syria, Iran and others of similar persuasion.

Key factors of WW111:

Please read Ezekiel 38& 39 yourselves and familiarise yourself with these two dramatic chapters, which are very soon to unfold before us. What follows are the main points from those two chapters:

●The main players will have “hooks” in their jaws drawing them into the conflict. ●Horsemen, with spears, shields and bucklers, is all the prophet was familiar with. In our day this would be all the modern weapons of warfare. ●The war will occur in the “latter days”. ●It will occur in “Israel which had long been desolate.”  ●They (Israel) were brought out of the nations and now dwell safely. ●The enemies attacking will “ascend coming like a storm, covering the land like a cloud.” This could be air forces. ●They will go up against a land of “unwalled villages.” They will attack a peaceful people, dwelling safely without walls”. ●They will attack and come to “take great plunder, spoil, livestock, goods, silver and gold”. ●The attackers will come from the “far north”, with Muslim allies. ●It will occur so that the nations may “know Me when I am hallowed in you (Israel).” ●The “fury, wrath and fire of God will show in His face” against Israel’s attackers. ●There shall be a “great earthquake” in the land of Israel at that time. God will bring the attackers to judgment with “bloodshed, great hailstones, flooding rain, fire and brimstone.”  ●Those who live in Israel will “burn the weapons for seven years”. “Seven months” will be required to cleanse the contaminated land. They will set up a “marker” next to the dead bodies after the seven months land-cleansing, so that the buriers can do their job. ●This will be done in a place to be called “The valley of Hamon Gog.” ●All the nations shall see the judgement of God. God will have mercy on the whole house of Israel after they have borne their guilt. He will “pour out His Spirit on Israel.” (Jews).

Interestingly the “Valley of Hamon Gog” mentioned in Ezekiel 39:11 means the “hordes” of Gog and refers to a valley which will be the burial place for the hordes killed in the war.

Hooks

Ezekiel 38:4 “I will turn you around, put hooks in 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.”

The original Hebrew word translated “hooks” is the word “chach” meaning: “hook as in nose ring.” A great big bull can have a rope tied to its nose-ring and be drawn around easily because it’s too sore to pull away. This is also a common method used to tame and subdue big beasts.  It implies being dominated or controlled by an outside force without much option.

This entire prophetic war looks like it should be part of the tribulation period. It does fit in with many descriptions in the Revelation. But there are also some key factors placing the war before the tribulation.

The breakdown:

Let’s break this war down and see what we come up with.

It will be an end-time war, which has not yet occurred. The chief attackers will be Russia and a number of Muslim states in southern Russia. The nations of the West (young lions) will come to Israel’s defence. It will involve land- based and air- based military forces. Israel will be in some sort of peaceful state at the time. (Israel is in a much more peaceful state now than in previous history.) The cause of the war will be to take “plunder and spoil” which would perhaps be oil, gas and agricultural riches of which Israel is well stocked.

The war will coincide with salvation flowing to the Jews in large numbers. (Ezekiel 39:7) This actually begins in chapter 37 of Ezekiel, the well known “dry bones” prophecy.

It may be a nuclear war. The description of the aftermath implies that something horrific has happened to the dead bodies, making them untouchable for seven months.

The war does not last seven years as many say. The cleaning up events last seven months for the initial decontamination process (Ezekiel 39:12), and then seven years for the complete cleaning process. But the war itself may be very short in time.

It is unlikely that it will occur in the tribulation period, because then the seven year cleaning up would run into the Millennium.

It is quite possible that the war occurs during or close to the war of Isaiah 17, in which Damascus, Syria is destroyed.

The victors:

Ezekiel 39:2-3 “I will knock the bow out of your left hand and cause the arrows to fall out of your right hand. You shall fall upon the mountains of Israel, you and all your troops and the peoples who are with you.”

One of the reasons why this great war is not Armageddon is because the participants are different and the outcome is different. Armageddon involves all the nations of the world and is ended by the Second Coming of our Lord.

The Ezekiel war ends with Israel being the victor after huge losses. It appears that the “young lions” which are the commonwealth nations also survive as victors, but also with great losses. (For more on the identity of the nations involved see edition 74).

The US may be greatly weakened, but will not be destroyed in this war.

Why is this important now?

I have decided to do this edition now, because the current situation may develop quickly into the war of Gog and Magog and other wars in prophecy.

There are so many other prophetic events all dovetailing together at the same time.

It is possible that this all fizzles out and we have to wait. That’s highly unlikely because a lot of things have to fizzle together.

We can’t be sure of dates and the sequence of events, but I sense a freight train rumbling down the tracks.

The peace treaty:

Deuteronomy 27:17 “Cursed is the one who moves his neighbour’s landmark. And all the people shall say, amen!”

The current peace talks and process are essentially all about land for peace. It is about dividing the land of Israel. Joel 3:2, Zechariah 12:3 and other verses bring out the fact that dividing the land brings war and not peace.

The nations of the world have the audacity to think that they can change God’s word on this issue! Israel itself will be brought into the land for peace delusion and fall for it to her own regret.

►If the great war of Gog and Magog takes place very soon; it just may be an extra reason for the cry for peace, and be a catalyst to the dreadful day the peace covenant is confirmed, starting the tribulation period.

Daniel 9:27 “Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week (of years)...”

Some believe that the current peace negotiations are not part of the Daniel 9:27 peace treaty, because they say that the Daniel peace covenant could easily be one of the previous peace agreements / talks, which were never completed.

That may be so, but let’s see what the Bible has to say.

The original word used for “confirm” a covenant, is insightful:

“Confirm”:  Strongs, H1396 = ‘gabar.’ This word means to make strong and mighty, to give strength to, to bind up that which is broken, to act proudly towards God.

“Confirm the covenant” does not mean a pre-existing one, eg Oslo. The word “confirm” means to secure it. That simply means to sign it, or ratify it. That does not mean it must be a pre-existing treaty. When all the negotiations are said and done, they sign or ratify the work. We could accurately say this: “He shall sign the covenant with many for one week of years. In the midst of it he shall cause the sacrifice and oblation to cease...” (Daniel 9:27)

The news on this developing peace treaty or covenant is changing fast. It has broken down, and been put back together again. I would not put too much emphasis on the public utterances of the Palestinians. 

Right now the news is that the Palestinians will not recognise Israel as a Jewish state. There’s nothing new about this, but then just a while back they also said that they will. So, confusion reigns.

The Palestinians have now just said that they will not recognise a Jewish state ever. Actually, recognition of the Jewish state may not be a prerequisite for the peace deal anyway, but we wait and watch.

I keep coming back to one big thing and that is the timing of these peace talks. I have said numerous times before that the tribulation period begins and is kicked off by the signing of a peace covenant.  Is it all a coincidence? It may be, but I doubt it because of all the other things lining up.

What you must do:

●Know how these things will play out! Know what is knowable from the scriptures. The most valuable thing you can ever do is know your Bible through the leading of its Author in your heart.

●Shake off the trappings that hinder your growth in our Lord and your love for Him.

●Watch, pray and be ready, but do not jump the gun!

Finally:

Deuteronomy 31:6 “Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid, for the Lord your God is the one who goes with you. He will never leave you nor forsake you.”

Ezekiel 37:12 “Behold O My people, I will open your graves and cause you to come up from your graves and bring you into the land of Israel.”

Psalm 46:10 “Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nation, I will be exalted in all the earth.”

I took this picture in a beautiful tropical forest. It speaks of calm and quiet – which is what we all have in our hearts even if we don’t see it now.

Psalm 145:10 “All Your works shall praise You, O Lord, and Your saints shall bless You.”

Shalom and grow in grace!