Tag: Last Days

Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.

On By Brian LazewskiIn Christian persecution8 Comments

Not a single day goes by that you will not see a story like this…

Female Student Murdered, Body Burned by Classmates in Nigeria

From Persecution.org

Mob Attack Spurred by Supposedly Blasphemous WhatsApp Message 

05/12/2022 Nigeria (International Christian Concern) – Deborah Emmanuel, a 25-year-old Christian student at the Shehu Shagari College of Education in Nigeria’s Sokoto State, was fatally beaten and her body was burned earlier today, May 12. Her classmates were incensed at a supposedly blasphemous message she had sent to a school WhatsApp group. 

Deborah, who attends an ECWA church and resides with her parents in Sokoto according to International Christian Concern’s (ICC) contacts, apparently got into an argument with her female classmates after sending a WhatsApp message her classmates interpreted as blasphemous. 

A video of Deborah being beaten went viral on local social media channels and has been reviewed by ICC staffers on the ground and analysts overseas. The video shows her lying still on the ground with her bloody left arm attempting to cover her head as male and female students gathered around, beating her with sticks, throwing large stones, and shouting, “Allahu Akbar.” She pleaded with her classmates not to kill her. 

A student from the school who spoke with ICC said, “Muslim students and teachers don’t like Christians in the school.” The student told ICC that school authorities watched as the frenzied mob killed Deborah, but could not stop the Muslim students, though they tried. 

The road to the school and Deborah’s house is currently blocked by students, making it difficult for Christians to move around. The governor of the state asked for the closure of the school without asking for the arrest of the students who committed the crime. 

Despite the intense persecution that Christians in Nigeria face, Nigeria was removed from the U.S. State Department’s Countries of Particular Concern list in November 2021.  [Source]

Dear ones, we are promised not to suffer God’s Wrath (those truly in Christ). But that doesn’t exclude us from mans satanically inspired wrath. Persecution of Christians is more frequent now than ever in history. Even in Western Countries. Look up the name Artur Pawlowski.

Be ready for it. It’s coming.. But Why?

If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. (John 15:18)

Do not marvel, my brethren, if the world hates you. (1 John 3:13)

Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also. (John 15:20)

When/If it visits you, God counts it as a blessing:

Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.“ Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. (Matthew 5:10–12)

Blessed are you when men hate you, And when they exclude you, And revile you, and cast out your name as evil, For the Son of Man’s sake. (Luke 6:22)

Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy. If you are reproached for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified. (1 Peter 4:12–14)

It strengthens your faith and relationship with Father God:

Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:10)

And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us. (Romans 5:3–5)

Be not afraid:

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? (Romans 8:35)

To that I answer No one!!!

Pray for the persecuted saints. Because everyday a story like this comes across the wire…

Can you hear The Approaching Hoof-beats?

On By Brian LazewskiIn Last Days8 Comments

One doesn’t need be an Einstein to figure out that the world is in peril. The media outlets as well as the internet are bombarding us with over-information/disinformation. It’s nearly impossible to find what is truth.

There is one source that never fails in delivering the truth, The Bible. As Hal Lindsey used to say, “The Bible is more accurate than today’s headlines”. If you drink the drink of the mass media and big tech, you’ll certainly be in a state of despair, fear, and hopelessness. It’ll latch on to you as a blood sucking leech and drain you into oblivion.  I’m not saying, do not be informed as to what is going on. Just be apprehensive and investigatory and run everything you see through the lens of God’s Word. Believe nothing you hear, half of what you see, and ALL of God’s Word!!

Right now, I see God starting to send shots across the bow of humanity. Time is getting short, and Divine Judgment is coming. We are getting a subtle taste and warning of what is to come. God in His lovingkindness and longsuffering sends warnings, and warnings, and warnings…  Many perceive things are really-bad now, but they really aren’t, not yet at least.

The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9)

Knowing this, it also warns us that one day the door of the ark will slam closed and all on the outside will perish in the Wrath of Almighty God.  But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie. (Revelation 22:15)

Have you ever had a sample at the grocery store? A small taste of what you get in the full package. Knowing that these current events are NOT the opening of the seals, they do indeed seem as if a small sampling of them and what is to come — In the distance can you hear the hoof-beats of the horsemen?

The First Sample (Antichrist)

Then I saw when the Lamb broke one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures saying as with a voice of thunder, “Come.” I looked, and behold, a white horse, and he who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer. (Revelation 6:1–2)

Antichrist. What do we know about antichrist? Is it a spirit? A man? A system? Look at the condition of humanity and you will hear his hoof-beats.

A spirit:

Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world. You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. They are of the world. Therefore they speak as of the world, and the world hears them. We are of God. He who knows God hears us; he who is not of God does not hear us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error. (1 John 4:1–6)

Therefore, the spirit of the antichrist is ALREADY in the world. Sound familiar? The utter denial that Jesus as fully God and fully man, just as He says He is. It deludes us with false teachers, false theologies, and a distorted view of a Jesus we do not recognize. John says to “Test all spirits” Indeed so, test all spirits, premonitions, teachings, and so-called prophets, new revelations, against the backdrop of God’s written Word. If it does not align with the written word, it is a false spirit of antichrist at play. To my point, if you are not reading The Bible, how in the world will you have discernment? How will you be prepared for what is coming? What weapon do you really have other than the Word of God? And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; (Ephesians 6:17) For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12) Get in HIS Word and sharpen your sword. Keep it sharp and be ready for battle.

One need only open their eyes a but a little to see this spirit at work in the world. A spirit of deception and lies that have even infiltrated the church. Take note, that the so-called church in the world is not the true body of Christ. There is and has only ever been a small remnant of true born-again believers in the church.  Most churches are built on shifting sand and not the SOLID rock of Jesus Christ. “But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.” (Matthew 7:26–27)

A Man?

Indeed so, the man of sin will come into the world as a leader that we call “the antichrist”. The one spoken of by scripture:

And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming. The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, (2 Thessalonians 2:8–9)

He shall speak pompous words against the Most High, Shall persecute the saints of the Most High, And shall intend to change times and law. Then the saints shall be given into his hand For a time and times and half a time. (Daniel 7:25)

As you see this rider is the opposite of Jesus in every way. The Real Yeshua is faithful and true, the false one is performing lying wonders.

He will be a false Christ an imitation of the real one. NOTE**This rider is not to be confused with the white horse in Revelation 19:11: Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. (Revelation 19:11) This Rider (rev 19:11) is Jesus Christ.

A System?

Biblically, we call this system “The World” This system is also antichrist. Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. (James 4:4b)

 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. (1 John 2:15–16)

We are told to not conform to this system: And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. (Romans 12:2)

We know this system HATES God and truth. “If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. (John 15:18–19)

Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! (Isaiah 5:20)

This system as an un-holy and un-just form of religion with sacraments such as abortion, practice of sexual perversions, murder, strife, envy, and so on… Sound familiar? being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them. (Romans 1:29–32)

This White Horseman is to be set forth to conquer and dominate all aspects of human life, politically, spiritually, and economically. It’ll be like a high-tech Nazi Germany thousands of times worse, and on a global scale.

The Second Sample (War)

When He broke the second seal, I heard the second living creature saying, “Come.” And another, a red horse, went out; and to him who sat on it, it was granted to take peace from the earth, and that men would slay one another; and a great sword was given to him. (Revelation 6:3–4)

This is the loss of peace and the conflagration of global war. Can you hear this hoof beat? Just look on the TV or internet at the foremost world event at this moment. War in the Ukraine. 

Currently the country (Russia) with the world’s largest nuclear arsenal of approximately 5500 warheads is mired down in the first major European war since WWII. What folks really do not fathom is how close we are to nuclear war, more so than the 1962 Cuban missile crisis.

War is nothing new to mankind. It has been with us since Cain murdered his brother. However, this current war (birth pang) has connotations of total global conflict for the first time in the nuclear age. These advanced weapons of mass destruction are readily available to any nations (despotic or not) that desire them. They are many, and more easily obtainable as each day passes.

The capability to kill with unprecedented efficiency has never been at the level it is now. It is also getting more lethal by the day. When this Horseman arrives on the scene, his warfare will be unlike anything humanity has seen yet.

Our news is permeated with war and conflict. And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. (Matthew 24:6)

The Third Sample (Famine)

When He broke the third seal, I heard the third living creature saying, “Come.” I looked, and behold, a black horse; and he who sat on it had a pair of scales in his hand. And I heard something like a voice in the center of the four living creatures saying, “A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not damage the oil and the wine.” (Revelation 6:5–6)

Look at the stores now as of this writing. Shelves are empty, shrink inflation is out of control, and disasters are happening to fertilizer facilities daily in the news. The war in Ukraine also will burden the global food supply.

We will have this sample upon us soon I believe. Food shortages are already becoming reality. The current shortages are a major inconvenience to world and will effect food supplies. Again, it’s another warning shot across the bow of what will come later. When this Rider does arrive, it’ll be horrific. It’ll be 1970’s Ethiopian famine times a thousand on a global scale. An entire day’s wages for a quart of wheat. That’s enough to feed yourself but not your family… As you can see the inflation spiking upward on a global scale. My friend John [1] observed: “Do you notice those empty spaces on some grocery shelves as well as hard to obtain, or even unobtainable products, with numerous businesses closing shop? Any prophetic implications here?“

The Fourth Sample (Death)

When the Lamb broke the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature saying, “Come.” I looked, and behold, an ashen horse; and he who sat on it had the name Death; and Hades was following with him. Authority was given to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword and with famine and with pestilence and by the wild beasts of the earth. (Revelation 6:7–8)

Over the last few years, we have certainly seen a sampling of this. We had a global pandemic which albeit bad, it is nothing like others before. However, this current one sparked global fear and permitted leads and governments to start stripping away rights of the people in the name of safety. Nevertheless, many people have perished from it. When the real seal is broken, the world will be begging for the good old days of Covid again.  

What do we do?

My friend Pastor John concluded a similar article [2] with this:

“ARE WE READY? WHAT ABOUT OUR FAMILIES AND FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS? In other words, WHAT ARE WE DOING ABOUT IT? DO WE REALLY CARE (about others as much as we do about ourselves)?”

Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God. (2 Corinthians 5:20) …!

“Things are getting hotter and will literally come to pass shortly and suddenly“

Knowing we are being warned by The Almighty, what course shall we take? How do we Prepare?

1. Now is a good time to get right with God if you are not. Is there oil in you lantern? “Later the other virgins also came, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open up for us.’“But he answered, ‘Truly I say to you, I do not know you.’“Be on the alert then, for you do not know the day nor the hour. (Matthew 25:11–13)

Are you saved?

2. Are you in God’s Word every day? If not, How can you be prepared to give a defense of what you believe? How can you discern truth from error? How will you know God’s will, and way? You are in a war! If you are not exercising your spiritual muscles you will be overwhelmed and unfit for what is coming. All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness;so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:16–17)

Make no mistake, the last few years have been a small sampling of what is to come. I believe we are experiencing the birth pangs Jesus spoke of at the Olivet discourse (Matt 24).

I don’t know about you. But, I certainly can hear HOOF-BEATS coming. Be Ready!

Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near.” (Luke 21:28)

Shalom, Brian

Footnotes

[1] John Pisarek Teacher-Feature

[2] Five Major Events That Introduce The 7-Year Tribulation Period

YES, PLEASE BE DISTRACTED, WHILE THE REAL MONSTER IS ABOUT TO POUNCE

On By Brian LazewskiIn apostasy, Last Days14 Comments
Are You Driven To Distraction? | Northstar Church

I do not know about Yuinz (Pittsburghese for you all) but I am sick and tired of being distracted with tools of fear, deceptions, and bad testimony.  While you are looking at the distraction, a real monster is lurking in the labyrinth and poised to tear us sunder and devour us.

knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. (2 Peter 1:20–21)

FEAR:

COVID and Vaccinations. It is a distraction and a tool of deception designed to turn us all against one another. I am by no means dismissing the disease as I have had it and survived. It is real, that is a fact. HOWEVER, it is not the Black Death or even REMOTELY as devastating as the Spanish Flu.  After-all, it does have a 99% survival rate. I do not know about you, but I like those odds.

Honestly, I am suffering from Vaccine information fatigue. LOOK, if you want to get it (vaccine), knock yourself out and go for it. I am quite sure as a free individual you can make such choices for yourself. If this Vaccine is the END ALL, BE ALL, MAKE YOU SAFE, jab, and YOU are worried about COVID, then YOU get it. Do not worry about me and other FREE individuals who do not want it. If we being the uneducated crazy Jesus freak Christians do not want to get it, what is the big deal? After-all, if what you are saying is TRUE (and it’s not) that we are all going to die unless…, then I would think YOU would encourage us not to get a Vaccine and be rid of us. Oh, by the way, I thought you Leftist were all about CHOICE over one’s body. I mean we can’t ask about what’s going on in that Planned Parenthood Facility, where little Jane of 16 is exercising her reproductive rights without parental consent. So then, if mandated Vaccinations become reality, then truly I DO NOT have a right over MY body, then I guess YOU should totally abolish abortion? Hmm, seems a fair trade. Indeed, I’ll line up for the Vaccination does 1, does 2, Delta variant, Echo variant, and whatever else Pfizer deems I need injected into me if it’ll end abortion. Yeah, I know that is not going to happen.

BAD TESTIMONY:

For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps: (1 Peter 2:21) We are called to give testimony of Jesus. However, when Christians wear the name of Jesus and act UN-Christlike, that is called bad testimony. When you wear the name of the Lord and act counter to His will and His way you are truly taking the Lord’s name in vain.

Over Vaccinations people are turning on one another even among professed believers. Again 99% survival rate. You see Abraham Lincoln once said, “A house divided against itself, cannot stand.” I think he read that in a book somewhere. “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand. (Matthew 12:25b)

While the UNBELIEVING world looks at us Christians what do they see? Indeed, a divided house. While were beating each other over the head about non-salvation issues such a Eschatological Rapture timing (or insert whatever topic here) saying those who do not agree with us are of Satan. Unbelievers sit by and laugh at what a joke these Christians are.

Even among people I deem friends, I see this behavior. They are prominent people with considerable influence and followings, well, I will not mention names. Let’s just say there is this lady from the Midwest and a pastor friend of hers that stated something like this “If you don’t agree with this certain Rapture timing, you are of Satan” This in turn set off this guy (rightly so) from NY that now lives in the UK, who happens to have a different Rapture timing view.  He was all outraged over this, and I agreed with him. Fast forward sometime later, that same person is now decrying those who do not agree with his Return timing as of Satan… What goes around comes around, eh? Point is, when those that are seeking the Lord see this behavior, it puts them off. Both unnamed individuals, I happen to love and agree (mostly) with, both divide God’s word very well. Yet, they both also have given bad testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore it will put people off and drive them away or worse. Into the arms of deceivers. So much for: Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you. (Ephesians 4:31–32)

DECEPTION:

For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; (2 Timothy 4:3)

There is no shortage of false teachers and influential Christians that have veered so far away from the truth. I just heard an interview with Amy Grant. Of course, Amy has a backslide or two (as we all do in life) But, now she is full blown out there with heresy.

“That’s why, to me, it’s so important to set a welcome table. Because I was invited to a table where someone said, ‘don’t be afraid, you’re loved.’… Gay. Straight. It does not matter. It does not matter how we behave. It doesn’t matter how we’re wired,” Grant asserted. [SOURCE]

It does not Matter How we behave? Are you serious? Sadly, this is where many of ” So Called Christians” are these days. If behavior does not matter then why did Jesus say this: And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ (Matthew 7:23) “Practice Lawlessness”, Hmm. I think it does matter how we behave. I am a pro at Repenting as I miss the mark too. Yet, I am not comfortable, nor do I affirm my failings and sins. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)

That is Mercy and Grace. Ms. Grant is advocating licentious living. There are FAR too many influential Christians and Pastors who have embraced full blown error. You therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked; (2 Peter 3:17)

Greater Series: Abolishing Apostasy (Hebrews 6:1-8)

THE APOSTASY MONSTER

The point of writing this is not to rant on COVID Fear tactics, Christian infighting, or False Christian’s It is to serve a wake-up call that we are NOW currently undergoing full blown moral collapse and apostasy. Studying these things since the mid 1980’s I always knew these days would come, perhaps even in my lifetime. Well now, they are at hand. I am not happy about this decline and falling away, Yet I have Joy that each day is a day closer to the return of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  I CAN NOT stress enough for you all to get into the Word of God. Start working your Spiritual Muscles.

Than you will know things will get worse. Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, (1 Timothy 4:1)

We know the world is being conditioned to take the mark of the beast. We know people will get tired of craziness and fear and a leader will come and fix this all by proclaiming peace and safety. The masses will place their trust in this leader. BUT, For when they say, “Peace and safety!” then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape. (1 Thessalonians 5:3)

Years ago, there was a movie about poker called Rounders. There was a quote in it that went something like this “If within 5 minutes you don’t spot the sucker that the table. You’re the sucker” QUIT getting caught up in despairing news designed to distract you away from God.

We know what is coming, let’s act like it! Quit punching yourself in the head putting out imaginary flames and get busy to share the Gospel with those who need it!

Shalom,

Brian

Is The Abraham Accords Peace Agreement Setting the Table for Ezekiel 38?

On By Brian LazewskiIn Ezekiel 383 Comments

 

If you tune out all the noise of the western media, you’ll soon get a sense something big is happening in the middle east. I believe it is possible that the war of Ezekiel 38 will happen prior to the tribulation period spoken of by Daniel and John in  Revelation. The geopolitics of old are falling by the wayside in favor of a new order of normal relations. With the recent Abraham Accords Peace Plan, Arab solidarity over the Palestinian issue is waning in favor of opposition to Iran. I will not be surprised if Saudi Arabia is next to join in.

The tentacles of Iran dig deep into the middle east. Their sphere of influence digs into Iraq, Syria, Lebanon (Hezbollah), and apparently is attempting to bolster up Hamas.  To be sure Iran is hurting economically and internally collapsing. It is in this state that I believe Iran is most dangerous as a wounded bear.

Turkey another chief player in the Ezekiel 38 war. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been doing everything possible project Turkey’s dominance into the region not unlike his Ottoman ancestors. If you dig a little deep, you’ll uncover many reports about Turkey’s involvement in Libya and The Sudan (Other players in Ezekiel 38). Albeit they have been setback recently in The Sudan, they nevertheless are still prevalent in Libya. Then we have Russia. Russia needless to say goes without saying. I believe them to be the King of the North. Now that Putin is El Presidente for life, he basically can operate as he wishes. He is in-fact a dictator hidden in plain sight.  They are also losing a lot of rubles over Israel’s extra blessing of natural gas. We do know from Ezekiel that whoever this confederation of nations are, they will be compelled to attack an unprepared Israel.   ‘Thus says the Lord GOD, “Behold, I am against you, O Gog, prince of Rosh, Meshech and Tubal.  “I will turn you about and put hooks into your jaws, and I will bring you out, and all your army, horses and horsemen, all of them splendidly attired, a great company with buckler and shield, all of them wielding swords;  Persia, Ethiopia and Put with them, all of them with shield and helmet;  Gomer with all its troops; Beth-togarmah from the remote parts of the north with all its troops—many peoples with you. Ezekiel 38:3-6

The nations are generally thought to be a confederation of Russia, Turkey, Iran, Libya, Sudan, and a few others. I would urge you to study this for yourself. Using the tables of nations maps in most Bibles, you’ll generally put this together. The Nations are more so agreed upon than the timing of this war (Gog Magog). I believe it could happen at any time as there are no preconditions. Some have it in the tribulation and a minority place it at the end of the Millennial Kingdom instead of there being a second war of Gog and Magog.  I happen to believe it will happen prior to the tribulation but that is my mere opinion.

What is missing here (Ezekiel 38) is mention of the direct neighbors of Israel. Many of these nations seem to be covered in the Psalm 83 war. Many believe that the Psalm 83 war was already fought between 1948 to 1981. This viewpoint does merit attention and could very well be correct. What I find interesting is that there now seems to be a wedge driven between Arab solidarity concerning relationship with Israel.

From the Jerusalem Post:

Palestinian leadership is on a collision course with Arab countries. The Palestinian leadership has placed itself on a collision course with many Arab countries, and the situation may not improve.

Less than a month after the Second Intifada erupted in September 2000, the Arab heads of state held an extraordinary meeting in Nasr City, a district of Cairo.

After the meeting, held at the urgent invitation of former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak, the Arab leaders issued a communique in which they “hailed the intifada of the Palestinian people in the occupied Palestinian territories” and held Israel “responsible for returning the region to a climate of tension and to manifestations of violence as a result of its practices, its assaults and its blockade of the Palestinian people, in violation of its obligations as the occupying power under the terms of the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949.”

In response to a proposal by Saudi Arabia, the Arab leaders decided to establish two funds to help the Palestinians. Al-Aqsa Fund, they said, will be allocated a sum of $800 million for “the funding of projects designed to preserve the Arab and Islamic identity of Jerusalem and prevent its loss, and to enable the Palestinian people to disengage from its subordination to the Israeli economy.” The second one, Al-Quds Intifada Fund, was to have capital of $200m. to be allocated for disbursement to the families of Palestinian “martyrs.”

A year later, the Arab leaders held another summit, this time in the Jordanian capital of Amman. As usual, the leaders issued another statement expressing full solidarity with the Palestinians and hailed “with great pride the Palestinian people’s steadfastness and brave intifada in the face of the savage onslaught waged by Israel.”

Although the Palestinians never saw much of the financial aid promised by the Arab heads of state, they were nevertheless encouraged by moral support they received from the Arab world during the intifada. Those were the days when the Palestinians felt that they had the full backing of the entire Arab world and that the Palestinian cause was the central issue of all Arabs and Muslims.

The Palestinians were further encouraged by the widespread support they received from the Arab street. No one in the Arab world dared to criticize the Palestinians, especially not during a time when they were engaged in a violent confrontation with Israel.

“We never had much faith in the Arab leaders, but at least they publicly stood with the Palestinians and strongly condemned Israel,” a veteran PLO official in Ramallah told The Jerusalem Post. “Back then, the Palestinians felt that all the Arabs were with them, and that allowed them to continue with the intifada. We did not feel that we were alone.”

IN 2002, the Arab leaders held a summit in Beirut and announced the Arab Peace Initiative, a 10-sentence proposal for an end to the Arab-Israeli conflict. The initiative calls for normalizing relations between the Arab world and Israel, in exchange for a full withdrawal by Israel to the pre-1967 lines, a “just settlement” of the Palestinian refugee problem based on United Nations resolution 194, and the establishment of a Palestinian state with east Jerusalem as its capital. Former Palestinian Authority president Yasser Arafat immediately embraced the initiative. His successor, Mahmoud Abbas, also supported it.

Some Palestinians saw the Arab peace plan as the turning point in the Arab world’s attitude toward the Palestinian issue and Israel. It was the first time that Arab heads of state had talked about the possibility of normalization with Israel, though they conditioned it on a full Israel withdrawal to the pre-1967 lines and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state.

“The Arab Peace Initiative represented a decline of the Arab position [toward the Arab-Israeli conflict],” noted Palestinian political analyst Hani al-Masri. “The Palestinians identified with the plan despite the concessions it contained.”

Masri believes that the Arab Peace Initiative (also known as the Saudi Initiative) came in the context of Saudi Arabia’s “atonement” for the 9/11 attacks. Fifteen of the 19 terrorists who carried out the attacks were Saudis.

In 2007, the Arab leaders met in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and “reiterated the adherence of all Arab countries to the Arab Peace Initiative” as it was approved by the Arab summit in Beirut five years earlier.

The Riyadh summit came against the backdrop of reports suggesting that some Gulf states were secretly engaged in normalization activities with Israel. The Palestinians were aware of the secret contacts between some Arab countries and Israel, but refrained from publicly denouncing these states so as not to alienate them.

“We saw the rapprochement between some Arab states and Israel, but we decided that it would be a bad idea to attack them,” explained a senior PA official. “We did not want to deepen divisions in the Arab world. In addition, we didn’t want to be accused of meddling in the internal affairs of any Arab country. We did our best to maintain good relations with all the Arab countries, particularly those that were secretly normalizing their relations with Israel.”

In retrospect, the official said, “we may have made a mistake by remaining silent.”

Had the Palestinian leadership raised its voice and made it known that normalization with Israel was a blatant violation of the Arab Peace Initiative, it’s possible that the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain would not have taken a decision to establish relations with Israel, the official added.

“The Palestinian leadership failed to see the writing on the wall,” remarked Palestinian lawyer Khalil Zahran. “By the time the Palestinian leadership woke up, it was too late. The leadership’s strong reaction to the Israel-Emirati deal, meanwhile, has proven to be counterproductive. It was a mistake to accuse an Arab country of betraying al-Aqsa Mosque and the Palestinian issue. Worse, it was a big mistake to send people to the streets to burn pictures of UAE Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed.”

By the time the PA leadership realized that its harsh rhetoric against the UAE was fruitless and harmful, it was too late.

First, the Arab League turned down a Palestinian request to hold an emergency meeting to discuss the repercussions of the Israel-UAE accord. When the Arab League foreign ministers held their ordinary meeting in early September, they refused to endorse a Palestinian draft resolution condemning the UAE for its “agreement of shame” with Israel.

Shunned by their Arab brothers, the Palestinians were finally forced to come to terms with the fact that the notion of Arab solidarity has passed away. For the first time in decades, the Palestinians now realize that the Palestinian issue is no longer the central issue of the Arab world. And for the first time in decades, the Palestinians are now fully aware that the Arab world has changed.

“As far as many Arab countries are concerned, Iran, Turkey and the Muslim Brotherhood organization are the real enemy, and not Israel,” said Amjad Shaheen, a prominent activist with the Palestinian ruling Fatah faction. “What’s worrying is that many Arabs are attacking the Palestinians and are saying they are fed up with us and our issue. The Palestinian people feel abandoned and isolated. I don’t think our leadership has a clear strategy how to cope with the new developments in the Arab world.”

Respected east Jerusalem Prof. Sari Nusseibeh believes that the Palestinian leadership has no choice but to make the best of what it has.

“It is incumbent on the Palestinian Authority leadership to transcend whatever feelings and to see if an opportunity has risen,” Nusseibeh said. “I think this has to be studied. Why not ask, for instance, the UAE to push for the kind of solution that the Palestinians have always asked for? Why not ask them to push for things that people have always wanted, such as the release of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli prisons? I believe that one should make best use of what one has.”

The Arab summit resolutions with regard to the Israeli-Arab conflict have failed, Nusseibeh noted. “The support we’ve had from the Arab world over the past two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight decades has not actually borne fruit, as far as the Palestinians are concerned. It is in this light that one should assess the recent agreements between Israel and Arab countries, whether implicit or explicit. Things seem to be sliding back, so to speak. Of course, this causes a great deal of pain for the Palestinians, just as the failure of the Oslo agreement causes a great deal of pain.”

Nusseibeh, who once served as the PLO’s representative in Jerusalem, advised the Palestinian leadership “to try and see if they could use the developing relations between Arab states and Israel to see if they can push forward the peace process.

“Perhaps it is more possible to do this now than it was in the past, when there were no relations [between the Arab states and Israel],” he said. “I think the Palestinian leadership should look into this possibility, in spite of the pain at the sense of being betrayed. In politics, one has to always be on the lookout for what possible opportunity there is to advance the interests of one. In the past, we had an Arab consensus, which was no peace with Israel until there is peace with the Palestinians. If you look at the history of this policy, one can’t but say it has failed. Why be blind to the fact?”

Like many Palestinians, Nusseibeh is disappointed with the Palestinian leadership for lacking a strategy to deal with the new developments in the region.

“One should be expecting changes sometime soon,” he said. “I don’t think [Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu is going to be there forever. On the Palestinian side, there may well be change, and some of the changes may actually not come about in a positive way. What I’m concerned about is that the stalemated position our leadership finds itself in might well put some pressure to bring about change in that leadership. Our leadership is under pressure not only because it has not been moving forward with the peace process, but because the Palestinians in the areas it controls are not happy with its governance. I don’t even discount violent change. Everything is possible.”

Under the current circumstances, it seems unlikely that Abbas and his cohorts in Ramallah are going to listen to advice such as the one offered by Nusseibeh. The Palestinian leadership has placed itself on a course of collision with many Arab countries, and it’s hard to see how Abbas will be able to climb down from the tall tree anytime in the near future. [Source]

 

So, there you have it. For years I often wondered how a massive invasion of Israel could be pulled off without the neighboring Arab states piling on.  I guess we can thank the pariah Iran for reshaping the middle east geopolitical sphere. The Arabs and Persians have been at it for thousands of years. And to many of them, their enmity of Persia outweighs their enmity of the Jewish state.

It also appears Israel is going to lock-down again due to Covid-19. I really don’t know how they are keeping their head above water with their economy in shambles and tourism kaput. Israel’s defense spending to GDP most recently reported around 39.50%. Considering How effective the IDF (Israeli Defense Force) is and how state of the art equipped they are, a shortfall in spending will only harm the IDF and their readiness to effectively defend their state.

I think there is a perfect recipe of events falling into place for Ezekiel 38 to unfold. Unprepared Israel. Financially collapsing Russia and Iran, and Turkey’s ambitions, not to mention that all three are operating in proximity in Syria right next door to Israel.

Could we be nearing the Ezekiel 38 war? If so, it doesn’t end well for the invaders as God Himself will thwart and destroy those enemies.  Behold, He who keeps Israel Will neither slumber nor sleep. Psalm 121:4

Nevertheless, as always, Pray for the Peace of Jerusalem. Her King is Coming soon!

Shalom,

Brian