Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Israel’s rabbis, and Christian ministers are all saying that the prophesied battle of Gog and Magog will occur soon that the Lord’s arrival on earth is imminent. I find it very interesting that the leaders of the three major religions in the world all feel a similar spiritual burden- that end time prophesies are about to be fulfilled. Let’s see who is saying what, but first, delve into some biblical background for context.
The End Time, End Times, or End of Days is a time period described in the eschatological writings of the three Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam). In Christianity, the End Times are depicted as a time of tribulation that precedes the Second Coming of the Christian saviour who is Jesus who will then usher in the fullness of the Kingdom of God and bring an end to suffering and evil after smiting the rebellious ones (non-believers). In Islam, Yawm al-Qiyāmah “the Day of Resurrection” or Yawm ad-Din “the Day of Judgment” is Allah’s final assessment of humanity. It is preceded by the end of the world. In Judaism the term “End of Days” is taken from the Tanakh, Numbers 24:4, as a reference to the Messianic era and the Jewish belief in the coming of Mashiach and the World to Come. (Summarized by Wikipedia).
IRAN/PERSIA & AHMADINEJAD,
In the Gog Magog prophecy of a battle to come described in Ezekiel 38-39, Ezekiel said that Persia, Libya, Ethiopia, Sudan, Turkey Russia and Armenia will surprise attack Israel. It reads: “Persia, Cush (the upper Nile region) and Put (Libya) will be with them, all with shields and helmets, also Gomer (Turkey) with all its troops, and Beth Togarmah (Armenia) from the far north with all its troops—the many nations with you.” (Ez 38:5). They are almost successful in their attack. However, at the very last second when all seems lost, God rescues Israel, visibly and demonstrably. All will know who and how Israel was rescued and it is this demonstration of divine intervention which pulls Israel back into covenant relationship with God. “I will execute judgment on him with plague and bloodshed; I will pour down torrents of rain, hailstones and burning sulfur on him and on his troops and on the many nations with him. And so I will show my greatness and my holiness, and I will make myself known in the sight of many nations. Then they will know that I am the LORD.’ ” (Ez 38:22-23)
By the end of the battle Israel will be back in old covenant, ‘I will make known my holy name among my people Israel. I will no longer let my holy name be profaned, and the nations will know that I the LORD am the Holy One in Israel. It is coming! It will surely take place, declares the Sovereign LORD. This is the day I have spoken of.” (Ez 39:7-8). Because of Israel’s recognition of God as the God of their Old Covenant (Abraham, Isaac, & Jacob), it means that by the end of the battle the church is gone, because we represent the new covenant. The last 7 years remaining for the old covenant to be fulfilled will resume. (Daniel 9:25, and see below).
The prophesied seventy weeks, or four hundred and ninety years to accomplish what the LORD wanted to do with Israel are divided into three distinct periods, to each of which particular events are assigned. The three periods are: –
I. Seven weeks, that is, forty-nine years.
II.-Sixty-two weeks, that is, four hundred and thirty-four years.
III. One week, that is, seven years. It is this last 7 years of concern to us now.
The Shias also believe that the world will end after a 7-year turmoil, that there will be deceiver, that Jesus will return to help the Mahdi as his deputy to force all to convert to Islam. The Shia Muslim end time scenario is exactly the same as Christianity’s, except the exact opposite. Think of their doctrines as being a photographic negative to the picture of Christianity. So, here is what Iran’s leader said today (Iran = Persia) and note how closely it relates to this upcoming Gog-Magog battle:
US, Israel will soon exit Middle East: Ahmadinejad
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said on Friday that a new Middle East is being created which would be free of the United States and Israel, as he backed the Arab uprisings but warned Egyptians to be watchful of America’s “friendly face.” “We will soon see a new Middle East materialising without America and the Zionist regime and there will be no room for world arrogance (the West) in it,” Ahmadinejad told the cheering crowds who gathered despite the cold and cloudy weather.
In his fiery style, Ahmadinejad, showed his messianic beliefs on Friday, saying the world was witnessing a revolution managed by Imam Mahdi, the 12th Shiite imam who disappeared as a five-year-old in the 10th century and who Shiites believe would return on the judgment day. “The final move has begun. We are in the middle of a world revolution managed by this dear (12th Imam). A great awakening is unfolding. One can witness the hand of Imam in managing it,” said Ahmadinejad. “Come and take away the Zionist regime which is the source of all crimes… take it away and liberate the region. Free the region and give it to the people and take this regime, which is the child of Satan (the United States), out.”
The Gog Magog battle is a foray of the Muslim coalition to do just that- an attempt to wipe Israel from the earth. That two Iranian warships were allowed through the Suez Canal after 32 years to patrol waters in the Med off Israel is no accident. That missiles are being fired into Gaza as we speak for the first time since the Gaza war is also no accident. The war is coming. Ahmadinejad is right.
Israel’s rabbis say the same thing.
“RABBIS SAY ARAB UNREST SIGNALS MESSIAH COMING SOON”
Prominent rabbis from the Lithuanian ultra-Orthodox sector have offered their own curious interpretations for the upheaval that is spreading through the Middle East, stating that the events are a clear proof that a higher power is at work. “Recently it appears that there is a powerful effort to destroy and agitate the world of the Torah, through various attempts to prosecute kollels and yeshiva students,” Steinman said. “When you try to agitate the world of the Torah, God agitates the world.” Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky, an unconventional Lithuanian leader who is believed to have mystic powers, offered a different explanation. “It is evident that many unnatural things are happening,” he said. “People have come to me and said that it’s ‘Gog and Magog’. We cannot know. But it’s probable that any unrest that God creates shows that the Messiah is coming, and that we must begin to prepare for it and become stronger.”
And finally, Christian leaders also say that the end is nigh and the battle of Gog-Magog is coming. Joel C. Rosenberg commented on the Ynet article above,
“On this, I agree with Rabbi Kanievsky – the War of Gog and Magog is approaching, the Messiah is coming, and we must be prepared and become stronger spiritually as the Lord’s return draws near. That said, I suspect the Rabbi and I disagree on the Messiah’s identity. That’s a good discussion to engage, particularly now. The Hebrew prophets told us the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem Ephratah, would minister to the people living darkness in the region of Galilee, would teach in parables, would do miracles, would suffer and die as a guilt offering for our sins, and then would rise again and His body would not see decay in the grave. What’s more, in Daniel chapter 9 we learn that the Messiah will come, atone for our sins, and be “cut off” before the Second Temple is destroyed and Jerusalem is crushed by the Romans. That means if the Messiah didn’t come before 70 A.D., He is never going to come. I know beyond the shadow of a doubt that our Messiah has come, and that He is coming back, possibly sooner that we realize. Today, we are seeing the type of “uprisings” and “lawlessness” that the Lord Jesus warned in Matthew 24 and Luke 21 would precede His return. What’s more, I believe we are steadily approaching what the Hebrew Prophets called the “Day of the Lord,” the tumultuous events that will lead us right into what Jeremiah called “the time of Jacob’s trouble” (Jeremiah 30:7), what Jesus Christ called the “Great Tribulation” (Matthew 24:21), and what the Apostle John described in horrific detail in the Book of Revelation.”
Another prominent Christian leader, Pastor John Hagee also commented this week on the military buildup in the Middle east and the Libyan participation as a precursor to the set up for the Gog Magog battle.
With the globe’s most scholarly and well-versed religious leaders all saying that the tribulation time of judgment and Jesus’ return to the earth is imminent, you pay attention. You know what else? Since the rapture precedes the Tribulation, it must be REALLY imminent. Keep looking up!
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