Category: Prophecy

Putin orders start of Russian military withdrawal from Syria

by atharris, posted in Damascus, Israel, Middle East, Prophecy

Putin orders start of Russian military withdrawal from Syria, says ‘objectives achieved’

Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu to start the withdrawal of forces from Syria starting Tuesday. Russia will however keep a military presence at the port of Tartus and at the Khmeimim airbase to observe ceasefire agreements.

Putin to Assad, Tehran: You want to carry on fighting? Count me out

A deep rift with Tehran over the continuation of the Syrian war and an irreconcilable spat with Syrian ruler Bashar Assad over his future prompted Russian President Vladimir’s shock order Monday, March 14, for the “main part” of Russian military forces to quit Syria the next morning. This is reported by debkafile’s military and intelligence sources. Moscow would retain a military presence at the naval port of Tartous and the Hmeymim airbase outside Latakia.

The Russian president did not fix a timeline for the military withdrawal – only its start. Neither did he promise to discontinue all military operations in Syria.

He did say only that “The task put before the defense ministry and Russian armed forces has on the whole been fulfilled” and he spoke of a “fundamental turnaround in the fight against international terrorism.”

RussianReatreat480

To some extent, Russia has kept a volatile country from going completely ballistic. Once the majority of the Russian military is gone, will the country resume its’ tailspin? Will Iran or Hezbollah be the instigator?

We know the destruction of Damascus (Isaiah 17) is yet to occur, and we know it is caused by the children of Israel.

In that day shall his strong cities be as a forsaken bough, and an uppermost branch, which they left because of the children of Israel: and there shall be desolation. Is. 17:9

One would think Israel would not create this type of destruction as long as a country as powerful as Russia were present, but now they leave….what’s next? Will this prophecy occur in the near future or will it commence in the seven year Tribulation? Will it be before or after Gog and Magog? Time will tell, but this author leans towards a pre-Gog & Magog occurrence. 

Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Tit 2:13

 

Political Unrest

by atharris, posted in Israel, Prophecy

Rarely is a post made concerning politics except where it becomes a threat to freedoms and/or society.

Most importantly:

Report: Obama to use UN to divide Jerusalem

With about 10 months left in office, President Barack Obama is considering unprecedented moves to implement a two-state solution, according to a Wall Street Journal report.

Senior US officials revealed that the President is looking to initiate a final negotiated settlement between Israel and the Palestinian Authority using United Nations Security Council resolutions, a step that would obligate not only Israel and the Palestinian Authority, but effectively determine the direction of US policy for the president’s successor as well.

White House ‘surprised’ Netanyahu spurning offer to meet Obama

Netanyahu’s extraordinary decision to spurn the presidential invite came a year after Obama refused to meet with Netanyahu in Washington, citing the proximity to Israeli elections, in what was widely regarded as a sign of the strain in ties between the two leaders;

And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. Gen. 12:3

Do you remember this man? Democracy in Turkey is quickly dying.

Turkey's Prime Minister and presidential candidate Tayyip Erdogan makes a speech during a meeting to launch his election campaign in Istanbul

Turkey has recently seized two newspaper media companies including the largest Zaman.

Turkish police raid Zaman HQs, fire tear gas on readers after gov’t takeover

An İstanbul court appointed trustees to take over the management of the Feza Media Group, which includes Turkey’s biggest-selling newspaper, the Zaman daily, as well as the Today’s Zaman daily and the Cihan news agency, dealing a fresh blow to the already battered media freedom in Turkey.

Turkish Cihan news agency ‘seized’ by government

Despite criticism from European officials over its crackdown on opposition media, the Turkish government has reportedly taken control of another news agency. It comes days after the seizure of the popular opposition newspaper Zaman.

Has Erdogan confused freedom of expression with spying?

Turkey’s “strongman” President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is going the extra mile in his trajectory of authoritarianism by challenging a Constitutional Court ruling.

Although stressing that he fully supports freedom of expression, Erdogan said no one can attack the country under the guise of liberty. “This is spying, [and] intelligence organizations in every country have almost infinite legal power — and so they can’t be interfered with so easily by any ordinary prosecutor,” he added. “Now, after our departure, there will be a lot of turbulence behind us over my statement,” he said, signaling that he was aware of the possible dramatic ramifications of his statement.

Amid President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s recent West African tour, from Feb. 28 to March 4 and including visits to Ivory Coast, Ghana, Nigeria and Guinea, news reports surfaced of Turkey establishing a military presence on the strategic Horn of Africa, in Somalia. This development will make Turkey the fifth foreign country to have a military presence in Africa, joining Britain, France, Japan and the United States.

According to the reports, carried extensively by the pro-government media under such headlines as “New Turkey Spreads to Four Continents,”

 

 

Egypt’s Betrayal

by atharris, posted in Israel, Prophecy

There is much prophecy yet to be fulfilled concerning Egypt in the last days. The titles of two recent news articles eerily appertain to one of the prophecy’s in Ezekiel 29. You can get a refresh on that prophecy here https://lookingforthatblessedhope.com/2015/04/07/thou-didst-break/

At the time of the post above a news article dated April of 2015 stated Egypt was preparing for war with Israel. It has now been almost a year. Here are the more recent news articles related to the prophecy.

Dated 2/29/2016

The Israeli-Egyptian love affair

  • Egypt’s higher stratums view Israel as an important, powerful ally in regional struggles. Egyptian President Sisi, in an interview with the Washington Post in March 2015, said he speaks to Prime Minister Netanyahu frequently, sometimes several times a month. In reality, Sisi talks to Netanyahu even more than that, and not only to Netanyahu.
  • On the list of Egypt’s close allies, Israel is a front-runner. Many of the interests of the two countries have converged and complement one another. Even the list of enemies held by Israel and Egypt includes the same names, more or less.
  • “Sisi understands the situation,” said a high-ranking Israeli security source. “He knows exactly whom he can trust in the region and whom he can’t. He knows what’s good for Egypt and, under the correct circumstances, what’s good for Egypt is also good for Israel.”
  • Sisi is also well-acquainted with Israeli Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eizenkot. They once served in parallel positions in the Israel Defense Forces and the Egyptian army and their cooperation extends over many years.
  • Intelligence information is almost totally shared between the sides with regard to the struggle against the Islamic State (IS) branch in the Sinai Peninsula. Israel and Egypt also rely on one another in their joint struggle against Hamas.
  • According to a high-placed Israeli military source, “The efficacy of the Egyptian army in its war against IS is gradually improving. This is true for intelligence, for preciseness and for rapid response. The Egyptians know that Gaza’s Hamas provides IS with military experts, they know that wounded Sinai IS operatives are treated in Gaza, they know that there is a direct, close connection between the sides. Thus, they try to block all passageways between the Gaza Strip and Sinai.”

This one is dated 8/14/2015

Egypt and Israel: A lover and his mistress

  • Israel is actually a close friend, maintaining an intimate, and sometimes very intimate, relationship with Egypt. At least that’s how Jerusalem sees it.
  • As far as the Egyptians are concerned, Israel has the same status as a mistress. It is only behind closed doors, in the innermost sanctum of the bedroom, that the lover opens up to her, pours out his heart and sometimes even puts his life in her hands. There is nothing to prevent Egypt from exchanging intelligence with Israel or cooperating with it in the fight against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, Iran’s influence in the region or Sunni radicals in the Sinai Peninsula. The two countries might even work together to steal a horse or two from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. But all that happens under the cover of night. God forbid that news of it gets out, because if it did, the man would be branded with an indelible mark of shame.

March of 2019 will mark the 40th year anniversary of the historic US-sponsored peace treaty between Israel and Egypt.

 

Northern Thunder

by atharris, posted in Israel, Prophecy

Northern Thunder….largely avoided in the general media, but clearly an event in the Middle East that should be noticed given it’s current state of turmoil; specifically Syria. Will this massive exercise lead to one of the many destructive prophecies waiting in the wings?

The gathering of one of the largest Muslim force in history is a significant message for Daesch….The drill involves 20 countries, amongst whom, Egypt and Pakistan, both of whom have sizable and equipped armies. Egypt has the largest army in Africa; Pakistan is a nuclear power.

The political and strategic substance of the drill is the show of an army with 350,000 strong troops, 2,500 warplanes, 20,000 tanks and 450 helicopters, under Saudi leadership. The 20-member coalition makes part of a broader 35-member Arab and Muslim (Sunni) coalition put together by Saudi Arabia.

http://neurope.eu/article/northern-thunder-saudi-arabia-as-a-military-superpower/

 

 

Israel – the Apple of God’s Eye.

by atharris, posted in Israel, Prophecy

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. Zec 2:8

For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins. Rom. 11:25-27

Israel is the Apple of God’s eye, the chosen nation. Their final few years are just ahead. Pray for them.

 

Assad again controls Damascus

by atharris, posted in Damascus, Prophecy

Interesting development for the Syrian civil war.

The Russian air strike that Friday, Dec. 25, killed Zahran Aloush, founder of the most powerful Syrian rebel group Jaysh al-Islam and his deputy, gave President Bashar Assad a big break in the Syrian war, thanks to his powerful backer, Vladimir Putin.

This grave loss will accelerate the breakup of Syrian rebel strongholds in and around Damascus. It will also hasten the evacuation under a UN-sponsored ceasefire of at least 2,000 rebels from the Damascus region. Less noticed, was the UN plan to remove at the same time several thousands ISIS fighters from the Syrian capital and transport them to their Syrian headquarters. The latter project has not been trumpeted for good reason: It implies UN recognition of ISIS as a party in the Syria war.
For nearly five years, the war seesawed back and forth, with neither the Syrian army nor the insurgents gaining the upper hand for long, even after Tehran threw its Lebanese proxy, Hizballah,  into the fray to bolster Assad’s army……

……This blow to the rebel movement, plus the mass-evacuation of its fighters from the Syrian capital, are major steps towards bringing the Syrian capital back under the control of the Syrian dictator.

Assad again controls Damascus thanks to Russian air strikes and intelligence

The fortress of Ephraim refers to norther Israel and the cities of Aroer are located in the area of modern day Amman Jordan. The children of Israel will at some point bring destruction on the enemy even as they suffer destruction.

aroer2

At that day shall a man look to his Maker, and his eyes shall have respect to the Holy One of Israel. Isa 17:7
In that day shall his strong cities be as a forsaken bough, and an uppermost branch, which they left because of the children of Israel: and there shall be desolation. Isa 17:9

And behold at eveningtide trouble; and before the morning he is not. This is the portion of them that spoil us, and the lot of them that rob us. Isa 17:14

Isaiah 17 is a fascinating prophecy and one that could be imminent. It is encouraged to read it if you have not already. The question remains, who is the “he” mentioned in verse 9 and 14? What man or enemy is this referring too??? Many options at this point, but the field may be narrowing down now.

Israel now has 5 nuclear capable submarines in their possession.

The latest and one of the most expensive weapons in the IDF’s arsenal, the Dolphin-class submarine INS Rahav, set out for Haifa from the German port of Kiel on Thursday, according to a senior naval official. Ordered a decade ago, the Rahav will be Israel’s fifth Dolphin-class submarine, joining the INS Tanin, Tekuma, Leviathan and Dolphin at the Haifa naval base when it arrives next month. Rahav is the Hebrew name for the Greek god of the seas, Neptune, and has been used for other naval ships in the past, but it can also mean haughtiness or arrogance in modern Hebrew.

Israel’s newest submarine leaves Germany, bound for Haifa

 

 

When will Jesus Return?

by atharris, posted in Ministry, Prophecy

That is the burning question in the back of every watchful Christian’s mind. When will He return? To get a better understanding of His 2nd coming, we must first look to circumstances surrounding His first coming.

We must first recognize His 2nd coming will consist of two events. The first is the Rapture, before the Tribulation, and the 2nd is His Physical return to Earth after the Tribulation on a White horse with all the saints behind Him. His first coming consisted of two events, His birth and the beginning of His ministry at age 30. At His birth there was “no room” for Him and He came in the “darkness of the night”.

And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn. And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. Luke 2:7-9

Does anyone have “room” for Jesus today? Has not the light of the church grown dimmer and dimmer? Jesus was also born into a generation that was unsuspecting of Him as seen in Matthew 2 when the wise men show up at the temple looking for the King.

Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him. When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. Mat. 2:2-3

How many Christians today are truly expecting Him? Prior to His birth, there was 400 years of famine for the Word of God (400 years between the book of Malachi and Matthew) prophesied in Amos.

Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD: Amos 8:11

Is there not a famine of God’s Word today? The are multiple versions of bibles on the market, many with verses deleted or changed from the original creating much confusion. The tried and true un-copyrighted King James 1611 Bible just recently turned 400 years old…..

Today’s world of instant information has given us a mental image of a chaotic life, an image of destruction, an image of fear, all in the anticipation that the foundations of the world will break down at any moment leading to Tribulation. But if we are honest, it is just that, a mental image. The quality of life today around most of the world is the best it has been since the creation of man. Don’t believe that, then pick another time period of history you would rather live in than now. Hopefully you will see the point I am trying to make in a minute.

Jesus said in Matthew 24:

3 And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world? 4 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. 5 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many. 6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. 8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.

Everything we see today is the same that has been throughout history since Jesus made this statement…..except…..the convergence of all these events for the first time that we see clearly in the mental image of instant information painted by the media, will lead to the Tribulation at some point in the very near future.

Still don’t see it? Look at the Bubonic Plague of the middle ages that took the lives of some 75 to 200 million people. Look at the atrocities of Vlad the Impaler, Genghis Khan, Stalin, Hitler, and many others. Countless millions were murdered under their vicious reign.  The 2004 Indian earthquake and resulting tsunami killed 230,000 people in one day. 9/11 lost over 3,000 lives in one day. One could continue on and one, but hopefully you see where this is headed.

Now to my point. Jesus said life would be just another ordinary day when He returns the 2nd time. Look what He says still in Matthew 24:

37 But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 8 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, 39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 40 Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. 41 Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left.

This passage does not speak to the Tribulation, but the Rapture. Look again. If this were just a very chaotic world, much less a world of Tribulation, people would not be “eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage“, people would not be working the field or grinding at the mill during just another day at work; they would be running for their lives. Life was normal until Noah entered the Ark. Life will be normal until the Rapture. I did not say it; He did. Jesus says more:

42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. 43 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. 44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh. 45 Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season? 46 Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing. 47 Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods. 48 But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming; 49 And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken; 50 The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of, 51 And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Clearly we are commanded to watch for He will come when we think not, in other words, just another ordinary day and He will come for His church.

Remember the events of September 2015 with the Blood Moons and the Shemitah? It was perhaps the most anticipated and covered events out of the Biblical academia concerning the end times. Even the secular community was aware of them, but the events came and went without even a whimper. That is not to nullify their importance, for their significance will be revealed in the Lord’s timing.

Since these events, I am sure many are now saying:

And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.

The Blessed Hope is not called Blessed for nothing. It is the Hope of the Blessing to be removed before the real ugliness starts at a time when “Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken. Luke 21:26 and at a time when at least 1/2 to 2/3rds of the worlds population will die.

Don’t let the spirit of the Antichrist rob you from the joy of life, the Joy of Christ, as he has done to so many already in these final days.

Jesus is still coming……

Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Titus 2:13