Monday, July 6, 2026

The Road To Ezekiel 38: Russia's Anger, Turkey's Ambition, Iran's Revenge


The Road To Ezekiel 38: Russia's Anger, Turkey's Ambition, Iran's Revenge
PNW STAFF


For years, Western leaders comforted themselves with a familiar assumption: remove enough of Iran's senior leadership, weaken its military infrastructure, tighten sanctions, and eventually the Islamic Republic would moderate or even collapse.

Instead, the opposite may be happening.

Recent headlines paint a sobering picture. Analysts now warn that Iran's regime survived the war and is now savvier, more ruthless and even more hard-line. At the same time, thousands gathered last week for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's funeral, where chants of "Death to America" and "Death to Israel" once again echoed through the crowds as mourners demanded revenge.

If those scenes tell us anything, it is this: regimes built on revolutionary ideology rarely become less radical after conflict. They often become more determined.

History is full of examples.


When military leaders are eliminated, younger commanders often rise with fewer restraints, greater ideological zeal, and a stronger desire to prove themselves. Rather than producing reform, conflict frequently accelerates radicalization.

Iran may now be entering exactly such a phase.


The country's military capabilities have undoubtedly suffered significant setbacks. Years of sanctions, economic strain, covert operations, and direct military losses have weakened Tehran's ability to project power independently. Yet weakness does not necessarily produce peace.

Sometimes it produces revenge.

That should concern not only Israel but the entire region.

A wounded regime seeking to restore honor can become more unpredictable than a confident one. National humiliation has often been one of history's greatest motivators for future wars.

The rhetoric coming from Iran certainly gives little reason for optimism.

Rather than speaking of rebuilding relations with the West, voices within the regime continue to frame the conflict as unfinished. Israel remains the "Little Satan." America remains the "Great Satan." Revenge remains central to the revolutionary narrative.

That raises an important prophetic question.

Could Iran's diminished ability to confront Israel alone actually push it toward deeper military partnerships?

For students of Bible prophecy, Ezekiel 38 immediately comes to mind.

More than 2,600 years ago, the prophet Ezekiel described a future military coalition that would one day march against Israel in what many believe will be one of history's defining end-times conflicts. The nations specifically named include Persia--universally recognized as modern-day Iran--along with Magog, Meshech, Tubal, Gomer, and Beth Togarmah, territories that many conservative Bible scholars associate primarily with modern-day Turkey and regions to its north. 

The coalition is led by Gog, who comes from "the uttermost parts of the north," a description that has led many prophecy teachers to associate the leader with Russia or lands under its influence, while acknowledging that faithful scholars hold differing views on some of the geographical identifications.

Whatever one's conclusion regarding every ancient place name, one fact is difficult to ignore: Iran is clearly represented in the prophecy, Turkey appears prominently through several of the listed peoples according to many scholars, and Russia has long been viewed by many prophecy teachers as the coalition's leading power. 

Remarkably, these three nations have spent much of the past decade drawing closer together diplomatically, economically, and militarily, while simultaneously becoming increasingly hostile toward Israel and, in varying degrees, toward the Western alliance.


The prophecy goes on to describe this coalition launching a massive invasion against Israel.

For decades, many prophecy teachers envisioned Iran as one of the alliance's dominant military powers.

But perhaps current events suggest another possibility.

What if Iran no longer serves as the coalition's primary military force?

What if, instead, it becomes an eager junior partner seeking revenge alongside stronger regional powers?

One nation increasingly fits that description.


Under President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Turkey has steadily transformed from being viewed primarily as a dependable NATO ally into a nation pursuing far greater regional ambitions. Many geopolitical analysts describe Erdoğan's vision as a form of neo-Ottomanism--an effort to restore Turkish influence across lands once ruled by the Ottoman Empire.

Those ambitions are no longer merely theoretical.

Turkey has expanded military operations into Syria and Iraq, increased its influence in Libya, strengthened its alliance with Azerbaijan in the Caucasus, projected naval power across the eastern Mediterranean, and built one of the world's most successful drone industries. Erdoğan increasingly presents Turkey not simply as another regional power, but as a natural leader of the Muslim world.

His rhetoric toward Israel has become equally aggressive.

He has repeatedly accused Israel of genocide, compared Israeli leaders to history's worst dictators, questioned Israel's legitimacy, and positioned himself as one of the loudest defenders of the Palestinian cause. Turkish officials continue escalating their criticism of Israel while expanding Ankara's diplomatic and military influence throughout the region.

Perhaps most remarkable is the irony that despite these increasingly hostile positions, the United States appears prepared to move forward with the sale of advanced fighter aircraft and modernization packages that would significantly strengthen one of NATO's largest air forces. While intended to preserve alliance cohesion, such sales would also enhance the military capabilities of one of Israel's most outspoken regional critics.

Viewed through the lens of Ezekiel 38, the picture becomes increasingly intriguing. If Iran has been significantly weakened while Turkey's regional ambitions continue to grow, one can easily envision Ankara assuming a much more prominent leadership role than many prophecy students once imagined.

Meanwhile, another major player continues moving in a direction that deserves careful attention.

The war in Ukraine has consumed enormous Russian resources, but it has also deepened Moscow's hostility toward the West. Every sanctions package, every shipment of Western weapons, every intelligence-sharing operation, and every drone strike inside Russian territory reinforces the Kremlin's conviction that this is no longer simply a war with Ukraine--it is a broader confrontation with NATO itself.

President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly framed the conflict as an existential struggle against a West determined to weaken Russia and diminish its place in the world. Whether one agrees with that assessment is beside the point. It is the worldview shaping Russian strategic thinking.

History demonstrates that great powers rarely forget perceived humiliation.

If the Ukraine conflict eventually settles into an uneasy ceasefire, Russia is unlikely to emerge seeking reconciliation. More likely, it will seek opportunities to restore its influence, weaken Western dominance, and strengthen partnerships with nations that share its hostility toward the United States.

Iran already supplies Russia with drones and military technology, while military cooperation between Moscow and Tehran has expanded dramatically in recent years. Rather than drifting apart, the two nations appear to be drawing closer together.

Put these developments together and an unmistakable pattern begins to emerge.

Iran seeks revenge for humiliation.

Russia seeks restoration after years of confrontation with the West.

Turkey seeks to reclaim the influence of its Ottoman past.

Three nations.

Three different ambitions.

Yet all increasingly find themselves united by common adversaries--and all appear together in the pages of Ezekiel 38.

What we are witnessing today is a geopolitical landscape that increasingly resembles the alignments Ezekiel described nearly 2,600 years ago.

Iran nursing its wounds while longing for revenge.

Turkey pursuing regional leadership while growing increasingly hostile toward Israel.

Russia becoming more isolated from--and more antagonistic toward--the Western world.


Jesus repeatedly instructed His followers to remain spiritually awake, recognizing the signs of the times while faithfully carrying out the work He has entrusted to His Church.




NYC health officials warn Central Park visitors after Legionnaires’ outbreak grows on Upper East Side


NYC health officials warn Central Park visitors after Legionnaires’ outbreak grows on Upper East Side


A Legionnaires’ disease outbreak on Manhattan’s Upper East Side has grown to 14 confirmed cases, New York City health officials said Sunday.

The cases are tied to ZIP codes 10028, 10128 and 10075, covering parts of the Upper East Side, including Yorkville and Carnegie Hill. At least one patient lives, works or recently visited the 10075 area, health officials said.

Officials are also urging anyone who spent time along the east side of Central Park between East 76th Street and East 97th Street to watch for flu-like symptoms, including fever, cough, chills and muscle aches.

"I want to acknowledge the NYC Health Department’s staff of epidemiologists, water ecologists, community health workers, and many more who spent the last few days working to keep New Yorkers on the Upper East Side informed and safe," NYC Health Commissioner Dr. Alister F. Martin said in a statement.

Legionnaires’ disease is a severe form of pneumonia caused by Legionella bacteria. People can become infected by breathing in contaminated water droplets, and the illness can be dangerous — even deadly — without quick treatment.

WEST NILE VIRUS DETECTED IN SOUTHERN STATE AS HEALTH OFFICIALS WARN RESIDENTS ABOUT MOSQUITOES

The source of the outbreak remains under investigation. Officials say they are testing cooling towers in the affected area as a possible source, though no specific source has been identified.

Cooling towers, often found on rooftops, can release mist carrying Legionella bacteria. The Health Department said all cooling towers in the affected area are being tested.

The cluster was first announced Thursday, when only two cases had been confirmed. The area of investigation has since expanded as more illnesses were reported.

More...

'NATO Proved Completely Ineffective on Battlefield' — Iranian Analyst on Konstantinovka Liberation


'NATO Proved Completely Ineffective on Battlefield' — Iranian Analyst on Konstantinovka Liberation
Sputnik



The liberated city of Konstantinovka had been turned by the Ukrainian regime into one of NATO's key fortified areas in the Donetsk region, Iranian international affairs analyst Ruholla Moddaber tells Sputnik.

"More than 150 kilometers of defensive fortifications, around 15,000 troops, several armored, artillery, and missile units, as well as multi-layered defensive positions, had been deployed there with NATO's direct assistance," he says.

During the operation, Russian forces eliminated more than 14,000 Ukrainian troops and destroyed over 30 tanks, paving the way for what Moddaber described as the complete liberation of Donbass and Russia's final victory.

"Most importantly, the liberation of Konstantinovka demonstrated the complete ineffectiveness of Ukraine's and NATO's attacks on Russian territory and its energy infrastructure. They failed to undermine Russia's energy stability, while NATO proved completely ineffective on the battlefield, suffered a total defeat, and has clearly shown that it is not prepared for a direct military confrontation with Russia," Moddaber says.

Russian forces will continue to advance in the Kharkov and Sumy regions, and the more Ukraine and NATO resort to attacks on Russian territory and civilians, the faster Russia will reclaim its historic lands, he concludes.






Man’s Star Trek and God’s Sovereignty

Man’s Star Trek and God’s Sovereignty
Terry James


Jesus warned that things on earth will be “as it was in the days of Noah” when He next reveals Himself to humanity (Luke 17:26–27).

We’ve looked numerous times at this prophecy by the Lord. He followed that up by saying it will also be like the “days of Lot” (Luke 17:28–30), which we’ve looked at even more frequently.

In both cases, times had become so debauched, so evil, so anti-God, that God looked down and determined that those doers of wickedness had to be destroyed.


He, of course, destroyed the world by the great Flood in the days of Noah, and He decimated the civilization that existed at the south end of the Dead Sea when Lot was taken out of Sodom.

In both cases, humankind had moved farther and farther from Heaven’s governance. All the people had corrupted themselves—with the assistance of the angels who fell in the rebellion with Lucifer and came to earth to cohabit with human women.


People haven’t changed in their sin and lostness. The world’s population is once again moving toward this independence from God.

Humanity—through the diplomatic efforts of those who, in Nimrod-like fashion, have determined to seek and build a new world order—is in the process of constructing a neoTower of Babel.

Symbolically, we might look at reaching out into space as trying in some ways to achieve the failed Tower project that was halted as the people were scattered by the God who created them.

People haven’t changed in their sin and lostness. The world’s population is once again moving toward this independence from God.

Humanity—through the diplomatic efforts of those who, in Nimrod-like fashion, have determined to seek and build a new world order—is in the process of constructing a neoTower of Babel.

Symbolically, we might look at reaching out into space as trying in some ways to achieve the failed Tower project that was halted as the people were scattered by the God who created them.


More....





Sunday, July 5, 2026

'Nearly 400,000,000 Christians Worldwide Face Persecution or Violence': Extremist Persecution of Christians, March 2026

'Nearly 400,000,000 Christians Worldwide Face Persecution or Violence': Extremist Persecution of Christians, March 2026


  • Boko Haram still seeks to impose strict sharia law across Nigeria and routinely targets Christians. — Morning Star News, April 2, 2026,Nigeria.

  • The ADF's [Allied Democratic Forces] "purpose is to gain a foothold in the nation, establish Sharia law in areas it controls, and kill non-Muslims." — International Christian Concern, March 13, 2026, Democratic Republic of Congo.

  • "Only Muslims are the real living human beings; all non-Muslims are corpses ... whoever is not a Muslim is equivalent to a dead body." — Musa Baluku, leader of the ADF, International Christian Concern, March 13, 2026, Democratic Republic of Congo.

  • On March 26, police in Lahore's Sadhoki Kahna Nau area, tortured to death 42-year-old Christian Iftikhar Masih while in custody. Police arrested Iftikhar on fabricated kidnapping charges, demanded a 200,000 Pakistani rupee ($720) bribe for his release, and later claimed he committed suicide by hanging. — Morning Star News, April 7, 2026, Pakistan.

  • "'Abraham,' a member of the Coptic community... said the main goal of these kidnappings 'is to reduce the Christian population and promote Islam by pretending that the woman chose Islam on her own free will.... They end up as Muslim wives by force.' He is not aware of any prosecutions against the kidnappers. 'Authorities are complicit, because they often do very little or nothing.'" — International Christian Concern, March 18, 2026, Egypt.

  • On March 25, Pakistan's Federal Constitutional Court ruled that 13-year-old Christian girl Maria Shahbaz must remain with the Muslim man who abducted and forcibly converted her. Despite her parent's testimony, the court declared Maria was of "mature age," accepted her conversion to Islam as genuine, and ruled that her marriage is valid under Islamic law. Maria's father, Shahbaz Masih, told the court she was only 12 or 13 when taken and presented documents to prove her age. The judges rejected the documents, claiming her appearance suggested she was older. The court stated that in Islam, conversion requires only a declaration of faith. — International Christian Concern, April 6, 2026, Pakistan.

  • "Nearly 400 million Christians worldwide face persecution or violence..." — Archbishop Ettore Balestrero, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations, March 3, 2026.

  • "Msgr. Balestrero also warned that persecution does not always take the overt and bloody form of murder, attacks, or physical violence. There are also 'more subtle and often silent forms of persecution,' such as gradual marginalization or exclusion from social and professional life, 'even in traditionally Christian countries.... through which legal norms and administrative practices restrict or, in effect, nullify the legally recognized rights of the predominantly Christian population, even in some parts of Europe....' The oppression of Christians does not stem solely from violent mobs or extremist groups, but also from institutional mechanisms that undermine, in practice, the very rights that are officially declared protected." — fsspx.news, March 10, 2026.


    The Muslim Slaughter of Christians

    Nigeria: According to a March 17 report, suspected Fulani herdsmen attacked Dorowa Maitozo village in Kaduna State. The Muslim bandits killed Rev. Joshua Ajiya, pastor of the Evangelical Reformed Church of Christ, who had served the congregation for only two months. Dozens of other Christians were kidnapped in the nighttime attack.

    On March 11, suspected Fulani terrorists attacked Oyatedo village in Kwara State. They killed John Omoniyi Ajise, brother of a prominent pastor, and abducted his wife and four other Christians.

    On March 29, armed gunmen attacked the predominantly Christian Angwan Rukuba area (Gari Ya Waye community) in Jos, Plateau State, Nigeria.

    The attackers shot indiscriminately, killing at least 28 people, including men, women, and children. Survivor Samson Glabe said: "Armed gunmen invaded the area at about 8 p.m. and shot indiscriminately at anyone they sighted." Gospel singer Arin Izere added: "Within seconds... we heard gunshots, they were shooting at anyone in sight. Many have been killed." The attack occurred in a densely populated Christian area of Jos.

    On Palm Sunday, March 30, armed Fulani militia and Boko Haram-linked gunmen carried out coordinated attacks on Christian communities in Plateau and Kaduna states. In Ungwan Rukuba, Jos North LGA (Plateau State), gunmen killed at least 30 Christians. Additional attacks in nearby areas of Plateau State killed at least 10 more. In Kagarko County, Kaduna State, Fulani opened fire indiscriminately inside the celebratory hall and killed 13 Christians. Community leader Musa Adamu said:

    "The attackers, who we know to be Fulani herdsmen, invaded our community in large numbers. They were armed with deadly weapons which they used in shooting indiscriminately at our people inside the hall where the wedding reception was held; 13 community members who are Christians were killed."

    On Palm Sunday, March 30, armed Fulani militia and Boko Haram-linked gunmen carried out coordinated attacks on Christian communities in Plateau and Kaduna states. In Ungwan Rukuba, Jos North LGA (Plateau State), gunmen killed at least 30 Christians. Additional attacks in nearby areas of Plateau State killed at least 10 more. In Kagarko County, Kaduna State, Fulani opened fire indiscriminately inside the celebratory hall and killed 13 Christians. Community leader Musa Adamu said:

    "The attackers, who we know to be Fulani herdsmen, invaded our community in large numbers. They were armed with deadly weapons which they used in shooting indiscriminately at our people inside the hall where the wedding reception was held; 13 community members who are Christians were killed."