Middle East Update

Mike Mickey (Rapture Alert) has written a timely and accurate commentary on the alliances which are have been strengthening in the Middle East over the past several years, exactly as one would expect according to biblical prophecy. I also agree with his conclusion - we are rapidly approaching the last days of this generation:


End Time War Alliances Forming

by Michael G. Mickey
(1-25-10)

Matthew 24:6:

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.

There's nothing new under the sun in relation to the enemies of Israel destined to make war against her plotting to make trouble, but let's take a look at a few notable examples of this in the news and what it could translate into in the prophetic, potentially near future.

Russia and Turkey: Determined to be strategic partners

In the prophetic future, according to Ezekiel 38-39, Russia and a confederacy of nations geographically near Israel are going to attack the Jewish nation, taking them by surprise. Here at RaptureAlert.com, I've been telling my readers, from long before it was as apparent as it is now, that one of Russia's future allies, Turkey, was going to become increasingly friendly with Russia and Iran in preparation of that prophesied event, commonly referred to as the battle of Gog-Magog, and it's coming around! Is it EVER coming around!

Panorama.am is reporting that Turkey and Russia are determined to become strategic partners. While, in this instance, the strategic partnership being addressed appears to be economic in nature, a warming of relations between Moscow and Ankara has been underway for some time now as I've documented in the past and plan to continue to. Simultaneously, relations between Ankara and Jerusalem have become very strained, all of this setting the stage for prophetic fulfillment to occur at a time known only to God. But about that time? Conditionally, at the very least, it's coming into view on the prophetic horizon.

Drawing further attention to Turkey and Russia's budding partnership is a current WorldNetDaily.com article entitled: NATO member aligning itself with Russia

The headline says it all, doesn't it? Remarkable!

Syria and Hezbollah preparing to war with Israel?

It's hard not to discuss the prophesied battle of Gog-Magog without noticing who isn't going to be participating in the battle, namely Syria. Could this be because the prophesied destruction of Damascus foretold by the prophet Isaiah will have taken place before Gog-Magog? Could be!

Isaiah 17:1:

The burden of Damascus. Behold, Damascus is taken away from [being] a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap.
Can you imagine it? Damascus, agreed by many to be the longest continuously-inhabited city on the planet, is someday going to be nothing more than a ruinous heap, so utterly destroyed it is no longer going to be a city! The imagery is apocalyptic in magnitude, especially when we consider that Damascus is home to 1.5 - 2 million residents, but the possibility of Isaiah's prophecy being fulfilled in our time? It's anything but hard to conceive in light of Syria's possession of a variety of WMDs and effective delivery systems. Ignite a war between Israel and Syria, toss in the unpredicatability and 'death wish mentality' of a terrorist organization like Hizballah into the mix, and anything, even something horrific, could occur to one or both parties.

To that end Israel Today is reporting, in an article headlined "Syria, Hizballah preparing for war with Israel", the following, in part:
Pan-Arab newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat reported on Monday that Syria has begun calling up reserve military forces in anticipation of a full-scale war with Israel.

Officials in Syria and from Lebanon's Hizballah terrorist militia have been saying for the past week that they are being threatened by Israeli military maneuvers along the Israel-Lebanon border, and expect the Israeli army to launch a surprise attack on Hizballah positions in Lebanon.

According to UN Resolution 1701 that ended the 2006 Lebanon War, Hizballah is not supposed to have any positions in southern Lebanon, but the international peacekeeping force on the ground there has not enforced those terms.
Not only do we have the above to consider in relation to war potentially breaking out between Syria and Israel, which could quickly spiral out of control, Syria has already threatened, as plainly as I believe possible, that any military conflict between Hizballah terrorists and Israel will result in a state of war between Israel and Syria as well. (Source: Arutz Sheva) The stage for Isaiah 17:1 to be fulfilled is essentially set, no small thanks to the United Nations.

The impotency of the United Nations and its so-called 'peacekeepers' in hampering Hizballah from re-arming itself after the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict can't be overstated in giving rise to the tensions that presently threaten to bring war and potential disaster to the troubled Middle East once again. And one of these days, potentially soon? The kettle that's been stewing for so long, so to speak, is going to boil over. It could happen today. Literally. I pray not for the sake of all the lost souls who would die as a result, but it could! It's enough to make one shudder, isn't it?

The end times. Folks, we're living in them! Tell someone - ANYONE - about Jesus Christ and the free gift of salvation today that they might be saved. After all, who knows what tomorrow may bring?