Why Ezekiel 38 is Not a Now Prophecy

on Wednesday, December 2, 2015 by Bill Salus

Reblogged from www.prophecydepotministries.net   

 

Current Middle East events suggest that the 2600 year old prophecy of Ezekiel 38 is about to happen. Russia’s military intervention into Syria in September of 2015 strongly reinforced this probability. This action put Russia, the apparent lead nation of the Ezekiel invasion, at Israel’s doorstep. Shortly afterward, Russia deployed their state of the art S-400 missile defense system into Syria, which essentially gained them control over most Mideast airspace.(i)
Turkey’s present political rifts with Israel and Iran’s advanced nuclear program, coupled with Iran’s stated intentions to wipe Israel off of the map, also increases the possibilities that Ezekiel 38 could occur soon. Russia, Turkey, and Iran are identified among the invaders in Ezekiel 38:1-6. They are among a nine member coalition that invades Israel in the end times to capture plunder and booty.

These developments above, along with flurries of other geo-political factors, have many prophecy buffs buzzing about the potential immanency of Ezekiel 38. However, we must avoid getting swept away in the sensationalism of newspaper exegesis, which is an attempt to connect current events with ancient biblical predictions. Current events can evidence the forthcoming of a Bible prophecy, but they have to match the predicted details exactly to warrant merit.

For instance, Russia intervenes into Syria. This hints that Ezekiel 38 is nearing because Russia’s military has moved into the Mideast theater. However, a few weeks later a Russian fighter jet gets struck down by Turkey. This prompts Russia to swiftly levy economic sanctions against Turkey, which result in a serious setback in their national relations. This friction is not conducive to the fulfillment of Ezekiel 38 because Russia and Turkey are allies in the prophecy.

See how the headlines below and their correlating succession of dates evidence the flaws of newspaper exegesis. On September 30, 2015, Ezekiel 38 looked like it was about to happen, but less than 60 days later a serious schism develops between Turkey and Russia.
“Russia launches first airstrikes in Syria”
(CNN Politics 9/30/15)(ii)
“Putin condemns Turkey after Russian warplane downed near Syria border”
(Guardian 11/24/15)(iii)
“Russia approves detailed sanctions against Turkey over downed plane”
(Reuters 12/1/15)(iiii) 

In reality, Ezekiel 38 has significant preconditions preventing its prophetic fulfillment. Ezekiel 38:8-13 mandates that Israel must be dwelling securely, without walls, bars, or gates, and in the center of their land, probably alluding to the landmass described in Genesis 15:18. Additionally, the Jewish State must be in receipt of great spoil. In my estimation, Israel today is not fulfilling these conditions.

Israel is unable to dwell securely as a result of the hostile Arab volatility that surrounds them. Walls, bars, and gates exist in Israel today in order to protect the Israelis from being terrorized by Hamas, Hezbollah, ISIS and the Palestinians in general. In fact, Israel is probably the most fenced in country in the world. It has fencing at various stretches along all of its land based borders.

Additionally, the goal of the Ezekiel 38 invaders is to destroy Israel and take plunder and great spoil. Although Israel’s economy is flourishing, it’s debatable if it presently possesses the great spoil that Russia and their coalition someday come after.

Ezekiel 38 describes nine distinct populations by their ancient names including Russia, Iran, Turkey, and Libya but omits the historic name equivalents of Arab states and terrorist populations that share common borders with Israel. Some of those who advocate that Ezekiel 38 is imminent teach that the surrounding Arab nations are identified indirectly in Ezekiel 38:6. They teach that the clause, “many peoples with thee,” includes the neighboring Arab states. However, there are three potential problems with this line of teaching.

1. The Arab states and terrorist populations within them are pinpointed directly in a distinctly different prophecy described in Psalm 83. The Psalm lists ten entirely separate members not included among the Ezekiel 38:1-6 invaders. Thus, it is probable that they are not among the “many peoples with thee” in Ezekiel 38:6, but are “many peoples distinct from thee”, not listed in Ezekiel 38 among the invaders. 

2. The hordes of Ezekiel 38 invaders must cross over much of the land possessed by these Psalm 83 nations and / or territories presently occupied by the terrorist populations in order to invade the nation of Israel. This beckons the question; why aren’t these nations, terrorists, or refugees listed among the Ezekiel 38 invaders?

3. Most importantly, Ezekiel 38 identifies nine specific invading populations, but oddly doesn’t mention any of the Psalm 83 Arab confederates among them. This conspicuous omission makes no sense when you consider that Ezekiel references all of the Psalm 83 members numerous times elsewhere throughout his prophetic book.
Case in point, Ezekiel lists Tyre 12 times. Tyre is a member of Psalm 83 and likely represents the Hezbollah today. He alludes to Philistia and / or Philistines 4 times. They are probably the Hamas terrorist organization. Edom or the Edomites are referenced 7 times. Asaph, the author of Psalm 83, calls them the tents of Edom and I interpret that as today’s Palestinian refugees.

The other Psalm 83 members like, Moab or Moabites, Ammon or Ammonites, Amalakites, Egyptians, Assyrians, Gebal (Lebanon), and the Saudis under the ancient banners of Dedan or the Ishmaelites, are also referenced elsewhere in the book of Ezekiel. Actually, all together the above Psalm 83 confederates are mentioned 89 times by Ezekiel.

Not one of those 89 references shows up in Ezekiel 38-39, with the exception of a potential Saudi contingent represented by Dedan in Ezekiel 38:13. But in this instance, Dedan appears to abstain from enjoining with the Ezekiel invaders. This suggests they play no military role in this invasion of Israel. Ezekiel 25:13 informs that many in Dedan will be killed in a war, which could be the result of the Psalm 83 war. If so, this might be the reason Saudi Arabia opts out of the Ezekiel invasion.

I believe the glaring omission of the Psalm 83 Arab confederates from the Ezekiel 38 list of invaders suggests they are not part of the Ezekiel 38-39 invasion. It is highly possible that they are defeated prior to fulfillment of Ezekiel 38. This article points out some, but not all, of the significant problems with teaching that Ezekiel 38 is an imminent prophecy.
……………………… (i)The the image centered on Hmeimim Air Base (Jableh, Syria) with concentric red and blue circles has been circulating in media since 27 November. Based upon data intel expert Sean Osborne has collected, he believes that this image is a fairly exaggerated depiction of the air intercept capabilities for the S-400 system components the Russians have actually deployed to Hmeimim AB. Osborne says, “I believe the Russians have deployed two distinct types of component missiles in their Almaz-Antey 5P85TE2 TELs. The longest range missile is the 40N6 which has a maximum range of 215 nautical miles. From Hmeimim AB this missile’s maximum range would be just shy of Tel Aviv. The other missile is the 48N6E2 with a range of approximately 130 nautical miles. From Hmeimim AB this missile’s max range would be in the vicinity of Sidon, Lebanon.”
(ii)Headline from this website: http://www.cnn.com/2015/09/30/politics/russia-syria-airstrikes-isis/
(iii)Headline from this website: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/nov/24/turkey-shoots-down-jet-near-border-with-syria
(iiii)Headline from this website: http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/12/01/us-mideast-crisis-russia-turkey-sanction-idUSKBN0TK4SD20151201#d11AlyjKA2lmpeG3.97

Israel is working at speed to convert Boeing 767 into a long-flight refueling tanker

Reblogged from debka.com

DEBKAfile Special Report August 10, 2015, 7:52 PM (IDT)

Tags:  Israel Air Force,  Refueling tanker,  Iran nuclear,  Barack Obama,

American Boeing KC-46A refueling tanker 

 

US defense and air industry sources report that the Israeli Air Force may give up on the US Boeing’s KC-46A Pegasus as its future refueling tanker for long-range flights because of delays in its delivery. Israel had first planned to take the Pegasus to replace its converted Boeing 707 when delivery was first to the US Air Force was scheduled for August 2017. But this week, the company put the date back by another eight months and the price increased by half a billion dollars. 

 

American sources point out that if Israel wants to retain the option of attacking Iran’s nuclear facilities when Barack Obama exits the White House in January 2017, it can’t wait for the brand-new US Pegasus tanker, which doubles as a military transport plane, to come off the Boeing production line and be delivered to its air force. The Boeing 707 in current service, after a multibillion investment in its conversion to a long-flight refueling tanker, no longer meets the fluctuating conditions in the Middle East. Work is therefore going ahead on the conversion of the Boeing 767 as its replacement. 

 

On July 22, debkafile’s military sources revealed a mammoth transaction for Iran to purchase Russian UL78 MK1 (Midas) tankers with a range of 7,300km. (The distance from Iran to Israel is 1,200km). Each tanker is capable of spontaneously feeding 6-8 fighter craft. 

 

This purchase represented Tehran’s aspiration - not just to draw level with Israel but to outdo its air force in range and fueling capability. This transaction no doubt spurred the decision by Israel’s defense chiefs to go ahead on its own project, instead of waiting for the American KC-46A to become available.

 

Israel Aerospace Industries [IAI] is therefore working at top speed on the Boeing 767, a long-range, wide-body, twin-engine jet airliner with a range of 7,000 to 11,000 km. The converted aircraft will be designated 767-200ER MRTT. 

 

In an interview published by the German newspaper Der Spiegel on Aug. 8, Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon said: “Ultimately it is very clear, one way or another, Iran’s military nuclear program must be stopped. We will act in any way, including taking military action, and are not willing to tolerate a nuclear-armed Iran. We prefer that this be done by means of sanctions, but in the end, Israel should be able to defend itself.”

Iranian backed terrorism in the Middle East

(SHARE) #Iran spreads terrorism around the Middle East. Lifting sanctions will allow Iran to enhance its terror machine.
Posted by Jewish Voice on Sunday, August 9, 2015

Obama tells US Jews: Rockets will fall on Tel Aviv if Congress kills Iran nuclear deal

• Iran stifling dissent over nuke deal, says snap-back...

• Iran nuclear deal gives it confidence to strike at Is...

The meeting Tuesday evening at the White House between Obama and an array of Jewish leaders lasted more than two hours.

US President Barack Obama (L) and Vice President Joe Biden. (photo credit:OFFICIAL WHITE HOUSE PHOTO BY PETE SOUZA) 

President Barack Obama told US Jewish leaders it was likely rockets would fall on Tel Aviv if a nuclear deal with Iran was blocked and military action ensued, one of them said on Wednesday.

In a separate appeal to American Jews, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a fierce opponent of the July 14 accord, pushed back in a webcast on Tuesday against the Obama administration's argument that the agreement was the only way to avoid eventual war with Iran.

The Republican-led US House of Representatives will vote on whether to reject the agreement when lawmakers return to Washington in September, party leaders said on Tuesday, setting up a showdown with the president.

Greg Rosenbaum, one of 20 Jewish leaders who met Obama at the White House on Tuesday, said on Israel Radio that the president spelled out what exercising a US military option to strike Iran's nuclear facilities would mean if the deal between world powers and Tehran was scrapped.


"He said military action by the United States against Iran's nuclear facilities is not going to result in Iran deciding to have a full-fledged war with the United States," Rosenbaum, of the National Jewish Democratic Council, quoted Obama as telling the forum.

"'You'll see more support for terrorism. You'll see Hezbollah rockets falling on Tel Aviv.' This is what he said would happen if the US had a military strike on Iran," Rosenbaum said, referring to the Iranian-backed Lebanese guerrilla group and its long-range missile arsenal.

Netanyahu, in the webcast organized by Jewish groups in North America, reiterated Israel's arguments that the nuclear deal was not enough to curb Iranian nuclear projects with bomb-making potential.

With surveys showing American Jewish opinion mixed on a dispute that has strained the US-Israeli alliance, Netanyahu cast his opposition to the Iran deal as non-partisan.

"I don't oppose this deal because I want war. I oppose this deal because I want to prevent war. And this deal will bring war," he said, cautioning that sanctions relief would result in a financial windfall for Iran that could help fund destabilizing regional conflicts.

"This is a time to stand up and be counted. Oppose this dangerous deal," Netanyahu said.

Having infuriated the White House by speaking against Iran in Congress in March at the invitation of the Democratic president's Republican rivals, Netanyahu cast himself as the emissary of an Israeli public that, polls show, mostly shares his misgivings about the deal with Iran.

Dear President Rouhani, Jesus Christ loves you. But judgment is coming, the Bible warns in Jeremiah 49:34-39. Let me explain.

 Reblogged from  flashtrafficblog.wordpress.com

In Uncategorized on September 26, 2013 at 3:17 pm

Dear President Rouhani,
While you are here in the United States, I would like to take a moment to share with you two very important truths:

First, the Bible makes clear that God loves all the people of the world, including the people of Iran.
The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob loves Persians. Jesus Christ loves you. He loves all Muslims. He wants to forgive you and your people and save you and adopt you and your family into His family to be His children and to go to heaven forever and ever.
The Lord Jesus Christ said, “For God so loves the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16). 

Anyone who truly repents and receives Christ by faith as Savior and Lord will be saved. “But as many as received Him [Christ], to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name.” (John 1:12)
This is the Gospel, the good news.

Second, the Bible also warns that judgment is coming to the Iranian regime in the last days.
Speaking of “Elam,” an ancient name for the nation we know today as Iran, the prophet Jeremiah wrote: “That which came as the word of the Lord to Jeremiah the prophet concerning Elam, at the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, saying: ’Thus says the Lord of hosts, “Behold, I am going to break the bow of Elam, the finest of their might.  I will bring upon Elam the four winds from the four ends of heaven, and will scatter them to all these winds; and there will be no nation to which the outcasts of Elam will not go.  So I will shatter Elam before their enemies and before those who seek their lives; and I will bring calamity upon them, even My fierce anger,” declares the Lord, “And I will send out the sword after them Until I have consumed them. Then I will set My throne in Elam and destroy out of it king and princes,” declares the Lord. ^“But it will come about in the last days that I will restore the fortunes of Elam,” declares the Lord.’” (Jeremiah 49:34-39)

The prophet tells us that there is coming a day when the Lord will have “fierce anger” against “the king and princes” of Iran and “will bring calamity upon them.”
When will this judgment come? I cannot say for certain.

But in the name of Jesus Christ, I urge you to take these and all the Scriptures to heart. I implore you embrace God’s love, repent of your sins, and receive Christ as Savior and Lord by faith.

More Iranians have left Islam and come to faith in Christ since 1979 than at any time in the last 14 centuries. More than one million Iranian Muslims have become Christians in the last three decades.

I pray that you will become one of them. Time may be short. Do not delay.
“Behold, now is ‘the acceptable time,’ behold, now is ‘the Day of Salvation,’” says the Bible. (2 Corinthians 6:2)

I recently gave an address explaining God’s love for the people of Iran, and explaining the prophecy of Jeremiah 49 concerning the people of Elam (Iran). My prayer is that you will take time to listen to it to understand the prophecy and its implications more fully.
My family and I are praying for you, President Rouhani. Many Christians are, as well.