As We See the Day Approaching

Reblogged from omegaletter.com
via servehiminthewaiting.com
Prophecy - Signs
Tuesday, July 28, 2015
Wendy Wippel 

The Prophet Ezekiel arrived in Babylon in Nebuchadnezzar’s last wave of captives, about 597 B.C, along with Israel’s deposed King, Jehoachin (also known as Jeconiah). Not coincidence. The nation of Israel, for the moment, was official history. And Ezekiel was there to make sure God’s people had “the rest of the story”.

Ezekiel is visited by God as he and the rest of the captives are on the banks of the River Chebar, and Ezekiel sees, in a whirlwind, a vision of the Lord’s glory.
He also gets this message:

“Son of man, I am sending you to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against Me; they and their fathers have transgressed against Me to this very day. For they are impudent and stubborn children. I am sending you to them, and you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God.’  Ezekiel 2:3-4

Not a real enticing job description. If they didn’t listen to God, are they going to listen to Ezekiel? 
And then it gets worse: 

Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; …When I say to the wicked, ‘You shall surely die,’ and you give him no warning, … his blood I will require at your hand. Yet, if you warn the wicked, and he does not turn from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but you have delivered your soul. Ezekiel 3:17-20

If it was me, I think I would have followed in Jonah’s footsteps and got out of town.
But Ezekiel bowed to God’s will.  And what follows is revelation after revelation (in both words and in odious allegories that Ezekiel was required to act out) of the judgment that will befall God’s impudent and stubborn children before they finally repent. 

With God saying, finally and ominously, that this rebellious and stubborn people will come to know that He is the Lord only when He “sets His face against them.” (Ezekiel 15:8)
And that’s what Ezekiel was initially given to convey to God’s people prophesied. Judgment. Nothing but judgment for a full seven years ( and 24 chapters), during which time, ostensibly, God’s people had a chance to repent. Through Ezekiel, they had been warned. 
In 587-, however, the siege of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar’s armies began. And with that, Ezekiel’s messages to the nation of Israel changed. Chapters 25-32 of Ezekiel (following the prediction in chapter 24 that the Temple would be destroyed), consist of Judgments on the surrounding nations.
A reminder, through Ezekiel, that Yahweh, despite his discipline, was still their God and their Avenger.
An Avenger that also promised to restore them:

The hand of the Lord … set me down in the midst of the valley; and it was full of bones. … and behold, there were very many in the open valley; and indeed they were very dry. And He said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” … Again He said to me, “Prophesy to these bones, and say to them, ‘O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! … “Surely I will cause breath to enter into you, and you shall live. Then you shall know that I am the Lord.” Ezekiel 37:1-6

Also He said to me, ‘ prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these slain, that they may live. So I prophesied as He commanded me, and breath came into them, and they lived, and stood upon their feet, an exceedingly great army. Ezekiel 37:9-10

Then He said to me, “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They indeed say, ‘Our bones are dry, our hope is lost, and we ourselves are cut off!’ Therefore prophesy and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Behold, O My people, I will open your graves and cause you to come up from your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel. Then you shall know that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves, O My people, and brought you up from your graves. I will put My Spirit in you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land. Then you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken it and performed it,” says the Lord.’” Ezekiel 37:11-14

God tells Ezekiel that at this point in time, with nation ruled by the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar, their people enslaved, and their king blinded and also in bondage the people of Israel feel that hope is lost.  And Ezekiel is tasked to restore their hope:

“Then say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Surely I will take the children of Israel from among the nations, wherever they have gone, … and I will make them one nation in the land, . . . and one king shall be king over them all;  I will deliver them from all their dwelling places in which they have sinned, and will cleanse them. Then they shall be My people, and I will be their God…. and  David My servant shall be king over them, and they shall all have one shepherd; they shall also walk in My judgments and observe My statutes, and do them. Then they shall dwell in the land that I have given to Jacob My servant, where your fathers dwelt; and they shall dwell there, they, their children, and their children’s children, forever; and My servant David shall be their prince forever. Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them, and it shall be an everlasting covenant with them; I will establish them and multiply them, and I will set My sanctuary in their midst forevermore. My tabernacle also shall be with them; indeed I will be their God, and they shall be My people. The nations also will know that I, the Lord, sanctify Israel, when My sanctuary is in their midst forevermore.” Ezekiel 36:21-28

Curiously what follows those verses are these:

Now the word of the Lord came to me, saying, “Son of man, set your face against Gog, of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal, and prophesy against him, and say, ‘Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against you, O Gog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal. I will turn you around, put hooks into your jaws, and lead you out, with all your army, horses, and horsemen, all splendidly clothed, a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords. Persia, Ethiopia,^[b] and Libya^[c] are with them, all of them with shield and helmet; Gomer and all its troops; the house of Togarmah from the far north and all its troops—many people are with you. Ezekiel 38:1-6

Doesn’t that seem weird?  Why the heck are we talking about Gog and Magog all of a sudden?
Let’s Review.  Israel’s people had been captured and taken to Babylon, and their king Jeconiah, had been deposed. Ezekiel’s job from that point on was to remind Israel of God’s faithfulness.  So Ezekiel relayed God’s assurance that the nation would be restored.
And Gog and Magog, apparently, is the methodology.
God tells Gog and Magog that,

“In the latter years you will come into the land of those brought back from the sword and gathered from many people on the mountains of Israel, which had long been desolate; they were brought out of the nations, and now all of them dwell safely. You will ascend, coming like a storm, covering the land like a cloud, you and all your troops and many peoples with you.” Ezekiel 37:8-9

Note that  God describes the God and Magog coalition coming against Israel in the latter years, after the people had largely returned and are dwelling in safety. Which has to mean sometime between 1972 and now.  (And with the recent deal with Iran, they are safer now than they were a month ago.
At least that’s what Kerry and O would like us to believe. 

“On that day it shall come to pass that … you will make an evil plan: ou will say, ‘I will go up against a land of unwalled villages; … to take plunder and to take booty, to stretch out your hand against the waste places that are again inhabited, and against a people gathered from the nations, who have acquired livestock and goods, who dwell in the midst of the land. Ezekiel 38:10-12

Airplanes made walls around cities superfluous in 1903. 

“Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say to Gog, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “On that day when My people Israel dwell safely, will you not know it? … You will come up against My people Israel like a cloud, to cover the land. It will be in the latter days that I will bring you against My land, so that the nations may know Me, “And it will come to pass at the same time, when Gog comes against the land of Israel,” says the Lord God, “that My fury will show in My face…. I will call for a sword against Gog throughout all My mountains,” … And I will bring him to judgment with pestilence and bloodshed; I will rain down on him, on his troops, and on the many peoples who are with him, flooding rain, great hailstones, fire, and brimstone. Thus I will magnify Myself and sanctify Myself, and I will be known in the eyes of many nations. Then they shall know that I am the Lord. Ezkiel 38:14-19, 23

Note that Gog and Magog’s attack on Israel comes a long time after the prophecy was made, specifically after Israel’s people had returned and were living in (relative) safety, with the three wars of securing modern Israel behind them. It is at that point that Gog and Magog attack, and God miraculously saves them. And apparently, even their enemies recognize the divine nature of their rescue.
So said enemies embrace Israel as chosen of God, right? 

We all know better.  Their enemies hate Israel’s God as much as they hate Israel, an attitude that the Psalms record:

Do not hold Your peace,And do not be still, O God! For behold, Your enemies make a tumult;And those who hate You have lifted up their head. They have taken crafty counsel against Your people, And consulted together against Your sheltered ones. They have said, “Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation, that the name of Israel may be remembered no more.” Psalm 83:1-4

That’s been the world’s mantra since God made the covenant with Abraham.
So what happens next? Remember, God, through Ezekiel, links Israel’s final redemption with Gog and Magog.  Think about it.  All the nations hate Israel, and are no doubt  incensed that Israel and their God escaped destruction at the hands of God and Magog. Their next step, logically, would be to join forces (at this point, diplomatically, as implicated in the first seal)  in order to together subjugate Israel to international rule.

That way they could divide Israel’s land and usurp their considerable resources,  possibly, in the process, forcing Israel to sign a treaty with a certain demonically inspired individual in exchange for permission to rebuild the temple.  If you are paying any attention at all it would appear that the stage is being set for these exact events to transpire. 
And being set quickly.

Iran and Russia, pretty much enemies for all of earth history, got all friendly when the Shah abdicated in 1979, and have signed numerous pacts of mutual support since.  In the recent deal with Iran, Russia and Iran acted as one voice. 
Putin’s right-hand man, Zhironovsky, has written a book describing Russia’s intention to rule Israel.

Iran’s leaders have said numerous times that their goal in life is to see Israel destroyed. As have many of Israel’s other neighbors.  And the two neighbors missing in the biblical description of the coalition that comes against Israel—Egypt and Iraq—currently kind of make sense. 
Egypt is virtually the only Muslim country that has signed a peace treaty with Israel: Iraq has enough problems of its own.
And Iran is almost certainly way closer to have atomic weapons than we even think.
But it’s OK.  God’s got Israel’s back. And as for us, anyone else hear trumpets?
About Wendy Wippel

PUTIN THREATENS AMERICA WITH NUCLEAR ANNIHILATION

Reblogged from News with Views

By Cliff Kincaid
July 28, 2015
NewsWithViews.com

The nation is fiercely debating the Iran nuclear deal and the significance of the Ayatollah’s “death to America” tweets when the real problem is Iran’s sponsor, Russia, and its lunatic ruler, Vladimir Putin. By controlling the media, killing off the opposition, and smearing Ukrainian freedom fighters as Nazis, the former KGB colonel has his country worked into a collective frenzy over a concocted Western threat. Some experts believe Russia is preparing for nuclear war on a global scale. If Putin carries out his threats, America is no more. 

In this case, the U.S. is facing not only a nuclear weapons program, which is the case with Iran, but what our top generals are calling an “existential threat” to our survival as a nation.

As the National Institute for Public Policy documents in the report, “Foreign Nuclear Developments: A Gathering Storm,” Russia has a new military doctrine that anticipates using nuclear weapons, and the regime has embarked on “a massive strategic modernization program to deploy new nuclear weapons and delivery systems.”

Not only that, but Russia has a ballistic missile defense to use against us.

Geopolitical analyst Jeff Nyquist tells Accuracy in Media, “The Russians became angry and threatening when NATO tried to build a very modest missile defense system to stop an Iranian missile. Yet Russia has over 10,000 dual purpose SAM/ABMs for defense against our missiles and will be deploying a new ABM prototype next year.”

He adds, “Russia has potential war winning advantages over the U.S. and NATO—not necessarily in the number of nuclear weapons but in the number of its ABM batteries, and the upgrading of these batteries with a new generation of interceptor rockets while the American side makes no effort in this direction. The U.S. ABMs in Alaska and California would be lucky to stop 12 Russian warheads.” 

Despite the preoccupation with Iran’s nuclear program, Iran currently has nothing of that nature which can threaten the homeland of the United States. Yet, Russia can obliterate the United States, a fact that has been highlighted recently by no less than three top American generals. The term, “existential threat,” has been used repeatedly to describe the Russian challenge. That term means the Russians can destroy the United States as a nation. 

Marine Corps General Joseph Dunford, nominated to become chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said, “If you want to talk about a nation that could pose an existential threat to the United States, I’d have to point to Russia.”

His statement, made during his Senate confirmation hearing on July 9, got a significant amount of media attention. Similar warnings came from Army General Mark A. Milley, commander of U.S. Forces Command, who has been nominated to become the next Army chief of staff, and Air Force General Paul Selva, nominated to become Vice-Chairman of the Joint Chiefs.

Dunford and the other generals acknowledge the real or potential nuclear threats from Iran, North Korea, and China. But it’s Russia that is deemed an “existential threat.” It is the most significant. 

Some conservatives have been complaining that patriotic military officers are being purged from the Armed Forces. Well, it appears that the purge missed Generals Dunford, Milley, and Selva. These generals are taking a risk by going against the conventional wisdom of the Obama administration. Indeed, the White House and the State Department have gone out of their way to say that the Obama administration does not agree with the assessment that Russia is an existential threat to the United States.

For the generals to go public in this manner—and to contradict the official stance of the Obama administration—suggests that the threat from Russia is very real indeed, and may be more serious than they are willing to publicly acknowledge.

When you consider how the Iran nuclear deal came about, you begin to realize how serious it is. Obama actually thanked Putin for bringing it about. 

The CNN story, “Obama, Putin congratulate each other for Iran deal,” demonstrates the nature of the problem. Although the story is designed to highlight the alleged positive roles Obama and Putin played in the deal, CNN reported that in a readout of the conversation between the two leaders, “the White House said Obama thanked Putin for Russia’s role in the Iran nuclear negotiations.”

Thanked Putin? This demonstrates something worse than the deal itself and the real nature of the Iranian threat. Putin should thank Obama because the U.S. is helping Iran, Russia’s client state, get tens of billions of dollars in international financial aid. Down the line, Russia gets U.S. approval to supply more weapons to the anti-American regime.

Iran is certainly a potential nuclear threat to Israel, the so-called “little Satan.” But the U.S. is the “Great Satan,” and our biggest nuclear threat at the current time is Russia, as our top military officers have said. Yet, Obama is treating Putin as an ally. 

Israel and its defenders have to come to grips with the fact that Iran is a threat to the Jewish state, the region, and the world because of its Russian sponsorship. Iran can’t be viewed in isolation, apart from Russia. Indeed, Iran is considered to be part of a “strategic alliance” with Russia.

As we have noted on several occasions, the Iranian Ayatollah, Ali Khamenei, is KGB-trained, having been “educated” at the KGB’s Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow. This means he is under Russian influence, if not an agent.

Obama has a blind spot regarding threats from the Islamic world, and that includes Iran. But his unwillingness to face up to the Russian threat, which is more serious than any on the face of the earth today, puts the very existence of the United States in jeopardy. 

Remember that Obama mocked Mitt Romney’s statement during the 2012 campaign that Russia was our geopolitical adversary. Obama hasn’t learned anything, despite the Russian invasion of Ukraine. He keeps refusing to supply Ukraine with heavy weapons to defend themselves. Praising the Russians for their role in the Iran deal signals something worse than just incompetence. It appears that Russia is exercising some sort of control over the Obama administration.

Russia and Iran sign military cooperation agreement

Reblogged from Haaretz.com 

Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu, on visit to Tehran, says 'common challenges and threats' must be addressed.

By Haaretz and The Associated Press | Jan. 20, 2015 | 2:29 PM | 3

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu, December 19, 2014. Photo by AP

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Iran and Russia have signed a military cooperation pact, the official TASS Russian news agency reported on Tuesday.
The agreement to intensify military and technological cooperation was made during a Tehran meeting between Iranian Defense Minister Hossein Deghan and visiting Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu, Russian media reported.
Shoigu, who arrived in Tehran on Sunday, was quoted by sputniknews.com as saying: “We are in favor of long-term and multi-level cooperation with Iran and welcome the Iranian leadership’s attempts to expanding its ties with Russia, including in military defense. We have common challenges and threats in the region that we can oppose only if we communicate."
Shoigu will also reportedly meet General Hassan Firouzabadi, the Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, while in Tehran.
Iran's IRNA state news agency described Shoigu's visit as an "outstanding event."

"Iran and Russia are able to confront the expansionist intervention and greed of the United States through cooperation, synergy and activating strategic potential capacities," Dehghan said. "As two neighbors, Iran and Russia have common viewpoints toward political, regional and global issues." 

Shoigu did not the mention ongoing controversy over a deal to deliver a sophisticated air defense missile system to Iran. In 2007, Russia signed a $800-million contract to sell Tehran the S-300 missile system, but the weaponry was never delivered amid strong objections by United States and Israel.

Iran has filed a lawsuit with a court in Geneva seeking $4 billion in damages over the breach of the contract, but the court hasn't yet made any ruling. Russia has insisted that its decision to freeze the S-300 delivery was based on the United Nations Security Council's sanctions against Iran. 

Iran's state TV reported Tuesday that Iran and Russia have agreed to settle their differences over the missile deal, without offering further details.
Last year, Russian media reports said that Moscow had sought to end the dispute by offering Iran a different, slightly inferior version of the S-300 system, but Tehran had rejected the proposal. 

Russia remains a central player in ongoing negotiations concerning Iran's nuclear program between the Islamic Republic and the West. In January, it was reported that Iran tentatively agreed to ship much of its material needed to manufacture nuclear weapons to Russia. 

In May 2014, it was reported that Russia planned on signing a contract with Iran to build two more nuclear reactors at its Bushehr power plant as part of a broader deal for up to eight reactors in Iran.

Nearing Midnight: The Russian Bear Has Gas

By Todd Strandberg - http://www.raptureready.com/rap16.html

In recent years, Russia has made huge progress building back its economic and military strength. One indication of this new vitality is a recent announcement to resume nuclear submarine patrols in the southern seas after a hiatus of more than twenty years.

Moscow plans to send Borei-class submarines designed to carry 16 long-range nuclear missiles─to the southern hemisphere. Russia has also put many of its nuclear bombers back on patrol. In February, two Russian bombers made news by circling the US island of Guam in a "highly unusual" move that demonstrated President Vladimir Putin's growing strategic assertiveness toward America.

In March, President Vladimir Putin made the decision to deploy a naval unit in the Mediterranean Sea on a permanent basis at the Tardus Naval Port in Syria. The Kermlin leaders acquired the Tardus Naval Port in 1971 without any real purpose for it. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia lacked the funds to develop the base.

Knowing that Syria is undergoing a civil war, Tardus would seem to be an unwise investment. Moscow has made plenty of bad bets in the Middle East. It supported Saddam Hussein and lost billions in the wake of the first Gulf War. It backed Gaddafi's regime and cost Russia construction contracts, and its investments in Libyan gas and oil to the tune of $10 billion. The Russians were even taken to the cleaners in Cypress when billions were lost in that nation's banking collapse.

Putin's willingness to stand with Bashar Al-Assad may be the result of yet another investment gamble. Since Assad is wildly hated for his brutality against his own people, Moscow has lost prestige with many moderate Arab states. Putin has remained loyal to Assad because the alliance fits in his master plan to control the natural gas market across Europe.

Russia already controls a quarter of the natural gas consumed in the European Union. In July 2011, Iran, Iraq, and Syria agreed to build a gas pipeline from the South Pars gas field in Iran to Lebanon and across the Mediterranean to Europe. The pipeline that would be managed by Russia's Gazprom would carry 110 million cubic meters of gas.

One of the obstacles of a Gog invasion of Israel has long been the nation of Turkey. Russian warships would have to pass through straits in Turkey in order to reach the Mediterranean. Since Moscow supplies sixty percent of Turkey's natural gas, Ankara may find it hard to ignore this amount of leverage. The fact that Turkey now has an Islamic leaning government makes its neutrality or assistance in a conflict all the more likely.

Natural gas may be the key reason why Russia attacks Israel. In 2010, 25 trillion cubic feet of natural gas was discovered just off Israel's northern coast. The Jewish state is now working to develop those fields. Of course, it would be a devastating blow to Putin's plans to monopolize natural gas if Israel became a major supplier of gas to Europe. The "evil thought" and the "spoil" of the Ezekiel 38 Gog passage may be Putin─deciding that he wants to control it all.

"Thus saith the Lord GOD; it shall also come to pass, that at the same time shall things come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought: And thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates, To take a spoil, and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land. Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish, with all the young lions thereof, shall say unto thee, Art thou come to take a spoil?" (Ezekiel 38:10-13a).