davidbowerkingwood

It’s interesting to see how prophecy is being treated today; many want to disregard prophecy as unimportant and lacking in significance. I have heard that the Bible was around 25% prophetic when it was written; one can imagine every fourth page as prophecy. If God devoted that much space to prophecy I would be inclined to think that He attaches great significance to it.

We are living in an age today when prophetic signs are being fulfilled all around us; I believe we ignore them at our own peril. You may recall the Lord’s disgust when the Pharisees ignored the many signs He was presenting as their Messiah at the time of the First Advent; let us not fall into that same error.

Now let us consider the battle of Psalm 83, the battle of Gog and Magog, and the possible events before and after. Since the Lord did not reveal as many details as we might have liked, it becomes necessary to try and connect the dots, as it were.

Today Islam refers to the United States as the “great Satan, and Israel as the “little Satan.” It appears rather obvious that a major concern on the part of Islam has to do with a rather likely intervention by the United States if Israel should be attacked; although the “great Satan” is hated, its military power is also feared.

What would Islam most likely do to Israel if the United States was suddenly incapacitated, if the United States was no longer in a position to defend Israel? If you’re guessing attack Israel I completely agree; the Islamic nations surrounding Israel would see this as their golden opportunity to attack with impunity.

I believe the Rapture of the church will do just exactly that; the United States will be thrown into a state of chaos by the loss of all true Christians. I believe the armed forces will be hit very hard as I’m convinced that many of our military are born-again believers.

As to the impact on our government, well, I guess I better not go there.

I believe this chaos will be the catalyst for the attack of Psalm 83 which may well take place a short amount of time after the Rapture of the church. This could be the catalyst for Islam’s attack on the “great Satan” as well. Whereas God has promised to defend Israel and give them the victory in this battle, the United States has no such guarantee from God.

I believe these two events are the reason the United States doesn’t appear in Bible prophecy. An EMP blast over the United States could throw this country technologically back into the 1800’s. Our days as a world power would be over for good.

Israel, on the other hand, will be delivered and enjoy a resounding victory over the attacking forces by Divine intervention. This could result in the short period of peace and stability prophesied in Ezekiel 38:11 which will precede the Battle of Gog and Magog.

The exact timing of the battle of Gog and Magog is not specified in Scripture and there is much discussion as to when it will take place. I believe the timing I have specified best accounts for all of the events described in Scripture so I believe it to be acceptably realistic. (For the record, I can make available by email a pdf copy of a timeline of end time events which is available on request to all subscribers or non-subscribers who provide their email address.)

Although the battle of Psalm 83 includes only those nations in Israel’s immediate vicinity, the battle of Gog and Magog will include Russia and Iran. Keep in mind the United States will no longer be a major force in world affairs; leadership will have shifted to the European Union.

The forces of Gog and Magog will attack Israel and suffer an overwhelming defeat by the hand of God as He miraculously defends Israel and carries the attack to the various homelands of the attacking nations by sending fire upon them.

During God’s defense of Israel there shall be great earthquakes; I believe that during these earthquakes the Islamic structures on the Temple Mount shall be destroyed completely, opening the door for Israel’s rebuilding of the Temple.

In Ezekiel 39:9 we are told the cleanup will last seven years; this is one reason I believe the battle of Gog and Magog will take place at least 31/2 years before the signing of the covenant with the Antichrist and perhaps longer.

It seems highly unlikely that Israel would have any continued interest in cleanup once the Great Tribulation starts at mid-point in the Tribulation. The world will be in such chaos that cleanup at that point would be like trying to sweep the kitchen while the house is burning down.

I believe Israel’s restoration after the battle of Gog and Magog will include the rebuilding of the Temple on the Temple Mount. God’s dramatic intervention in the defeat of the invading forces will cause Muslims to step back and give Israel the opportunity to rebuild the Temple unhindered.

Temple worship will be restored and Israel will enjoy another time of peace which will eventually include the signing of the covenant with the Antichrist. We will continue the summary of events in Part 4.