#638

Is WWIII Brewing in The Middle East?

The War To End Them All

Many who lived at the time of WWI remember that at the time it was called The World To End Them All and for good reason. In an article about that war from mentalfloss.com we read a quote from author H.G. Wells that encapsulated the idea of the fight:

This is already the vastest war in history. It is a war not of nations, but of mankind. It is a war to exorcise a world-madness and end an age… For this is now a war for peace. It aims straight at disarmament. It aims at a settlement that shall stop this sort of thing for ever. Every soldier who fights against Germany now is a crusader against war. This, the greatest of all wars, is not just another war—it is the last war!

We know now that there was another war to come and interestingly it would also be against Germany. Fortunately the world has avoided a third world war, but the thought of one building in the Middle East is heard from many people. Israel and Iran are the two key players now with Iranian proxies also in the fray. The talk of a third world war breaking out in the region is not a far-fetched theory, to some it could be a reality. For those who study Bible prophecy they see things being setup for a war known as the War of Gog and Magog:

Thus says the Lord God: “On that day it shall come to pass that thoughts will arise in your mind, and you will make an evil plan: 11 You will say, ‘I will go up against a land of unwalled villages; I will go to a peaceful people, who dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates’— 12 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. 13 Sheba, Dedan, the merchants of Tarshish, and all their young lions will say to you, ‘Have you come to take plunder? Have you gathered your army to take booty, to carry away silver and gold, to take away livestock and goods, to take great plunder?’ ” ’ (Ezekiel 38:10-13, NKJV)

One of the nations listed that will come against Israel in this last days conflict is seen in a previous verse:

Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya are with them, all of them with shield and helmet (Ezekiel 38:5, NKJV)

Persian is modern day Iran. It’s not a coincidence that Iran is in this prophetic list of nations that will come against Israel and they are now fighting with them as we speak.

Israel Attacked Them

Unless you are living under a rock and don’t listen to any news, Israel struck Iran yesterday. It was not a well-kept secret other than when and where the Israel Defense Force (IDF) would strike. As I kept track of the offensive I was wondering if Israel would go for the proverbial jugular and take out Iran’s nuclear sites as well as their oil refineries and plants. If they did that, Iran would surely lash out and they said so in multiple comments in the days leading up to this strike. For now, only military sites were hit and Iran is saying they don’t plan on retaliating which should cause everyone who feared more than a regional conflict would ensue to rest easy. And for those who also thought that a war between Iran and Israel would burgeon into the aforementioned War of Gog and Magog, you can also move on from that thinking as well. Israel stopped short of provoking Iran and publicly stated as much. So for now, talk of a regional war between Arabs and Jews will have to wait. You might ask how I can be so certain and I’m happy to tell you. Hopefully what I’m going to lay out for you will age well, too. I do reserve the right to be wrong, but I do have a method for my madness so I’ll use the Bible to make my points. As some in my circle want me to quit saying, your mileage may vary. With that being said, let’s break down what just happened with what Ezekiel prophesied some 2,500 years ago.

There Will Be A Regional War

The war predicted in Ezekiel 38 will be a regional one, although it will garner world-wide attention. In the information age it won’t take long for anyone to take note and even the prophecies tell us that:

Sheba, Dedan, the merchants of Tarshish, and all their young lions will say to you, ‘Have you come to take plunder? Have you gathered your army to take booty, to carry away silver and gold, to take away livestock and goods, to take great plunder?’” (Ezekiel 38:13, NKJV)

We can debate for a while on just who these nations really are and some actually see America among them. In an article from raptureready.com we read this:

In the light of such conclusive scholarship, coming to light most significantly at this time when the nations indicated by Ezekiel to be involved in a great Middle Eastern war, we can now say with definite assurance that the merchants of Tarshish and ” the young lions (colonies) thereof” must include the Western nations of Europe and the Americans, particularly the United States.

David Allen Lewis agrees: So the young lions of Tarshish would definitely refer to the North American colonies as well as the European colonies, and hence bring the U. S. into this prophecy as one of the nations that will strongly protest the Russian invasion of Israel in the last days.

The author of the entire article, while making interesting points, doesn’t see conclusive evidence that the United States is looking for a diplomatic solution to this future war. Ultimately, only the nations listed will come against Israel.

We’re Not There Yet

For those who think that the current fighting is the War of Gog and Magog just a look at the countries currently involved can see that the major players may support modern day Persia, which is Iran, they are not involved now. Russia is the big player in this prophecy and they are certainly not coming down from the north as seen in this prophesied conflict. The various African nations aren’t joining either. Just from that perspective, the alignment of nations isn’t there now, but if Iran is weakened further, Russia would appear to “owe” Iran who is giving them weapons to fight against Ukraine. But there is a more compelling reason for the conditions of the War of Gog and Magog not seen now and it is with the state of Israel:

‘Thus says the Lord God: “On that day it shall come to pass that thoughts will arise in your mind, and you will make an evil plan: 11 You will say, ‘I will go up against a land of unwalled villages; I will go to a peaceful people, who dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates’(Ezekiel 38:10-11, NKJV)

Israel is hardly living in peace and safety now and you could make a case that since they became a nation again in 1948, they have never had that luxury. Add to that the nation is completely surrounded by walls with gates right now. For the Jews to take down those walls, the constant threat of terrorist attacks would have to be removed. So right now, the various conditions needed for this war to occur don’t exist. But the current fighting could easily set things up.

Pump The Brakes

What I’m saying is that the conflict in Israel, according to the Bible isn’t going to lead to WWIII as some fear. Will it cause anxiety and fear of one? Sure. To those not knowledgeable of the Scriptures and last days prophecy a Middle East war could easily draw in the nations of the world to get involved. With the supply of the globe’s oil alone it could cause nations to take sides and back one side or the other. However, the Bible points to a few more world wars and one is at the end of the Tribulation and the other at the end of the Millenium. The strike on Iran by the IDF doesn’t rise to that level so we need to slow our roll on the talk of a world-wide conflict for now. Other than Israel being in the region, the Middle East isn’t going to cause a global war with all the Arab nations battling with each other and the Jews. At least not in my mind. Yes, things are falling into place and yes, it is intriguing, but no, we’re not hurtling down the road to Armageddon with what happened in Iran. If you are a Christian you’re commanded to pray for the peace of Jerusalem in Psalm 122:6 and on that point we need to increase not decrease our efforts and attentions. However, what is happening in the Middle East right now is leading more to a regional war, a major one to be sure, but not a global one.