1. February 2007 $2.95 U.S. ($4.25 Canada)

2. INSIDE THIS ISSUE
Israel, Iran, the Bomb and the Spring Equinox . . . . . . 3
Iran’s president has called for the destruction of Israel. Also, he P. O. Box 7000
has announced that Islam’s Twelfth Imam will appear in Mecca Oklahoma City, OK 73153
by March 21, 2007. He claims that Saudi Arabia will submit to Dr. J. R. Church, Editor
his rule, and from there, their so-called Messiah will take over Gary Stearman, Associate Editor
Iraq! But that’s not all. They claim that Jesus will return with him Volume 27 • Number 2 • February 2007
to help establish Islamic rule over all the world. Meanwhile, the SUBSCRIPTION RATES:
London Sunday Times claims to have inside information that Israel U. S.: $29.95 - 1 year
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The Epistle of III John . . . . . . 6 Find Prophecy in the News on the Worldwide Web!
John was the main prophet of the of the New Testament, giv- http://www.prophecyinthenews.com
ing us the “spiritual” Gospel. Therefore, we should be hanging
on every word from his pen, as if he was pointing us toward the
mystical meaning of some great spiritual concept. Over and over, Page 3 . . .
John writes about a subject he called, “truth.” Could this be a
“class of truth” that transcends practical Christian living? As a Israel, Iran, the Bomb and the Spring Equinox
matter of fact, John speaks of “truth” in exactly this fashion. By Gary Stearman
Time Travelers: The River of Time . . . . . . 8
Here is another installment in Gary Stearman’s series on “Time
Travelers of the Bible.” Suppose there was no Bible to lay out a
Page 6 . . .
schedule for prophetic fulfillment. Suppose we had no clue of the
future and no knowledge of a resurrection with rewards for godly
The Epistle of III John
living. Where would civilization be? By J. R. Church
Imminent War on the Persian Horizon . . . . . . 13
For years, even decades, Israeli leaders have said that of all their Page 8 . . .
enemies, Persia is the one with whom they will ultimately do battle.
This war, when it comes will engulf the whole world. The River of Time
By Gary Stearman
Egypt: Fire and Flood . . . . . . 14
The Prophets foretold a time when Egypt would be uninhabitable
for forty years. If the Aswan Dam were blown up with a nuclear
bomb, the resulting massive flood could wipe out the country.
Page 13 . . .
Imminent War on the Persian Horizon
Bob Ulrich’s Book Review . . . . . . 16 By Gary Stearman
One Book Rightly Divided - Bob Ulrich introduces you to Dr.
Douglas Stauffer and his two works on the history and content of
the Bible.
Page 14 . . .
AMAZING DISCOVERIES . . . . . . 17
The F-35 Stealth Fighter - Lightning II! - America’s latest
Egypt: Fire and Flood
fighter plane is the most amazing ever developed. It travels at By J. R. Church
speeds of over 1,200 mph and radar cannot see it! One version
will be able to take off and land vertically. The bells and whistles
are discussed in this article on page 17.
Page 17 . . .
The Prophecies in Psalms 107-150 . . . . . . 37
The prophetic themes resident within the last 44 psalms are im-
The F-35 Stealth Fighter
portant for understanding the rise of the Antichrist and the Second By J. R. Church
Coming of Christ.
2 Prophecy in the News

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Nuclear Weapons: Primed, Aimed and Ready!
Israel, Iran, the Bomb
And the Spring Equinox
By Gary Stearman
The headline was riveting: “Revealed:
Israel Plans Nuclear Strike On Iran.” This
top-featured article appeared in the London
Sunday Times Online, on January 7, 2007.
Writers Uzi Mahnaimi and Sarah Baxter
clearly claimed to have in-
side information, allowing
them to access classified
Israeli plans:
“Israel has drawn up
secret plans to destroy
Iran’s uranium enrich-
ment facilities with tacti-
cal nuclear weapons.
“Two Israeli air force squadrons are train-
ing to blow up an Iranian facility using low-
yield nuclear ‘bunker-busters,’ according to
several Israeli military sources.
“The attack would be the first with nu-
clear weapons since 1945, when the United
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (above) is convinced that Islam’s long-awaited
States dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima
“Twelfth Imam” will appear in Mecca by March 21, 2007 — this year’s Spring Equinox. Islam
and Nagasaki. The Israeli weapons would
is claiming: “The Mahdi’s farsightedness and firmness in the face of mischievous elements
each have a force equivalent to one-fifteenth
will strike awe. After his uprising from Mecca all of Arabia will be [sic] submit to him and
of the Hiroshima bomb.
then other parts of the world as he marches upon Iraq and established [sic] his seat of global
“Under the plans, conventional laser-
government in the city of Kufa.”
guided bombs would open ‘tunnels’ into
the targets. ‘Mini-nukes’ would then im- Third-ranked is Arak, where high-tech Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s office had
mediately be fired into a plant at Natanz, heavy water reactors are in full-time pro- no comment. It must be remembered that
exploding deep underground to reduce the duction. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
risk of radioactive fallout. The article includes many details, includ- has repeatedly called for Israel to be “wiped
“‘As soon as the green light is given, ing the fact that the Israeli Air Force has off the map.” He has demanded that this
it will be one mission, one strike and the already flown practice missions for the trip, must be done in the near future.
Iranian nuclear project will be demolished,’ which has a one-way distance of about a
said one of the sources.” thousand miles. Iran, Creator of Chaos
According to the article, at least three As would be expected, Israel quickly In fact, Ahmadinejad has set a date:
targets would be involved in that mission. denied the report. On the same day as the March 21, 2007. This is the date of the
First on the list is the city of Natanz, where Times story, Haaretz News Service quoted Spring Equinox, when the Sun at its zenith
thousands of Zippe-type gas centrifuges are Mark Regev, a spokesman from Israel’s is observed directly above the equator.
in continuous operation. These units sepa- Foreign Ministry, who said that, “Israel Iran’s leadership is now flushed with the
rate fissionable uranium gasses, dividing wanted the issue of Iran’s nuclear program pride, and the perception that they have
U-238 from the weapons grade U-235. The resolved through diplomacy. scored a number of military and diplomatic
latter is then collected in amounts sufficient “The focus of the Israeli activity today victories. For Iran, the year 2006 witnessed
to make a bomb. is to give full support to diplomatic actions an increasing presence on the world stage.
The second target is Isfahan, where an- and the expeditious and full implementa- Iran’s president continues a worldwide
other conversion plant stores the separated tion of Security Council resolution 1737. publicity campaign based upon the fervent
gas in massive quantities, until it can be con- If diplomacy succeeds, the problem can be belief that the Islamic world has now come
verted to enriched, fissionable uranium. solved peaceably.” to the historic moment when it will reach
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its ascendancy, becoming a global power.
This will happen, he believes, because the
Mahdi, their long-awaited messianic leader,
will return to rule the world.
All this would amount to just so much
propaganda if it weren’t for one thing.
The mullahs of Iran believe that it is their
duty to create turmoil and pandemonium.
This, they say, will actually accelerate the
Mahdi’s coming. We first began to focus on
this fact over a year ago. Now, it has come
to worldwide attention. Actually, the Shiite
Muslims are zealous in their desire that ev-
eryone should hear about the object of their
fervor. They are trying everything they can
to make sure that their hopes, dreams and
aggressive intentions are well known.
A news release by WorldNetDaily on
December 31, 2006, included the remark-
able statement, distributed by an Iranian
state website, to the effect that the Mahdi
(accompanied by none other than Jesus!),
could make himself public at the date of the
Spring Equinox:
“Imam Mahdi (may God hasten his
reappearance) will appear all of a sud- Prophecy in the News airs on Sky Angel
den on the world scene with a voice from
the skies announcing his reappearance at Monday 11:30 PM (EST) & Friday 10:00 AM (EST)l
the holy Ka’aba in Mecca.” The internet
program was entitled, “The World Toward is the Mahdi. And although Ahmadinejad religious views. During the presidential
Illumination.” Its apocalyptic imagery of has never claimed messiahship, others are election, Yazdi told believers that Ahma-
Islamic armies marching upon Jerusalem convinced that he is the one who will bring dinejad was the ‘chosen’ of the Mahdi. Be-
is a bloodthirsty spectacle: about the Mahdi’s emergence. cause Ahmadinejad is the person designated
“The Mahdi’s farsightedness and firm- In late 2005, many global news bureaus to prepare the way for the Twelfth Imam’s
ness in the face of mischievous elements reported that Ayatollah Amoli swore that he second coming Yazdi told followers they
will strike awe. After his uprising from saw Ahmadinejad surrounded by a super- had a duty to vote for him.
Mecca all of Arabia will be submit [sic] natural light, as he spoke before the United “Yazdi heads the Imam Khomeini Re-
to him and then other parts of the world Nations General Assembly. A Radio Free search and Learning Center in Qom, site
as he marches upon Iraq and established Europe report (dated November 29, 2005) of the sacred Jamkaran well, down which
[sic] his seat of global government in the told of the Ayatollah saying to him, “…in the Twelfth Imam supposedly disappeared
city of Kufa. the name of God, I saw that you became as a child centuries ago. At the well there is
“Then the Imam will send 10 thousand of surrounded by a light until the end of the a green ‘post office box’ to permit devout
his forces to the east and west to uproot the speech.” Shi’ites to write prayer requests on small
oppressors. At this time God will facilitate Ahmadinejad unabashedly agreed, say- pieces of paper and to ‘mail’ them to the
things for him and lands will come under ing, “I felt it myself, too. I felt that all of a Mahdi” (p. 58).
his control one after the other … sudden the atmosphere changed there, and This is the mystical atmosphere among
“After his appearance the Imam would for 27 or 28 minutes all the leaders did not the leaders of today’s Islamic revolutionar-
remain in Mecca for some time, and then go blink.” ies. They are convinced that they are pos-
to Medina … a descendant of the Prophet’s He added, “I am not exaggerating when sessed of a supernatural power; that they are
archenemy Abu Sofyan, will seize Syria and I say they did not blink; it’s not an exag- unstoppable. They have pledged to bring
attack Iraq and the Hejaz with the ferocity geration, because I was looking. They were forth the Imam Mahdi, and believe that they
of a beast … finally Imam Mahdi sends astonished as if a hand held them there and can do this by fomenting chaos. The more
troops who will kill the Sofyani in Beit made them sit. It had opened their eyes they can disrupt any effort toward general
ol-Moqaddas (Jerusalem), the Islamic holy and ears for the message of the Islamic peace, the more successful they feel. This,
city in Palestine that is currently under oc- Republic.” for them, is true religion.
cupation of the Zionists.” The following quote from Showdown As Mark Hitchcock has written, “Ahma-
with Nuclear Iran by Michael Evans dinejad is a Shiite Muslim who is deeply
Mystical Superstition clarifies their general belief about their committed to an Islamic Messianic Figure
As we reported a year ago, the leading president: known as the Mahdi (Arabic for ‘rightly-
lights in the Islamic revolution have a pow- “Ahmadinejad’s chief spiritual advisor is guided one’) or sometimes referred to as
erful conviction that they are surrounded by Ayatollah Mohammad Taqi Mesbah Yazdi, the Hidden Imam. He has a presidential
a strong aura of spiritual power. Some have known as ‘the Crocodile’ for his rugged obsession with what is known in Islam as
professed the belief that Osama bin Laden facial features and his hard-line orthodox Continued on Page 36
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The View From
Mount Calvary By John Phillips
24 Portraits of the Cross Throughout Scripture
Without Jesus, the Bible makes no sense, and without His atoning death on the cross, the
Bible makes no difference. From Genesis to Revelation, the death of Jesus on Mount Calvary
is the Bible’s central theme.
“So, Calvary covers it all,” writes John Phillips. “Calvary was conceived in the mind of God
in a past eternity. Its shadow lays across the pages of the inspired Old Testament. Its stark
reality is detailed for us in the Gospels. Its blessed results are the themes of the Epistles. In
ages yet unborn, Calvary will be the lasting wonder of all God’s redeemed.”
The View from Mount Calvary will deepen your appreciation of the finished work
of Christ as John Phillips guides you through the entire Bible. John Phillips taught in the Moody
Evening School and on the Moody Broadcasting radio network. He is the author of numer-
ous books, including a multivolume expository commentary series. Now retired, Dr. Phillips
remains active in his writing and preaching. He and his wife, Betty, live in Winston-Salem,
North Carolina. (294 pages)
Item # B2707 - $15.95
NATIONS UNITED
How the United Nations Undermines Israel and the West
By Alex Grobman
On November 10, 1975, the United Nations General Assembly declared that Zion-
ism “is a form of racism and racial discrimination.” This insidious ideological attack
against Israel was repealed in 1991, but the attempt to delegitimize the nation
has severely harmed the country. Israel is still viewed as a pariah state on college
campuses around the world. The long-term effects of the resolution will continue
to resonate for years to come.
In this meticulously researched and well-written work, Alex Grobman exposes the
strategy behind this malicious campaign and examines the environment at the UN
that fostered this assault. Through the use of extensive sources, Grobman system-
atically refutes the charges against the Jewish State. (192 pages - hardcover)
Item # B2708 - $19.95
The Beginning of the World
A Scientific Study of Genesis 1-11
By Dr. Henry Morris
While many Christians are compromising the Scriptures with what they think is
modern science, God is calling many scientists to defend the faith. The result is a
sudden surge of awareness that the Bible is true after all — even the long-ridiculed
doctrines such as a literal six-day Creation, a young Earth, and a worldwide cata-
clysmic Flood in the days of Noah. In this book, both the scientific and historical
aspects of these issues as well as their evangelistic and spiritual applications are
discussed at length.
Dr. Edward Blick, Ph.D., Professor of Aerospace Mechanical and Nuclear Engineer-
ing at the University of Oklahoma added this endorsement: “Evolution is a scientific
fairy tale just as the “flat earth theory” was in the 12th century. Biblical Creation is
the only sensible alternative.” (164 pages)
Item # B2523 - $10.95
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Studies in John’s Epistles:
The Epistle of III John
By J. R. Church
In spite of the brevity of this Epistle,
theologians have taken great pains to pore
over every word and discuss various av-
enues of its practical construction. It seems
as though our theological sleuths (and I
admire them for that) have turned over
every rock, looked under every proverbial
blade of grass and discussed such things
as the identity of Gaius;
whether or not (among
several) he might have
been the one who lived John the Apostle
at Corinth; whether or
not the aged John was
able to travel that great
distance overland; or,
having been a Galilean
fisherman, could traverse the treacherous
waters of the Aegean Sea, etc., ad infinitum!
I appreciate the heroic efforts of so many
great theologians, but after all is said and
done, we must admit that John’s message
was rather short — only 14 verses long,
containing less than 300 Greek words.
Was the Apostle writing only to correct an
error in some local congregation? Why was
the problem with Diotrephes so important
as to need John’s attention? If that is all
there is to this Epistle, why was it deemed
important enough to be included in the
canon of inspired Scripture?
What seems to be lacking in the commen-
taries at my disposal, is an acknowledgment
of a possible prophetic message. After all,
John was the main “Prophet” of the New
Testament. Why, at this time in John’s life,
would theologians only be concerned with
the practical applications of this Epistle?
Polycrates (A.D. 130-196), bishop of
the Ephesians, had said that John was the
“high priest” of the Lord, wearing on his
forehead the golden frontlet, once worn by John (top-right) lived in Ephesus during the last decade of the first century. From
Caiaphas, the Jewish High Priest; and since there, he wrote five New Testament books. Our estimate is that his Gospel was written
John was acknowledged as the writer of before A.D. 96; the Apocalypse in A.D. 96; and I, II & III John shortly thereafter.
the “spiritual” Gospel (the Sohd or “secret of some great spiritual concept. Over and things; that he could heal the sick and raise
level” of Jewish interpretation); a “spiritual” over, John writes about a subject he called, the dead, simply by speaking; that the Savior
First Epistle; and the fabulous visions of the “truth.” Could not this be a “class of truth” promised to return to Earth with the armies
Apocalypse; why shouldn’t we be looking that transcends practical Christian living, the of heaven; that a great war in heaven will be
into the “spiritual level” of the Second philosophical or psychological teachings concluded, at last, in this physical realm; and
and Third Epistles, as well? We should be of mortals, and the daily activities of local that He will reign over the human race for
hanging on every word from the pen of this congregations? After all, John has written a thousand years as King of kings and Lord
great New Testament Prophet, as if he was about Jesus being the human embodiment of lords. As a matter of fact, John speaks of
pointing us toward the “mystical” meaning of the Eternal God; that Jesus created all “truth” in exactly this fashion.
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Here Are Our Latest Studies in Eschatology!
Gate of the Fallen Angels
1. Gate of the Fallen Angels - Mount Hermon is credited with being the port of
entry for the “sons of God” in Genesis 6. After the Flood, another group came back to
continue their program of corrupting the human gene pool, inserting the “seed of the
serpent” into the lineage of the tribe of Dan. Ancient writings noted that the Antichrist
will not be entirely human.
2. Solomon’s Strange Woman - In the book of Proverbs, Solomon introduces two
women. One is called, Wisdom, while the other is referred to as the Strange Woman.
In these two, you will learn something about Solomon’s famous wisdom. As he grew
old, he chased after the Strange Woman — a thousand of them!
3. The Epistle of II John - John writes a short, yet mysterious letter to an unknown
person, whom he calls “elect lady.” Was this simply a personal letter with no divine
value? John is the most mystical of all the writers of the New Testament. Therefore,
we believe the book has prophetic value.
4. The Men Who Captured Saddam Hussein - In this program, we interview
Lt. Col. Steve Russell (ret.), the soldier who led the battilion credited with capturing
Saddam Hussein. He tells us how they conducted their investigation over a period of
months and finally found him. Today, Steve Russell teaches a class on Revelation.
Available on Audio Cassette (C5801) or CD (CD5801) for a Gift of $10
Also on VHS Video (V5801) or DVD (DVD5801) for a Gift of $20
the finger-like radiance of the sun that an- are foolishness unto him: neither can he
The Truth About Truth nounces its imminent rising. Once the sun know them, because they are spiritually
The term “truth” and its variations (true, lifts above the eastern horizon, the radiance discerned” (I Cor. 2:14). John uses “truth,”
truly, etc.) are translations of the Greek disappears. It is the radiance or aura that “true” or “truly” 16 times in I John; 4 times
αληθης (alethes - al-ay-thace’) meaning speaks of Sohd – the secret level. It can best in II John; and 8 times in III John. In the
“true (as not concealing), truly, truth.” The be seen if one does not look directly at it, Apocalypse (Revelation), John no longer
Greek roots seem to emanate from two but rather catches it out of the corner of the needed to use the terms “truth” or “truly,”
terms, αλεω (al’-yoo) to “grind flour”; and eye. The glorious appearing of the King of but simply uses the term “true” 10 times. In
θεος (theos) for “Deity, God.” Thus, the use kings in Rev. 19, is like the sun rising — the the Apocalypse, it seems as if this body of
of the term “truth” reminds us of the Drosh secret is revealed and, therefore, will no doctrine no longer needs to be covered-up,
level of Jewish interpretation, which refers longer be Sohd. but rather, will be finally revealed.
to the threshing of grain — studying each The works of the Apostle John present Some scholars translate “verily” as
inspired word of Scripture as if threshing the Sohd level of Christ. He opens his view “truly.” John is the only one who uses the
grain to separate the kernal from the chaff. by telling us that Jesus was the personifica- double term “Verily, verily,” translated in
The Drosh level of interpretation is said to tion of the “Word” of God; that He is the the NIV as, “I tell you the truth.” There-
be a regal art, involving the use of parables “Light” that shines in the darkness that fore, we should note that John’s Gospel
or riddles. But, αλεω seems to be more cannot comprehend. These are teachings repeats the double “Verily, verily” 24 times,
than that. Once the grain is separated from that cannot be scientifically explained. bringing the total to 48. The “verily” is
the chaff, it is ground into fine flour, thus However, if you read the sages of Israel, the Greek αμην “amen.” Furthermore,
reminding us of the Sohd or secret level. though they may deny the deity of Christ, John concludes his Gospel with “Amen,”
The Sohd level of biblical interpretation they go to great lengths to discuss these thus making a total of 49 times. Matthew
is not of this world. It goes beyond this mysterious aspects of their Scriptures. refers to “truth” only 3 times, and uses the
realm of existence, lifting us into heavenly John uses the term “truth,” or a variation single “verily” and “Amen” 28 times. Mark
places to view the metaphysical realm of of it, some 113 times in his five works — far uses “truth” only 3 times, and the single
the Scriptures. We can see the Sohd level more than all other New Testament writers. “verily” and “Amen” 16 times. Luke uses
in the story of the flaming sword at the east Among these, John uses “truth,” “true” or “truth” 5 times, and the single “verily” and
gate of Eden; Moses’ encounter with God “truly” 49 times in his Gospel. We should “Amen” 9 times.
atop Sinai for 40 days; Elijah’s heavenly note that John concludes his Gospel by In light of the above, we should note that
chariot; and the holy city New Jerusalem. quoting the cynical Pilate, who asked, “truth” seems to include an entire body
The Sohd level is definitely prophetic. The “What is truth?” (John 18:38). This re- of metaphysical doctrine. John referred to
rabbis describe it as one standing in the minds us that “…the natural man receiveth this as “the doctrine of Christ” (II John 9).
darkness of the early morning and seeing not the things of the Spirit of God: for they Continued on Page 33
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Time Travelers:
The River of Time
By Gary Stearman
Today, we are obsessed with time. The
atomic clock now sets the pace of business
and science. Quartz oscillators by the mil-
lions grace the watches and c-phones that
now number in the billions. Those oscil-
lators change the digits on watches and
spinning hands on clocks. Many of them
regularly crosscheck themselves by radio
with the National Institute of Standards
and Technology. Its atomic clock transmits
virtually perfect time through global short-
wave radio and satellite networks.
But the wonder of this technology is
that it comes with a curse. When you live
life by the second, you become its slave
rather than its master.
The common complaint
that there are not enough
hours in the day is an
increasingly distressing
phenomenon. It seems
that the more time we
keep, the less of it we liam Willett in a 1907 tract called, “Waste of in the secular sense … the annual race to
have available. There is Daylight.” He wrote, “Everyone appreciates pay taxes on time, or to give a birthday or
the common perception that time is moving the long, light evenings. Everyone laments Christmas present on time, or to get to work
faster and faster. their shortage as Autumn approaches; and on time, or to the doctor on time, or to finish
It wasn’t always so. Years ago, the cities, everyone has given utterance to regret that that project on time.
villages and districts across Europe and the clear, bright light of an early morning
America each kept their own local time. during Spring and Summer months is so Time and Faith
For the most part, morning, noon and night seldom seen or used.” However, there is another way to look
were as close to timekeeping as one really His idea, first proposed by Ben Franklin at time. The Lord, the Author of time, has
needed to get. As cities grew larger, they in 1784, caught on … in a big way. The promised the faithful that time is on their
began to keep their own astronomical time. industrial revolution, mass production and side. What we view as a flowing stream,
Shipping and navigation increasingly called the twenty-four-hour, seven-day rat race are He views as a complete structure … both a
for a closer approximation of Solar, Lunar all now history. Technology has created a foundation and a finished Temple.
and Sidereal time. continual race against time. Time, in fact, Time is essential to faith, which antici-
London and Paris competed as candidates has become a despotic dictator, calling for pates the future fulfillment of key events,
for the prime meridian. London won the ever-greater efficiency, representing greater which themselves, are the objects of one’s
contest. The Greenwich Prime Meridian productivity. faith. Moment by moment, time unfolds, as
and the astronomer royal set the pace of Time, the fourth dimension after length, it has for as long as anyone can remember.
global shipping. The race for better time- width and height, is fundamental to our very We live in time. More than that, we live by
keeping was on. By the nineteenth century, existence. Some have likened it to a river time, which is the same as saying that we
accurate clocks were keeping records as upon which life flows at a leisurely pace, live by faith.
steamships plied the seven seas. until the channel narrows, the declining For now, the belief that the seconds will
In the New World, railroads began to riverbed steepens and it becomes a stretch continue to click past in steady procession
cross the prairie, and soon, their tight sched- of rapids. All this seems good, since we will is the most basic fact of our existence. We
ules and the telegraph demanded higher and reach our destination sooner. Then we hear plan and devise strategies on the basis of
higher standards. Once upon a time, if your a distant roar and see rising mist. Could that time. In one sense, man worships time as
pocket watch was within fifteen minutes be a waterfall? the great rewarder of personal diligence.
when the Sun was at the zenith that was Time is no longer just a provider. Now In another sense, he resents time, as it
close enough. Not any more. it has become a taskmaster. A basic fact of holds out a vast promise, which in the end,
Today, we even save daylight, an idea first our very existence has begun to control us dwindles to nothing.
seriously proposed by an Englishman, Wil- … to become our oppressor. This is time The past departs, cemented in place as
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an unmovable tableau. The present moves would be a blank slate. Hope would be in the tone of God’s love for His children.
at what we perceive as a constant rate, like confined to a series of abstractions, based As you might tell a child during a stormy
the sweep-second hand on a clock, or the upon what could be gleaned from the night, “Be patient, in a little while, the storm
electronic march of seconds on a digital present and the past. Given the past five will pass, the clouds will clear and the sun
timepiece. Every click is an act of faith, the thousand years of raw experience with will rise.”
belief that the seconds will keep on com- human governments, the future would be Time, then, is best measured by perspec-
ing. After all, the assumption is that these bleak, indeed. In such a case, hope would tive. To the child, overnight is forever; to
tiny parcels of time will continue what they wax and wane on practically a daily basis. the parent, it is but a short time.
have been doing for thousands, some say Man would live under the black cloud The key element in the passage above
millions or billions of years. of “scientific” uncertainty. The imagined comes from the prophet Habakkuk, who
This belief in a uniform state of things future would change with each new theory mentally wrestles with the deep questions
is the mainstay of secularism. In the world about the universe. concerning God’s will for Judah in the days
of evolutionary theory, it is called “unifor- In fact, this is exactly the state of the just before the Babylonian invasion. First,
mitarianism.” Simply put, it is the belief modern philosopher, whether he be exis- the prophet asks how the Lord can continue
of evolutionists that we live in a stable tentialist, communist, social Darwinist or to tolerate the wicked ways of Judah. God
universe, or at least a stable corner of nihilist, holding that nothing is verifiable. answers that He is raising up the Babylo-
the universe. It provides the foundational He does not believe the prophets. Rather, nians to judge them.
continuity upon which living things can he believes in science, sociology, psychol- This leads Habakkuk to ask another
thrive without interruption. In their eyes, ogy and economics. His faith depends upon question: How can the Lord judge Judah by
it is simply a stable platform upon which human observation. using an even more wicked nation, whose
natural processes play out the myriad of On the other hand, our faith is based upon sins are legendary? The Lord’s answer to
interactions that we call life. God’s revelation. When He spoke through this knotty question begins as follows:
Actually, theirs is the faith that time His prophets, He gave us a future. In a “And the LORD answered me, and said,
and space, as they are currently observed, sense, it is as though He set an alarm that Write the vision, and make it plain upon
will not change. They assume that there is would go off as His day drew near. tables, that he may run that readeth it.
no force or constraint outside the visible This observation brings out a cogent truth “For the vision is yet for an appointed
universe, and that natural progressions about time and faith. Faith is necessary only time, but at the end it shall speak, and not
will persist. in the zone of time. In eternity, all will be lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it
It can thus be seen that time is also the known as it is now known. For Christians, will surely come, it will not tarry.
seed of the secularists’ faith. The millions time has already been linked to completed “Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not
of years ahead are their hope and promise. faith. In eternity … in the presence of the upright in him: but the just shall live by his
They cling to the expectation that mankind Lord … faith will no longer be necessary. faith” (Habakkuk 2:2-4).
will develop ways to achieve immortality Sight and experience will be the basis of As the writer to the Hebrews draws upon
and utopian peace. Their “god” is the steady our lives. Time and faith will become curi- Habakkuk’s prophecy, he makes at least two
march of time. ously distant. significant alterations. First, he changes
Faith, then, has an object – the future “for an appointed time” to “for yet a little
Setting an Alarm fulfillment of prophecy. Time is laid out while.” In so doing, he indicates that the
On the other hand, Christian hope is not in a pattern of markers, each promised as time to fulfillment is much closer than when
based upon time, but upon a discontinuity a sure hope. Consider the following Scrip- first prophesied.
in time. More precisely, it rests upon several ture, and note that it speaks of time as “a Second, Hebrews changes “it will surely
such discontinuities, each brought about little while:” come” to “he that shall come will come.”
by an era in which God spoke through His “Cast not away therefore your confi- The “it” of Habakkuk’s day has become
prophets. Moses, Elijah, Isaiah, Ezekiel, dence, which hath great recompence of the “He” of the New Testament era. He is
Daniel, John and others, each brought the reward. the risen Christ.
future into the context of their present. “For ye have need of patience, that, af- Of course, the key phrase in both quotes
After all, it is they, and they alone who ter ye have done the will of God, ye might refers to the “just,” living by “faith,” which
have given us the assurance that there is receive the promise. is set in the context of the patient wait for
something outside the restrictive envelope “For yet a little while, and he that shall that which will surely come. Time and faith
of time. They have assured us that there is a come will come, and will not tarry. are wedded in the concept of patience.
Creator who lives outside its constraints. “Now the just shall live by faith: but if In his epistle to the Romans, Paul quoted
Each time they spoke, it was as though a any man draw back, my soul shall have no Habakkuk in a similar context, namely, the
rift in time occurred, in which future events pleasure in him. Lord’s coming judgment:
were laid out, offering hope to the Lord’s “But we are not of them who draw back “For I am not ashamed of the gospel
chosen. Their prophesies knit together past, unto perdition; but of them that believe to the of Christ: for it is the power of God unto
present and future into a single entity, as saving of the soul” (Hebrews 10:35-39). salvation to every one that believeth; to the
solid as the Rock. These words were written about nineteen Jew first, and also to the Greek.
Their proclamations foretold the apos- hundred years ago. Generations of the faith- “For therein is the righteousness of God
tasies of Israel and Judah, and their sub- ful have come and gone, each believing in revealed from faith to faith: as it is written,
sequent captivities. They also spoke of the promise of God, that He would send The just shall live by faith.
the coming Messiah and his Millennial His Son to judge the world and set things “For the wrath of God is revealed from
Kingdom. straight at last. From the biblical perspec- heaven against all ungodliness and un-
Imagine what the world would be like if tive, this will take only “a little while.” righteousness of men, who hold the truth in
there had never been prophets. The future These are words of reassurance, given unrighteousness” (Rom. 1:16-18).
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In time, things will be completed accord- they were the result of the Apostle John’s Greek, aiphnidios, meaning “suddenly
ing to His long and complex plan. The righ- wishful thinking. Nineteen hundred years and without warning.” This latter aspect
teousness of God is yet to be revealed, and later, they say, these words remain a hollow of its meaning is seen in Luke’s gospel, in
time is the agency of its revelation. Again, and empty promise. After all this time, He which the same Greek word is translated,
we see that living in faith is, of necessity, still hasn’t come. They usually add that if “unawares:”
living in time. the Lord spoke to them at all, He was being “And take heed to yourselves, lest at
Here, God’s judgment is seen as having quite deceitful. any time your hearts be overcharged with
been revealed from heaven, against man- The faithful, however, believe that not surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of
kind, which is presented as suppressing only did the Lord speak these words, He this life, and so that day come upon you
the truth. meant exactly what He said. They are first unawares” (Luke 21:34).
For secular man time, itself, is the thing voiced to His beloved Philadelphian church, When the Lord says, “Behold, I come
worshiped. Given enough of it, they say, as He promises that it will never experience quickly,” He means it, but not in the worldly
any variation is possible. Things can sponta- the dramatic cataclysms of His judgment in sense. Again, we see that time, as we know
neously combine in life-giving ways. Over the Day of the Lord: it, is relative to His plan. Skeptics may
time, chemical and nuclear reactions can “Because thou hast kept the word of my complain that Jesus misled His followers
become godlike in their manifestations. patience, I also will keep thee from the with an unfulfilled promise. But the faithful
For Christians, time is the motion toward hour of temptation, which shall come upon view the interim of time as necessary to His
His coming. all the world, to try them that dwell upon plan, which is doubtless far more complex
the earth. than we can fully realize.
Things Hoped For “Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast Also, we see that the future of this world
Directly following the Hebrews passage which thou hast, that no man take thy is directly aimed at the Lord’s Day. As if
quoted above, we find the summation of crown” (Rev. 3:10,11). to emphasize this idea, the final chapter of
the matter. It is the eleventh chapter of the As John penned these words in A.D. Revelation repeats it three more times. The
Epistle. This, the so-called “faith chapter,” 96, he must have thought of the church in first time, as might be expected, reaffirms
defines faith as time, for time necessarily Asia, toward which they were directed. He the importance of keeping the faith:
means delay. By definition, those things could not have known their full prophetic “And he said unto me, These sayings are
promised have not yet been realized. They significance. From the perspective of time, faithful and true: and the Lord God of the
are made evident by the substance (solidity) Christians now see this church as the model holy prophets sent his angel to shew unto
of faith and its conviction that the timeline of evangelism and Bible study. In the sev- his servants the things which must shortly
will take us to the prophesied end: enteenth through the twentieth centuries, be done.
“Now faith is the substance of things Philadelphia became the model of the open “Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he
hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. door, as missionaries traveled the earth and that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of
“For by it the elders obtained a good Bible teachers expounded the hidden truths this book” (Rev. 22:6,7).
report. of prophetic Scripture. Faith, expressed as time, sees the Lord’s
“Through faith we understand that the This church represents the love of God work from His perspective. In a worldly
worlds were framed by the word of God, so and the gifts of the Spirit. It is the recipi- sense, “shortly” means, “in a brief time.”
that things which are seen were not made ent of a solid promise that it will be kept, In the heavenly sense, it means, “brought
of things which do appear” (Heb. 11:1-3). not “through,” but “from” the “hour of to completion when all the conditions have
Faith plus time equals hope, as substantial temptation.” been fulfilled.” John was privileged to see
as though it has already been realized. Faith This great blessing is the Rapture of the things from this heavenly perspective. He
is here understood as temporary; that one church, which at a certain point, will be personally witnessed the completion of
will arrive at a time when it is completely removed from this Earth so quickly that we events that we still refer to as “future.”
unnecessary. The key to hope is the recog- cannot imagine it. John did not know when “And he saith unto me, Seal not the say-
nition that from the Lord’s point of view, it would come, but he knew that it would be ings of the prophecy of this book: for the
faith is now complete. a sudden event. As the Lord said, it would time is at hand.
Notice that the writer to the Hebrews happen “quickly.” “He that is unjust, let him be unjust
illustrates faith by emphasizing that this This perspective is given great emphasis still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy
universe was made by a Creator, who in Paul’s first epistle to the Thessalonians: still: and he that is righteous, let him be
brought its material elements together out “But of the times and the seasons, breth- righteous still: and he that is holy, let him
of nothing. As we have already seen, this ren, ye have no need that I write unto you. be holy still.
universe is built around the concept of “For yourselves know perfectly that the “And, behold, I come quickly; and my re-
time, which, to the Lord, is simply another day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the ward is with me, to give every man accord-
building block. night. ing as his work shall be” (Rev. 22:10-12).
He uses time as we would use concrete. “For when they shall say, Peace and Notice here, that time – addressed as
This is our faith. The secular mind worships safety; then sudden destruction cometh “at hand” – is depicted as being laid out
time; we worship its Creator. Since He con- upon them, as travail upon a woman with in advance. In the most literal Greek, He
structed time, He speaks of it in a way that child; and they shall not escape. says, “The time is near.” In other words,
is often puzzling to those who live in it. “But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, the judgments of Revelation are imminent.
that that day should overtake you as a thief” Again, His perspective dictates the meaning
“I Come Quickly” (I Thes. 5:1-4). of the phrase.
Many have pondered the Lord’s three- These words catch the quickness of the In the final use of the three-word phrase,
word promise in the book of Revelation. blessed event that is the hope of every the Lord then concludes with His personal
Skeptics have mocked them, saying that Christian. The word “sudden” is from the assurance that the events of Revelation will
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come at a precise moment in time, and they Of the tribe of Benjamin and raised with Time is not the enemy of the faithful, it is
will come with such speed that those alive the finest Hebrew education, his hope had the friend, allowing those whom the Lord
at that time will be amazed. always been inseparable from that of the has chosen in ages past to come to their full
“He which testifieth these things saith, twelve tribes. He was privileged to be a potential. As He uses it, time is a quality, not
Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, leader of his people, and later came to a quantity. It is the essence of fulfillment:
Lord Jesus” (Rev. 22:20). lament their blindness to the true identity “And when ye shall see Jerusalem com-
of Jesus: passed with armies, then know that the
Paul: Ahead of His Time “For I could wish that myself were ac- desolation thereof is nigh.
When Paul writes of his own Apostle- cursed from Christ for my brethren, my “Then let them which are in Judaea flee
ship, he is always amazed at the extent of kinsmen according to the flesh: to the mountains; and let them which are in
the Lord’s grace toward him. And rightly “Who are Israelites; to whom pertaineth the midst of it depart out; and let not them
so, since he was devoutly opposed to the the adoption, and the glory, and the cov- that are in the countries enter thereinto.
early church, persecuting it on behalf of his enants, and the giving of the law, and the “For these be the days of vengeance,
brethren, the Pharisees. service of God, and the promises” (Rom. that all things which are written may be
Toward the close of First Corinthians, 9:3,4). fulfilled.
he speaks of Christ’s resurrection, and the Here, in a burst of emotion, he wishes “But woe unto them that are with child,
order of events that followed it. Here, we (knowing that it can’t be so) that his new and to them that give suck, in those days!
have an important timeline with a twist. birth might be invalidated, if that would for there shall be great distress in the land,
Since the resurrection is the key element result in the salvation of Israel. He real- and wrath upon this people.
of all Apostolic teaching, the element of izes that he has personally experienced “And they shall fall by the edge of the
timing is central to his statement. But Paul the Messianic blessing that his people had sword, and shall be led away captive into
sees his own salvation as a curious deviation always expected would come to the entire all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden
from the perceived timeline: nation. For Paul, that was the “due time.” In down of the Gentiles, until the times of the
“For I delivered unto you first of all that one sense, he was saddened to see himself Gentiles be fulfilled.
which I also received, how that Christ died raised up before the promised redemption “And there shall be signs in the sun, and in
for our sins according to the scriptures; of his Hebrew brethren at the inception of the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth
“And that he was buried, and that he the Kingdom. distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea
rose again the third day according to the And that is the biblical view of time. It is and the waves roaring” (Luke 21:20-25).
scriptures: more a matter of quality than quantity. For Time, as the world sees it, is a race to
“And that he was seen of Cephas, then Paul, as for all the prophets and Apostles, produce something … anything. It demands
of the twelve: time is specifically linked to God’s redemp- more product, more advertising and more
“After that, he was seen of above five tive plan. It is never arbitrary. cash flow. Desire becomes necessity, and
hundred brethren at once; of whom the necessity is touted as the highest attain-
greater part remain unto this present, but “Fulness” (KJV) ment. Time, as the Bible sees it, is simply
some are fallen asleep. The quality of time is known only to the an element in God’s program.
“After that, he was seen of James; then heavenly Father. As Jesus said, “But of
of all the apostles. that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not “My Clock, Not Yours”
“And last of all he was seen of me also, the angels of heaven, but my Father only” At the moment, it is quite clear that we
as of one born out of due time. (Matt. 24:36). Here, of course, Jesus refers are rocketing toward judgment. A great war
“For I am the least of the apostles, that to His second coming. in the Middle East will soon change the
am not meet to be called an apostle, because Its timing is apparently based upon the standing rules of international diplomacy.
I persecuted the church of God. conjunction of time and conditions. The lat- These days, everybody is talking about it.
“But by the grace of God I am what I ter are referred to in Scripture as “fulness,” Historians, novelists and preachers are all
am: and his grace which was bestowed as when Paul explained why his kinsmen casting a wary eye at Russia’s leader, who
upon me was not in vain; but I laboured had become spiritually blind: might just be the prophesied, “Gog, the land
more abundantly than they all: yet not I, “For I would not, brethren, that ye should of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and
but the grace of God which was with me” be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be Tubal…” (Ezek. 38:2).
(I Cor. 15:3-10). wise in your own conceits; that blindness in We all know the prophecy about how the
Here, Paul carefully recounts the order of part is happened to Israel, until the fulness Lord will bridle Gog’s jaws and lead him
those who met Christ after His resurrection. of the Gentiles be come in. like a beast, dragging him into the vortex
When he comes to his own encounter, he “And so all Israel shall be saved: as it of Mideastern conflict. From the perspec-
refers to himself as, “one born out of due is written, There shall come out of Sion the tive of time, the Lord’s view of this matter
time.” In the literal Greek, he says, “even Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness is quite interesting. According to Ezekiel’s
as if to an untimely birth.” What could from Jacob” (Romans 11:25,26). prophecy, as these things begin to happen,
he mean by this? As one whose epistles By the grace of the Lord, Paul had been a time marker will be triggered:
repeatedly prophesy the events of the last saved far in advance of the promised salva- “Thus saith the Lord GOD; It shall also
days, Paul must have had an acute sense of tion of “all Israel.” This, of course, assumes come to pass, that at the same time shall
the order of things. For him, time was not all the elect of Israel, as Paul had previously things come into thy mind, and thou shalt
a monotonous flow of one day after the stated: “Even so then at this present time think an evil thought:
next, but an exquisite movement toward a also there is a remnant according to the “And thou shalt say, I will go up to the
momentous series of events. election of grace” (Romans 11:5). land of unwalled villages; I will go to them
His life was totally centered around Juda- Time, then, includes the remnant of Is- that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them
ism and the Messianic hope of his people. rael, as well as the remnant of the Gentiles. dwelling without walls, and having neither
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bars nor gates” (Ezekiel 38:10,11). with her, all ye that love her: rejoice for joy of rejoicing.
Here, as the Lord draws Gog into the with her, all ye that mourn for her: Time as a river is not a mere metaphor.
fray, an evil plan will come into his mind, “That ye may suck, and be satisfied with Time and faith flow forth from the Lord,
apparently, at the very beginning of the the breasts of her consolations; that ye bringing life and peace. Time brings the
invasion. It appears that this is Gog’s own may milk out, and be delighted with the water of life to the faithful, but judgment to
idea, concocted on the fly as tensions mount abundance of her glory. the lost. It should never be forgotten that in
in the theater of war. “For thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will His Second Coming, He is accompanied by
But the matter of timing doesn’t stop extend peace to her like a river, and the fire, and the warrior host of heaven.
here, for a few verses later, the Lord places glory of the Gentiles like a flowing stream: Though there is a great deal that we do
another time marker that ties this signal then shall ye suck, ye shall be borne upon not understand about time, we do know
event to judgment day: her sides, and be dandled upon her knees. that it flows according to God’s purpose.
“And it shall come to pass at the same “As one whom his mother comforteth, In the final chapter of the Bible, we are
time when Gog shall come against the land so will I comfort you; and ye shall be com- given the beautiful image of a river, flow-
of Israel, saith the Lord GOD, that my fury forted in Jerusalem. ing through our eternal residence, the New
shall come up in my face. “And when ye see this, your heart shall Jerusalem. It cannot be coincidental that it
“For in my jealousy and in the fire of rejoice, and your bones shall flourish like is shown in close connection with time and
my wrath have I spoken, Surely in that day an herb: and the hand of the LORD shall be the seasons:
there shall be a great shaking in the land known toward his servants, and his indigna- “And he shewed me a pure river of water
of Israel” (Ezek. 38:18,19). tion toward his enemies. of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of
The movement of troops into the great “For, behold, the LORD will come with the throne of God and of the Lamb.
latter-day battle is marked in time. For fire, and with his chariots like a whirlwind, “In the midst of the street of it, and on
believers, this is a certainty. The days to render his anger with fury, and his rebuke either side of the river, was there the tree
between now and then are few, and they with flames of fire. of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits,
are numbered. But that’s not all. It is well “For by fire and by his sword will the and yielded her fruit every month: and the
known that the forces allied with Gog are LORD plead with all flesh: and the slain of leaves of the tree were for the healing of
dramatically defeated in such a way that the LORD shall be many” (Isa. 66:8-16). the nations.
the nations will know that Israel’s victory The river of time has brought us close to “And there shall be no more curse: but
is the Lord’s doing. “that day.” The birth of Israel in a single the throne of God and of the Lamb shall
And only a few short verses later, the day was marked and destined for a precise be in it; and his servants shall serve him”
Lord makes another mark in time: moment. Today, Jerusalem is the focus of (Rev. 22:1-3).
“Behold, it is come, and it is done, saith conflict. Isaiah sees it as the site of comfort. Even there, time flows like a river. What
the Lord GOD; this is the day whereof I Israel, born in conflict, shall be the object wonders await us in its fullness! u
have spoken” (Ezek. 39:8).
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Imminent War on
the Persian Horizon
By Gary Stearman “U.S. Admiral William J. Fallon, head of
the U.S. Pacific Command is taking over
Dr. Jerome Corsi, conservative author as the top commander of U.S. forces in the
and columnist, is a long-time Middle East Middle East, following the retirement of
watcher with a keen interest in the Arab/ Gen. John Abizaid. The transition of com-
Israeli conflict. His books, Atomic Iran mand from the Army to the Navy should
and Black Gold Stranglehold, have added be noted, especially with this much naval
greatly to our understanding of develop- power concentrating in the Gulf. We should
ments in the region. His critical analysis of also note that Admiral Fallon has command
the theater of war surrounding Baghdad has experience in the 1991 Gulf War, where he
given us a new look at what may be emerg- commanded the Carrier Air Wing Eight on
ing there. Our true target is now Iran. the USS Theodore Roosevelt during Opera-
He is saying that the current change of tion Desert Storm.”
leadership in the U.S. military points to The Intercontinental Ballistic Missile
a whole new strategy in the region. Now, Force from our nuclear submarines alone,
Iraq is no longer the chief focus of the dwarfs anything Iran will be able to project
Western war machine. Old Persia, reborn for many years into the future. U.S. sea-
as modern Iran, has now been programmed borne might is the greatest single force on
as the central target of satellites and battle the planet today.
computers. As this is written, Israel has already made
For years, even decades, Israeli leaders practice runs, in which they simulate the
have said that of all their enemies, Persia removal of Iran’s nuclear facilities. No
is the one with whom they will ultimately With U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan, doubt, the U.S. fleet will be standing by in
do battle. Persia is strategically located be- we are in a position to put pressure on case things get hotter than expected.
tween the Caspian Sea and the Persian Gulf. Iran, should a strategic confrontation The January 7th London Sunday Times
To its east, lies Afghanistan; to its west become necessary. editorial was in complete agreement with
is Iraq. Even more interesting is Persia’s command ship of the Bataan Expeditionary Corsi’s assessment:
position in the great latter-day invasion of Strike Group, departed from Norfolk, Va., “The nomination of Admiral William
Israel. The ancient nation ranks first among headed for forward deployment. Typically, Fallon, a former navy fighter pilot, to com-
the allies of “Gog, the land of Magog … we should expect the USS Bataan to replace mand U.S. military operations in the area
Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya with them, all the USS Boxer in normal rotation. Even if is regarded as a sign of forward planning.
of them with shield and helmet” (Ezekiel that is the destination of the USS Bataan, we Fallon does not have a reputation as a hawk,
38:2, 5). As posted in the January 8, 2007 would have two amphibious strike forces in but in the words of a Pentagon source: ‘If
WorldNetDaily, Corsi writes, “War with the Gulf as the rotation is completed.” you go after Iran, you have a naval war on
Iran is imminent.” Corsi’s deduction is that there is a quiet your hands.’
He says, “In addition to moving addition- but massive naval fleet being assembled “Retired Colonel Sam Gardiner, a former
al military into the region, President Bush for quick deployment in the areas key to National War College professor who has
is putting into place a new political and Iran’s potential nuclear threat. A carrier war-gamed air strikes on Iran, believes an
military command team, all in preparation task force, together with guided-missile American attack remains a possibility. The
for an expanded war in the Middle East. cruisers and nuclear submarines is now a current deployment of a second U.S. aircraft
“We have already noted that the USS reality in the Indian Ocean, Arabian Sea carrier strike force to the Gulf region, as
John C. Stennis (CVN 74) aircraft carrier and Persian Gulf. well as British minesweepers, is a ‘huge
battle group is heading to the Persian Gulf He holds the opinion that the key indica- deal,’ he said. ‘It is only necessary to do
to join the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower tion of this new reality lies in our Middle that if you are planning to strike Iran and
(CVN 69) aircraft carrier battle group cur- East military assignment. That will set the deal with the consequences’ – including an
rently on station there. tone for 2007. A naval assault, if unleashed attempt to shut the Strait of Hormuz, the
“Additionally, the USS Boxer (LHD 4) in its full strength, would present a new sea route for much of the world’s oil from
amphibious assault ship, the flagship of order of magnitude in the war that began the Gulf states.”
the Boxer Expeditionary Strike Group, is against Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hus- Today, the course toward a Mideast
on station in the Persian Gulf. On Janu- sein. It would become World War III. conflagration seems perilously close to
ary 4, 2007, the USS Bataan (LHD 5), the To Corsi, this is an obvious development: realization. u
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A Prophetic Mini-Study
Egypt: Fire and Flood
By Gary Stearman
Lately, Egypt has been relatively quiet.
After lying in the background of Middle
East affairs for the last three decades, it
has almost been forgotten that Egypt was
dominant in both the Six-Day and Yom
Kippur Wars.
In fact, from the beginning, Egypt was
bent upon Israel’s complete destruction.
In the 1950s, Egypt’s Nasser had combined
forces with Jordan, enlisting fedayeen fight-
ers. By 1956, their raids into southern Israel,
and his closing the Suez canal to Israeli
shipping, led to an Israeli counterattack,
and victory.
Even though Egypt was beaten back
for the time being, Israel continued to be Aswan has two dams. The British built the low dam (seen above under construction)
treated as the aggressor. In the ten years from 1899-1902. When it almost overflowed in 1946, Egypt decided to construct a
that followed, Egypt rearmed, waiting for second, more elaborate dam nearby.
the right time to attack again. On May 15,
1967, the anniversary date of Israel’s state-
hood, Egyptian forces invaded the Sinai.
The radio Voice of the Arabs announced,
“The sole method we shall apply against
Israel is a total war which will result in the
extermination of Zionist existence.”
Other Arab states echoed these senti-
ments. But in a miraculous series of defense
maneuvers, Israel defeated Egypt in six
short days. Their defeat was stunning, but
still, Egypt’s desire to wipe out Israel was
not dampened. Six years later, in October
of 1973, Egypt and Syria opened a coor-
dinated, two-pronged surprise attack upon
Israel. It was deliberately planned to fall on
Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. The
attack came at a time when all Israel was
shut down for a period of fasting and prayer.
But once again, Israel brilliantly counterat-
tacked, driving back the invaders.
As had happened so many times before,
a truce was called. This led to a series of
talks that finally brought Jimmy Carter,
The Aswan High Dam (as seen from above) was built with the help of Russia.
Egypt’s Anwar Sadat and Israel’s Men-
Construction began in 1960 and was completed in 1970. This dam regulates the
achem Begin together. On March 26, 1979,
water of the Nile River and produces electricity for the nation.
an Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty was signed in
Washington, D.C. recently abandoned area of Gaza. This leads cies. As we shall see, they are related. But
In the quarter-century that has followed, us to ask, What will be Egypt’s role in the they evoke a mystery. They suggest that
Egypt has held its forces in reluctant abey- great upcoming battle surrounding Israel? Egypt will soon experience a massive dev-
ance. Still, it often supplies Israel’s enemies astation that is unique to its geography. And
with weapons. It has aided Fatah, Hamas,
The Mystery of Egypt apparently, for reasons that shall become
and the PLO. Currently, it is quietly sup- With the foregoing in mind, it is interest- clear, this event will predate Gog’s lightning
porting Hamas, which has occupied the ing to examine two distinct biblical prophe- assault upon Israel.
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We have written at some length about the are desolate, and her cities among the cit- LORD is near, a cloudy day; it shall be the
first of the two prophecies, found in Ezekiel ies that are laid waste shall be desolate time of the heathen.
29. As it begins, it seems to be directed forty years: and I will scatter the Egyptians “And the sword shall come upon Egypt,
toward a specific Pharaoh, perhaps the one among the nations, and will disperse them and great pain shall be in Ethiopia, when
on the throne at the time Ezekiel wrote through the countries” (Ezek. 29:1-12). the slain shall fall in Egypt, and they shall
his prophecy. But as one reads carefully, In the past, we have written at length con- take away her multitude, and her founda-
it becomes clear that “Pharaoh” is really cerning this prophecy. In this mini-study, tions shall be broken down.
a general title given to the evil spirit of we can only briefly review a few facts. First, “Ethiopia, and Libya, and Lydia, and all
Egypt. It is quite easy to see this, since this Egypt is geographically unique. The Nile is the mingled people, and Chub, and the men
particular “Pharaoh” is a dragon who lives its very existence. For centuries, its annual of the land that is in league, shall fall with
in the Nile River. In the verses that follow, flood cycle fertilized the land, linking its them by the sword.
the dragon professes ownership of the Nile, agricultural base with a profitable fishing “Thus saith the LORD; They also that
even boasting that he has created it. His ar- industry. In other words, God blessed this uphold Egypt shall fall; and the pride of
rogance is about to be challenged: land with a life-giving river. her power shall come down: from the tower
“In the tenth year, in the tenth month, in In the last few decades, this arrangement of Syene shall they fall in it by the sword,
the twelfth day of the month, the word of the has radically changed. In 1970, Russian saith the Lord GOD.
LORD came unto me, saying, engineers completed the final phase of the “And they shall be desolate in the midst
“Son of man, set thy face against Pha- Aswan High Dam. It is huge, measuring of the countries that are desolate, and her
raoh king of Egypt, and prophesy against 360 feet in height, 10,200 feet (almost two cities shall be in the midst of the cities that
him, and against all Egypt: miles) long and 3,200 feet wide at the base. are wasted.
“Speak, and say, Thus saith the Lord Behind it, is the vast Lake Nasser, and the “And they shall know that I am the
GOD; Behold, I am against thee, Pharaoh waters of the Nile that back up into Ethio- LORD, when I have set a fire in Egypt, and
king of Egypt, the great dragon that lieth pia. Its dimensions are so massive that it is when all her helpers shall be destroyed”
in the midst of his rivers, which hath said, considered indestructible. Saboteurs using (Ezek. 30:1-8).
My river is mine own, and I have made it ordinary explosives couldn’t make a dent. The language of this prophecy is unmis-
for myself. However, experts have said that one or two takable. A storm is gathering; the “day of
“But I will put hooks in thy jaws, and I well-placed nuclear bombs could blow it the Lord” is approaching. Note that not
will cause the fish of thy rivers to stick unto wide open. just Egypt, but all of northeast Africa is
thy scales, and I will bring thee up out of In Ezekiel’s day, Aswan (biblical Syene) involved. Today, Ethiopia, Somalia, Sudan,
the midst of thy rivers, and all the fish of thy was a small village, some 550 miles south Chad and Libya constitute a seething caul-
rivers shall stick unto thy scales. of the Great Pyramid, on the bank of the dron of Islamic terrorism. These countries
“And I will leave thee thrown into the wil- first cataract of the Nile. It was considered surround Egypt, which is, itself, a seat of
derness, thee and all the fish of thy rivers: the southernmost extent of Egypt. When Islamic power. In spite of an intervening
thou shalt fall upon the open fields; thou Ezekiel wrote this prophecy, there was no peace treaty, it has never deviated from its
shalt not be brought together, nor gathered: “tower” there. Today, of course, there is the desire to eradicate Israel.
I have given thee for meat to the beasts of towering High Dam, which this prophecy In the prophecy above, Ezekiel states that
the field and to the fowls of the heaven. indirectly names as the source of the great all these countries will suffer judgment …
“And all the inhabitants of Egypt shall flood that will ravage Egypt. including “Lydia,” representing modern
know that I am the LORD, because they Ezekiel mentions a structure that didn’t Turkey. But the most devastating judgment
have been a staff of reed to the house of exist until 1970, saying that it will break, of all is reserved for Egypt. Once again, the
Israel. allowing flood waters to surge almost six prophecy evokes the imagery of the “tower
“When they took hold of thee by thy hundred miles to the north, where they of Syene,” which we have pointed out as the
hand, thou didst break, and rend all their would empty into the Mediterranean Sea. If Aswan High Dam. It seems to be central to
shoulder: and when they leaned upon thee, nuclear weapons are used to accomplish this all the judgments mentioned here. Egypt’s
thou brakest, and madest all their loins to catastrophe, the resulting flood would cover Islamic allies will suffer greatly when the
be at a stand. all Egypt with nuclear waste. As we have Lord sets His fire in the land of Egypt. It is
“Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; mentioned in the past, this would account clear that this fire is the instrument that will
Behold, I will bring a sword upon thee, and for the virtual abandonment of the country unleash the trillions of gallons of radioac-
cut off man and beast out of thee. for the forty-year period mentioned by Eze- tive water that washes across Egypt.
“And the land of Egypt shall be desolate kiel. This has never before happened. Many students of Bible prophecy have
and waste; and they shall know that I am asked why Egypt is not listed among the
the LORD: because he hath said, The river Fire Falls Upon Syene allies that come against Israel in the great
is mine, and I have made it. Naturally, when we read about the hor- invasion described in Ezekiel 38. Certainly,
“Behold, therefore I am against thee, and rific event mentioned above, our first ques- Russia is represented, along with Persia and
against thy rivers, and I will make the land tion is: When does this prophecy take place? some of the countries of North Africa. Na-
of Egypt utterly waste and desolate, from In the following chapter of his prophecy, tions from parts of Europe and Asia are also
the tower of Syene even unto the border Ezekiel answers this question, too. represented, but Egypt is not among them.
of Ethiopia. “The word of the LORD came again unto Under today’s geopolitical circumstances,
“No foot of man shall pass through it, nor me, saying, Egypt would be at the head of the line in
foot of beast shall pass through it, neither “ Son of man, prophesy and say, Thus support of such an invasion, as it has been
shall it be inhabited forty years. saith the Lord GOD; Howl ye, Woe worth in the past. We must conclude that by the
“And I will make the land of Egypt the day time Gog launches its lightning invasion,
desolate in the midst of the countries that “For the day is near, even the day of the Egypt has already been destroyed. u
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A Spiritual Masterpiece!
By Douglas D. Stauffer was wholly convinced that he was defeating
Review by Bob Ulrich God by encouraging the Jews’ rejection of
I began to tremble when I heard my name their Messiah. Imagine his chagrin when he
called. It was 1965 and I was 9 years old. I finally figured it out!
was embroiled in a battle for “Stockader of One Book Rightly Divided is a book
the Year” with Danny Dabinet and it looked that clearly explains dispensationalism and
like we were running how God has designed different plans for
neck and neck for the different generations. We are in the Church
award. My sneaky, Bri- Age at the present, but it won’t be long
gade-commander father before we enter the Kingdom Age. In each
had pulled me aside generation, God has had a spokesman. If
beforehand and told me you lived in Noah’s time and you wanted
not to get my hopes up to know God’s plan, you had to ask Noah.
too high, intimating that If you lived during the Exodus from Egypt,
I had finished second in you had to find Moses and ask him what
my quest for the prize. Can you imagine the God has planned.
joy I felt when my name was called and I These were God’s men for the time they
realized that I had reached my ultimate goal lived and all of God’s communication
in Christian Service Brigade? That joy was flowed through them. So here’s a ques-
only surpassed by the laughter written all they receive eternal life! I now realize that I tion that will challenge you. Who is God’s
over my father’s face when we both realized have missed out on several important bibli- spokesman for the church age? The answer
that I’d been had! cal truths. I have also questioned some dif- may surprise you. In fact, no one I have
My life verse back then was a passage ficult passages of Scripture that appear to be asked to date has gotten it right. But, I am
that most of us can quote from memory. It contradictory and confusing. I suspect some now convinced, as is the author, that one
is found in II Timothy 2:15, “Study to show of these passages have troubled you as well. man provides us with all the information
thyself approved unto God, a workman that You are in for a real treat when you see these we need to study and rightly divide our
needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing difficult passages of Scripture clearly de- Bibles.
the Word of truth.” The King James transla- fended like never before. One Book Rightly Dr. Stauffer’s companion work, “One
tion of the Bible is the only translation that Divided is a must read! It will challenge your Book Stands Alone,” tackles the most
tells us to “study” and to “rightly divide.” understanding of the Bible as never before. pressing theological debate of our time
Such is the basis for Douglas Stauffer’s You may also find it a bit controversial, but — identifying God’s preserved Word in
book, One Book Rightly Divided: The Key that’s OK. We all need to be challenged and the English language. Unlike many of the
To Understanding the Bible. II Timothy sharpened from time to time. controversial and sometimes caustic works
2:15 is the only verse in the Bible where a Have you ever wondered why the dis- in this area, this book conclusively pin-
Christian is commanded to study his Bible ciples appeared to be so confused about points the present battleground and spiritual
and then told how to do it. In this age of doc- the death of Jesus? Jesus had told them that combatants of the 21st century. Dr. Stauffer
trinal confusion, multiple Bible translations, He was going to die and that He would rise identifies the counterfeit authorities guilty
and a general malaise for God’s Word, is it three days later, but they didn’t understand. of giving an uncertain sound. The reader
surprising that many Christians have lost Peter actually rebuked the Lord when He will quickly discover how to recognize
their biblical compass? It is not uncommon told him that He was going to the cross! Satan’s multi-pronged attack aimed at the
to hear the phrase “Bible contradictions,” Even when Peter and John raced from the deity of Jesus Christ; scriptural purity and
while many Scriptures have been distorted empty tomb, they didn’t understand what preservation; salvation by grace without
to meet a religious group’s own agenda. had happened. We have a hard time trying works; the supremacy of preaching; Christ’s
As hard as it is to believe, there are several to understand why Peter would try and sinless perfection; the teaching of moral ab-
important passages of Scripture in the KJV stop the Lord’s death knowing what we solutes; and the total elimination of certain
that have been completely left out of other know about the cross today. But, none of key verses and doctrines. So, check out this
translations! According to this author, there the disciples understood, nor did the Old book, as well. Both works are needed in this
are no contradictions in the Bible. Only an Testament saints like Isaac, Joseph and Da- Laodicean Age of liberal theology.
inability to properly interpret Scripture and vid. They were not looking to the cross for Have you made a New Year’s resolu-
to apply the Bible’s own built-in hermeneu- salvation. The mystery of the cross was kept tion yet? Join me in learning to study and
tical formula. secret for a reason. Had Satan understood rightly divide the most important book
It has been a long time since I have been the significance and impact of the cross ever written!
this excited about a book on doctrine. In prior to its fulfillment, he would not have One Book Stands Alone (ad p. 29)
fact, I told my father that every Christian entered into Judas Iscariot and instigated Item # B2705 - $24.95 (plus S&H)
should be forced to read this book before the betrayal and crucifixion of Jesus. Satan One Book Rightly Divided (ad p. 29)
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