Ezekiel 38:1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, set thy face against Gog, the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him,
3 And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal:
4 And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws, and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords:
5 Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet:
6 Gomer, and all his bands; the house of Togarmah of the north quarters, and all his bands: and many people with thee.
The situation in the Middle East has become quite the powder keg in the past day or so. The U.S. has been in negotiations with Iran for a few weeks. Iran has apparently killed over thirty thousand of its own citizens over the past short while.
President Trump promised the civilian population of Iran that he would be there to protect them from a ruthless leadership. Mr. Trump delayed his promise and allowed a large number of Iranian civilians be butchered and he did not react. He had a massive buildup of naval and airforce war equipment moved to that area over the past short while.
Israel has been chomping at the bit to knock the power out of Iran. Iran today is Persia of the Bible. Persia was part of the second kingdom that would become a world power, after Babylon. Persia was never a God-fearing nation. It is important to note that God created man and He can use people who hate Him for His glory.
King Darius was the Persian king who made the mistake of listening to his advisors and had Daniel thrown into the lions’ den. He realized his mistake and hoped Daniel’s God would protect him. Daniel came out of that den the next morning without a scratch, but the king’s men were thrown into that same den and were killed before their bodies hit the ground.
King Cyrus was the king of Persia who decreed that the Jews could go back to their own land. He helped fund the return. The book of Esther, which some have stated does not belong in the Bible, speaks of the Persian king who was not bigger than God. Haman had manoeuvred himself into the inner circle of the king, but God was still in charge. God saw to it that Haman was killed and Mordecai became the chief man under the Persian king. Israel still commemorates Purim as a result of the hand of God protecting the Jews from the slaughter that wicked Haman had planned. Interestingly, Purim is on the calendar right now in Israel. They are constantly reminded of the vulnerability they have faced for thousands of years. They are also reminded that it was God, not man that protected them. God used men and women in His plan, but it was God that was and is the Protector of Israel. Yet, to this day, they do not want to submit to His leadership. They will do that one day, but today is not the day. This is because of their hard-heartedness.
Ezekiel was directed by God to speak of a future event where Persia/Iran will be involved with a coalition to try to destroy Israel. Wicked people refuse to learn. No one will wipe out the Jews. Israel will face some severe trouble yet in the future due to their unwillingness to submit to God.
President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu think they can knock Iran down so that it will no longer be a threat to the Middle East and to the rest of the world. They may be able to slow down this threat, but they will not eliminate it. They should read Ezekiel 38-39 and believe what it says.
God is obviously able to use what is happening right now to slow down Iran’s wicked plans. It is not in His timetable right now to destroy all wickedness. That will happen at the end of the Millennium. God knows that it is not in man to do good. Unless man surrenders to Him and is born again, he cannot do good. He has provided the Truth, the Word of God. He is still in charge of true churches today, but they are becoming less and less.
Since President Trump has begun making threats at Iran recently, the Democrats in the U.S. and some Republicans have grown concerned about the President’s power. The U.S. congress is planning on holding a meeting this coming week to have a vote to limit the President’s ability to go to war without Congress’ approval. If they win, the President will have his hands severely tied. We will see where this goes.
It is important to note that God is still in charge. President Trump has been put into his current position by God to slow down the devil’s plan. Mr. Trump does not realize why he is the President of the most powerful nation in the world. That nation, the U.S., was severely crippled during the rule of Mr. Biden and his team. It was about to collapse. It has come back from the brink for a short time, but it will not last.
Mr. Trump is a wicked man, being used by God for His purposes. Mr. Trump may still have the opportunity to repent and be saved. We know from the Scriptures that God is in charge of bringing people to salvation. He wants all to be saved. We also know that at times He shuts the door on those who continue to be defiant against Him. We do not know if Mr. Trump has reached that place with God or not. We know that he is currently not interested in the truth. He is interested in making his name greater.
Mr. Netanyahu is also in a precarious place. He is very dependent on aid from the U.S. He does not realize that the arm of flesh will fail you. He is not looking to God for protection or direction. God has been very merciful to the nation of Israel. He will not allow them to be destroyed, but He is still spanking them and trying to get them to turn to Him. We know from the Scriptures that after the “Rapture” there will be seven years of trouble for Israel, with the last three and a half years of that time being very severe for them. They will embrace the antichrist. He will deceive the world into bowing to him. He will reveal who he is at the mid-point of the 7 year Tribulation and will then use his armies to try to destroy the Jews and anyone who turns to God for salvation. Many will be killed by him, but he will not succeed in his plan. At the end of that seven year period, the antichrist, and the false prophet will be cast into the lake of fire. They will be done. The wicked will be destroyed. The devil will be bound with chains and cast into the bottomless pit for one thousand years. Jesus Christ will rule during that time and life will be much different than it has ever been on this earth.
This current situation in the Middle East should be cause for born again Christians to continue to pray for the peace of Jerusalem. We also need to pray for the many lost Gentiles who have accepted the lies of false teachers and corrupt politicians. This war is a serious event. It is not something that should cause true Christians to try to find a place to hide. We need to speak up and remind people that this turmoil is all leading up to the war of Ezekiel 38-39.
We do not set dates or times. The next major event on God’s timetable, is the return of the Lord Jesus Christ in the clouds to take the New Testament saints out of this world. That could happen at any time. The question is: are you ready for that day?
Today is the Lord’s day. It is another day that God has given all people to go to a true, local church to hear the true Gospel preached. It is the day where saints can come together in God’s house to be encouraged and challenged from God’s Word. It is also the day in which lost people can go to God’s house to be reminded and warned of the importance of turning to God while they still have the opportunity to repent and be saved. Be sure you do not miss out on the opportunity God has provided for you to know Him and serve Him. Soon it will be too late.
Pastor Bartel