There is a war coming against Israel, a war that will come from many surrounding nations, but one that will end in major defeat of those nations with Israel victorious. This is a war foretold to us by the Holy Scriptures in Ezekiel 38 & 39, and this war has one major intended consequence – that the world may know the Glory of the Lord our God. As Ezekiel tells us, the aggressors in this war should include Turkey, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Syria, and Russia. Many believe that Russia will be the lead country, drawing all of the Islamic nations in with it. Now just to be clear, this is not the war of Armageddon, and from here on I will refer to it as the Ezekiel war.
Now there are some of you who, once seeing that this is a war foretold to us from the Bible, have already dismissed this as nonsense. But there have been many prophecies foretold us in the Bible that has already happened. For instance, if you remember in your history, Israel was demolished in AD 70 by the Roman General Titus. God had told Israel that He would scatter them across the ends of the earth if they broke their covenant with Him and abandoned Him for other Gods. This was foretold to us in Deuteronomy 28: 64-65 and 2 Chronicles 7:19-21 (as well as other verses):
Deut. – “Then the LORD will scatter you among all peoples, from one end of the earth to the other, and there you shall serve other gods, which neither you nor your fathers have known—wood and stone. And among those nations you shall find no rest, nor shall the sole of your foot have a resting place; but there the LORD will give you a trembling heart, failing eyes, and anguish of soul.
2 Chron. – “But if you turn away and forsake My statutes and My commandments which I have set before you….. then I will uproot them from My land which I have given them; and this house which I have sanctified for My name I will cast out of My sight…”
Thus Israel was been destroyed and desolate for over 2,000 years. But God, as He promised them the land of Israel, also told them he would reunite Israel together as a nation again, just as He had scattered them. As you know this has certainly happened. It was foretold in Jeremiah 31:35-36:
Thus says the Lord, Who gives the sun for a light by day, The ordinances of the moon and the stars for a light by night, Who disturbs the sea, And its waves roar (The Lord of hosts is His name): “If those ordinances depart From before Me, says the Lord, Then the seed of Israel shall also cease From being a nation before Me forever.”
So whether you choose to believe this or not, you will see it come to pass.
Now, the Ezekiel war is one that God will bring about as his judgment against these nations. Ezekiel tells us that God’s wrath will be roused in His anger and as these nations come against Israel, he will cause a great earthquake in the land of Israel and it will be felt all around the world. And with it He will lay waste to the armies that want to invade Israel. He will conquer them with pestilence, torrential rains, fire and sulfur, and will cause them to turn on each other. In fact, Ezekiel tells us that there will be so many dead that it will take Israel 7 months to bury them all. It’s also possible that the fire and sulfur may come from nuclear weapons, that of which I am sure Israel will use to protect itself given the vast armies with which it has to contend.
There will be great resources that Israel collects from this conquered invasion, and it will be enough to last it seven years. Israel will be victorious and God’s Name will be glorified and honored among His chosen people, and perhaps throughout the world.
Now, as to the timing of this, I must say “who knows?” But I do feel we are approaching such a day very soon. Russia is conspiring with Iran who detests the existence of Israel and there is quite a bit of hatred of Israel in the other countries mentioned above. I doubt it would take much to cause them to want war with Israel. If you look at how other “friendly” nations are responding to Israel, it looks as though Israel is becoming more and more isolated. I’ve written before regarding the new stance I believe the U.S. is taking against Israel, and it seems every day that Pres. Obama is working harder to appeal to the Muslim nations around Israel. The once solid allegiance we’ve had with Israel is about to crumble. But this has to happen, as God will be the only protector of Israel in the end.
Also, it’s fair to point out that with current military cuts in spending and the talk of discontinuing our missle defense system under the new administration, that it will not only leave us more vunerable, but may in fact take away the “bluff,” if you will, that helps keep other countries in check. This could also have a hazardous effect on Israel.
Oh, and to note, at some point Damascus will come to its own ruin as well, as prophesied in Isaiah 17:1. I don’t know if this will be a part of the Ezekiel war or not, but I do know from recent events that Russia is stockpiling weapons and aircraft there, which could be a staging point of this war.
So keep an eye on the Middle East and you will know when this is coming. God is serious about making known His Glory to the world and to His chose people.