Welcome, everybody. Tonight, this is our Friday Prophecy Update, first Friday of each month, and it's the month of August. I can't believe how fast time goes by, but it's good to have you all with us live this evening. We're glad to have you, and we're gonna be talking about all kinds of things, Bible prophecy, but focused on the number one topic of all Bible prophecy things. I'll tell you what that is in a minute, but let's start with a word of prayer. Lord, we're so thankful for your word that's living and powerful. We're thankful for this chance to consider your word as it relates to the days we're living. And I pray that you'd give us wisdom, help us to think rightly. Lord, give us the right response to what your word teaches. And I pray your blessing on this Prophecy Update tonight. Bless all the folks that are tuning in, we pray even right now, we ask in Jesus' name, amen. Amen. Well, what is the centerpiece of Bible prophecy? Well, it happens to be the nation Israel. You know, there's many Bible prophecy topics, and we cover all kinds of topics, everything from some of the new technology that's out there that we see, even AI. I love this little cartoon about the cowboy. And, you know, it's interesting how AI, we were talking about this just a couple months ago, and it's taken off even faster than what we even imagined. And there's plenty to talk about how AI might fit into the biblical prophetic picture. Globalism, deception, deception on so many fronts. We can talk about deception and corruption, deception and wokeism and syncretism, all the isms out there. Babylon Bee, they nailed it again when they were talking about the gender pronouns. Check this video out. Perhaps we should start out by introducing ourselves. I'm Chief of Space Operations, General Foreman. He, him. Undersecretary of State, Angus Miller. He, him. Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer, Amanda Williams. She, her. And what exactly is a Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer? It's my job to be a black woman. Well, good job, then. And what is this he, him, she, her of which you are all speaking? Those are our gender pronouns, so you know which gender we identify as. I appreciate that, but I am pretty good at telling the difference between the two genders. A man, man, woman. Nailed it. That was a lucky guess, but there are way more than just two genders. Fascinating. We've been probing humans for years and we have only discovered the two. How many genders are there? 172. There's so many of them. There's gender vague, there's gray gender, demigender, autigender, omnigender, polygender, and about 10 different kinds of trans. And those are just the ones that my nephew has identified as in the last month. There's also bigender. which is two genders, those genders being male and female, or a combination of all genders, including a gender, which is no gender at all. So you can actually simultaneously be no gender at all plus a gender. It's pretty cool, huh? The planet has no sign of intelligent life. Official recommendation, destroy. But all that to say, the Babylon Bee, they nail the funny parts. I think it's funny to keep things light when they are actually pretty serious. But everything from globalism, lawlessness, the coming persecution, that's what we covered last, prophecy update, the possible persecution that's coming. But Israel, is one of the most important things to keep your eyes on. The Bible repeatedly affirms that Israel is extremely special to God. He chose Israel as a special people unto himself. If you don't believe me, you gotta read your Bible. Deuteronomy chapter seven, verse six says, for thou art an holy people unto the Lord thy God, the Lord thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself. above all people that are upon the face of the earth." I like how the ESV puts it there, a treasured possession. That's what God calls the Jewish people, a treasured possession. You know, God established a special everlasting covenant with His holy people, the Jews, and that covenant remains active today, no matter what You know, people will try to tell you God's done with the Jews, God has no plan for the Jews, the church has replaced Israel, also known as replacement theology. Very dangerous teaching. I always like to remind people, if you believe God has replaced Israel because they were not following his word and not doing what they should have been doing, then we should be nervous too. If God forsook his everlasting covenant with Israel, then why wouldn't he forsake us? God does not go back on his promises. It reminds me of his covenant promise there in Genesis chapter 17 verses 7 and 8. He says, and I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant. And the word everlasting there means Everlasting. It's funny how entire huge denominations will try to say, well, that's no longer the covenant for the Jews. It's now for the church. Wrong. He says it's an everlasting covenant to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, and I will give unto thee and thy seed after thee the land wherein thou art a stranger. all the land of Canaan for an everlasting possession and I will be their God. You know, this Genesis 17 verses seven through eight answers so many questions about the Jews. Do they have a right to be in the land? All the questions the world is grappling with right now and people are frankly furious over. The Bible should shut the mouths of everyone. But obviously people aren't reading their Bibles and some people don't care what the Bible says. But as it turns out, not only does God love His people and has a plan and a purpose, an everlasting covenant with the Jews, but He also, God observes and cares how other nations deal with the people of Israel. That's made perfectly clear in Genesis chapter 12 verse 3, where it says, and I will bless them, the nations or people, that bless thee and curse him that curseth thee. And in thee, the Jews, Israel, shall all families of the earth be blessed. Isn't it shocking that, you know, here's a people group, God says, these are my people, my chosen people. And yet, historically, the world, shockingly, has targeted the Jews for hatred, antisemitism, which is a fancy way of saying to be against Jewish people. And, you know, the atrocities that have happened to the Jews, not just, you know, in recent history, but all throughout history. You might say, oh, come on, Brett, people groups have been targeted throughout history, you know, think about slavery and stuff like that. Well, as bad as slavery is and was, some people, you might ask the question, what's the difference between antisemitism and say like slavery, you know, in the early parts of the United States when we had slavery? I'll tell you the main difference, and the reason why, what has happened to the Jews is far worse than slavery even in history. I'll tell you why. Slavery was an abuse of the people horribly. And the Jews, however, they weren't trying to enslave the Jews, they were trying to exterminate that people group altogether. Throughout the history of Israel and the Jewish people, They've been targeted over and over and over again. They're the only people who've been targeted for total annihilation. And not only once, but many times, whether you're talking about Pharaoh slaughtering the male babies in Egypt and wanting to wipe out the Jews, Or the story there in Esther where Haman, the Agagite, that's where he was, he was an Agagite. Haman, he was the guy who wanted to wipe out all the Jews, kill them all. He made a law to kill all the Jews. And that's kind of the whole story of the book of Esther. Herod the Great, during the time when Jesus was born, was willing to go and just exterminate all the baby boys there in that region, along with the Roman Empire, ultimately, when you come to the end of the Jews being there in Israel, AD 70 and onward, the Romans really wanted to exterminate the Jewish people as well. We can talk about all the emperors that came and went, Ultimately, you get to Adolf Hitler and the Nazis with the Holocaust, which is just another time in history where the Jews, they sought to annihilate them completely, not enslave them, but to annihilate them. Why would the world continuously, throughout all the generations, have this target on the Jewish people's back? I think there's only really one logical answer, and that is they're God's chosen people. and the world hates them because of that. You know, it's interesting to me, no power that has ever persecuted the Jews or the Jewish people have remained great. Eventually they would all fall. And the Jews just continue to plug along through history. And they do amazing things, whether it's Nobel Peace Prize or, you know, throughout history, the Jews have brought more than any single people group, whether we're talking about medicine, science, technology, the Jews have given enormous gifts to human civilization, probably the most important man in the world for sure was a Jew, Jesus. The most important book ever given in the world, written by and given by the Lord through the Jews, the Bible. the most important organization in the world, the Christian Church, all originated in Israel and was begun with the Jewish people there. This would stand to reason that Israel, the Jewish people, the nation of Israel, is the epicenter of Bible prophecy. You know, ever since it became a nation again in modern day, in 1948, when the modern state of Israel was born, it not only became an important stage for setting the development of Bible prophecies and the international regathering of the Jews in unbelief, I might add, the Jews. Some people think that we that are pro-Israel, we think they're doing everything right and that they're God's chosen people and they must be in love with God. No, the truth is the Jews have made some horrible decisions throughout history and they've largely gathered in unbelief. God is gathering them in unbelief. Remember the Valley of Dry Bones in Ezekiel? I'm not sure that we see the bones gathering and even some flesh and stuff gathering, like it says there, but there's no life that has been breathed into the Jews yet. There's still largely an unbelief. And one of the predictions of the Bible, there's coming a time where the Jews, after being regathered, will have life breathed back into them. If you read there at Exodus, pardon me, in Ezekiel, the Valley of Dry Bones. But they've gathered in unbelief before the judgment of the tribulation period, that seven year period that's coming called the tribulation. One of the Bible predictions of this is found in the Old Testament passage of Ezekiel chapter 20, verses 34 through 38. It says, and I will bring you out from the people and will gather you out of the countries wherein you're scattered with a mighty hand and with a stretched out arm and with fury poured out and I will bring you into the wilderness of the people and there I will plead with you face to face. Now before we read on in that section, what does it mean that God's gonna gather them with an outstretched arm and with fury poured out? Before the Jews are brought back to life, breathe life into them, before they are saved, we gotta remember the Bible says in Romans 11 that when the fullness of the Gentiles comes in, that I believe is gonna be ultimately the rapture of the church, Then it says all of Israel will be saved. When will Israel be saved? After the rapture of the church, during the tribulation period. And it's that tribulation period that's going to be brutal for the Jews, but it's God's outstretched arm with fury poured out. And the Lord's going to use that to wake up a nation. The Tribulation period, one of the main objectives of the Tribulation is to see the Jews come to life and be woken, not like in the woke terms today, but they will wake up and see that Jesus really is the Messiah. But it's not until they will experience that wrath, you know, in that certain way where it's going to be poured out on a Christ-rejecting sinful world. But there in Ezekiel, it goes on there in verse 36, it says, you know, he wants to meet them face to face. Like as I pleaded with your fathers in the wilderness in the land of Egypt, so will I plead with you, saith the Lord God, and I will cause you to pass under the rod. Note that part there, and I will cause you to pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of covenant, and I will purge out from among you the rebels and them that transgress against me, and I will bring them forth out of the country where they sojourn, and they shall not enter into the land of Israel, and you shall know that I am the Lord. This is, you know, another time where the Lord is reminding that I will cause you to pass under the rod. The Jews are going to go through tribulation time period. Now with this all said, the Lord says in these verses he's going to regather Israel from all over the world. You know, the diasporas where the Jews were scattered after A.D. 70. and then the Jews regathered in modern times. This is one of the most incredible Bible prophecies that we have in our lifetime. Some of us are old enough. If you're old enough to remember when the Jews were able to, in 1948, have a nation once again, that should have just sealed the deal with people understanding how it's gonna work. with Bible prophecy. Dr. Walvord, who's someone who's now in heaven, but I love all the books that he wrote, commentaries on the book of Revelation, commentaries on the book of Daniel. But Dr. Walvord, he said, of the many peculiar phenomena which characterize the present generation, few events can claim equal significance as far as biblical prophecy is concerned with that of the return of Israel to their land. It constitutes a preparation for the end of the age, the setting for the coming of the Lord for His church, and the fulfillment of Israel's prophetic destiny. I can't agree more. He's right. What a huge fulfillment of Bible prophecy, the Jews regathering, becoming a nation, not just any nation, but a powerful nation. And the fact that the last 75 years we've seen a worldwide regathering you know, and the reestablishment of the nation Israel should make all Christians excited to be living in the last days. I think that is one of the main proof positives that we are living in the last days because of what's happening in Israel. So that's why You know, we focus on Israel and we always look to Israel to sort of be the epicenter of all things Bible prophecy. God loves them, has a plan for them, and the stage is being set for the end time scenario through Israel. Traditionally, one of the things we all tend to look at is the external threats against Israel. You know, everything from the Gog-Magog War of Ezekiel and the nations that are involved in that. We might talk a little about that tonight. But also just the players of the Gog-Magog-Ezekiel 38 War. And we do kind of watch the external threats, even the prediction of Russia with a hook in her jaw being drawn down to Israel during that war. And so we do kind of keep that as something to watch, the external threats. But as of late, one of the things we've been noticing, and I wanted to kind of put some time in this evening, is some of the internal threats we're seeing in Israel right now. And if you haven't been following what is happening in Israel today internally, it's a little bit shocking if you know kind of the story. In fact, some are suggesting that civil war is even possible. You know, that's something even four years ago, five years ago, nobody was really talking about that. But, you know, there's this Jerusalem Post article, Israel's Entering a Civil War, Former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert Says. In this J-Post article, in an interview with British news outlet Channel 4 News, The former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert declared that Israel is going into a civil war following Monday's vote to pass a bill severely restricting the use of the reasonableness standard. Keep that in mind, I'll tell you what that is in a second. There is a threat, he said, a very serious threat, Olmert said. It's never happened before and we are now going into civil war now. Like Olmert, who's not a lightweight, he's a former prime minister of Israel, he says, we are going into civil war right now. See, what happened here, this language is a little funny, but it's the reasonableness standard bill that was just passed into law in the Knesset. Now, what's interesting is the reasonableness standard bill is a little hard for us as Americans to get our brains around, and I think the reason why is we have a constitution, and that's kind of the way we roll, at least we should, saying, is it constitutional? And it should take all ambiguity out, and we interpret laws, and that's what our judicial system is supposed to do. Well, as it turns out, the Israelis don't have a constitution. They have a list of laws and stuff like that, but there's no formal constitution. But what the current prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, is wanting to pass is this law known as the Reasonableness Standard Bill. Here's why. Because in the last 30 years or so, the Supreme Court of Israel has used something to their own political gain, it seems. At least this is what the one side is arguing. And they are applying something that's like a loophole that's not really a law. And that is, if the government passes laws, and then the judicial system, the Supreme Court, decides, we don't like that law, and that's not reasonable. They are using the power of reasonableness, saying if it's not reasonable to us, we're not gonna allow that law to pass. So there's been things that have happened in Israel where the government passed laws and then the courts have controlled that by saying it's not reasonable. So this passing of the bill, in the first reading of the controversial, this article, Jerusalem Post, Israel's Knesset passes reasonable standard bill in the first reading. The first reading of the controversial Reasonable Standard Bill passed in Knesset by a vote of 64 to 56 with plans to move on to the Knesset Constitution, Law, and Justice Committee. Following the passing of the bill, protests planned throughout the country are expected to occur throughout Tuesday. If it passes, the bill next stage will be a return to the Constitution, law, and Justice Committee, which already on Tuesday will begin to prepare for its second and third reading. But basically, if you follow what's happening, it's past the second and third reading. And so people have kind of flipped out. The courts have used the term unreasonable in the extreme, which is their opinion. There's no legal definition. They're just saying, ah, it's unreasonable, so we're going to throw that out. And so who would have thought that you could use the court system, the criminal justice system, to control a country? Does that sound familiar? It's interesting to watch some of the things that parallel what's going on in Israel right now with what's going on in the United States. The judges of the Supreme Court of Israel are not using legal definitions or citing case law or anything like that. It's just their opinion whether something is reasonable or not. So, the Israeli Supreme Court has granted themselves the power to say what is reasonable or what is kosher or not. Now, Netanyahu, the Prime Minister, and the majority, by the way, are asking who gives them the right to define this of what's reasonable. It's nowhere in their laws. This is something they've just sort of made up and adopted and started to use it more and more as time has gone by. The opposition is saying Netanyahu is destroying democracy in Israel. And that's debatable. You know, I mean, some people are saying, well, Netanyahu is in legal trouble, so he's trying to get control. And some people are even trying to accuse Netanyahu of being a dictator in Israel. He's trying to ruin democracy in Israel. So what's happened basically with the elites, the people that are wealthy and powerful with their wealth, they're basically stirring things up in a way that we've seen nothing like this in Israel's history from its beginning in 1948. We're seeing massive protests and crowds of people by the hundreds of thousands. You know, you can see pics like, you know, this guy standing in front of the Israeli, you know, police who's being blasted by a water cannon, you know. Basically, you know, they're in Jerusalem on Begin Highway during a protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. And this is called his judicial overhaul. That's what they're calling it. And so just even as recently as July 24th, as they passed that law, people have been angry. Hundreds of thousands of people in the streets. You say, well, Brad, that big deal protest, we see that in Portland, Oregon. We see that, you know, I don't know about hundreds of thousands, but think about it. If you talk about a country like Israel of only 10 million citizens, but you have 400,000 to 500,000 people on the streets. This is huge. And they're staying out on the streets till like three in the morning, you know, and you know, like it's nonstop. So you say, okay, Brett, so what? Political turmoil in Israel, civil war, what does that have to do with us? Well, it has to do with the biblical prophetic picture. For example, what do you think Israel's enemies are thinking about this right now? Because Israel, with its internal turmoil, they are vulnerable right now. Al Jazeera has an article, and they're noticing, obviously, Israeli military reservists at center of anti-government protest. This article says, military protest group Brothers in Arms was one of the dozens who participated in the second weekly day of disruption, which were the voices of ex-soldiers that have taken center stage. Leading the way are more than 10,000 reservist soldiers, including members of the elite intelligence unit, 8,200 and Air Force pilots who have signed an online petition to go to war for the soul of the nation. threatening to boycott their reservist duties. These are people that have a sworn duty to serve and protect through military force, and they're not showing up. Some would argue that's a crime. When you sign up for the military, you have to kind of abide by the orders But these are major, you know, high ups in the military. And it's not just military, it's even doctors who are boycotting and not showing up to do surgeries. There's all kinds of people that are really upset about this. And they're saying, we're not gonna let Israel lose its soul. Now, are they losing their soul? Is Netanyahu trying to make Israel lose its soul? Boy, that's a debatable thing. I know, I've kind of talked to people on both sides of this argument. Is Netanyahu perfect? Has he done everything perfect? No. But at the same time, it seems to me, as I understand it, and you can do your own research on this, but it seems to me like Netanyahu's actually not trying to become a dictator, not trying to do away with democracy, but actually trying to rewind back to 30 or 40 years ago, the way Israel rolled before the judicial branch started using this idea of, you know, their own judgment on things, coming up with their own, whether it's reasonable or not. And it seems to me like Al Jazeera and the enemies of Israel are noticing, man, they're divided. They could even be going into civil war. All of this over the issue of judicial reform. And so now Israel's unique, even different than most countries. We think of Israel as kind of like the West, the United States, One big difference is Israel has a civilian army and is causing this dangerous situation as Israel's enemies smell blood in the water. So no matter how we understand the problem, whether it's Netanyahu trying to take over and get too much power, or if he's trying to preserve Israel, not let the judicial courts take over. No matter how we understand the problem, we as Christians still have the same job to do. And that is to pray for the peace of Jerusalem. That's what we should really be given to, no matter what your position is on what's going on in Israel. Maybe you don't hold a position, but Psalm 122, Verses six through seven, pray for the peace of Jerusalem, they shall prosper that love thee. Peace be within thy walls and prosperity within thy palaces. So we should pray for the peace of Jerusalem and we should also pray that our country, the United States, lands correctly on this because the nations that bless, you know, we already talked about it, the nations that bless Israel will be blessed. but the nations that curse Israel will be cursed. And so we need to pray for our country and our leadership that we would make wise decisions. How are we doing with that? You know, well, for the longest time, this Hill article, Biden won't commit to involving Netanyahu, pardon me, to inviting Netanyahu to the White House. He's given Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of Israel, the cold shoulder. President Biden would not commit to inviting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the White House, a split from previous presidents who have long welcomed the country's longest-serving Prime Minister. Biden has split with Netanyahu due to the extreme right-wing nature of his new cabinet as well as settlement expansions, and instead noted that President Isaac Herzog would be visiting Washington instead of... So the president, by the way, of Israel is more of a figurehead, whereas the prime minister is the guy who really is the one in power. So our president invited President Isaac Herzog, who's more of a left-wing kind of guy, invited him. So never fear, the U.S. is here. You know, how did the president with our Herzog, Isaac Herzog, go with with President Biden? Well, a little bit like the last time the Israeli leader met with Biden. Some people thought Biden fell asleep. But if you watch closely, he's not falling asleep. Check out this clip. This is President, Israeli President Isaac Herzog meeting with Biden and see if you can see how that went. Well, Mr. President, welcome back. Welcome back to Washington. Welcome back to the White House. And it's a pleasure to have you. We brought Israelis and Palestinians together at a political level. So if you can get an interpretation for that, I'm told that Herzog told Biden he didn't need an interpreter because he speaks English really well, but maybe in that situation, he should have got the interpreter. I would have liked to have one there, but be that as it may, more lack of real leadership, especially in a time when Israel is in trouble. How's the rest of the United States handling this? Well, you know, even our Congress, did you see the Times of Israel article? And I, I hate to even say this, but Ilhan Omar, she said, no way in hell likely to attend when Herzog gave his speech to Congress. She boycotted that because he was going to be there, Isaac Herzog. He went to address the joint session of U.S. Congress And she said, there's no way I'm going to attend. Omar wrote in a Twitter thread that listed nearly a dozen reasons for her blowing off that part of her duty as a congressperson. Ilhan Omar, by the way, the Babylon Bee also did a funny thing. Ilhan Omar withdraws support from Bill to save the earth after learning that's where Israel is. It seems to me like she's set on hatred for Israel, which is sadly, much of the Arab world has that kind of a worldview. So you say, okay, Brett, I got it. So this judicial reform in Israel is causing all kinds of trouble. Some people are talking civil war. Do I think it's going to end in civil war? I hope not. I don't think so. But some people are even saying that. So it is something for us to be praying about. What does civil war mean to Bible prophecy? To me, it has to do with the stage being set for the coming world leader the Bible refers to in many ways, but one way is the Antichrist. Is it possible that today. We're watching the stage being set by God to get all the requirements in place for the next phase of God's plan. And that could be something coming up soon, the revealing of the Antichrist and the start of the Tribulation period. Now we know from 2 Thessalonians chapter 2 that the church is going to be taken out before all that happens. But what is happening right now with Israel being divided and the vacuum for leadership in Israel is interesting. When will Israel be in a place where they'll fall for this coming world leader and think he's the best thing that ever came? They're going to fall hook, line, and sinker, and he's going to make some kind of a peace deal according to Daniel chapter 9. He's going to make a peace deal with Israel, and he's going to woo them into a peace treaty, and they're going to sign it. They're going to follow him. Now they'll realize they've been duped in the middle of the Tribulation once that event called the Abomination of Desolation happens there in the Temple Mount in Jerusalem midway in the Tribulation period. But before that, they're going to think he's the best thing that ever happened. What would make a Jewish state like Israel say, we're going to follow this guy? I think this is perhaps what we're seeing. Israel struggled with leadership. Benjamin Netanyahu is the longest prime minister in the history of Israel. but there seems to be a mounting hatred for him. And they're trying to, you know, get him legally in trouble and causing all kinds of trouble for him. And the protests by the hundreds of thousands are really against Netanyahu. So there continues to be a leadership vacuum in Israel and worldwide. Man, we can talk about all the various nations dealing with serious unrest and crisis in leadership. Do you think we feel that way in the United States? Who's going to be the Democratic politician who will step in for Biden? Is it Kamala? Who is that going to be? And who's going to be the Republican? People are wondering. Where are the leaders and who are we going to have? And it's going to be interesting to see how that goes both for Israel and for the United States. But because of that, the stage is being set for this coming world leader who's going to not just be one nation, he's going to gather many nations and unify people. He's going to be a slick politician. We tend to think of the Antichrist as a little evil guy running around the world with a black cape and pitchfork and you know, a little goatee, you know, the devil running around. I don't believe that's what Antichrist is going to look like. I think he's going to be a slick, even polished, perhaps, politician. who will speak great words, Daniel prophesies about him, powerful words. He'll worship the God of munitions. He'll have a certain powerful ability in warfare. And people will be drawn to this guy, including the Jews. It makes you wonder, could this be, and I'm not saying this for sure, but could this be just the stage being set to fill that leadership vacuum? right now with the unrest that's going on in Israel. They're looking for answers. Nowhere in Israel's history have they been so divided, and dangerously so. You see, the stage is being set for Antichrist, but the stage is also being set in this next segment I want to talk about for that Ezekiel war. Because of Israel's weakened state right now, the division in their country, like I said, you know, the sharks are smelling blood in the water, particularly Iran and others are seeing this. In this Iran International article, Iran and its proxies see opportunity in Israel crisis. I'll talk about the proxies here in a second, what that is, but this article says, Iran's IRGC held a three-hour meeting last week with Lebanese Hezbollah and Palestinian Hamas to see how they can take advantage of Israel's internal problems. Reuters quoted an Iranian diplomat saying that the Revolutionary Guards IRGC Quds Force attended the three-hour meeting as Israel's foes see an opportunity in Israel's political turmoil related to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's judicial reforms. Iran and its proxy groups have been devoting special attention to the crisis at closed-door meetings, perceiving this as a potential turning point for Israel, Reuters said. So Iran's feeling their Cheerios right now and they're doing all kinds of interesting things. They've been developing proxy paramilitary and military groups all around the Middle East. And they've been doing this for a long time. One thing you gotta give the Iranians is patience. They've just patiently been developing these proxies because Iran knows that they can't really go head to head, one on one with Israel militarily. But they've been patiently building up, really, some would say hundreds of thousands of soldiers around Israel, surrounding them, and causing all kinds of trouble. We'll talk more about those proxies in a second. But along with that, Iran has been in the Strait of Hormuz. They're in the Persian Gulf, causing more and more trouble. They've been using their military ships to fire on cargo ships. even recently. And because of that, in USNI news, we learned that the United States were right now sending destroyers, F-35s, F-16s, to protect the merchant ships in the Middle East from the Iranians who have been shooting at these other ships. So we're bringing out the big guns, our United States Navy. We're sending a mix of Air Force fighters, a guided missile destroyer to escort ships in and out of the Persian Gulf. A Pentagon press secretary said Monday the United States is dispatching a mix of F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters and F-16 Falcon Fighters to supplement forces already in U.S. Central Command as the Iranian forces continue to attempt to seize merchant ships in and around the Strait of Hormuz. That's the hot point of contention. So then the question becomes, will Israel be forced into a first strike in the coming war that seems to be looming with Iran and its proxies? Most of the experts believe that Israel can't afford to let the proxies strike first. Now, who are the proxies of the Iranians? Well, Iran has provided funding. weapons, training to groups, including the Lebanese Hezbollah, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, the PIJ as sometimes referred to, which have vowed and carried out attacks already on Israel. which have been designated terrorist organizations by most countries, many countries. But since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Iran has been working hard on this network of these proxy power groups, nations and military units, paramilitary groups. And as of 2022, Tehran has allies among more than a dozen major militias Some with their own political parties that challenged local and neighboring governments. So Iran's Revolutionary Guards and the elite Quds Force providing arms training and financial support to militias. You know, the political movements in at least six countries the Iranians have been controlling. The big countries that you should know that Iran is sort of controlling is Bahrain, Iraq, Lebanon, the Palestinian territories, if you include the Gaza Strip in southern Israel, and along with the West Bank. parts of Syria and Yemen. And, you know, really, when you look at a map of this, you kind of realize that Israel's got all kinds of people that Iran have been arming and training and readying for a unified attack against Israel. So Israel's largely surrounded, whether you're talking about the Gaza Strip in the south, Hezbollah in Lebanon, the proxies that are there in Syria and in Iraq, And so Israel really is shockingly surrounded. And the big question is, could they afford to be attacked first? And most agree that they cannot. And if you've been following Israel's narrative, they're reserving the right for a preemptive attack against Iran and their proxies. You know, it's interesting, their Jewish News article, a war between Hezbollah and Israel is in Iran's interest. Increasing provocation by Hezbollah on Lebanon's border with Israel is part of Iran's strategy to push its conflict with Israel as far away as possible from its own borders, and Israeli security officials told Jewish News. Hezbollah operatives have attempted to breach and damage Israel's border fence in Lebanon in recent months. while the organization set up two tents on Israeli territory in the contested Mount Dove region, Sheba Farms, bringing the IDF on high alert. While one of the two tents, this is a very tense situation, while one of these two tents have been removed, there still remains this one tent. You have to understand, this is bold. For Hezbollah to cross the border into Israel and put up some tents and act like they're setting up camp there. If you know how the Israelis operate, there's not much of a future in that. Like there's, you can watch video of people trying to sneak into Israel from the north in the Hezbollah region, and Israelis will shoot them out of that area. And there's video you can find. So these guys are getting more and more bold. And Hezbollah's leader, Hassan Nasrallah, has warned Israel, do not touch that tent. or else there'll be a big price to pay. So this idea that Iran's provoking, they've been provoking the United States, they're provoking Israel. You say, now why would Iran be provoking such powerhouses like Israel and the United States? It has to do with their eschatological view. They believe that their Mahdi, their 12th Imam or whatever, would come in by bringing in havoc in the Middle East. Even if it cost Iranian lives, their worldview is so be it. Their number one goal is to get rid of Israel and wash it off the face of the map into the sea. They've not pretended to even hide that fact. So, can the Jews afford to let Iranians continue to poke? Meanwhile, the Iranians continue to enrich uranium. Now, there's a big debate, and whoever you listen to is, how much uranium has been enriched? Do they have enough to build bombs? Some experts say they already do. It's a done deal. And it's shocking that Israel has even let that happen. But all that to say, the idea of Israel doing the preemptive strike, which means Israel going to war with Iran, what does that have to do with the Bible? Well, again, it goes back to that Gog Magog War of Ezekiel 38. Iran is one of the key players along with Russia, Turkey, some of the other nations listed there. We've done whole studies on Ezekiel 38 about the Gog Magog War. But if Israel preemptively strikes Iran, that might just be the beginnings of the Gog Magog War, something to watch. There's another small prophecy that we all kind of are watching too because Iran is largely setting up shop in the city of Damascus and if you remember that Isaiah 17 prophecy about Damascus is going to be destroyed at some point. It's never been destroyed in the history of the world. It makes you wonder if Israel is going to be a part of that prophecy being fulfilled when Damascus becomes uninhabitable. That's what the Bible says it's going to happen. So we could talk more about the preemptive strike possibility for Israel, but here's some of the things that I want us all to really remember. about all these things. You know, we can get so focused on what's happening with the world events and get all excited about this and even almost feel the need to defend and stand with Israel, which we do, we should be praying for Israel. We can't really defend all of Israel's behavior, because remember, they've gathered in unbelief. And a lot of the leaders of Israel are largely somewhat secular. And they're not really doing what God wants them to do yet. There will come a day where Israel will turn and accept the Lord. But until then, we have to be careful not to get caught up too much in the politics of Israel as much as we should be caught up in caring for and loving on the people of Israel and praying for that peace of Jerusalem, which the ultimate peace of Jerusalem happens when we see Jesus who comes, the second coming, where he will rule and reign from Jerusalem. That's gonna happen. That's gonna be when the peace of Jerusalem is actually going to happen. And one of the things we also need to remember is, you know, what Luke tells us, Luke 21, verse 28, it says, and when these things begin to come to pass, Now remember, this is the Olivet Discourse. Remember, we've been studying, we studied Matthew 24 and 25. We just finished Mark 13, which is that version of the Olivet Discourse, and then Luke 21, 28. But in Luke's account, this is one of the things Jesus says to remind us about the last days, when the disciples asked, what about the end of the world? What's gonna happen? Luke reminds us, and when these things begin to come to pass, Then look up and lift your heads, for your redemption draweth nigh." The signs of the times, this is what Jesus was referring to when the disciple says, when will these things be the sign of your coming and the end of the age or the end of the world? This is the thing that we were to know is the signs of the times. And I think all the stuff we've talked about, Israel is God's timepiece. And as we look what's going on in Jerusalem, those are all indicators of where we are in the timeline of Bible prophecy. And I believe what we're seeing going on in Israel right now very well could be. And I say that not emphatically because, who knows, things could change. Suddenly this could be all ironed out. Well then what good is it for us to think about that? Because Jesus told us to watch for those signs of what would come in the end. And we're not to be caught as in the dark, but we're children of the light, we're told there in 1 Thessalonians chapter 5. Children of the day. So the light of the word, thy word is a lamp unto my feet, a light unto my path. We're looking to the scripture to sort of illuminate and show us the signs of the times. And I see very possible, I wouldn't be emphatic, but very possible that what we're seeing in Israel, the unrest and the turmoil could be a precursor to those two main things, setting up for an Antichrist to come and do his thing, but also the enemies of Israel being emboldened as Israel finds themselves weakened with more than 10,000 of their leading military commanders saying, we're not even gonna show up to work. because of this judicial problem. If I were an enemy of Israel right now, I'd be very much emboldened to say, now's the time to move. We'll see. We'll see where this brings us. But these signs of the times should remind us, not that we're waiting for those to happen in our lifetime, but the rapture of the church is going to happen before all that really comes to pass. Before we see Antichrist, the rapture of the church happens. So we're watching these precursor to these possible events, which means the rapture could happen any minute. The eminence of the rapture of the church is something that I believe the Bible teaches. You know, so much we're looking at are things that are gonna ramp up, like we talked about last week when we were in Mark chapter 13, as a woman in travail with child, birth pangs that are more intense and more frequent as it gets close to the coming of the baby. The same thing is true in Bible prophecy as we see the ramping up of things and more intense and more frequent. Could it be that's the coming of Christ? If you're not watching the news, what's happening in Israel right now, some are arguing this is the most intense thing that's happened in Israel's history since 1948 to the present. These protests, hundreds of thousands of people, the threat of civil war, the Jews in Israel are saying this is giant. And I think we should see this as perhaps a giant contraction or these giant birth pangs. So what do we do about that? Do you remember when we were last week in Mark chapter 13? And by the way, if you just watch our prophecy updates here, we're glad to have you. It's great. But all of our, what we do on Sundays and Wednesdays here at A.T. is we go verse by verse, chapter by chapter through the Bible. We don't skip a verse. And because one-fourth, at least one-fourth of the Bible is Bible prophecy, we touch on it all the time as we go verse by verse. And we just finished the Olivet Discourse in Mark 13. But one of the things we saw Jesus teach us there in Mark 13 is he finishes up his dissertation there and Mark's gospel tells us that there's three main things we should focus on. And this is something we looked at as we were wrapping up that. I wanted to remind us here because In talking about all these things, you know, you can get upset about what's going on in Israel, you can be upset about what's happening in the Middle East and the Jews and all that. But we're not told to be upset. We're told by Jesus, in light of these things, there's three things we looked at. Jesus said over and over, watch, watch, watch. But threaded in there were two other things. The first thing he said, watch and pray. And don't forget, as Bible prophecy students, we should be people given to prayer. Prayer and studying prophecy goes hand in hand. If you're just studying Bible prophecy and you're not committed to praying for the peace of Jerusalem, you're missing the point. That's what Jesus said, watch and pray. And then not only did he say pray, but he also said work there in Mark 13. Now, again, we're not working for our salvation because we're saved by grace through faith. But, you know, he says in verse Mark 13, 33, he says, you know, take heed and watch and pray. for you know not when the time is. So that's what we should be doing, pray. But then it also says that Jesus kind of gave an example. He said, for the son of man, verse 34 of Mark 13, the son of man is as a man taking a far journey who left his house and gave authority to his servants and every man his work. and commanded the porter to watch, so watch therefore. So Jesus, when he ascended from Jerusalem and went to prepare a place for us, we've been given work to do. And the work we've been given is to go into all the world and preach the gospel, make disciples, baptize people. That's something also that should really spark in our hearts when we study Bible prophecies, to pray, but also to do the work of the ministry and preach the gospel. Man, if there was ever a time to talk about what's going on in the world and use that as a springboard of what Jesus has called us to do and share the gospel with people, this is the time. People are more receptive, I think, when they know what's going on in the world and then they see what the Bible says in prophecy. You remember what Jesus said in the Olivet Discourse in Matthew 24? In fact, it's Matthew 24, verses 45 through 51. It says, who then is a faithful and wise servant whom his Lord hath made ruler over all his household to give them meat in due season? Blessed is that servant whom his Lord, when he comes, shall find so doing. Verily I say unto you, that he shall make him ruler over all his goods. Now before we read on there, that's the good servant. He's busy about the work of the Lord. That's what we should be doing right now. being busy about the work of the Lord. But that scripture then goes and talks about, Jesus finishes on about the evil wicked servant in verse 48. He says, but, and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, my Lord delays his coming, which is sadly what a lot of the church is saying today. I'm not saying all the church is evil, but I wouldn't want to be in this category of a guy saying, the Lord delays his coming and shall begin to smite his fellow servants and eat and drink with the drunken. The Lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him. and in an hour when he's not aware of, and shall cut him asunder and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth." You know, we can argue about, you know, who that is. And all I'm saying is that's the person who says the Lord's delaying is coming and he's just kind of lolligagging. He's not working. He's just kind of chilling and saying, I'm just going to party down, smite my fellow in the face. But he's going to end up in the place where there's weeping and gnashing of teeth. And so we need to be really aware. Part of what we're supposed to do is be busy about the work of the kingdom, sharing the gospel. So Jesus said, he said, you know, pray in light of end times, work, be busy about the kingdom and then watch. And he said that over and over and over again. Watch, watch, watch. That's why we do prophecy updates. And that's why it's good for you and for me to be students of Bible prophecy and see what's going on in the world, because Jesus told us over and over again that we're called to be those who are watchmen on the wall, watching over and over again, seeing what's happening. And so stick with us, you know, as we study through the Bible, verse by verse, and also these once a month prophecy updates, just to sort of keep our eye on what's going on. And as we looked at keeping our eye on Israel in this particular, keep your eye watching what's going on in Israel, because that is the best indicator of the days we're living. Israel, that's it. Let's take just this last minute or two, and let's pray for the peace of Jerusalem. Let's do what Jesus taught us to do, and we'll close out with this. And Lord, we're so thankful that we've been given clear directives in these last days, that you've called us to pray for the peace of Jerusalem. And Lord, we think of what's going on right now, the exact opposite, an amazing irony, the city named by that delineation of peace, the city of peace. And yet it really hasn't been peaceful hardly ever throughout history. But we know when the Prince of Peace arrives, there will be an everlasting peace and everlasting righteousness that will be brought into Jerusalem. So as we keep our eye on Israel and we pray for the peace of Jerusalem, Lord, we really are looking for your return. Come quickly, Lord, and I pray that you'd give your church that anticipation. And instead of just being prophecy buffs and studying Bible prophecy, may it bring good fruit in our lives that we'd be busy praying and doing the work you've called us to and keeping our eyes up, Lord, looking to you, looking up as these things begin to come to pass and lifting our heads where our redemption is gonna draw nigh. We look forward to that, Lord. So I pray for my brothers and sisters that are here that you just instill within the hope and the joy that we have. Lord, we know we're not supposed to be fearful about these times, but confident in you, putting our trust in you, knowing that you have plans and a purpose for us all, Lord. So we pray blessing on this now as we've offered this to you. I pray your blessing and all the folks that are joining us now, bless them, we pray in Jesus' name, amen. Well, thank you for joining me tonight. It's good to have you with us online. Don't forget, by the way, to click subscribe to our YouTube channel, and there you'll get not only our prophecy update, but also our verse-by-verse through the Bible studies. And we're right now in the Gospel of Mark. It's a good time to join us. We'll be in the Gospel of John just in a couple weeks. It'll be a great chance to jump in. and start joining with us in the Through the Bible study. Hey, and also let us know, you know, if you're out there and give us the thumbs up, which helps get the word out. People will maybe get more exposure to what the Bible says about what's going on in Jerusalem as you click those little links and what have you. So I'm sure appreciate that. But until next time, we'll see you the first Friday of September. Next time, God bless y'all.