By Marko Kiroglu

The Next Big War is Coming Soon

When we take a look at current global events and try to connect the dots with the prophecies of the Bible pertaining to our times, we suddenly begin to realise that there is a big and very significant war coming in the very near future. It is so close that it might actually happen within this year or the next. This war will be so big that you could actually define it as a World War. This coming big war will involve many nations and it will change the world dramatically. The world will never be the same after this war. Its after-effects will even change the spiritual dynamics for millions of people, as well as global politics, and economic and military alliances. The world will be changed radically. I hope you are now really eager to know what war this is? It is the war of Ezekiel 38 - 39. It is the war of Russia and her friends against Israel. 

I suggest that you first read Ezekiel 38 - 39 again to be able to better comprehend what I am about to tell you in this article. 

Who and Why?

Ezekiel 38:1-6 tells us who the nations are that will come together and attack Israel. Although different scholars identify these nations slightly differently, the general understanding among Bible prophecy scholars about who these nations are, is as follows:

• Gog from Magog and the prince of Rosh - Russia and all the Turkic Islamic nations such as Kazakhstan, Kirghistan, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan etc. These nations were all part of the former Soviet Union, and to this day they still greatly rely on, and remain reliable allies of Russia. 
• Meshech and Tubal -  South of Russia, countries like Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Turkey.
• Persia - Iran
• Ethiopia and Libya - this also includes modern day Sudan. 
• Gomer -  This could be Germany or Eastern Europe. 
• Tegormah - Turkey. 

It seems that this will be a very large confederation under the leadership of the "prince of Rosh" (Russia). It is also obvious (verse 4-6) that God Himself will drag these nations in a war against Israel to punish them there and to show His glory. However, they themselves will be motivated to launch this war with the intention to plunder the riches and resources of Israel. Seeing the list of nations in this confederacy, and knowing what I know about the doctrine and culture of Islam, I tend to think that the Islamic nations that are joining the war will also be motivated by their hatred of the Zionist nation and their obsession to destroy Israel. It is a globally known fact, that since 1979, Iran has been vowing to wipe the Jewish nation off of the map. This obsession to destroy the Jewish nation is the reason why for many years they have been trying to build nuclear weapons. Although the other Islamic nations may not have been as vocal, the doctrine of Islam, which fuels this hatred of Jews and mandates their total destruction, is preached in the mosques of all Muslim nations. For many centuries both the doctrine and the traditions of Islam have been instructing and preparing faithful Muslims all over the world to unite and kill all the Jews in the end times. Here is a prophetic text from one of the most authoritative Islamic books which is often quoted by Islamic preachers to fuel the hatred of Jewish people among Muslims: 

"The last hour would not come unless the Muslims will fight against the Jews and the Muslims would kill them until the Jews would hide themselves behind a stone or a tree and a stone or a tree would say: Muslim, or the servant of Allah, there is a Jew behind me come and kill him" (Sahih Muslim 2922; Book 54, Hadith 103). 

Could it be that the Ezekiel 38 war will be the event in which Muslims will try to fulfill this prophecy, which can be found in their own traditions and religious indoctrination?

The aftermath of the War

In the aftermath of this war, by God's intervention on their behalf, Israel will have a very decisive victory. Ezekiel 39 gives a detailed account of how God Himself will destroy all the multinational armies that will come against Israel. After this great victory, Israel will be recognised as a mighty military force to be reckoned with. It is very interesting that Russia's original motivation will be to plunder Israel, but at the end of the war it will be Russia and her allies that will get destroyed and plundered. After this war Israel will probably be the only stable supplier of oil and gas to Europe and will be recognised as a global powerhouse.

This development will make the European Antichrist rather sympathetic and friendly towards Israel in the early years of his global political career. 

In the aftermath of the Gog and Magog war, Russia and all her allies will be left in total disarray following their major defeat, as we read in Ezekiel 39. Along with Russia, the block of Muslim nations will also lose all their military might and suffer great economical loss. However, their biggest loss will be on the spiritual front, as millions of Muslims will desert Islam and embrace the God of the Jews. This I believe correlates with prophecies about the "two witnesses" (Revelation 11) and the 144000 Jews (Revelation 14) who will proclaim the Gospel of the Kingdom and multitudes will believe because of their preaching and be saved. This of course will happen during the first half of the great tribulation, after the rapture and I also tend to think that the majority of these multitudes will be Muslims who saw how mighty the God of the Jews is in the recent miraculous victory of Israel in the Gog and Magog invasion.

This detail also shows again that the war will take place either just before or just after the rapture, giving enough time for the defeated people to recognise the power of the God of the Jews, hearing the gospel of the kingdom preached by Jews and then responding positively. 

A new world order

Another major after-effect of the God and Magog war, will be the global political chaos and the power vacuum that the dissemination of Russia and her allies will create within international politics. And consequently, the rise of a European leader to fill that power vacuum, i.e, the Antichrist. Of course, the Antichrist will be very careful with his actions towards Israel, and will be rather supportive of her in his early years. After all, Israel is now a mighty nation that completely decimated the powerful armies of Russia and all of her allies. Furthermore, Israel is now a stable provider of oil and gas to Europe. Thus the rising Antichrist has to be friendly and supportive towards Israel. I believe this is one of the reasons why the Antichrist, although in his heart he will hate the Jews, will sign a 7 year peace treaty with them and give them his support to build the third temple on the temple mount. It seems like the Antichrist will use his political and military might to protect the Jewish nation from any Islamic attack or resistance while they are building the third temple on the temple mount, where today an Islamic mosque stands. Could it be that the mosque on the temple mount will also be destroyed during the God and Magog war, making it possible for Israel to commence their building project just after the war, with the expressed support and even protection of the Antichrist?

Perhaps due to all these personal efforts, the Antichrist will be greatly appreciated and embraced by Jews and eventually invited to the opening ceremony of the temple once the construction is completed. This of course will take place in the middle of the 7 years tribulation. 

The rapture of the Church & the war of Gog and Magog

Prophetically and theologically speaking, the rapture can happen any time. There are no signs or prerequisites to the rapture. Furthermore, only the Father God knows the date and time of the rapture. 

However, as we see signs pointing to the war of Ezekiel 38, we realise that there is very little time left for the rapture to take place. The information in the Bible about the war of Gog and Magog reveals that this war will take place either just before or just after the rapture. 

Firstly, this war will usher in a time of global political chaos and create a power vacuum, which the Antichrist will use to rise and establish his one world government. I am of the opinion that the Ezekiel 38 war will be a cataclysmic event, completely changing the power balance in world politics. It will create the right climate for the rise of the Antichrist and Israel to sign the 7 year peace treaty that Daniel prophesied about (Daniel 9:27). This means the war needs to happen before the beginning of the 7 year tribulation.

Secondly, this war will significantly reduce Islamic resistance to Israel building the third temple. There are two reasons for that. Primarily it might be that the Islamic mosque that is currently occupying the temple grounds might be destroyed during the war and make the temple grounds accessible to Jews to build the third temple. Secondly, the new flourishing relationship between Israel and the Antichrist will ensure protection and assistance from the Antichrist and his European army for the Jews while they are building the temple. This also again places the timing of the war just before the beginning of the 7 year tribulation. 

Thirdly, Ezekiel says that after the war, Israel will have 7 years to gather and burn up the weapons and fuel that will be left behind on the battleground by the defeated armies. This again places the war at least 7 years before the second coming of Christ, which then is again just before or at the beginning of the 7 year tribulation.  

Lastly and perhaps most importantly, if we look at the current world affairs and world politics, it becomes clear that Russia, Iran, Syria, Turkey and other Muslim nations are now becoming more and more impatient with Israel. Iran is still busy building nuclear weapons and it might just be a matter of weeks or months before Iran will have sufficient nuclear warheads available to attack Israel. The Russian economy is badly crippled due to the war in Ukraine and Russia needs a new way to get her hands on hard cash and resources. Turkey has been increasingly hostile towards Israel since 2010 and besides their spiritual animosity, they are also eyeing Israel's oil and gas resources. The Turkish economy was already in a very bad shape, but the recent massive earthquakes has now left Turkey truly destitute. 

Given the above situation, the Ezekiel 38 war might actually break out much sooner than many tend to think. However, if the Ezekiel 38 war needs to happen just before the rise of the Antichrist, and the beginning of the 7 year tribulation, then the rapture of the church might take place either just before, or during, or just after the war, somehow overlapping with the war. In any case, it seems that the time for this big war is approaching fast. That means the time for the rapture of the church is approaching even faster.

What Should You Do?

In the light of the unfolding Bible prophecies all around us, we can clearly see that we are living in the last days and that the end is here. Just as the Bible reveals, the world is on a very fast downward spiral and there is no way to stop or even slow it down. Wars, natural disasters, corruption in all positions of power, increasing shortages of basic needs such as housing, food and fuel, increasing hostility among people and devastating wars that kill many and render millions homeless, total eradication of morality and the rapid rise of a global scale rebellion against God are among the most obvious signs of these last days. 

I liken this world to a sinking ship. It is sinking very fast and there is no way to save it. 

However there is still a way to save yourself. You do not have to sink with the world. You can get saved out of the world. 

There is only one way that that can happen: 

The Bible tells us that "whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Acts 2:21).

What this means is that anyone who believes in Jesus Christ as his Lord and Saviour will be miraculously saved by God out of this world that is sinking very fast. 

"If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved" (Rom 10:9).

In the light of all of this, the best thing you can do for yourself is to believe in Jesus Christ with all your heart and confess that He is your Lord and Saviour. Thereafter, join a Bible-believing church and get baptised.

If you are in Cape Town and would like to give your life to Jesus and get baptised, contact us and we will gladly help you in this process.