The Armies of the Kings of the East

“The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up to prepare the way for the kings from the East.” – Revelations 16:12

Several interpreters of Bible prophecy have taught over the years that the vast armies of China and other nations will enter the Holy Land over a dried-up Euphrates River. I could not help but think of Revelations 16: 12 as I watched this incredible video of a parade in Tiananmen Square. It looks like many more people were in the parade than were watching the parade!

Video information and link:

China’s 60th Anniversary national day – timelapse and slow motion – 7D and 5DmkII from Dan Chung on Vimeo.

Increase in Earthquakes

A current post mentions Cyclone Nargis which ravaged Myanmar and the recent strong earthquake in China. Hal Lindsey details the increase in earthquakes and other events predicted in Matthew 24. These increasing events could very well be the “birth pains” before the return of Christ.

Political thriller books by Joel C. Rosenberg

If you know someone who likes to read political thrillers or is curious about Bible prophecy, I recommend a series of books by Joel C. Rosenberg. The books can get violent, so you may prefer to read them first before you decide if you want to recommend them. As the reader goes further into the series, the author presents more and more of the Gospel and explains how to become a Christian.

Joel Rosenberg is knowledgeable about Biblical prophecies and current events. His first two books spent many weeks on the New York Times bestseller list partly because his books seemed to foreshadow the September 11th attacks, the War in Iraq over weapons of mass destruction, and other events.

We have read the first four books. The fifth book will be released March 2008.

• The Last Jihad
• The Last Days
• The Ezekiel Option,
• The Copper Scroll
• Dead Heat

We have recommended these books to non-Christians and also given them as gifts.

These books are an easy way to learn Biblical prophecy, too. The Ezekiel Option gives the reader insight into prophecies about Iran and Russia and a possible scenario for Ezekiel 38 – 39. The Copper Scroll covers the Dead Sea Scrolls, The Third Temple in Jerusalem, and the possible recovery of the Temple treasures, including the Ark of the Covenant.

The first chapter excerpt of Joel Rosenberg forthcoming book “Dead Heat” is now available online, if you want a sneak peek. After we read the book, I will update this post.

Russia, Iran, and China

Just last week, I saw on the news that Russia and China were conducting war games. The news reporter commented that the U.S. military did not express any concern about this.

Within 24 hours of that newscast, I received an e-mail from my friend, Duane. The rest of this entry is an abridged version of his e-mail:

The current Russian and Iranian alliance, including several Middle Eastern countries, united together against Israel, appears to be fulfilling the 2500-year-old prophecy from Ezekiel 38 – 39. Some may wonder where the 200 million strong army of the Far East, crossing the “great river Euphrates”, fits into this picture. (See Revelation 9:13-18)

I found information about the Shanghi Cooperation Organization (SCO) which may illuminate these two prophecies. This information was in a lengthy article “The Revolution in Transatlantic Affairs” By Tony Corn (who holds a Ph.D. from the University of Paris and is a graduate of the U.S. Naval War College).

Mr. Corn’s article is a lengthy analysis of the current world situation commenting on the possibility of America and Europe attempting to jointly be a world power coming out of the current Mid-east wars. He also points out that China has created a coalition including Russia and Central Asia.

Here are two paragraph excerpts from the article, declaring that China and India are more closely allied with Russia and Iran than we might have thought – - -

“The year 2001 could have been an eye-opener but the West, too traumatized by the Islamist attack on America, failed to notice an equally important, if less spectacular, development: the creation by China of a coalition, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, including Russia and Central Asia as members, Iran as a silent partner, and India and Pakistan as observers. It took another five years for Western foreign policy experts to realize that this emerging SCO was, for all practical purposes, an OPEC with nukes, which had the potential to develop, over time, into a full-fledged ‘NATO of the East.’

“. . . While the pivotal states of this strategy appear to be Pakistan, Iran, and (more recently) Saudi Arabia, the geopolitical situation of Iran puts it in a class by itself, as the most precious proxy in China’s ‘indirect approach’ against American primacy. It is therefore no surprise to learn that China is using Iran as a conduit for the delivery of arms to both Iraqi and Afghan insurgents, and providing Iran itself the kind of small boats needed to conduct attacks against commercial shipping or the U.S. Navy in the Persian Gulf.”

While China and India do not appear in Ezekiel 38 – 39, they may be sideline supporters, expecting Israel’s defeat. Then, they may join with what is left of Russia and Iran, and the other countries, later at the end of the Tribulation, hoping to overcome their failure which was prophesied in Ezekiel. [end of Duane’s e-mail]