Um Yeah. Mm-hmm. Welcome to Prophecy Today. I'm Jimmy DeYoung Jr., and along with my brother Rick, we examine current events in the light of God's prophetic word. You know, having a proper understanding of Bible prophecy helps us as we watch world events as they unfold and how close that we are to the rapture of the church.
Did you know that the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of Bible prophecy? It's all about Jesus.
Well, on today's program, we're going to take a look at all the nations that are involved in Bible prophecy, all the world leaders that have a role today and possibly in the future after the rapture of the church.
Well, Rick, we've got to get started. We've got Ken Timmerman, David Dolan, Winky Medad. Rob Congdon talking about Bible prophecy and when it does take place, plus Dr. Jimmy D. Young with the Legacy Series.
Rick, let's get started with our first Ken Timmerman.
Well, that's right, Jimmy. I have Ken Timmerman with us. He is our expert on geopolitical affairs. He lets us know what is going on around the world. You can find out more about Ken.
See the books he's written by going to his website at kentimmerman.com. Ken, thanks for joining us today. Thanks for having me on, Rick. It's always a pleasure.
Well, Ken, the biggest story of the week was this group chat that President Trump's national security team had where they inadvertently, it seems, added a reporter. Can you give us your take on this situation?
Well, you know, the left is calling this a scandal, Rick, the signal chat scandal. But I'm really scratching my head to figure out what the scandal is, besides the fact that somebody made a really dumb mistake adding this reporter. If you want to talk about a national security scandal, and that's what the Democrats are trying to say, they're claiming that Pete Hagseth put the lives of American pilots at risk, which is pathetic and ridiculous.
Well, how about Biden's withdrawal from Afghanistan that led to 13 American service members getting killed? And we know now that they had warning two hours before that bomb went off and did nothing to stop it. Or how about Biden pledging to defend Ukraine in October 2021 before Russia had even invaded? You know, that was a scandal. Or what about the open border, letting 10, 15, maybe even 20 illegals cross into the United States, including murders and rapists, some of those people that now the Trump administration is sending back.
So I think there's lots of scandals. That are real, that are authentic? How about President Biden's advisor who was in contact with the Iranian regime, asking them to take U.S. diplomats hostage? That's the story I tell in my new book, The Iran House.
Now, that's a scandal, but nobody wants to talk about that. Instead, they're talking about signal. Here's the bottom line on it, Rick. The attacks were a success. The attacks were certainly not compromised.
All of the things that the Democrats are alleging did not happen. This was also an internal deliberation discussing policy. And if you look at this, it's kind of a term of art, Rick, but internal deliberations are privileged, meaning that they cannot be disclosed through the Freedom of Information Act, which Democrat pressure groups are trying to do. And they're also protected from congressional review.
So, look, I think this is all a tempest in a teacup. Signal is used by the CIA for end-to-end encryption. And while probably most of our listeners don't know this, Rick, but what that means is for every message from every user is individually encrypted to every other user.
So if there are 18 people on that chat, it means there were 18 times 18 encryption keys. I'll do the math for you. That's 384. That's pretty difficult to crack.
Well, it certainly is, Ken.
Well, one of the interesting things to come out of this now that we did see those internal deliberations was the fact that Vice President J.D. Vance again came on and basically said that this should be Europe's responsibility. They have much more interest in this. And he basically was calling Europe out again. Can you talk about how that is playing and what that means?
Sure, Rick. And the key word that you just used was again. This was not a surprise. It was not classified. It was not unusual.
It was in keeping with what J.D. Vance told the Europeans to their face in public in Munich a couple of weeks ago. And we talked about that on this show. Here's a quote from the group chat. He said, J.D.
Vance said, 3% of U.S. trade runs through the Suez. 40% of European trade does. There is a real risk that the public doesn't understand this. In other words, the raid on the Houthis to guarantee the traffic through the Suez Canal, or why it's necessary.
So Vance was saying the obvious, which is that once again, the U.S. military. is coming to the defense of the Europeans. Peg Seth, in one of the pieces of the chat, said, Well, the Europeans don't have the capabilities to attack the Houthis. We're the only ones who do.
Again. duh. We all know this. The American public knows this. But they perhaps don't realize what Vance said, which is that the Europeans rely much more on the Suez Canal than we do for trade.
And so we are basically handing them a free gift for which we've gotten no thanks and no recognition.
Well, it certainly seems like President Trump and Vice President Vance are dragging Europe, maybe kicking and screaming, to help defend themselves. And maybe that was in play this week when the European Union urged its citizens to stockpile supplies for at least three days in case of a crisis. You know, Rick, I lived in France for 18 years during the Cold War. Never heard such a thing ever during that time. And this was 1983 was the time when apparently the U.S.
and the Soviet Union came the closest to a nuclear exchange ever in history. And never heard any European government talk about this.
So this is a very, very new thing. Talking about stockpiling three days of food and water for either a military emergency or some kind of unknown climate emergency. It shows to me, Rick, that the Europeans are truly nervous about Russia. And they're nervous that the United States won't bail them out. Out.
So, my response to this, and I think you're hearing the same thing from the administration, it's about time that the Europeans start to feel the impact of their own policies. We felt it here in the U.S. all during the Cold War, while the Europeans just fiddled away, ate their caviar, and drank champagne. Let's move on to the situation in Turkey, where seemingly President Erdogan has jailed his main political rival, which has sparked protests. Can you talk about this situation?
Well, a pretty dramatic situation in Istanbul, when the opposition party was holding a primary to select their presidential candidate, the person who would actually face Erdogan in two years from now in the next presidential elections. And what did Erdogan do?
Well, he actually jailed his main rival, the mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu, earlier in the month. And since then, there have been protests in Istanbul, rolling protests. The regime. Has tried to crack down on them. They've tried to isolate the city, to cut it off so people cannot come in and protest.
They've been arresting journalists. Rick, let me just remind our listeners: this was for a party primary election.
So it shows to me that Erdogan is really worried about opposition to his rule. He's worried that Imam Oglou is tremendously popular. This is a guy who defeated Erdogan's candidate in April 2019 in the Istanbul city election. And when Erdogan then annulled the election, held a new election two months later, Imamoglou won again with a bigger margin. It sounds to me, Rick, an awful lot like what the Democrats were doing under Biden to Donald Trump, the former president, using lawfare to keep him from running again.
Erdogan is doing the same thing. For example, he had the university where Imam Oglou got his college degree to invalidate his degree. Why is that important? Important because it is a requirement under Turkish law to have a college diploma to be able to run for president.
So if Imamouglu doesn't have that diploma, he can't legally run for president.
So all of this is lawfare. All of it shows that Erdogan is worried and that actually this person we see as a dictator installing a republic of fear like Saddam Hussein really has feet of clay.
Well, this fragility is pushing him closer to Russia's Vladimir Putin, who in a phone call on Friday he called a key partner. Right.
Well, what Erdogan is really seeking here is Russia to give a green light to Turkey taking over Syria. This is all about Syria.
So Erdogan is saying, hey, look, we can help you in the Black Sea. You want a new deal with Ukraine and the United States to guarantee the export of Russian grain and of Ukrainian grain through the Black Sea, the Bosphorus, which obviously goes through Turkey, right, right at Istanbul. We're very happy to help you with that. But in exchange, we want free reign in Syria. You had supported Assad.
You had supported the Iranians in Syria. They're gone. Just leave us alone. We want Syria. We want it to become a Turkish Sanjak, a region of Turkey.
And in exchange for that, we're willing to help you any way you want, but give us Syria. Very interesting.
Well, we'll continue to follow that situation well in the few minutes that I have left with you. Ken, I want to talk about China. We watch China, even with all these things taking place around the world. There are many that agree that China is the biggest threat in the world today. And I have a couple of questions I'd like to ask you about them.
First of all, China has set up Iran's next war in the Middle East. Can you talk about that and what they have done to help Iran become a nuclear power?
Well, people tend to forget this, but the Chinese, like the Russians, but the Chinese played a very significant role in helping Iran to acquire a nuclear weapons capability. They were very much behind the AQCon network, who AQCon, remember, made centrifuges and the Iranians bought those centrifuges. They also built the hexafluoride plant that allowed them to transform uranium yellow cake into gas so they could be spun in those centrifuges to enrich it. And they provided a whole bunch of other Nuclear weapons components and materials, including beryllium, over the years. And nobody wants to talk about that, but it's very Real and very significant.
Why are the Chinese helping Iran to become a nuclear weapon state? It's an open question that does not get a lot of open debate, and I think it should, Rick. The Russians also have supplied equipment to the Iran, especially on the missile front. There have been lots of Russian scientists going there, but this Chinese aid is ongoing. And today, in particular, you see, China is the biggest.
Purchaser. Of Iranian oil despite the sanctions. This is going to become very interesting in the coming months because President Trump has indicated he's going to, again, by reimposing maximum pressure sanctions on Iran, he wants to stop the flow of oil to China. Let's see how far the Chinese are willing to go to continue to support Iran both financially and with technology and military equipment. Ken Timmerman for Prophecy Today.
Ken, thanks so much for keeping us informed on what is going on around the world. We look forward to talking to you again soon. Thanks so much, Rick. God bless. We've got to take a break.
We'll be right back with David Dolan and our Middle East news update right here on Prophecy Today, weekend. I'm Luth Kramer with Mission Network News. This is the sound of Turkish protests that began on March 19th. A day before, Istanbul University annulled Ikrem Imamoulu's degree, barring him from running in the presidential election. Imamoulu, a leading rival to pro-Islamic President Erdogan, was soon jailed, triggering nationwide protests.
Tens of thousands have taken to the streets with over 1,100 arrests so far. A local believer we'll call Emra explains: What protesters are afraid of is future security because what we see here is the government more and more abusing their power. Protesters are shouting rights, law, and justice. They're concerned over the country's growing oppression of freedom and persecution of opposition. Pray for the safety of protesters and their freedom, and ask God to provide gospel opportunities.
And finally, Jesus loves women. And Sil Candley with A3 says it's important for women to know they're valuable. To the Lord, but also in their context to serve, to minister, that they have a voice. She says A3's Women in Ministry cohort is designed to bring women to the table. This is just a great opportunity for us to come alongside women.
What started as a Bible study in one Southeast Asian country has since spread to four others.
Now, women who have been blessed by A3's programs are being equipped to train others. We empower so that each group can carry it forward. Pray for the women who are involved with the ministry of A3. I'm not saying women power, I'm just saying let's embrace what men and women can do for the kingdom of God. Thanks for listening to Mission Network News, a service of one-way ministries.
We're listener-supported by people just like you.
So, by giving to Mission Network News, you enable us to keep the stories of God's kingdom coming. And together, the Great Commission happens. Look for links at missionnews.org. That's missionnews.org. I'm Ruth Kramer.
Hey, everybody. Welcome back to Prophecy Today Radio, the program that looks at current events in the light of Bible prophecy.
Well, we're fortunate enough to have Dave Dolan with us. He's a journalist with over 30 years of experience in Israel. He comes to us every week to talk about what is taking place in the Middle East. Dave, thanks for being with us today. It's a blessing to be with you, Rick.
Well, David, there is never a shortage of news. There are so many things taking place going on in that part of the world. Could you give us an update on the latest this week?
Well, the very latest occurred on Friday when we had an upsurge of violence in the north. We had two rockets fired at Israel from Lebanon. One actually did get into Israeli airspace. It was shot down over Kiryat Shmona, the biggest. City in the north, where I lived for two years.
That's the first. attack aimed at Kiri at Shmona in about three months, Rick. We also had another one that was intercepted over Lebanese airspace. And Israel responded pretty forcefully. They struck for the first time again since November.
A building in South Beirut in the Dahia district, which of course is the Hezbollah stronghold in South Beirut. It was a building that housed drones, they said. And they actually issued a warning beforehand so that there were no humans probably in there when they hit it. But they made some pretty strong statements after that. The Prime Minister said we won't have this.
He said our people are returning to their homes in the north. We are going to ensure they're calm and we will not permit any sort of rocket attacks or artillery attacks upon our north, period. And then the defense minister said afterwards, Israel Katz, that the rooftops of buildings in the Dahia district will shake. Every time there's something going on like this, in other words, they're going to go right to To the central Hezbollah area.
Now, Hezbollah denied. That it was responsible for these rockets. And in fact, there are, we know, Palestinian groups. That have rockets as well, and that have participated with Hezbollah, cooperating with them in the war in the last year and a half.
So it could have been them, but the Israeli leaders are saying basically the Lebanese government is mainly responsible. They made that clear, and Hezbollah has to rein in anybody that's on their end as well. Israel won't put up with that.
Well, it was immediately decried, condemned in Paris. French President Macron was meeting with President Yosef Aoun, who's the Lebanese President. He said this is unacceptable. This is Macron. This is a betrayal.
There was no activity justifying Israeli strikes. It's a violation of the ceasefire. Really anti-Israel statements, which, of course, there was activity. They fired these rockets into Israel, and Israel responded, didn't initiate this. But the United States, Rick, on Friday, Morgan Ortegas, the Assistant to Steve Witkoff at the State Department.
She made a statement saying we support Israel's right to strike back. We want this ceasefire to hold, but it won't hold if Israel is being fired upon. And that came after Naptoly Bennett, the former Prime Minister of Israel. Tweeted out, we must strike Iran itself over this. and not and any time there's any further attacks and not fiddle around anymore, basically.
President Trump at the White House on Friday made similar statements. He said that things will be, I'm quoting, bad, bad. Things will happen to Iran if they don't immediately stop this, stop their aid to the Houthis. And of course, if they don't re-enter into a nuclear Accord agreement with the United States, a better one that he wants to negotiate. And he repeated that he's given them a deadline to answer back on this.
Meanwhile, of course, we had reports during the week of U.S. beefing up its forces, continuing to do so in the region. Five B-2 stealth bombers were reportedly flown to the island of Diego Garcia. That's in the Indian Ocean, not far from either Yemen or Iran. And we had two more ballistic missiles fired at Israel on Thursday, sending over a million.
people from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and in between to shelters. The Israelis were able to take both of those out. There was some shrapnel that came down, but nobody was injured in that. We had the Parliament speaker of Iran say on Thursday that, quote, the region will blow up like a spark in an ammunition dump if there is any American or Israeli action against Iran.
So tension is still very high in that area. And then we had the situation in Gaza continuing. We had these protests against Hamas.
Some Arab media were claiming they weren't against Bippoor Hamas, but other reporters there said no, the slogans were calling for an end of the war. releasing the hostages And for the end of Hamas' rule. And Israeli commentators, many of them were saying, ah, the people are finally speaking up and they've had a change of heart. But others pointed out that like the Iranian regime, Hamas is a repressive force that will easily kill its own people as anybody else. And in fact, a Saudi paper reported on Friday that they set up, quote, revolutionary corps.
To immediately try, and in most cases, execute immediately people they deem as betrayers, informants. giving information to Israel. This came after another top senior Hamas official was killed, Rick, in targeted attacks during the week. Sadly, he was in a hospital, hiding in a hospital, so one little portion of it was hit. But it was in the international media that Israel's bombing all of Is of Hamas's hospitals and the Palestinians' hospitals, so that's not quite the case.
But they say now that ten top Hamas officials have been killed since march eighteenth when the action resumed. And meanwhile, the IDF continues to be beefed up along the Gaza border for a possible major ground incursion in the coming days.
Well, David, as I listen to your report and I hear these stories of what is taking place in the north with Hezbollah, and we talked about Hamas, and of course directly with Iran, and saying that the Middle East will blow up if there was an attack on Iran.
So we look at Iran. They are at the center of everything. And I know you've talked about it before on this program, but explain to our listeners, not only from your journalistic perspective, but I know you're a student of Bible prophecy as well and have written many books on the subject. Explain Iran's role right now and how important they are to what is taking place in the Middle East.
Well, Rick, what you don't usually hear from journalists when they talk about this, if they're talking about this topic, is the spiritual and religious aspect. They'll mention it maybe, but not stress it. We have to keep in mind that these leaders of Iran, especially the Ayatollahs, the two Ayatollahs since the revolution, but also all of the top people they have around them, the heads of the Revolutionary Guards, these are Shiite fundamentalist Muslims. They do believe that. Shiite Islam will bring the Madhi, the great Muslim leader, back.
through a worldwide explosion of violence. They are not afraid of war. They are wanting. Upheaval. Obviously, they sent Hamas across the border in the bloodiest, or they at least participated in that behind the scenes.
in the bloodiest massacre we've seen since World War two.
So they are not afraid to stir up trouble, and they believe that they will have war one day with the Great Satan and the Little Satan. They believe that they will destroy first the Little Satan and then the Great Satan. They will destroy America. You know, they say these things that we kind of laugh and look the other way. But even President Trump mentioned in the White House when he was asked about these drones going Iranian drones going to Ukraine, he said they're pretty good at this, they have good facilities and they know what they're doing.
And by the way, Rick, earlier this week, They said they have whole underground cities. That are building these missiles and building these weapons. And we know they built a small version of that in Lebanon.
So they probably do.
So they're a much fiercer opponent than many people think. And indeed, it won't be an easy fight if the U.S. gets. directly involved. And I do think that's on the way, Rick.
And I think it's not going to be too far off in the distance because, again, they are provocative all the time. They'd like to stay in power, but really their ultimate goal is this Islamic goal that they have. And so they say, bring it on, basically.
Well we'll keep an eye on that situation there, and we certainly do know the role Iran is going to play in the future from Ezekiel thirty-eight, and they are certainly setting the stage for that to take place right now.
Well, briefly, uh we look at these protests that are taking place in Gaza right now and maybe there is a groundswell of support to get rid of Hamas. Is that something that's viable? Do you think that's something that could possibly happen?
Well, Rick, what it really shows is that Hamas has lost its grip on portions Of Gaza, not the whole place, but portions. And everywhere that that's true, we've had these demonstrations pretty much every day, all week.
So the people are finally feeling free enough to say what most of them, I believe, and I've been there, I've talked to people, they've never really liked Hamas's brutal rule and the way that they took over violently from the Palestinian Authority, et cetera, and certainly the conditions. The periodic wars, every three or four years, there's been a war since 2007 because of Hamas action or Islamic jihad, their partner in crimes.
So the people are tired of it. The young people in particular are at these rallies, these demonstrations, and they obviously want better lives, normal lives, and not this unending holy war against their neighbor, which is bringing them nothing. And by the way, before the war, many of them worked in Israel and they got good money there.
So yeah, they want an end to this government. Dave Dolan from Prophecy Today. Dave, thanks for being with us today. I'm glad to do it, Rick. God bless.
We're going to take a quick break right now, but we'll be back with more of Prophecy Today Radio. I'm Jeremy Scott with Mission Network News. Four more countries may begin feeling heat from the United States over religious freedom violations. The U.S. Commission for International Religious Freedom is recommending four additional nations for the State Department to designate countries of particular concern: India, Nigeria, Afghanistan, and Vietnam.
Todd Nettleton with The Voice of the Martyrs USA says now is a critical time for Christians to respond. Pray over the map in the USERF report for local believers to be bold witnesses for Christ. And how are ministries in the Middle East and North Africa adapting to digital change? SAT-7's Terry Escott says traditional broadcasting still serves an important role, but the younger generation's use of digital media puts it on the ministry's radar. Conflict and social disruption in the MENA region can help open people's hearts to the gospel.
Pray for SAT-7 as they share Christ across the MENA region. Read further at missionnews.org. Mission Network News, a service of one-way ministries. I'm Jeremy Scott. Welcome back to Prophecy Today.
I'm Jimmy De Young Jr. Along with Rick, we're examining current events in the light of God's prophetic word. In the second half of this half hour, we're going to have Dr. Rob Congdon come and talk to us about Bible prophecy and when the rapture will take place according to God's holy word. But before we get there, we'd like to bring in Israel Madad, Winky Madad, and two topics we're going to talk about today: anti-Semitism and the Ark of the Covenant.
Two great topics. Rick, let's bring in Winky Medad and let's find out about a conference that he just returned from.
Well, that's right, Jimmy. I have Winky Madad with us. He's a frequent contributor to this program, the former mayor of Shiloh, a town that he lives in, there in the area of Judea and Samaria. Winky, thanks for joining us today. Thank you again for having me on.
Well, Winky, several topics I would like to discuss with you today. But before I do, while I was texting you, arranging this interview, you sent me a picture of a conference that you were at.
Now, this was in Jerusalem, I believe. And the title of the conference was Don't Confuse Me with the Facts: How Progressivism Fell Captive to Anti-Semitism. I thought that'd be a good place to start today. Can you tell us a little bit about this conference?
Well, it's been on the planning stage for a couple of months now. we have a Ministry for Diaspora Affairs. And of course, anti Semitism is very much a concern of Jews who are living abroad.
However, over the past period of time and I don't know if it's ten to twenty years. Because of the special identification between the very progressive left or as a woke generation. And so settler colonialism. What has happened is the A attacks on Israel. In terms of propaganda, in terms of newspapers, in terms of media.
have been sliding very much Into a category that we call anti-Semitism. No one says you cannot criticize the actions of the State of Israel. on the policies of its government, et cetera.
However, What is happening is that Zionism should be erased. Israel has no right to exist And their narrative is simply denying historical facts about Jews in the land of Israel. ten years ago, one hundred years ago and two thousand years ago. And we view this type of an attack And this type of approach as another form of anti-Semitism. many, many centuries ago, it was a theological Uh divide.
between Jews and non Jews. And then it became racial. and scientific especially in Germany. And now Jews don't have the right to identify Who we are. People who came from the land of Israel.
and who have lived in the land of Israel and have proof of that. against a nation That really doesn't exist. and for sure only came to this area in the seventh century.
So this conference came about, and we had Muslim from Sweden. We had pastors from the United States. We had politicians We had one of the leaders of Marine Le Pen's a party in France It was a very varied type of uh personality conference. And it wasn't just Jews talking to Jews. It was friends of Israel and friends of Jews discussing what they can do to combat anti Semitism.
It's very interesting. The title Don't Confuse Me with the Facts. And if you look at the facts, we have the fact that this is an ancient Jewish homeland going back over 3,000 years to the Israeli, the Jewish presence in that area. And then, of course, you look at progressives, if you want to use that term, who are championing the cause of these violent extremist terrorist groups like Hamas. There certainly is a contrast there that it's so interesting.
And then you go down and you scratch the surface just a little bit. They say it's well, we're not anti-Semitic, we're anti-Zionist, but boy, it is very similar, isn't it? Very much so. I mean, look, we've discussed it recently. in terms of campus activity.
They didn't say, excuse me, are you a Zionist? They disallowed Jews from using libraries or walking across campuses. And especially the Islamists do that very much often. In fact, when the Hamas Terrorists came into Israel, their cry was in Arabic, Yahud, Yahud. Which is Jew Jews.
They weren't saying Israeli. They weren't saying Zionist. They weren't saying. Kibbutznik colonialist or something like that. The demo is very clear.
And the most irrational aspect of this anti-Semitism. is that supposedly these people are relatively liberal Uh Uh all sorts of ideologies Which error The opposite of what Hamas and even Fatach are engaged in And not only against Jews, but against their own population as well.
So it just doesn't make sense. And this is Especially for our audience, which is basically non-Jewish. The most interesting thing about anti-Semitism is it really doesn't make sense once you begin to think about it.
Okay? It's not factual, it's not historical, it's not logical, it's not rational. It's about conspiracy theories. It's about things they really don't know anything about, but it catches their imagination or I don't know what, and it makes them feel powerful to attack Jews. They don't attack other Arabs for killing Arabs in Syria Or they don't attack Muslims for killing Christians in Iraq or in the Sudan or in Africa.
So there's obviously a prejudice here they can't control. Very interesting.
I appreciate you going to that conference and reporting on it for us.
Well, one final question that I have for you, or one final topic that I'd like to talk to you about. And I saw on your Twitter you kind of retweeted a story that came out in some declassified CIA documents talking about and I don't know what you know exactly about this, but I know you've heard this story about quote-unquote remote viewing where they have located the Ark of the Covenant.
Now, I'm not necessarily asking you to comment on the validity of this story, but maybe just your thoughts, why you retweeted it, what you think about this situation.
Well, I think it's mind-boggling that the CIA would get itself involved in something that you and I know is a very religious, a very faith based issue I know there are stories that it's somewhere in Ethiopia. Yeah. uh or maybe even in the Vatican chambers, I don't know. But I thought it was very quite interesting because you and I discuss all sorts of issues about the Temple Mount, about the Temple, about all things that in the past that women would be weaving and everything involved in about the Temple service. And here, lo and behold, we have the CIA getting involved.
And one of the issues that you and I know is that uh this is weird uh talking about a temple, you know? And well, I don't know, maybe it isn't weird, maybe it's something that you know, we have to deliberate and discuss and discover and research. uh because it's part of mankind's existence uh in relationship to his Divine being. Uh the the temple is a link. The temple is something a little bit physical which we can experience together with God.
And maybe to have something to do with good. Maybe that's why the CIA is all about it. But I thought it was interesting to say, listen, It's okay to talk about the temple and the temple building and the temple contents and the service. And it's something to talk about and discuss.
Well, it certainly is. And just one final question, and I have to ask this question. We look at this situation, and we know the importance of the Ark of the Covenant as it was its role that it played in the temple and in the tabernacle. And we know how important it is to the Jewish people.
Now, if the Ark of the Covenant was to come to light, whether you say it's in Ethiopia or in the Vatican or wherever it may be, if it was verified, just like the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered right around the same time that Israel became a nation, what do you think that would do? What would it do for Israel? What would it do for the movement to have a presence on the Temple Mount? If you could, if the Ark of the Covenant is discovered, talk to me about what you think might happen.
Well, I think it would convince people. that these things are real. That these things are active. Yeah. that these things have meaning for man.
that these things are not some fanciful legend of a mythical past. But Talk of for sure, of course, the Jewish worship. And other people who believe that the temple has a part in their theology and their religion as well. I once wrote an article in which I look around for some of the weirdest religious or cultural uh events taking place uh Spain has all sorts of marches with all sorts of Things going on, and other people, and there's voodoo, you know, and people are okay with that. But when Jews talk about the temple, oh, that's ridiculous, that's silly, and stuff like that.
And I'm just going to point out And each and every person should be able to choose a lifestyle and a religious or should I say, a faith based orientation. that he wants, as long as he doesn't hurt anybody else. And that should be part of an acceptance By Western civilization. And for the Jews, the temple is very much part of that. Very interesting.
Something to think about.
Well, Winky, as always, we appreciate the insight that you give us from your unique perspective there in Judea and Samaria, the town of Shiloh, the city of Shiloh, there in the Holy Land. Thanks so much. We look forward to talking to you again soon. Thank you very much for having me on, and goodbye to you and our listeners. Rob Congdon joins us today.
He's a good friend of our ministry. He's been on the program for many, many years. He is the director of Congden Ministries at CongdenMinistries. org. You could check out his website there.
And Rob, thank you so much for joining us today. It's so good to be with you. I always enjoy being with you and your listeners.
Well, Rob, what I'd like to talk about today, and I've noticed a trend coming up, and I go to a Baptist church, and there's a lot of people in the church now, or at least a few people in my church, and in general, a trend here talking about being a Reformed Baptist. And so I thought that it might be a good time for you to address this.
So if you could, just kind of give us an overview. When you're talking about maybe the traditional definition of a Baptist versus a Reformed Baptist, could you tell us what the difference is?
Well, of course, traditionally a Baptist was Its prime emphasis when it really came into being as a group of people was the idea that they didn't really hold to infant baptism. They believed it was believers' baptism and it should be by immersion, total immersion.
So, therefore, the groups that split away from many of the Protestant movements. uh said no, you know, we have to immerse our believers in baptism. And so that ended that was really the major distinction. But with time, the Baptists themselves As anybody who's been in Baptist churches knows, eventually starts splitting into different groups. Uh over other issues.
And eventually a group came out that were called the Reformed Baptist. What they really Distinguished them, if you will, from many of the other Baptist groups was that they believed in a sort of a congregationalist type of church system. In other words, they went away from the idea of elders and really united groups of fellowships, and they went more into the individual and into the congregational where the people would vote. Uh however, what they retained is much of Calvinistic or Reformed theology. And now in our day, actually I now say to people that if they say they're a Baptist to me, I say, well, tell me a little bit of what you hold to, and you find very quickly whether they're what your dad used to call, and I call myself a biblicist, those who take the scriptures literally, historically, and grammatically as written.
And uh versus really a Calvinistic theology that brings into allegorical interpretations of Scripture, emphasizing, of course, eschatology.
So there has been this division and the numbers of people who would be calling themselves Reformed Baptist, in reality, they're pure, straightforward, very my term is aggressive Calvinists today. And the distinction between them and those that are also aggressive Calvinists in some of the denominational churches and those in Bible churches, there's almost no difference today for all purposes. They have all moved into that. Grouping of Calvinism, and I tend to lump them in because the distinguishes. The parts that distinguish them has become minor.
I do love that interpretation of being a biblicist. I know last week with Mike Gendren, we talked about the one true church, and the one true church basically comes, or not basically only comes from Scripture. If it's not of Scripture, then it's not the true church. And so that's what we at Prophecy Today, and I know you as well, like to look at.
Well, what are the differences? We'll probably end up focusing on eschatology here, but from a theological or even a salvation perspective, what are the differences from a Reformed Calvinistic Baptist?
Well uh Again, the significant difference, and I point out to people: this is what they need to understand. Back in the 1890s, and that's a term I use, 1890 Calvinists, an 1890 Calvinist and I would go out and we'd share. Share the scriptures. And our goal would be to present the scriptures of the need to receive Jesus Christ alone as your Savior, not by works that you can do, and that's it. And when a person would receive Christ, 1890s Calvinists would say, well, see, they were elect and our job was merely to tell them the scriptures.
I would say, well, our job was to present the scriptures and let them make the choice on their own to receive Christ or reject him.
So there was kind of a difference on in theory of how salvation worked, but in actual practice, there was no difference. Today there's a significant difference. the aggressive Calvinist who understands Calvinism doesn't believe he needs to proclaim the scriptures. You are either elect or not elect to salvation, and therefore they don't need to go out In what we would call evangelism. And that's a significant difference because now it's not theory, it's on the street.
Foot on the ground. Salvation presentation versus none. And then you have people in between that sort of are confused and don't know what to do. But let's face it, human nature is comfortable in not meeting people face to face and confronting them with their need for salvation.
So obviously it emotionally appeals to many people. Calvinism does.
So today, the difference has faded, it's become significant today, where in eighteen nineties, like I said, it was theory, but practice was the same.
Well, if we move on from that to eschatology, and we were talking a little bit before this, and you talked about your eschatology basically is driving your uh theology here, isn't it?
Well, I think it significantly does. I remember John Whitcomb, Dr. John Whitcomb used to say, if you get Genesis right and Revelation right, the rest of the Bible will fit together beautifully, and he's right. Sadly, when Calvin came along, he had a different view about prophecy. His view of prophecy was that or a prophet, let's say a prophet first of all, is the prophet's job was merely to interpret Scripture And to have special wisdom and aptitude for recognizing the problems and needs of the churches.
today and that their job was not to predict future events.
So his whole view of prophecy was read the scriptures, and they've got to apply today into the churches, and we're going to deal with them on that end, but avoid talking about the future. And so consequently, eschatology is not often taught in strong Calvinistic churches. But the reality is, if you look at our eschatology and the events we're talking about in the latter days, you'll find that they actually Support and prove the biblicist position and show that Calvin's five points are quite weak. In terms of understanding a scripture, in fact, they're really philosophy rather than scriptural. I love what you say there that the great Dr.
John Wickcomb said: if you get Genesis and Revelation right, the rest of it falls into place. Again, I know I have a few Calvinistic friends, and I know they say their thoughts are: well, Revelation doesn't fit neatly into my box, so it's not something that we could understand, even though it's part of Scripture.
Well, that's a very dangerous worldview, isn't it? Oh, absolutely. You know, all scripture is profitable for teaching, etc. And it is. And I think of a good reason.
Relatively short illustration of something that happened in my life. Um way back when we were serving in Britain, On a Sunday, we were to go visit a church and to meet some people there. And interesting, three different churches met in one building.
Well, you can guess, we walked into the wrong church service. We weren't in the right one. And it was right after major tragedies and terrorism in in the world around us. Everybody was ill at ease. And people wanted to have answers to why these things are happening.
And the minister, that tells you it was a Calvinistic church, he gets up and he reads this verse. He reads in Daniel 12, verse 9, Go thy way, Daniel, for the words are closed up, sealed till the end of time. And he said, I have no answers for what are happening today, because it's all sealed up, and we'll find out someday. And that's a typical Calvinist approach to eschatology. Sadly, that doesn't give any answers for life and for the world the world or for God's plan of history and his purposes, and it leaves people with no direction at all.
Well, one of the focuses, and I know you know this, on our ministry here at Prophecy Today. I mean, one-third of the Bible is prophetic in nature. And so, as we look at that, we realize we see prophecies that were fulfilled from the Old Testament, and they were fulfilled with the coming of Christ. We see prophecies that are for the end times, those are there to motivate us, those are there to drive us. And if you get rid of those, it definitely does change the way you're going to look at the world.
I have one more question. What do you think about people who say that the premillennial pre-trib view, which we talk about here on Prophecy Today, and I know you subscribe to as well? What do you say to people who say that's kind of a Johnny come lately theology, or that's something that was only maybe within the last hundred to 150 years?
Well, it's interesting. That's one of the things they like to bring up, that the Schofield Bible and other dispensational views are relatively modern in terms and not as old as Calvinism.
Well, if you do some careful study of the scriptures and you look carefully at the book of Acts, for instance, which Over and over, it says it's talking that they were preaching salvation or resurrection and The kingdom of God. And so the kingdom of God is a crucial issue. And in the early days of the church, there are documents showing us this. They were taking a view. That closely aligned with what we call dispensational today, but they just didn't title it that.
That's a modern title, if you will, but not a modern teaching. And I can't stress enough how crucial it is to understand things. If I might, I'd like to really give one practical aspect of the difference between Calvinism's eschatology. And a premeal, pretrib, dispensational eschatology and how serious it is to the individual believer and how his outlook is on his future life here right now. Please do.
Okay. One of the key points of Calvinism is called perseverance of the saints, and everybody makes it their own interpretation. The simple explanation has always been for me growing up was that once you are saved, you will always be saved. God will, you know, you're not going to turn away if you're a true believer.
Well, if we look at Calvinism and we look at what's called the great white throne judgment of Revelation 20 verses 11 through 15, now that's a very final event before the new heavens and earth. They stress the great white throne judgment is a time where every human being will have to face God and give praise. Roof. Proof. Of what they did to show they were either the elect or not the elect.
In other words, they've got to get like in a courtroom and prove that they're the elect to God himself.
So the Calvinists would say, you better keep doing your works To prove that you're elect.
Well, that's basically salvation by works in reality. I would say the scripture says, by faith alone I accept Jesus Christ, that his work Paid for my salvation by the shedding of his blood.
Now, here's the key. When we get into Jude, we find out it tells us that God preserves us. In other words, like the little child walking down the street learning to walk, God's hand hangs on to them even when their feet go out from under them. In my case, or a biblicist case, we know that God's going to keep us. In our salvation with Him, it isn't our effort.
Well, that affects everything you do. And so it's very important to see that that's how that affects it. In the Calvinists, they really. Rarely touch on eschatology, but the great white throne judgment is a major teaching. And also, they stress in Revelation 12 that what you read about Revelation 12 is not Israel, it's the church.
And therefore, they throw out all of the tribulation, the millennium, they throw that out because obviously that has to do with Israel. And the church is now Israel and there is no nation of Israel anymore. That again has a major practical application in our world today and in our treatment and our outreach to Jewish people. Absolutely. And I know I said that was the last question, but you brought that up, and that's very fair.
We talk a lot about Israel and what's taking place in Israel, and we talk about what we saw in 1948 was essentially fulfilled Bible prophecy. And that does, again, that does not fit neatly into a box for the Reformed group. And so, of course, when your theology does not agree with Scripture, you need to re-look at your theology, do you not? Oh, absolutely. And I think that's correct.
crucial When I come in my normal reading through my scriptures, I come to Daniel again. I approach and I say, Lord, let Daniel speak to me. Let the book of Revelation speak to me as you wrote it, not what I want to make it say. And I thank the Lord because each time I reread it, I learn new things about what our Lord's doing, but it never changes the things I've learned before because I take the scriptures as God wrote them, not as I want them to. Make them or become my philosophical view.
And never forget, Calvinism's basis goes back to Augustine and the the philosophy of the day. And so consequently, it it isn't pure scripture concepts. It's philosophy and scripture where I believe in scripture is alone to dictate what I understand of God and my Lord. Rob, excellent conversation and excellent information for our listeners. If you could, before you go, could you just let us know a little bit about your ministry and how people could learn more?
Oh, sure. Our ministry, interesting, just in the news today, they talked about the vast number of people now going to the internet for Bible teaching. And that was very encouraging because our ministry is primarily through the internet. We do do some Bible conferences, but the internet. We are teaching the scriptures to people in depth.
At a level, they can understand it, but it's still in depth, and we are stressing prophecy. In our ministry, on our internet site, you can find book teachings and videos on prophecy, but also on Calvinism and why it is not biblical.
So it's an internet outreach, and we go to 31 countries of the world. We have viewers and listeners in 31 countries of the world. Just do a search on Google for condonministries.org, and you can get to it. Thank you so much, Rob. We look forward to talking to you again soon.
I do too. And the Lord bless you and keep you until he comes.
Well, we've got to take a break. And when we come back, Dr. Jimmy DeYoung and the Legacy Series, right here on Prophecy Today weekend. Welcome back to Prophecy Today. I'm Jimmy the Young Jr.
Along with Rick, we've been examining current events in the light of God's prophetic word. Rick, we've got a trip coming up to Israel, and I'm so excited about it. A lot of our friends are starting to go back, and really, things are opening up for people to go to Israel. When is our trip? Jimmy, May 5th of this year.
Now, that is right around the corner.
So, if you are interested, give us a call. We'd love for our listeners, anybody that is interested in Bible prophecy, any student of the Bible. We always say it's the best classroom in the world. You look at your Bible in black and white, but once you go to Israel, you're looking at it in color because you are at the places where all of this took place. We're going to walk where Jesus walked.
We look at Israel, past, present, and prophetic. We'd love to have you come with us. Call us at 423-825-6247. There's still time to get in on this tour. It's coming up May 5th.
Yes, it's a great time to go. And if you can't make it on this and you would like, Like to go with us, and we would love for you to go with us. We are doing another trip in the fall, and we're going to start getting that information out. It's a ministry to us that Rick and I love to do. It's a great place to go to be able to teach people about God's word.
Well, as we continue our study on the amazing book of Isaiah, you will notice that Isaiah has more to say about the first coming of Jesus Christ than any other book in the Bible.
However, Isaiah also has many prophetic passages that are focused on his second coming as well. We will look first at Isaiah 17, but before we go, we need to go to Isaiah chapter 44 and 45 as we begin our study of Isaiah. Go with me now. To Isaiah Chapter 44, Dr. Jimmy D.
Young and the Legacy Series. This book talks more about Jesus Christ and prophesying. It talks about his cradle experience, his cross experience, his crown experience. There's more dealing with the prophecies of the coming Messiah than any other book in the Bible. The knowledge of Isaiah is unbelievable.
Let me illustrate in three chapters and we'll conclude. Go to chapter 17 of the book of Isaiah.
Now, I'm just pinning out three. If you got chapter 17, look at chapter 44 just a moment. Chapter 44 and chapter 45. Let me show you how specific this all is: how God is showing the world that this is a prophet. The test has been applied to Isaiah.
If he speaks it and it comes to pass, it's me giving the message to him. Have you got Isaiah 44? Look at the last verse. That saith, and he's given a prophecy about at the end of the Babylonian captivity what's going to happen. And then he said, And that saith of Cyrus, he's my shepherd, and he shall perform all of my pleasure, even saying to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be built, and the temple, thy foundation shall be laid.
Chapter 45, verse 1. Thus saith the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden to subdue nations before him, and I will loose the loins of the kings to open before him, and the two leaved gates, and the gates shall not be shut. You know what this is talking about? This is 150 years before the fact. The children of Israel have not gone into the Babylonian captivity yet.
Over in Isaiah chapter 39, there's going to be a prophecy that Isaiah gives them because of something that Hezekiah does, opening up the entire temple complex and all the treasuries of the temple to the Babylonians. He says, You're going to have to face Babylonian captivity.
Now that's 100 years before the fact, 150 years before the fact, God gives Isaiah the name of the man who is going to allow the Jews to go back and rebuild the temple. Not only does it say it's going to happen, he gives his name. How much more detail can you get? And that is fulfilled. You know where the fulfillment is?
Ezra chapter 1. Cyrus was the leader of the Medo-Persian Empire who defeated the Babylonians. Cyrus then said, Hey. 50,000 of you Jews can go back under Zerubbabel. To Jerusalem to rebuild your temple.
And in fact, I'll help raise the funds to rebuild that temple. with my treasures. God. Gives it to Isaiah. Amazing prophecy.
In the 27th chapter of the book of Isaiah, we don't take time to look at it now. In the 27th chapter, he says, I will regather the Jews. After they have been dispersed to the entire earth. And over the last 100 years, out of 108 nations of this world, God has gathered Jews back into Jerusalem. Every world leader that visited the anniversary of the founding of the state of Israel.
Every one of them, without exception, said, This is a miracle. This is a fulfillment of Bible prophecy. Isaiah. Pass the test.
Now let me show you these three real quickly. Chapter 17. Let me just give you an overall big picture. The first verse: The burden of Damascus, behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap. What is that talking about?
When is that going to take place when Damascus will be destroyed?
Well, there was a short-term fulfillment of this prophecy, and there's going to be a long-term fulfillment. The short-term was when Zennachareb went in, when he was capturing all that part of the world, the Assyrian leader, he came into Damascus and somewhat, to some extent, destroyed it, but not forever. But there's a couple of phrases that I want you to look at. Look at verse 7. At that day shall a man look to his maker.
Verse nine. In that day, verse 11, in that day. Also in verse 11, it is In the day When you see that phrase, in the day, it's talking about the day of the Lord any time in history when God intercedes in the affairs of man personally on the earth. In that day. I will destroy Damascus.
What day is that talking about? That's talking about During the seven-year tribulation period. That's when the day of the Lord. is an operation.
So how do you put it all into what's going on? Daniel chapter 11 says, Syria, starting in verse 40. will be the first Nation. To attack Israel in the last days when the coalition of nations come against the Jewish people. And in that day, Syria.
will be wiped out. That's the text. Never mind. Assyria. in 2,000 years.
And that important. In that day, That's chapter 17, chapter 18. Verse 1. Woe to the land shattering with the wings, which is beyond the rivers of Ethiopia. If you read the rest of this chapter, it's talking about the Ethiopian Jews.
Coming as a present. Verse 7. In that time, that's similar to in that day, in that time shall the present be brought unto the Lord of hosts of a people scattered and peeled from a people terrible from their beginning, hitherto a nation meted out and trodden underfoot, whose land the rivers have spoiled, to the place of the name of the Lord of hosts to Mount Zion. It's talking about the return of the Ethiopian Jews to Israel. There's been three waves of Ethiopian Jews making their way into Israel.
I was there to record one of them, May 24th, 1991, when 42 aircraft took off from Ben-Gurion Airport, flew to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, picked up 15,000 Ethiopian Jews in Operation Solomon, brought them back to Israel. Mm-hmm. Judy and I went to cover it. As credentialed journalists, we were there to cover it. I couldn't get any conversation with them.
They didn't speak. English or Hebrew, I didn't speak their language.
So as we started to help them eat, We started to help feed them. They didn't know how to eat. They were a starving people. That's why Israel brought them into the land. I opened up a yogurt container and fed a little baby, and it caught on, and all of them started eating the yogurt that was in front of them.
I peeled a boiled egg and helped an old man eat it, and everybody caught on. And the tears were running down my eyes as I thought of Zephaniah 3:9 and this passage of Scripture, the 18th chapter of the book of Isaiah, out of Ethiopia! Shakam is present. His prides. Isaiah 65 says the prize.
Other people. God's people. brought back. to Jerusalem. As I speak.
Today Jews from Ethiopia. are on their way. to Israel. 18th chapter. of the book of Isaiah.
He passed the test in the pass. This is a prophecy. Oh, the 19th chapter. This is so amazing. Let me just go over everything.
In that day, as used again four times in this passage of Scripture, chapter 19, verses 18, verse 19, down in verse 23 and verse 24. In that day, what's it talking about? In that day, people from Egypt. People from Assyria will join with the Hebrews and they'll walk down the King's Highway. You know what the King's Highway is?
It was a trade route in the times of Moses coming out of Egypt through Israel into. Jordan. on through Syria. over to Mecca. It went right by Petra.
And it says they'll all come. speaking Hebrew. It's the eternal language, Hebrew. And they all say, Come, let us go up to the temple to worship. You see these These nations will attack Israel.
All of them won't be destroyed. Forever. Two will be. the Babylonians and the Edomites, forever as Solomon and Gomorrah, But the rest of them, as you look at Bible prophecy from Jeremiah, who was the prophet to the nations, all the rest of them will repent, get their hearts right. The treaty.
the treaty between Israel and Jordan. provided for a highway to be built. And travelled. By the way, you know who built the highway? Sudden Who's saying?
Built the highway. From Aqaba. The only point Yeah. They could bring their materiels in. He built a highway, saw the semi-trailer trucks.
could take it up to Baghdad. A multi-billion dollar project. And that's the way. They'll travel. up this highway.
The Egyptians. The Assyrians. The Jews speaking Hebrew. Let's go to the temple. and worship.
Those last three. The stage is set. Damascus. to be destroyed. They're itching.
for that. Ethiopians. Coming home, they're in the air. On their way right now. And all going to the temple.
Where he What did come? Let us go to the house of the Lord. The mountain of the Lord. In Jerusalem. to study the word.
Where? At the edge. of Isaiah's prophecies. being fulfilled. But this is only The beginning.
of what his book is talking about. Let's have a word of prayer, Father. Thank you for this. Awesome book. An awesome book, an amazing book, an articulate book, an authoritative book, an accurate book.
That is so specific. Oh, we're going to delve into the depths. And see. The prophecies of the Messiah. How he fulfilled them.
And every aspect. of his being. But look at the kingdom. We realize the focus on the Jewish people. is key.
Thank you for it. The privilege. to spend time with dear friends. Studying. Your word.
It all be done. For your glory, my precious name. Fuck. Today I closed my study in prayer, thanking the Lord for the prophet Isaiah. who foretold the first coming of Jesus Christ, but also he gave us many prophecies about the second coming as well.
These second coming prophecies helping us to understand the times in which we are living, to see how close we are to the rapture, the next event in God's calendar of activities, which actually could happen at any time and will happen before the second coming prophecies discussed today are fulfilled. Please come back next week to join us in our study of Isaiah. And until that time, keep looking up. For the rapture. Dr.
Jimmy DeYoung and the Legacy Series. We've got to take a break, and when we come back, Rick and I will take a look at the book right here on Prophecy Today weekend. I'm Jeremy Scott with Mission Network News. Four more countries may begin feeling heat from the United States over religious freedom violations. The U.S.
Commission for International Religious Freedom is recommending four additional nations for the State Department to designate countries of particular concern: India, Nigeria, Afghanistan, and Vietnam. Todd Nettleton with The Voice of the Martyrs, USA, says. It will be interesting. In some of those cases, there are trade relationships like India. In others, you know, it's been confusing to me how Nigeria was not on the list previously.
So we kind of wait and see what the State Department does.
Now is a critical time for Christians to respond. The map that is. Printed in the userfort is something that you can take and pray over. Find more prayer resources at missionnews.org. Then, how are ministries in the Middle East and North Africa region adapting to the fast and furious digital change?
SAT7's Terry Ascot says traditional broadcasting still serves an important role for people looking to avoid a digital footprint or for those who are digitally illiterate. But the younger generation's use of digital media puts it on the ministry's radar. With the advent of AI, there's going to be a major challenge in understanding what is true and what is not true. Outside the digital realm, Ascot says conflict and social disruption in the MENA region can open people's hearts to messages of hope. And so these very challenging times are also times of opportunity for the gospel.
Please pray for the team at SAT7 as they share the gospel in the MENA region. Find specific prayer points and more to the story at missionnews.org. Thanks for listening to Mission Network News, a service of one-way ministries. We're listeners supported by people just like you.
So, by giving to Mission Network News, you enable us to keep the stories of God's kingdom coming. And together, the great commission happens. Look for the links at missionnews.org. That's missionnews.org. I'm Jeremy Scott.
Welcome back to Prophecy Today. I'm Jimmy the Young Jr. Along with Rick, we have been looking at current events in the light of God's prophetic word. And Rick, I start off the program, and I've been starting off the program the last couple of weeks saying it's because of our understanding of Bible prophecy and what's going to take place in the future that we can examine and look at world events as they're happening. And we're also focusing on the nations and world leaders.
So, on today's program, as we looked, we Really should help people to understand and draw the connection between why we focus on some of those stories.
Well that's certainly right, Jimmy. Talking to our broadcast partners today, there are so many things that we look at the Bible prophecy, we know what the Bible says is going to take place in the future, and then we kind of pick out stories. And none was more of an example than that one today. We talked to Ken Timmerman about President Trump and Vice President Banson, the way they are pushing Europe. To basically militarize.
Now, this is something that the Bible says is going to happen during the tribulation, doesn't it? Yes. And, you know, there isn't a, I guess, an EU army at this point, individual countries in the European Union. And don't forget, the European Union is the infrastructure for the revived Roman Empire. That's talked about in Nebuchadnezzar's dream in Daniel chapter 2.
Daniel's dream in Daniel chapter 7. And Daniel chapter 2, this is the ten toes of the feet of iron and clay. And then in Daniel chapter 7, Daniel's dream was this terrible beast with 10 heads.
So as we look at these nations that are coming together and they don't have a military, yes, you're absolutely right, Rick. You know, when you look at this, this is something that the Antichrist is going to be a world leader. He is going to be military-minded, as a description that's given to us in. Daniel chapter 10 and 11 about the Antichrist, and one of the descriptions throughout the word of God in Revelation chapter 13 about the Antichrist.
So, when we look at this, yeah, you're absolutely right when you see the militarization of the European Union and how that plays into Bible prophecy.
Well, Jimmy, of course, we know that is all going to happen during the tribulation, and that is after the rapture of the church. And as we always say, that's what we look forward to. We see what's going to happen in the future. We know something that's going to take place before. Another thing, Jimmy, is that there's going to be a temple standing during the tribulation.
We talked to Winky today about the Ark of the Covenant. Very interesting.
Yes. You know, Rick, you and I have talked about this. And I started, I had a rabbi friend of mine that I've made, and he has a Torah study every week. And we were going through the scriptures. And, well, they go through the first five books of the Bible throughout the year.
In the 53 weeks of the year, they use the lunar calendar.
So, you know, they are going through those passages. And then once they go through that, they celebrate that and then they go through it again.
Well, the passage we were talking about, Rick, was the Ark of the Covenant. And it's so interesting when you look at the Jewish perspective. And certainly coming from Winky's position, he is a religious Jew, so he's looking at the importance of the Ark of the Covenant. Not only him, but a lot of people are looking at it. And one of Dad's first videos was Ready to Rebuild.
Then 20 years later, we did Ready to Rebuild Revisited. It's a great DVD that people can get. But, you know, we talk about the Ark of the Covenant. And as I was talking to this rabbi and all the other people that were there, of course, I was the only Gentile that was there at this Torah study. The rabbi was saying, Well, we don't really know where the ark of the covenant is, and we're going through that.
And I said, Well, Second Chronicles thirty five three talks about where the Ark of the Covenant was put. Josiah told the Levites to put the Ark of the Covenant in a secret, secluded hiding place. We've had many teachings on that on this program. And you know, but Most of these people sitting in the room, like, what? Where did you get that from?
And, you know, it was like, well, it's in, and so they're looking up on their phone, 2 Chronicles 35:3. We know exactly where the Ark of the Covenant is. And it's something that we have talked about. And how if it does come out and they brought it out, and the Temple Institute says often, every time you go there, we know where the Ark of the Covenant is, and they're ready to bring it out when there is a temple standing in place. And that is so very exciting.
When you talk about this, you see all these, like you said, all these parts and pieces are being put in place, ready for the timeline of Bible prophecy to be unfolded.
Well, Jimmy, we know this, and you know this from your study of scripture. Very interesting that you're able to just bring that up to that group of people as they look at that. And, you know, Jimmy, we study Bible prophecy.
Now, it's not just a week, we. We know fun facts, or we do, uh, we can do fun things, or we like to follow the news. But Jimmy, we study this because it helps us to understand God's communication to us through his prophetic word, and that is so important to us, isn't it? It sure is. You know, I started the program today, Rick, talking about the spirit.
The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. That's Revelation 19:10. And, you know, I love what the angel said. John writes, Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said to me, You must not do that. Don't worship the angels.
Don't worship the prophecies. But he says, I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God. For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of Bible prophecy. And as we study this, I always want to remind people: don't chase after things and try to overreach.
With Bible prophecy, keep it all in context and just, you know, remember that Jesus is the center of Bible prophecy.
Well, it certainly is, Jimmy. And of course, to keep the main thing, the main thing, as we study, we keep Jesus in focus. That always works for us, doesn't it? It sure does. Jesus is the substance of all prophecy.
Or really, put it another way, Jesus is the common thing among all prophecy. All true prophecy bears witness about Jesus. Therefore, all prophecy should cause us to worship him alone. And then the message or testimony given by Jesus is the essence of true prophecy. Jesus is the word, and no prophecy comes to us except through him, ultimately pointing to God as the source of all true prophecy.
Well, Jimmy, it is our understanding and our study of Bible prophecy that, as we always say on this program, it helps us to live a pure, prepared, and productive life in the light of his soon return. It sure does, Rick. And with everything that we see and we focus on on a weekly basis, we can't help but say that the rapture of the church could happen at any moment. Let's keep looking up. Until Thank you so much for joining us today.
This is Jay Johnson inviting you to join us again next week for more of Prophecy Today.
