Welcome to Prophecy Today. I'm Jimmy DeYoung Jr. Along with my brother Rick, we examine current events in the light of God's prophetic word. What a time to be examining current events. This week, we're going to focus on the New World Order.
Now, I know this is not the first time that prophecy teachers have talked about a new world order, but in the last week, a new world order has come up against the most powerful man on the earth, the President of the United States, Donald Trump. And you have Russia. India China and Iran all putting together a new world order to do battle to come against, and it just seems like all these nations that are listed in Bible prophecy, there's an alignment. This is not the alignment talked about in Ezekiel 38. This is not the alignment that's talked about in Daniel 11 or Psalm 83, but this is an alignment of nations that will come against Israel according to Revelation chapter 16.
We're going to get into that today on the program, but I want you to know that before all of this comes and comes against the United States of America and against the world, the rapture of the church happens first, which is why it's so exciting. I'm in Farmington, Maine, doing a prophecy conference at Farmington Baptist Church. We invite all of you that are in the New England area to come to the meeting. The meetings start at six o'clock each night, Saturday night, Sunday night, and then Monday. Night at six o'clock, and we would love to help you to understand Bible prophecy better.
Rick, we've got Ken Timmerman. We're going to go in depth with Ken Timmerman in the first half hour. In the second half hour, David Dolan's going to go a little bit more in depth on what's taking place in Israel and what Israel feels about this new world order. And then Paul Scharf will be on the program today. We'll take a look at the book, and of course, Dr.
Jimmy DeYoung talking about the seals in the book of Revelation, chapter 6. Rick, we've got a lot to cover, so let's get started with our first, Ken Timmerman.
Well, that's right, Jimmy. I have Ken Timmerman with us. He comes to us every week. He's our expert on geopolitics. He lets us know what is going on around the world.
If you want to find out more about Ken, you can go to his website, kentimmerman.com. You could sign up for his newsletter. I highly recommend that. You can find out more about the books that he's written. Ken, as always, thanks for being with us today.
Glad to be with you, Rick, as always.
Well, Ken, lots going on this week, but we'll start with the big news of this week. We kind of looked ahead to it last week, this summit with G Putin and the leader of India. This is a huge thing on a geopolitical scale. Can you tell us what do you know about how this summit went?
Well, by all accounts, it was truly a meeting of minds at the very least between President Xi and President Putin. Also, Little Rocket Man, let's not forget him, Kim Jong-un, was there as well.
So the three of them were showcased. Little Rocket Man came in later. He came in for the military parade. China was doing the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, which, by the way, they said was a great victory for China and the Soviet Union. They failed to mention the United States.
They failed to mention D-Day or anything else. They failed to mention that it was the United States that resupplied Shanghai-shek and the Chinese National Army to get the Japanese out of China.
So Putin and Xi have a very different view, not just of contemporary events, but of world history than we do here in the West. But look, it started out as a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. This has been going on for a number of years. It's kind of stagnant. If you wish, up until the last.
Two to three years since the war in Ukraine. This is a group that first was set up by the Chinese around 10 years ago. They invited some of the BRICS countries to join them for economic cooperation. BRICS, remember, is Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. And now they've added Iran, they've added the UAE.
Well, the UAE was not there at this meeting, but Iran was. This was an economic summit. It was a strategic summit. And I think one of the long-term goals of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization has been to put forward a new world currency. They haven't done that yet, but there's been talk of this for well over 10 years.
They want a gold-backed currency. Both China and Russia, and Iran, by the way, have been buying massive amounts of gold on the open market for many, many years.
So they quite conceivably do have the hard assets to back a new currency. But would they actually back a currency that would be convertible? That would be accepted in world markets, that is a completely different story, Rick.
Well, Ken, this story is so huge, basically, because it's these group of allies right here trying to assert a new world order and move away from the West. Of course, President Trump, with his typical humble response, I say that sarcastically, he basically said on a post: listen, we've lost India and Russia to deepest, darkest China. What do you think about Trump's response on this?
Well, I think it was in part a goad to both Russia and the Chinese, and to the Indians. And it was also a recognition that so far his strategy has failed. Remember, we've been talking about geopolitics the past couple of weeks, that this is a geopolitical game, it's a chess game that's not checkers. And it starts, of course, with the Putin-Trump summit over the Ukraine war, where Putin made promises to Trump. And Trump came out of that meeting and said, Well, President Putin says he's going to have a summit meeting with Zelensky.
Well, that never happened. Instead, Putin bombed Kiev with the Biggest onslaught of missiles and drones since basically the beginning of the war. Trump responded by saying, Okay, we're going to put secondary sanctions on Putin's allies, the buyers of Russian oil, China and India, an additional 25% to bring their tariffs up to 50%. And instead of caving, those countries got together at this summit here.
So we're seeing a kind of tit-for-tat back and forth in this geopolitical chess game. The next step is going to come from Trump. He's already announced that the U.S. will send long-range missiles to Ukraine with no restrictions on striking into Russian territory. You have a number of outside commentators like General Jack Keene, who's very close to people in the White House, saying that there should be no limits on striking into Russia since Russia actually invaded Ukraine.
And when a country invades another, they cannot expect their own territory to be a sanctuary.
So I think. That is going to be part of Trump's next step. And there could also be things like the seizure of Russian assets. There's $300 billion that have been seized in Europe and in the United States, more tariffs, and other things. More is to come here.
This is a very big evolving story. The Russians and the Chinese would like us to believe that this is a big tectonic shift in world alliances. Right now, In my view, India is still sitting on the fence. India and China have never been allies. They have at times had a hot war against each other.
They've never been allies. They've never really even been friends.
So this is for the Indians to jump into the embrace of the Chinese, I think, is going to take more than twenty-five percent tariffs. But we'll see. We certainly will, and it remains to be seen whether this is a huge shift or what's going on here, just posturing by these sides. Let me take you to an interesting story that came out of this conference. There was a hot mic moment, and this kind of goes to the mindset of these leaders.
And the hot mic moment was between President Putin and China's President Xi. Can you tell us about that? And this was as they were walking up this long red carpet to watch the military parade, the biggest military parade the Chinese have ever put on. It was enormous. And it was, again, on the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II.
And you have this, so this video has been all over the internet. It's a Reuters video, and the translations appear to be done in real time because they're picked up on this hot mic moment. And you have them talking about life expectancy. And she says, well, you know, today the average expectancy is something like 70 years. And Putin says, well, you know, modern science can expand that.
And with advances in biotechnology and organ transplants, you might be able to live to 150 years in our lifetime. Just think of that. What it says to me is that both Putin and she had the ambition. To stay in power for a very long time, and both men are looking for ways to escape mortality. Very interesting.
Well, one final question on this summit and what it represents. You mentioned Iran and their interest here.
Now, they were in that 12-day war. They were soundly beaten, whether they accepted it or not, by Israel and then, of course, by the U.S. intervention. But this is the alliance they are going to move toward. They're going to put all their chips in that basket, and that's what they're signaling, isn't it?
You're right, Rick, but it's been going on for a long time. Remember, the Iranian revolution of 1979 was not only against the Shah, but it was against the Shah's relationship, his partnership, his alliance with the United States. And that was the beginning of this whole notion of the U.S. being the great Satan and Israel being the little Satan. But it took really quite some time for the Islamist regime in Tehran to accept Russia as an ally.
Remember, traditionally, Iran and Russia had been enemies. They were enemies in the 1906 constitutional revolution in Iran when the Cossacks basically destroyed the Iranian parliament. And Iranians remember those events.
So it's taken 40 years to break down those taboos inside traditional Iranian society and accept Russia not just as a partner, but as a strategic ally. Today, The Iranian regime has no other choice. They have nowhere else to go but to Russia and to China and to North Korea.
So this alliance, Rick, for Iran is something they must accomplish. They must succeed. They have no other alternative. Russia and China, Iran is the junior partner. Ken Timmerman reporting for Prophecy Today.
Ken, we don't typically do this all the time, but we'd like to ask you to stay with us for the next segment as we continue to talk about geopolitical events around the world. Would you be able to do that? Sure, Reck, with pleasure. Great job as always, Ken, and I'm looking forward to the second segment here that we have coming up. But you know, the problem with the acceptance and the approval of any new world order that government has ever offered, nor will it ever offer, real hope and peace for mankind.
And when man turns to government to provide worldwide peace and hope, he becomes disillusioned and enslaved by its false promises. History has proven time and time again that no quasi-world empire has ever survived simply because of its innate flaws of greed. corruption and quest for power.
Well, we've got Ken Timmerman coming back in just a second. Stick around. David Dolan will be in the next half hour. But we have more to cover with Ken right here on Prophecy Today weekend. I'm Ruth Kramer with Mission Network News.
Indonesia is experiencing its most violent wave of protests in over two decades. Protesters are angry with lavish government spending and police abuse. At least 10 people have been killed so far, and over a thousand taken to hospitals. FMI's Bruce Allen explains. Anti-government protests and recent days.
Have spread to thirty-two of the country's thirty-eight provinces. Government buildings, police stations have been attacked and burned.
some in the locations where our FMI supported church planters serve. Churches are living the gospel of peace by example. Local pastors in one regency were even invited to government headquarters to pray for peace. Alan asks Pray that the Christian community is a visible demonstration of Christ's compassion. And technology can be a great thing.
For example, it's helping Christians in Southeast Asia translate the Bible into minority languages, Dane with Unfolding Word says. They've taken technology tools that our folks created, most notably the one called Translation Core, they have turbocharged it. It not only serves as a checking Tool, which is essential in Bible translation, but it actually serves as an initial drafting tool as well. Tech tools from Unfolding Word help believers complete more work in less time. They've translated the New Testament faster than anybody we've partnered with.
However, the government in this region can and does use technology to persecute Christians, so pray that believers will have discernment and wisdom. You're listening to Mission Network News, a service of Onway Ministries. How does radio share the hope of Christ worldwide? This month, Transworld Radio is offering a free book called Making Waves. Get your free copy when you click on the banner out at missionnetworknews.org.
I'm Luth Kramer. Welcome back to Prophecy Today. I'm Jimmy DeYoung Jr., along with Rick. We're examining current events in the light of God's prophetic word. And we're going a little bit more in depth with Ken Timmerman.
And I am so appreciative of the knowledge that Ken has and what he brings every week to the program. Rick, let's bring Ken back in to cover the rest of the news, as we say.
Well, that's right, Jimmy. Ken Timmerman has agreed to come back in this second segment as we look at these geopolitical events taking place around the world. We're going to have Dave Dolan on in our next segment, and we look at the Middle East news update. But Ken has agreed to be back with us. Ken, thanks for doing that.
Well, let's look at the situation. We talked about that meeting with the New World Order, that summit with Xi, but now let's look at what's going on with the Russia-Ukraine crisis. And we look at signals coming out of Europe this week. Russia has issued warning to European leaders about Western troops in that area. Can you talk about that?
Yes, this was a very explicit warning by the Russian spokesperson of one of Putin's spokespersons, Maria Zakharova, where she said Western war instigators view Ukraine as a testing ground for their military developments, and Russia will not accept Western troops anywhere in Ukraine.
Now, that has long been seen by the Ukrainians, but even by most in the Trump administration, as a possibility, not U.S. troops, but European troops in the western part of Ukraine, simply to enforce a peace agreement or a ceasefire agreement with Russia.
Now, Russia is saying, no, no, no, no Western troops at all. Zelensky was in Paris this week to meet with Macron, the president of France, again to elicit more promises of Western support for the war effort. Right now, the peace effort is completely stalled, so he's turning back to the war effort. He had a conversation with President Trump. This week, and that is where the president, I am sure, told Zelensky he was going to be sending more military aid.
So this is now. War war, not jaw jaw.
Well, and just a quick question, and I know this is completely your opinion, but uh you said that uh the peace process has been stalled. Is there any time line at all? Do you see any end in sight to this crisis? Right now I don't, Rick. And there have been really some rather alarming developments just recently.
Ursula van der Leyden, the president of the EU, revealed this week that she had been traveling to Romania, I think it was, recently in her official aircraft. And there was an attempt by the Russians to sabotage the plane. They took down the GPS system, the guidance of the aircraft, and she revealed her pilots had to land using a physical map, not GPS coordinates, not any instruments, because the Russians had taken them out with the cyber attack. That is really tantamount to an assassination attempt of a world leader. Ursula van der Leyden is a world leader as the head of the EU.
So I think things are going to take a dark turn here. I don't see much light at the end of this tunnel because I think the tunnel is going to be very long.
Well, Ken, certainly interesting developments there in Europe. But Ken, I want to change gears a little bit, and I want to talk about a different subject, the Muslim Brotherhood. There has been a motion to declare the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist organization. And we look around the world, especially in Europe, and we see the influence of the Muslim Brotherhood in Europe and the Middle East. This is an organization that is very concerning.
Can you talk a little bit about the Muslim Brotherhood?
Well, it's also important here in the United States, and I'll get to that in a second. But on July 16th, Senator Ted Cruz introduced this piece of legislation called the Muslim Brotherhood Terrorist Designation Act of 2025, which would, as you said, designate them as a terrorist group. Why is that important?
Well, it's important because the Muslim Brotherhood operates in the United States. Quite openly and has been operated in the United States quite openly since the end of the 1980s. They have a number of non-governmental organizations, they have interest groups, they even have lobbying organizations, MPAC, for example, and the Muslim Political Action Committee, and CARE, the Council on American Islamic Relations. They were designated an arm of Hamas. Hamas, of course, is the Muslim Brotherhood in Gaza and the Palestinian territories.
So, this bill, should it become law, and I fully expect it will, will have a dramatic impact on some of those organizations here in the United States with ties to the Muslim Brotherhood. It will also have an impact on college campuses, university campuses, where you have Hamas supporters who openly are marching on the streets, closing classrooms, closing buildings, seizing administration buildings, et cetera, attacking Jewish students.
So, those people can now. Be arrested. And if they are foreign students, be deported.
So I think this has legal ramifications, which are very important.
Now, what is the Muslim Brotherhood? I think a lot of our listeners have a pretty clear idea, but it was created in 1928 by Hasan al-Bana. It is extended around the world. Hamas is probably its best-known arm. But remember, in Egypt in 2012, Hosni Mubarak, the president, was overthrown by a Muslim Brotherhood government.
So they are not just in Gaza, they're not just in Egypt. Turkey is very, very close to the Muslim Brotherhood. Qatar is very close to the Muslim Brotherhood. And you see Turkey increasingly trying to exert its influence in Syria and through Syria into Lebanon. This is bringing the Muslim Brotherhood as a military organization now into those countries.
So the Muslim Brotherhood is a worldwide Islamic expansionist supremacist organization. They want to impose Islam and Islamic Sharia law. Everywhere they go. In Europe, you have many countries that have a 15%, 20%, 25% Muslim population, and the Muslim Brotherhood is fully, fully integrated into those populations, driving extremists through the mosques, through the schools, trying to impose Sharia law. And in some places, like Belgium, they have declared it will become an Islamic State.
By twenty thirty. That's just around the corner, Rick.
Well, it certainly is, Ken, and that's why we're talking about it right now so our listeners can be aware.
Well, for my final question, I'd like to talk to you about the nation of Israel.
Now, we're going to have the Middle East News update with Dave Dolan next, but I want to talk about Israel from the perspective of Europe and really the world. And I want to do this through the lens of two stories. The first is the supposed Famine in Gaza that many people are blaming Israel for and not necessarily supported by the facts, but maybe you can talk about that. And secondly, many countries around the world recognizing a Palestinian state, including your adopted home country of France. Can you talk a little bit about how the rest of the world views Israel?
Well, Rick, now you're talking to somebody who's the author of a book called The French Betrayal of America.
So I haven't really adopted France as my second nation, but I do happen to love the south of France where people are pro-Trump, pro-America, and conservative. But look, what's happening in Europe flows directly from what we were just discussing with the Muslim Brotherhood. You have these large Muslim populations, and they are now affecting the way the leaders, the elected leaders of countries such as France, Britain, Belgium, and the UK act internationally. All of those leaders and others are calling for the adoption of a Palestinian state, the declaration of a Palestinian state this month at the United Nations. Why are they doing it?
They're doing it because they face increasing pressure domestically. From their own Muslim populations and the spillover into the left-wing political parties. You have this long-standing alliance, the so-called red-green alliance between the left-wing parties and the Islamist parties here in the United States, but also in Europe. And that is now driving policy. When Macon calls for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, for example, a ceasefire that would save Hamas from destruction, he hardly mentions that awful massacre on October 7th.
So Macon really is doing the work of the Muslim Brotherhood. He's doing the work of Hamas, and so are other countries, including Canada, Australia, the UK, and other places in Europe. About the famine, there is a problem with food distribution in Gaza. That is absolutely true. But it's not because there are not enough trucks going in.
The Israelis have been. Pumping in 600, 800, 1,000 trucks of food a day. But guess what? They get hijacked. And who is hijacking them?
Hamas is hijacking them. And then Hamas goes around with its Pollywood videographers and tries to find starving children, starving women, or just children who are emaciated from other diseases. We've seen that as well. These are just fake news stories and make the world believe that there's a famine. And the world does believe it for the most part.
And this is the horrible thing. They've succeeded with this disinformation campaign. The Israelis and the United States have gone to incredible lengths to make sure that all Gazans can eat a sufficient diet, you know, not be on a starvation diet, but be on a normal diet every single day. And that food gets hijacked, and it gets hijacked for a political purpose by Hamas to use famine as a political weapon. By the way, it's the same way that the Palestinians have always operated.
I saw that in Beirut for the first time in 1982. I write about that in my book, and the rest is history. They take the civilian population as hostages. That's the way they operate. They take the civilians as human shields and hostages, and they use them politically to win points with the rest of the world.
And they're very successful at it, Rick. That's the tragedy. Ken Timmerman for Prophecy Today. Ken, as always, we appreciate your contribution. Look forward to talking to you again soon.
Thanks so much, Rick. God bless. Great job as always, Ken. David Dolan with our Middle East News Update coming up next. All right, you're on Prophecy Today weekend.
I'm Ruth Kramer with Mission Network News. A magnitude 6.0 earthquake devastated eastern Afghanistan Sunday night. It was followed by a 5.2 magnitude quake on Tuesday night. Over 1,400 people lost their lives with more than 5,400 homes destroyed. Nehemiah with FMI says villagers are trying to rescue those trapped in the rubble with their bare hands.
The Taliban government has called for international aid, so pray that the light of Christ will shine to those who have lost so much. Then, are you a list maker? God is. Revelation tells us about his best list, a record of the Lord's redeemed people. Director of the Alliance for the Unreached David Bogozian says, 2,000 years after the Great Commission, we are more resourced than ever to finish the task.
And lists are helping the cause. Equipped with information about the remaining people groups who've not yet heard, missionaries are fanning out with the gospel. Mission Network News is a service of one-way ministries on Youth Kramer. Welcome back to Prophecy. Today, I'm Jimmy Young Jr., and along with my brother Rick, we've been examining current events in the light of God's prophetic word.
Ken Timmerman, for the first half hour and now, we have David Dolan coming up. But I've often been asked, why focus so much on Israel and the end times? Why not just focus on the gospel and the assurance of salvation for now?
Well, here are some answers. Without Israel, we do not have the gospel, for salvation is of the Jews. That's John 4:22. We do not have the Savior, Jesus Christ, who is a descendant of Israel's patriarchs. Romans 9:5.
We do not have the revelation of God's word and will for our lives. That's Romans 9:4. We do not have a tree of spiritual blessing to be grafted into. Romans 11, 17, and 18. We do not have the second coming of Jesus for his return in response to the calling on Israel on his name to save them at the climax of the tribulation period.
Matthew 23, Zechariah 12, Hosea 5. And we do not have a future kingdom to inherit for Christ. Will reign as the king of Israel from David's throne in Jerusalem, and Israel will be the central nation of his kingdom. And last but not least, we do not have any assurance of the gospel of our salvation. For if God can reject Israel and revoke His unconditional promises, then He can also reject us and revoke our promises of salvation in eternal life.
That's so very important as we are taking that information and now going to be focusing on Israel. And after that, after we focus with David Dolan for an extended period of time, Paul Sharf is going to come back in and talk to us as to why we believe in a pre-tribulational rapture. That's all ahead coming up. But first, Rick, let's bring in Dave Dolan and help us to understand what is going on in the Middle East.
Well, that's right, Jimmy. I have Dave Dolan, a journalist with over 30 years of experience, to help us with the Middle East news update. We do this every week, not always in this time slot, but Dave is joining us today as we look at what's going on in Israel. Dave, as always, we appreciate your insight and the experience you bring to this program. Thanks so much for being with us.
Well, as always, Rick. I'm blessed to do it.
Well, David, you typically give us an update on what has taken place in the last week in the Middle East, but Israel, in the Middle East in general, but Israel in specific. Can you tell us what's the latest?
Well, the focus remains on the Gaza Strip as it has really for seven hundred days, Rick, as of yesterday, Friday. It was seven hundred days since the horrific Hamas, Islamic Jihad, terror. attack, massacre, pogrom, you could use so many words, took place. We're nearly at the two year anniversary of that. There were special Uh Events held throughout Israel to mark the seven hundred days, especially in.
what's been dubbed hostage square in Tel Aviv. There was a large gathering of some of the families of the remaining hostages. Of course, we got back, as I mentioned last week, the bodies of two Israel recovered the bodies of two um hostages that uh were killed uh on october seventh The second one was laid to rest. Enric, there was a major funeral procession that began in the Tel Aviv area and went to several other towns and cities on Monday. For a very well-known hostage who was at the Nova Music Festival, a 28-year-old.
young man, very popular, very handsome, and hundreds of his friends accompanied the procession wearing shirts in his honor, special shirts and different things like that. And then we had as the campaign intensified in Gaza during the week, It moved to the neighborhood of Radwan, which is a major Hamas stronghold. The IDF Chief of Staff said forty percent of the GUS trip is now under. Idea of control. But of course, again, the hostages remain a focus.
And on Friday, Hamas released a new propaganda video that was filmed, it said, on August 28th. And it featured the hostage we saw a little over a month ago looking like a Holocaust victim, a guy Gilboa Dalal. I mentioned him last week. He's an expert on Japan, and his father and brother were in Japan pleading for. I help from that government to get him free.
But in the video, Rick, it's he is shown being driven around Gaza City. He says he's in Gaza City, and he quotes the statement we had last week from the Gaza. From the Hamas spokesman, Abu Obaida. I'll talk about him a bit more in a second. But saying that the hostages are in Gaza City and that whatever fate.
Hamas faced, they would face the same.
So he repeats that in the video. Yeah, Guy Dalal and says, please. do everything you can to uh get me released. And there's a scene where he meets another hostage, Rick Alon O'Hel. Another young man, he's not only an Israeli, but a duo-German Serbian.
A national as well.
So his parents spoke afterwards. They hadn't seen any proof of him being alive. It was the first. And he's seen greeting Dalal briefly and giving him a quick hi. hug and the camera focuses on his face.
You can see that his right eye is drooping and flickering. And uh the Parents had the video shown to some Eye doctors and experts, and they all believe he's probably blind by now in that eye. The parents afterwards made a statement saying the Red Cross or other Health officials need to see these guys that this is a war crime to beholding them without any care. And et cetera. But Guy Dalal said at one point, I can't believe I'm still alive, but please.
get me home.
Well, of course, the Prime Minister's office responded pretty strongly to that. They said that this is a malicious propaganda video. That it will not weaken our resolve to hold Hamas account for this. atrocity, these kidnappings and everything else that had happened. And that's a war of words there.
We also had some tensions with Egypt later in the week, Grick. We had Prime Minister Netanyahu in an interview with the Telegram uh website uh in Arabic He said in the interview, Rick, that Egypt is basically trapping Gaza residents that want to leave. Many do want to leave and go to other places because, of course, of the continuing war, the terrible destruction, the situation there. And he said that, that is wrong, that Egypt should open its doors. Egyptian Foreign Minister on Friday said no, no way we're going to do that.
This is a red line. The Palestinians must remain where they are, and I'm paraphrasing now, but mainly so that their cause for a Palestinian state remains very hot and alive. Again, he didn't put it that way, but he said they have to stay where they are.
So that's all going on with Gaza and the war. We also had more missile attacks from Yemen during the week, from, of course, the Houthi forces in Yemen. We also had some more drones shot down. All of those were shot down, but some more sirens sent Israelis to shelters. Just a reminder to everyone that that part of the war is not over either.
And then in the North Rick, we had on Friday the Lebanese government vote formally to approve a plan that would disarm Hezbollah, the Iranian backed Hezbollah force. But the Army would be in charge of that. The five Shiite ministers in the cabinet walked out of the session. They opposed that very, very much. And there's fear that this could spark a new internal civil War in Lebanon if it's pushed too hard.
And basically, Hezbollah issued a statement saying. Only when Israel gets completely out of Lebanon, only when they're conducting no more strikes or actions against us. Will we disarm?
Well, of course, Israel is only doing that because Hezbollah is still there and is still armed. and is still trying to rebuild Sites and weapons factories and that sort of thing.
Well, David, so many things to follow up on there, but let's talk about this a little bit. You mentioned 700 days since the October 7th attack, coming up on the two-year anniversary next month. And you lived in Israel for 30 years. Witnessed wars in the north, the first and the second Antifada, and the withdrawal from the Gaza area.
So many things that you were a personal eyewitness to. And it certainly seems like October 7th is taking its place. And one of those events that certainly shaped the Middle East. And even it's more profound as time goes by and the effects are still being felt. Can you talk about how much of a historic event this was and how it changed Israel's perception in the world and really the makeup of the Middle East?
Well, Rick, actually, I was in Israel 33 years. I like to tell people I was there the same amount of time that Jesus was. The only thing is, is. He didn't leave on El Al. He left on El's wings, on the wings of the Lord.
Resurrected to heaven from the Mount of Olives. And I, of course, was in Lebanon and covered the war there. I covered the first Gulf War. I covered the first uprising and the second uprising for CBS.
Well, there's been the two thousand six conflict. We had the 1996 Hezbollah attacks in the north of Israel and And of course, Rick, we've had Hamas itself launch five or six. I've lost count. Attacks upon Israel since they took over the Gaza Strip in 2007, proving Netanyahu's warnings that it would turn into Hamastan, an armed camp against Israel, that they would initiate attacks all the time. And usually, Rick, as you know, their excuse for that is something to do with Jews on the Temple Mount.
The fact that there are any Jews uh up there is An affront to their view of fundamentalist Islam. And Jews cannot rule over Muslims and cannot have any land that was once ruled by Muslims, cannot retake it. They're the Himi peoples, they should pay a pull tax, they're second rate, and they're under the authority of the Muslims.
So all of that. And so we've had all of this trouble all these years. The Palestinians, Rick, I have to say, Hamas in particular, As a journalist, I can say this, they have been extremely clever. and pretty advanced in their propaganda machine. One of the leading Israeli newspapers, Yedi Oda Khanot, this week, ran a report that shared some captured documents in Gaza City, recently captured, that showed the extent.
of their propaganda operation. And of course, this was all headed up by Abu Obaida, and I mentioned him earlier. He was the spokesman officially for the military wing of Hamas. But Rick, his voice was recognized immediately all over the Arabic-speaking world. He was on the media all the time, giving the Hamas positions on things and spouting different things.
Very, very clever man, really known as the Joseph Goebbels of the Hamas movement. And he was successfully killed. last weekend. In fact, I quoted him twice during the program last week without naming him. But you may remember, he said, we will as we heard earlier, Gilboa guy Gilboa Dalal said, they're driving me around uh Gaza City and they say he said in the video they say They'll take us wherever the action is.
So, in other words, increasing the chances we'll be killed.
So, they're really using them as human shields now like never before. But he's you know, he is just Obaida was just an expert at these propaganda videos. He produced most of them. He was the one, Rick, behind the starvation in Gaza campaign. He was the one that the documents show that suggested that they go to the media and really make that an issue, that they stage pictures of, as we know now, previously ill children that had other conditions, pretending they were dying of starvation.
And by the way, Rick, earlier this week, the IDF released a picture of the feast breaking the Ramadan fast last March that the Hamas leaders held in their secret hiding place underneath the European hospital in the South Gaza Strip. And the picture, there was more than one, showed dozens of people gathered and lush displays of food and meats and pastries and breads and just some obvious feasts they were having.
So again, you know, there's food there. It's just that Hamas has most of it because they've been stealing it, and the UN has been very much looking the other way, frankly, when that has happened so often. And the new US food program is working. It is expanding, Rick. A friend of mine Chris Mitchell, who's with CBN Television, the bureau chief actually in Jerusalem, known him many years.
He was just down there at one of the centers last week, filmed there, and you could see there's copious amounts of aid, fresh food and vegetables, and potatoes and breads and everything, and the lines were orderly, etc. What's been happening, of course, is Hamas has been trying to disrupt that U. S. based aid program by shooting into the crowds and killing some of their own people.
So they have very little regard for the Jewish people. They have very little regard for their own people. And it is a shame that they are effective. trapped in Gaza and I agree with Netanyahu who who said on Thursday, look, you know, people around the world are free to travel to other places for the most part if they especially if they're in a war zone. How many Syrians were allowed into Europe and other places because of the Syrian war over the past decade?
So he said to just trap the Palestinians there and not allow them any other options, especially when there are Yeah. Arab countries that have the capacity and the wealth. There are not many, but there's a number that could help them easily and.
Some are doing so, of course, but the situation is very, very bleak there, Rick. And yes, this is the darkest conflict in the thirty three years of war that I covered in Israel and the conflict since then, since I came back to the States the last ten years. We've had other things. This is definitely by far the worst, and it's not over. And Iran is not defeated, and Hezbollah sadly is still there.
The Houthis are still there. Hamas is at this point still there. Everybody weakened, but the determination to destroy Israel remains.
Well, it certainly does. And this is my final question for you in this kind of elongated Middle East news update. As we look at all these things, we talked about it with Ken in the segment before this about the way the world is reacting and believing the propaganda that is coming out of Gaza and that Hamas is putting out. And you mentioned it again. We look at that same thing.
It seems like the world is all too willing to accept this fact, to accept what is going on because of I mean, there's no other way to look at it because of anti-Semitism. This is a sign of what scripture says is going to take place in the end times and really demonic, satanic attacks on the Jewish people. As we close up this Middle East news update, can you talk a little bit about how the world is so willing to accept these facts against the Jewish people at this anti-Semitic attacks? Can you give us your thoughts?
Well, Rick, we have to remember that Britain and France and the United States and other of the Western allies in World War II realized, knew that there were these con Concentration camps. That they were mostly Jews being rounded up. They knew there were crematoriums, that many people were being murdered, millions turned out. They knew all this a couple years before any actual military action was taken to challenge that. In the meantime, we had Jewish refugees trying to get uh residency elsewhere.
Uh they were denied entrance into Cuba. They were denied entrance into Cyprus. They were sent back for From the shores of Israel, well, then, of course, called Palestine to Cyprus and then back some of them into Germany after the war, into holding camps there, even though they were Nazi-run. You know, this is not new. And of course, it goes back to the struggle that the Bible told us would take place between the children of God and the children of Hasatan, the adversary, those who know the light and those who resist the light.
And we would see the physical manifestation of that through Abraham and his offspring, and Jacob and Esau would struggle, and this conflict would go on until the end of time. All of these things were prophesied, and they're all happening. But that is, of course, the underlying reason for this intense battle. Basically, left-wing media appetite for slanderous things against Israel, appetite to believe the worst things. And I can tell you one thing: living in Israel 33 years, the Jewish people do not want to wipe out their Arab cousins.
They want to live with them in peace. They want to work with them. They have a lot in common, words in common, culture in common background in common. They look alike. And it's again just a spiritual force that comes from the pit of hell that is the reason that this goes on.
But it has an ending, and that ending is a glorious one for Israel and for the the world.
So we we keep that in mind. Dave Dolan bringing us a historic and political perspective of what is taking place in the Middle East, but also a prophetic perspective. Dave, as always we appreciate your insight. Look forward to talking to you again soon. Thank you, Rick.
God bless. Great job, as always, David, and I so appreciate your knowledge and what takes place in the Middle East. Each week you come to this program. We have complete trust that you understand after so many years in the Middle East to be able to give us that information. Let me remind you again: why do we focus so much on Israel?
Well, God has a plan, He's not finished with the Jewish people. Let me remind you those things that I talked about at the very beginning. Without Israel, we do not have the gospel, for salvation is of the Jews. John 4, verse 22. We do not have the Savior, Jesus Christ, who is the descendant of Israel's patriarchs.
Romans 9:5. We do not have the revelation of God's word and will for our lives. Romans 9:4. We do not have a tree of spiritual blessing to be grafted into. We do not have the second coming of Jesus, for he returns in response to the calling of Israel on his name to save them at the climax of the tribulation.
And that is. The four major trends of Bible prophecy, the return of the Jewish people to the land of Israel, an anticipation for peace, the alignment of nations that are going to come against Israel, an anticipation for the arrangements for the temple to be rebuilt.
So all of these things are things that God has given and promises that he's made to the Jewish people that have to be fulfilled. We do not have the second coming of Jesus, for he returns in response to the calling of Israel on his name to save them at the climax of the tribulation. We do not have a future kingdom to inherit, for Christ will reign as the king in the city of Jerusalem. And we do not have any assurance of the gospel in our salvation. That's why we focus on the Jewish people always as we each program, and we continue to do that.
That helps us to understand the times in which we're living.
So, we've got some questions from pastors that come in, and I got a question about pre-trib eschatology, understanding the study of the end times from a pre-trib point of view.
So, I thought I would like to get my good friend Paul Scharf on the program, Friends of Israel Ministry. And Paul, welcome to the program today. Thank you, Jimmy. It's wonderful to be back with you. Yes, Paul.
So, why do we teach a pre-trib eschatology?
Well, Jimmy, is we take the Bible literally. That's the key. Literal interpretation recovered in the days of the Protestant Reformation on the basis of sola scriptura, the authority of scripture alone. We believe as we look at the whole Bible take the whole Bible literally in context. We're going to be premillennial That is, Christ is returning before and to establish his millennial kingdom.
And then before that, there has to be a rapture.
Now, someone listening might say, I don't like the word rapture. It's not a Bible word.
Well, actually, it is a Bible word. If you take the Latin, it comes from the Latin like so many of our theological. Terms do From the Greek harpodzo, if you want to go back to the original inspired term that Paul used in 1 Thessalonians 4:17. We're going to be caught up to be with Christ, Jimmy. Isn't that exciting?
That's exciting. And so, the only question, all Bible believers then believe in a rapture. The only question is the timing. And in relation to the tribulation, is it going to be before, in the midst of or after? Or is there no tribulation?
What we believe as Bible literalists Jimmy, that there's a seven-year-old tribulation that's coming, the seventieth week of Daniel, And the angel Gabriel told Daniel in Daniel chapter 9, verse 24. Seventy weeks, all seventy of the weeks that he described for the prophet Daniel. were for Daniel's people and the holy city of Jerusalem. In other words, they all pertain to Israel. not the church.
And there's a seventieth week, a final period of seven years that's still to be fulfilled. We believe that's equivalent with the tribulation that's described in such incredible detail in the Hebrew prophets. And in the New Testament scriptures, And we believe as we compare scripture with scripture, that the church is going to be taken out of the world to be with Christ before God turns his focus in the world back to Israel for that seventieth week of Daniel. And the church age will end before that and it will end with the rapture And we have the glorious promise of this in Revelation chapter three, verse ten. Christ's word to the church in the ancient city of Philadelphia.
Because you have kept my command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour. which shall come upon the whole world to test those who dwell on the earth, So the church will not just be kept from the testing, But from the hour of the testing, that is a wonderful promise and hope that we have, Jimmy, in Christ. to be kept from the very time period of the tribulation. And I would point our listeners to another verse as well. And that's in the book of Second Thessalonians where Paul is discussing These things that we're talking about, and I know you're.
dealing in depth with on this week's program. Second Thessalonians two, seven and eight. I was listening to some recordings of one of my favorite old preachers, Dr. Bruce Dunn.
Some of our listeners may remember. Dr. Don, a great prophecy preacher of years past, And he said if you want the pretrib rapture in two verses, Here it is in Second Thessalonians two. Verses seven and eight. Is already at work, only he who now restrains, and I believe that's the Holy Spirit working through the church.
Of course, the church will be removed at the rapture and the Holy Spirit's Special earthly relationship to indwelling church age believers will thus. end in the sense the church age will end and the church will be taken to heaven.
So he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way And then verse 8. Dr. Dunn pointed out, it says, Then the lawless one will be revealed. That's the Antichrist. The church is taken.
The Antichrist is revealed. The pre-trib rapture. in two verses. Wow. Paul quickly excellent answer.
Give me your uh website. Thank you, Jimmy. People can find out all about the Friends of Israel at FOI.org. And they can find all of my materials at sermonaudio.com P F C H A R F P Sharf And I'd love to have them keep up with me there, and I'd love to hear from them. And I always appreciate being with you.
Yes. Wow. Very good, Paul. Paul, you know what? We got to take a break.
And when we come back, I want you to talk about the day of the Lord and the mark of the beast. How do we know that we're not taking the mark of the beast today? Would you do that with us? That would be great, Jimmy. Great.
We've got to take a break, and Dr. Jimmy DeYoung will come in with. The Legacy series, which he's laying out. God's promise, His plan, and the procedure for the end times. And Paul Sharp will be back right after that at the end of the program when we take a look at the book.
We're going to take a break. We'll be right back right here on Prophecy Today Weekend. Welcome back to Prophecy Today. I'm Jimmy De Young Jr. Along with Rick, we've been examining current events in the light of God's prophetic word.
Rick, great program today. If people were interested in finding out more about our ministry and about the trips that we have to Israel, where would they go? Timmy, you can go to our website, prophecytoday.com. You can find out more about the ministry. You can see how you could donate to our ministry or look at materials that we have.
And also, we're headed back to Israel. We've been already once this year. We're going again in October, the end of October, the 1st of November.
So if you'd like to go. You can go to our website to find out more information about that or call us at 423-825-6247. 423-825-6247. And we would love to take all of you with us. And as Rick always says, it's a great classroom.
It's the best classroom in the world for teaching Bible prophecy, Israel past, present, and future. Today, we're going to continue our study of Revelation. It's a great book to be studying today with all that is happening and unfolding in the Middle East. Before we continue our study, let me remind you of several things. First let me remind you of the three main events of the future.
the rapture, the second coming or the return, and the retribution, which is the great white throne judgment. We concluded our study last week looking at the sealed judgments. In Revelation chapter six we looked at the first two judgments, which revealed to us the appearance of the Antichrist and the alignment of nations. Revelation chapter six, verses one and two, as a man on a white horse, wearing a crown, with a bow in his hand, going forth to conquer. This is the Antichrist, a member of the Satanic trinity that tries to replicate the true Messiah.
He is a false Messiah. Revelation six, verses three and four, is a man on a red horse that takes peace from the earth. This is the judgment of war that is detailed in Daniel eleven, Ezekiel thirty eight, and Psalm eighty three. Take your Bible now and let's go to Revelation chapter six and verse five, and we will continue our study on the Book of Revelation as we look at the sealed judgments. The next seal, third seal, is famine, the fourth seal.
Look at it, verse 7. And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see. And I looked, and behold, a pale horse, and his name that saw on it was death, and hell followed with him, and power was given unto him over the fourth part of the earth, to kill them with the sword, and with hunger, and with death, with the beast of the earth. And so it is in this fourth seal judgment. One-fourth of the earth's population, we're talking about 1.5 billion people are going to be killed in this fourth seal judgment.
And that is an awesome thing. That is going to happen.
Now, I'm not going to go into all the detail. Please, just let me go through here with you the portion of the scriptures that unfolded. Chapter 11 is the two witnesses that preach. See, I go from the seals to chapter 11 because during that first three and a half years, remember I said there will be two witnesses that will preach. Verse 3, chapter 11.
And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy 1,203 score days. That would be 1,260 days, three and a half years. During that time, they're going to have opportunity to win many, many people to Jesus Christ. In fact, the Bible says in Matthew 24, Verse 14: The entire earth will hear the gospel of the kingdom, and then the end of the tribulation period will come. Who is going to do all the preaching?
Well, these two witnesses will be headquartered in the city of Jerusalem on the Temple Mount. The first results of their witnessing will be as foretold here in chapter 7. Go back to chapter 7. I'm going chronologically. I'm not going numerically.
I'm telling you how it's going to unfold. In chapter 7, it says, verse 4, and I heard a number of them which were sealed, and there were sealed 140 and 4,000 of all the tribes of the children of Israel. And God is going to seal 144,000. Chapter 14, verse 4 said, these will be male virgin Jews. The reason they're going to be virgin is they will not have time to deal with marriage or to have a family.
They have seven years to preach the gospel of the kingdom to everybody on the face of the earth. And so they will be male virgin Jews, 144,000 from each of the tribes of Israel. Look at verse 9 of chapter 7. And after this, I beheld, and lo, a great multitude, which no man could number of all the nations, and the kindreds, and the peoples, and the tongues, stood before the throne and before the Lamb.
So these people will come to know Christ. Many people will come to know Christ during the tribulation period. Go back to chapter 11 again. At the end of this first three and a half years, these two witnesses are going to be killed and they're going to lay in the streets of Jerusalem. And it's going to be part of the.
Party time. Everybody's going to be excited. Look at verse 10. And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them and make merry and shall send gifts one unto another, because these two prophets tormented them that dwell on the earth. Then they're going to lay in the streets, not put in the grave, but resurrected and taken up into the heavens.
Verse 12. And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up into the heavens in a cloud, and their enemies beheld them.
So that is what's going to take place in the first three and a half years as well, and at the end, they will be. Killed and then resurrected and taken to heaven. Also, at the end of the three and a half years, look at chapter 12 and verse 7. And there was a war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought.
Against the dragon, and the dragon fought. And his angels, and prevailed not, neither was their place found anymore in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent called the devil. He was cast out all the way from the first and second heaven to the earth. Chapter 12, verse 12.
Therefore, rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them, woe unto the inhabitants of the earth and the sea, for the devil has come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time. Verse 13: When the dragon, that's Satan, saw that he was cast unto the earth. He persecuted the woman that brought forth the man-child. And so we see that Israel is going to be persecuted to the extent that Satan is going to try to wipe them all out. Verse 17, and the dragon was wroth with the woman and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God and keep the testimony of Jesus Christ.
This is the midway point of the tribulation period.
Now we go back to chapter 8, because chapter 8 is the record of what's going to happen in the seven trumpet judgments. Chapter 8, verse 1 gives us the seventh seal judgment. Remember, it was the sealed book, and in that sealed book Was every one of the 21 judgments. Look at verse 1 of chapter 8. And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour.
That's talking about what has already unfolded on the earth. I believe out of the heavenlies we'll be able to see it, but yet, knowing in the heavenlies at that time what's going to happen in the future, we're not going to be able to say anything. It's going to be so awestruck, we are. we're not going to be able to say anything. And then he starts to open the seals.
I mean, the trumpets. Look at verse 7. And the first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth. And a third part of the trees burned up, and all the green grass was burned up. And the second angel sounded, and as it were, a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea, and a third part of the sea became blood.
Verse 9: And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, the fish, they that had life died, and a third part of the ships were destroyed. You're going to see one-third from the heavenlies. If you're here without Christ, you'll see it in person. One-third of the ocean turned to blood. I'm not going to go through all of these.
Look at verse 1 of chapter 9. An angel sounded, and a star, that's talking about not a star, twinkle, twinkle, little star, but a star like Michael Jordan is a basketball star. It's talking about Satan. When he's thrown out of the heavenly, he's given the key to the bottomless pit. The bottomless pit, I cannot tell you where it is.
I have an idea. I think it's in outer space, in one of those black hole areas. It's not on the earth because you couldn't have anything bottomless on the earth. But I think it's in our space. I don't know, so don't quote me on telling you where it is.
But they're going to be 200 million. Evil angels. in that location. And they are going to be the angels that committed sexual immorality. Talks about in Jude verses 5 and 6 and 2 Peter 2:4.
Angels, evil angels, committed sexual immorality. When did that happen?
Well, that was the reason for the flood, Genesis chapter 6. where it says the sons of man had sexual relationship with the daughters of men. The women and evil angels. had a relationship there, and because of that relationship, God wiped out all of humankind. Have you ever studied the fifth chapter of Genesis, the genealogies from Adam all the way to Noah?
not one evil angel is listed. That's the reason for that genealogy. and they're going to be released upon the earth, and they're going to kill a third of the remaining people alive on the earth. If you kill one fourth, With that fourth seal judgment, and we come to the sixth trumpet judgment. And you kill a third.
That's half of the Earth's population. that has been wiped out. Go to chapter 16. These judgments are unfolding. Chapter 16 would be the record of the vile judgments.
And this is going to be intense as we quickly move towards the time of the return of Jesus Christ. Notice what we read here, verse two, and the first went out and poured out his vial upon the earth, until there fell a noisome and grievous sore upon the men that had the mark of the beast, those who are falling in line with the beast. And upon them shall worship his image. Verse 3. And the second angel poured out his vial upon the sea, and it became as blood of a dead man, and every living soul in it died.
Remember, it was the third in the trumpet judgment.
Now it's all of the ocean turns to blood, and all of the fish of the sea die. And it gets progressively worse. Verse 4 talks about all the waters and the fountains and the streams in the earth turn to blood. This is a terrible time in the tribulation period. It's for the purpose of bringing the earth under submission and earth dwellers under submission.
Look at what's going to happen, verse 8: the fourth vial. And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun, and power was given unto them, the scorched men with fire. Fire, and men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues, and they repented not, even though all this judgment is coming. They don't turn to God. In fact, verse 11 says they blasphemed God, but look at the sixth vile judgment, verse 12.
And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates, and the water thereof was dried up so that the way of the kings of the East might be prepared. The kings of the East would be China, 1.4 billion people. It would be India, 1.3 billion people. That's 2.7 billion people. That's almost half of the Earth's population who have not been involved yet.
And those kings come out of the East into Jerusalem, where all the armies of the world gather together. Look here at verse 13. This is after this sixth vile judgment. And I saw three unclean spirits, like frogs, come up out of the mouth of the dragon and out of the mouth of the beast. The dragon, of course, Satan, the beast, Antichrist, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.
For they are the spirits of devils. Look at here. Working miracles. Devils work miracles. Which go forth unto the kings of the earth, unto the whole world, to gather them for the battle of that great day of God Almighty.
It's the battle of Armageddon, of course. And these evil, evil creatures, Satan, Antichrist, false prophets, satanic trinity, perform miracles to gather all the nations of the world.
Now look here at verse 17. This is the last. This is the 21st of 21 judgments. They get progressively worse. And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air, and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven from the throne saying, It is done!
And there were voices and thunders and lightnings, and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the face of the earth, so mighty an earthquake. And the great city was divided into three parts. The cities of the nations fell, and great Babylon came into remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath. Babylon is going to be destroyed. That's the last judgment.
You heard me correctly say that Babylon is going to be destroyed, and according to Revelation eighteen, Babylon will be destroyed in one hour. That happens at the end of the seven year tribulation period. This statement may bring some questions to mind. like I thought Babylon was destroyed twenty five hundred years ago, as recorded in Daniel five.
Well, the historic event recorded in Daniel 5 is the destruction of the Babylonian Empire. Not the city of Babylon. The city of Babylon has never been destroyed. Babylon, the literal city, will become the international headquarters for the One World Economic, Political, Governmental System or Empire of the Antichrist during the last half of the Tribulation period. This will be our subject next week when we conclude our study of the book of Revelation.
Well, we need to take a break, and when we come back, we're gonna take a look at the book. And Paul Scharf is gonna join us again and talk about a few things that people have questions on, and I think that is so very important. Let me remind you. To always pray for our partners, our broadcast partners. We are all on the front line of teaching God's word to people in a world in which you're living today.
We'll take a break and we'll be right back right here on Prophecy Today weekend. The book of Revelation is God's final word to man and the timeline of the last days revealed to the Christians. This symbolism-filled example of apocalyptic literature can be difficult to understand, especially when simply reading it from beginning to end. Dr. Jimmy DeYoung's latest book, Revelation a Chronology, takes a walk through the prophetic book of Revelation in the order that the events will take place, chronologically, sharing insights into its true meaning and doing so in an easy to understand and practical way.
If you have difficulty understanding the book of Revelation, get your copy of Revelation a Chronology and let Dr. Jimmy DeYoung aid you in your understanding of this profound end times prophecy book that God has preserved in his scriptures for Christians in the last days. To order your copy of Jimmy DeYoung's Revelation, a chronology, call us toll-free at 877-674-3298 or visit our website at prophecytoday.com. Two different futures. This is Ken Ham, an Aussie transplant with a passion for God's Word and the gospel.
Did you know the Big Bang is also a story about the future? According to this secular idea, the universe will expand forever. Eventually, all usable energy will be used up and life will be impossible. This is very different from the future described in the Bible. Eventually Jesus will return and establish the new heavens and new earth.
Death and suffering will be done away with. I will live with Jesus for eternity.
Now some Christians inconsistently accept the secular story for the universe's beginnings, but the Bible's account of the future. We need to believe what God's Word says about the past in Genesis, and believe what God's Word says about the future. Get daily insights on science, the Bible, and hot-button cultural issues from Ken Ham when you sign up at AnswersRadio.com. Welcome back to Prophecy Today. I'm Jimmy DeYoung Jr.
Along with my brother Rick, we've been examining current events in the light of God's prophetic word. This is a section of the program where we take a look at the book. And as promised, Paul Scharf with Friends of Israel Ministry is back with us. Paul, welcome back to the program. Thank you, Jimmy.
Great to be here. Yeah, so let's talk about this. I want to give you as much time as I can here in our last segment. What is the day of the Lord?
Well, Jimmy, the day of the Lord is really an expansive topic, and it's mentioned more than 20 times in both the Old Testament. Combined with the New Testament, and it can be used for near-term fulfillments of God's work. in the world in which he's uh doing um his special acts of judgment, for instance, on behalf of the nation of Israel. In the Hebrew prophets. But as we move into the New Testament, building on that Old Testament foundational understanding of the day of the Lord.
The term really relates to end time events especially what we would call the days of the tribulation to come following the rapture and even extending into the millennial kingdom. The judgments Right at the end of the Millennial Kingdom, 2 Peter. three, ten to thirteen, talk about, and Peter describes those judgments at the end of the millennium. Before the Lord God ushers in eternity future, when of course all believers will be with Christ in the new heaven and the new earth forever.
So the day of the Lord, it. it's a simple concept, but it can also get somewhat complicated. But for our purposes here to zero in on The issue of how we as believers should prepare and live our lives. Paul, coming off of the great rapture passage in 1 Thessalonians. Yeah.
at the end of Chapter four, and I referred to that in the previous segment, He says in Chapter five, he switches the emphasis He's been talking about we and us and how we're going to be with the Lord at the rapture. But in Chapter five, As Paul comes into 1 Thessalonians 5, he says, when they say, When they say And he's saying, Brethren, you have no need that I should write to you about the times and the seasons, for you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord.
So comes as a thief in the night, for when they say, again, not what we say, but they who are left behind. at the rapture. They're going to say peace and safety. And the reality is what's going to happen to them Sudden destruction, no escape. The day of the Lord will come upon them.
like a thief In the night. But Paul says Verse four. You're not in darkness. A believer This day will not overtake you as a thief. I'd like to sum this whole section up by saying The believer.
Uh us who know Christ. Wake up. It's already getting dark. In other words, the day of the Lord is coming, the tribulation is coming. But we won't be here, we'll be with Christ But this should motivate us it has implications for how we live today.
Paul goes on to say in this passage, Verse six, let us not sleep.
Now that's a different word for sleep Than Paul had used earlier in 1 Thessalonians 4, where he's obviously using. Sleep. as a euphemism for death. But here in Chapter five, he's using sleep to talk about someone who's sort of, we would say, asleep at the wheel.
sort of sleepwalking through life. It's a different Greek word entirely. Let us not sleep, but let us watch and be sober. For those who sleep sleep at night, and those who get drunk are drunk at night. But let us who are of the day be sober.
And Paul goes on. to talk about this. And he says Why should we be concerned and live our lives to the fullest for the Lord God during this time? because God has not appointed us to wrath. First.
Thessalonians 5.9 Just like first Thessalonians one ten, We're not here to face the wrath of God in the coming tribulation. We're going to be delivered from that.
So live your life to the fullest. Wake up. Because Christ died for us. Yeah. Even if we sleep, verse 10, Paul says, even if we miss.
The great blessings we could have in the Christian life, we're going to live together with Him.
So don't sleep. Wake up. It's already getting dark. Yes. So, a question came in then.
How do we know that we are not taking the mark of the beast today?
Well, Jimmy, I would say the quickest answer to that is we know that the mark of the beast isn't here yet because the beast isn't here. Yeah, that's true. And there's so much that could be said about the mark of the beast, which is described in Revelation thirteen, which, by the way, we know the Mark of the Beast isn't here again because the events surrounding it that are detailed in that chapter And in the surrounding context, they're not happening yet.
So we who believe in a pretrib rapture coming out of a literal interpretation of the scriptures Uh we know that the things that are going to bring about the market of the beast, they aren't happening today.
Now, there are technologies and there are circumstances that are developing that may be preparing the way for the ultimate. Implementation of the Mark of the Beast, but But Jimmy, we don't have to worry about taking it today because the Beast isn't here. Nothing that we're taking today in any form, whatever it be. is not Related to that final Antichrist who's coming because he's not here yet, and when he comes. And when he launches the Market of the Beast, God is so gracious and so merciful Revelation fourteen tells us he's going to send three different angels.
To give a warning to the whole world so that no one can miss it. And they're going to say, in essence, to the whole world, to everyone listening, Do not take the mark. It will cost you your life if you don't take the mark. But if you refuse the mark and trust in the Lord God, you'll live eternally. Don't take the mark.
Don't take the mark. Don't take the mark. Because the third angel in Revelation 14:9 says, If anyone worships The beast and his image, and receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand. That's the key, Jimmy. Taking that mark will be an act of worship.
And no one who takes it will be doing so unwittingly. They won't have just gotten in the wrong line. that somewhere in some you know, setting where they incidentally ended up taking the mark of the beast. They are going to know that by taking that mark, whatever it is, and it will, I'm sure. Relate to economic and different kinds of opportunities that are open to them so that they can.
have the right credentials, et cetera. but it will have some of those facilities with it but it will also represent worship. Of the beast. And everyone who takes it will know what they're taking. Paul, you know, with what you've told us, with what Dr.
Andy Woods told us, with our broadcast partners today. Things that we see. We see that we are very close to the rapture of the church taking place. And it can't be too far away. In fact, it could be in the next moment.
So 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. Prophecy Today is a listener-supported production of Shofar Communications in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
