When it comes to Biblically-relevant news, it has been a very eventful week to say the least. From the Coronavirus superbug to the powerful 7.7 earthquake in the Caribbean to the President’s Middle East Peace Plan, there has been no shortage of “End Times” chatter across the internet.
Now, as always, it is my job to explain how these events do or don’t fulfill Biblical Prophecies. First, let me start with the event that has sparked the most fear across the globe – and that is the pestilence known as the “Wuhan Coronavirus.”
The outbreak of the deadly virus began in Wuhan City, China, and infected thousands of people. The virus quickly spread from person-to-person in many parts of the country. So much so, that the Chinese government issued the largest quarantine in human history – locking down at least 16 cities, containing around 50-million people. This has also led to flights to and from affected parts of China being halted in many countries of the world, including the United States.
The number of confirmed cases of the Coronavirus has rapidly grown, with nearly 8,000 being infected in China alone. Thus far, the virus has claimed nearly 200 lives. Scientists say that a vaccine will most likely take months to develop.
The pestilence now encompasses about 20 countries, and that list of countries includes: the U.S., Canada, France, Germany, Australia, and many nations across Asia. The Middle East has also reported infections. To date, there have been 5 confirmed cases in the United States; but, unfortunately, that number is expected to grow.
While this outbreak has many people around the world in a panicked state, I’ve been warning everyone about this for years. Pestilence outbreaks are one of the big signs heralding the Rapture of the Church before the 7-year Tribulation hour on Earth begins, and before the rider on the Pale Horse brings the worst pestilences the world has ever experienced. I devoted an entire chapter of my second book, EVEN MORE Signs of Our Times, to the subject. Here is some of what I had to say in the book –
“Jesus said, there shall be pestilences.” – MATTHEW 24:7 & LUKE 21:11
In recent years, health experts from numerous countries have issued warnings that the human race is at a greater risk of experiencing a global pandemic than ever before. They also warn that we are currently ill-prepared to combat a worldwide outbreak. The experts are in agreement across the board that it is not a matter of if a pandemic will strike, but a matter of when.
An infectious outbreak of SARS, cholera, bird flu, swine flu, Ebola, Zika, bioterror, or even a brand new disease altogether, could kill millions. During the 2014-2016 Ebola epidemic, nearly 30,000 people were infected and one-third of them died from the disease. As of 2018, about 90 countries had reported Zika transmission.
We are at a greater risk than ever before of witnessing a worldwide plague occur due to numerous factors, such as terrorism – growing population – global travel – weather – and large-scale immigration, just to name a few.
The fact that the population of the United States grew by leaps and bounds during the Obama administration, due to an influx of refugees and immigrants, means that the possibility of a national pandemic has greatly increased. Refugees that have been pouring in from disease-prone Syria, and illegal immigrants from Mexico, are prime candidates for being the carriers who will bring the next pandemic to America.
It is believed that, within 30 years, nearly 70% of the world’s population will live in urban areas (cities) rather than in less populated rural areas. In cities, living and interacting with thousands who could possibly be infected increases the chances of contracting a disease. City-life also greatly increases the chance for a disease to spread quickly, through something as simple as a touch, a cough, a kiss, or a bite. While many of the deadly diseases most likely will not originate in the USA, the easiest way that they can arrive here is through global travel.
Countries like Africa, or Middle East war zones like Syria, are breeding grounds for deadly diseases; and any outbreak that begins on the other side of the globe will eventually make its way here. That is exactly what happened with the Ebola pandemic. The disease which spread rapidly in foreign nations was undetectable for a few days; so Americans traveling home from infected areas did not know that they contracted the disease until they were back on U.S. soil. Luckily, the infected were quarantined, and the deadly disease did not spread as much as it could have.
According to experts, infectious agents can live in humans during their incubation period – which is the time between infection and the onset of symptoms. This means that travelers can transmit an infection to another country before any onset of the appearance of sickness. Billions of travelers crisscross the globe annually. We recently learned, in 2018, that the latest outbreak of the Ebola virus in the Democratic Republic of Congo is the worst in the country’s history. Could it make its way to the States again?
The SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) pandemic of 2003 began with Dr. Liu Jianlun, who developed symptoms of the airborne virus on a trip to China and then went to visit his family in Hong Kong. It is believed that he infected people at his hotel, along with his family. In less than 4 months, nearly 4,000 cases and 550 deaths from SARS were traced to Liu’s Hong Kong visit. More than 8,000 other people became infected, in more than 30 countries worldwide, because of just one man.
Also this week, a powerful 7.7 magnitude earthquake rocked the Caribbean. Jamaica was the hardest hit, but the quake was felt as far away as the East coast of Florida. I wrote extensively about powerful earthquakes being another big sign of Christ’s return in my first book, The Signs of Our Times. So, here is a snippet from the chapter on this subject –
“Jesus said, There will be powerful earthquakes in diverse places.” – LUKE 21:11/MATTHEW 24:7/MARK 13:8
There are many scoffers of the Holy Bible, and of Bible Prophecy in particular, who love to say that “we have always had powerful earthquakes.” What they fail to realize, as I have pointed out in previous chapters, is that none of the world’s strongest earthquakes could have meant anything concerning “Last Days” Prophecy until 1948. That, of course, being the year that the Nation of Israel reappeared on the world scene. The existence of the Jewish State is absolutely central to the return of Christ.
With that in mind, I’m sure the scoffers would be surprised to know that 7 out of the 10 most powerful earthquakes from the past 400 years have come after the year 1948. 70% occurred in this generation. On top of that, 5 out of the 7 magnitude 9.0+ earthquakes have occurred after 1948. Again… over 70%. I think it is obvious that our generation has definitely seen an uptick in powerful quakes.
The largest temblor ever recorded, a 9.5 magnitude on the richter scale, devastated Chile in 1960. So, the most powerful earthquake ever recorded shook the earth after 1948. Actually, the top 5 most massive earthquakes all came after ‘48 – Chile (9.5 in 1960), Alaska (9.2 in 1964), Sumatra (9.1 in 2004), Kamchatka (9.0 in 1952), and Japan (9.0 in 2011). Just one year before the historic Japan quake and ensuing tsunami, Chile was rocked by a destructive 8.8 magnitude in 2010.
Since the year 2000, there have been about 275 earthquakes of magnitude 7.0 or higher. Earthquakes which are above 6.0 magnitude are considered “strong,” while those at or above the 7.0 threshold are dubbed “powerful.” Obviously, anything above an 8.0 is referred to as “great.” So, in just under two decades, the world has experienced nearly 300 of the earthquakes which Jesus prophesied would be occurring in the Last Days leading up to His imminent return.
And, finally, President Donald Trump unveiled his long-awaited “Deal of the Century” Peace Plan for Israel and Palestine in a live Press Conference on Tuesday afternoon. He did so alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin NetanYahu. Now, as to whether or not it ties in to Latter-Day Bible Prophecy or not, here are my thoughts…
First of all, I believe that Trump and NetanYahu both meant well. There is no doubt that they both want to see Israel live in security and in peace with their neighbors. Sadly, I don’t think that either of them truly understand what the Bible has to say about the ongoing conflict.
Over 4,000 years ago, Almighty God deeded the Israelites a specific parcel of Land, and he gave it to them and to them alone. Not one inch of that Holy God-given Land should ever be given away for “peace.” Not to the Palestinians, and not to anyone. Ever. This has always been my position no matter who the President is.
While I support Trump over any of the Democrats in 2020, I’m sad that he is so strongly pushing this Peace Deal. Every Peace Plan that has been presented by U.S. Administrations to date has always placed Israeli Land on the negotiating table, and this is a big no-no in God’s sight, and thus – in mine as well. Trump’s Plan is no different.
Yes, his Plan does some great things – calls for the disarming and dismantling of Hamas and Islamic Jihad terror groups in Gaza, calls for the Palestinian government to recognize the State of Israel, and calls for the payments to terrorists by the corrupt government to end. He also gave Israel control over the Jordan Valley, the Biblical Holy Sites of Jerusalem, and sovereignty over much of Judea and Samaria.
While this is far more than past presidents or the rest of the world would allow Israel to have, that doesn’t change the fact that the Land already belongs to Israel in God’s eyes. They already own all of it, regardless of what the United Nations, the United States, the European Union, or the Islamic world has to say about it.
Trump is no Bible scholar, so he thinks that he is being pro-Israel through this plan as it is drawn up. Sadly, no plan that places Israeli Land on the negotiating table will ever be pro-Israel. It can’t be. Besides giving Palestine some of Israel’s Holy Land for their future State, in what the Peace Plan calls “land swaps,” Trump has allowed for the Palestinians to make their capital in East Jerusalem and has offered them 50-billion dollars in Economic aid.
Jerusalem is the eternal undivided Capital of Israel in God’s Word. It is His Holy City. He has given it to one nation and one nation only, and that is Israel. Palestine has no claim. They don’t deserve one centimeter of it. They never have and they never will. This is another subject that I write a great deal about in my first book. Here is just a portion of what I wrote in The Signs of Our Times –
Every so-called Peace Plan between Israelis and Palestinians has failed because the Muslims do not want peace with Israel… they want Israel gone. The only “peaceful future” that Palestine desires is one where there is “no Israel.” They are going to be very disappointed in the end, because God says that will never happen. Israel abides “forever” (Joel 3:20).
There is not one inch of the Biblical Holy Land that belongs to Palestine. No, not even one centimeter. The Israelis are not “occupying” anything, but rather they are exactly where God has always determined them to be. The Land which the LORD deeded to them is actually supposed to be 300,000 square miles. That is a far cry from the 8,600 square miles making up the modern-day Nation of Israel.
The only question that we should be asking in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict today is: if Israel currently possesses less than 9,000 square miles of land, then who possesses the other 18.5-million acres of the Jews’ Promised Land? It is only in discovering the answer to this question that we come to the realization: there truly are “occupiers” in the Middle East today, and Israel is most certainly not one of them!
Yet, the world is always calling for that tiny Nation of Israel to give up “Land-for-peace” – never their Muslim neighbors. This is due to our generation’s Biblical ignorance, lack of historical knowledge, or simply unbridled anti-Semitism.
As to who is occupying the other 291,000 square miles of Israel’s God-given Land today, we must examine the original borders of Israel – mapped out by the LORD in the Scriptures. The promise of the Land inheritance was first made to Abraham in Genesis 15:18-21, renewed to his son Isaac, and then to Isaac’s son Jacob (Israel) in Genesis 28:13. The Land was described, in terms of the territory, in Exodus 23:31.
The other verses in our Holy Bible that describe the Land allotment can be found in: Genesis 17:8, Numbers 34:1-15, Deuteronomy 1:7 – 11:24 – 19:8, Ezekiel 47:13-20, Judges 20:1, 1st Samuel 3:20, 2nd Samuel 3:10 – 17:11 – 24:2-15, 1st Kings 4:25, 1st Chronicles 21:2, and 2nd Chronicles 30:5. Some of these verses reveal that the modern-day nations of Palestine, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and even Sudan are all “occupying” Israel’s Land – not the other way around. How I wish that this world would get educated in history!
The real conflict in the Middle East today should not be over the lie that Israel somehow has “illegal settlements” on so-called Palestinian land, but should be about how the Palestinians (and all of Israel’s neighbors) are illegally possessing Land which God has given solely to the Jewish people.
I also write in the book about the many connections between the U.S. brokering Peace Deals that give away Israeli Land to the Palestinians and some of the most costly disasters in United States history. There is no doubt that when America has any hand in dividing God’s Holy Land, this nation suffers the consequences.
So, at the end of the day, these are the reasons why I OPPOSE the “Deal of the Century.”
The Muslims have taken more than enough land from Israel throughout history, and our country shouldn’t be partakers in gifting them with any more. Israel will have true peace someday, but it will not be until their Prince of Peace – our returning Lord Jesus Christ – comes back down. Until then, all other “peace” will be elusive, fragile, and short-lived.
In closing, I have seen a lot of unBiblical opinions by uneducated Christians floating around social media; and so I have to set the record straight. As of this time, this Peace Treaty is NOT the 7-year Peace Treaty brokered by the Antichrist to begin the Tribulation period on the earth. Both the Israelis and Palestinians will accept the Peace Plan of the Bible without reservations. The Palestinians have flat-out rejected Trump’s Plan.
Also, Donald Trump is NOT the Antichrist. Trump said that this Plan would not be fully implemented for another 4 years if it is accepted by both parties. If he does get reelected in 2020, then the Plan would not take effect until AFTER his 2nd term is over. Antichrist is ruling from a position of power when the 7-year Treaty takes effect and then he breaks it 3 ½ years in. Trump won’t be ruling 3 ½ years into the Plan, another President would be. So, Trump cannot be the Antichrist.
I did a lot of research on the subjects of the Antichrist and his 7-year Peace Treaty in my new book, The COMING Signs of Our Times, and you can read all of the reasons why this is NOT that Treaty and why Trump is NOT that Godless world dictator in the book.
The one thing which all of the events that I have written about today have in common is that they are all pointing to the glorious day when we believers will hear “Come up hither”… because our King is coming! THE KING IS COMING. Keep looking up.
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