The latest conflict between Israel and the Palestinians erupted over the opening of the Rabbinic tunnel to tourism. The excavated tunnel runs northward along the Western Wall of Herod's Temple compound. It does not enter any so-called Moslem sacred ground. In fact, the tunnel has been available for tours for many years. In 1974, I was given one of the earliest tours of the site. Since then, I have taken several tour groups into the tunnel. I remember well, my first tour of the area. It was about 5:00 o'clock one August afternoon. I eagerly awaited my appointment with one of Israel's leading archeologists. Zwi Hoffman met my photographer, Ed Cass, and me at the Western Wall and escorted us under Wilson's Arch, the ancient bridge that spans the Tyropeon valley. We were there to take photographs of his excavations along the Western Wall of the Temple compound.
In 1974, J.R. Church entered the rabbinic tunnel and took panoramic pictures.
As we walked northward along the bedrock that supported the massive stone blocks, dating back to the time of Herod the Great, we discussed Israel's burden with history. Signs of first-century conflict with the Romans were evident all around us. Broken boulders, burned stonework, and layers of debris reminded us of the suffering Israel had endured toward the close of the first century.
I was curious to learn his perspective about the continuing conflict between the Jews and Arabs since the birth of Israel in 1948. We discussed the 1967 Six-Day War and the Yom Kippur War of 1973. Our conversation soon got around to the prophets and their prediction that the Chosen People would someday return to their Promised Land - only to face renewed conflicts.
We discussed the Arab nations that opposed the formation of the state of Israel and I asked him what he thought about a possible solution. His answer was a bit surprising. He said, "Our problem is not really with the Palestinians and Arabs. They are but pawns in a game. Our difficulty lies with the motivating force behind them namely, the Soviet Union. Our problem is not really with the Arabs, but with the Soviets." He told me that someday Israel must face the predicted "Battle of Gog and Magog."
Since that delightful evening in Old Jerusalem, I have watched the "evil empire" crumble. After 70 years, Soviet-styled Communism failed to capture the enthusiasm of its people. There is no more Soviet Union. In its place are several republics that once menaced the planet. However, Israel still faces a continuing conflict with the Arabs. Was my friend wrong? Or better yet, how do we now interpret the prophet who wrote about a future conflict with Gog and Magog?
The questions are heard over and over again. Now that the Soviet Union is dissolved and Russia remains, can we really look forward to an era of peace? The Cold War seems to be over - is it, really? Will Russia become part of the free-market West? That is the dream of Boris Yeltsin.
Theologians are naturally perplexed about current events in Russia and its satellite republics. Popular media images of post-Soviet peace and the free-market revolution appear to be at odds with our traditional prophetic view. Ezekiel called for an invasion of regathered Israel by a northern enemy who gathers allies from the Middle East. This unholy consortium will enter the Holy Land with a vengeance. Many have said that this event can't be too far into the future. How then, do we reconcile these two seemingly contradictory points of view?
Russia is neither practical nor noble. She has always supported the enemies of Israel. Syria, Jordan, Libya, Ethiopia, and other similar Mideast powers have always depended upon Russia for military support. It seems my Israeli friend was right. Russia has always supplied military equipment for Arab use against Israel. For example, in 1982, when Israel moved into Lebanon to rout the PLO, they uncovered an enormous hidden cache of Russian arms and war material. Clearly, the Russians were planning an invasion of some sort. Has their intent changed in the years since that event? Apparently not.
The message to small but militant countries around the world is loud and clear why go to the trouble and expense of manufacturing your own nuclear materials, when they can be so easily obtained on the black market?
The top headline of the JEWISH PRESS (February 14, 1992) screamed, "Syria Acquires Nuclear Bombs." Arizona's Secretary of State, Richard Mahoney added, "By ignoring Syria's President Hafez Assad's deadly actions and treating him as an ally, our president is enabling Syria to acquire nuclear bombs. Assad is much smarter than Iraq's Saddam Hussein and has concealed his securing a nuclear bomb in the shroud of Palestinian statehood."
He continues, " American intelligence has established that Soviet nuclear bomb technicians are quitting Russia and heading for more remunerative waters to peddle their wares. According to recent CIA testimony on Capitol Hill, Syria, after failing to purchase Soviet SS-23 intermediate range ballistic missiles, has now acquired a possible nuclear-delivery system from North Korea. Syria has also tried to purchase 980 grams of enriched uranium as well as a nuclear research reactor from China."
Expert opinion tells us that those missiles can accurately deliver nuclear warheads into Israel, with a warning time of only a few minutes, and perhaps as little as a few seconds.
The ECONOMIST also reported, "In 1984. China helped Iran build a nuclear research center at Isfahan. A Chinese research reactor may follow " It adds, "There are persistent reports of Chinese and Pakistani experts setting up uranium enriching centrifuges at Moallem Kalayeh, north of Tehran, although inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency found nothing there in February. Iran has signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. It hopes to buy - from India, China or both - 'a few' legitimate civil reactors soon."
Once again, it can be seen that the mere signing of a treaty has virtually no meaning, except as propaganda. In Iran, Syria and other Middle Eastern countries, "nonproliferation" now means "proliferation." The nuclear arms race that has captivated the world for the last 40 years has now shifted to a new arena.
The ECONOMIST adds another interesting note: "For Algeria, the Chinese are building a large research reactor at Ain Oussera. This looks fishy. The Algerians kept it a secret until it was spotted by satellites." Under the title "Bombs for All?" the editors of this prestigious magazine had the following to say. "The Soviet collapse has raised fears that would-be bomb makers, from Iran to North Korea, may get their hands on Soviet nuclear skills, weapons or materials. But the really bad news is what Iraq had been up to under the noses of inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency. It shows that, against a determined cheat, existing safeguards are alarmingly inadequate."
No wonder the ancient prophets spoke of fire that would sweep in judgment across the land. Though the Middle-East is the flashpoint, that fire seems destined to sweep around the world.
We don't know the full details yet, but stories now leaking out of the Middle East speak a spine-chilling truth. The world's most horrifying weapons are now in the hands of terrorists.
Under Wilson's Arch, which lies on the north side of the Western Wall, is a large room where Jews congregated to pray. The door at the northern end of this room leads to the tunnel which continues straight north along the wall of the ancient Temple fortress.
Syria May Light the Fuse
Let's look at the events leading up to the predicted "Battle of Gog and Magog." According to Isaiah's view, Syria may play an important role in the conflict that leads to the invasion by Gog. Somehow, the Syrians will force a showdown with devastating results. During a war with Syria, Damascus - for the first time in its history will be destroyed. Isaiah 17 speaks of this event:
"The burden of Damascus. Behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap" (Isaiah 17:1).
Such a destruction has not yet occurred in the history of Damascus, which is said to be the oldest continuously occupied city in the world. I feel that when Damascus is destroyed Israel will occupy Lebanon and Syria - all the way to the Euphrates River. The borders between Israel, Lebanon, and Syria seem to be coming down in verse 3:
"The fortress also shall cease from Ephraim ..." (Isaiah 17:3).
Some interpret this to mean that the Lebanese border will cease to exist. Israel will occupy Lebanon and Syria. Isaiah continues:
"... and the kingdom from Damascus, and the remnant of Syria; they shall be as the glory of the children of Israel, saith the LORD of hosts" (Isaiah 17:3).
Ephraim's northern borders with Lebanon and Syria may be dissolved. Both countries could become part of a greater Israel - as God promised Abraham in Genesis 15:18.
However, this occupation will not be without a price. Just as Iraq was condemned for annexing Kuwait, the United Nations would condemn Israel for this acquisition. Instead of the United States leading the invasion force, as it did against Iraq, the Soviet Union could take the initiative and head up the armed forces against Israel. Such a scenario could result in the battle of Gog and Magog.
Instead of the Soviet Union sitting back and cooling its heels, as it did in the Iraq situation, we could see the Soviet Union play a dominant role. The Soviet invasion could come as a result of Israel's conflict with Syria. Isaiah describes the deployment of a massive invasion following the destruction of Damascus:
"Woe to the multitude of many people, which make a noise like the noise of the seas; and to the rushing of nations, that make a rushing like the rushing of mighty waters!
"The nations shall rush like the rushing of many waters: but God shall rebuke them, and they shall flee far off and shall be chased as the chaff of the mountains before the wind, and like a rolling thing before the whirlwind.
"And behold at eveningtide trouble; and before the morning he is not. This is the portion of them that spoil us, and the lot of them that rob us" (Isaiah 17:12-14).
This could be a description of the Russian invasion. It corresponds quite nicely with Ezekiel 38. The term "spoil" is used by both prophets. Notice, the battle begins about sundown and by the next morning the mighty invading army is devastated.
Entering through the door shone on the previous picture, one enters the tunnel. The large stones on the right are nine feet thick, and forty feet long. There are three of them weighing up to 450 tons each. These are a retaining wall built by Solomon.
From the North
When the prophet wrote in Isaiah 14:31 that "a smoke" would come from the north, he was referring to one of the great wars of the end-time. I think the key to the prophecy is the word "north." Furthermore, there are other prophetic scriptures which also describe an invasion from the north. For instance, Jeremiah wrote:
"And the word of the Lord came unto me the second time, saying, What seest thou? And I said, I see a seething pot; and the face thereof is toward the north.
"Then the Lord said unto me, Out of the north an evil shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of the land." (Jeremiah 1:13-14).
These verses seem to describe an end-time invasion of Israel. Again, Jeremiah 4:6 says:
"Set up the standard toward Zion: retire, stay not: for I will bring evil from the north, and a great destruction."
Again, in Jeremiah 6:22:
"Thus saith the Lord, Behold, a people cometh from the north country, and a great nation shall be raised from the sides of the earth."
Yet again, in Jeremiah 10:22:
"Behold, the noise of the bruit [news) is come, and a great commotion out of the north country, to make the cities of Judah desolate ..."
Micah also wrote about the war:
" .. the day of thy watchman and thy visitation cometh, now shall be their perplexity" (Micah 7:4).
The word "watchman" comes from a Hebrew word which some have translated "north." The Jerusalem Bible translates the verse this way:
"Today will come their ordeal from the north, now is the time for their confusion."
Indeed, it will be an "ordeal" when the Russians come over the hill. Joel also described the invasion of a northern army when he wrote in Joel 2:20:
"But I will remove far off from you the northern army, and will drive him into a land barren and desolate, with his face toward the east sea, and his hinder part toward the utmost sea, and his stink shall come up, and his ill savor shall come up, because he hath done great things."
Many Bible scholars believe this verse to be a description of the Battle of Gog and Magog. Zechariah seemed to be referring to the end-time when he wrote in Zechariah 6:8:
"Then cried he upon me, and spake unto me, saying, Behold, these that go toward the north country have quieted my spirit in the north country."
Finally, Daniel seems to link the Battle of Gog and Magog to events of the end time when he referred to the Antichrist in Daniel 11:44-45.
"But tidings out of the east and out of the north shall trouble him: therefore he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to take away many.
"And he shall plant the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the glorious holy mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him."
"Tidings out of the north" may be a reference to the Russian invasion, and "tidings out of the east" may be a reference to the awesome Armageddon.
All of these verses appear to describe the wars of the Tribulation Period in general terms. Very few specifics are given. Therefore, we must leave the unfolding details of the events in the hands of God.
We can only speculate as to what will happen next, but I believe we can say with a fair degree of accuracy that the darkest hour of world history is upon us. The world is soon to see a Russian invasion of Israel and the unfolding of the last seven years of world history.
