Four Dual Witnesses Foretell Early Events of “The Time of the End”: Part 1

[These parallel NT and OT passages have been explained elsewhere, in blogs 5, 8, and 29, as parts of longer narratives. But I think it useful to focus on them here by themselves alone.]

1) Matthew 24:15 “Therefore when you see the Abomination of Desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, having stood in the holy place…”

1) Daniel 11:45 “And he [the King of the North] shall plant the tents of his pavilion between the seas at the glorious holy mountain…”

“The glorious holy mountain” is Mount Moriah, generally accepted to be the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. 2 Chr. 3:1 It is widely believed that the Abomination of Desolation will take place when “the man of sin…the Son of Perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called a god, or that is worshiped, …shall sit in the naos/holy place of God, showing himself that he is a god.” 2 Thes. 2:3-4

This act is preceded by the events of Daniel 11:40-44, when, “at the time of the end…the King of the North” will invade and occupy many Muslim “countries,” including Egypt and North Africa; as well as “the glorious land,” Israel. Dan. 11:40-42 The spirit of the King of the North will be personified in the leader of either an Anglo-American-Euro alliance, or, others believe, the European Union led by Germany.

This invasion, war, and occupation will devolve into the Great Tribulation (discussed in Part 2). The current instability of these same Muslim nations appears to be leading to just such a time. Likewise, the increasing energy insecurity in Europe, both in supply and in cost, may eventually cause its leaders to make a move on the oil and gas fields of the Middle East.

The European globalists and environmentalists have been insisting on cutting Europe’s addiction to oil and gas, but this is not working out so well for the people of Europe. They are seeing their energy expenses skyrocket. Also, their Russian gas supply is showing itself to be vulnerable to geopolitical uncertainties. So sooner or later, Europe may look to secure its needed energy fix from the Middle East – just as Nazi Germany sought to do in World War II. Israel is developing large offshore gas fields, which will likely become relevant to this prophecy later in the 2020s.

[Update, 7/1/22: "European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi arrived in Israel on June 13 to meet Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett. The main purpose of the visit was energy talks. This was Draghi’s first trip to the Middle East. ... Israel has significant natural gas deposits off its coast. Jerusalem then seems like a natural partner for Brussels." -- https://www.thetrumpet.com/25791-are-europe-and-israel-bound-to-be-friends-and-allies]

Few people know that Israeli and German air forces have held aerial exercises together four times since 2017. Joint training flights have taken place over both countries. In the most recent exercise of October 17-28, 2021, Germans and Israelis flew together in formation over Jerusalem. Other countries participating in the Blue Flag exercise were France, the United Kingdom, Greece, Italy, India, and the United States.

All of these nations have an interest in maintaining a stable supply of Middle Eastern oil and gas. Their joint military preparation and alliance with Israel is geared to that end, because they would need one reliable country in the region to stage from, in case military intervention in the area is required to secure its critical energy supplies.

According to the prophecy of Daniel 11:40ff., this conflict will begin when “the King of the South will thrust at him [the King of the North]…” Currently, Iran with its regional allies – Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Houthis in Yemen, Hamas in Gaza, and the government of Syria, among other players – have been gradually stepping up their threats and attacks upon the major energy suppliers (Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, etc.), and also the strategic waterways used to transport these supplies. If/when Iran escalates this conflict to a level cuts off off a substantial amount of oil and gas, then is the time when this prophecy will most likely be fulfilled.

Finally, it must be noted that Iran has itself been participating in land and sea military exercises with Russia and China.

Index and summaries of all articles is here:

https://www.worthychristianforums.com/blogs/entry/1403-index-and-summaries-of-articles/