If you do not believe in God or the Bible, I want you to know that this post is not an attack on you! Instead, this post is offered as a partial explanation for why I believe in God and the Bible while – at the same time – informing you of some current events about which you may not have been previously aware. Yes, this post contains references to Bible prophecy, but the passages I cite are meant to support my faith by showing a possible connection between prophecy and modern events. I am sincere in my assertion; I mean no offense to those who hold different beliefs, nor do I wish to argue with those who may disagree with my understanding of Scripture. This post is offered merely as a thought piece: something to consider concerning the events of our times and their possible connection to Bible prophecy. All I ask is that you read it with an open mind, and then you decide what to make of it for yourself.
One of the most common criticisms aimed at Bible prophecy is that it is too vague: that it can be read to apply to almost anything – depending on how one reads it. Another is that most prophecies were written for times that have already come to pass and should not be read as applying to modern times. I wish I knew a more polite way to address the first criticism, but I don’t know how to say it any more kindly than to say it simply is not true. Many Bible prophecies are very specific, as we will soon see. This criticism is usually the result of ignorance – even on the part of modern Jews and Christians alike. The problem is that we no longer understand the cultural references, metaphors, symbolism and allegories used in Biblical prophecy. The result is easily understood: confusion as to what the prophecy means and the misconception that prophecy is unclear. However, the second criticism is one that deserves more attention as it is true: many prophecies have already come to pass and we should use caution in applying them to modern times. But, here again, we need to understand that much of Bible prophecy has a dualistic nature to it: it applies equally to both the time it was written and the end times. This requires a very careful reading of Scripture and an understanding of when to take the Bible literally and when to read it as metaphorical. Honestly, that is beyond me at this time, as well as the scope of this post. For now, we’re just going to look at some prophecy which I believe does speak directly to the times in which we live.
The Bible tells us that, among his last words, Moses blessed his sons, and in those blessings were hints as to the future of their clans that have led many to actually search for oil in Israel:
New American Standard Bible (NASB)
13 Of Joseph he said,
“Blessed of the Lord be his land,
With the choice things of heaven, with the dew,
And from the deep lying beneath,
19 “They will call peoples to the mountain;
There they will offer righteous sacrifices;
For they will [a]draw out the abundance of the seas,
And the hidden treasures of the sand.”
24 Of Asher he said,
“More blessed than sons is Asher;
May he be favored by his brothers,
And may he dip his foot in oil.
Now, I don’t know what Moses meant by these blessings, but there have been many who were convinced he was referring to petroleum oil. For years people had searched, and for years they found nothing. This led some to explain that those who were searching for what they thought was a prophetic prediction had misread Scripture:
Asher Shall Dip His Foot In Oil…Petroleum Oil, Or Something Else?
But then came the discoveries, and right where Moses said they would come:
Moses Finally Vindicated by Israeli Oil
Tapping the Promised Land: Can Israel Be an Energy Giant?
In 2009 an Israeli geologist discovered oil embedded in rock in the ground southwest of Jerusalem. There’s lots of it — and it could change the Middle East forever
But it didn’t stop with the oil discovered due to the development of fracking:
Will Israel Become an Oil Giant?
Israel’s newly discovered gas field contains significant crude oil find
Israel Discovers New Giant Off-Shore Oil and Gas Field
Israel: the coming energy superpower
The impact of the coming rise of Israel as a regional energy superpower plainly heralds significant and imminent changes in the Middle East, and beyond
Why Israel will rule the new Middle East
Now, rather than go through a long list of prophecy quotes, let me give you prophecy in a nutshell. But first, let me state this very clearly: I am not saying this is the definitive, 100% correct reading of what the Bible tells us will happen in the last days. All I am telling you is what the best understanding of prophecy students have come to understand prophecy is trying to tell us is going to happen. You have to decide for yourself. Now, with that said, here are the Cliff Notes:
There will be a war in which Russia and Iran will lead a coalition against Israel. This will lead to what most now believe will be a nuclear attack, by Israel, against the coalition forces. It will take seven months to clean up the battle field and bury the dead. There is some question as to whether or not this battle will lead to an end of Islam or not. What we do know is that Israel will sign a peace treaty and will become very wealthy. Prophecy tells that Israel will become a world leader in exporting things such as fruits and flowers. Prophecy also tells us that, sometime around when this is happening, Jews will begin to return to Israel and the Jewish people will start to undergo a spiritual renewal. We are also told that there will be a world government, and that it will have a religious aspect to it, but that it will not dominate every nation on earth. We know this because the leader of this government will break the peace treaty with Israel and attack Israel, but there will be nations that come to Israel’s defense against this world leader. This world government comes into being due — at least in part — to global economic catastrophe. The Bible tells us that this world leader will give away great wealth, and that he will seek to control all economic activity. However, this apparently does not apply to Israel, which will be a wealthy nation unto itself. Eventually, the pressures that result from the strife between this world leader and Israel lead to the battle of Armageddon, in which the enemies of Israel (and of God) are beaten forever (by Christ, who returns with a spiritual army).
Prophecy also says that God will “put a hook in Gog’s mouth” and drag him to attack Israel (Gog is believed to be Russia). I believe the hook is oil.
Prophecy says the New Babylon will ‘seduce’ the world’s merchants and intoxicate them with her wine. I believe New Babylon is connected to Islam (possibly Saudi Arabia) and that the wine is oil. We are also told that New Babylon will be destroyed in one hour, and that the smoke from her ruin will make the sky go black. Did you know that Saudi Arabia has rigged her seven oil fields for self-destruction and has vowed that, before anyone else gets control over those fields, Saudi Arabia will destroy them? Did you also know that Iran wants control over Saudi Arabia, not only for the oil, but for the religious significance of the region?
Did you know that Shi’a Islam (i.e. Iran) end times prophecy is identical to that of Biblical prophecy — just from the other side? Their savior is the Bible’s Antichrist and vice versa.
Prophecy tells of a 200 million man army (a yellow horde) will come – from the east – down the Euphrates River valley and attack Israel. Thanks in large part to their one-child policy; China recently announced it has 225 million men of military age with no hope of every finding a wife or raising a family. In other news, the Euphrates River has been going dry for several years now.
Now, I will readily admit that there is enough here to make a skeptic think prophecy is too vague to be of value. However, as I said, I just gave you the Cliff Notes. There are many specific details in prophecy and they foretell exactly what we are seeing in the headlines every day. If you are interested, I would suggest you read: Epicenter and Islam: the Cloak of the Antichrist. Between the two of these books, you will not only read the majority of the specific Bible prophecies that have students of prophecy excited, you will get a very good understanding of what is likely to happen in the coming days. You will certainly gain a better understanding of the region, the relationship between Islam and Israel and the crucial role that oil plays in bringing about the end times battles.
The Oil for Your Lamp 
If Russia, Iran and Iraq signed this pact with Israel to pipeline natural gas to Syria, why would they then attack Israel?
Honestly, I have no idea. Militarily, there is no real reason for ANYONE to attack Israel. The hatred is motivated by religion and the political animosity is a product of proxy. By that, I mean the Russians still do not want to attack the U.S. directly, so they might decide to attack what they believe to be a weaker but valued ally: Israel. Still, the military historian in me says the motivation here — the most important one, anyway — is religious, which makes this a spiritual matter. There simply isn’t much of a military or even economic reason that I can see for attacking Israel outside of religion.
But I could be missing something.