Ancient prophecy may be linked to Egypt violence

The civil strife in Egypt seems to be coming to an end. CBS News reported on Saturday that the curfew for civilians would be shortened from 11 hours per night to nine. The Islamist former president of the country, Mohammed Morsi, is in jail along with many leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood. Over a thousand pro-Morsi demonstrators have been killed by security forces according to a New York Times report. The crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood may have pre-empted Egyptian involvement a soon-to-come regional war against Israel and helped to fulfill a 2,000 year old prophecy.

In Ezekiel 38-39, an ancient Hebrew prophet foretold a future war in which a large Islamic army marched against a reconstituted Israel. Although many of the names of the participating nations are unfamiliar to modern ears, the identities of many can be determined by Biblical scholars. Ironically, Egypt, one of Israel’s largest and most powerful neighbors, is not mentioned in the prophecy even though its modern name is the same as it was in Ezekiel’s day.

Joel Rosenberg, a prominent scholar and insider of both American and Israeli politics, believes that the prophecy of an Arab coalition led by Iran (Persia) and Russia (Rosh and Magog) may be on the verge of being fulfilled. Rosenberg’s 2006 book, “Epicenter,” [Joel Rosenberg’s blog is Flashtrafficblog.wordpress.com and his podcast is available on iTunes] detailed how Vladimir Putin’s Russia and Iran under the Ayatollah Khamenei are be colluding on an Iranian nuclear weapons program that will eventually threaten Israel. Israel’s relations with Turkey (referred to as Beth-Togarmah, Gomer, and Meschech in the prophecy) have traditionally been friendly, but have become chilly since the 2010 Gaza flotilla raid in which several Turks died while attempting to smuggle supplies past the Israeli blockade of Gaza. In the book, Rosenberg pointed out that Egypt and Israel had signed a peace treaty in 1979 that had secured peace between the two nations for more than 30 years.

The victory of Mohammed Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood in the 2012 Egyptian election threatened to change all that. Even before the election, the Muslim Brotherhood had called for a review of the treaty. In 2012, the deputy head of the Brotherhood’s political wing told a London-based Arab newspaper, “We never promised that we would honor the peace treaty with Israel. The treaty is not sacred and we can and should make changes in it.” Israel Hayom also quotes another senior member of the Muslim Brotherhood who said the party’s position “is not to recognize the Zionist entity and not to recognize peace agreements with hostile entities.” It is likely that Morsi would have ignored or renounced the peace treaty with Israel had he remained in power.

The Egyptian military did not depose President Morsi because he threatened war with Israel. Morsi had angered many Egyptians by throwing out the country’s constitution and claiming sweeping new executive powers. Twenty-two million Egyptians signed a petition demanding that Morsi step down according to France 24. The army removed Morsi to prevent the Muslim Brotherhood from consolidating power and transforming Egypt into an Islamist state. Eventually the army used force to disperse pro-Morsi demonstrators and cracked down on Muslim Brotherhood members throughout the country. The provisional military government is considering banning the Muslim Brotherhood according to the Associated Press.

With a series of disastrous wars against Israel still in the memory of military leaders, the army may well have also wanted to prevent the nation from being dragged into another conflict by the Muslim Brotherhood. In fact, Turkey’s Islamist prime minister, Tayyip Erdogan, claimed that Israel was behind the coup. The Financial Times noted that since the coup the Egyptian military had stepped up cooperation with Israel to fight Islamic militants in the Sinai Peninsula. Although the Egyptian generals probably never considered Bible prophecy, their action against the Muslim Brotherhood they may have inadvertently helped to fulfill the prophecy that Egypt would not be part of the coalition against Israel.

The Bible does contain other prophecies of Egypt as well. Daniel 11, Ezekiel 29-30, and Isaiah 19 are all prophecies that deal with the judgment of Egypt. Daniel 11 describes wars between the King of the South, widely believed to be Ptolemy, a Greek ruler of Egypt, who lived 300 years after Daniel. Ezekiel spoke of Nebuchadnezzar’s victory over Egypt. This prophecy was fulfilled by the Babylonian victory over the Egyptians at the Battle of Carchemish in 605 B.C. and subsequent conquest of parts of Egypt. Isaiah 19 tells of God’s judgment on Egypt and their eventual repentance and worship of the Hebrew God. This prophecy has apparently not been fulfilled in total.

Most Bible scholars believe that the coalition of Ezekiel 38-39, often called the War of Gog of Magog, will occur before the end-time events described later in Daniel, by Jesus in his Mount Olivet Discourse, and by the Apostle John in the Revelation. In 2011, a group of Israeli rabbis said that they believed that the Arab Spring uprisings might be setting the stage for the Magog war. A number of Christian preachers have also suggested that Ezekiel’s prophecy may be nearing fulfillment. Also in 2011, the Iranian government released a film that indicated that the Mahdi, a Shia Muslim version of the Messiah, is will appear soon to lead his followers on a military conquest.

Israeli officials have had little to say about the unrest in Egypt except to denounce Erdogan’s charges of instigating the coup. Reuters reported on August 15 that Prime Minister Netanyahu had instructed his cabinet to avoid public comment about the fighting in Egypt.

 

originally published on Atlanta Conservative Examiner

Democracy protests spread through the Middle East

Protesting Libya at the White House (Ted)

Over the past few months, democracy protests have broken out across the Muslim world.  In December 2010, protests broke out in Tunisia following the police abuse and subsequent suicide by immolation of a street peddler.  Less than a month later, Ben Ali, Tunisia’s dictator fled to Saudi Arabia. 

From Tunisia, the democratic protests spread to Egypt.  Protesters crammed the streets of Egypt’s major cities demanding the resignation of Hosni Mubarak.  As the Egyptian army looked on, Mubarak announced that he would not seek re-election this September and promised reforms.  On February 11, President Mubarak finally stepped down and handed over control of the country to the military.

The protests do not stop there.  Democracy advocates in Yemen are demanding reform.  In Jordan, the king dismissed the cabinet and appointed a new prime minister in an attempt to mollify protests against his government.  There is still opposition to the Iranian government in spite of the regime’s crackdown on protests there in 2009.  Protests against entrenched Muslim dictatorships have even reached Syria, where students rallied against security forces after police beat a young man in the capitol.

Will Gaddafi be the next Muslim dictator to fall?

Most recently Georgians have watched in horror as protests against the governments of Bahrain and Libya have turned violent.  The two countries are very different.  Bahrain is a wealthy ally of the United States, while Libya is a poor country ruled by Moammar Gaddafi, a longtime sponsor of terrorists.  The governments of both countries have apparently been unnerved by the events in Tunisia and Egypt and have decided that heavy-handed crackdowns on the protesters are the only way to preserve their power.

The Muslim world, characterized by authoritarian governments and a populace that ranges between a few extremely wealthy and the majority who are extremely poor, has long been ripe for revolution.  It is not surprising that the people of these countries would look at the prosperity of the rest of the world (even in a recession) enviously.  The US unemployment rate is over 9%, but the unemployment rate in these Arab countries is often much higher.  The peddler who started Tunisia’s revolution was a college graduate and father who could find no other job than selling food on the street.  Unemployment and low wages couple with rising food prices put average Arab families in a precarious position.

When pro-democracy Muslims saw the success of democracy in Iraq and Afghanistan, it undoubtedly inspired them to seek change in their own countries.  When the people had their first success in Tunisia dominos started to fall in other Muslim dictatorships.  The success in Egypt further emboldened democracy protests around the Middle East.  The domino theory is in action as one dictator after another is threatened and falls to a popular uprising.

Many Georgians are understandably concerned where the Middle Eastern upheaval will lead.  Many Georgians have already been actively involved in two wars in the Middle East.  There is justifiable concern that radical groups like the Muslim Brotherhood will hijack these democratic revolutions in favor of Islamic theocracies. 

It would be a mistake for the United States to continue backing unpopular dictators out of fear of a takeover by radicals or higher oil prices.  The people of the Middle East are willing to risk their lives to fight for what America possesses and has long believed is the best choice for the world:  freedom and democracy.  It would be hypocritical and tragic of the United States not to aid proponents of democracy (as we failed to do in Iran in 2009).

The Muslim revolutions echo the revolts against communism in 1989. (Kpalion)

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What the US can and should do is to aid democratic movements around the world.  As dictators topple, US democracy advisors should be dispatched to help newly free people learn to preserve their freedom.  This tactic was used in Eastern Europe after the fall of the Soviet Union successfully.  Democracy and capitalism have taken root in several countries there, many of which already have lower taxes than the US!  By giving support and aid to democracy groups, we would also counter the support that Iran, al Qaeda and others will undoubtedly be giving to radical groups.

Now is not the time for the US to abdicate our responsibility for spreading democracy and freedom around the world.  The revolutionary wave sweeping the Middle East is a once in a lifetime opportunity.  The people want freedom and they are willing to die for it.  If the opportunity is missed, or seized by Islamic radicals, it may mean that more Georgians will one day have to fight wars in Middle Eastern deserts.

The question is in which Middle Eastern country democracy will strike next and whether the US will be ready.

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Is the Egyptian revolution good or bad?

http://www.flickr.com/people/81043308@N00

As the people of Georgia watched the Egyptian crowds rallying in opposition to Hosni Mubarak, many probably wondered what will come next and what it means for the rest of the world.  While Georgians from Egypt Community in Effingham County to Cairo in Grady County likely are happy for the newfound freedom of the Egyptians, it is equally likely that they profoundly hope that it does not lead to further violence that will require American involvement.

As the protests in Egypt turned increasingly violent today, many in this country and around the world are asking what comes next.  The answer to that question largely depends on who comes next.  At this point there is no credible leader to replace current Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.  Mubarak recently bowed to public pressure and announced that he will not seek re-election in national elections this September.

Elbaradei (iaea.org)

The most visible candidate for the job is Mohamed Elbaradei.  Elbaradei, who recently announced his openness to running, is the most visible opposition leader.  Elbaradei served three terms as Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).  During his tenure at the UN, Elbaradei faced US opposition because of his belief that Iran was not working to build a nuclear weapon.  The big question today is whether Elbaradei backs the democracy movement or the Muslim Brotherhood.  Many observers, including Middle East expert Joel Rosenberg, believe that Elbaradei is sympathetic to the Muslim Brotherhood and Iran. 

The Muslim Brotherhood is a radical Islamic organization founded in 1928.  The group was founded by Hassan al-Banna, an admirer of Adolf Hitler.  The Brotherhood espoused Wahabism, the same form of Islam touted by Saudi financier and terrorist Osama bin Laden.  Wahabbi Muslims believe that jihad should be used to spread Islam throughout the world.  The Muslim Brotherhood has long been banned in Egypt because of its insistence on enacting sharia law (although some Brotherhood members were elected to Egypt’s parliament as independents).  Members of the Brotherhood assassinated Hosni Mubarak’s predecessor, Anwar Sadat, in 1981 in retaliation for Sadat’s decision to sign a peace treaty with Israel.  It was also a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, Ayman al-Zawahiri, who helped form Egyptian Islamic Jihad and became a leading al-Qaeda cleric. 

Emblem of the Muslim Brotherhood

If the Muslim Brotherhood were to take over Egypt, the country might well become another Islamic theocracy like Iran or a terrorist state like Gaza, where terrorist group Hamas won democratic elections.  On the other hand, some in the West believe that the Muslim Brotherhood is capable of becoming a peaceful political organization.  Disturbingly, the Obama Administration has hinted that there might be a place for groups like the Muslim Brotherhood in the new Egyptian government.  Today there is no charismatic leader of the Brotherhood akin to Iran’s Ayatollah Khomeini which might help to prevent the group from seizing control of the country.  Likewise, the Egyptian uprisings seem to be spontaneous, secular, and democratic rather than inspired by religious fundamentalism.  The Brotherhood has admitted that they are not responsible for the uprising, although they are a dominant part of the opposition to Mubarak’s regime.

But if the Muslim Brotherhood lacks a national leader, so does the democracy movement.  Like the American Tea Party, the Egyptian protests seem to be a grass roots movement made possible by the internet and modern telecommunications.  It can be a drawback, as well as a strength, of such movements that they have no national leader.  The Tea Party had an established national opposition party to work with, but Egypt’s democracy movement will be starting from scratch.  A popular uprising can throw a dictator from power, but a country cannot be run by a mob.

The final major player in the coming Egyptian history is the army.  The army could have cracked down on protesters as the Chinese did at Tiananmen Square in 1989 when the People’s Liberation Army killed thousands of protesters.  The Egyptian army has been involved in politics for decades since overthrowing the monarchy in 1952.  After being involved in several disastrous wars against Israel, it is likely that the army would want to preserve Egypt’s secular government and act to prevent the country from becoming a radical Islamist state.  The army might also eventually move to restore order if the violence between opposition and pro-Mubarak protesters becomes too prevalent.

At this point, no one knows where the future of Egypt will lead.  What is indisputable is that the country is at a crossroads.  In one direction lies the prosperity and freedom of a democracy.  In the other lies the possibility that an Egyptian equivalent of the Taliban or another strongman will spin the country into more auth