Rumble
Fotet.org
Watching the aftermathof the major earthquake in Turkey and Syria and their many aftershocks has been gut-wrenching. This massive natural disaster has been eye-opening for the church in terms of where we now stand in the last days.
As most are now well aware, a devastating 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck south-central Turkey near the border with Syria on Sunday, February 5th. It was the single most powerful quake in the Middle East since 1939.
At a little past 1:00 AM on Monday morning, the ground began shaking in southern and central Turkey and western Syria. Because of its shallowness, the 7.8 quake devastated the region. Nine hours later, a second quake struck, this one 7.6, with an epicenter less than 100 miles away from the first. The damage has been catastrophic.
More than 35,000 are confirmed dead with another 45,000 missing. Many of these are buried in the rubble of 8500 collapsed buildings, which will undoubtedly double and possibly triple the current death toll. Those without a roof over their heads number greater than 400,000, a number which is even more tragic considering the snow and below freezing temperatures in much of the affected area.
The earthquake has reminded the church that we are squarely in the “birth pangs” that Jesus spoke of to His disciples in Matthew 24. In the last three years, we have had a global pandemic that has killed nearly seven million people, a world war that has killed 100’s of thousands and now a massive earthquake that has killed over 35,000. What is coming next?
The earthquake shook all of Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, and Cyprus, most of Israel and Jordan, and parts of Armenia, Georgia, Iran, Iraq, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia. Most of the regions mentioned in the Bible were shaken. The earthquake was so massive that a large portion of Turkey moved as much as 10 feet westward (source), and the result is that the entire region has been swarmed with aftershocks—nearly 3,000.
When earthquakes of this magnitude strike, typically hundreds or thousands of aftershocks will follow for an extended period of time—weeks, months, even years. Jesus’ words in the Olivet Discourse of Matthew 24 about the “birth pangs” have now taken on sudden urgency and relevance like never before. The Church should be fervently praying.
Remember, Jesus spoke to his Jewish brethren about life in Israel leading up to his return. While earthquakes in distant places like New Zealand or Chile get our attention, nothing is quite as relevant as when the big one hits smack dab in the heart of prophetic ground zero. And now there has actually been a trigger for ongoing earthquakes across the Middle East for the foreseeable future.
Moreover, this quake may have put into motion tectonic activity leading up to bigger ones to come. Dr. Ata Richard Elias from the Lebanese University in Beirut has said that one more shift of the Arab plate would erase Lebanon off the face of the map.
Again, consider Jesus’ words:
Matthew 24:7
Looking at the search criteria HERE, you can confirm that this mega-quake was the largest to strike not only the Middle East, but large swathes of Europe, Africa, and Asia beyond the Middle East, since 1939. You can see the search region below:
At the moment it’s looking like 2023 is when prophetic signs are finally starting to boil over.
Until we’re gone, the Restrainer will restrain, but His restraining hand appears to be lifting this year.
Putting this in perspective:
- Something of international concern happened the day right before this earthquake: the U.S. shot down the 200-foot-wide Chinese reconnaissance/EMP test balloon near Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
- The largest Middle East earthquake in 83 years shakes the whole Middle East and thousands of aftershocks are continuing across the region, and they will continue for the foreseeable future. Jesus’ prediction in Matthew 24:7 has never been more applicable than right now.
- Putin is about to re-invade Ukraine with a massive 500,000-man army, and if NATO responds, there’s nothing left but World War III.
- The Iran-Israel standoff is finally boiling over this year. Israel recently struck several facilities deep inside Iran in the city of Isfahan because Iran now has the materials to build somewhere between four and six bombs. Time has run out.
- Next month will witness a sort of Babel 2.0 moment: the first orbital flight of the SpaceX Starship. It’s the first spacecraft capable of sending colonists to the moon or Mars. It’s my opinion that, just like the ancient tower of Babel, where the world tried to “reach up to heaven,” today’s world is crossing the line here and God will not allow this in mankind’s current fallen state.
- The five red heifers are apparently still kosher and will be ready for slaughter this year. This would fulfill one of the final missing criteria for the rebuilding of Israel’s Temple. The heifers are necessary for cleansing the temple and making it ready for sacrifices.
- The U.S. and Canadian governments are now claiming three “unidentified objects” were shot down over the U.S. and Canada and the wreckage is being retrieved. While these may end up being claimed to be advanced craft from Russia or China, this could also end up being a final unveiling of the Satanic deception of an alien invasion that could help the enemy to explain away the removal of the Church from the earth (2 Thess. 2:9-11). This story is now at the top of most national news sites (see here, here, and here).
- Finally, the new Israeli government is the first religious government in the history of the modern state of Israel. We’ve waited 75 years for this alignment. This is a crucial end-time development in Israel’s Knesset and something very important I’ve tried to point out for years. Previous conservative coalitions were reliant on secular nationalists. Bibi’s coalition is reliant on the religious right. The significance is that this is the exact coalition you would expect to be in place for demanding Israel’s right to build the Temple and for stewarding the religious revival of the nation as it enters the Tribulation.
Several years ago I spoke that if God was to reject Donald Trump for a second term in office and instead, install Joe Biden, we could very well be entering the last four years of the Church Age. Indeed, I still stand by that possibility. Perhaps, though, it’s really the final ONE.
So if you would prefer not to experience the worst seven years in human history, it is my fervent plea that you instead believe the good news about the Gospel of Jesus Christ and call upon the name of the Lord to be saved today.
