Americans have felt secure since the death of communism and the dismantling of the U.S.S.R.  We have been led to believe that Russia is no longer a threat to world peace.  A former KGB policy  planner by the name of Anatoliy Golitsyn does not agree.  Golitsyn defected to the west nearly 20 years ago.

In 1984 he published a book entitled New Lies For Old in which he claimed  that the “final offensive phase” of the Kremlin’s plan to dominate the world would begin with the “false liberation of Eastern Europe and the  conversion of communism to democracy”.  He even predicted the demolition of the Berlin Wall years before it fell!

 Every “change” we have witnessed in the U.S.S.R. and even the “fall” of communism were all part of a well orchestrated master plan as reported by Major Golitsyn six years before they occurred!

Meanwhile, as the United States has led the way in disarmament, Russia has continued the most incredible military build-up in history.  According to Time Magazine, Russia spends over 50% of it GNP on its military even though she has allowed her armies to go underpaid and nearly starving!  Where has this money been spent?  In the deployment of nuclear submarines fully equipped with nuclear missiles!  In response, America has now cut her military spending to less than 4%.  As American military bases all over the world are being closed and western missiles are being dismantled, the Soviets are actually accelerating their strategic arms deployment.

Before leaving office, President Bush frantically made “deep concessions” in a last minute effort to negotiate the START II disarmament treaty.  At the same time the Russians continued to launch a new nuclear powered submarine every six weeks!  Americans are virtually exposed to the threat of extinction because what few anti-missile systems we once had, have all been dismantled at the insistence of our liberal politicians.  But no fear, the world is protected by the insane defense strategy known by the acronym M.A.D., Mutual Assured Destruction.

The Soviets are excellent chess players and masters of deceit.  What’s worse, our leaders have applauded every lie that has come out of the Kremlin.  As they talk “peace”, they prepare for war!

It is interesting that the Bible speaks of an end time invasion of the Middle East by a huge army from the far northern regions of Russia.  Ezekiel, one of the ancient prophets, spoke of a day when Gog (Russia) would descend upon the Middle East and ignite a military conflict that would bring about death and destruction on an international scale.  The Scriptures tell us that this terrible day of destruction will come “suddenly” upon an unsuspecting generation – “as a thief in the night”.  The Old Testament prophets Isaiah and Jeremiah even warned that the world would be literally thrown out of orbit when mankind unleashes the fury of his destructive nature – “I will shake the heavens, and the earth shall remove out of its place . . .” (Isaiah 13:13)   “At the noise of the taking of Babylon, the earth is moved . . . “ (Jeremiah 50:46) 

Will Russia and a gigantic army of Islamic soldier really invade the land of Israel as the Bible claims?

HORDES FROM THE NORTH!

President Roosevelt called it a “day of infamy.”  Every American young person and adult living on December 7, 1942, can recall exactly where they were and what they were doing when they first heard the shocking news – “Pearl Harbor Attacked!”

The Japanese raid on America’s Pacific Fleet at anchor in Pearl Harbor came not only as a day of death and destruction, but it also came as a rude wakeup call to a peace-loving nation.  Before Pearl Harbor, Americans felt safe and untouchable, a long way from the war in Europe. 

Not only was America taken by surprise on that fateful Sunday morning, but the nation woke up to the fact that she was far from ready to protect herself in a world of aggressive and dangerous enemies. 

NEVER AGAIN!

America was suddenly thrust into WWII and our national resolve became “never again”.  Never again would we be caught unawares!  Never again would we be unprepared!  Never again would an enemy inflict such devastation upon our peace loving and unsuspecting people! 

The sleeping American giant roused and the nation prevailed.

TIME TO ARM:

As a result of that fateful attack against our slumbering defenders, the post-war years of the 1950’s and 60’s brought about the greatest armament of any nation in history.  The United States was serious about her resolve to prepare her military for any possible act of future aggression.

But America wasn’t the only country arming itself: the Soviet Union was also building a huge military machine under the pretense of protecting itself from the aggressive dangers of the West. 

Many of us remember the jitters of the “cold war” as many citizens took measures to protect themselves from the unavoidable war with the communists.  I remember watching the husband of my third grade teacher build an underground concrete bunker in their backyard.  They were getting ready for the ultimate “day of infamy”.

National defense and civil defense were absolute priorities in those days of cold war uncertainty.  The world had entered the era where all-out warfare could reduce the entire planet to smoldering ashes in just a few moments time.  Such a nuclear nightmare is truly beyond comprehension.

During the next fifty years, leaders of the United Nations made every effort to bring the world under the protective umbrella of a “New World Order” and a world-wide commitment to peace and disarmament. 

 PERESTROIKA:

A day of relief, hope, and victory for the free world came with the dismantling of the Soviet Union and the onslaught of “perestroika.”  The evil empire of the Soviets had come to an end without firing a shot or launching a missile, and the world rejoiced.

 Russia’s newly adopted program of “openness” and the removal of the Berlin Wall gave the world additional hope that “peace and safety” were not only possible, but that they had finally arrived!  Many of the world’s leaders even boasted that we had entered the “Post War Era.”

  Most Americans breathed a sigh of relief that we were no longer living under the threat of annihilation and that the Russian war machine had been dismantled.   

 Communism was finally dead, and the threat of nuclear holocaust was finally over.  Or, so we were led to believe.

 NOT ALL RUSSIANS AGREE!

A former KGB policy planner by the name of Anatolly Golitsyn defected to the west in the late 1970’s.  In 1984 he published a book  entitled  “New Lies for Old”  in which he claimed that the “final, offensive phase” of the Kremlin’s plan to dominate the world would begin with the “false liberation of Eastern Europe”, the “conversion of communism to democracy”, and the “demolition of the Berlin Wall.”

 Every “change” we have witnessed in the former U.S.S.R., and even the “fall” of communism, were all part of a well orchestrated master plan of deception as forewarned by Major Golitsyn six years before they began to occur.  The purpose of this masterful deception, of course, would be to create an international atmosphere of peace and safety and accelerate disarmament in the West. 

 TIME TO DISARM!

Golitsyn’s warnings fell on deaf ears, and as the United States boldly led the way into nuclear disarmament, Russia continued an incredible military build-up and even more incredible cover-up.  According to Time Magazine, soon after the dismantling of the Berlin Wall, Russia increased it’s military spending to over 50% of it GNP.  At the same time, America cut it’s military spending to 6%.

 Before leaving office, President George H. Bush frantically made “deep concessions” in a last minute effort to negotiate the START II disarmament treaty.  American military bases all over the world were closed, and western missiles were dismantled even as the Russians accelerated their arms deployment.

 As America became serious about disarmament, the Russians continued to launch many new nuclear powered submarines.  These state of the art subs were produced in record number under the leadership  of  Russia’s  President  Yeltsin.        Each submarine was fully armed with dozens of nuclear warheads aimed at strategic military targets and population centers throughout the United States.  Even now, these undersea nuclear missile launchers are able lurk off our shores with the ability of wreaking havoc to our cities with little or no warning. 

 That’s the reality of the “safer world” in which we live.

 Russia’s President Mikhail Gorbachev’s earlier promise to convert weapons factories to manufacture peace-time products was nothing more than a hoax, but our media had convinced the American public that Russian intentions were truly honorable.  Instead, Gorbachev increased the Russian military budget by a whopping 37%.  Apparently this was his contribution toward world peace that qualified him to be awarded the 1990 Nobel Peace Prize.

 Soon afterwards, the Kremlin also completed numerous deep underground civil defense structures around Moscow, each one of which is the size of the Pentagon.  Meanwhile, the citizens of the United States continue to be exposed to an insane defense strategy known by the acronym “M.A.D.” -- “Mutual Assured Destruction.”  This simply means that we had agreed to abandon all civil defense plans and to scrap all anti-missile defense systems.  Today, Americans are still exposed to the threat of nuclear extinction because what few anti-missiles systems we once had were scrapped and dismantled at the insistence of our liberal politicians.

 Ask any person on the street where they would go in the event of a nuclear attack and they wouldn’t have a clue.  The fact is, there are no civil defense sites posted or available.

 As the new millennium dawned, the frantic efforts to deploy a STAR WARS missile defense system were plagued with failures, budget woes and setbacks, leaving the American public at incredible risk.  As we have submitted to the conditions of disarmament treaties, the Russians have installed elaborate missile protection systems around their major cities.

 These problems persisted up to the current time as reported by the United Press on January 19, 2006:

 Fort Greely, Alaska - “Behind the heavy barbed wire at this snowy range are silos containing eight interceptors designed to shoot down incoming enemy missiles.  There were supposed to be 16 in place by now.  But after an embarrassing series of test failures in the ambitious, expensive and highly criticized program to build a national missile-defense shield, the U.S. military is slowing the deployment of interceptors while it conducts more testing.

 “The government has spent about $100 billion on missile defense since 1983, including $7.8 billion authorized for the current fiscal year. 

“Interceptors, however, have failed five times in 11 tests, even though some critics of the program say the tests have been practically rigged to succeed.”

 Year ago, General Sir Walter Walker, former NATO Commander-in-Chief, issued his concern about the demise of NATO, the disarmament of the West and the Russian build-up:

 “I consider it my duty, as a former NATO Commander-in Chief, to tell you of the extremely dangerous threats that lie ahead.  It is because I know for certain that we are now in a period of the greatest strategic deception, perhaps in all history, that I feel I should not allow this occasion to pass without warning you of the future that lies ahead in the next decade.”

General Walker saw the Russian Bear preparing for war.  His warning continued:

“Despite the collapse of the Soviet economy, the Kremlin, under pressure from the military, is actually increasing the military budget by $42 billion to more than $160 billion.  In contrast, only $7.5 billion is being earmarked for education, and a mere $4.5 billion for health . . . the Soviet Union is NOT on the verge of collapse.  Western defense, on the other hand, is.”

The Russians are excellent and patient chess players and masters of deceit.  What’s worse, our leaders have applauded every lie that has come out of the Kremlin.  But as they talked peace, they prepared for war.

20^th CENTURY TROJAN HORSE:

The fact is, the West has been lulled to sleep by the most brilliant scheme of deception the world has witnessed since the Trojan Horse.  The giant Bear of the north may appear to be taking a peaceful nap, but the purpose of Russian hard-liners continues to be world domination.  The present generation of Americans has      long forgotten the nauseating statement of Nikita Khrushchev:

“I dream of the hour when the last Congressman is strangled to death on the guts of the last preacher – and since Christians seem to love to sing about the blood, why not give them a little of it?  Slit the throats of their children and drag them over the mourner’s bench and the pulpit, and allow them to drown in their own blood; and then see whether they enjoy singing these hymns.”

 This gruff rhetoric of the 1960’s has given way to a much more appealing, smiling and conciliatory leadership in Russia.  For the past fifteen years they have opened their doors to a guarded form of free trade and have even taken on the guise of democracy.  But the fact remains, the basic leadership of the nation has not  changed nor has their stated purpose for a global empire.  The significant fact is that the Russian sophisticated missile and nuclear weapon systems have never been downsized or dismantled. 

 Meanwhile, the West has fully bought into the peace-loving propaganda of the Kremlin.  Almost without exception, the people I talk to believe the threat of nuclear warfare has been all but removed.  These are days of “peace and safety” in the opinion of most Americans.  They sincerely believe that the threat of a full-scale nuclear exchange has been eliminated through the political process.

 Perhaps the most distressing part of this plot of Russian “disinformation” and deception is that KGB lies are being successfully pedaled to our gullible public by our own media.  The liberal American news makers seem to be major partners in a massive campaign to escalate our own disarmament despite unbelievable risks.

 ULTIMATE VOICE OF AUTHORITY:

The observations and warnings of military leaders and men in the know seem to be falling on deaf ears throughout the free world. 

 But there in ONE VOICE that speaks with absolute authority regarding the future events of planet earth, and we would be wise to listen before it is irreversibly too late.  That voice is none other than the voice of God as He speaks through His Word, the Bible.

 In previous chapters, we have attempted to show that the Scriptures are filled with words of prophetic significance and warnings  for  the  days  in  which  we  live.   God, through His spokesmen the prophets, has made every effort to publish His warnings for the end-time nation referred to as the “daughter of Babylon.”  This youngest, most wealthy and powerful nation on earth will be destroyed in just one hour, and the consuming fires will descend from the far north.

 It is not mere speculation that the enemy to the north is a huge and powerful multi-national force led by ”Gog of Magog”, or Russia.

 PEARL HARBOR II:

Despite America’s resolve to never again be taken by surprise, the horrific events of 9/11 proved that no nation is safe by mere military might, intelligence networks or vigilance.

 The blatant calls for the destruction of Israel and America by militant Islamic heads of state, religious leaders and terrorists is chilling, indeed.  Add to that the availability of portable weapons of mass destruction, and you have the perfect formula for unprecedented days of peril.  When these weapons fall into the hands of hateful extremists and mad men, they will eventually make their way to our cities, and the world will never be the same.

 In Ezekiel chapter 38, the prophet described the huge military might of Russia and her end-time allies which will consist of many Islamic nations that all have one thing in common: intense hatred for and desire to eliminate the State of Israel and the United States.

 The prophets were very specific in declaring there was coming an attack from the north against the end-time “daughter of Babylon” –

 “For, lo, I will raise and cause to come up against Babylon, an assembly of great nations from the north country, and they shall set themselves in array against her; from there she shall be taken; their arrows shall be as of a mighty expert man; none shall return in vain.”  (Jeremiah 50:9)

 Jeremiah’s declaration that the “daughter of Babylon” will be attacked from the north causes us to turn our attention to the prophecies that were written against that northern kingdom called “Gog of the land of Magog”.

HERE COMES RUSSIA:

Ezekiel chapters 38 and 39 are filled with details regarding the northern confederacy that will invade the Middle East (Israel) and be destroyed in divine judgment.

Just as the LORD had declared that He would bring destruction upon the “daughter of Babylon”, so He utters the same curse upon the northern enemy of His people Israel – “Son of man, set thy face against Gog, of the land of Magog . . . . and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog . . . “  (Ezekiel 38:3)

Later in this prophetic chapter of future wrath, God states His great displeasure with Gog when they lead a huge invasion against God’s land, the land of Israel –

“And it shall come to pass at the same time when Gog shall come against the land of Israel, saith the Lord God, that my fury shall come up in my face . . . surely in that day will there be a great shaking in the land of Israel, So that the fish of the sea, and the fowls of the heavens, and the beasts of the field, and all creeping things that creep upon the earth, and the  men  that are upon the face of the earth, shall shake at my presence, and the mountains shall be thrown down, and the steep places shall fall, and every wall shall fall to the ground. And I will call for a sword against him throughout all my mountains, saith the Lord God; every man’s sword shall be against his brother.”(Ezekiel 38:18-21, emphasis mine)

It would appear that this portion of the prophecy is specifically directed against the invading armies from the north.  When they enter “God’s land,” judgment will fall.  I believe this will be a supernatural intervention wherein God will bring about great confusion amongst the invaders and they will turn upon one another just as they did in the days of ancient Judah when God caused a huge army to utterly fall by the infliction of their own swords (2 Chronicles chapter 20).  That ancient battle was fought by the LORD of Hosts, the King and LORD of the people Judah.  It took King Jehoshaphat and his army three days to collect the spoils from the dead bodies, and the people knew that this was a battle won by the LORD because the fight was over before one of God’s people could even draw his sword.

DEFEAT OF THE RUSSIAN ARMY:

The Lord will once again intervene directly into the affairs of His covenant people, and the battle against the invading army of Gog may be a repeat of previous victories of the LORD against the enemies of Israel.

Two interesting points should be made here:

1.  The bodies of the invaders will be buried in the mountains east of the Dead Sea.  These mountains are in the present day country of  Jordan –  “And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will give unto Gog a place there of graves in Israel, the valley of the travelers on the east of the sea; and it shall stop the noses of the travelers, and there shall they bury Gog and all his multitudes; and they shall call it the Valley of Hamon-gog.”  (Ezekiel39:11) 

Let us not forget that God has claimed all of the land from the River Egypt (Nile) to the River Euphrates which flows through the center of present day Iraq.  The actual battle and destruction of Gog’s invading army will apparently take place east of present day Israel.

2.  God will only destroy 83% of the invading army – “And I will turn thee back, and leave but the sixth part of thee, and will cause thee to come up from the north parts, and will bring thee upon the mountains of Israel.” (Ezekiel 39:2) 

 This overwhelming, but partial victory, may give opportunity for the coming world dictator known as anti-Christ to become involved, win an easy victory over the remaining survivors from Gog’s northern army and thereby deceive the Jews who expect to recognize their messiah when he saves them from the northern invasion.  He will declare himself to be their long awaited Messiah and after three and one half years, turn on them, desecrate their Temple in Jerusalem, and demand their worship. 

 RUSSIA’S SMOLDERING HOMELAND:

In addition to the decisive victory over the invading forces in the land of Israel, God is going to call for the destruction of Russia’s homeland as we read in Ezekiel 39:3 and 6 – “And I will smite thy bow out of thy left hand, and will cause thine arrows to fall out of thy  right hand . . . And I will send a fire on Magog, and among those who dwell securely in the coastlands . .  . “(emphasis mine)

 God will personally intervene against the army of Gog and they fall upon the mountains of Israel.

 At the same time, the Russian homeland will also be destroyed as God calls for fire against them.  This just judgment against the land of Russia could very well be the retaliatory response of another nation that becomes embroiled in the catastrophic melee.  In all probability, the “daughter of Babylon” will be able to send a fiery response during the time of her own destruction.  Notice that “I will smite thy bow out of thy left hand, and will cause thine arrows to fall out of thy right hand . . . “ (verse3)  The Russian homeland and the bases for her remaining weapons will apparently feel the retaliation of nuclear weapons.  That’s the theory behind M.A.D. (Mutual Assured Destruction).  The aggressor may ultimately “win” the war but will pay a dreadful price. 

 Regardless of the possible scenario, we do know that end-time Babylon will be attacked from the north and be totally annihilated.  Possibly during the same conflict, the Russian homeland will suffer great destruction and the Russian forces invading the land of Israel will be humbled.  

 There is something else very interesting to note in all of this - during this massive battle, there will be a “shaking in the land of Israel, so that the fish of the sea, and the fowls of the heavens, and the beasts of the field, and all creeping things that creep upon the earth, and all the men that are upon the face of the earth, shall shake at my presence . . . “  (Ezekiel 38:20 emphasis mine)   This is no small military action limited to a small area like Israel.  This conflict is international in scope, and even the “fish of the sea” suffer the consequences. 

 When the Lord specifically mentions “a shaking in the land of Israel” one would speculate that this shaking would be describing weapons of mass destruction being detonated somewhere east of present day Israel and still within the boundaries of what He calls “His land”.  This “shaking” could include the final melting down of Saddam Hussein’s rebuilding effort of the ancient city of Babylon.

 One would wonder why this day of calamity would involve the “fish of the sea”?  Is it possible that at the same time God is delivering a death blow to the invading Russian hordes, that there is another even larger battle taking place that would include nuclear explosions at sea? 

 We do know that nuclear weapons would be employed against enemy submarines in an all-out thermo nuclear exchange.  Time will tell how this passage will be literally fulfilled.  It is always easier to observe the exact meaning of prophetic utterances after they have been fulfilled. 

 We cannot help but ask, “Just who will comprise this massive invading army that comes against the land of Israel?” 

 ISLAMIC JIHAD:

When “Gog of the land of Magog” invades the land of Israel, she will have amassed a huge confederacy of nations intent on annihilating Israel once and for all.  In today’s world, if Russia decided  it  was  time to launch a full-scale attack against Israel,

 she would have plenty of Moslem volunteers who would be overjoyed to take part in destroying their mortal enemy. 

 The nations in league with the king of the north are listed in Ezekiel 38:4-6 – “And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws, and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army . . . Persia, Cush, and Put with them;

all of them with shield and helmet; Gomer, and all its hordes; the house of Togarmah of the north quarters, and all its hordes; and many  peoples with thee.”

 An author and student of the prophetic scripture by the name of Mark Hitchcock spent considerable time and effort in researching the names and identities of the nations that invade Israel with Russia.  In his book “After The Empire,” he summarized his findings -

 “Three of the invaders of Ezekiel 38 and 39 have now been identified: the former southern Soviet republics, the former Russian republic, and Turkey.  The former southern Soviet republics and Turkey have almost everything in common – language, religion, political ties, economic compatibility, and, of course, a common Moslem hatred of Israel.  It’s not too difficult to imagine these two getting together in the near future to invade Israel.”  (chapter 4, pages 50-51)

 We may be surprised that Turkey is listed as one of the nations in league with “Gog”, or Russia.  Modern day Turkey seems to have strong ties to the West, but those ties are purely economic.  Even during the second conflict with Iraq, the Turks prohibited the United States from having air bases in their land.  Their allegiance to the Moslem world cannot be underestimated.

 In addition to the five former Soviet republics of Kazakhstan, Uzebekistan, Kirghizian, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan, plus Turkey, all Islamic republics, Hitchcock researched these additional Moslem nations that will be partners with Russia in the invasion of Israel:

“Persia” is modern day Iran.

“Cush” is modern day Sudan, south of Egypt and under the control of militant Islam.

“Put” is modern day Libya who has already illustrated their hatred for the West and Israel, in particular.

The Prophet Ezekiel apparently did not list all the nations that will be involved in this action against Israel as we read in Ezekiel 38:6, 9 and 15 – “ . . . many peoples with you.”  One of the nations Ezekiel does not list is “the king of the south” or Egypt but Egypt is listed as one of the participants in this great invasion by the Prophet Daniel in Daniel 11:40-43.

One nation in particular deserves a special comment and that nation is Iran.  Iran has been identified as ancient “Persia”. 

A majority of the extremist militant warfare being waged by the Muslim world is coming right out of Iran.   Iran is financing Hamas in their effort to destroy Israel.  And Iran is very involved in much of the suicide bombing that is taking place in Iraq.  Iran has also been personally behind many of the attacks that have been waged against American forces such as the destruction of the Marine’s barracks in Beirut, Lebanon, in 1983, when 241 American service men will killed.

Near the end of the Iran Iraq war, Ayatollah Khomeini was able to send hundreds of thousands of young men against the well armed forces of Saddam Hussein.  Many of these young men were armed only with knives and copies of the Koran.  Multiplied thousands were killed as wave after wave of these suicide attackers faced the machine guns of the Iraqi army.  But they caused such panic amongst the Iraqi invaders, that the battle was won by Iran and Saddam’s forces retreated. 

These same type of frenzied militiamen may one day mount an attack against the people of Israel when the multitude of Islam join forces with Russia and attempt to drive the Jews into the Mediterranean Sea.

THE SPARK THAT IGNITES THE HOLY WAR:

It is obvious that a gigantic horde of Islamic warriors will one day become embroiled in their hatred against Israel. 

Hatred  for  the  people  of  Israel has  been in the hearts of  the Muslims for many hundreds of years.  But something will incite them to unite and join forces with the Russian army and march into the Holy Land.  

We need to consider the questions:

Americans have felt secure since the death of communism and the dismantling of the U.S.S.R.  We have been led to believe that Russia is no longer a threat to world peace.  A former KGB policy  planner by the name of Anatoliy Golitsyn does not agree.