Which military will be the ‘last one standing’?!
At first blush, that question may sound absurd! After all, America proudly boasts unmatched defense spending, global bases, and cutting-edge weaponry. Iran, by contrast, suffers under heavy and broad western sanctions, endures internal dissent, and, at this writing, faces the threat of increased U.S. involvement in an unprecedented war with Israel.
Yet… Both history and Bible prophecy whisper something much deeper that is all too often missed, or is seriously discounted—something far more unsettling!
Iran has a military tradition that has lasted nearly 2,600 years, beginning with Cyrus the Great, the Persian king who conquered Babylon (See: Daniel 5). Since then, Persian and Iranian forces have endured through empires, conquests, collapses, revolutions, and sanctioned isolations. Through it all, its militaries have adapted, survived, and persisted.
By contrast, America’s military just celebrated its 250th birthday (June 14, 1775). That’s about a 10th of Iran’s military tradition. Its greatest victory is 80 years old, and its most recent one is a few decades old. The foundations of American strength—its economy, unity, moral clarity, and political stability—are increasingly fracturing. Moreover, the implications become spiritually staggering when America’s fracturing reality is held up against Biblical prophecy, particularly Ezekiel 38, which depicts what I call the 1st War of Gog and Magog.
A Prophetic Flashpoint
The prophet Ezekiel foresaw a day when a massive Russia-led coalition will invade a future over-crowded, defenseless Israel. The likely second largest forces in that coalition might be modern-day Iran. (See: First Ukraine, Next Israel’s Terrain?!)
--Isaiah 11:11-14 and 26:20–21 appear to foresee the timing of this event, during the 42-month-long, globally-destabilizing apocalypse in the latter half of the 4th age of history. This event might be the trigger for Armageddon (Revelation 13:5, and 19:11-16)
--A regathered, Jewish people—at peace, defenseless, and overflowing into N. Jordan and Lebanon (Ezekiel 38:8-13, and Zechariah 10:10, See: Five Hasty Jewish Migrations (Part 1))
--Crucially, Ezekiel 38:13 predicts no allies will respond, militarily—only with questions:
Sheba, Dedan, the merchants of Tarshish, and all their ‘young lions’ [leaders] will say to you, ‘Have you come to take plunder? Have you gathered your army to take booty, to carry away silver and gold, to take away livestock and goods, to take great plunder?’ (Ezekiel 38:13)
--Ezekiel 38:18-23 and Isaiah 2:17 foretell its …awesome, awful conclusion, as The Lord alone steps-up, and in to defend Israel, utterly destroying all invaders in a gruesome manner! (See: Dear Pre-Armageddon Soldier (Poem, Letter))
No ally warnings, threats, mercenaries or weapons?! What a chilling restraint! The indicated impotence (or unlikely unwillingness?) of Israel’s global allies, may well be much more than a passive response in her dire time of need. I perceive this will be a two-way, prophetic humiliation:
--A devastating rebuke of pride of Israel’s global allies, particularly for American Christians who, with ‘eyes wide shut’, presume our nation will ALWAYS be Israel’s defender, no matter what. Like a flashbang grenade, Ezekiel 38:13 shatters that presumption!
--A divine stripping away of Israel’s proud, worldly strength, and misplaced trust, just as The Lord did in ancient times, and has promised to do in her future.
There are a myriad of reasons why America might not respond, including:
- Isolationist leadership or confusion
- Fiscal collapse and economic implosion
- Military overstretched and/or demoralized
- Internal collapse and/or geographic fragmentation
- Moral disintegration, thus judged and removed from the prophetic stage
- Or possibly ALL of the above triggered by impacts of the apocalypse plagues
All Bible prophecies communicate some details, and many inferences. I perceive Heaven expects us to develop and use our knowledge and understanding of Biblical history, unfolding world events, and our Holy Spirit-ignited imaginations, to perceive plausible prophetic scenarios, until its prophecies become …historical facts. We do ourselves and others no favors when both sets of our physical and spiritual eyes remain ‘wide shut’ to what Ezekiel 38 infers. Perceiving should help to keep us alert and stay prepared.
Conclusion
Writing this post, my first question was, ‘Which might be the last military standing—Iran’s or America’s? Reviewing the context of the 1st War of Gog and Magog, these points became clear:
1. If America’s forces will have dissolved before this war, e.g., from the effects of the apocalyptic plagues, the inference is that Iran’s forces will outlast America’s forces.
2. Iran’s and other nations’ forces engaging in this war will face no resistance from Israel’s allies, but they ALL will be horribly destroyed by Heaven’s torrents of natural forces.
3. All nations’ forces that will have dissolved before this war, and those engaging in this war, will be militarily absent at/in Armageddon.
Here's the answer to the picture caption question:
Neither military will be left standing!
All military forces will either:
Dissolve institutionally during the apocalypse,
Be horrendously destroyed during the 1st War of Gog and Magog, or
Dissolve bodily at Armageddon, the end of the apocalypse!
NO military banner waving at the end of the 4th age!!!
Selah~
