TODAY'S TECHNOLOGY IN BIBLE PROPHECY
Lesson 47: The prophesied Iranian invasion of Iraq that will touch
off AWWII.
I The Bible records several pressing circumstances that will
drive the events leading up to the fall of "Mystery
Babylon."
A Revelation 16:12 outlines the initial geopolitical
situation: a dispute over scarce water supplies in the
Euphrates river basin, followed by the mobilization of
the armies of "the kings from the east."
B Isaiah 13 documents a second contributing incident, an
Iranian invasion of Iraq.
II Isaiah's prophecy reports that Babylon will be destroyed by
the world's second atomic war.
1 The burden of Babylon, (Isa. 13:1a).
6 Wail, for the day of the LORD is near! It will come as
destruction from the Almighty.
7 Therefore all hands will fall limp, And every man's heart
will melt.
8 And they will be terrified, Pains and anguish will take
hold of them; They will writhe like a woman in labor, They
will look at one another in astonishment, Their faces
aflame.
9 Behold, the day of the LORD is coming, Cruel, with fury
and burning anger, To make the land a desolation; And He
will exterminate its sinners from it (Isa. 13:6-9, NASB).
A The burden of Babylon addresses the prophecy to Babylon.
B "The day of the LORD," twice repeated here, firmly
establishes the setting for this prophecy to be during
the days of the last atomic war of the nuclear age, just
before Christ returns.
C The chilling details of the moment of death for those
burned alive (their faces literally "aflame") by the
scorching thermal pulse of exploding nuclear weapons,
removes any lingering doubt.
10 For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof
shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened in
his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to
shine.
11 And I will punish the world for their evil, and the
wicked for their iniquity; and I will cause the arrogancy
of the proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of
the terrible.
12 I will make a man more precious than fine gold; even a
man than the golden wedge of Ophir.
13 Therefore I will shake the heavens, and the earth shall
remove out of her place, in the wrath of the LORD of hosts,
and in the day of his fierce anger (Isa. 13:10-13).
A Isaiah described the immense clouds of atomic smoke,
blasted into the heavens by nuclear weapons, in terms of
the smoke's light blocking effects--e.g., the stars and
moon not giving their normal light and the sun darkened
at daybreak.
B Isaiah then emphasized the great loss of life in the atomic
war by comparing the small number of survivors to "fine
gold" and "the golden wedge of Ophir"--a very unique and
rare golden wedge.
C Note here (as in Isa. 24:3) that "I will shake the
heavens" does not mean God will physically shake the
heavens, but rather, that the heavens and earth will be
shaken by the violent forces unleashed by man-made
atomic bombs, according to the prophesied Word of God.
D How can it be determined that this passage describes
AWWII?
1 Revelation 8's description of a third of the earth
burned up by AWWI shows that man will not be "more
rare than fine gold" (RSV) after AWWI, since two
thirds of the earth will be unburned by AWWI.
2 Also, "I will shake the heavens, and the earth...in
the wrath of the LORD of hosts, and in the day of his
fierce anger" defines the outbreak of this atomic war
to be during the days when the seven last plagues of
judgment will be poured out on the earth.
III Isaiah's review of the events leading up to the fall of
Babylon.
17 Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them, which
shall not regard silver; and as for gold, they shall not
delight in it (Isa. 13:17).
A Here, "against them" is a direct reference to Babylon
since this prophecy opened with the statement: "The
burden of Babylon, which Isaiah the son of Amoz did
see," (Isa. 13:1).
B What facts in this prophecy show that the nations of
Babylon and Media do not refer to these ancient nations?
1 Since AWWII and "the day of the LORD" are the twin
themes of the prophecy leading up to this point in
the text, it follows that the two combatant
nations identified here will be bonafide modern
nations, residing on the lands of the ancient
nations named in the text.
2 Accordingly, since the nations of Iraq and Iran
presently appear on the map where the nations of
Babylon and Media once held sway, they are the
countries to be considered in the continuing
analysis of the prophecy.
C What is the significance of Isaiah's observation that
the Medes "shall not regard silver; and as for gold,
they shall not delight in it?"
1 Isaiah's comment identifies modern Iran's most
striking national characteristics.
a For example, they "shall not regard silver; and as
for gold, they shall not delight in it" is an
unmistakable portrait of the Islamic fundamental-
ist state that emerged out of Ayatollah Khomeini's
successful revolutionary take-over of the country
in the late 1970's.
b Under Khomeini's religious regime the Iranians
rejected Western ways, especially the pursuit of
modernization, wealth and the free-wheeling
Western life style silver and gold can buy, in
favor of the religious laws and customs outlined
in the Islamic religion.
2 Modern Iran's disregard for wealth can be observed in
her citizens' willingness to sacrifice all their
earthly possessions, including their lives, to
achieve their national religious goals.
3 This collective national religious resolve (clearly
demonstrated in the Iran-Iraq War of the 1980's),
means the Iranians will not simply back down when
threatened with economic hardship by the world's more
economically powerful nations.
4 Isaiah's forewarning: "Behold, I will stir up the
Medes against them," therefore, declares that the
Iranians will attack Iraq during the days leading up to
the seventh plague event.
a The Iranian invasion will present a serious threat to
the world government's space base, prophesied by
Zechariah to be built in modern Iraq.
b Also, if the nations elect to establish the world
government's capital in a rebuilt city of Babylon,
then the costly international capital would be in
harms way of the Iranian invasion as well.
5 Even worse, Isaiah's prophecy predicts that the
nations will not be able to persuade the Iranians to
quit their invasion on the promise of economic gain,
since they "shall not regard silver; and as for gold,
they shall not delight in it."
D In summary it is logical to assume that the fate of the
international space base and perhaps the world's capital
city, in the path of a determined Iranian invasion force,
will be one of the reasons that will prompt the nations to
march large armies into the Middle East at the time of the
seventh plague event.
IV Isaiah's description of the final fall of Babylon.
18 Their bows also shall dash the young men to pieces; and
they shall have no pity on the fruit of the womb; their eye
shall not spare children (Isa. 13:18).
A What facts reveal that "their bows also shall dash the
young men to pieces" could not refer to an ancient bow?
1 The bows of Isaiah's day did not kill soldiers by
blowing them to bits (which, incidentally, is the
equivalent twentieth century expression for "dash to
pieces").
2 Note also that Isaiah did not say the Medes would use
ancient bows in the war--only that "their bows" (the
future Iranian/Medians' bows) would have the unheard
of power (in Isaiah's day) "to dash the young men to
pieces."
3 Thus, Isaiah called the modern artillery cannon with
which the invading Iranian Army was firing high
explosive shells into the ranks of Iraqi defenders, a
bow, simply because a bow was functionally similar to
the modern artillery weapons.
B How does the insertion of the original Hebrew word for
children--literally "sons"--in the statement: "And they
shall have no pity on the fruit of the womb; their eye
shall not spare children," reveal the greater meaning of
the text?
1 Insertion of the exact word "sons" here identifies the
sickening and uniquely Iranian practice, introduced
by Ayatollah Khomeini's Revolutionary Army during the
1980's Iran-Iraq War, of depending on human-wave
attacks by irregular units to overwhelm the enemy on
the battlefield.
2 Iran's irregular units often included large numbers
of 12-year-old schoolboys who served as little more
than cannon fodder.
3 Thus, the Iranians shall not spare "their own" sons
during their invasion of Iraq at the time of the
Seventh Last Plague War.
19 And Babylon, the beauty of kingdoms, the glory of the
Chaldeans' pride, Will be as when God overthrew Sodom and
Gomorrah.
20 It will never be inhabited or lived in from generation
to generation; Nor will the Arab pitch his tent there, Nor
will shepherds make their flocks lie down there
(Isa. 13:19-20, NASB).
A What facts reveal that this prophesied destruction of
Babylon refers to the downfall of a restored Babylon at
the time of the end?
1 Isaiah's comparison here to the overthrow of "Sodom
and Gomorrah" demands an abrupt and permanent destruc-
tion of the city of Babylon referred to in this prophecy.
2 The old city of Babylon did not fulfill this prophecy
since the city was inhabited for several centuries
after Cyrus the Great conquered the Kingdom of
Babylon in 538 B.C.
3 In fact, there are several small, but growing, cities
located on the site of Babylon today, including one
that retains the ancient name of Babylon.
4 Further, the cities have a large Arab population whose
principal occupation is the shepherding of flocks.
5 Also, Iraq rebuilt part of ancient Babylon as a
tourist attraction in the 1980s.
6 And finally, the prophecy is addressed to the Babylon
that will witness the atomic judgment of the nations
at the time of the end--("the day of the LORD").
B Thus, it appears from this text that the first thing to look
for in the prophecy's fulfillment, will be the construction
of a literal "Mystery Babylon" that will eventually become
the capital city of an all-encompassing world government.
C What will seal the violent judgment of "Mystery Babylon"
and her inhabitants?
1 In order to obtain complete control over the nations,
Babylon's rulers and bureaucrats will make the fatal
mistake of setting up a systematic procedure to kill
God's prophets and the Christians who will oppose
their evil regime.
2 These acts of violence against Christ's servants will
seal the violent judgment of the city and her
inhabitants.
D That prophesied nuclear destruction will be so complete
that the city "will never be inhabited, or lived in from
generation to generation; Nor will the Arab pitch his
tent there, Nor will shepherds make their flocks lie
down there" (Isa. 13:20, NASB).