Gog, of the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal

[Sean Osborne]

My all-time favorite President of the United States of America, Ronald Wilson Reagan, now with the Lord forevermore, had this to say about Ezekiel 38/39 in 1971 when he was the Governor of California:

Ezekiel tells us that Gog, the nation that will lead all of the other powers of darkness against Israel, will come out of the north. Biblical scholars have been saying for generations that Gog must be Russia. What other powerful nation is to the north of Israel? None. But it didn't seem to make sense before the Russian revolution, when Russia was a Christian country. Now it does, now that Russia has become Communistic and atheistic, now that Russia has set itself against God. Now it fits the description of Gog perfectly.**

**Paul Boyer, When Time Shall Be No More: Prophecy Belief in Modern Culture (Cambridge, MA: The Belknap Press of Harvard University, 1992), p162.

Now we can know and have deeper insight into why Reagan dealt with the Soviet Union as he did.

[GlennO]

Thanks for that post Sean! I think Billy Graham was a strong influence for the good in Reagan's life. I believe there is good cause to hope we will see him in the gathering of the saints.

BTW.... D. D. Eisenhower is my modern era favorite president

[Sean Osborne]

Thanks for that post Sean! I think Billy Graham was a strong influence for the good in Reagan's life. I believe there is good cause to hope we will see him in the gathering of the saints.

BTW.... D. D. Eisenhower is my modern era favorite president

Yes, Billy Graham was exactly that to "The Gipper."

btw ... D.D.E. is my #2 all-time favorite Prez, and my #1 all-time favorite CInC golfer. Bob Hope is my all-time favorite comedian too. And then there's "The Duke."

sigh... sometimes i wish I could go back in time

[GlennO]

Yup!!

[SonSeeker]

Agreed, great post, Sean.

Reagan or Ike, #1 or#2 in my book and the order really doesn't matter.

Bob Hope is my all-time favorite comedian too. And then there's "The Duke."

Back in the day, I worked at Orange County Airport in southern Cal, back before it was known as John Wayne Airport. Was fortunate to meet Bob Hope there and I must say he was an absolute gentleman who honestly loved meeting people. All-time favorite comedian? Absolutely!

At the other end of the spectrum, Hanoi Jane hid in a phone booth pretending to be talking to someone until the last possible second so she didn't have to speak to any of us mere mortals. Gimme a break.

[dave-o]

[...]Bob Hope is my all-time favorite comedian too. And then there's "The Duke."

sigh... sometimes i wish I could go back in time

You mean when comedians didn't need to sport the the eff-word 3 times a sentence just to get a laugh? Me too.

[Sean Osborne]

Hey, dave-o, Sonseeker and GlennO" -- this one's for ya'll.

Bob Hope's best one-liner ever:

Best one liner ever - YouTube

[Joseph The Carpenter]

Duke was his dogs name
My dogs are named Red River, Angel (and the badman), (Sgt. John M.) Stryker (Sands of Iwo Jima)
His real name was Marion Morrison.

[SonSeeker]

Hey, dave-o, Sonseeker and GlennO" -- this one's for ya'll.

Bob Hope's best one-liner ever:

Best one liner ever - YouTube

Right on, Sean!

[GlennO]

SWEET !!

[Sean Osborne]

Sean Osborne

Do you believe that Daniel 11:43-45 is describing the antichrist verses Magog war?

The antichrist in the latter stages of the 70th Week. Ezekiel 38/39 occurs prior to the 70th Week.

[JAyres]

God just doesn't make men like Eisenhower, Reagan, Bob Hope, or John Wayne anymore.

[Sean Osborne]

To Sean

The antichrist will come to power in the 11 horn spoken of in Daniel 7:23-25, when God causes those who heard the truth of the gospel and rejected Jesus before

the rapture to believe the antichrist 2 Thessalonians 2:3-12. Then he will sign the covenant to divide Israel shortly before the end time wars start in the first seal.

Daniel 11:39-40 KJV The antichrist will come riding on a white horse with a crown conquering to enforce the peace treaty. Daniel 11:40-43a. The antichrist will be

given total control at the middle of the tribulation when God causes the ten kings who devour the earth to give their power to the antichrist.Revelation 17:16-18

All of the wars are done in the first half of the tribulation before total control is given to the antichrist who will ruel foe 42 months or the last half of the

tribulation.Revelation 13:5

I'm not sure why this was addressed to me personally.

However and nevertheless, from my perspective a few minor eschatological errors exist in the above; i.e. a few English-language transliterated additions appear in this which are not within the original Hebrew text of Daniel. The land divided in Daniel 11:39 is not specifically stated to be the land of Israel, but just land - adamah - in general terms. This prophetic reference is probably not much different in context to when Great Britain divided up the land it took in the Middle East following the collapse of the Ottoman Empire after WWI.

[Sean Osborne]

In keeping with the thread OP... this post adds some good insight on the dynamic at work. Not posting the whole article - those who're really interested can use the link for that - just going to post some key excerpts

Soviet nostalgia binds divergent CIS states

The Commonwealth of Independent States was set up in haste by 11 of the 15 ex-Soviet states just days before Mikhail Gorbachev resigned as president of the Soviet Union on December 25, 1991. From the outset, the loose grouping of impoverished new states was riven by separatism, ethnic conflict and economic disputes, raising questions about what they could possibly have in common.Twenty years on, one thing they share is a nostalgia for the old Soviet days.

Such widespread nostalgia is honey to the soul of Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, who is preparing his return to the Kremlin next year. Street protests in Moscow this week following an election which cut his party's majority in the lower house of parliament have toughened Putin's anti-Western rhetoric. The man who once called the collapse of the Soviet Union "the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the 20th century" reacted to the vote by accusing foreign countries of stirring up protests and trying to influence Russian elections.

Putin published an article in October outlining his plans to bring former Soviet states into a new "Eurasian Union," saying that "a stronger integration on a new political and economic basis and a new system of values is an imperative of our era." Putin's idea has been embraced by Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, who has attracted more than $120 billion in foreign investment since independence and presided over average economic growth of 8 percent annually over the last decade.

Putin has said some ex-Soviet states made the wrong choice in turning away from Moscow to seek integration with the European Union, because in future the Eurasian Union would be the EU's partner in talks to create a common economic space. "It is hard to see how the CIS is going to compete with the well-developed European bloc driven by the shared vision of its members," said Gevorgyan of IHS Global Insight. "To win this competition, the CIS has to have a much more appealing ideology than that of the good memories and friendship of nations under the Soviet Union." The ex-Soviet republics of Central Asia also have another ace up their sleeve: China lies directly across a common 2,800-km (1,740-mile) border.

The countries may have little in common but their shared Soviet past. But old habits die hard.

Being over-the-top xenophobic has always been backward Russia's main issue. Having a leader like Pooty-Poot, a certifiable xenophobe, running the whole show makes for good background material considering the destiny outlined in Ezekiel 38/39.

[Sean Osborne]

Here comes Gog, struttin' down the hallway brimming with arrogance, pride and a false sense of destiny...

Vladimir Putin lashes out at America for killing Gaddafi and backing protests
Vladimir Putin has accused his political opponents at home of trying to destabilise Russia on the West's orders and alleged that the United States killed Libyan dictator Col Muammar Gaddafi.



By Andrew Osborn, in Moscow

2:11PM GMT 15 Dec 2011

In a ferocious verbal tirade broadcast on state TV that lasted more than four and a half hours, the Russian prime minister made it clear he was determined to return to the Russian presidency next year, scornfully dismissing recent demonstrations against him.

"I know that students were paid some money - well, that's good if they could earn something," he said, referring to the biggest protest of its kind since the 1991 fall of the Soviet Union last Saturday.

Facing down the biggest challenge of his almost twelve years in power, the Russian strong man insisted that the disputed parliamentary election which triggered the protests was not flawed, rejecting calls for a re-run outright.

"It properly reflected the real balance of power in the country," he said during a live televised question and answer session that has become an annual tradition. "As for the fairness or unfairness: the opposition will always say the elections were not fair. Always. This happens everywhere, in all countries." Repeatedly accusing his domestic critics and opponents of taking money from the West to do him down, he claimed there was a plot to destabilise Russia by effecting a velvet revolution there.

"There is a well-tested scheme to destabilise society," he said.

Scornfully recalling Ukraine's pro-Western Orange revolution in 2004, he said that anti-Kremlin opposition figures had advised Ukraine's orange movement at the time and had now brought the same technology to Russia. "Some of my critics are sincere, they must be heard and respected. The rest are pawns in the hands of foreign agents. There are people with Russian passports but who work in the interests of foreign states." Unruffled and outwardly supremely confident, he even quipped that the street protests were only possible because he tolerated freedom of expression.

"If it is the result of the Putin regime it pleases me," he said with a relaxed smile. "I saw on television mostly young, active people clearly expressing their positions. I am pleased to see this. The fact that people are expressing their point of view about the processes occurring in the country, in the economy, in the social sphere, in politics, is an absolutely normal thing, as long as people continue acting within the law." Mr Putin typically revels in these televised question and answer sessions and Thursday's was no exception. His tenth and his longest yet, he used the occasion to mock the anti-Kremlin protestors who had donned white ribbons as a symbol of their peaceful protest saying he mistakenly thought they had pinned condoms to their clothing.

"I decided that it was an anti-AIDS campaign... that they pinned on contraceptives, I beg your pardon, only folding them in a strange way," he said.

"I then took a closer look. No. In principle, my first thought was: "okay, they are fighting for a healthy lifestyle."

Insisting he was inured to and unfazed by criticism, he played down an incident in Moscow last month which saw him publicly booed and insisted he would leave office "within a day" if he ever felt the Russian people did not support him.

Determined to return to the Russian presidency next year for a controversial third time after a March 4 vote, Mr Putin is under growing pressure to allow greater political competition and to hold a re-run of the disputed election that saw support for his ruling United Russia party tumble by fifteen percent.

But the concessions he held out were relatively minor.

He had already vowed to significantly reshuffle the government next year, while his spokesman had suggested he might even reinvent himself and show the world 'Putin mark two.' On Thursday, he raised the possibility of partially restoring direct elections for the country's governors, and said the Kremlin might allow genuine opposition parties to register their presidential candidates.

"Maybe we need to take the next step in the development of our political system," he said. Governors could in future be directly-elected by voters in their region, he added, although the Kremlin would still have to vet them for suitability first. "Such a step is possible and justified."

But Mr Putin showed no such leniency when it came to the United States.

Last week, he dismissed criticism of the vote by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton as part of US efforts to weaken Russia, and on Thursday he upped the ante by accusing US special forces of being involved in the killing of deposed Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi.

"Who did this?" Putin said. "Drones, including American ones. They attacked his column. Then - through the special forces, who should not have been there - they brought in the so-called opposition and fighters, and killed him without court or investigation."

A spokesman for the US military said the claim was "ludicrous." In a related aside, Mr Putin said John McCain, the US senator, was losing his mind, probably because of the torture he suffered as a prisoner during the Vietnam War.

Putin was responding to remarks McCain made in October, when the former US presidential candidate said the killing of Col. Gaddafi should make "dictators" like Putin "nervous." Signalling that President Barack Obama's much publicised attempt to "reset" relations with Russia was now barely alive, Mr Putin added: "Sometimes it seems to me that America does not need allies, it needs vassals. People are tired of the dictates of one country." The carefully stage-managed performance showcased Putin's charisma and his natural ability to command attention and was designed to boost his image and show he remained in control of Russia.

Outgoing President Dmitry Medvedev, who in September agreed to step aside for Putin after just one term in office, has never held phone-in sessions with Russians since he entered the Kremlin in 2008, instead choosing a far safer format of television interviews.

Mr Putin said billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov, who is planning to run against him, would be a "worthy, strong competitor" but that he did not wish him well because he was running as well.

Despite the recent outbreak of discontent, Mr Putin remains Russia's most popular politician and is expected to comfortably win next year's presidential election.

"The motherland is my life," he said. "I believe in Russia."

[micah719]

Yes, and dogs believe in cats, cats believe in mice, and mice believe in cheese. The Russian cheese does not want to become Swiss.

[Elijah's Mantle]

was re-reading through passages of Isaiah and come to chapter 13 . wow is ever descriptive . It speaks of Babylon being the first to be Judged probably because she is satans city in opposition to Jerusalem . I think almost the whole of 13 speaks loudly of Armageddon

what really is something is reading passage 12
man is made as scarce as the golden wedge of Ophir
so we really cant imagine that horrendous of bloodshed

It begins to bear witness of things even into Revelations 16:6 and the close of Revelations chapter 18

what kinda my question was was getting into the last in 22 when it speaks of doleful creatures and satyrs dance there

do you gather from Revelations 21-and 22 that there will be opening in the earth where men can actually see into eternal hell ?



do you suppose Babylon will be one of the spots ?

what do you reckon ?

[Sean Osborne]

Regarding Ezekiel 38/39 and all that is occurring between Russia, Iran, the US, Israel and our NATO allies:

The current conditions in Israel do not merit talk of an imminent fulfillment of Ezekiel 38/39. There is much to be fulfilled prior to those conditions being met.

In fact, one need not bother to ask the residents of Sderot, Be'ersheva, Ashdod or anywhere in Judea or Samaria if any of the five following conditions are true as they are plainly evident as untrue:

1.) All Israel is not dwelling securely (yashab betach) at the present time;

2.) Israel is not a land of unwalled villages ('erets pĕrazah);

3.) Israel is not at undisturbed rest, dwelling without walls, bars or gates (shaqat yashab chowmah bĕriyach deleth) (Ez. 38:11);

4.) With no one to make them afraid (charad) (Ez. 39:26);

5.) Nor is Israel yet in possession of the valley of the passengers east of the sea (gay' `abar qidmah yam) (Ez. 39:11).

When ALL 5 of the above prophetic conditions are plainly evident, then talk about the imminence of Ezekiel 38/39 fulfillment will be appropriate.

[mattfivefour]

Good, Sean. There is much confusion about prophecies because people do not understand the telescoping of prophetic vision. From the prophet's point of view events can appear to be all together. But, like mountain ranges seen from afar, there can often be great distances between them.

It is very important to separate out events, not just look at fulfillments (of which there can be more than one or even two.) Your post will help people do that as to the timing of Ezekiel 38/39.

[Sean Osborne]

Thanks Matt. Indeed the conditions that are set for the fulfillment of Ezekiel 38/39 come directly from the text itself (38:11, 39:11 and 39:26) meaning that these are the conditions set by God Himself. All that is required of us is to read them as literally as He spoke them to Ezekiel about 2,588 years ago.