Published: November 05, 2009 06:59 pm      

Scholars: Bible provides Middle East insight, foresight

EDMOND — Some Bible scholars say centuries-old Scripture foretold events like the establishment of modern Israel, an emerging Iranian-Russian alliance and a coming war involving Israel.

Are they right? Are biblical prophecies being fulfilled? Is the world nearing the “end times?” Or are there other possibilities?

Local pastors helped shed some light on what the Bible says about this volatile region of the world, about fulfilled prophecies, unfulfilled prophecies and key places. The insight included Iran’s president and his possible perceived role in future events.

Prophets such as Daniel, Jeremiah and Isaiah are part of the Christian Bible’s overarching story, which involves creation, the entry of evil, God’s relationship with his chosen people, the messiah and God’s final victory over evil.

Scholar-author Mark Hitchcock, senior pastor at Edmond’s Faith Bible Church, said nearly one-third of the Bible’s content can be characterized as prophecy, and many prophecies have been fulfilled, validating the Bible as truth.

However, opinions among scholars vary on specific prophecies (post-millennialism, pre-millennialism, amillenialsm), timelines are difficult to pinpoint and the level of reverence for prophecy among Christians varies. Christ’s promised return (Matthew 24:1-14, 36-44; Mark 13:23-36; Luke 12:35-40) is an example of a universally agreed upon prophecy.

Hitchcock, author of 20 books on the subject including “The Complete Book of Bible Prophecy” and “The Second Coming of Babylon,” said modern Israel’s establishment (Ezekiel 28:25, Isaiah 11:12; Jeremiah 23:8) is a key prophecy that needed to be fulfilled to trigger future prophetic events.

Paul Blair, senior pastor at Edmond’s Fairview Baptist Church, said Jerusalem is a cup of trembling for the world, fulfilling a prophecy (Zechariah 12:2-3).

“Modern day Jerusalem is on no major trade route, it is not a coastal city, not a major trade city and not even recognized by the U.N. as the capital of Israel, yet it is the most hotly contested piece of real estate on planet earth,” Blair said.

Since its 1948 declaration of independence, Israel has fought — and won — a number of wars against its neighbors.

Today, as Iran moves closer toward realizing its nuclear ambitions, Israeli-Iranian relations are tense. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has called for Israel to be “wiped off the map,” and Israel has the military capability to bomb Iran’s nuclear sites.

Ezekiel 38-39 predicts a war commonly known as the Battle of Gog and Magog. Ezekiel 38:5-9 says that Persia (Iran) will be part of this end time coalition of nations that will invade Israel and “be like a cloud covering the land.”

Mateen Elass, senior pastor at the First Presbyterian Church of Edmond, said according to extra-Quranic Shiite traditions the end is near. Ahmadinejad is a Shiite, Elass said.

Shiite theology holds that Imam Mahdi (the 12th imam of majority Shiite belief) will return suddenly to this world and lead it into Islam’s ultimate Golden Age, during which Islam extends worldwide and brings God’s rule to every nook and cranny of the globe, Elass said.

“From things Ahmadinejad has said, he perhaps has delusions of grandeur that he may be the one to usher in Islam’s final stage of glory by serving as the lighter of the fuse on the powder keg of the Middle East, drawing the world into a final world war,” said Elass, who was born to a Syrian Muslim father and an American mother.

Blair said the imam will usher in a period of seven years during which he will bring the world into proper order under Allah. It seems that Shiite Muslims will be prepared to follow this coming world leader that the Bible foretells will emerge promising to establish peace through the enactment or enforcement of a seven-year treaty, Blair said.

Many Christian scholars believe the Battle of Gog and Magog will happen at the beginning of that seven-year period, commonly known as the Tribulation, the Seventieth Week of Daniel and the Time of Jacob’s Trouble, Blair said.

The Tribulation will end with Christ’s visible return to the Mount of Olives in all his glory at that great battle, which will run from the Jezreel Valley to Edom, with Jerusalem at its epicenter, that is known as the Battle of Armageddon. The Mount of Olives is where Jesus ascended into heaven, according to Scripture.

Teachings regarding the end time conflict, a future ruler and Israel’s future vary in Islam, Christianity and Judaism.



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