The
Prophetic Messenger
A
Newsletter From Mysteries From The Word Of God Ministries
November/December 2004
- Volume 6/Issue 6
The Turkey Factor
"2 Son of man,
set thy face against Gog, the land of Magog, the chief prince
of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him, 3 And say, Thus
saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief
prince of Meshech and Tubal:" Ezekiel 38:2-3
In this issue of The Prophetic Messenger
we will discuss the nation of Turkey and the prophecies concerning
this nation.
1. The Nation Of Turkey Today
Here is a brief history of Turkey from the CIA fact book (Note
1). It says "Present-day Turkey was created in 1923 from
the Turkish remnants of the Ottoman Empire. Soon thereafter,
the country instituted secular laws to replace traditional religious
fiats. In 1945 Turkey joined the UN, and in 1952 it became a
member of NATO. Turkey intervened militarily on Cyprus in 1974
to protect Turkish Cypriots and prevent a Greek takeover of the
island; the northern 37 percent of the island remains under Turkish
Cypriot control. Relations between Turkey and Greece have improved
greatly over the past few years. In 2004, the estimated population
of Turkey is 68,893,918. Its religion is 99.8% Muslim (mostly
sunni), other 0.2% (mostly Christians and Jews)." The nation
of Turkey has been a friend and ally of Israel but has recently
started showing opposition to Israel and is developing relationships
with nations that are enemies to Israel. An article titled "Turkey
and Syria Bury Differences"(Note 2) says "Turkey and
Syria have agreed to bury their differences, ending decades of
frosty relations. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who is visiting
Turkey, said the two countries would work together for peace
and stability in the Middle East. Mr Assad's visit is the first
to Turkey by a Syrian head of state. After a meeting with Turkish
President Ahmet Necdet Sezer, he said the two countries shared
concerns about the territorial integrity of Iraq. Meanwhile Turkey,
with its strong ties to Israel, is reported to be offering to
help Syria make progress with its recent overtures towards the
Jewish state.........But since succeeding his father Hafez al-Assad
almost four years ago, Mr Assad has been trying to improve ties
with Ankara, and his visit caps a series of smaller steps to
repair relations. 'We have moved together from an atmosphere
of distrust to one of trust,' he said. 'We must create stability
from a regional atmosphere of instability.' Mr Sezer echoed the
Syrian leader's concern: 'No time can be lost in replacing the
atmosphere of enmity, distrust and instability which unfortunately
prevails in our region with one of peace, stability and prosperity.'
Mr Assad also mentioned Iraq, whose US-led occupation - which
the two countries oppose - has brought the two countries closer
together........Turkey and Syria have common interests in Iraq.
Both have sizeable Kurdish populations and neither wants to see
the Kurds of Iraq winning independence under the new constitution
there." In another article titled "Gaza Action Triggers
Turkey-Israel Tension"(Note 3) it says "Israel's recent
military operation in the Gaza Strip has strained relations with
its main regional ally, Turkey. Turkey's leaders have condemned
the Israeli action in Gaza and have suggested that bilateral
relations might have to be reviewed in the light of it. Israel
and Turkey have enjoyed close economic and military ties for
the last decade but many Turks are dismayed at Israel's treatment
of the Palestinians and the Turkish government has come under
increasing pressure to take a stand on the issue. On Wednesday,
the Turkish media reported that Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan
had declined an invitation to visit Israel, saying that the action
in Gaza meant the time was not right for such a visit........The
Israeli media on Thursday devoted much space to the latest developments
in Israeli-Turkish relations. Israel Radio said that Israeli
officials were 'extremely worried' at the way in which these
relations had deteriorated recently. 'Turkey and Israel have
numerous business connections and ongoing defence, water, and
energy contracts. Jerusalem is now expected to make a major effort
to resolve the crisis,' the radio added." Turkish opposition
to Israel was prophesied in the book of Ezekiel. Ezekiel 39:1-2
it says "1 Therefore, thou son of man, prophesy against
Gog, and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee,
O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal: 2 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:" Meshech and Tubal are modern
day Turkey. In the future Turkey and other nations will come
against Israel in war.
2. The Prophecies Concerning
Turkey
In Ezekiel 38 and 39, the Bible tells us about a future war against
Israel. One of the nations that will come against Israel is the
nation of Turkey. By reading Genesis 10 and by studying the descendants
of Shem, Ham and Japheth from historical maps, you can find the
geographical locations of the nations in Ezekiel's prophecy.(For
more information order our book Why
Are So Many Christians Confused About Bible Prophecy?).
The name Meshech and Tubal is mentioned three (3) times in Ezekiel
38 and 39. In Ezekiel 38:2-3 it says "2 Son of man, set
thy face against Gog, the land of Magog, the chief prince of
Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him, 3 And say, Thus
saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief
prince of Meshech and Tubal:" In Ezekiel 39:1 it says
"Therefore, thou son of man, prophesy against Gog, and
say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog,
the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal:" Meshech and
Tubal is modern day Turkey. Notice the Biblical phrase "Gog,
the land of Magog" who is the chief prince of Turkey. The
land of Magog is the former U.S.S.R. and Gog is the leader. Many
would say that the former U.S.S.R. is dead but let me share a
recent article to show you that it is back. In an article titled
"Duma Votes to Send Russia Back to 'Old Days' of One-Party
Rule"(Note 4), it says "Russia's lower house of parliament,
the State Duma, voted in favor of allowing ministers to lead
political parties Wednesday, raising fears that Soviet-style
one-party rule is making a comeback, Reuters writes. The Duma
passed the bill by 344-69, with 13 abstentions, at the third
reading with support from all parties except the Commmunists,
who, in an odd reversal of history, argued against the bill on
the grounds that it would mean a return to the ways of the Soviet
Union. 'What's being proposed is a return to the old days, when
even the man in charge of the bath-house couldn't be appointed
without the party's say-so,' Communist deputy Sergei Reshulsky
said.......Both houses of parliament are already dominated by
Kremlin loyalists, and President Vladimir Putin wants power to
appoint regional governors as well as cabinet members. 'Very
soon, and without amending the Constitution at all, we may have
not only a one-party cabinet ... but also a one-party ruling
hierarchy, covering all levels of government,' commentator Yevgeny
Zherebenikov wrote in Itogi magazine.' (For more information
see our article titled "Is
Communism Dead?" in the May/June 2000 edition of The
Prophetic Messenger). In just a little over 13 years
the old Soviet Union one-party rule is back with little to no
media coverage in America. In another article titled "Russia
Plotting Anti-U.S. Bloc"(Note 5), it says "President
Vladimir Putin envisions a new Russian-led security alliance
aimed at the United States, sweeping from the Baltic Sea to the
Sea of Japan. Embracing such nuclear powers as Communist China,
Iran and India, it would serve two primary geopolitical ambitions
shared by Putin's Soviet-era predecessors in Moscow:
· A counterweight to the U.S.-led North Atlantic Treaty
Organization
· A brake on the expansion of American interests in the
oil-rich Caspian Sea region....................With that complex
coalition in place, the next step would be to try to peel Turkey
away from its membership in NATO. At the core of this Russian
strategy is the intent to root out American investment in the
exploration, production and transport of petroleum in and around
the Caspian Sea specifically the U.S.-proposed pipeline
from Baku to the Turkish port of Ceyhan." Notice this article
was dated back in December of 2000. As we look at these nations
China, Iran and India, we can see that President Putin has fulfilled
his security alliance goals with these three nations. President
Putin's plan to "peel Turkey away from NATO" would
fulfill the prophecy Ezekiel had over 2500 years ago. In Ezekiel
38:2 it says "2 Son of man, set thy face against Gog,
the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and
prophesy against him, 3 And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold,
I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal:"
NOTES
Note 1: www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/tu.html
Note 2: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/3372767.stm
Note 3: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3753963.stm
Note 4: www.mosnews.com/news/2004/10/13/ministers.shtml
Note 5: www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2000/12/18/72013.shtml
Coming Up In The
Next Issue
Three
Horns Plucked Up.
Read this article in the next issue of The Prophetic Messenger.
Memory Verses
As Christians if we want to
live in victory and if we want to be able to share the Word Of
God with others we must know the Word of God ourselves. Let's
see what the Bible says about this. "Thy word have I
hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee."
Psalm 119:11. " If ye abide in me, and my words abide
in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto
you." John 15:7. "Then said Jesus to those Jews
which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye
my disciples indeed." John 8:31. We encourage you to
put the following scriptures in your heart: Psalm 34:9, Galatians
6:7, Psalm 118:22, I Thessalonians 5:3, I Peter 2:24, Numbers
14:24, Proverbs 19:9, I John 3:13-14, Matthew 11:28-30, Psalm
23:1-6. Use only the Old King James version of the Holy Bible.
(If you have any questions about this please see the book New
Age Bible Versions, by G.A. Riplinger ©1993, ISBN 0-9635845-0-2.)
Ordering Information
For "Why Are So Many Christians Confused About Bible Prophecy?"
To order the book Why
Are So Many Christians Confused About Bible Prophecy?
send a check or money order for $20.00 with your name and address
to: Mysteries From The Word Of God Ministries, P.O. Box 6391,
Vancouver, WA 98668. You can also order on-line at www.bookonprophecy.org
or order it at your favorite book store ISBN 0-9711584-0-1
Join Us For
Service
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us on Sundays! Our church is called The Ingathering Fellowship.
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