This is Daniel Whyte III with the Second Coming Watch Update. This is update #950. Let’s take a quick look at today’s prophecy-related headlines which point towards the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ and the end of the world as we know it.
First, today, under the Sign category of PESTILENCES AND FATAL EPIDEMIC DISEASES — According to the Guardian, scientists in South Africa believe the South African variant of coronavirus, two cases of which have now been detected in the UK, is likely to be more transmissible, may hit young people harder, and may be slightly more resistant to vaccines. There are also some fears that the more numerous individual mutations of the South African variant may make it able to “re-infect” individuals who have already caught the virus and recovered. Scientists in South Africa are still working “calmly and methodically” to fully understand the new variant. Data on the South African variant, which has swept across a swath of the country, has already been compared by scientists to the UK variant detected last week.
Second, today, under the Sign category of WARS & RUMOURS OF WARS — According to the Jerusalem Post, US President Donald Trump threatened Iran on Tuesday afternoon, two days after rockets struck the US embassy compound in Baghdad. The rockets are some of dozens that have been fired over the last year by pro-Iranian militias. The US has put in place air defense called C-RAM to defend the Green Zone and embassy area, however some of the rockets still caused damage. Trump tweeted: “Our embassy in Baghdad got hit Sunday by several rockets. Three rockets failed to launch. Guess where they were from: IRAN. Now we hear chatter of additional attacks against Americans in Iraq. Some friendly health advice to Iran: If one American is killed, I will hold Iran responsible. Think it over.” In the past when US soldiers and a contractor have been killed the US responded with airstrikes in December 2019 and March 2020. Iran and its allies in the region are commemorating the deaths of two top generals this month and tensions are running high.
Third, today, under the Sign category of EARTHQUAKES IN DIVERS PLACES — According to CBS News, The Kilauea [KEE-LOU-EY-AH] volcano on Hawaii’s Big Island has erupted, about an hour before an earthquake struck the area. The eruption began late Sunday within the Halema’uma’u [HA-LAY-MAH-OO-MAH-OO] crater, which is located within Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. A magnitude 4.4 earthquake hit about an hour after the volcano began erupting. By 1 a.m., USGS officials said there were reported lava fountains shooting about 165 feet into the sky and feeding a growing lava lake within the crater that used to hold water. In addition to changing the volcano alert level, the US Geological Survey also changed the aviation code color to “red” ― a warning for aviators to avoid the area.
Fourth, today, under the Sign category of TURMOIL IN THE MIDDLE EAST — According to the Jerusalem Post, IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Aviv Kochavi [AH-VEEV KOH-CHA-VEE] said Monday if Iran or its proxies try to carry out attacks against Israel or Israeli targets, they will be attacked by the IDF and pay a heavy price. He said at an awards ceremony, “We are hearing more and more threats against Israel coming from Iran. If Iran and its partners… attack the State of Israel, they will [pay] a heavy price. I am simplifying things and describing the situation to our enemies as it is. Our retaliation plans are prepared, and they already have been practiced.” Three weeks ago, Iran’s top nuclear scientist was assassinated outside of Tehran. The operation was widely attributed to the Mossad. After the assassination, Iran blamed Israel for the attack and vowed revenge.
Fifth, today, under the Sign category of PESTILENCES AND FATAL EPIDEMIC DISEASES — According to the Associated Press, Local authorities in rural Egypt have declared a state of emergency after detecting two outbreaks of bird flu. Nagy Awad [NOD-YUH OW-AHD], head of the veterinary agency in the southwestern province of al-Wadi al-Gedid [al-WAA-DEE al-GEH-DIHD], said the infected birds were culled and authorities have carried out medical examinations of people who were in contact with them. The virus, which is mainly spread through contact with infected animals, can cause severe illness or death in humans. Egypt suffered a major outbreak of bird flu in 2006 that led to the suspension of all poultry exports. Authorities have been pressing to renew them, and earlier this year, the World Organization for Animal Health, an intergovernmental body, had declared Egypt free of bird flu for the first time in 14 years. The H5N1 strain of bird flu spread in early 2000s in Asia, Europe, Africa and the Middle East, leading to the slaughter of tens of millions of chickens and ducks. Hundreds of people were infected, many of whom died, according to the World Health Organization.
The prophetic passage of Scripture that we are looking at today is Ezekiel 37:15-25.
Ezekiel 37:21-22 reads: “And say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land: And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all: and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all.”
Allow me to share with you some commentary on this passage from Exploring Bible Prophecy from Genesis to Revelation, by Tim LaHaye and Ed Hindson.
Every Israelite male was commanded to appear at the temple three times a year. However, the northern kingdom’s rulers feared that continued spiritual devotion to the temple by their subjects would ultimately produce a political shift toward the house of David. So they constructed alternate religious centers that plunged the kingdom into idolatry. Only a restoration that reunited the two kingdoms spiritually and politically would fulfill the divine ideal.
The prophecy of the two sticks (Judah and Ephraim/Joseph) becoming one has been variously interpreted, with one modern version identifying Judah with messianic Judaism and Ephraim with Gentile Christianity and the two coming together in the church. However, the passage reveals the names to be written on these sticks. Ezekiel 37:21 identifies these two sticks with “the sons of Israel” that had been dispersed among the nations and would be regathered into their own land. Verse 22 speaks of the historic division into “two kingdoms,” while verse 25 speaks of all the people and their land in continuity with Jacob and “[their] fathers.” Both of these references could apply to none but the historic Jewish people descended from the patriarchs to whom the land of Israel was given. Clearly, it is only the Jewish tribes that had been divided that would be reunited. Judah was the larger of the two tribes that gave the southern kingdom its dynastic ruler (“the house of David”) and its name, and similarly the northern kingdom was named after its most prominent tribe from the house of Joseph, Ephraim.
If the Lord tarries His Coming and we live, we will continue looking at the prophetic passages of the Bible in our next broadcast / podcast.
Our Second Coming quote for today is from A. W. Tozer. He said, “This is the kind of age and hour when the Lord’s people should be so alert to the hope and promise of His coming that they should get up every morning just like a child on Christmas morning—eager and believing that it should be today!”
Let’s Pray
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If you are not ready for the return of Jesus Christ, may I encourage you to get ready today by receiving Him as your Savior. Here is how.
First, accept the fact that you are a sinner, and that you have broken God’s law. The Bible says in Romans 3:23: “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”
Second, accept the fact that there is a penalty for sin. The Bible states in Romans 6:23: “For the wages of sin is death…”
Third, accept the fact that you are on the road to hell. Jesus Christ said in Matthew 10:28: “And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” Also, the Bible states in Revelation 21:8: “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”
Now that is bad news, but here is the good news. Jesus Christ said in John 3:16: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
Just believe in your heart that Jesus Christ died for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead by the power of God for you so that you can live eternally with Him. Pray and ask Him to come into your heart today, and He will. Romans 10:13 says, “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
Keep looking up for your redemption draweth nigh. Let us join in the prayer of John the Revelator — “Even so, come, Lord Jesus.” God bless you.
BCNN1 WP 