NEWSBITE 8.4.2025
“For I have bent Judah as My bow; I have made Ephraim its arrow. I will stir up your sons, O Zion, against your sons, O Greece, and wield you like a warrior’s sword” (Zechariah 9:13).
In the Online edition of i24 News two days ago a headline read; “Turkey left fuming after Israel demolishes key military bases in Syria.” The sub head read; “Ankara is positioning itself to play a major role in the post-Assad Syria, filling a vacuum left by Iran, in a development that has put Israel on edge.”
According to the article Turkey’s Erdogan was left fuming after at least three air bases in Syria where Turkey hoped to deploy its forces were devastated by Israeli air strikes last week.
The Israeli strikes hit the T4 and Palmyra air bases in Syria’s Homs province and the main airport in Hama province. Israeli attacks came despite Ankara’s efforts to reassure Washington that a deeper military presence in Syria was not intended to threaten Israel.
Of course the man from Turkey was using Taqiyya, the Islamic art of deception, misinformation and disinformation towards their enemies in a time of Jihad to protect oneself from persecution.
In recent weeks Turkish military teams scoped out three or four sites on Syrian soil, undoubtedly to give them an advantage militarily over Israel.
Israeli air strikes at T4 “destroyed the runway, tower, hangars and the planes that were grounded. It was a tough message that Israel won’t accept the expanded Turkish presence,” said one of the intelligence officials who spoke to the news agency.
According to the report Ankara is positioning itself to play a major role in the new Syria, filling a vacuum left by Iran, in an expansion of Turkish sway that has put Israel, embroiled in a multi-front war of survival for the last year and a half on edge.
In Bible prophecy ultimately it will be Turkey that will lead the Ezekiel 38 invasion of Israel, not Russia, even though Russian forces may be among the many other nations that will support the Islamic armies of the Antichrist (Ezekiel 38:6) (Joel 3:2,12) (Zechariah 14:2).
These armies that will lay siege to Jerusalem will come out of Syria and blanket the Land of Israel as locusts would and devouring everything in their path (Joel 2:1-11). Their intent will be to destroy Israel and conquer Jerusalem for Islam.
However, when it looks like Israel is finished and in desperation the surviving Jews cry out to the LORD to spare them from being the object of scorn and a byword among the nations and have them say where is their God, He, in jealousy for His Land out of pity will save them from the clutches of their enemies and out of the hands of all who hate them to worship and serve Him (Luke 1:71-75).
This will be accomplished when the Messiah returns and when the remnant of Israel sees Him whom they pierced they will all be saved (Zechariah 12:10-13:1). The Times of the Gentiles will be over (Romans 11:15-29).
So then when Israel is attacked and Jerusalem besieged God will intervene, send the Messiah back ro Israel and drive this northern army away from Israel pushing it into a parched and barren land with its front columns going into the Eastern Sea (the Dead Sea) and the Western Sea (the Mediterranean Sea) and its stench will go up; its smell will rise (Joel 2:18-20) (Zechariah 14:2-3).
This prophecy we are looking at in Zechariah 9:13 was partially fulfilled when the Jewish zealots the Maccabees during the intertestamental period, being 400 years between the Old and the New Testament, fought and conquered the Seleucid Greeks and their commander Antiochus Epiphanes, a major type of the Antichrist in the Book of Daniel.
However we are going to see the complete deliverance of Israel when facing ‘the sea’ of annihilation at the hands of the invading armies of Antichrist. Just as the Israelites were delivered from the power Pharaoh of Egypt and his armies that were swept away and drowned in the Red Sea by the power of God, so the armies of Antichrist will be inundated with fire from heaven! (Ezekiel 38:21-23; 39:1-6).
There is no doubt that Erdogan’s regime enraged by Israeli air strikes against Turkish infrastructure on Syrian soil will galvanise the Turks into taking further action against Israel in the not too distant future. At present Erdogan is supporting the al-Joulani terrorist regime in Syria which is also seeking an opportunity to attack and invade Israel.
True to the 600 year old tradition of the Turkish Ottoman Empire, wanting the conquest of Jerusalem for Islam in order to show the superiority of their ‘god’ Allah, the Mesopotamian Arabic moon-god of war, over the God of the Jews and the Christians, is paramount in Islam’s ideology of conquest by the sword.
It Erdogan could take Jerusalem for Islam more than likely the whole Islamic world would follow him as their caliph. This is Erdogan’s agenda and only the Israelis know this.
As for the political leaders of Europe, Canada, Great Britain and Australia they do not have a clue as to what Islam is doing by invading their countries through migration establishing an Islamic Trojan Horse in the very heart of western democracies.
Our text is prophetic. Let’s look at this very briefly at the text…
“For I have bent Judah as My bow; I have made Ephraim its arrow. I will stir up your sons, O Zion, against your sons, O Greece, and wield you like a warrior’s sword.”
When Israel is attacked and almost overwhelmed by the armies of Antichrist the Triune God of the armies of Israel will bend His bow of war. An archer would place His foot on the bow in bending it.
The warriors of Israel will be weapons in the hand of God. Judah is the bow, Ephraim the arrow, the sons of Zion (the Jews) are now raised or lifted up by Him and wielded by God like a warriors sword.
It is interesting to note that Zechariah tells us that “Judah will also fight at Jerusalem” (Zechariah 14:14). Their commander in Chief will be the Messiah riding forth in victory leading the armies of heaven (Psalm 45:2-6) (Isaiah 63:1-6) (Revelation 19: 11-16).
When the Messiah returns and His feet stand once again on the Mount of Olives He will take the fight to Israel’s enemies and destroy all of the armies arrayed against Jerusalem and that ravaged the city and exiled half of the Jewish population pf Jerusalem to Islamic countries (Zechariah 14:1-5). It will see the complete demise of Islamic tyranny! (Isaiah 34:5-10).
Following this the Messiah our Lord Jesus will inaugurate his Messianic kingdom and rule over the nations that have survived His Second Coming (Zechariah 14:6-21).
In our text we know that “the sons of Zion” is Israel. It also speaks about “the sons of Greece” over which Israel will gain the victory under their Commander in Chief the Messiah. Now the word for “Greece” in the Hebrew language is the word “Yavan” or “Ionia.”
“Yavan” is identified with the ancient Greeks, specifically the Ionians, who were one of the four major Greek tribes. The Ionians were known for their significant contributions to Greek culture, philosophy, and science.
The mention of Yavan in the Bible reflects the historical interactions between the Israelites and the Greek world, especially during the Hellenistic period following the conquests of Alexander the Great.
Now the Empire of Alexander the Great had a western and Middle-Eastern leg of his empire. Yavan or Ionia was located in modern day Turkey. Prophetically it would seem that this end-time battle that Israel will have with the armies of Antichrist will be spearheaded by Turkey.
It is also interesting to note that in Daniel chapter 10 we are told that there is a principality (unseen demonic entity) over Persia (Iran) and also over Greece (Yavan or Ionia-Turkey) (Daniel 10:20).
In the last invasion of Israel both Iran and Turkey will be in the invasion forces propelled by the principalities hell-bent on Israel’s destruction. Daniel’s prophecy applies to the latter days or the end of this present age (Daniel 10:14).
Coming back to the nations mentioned in the invading forces coming against Israel in Ezekiel chapter 38:1-5 all of the nations mentioned by name are all Islamic nations today. Russia is not mentioned as leading this end-time army of the Antichrist.
Now clearly Gog is the Antichrist. Magog is the land where he rules over as the chief prince of Meshach and Tubal. Gomer and Beth Togarmah from the far north are also mentioned. On ancient maps of the Middle-East all of these five nations are seen in the geographical region of modern day Turkey.
Added to this, we know that the Messiah’s letters to the seven churches were located in modern day Turkey. It is also interesting to note that in His letter to Pergamum He specifically mentions that this city is where “Satan has his throne”, where Antipas the faithful witness is martyred and “the city where Satan lives” (Revelation 2:12-13).
In the time of the apostle John you have the huge Pergamum Altar an enormous pagan temple dedicated to the worship of the ‘god’ Zeus, the chief ‘god’ of the ‘gods’ of Rome. In the early 1930’s it was transported to Berlin. Soon after this Adolph Hitler rose to power as a demon possessed man.
Some years ago now Erdogan wanted to transport this altar still in Berlin back to Turkey.
I am persuaded that while the seven churches or assemblies were literal assemblies that existed in John’s time, prophetically, they can also represent the body of Messiah corporately in the last days.
Is the Holy Spirit telling us that Israel and the Body of Messiah spiritually grafted into the Commonwealth of Israel will face a Turkish Antichrist with his beast empire?
It is interesting to note that the Messiah our Lord Jesus mentions Antipas the faithful witness put to death in the city of Pergamum. The beast kingdom of the Antichrist will persecute the saints of the Most High God for three and a half years (Revelation 13:5-7).
Satan will seek to destroy the woman Israel and her spiritual offspring the Body of Messiah spiritually grafted into Israel being those who obey God’s commandments and hold to the testimony of Jesus (Revelation 12:1-6, 13-27).
Dark days lie ahead for Israel and her spiritual offspring. Both Israel and the body of Messiah spiritually grafted into Israel are destined to pass through their darkest hour (Daniel 7:21, 25).
However after three and a half years, or 42 months or a time, times, and half a time, the LORD will step in and pronounce judgement in favour of the saints of the Most High and the time will come when they possess the kingdom (Daniel 7:21-22).
Daniel also tells us concerning the Antichrist that after speaking against the Most High, oppressing the saints and seeking to change the laws of God for three and a half years, God’s judicial court will sit and the Antichrist will be completely stripped of his power and destroyed forever.
After that Daniel once more proclaims that the sovereignty, power and greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be handed over to the saints, the people of the Most High where the Messiah’s Kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey Him (Daniel 7:25-27).
As we see Turkey vying for complete sovereignty over Syria and the man from Turkey wanting to rule in Israel who is seeking for the whole Islamic world to join him in his conquest of Jerusalem, we know that the invasion of the Holy Land will come from Syria with Turkey leading the way.
How far down the track the invasion is not certain, however, as we see Turkey becoming a major player in the Middle-East, making inroads into Syria, and with Iran cementing its relationship with China and Russia, we can most certainly see the armies of the nations gathering together that by Satanic power will move against Israel only to fall on the mountains of the Holy Land (Ezekiel 39:1-6).
God will bring these armies into the valley of Jehoshaphat (the Upper Kidron Valley), the valley where God judges, and there He will sit in judgement over the armies of the nations that have divided up His Land and maligned and ruthlessly traded off His people as slaves and prostitutes to be bought and sold in the market place (Joel 3:1-3).
Indeed God says through the prophet Joel…
“Let the nations be aroused And come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat, For there I will sit to judge All the surrounding nations. Put in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Come, tread, for the wine press is full; The vats overflow, for their wickedness is great.
Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! For the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision. The sun and moon grow dark And the stars lose their brightness.
The LORD roars from Zion And utters His voice from Jerusalem, And the heavens and the earth tremble. But the Lord is a refuge for His people And a stronghold to the sons of Israel”(Joel 3:12-16).
Indeed God has spoken; “For I have bent Judah as My bow; I have made Ephraim its arrow. I will stir up your sons, O Zion, against your sons, O Greece, and wield you like a warrior’s sword” (Zechariah 9:13). Selah.
