March 23 - 29, 2014

1. Weekly World Watch Andy Walton’s March 23 - 29, 2014 “If the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet to warn the people and the sword comes and takes the life of one of them, that man will be taken away because of his sin, but I will hold the watchman accountable for his blood.” (Ezekiel 33:6, New International Version) PRESS SPACE BAR TO CONTINUE To skip the introductory slides and go straight to this weeks developments click here.

2. What is a Weekly World Watch? The idea is simple. It is to look at current events and compare them to events spoken of in the Bible. . I hope to build up a picture of God’s hand working in the affairs of this world. God is bringing about a day when all nations will be gathered to Jerusalem to battle. At that time God will send His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, back to this earth. Jesus will then establish God’s kingdom on earth. This kingdom will last for ever. This is our hope and the reason we watch. The following six themes will appear repeatedly in WWW: • Israel: The continuing conflict in the Middle East and focus on Jerusalem. • Europe: Its developing union, both political and religious. • Russia: Its return to anti-Western ways as Bible prophecy’s “king of the north.” • The UK and the US: Bible prophecy’s “king of the south.” • Moral standards in decline and violence on the increase. • Increasing natural disasters: including earthquake, famine etc WWW presentations in PowerPoint can be ordered as audio/visual CDs by clicking here. Move your mouse to place the cursor on the blue link and click.

3. BIBLE QUOTE What is in a Weekly World Watch? Each WWW looks at a few key developments that have happened during the past week. It is in no way meant to be exhaustive – just a look at those events I saw as significant from a Biblical point of view. Every WWW event slide has the following format. To reveal each block of text just left click your mouse or press the space bar. You control when it appears. News Photo This is straight from a news report that caught my eye because it looked significant from a Biblical perspective, usually that of prophecy. HEADLINE The source of the headline and the date are included. This is the reporter’s description of the event. It is always a direct quotation from the news report and reflects the understanding of the reporter and editors. EVENT This is my comment on why the event is interesting to a Bible student. The intention of the WWW is to offer brief Biblical perspectives without going into detail. If more detail is desired, please e-mail me: (andy@weeklyworldwatch.co.uk). Please note that these are personal thoughts and the aim is purely to stimulate Bible study. COMMENT This is normally one verse which backs up why the event that has occurred is interesting from a Biblical perspective. Please read in its context. Unless stated otherwise, all quotes are from the King James Version.(Book, chapter, and verse)

4. This Week’s Developments March 23 - 29, 2014 • Time to re-arm? Amazing front cover picture • Russia's build-up near Ukraine reaches 40,000 troops • G8 suspends Russia for annexation of Crimea • Egypt sentences 529 Morsi supporters to death • Barack Obama meets Pope Francis for the first time • David Cameron welcomes first gay marriages To print any of the event slides that follow, click the picture on the upper right PRESS SPACE BAR TO CONTINUE

5. the king of the north shall come against him like a whirlwind… Time to re-arm? New Statesman, March 28, 2014 This week I walked into a newsagents at Paddington station in London and there was this magazine on the shelf in front of me. The picture as you can see is amazing. It is almost identical to slides that many of us have used to show Russia’s future role in invading the Middle East. It even shows Britain and America in the south confronting the Russian bear. We are surely watching events unfold we have long looked for…. COMMENT BIBLE QUOTE (Daniel 11:40)

6. Son of man, turn and face Gog of the land of Magog, the prince who rules over the nations of Meshech [Moscow] and Tubal [Tubolsk], and prophesy against him. Magog actually means “land of Gog”. Magog covered eastern Ukraine. Gog (ancient ruler of Magog) originally ruled that area. Putin a latter day Gog is making ancient Magog “his land”…. Russia's build-up near Ukraine reaches 40,000 troops Reuters, March 28, 2014 EVENT Russia's reinforcement of troops near Ukraine has brought the total forces there to as many as 40,000, U.S. officials estimated on Friday, as the United States voiced anxiety over the buildup and called on Moscow to pull back its military. The U.S. estimates of as many as 35,000 to around 40,000 troops are higher than the more than 30,000 total deployments reported earlier this week by U.S. and European sources familiar with official reporting. Some European sources remain cautious of increasing the estimates beyond 30,000. The military buildup is adding to concerns that Russia may again be readying an incursion into Ukraine following its annexation of Crimea, which has triggered the worst stand-off with the West since the Cold War. "The possibility of another Russian incursion is very real," a U.S. intelligence official said, echoing increasingly ominous statements by other Obama officials. NATO's top military commander said on Sunday that Russia has built up a "very sizable" force on its border with Ukraine. He went on to say that Moscow may have a region in another ex-Soviet republic, Moldova, in its sights after annexing Crimea. “Russia was acting more like an adversary than a partner,” he said. We don’t know if Putin will push further West. It possibly depends on what guarantees he can get out of Obama. One thing that does concern military commanders in the West is that the type of troops and vehicles placed on Ukraine’s border are the exact type that could quickly enter at a moments notice and take a great deal of territory. Ancient Magog certainly did cover the whole of east Ukraine and therefore it is possible Putin does invade and capture the entire territory. The Bible says that Gog is (of the land of Magog), ruler of Meshech and Tubal. Putin does rule Meshech and Tubal… COMMENT BIBLE QUOTE (Ezekiel 38:2)

7. Sheba and Dedan and the merchants of Tarshish and all her young lions will say to you, “Have you come to plunder? Have you gathered your hordes to loot, to carry off silver and gold, to take away livestock and goods and to seize much plunder?”’ G8 suspends Russia for annexation of Crimea Daily Telegraph, March 24, 2014 Russia was suspended from the G8 club of rich countries on Monday as President Barack Obama promised to “impose a greater cost” on the Kremlin if the confrontation over Ukraine escalates. The group of leaders retaliated for President Vladimir Putin’s annexation of Ukraine’s region of Crimea by agreeing to exclude Russia from their meetings. Mr Obama joined David Cameron and the leaders of France, Germany, Canada, Italy and Japan to impose the penalty. However, they stopped short of permanently barring Russia from the top table of international politics, holding open the prospect of readmission if Moscow agrees to “abide by international rules”. Until then, the G8 is effectively suspended and the world’s richest countries will meet as the G7. Their main fear is that Mr Putin will move beyond Crimea and invade eastern Ukraine. These diplomatic efforts are designed to deter Russia from taking this step. EVENT he Europe and America are struggling to make an impact on Putin. Russia has openly scorned the sanctions on individuals so far. Even the announcement of the exclusion of Russia from the G8 was openly mocked. Sergei Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister, said, “The G8 is an informal club, there is no formal membership in that club, so nobody can be expelled from that club by definition,” he said. “If our Western partners believe that this format has no more future, well so be it. We are not clinging to that format and we will not see it as a tragedy if it does not convene.” We just don’t care he is saying. All of this is quite similar to what we will see happen in the future. The Bible says Russia will invade Israel and on into Egypt. It says that America and Britain will question Russia. They don’t attack Russia - they just keep asking what Russia is doing. It is exactly what they are doing now, ringing their hands, with little they can do… COMMENT BIBLE QUOTE (Ezekiel 38:13)

8. The officials of Zoan have become fools, the leaders of Memphis are deceived; the cornerstones of her peoples have led Egypt astray. The Lord has poured into them a spirit of foolishness; they make Egypt stagger in all that she does, as a drunkard staggers around in his vomit. There is nothing Egypt can do— Egypt sentences 529 Morsi supporters to death Daily Telegraph, March 24, 2014 Egypt’s judges have risked new international outrage by sentencing to death 529 people accused of rioting after a single, two-session trial that ended on Monday. The judge, in the city of Minya, refused to allow the defence to complete their cases or even admit the defendants’ families or lawyers to court for the verdict, they claimed afterwards. The sentence, if it is carried out, will be the biggest mass execution from a single case in history. Legal experts say it is likely to be either overturned on appeal – rejected by the Grand Mufti, to whom all death penalties are referred – or commuted by the president, not least because of the international consequences of such an event. But it brought widespread condemnation from inside the country and abroad. Amnesty International described it as “grotesque”. “Many will question whether Egypt’s criminal justice system has indeed anything to do with justice,” Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui, its deputy Middle East director, said. EVENT he COMMENT Egypt’s political turmoil continues. The United States expressed shock Monday after an Egyptian court handed down death sentences against 529 supporters of Egypt's deposed president Mohamed Morsi after a two-day trial. The largest mass sentencing in the country's history was related to the death of a policeman and other violence in the aftermath of the clearing of two squares last August. The Bible in a section in Isaiah speaks of 10 national nightmares that come upon 10 different nations before the day of the Lord comes. One of those nations described is Egypt. In Isaiah 19 we read of the burden (tribulation) of Egypt. It describes Egyptian fighting Egyptian. Brother against brother. It says there will be a perverse spirit in Egypt. It says a cruel lord will rule over them. They will act as fools. We see this happening… BIBLE QUOTE (Isaiah 19:13-14)

9. Come with me,” he said, “and I will show you the judgment that is going to come on the great prostitute [Vatican], who rules over many waters [peoples]. The kings [rulers] of the world have committed adultery [lusted after her power and influence] with her, and the people who belong to this world have been made drunk by the wine of her immorality.” Barack Obama meets Pope Francis for the first time Daily Telegraph, March 27, 2014 President Barack Obama is holding a historic first meeting with Pope Francis, the pontiff that the president views as a kindred spirit on issues of economic inequality and the poor. Mr Obama arrived at the Vatican on Thursday morning amid the pomp and tradition of the Catholic Church, making his way to greet the pope after a long, slow procession. The pontiff and the president shook hands before sitting down with their translators at a wooden table for their meeting. "Wonderful to be here," Mr Obama said, calling it "a great honour”. As they meet, the six-year president, with his sinking poll numbers, would not be blamed for seeking some reflected glory from a pope who, one year into his pontificate, is viewed as an agent of change in the Roman Catholic Church. Mr Obama is the ninth president to make an official visit to the Vatican. EVENT COMMENT World leaders queue up to meet the Pope. In the last 12 months he has been visited by many, many presidents and kings. This week Obama has paid him a visit. Others include Angela Merkel (German ruler), Vladimir Putin (Russia), François Hollande (France), Archbishop of Canterbury (head of Church of England), King Abdullah (Jordan), Benjamin Netanyahu (Israel) and many more. Which other leader (either political or religious) has such a following? The kings of the earth all want an audience with this man. They are intoxicated by the power he holds over 1 billion people. How they would like power like his! Power for life! Influence, wealth and the hearts and minds of the masses. The Bible said this would be so. In the book of Revelation we read of a harlot sitting on 7 hills. The harlot is symbolic of a false religion. The 7 hills are Rome. But the false religion of Rome will come to an end…. BIBLE QUOTE (Revelation 17:1-2)

10. The earth suffers for the sins of its people, for they have twisted God’s instructions, violated his laws, and broken his everlasting covenant. Therefore, a curse consumes the earth. Its people must pay the price for their sin. They are destroyed by fire, and only a few are left alive. David Cameron welcomes first gay marriages Daily Telegraph, March 28, 2014 Gay marriage will make British society stronger, David Cameron has insisted as an historic change to the meaning of matrimony comes into effect. Mr Cameron said the introduction of same-sex marriage in England and Wales - after a debate which bitterly divided his own party and pitted church against state - was a tribute to “the sort of country we are”. Writing in PinkNews, the gay and lesbian website, he said the redefinition of marriage was in keeping with Britain’s “proud traditions of respect, tolerance and equal worth”. But opponents of the change said it had “ripped up” the centuries-old understanding of marriage and divided the country. New polling seen by The Telegraph also shows that the issue could cost the Conservatives significant votes in the local and European elections in May. EVENT The very first legal gay marriage ceremony anywhere in the world was in the Netherlands in 2001. Today Britain becomes the 14th country to allow gay marriage and ceremonies started at midnight. The UK prime minister said this morning "Congratulations to the gay couples who have already been married - and my best wishes to those about to be on this historic day.” It is indeed an historic day for Britain. It is a day when the depravity of homosexual behaviour was not only tolerated, not only promoted to our children but finally brought into the most sacred of religious services. Marriage. Marriage was instituted by God not man. It was God who designed it as the bedrock of civilisation. It was also symbolic of Christ and the ecclesia – God’s ultimate plan and purpose. We read in Isaiah 24 of the final judgement of the entire world. One of the 3 accusations is (as one modern version says) the people have “twisted God’s instructions”. This week Britain certainly has…. COMMENT BIBLE QUOTE (Isaiah 24:5-6 NLT)

11. Weekly World Watch The end of this week’s WWW will be e-mailed to you each week. If you think others may find the WWW helpful please direct them to the website www.weeklyworldwatch.co.uk They can register on the site PLEASE NOTE: The Weekly World Watch is written and sent by myself – it is my take on events and I accept that on occasions I will miss significant events and also misinterpret them as well. However I will endeavour to be faithful to the scriptures and hope that it will be of benefit to both of us. Please take a look at this excellent Christadelphian Prophecy website Just click the image To watch again, click here.