Weekly World Watch: Dec 11-17, 2016

1. Weekly World Watch Andy Walton’s December 11 - 17, 2016 “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 December 11 - 17, 2016 • Russia: Majority want Putin to be president after 2018 • After Aleppo, what does Putin want from his wars? • Donald Trump promises Syrian safe zones • US will take action over Putin's hacking of US election • Sweden: threat of war and conflict 'make preparations’ • Trump's ambassador to supports settlements and opposes two-state solution To print any of the event slides that follow, click the picture on the upper right PRESS SPACE BAR TO CONTINUE

5. And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal: And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws, and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, The phrase “I will turn thee back” is better translated “I will return thee” or “when I have restored thee”. Putin has been restored and since 2012 he has invaded Ukraine and Syria. • Russia: Majority want Putin to be president after 2018 Express, December 18, 2016 TWO-THIRDS of Russians polled in a recent survey support Vladimir Putin running for another term as president - almost two decades after the ex-KGB strongman was first propelled to the top of the Kremlin. Mr Putin's popularity has been on the rise in recent years with his aggressive stance against the West playing well with the domestic audience. Research conducted by the Levada Centre found 63 per cent of respondents favoured the incumbent standing for another six year term. Just 18 per cent said they would rather another candidate and 19 per cent said they did not know. Political pundit Mikhail Vinogradov said the 'Crimea effect' had helped his poll rating soar. Russia annexed the Ukrainian territory in 2014 and has occupied the Black Sea peninsula ever since. Presidential terms were extended from four to six years while Dmitry Medvedev - Putin's long-time friend - was running the country. The Russian constitution limits the election of one person to the presidency to two consecutive terms - but Putin got around this by serving as prime minister between 2008 and 2012. EVENT Putin has been in power now since the year 2000. He was president until 2008 when he was no longer able to stand as president as the Russian constitution only allowed 2 consecutive terms of 4 years. But he then continued to run Russia as prime minister from 2008 – 2012. During that time he changed the Russian constitution to allow the president to be in power for two 6 year terms. He then returned to office in 2012. Therefore Putin can potentially be in power until 2024! What is interesting though is that the Bible says when you see the Russian ruler (Gog) “return” then he will (after that point) invade with a vast army. Since Putin “returned” to power Russia has been at war. COMMENT BIBLE QUOTE (Ezekiel 38:2-3)

6. Damascus has become feeble, and all her people turn to flee. Fear, anguish, and pain have gripped her as they grip a woman in labour. That famous city, a city of joy, will be forsaken! Her young men will fall in the streets and die. Her soldiers will all be killed,” says the Lord of Hosts. • After Aleppo, what does Putin want from his wars? Daily Telegraph, December 16, 2016 The battle of Aleppo may officially have been won by Bashar al-Assad's Syrian Arab Army, but it was Moscow, not Damascus, that announced the end of the battle. And it was Russian leader Vladimir Putin who effectively claimed victory when he announced plans to bring peace to the country in its aftermath. In a clear snub to the United States, he made clear neither Washington nor the United Nations would be involved in these talks – cementing Mr Putin’s claim to victory, and Russia’s displacement of the United States as the crucial power broker in the Middle East. For Mr Putin, the fall of Aleppo is the latest in a string of military successes notched up over almost three years of constant warfare – and the latest vindication of a new era of Russian military adventurism. So far there is little sign Russians are growing tired of either conflict. As long as they bring him success, Mr Putin’s wars are likely to continue. EVENT Putin’s military adventures began after being returned to power in 2012. But they are not over yet. As the report says in the Daily Telegraph “Mr Putin’s wars are likely to continue.” He will grow in the confidence that he can wield his immense military power successfully. Putin wants Russia to be respected as a super power again. Through his intervention in Syria he has changed the balance of power in the region. America is greatly weakened from where it once stood. There seems little doubt Putin will want to capitalise on his “victory” in Aleppo. Commentators say that the war in Syria is not over and the war is going to go on. Putin though will claim Russia’s power has achieved a victory. We know that peace is not coming to Syria. The Bible says that more destruction is coming. At some point Damascus will be destroyed as a city… COMMENT BIBLE QUOTE (Jeremiah 49:24-26 NLT)

7. “The king of the south will increase in power, but one of his own officials will become more powerful than he and will rule his kingdom with great strength. “Some years later an alliance will be formed between the king of the north and the king of the south. The whole of Daniel 11 is about the ancient king of the north and south until verse 36. It then leaps forward to the time of the end. • Donald Trump promises Syrian safe zones Daily Telegraph, December 17, 2016 U.S. President-elect Donald Trump said on Friday his administration would build "safe zones" to try to help civilians trapped in Syria's bloody conflict, an idea that President Barack Obama said would be too hard to enforce. Mr Trump and Mr Obama spoke separately of the conflict after efforts to evacuate civilians from the city of Aleppo ground to a halt on Friday after weeks of bombardments by the Syrian army. "We're going to try and patch that up and we're going to try and help people," said Mr Trump, who takes over from Obama on Jan. 20. "We're going to build safe zones," he told supporters at a rally in Florida. "We're going to get the Gulf States to pay for the safe zones.” However, Mr Obama earlier told reporters that the idea presented a "continued challenge" because safe zones would require protection by ground forces, something to which the Syrian government and its backers in Moscow and Tehran would be unlikely to agree. EVENT Trump wants to work with Putin as a partner not an enemy. Trump believes he can do deals with Putin and that the two men will work together over Syria. But Trump announced this week that in effect he is not looking to take a back seat in Syria as Obama has. Trump wants to setup safe zones within Syria. This would require ground troops and very possibly no fly zones. It is highly unlikely Putin (who is on a roll in Syria) would except any deal with Trump over US influence in Syria like this. And so far from becoming friends we could see these two men (with massive ego’s) becoming foes. We wait to see what happens. What we do know with Bible in hand that the king of the north (Russia) and king of the south (US/UK) are enemies at the time of the end. We will see a repeat of the ancient enemies – the Seleucids v Ptolemy's. COMMENT BIBLE QUOTE (Daniel 11:5-6 NLT)

8. At the end time the king of the South will push and provoke him (Gog of v 36-39), and the king of the North (Russia) will storm against him (King of the South / US etc) with chariots and horsemen and with many ships; and he will enter countries, overwhelm them and pass through. To see why Daniel 11 v 36-39 is Gog, click here to watch a presentation. US will take action over Putin's hacking of US election Daily Telegraph, December 16, 2016 US president Barack Obama warned that America will "take action at a time and place of our choosing" over Vladimir Putin's hacking of the US election. In a dramatic escalation of the hacking row President Obama told National Public Radio: "I think there is no doubt that when any foreign government tries to impact the integrity of our elections we need to take action. "And we will. At a time and place of our own choosing. Some of it may be explicit and publicised. Some of it may not be.” He added: "Mr Putin is well aware of my feelings about this because I spoke to him directly about it.” Mr Obama was referring to a "candid and blunt" meeting with the Russian president at the G20 summit in China in September. On Thursday Mr Obama's spokesman Josh Earnest confirmed the White House believed Mr Putin was behind the hacking, saying it was "pretty obvious". EVENT This week has seen some amazing headlines in terms of US officials pointing the finger directly at Putin who they accuse personally of hacking the US election. Ben Rhodes, Mr Obama's deputy national security adviser, said: "I don't think things happen in the Russian government of this consequence without Vladimir Putin knowing about it.” But it hasn’t stopped with officials making these statements. At the end of this week president Obama also waded in warning that America WILL take action. But Obama only has weeks left in office. So if action is to be taken the Obama administration needs to do it soon. Trump has said he doesn’t even believe Russia was involved. This means we may see something soon. It may even be part of the “push” or “provocation” directly against Gog mentioned in Daniel 11:40…. COMMENT BIBLE QUOTE (Daniel 11:40 amplified)

9. Swedish towns told to 'make preparations regarding the threat of war and conflict' with Russia Daily Telegraph, December 15, 2016 EVENT Sweden’s towns and villages have been ordered to make preparations for a possible military attack in the latest sign of the country’s growing anxiety at its newly belligerent Russian neighbour. The country’s Civil Contingency Agency (MSB) last week sent a letter to local authorities across the country asking them to maintain operations centres in underground bunkers, ensure that a system of emergency sirens is in place, and to be open to cooperating on war exercises with the Swedish Armed Forces. “In a state of war, civil defence for municipalities is no different from any of the other services they should provide,” the letter read, instructing local governments to “ensure their ability to maintain their functions during disturbed situations, and at the most extreme, in a war scenario.” The dramatic call comes as Sweden returns to the Total Defence Strategy it maintained during the Cold War, reconstituting its old coastal anti-ship missile system, placing an armoured division on the exposed Baltic island of Gotland, and making plans to restart compulsory conscription as early as 2018. In 2013, the Russian air force conducted a mock nuclear strike against Sweden during war games which saw a number of Russian aircraft approach Swedish airspace after crossing the Gulf of Finland. This was one of several examples of dummy nuclear attacks against Nato and its allies in recent years, according to a Nato report. A Swedish official said “What is new is that the security situation in our neighbourhood has worsened, and that we must therefore make preparations regarding the threat of war and conflict.” Putin's Russia is worrying its immediate neighbours and they are preparing for war. War World 3 is coming. The world is about to be shaken…. COMMENT Proclaim ye this among the Gentiles; Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war draw near; let them come up: Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruninghooks into spears: let the weak say, I am strong…. BIBLE QUOTE (Joel 3:9-10+16)

10. For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city. • Trump's ambassador to supports settlements and opposes two-state solution Daily Telegraph, December 16, 2016 EVENT Donald Trump has sparked an angry backlash after giving the post of US ambassador to Israel to his bankruptcy lawyer, who is a strong supporter of Israeli settlements and once compared liberal Jewish activists to “Jews who turned in their fellow Jews in the Nazi death camps”. Mr Trump’s decision to give the sensitive post to David Friedman, a Right-wing attorney who has no diplomatic experience, marks a dramatic shift in long-held US policy on the Middle East. Mr Friedman opposes the two-state solution - the idea of Israel living alongside and independent Palestine - and has talked openly about replacing it with a one-state model where Israel annexes the occupied West Bank. The 59-year-old has raised money for Jewish settlements in the West Bank. Much of the international community considers such settlements illegal. COMMENT Trump is strongly pro Jewish. His own daughter Yvanka Trump converted to Orthodox Judaism and took the Hebrew name "Yael”. She sends her daughter to kindergarten at a Jewish school in New York City. Surely this is a huge influence on Donald Trump. The selection of Mr Friedman as the US ambassador to Israel is big news for Israel. His opening remarks were “I am deeply honoured and humbled by the confidence placed in me by President-elect Trump to represent the United States as its Ambassador to Israel,” he said. “I intend to work tirelessly to strengthen the unbreakable bond between our two countries and advance the cause of peace within the region, and look forward to doing this from the U.S. embassy in Israel’s eternal capital, Jerusalem.” Could this be part of the reason why all nations are one day gathered to Jerusalem to battle? BIBLE QUOTE (Zechariah 14:2)

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12. 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. To watch again please click the green arrow To watch again, click here.