Weekly World Watch by Andy Walton: April 4-17, 2010

1. Weekly World Watch Andy Walton’s April 4 - 17, 2010 “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) 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). 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 April 4 -17, 2010 • Volcanic dust cloud shuts down British airspace • China earthquake: death toll could reach 10,000 • Syria: a new level of threat • Former Jerusalem mayor arrested in bribery scandal • Tehran: If Iran is attacked, nuclear devices will go off • Fear and foreboding in the Middle East To print any of the event slides that follow, click the picture on the upper right

5. And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke: The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come . Volcanic dust cloud shuts down British airspace Daily Telegraph, April 16, 2010 British airspace was shut down for the first time in living memory after a huge plume of volcanic ash from Iceland swept across the country. The decision to stop all flight movements on safety grounds brought airports to a standstill, inflicting chaos on around half a million passengers. As vast cloud moved eastwards Belgium, Holland, Scandinavia, northern France and parts of Russia also became a no-fly zone. Irish airspace was also shut down. With no signs of the eruption at the Eyjafjallajokull glacier abating or the wind changing direction, some experts voiced fears that the disruption could continue for days. EVENT I must admit to never thinking I would have a headline like this in the WWW! The skies over Britain have been almost entirely closed for two days. The British airline industry is in the grip of an unprecedented shutdown. Weather forecasters said current conditions were likely to keep the ash cloud over Britain for several days. Experts are predicting shortages of imported fresh fruit, vegetables, flowers and medicines due to the shutdown. Is it a first? In modern times it is. The devastating 19th-century eruption of Indonesia's Krakatau island was bigger. In ancient times, Mount Vesuvius buried an entire city. But in this era of global trade crisscrossing the planet by air, the Icelandic eruption has implications that underscore the particular vulnerabilities of the modern world. It shows how easily God can “shut down” a nation. It shows how vulnerable our existence is. Despite all our technology and knowledge, a volcano far away can bring the travel of millions to a standstill. We are living in the days described by Jesus. One of fearful sights and great signs in heaven. See Luke 21:11 COMMENT BIBLE QUOTE (Acts 2:19-20)

6. Howl ye; for the day of the LORD is at hand; it shall come as a destruction from the Almighty. Therefore shall all hands be faint, and every man’s heart shall melt: And they shall be afraid: pangs and sorrows shall take hold of them; they shall be in pain as a woman that travaileth China earthquake: death toll could reach 10,000 Daily Telegraph, April 16, 2010 The death toll from the 7.1 magnitude earthquake that hit western China's remote Tibetan plateau will rise dramatically and could reach 10,000, locals said on Friday. The official death toll now stands at 1,144, with a further 243 missing and 1,174 severely injured, according to Xinhua, the Chinese government news agency. However, monks at Jiegu monastery said at least 1,000 corpses had arrived at their temple alone, and that four other monasteries had each collected a similar number. "The government is downplaying the number," said Ge Laidanzeng, a 20- year-old monk. He said that when all the bodies were retrieved from the wreckage of the town there would "definitely be more than 10,000 dead". EVENT In just a few short months we have seen some very large earthquakes and a tsunami. The earthquake in Haiti on the 12th January 2010 was the 6th deadliest earthquake in recorded history killing an estimated 230,000 people. The earthquake in Chile on the 27th February was the 7th strongest earthquake ever recorded measuring 8.8 on the Richter scale. Tremors were felt 1500 miles away. Seismologists estimate that the earthquake was so powerful that it may have shortened the length of the day by 1.26 microseconds and moved the Earth's figure axis by 8 cm. A series of tsunami’s were caused and created waves over 2m high. As we near the time of the return of Jesus to the earth we are told that the world will have pain as a woman in labour. The contractions of a woman about to give birth become ever more frequent and of a greater and greater intensity. These contractions are dilating the cervix. When it is fully dilated the final push comes. This brings the most extreme pain and could equate to the final time of trouble such as never was…. COMMENT BIBLE QUOTE (Isaiah 13:6-8)

7. The burden of Damascus. Behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap. And in that day it shall come to pass, that the glory of Jacob shall be made thin Note: Jacob (Israel) is weakened (made thin) when Damascus is destroyed Syria: a new level of threat Daily Telegraph, April 15, 2010 Damascus cityscape All this will be destroyed Reports that Syria has supplied or is moving towards the supply of Scud missiles to Hezbollah mark a new and worrying development in the Middle East. Though Damascus yesterday denied it, intelligence sources confirm that the rumours are not baseless. And tensions are undoubtedly running high: Jordan's King Abdullah II was reported to have told lawmakers in Washington this week that he believed a new conflict between Israel and Hezbollah was near. Israeli alarm at a Scud-armed enemy on its northern border is understandable. Though Hezbollah is already believed to possess long-range missiles, Scuds represent a new level of threat to population centres and Israel's security installations. Some of them could come fitted with chemical warheads. Syria has recently been courted by the US and has been making encouraging diplomatic noises. But it must also act tough in the eyes of its traditional allies, including Iran. This two-faced strategy is making conflict more likely. EVENT Israeli President Shimon Peres on Tuesday publicly charged President Bashar Assad's government with transferring Scud missiles to Hezbollah's forces inside Lebanon. The Scuds are believed to have a range of more than 435 miles placing Jerusalem, Tel Aviv and Israel's nuclear installations all within range of Hezbollah's military forces. During a month long war with Israel in 2006, Hezbollah used rockets with ranges of 20 to 60 miles. Israeli officials called Scud missiles "game-changing" armaments that mark a new escalation in the Mideast conflict. The Bible says clearly that Damascus (capital of Syria) will be utterly destroyed. This has not happened yet. The events this week move us a step closer to this occuring. COMMENT BIBLE QUOTE (Isaiah 17:1-4)

8. Therefore the LORD will cut off from Israel head and tail, branch and rush, in one day. The ancient and honourable, he is the head; and the prophet that teacheth lies, he is the tail. For the leaders of this people cause them to err; and they that are led of them are destroyed. Former Jerusalem mayor arrested in bribery scandal BBConline, April 14, 2010 Israeli police have arrested the former mayor of Jerusalem in connection with a bribery scandal linked to associates of former Prime Minister Olmert. A judiciary spokesman told the BBC Uri Lupolianski was suspected of receiving bribes, money laundering, fraud, breach of trust, tax avoidance and conspiracy. The Orthodox rabbi succeeded Mr Olmert as mayor in 2003 and served until 2008. His arrest came as part of a probe into whether bribes were paid for building permits for a housing development. According to the police, during his time as deputy mayor from 1993 to 2003, and later as mayor, Mr Lupolianski received more than 3m Israeli shekels ($810,000) in bribes from the developers in return for helping to advance the project by rejecting hundreds of objections. EVENT Israel’s leaders have been embroiled in corruption scandals in recent times. The former major of Jerusalem has been arrested this week on corruption charges. The former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert was plagued during his three years in office by a string of corruption scandals, which played a major part in his eventual resignation. This week he has become embroiled in yet another corruption scandal. Israeli police named Mr Olmert as a prime suspect in a multi-million dollar corruption scandal. This scandal is linked to the one reported above. Last year the former Israeli President Moshe Katsav was formally charged with rape and other sexual offences. When God puts hooks in the jaws of the Russian armies to bring them against Israel he does so because of their godlessness and their sin. Judgement is coming on Israel. COMMENT BIBLE QUOTE (Isaiah 9:14-16)

9. And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldees’ excellency, shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah. Note: Babylon = Iraq. It has never been overthrown as Sodom was. Sodom was destroyed by fire and brimstone. Ancient Babylon never was. It leaves perhaps a latter day fulfilment. Tehran: If Iran is attacked, nuclear devices will go off in American cities Debkafile, April 13, 2010 This warning, along with an announcement that Iran would join the world's nuclear club within a month, raised the pitch of Iranian anti-US rhetoric to a new high Tuesday, April 13, as 47 world leaders gathered in Washington for President Barack Obama's Nuclear Security Summit. The statement published by Kayhan said: "If the US strikes Iran with nuclear weapons, there are elements which will respond with nuclear blasts in the centres of America's main cities." For the first time, debkafile's military sources report, Tehran indicated the possibility of passing nuclear devices to terrorists capable of striking inside the United States. Along with the strides made in its nuclear manufacturing capacity, Tehran's anti-US rhetoric has grown more strident in the past week. Thursday, April 8, Iran's Armed Forces Chief of Staff Maj.Gen. Hassan Firouzabadi said if the United States made any military moves on the Islamic Republic "none of the American troops in the region would go back home alive." EVENT Shortly before the summit President Obama said that the biggest threat to US security is the possibility of a terrorist organisation obtaining a nuclear weapon. According to Debkafile, Iran has promised to bring nuclear terror to American cities if they were attacked. Neither North Korea nor Iran, two states with disputed nuclear ambitions, have been invited to the summit. Syria was not invited either. Israel was invited but Prime Minister Netanyahu cancelled his visit to America at the last minute. Iran’s threat to destroy American troops in the region has been made before. Estimates are that America has some 220,000 troops in countries around Iran. Most are in Iraq. We may see a final fulfilment of the Isaiah 13 prophecy in relation to Babylon. COMMENT BIBLE QUOTE (Isaiah 13:19)

10. The mountains quake at him, and the hills melt, and the earth is burned at his presence, yea, the world, and all that dwell therein. The LORD is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them that trust in him. Fear and foreboding in the Middle East BBConline, March 25, 2010 The Middle East is full of talk of war. Not today, tomorrow or perhaps even next year but the horizon is dark, and people who have to live with the Middle East's grim collection of smouldering problems are finding it hard to look ahead with anything other than foreboding. By the end of this year, if sanctions have not persuaded Iran to stop what many countries insist is a nuclear weapons programme, the war party in Israel will be pushing for military action. South Lebanon is once again looking like a tinderbox. Insults and threats have been bandied back and forth between Syria, Israel and Hezbollah. In Washington DC, where I have been this week, analysts say Syria has been shipping bigger and better weapons to Hezbollah, its Lebanese ally. Israel assumes that there will be another war in Lebanon, and has been training its army to win it, which it could not do last time in 2006. And then there is the crisis between the United States, Israel and the Palestinians. Benjamin Netanyahu's disastrous visit to Washington DC has exposed just how bad this crisis and current US-Israeli relations are. What is even more serious is that it is centred on the future of Jerusalem, which is about the single most emotive issue in the entire Middle East. EVENT This report by Jeremy Bowen, the BBC’s Middle East editor seems to sum up the current situation very well. War is in the air. Israel is isolated and spurned by her allies. Iran and her terrorist pawns are ready to strike. And on top of all of this as the earth quakes and groans we see Jerusalem becoming the centre of the whole problem…. COMMENT BIBLE QUOTE (Nahum 1:5,7)

11. Weekly World Watch The end of this week’s WWW will be e-mailed to you each week. Please forward the e-mail addresses of others who may be interested. I will include them in the list of recipients. Comments and suggestions for improvement are welcome. E-MAIL ANDY Click here (Move the mouse until the cursor appears.) To watch again, click here.