God has made some wonderful promises to Israel. He will gather the Jews from all over the world back into the Promised Land (Deut. 30:1-5). They will get all of the Promised Land (Gen. 17:7-8). They will be exalted above all of the nations on earth (Deut. 28:1, 13). Jesus will sit on the throne of David and rule over them (Luke 1:32-33). Jerusalem will become the center of the nations and the Word of God will go forth to all nations from there (Ezek. 5:5; Hos. 4:2).

God said these things will happen and every jot and title of them will happen. But let’s be realistic. As things stand today, the Muslims in Gaza, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon are not going to freely turn part of their land over to Israel. China, Russia, Iran and the like are not going to voluntarily accept the fact that tiny Israel is more important than they are. The UN, EU,U.S. and others are not going to willingly submit to the rule of Jesus. All of the nations on earth are not going to agree to let the Word of God go unhindered within their borders. So as things stand today, there is not a chance in the world that God’s wonderful promises to Israel are going to be fulfilled.

This brings me to what triggered this article. A Rapture Ready reader recently sent me some interesting information that he said comes from the Gemara, one of the two sections of the Jewish Talmud (Mishna and Gemara). The information concerns what the Gemara says about the significance of solar and lunar eclipses (especially eclipses on Feast Days such as the recent Blood Moon on Passover and the upcoming Blood Moon on Tabernacles). It is important to note that Christians don’t consider the Gemara to be Scripture, but it contains the remarks ancient Jewish rabbis that I don’t want to overlook.

The Hebrew children were slaves in Egypt when God sent the Ten Plagues to make Pharaoh let them go. According to the Gemara, if God had not sent the Ten Plagues, Egypt would not have collapsed, Pharaoh would not have released the Hebrews from slavery and the nation of Israel probably would not have come into being. Without the nation of Israel, we might not have had the Scriptures, the Temple, the Messiah, the prophets, the church, etc. So the Ten Plagues played a crucial part in the return of the Jews and the conduct of God’s plan during Old Testament times. Also, the fall of Egypt on the first Passover celebration can be seen as the beginning of the nation of Israel and many other great blessings. It can be seen for the good things that happened for all people not the bad things that happened to Egypt.

Now, let’s direct our attention to the future. We are living in a period of time that the Bible calls the Times of the Gentiles, but the Times of the Gentiles must come to an end (Luke 21:24). The Gentile nations must be brought down so Israel can rise up and fulfill the role that God said she will fulfill in the future. The Gentile nations must be subdued so Jesus can reign, Israel can be exalted above the nations of the earth, the Word of God can go all over the world, etc. (Psa. 110:5-6; 1 Cor. 15:24-28).

The Gentile nations are not going to go easy. This is where the Tribulation period comes in. It will be a time of judgment upon the nations (Zeph. 3:8). The Antichrist will rise to power and go forth conquering and to conquer (Rev. 6:1-2). Peace will be removed from the earth (Rev. 6:3-4). War will prevail and the nations of the earth will be brought low (Rev. 6:8; 8:11; 9:15). This will pave the way for the rise of Israel; the millennial reign of Jesus; peace, justice and righteousness on earth, etc. Christians should focus on the good that is coming to the earth not the bad.

Now, I don’t know much about blood moons. I haven’t totally avoided the subject, but I have said very little about it. I do know several things: One, God put lights in the heavens “for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years” (Gen. 1:14). Two, NASA’s SOHO satellite videoed large dark spots on the sun in 2013. Three, the Hebrew calendar and the Tribulation period are based on the moon (30 days/month; 7 yrs. X 360 days/yr. = 2520 days). Four, the prophet Joel said, “The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come” (Joel 2:31). Five, Peter quoted Joel when the Church began by saying, “The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come” (Acts 2:20). Six, a tetrad of blood moons started on April 15, 2014 and this is before the day of the LORD. Seven, the convergence of signs seem to indicate that like the day of the LORD is getting close. And eight, I am not predicting it, but I wouldn’t be surprised if war broke out in the Middle East in the coming weeks or months.

The tetrad that started in 1949 followed the establishment of Israel. The tetrad that started in 1967 preceded Israel’s capture of the Temple Mount. And the Tribulation period is the seventieth week of Israel’s punishment (Dan. 9:24-27). Each person needs to make up their own mind, but God is in control and His wonderful promises to Israel will come to pass.

Prophecy Plus Ministries
Daymond & Rachel Duck

Venezuela is in trouble and the terrible situation that exists there makes me think of the Mark of the Beast. It is not the Mark of the Beast because that won’t happen while the church is here, but the whole situation reminds me that the stage is about set for the Mark of the Beast to come on the scene.

Venezuela has had problems with inflation, high food prices, food distribution and a host of other issues for years. Not long ago, food prices were rising sharply and President Nicolas Maduro decided to freeze them to stop the rapid increases. He also decided to subsidize basic foods because there were riots and he needed to make the prices more affordable for the poor. He even passed a “law for fair prices” so people could be jailed, if they marked up the price by more than 30%.

When food distributors couldn’t raise prices some went out of business and others decided to sell their food in other nations where they could charge more money. Also, some enterprising Venezuelans who live close to the nation’s borders with other countries saw the frozen prices as an opportunity to purchase the subsidized foods at reduced prices, transport them across the border and resell them at a higher price. Others saw this as an opportunity to stock up on food while they could get it at a reduced price.

President Maduro decided to combat this situation in several ways. One, he decided to start tracking the buying and selling of food so he could know who is buying it, how much they are buying, what they are buying, etc. Two, he started placing armed guards at the government-run food stores to ensure that those who buy and sell food obey his policies. Three, he started requiring everyone who purchases food to have and ID card (some call it a food rationing card). Four, he started requiring those who buy food to be fingerprinted.

Five, he started requiring those who buy food to give their cell phone number. Six, he decided that those who buy food will not be allowed to return to the store for eight days. Seven, he decided that minors won’t be allowed to buy food because they will probably be buying it for their parents. Eight, he started putting all the information he collects (ID, fingerprint, phone number, purchases, etc.) in a computer data base for future reference. And nine, he programmed his computers to sound an alarm if someone starts making suspicious purchases.

From what I have read, the public has accepted these new procedures and the program is off to a good start. Nevertheless, it reminds me of the coming Mark of the Beast and it makes me shudder to think about what is going to happen when a world government controls the buying and selling of food, medicine or whatever. The Antichrist’s data bases will contain everything he needs to know about people (eye scans, fingerprints, names, addresses, buying habits, etc.). Many will accept his tracking of all buying and selling and he won’t think twice about denying anything to those who oppose them.

“The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying. But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof” (Romans 13:12-14).

Prophecy Plus Ministries
Daymond & Rachel Duck