As you
can decipher, the map on the Oracle of Damascus provides an immediate Middle
Eastern map of those nation states surrounding modern-day Israel. Included in the present demise of modern-day
Syria (from whence this prophetic war derives its dominant name) are the nation
states and their primary governmental antagonists inspiring these lands in
their hatred of all things Jewish and Israeli.
Understand, today’s antisemitism is
naught but the essence of anti-Zionism.
In other words, and not to be trifling here, it’s O.K. to be Jewish wherever you are (at
some risk now—due to the following statements) but if you are in favor of a
Jewish State for whatever reason (e.g., support as America’s stalwart ally in a
sea of antagonists to Israel and the USA; in sympathy for a Jewish State due to
Holocaust and the murder of some 6 million Jews via Nazism’s wrath; support
based on biblical views both prophetic and mandatory biblical injunctions,
etc.), then you will be—if you haven’t already been—suspect and/or ostracized
by the secular elites; and, in my case, deemed a “theological nut-job”
bordering and/or delving into ancient Judeo-Christian heresies or at best,
toying with the non-essentials of the faith going off into conjecture land and
“NOT keeping the main thing, the main thing!”
My response: SO BE IT!
To compound my precarious standing
amongst the faithful, I have assumed the role as the Chair of an obscure
organization (although we’re approaching some 50,000+ followers) known as the “Commonwealth of Israel Foundation”
(COIF)–forbid that Israel might be charged with another world conspiracy by
claiming to have a Commonwealth, as if they’re planning on taking over the
planet! I can assure you COIF has
absolutely nothing to do with such a vaunted conspiracy.
Biblical
Belligerents Opposed to Israel & an Analysis
Now, concerning the Oracle of
Damascus which for all intents and purposes appears to be culminating as we
write . . . this ongoing, for nigh the past 13 years, will, I believe, usher
forth in a most horrific finale given the present Hamas-Hezbollah-Israeli conflagration,
let alone the present blood-soaked chaos through Syria proper.
The
present altercation (Oct-2023) MAY terminate with
Iran’s attempt to nuke Israel FROM DAMASCUS necessitating Israel's preemptive
strike on Iran's proxy, Syria-Damascus which could be a nuke in and of
itself. This in Israel is known as the SAMSON-COMPLEX (in bringing the
whole Temple down with it). The primary belligerents in this
conflict are Lebanon-Hezbollah; Syria, Gaza-Hamas and the Palestinian Authority
(the West Bank--the Stronghold of Ephraim or Ramallah)--the constellation of
these nations/tribal identities are mentioned in Zechariah 9:1-8 which directly
forecasts the First and Second Comings of Messiah: Zech 9:9-10 and
residual prophetic relevance found in Zech 9:11-17; likewise, this precise
end-of-days conflict is seen in Isaiah 17 wherein all the aforesaid
belligerents are designated, to wit:
(1) Damascus-Syria (Isa. 17:1: “The
burden against Damascus. ‘Behold, Damascus will cease from being a city,
and it will be a ruinous heap.’”)
Isaiah 17 does mention other opposers to Israel but first and foremost
is Damascus. Damascus is considered to
be the oldest, continuously inhabited city on the face of the earth (estimates
exceed 5,000 years).[v] Zechariah 9:1-8 clearly is prophetic in
nature wherein “the land of Hadrach and Damascus” (vs. 1) is delineated—Hadrach
is mentioned but once in Scripture.[vi] And “. . . against Hamath, which
borders on it” (Zech. 9:2). Hamath
is today’s Hama, Syria—just to the north of Lebanon on the banks of the Orontes
River. (See also: Isa. 17:3)
Setting off Zechariah 9 brings us into prophetic
contact with a whole series of other “players” in the Oracle of Damascus drama –
but the main emphasis here is the intrusion of some of the most famous
Messianic texts in the Bible: “Rejoice
greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O
daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King
is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, lowly and riding on a
donkey, a colt, the foal of a donkey. I
will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the horse from Jerusalem; the battle
bow shall be cut off. He shall speak
peace to the nations; His dominion shall be from sea to sea, and from the River
to the ends of the earth” (Zech. 9:9-10; Matt. 21:5; Mark 11:7, 9; Luke 19:38;
John 12:15).
This passage in Zechariah 9:9-10 presents the coming of Messiah and is
perhaps the only messianic description presented in all four gospels. Why?
Why are these most prevalent prophetic passages in the entire Bible
immediately following the Oracle of Damascus highlighting not only the First
Coming of Messiah (Zech. 9:9) but His Second Coming as well (Zech. 9:10—“His dominion
shall be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth”? When you see the Oracle of Damascus being
fulfilled—even so, the coming of Messiah!
The Coming King is intimately connected with the Oracle of Damascus—that
is precisely why it has major prophetic implications! You wish to concentrate on the Person and
Work of Christ—well then, you’re staring Him right in the face! When you cannot fathom what is going on in
the Middle East right now—know this full well:
MESSIAH IS AT THE GATE—THE KING IS COMING!
(2) Jordan: There are literally millions of
Palestinians living in modern Jordan (est. of Jordan’s present 10 million
population of which some 5 million of them are considered to be Palestinians. Jordan would like to hide this figure, but
the facts are the facts—see here.) And this is why, along with the “Stronghold
of Ephraim” (the present city of Ramallah—present HQ of the Palestinian
Authority and just to the north of Jerusalem (Isa. 17:3: “The fortress also will cease from Ephraim,
the kingdom from Damascus” – here the association of the Palestinian Authority
with that of Damascus within the context of the “Burden against Damascus” (Isa.
17:1).
In particular, the Jordanian-Palestinian contrivance is
witnessed in the repeated phrase: “The
cities of Aroer” (Isa. 17:2 “Aroer (Hebrew: ×¢ֲרוֹ×¢ֵר, ×¢ֲרֹ×¢ֵר) is a biblical town on the north bank of the
River Arnon to the east of the Dead Sea, in present-day Jordan. The town was an ancient Moabite settlement, and is
mentioned in the Bible. Aroer is identified with the modern village of 'Ara'ir
in Jordan.” (Source)
Furthermore, today’s Jordan—i.e.,
those lands immediately to the east of modern-day Israel, are the ancient lands
of the Edomites. It is here that the
prophecy of Obadiah comes into view: “Oh,
how Esau (which is Edom—Gen. 36:1) shall be searched out . . . Will I
not in that day,” says the LORD, “and understanding from the
mountains of Esau? Then your mighty men,
O Teman (a warrior of Edom found in Genesis 36), shall be dismayed, to
the end that everyone from the mountains of Esau may be cut off by slaughter”
(Obadiah vss. 6-9, excerpts). Likewise,
in Obadiah 10-16 and again in vs. 21: “Then
saviors shall come to Mount Zion to judge the mountains of Esau, and the
kingdom shall be the LORD’s.” Edom/Jordan’s
treatment of Israel will have come full circle—“For the day of the LORD upon
all the nations is near; as you have done, it shall be done to you; your
reprisal shall return upon your own head” (Obadiah 15).
Finally, it must be
understood that there is likewise, in Scripture (Amos 9:12; Acts 15:17) a “remnant
in Edom” or “the rest of mankind” (Acts 15:17) which is the Lord’s portion—even
though Esau was “hated” yet has the Almighty included “all in disobedience that
He might have mercy on all” (Romans 11:32)—this can be wholly attested to in
that Obed Edom (lit. “the servant of Edom”) was “greatly blessed” having had
the Ark of the Covenant in his household for 90 days (2 Sam. 6:7-11; 1 Chron.
13:13-14); furthermore, Obed-Edom (lit. “the Servant of Edom”), along with
Hosah and 68 of his fellow Edomites (for a total of 70 Edomites) became
Levitical priests and gatekeepers (among other service duties) in the
Tabernacle of David (1 Chron. 15;18, 24-25; 16:38). God Almighty will have the final word
regarding His ministry of reconciliation between Jacob and Esau! For today’s Esau/Edom—the “rest of mankind”
are certainly alluded to both Romans 10:20 and Isaiah 65:1: “I was found by those who did not seek Me; I
was made manifest to those who did not ask for Me.”
(3) Palestinian Authority (Fatah): The Almighty’s merciful redemption is wholly
declared in (2) above concerning the “rest of mankind” or “the remnant of Edom.” However, that caveat notwithstanding, and His
love for the Palestinian people is without hypocrisy, yet they find themselves
in the “stronghold of Ephraim” (Ramallah) contrary to Israel’s survival.
It is with some hermeneutical
gravitas to venture into Edom’s collaboration with the Babylonian Empire cir.
605-586 BC when the Babylonians invaded the southern kingdom of Judah. Edom’s solemn judgment due to his favorable
views of Babylon’s incursions against their distant relatives and how the
Edomites actually joined with the Babylonians in desecrating the land of Judah—no
wonder then that Psalm 137:7; Lam. 4:21-22; Ezek. 25:12-14 seconds the divine
motion to visit them on that day that the prophecy shall be fulfilled: “But on Mount Zion there shall be
deliverance, and there shall be holiness; the house of Jacob shall possess
their possessions . . . the house of Jacob shall be a fire, and the house of
Joseph a flame; but the house of Esau shall be stubble; they shall kindle them
and devour them, and no survivor shall remain of the house of Esau, for the
LORD has spoken” (Oba. 17-18).
(4) GAZA-HAMAS – the specificity of this
antagonist to Israel is without dispute.
In ancient times this area was known to be inhabited by the Philistines
(viz. Philistia); therefore, in Obadiah 19 we read of the “day of the LORD upon
all the nations is near” the following: “The
South (South of the Israelites) shall possess the mountains of Esau (Jordan),
and the Lowland (Israeli settlements near Gaza) shall possess Philistia (vs. 19).
Moreover we find it
difficult to avoid Gaza when it says Gaza and surrounding turf: “Ashkelon shall see it and fear; Gaza
also shall be very sorrowful; and Ekron, for He dried up her
expectation . . . a mixed race shall settle in Ashdod, and I will cut off the
pride of the Philistines . . . and shall be like a
leader in Judah, and Ekron like a Jebusite” (Excerpts from Zech.
9:5-7). No, this GAZA is at the heart of the
Oracle of Damascus and is clearly identified by its own names: Gaza, Ashkelon, Ekron, Ashdod, the land of
the Philistines. What area could we be talking
about? Yes, clearly some of these
ancient cities are now in Israel proper but their proximity to Israel cannot be
denied to be that of ancient Philistia whose “see people” harassed not only ancient
Israel but the most civilizations inhabiting the Mediterranean.
Today’s Hamas, now controlling
the political climes of Gaza and wreaking havoc upon the aforementioned cities
holding to these ancient names of the Philistines now in Israel, shall, in the
Oracle of Damascus meet their come upends.
The connection to the Oracle of Damascus can be seen in the fact “people
from the foothills will possess the land of the Philistines” (viz. Oba. 19—Gaza-Hamas) and “They will occupy the
fields of Ephraim and Samaria” (Israel's ultimate annexation of the West
Bank - Oba. 19) and Benjamin will possess Gilead (direct reference of
Judah-Benjamin taking the East Bank/Jordan) Oba. 19 - therefore, in that so
many references are made to these lands, I have concluded they are all
connected to the final and first prophetic war known as the Oracle of Damascus.
(5) Lebanon – Hezbollah: We discover in the cardinal passages in
Zechariah 9:2-4 the following: “. . .
And against Tyre and Sidon, though they are very wise. For Tyre built herself a tower, heaped up
silver like the dust, and gold like the mire of the streets. Behold, the Lord will cast her out; He will
destroy her power in the sea, and she will be devoured by fire.”
Yes, there are no doubt
allusions to other portions of prophetic passages which decry “Tyre and Sidon” and their flirtations with
the likes of Jezebel and the Prince and King of Tyre (Examples of abound with
their sordid lamentations concerning Tyre:
Ezekiel Chapters 26-28). But here
in Zechariah 9:2-4 her ultimate demise, though she constructed herself an
island fortress whereupon the likes of Alexander the Great found her virtually
implacable until he successfully laid siege to this fortress man-made island
(cir. 332 BC);
yet shall Lebanon-Hezbollah meet her timely judgment in the midst of the Oracle
of Damascus! “Behold, I am against you, O Sidon; I will be glorified in your
midst; and they shall know that I am the LORD, when I execute judgments in her
and am hallowed in her” (Ezk. 28:22).
Although both Hamas and
Hezbollah are connected with Persia-Iran-Elam, we shall leave them until we locate
them within the vortex of the Gog-Magog Conflagration.
Outcome
of the Oracle of Damascus
Now, prior to the inevitability of this prophetic war, we
are to comprehend the arduous and exhaustive conflict wrought upon Israel
during the “Oracle.”