russia & china in prophesy

8/6/2019 Russia & China in Prophesy

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ISBN 0-943093-21-X



R u s s ia & C h i•

m P r o p h e c yStatesmen could know. Thoseinvolved in international affairscould be forewarned. Here,according to Bible prophecy , iswhat lies ahead for the U.S.S.R.and the nations and peop les on

the outer rim of Asia.



Chapter One

RADICALLYALTERING EUROPE

T wo new words have entered the English language as aresult of a dramatic cultural and economic transfor-mation now underway inside the Soviet Union.

The first one, the most familiar, is glasnost, roughlytranslated as "openness." It reflects the new, more open spiritof candor on the part of Soviet officials both in dealing withthe West and in permitting greater latitudes of public expres-sion inside the traditionally rigid Soviet society.

The other word is perestroika, which means "reconstruc-tion." It has to do with initiatives instituted by CommunistParty General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev and like-minded

associates in the Soviet hierarchy to reform the encrustedSoviet economy. They are determined to place it on a firmer,more cost-effective foundation to meet the challenges of thedecades ahead.

Openness in the Media, Arts

Glasnost has been reflected in a number of ways, amongthem:

• Greater latitudes in the official news media, so muchso that the distribution of Pravda, the Soviet CommunistParty newspaper, is not permitted in various parts ofmore restrictive Eastern Europe. On an official visit toMoscow, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher was

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The multi-facetedGorbachev renovation

program is making asizeable impression onthe nations of

Western Europe.

2 ussia & China in Prophecy adically Altering Europe

permitted to speak her frank mind on a late-night telecast.• For the first time in the U.S.S.R., a display of open

political dissent. A group of Crimean Tatars were allowed todemonstrate in Red Square, and were even granted their

demand to talk to Soviet President Andrei Gromyko. Smallnumbers of Tatars, banished to Siberia for alleged pro-Nazisentiments during World War II, may be permitted to return.In addition, for the first time, ethnic Russians, not justSoviet minorities, may be permitted to emigrate.

• The appearance in concert of an American "pop-rock"artist performing music that was until recently frowned uponby Soviet authorities (who have however looked the otherway at the mushrooming of locally established musicalgroups).

• The distribution of once-banned books such as Boris

Pasternak's Dr. Zhivago and Anatoli Rybakov's Children ofArbat, the latter a fictionalized and sympathetic account ofan exiled dissident student under the harsh reign of Stalin.

• The popularity of the movie "Repentance," also athinly disguised attack on Stalinism.

Of course manyrestrictions on thelives of Soviet citizensremain, such as thegeneralized ban ontravel to the West.

And certainly there isno attempt under thepanoply of glasnost todiminish the unchal-lenged role of theCommunist Party.

Economic Reform

Even more important than glasnost, many observers believe,is Mr. Gorbachev's attempt at perestroika, the radical refor-mation of the moribund Soviet economy.

A watershed decision was made by the Communist PartyCentral Committee in June 1987. After hearing a blisteringattack on the country's economic ills from Mr. Gorbachev,

the Committee endorsed the General Secretary's overall planto introduce decentralization of the economy. Its purpose?To allow decision-making so that the Soviet economy be-comes more responsive to the realities of the marketplace.

The shift away from centralized planning is scheduled to befully implemented by the end of 1990.

Experts realize agigantic amount of in-ertia must be over-come to put the newpolicy into effect. Yet,Mr. Gorbachev is de-termined to see hisideas through.

Some skeptics be-

lieve that Mr. Gor-bachev could face thesame fate of an earlierreforming GeneralSecretary, Nikita

Khrushchev, who was ousted in 1964. But most Kremlin-watchers stress that t imes are different today, that evenmany Soviet political conservatives realize that somethingdrastic has to be done to revive the Soviet economy.

Cultivate European Ties

The multi-faceted Gorbachev renovation program is makinga sizeable impression on the nations of Western Europe.

One of the General Secretary's chief lieutenants in thereform program is Aleksandr Yakovlev, the Politburo mem-ber in charge of culture and propaganda. One Western ana-lyst goes so far as to say the Gorbachev program is "pureYakovlev."

Mr. Yakovlev is said by one Western diplomat to have"the profoundest misgivings about everything American." Heonce described the U.S. as a land of "deep amorality built ona convulsive worship of success."

Mr. Yakovlev, on the other hand, shows great inter-est in developing relations with Western Europe andJapan. His strategy aims at tapping these areas in order



4 ussia & China in Prophecy

to close the U.S.S.R.'s industrial and technological gap.The Western Europe connection is certain to develop

into a formidable relationship. It is in this area that MikhailGorbachev has emerged as a first-rate politician, often stun-ning his counterparts in Washington and other Western

capitals with his astuteness.Mr. Gorbachev's approach has generally been to take theWest up on a series of old proposals made when NATO wasconvinced previous Soviet leaders would reject them. A topFrench official told the Wall Street Journal (June 17, 1987):"We booby-trapped ourselves. Gorbachev pulled the rightstring, and the whole thing unraveled. Beautiful. Wellplayed."

Now some observers are wondering whether the shrewdSoviet leader just might take Mr. Reagan up on the latter'splea in front of the Brandenburg Gate and Berlin Wall inmid-1987. "Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate! Mr. Gorbachev,tear down this wall!"

Even a partial opening of the Berlin Wall, constructedover a quarter-century ago, would send shockwaves throughWestern capitals.

According to one West German policy maker, Gorbachevhas "already got all of us Germans talking about reunifica-tion, without actually having done or said anything."

Initiatives in East Bloc

It is not only the West that is in for a few surprises. The twinpolicies of glasnost and perestroika have proven to be ex-tremely unsettling to the current leaderships of the Soviet-bloc nations of Eastern and Central Europe.

In an unusual twist of fate, the leadership circles ofnearly all the other Communist nations in Europe are nowout of step with the reform-minded men in Moscow. Whilethey pay lip service to the Kremlin's calls for the entire blocto institute pragmatic reforms, nearly all of them are drag-ging their feet.

In the supreme irony of all, the Soviets are pressingCzechoslovakia to effect reforms very similar to whatthe Czechs were introducing in the late 1960s—beforeSoviet and Warsaw Pact tanks rolled in to put an end

Radically Altering Europe

to what was known then as the "Prague Spring." Askedto explain the difference between Gorbachev's "MoscowSpring" and the "Prague Spring" of 1968, Sovietspokesman Gennadi Gerasimov has replied in two memo-rable words: "Nineteen years."

But for the East bloc leaders, much more is at stakein their own countries, most of which are much moreWestern in culture and are Communist only as a resultof the post-World War II division of Europe. Reforms inEastern Europe could more easily get out of hand thanin the U.S.S.R.

Radically Altered Europe

For several reasons, the status quo of the post-WorldWar II period in Europe, in place for over four decades,is coming to an end. A new set of dynamic conditions,

many of them generated in Moscow, is taking over.In addition, the United States, increasingly preoccu-pied with Asia, Latin America and the Middle East, isundergoing a fundamental change in its economic andsecurity relationship with Europe.

The removal of U.S. medium-range missiles from Eu-rope, it is widely believed, could generate a momentumleading to a gradual removal of U.S. ground forces.

Western European nations such as France and WestGermany are discussing numerous plans to develop acloser defense strategy. They know, said one analyst,

"that the long week-end under America's atomic umbrellais drawing to a close."Out of it all, a much greater relationship between a

more unified Western Europe and the Soviet sphere ap-pears inevitable. West German officials continually em-phasize that the key to German unification lies in over-coming the political division of Europe as a whole. Underterms of a generalized European settlement, Moscowmight consent to much greater political latitude for partsof Eastern Europe.

The big question is what the United States—on the

outside looking in—will do when confronted with a newreality straddling the old East-West divide in Europe.



6 hapter Two What's Prophesied for Russia and China

WHAT'S PROPHESIEDFOR RUSSIA AND CHINA

T he decades-long split between Asia's two communistgiants is one of the most crucial variables in worldpower politics today. What does it mean?

Strategic planners well understand that a settlement oftheir dispute would radically transform the entire globalbalance of power. Even a localized war —presently unthink-able—between the Soviet Union and China would haveequally grave international repercussions.

What's behind the Sino-Soviet quarrels? What lies aheadfor the Soviet Union and China—yes, and even India, Japanand Southeast Asia?

Newsmen and diplomats do not know.War of Words

It was February 1950, in the midst of a freezing Russianwinter. Mao Tse-tung (Mao Zedong) stood beaming in aMoscow railway station at the conclusion of a two-monthstay in the Soviet Union.

Bundled in a heavy fur coat and wearing a woolen cap,the Chairman of the Chinese People's Republic paused brieflybefore boarding his train to speak to the onlooking crowd.

Having just concluded a mutual defense treaty with the

Kremlin and having received his new nation's first foreignloan for $300 million, he confidently declared that Chinese-

Soviet friendship would be "everlasting, indestructible andinalienable."

It turned out to be one of history's unfulfilled predic-tions.

By 1963, the friendship lay in ruins. Since then, Sino-

Soviet relations have been on ice.Over the past two decades, the Kremlin has openly

criticized aspects of Chinese policy as being "divisive" and atvariance with socialist principles and standards. For theirpart, the Chinese have been equally critical of the Sovietmodel of socialism, labeling Moscow "a renegade capitalistregime."

At its simplest, the central issue of the Sino-Sovietquarrel is who is going to be in charge in the communistworld.

The Soviet Union—the world's largest country in land

area—claims ultimate supremacy with the whole communistworld. China—the world's most populous country—chal-lenges this alleged Soviet hegemony over the world commu-nist movement by offering an alternative mother party.

This ideological struggle continues throughout the worldto this day. On both sides, the former days of communistsolidarity are now but a dim memory.

Deep Roots

Let's first look at the quarrel through Soviet eyes.Russia's "Chinaphobia" is by no means a recent phe-

nomenon, nor solely a concoction of modern Kremlinthinkers. The roots of modern-day Sino-Soviet hostility ex-tend deep into the past.

Russians have never forgotten Genghis Khan's GoldenHorde, and the Tatar-Mongol occupation of Russia thatlasted for some 300 years. Those black years of Mongoldomination are deeply rooted in Russia's historical memory.(The Mongols, of course, were not Chinese, but Russiansmake little distinction between the varied peoples of theEast.)

Diplomats in Moscow observe that the Russians are

obsessed with a fear of the East.China's staggering population of one thousand million



12 ussia & China in Prophecy What's Prophesied for Russia and China 3

would cost Russia at least 60 million dead. The risks of aSoviet strike against China are clearly prohibitive. Such awar would be futile and counterproductive for allconcerned.

An unwanted accidental conflict—sparked by unforeseen

causes and escalating quickly out of control—always remainsa possibility. Such a conflict could conceivably remain non-nuclear and be limited to action in border regions. But evenlimited fighting of this sort is generally considered unlikely.

Sino - Soviet Détente?

If war has indeed become unthinkable between the twocommunist superpowers, what are the prospects for recon-

ciliation?Can the Sino-Soviet split be patched up?Decades of quarreling over frontiers and other issues

will not quickly be put aside, but the Sino-Soviet disputeis not necessarily fixed in concrete. Indeed, both sides arewell aware of the enormous advantages that could berealized by reconciliation.

For both the Chinese and the Soviets, détente wouldallow a reduction of their crushingly burdensome militaryexpenditures. It would also greatly bolster their leverage inthe international political arena.

Will it happen? And in what circumstances?A renewal of negotiations could yet eliminate the nettlesome

boundary issue. The ideological issue—that of who will dominate

world communism—would prove a thornier problem, thoughsome sort of compromise or accommodation might be hammeredout if sufficient motivation were present on both sides.

It should be remembered that neither side has sought tosever diplomatic relations during their decades-long feud.Even Sino-Soviet trade has continued.

Many Kremlinologists and China-watchers, however, feelthat both sides are privately interested in a cautious normal-ization of relations over the long term.

Eurasian Colossus?

What does Bible prophecy reveal for the future of Asianrelations? In numerous prophecies, the Bible points to the

development of a giant Eurasian world power, linked withpopulous neighbors by military and/or political alliances.

Almost 2,000 years ago, the aged apostle John saw invision armies totaling 200 million men—armies that willsweep across Europe and critical battlefronts elsewhere,

devastating the final restoration of the old Roman Empirethat will have emerged just before the end of this age (Rev.9:16).

These great armies—which could be mustered only bycombining the forces of the Soviet Union and the Asianallies—are alluded to by the prophet Daniel (Dan. 11:44). Herecorded that a sphere of power to the east and north of theHoly Land (where Soviet Russia is today) would becomeinvolved in a struggle, with the revived Roman Empire inEurope, for control of the Eastern Mediterranean.

Consider, now, how political alliances in Eurasia might

come into being.The Soviet Union has a long-standing fear of one day

being caught up in a two-front war—a simultaneous conflictwith both Europe and China. Kremlin planners will do

virtually anything toprevent that.

Worsening rela-tions with China onher eastern flank, cou-pled with Eastern Eu-rope's severe drain on

Soviet economic andmilitary resources,could eventually makeit necessary for theSoviet Union to loosen

its hold on EasternEurope.

The Kremlin may have to strike a political deal thatwould bring about the withdrawal of its military forces fromEastern Europe, for duty in Asia, and allow countries fromEastern Europe to associate themselves with the evolving

West European union. This would create the circumstancesnecessary for the final emergence of a United Europe—the

The central issue ofthe Sino-Soviet

quarrel is who is

going to be in chargein the c mmunist

world.




Notice, in the very first verse, Ezekiel was among theJewish captives who had been taken from Judah to the riverChebar. It was in the fifth year of the captivity of KingJehoiachin that this prophecy began coming to Ezekielthrough visions.

Ezekiel was being shown things far into the future.Notice, the prophecy was inspired and written after

Judah's captivity began—about 130 years after the House ofIsrael had been taken captive to Assyria.

Yet, Ezekiel is a prophet to the House of Israel. (Not tobe confused with the modern Jewish nation of Israel. TheseIsraelis are actually descendants of ancient Judah.) Hisprophecy applies to the far future—not to the captivity ofancient Israel, which had occurred more than 130 yearsbefore he wrote.

Notice Ezekiel's message, a prophecy for the future, is

primarily for the House of Israel (Ezek. 2:3; 3:1, 4-7).In chapter 3, verse 17, Ezekiel is made a watchman to

warn the House of Israel.

Message to Israel, Not Judah

Notice! Beginning chapter 3: After the prophet "eats theroll"—that is, receives the prophetic warning message—he isto "go speak unto the house of Israel"—not to the Jewsamong whom he dwelt.

Remember he is already among the captives of Judah.But he is told: "Go, get thee unto the house of Israel" (verse

4) .The 12 tribes of Israel had long before this divided into

two nations—the 10 tribes being the House of Israel, whileJudah, Benjamin and Levi composed the House of Judah,who, only, were "Jews."

The Jewish people of today are descended from theHouse of Judah. But the English-speaking racial descendantsof Joseph composing the United States, Canada, Britain,Australia and New Zealand are the leading "birthright" tribesof Ephraim and Manasseh, heads of the 10 tribes of theHouse of Israel. Ezekiel's message is for our day—and it is,

therefore, a message for these peoples, Now!Notice chapter 4. The prophet is to place before him a

Why Russia Will Not Attack America 7

tile, and trace upon it the city of Jerusalem, and "lay siege"against it. The war pictured was against Jerusalem, capital ofJudah. But "this" (verse 3) "shall be a sign to the house ofIsrael." Then follows the well-known key to the "day for ayear" method of reckoning prophecy.

Continue chapter 5: "... For," comes the warning mes-sage from the Eternal,"thereof shall a firecome forth into all thehouse of Israel" (verse4). Notice, this is toportray vividly awarning of some FU-

TURE destruction uponthe House of Israel!Not upon Judah, al-

ready largely con-quered by Nebuchad-nezzar. But uponIsrael—the 10-tribednation who had gone into its first and original captivity 130long years before! The warning is not of a captivity alreadyhistory. It says "thereof shall a fire come" upon Israel! It isa prophecy relating to a future destruction and captivity.

No such destruction and captivity has ever yet come tothe House of Israel since this was written. Therefore it is stillin the future—in our time.

A Captivity Yet Future

Notice more of this warning:"A third part of thee [America-Canada-Britain] shall die

with the pestilence, and with famine shall they be consumedin the midst of thee: and a third part shall fall by the swordround about thee; and I will scatter a third part into all thewinds [in captivity being removed from their own lands andscattered over the world] ..." (verse 12).

Coming to chapter 6, the local scene of the vision shifts tothe mountainous land of ancient Israel, in the Middle East—

but the message is for America, Canada and Britain, today.Will we heed it? God help us to wake up!

The people finallywill cry out for a

true prophet orminister of the

Eternal God—but it

will be too late!



18 ussia & China in Prophecy Why Russia Will Not Attack America 9

"... Behold, I, even I," says the Eternal God (verses 3,5-7), "will bring a sword [invasion] upon you, and I willdestroy your high places.... And I will lay the dead carcasesof the children of Israel before their idols; and I will scatter

your bones round about your altars. In all your dwellingplaces the cities shall be laid waste [nuclear bombing]. . . . andye shall know that I am the Lord."

Just a small remnant shall escape and be spared (verse8). They are described in Luke 21:36.

Continue: "Thus saith the Lord God ... Alas for all theevil abominations of [not Judah, but] the house of Israel! forthey shall [not did, in the captivity 130 years before Ezekielwrote, but shall] fall by the sword, by the famine, and by thepestilence" (verse 11).

The Time Is Yet Future

Notice the time. It's important."All hands shall be feeble, and all knees shall be weak as

water" (chapter 7, verse 17). "Howl ye; for the day of theLord is at hand. ... Therefore shall all hands be faint, andevery man's heart shall melt: and they shall be afraid ..."(Isa. 13:6-8). Plainly, the time is the "Day of the Lord"—yetin the immediate future!

Continue in Ezekiel: "They shall cast their silver in thestreets, and their gold shall be removed: their silver and theirgold shall not be able to deliver them in the day of the wrath

of the Lord ..." (Ezek. 7:19). Now compare that with Zepha-niah 1:14-15, 17-18: "The great day of the Lord is near....That day is a day of wrath.... And I [the Eternal] will bringdistress upon men.... Neither their silver nor their gold shallbe able to deliver them in the day of the Lord's wrath...."Both are speaking of the same time—a time shortly ahead ofus, in this present generation!

"Wherefore," continues verse 24 (Ezek. 7), "I will bringthe worst of the heathen, and they shall possess their houses:I will also make the pomp of the strong to cease.... Destruc-tion cometh; and they shall seek peace, and there shall be

none.... Then shall they seek a vision of the prophet; but thelaw shall perish from the priest" (verses 25-26).

Yes, when this comes, the people finally will cry out for

a true prophet or minister of the Eternal God—but it will betoo late! For then shall have come the time spoken of by theprophet Amos, when there shall be a famine of hearing thewords of the Eternal—(Amos 8:11)—an end of true gospel

preaching. Already the people and their ministers haveturned their eyes and ears from God's law.Notice chapter 11 of Ezekiel's prophecy. It is a message

addressed to the House of Israel (verse 5). "... I will bring asword upon you, saith the Lord God. And I will bring you outof the midst thereof, and deliver you into the hands ofstrangers, and will execute judgments among you. Ye shall fallby the sword ..." (verses 8-10). When? It is future from thetime Ezekiel wrote, and it has not yet happened since then.God says it will happen!

Chapter 12, verse 11: "... they shall remove and go intocaptivity." It is yet future—and it is the House of Israel.

When? "And they shall know that I am the Lord, whenI shall scatter them among the nations, and disperse them inthe countries" (verse 15). The expression "They shall knowthat I am the Lord" is used repeatedly through the book ofEzekiel—always referring to the time of the Second Comingof Christ, and Israel's final restoration back to her originalland. Many prophecies show that the modern nations de-scended from ancient Israel are to be scattered in this latter-day captivity when Christ comes to restore them back to thatland.

People Won't Believe It

Always the true prophets and ministers of God have stoodalmost alone and opposed by the overwhelming majority inIsrael. That is Israel's history of old. It is true today.

The 13th chapter shows the declaration of the popularministry of this day in Israel—in the United States, Canadaand Britain.

"Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel... Woe unto the foolish prophets, that follow their ownspirit, and have seen nothing! 0 Israel, thy prophets are likethe foxes in the deserts. Ye have not gone up into the gaps,neither made up the hedge for the house of Israel to standin the battle in the day of the Lord" (verses 2-5). It is



The final restorationof the Roman Empire

shall be subduedat a battle

commonly called"Armageddon."


speaking of the soon-coming "Day of the Lord"—not someancient event! "... they have seduced my people, saying,Peace; and there was no peace ..." (verse 10).

Ezekiel catalogs the nations' sins—customs and ways

that seem right but that are contrary to God's laws and anabomination in his sight. Some of them he mentions in the8th chapter.

And chapter 22: "Thou hast despised mine holy things,and hast profaned my sabbaths," says the Eternal (verse 8)."... thou hast taken usury and increase, and thou hast greed-ily gained of thy neighbours by extortion, and hast forgottenme, saith the Lord.... And I will [not did, but will] scatterthee among the heathen, and disperse thee in the countries,and will consume thy filthiness out of thee" (verses 12, 15).

Chapters 25 through 32, Ezekiel digresses to prophesy

against a number of foreign nations who have come indirect contact with Israel. In Ezekiel 33:11, the prophetreturns to pleading with the House of Israel. "... Turn ye,turn ye," God pleads, "from your evil ways; for why will yedie, 0 house of Israel?" Here, too, Ezekiel is again directedto be a watchman towarn the House of Is-rael—THE UNITEDSTATES, CANADA AND

BRITAIN TODAY—at

the time when thisprophesied foreignsword is coming.Ezekiel wrote themessage—but it re-mains for us to whomGod has revealed ittoday to actuallyshout and proclaim itto the people. God help us to be faithful in this solemn andgrave commission!

In the 34th chapter, God tells him to prophesy againstthe ministers of our land. They have fed themselves and notthe flocks. They have preached what people wanted to hear(II Tim. 4:3-4) in order to get their salaries.

Why Russia Will Not Attack America 1

The Coming of Christ!

And now the Eternal inspires the prophet to come to thesolution.

"Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I am against theshepherds; and I will require my flock at their hand, andcause them to cease from feeding the flock.... Behold, I,even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out.... Andwill deliver them out of all places where they have beenscattered in the cloudy and dark day [the Day of the Lord—yet future]. And I will ... gather them from the countries,and will bring them to their own land, and feed them [spir-itual food] upon the mountains of Israel by the rivers, and inall the inhabited places of the country" (Ezek. 34:10-13).

Christ himself will set his hand again the second time to

recover the remnant of his people Israel (Isa. 11:11). Spiritualblindness shall then be removed, and all Israel shall be saved!(See Romans 11:25-26.) The kingdom of God shall be estab-lished. Men shall be tired of their own ways, and seek God'sways—and his law shall go forth of Zion (Mic. 4:2-3). And thenations shall find PEACE!

In the 36th chapter of Ezekiel, the Eternal addresses theHouse of Israel:* "Prophesy unto the mountains of Is-rael ... Thus saith the Lord God to the mountains, and to thehills, to the rivers, and to the valleys, to the desolate wastes,and to the cities that are forsaken.... But ye, 0 mountains

of Israel, ye shall shoot forth your branches, and yield yourfruit to my people of Israel; for they are at hand tocome.... And I will multiply men upon you, all the house ofIsrael, even all of it: and the cities shall be inhabited, and thewastes shall be builded: and I will multiply upon you man andbeast ..." (verses 1, 4, 8, 10-11).

Yes, the House of Israel is pictured returning to itsoriginal land, not from a condition of wealth and prosperityfrom Britain, the United States and Canada—not in theposition of a people victorious in a great world war—but asa slave and captive people, scattered through the nations of

the world. All prophecies picturing this rescue and regather-ing of Israel at Christ's coming give us the same propheticpicture.



22 ussia & China in Prophecy hy Russia Will Not Attack America 3

Both Houses of Israel United

In chapter 37, the first part pictures the "valley of drybones." This represents (verse 11) the whole House of Is-

rael—including Judah. It has a dual significance. It picturesthe rebirth and resurrection of Israel as a nation, fromcaptivity, dispersion and slavery. It pictures, too, the literalbodily resurrection of the individuals who had already died,after which the knowledge of the truth—spiritual knowl-edge—shall be revealed, and they shall be converted, andGod's Spirit shall enter within, and they shall be saved.

Beginning with the 15th verse, the illustration of the twosticks shows the two houses, or nations, Israel and Judah,being once more united, under Christ at his Second Coming,in the land of Israel.

"... Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I will take thechildren of Israel [from the British Isles, America andCanada—from a position of wealth and affluence as recentvictors in the world war? No, but] from among the heathen,whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, andbring them into their own land: and I will make them onenation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one kingshall be king to them all: and they shall be no more twonations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms anymore at all: neither shall they defile themselves any morewith their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with anyof their transgressions.... And they shall dwell in the landthat I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein yourfathers have dwelt ... they, and their children, and theirchildren's children for ever. . Moreover I will make acovenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlastingcovenant . .."—the New Covenant (verses 21-23, 25-26).

At Peace in the Holy Land

Notice, now the story flow—the time sequence: The prophethas carried us through the sins of his people, the cominginvasion and captivity and dispersion, and the coming ofChrist as Deliverer to restore the fortunes of Israel. We have

come to the time when both the Houses of Israel and Judahshall be reunited into one nation, rescued from captivity and

dispersion and regathered in their land, once again madeprosperous, having learned their lesson, now living God'sway, under his laws, enjoying his richest blessings, bothmaterial and spiritual!

And now we come to chapter 38. This chapter findsIsrael restored in her land—"the land that is brought backfrom the sword" (verse 8). We find Israel now at rest,dwelling safely, totally unprepared for war—having "neitherbars nor gates" (verse 11), in the desolate places of the landof Israel, now inhabited (verse 12)—yes, inhabited (sameverse) by the people who are once again restored to greatmaterial prosperity—"which have gotten cattle and goods,that dwell in the midst of the land."

Notice it!This prophecy does not picture the British Isles, America

and Canada. It pictures the Holy Land. It pictures all 12tribes having been taken there from a dispersion and captiv-ity and slavery, gathered out of the nations where they hadbeen scattered, now once again beginning to prosper.

Notice it: The time of this prophecy is after—not before,but after—the Second Coming of Christ—after the greatDeliverer has come and rescued our people and restored usto the land of Israel—after Israel and Judah are reunited.Certainly the "latter years" (verse 8).

The place of this battle is not Britain or America orCanada—it is the Holy Land. "... thou shalt come into theland that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered outof many people, against the mountains of Israel, which havebeen always waste [or "once a perpetual waste"—Moffatttranslation]" (verse 8). The "mountains of Israel" is anexpression used all through the book of Ezekiel, and refers tothe literal mountainous land of ancient Israel.

Our people shall have regained so much wealth that Gogand allies shall come to "take a spoil" (verse 13), "to carryaway silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to takea great spoil."

Christ's Reign Contested

But this very fact—that this invasion will not come untilafter the Second Coming of Christ—will seem preposterous



ECONOMIC STRENGTH

GROSS NATIONAL PROD(thousand millions of US dollars)

E X P O R(thousand

West Germany

United States

Japan

France

United Kingdom

Italy

Soviet Union

Canada

Netherlands

Belgium/Luxemb

MPORTSdollars)

75.6

68.8 EXPORT68.6 IMPORT

2067

1292

United States

Soviet Union

Japan

West Germany

France

United Kingdom

Italy

Canada

China

Poland

69 7

54 0

48 3

37 3

34 1

321

23 5

217.3387.1

243.3191.1

210.8126.2

124.0127.6

107.0129.4

ji2 ussia & China in Prophecy

Notice, again, the time: "Now will I bring again thecaptivity of Jacob, and have mercy upon the whole house ofIsrael [Israel and Judah], and will be jealous for my holyname. ... When I have brought them again from the people,and gathered them out of their enemies' lands, and amsanctified in them in the sight of many nations; then shallthey KNOW that I am the Lord their God . .." (Ezek. 39:25,27-28)!

From this remarkable sequence of prophecy we can knowthat no war is foretold between the U.S.S.R. and America, orCanada, or Britain now!

it



MILITARYSPENDING

(thousand millionsof US dollars)

World War Ito the end of theRussian Civil War1914-192117 million

Stalinist Period

1930-193820 million

World War II1941-194520 million

Total Losses57 Million

4.5

4.1

2.2

1.4

1.0

.82

.79

.78

.65

.60

0 0 00 50 00 00

4

MILITARY PREPA REDNESS

RUSSIAN AN D S OVIET MANPOWE RLOSSES IN THE 20TH CENTURY

The character of the peoples inhabiting what is now calledthe Soviet Union has been shaped by a historical fabricinterwoven with a rich culture and endured tragedy. Fromthe Mongol conquests of the 13th century, the PugachevRebellion of 1773 and Napoleon's invasion in 1812, to theFirst and Second World Wars and the Russian Revolutionand Civil War, invasion and internal strife have molded amindset of passionate patriotism and suspicion of foreign-ers.

260

23 7

25 . 4

24.0

22.8

22.4

22.2

14.6

13.4

12.7

ARMED FORCES(millions of pe rsons)

Soviet Union

China

United States

India

Vietnam

Turkey

Iraq

North Korea

Pakistan

South Korea

Soviet Union

United States

United Kingdom

China

West Germany

France

Saudi Arabia

Iraq

Poland

Japan



30 hapter Four outh Asia in Prophecy 1

with the restored Roman Empire. Much of Asia will eventu-ally be marshaled into a great end-time, communist-domi-nated confederacy—encompassing nearly one half of theearth's population!

These atheist-led Asian armies are also described inEzekiel, chapters 38 and 39, where elements of those forcesare prophesied to invade the Holy Land when all 12 tribes ofIsrael have returned.

SOUTH ASIAIN PROPHECY

International attention continues to be riveted on turbu-lent South Asia. That vast region—stretching from thePersian Gulf to the South China Sea—is in a precarious

state of ferment and unrest.Yet how many know that the future of the peoples of the

vast South Asia region was recorded millennia ago in thepages of the Bible? The stage is now set for the unfolding ofan astounding sequence of Bible prophecies.

Turn, first, to the book of Revelation. Here is revealeda great end-time political ruler referred to as the "beast"(chapter 17). The beast will be a superdictator over a comingEuropean confederation of 10 nations—a rebirth of the Ro-man Empire. This European power will eventually establishits capital and religious headquarters at Jerusalem (Dan.11:45).

Daniel says that this European conqueror will becometroubled by "tidings out of the east and out of the north"(11:44). There can be little doubt about the source of thebeast's trouble. East and north of the Holy Land are Russia,China and other nations of the vast Asian continent.

The clear implication of this verse is that a greatEurasian alliance will ultimately arise at or near the end ofthe Great Tribulation (mentioned by Daniel in chapter 12and in Matthew 24:21) and will enter into a confrontation

Misunderstood Prophecy

Some Bible scholars assert falsely that these prophecies ofEzekiel were fulfilled anciently. They never were. Othersbelieve they are about to occur—but some years beforeArmageddon. Both views are erroneous.

The events of Ezekiel 38 and 39 are without question still

future—for the "latter days" (38:16) and "latter years" (38:8).Moreover, Ezekiel 38:14 describes the time setting as being"in that day when my people of Israel dwelleth safely." Thisis certainly not the situation in the State of Israel today! TheIsrael described by Ezekiel is a nation that dwells in security,in unwalled villages, totally unprepared for war (38:8, 11, 14).Read it for yourself! These circumstances will be extant onlyafter the coming of the Messiah, when surviving Eurasianforces will be supernaturally punished.

Asian alliances, however, will begin taking shape well inadvance—and are even now beginning to move into theirprophesied end-time configuration!

Table of Nations

The composition of the army that will come against therestored 12 tribes of Israel is clearly defined:

The account begins in Ezekiel 38:1-2: "And the word ofthe Lord came to me: Son of man, set your face against Gog,of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, of Meshech, andTubal, and prophesy against him" (The Amplified Bible).

Here is a great power that will challenge the very rule ofChrist!

Ezekiel reveals that joined with Magog, Rosh, Meshechand Tubal in this confederacy will be Persia, Cush, Phut(incorrectly rendered "Libya" in the Authorized Version),



RUSSIA AND SOUTH ASIA3 of every 5 people live here

U.S.S.R.

N.R E A

JAPAN

S.K O R E A

': B URMA

: ; ;TAIWAN

H O N G K O N G

\VIETNAMB A N G L A D E S H.. . TAJLAND

MORE THAN 500,000,000 ;' •1 1 1 1 6 0,000,000 — 500,000,000

2 0,000,000 — 60,000,00010 ,000,000 — 20,000,000 S I N G A P O R EUP TO 10,000,000

:;:::;:;:; POPULATION DENSITY OF MORE THAN 260 PERSQUARE MILE, OR MORE THAN 100 PER SQUARE

KAMPUCHEA PHILIPPINESS R I LA N K A

POPULATIONRUNEI- \

INDONESIA

7-0


Gomer and Togarmah (see verses 5-6). Who are these peoplestoday? And what do these prophecies have to do with thefuture of South Asia?

With the exception of Persia, the names mentioned byEzekiel are nowhere to be found as names of nations on worldmaps today. The names of the majority of the world's modernnations are of fairly recent origin. Nations and peoples haveundergone sometimes dozens of name changes over the cen-turies and millennia of history.

In the Bible, nations are named after their ancestors.Nations are families grown big. The whole human family oftoday, according to the Bible, springs from Shem, Ham andJapheth, the sons of Noah (Gen. 10:32). The "Table ofNations" of Genesis 10 is an account of the origins of today'snations and races.

Through migrations, these diverse peoples overspreadthe entire earth. You can read the story in Genesis 11. Inmany cases we can accurately trace their travels from thestarting point of Babel (in what today is Iraq) through thepages of history to their present locations.

Especially helpful in such research are the accounts ofthe classical historians and geographers (such as Herodotus);Persian, Tatar and Arabic histories (such as Meadows of Goldby al-Masudi); the works of early Jewish historians (such asJosephus); Chinese and other Asian traditions; and medievalEuropean chronicles.

Modern scholars generally give little credence to theTable of Nations or to many of these early histories andtraditions. Consequently they are ignorant of the true identi-ties of many of the world's peoples today.

Let us look again at the names mentioned by Ezekiel.Where are these peoples found today?

Gog of the Land of Magog

Ruling over all these allied peoples is Gog. Gog (meaning"mountain" or "high") is described as a great prince, thepolitical/military head of the vast region in question. Ezekielpictures Gog as a guard and commander over the assembledpeoples (38:7).

Along with the beast, the miracle-working false prophet



34 ussia & China in Prophecy South Asia in Prophecy 5

The prophecy ofEzekiel clearly

indicates that Iranwill eventually

become linked withthe Soviet Union.

(Rev. 16:13; 19:20), and the leaders of an Arab-Muslim con-federacy, Gog is one of the major end-time personalitiesspecifically mentioned in the Bible.

Gog is also a people, apparently a tribal subdivision of

Magog. The original Gog was probably a son or grandson ofMagog. Ezekiel describes the end-time Gog as being of theland of Magog. How,then, do we identifyMagog today? TheTable of Nations listsMagog as the secondson of Japheth, son ofNoah.

Japheth's descen-dants are primarily

Eurasian peoples.They include the EastSlays—Great Rus-sians, Little Russians,White Russians—andthe Mongoloid peoples of Asia outside of the Near East andthe subcontinent of India.

Japheth's son Magog gradually become divided into twomain branches. The western, Caucasian-looking Slavicbranch is identified by the first-century Jewish historianJosephus and others as among the nomadic Scythian tribes

north of the Black Sea in what today is the Soviet Union.But there was also an eastern or Mongoloid branch ofthe Scythians that anciently inhabited the plains stretchingall the way to north China. The Venetian traveler MarcoPolo, who visited the Mongol realms in the 13th century,identified Magog as being part of the Munguls or Mongols.Other histories identify Magog with the Mandarin-speakingnorthern Chinese. (The Cantonese-speaking southern Chi-nese, incidentally, are an Asian branch of Javan, another ofJapheth's sons.)

Which branch of Magog is intended in the prophecy ofEzekiel? The Magog of Ezekiel 38 and 39 is pictured as apeople of a northern locality—i.e., the vast lands of theSoviet Union. Ezekiel describes Gog as coming "from the

north parts" (39:2). The Soviet Union is in the far north.Moreover, Gog is described as the prince of Rosh,

Meshech and Tubal, peoples clearly Russian by descent.

Russians — reat and White

The Hebrew word Rosh is translated "chief" in Ezekiel 38:2-3in the Authorized Version. In Hebrew, the word for chief isRosh. But in Ezekiel's prophecy the original Hebrew may alsobe a proper name.

Rosh is the ancient Hebrew name for the Russ("blonds") who settled in the plains of Eastern Europe in theninth century, A.D. They gave their name to the Russiannation. The people of Rosh are among the White Russians ofByelorussia today.

Living next to the people of Rosh are Meshech andTubal. Both Meshech and Tubal are sons of Japheth (Gen.10:2) and thus brothers of Magog. To Herodotus and otherclassical geographers and historians they were known as theMoskhi or Moschi and the Tibareni, occupying the region ofthe Caucasus between the Black and Caspian Seas. In Assyr-ian inscriptions they are the Muska and Tubla. Josephus callsthem the Moschevi and Thobelites.

The descendants of Meshech (Moskhi) ultimately trav-eled into the lands north of the Black Sea, settling aroundMoscow. They gave their name to that city, as well as to theMoskva River and the state of Muscovy.

Part of Tubal also moved north, giving their name to theriver Tobol and founding the Siberian city of Tobolsk. (Mon-goloid branches of Tubal are found in Tibet, Nepal, Bhutan,Sikkim, the Indian state of Nagaland, Xinkiang or ChineseTurkestan, and parts of northern China and Manchuria,according to Arabic sources.)

Together, the Caucasian branches of Meshech and Tubalform the two distinctive branches of the Great Russians oftoday. The Great Russians are the largest ethnic group of theSoviet Union.

Future Russo/China Alliance?

Ultimately allied with the Russians under Gog will be "manypeople" (Ezek. 38:6, 9, 15).



36 Russia & China in Prophecy South Asia in Prophecy 7

Scenes in turbulentSouth Asia: Guerrillasof communist NewPeople's army train inremote area of thePhilippines (top); Muslimguerrillas opposingSoviets in Afghanistanpose with capturedSoviet armored vehicle(below); Iraqi troopsguard Iranian prisonerstaken in the Iran-Iraqwar (facing page).

These could hardly exclude the militarily weaker Chineseand their Asiatic kinsmen—those eastern Magogites who"dwell securely in the coastlands" of the Pacific (39:6, The

Amplified Bible).The People's Republic of China—the "many people" of

Ezekiel 38—is thus pictured as being linked with Gog in thelast days. We can conclude that, one way or another, the

breach that separates the Soviet Union and China willeventually be bridged. Beijing and Moscow will yet cometo terms in spite of racial and political tensions!

Linked with the Russians and the other nations ofthe Orient in the vast end-time Asian confederacy will bePersia, Cush, Phut, Gomer and Togarmah (Ezek. 38:5-6).

Who are these peoples today?History and Scripture identify them as the very

peoples of the South Asian region. Willingly or unwill-ingly, they will all be drawn into the Soviet sphere ofinfluence in the years just ahead! Let us look at each oneindividually.

Let us begin with Persia (Ezek. 38:5), the most easilyidentified. Persia is simplyanother name for modern-day Iran. The name Persiaoriginated from a geograph-

ical region within southernIran. This region was an-ciently known as Persis, theGreek form of Old PersianParsa. Historically, the peo-ple of Iran have never usedthe name Persia for theircountry. They have alwayscalled it Iran, "Land of theAryans." (Aryan is used todesignate speakers of Indo-

Iranian languages, as dis-tinct from Semitic-speakingArabs, for example.) Thename Iran, however, didnot come into widespreaduse in the west until the

1930s.

Iran today has a popu-lation of some 45 million.

Iranians comprise nearly 70 percent of the country. Iranians,though Islamic, are totally distinct from the neighboring Arab

peoples of the Middle East. They are a mixed people of the



38 ussia & China in Prophecy South Asia in Prophecy 9

remnants of Media and Elam and other ancestors of Semiticand Hamitic stock.

Modern Iran also includes numerous minority groups ofvarying ethnic backgrounds: Turks, Kurds, Arabs, Baluchis,Armenians, Lurs, Azerbaijanis, Bakhtiaris and others.

There is growing evidence of a Soviet attempt to utilizeto their own advantage disputes among certain of theseethnic minorities within Iran. Some observers see this activ-ity as aimed at precipitating an internal crisis—a crisis thatcould provide an opportunity for Soviet military "interven-tion" in Iran.

An appeal for help by any pro-Soviet ethnic minoritiesin Iran could be answered by a movement of Soviet troopsboth from the Soviet Union across Iran's northern border andfrom Afghanistan across Iran's eastern border. Alternately, apro-Soviet government might ultimately rise to power inTehran and move the country into the Soviet orbit by non-violent means.

Whatever the method, the prophecy of Ezekiel clearlyindicates that Iran will eventually become linked with theSoviet Union. This is not to say that Iran or other SouthAsian nations will be incorporated into the Soviet Union asfull-fledged republics. Rather, there will generally be onlypolitical linkage in the form of alliances or as vassal statesdominated by Moscow.

Afghanistan, of course, is already in the Soviet orbit. ASoviet-installed regime today governs in Kabul.

Known anciently as Ariana and Bactria, and in theMiddle Ages as Khorasan, Afghanistan lies in the very heartof Asia. Historically, the great invasions of the Indian sub-continent have been made through its strategic mountainpasses.

Afghanistan's present racially mixed population is a re-flection of its location astride the ancient 'trade and invasionroutes of Central Asia. The bulk of the population (60 per-cent) is Pushtun or Pathan, the main tribes being the Dur-rani and the Ghilzai. Other groups represented are the Tajiksor Tadhziks (30 percent), Uzbeks (5 percent), Hazaras,Turkomans and Kirghiz.

The unifying factor amid all this ethnic diversity is

religion. Afganistan is almost wholly Islamic, mostly Sunni.Moslem armies had gained control of Afganistan as early asA.D. 652.

The biblical origins of the Afghan peoples are widelyvaried. Some are traced to the sons of Japheth. (The Turko-mans, for example, claim descent from Tiras, a son ofJapheth.) Others descend from branches of the families ofJoktan, of Gomer, of Uz and of Esau. Some Afghan chroni-cles even claim that elements of the Pathans are descendedby intermarriage from King Saul of ancient Israel through hisgrandson Afghana.

Also predicted to cluster around the banner of Gog in thelatter days are Cush and Phut (or Put). These peoples ofEzekiel 38:5 are generally found today in the region of Indiaand Pakistan.

Cush was a son of Ham (Gen. 10:6). Cush is oftentranslated "Ethiopia" in the Bible. But not all Cushites livein Ethiopia!

The descendants of Cush split into two major groups, theEastern and Western Cushites. The Western Cushites arefound in major areas of Black Africa today, including modernEthiopia, now under Soviet influence.

The Eastern Cus hites, on the other hand, are the brownpeoples of central and southern India and part of Ceylon (SriLanka) They are represented by such groups as the Dravid-ians, Tamils and Telugus. Herodotus calls these EasternCushites "Asiatic Ethiopians." During their migrations, inci-dentally, these Asiatic Cushites gave their name to the Hindu

Kush mountain range of Central Asia.Interestingly, the names of Cush's sons Seba and Raa-

mah (Gen. 10:7) have been perpetuated in the Hindu godSiva or Shiva (the destroyer) and the hero Rama (an avatarof the god Vishnu).

Phut was also a son of Ham. Phut is often translated"Libya" in the Bible, referring to the land of Libya in NorthAfrica. As with Cush, there is also an Asiatic branch of thefamily of Phut or Put. It is that Asiatic branch that willeventually become associated with the U.S.S.R.

Along with elements of Shem, descendants of Phut (orPut) were among the Indo-Aryans who settled northern India



40 ussia & China in Prophecy outh Asia in Prophecy 1

and drove the Cushitic Dravidians into the south of India inthe second millennium B.C. The warrior-caste Rajputs wererulers over the historic region of Rajputana, a former groupof princely states comprising what is now Rajasthan state ofnorthwestern India.

Elements of Phut are also found today in other states ofnorthern and central India and in the neighboring countriesof Pakistan and Bangladesh. The clear implication, therefore,is that these nations will ultimately become politically associ-ated with the U.S.S.R.

India, along with China, will undoubtedly contributeheavily to the 200 million-man army of Revelation 9:16. Afterone-thousand-million-strong communist China, India has thelargest population of any country in the world (more than 750million!)

The nation of India is officially a neutralist state aspiringto a nonaligned stand between the superpowers. But in lightof India's long and often tension-ridden borders with Chinaand Pakistan, the Soviet Union has become necessary in-surance for New Delhi. India leans on Soviet protection tocounterbalance the alliance of China and Pakistan.

India is heavily dependent on the Kremlin for key mili-tary supplies. New Delhi has a friendship treaty withMoscow, signed in 1971. And the Soviet Union has becomeIndia's major trading partner.

The government of Pakistan—lying to the east andsouth of Soviet-occupied Afghanistan—is growing more ner-vous by the day.

Pakistan now stands as the only obstacle between theSoviet troops in Afghanistan and Moscow's goal of a warm-water Arabian Sea port. By virtue of the Soviet militarypresence in Afghanistan, the Kremlin is now in a primeposition to exert political and military pressure on Pakistan.

The Muslim nation of Pakistan consists of fourprovinces, two on each side of the Indus River. The twoprovinces on the eastern side—Punjab and Sind— are firmlyin the control of President Zia ul-Haq's government in Islam-abad.

The two provinces west of the Indus—North- W est Fron-tier and Baluchistan— are in a state of unrest. These

provinces share a 1,200-mile border with Soviet-occupiedAfghanistan. The Pakistani government fears that the Sovi-ets may now use Afghanistan as a base to exploit the separa-tionist sentiments among the ethnic groups in these twoprovinces. Trouble among these ethnic minorities is alreadystraining Pakistan's unity.

Of primary concern is the long-simmering independencemovement among the Baluchi tribesmen of western Pakistan.The Baluchis have long sought to unite with fellow tribesmenin southern Afghanistan and eastern Iran to form an inde-pendent state of Baluchistan.

There is strong evidence of deep Soviet involvement inthis effort to carve out a separate Baluchi state. A pro-Rus-sian vassal state in Baluchistan would effectively extendSoviet influence all the way south to the Arabian Sea. TheKremlin would at last have the warm-water ports that it hassought since the days of the czars.

As an added bonus, the Soviets would be in a position tocontrol the major oil supply lines leading from the Persian Gulf!

Pushtu-speaking tribesmen in northwestern Pakistan andeastern Afghanistanhave also long dreamedof their own indepen-dent state of Push-tunistan. These peo-ples, like the Baluchis,provide potentially fer-tile soil for Soviet revo-

lutionary propaganda.The predomi-

nantly Muslim nationof Bangladesh—onceknown as East Pak-istan—broke away

from Pakistan in a bloody civil war in 1971. Though Bangladeshofficially adheres to the principle of nonalignment, its relationswith the Soviet Union have grown steadily closer.

Also allied with Gog will be "Gomer, Togarmah and alltheir bands" (Ezek. 38:6).

Gomer was the eldest son of Japheth. Contrary to the

In the Bible,nations are named

after theirancestors. Nations

are familiesgrown big.



42 ussia & China in Prophecy outh Asia in Prophecy 3

assertions of many students of Bible prophecy, Gomer in thisprophecy is not West Germany.

Who, then, is Gomer? Among the Oriental descendants ofGomer's three sons are found elements of the Turkic and Tatar(Turko-Mongol) peoples of the Asian steppes and deserts.

Many of these peoples—inhabiting the five socialist re-

publics of Soviet Central Asia—have already been incorpo-rated into the U.S.S.R. The nation of Mongolia, wedgedbetween the Soviet Union and China in the region just southof Siberia, is a virtual Soviet satellite. The Turkic Uighurs ofXinkiang (western China) and the Mongols of Inner Mongo-lia are under Communist Chinese control.

Gomer's third son, Togarmah, is specifically mentioned inEzekiel 38. Togarmah, in part, settled ancient Armenia. De-scendants of Togarmah also migrated eastward into Mongolia,where they are today found mixed with elements of Magog.Togarmah's modern-day descendants are also found in China's

Xinkiang province and in Russian Siberia or Tartary.Ezekiel, however, speaks specifically of Togarmah "in

the uttermost parts of the north" (38:6, Amplified). This isa clear reference to the Siberian branch of Togarmah.

But what of Southeast Asia?The modern-day nations of this region are of the south-

ern Mongoloid racial group. These nations are primarilyJaphetic in descent, of the line of Gomer and, farther east,of Javan. Here communism has already deeply penetrated.

Vietnam is already a communist nation in the Sovietfold. After some two decades of fighting, the American-

backed government of South Vietnam surrendered to Soviet-supported North Vietnamese forces in the spring of 1975.Within days the communist conquest of South Vietnam waseffectively completed. Vietnam was officially reunited as acommunist state in July 1976.

The government of neighboring Laos is an ally of Viet-nam and the Soviet Union. Nearby Cambodia (Kampuchea)has been dominated by Vietnam since 1979.

Continuing Vietnamese military activity within Cambo-dia poses a potential threat to the security of Thailand to thenorth and west. Malaysia also sees a potential military men-

ace from expansionist Vietnam. Adding to the uncertainty,

small bands of communist guerrillas continue to roam theThai-Malaysia border area.

In Burma, militarily active communist guerrillas arechallenging the government in Rangoon. Insurgent uprisingsamong the country's ethnic minorities add to the instabilityin that nation. In Indonesia and the Philippines too, commu-

nist insurgency occasionally assails the authority of the cen-tral governments.

Most of Southeast Asia will undoubtedly find it difficultto withstand incessant communist pressure. Ultimately,prophecy reveals, the region will be forced into cooperatingwith the Soviet Union and her allies.

"I Am Against You!"

As we have seen, the coming Eurasian confederacy will dev-astate much of Western Europe. After Christ decimates thearmies of all nations gathered at Armageddon, Gog will

assemble a large army from among his surviving Eurasianforces. That army will attempt to impose its ideology on arestored Israel. But it will not succeed!

"Behold, I am against you, 0 Gog!" God declares (Ezek.38:3). The fate of his armies is vividly portrayed: "You shall fallon the mountains of Israel, you and all your troops, and thepeoples who are with you; I shall give you as food to every kindof predatory bird and beast of the field" (Ezek. 39:4, Amplified).The people of Israel will labor seven months burying the millionsof Gog's dead (39:12). The survivors will know that God rules.

The demise of Gog and his allies will furnish a powerful

witness to the nations of the world. "And I shall set My gloryamong the nations; and all the nations will see My judgmentwhich I have executed," God declares (39:21, Amplified).

The people of Israel will utterly destroy the weapons car-ried by Gog's army (39:9-10). With the power of Gog irretriev-ably broken, the nations of the world will at last submit to thegovernment of God. After 6,000 years of war and internationalstrife, worldwide peace will finally become reality. "And theyshall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears intopruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation,neither shall they learn war any more" (Mic. 4:3; Isa. 2:4).

South Asia—and the world—will at last know true peace!

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any one subject is found in any one place in theBible. To properly UNDERSTAND the Word of God,you must put together ALL the scriptures on aparticular subject. "Here a little, and there a little"!(Ise. 28:10, 13.) And only when all the scriptures are

put together can you really see what the Bible says.That's why we offer the Ambassador College

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WhereAre WeN O W inProphecy?

You've heard them all: Armageddon. TheSecond Coming. The beast. The number 666.The Great Tribulation. The Day of the Lord.

What do these seemingly strange biblicalsymbols mean? Is it possible to know? Canyou understand Bible prophecy?

Yes! We have prepared for you, inunderstandable language, an overview ofbiblical prophecy—the neglected one-third ofyour Bible. All you have to do to receive

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russia & china in prophesy

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