Why Russia must attack Israel before the rapture~By Kyle

Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near. - Revelation 1:3 NASB

The last couple of months I have been studying eschatology (Greek eschatos last, farthest). Since my generation could very well be the one that gets to witness this truly awe inspiring ending to the world (no, the world will not end on the 21st :0) ), end-times study has been very interesting to me. It all started when I began reading the Left Behind books. Though the books are just man's interpretation of scripture relating to end-times, and though I didn't quite agree with everything in the books, it was interesting to read how the world could possibly end. 
Here is a very simple list of the twenty-one judgements prophesied in Revelations:
The seven "seal" judgements:

1. White horse and rider (Antichrist)
2. Red horse (World War 3)
3. Black Horse (famine)
4. Ashen horse (Death: total of 1/4 population dead)
5. Martyrs (Given white robe/rest, promise of judgement/vengeance)
6. Wrath of the Lamb (terrible earthquake/blood moon/black sun/asteroid shower)          Interlude 144,000 Jews turn to Christ, Innumerable soul harvest
7. Ushering in of the "trumpet" judgements

The seven "Trumpet" judgements:

1. Hail and fire mixed with blood thrown to the earth, 1/3 trees/earth burned, all grass burned
2. fiery mountain (possibly an asteroid) thrown into sea, 1/3 sea turned to blood, 1/3 of sea creatures/ships destroyed or killed.
3. A star named Wormwood falls to Earth and poisons 1/3 of the rivers and springs, many men die of the poison
4. A third of the sun/moon/stars darkened
5. Terrifying locusts given power to torment all unbelievers for 5 months, but cannot kill
6. Demonic army, 200,000,000 strong, unleashed to kill 1/3 of remaining population
7. Christ's reign foreseen               Mid-point of tribulation

The seven "bowl" judgements

1.  Loathsome sore on those with the mark of the beast
2. Seas turned completely to blood/all sea creatures perish
3. Rivers and springs turned to blood
4. Scorching sun
5. Darkness covers throne of the Beast (Antichrist indwelt by Satan)
6. Euphrates dried up in preparation for Armageddon                                                         Armageddon
7. "It is done." Lightning and peals of thunder/Earth-leveling earthquake/100-pound hailstones (basically, the end of the world)

These judgements are terrible; they are not even pleasant to think about, but if we understand what is to come I think it will impress on us the need to be bold with the gospel of Christ. We need to save as many people as possible from this terrible time! I for one do not want any of the people I know to have to go through this.

"There will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth dismay among nations, in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, men fainting from fear and the expectation of the things which are coming upon the world; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. - Luke 21:25-26 NASB
Naturally, I began to wonder what warning signs we will see before we are raptured (To view my post on the rapture, click this link) and this terrible tribulation period is begun on Earth. Obviously, the biggest warning will be the attack on Israel by (most believe) Russia. I began to wonder, though, why most everyone says it will happen before the tribulation. So (of course) I Googled it. Here is a clip from an article that helped me understand why the invasion must come first:

Any chronology of the Rapture and the invasion of Israel is speculative and should be given wide flexibility. However, it is instructive to examine some of the possibilities. (Ibid., p. 148)

The Rapture may occur in any of the four possible time sequences: before Russia is destroyed, immediately afterward, long afterward, or simultan-eously with the signing of the covenant between the Antichrist and Israel. (Ibid., 150, emphasis added, K.B.)

If he is correct in saying the Rapture takes place before the invasion of Israel by Russia, then there should be a gap of 3½ years. That is impossible because the Bible does not permit a gap as explained previously. Since there is no gap, the invasion of Israel by Russia is an extremely important warning sign for us to “watch.” The last possibility is correct. The Rapture will take place as LaHaye said, “simultaneously with the signing of the covenant between the Antichrist and Israel.”

The 5 primary reasons that I believe the War of Gog/Magog will take place before the Rapture/Tribulation are given in my book, The Millennium, the Apocalypse and Armageddon:

1. The Antichrist signs his Shalom covenant with Israel, that is a peace covenant. The Russian led invasion takes place when Israel is dwelling in security (betach) as it is today, not when it will be living in “peace” when the Antichrist signs a covenant with them.

2. The Western powers are still in existence when this war breaks out because they make a timid response to the invasion by asking Russia if it has come to take a “spoil” and a “prey” (Ezekiel 38.13). A world government will be established prior to the rise of the Antichrist and the start of the Tribulation (Daniel 7.23-24). The War of Gog/Magog must take place before then because there is no world government that responds to the invasion. Instead individual nations make a response.

3. The invasion gives rise to a worldwide revival (Ezekiel 39.7). It starts with the first stage of Israel’s conversion. The second stage of Israel’s conversion comes after the 144,000 witnesses are commissioned (Revelation 7.1-8). They lead millions of people to Jesus Christ throughout the world (Revelation 7.9).

4. The implements of war are burned for 7 years (Ezekiel 39.8-9). As noted previously they cannot be burned into the Millennial Kingdom.

5. Egypt and its allies – Ethiopia, Put, Lud, Arabia and Libya – will be destroyed before the start of the Tribulation along with the nations that support Egypt (Ezekiel 30.1-6). Russia has supported Egypt against Israel since 1948. Therefore Egypt will be destroyed along with Russia in the War of Gog/Magog before the Tribulation.

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The most interesting part of the study to me was the verse about the war implements being burned for seven years (the duration of the tribulation is seven years). Since (obviously) there will not be no weapon burning after Christ's return and the millennium kingdom, that means that the attack at the very least will have to take place simultaneously with the rapture, if not before.

The attack could be even as far as 3 1/2 years before the rapture! From the article:

The War of Gog/Magog must therefore take place prior to the start of the Tribulation. We also know that it will take place at least 3½ years before the start of the Tribulation. Ezekiel 39:9 says, “they that dwell in the cities of Israel shall go forth, and shall make fires of the weapons and burn them” for 7 years. At the mid-point of the Tribulation, when the Antichrist commits the abomination of desolation, the residents of Israel are commanded to flee to the mountains (Matthew 24:15-18). If the residents of the cities of Israel burn the weapons for 7 years, Russia will attack Israel at least 3½ years before the Tribulation starts, because most people will not be living in the cities from the mid-point of the Tribulation on (Revelation 12:14-17).

To read the whole article, click here.

Wow! If it is really true that the attack will take place quite a while before the rapture, and since it will be clear that God alone destroyed the attacking armies, then we may have an apparelled chance to reach people for Christ! Whatever the case, we can be assured that we are on the winning team. That our God is always in control. Please, study eschatology for yourselves! God gave us these prophesies for a reason; we need to use them! Know for yourself what stance you will take on the tribulation and the end-time events. Be ready!