If ever there were a time when phrases like “rumors of wars” and “preparations for war” carried their full weight, it was these past few days. Watching the news day after day feels like witnessing a suspenseful drama unfold, each report building in intensity, like a crescendo that leaves the world holding its breath.
On Friday the 13th, reports indicated that the world’s largest U.S. aircraft carrier was heading toward the Middle East to join another carrier already stationed there as preparations for a possible strike against Iran intensified. On the 16th, the U.S. Air Force ordered 30,000-pound GBU-57 bunker busters, capable of piercing 200 feet of earth, for use against Iranian nuclear facilities. Then, on the 18th, we read in Middle East media, such as the Jerusalem Post, that both the U.S. and Israel would hit Iran very soon. On the same day, reports emerged that Russia and Iran were conducting joint naval exercises in the Gulf of Oman and the northern Indian Ocean.
With that announcement, the tension seemed to intensify. Some began to ask: Are we witnessing preparations for the war of Gog and Magog? Here are two of the major nations often associated with that prophecy, Russia and Iran, appearing side by side in a coordinated military exercise, echoing the coalition mentioned more than 2,500 years ago. Also on the same day, the US announced that its military is ready to strike Iran.
On the 19th, a US air power buildup in the Mideast was described as the largest since the Iraq War, as the US sent record numbers of fighter jets and other aircraft to the Middle East. On the same day, countries around the world, such as Germany and Poland, urged their citizens to leave Iran and the surrounding areas immediately. On February 20, the US said the world had 10 days to see whether Iran agreed to a deal or bad things happened. Then on the 21st, according to the Times of Israel, Israeli officials said they believed the US and Iran were at an unbridgeable impasse as they neared open conflict.
The situation in the Middle East is very serious, and it calls for our earnest prayers. However, amid rumors of war, signs of peace are also present. Last Thursday, on the 19th, many countries held their first Board of Peace Meeting in Washington. The President of the US, Donald Trump, said: “We have peace in the Middle East” and “The war in Gaza is over.” These statements were accompanied by words like: “Lasting harmony,” “Ancient wounds healed.” To these things the prophet would not agree, for only the Messiah will bring this type of peace.
While countries promised a $7 billion investment in Gaza, the US promised $10 billion. And they all want to be there! Last week, Indonesia finally announced the number of soldiers ready to go: 8,000 troops, set to deploy in June of this year. Russia proposed running a hospital in the Gaza Strip. On Thursday, Turkey again expressed its strong desire to send troops there: another player in the War of Gog and Magog. Italy, Romania, Greece, and Cyprus have all accepted invitations from the Trump administration to participate as “observers.”
What is happening in our world? On the one hand, we see preparations for war; on the other, urgent talks about peace and new treaties being announced.
And why this sudden rush toward Gaza? Why not the same urgency for places like South Sudan, where there is mass displacement and suffering, or Congo, Afghanistan, Haiti, or Cuba? If the war in Gaza has truly ended, why does this small strip of land command such global attention?
One more time, the prophets spoke of a time when words of peace and the realities of war would rise together, when promises of calm would accompany preparations for greater conflict. Scripture tells us that in the last days, there would be talk of peace even as the world moves toward climactic confrontation; this is what we are witnessing today.
And why Gaza? Once again, based on prophecies, it is surely because it lies only about 75 kilometers (45 miles) from Jerusalem, the city Scripture says will become the focal point of the nations. As we watch these developments unfold, we who trust in the God of the Bible can remain at peace. History is not unraveling out of control. God is sovereign. He stands both above the events of this world and deeply involved within them.
Click here for the Video: Israel and the Nations – Between War and Peace – The Nations in Motion