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By Britt Gillette
In the last days, the Bible tells
us of a horrible series of events that will take place in the lands
of Israel and Syria. One of these events is the disappearance of
Damascus as one of the premiere cities in the world. The oldest
continuously inhabited city on the planet, Damascus has witnessed at
least 5,000 years of human history, and some historians believe the
city actually dates back to the seventh millennium BC. In fact, Paul
was on the road to Damascus when Christ first appeared to Him, an
event that transformed not only his life, but the course of human
history.
In the very near future, Damascus
will once again play a major role in human events. The prophet
Isaiah provides us with God’s commentary on a future conflict
between Damascus and Israel, and in so doing, he reveals certain
prophecies which have been partially fulfilled in the past. However,
the ultimate fulfillment of Isaiah 17 remains in the future. The
current existence of Damascus, which will one day cease to be a
city, as well as the historical absence of the coalition of nations
prophesied to attack Israel and be destroyed by God, is proof that
Isaiah 17 prophesies events yet future.
This is what God revealed
to the prophet Isaiah:
“This message came to me concerning
Damascus: ‘Look, Damascus will disappear! It will become a heap of
ruins. The cities of Aroer will be deserted. Sheep will graze in the
streets and lie down unafraid. There will be no one to chase them
away. The fortified cities of Israel will also be destroyed, and the
power of Damascus will end. The few left in Aram will share the fate
of Israel’s departed glory,’ says the Lord Almighty.” Isaiah 17:1-3
(NLT)
These opening verses paint a bleak
picture. The city of Damascus will become a heap of ruins, utterly
destroyed. Few, if any, buildings will be left standing. The once
great city will be devoid of human life and will become home to all
manner of wildlife in the absence of humans to chase them away.
According to these verses, the
cities of Aroer, which are located on the northern bank of the Arnon
River just east of the Dead Sea, will also be deserted. However, the
passage doesn’t say they will be destroyed in the same manner as
Damascus, just that they will be deserted. It may be that people
simply flee these cities out of fear.
In addition, many of the fortified
cities in northern Israel will also be destroyed. Those few who
remain in Aram, 38 miles south southeast of Damascus, will share the
fate of these northern Israeli cities.
“‘In that day the glory of Israel
will be very dim, for poverty will stalk the land. Israel will be
abandoned like the grain fields in the valley of Rephaim after the
harvest. Only a few of its people will be left, like the stray
olives left on the tree after the harvest. Only two or three remain
in the highest branches, four or five out on the tips of the limbs.
Yes, Israel will be stripped bare of people,’ says the Lord, the God
of Israel.” Isaiah 17:4-6 (NLT)
The breadth and scope of
destruction is clearly illustrated as God describes the Israeli
landscape as stripped bare of people. Only a small fraction of
people either choose to stay in the land or else survive what is a
massive holocaust, leaving only a few inhabitants who struggle in
poverty.
“Then at last the people will think
of their Creator and have respect for the Holy One of Israel. They
will no longer ask their idols for help or worship what their own
hands have made. They will never again bow down to their Asherah
poles or burn incense on the altars they built.” Isaiah 17:7-8 (NLT)
As a result of this event, the
people of Israel will once again turn to God Almighty. Currently,
the nation of Israel is predominantly secular in nature. Other
biblical passages infer that this will change as the prophesied
rebuilding of the Temple in the last days indicates a spiritual
resurgence among the Jews of Israel. Nevertheless, this passage
clearly indicates the people of Israel will turn away from all false
idols and gods.
Knowing that this will happen, we
must ask: why does it happen? The answer is found in the verses that
follow:
“Their largest cities will be as
deserted as overgrown thickets. They will become like the cities the
Amorites abandoned when the Israelites came here so long ago. Why?
Because you have turned from the God who can save you – the Rock who
can hide you. You may plant the finest imported grapevines, and they
may grow so well that they blossom on the very morning you plant
them, but you will never pick any grapes from them. Your only
harvest will be a load of grief and incurable pain.” Isaiah 17:9-11
(NLT)
The devastation that overshadows
Israel will come about because Israel has “turned from the God who
can save them.” All the hard work performed prior to this event will
be lost. Those who have been distracted by the things of this world
will be disappointed, for they have forgotten God, and by putting
faith in the things of this world, they will ultimately be
disappointed. Their only harvest will be “a load of grief and
incurable pain.” This grief will be brought to a climax when, in the
midst of their suffering, the nation of Israel faces an imminent
invasion:
“Look! The armies rush forward like
waves thundering toward the shore. But though they roar like
breakers on a beach, God will silence them. They will flee like
chaff scattered by the wind or like dust whirling before a storm. In
the evening Israel waits in terror, but by dawn its enemies are
dead. This is the just reward of those who plunder and destroy the
people of God.” Isaiah 17:12-14 (NLT)
While Syria and Israel lie in ruin,
the enemies of Israel will view her suffering as an opportunity to
invade, their ultimate goal to destroy her forever. However, God has
a different plan in mind, and He will destroy these invaders
Himself. A more in depth illustration of this attack is foreseen in
Psalm 83:
“O God, don’t sit idly by, silent
and inactive! Don’t you hear the tumult of your enemies? Don’t you
see what your arrogant enemies are doing? They devise crafty schemes
against your people, laying plans against your precious ones.
‘Come,’ they say, ‘let us wipe out Israel as a nation. We will
destroy the very memory of its existence.’ This was their unanimous
decision. They signed a treaty as allies against you – these
Edomites and Ishmaelites, Moabites and Hagrites, Gebalites,
Ammonites, and Amalekites, and people from Philistia and Tyre.
Assyria has joined them, too, and is allied with the descendants of
Lot. Do to them as you did to the Midianites or as you did to Sisera
and Jabin at the Kishon River. They were destroyed at Endor, and
their decaying corpses fertilized the soil. Let their mighty nobles
die as Oreb and Zeeb did. Let all their princes die like Zebah and
Zalmunna, for they said, ‘Let us seize for our own use these
pasturelands of God!’ O my God, blow them away like whirling dust,
like chaff before the wind! As a fire roars through a forest and as
a flame sets mountains ablaze, chase them with your fierce storms;
terrify them with your tempests. Utterly disgrace them until they
submit to your name, O Lord. Let them be ashamed and terrified
forever. Make them failures in everything they do, until they learn
that you alone are called the Lord, that you alone are the Most
High, supreme over all the earth.” Psalm 83 (NLT)
So how do we know that Psalm 83
describes the same scene envisioned in Isaiah 17? Let’s compare the
two. Here’s how the intentions of Israel’s enemies are described:
Plunder & Destruction
“This is the just reward of those who plunder and destroy the people
of God.” Isaiah 17:14 (NLT)
Destruction
“They devise crafty schemes against your people, laying plans
against your precious ones. ‘Come,’ they say, ‘let us wipe out
Israel as a nation. We will destroy the very memory of its
existence.’ This was their unanimous decision.” Psalm 83:3-5 (NLT)
Plunder
“for they said, ‘Let us seize for our own use these pasturelands of
God!” Psalm 83:12 (NLT)
Here’s how the fate of Israel’s
enemies are described:
“They will flee like chaff
scattered by the wind or like dust whirling before a storm.” Isaiah
17:13 (NLT)
“O my God, blow them away like
whirling dust, like chaff before the wind!” Psalm 83:13 (NLT)
From the description of their fate
alone, it is reasonable to conclude that the armies of Isaiah 17:12
are the same nations who sign a treaty against the Lord in Psalm
83:5-8. Below is a list of those nations and their modern
geographical equivalents:
Edomites = Jordan / Parts of the
West Bank
Ishmaelites = The Arab people
Moabites = Jordan / Parts of the West Bank
Hagrites = Jordan / The Arab people
Gebalites = Lebanon
Ammonites = Jordan
Amalekites = Southern Israel / Gaza
Philistia = Gaza
Tyre = Lebanon
Assyria = Syria / Parts of Turkey and Iraq
The Descendants of Lot = Jordan
By studying the geographical
history of these ancient people and places, we can uncover which
nations they currently compose. According to Psalm 83, in the
aftermath of the destruction of northern Israel and Damascus, Israel
will be invaded by armies from Jordan, the West Bank, Lebanon,
Syria, and Gaza. All of these locations are heavily populated by the
enemies of Israel today.
An Expanding War?
But are the nations cited in Psalm 83 the only nations involved in
this attack? It’s quite possible that additional conspirators are
named in the Book of Ezekiel. Isaiah 17 and Psalm 83 might well
foreshadow the war of Gog and Magog.
In Ezekiel 38-39, an enormous
coalition of nations, “a vast and awesome horde” – will roll down on
Israel “like a storm and cover the land like a cloud” Ezekiel 38:9
(NLT). This prophesied future war in Ezekiel has many similarities
to Isaiah 17:12-14. Both prophets foresee a time when enemy armies
rush toward Israel while she awaits unprepared. Both prophets
foresee God’s instantaneous destruction of Israel’s enemies. And in
both scenarios, the marching armies intend to plunder and destroy
the people of Israel:
Destruction
“You will say, ‘Israel is an unprotected land filled with unwalled
villages! I will march against her and destroy these people who live
in such confidence!” Ezekiel 38:11 (NLT)
Plunder
“But Sheba and Dedan and the merchants of Tarshish will ask, ‘Who
are you to rob them of silver and gold? Who are you to drive away
their cattle and seize their goods and make them poor?’” Ezekiel
38:13 (NLT)
Plunder & Destruction
“This is the just reward of those who plunder and destroy the people
of God.” Isaiah 17:14 (NLT)
Could the events predicted in
Isaiah 17 and Psalm 83 be a catalyst for the war of Gog and Magog
prophesied in Ezekiel 38-39? Although it is not a certainty, the
possibility can not be completely ruled out.
Today’s Headlines
Looking at today’s geopolitical
landscape, it’s not difficult to envision the scenario outlined in
Isaiah 17 and Psalm 83. Syria has been adamant in its demand that
Israel surrender the Golan Heights, threatening war if Israel fails
to comply. Meanwhile, the summer 2006 war between Israel and
Hezbollah has apparently convinced leaders in Damascus that Syria
can be victorious in a conflict with Israel by simply overwhelming
the tiny nation with rocket attacks. From a greater perspective, it
has convinced the entire Islamic world that Israel isn’t the
militarily invincible nation they once thought.
Syria’s rocket technology is far
more advanced than that deployed by Hezbollah, and Syria is known to
possess chemical weapons, including the highly lethal VX and Sarin
gases. If Syria miscalculates and attacks Israel with these weapons,
the Israeli response will be swift and devastating. Israel is armed
with nuclear weapons, and if its survival is put in question, it
will not hesitate to use them.
If this happens, a mortally wounded
Israel will become an irresistible target for her enemies. The
surrounding Muslim nations will see an opportunity to destroy her,
while Russia will see an opportunity to seize the upper hand in the
oil rich Middle East.
Today, the most virulent enemies of
Israel reside in the very places named in Psalm 83 – Hamas in Gaza,
the Palestinians in the West Bank and Jordan, Hezbollah in Lebanon,
and the Syria leadership and its Axis of Evil partners in the city
of Damascus.
As of this writing, the conditions
are ripe for the fulfillment of Isaiah 17 and Psalm 83, paving the
way for the rapture of the church and the beginning of the
tribulation. In light of such developments, we should zealously
preach the Gospel of Christ to all who will listen. For the hour is
late, and the return of Christ is near.
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