While most people in America will dismiss the following news article as
being boring, uninteresting and unimportant, we who are students of God's
Word should take note of its potential importance in Endtime Prophecy.

Those of you who are deep readers of my articles will know that I discuss
Turkey's possible involvement in the Endtime scenario in a number of my
articles, such as in the series "The Seven Heads".

What the following NYT article describes is a very profound change in the
constitution of Turkey's leadership and power structure, as well as in the
direction that Turkey is taking in the modern world.

As I explain in my articles -- see "The Seven Heads" for example -- and as
this article confirms, since its founding as a modern nation by Mustafa
Kemal Ataturk in 1923 -- after whom the country derived its modern name --
Turkey has been ruled by a very strong military, and it has been very
secular in nature. However, during the past decade, the Islamists have
slowly gained ground, culminating in the election of Islamist Recep Tayyip
Erdogan as Turkey's new Prime Minister.

So, how does this possibly fit into the Endtime scenario?

Contrary to what some modern Bible scholars and preachers teach, I am
personally not fully convinced that when the Book of Revelation mentions the
Euphrates River drying up in order to make a way for the Kings of the East
to fight at the Battle of Armageddon, that it is necessarily referring to
the nations of the Orient, such as communist China, etc.

Here is the verse from Revelation chapter sixteen:

"And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates; and
the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might
be prepared."
Revelation 16:12, KJV

The common picture that is presented by some Bible preachers is that of the
Euphrates River drying up in Iraq, and then the oriental armies crossing
over it on their way to invade Israel.

There is no doubt in my mind that the Euphrates River will dry up. In fact,
as we have discussed before, it has already come close to drying up a number
of times; in part, because the nations of Turkey and Syria to the north
control the water flow of this river by building massive dams.

But here's the key point -- and this is in my articles. In the Bible, where
the Book of Revelation uses the phrase "kings of the east", the Greek word
that is used there for our English word "east" is "anatolia".

Now, if you read the article below carefully, you will notice that it refers
to the Anatolian news agency. You see, prior to being known as Turkey, that
country was known as Anatolia, and long before that, it was ruled by the
Hittites -- the sons of Heth -- way back in Abraham's day.

My point is, the "kings of the east" could very well mean
"the kings of
Anatolia"; that is to say, the modern leaders of Turkey. And incidentally,
the word that is translated there as "kings" also means
"military leaders".

In short, the Book of Revelation could be describing an invasion of Israel
FROM THE NORTH -- as in the King of the North? -- by the military forces of
Turkey.

"But wait", you say; "How can Turkish armies cross the
Euphrates River which
runs through Iraq?".

Well, there are two possibilities.

First, the head waters of the Euphrates actually begin in Armenia in eastern
Turkey, and flow from eastern Turkey, down through eastern Syria, and THEN
into Iraq. So, Turkish armies would have to cross it in order to then pass
through Syria -- which also hates Israel -- in order to invade Israel.

Or -- as they have done a number of times already -- the Turkish forces
could cross into northern Iraq first, and then cross the Euphrates River, on
their way to Israel.

There is one other very important fact which adds weight to my theory.

At the time that John the Revelator received the Book of Revelation -- or
the Apocalypse -- where was he located?

Verse nine in chapter one of the Book of Revelation tells us quite clearly:

"I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the
kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle that is called Patmos,
for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ."
Revelation 1:9, KJV

The Isle of Patmos is located in the Aegean Sea, which is located off of the
western coast of Asia Minor, which today is known as Turkey. Wikipedia
states:

----- Begin Quote -----

The Aegean Sea is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea located
between the southern Balkan and Anatolian peninsulas, i.e., between the
mainlands of Greece and Turkey respectively."

----- End Quote -----

In other words, at the time that John received his revelation from the Lord,
if he were to face east towards the rising sun, he would NOT see China,
Korea or Japan -- the modern kings of the east -- he would in fact see Asia
Minor - Anatolia - Turkey.

So does an Endtime invasion of Israel from the north by an Islamic-ruled
Turkey and Syria seem more feasible to you now, with other of Israel's
enemies joining in the fray from the east and the south?

Now, granted, this is all personal speculation on my part, but it is quite
Biblically sound, and offers a viable alternative to the "kings of the
east"
being orientals.

With those points in mind, you might find the following "boring" NYT news
article more interesting.


Army Ebbs, and Power Realigns in Turkey

By SABRINA TAVERNISE - NYT

March 1, 2010


ISTANBUL -- The detention of top military officers in Turkey last week was
nothing less than a quiet piece of history. The military, long considered
untouchable in Turkey, was pushed from its political pedestal with startling
finality.

The moment, years in the making, was more whimper than bang. But it still
raises an existential question for this NATO member: What sort of country
will Turkey be?

The question goes to the very heart of modern Turkey, a Muslim democracy
whose military was a potent force in the country's political life for most
of its 86-year history. Its strictly secular ideology permeated all aspects
of public life, including the education system, the judiciary and the
bureaucracy. The military, long considered the ultimate guardian of that
secularism, has overthrown elected governments to protect it.


[continued in next message]


Jeff Snyder, SysOp - Armageddon BBS  Visit us at endtimeprophecy.org port 23
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