Needless to say, I sat up and began to take notice. When you look at a map of Israel, it looks like a sword with a notch in the blade. Lebanon could very easily be the handle, but is not a part of Israel yet. Someday, it will be. The cutting edge of the blade is facing Jordan, and the other Arab countries that hate her. God then reminded me that at various times God used nations as a sword against his enemies. Then I thought of Gideon, where he said: "The sword of the Lord and of Gideon."

Then I was reminded that God had said in prophecy that He would use the tiny nation of Israel to provoke His enemies to anger. He does this so that He can come to her rescue and fight for her. Anyone who opposes Israel will be considered to be God's enemies. God uses nations to fulfill His will in many instances in this life. God allowed Israel to become a nation once again in 1948. In the six days war during the sixties, Israel regained Jerusalem. This has caused the Muslim people in the Middle East great distress. All the Muslim countries that are not really Arab claim to be and hate Israel with an obsession. At one time the nation of Egypt, joined with Syria, called their selves the United Arab Republic. Yet, Egypt has shown more kindness to Israel than most. There are many Muslims in the old former Soviet Union territories.

God said in Zechariah 12:3:

To the Arabs it is as if someone has set a large stone in their back yard and they do not want it there. God is saying that whoever tries to remove this burdensome stone will be cut in pieces (destroyed). The Muslim people in the Middle East hate the Jewish people. God is going to draw these people, through their hatred, to Armageddon some day. God says that whoever curses Israel will be cursed!

In Zechariah 12:9, God said:

Not all the nations of the world are against Israel, and some will defend Israel during the tribulation against the Antichrist and his ten nations. God will seek to destroy His enemies. The nations that hate Israel are His enemies.

Then, in December 1990, I was standing in the back yard. It was night and the stars were so clear and beautiful to look at. I could not help but to admire God for His beauty in creation. While I was standing there a voice from within spoke to me again. It said, "Your daughter, Ginger, is going to go through a lot of pain, but her end will be good." I went into the house and told my wife, Judy, what I had heard and asked her to write it down. She did, and put it in my Bible. The next few months that followed turned into a tragic experience for us. In February, we were informed that Ginger had leukemia, but the doctors seemed confident that everything would be all right. We were raised to believe that God could heal, so we devoted ourselves to believing for her healing.

In the following month of May she died. But, before she died, she wrote this note to one of the nurses on duty. It said, "I may have leukemia, and I may be on a ventilator, but I have Jesus, and that makes me a winner! At her funeral services, at the end of the preaching, six people were born again. Many people criticized me for accepting her death as being the will of God, but nothing in this world can convince me that God was not with us during this terrible tragedy in our lives. God has proven to me that He can take a bad situation and turn it in to something good. He has, and He does. While we were going through this experience, I had another strange thing happen that changed my opinion about America and what God has planned for her.

I was sitting in the recliner resting one evening. I was very discouraged. My heart was heavy. My daughter had gone to be with Jesus, but I was worrying about America and her relationship with God. The fear that God might destroy us for the horrible sins that we have committed as a nation was troubling my mind. I thought about prayer in school and the abortion of little infant children. As I thought about these things, and although no one was in the house with me, I spoke out loud and said, "God is going to destroy America." Instantly there was a reply and God spoke in a small still sweet voice into my heart and said, "No, I'm not. America is mine, and I'm going to save America."

All at once I was filled with the presence of God. In a moment of time I experienced something that was very unexpected. I saw America, from her very beginnings to this present day. I heard every marvelous song that was ever sung about her. I saw her in a way that I had never seen her before. I heard many voices, and words from the pledge of allegiance where it is said "one nation under God," to our very beginnings where it was said that we were all given certain unalienable rights by our creator. The song, God Bless America, stood out in my mind. It was in this moment that a voice from within spoke and said, "I created America for myself, and I am going to bless America in a wonderful way." I began to weep, because I knew that I was hearing the voice of God.

Then, I saw a place in the wilderness where people could worship and follow God without persecution. I then saw America as a great protector over the nations of the world, standing as a guardian against the oppressors of this world. During World War II, when Hitler was trying to exterminate the Jews from the face of the earth, God forced the United States into this war that she did not want to enter, in order to stop him. When we did this, God, through a Jewish-German by the name of Einstein, gave America the Atomic bomb.

This caused us to be feared by every nation in the world. It was this fear that enabled the Jews to go back to Israel. Iraq and other Arab countries tried to stop them, but if any large nation had gone against Israel, the United States would have retaliated. We have been like a guardian angel over Israel ever since. It is the plan of God, and even though America is very oppressed by sin at this time, God is going to pull us through. This nation belongs to God. I am convinced that during the next few years we will experience some very hard times, but do not give up hope. God is getting ready to bless America with the thing that we need the most, and that is salvation.

While experiencing these things about America, I was weeping because of the joy of what my heart could see. At that time, I saw another picture. I could see a great battlefield. It was dark over head, with flashes of light that reflected against the bottom of the clouds that loomed over us. I found myself in a trench of mud with American soldiers all around me. While looking at the faces of these soldiers, I knew that there was a feeling of desperation. It seemed hopeless. Instinct told me that this was the battle of Armageddon, and we were in Israel. The moment was intense with anticipation. There was an American flag with its staff sticking out of a mound of dirt in front of me. You could hear it quietly popping as the wind furled it from time to time. All at once, there was a noise from behind, and, as we whirled around to see what it was, a white horse leaped over us. My heart leaped when I saw the rider on its back. It was JESUS!

As He cleared the trench, He turned in the saddle. Looking back at us with a smile, He motioned with His left hand in a single move for us to follow. There was great joy and great courage at that moment, because all at once we realized that victory was certainly at hand. Needless to say, this experience overwhelmed me with emotion. It also made me very interested in what the Bible had to say about this. Since then, God has revealed these prophecies to my heart. I have written this little book with the hope that the Christians in America, during the dark times that are to come, will put all their trust in Jesus. He is the only true hope that the world has and will ever have. He also explained the meaning of this vision and told me that my feeling that we were at the battle of Armageddon was symbolic. The vision was to show me that America would come to God during a very hard time that would be very close to the end of the age. That we will come out of the trenches to serve God before it is over.

Back in the early part of the 1990's God gave David Wilkerson a vision of the coming punishment on America for her sins. Since then David has preached many messages on the meaning of this vision and America's coming punishment. David Wilkerson believes that the American stock market is going to crash so bad that it will be the worst crash we have ever seen in America. This event will bring about chaos and havoc along with much destruction all over America, especially in cities like New York. He believes that it will be so bad that there will be uncontrollable fires in the city with much death and looting. I believe that his vision and mine are one and the same showing the hardship and despair that is coming to America. The soldiers in the trenches was an expression showing how America will be feeling before they finally turn to God and do his will. America's sins are many and they are terrible but God also gives us hope.

In this book, I will attempt to teach the Bible shadows that give us a complete account of what is to happen during the seven-year tribulation.

God has a great work for the Gentile Church during this time. We will grow closer and closer to Him during these last days. I pray that God will open your understanding to see His great love for mankind. In Isaiah 46:9-10, God told us this secret:

Notice He said, "Declaring the end from the beginning." The beginning is the book of Genesis, and the ending is the book of Revelation. God is telling us that in Genesis we will find the answer to understanding the book of Revelation. Without the Book of Genesis, the other prophecy books are not complete. I will attempt to share these with you, beginning with the promises so that we can understand his plan. May God bless your understanding.

With careful study, we find that there is a reason for the great tribulation that is to come. In Bible prophecy, it is known as Jacob's troubles. It will be a time for Israel to accept Jesus as Lord. It is their day of redemption. God will save the Jewish people in the nations, first, especially in America, because of a promise made to Ephraim, Joseph's youngest son. This will happen before the seven-year tribulation begins. Then, during the seven years of tribulation, He will save the Jews who live in the nation of Israel itself. This He will do because of a promise made to Judah. Out of this group of Jews, he will save 144,000 special preachers to take the Gospel to the nations under the control of the Antichrist.

It is commonly taught that the seven-year tribulation that is coming is a time that God is going to pour out His wrath on the whole earth. This will beduring the second half of this period, which will last 3 1/2 years. The Antichrist will conquer the whole earth and force everyone to take the mark of the beast. If you do, you will be eternally lost. If you don't, then the Antichrist will kill you.

It is believed that this test is brought on because of sin and the refusal to accept Jesus. Because of this the people who are saved during this time will have to suffer the loss of their lives because they waited so long to accept Him. Of course, we know that the tribulation will end with the battle of Armageddon. It is also commonly believed that Christ will rapture the Church before the seven-year tribulation begins because the Church is not appointed to wrath and He will spare them of any hardship.

Most people accept this teaching without any problem. Basically, because it is the popular thing to believe, the majority of people do believe this, without researching the scriptures. And, because the Bible is so big to most of us, it is a lot easier to accept, or go with the flow with others, rather than to research for ourselves.

The tragedy that is created by this is the hard opposition that rises up out of it against the truth that is in the Holy Bible itself. There is one thing that God's people need to always remember and that is that God always keeps his promises. In Bible prophecy the teachers have forgotten the most basic of promises and when they do remember, they fail to put it into God's plan of salvation.

It all began with Gods' promise to Abraham in Genesis 12:2-3:

What most of us fail to realize while reading these scriptures is the significance of the blessing and cursing that is in this promise. It is easy to see that because of New Testament scripture, Jesus is the way God intended to bless the nations. Jesus is Abraham's promised seed. And, because Israel had been so blinded and had so venomously rejected Jesus as Messiah, we have mistakenly thought that their actions had some how annulled God's Word, concerning our treatment of Israel.

Nations have risen and fallen because of Abraham's promise. Sometimes people think that God has failed to keep His Word when they observe the Jews being mistreated. But, we must remember that God is slow to wrath. It took God four hundred years to bring judgment upon Egypt for it's treatment of Israel. And, even after bringing great destruction upon the Egyptians, God felt that He owed a debt to Egypt because Israel had lived in their land. God never forgets a promise. (Deuteronomy 23:7-8)

Without considering the Abrahamic promise, we fail to see the broader scope of Bible prophecy. While reading scriptures concerning prophecy, did you ever wonder how such a loving God could allow someone as wicked as the Antichrist to ever rise in power? Did you? Well, the answer is found in God's word, rather than through speculation. The promise of blessing and cursing associated with the treatment of Israel is the very reason the Antichrist is coming to power. God has always brought judgment on nations for mistreating the Jews but the Antichrist will be the final act of judgment on the nations that despise Israel. The final blessing on the nations that treat Jews well, will be salvation and deliverance from sin. JESUS! He is the blessing and the resurrection from the dead.

The promise given to Abraham of blessings and cursings has become a test for the nations. I know that most of the Church has no idea of the importance of this. The Jews have been scattered into the earth and everywhere they go the promise of blessing and cursing goes with them. Did God intend for this to be a test? I believe He did, and it will eventually be the reason that God either destroys or rescues the people in these countries. Some people may say that it is unfair to be put to a test without prior knowledge, but this promise is clearly stated in the Bible. God'sWord is sure. It does not return to Him void. It is our choice to believe it or reject it.

In Jeremiah 23:1-4, Jeremiah 25:34-38; and Micah 5:5, God compares the nations in which Israel has been scattered to shepherds or pastors. It makes a lot of sense when you think about it. Every government in the world is responsible for the people who live there. God is holding all nations accountable for their treatment of the Jews. This is what God says to these nations in Jeremiah 23:1-2:

God is promising to curse these nations, but God also promised to raise up other nations who will care for the Jews. In Jeremiah 23:3-4, God says:

The United States was the first nation in the world to reach the Jews with equal justice. We are also the most powerful nation in the world because of it, but the final judgment on our nation has not come yet. It will come during the time of the end when God will pour out His Spirit and save our land. But the nations that have mistreated Israel will be brought into final judgment, the curse, the Antichrist. This man will terrorize these nations and do everything he can possibly do to prevent these nations from accepting Jesus as their Saviour. Because of God's mercy, He will send evangelists to these people, but they will kill them. Even then, His hand will be outstretched to save, even in wrath He will be merciful. The Antichrist will be a stumbling stone (the curse) and whoever takes his mark will be eternally lost.

In Isaiah 49:25-26, God says:

In these scriptures God is promising to contend with the nations that oppress Israel and that they will suffer death because of it. He will send the Antichrist to oppress them.

In Jeremiah 25:31, God says:

He says in verse 34:

Once again we see God calling nations "shepherds", and He is declaring their judgment because of their treatment of Israel.

Verse 38:

This oppressor will be the Antichrist. In Daniel we will see this once again. Notice that this verse in Jeremiah says that their land will be desolate because of the oppressor. In Daniel 9:26, God gives us more insight on this point. And, because I don't want you to lose your thought on this desolation issue, I will only explain a portion of this verse. In part it says:

This is what God is telling us. He is saying that the Antichrist, this prince, is going to invade Israel and this will cause a war. During this war, nations will be made desolate because God has made judgment and determined which ones should be desolate!

Remember Jeremiah 25:38:

This "prince" in Daniel is the same oppressor. Daniel reveals more about this desolation in Daniel 9:27:

In order to understand this desolation we must go back to what Jesus said in Matthew 23:37-39:

Here we are able to clearly see what God is saying about desolation. The word "desolation" to God means unfruitful or barren. It means nations with unsaved people living in them. Nations who are unable to accept Jesus as Savior. To understand this we must see nations the way God sees nations. He pictures them as women who are being impregnated with the seed, the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It is placed there by the preaching of it. If a nation hears and bares children then she is not a desolate woman. In Israel if a woman was barren, she was consider to be desolate. This is why the Antichrist is the abomination that maketh desolate. He will prevent nations from accepting the Gospel and being saved.

Matthew 24:15:

In order to understand, let's go back to Daniel 9:27. The scripture says that he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week. This week is a week of years, actually a total of seven years. He confirms the covenant, notice it does not say that he is the leader of world peace or a one-world government, or a new-world order, or any of those things. He simply agrees to this seven-year treaty along with everyone else. It says that in the midst of this week of years, he does something that will cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations, he shall make it desolate.

II Thessalonians 2:3-4 says:

This occurs in the middle of the week, or 3 1/2 years after the signing of the treaty. This act is the abomination that maketh desolate.

Daniel 11:31:

In these scriptures we begin to see what Revelation 13 is talking about. It says they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate. They are the people and armies that follow after him. They exalt him and declare him to be God. This is the abomination that makethdesolate. There is not a doubt that this man will claim to be God and his people will exalt him in the temple in Jerusalem. This is the abomination that will prevent nations from coming to Jesus. They will remain desolate, which means very few people will become Christians in these nations and if they do, the Antichrist will kill them. This is also one of the abominations that maketh desolate. God gives the nations that are already desolate, an oppressor because of their hatred for Israel, in order to prevent their salvation when the Gospel goes across the earth in the last seven years of this world. He is the curse on the nations that have cursed Israel, and becomes a stumbling stone to the salvation of those countries. But the nations who have been good to the Jews will be blessed by Abraham's promise of salvation through Jesus Christ!

This oppressor of nations will come to Israel, but God will help Israel to escape. He will then bring great oppression to all of the desolate countries around Israel. Israel's enemies! God has already brought this inability to come to Christ by allowing them to believe in a false God created by Mohammed! This is already astumbling stone to prevent them and their generations from receiving Christ. God is not willing that any man should perish, but His promise to Abraham cannot be broken to people or nations. Many people believe that the Muslims worship the same God as Abraham. Even the Muslims themselves believe it. But, the God that Mohammed created in the Koran is not the same God that Abraham worshipped. He would never command anyone to kill Christians and Jews. The true God of Abraham is commanding them to reject Mohammed and accept Jesus but they will not hear it.

The Lord will still save a remnant of people out of these countries because of the prayers of the Christians who pray for them. We must remember that God placed a stumbling stone in front of Israel and put them in partial blindness because of their sins against Him. They and their children have been going to hell for the past 2,000 years over His word! Do you suppose that He will keep His word with Israel, but doesn't intend to keep His word with us because we are Gentiles? I DON'T THINK SO!

The last seven years of the earth as we know it will be a judgment on all the nations of the world. We have been unable until now to see what this judgment is about. Because we mistakenly thought that the seven-year tribulation period was judgment brought on man for not receiving Christ, or a penalty for sin, we were blinded from the truth. That judgment will follow for sure, and every man will give account, but the seven-year tribulation is not that judgment. This period is not about who has received Christ, but about who will receive Him, and be saved.

Picture it like this: You own a business, and for some reason you have to close. Maybe to retire or possibly to move to a new address. In any event, you are shutting down. When you do this you realize, of course, that you will have to settle all of your accounts. You will pay your debts and collect from the people who owe you before closing the books. You realize that you can't leave these accounts open forever, you must close NOW. It's over.

God is doing the same thing. He is bringing everything to an end. He is slow to wrath, but since the end is near, He must settle His account and pay His debts, and settle with those who owe Him. He will begin with the nations that were good to the Jews, by bringing great revival and salvation to their nations. During this time, out of these nations, He will raise up seven nations (shepherds- Micah 5:5) to defend Israel. Israel will be saved and return the favor by taking the Gospel, with great zeal.

Matthew 23:14:

But the nations who have hated Israel will be given an oppressor who will blind them through deceit, simply because they received not the love of the truth (II Thessalonians 2:9-12). Unable to receive Christ, they will oppose Him until Armageddon, at which time they will be destroyed. God brought judgment on Europe and parts of Asia because of their hatred for the Jews by giving them three men to lead them to death. Hitler, Mussolini, and Stalin. Millions died! He also used this to bring an end to His judgment on Israel. But this time He will use one man instead of three who will bring the final oppression and desolation to the nations that hate Israel. He will prevent their salvation and cause their eventual destruction. The rapture of the Church will occur right before this happens at Armageddon.

The Antichrist will only conquer one fourth of the world. The Holy Spirit will be poured out in a great measure in order to save the Jews. While this is happening, God will bring great Revival to the world. It will cause the warfare between good and evil to become stronger and stronger. The good get better and the wicked become more wicked, only to end at the battle of Armageddon, with the wicked being destroyed by Jesus. The Antichrist will not be the leader of world peace, but will simply be one of Israel's old enemies. The only one world government we will see during this event is the Kingdom that Jesus brings with Him from Heaven. Then, there will be a one world government.