June 27 – July 3, 2010

1. Weekly World Watch Andy Walton’s June 27 – July 3, 2010 “If the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet to warn the people and the sword comes and takes the life of one of them, that man will be taken away because of his sin, but I will hold the watchman accountable for his blood.” (Ezekiel 33:6, New International Version) To skip the introductory slides and go straight to this weeks developments click here.

2. What is a Weekly World Watch? The idea is simple. It is to look at current events and compare them to events spoken of in the Bible. . I hope to build up a picture of God’s hand working in the affairs of this world. God is bringing about a day when all nations will be gathered to Jerusalem to battle. At that time God will send His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, back to this earth. Jesus will then establish God’s kingdom on earth. This kingdom will last for ever. This is our hope and the reason we watch. The following six themes will appear repeatedly in WWW: • Israel: The continuing conflict in the Middle East and focus on Jerusalem. • Europe: Its developing union, both political and religious. • Russia: Its return to anti-Western ways as Bible prophecy’s “king of the north.” • The UK and the US: Bible prophecy’s “king of the south.” • Moral standards in decline and violence on the increase. • Increasing natural disasters: including earthquake, famine etc WWW presentations in PowerPoint can be ordered as audio/visual CDs by clicking here. Move your mouse to place the cursor on the blue link and click.

3. BIBLE QUOTE What is in a Weekly World Watch? Each WWW looks at a few key developments that have happened during the past week. It is in no way meant to be exhaustive – just a look at those events I saw as significant from a Biblical point of view. Every WWW event slide has the following format. To reveal each block of text just left click your mouse or press the space bar. You control when it appears. News Photo This is straight from a news report that caught my eye because it looked significant from a Biblical perspective, usually that of prophecy. HEADLINE The source of the headline and the date are included. This is the reporter’s description of the event. It is always a direct quotation from the news report and reflects the understanding of the reporter and editors. EVENT This is my comment on why the event is interesting to a Bible student. The intention of the WWW is to offer brief Biblical perspectives without going into detail. If more detail is desired, please e-mail me: (andy@weeklyworldwatch.co.uk). COMMENT This is normally one verse which backs up why the event that has occurred is interesting from a Biblical perspective. Please read in its context. Unless stated otherwise, all quotes are from the King James Version.(Book, chapter, and verse)

4. This Week’s Developments June 27 – July 3, 2010 • Russia angry as U.S. seeks to limit spy fallout • Iran arms Syria with radar • Lieberman: No chance for a Palestinian state • Russian FM: It's important to talk to Hamas • Pope launches team to 're-evangelise' the West • UK vows to extend hand to neglected allies To print any of the event slides that follow, click the picture on the upper right

5. And at the time of the end shall the king of the south push at him: and the king of the north shall come against him like a whirlwind, The “push” is by the king of the south against the king of the north. This maybe part of the provocation. . Russia angry as U.S. seeks to limit spy fallout Reuters, June 29, 2010 Moscow on Tuesday angrily rejected allegations by Washington that it had cracked an undercover Russian spy ring but U.S. officials said the Cold War-style cloak and dagger saga would not undermine a thaw in relations. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said U.S. police who arrested 10 suspected spies in four cities in the eastern the United States on Sunday had gone "out of control". "I hope that all the positive gains that have been achieved in our relationship will not be damaged by the recent event," Putin told visiting ex-U.S. President Bill Clinton in Moscow. The Russian Foreign Ministry said those arrested in the United States were Russians and the charges against them were baseless. In Washington, administration officials said the case would not set back President Barack Obama's drive to "reset" ties with Russia, one of the signature diplomatic initiatives of his administration. EVENT Last week they were “friends”… for a day – this week the Cold War is back! President Barack Obama last week took Russian President Dmitry Medvedev to his favourite hamburger joint, which turned out to be just blocks from the Arlington, Va., apartment building where one of the alleged Russian secret agents lived. Putin said that these arrests were “in the spirit of the Cold War-era”. The timing of these arrests has stunned many observers coming after last weeks “successful” meeting. Why launch such provocative arrests the following week? We can only speculate. What we do know for certain is that God has foretold a king of the north (Russia) versus king of the south (America based in Saudi Arabia) battle. The king of the south “pushes” at the king of the north and provokes him…. to war… COMMENT BIBLE QUOTE (Daniel 11:40)

6. The burden of Damascus. Behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap…. And in that day it shall come to pass, that the glory of Jacob shall be made thin Note how Jacob (Israel) is made thin (languish, made low, impoverished) in the day Syria is destroyed. Iran arms Syria with radar Wall Street Journal, June 30, 2010 System Could Help Tehran Dodge Israeli Strike; a Blow to U.S. Strategy on Damascus Iran has sent Syria a sophisticated radar system that could threaten Israel's ability to launch a surprise attack against Iran's nuclear facilities, say Israeli and U.S. officials, extending an alliance aimed at undermining Israel's military dominance in the region. The radar could bolster Syria's defences by providing early warning of Israeli air-force sorties. It could also benefit Hezbollah, the Iran-backed militant group based in Lebanon and widely believed to receive arms from Syria. Any sharing of radar information by Syria could increase the accuracy of Hezbollah's own missiles and bolster its air defences. That would boost Hezbollah defences, which U.S. and Israeli officials say have been substantially upgraded since 2006, the last time Israel fought the southern Lebanon-based group. The mid-2009 transfer was described in recent months by two Israeli officials, two U.S. officials and a Western intelligence source, and confirmed Wednesday by the Israeli military. Officials described it as part as a dramatic increase in weapons transfers and military coordination among Iran, Syria and Hezbollah. EVENT These radar systems were transferred last year to Syria but have only been confirmed this week. We are seeing the continued preparation for conflict between Israel and Syria. It is possibly a future conflict we have not looked for as it is not mentioned in Ezekiel 38, Daniel or Revelation etc. However it IS a conflict that will occur and will almost certainly come BEFORE the Gogian invasion. It is a conflict that Israel will briefly win but at a terrible cost. It will leave Israel weakened and prone to the next invasion - from Russia and her allies. We refer to Isaiah 17 that has never been fully fulfilled. It will be – and possibly soon. COMMENT BIBLE QUOTE (Isaiah 17:1,4)

7. And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it. Lieberman: Absolutely no chance for a Palestinian state within next two years Haaretz, June 29, 2010 Foreign Minister slams Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov over Moscow's contacts with Hamas, as the two officials meet in Jerusalem. An independent Palestinian State is not a possibility in the next two years, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said following a meeting with Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov in Jerusalem on Tuesday. "There is absolutely no chance of reaching a Palestinian state before the year 2012," Lieberman said, adding that "one can dream and imagine, but we are far from reaching an agreement.“ An apparent disagreement broke out between Lieberman and Lavrov during their meeting in Jerusalem over Moscow's increased efforts to include Hamas in Mideast peace talks. EVENT There was no meeting of minds between Israeli and Russian Foreign ministers in Jerusalem this week. In a statement afterwards Lieberman, Israel’s Foreign minister made it absolutely clear that an independent Palestinian State is not on the table. It’s been a week of difficulties for Lieberman. At Mr Obama's behest, secret talks took place in Brussels on Wednesday between Israel and Turkey. Lieberman was not told of these talks and because of this he vent his fury with the Israeli prime minister on Israeli airwaves. This has struck a blow to the fragile unity of Mr Netanyahu's unwieldy government. Netanyahu is reliant on the support of Lieberman's coalition party. As we near the end tensions will continue to rise between governments. Jerusalem will become an increasingly intractable, unsolvable and immovable problem. We know how it will end. Israel isolated, then surrounded, almost annihilated but then saved by Christ. COMMENT BIBLE QUOTE (Zechariah 12:3)

8. After many days thou shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: …..Thou shalt ascend and come like a storm, Russian FM: It's important to talk to Hamas Ynet news, June 29, 2010 Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Tuesday that his country was doing the right thing in its direct talks with the Hamas organization. "Yes, we are holding talks with Hamas – because it was elected by a large Palestinian majority in free elections, according to all elements," Lavrov said in a joint press conference with his Israeli counterpart, Avigdor Lieberman, at the King David Hotel in Jerusalem. "Nonetheless," he added. "In all our talks with Hamas we try to convince our colleagues to move to the diplomatic route, to draw nearer to the PLO's stand and support the Arab peace initiative." He also hinted that "we are witnessing positive movements. If we take the economic development in Gaza as an example," he explained, "without direct talks with Hamas this issue will not be advanced. It's not a simple process, but it must be done." Lieberman addressed the remark, saying that "the policy towards Hamas is one of the points we and Russia disagree on. EVENT This is the other part of the conversation Lieberman had with Lavrov. Russia is one of the very few nations that is prepared to talk to Hamas. It is recognised as a terrorist organisation. In fact in recent times Hamas leadership has been welcomed in Russia much to Israel’s dismay. Hamas wants Russia involved. Hamas believes Russia is on their side and has the clout to make Israel listen. It was following several visits by Hamas that Russia began to get far more involved in the Palestinian v Israel conflict. The Bible says that Russia would be visited. See verse below. The word “visit” means to be “sought after”, “looked for”, “needed”. After the visits and the requests for assistance Russia then comes into the land – like a storm… COMMENT BIBLE QUOTE (Ezekiel 38:8,9)

9. So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman[False religion of Rome] sit upon a scarlet coloured beast [Europe], full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. The word “sit” means to “abide” or “have a fixed abode” Pope launches team to 're-evangelise' the West Daily Telegraph, June 29, 2010 The Pope launched a team to stem the secularisation of Catholic countries and "re-evangelise" the West. Benedict XVI announced the creation of a new Vatican department dedicated to tackling what he called "a grave crisis in the sense of the Christian faith and the role of the Church." He expressed deep concerns that previously staunch Catholic countries in Europe and North America were facing "the eclipse of a sense of God". Tens of thousands of worshippers are deserting the Church over issues such as clerical sex abuse and the ban on married priests. "I have decided to create a new body with the aim of promoting a renewed evangelism," in countries that are going through "progressive secularisation of society", the 83-year-old Pope said. The new department, to be called The Pontifical Council for New Evangelisation, will try to reinvigorate belief among Catholics in rich, developed countries – or, in the pontiff's words, "find the right means to re-propose the perennial truth of the Gospel." EVENT The Catholic church is in trouble. The sex abuse scandals are causing enormous fall-out. As one commentator on the Vatican put it ”The Vatican is facing one of its gravest crises of modern times as sex abuse scandals move ever closer to Pope Benedict XVI — threatening not only his own legacy but also that of his revered predecessor” So her answer is to come out fighting. Convert the West. Setup a renewed evangelism. The woman of Revelation 17 will continue to steer the political beast of Europe ever more forcefully. Only Christ’s return will remove her from her position of power. COMMENT BIBLE QUOTE (Revelation 17:3)

10. For the king had at sea a navy of Tarshish with the navy of Hiram: once in three years came the navy of Tarshish, bringing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks. . UK vows to extend hand to neglected allies Associated Press, June 30, 2010 The peacock is the National Bird of the Indian subcontinent. British Foreign Secretary William Hague vowed Thursday to woo allies left neglected in London's rush to cozy up to the White House, promising a sweeping overhaul of the country's "patchy" foreign policy. In a first major speech since the country's Conservative-led coalition government took office in May, Hague said he'd reach out to nations who felt snubbed under the Labour government led by Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. Brown and Blair's courting of successive U.S. presidents over 13 years in office had led some links with historic partners "to wither or stagnate" and seen a dramatic fall in Britain's clout in the European Union, Hague said. "I think sometimes British politicians and British leaders have been so preoccupied by those ties, that they have neglected to build the wider relationships in the world," Hague said. "From now on we will not neglect the wider world.“ Countries including India and the Gulf states have claimed that Britain only came calling in times of global crisis — or when they needed to secure a key U.N. vote, he said. EVENT Britain is once more looking globally. It is interesting to note the places where she is most interested. India and the Gulf States. This is remarkable because the Bible tells us that ancient Britain (Tarshish) traded with a nation that sold them peacocks and apes. This was almost certainly India. We also know of the link between Britain and the Gulf states as Ezekiel 38 mentions Sheba and Dedan (Gulf States) in the same breath as the MERCHANTS (traders) of Tarshish (Britain). William Hague is therefore aligning British foreign policy to the very nations God said Britain would be aligned to! Britain is looking away from Europe especially and out into the wider world. COMMENT BIBLE QUOTE (1 Kings 10:22)

11. Weekly World Watch The end of this week’s WWW will be e-mailed to you each week. Please forward the e-mail addresses of others who may be interested. I will include them in the list of recipients. Comments and suggestions for improvement are welcome. E-MAIL ANDY Click here (Move the mouse until the cursor appears.) To watch again, click here.