In Russia, the Kremlin leadership is meeting to finalize a war plan which would take advantage of the chaos in the West. The military leaders present their two-pronged offensive plan, whereby two Russian army groups will advance along separate tracks, and meet in the mountains of Jordan east of Israel. From there they will invade Israel with the ultimate objective being the capture of Jerusalem. The whole operation should take no more than one week. President Zhukov gives his final agreement to the bold plan. Time is of the essence. The world is in chaos. The invasion is set to begin in 48 hours.
Two days later Russian military forces are detected by US satellites heading toward the Middle East. They are in two columns driving southward at great speed. President Antivon puts the US military on high alert.
While their forces are driving through southern Russia, the two Russian Army Group commanders review their plan for taking their objective, which is Jerusalem:
Gen. Ivanov: "My forces will drive through northern Syria, while you drive through Iran and southern Syria. This will confuse the West regarding our intentions. We will meet at Damascus, then push south together to Amman, Jordan, where we will cross into Israel toward Jerusalem."
Gen. Kokoff: "With the West in confusion, Israel should be an easy target for us. I'll see you at Damascus."
In Washington DC, President Antivon and staff discuss the massing of Russian forces in southern Russia. President Antivon: "What are they planning? They obviously think the crisis of the Vanishment will allow them to take advantage of the chaos in the world. But we need to wait and see what move they make before we do anything."
US Military Commander: "The Russians are planning something big. They appear to be highly focused on the Middle East, and Israel in particular. Their forces are not massing along their southern border, they are moving fast and intend to keep going. We have intercepted a large number of communications discussing Israel. I would expect an invasion to their south any day now."
President Antivon: "We will take a wait and see approach. I cannot act now since their intentions are unclear." The Joint Chiefs suggest there should be movement of US naval vessels into the eastern Mediterranean. President Antivon agrees.
The following day two Russian Army Groups depart from southern Russia headed farther south by separate routes. Within two days they have merged their forces and are passing through Jordan east of Israel. They are moving rapidly without resistance. Just as they turn west and head through the mountains toward Israel the skies turn a ghostly gray, with swirling clouds tinged with red streaks. Suddenly, fiery hail begins to fall. Large burning boulders streak across the sky and fall directly on the Russian forces. The tanks and armored vehicles leading the military column through the mountains are crushed and burn as if they were plastic toys. Thousands of troops who were behind them but still in the plains are screaming in unison as they burn to death. The Russian forces are quickly wiped out. After only half an hour, a scene of burned-out wreckage of war machines and countless dead and burned bodies are everywhere. No one escaped alive. But most of the supplies were spared, including a large amount of food, dozens of fuel trucks, and an enormous amount of other materiel and supplies.
Israeli news media reports the incident as a stunning destruction of the invading Russian forces trying to invade Israel. It is reported as a freak weather event, although the fiery hail and boulders from the sky cannot be explained.
In Jerusalem the group of new Jewish believers led by Shem Kolb has expanded at an incredible rate. What started as just a couple dozen new believers has now bloomed to 144,000 in just one week. Shem, the leader of these 144,000 new Jewish believers, is meeting with the core group while the rest are listening online. He reads from the book "The Future Times" to explain what has just happened:
"One of the very first wars during the Tribulation is described in Ezekiel Chapter 39 where the King of the North and his allies attack Israel. This is not the Armageddon campaign, which will occur seven years from now at the end of the Tribulation.
Ezekiel 39:2 “I will bring you [King of the North] from the far north and send you against the mountains of Israel. 3 Then I will strike your bow from your left hand and make your arrows drop from your right hand. 4 On the mountains of Israel you will fall, you and all your troops and the nations with you. I will give you as food to all kinds of carrion birds and to the wild animals. 5 You will fall in the open field, for I have spoken, declares the Sovereign Lord... I will make known my holy name among my people Israel.”
The King of the North sees an opportunity to attack Israel shortly after the Rapture has caused massive disruption on the earth, especially among those nations supporting Israel. During the Ezekiel 39 battle the King of the North will be soundly defeated in the mountains of Israel as God Himself rains down fire from Heaven on the enemy army, which then retreats in defeat."
Shem pauses from reading to explain the significance. "You see how these events occurred exactly as the Prophet Ezekiel said it would be, and this was well over 2500 years ago. And listen to the reason this has occurred. This books explains that Israel will need the remnants of the war machines to survive the next seven years:"
"There are several reasons this war must occur very early during the Tribulation. First, Israel will burn the weapons of the defeated army for fuel for seven years, which puts the battle at the very beginning of the Tribulation. Ezekiel 39:9 “Then those who live in the towns of Israel will go out and use the weapons for fuel and burn them up—the small and large shields, the bows and arrows, the war clubs and spears. For seven years they will use them for fuel. The inhabitants of Israel are given this extra fuel because the Tribulation will be a time of economic disaster, so the Jews in Israel will need the fuel and supplies for survival during that seven year period.
The second reason this war occurs during the early part of the Tribulation is because it is one of two miraculous events which will be used by God to cause Jews to lose their blindness toward Jesus Christ as Savior, resulting in many Jews being saved early in the Tribulation. The Rapture is the first event, as discussed by the Apostle Paul in Romans 11:25: “Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in.” Then shortly after the Rapture the Ezekiel 39 war occurs and God gives Israel a miraculous deliverance from the huge army of the King of the North who attacks during the time of chaos caused by the Rapture. If not for this miraculous deliverance, Israel would be destroyed. When discussing this war Ezekiel 39:22 says: “From that day forward the people of Israel will know that I am the Lord their God.” This shows how the divine deliverance from certain disaster changes the view of many Jews toward Jesus Christ, resulting in them becoming believers in large numbers.
Recall that a main purpose of the Tribulation is to bring many Jews to salvation so they will go into the Millennial Kingdom. Then later in the same Chapter Ezekiel 39:27 says: “When I have brought them back from the nations and have gathered them from the countries of their enemies, I will be proved holy through them in the sight of many nations.” Note the “When I have brought them back” describes the restoration of Israel as a future event which will occur seven years later at the end of the Tribulation, which further identifies the timing of this war. Furthermore, the Ezekiel 39 war cannot occur before the Rapture since no prophetic event of the Old Testament can occur during the Church Age since the Church was not allowed to be revealed until Israel formally rejected Jesus Christ and His Kingdom (Millennium). Jesus had to legitimately offer the Kingdom to Israel but could not have done so if there was any Church Age prophecy which must be fulfilled. There is no prophecy to be fulfilled during the Church Age except for the Rapture itself, and this war is an Old Testament prophesy which has not yet occurred, and cannot occur until the Tribulation has begun.
The King of the North will pay a terrible price, suffering a devastating loss of people and equipment which will keep him out of the political and military picture until late in the Tribulation when he attacks the King of the West."
Shem adds after reading from the book: "It is all just as was written about in Ezekiel 39, and has been explained in this book written long ago. Let us go out to the mountains and see for ourselves."
At the same time a Rabbi from northern Israel who recently converted to Christianity is being interviewed on Israeli TV:
Reporter: "Rabbi Cohen, what is the significance of the defeat of the Russian forces in the mountains of Jordan?"
Rabbi Cohen: "We have seen the protection of our nation by God Himself alone, as Ezekiel 39 explains. This is a day of great celebration of God's victory over our enemies. Truly our Messiah will return in less than seven years from now, and then we will go into a Millennium where the Lord Himself will rule for 1000 years. For now, the King of the North has been dealt a mortal blow. But the forces of the Antichrist are coming for us in the near future. We must prepare. Time is short."