October 11 - 24 , 2015

“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)

Weekly World Watch

Andy Walton’s

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What is a Weekly World Watch?

• 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.

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.

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.

• Increasing natural disasters: including earthquake, famine etc

The following six themes will appear repeatedly in WWW:

HEADLINE

EVENT

COMMENT

News Photo

The source of the headline and the date are included.

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.

What is in a Weekly World Watch?

BIBLEQUOTE

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)

This is straight from a news report that caught my eye because it looked significant from a Biblical perspective, usually that of prophecy.

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.

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.

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). Please note that these are personal thoughts and the aim is purely to stimulate Bible study.

This Week’s Developments

To print any of the event slides that follow, click the picture on the upper rightPRESS SPACE BAR TO CONTINUE

• Israel: clashes continue as diplomats push for peace

• Israel rejects international troops on Temple Mount

• Assad praises Putin during surprise talks in Moscow

• Russia retreats to autarky as poverty looms

• What Hitler and the Grand Mufti really said

October 11 - 24, 2015

• Hurricane Patricia 'strongest storm on record'

Stone-throwing Palestinians clashed with Israeli soldiers in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and in the Gaza Strip during "Day of Rage" protests on Friday while diplomats tried to end more than three weeks of bloodshed. John Kerry, US secretary of state, said he was cautiously optimistic there was a way to defuse tensions after holding four hours of talks with Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, in Berlin on Thursday. Police said Friday prayers there ended quietly. But in the West Bank and Gaza, Palestinian medical officials said 45 people were wounded by gunfire, including a 13-year-old critically injured near Ramallah and three photographers near the Gaza border. Earlier, a 16-year-old Palestinian stabbed and wounded an Israeli soldier in the West Bank, before being shot and wounded by other troops, the Israeli military said.

Daily Telegraph, October 23, 2015

EVENT

COMMENT

Thus saith the Lord God; Remove the diadem, and take off the crown: this shall not be the same: exalt him that is low, and abase him that is high. I will overturn, overturn, overturn, it: and it shall be no more, until he come whose right it is; and I will give it him. Notice 3 overturns (destructions) of Jerusalem – then Christ is given the crown.

BIBLEQUOTE

It’s been years since we have seen such violence in the streets of Israel. More than 50 Palestinians, half of them assailants, have been shot dead by Israelis at the scene of attacks or during protests in the West Bank and Gaza since October 1. Nine Israelis have been stabbed or shot dead by Palestinians. So why the violence now?The main reason the Palestinians give is that Israel (they say) is planning to change the status of Temple Mount. Non Muslims are actually banned from praying on Temple Mount and Israel still recognises this. The peace quartet met in Vienna this week to discuss this and in a statement afterwards they called on Israel "to work together with Jordan to uphold the status quo at the holy sites in Jerusalem in both word and practice". The Bible speaks of Jerusalem becoming the centre of worldwide conflict. There have been two previous complete destructions of Jerusalem. 586BC and AD70. We are told a third destruction is coming and then Christ will be crowned as king.

Israel: clashes continue as diplomats push for peace

(Ezekiel 21:26-27)

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Israel rejects international troops on Temple Mount

Deputy Ambassador to the UN, David Ruth, attended an emergency Security Council meeting Friday evening regarding the deteriorating security situation in Israel, saying that the Jewish State would not agree to the presence of international forces on Jerusalem's Temple Mount. Israel's newly appointed ambassador Danny Danino was not present for the meeting as he will only officially begin his new duties on Wednesday, but said before the meeting, "Israel is committed to maintaining the status quo, and does not agree to the deployment of international forces to the Temple Mount, which will only violate the status quo that has prevailed for decades.”The emergency meeting came amid increasing violence between Israelis and Palestinians who have accused authorities of trying to take over the Temple Mount and prevent Muslims from praying there.

Times of Israel, October 16, 2015

EVENT

COMMENT

I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.

BIBLEQUOTE

(Joel 3:2)

Far from Israel trying to change the status of Temple Mount the opposite in fact is true. The Palestinians are trying to do this in three ways. All developing this week…

Firstly Abbas (the Palestinian leader) wants complete control over Jewish visitors to the Mount (headline…“PA demands full Muslim oversight over Jewish visitors to Temple Mount”, Times of Israel, October 22, 2015). Secondly, he wants an international force to patrol for him on the Temple Mount (headline, “U.N. issues summary of protection forces as Palestinians requested”, Reuters, October 21, 2015). Thirdly they are trying to reclassify the Western Wall as a Muslim site within the al Aqsa Mosque complex. (headline “US opposes proposal to reclassify Western Wall”, Jerusalem Post October 20, 2015). We see the world becoming suddenly focussed on

Temple Mount and Jerusalem. It is a sign we are nearing the end..

Assad praises Putin during surprise talks in Moscow

President Vladimir Putin and Syria’s dictator exchanged beaming handshakes and vowed to continue their joint military campaign when Bashar al-Assad made a surprise appearance in Moscow. For the first time since the onset of Syria’s civil war in 2011, Assad felt confident enough to leave his country. He flew to Moscow on board a Russian military aircraft to meet Mr Putin on Tuesday night, returning to Damascus by the time the Kremlin announced his visit on Wednesday. The meeting came three weeks after Mr Putin sent the Russian air force into action to support Assad’s regime in Syria. Before this operation began on Sept 30, Assad had suffered a series of military defeats to the point where Mr Putin’s intervention may have saved the dictator from being overthrown. A senior Iranian official also confirmed that “Tehran and Moscow are following a specific unified policy inside Syria”, adding: “The relationship between Tehran and Moscow is a durable one and a continuing one.”

Daily Telegraph, October 21,2015

EVENT

COMMENT

The fortress also shall cease from Ephraim, and the kingdom from Damascus, and the remnant of Syria: they shall be as the glory of the children of Israel, saith the LORD of hosts.Woe to the multitude of many people, which make a noise like the noise of the seas; and to the rushing of nations, that make a rushing like the rushing of mighty waters! Verse 4 speaks of Syria coming to an end. Verse 12 is Russia coming down

Putin is continuing to increase his support for Assad while at the same time saying there should be talks. Russia is now driving the agenda in Syria while the US and the West look on not knowing how to counteract this. America remains firm that there is no future for Assad. "We view the red carpet welcome for Assad, who has used chemical weapons against his own people, at odds with the stated goal by the Russians for a political transition in Syria," White House spokesperson told reporters. The headlines this week said that America “poured scorn on this visit” and was “angered by it”.We see here the new king of the north (Russia) supporting the original king of the north. Russia will completely replace Syria as king of the north when Syria is destroyed.

BIBLEQUOTE

(Isaiah 17:4+12)

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Russia retreats to autarky as poverty looms

Russia is running out of money. President Vladimir Putin is taking a strategic gamble, depleting the Kremlin's last reserve funds to cover the budget and to pay for an escalating war in Syria at the same time. The three big rating agencies have all issued alerts over recent days, warning that the country's public finances are deteriorating fast and furiously. There is no prospect of an oil revival as long as Saudi Arabia continues to flood the market. Russia cannot borrow abroad at a viable cost.Standard & Poor's says the budget deficit will balloon to 4.4pc of GDP this year, including short-falls in local government spending and social security. The government has committed a further $40bn to bailing out the banking system. Russia is pressing ahead with massive rearmament, pushing defence spending towards 5pc of GDP and risking the sort of military overstretch that bankrupted the Soviet Union.

Daily Telegraph, October 18, 2015

EVENT

COMMENT

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, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over. We are still waiting for the push to happen. It is a military provocation by US/UK against Russia

BIBLEQUOTE

So what is happening in Russia and especially in Putin’s mind? Is the venture into Syria connected to the collapse of Russia’s wealth with falling oil / gas prices?One report this week suggested the following. Putin is trying to end crippling sanctions and isolation from the West. So his plan is as follows. He wants Russia and America to work together over Syria. If they are working together militarily how can sanctions remain? So his plan is to create a common enemy which they can fight together. The common enemy is ISIS. But the US is fighting ISIS through rebels in Syria who also want to get rid of Assad. So Putin thinks that if the rebels are destroyed there are then just two options. ISIS or Assad. Russia / America could then join forces to defeat ISIS. Russia is then in from the cold and sanctions are stopped. But this plan fails. The Bible says that America militarily provokes Russia at some point which causes WW3.

(Daniel 11:40)

What Hitler and the Grand Mufti really said

This week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sparked a wave of backlash when he argued that the Holocaust was the brainchild of the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, Haj Amin al-Husseini, who, Netanyahu claimed, suggested killing the Jews (rather than merely expelling them) to Hitler during a 1941 visit to Berlin. As it happens, the full German record of the meeting between al-Husseini and Hitler, on Nov. 28, 1941, was published half a century ago. The Grand Mufti began by thanking the Fuhrer for the great honour he had bestowed by receiving him. The Arabs were Germany’s natural friends because they had the same enemies as had Germany, namely the English, the Jews and the Communists. Therefore they were prepared to cooperate with Germany with all their hearts and stood ready to participate in the war, not only negatively by the commission of acts of sabotage but also positively by the formation of an Arab Legion.

Time, October 22, 2015

EVENT

COMMENT

In the morning thou shalt say, Would God it were even! and at even thou shalt say, Would God it were morning! for the fear of thine heart wherewith thou shalt fear, and for the sight of thine eyes which thou shalt see.

BIBLEQUOTE

(Deuteronomy 28:67 )

The Israeli Prime Minister this week caused a storm by suggesting that the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem back in 1941 persuaded Hitler to “burn” the Jews instead of deporting them. Many have said this is totally wrong because Hitler was going to do this regardless of what this Palestinian religious ruler said. But this somewhat misses the point. The point is that Grand Mufti did support Hitler and what he was trying to do. No doubt Hitler would have done it anyway but Netanyahu is pointing out that even back then BEFORE Israel even existed as a nation the Palestinians were looking for the destruction of the Jews. The fact that the Grand Mufti saw Hitler as an ally and a potential advocate for the Palestinian cause says it all. It was Anti Semitism then and it is growing again in the world. We know the whole world turns against Israel at the end.

Hurricane Patricia 'strongest storm on record'

Hurricane Patricia, the record-breaking category 5 hurricane, rumbled across western Mexico early on Saturday, uprooting trees and triggering some landslides but causing less damage than feared for such a massive storm, officials said.Authorities relocated coastal residents, evacuated tourists from beach hotels and closed sea ports, airports and schools in several states before Patricia made landfall in Jalisco state as a huge category five hurricane.Patricia had grown into the strongest hurricane ever recorded hours before reaching the coast, raising fears that it would bring death and destruction across the country.But almost five hours after landfall, President Enrique Pena Nieto addressed the nation on television, saying that the first reports “confirm that the damages have been smaller than those corresponding to a hurricane of this magnitude.”

Daily Telegraph, October 24, 2015

EVENT

COMMENT

We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies.

BIBLEQUOTE

(Romans 8:22-23)

We keep seeing incredible weather events around the world. This week saw an immense hurricane hit Mexico. Earlier in the year more than 1,200 people died in Pakistan of heatstroke and dehydration as temperatures soared far above 40C and power cuts crippled Karachi. India is recovering from the second deadliest heat wave in the country's history, which had killed 2,500 people a few months ago.A huge storm front that moved through Texas and Oklahoma at the end of May triggered record-breaking rainfall and spawned several tornadoes. Almost 500 people are estimated to have been killed by tornadoes so far this year, mostly in China.All of these are signs we are nearing the end. The physical earth is groaning under the sin of its inhabitants. We know only Jesus Christ returning will put it right.

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They can register on the sitePLEASE NOTE: The Weekly World Watch is written and sent by myself – it is my take on events and I accept that on occasions I will miss significant events

and also misinterpret them as well. However I will endeavour to be faithful to the scriptures and hope that it will be of benefit to both of us.

Weekly World Watch

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