WHO CONQUERS MODERN ISRAEL IN THE END-TIME?


In the United Church of God booklet “The United States and Britain in Bible Prophecy” we read on page 42:

“As Moses delivered the ancient Israelites from Egyptian slavery, Jesus Christ is coming to deliver modern Britain and America and the other Israelite-descended nations from an end-of-the-age subjugation by a modern religious and political system called "Babylon the great" (Revelation 17), centered in Europe.”

To the average person on the street the idea that America could somehow be invaded and taken into captivity seems preposterous yet this has consistently been a part of the Church of God's prophetic message since Mr Armstrong began preaching to the world. In the church's prophetic message we have quoted many verses proving from the Bible that the modern nations descended from Israel will go into captivity in the end-time. Jeremiah 30, verse 3 is probably the favourite proof-text that most people remember from Mr Armstrong's telecasts where it speaks of both Israel and Judah being released from captivity at the time God resurrects David to be their king.

There are plenty of verses proving that modern Israel will be taken captive but the question that I'd like to answer in this article is where is the proof showing who will be the captors of modern day Israel. How do we prove who takes modern day Israel captive?

First of all, let's consider what such a nation would be up against to be able to do this extraordinary feat. America's military superiority is truly astounding. Even without the missile defense system that America hopes to develop they have an astounding capability of withstanding an invasion from any nation. America has many nuclear submarines that can launch over a dozen nuclear missiles and the nuclear arsenal of just one nuclear submarine alone can destroy over 100 major cities with multiple millions of people.

America's Polaris nuclear submarines can, just by sound, detect the incoming presence of a nuclear submarine of other nations half an ocean away. America has underground facilities like the NORAD facility at Cheyenne Mountain that can withstand most aboveground nuclear attacks and still fire its arsenal back if a nuclear nation launched nuclear weapons upon America.

Following the World Trade Center tragedy America also has a backup power structure in the event of an attack which would kill all federal politicians based in Washington D.C. If a nuclear attack from another nation was launched on America, the attacking nation would almost certainly be known and a government power structure would be protected to authorise retaliatory action.

Is America invincible? To most people the idea that a nation or empire could invade and conquer the United States of America is preposterous. But is it really so impossible? When the Titanic set out from England in 1912 on its maiden voyage many people said that the ship was unsinkable. One person was quoted as saying that even God could not sink her but sink she did when she struck an iceberg on her maiden voyage. The great lesson of the sinking of the Titanic is never to be so proud to think of anything human or man-made as unsinkable or invincible. This lesson applies to America as well. Without a major moral course correction God will bring about events that will bring down America and our other Israelite nations.

The ancient Babylonians similarly thought that their city of Babylon was impregnable. The ancient city of Babylon was surrounded by massive double walls. The Babylonians had stored up provisions for many years and could survive a siege indefinitely. When Cyrus' Persian army encamped around the city the Babylonians laughed and feasted. Cyrus, however, had devised an ingenious plan to divert some of the water of the Euphrates that flowed through the city. Under cover of darkness they were able to wade under the gates and into Babylon. Cyrus had also gotten a spy into Babylon to open a set of gates to let the army into the city. The city and empire of Babylon was conquered overnight by Cyrus who God predicted by name two centuries earlier through the prophet Isaiah. There's an old saying “where there's a will there's a way!” If God determines that a nation is to be punished for its sins He will provide an ingenious way, if needed, to discipline them however He needs to.

What proof is there that it will be the coming European superstate led by Germany that will defeat America and Britain? First of all, let's look at Isaiah 10 starting in verse 5:

“Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger and the staff in whose hand is My indignation. I will send him against an ungodly nation, and against the people of My wrath. I will give him charge, to seize the spoil, to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets. Yet he does not mean so, Nor does his heart think so; But it is in his heart to destroy, and cut off not a few nations…(dropping down to verse 12) Therefore it shall come to pass, when the Lord has performed all His work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, that He will say, 'I will punish the fruit of the arrogant heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his hty looks” (Isaiah 10:5-7, 12).

Verse 20 gives us the time frame of this captivity of Israel showing it is at the time of the Great Tribulation: “And it shall come to pass in that day that the remnant of Israel, and such as have escaped of the house of Jacob, will never again depend on him who defeated them, but will depend on the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.”

Now who is Assyria in our modern day? Where did the Assyrians migrate to after the Assyrian empire fell?

Pliny the Elder (23-79 A.D.) in the first century spoke of the "Assyriani" of his day NORTH of the Crimea in Russia (Historia Naturalis, bk. 4, sec. 12). Jerome in the forth century later wrote, "Asshur [who was the ancestor of the Assyrians] also is joined with the tribes [i.e. the migrating Israelite tribes to their west] invading Western Europe ALONG THE RHINE" (Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, ltr. 123, sec. 16).
 
The names of some of Asshur's descendants give some striking clues about the identity of the modern Assyrians. Some of these include: Khatti; Akkadians; Kassites (or Cossaei); and Almani. We can compare these with some of the names of early German tribes in Europe: Hessians (anciently named Khatti - "Germany," Encyclopedia Britannica); Quadians (Latin for Akkadians); the Chauci (same as the Cossaei); and the Allemani (Latin for Almani). Even today the French name for Germany is Allemagne. The descendants of the Assyrians today include the nations of Germany, Austria and the eastern two-thirds of Switzerland that is German-speaking.

In Revelation 18:7-8 we read the following about this Beast power, which is also called Babylon in this chapter because politically and economically it is a continuation of the Babylonian system started at the Tower of Babel:

“In the measure that she glorified herself and lived luxuriously, in the same measure give her torment and sorrow; for she says in her heart, 'I sit as queen, and am no widow, and will not see sorrow.' Therefore her plagues will come in one day—death and mourning and famine. And she will be utterly burned with fire, for strong is the Lord God who judges her.”

In Isaiah 47:5-9 we read a parallel account of this prophecy:

“Sit in silence, and go into darkness, O daughter [i.e. end-time successor] of the Chaldeans [Babylon] for you shall no longer be called the Lady of Kingdoms. I was angry with My people. I have profaned My inheritance, and given them into your hand. You showed them no mercy; on the elderly you laid your yoke very heavily. And you said, 'I shall be a lady forever,' so that you did not take these things to heart, nor remember the latter end of them. Therefore hear this now, you who are given to pleasures, who dwell securely, who say in your heart, 'I am, and there is no one else besides me; [notice what he says next] I shall not sit as a widow, nor shall I know the loss of children'. But these two things shall come to you in a moment, in one day: the loss of children, and widowhood. They shall come upon you in their fullness.”

God in Hosea 11:5 speaking to Ephraim says: "He shall not return to the land of Egypt; But the Assyrian shall be his king, Because they refused to repent. And the sword shall slash in his cities, devour his districts, and consume them…(dropping down to verse 10) They shall walk after the Lord. He will roar like a lion when He roars. Then His sons shall come trembling from the west (not the east like at the time of the Assyrian empire which lay east of the land of Israel). They shall come trembling like a bird from Egypt, like a dove from the land of Assyria and I will let them dwell in their houses,” says the Lord.”
 
In Zechariah 10:9-11 we read: “I will sow them among the peoples, and they shall remember Me in far countries; They shall live, together with their children, and they shall return.  I will also bring them back from the land of Egypt, and gather them from Assyria. I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon, until no more room is found for them. He shall pass through the sea with affliction, and strike the waves of the sea: All the depths of the River shall dry up. Then the pride of the Assyrian shall be brought down.”

The depths of the River drying up for the returning Israelites parallels with the next verse we'll read. If we go over to Isaiah 11 we read of the millennial prophecies about the dwelling with the lamb and the knowledge of the Lord covering the earth as the waters cover the sea and following straight on from that in verses 11 and 12 we read:  
 
"And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea. And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth”. We see here the first place on this list of countries that the modern Israelites will return from at Christ's return is Assyria.

Over in Ezekiel 21:14 God says to Ezekiel: “You therefore, son of man, prophesy, and strike your hands together. The third time let the sword do double damage. It is the sword that slays, the sword that slays the great men, that enters their private chambers.” From history we know that German imperialism led to both the first and second World Wars. The coming World War III will be far more devastating than either World Wars I and II.

The book of Ezekiel was written over 100 years after the House of Israel was taken into captivity by the Assyrians. In Ezekiel 5 and 6 he speaks of a future captivity where a third will die by famine and pestilence, a third by war and a third will be taken captive and that all the cities will be laid waste. In verse 11 of Ezekiel 6 he writes: “Thus says the Lord God: “Pound your fists and stamp your feet, and say, 'Alas, for all the evil abominations of the house of Israel [not Judah]! For they shall fall by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence.”

God's punishment will first come upon Israel and then on the Gentiles (Isaiah 10:5-12). After Christ returns, God will first work with physical Israel and offer them the chance to be spiritual Israelites and then, after they repent, God will open up salvation to the Gentile nations. Israel will become God's model nation and all nations will be blessed because of their example. After Israel fulfils its destiny as God's model nation in the Kingdom of God all nations will likewise repent and become God's chosen peoples (Revelation 17:14)!

The Germans are a wonderful, cultured and very efficient people capable of many great and marvelous things yet they periodically become an aggressive and conquering people. The good news for the German people is that after Jesus Christ returns God will tame this aggressive tendency in the German nature when they are converted and receive God's spirit and they will fully realize their great potential for good.

In Isaiah 19 we read: “In that day Israel will be one of three with Egypt and Assyria—a blessing in the midst of the land, whom the Lord of hosts shall bless, saying, 'Blessed is Egypt [Arabs] My people, and Assyria [Germany] the work of My hands, and Israel My inheritance'”. God truly has a wonderful plan to save all mankind and bring them into His family!