Post by Daniel on Jul 6, 2016 9:51:49 GMT -5
Final Peace Treaty - Key To God's Prophetic Clock
By Tom Olago July 06, 2016
The potential signing of a Middle East peace treaty between Israel and the Palestinians - and by extension the Arab world- would be a highly significant event on God's prophetic calendar.
In this regard, it would almost seem like there is currently some invisible hand influencing the urgency and pressure towards a Middle East peace deal.
On Friday the 3rd of June, the French hosted a meeting of almost 30 foreign ministers, including Secretary of State John F. Kerry, to seek international consensus on a way to move talks forward. Ironically, the primary actors - Israel and Palestine - were not invited.
This fact appears to be a glaring warning to both sides that international frustration at the lack of progress with peace talks has reached a boiling point. Some analysts fear that this could be the beginning of an imposed or 'arm-twisted 'peace upon the parties rather than the parties themselves coming to mutually agreeable terms.
Such a final treaty could actually be signed as soon as November 2016, based on timetable projections, in what observers consider would involve a UN resolution backed by international law compelling Israel and the Palestinians to abide by it.
Easier said than done - after all, there are reasons why similar initiatives have failed repeatedly over the years. One major sticking point has always been the control of Jerusalem. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accepts the two-state solution in principle, but adamantly refuses to re-divide Jerusalem or relinquish Israeli sovereignty over it.
On the other hand, PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas insists that a peace treaty must involve Jerusalem as the Palestinian capital.
Another bone of contention is the proposal to have Israel withdrawing from all the lands it had captured during the 1967 war, including East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights. The land for peace exchange serves as the foundation of the Arab League's peace plan, which was launched in 2002.
That Arab Peace Initiative called for a two-state solution based on an Israeli withdrawal to the pre-1967 armistice lines and making East Jerusalem the Palestinian capital in return for "normal relations in the context of a comprehensive peace with Israel."
That outcome would be a dream come true for the Palestinians - in their eyes a great source of joy and vindication over the hated Jewish people.
But Israel will have none of it, instead laying claim to their own historic ownership of Jerusalem and the need to ensure their own security by retaining militarily strategic lands captured in the 1967 six-day war.
Based on a recent jns.org report, one Likud minister asked Netanyahu what he would do if Arab states were not willing to revise the initiative. "If the Arab states grasp the fact that they need to revise the Arab League proposal according to the changes Israel demands, then we can talk," Netanyahu replied. "But if they bring the proposal from 2002 and define it as 'take it or leave it,' we'll choose to leave it."
Given this long-standing impasse, is there any reason to be optimistic about the chances of a permanent and mutually acceptable truce this time around?
Possibly. One reason is that this time around there will be a presidential election in the U.S. The Obama administration has made clear it supports Israel giving up land for peace but under 'the right conditions'.
One 'right condition' might just include Obama wanting to leave behind a legacy of helping push the peace process forward - or better still, help seal the deal - as one of his last acts in office.
Another potential scenario is that diplomats will go beyond Israeli-Palestinian issues and make it part of a much larger Arab-Israeli peace, encompassing both Palestinians and the Arab League. The allure of peace with the entire Arab world may just be the one thing that would tempt Israel to cross red lines it has vowed never to cross.
The Biblical viewpoint adhered to by many eschatologists predicts a final "peace covenant" based on Daniel 9:27: "And he (the "prince that shall come"; AntiChrist) shall confirm the covenant with many", to which Israel would be a signatory.
The idea of "confirming" suggests guaranteeing or enforcing an existing treaty, one that has already been put forward - such as the Arab Peace Plan. The idea that it involves "many" suggests such a treaty would be much more comprehensive than just the Palestinians. The Arab League represents over 22 countries and would certainly qualify as "many".
The prophet Daniel details several other elements to this treaty, one of them being that it will be for seven years. One analysis of the Bible narrative states that Daniel had a vision from God that foresaw a period of 70 weeks of years in Israel's future history.
After 69 weeks the Messiah is killed, "but not for Himself". Daniel's prophecy then goes into hibernation and the clock stops. It is said that almost 2000 years have gone by and yet there is still one unfulfilled week seven years - determined or allotted to Daniel's people (the Jews) and the Holy city (Jerusalem) before the end comes.
According to another common interpretation of Bible prophecy, the countdown of the final week of years will resume when the Antichrist signs a seven-year peace agreement or covenant with Israel. From that point, there are exactly seven years left before the end of the great Tribulation and the end of the world.
This will be the time known as Daniel's 70th week, which is also described at great length in the Book of Revelation. Will the upcoming treaty currently in the works involve a seven-year timetable?
Whatever the exact timing, Scripture reveals that the eventual peace treaty that is signed will only be a temporary peace, leading to the deadliest time on earth that man has ever known.
According to Jesus Own words, "For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be." (Matthew 24.21)
Is the recent French-led initiative going to culminate in the Biblically prophesied peace treaty? Potentially - but no matter what form the final treaty will take, it is noteworthy that PA Chairman Abbas wants a specific time frame for implementation. This could well be a reason for the seven-year time-bound scenario.
One concession that Israel would almost certainly push for as part of any final agreement would be to achieve their long-held desire to build the Third Temple. The Temple must also be rebuilt as the AntiChrist will desecrate it at some point during the Great Tribulation period (II Thessalonians 2:4).
The challenge is how that could possibly be done in a manner that would be acceptable to the predominantly Muslim Arab world. Muslims consider the Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa mosque - both of which sit on the Temple Mount area - as highly sacred to Islam.
continue reading
www.prophecynewswatch.com/article.cfm?recent_news_id=471
By Tom Olago July 06, 2016
The potential signing of a Middle East peace treaty between Israel and the Palestinians - and by extension the Arab world- would be a highly significant event on God's prophetic calendar.
In this regard, it would almost seem like there is currently some invisible hand influencing the urgency and pressure towards a Middle East peace deal.
On Friday the 3rd of June, the French hosted a meeting of almost 30 foreign ministers, including Secretary of State John F. Kerry, to seek international consensus on a way to move talks forward. Ironically, the primary actors - Israel and Palestine - were not invited.
This fact appears to be a glaring warning to both sides that international frustration at the lack of progress with peace talks has reached a boiling point. Some analysts fear that this could be the beginning of an imposed or 'arm-twisted 'peace upon the parties rather than the parties themselves coming to mutually agreeable terms.
Such a final treaty could actually be signed as soon as November 2016, based on timetable projections, in what observers consider would involve a UN resolution backed by international law compelling Israel and the Palestinians to abide by it.
Easier said than done - after all, there are reasons why similar initiatives have failed repeatedly over the years. One major sticking point has always been the control of Jerusalem. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accepts the two-state solution in principle, but adamantly refuses to re-divide Jerusalem or relinquish Israeli sovereignty over it.
On the other hand, PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas insists that a peace treaty must involve Jerusalem as the Palestinian capital.
Another bone of contention is the proposal to have Israel withdrawing from all the lands it had captured during the 1967 war, including East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights. The land for peace exchange serves as the foundation of the Arab League's peace plan, which was launched in 2002.
That Arab Peace Initiative called for a two-state solution based on an Israeli withdrawal to the pre-1967 armistice lines and making East Jerusalem the Palestinian capital in return for "normal relations in the context of a comprehensive peace with Israel."
That outcome would be a dream come true for the Palestinians - in their eyes a great source of joy and vindication over the hated Jewish people.
But Israel will have none of it, instead laying claim to their own historic ownership of Jerusalem and the need to ensure their own security by retaining militarily strategic lands captured in the 1967 six-day war.
Based on a recent jns.org report, one Likud minister asked Netanyahu what he would do if Arab states were not willing to revise the initiative. "If the Arab states grasp the fact that they need to revise the Arab League proposal according to the changes Israel demands, then we can talk," Netanyahu replied. "But if they bring the proposal from 2002 and define it as 'take it or leave it,' we'll choose to leave it."
Given this long-standing impasse, is there any reason to be optimistic about the chances of a permanent and mutually acceptable truce this time around?
Possibly. One reason is that this time around there will be a presidential election in the U.S. The Obama administration has made clear it supports Israel giving up land for peace but under 'the right conditions'.
One 'right condition' might just include Obama wanting to leave behind a legacy of helping push the peace process forward - or better still, help seal the deal - as one of his last acts in office.
Another potential scenario is that diplomats will go beyond Israeli-Palestinian issues and make it part of a much larger Arab-Israeli peace, encompassing both Palestinians and the Arab League. The allure of peace with the entire Arab world may just be the one thing that would tempt Israel to cross red lines it has vowed never to cross.
The Biblical viewpoint adhered to by many eschatologists predicts a final "peace covenant" based on Daniel 9:27: "And he (the "prince that shall come"; AntiChrist) shall confirm the covenant with many", to which Israel would be a signatory.
The idea of "confirming" suggests guaranteeing or enforcing an existing treaty, one that has already been put forward - such as the Arab Peace Plan. The idea that it involves "many" suggests such a treaty would be much more comprehensive than just the Palestinians. The Arab League represents over 22 countries and would certainly qualify as "many".
The prophet Daniel details several other elements to this treaty, one of them being that it will be for seven years. One analysis of the Bible narrative states that Daniel had a vision from God that foresaw a period of 70 weeks of years in Israel's future history.
After 69 weeks the Messiah is killed, "but not for Himself". Daniel's prophecy then goes into hibernation and the clock stops. It is said that almost 2000 years have gone by and yet there is still one unfulfilled week seven years - determined or allotted to Daniel's people (the Jews) and the Holy city (Jerusalem) before the end comes.
According to another common interpretation of Bible prophecy, the countdown of the final week of years will resume when the Antichrist signs a seven-year peace agreement or covenant with Israel. From that point, there are exactly seven years left before the end of the great Tribulation and the end of the world.
This will be the time known as Daniel's 70th week, which is also described at great length in the Book of Revelation. Will the upcoming treaty currently in the works involve a seven-year timetable?
Whatever the exact timing, Scripture reveals that the eventual peace treaty that is signed will only be a temporary peace, leading to the deadliest time on earth that man has ever known.
According to Jesus Own words, "For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be." (Matthew 24.21)
Is the recent French-led initiative going to culminate in the Biblically prophesied peace treaty? Potentially - but no matter what form the final treaty will take, it is noteworthy that PA Chairman Abbas wants a specific time frame for implementation. This could well be a reason for the seven-year time-bound scenario.
One concession that Israel would almost certainly push for as part of any final agreement would be to achieve their long-held desire to build the Third Temple. The Temple must also be rebuilt as the AntiChrist will desecrate it at some point during the Great Tribulation period (II Thessalonians 2:4).
The challenge is how that could possibly be done in a manner that would be acceptable to the predominantly Muslim Arab world. Muslims consider the Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa mosque - both of which sit on the Temple Mount area - as highly sacred to Islam.
continue reading
www.prophecynewswatch.com/article.cfm?recent_news_id=471