The Prophecy Pundits Are Back!

Riddleblog ^ | September 4, 2013 | Kim Riddlebarger

[Gamecock]

With the increasing possibility of US military action against Syria and the Assad regime, it should come as no surprise that the prophecy pundits have been hard at work.

Since the ancient city of Damascus figures prominently in the news, the pundits run to their concordances and find those biblical texts where the city is mentioned. Given their view that many of the prophecies in the Old Testament have yet to be fulfilled (and were not fulfilled in the history of Israel, or with the coming of Jesus Christ) they go to great lengths and demonstrate even greater ingenuity, I might add, to explain how the Bible's mention of Damascus (Isaiah17) must be a reference to the current (and latest) political crisis in the region.

One pundit writes (Damascus, Syria and Isaiah 17),

One of most intriguing Bible prophecies in the end times has to do with Isaiah 17. The prophecies in Isaiah 17 point to the end times destruction of Damascus, Syria. The Bible states that the destruction of Damascus will be so great that the city will be nothing but a "ruinous heap" after the fulfillment of the ancient prophecy. This is noteworthy because presently the city is recognized as the world's longest constantly inhabited city. The utter destruction of Damascus will be an event that only the sovereign Lord could have predicted, yet he warns in Isaiah 17 that Damascus does have a date with destiny in the near prophetic future.

He goes on to say,

Another thing to note about Damascus is that it is also "home" to many of the world's leading terrorist masterminds. With such groups as Hamas and Hezbollah among others making their home in Damascus, it is easy to see that if a wide ranging conflict broke out between Israel and these terrorist groups that Isaiah 17 could easily be destroyed. Syria has made many recent "defense pacts" with the terrorists as well as Lebanon where the groups also operate. Syria has threatened to "get involved" in the next round of fighting.

Sounds plausible at first hearing, right? But there is a major problem with the pundit's interpretation. The critical biblical text (Isaiah 17, specifically verse 1) is not speaking of the end times. Rather, this is an oracle of YHWH spoken against the ancient city of Damascus (Aram) through the prophet Isaiah. The people of Israel (in open disobedience to the covenant they had made with YHWH) had made an alliance with Aram, seeking a pagan nation's help against the dreaded Assyrians. God, however, commanded that his people be faithful to their covenant with him, and look for their deliverance as coming through the righteous branch (a future son of David and a royal messiah). The Damascus of Isaiah's day was in fact destroyed in 732 B. C. (during the time of Isaiah) by the Assyrians. The prophecy has already been fulfilled.

No doubt, these prophecy pundits mean well. But their modus operandi of finding some mention in the Bible of any contemporary place or region in the Middle East currently in conflict (and in the news), and then turning that passage into an "end-times" prophecy, is to distort the plain teaching of God's word.

If the crisis with Syria escalates, I'm sure there will be more of this to come. Hey, we don't have Saddam Hussein to kick around any more. Bashar-Al-Assad will do just fine, until this crisis passes, and a new ominous Arab political leader comes on the scene to take his place.

[ExGeeEye]

And when the prophecy is fulfilled, this author will immediately claim it was a coincidence.

[Genoa]

I wonder if we have to believe in the millennial kingdom to get to be a part of it.

[bkepley]

http://kimriddlebarger.squarespace.com/welcome/

Seems like a pretty serious guy to me. Have you researched what he is saying?

[Gamecock]

And when it’s not? (Just like every other scheme thus far...)

[Alex Murphy]

Ping to read later.

"Prophecy is hard!" - Pentecostal Barbie

[fatboy]

A question that Kim Riddlebarger cannot answer is: Where in the Bible does it teach that Jehovah cut a covenant of either Grace, Works and/or Redemption? And yet his entire theological platform depends on such covenants.

[Errant]

1 Thessalonians 4

16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:

17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

[Lera]

Jesus own words about watching and knowing what time it is

Luk 19:41 And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it,
Luk 19:42 Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.
Luk 19:43 For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side,
Luk 19:44 And shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation.

---

Rev 3:1 And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write; These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars; I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead.
Rev 3:2 Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God.
Rev 3:3 Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.

[LibLieSlayer]

Hey author... GOD will not be mocked... you will burn in hell unless you repent and ask GOD to forgive you.

[Ezekiel]

No doubt, these prophecy pundits mean well.

Many of them are visionaries... they see profit in the gullible Christian marketplace. Books, videos, monetized blogs, etc.

The Damascus of Isaiah's day was in fact destroyed in 732 B. C. (during the time of Isaiah) by the Assyrians. The prophecy has already been fulfilled.

Pundits who hiss at the prophecy pundits also have a habit of assigning one fulfillment/interpretation to a text and leaving it at that.

Multiple complementary meanings and fulfillment - eh why bother. Interpretations may be purchased at Amazon for $10.88 and are eligible for super saver shipping on orders over $25.

The prophecy souk is bustling with shoppers looking for a last-minute bargain. And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came.

[Genoa]

8 Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; 10 that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, 11 if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. 12 Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. 13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, 14 I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 3

[Lera]

Amen

[Peter ODonnell]

I don’t see Damascus as the essential prophetic element in this developing crisis, but the regional and global dynamics sound very much like the description of Armageddon and the Gog/Magog prophecies. We seem to have all the necessary components — a spirit of anti-christ is prevalent, Russia would be allied with Syria and Iran against a host of other nations, Israel would come under direct threat, and the location of Armageddon links plausibly to the way this crisis could unfold. We also have the turmoil in Egypt which has often been mentioned in end-time prophecy.

Thus I would say, look beyond Damascus for prophetic insight and watch carefully how this unfolds on a larger scale.

[ExGeeEye]

1. Every?

2. Every prophecy that has not come true yet...are not shown to be incorrect by the fact that they have not come true...yet.

[ExGeeEye]

That was terrible grammar. To restate:

Prophecies that have not come true yet...are not shown to be incorrect by the fact that they have not come true...yet.

[RedMonqey]

Given the track record of the “prophecy pundits’ who have claimed the “End Times are Nigh” vs the “Skeptics’ wait and see’ attitude...

I'll bet $$$ on the “Skeptics” because the Doomsayers turned out to be charlatans or fools.

[Gamecock]

‘xactly.

[stars & stripes forever]

http://www.patburt.com/

[dps.inspect]

Let me get this straight, When God said that Damascus would "cease from being a city", what He really meant was that it would only temporarily cease from being a city, but would continue being a city into modern times... Ah, thanks for the clarification; and please, keep us all informed of other misstatements by God.