DREAM: I was given a large green book that was open to the center, by a familiar lightbeing I've seen before several times in dreams and visions. The book was held open by a rubber band. The book was about the races - both past and future. 1/2 of the races had been won and were past and 1/2 of the races still were to be held and the names of the winners in the future were highlighted with green light for anyone who cared to look. I lay the book open on a chair for anyone to see.

I had several large stacks of newspapers piled along the wall with the future news already printed. I offered them to my spiritual teacher - he would be able to tell the future to everyone by reading them. He didn't want to look at them and turned them down.

I met my old friend Bonny who was very unhappy about not being able to lose weight. I advised her, "Then you may as well enjoy every morsel of food you put in your mouth, rather than hating yourself for eating it."

I was then given a picture book of all the wars that had been fought and of all the wars to come. This book was also open to the middle.

I offered the book of wars to an old retired soldier who was sitting on a chair by the window, so he could know in advance who was going to win the future wars. He looked not only old but sad and he refused to look at the book.

I lay the book open on the chair next to him so he could look at it if he wanted to, but he just stared into the space of the room and let the book slide off the chair and it slid to the floor, still open, with the pictures facing the wall.

He just wouldn't look at it.

I was picked up by my psychic friend Donna and we went for a ride in the car.

As she drove, we passed an open garage that had a brand new red and black steam shovel that hadn't been used yet, but would be in the future.

I asked her if she had seen the steam shovel in the garage, but she hadn't because she was watching the road ahead and couldn't look sideways into the buildings like I could as a passenger in her car.

I said, "You can see it if you just back up to that open garage we just passed, but she refused to look and just kept driving forward and would never be able to acknowledge what I already knew what was coming.

1923 - Bucyrus Erie Steam Shovel	1928 - Osgood Steam Shovel

DISASTER AND WAR INDEX ON THIS SITE

http://www.greatdreams.com/redblack.htm

NOTE: I had forgotten all about this dream, but this year, I signed up with Nature's Sunshine - an herbal company and I'm also studying with a woman to become a certified herbalist.

Earlier this year, spirit asked me to do some herbal pages so people could find alternative health care on their own in case big pharma and their horrible side-effects plus outrageous costs are not in our best interest.

To be sure, none of this is a coincidence. Spirit evidently thought it was a good idea for me to know about herbs.

http://www.greatdreams.com/dragons.htm

http://www.greatdreams.com/reptlan/nephilim.htm

http://www.greatdreams.com/oldwmn.htm

As it was, I was Manager of an apartment building and had my regular duties to perform.

It was near Christmas and I and several other women got together at a small private meeting to discuss charity work. We discussed mostly what to call the charity - nothing about money or funding. There was wide disagreement about everything and nothing was decided. One thing we did know was that someone in a tire company had offered to sponsor us on a local radio show and would play Christmas music. We heard samples of this music while we were meeting and that is what kept the group calm, though there seemed to be a lot of anger and animosity underneath the discussion in the voices and attitude of the women.

After the meeting, I kept thinking about the opportunity to help people at Christmas time, and right in front of me was a radio that had a lighted round dial on it - on which I saw the title of the radio show. It was CRISES ALIVE. Suddenly I was excited about the project - what a perfect way to help people on Christmas Eve - that people who were in crises to be able to call us on Christmas Eve, and we could outreach to the community and help these people and we could play Christmas music between phone calls.

In the meantime, I had to do my managerial duties and looked forward to our next meeting which was going to be that evening at dinner at a restaurant next door.

So I went outside where there was deep snow which I had to shovel as part of my duties. I shoveled a bit, then sat down on a snow bank to think a bit about my new job title and the charity work and radio show, which I would suggest at the next meeting.

While I was sitting there, Joe, the maintenance man and his girlfriend Robin and another couple. The woman named Gwen - an older white-haired lady who looked very familiar and another guy came walking along the sidewalk to go to breakfast at the restaurant. They were all dressed up in daytime casual suits, looking really good and I was dressed in 'schluppy' warm winter clothes and boots for shoveling.

Joe introduced me to Gwen and told her I was going to be his dinner partner that evening.

I felt very guilty for sitting down on the job to rest - when there was so much to do, but then again, that group was going to spend two hours in a nice fancy restaurant for breakfast - even if it was for business - and my guilt for sitting down and resting went away.

CHECK OUT STEAMSHOVEL PRESS: http://www.steamshovelpress.com/

The Wayland Smithy Formation

Photo credit: Lucy Pringle

Site Search for New Jerusalem

The bride: Rev. 21:9

The great city: Rev. 21:10

10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the great city, the holy^[a] Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,

Each “building” may represent a Tribe, for the total of twelve. There will (symbolically) be 12,000 people from each tribe, for a total of 144,000. The number 144 suggests a square as 12 x 12. The Tribes, of course, relate to the Zodiac signs, so this may include all people.

The general form of the Wayland Smithy formation resembles the Triple Julia Set formation that appeared at Windmill Hill, near Avebury Trusloe, Wiltshire, around 30 July 1996:

A twelve-fold Koch snowflake fractal type crop formation was reported the same day as the Wayland Smithy formation, 8 July 2006. It appeared at Boxley, near Maidstone, Kent:

Image credit: Bertold Zugelder

http://www.lucypringle.co.uk/photos/2006/uk2006ar.shtml

http://www.cropcircleconnector.com/2006/boxley/boxley2006a.html

Snowflakes are considered as natural examples of sacred geometry:

http://www.charlesgilchrist.com/SGEO/PCX4812.html

There is a similarity of the 2006 snowflake formation to the Waylands Smithy formation, in that the underlying twelve-pointed star pattern is within both formations. The four overlapping triangles or double Star of David can be drawn within both. Interestingly, the inner part of the Boxley snowflake formation indicates three overlapped boxes. This may correspond to the three sets of "skyscraper buildings" of Waylands Smithy.

The New Jerusalem is generally figured as four sets of three. This is said to be based on the Twelve Tribes of Israel in their camp positions given in Numbers 2, and the symbols of the tribes given in Genesis 49. There are four main tribes and two minor tribes in each quadrant. The four main tribes are the "Four Living Creatures" of Ezekiel, that correspond to the solstices and equinoxes during the Age of Tarus. The "Four Living Creatures" are lion, man, eagle, and ox, corresponding to Leo, Aquarius, Scorpio, and Taurus.

This follows the idea of the "heavens" in the trigons of the Zodiac.

Image credit: Trevor

The Trigons are fire signs, air signs, water signs, and earth signs. The following table shows the relationships.

The word, "equinox," means "equal nights." This refers to the spring and fall equinoxes, when the hours of day and night are equal. This seems to be illustrated in the above image as the small spheres on the left and right, that are half white and half black. It reminds me a bit of the "Monkey Face" type formations.

Interestingly, the set of four small outer circles, along with the triangle of three small circles in the center, follow the general form of the two twelve-fold (4 x 3 and 3 x 4) formations discussed above.

The New Jerusalem is sometimes illustrated as a cube:

Scholars note that the cube has 12 edges, and that the description given by Saint John in
Revelation 21:15-17 indicate a cube:

The 12 "skyscraper buildings" of the Wayland Smithy formation, may figure as 12 cubic rectangles times 12 edges each, giving the ancient Gematrian number 144, meaning Light. Note also, above, that 144 cubits is the measure of the wall of the New Jerusalem.

Symbolism in the Locations

Many crop circle formations may be located near ancient site in order to transmit a more complete message. Wayland is a figure in Norse mythology, the Saxon god of metal working:

The symbolism of the craftsman - builder -smith is universal, an archetype. The metal worker is a primary type. Wayland sounds quite similar to the Greek Hephaistos, who is the Roman Vulcan. The Biblical metal worker is said to be Tubal Cain, who fashioned the sacrificial knife of Abraham.

We have discussed this type of symbolism in our work. It seems to be related to the swastika and the demiurge, who seems to represent the consciousness gestalt of mankind. See:

It may well be that the message of the Wayland Smithy formation is about mankind reversing its negative cycle, and turning toward a bright and abundant future, in terms of the symbolism of building the New Jerusalem, the Order of the Heavens made apparent on earth.

The symbolism involved here is quite like the Masonic tradition, which apparently connects back to the Knights Templar. This is not the first crop formation that seemed to hint at such a connection. These days, conspiracy theories tend to dominate when the Masonic subject comes up. Perhaps some of the theories are justified, I do not know. However, the basic symbolism, in my mind, is not a bad thing, as one might surmise from the paragraph above.

The Boxley formation may have the same type of connection in its location near the ruins of the12th century Cistercian Abbey. The Cistercian Monastic Order is said to have been greatly enhanced by Bernard Of Clairvaux, a major figure among the Knights Templar

Is it a meaningless coincidence that the snowflake formation at Boxley is near Maidstone? I think not! The location meaning just could suggest the Philosopher's Stone.

Several of the images within Kris's article also connect well with Wayland's Smithy, such as the 1997 hexagon near stonehenge. There is an X type shape with a vertical line through it, as parts of the Star of David, which may fit with the symbolism of the Arrow of Ra, expressed in Trevor's insightful article:

The location of Great Britain itself, as the primary place of crop circles, may also carry symbolism. Part of this involves the Lost Tribes, the legends of King Arthur and the Holy Grail. The Covenant given to Abraham is said by some to have been fulfilled through the sons of Joseph, the eleventh son of Jacob/Israel. The older son was Manasseh, the younger son was Ephraim. The two became the great nations of the USA and Great Britain.

A book, tracing the story Biblically and historically-legendary was written in 1902 by J.H. Allen:

Judah's Sceptre and Joseph's Birthright
http://www.giveshare.org/israel/judah/

Ephraim, who was to become a company of nations, had the ox as his symbol, indicating the association with the Earth sign Zodiac sign of Tarus. It may be more than meaningless coincidence that Wayland Smithy is located in Oxfordshire!

MORE FABULOUS GEOMETRY OF WAYLAN SMITHY CROP CIRCLE AT:
http://www.greatdreams.com/crop/2006ccs/2006ccs.htm

Introduction To Sacred Geometry
by Charles Gilchrist

Your (free) Sacred Geometry Coloring Book

Double Tetrahedron In Metatron's Cube

Metatron’s Cube

Knights Templar

Freemasonry

Knights Templar (Freemason degree)

I KINGS

1 Kings 3:4 And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there; for that [was] the great high place: a thousand burnt offerings did Solomon offer upon that altar. 3:5 In Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night: and God said, Ask what I shall give thee. 3:6 And Solomon said, Thou hast shewed unto thy servant David my father great mercy, according as he walked before thee in truth, and in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with thee; and thou hast kept for him this great kindness, that thou hast given him a son to sit on his throne, as [it is] this day.

1 Kings 3:13 And I have also given thee that which thou hast not asked, both riches, and honour: so that there shall not be any among the kings like unto thee all thy days. 3:14 And if thou wilt walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will lengthen thy days. 3:15 And Solomon awoke; and, behold, [it was] a dream. And he came to Jerusalem, and stood before the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and offered up burnt offerings, and offered peace offerings, and made a feast to all his servants. 3:16 Then came there two women, [that were] harlots, unto the king, and stood before him. 3:17 And the one woman said, O my lord, I and this woman dwell in one house; and I was delivered of a child with her in the house.

2 CHRONICLES

2 Chronicles 9:27 And the king made silver in Jerusalem as stones, and cedar trees made he as the sycomore trees that [are] in the low plains in abundance. 9:28 And they brought unto Solomon horses out of Egypt, and out of all lands. 9:29 Now the rest of the acts of Solomon, first and last, [are] they not written in the book of Nathan the prophet, and in the prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite, and in the visions of Iddo the seer against Jeroboam the son of Nebat?

2 Chronicles 26:3 Sixteen years old [was] Uzziah when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty and two years in Jerusalem. His mother's name also [was] Jecoliah of Jerusalem. 26:4 And he did [that which was] right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father Amaziah did. And he sought God in the days of Zechariah, who had understanding in the visions of God: and as long as he sought the LORD, God made him to prosper.

2 Chronicles 32:30 This same Hezekiah also stopped the upper watercourse of Gihon, and brought it straight down to the west side of the city of David. And Hezekiah prospered in all his works. Howbeit in [the business of] the ambassadors of the princes of Babylon, who sent unto him to enquire of the wonder that was [done] in the land, God left him, to try him, that he might know all [that was] in his heart. 32:32 Now the rest of the acts of Hezekiah, and his goodness, behold, they [are] written in the vision of Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, [and] in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel.

ISAIAH

Isaiah 1:1 The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, [and] Hezekiah, kings of Judah. 1:2 Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth: for the LORD hath spoken, I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against me.

JEREMIAH

Jeremiah 23:15 Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts concerning the prophets; Behold, I will feed them with wormwood, and make them drink the water of gall: for from the prophets of Jerusalem is profaneness gone forth into all the land. 23:16 Thus saith the LORD of hosts, Hearken not unto the words of the prophets that prophesy unto you: they make you vain: they speak a vision of their own heart, [and] not out of the mouth of the LORD.

Jeremiah 23:25 I have heard what the prophets said, that prophesy lies in my name, saying, I have dreamed, I have dreamed. 23:26 How long shall [this] be in the heart of the prophets that prophesy lies? yea, [they are] prophets of the deceit of their own heart; 23:27 Which think to cause my people to forget my name by their dreams which they tell every man to his neighbour, as their fathers have forgotten my name for Baal. 23:28 The prophet that hath a dream, let him tell a dream; and he that hath my word, let him speak my word faithfully. What [is] the chaff to the wheat? saith the LORD. 23:29 [Is] not my word like as a fire? saith the LORD; and like a hammer [that] breaketh the rock in pieces? 23:30 Therefore, behold, I [am] against the prophets, saith the LORD, that steal my words every one from his neighbour. 23:31 Behold, I [am] against the prophets, saith the LORD, that use their tongues, and say, He saith. 23:32 Behold, I [am] against them that prophesy false dreams, saith the LORD, and do tell them, and cause my people to err by their lies, and by their lightness; yet I sent them not, nor commanded them: therefore they shall not profit this people at all, saith the LORD. 23:33 And when this people, or the prophet, or a priest, shall ask thee, saying, What [is] the burden of the LORD? thou shalt then say unto them, What burden? I will even forsake you, saith the LORD.

Jeremiah 29:7 And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captives, and pray unto the LORD for it: for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace. 29:8 For thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Let not your prophets and your diviners, that [be] in the midst of you, deceive you, neither hearken to your dreams which ye cause to be dreamed.

EZEKIEL

Ezekiel 1:1 Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth [month], in the fifth [day] of the month, as I [was] among the captives by the river of Chebar, [that] the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God.

Ezekiel 7:2 The time is come, the day draweth near: let not the buyer rejoice, nor the seller mourn: for wrath [is] upon all the multitude thereof.

Ezekiel 7:13 For the seller shall not return to that which is sold, although they were yet alive: for the vision [is] touching the whole multitude thereof, [which] shall not return; neither shall any strengthen himself in the iniquity of his life.

Ezekiel 7:24 Wherefore I will bring the worst of the heathen, and they shall possess their houses: I will also make the pomp of the strong to cease; and their holy places shall be defiled. 7:25 Destruction cometh; and they shall seek peace, and [there shall be] none. 7:26 Mischief shall come upon mischief, and rumour shall be upon rumour; then shall they seek a vision of the prophet; but the law shall perish from the priest, and counsel from the ancients.

Ezekiel 8:2 Then I beheld, and lo a likeness as the appearance of fire: from the appearance of his loins even downward, fire; and from his loins even upward, as the appearance of brightness, as the colour of amber. 8:3 And he put forth the form of an hand, and took me by a lock of mine head; and the spirit lifted me up between the earth and the heaven, and brought me in the visions of God to Jerusalem, to the door of the inner gate that looketh toward the north; where [was] the seat of the image of jealousy, which provoketh to jealousy. 8:4 And, behold, the glory of the God of Israel [was] there, according to the vision that I saw in the plain.

Ezekiel 11:22 Then did the cherubims lift up their wings, and the wheels beside them; and the glory of the God of Israel [was] over them above. 11:23 And the glory of the LORD went up from the midst of the city, and stood upon the mountain which [is] on the east side of the city. 11:24 Afterwards the spirit took me up, and brought me in a vision by the Spirit of God into Chaldea, to them of the captivity. So the vision that I had seen went up from me. 11:25 Then I spake unto them of the captivity all the things that the LORD had shewed me.

Ezekiel 13:5 Ye have not gone up into the gaps, neither made up the hedge for the house of Israel to stand in the battle in the day of the LORD. 13:6 They have seen vanity and lying divination, saying, The LORD saith: and the LORD hath not sent them: and they have made [others] to hope that they would confirm the word. 13:7 Have ye not seen a vain vision, and have ye not spoken a lying divination, whereas ye say, The LORD saith [it]; albeit I have not spoken? 13:8 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because ye have spoken vanity, and seen lies, therefore, behold, I [am] against you, saith the Lord GOD

Ezekiel 13:15 Thus will I accomplish my wrath upon the wall, and upon them that have daubed it with untempered [morter], and will say unto you, The wall [is] no [more], neither they that daubed it; 13:16 [To wit], the prophets of Israel which prophesy concerning Jerusalem, and which see visions of peace for her, and [there is] no peace, saith the Lord GOD.

Ezekiel 40:1 In the five and twentieth year of our captivity, in the beginning of the year, in the tenth [day] of the month, in the fourteenth year after that the city was smitten, in the selfsame day the hand of the LORD was upon me, and brought me thither. 40:2 In the visions of God brought he me into the land of Israel, and set me upon a very high mountain, by which [was] as the frame of a city on the south. 40:3 And he brought me thither, and, behold, [there was] a man, whose appearance [was] like the appearance of brass, with a line of flax in his hand, and a measuring reed; and he stood in the gate. Afterward he brought me to the gate, [even] the gate that looketh toward the east:

ACTS

Acts 2:16 But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel; 2:17 And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: Acts 2:18 And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:

Acts 9:8 And Saul arose from the earth; and when his eyes were opened, he saw no man: but they led him by the hand, and brought [him] into Damascus. Acts 9:9 And he was three days without sight, and neither did eat nor drink. Acts 9:10 And there was a certain disciple at Damascus, named Ananias; and to him said the Lord in a vision, Ananias. And he said, Behold, I [am here], Lord. Acts 9:11 And the Lord [said] unto him, Arise, and go into the street which is called Straight, and enquire in the house of Judas for [one] called Saul, of Tarsus: for, behold, he prayeth, Acts 9:12 And hath seen in a vision a man named Ananias coming in, and putting [his] hand on him, that he might receive his sight. Acts 9:13 Then Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard by many of this man, how much evil he hath done to thy saints at Jerusalem:

Acts 10:15 And the voice [spake] unto him again the second time, What God hath cleansed, [that] call not thou common. Acts 10:16 This was done thrice: and the vessel was received up again into heaven. Acts 10:17 Now while Peter doubted in himself what this vision which he had seen should mean, behold, the men which were sent from Cornelius had made enquiry for Simon's house, and stood before the gate, Acts 10:18 And called, and asked whether Simon, which was surnamed Peter, were lodged there. Acts 10:19 While Peter thought on the vision, the Spirit said unto him, Behold, three men seek thee.

Acts 11:4 But Peter rehearsed [the matter] from the beginning, and expounded [it] by order unto them, saying, Acts 11:5 I was in the city of Joppa praying: and in a trance I saw a vision, A certain vessel descend, as it had been a great sheet, let down from heaven by four corners; and it came even to me:

Acts 12:7 And, behold, the angel of the Lord came upon [him], and a light shined in the prison: and he smote Peter on the side, and raised him up, saying, Arise up quickly. And his chains fell off from [his] hands. Acts 12:8 And the angel said unto him, Gird thyself, and bind on thy sandals. And so he did. And he saith unto him, Cast thy garment about thee, and follow me. Acts 12:9 And he went out, and followed him; and wist not that it was true which was done by the angel; but thought he saw a vision.

Acts 16:8 And they passing by Mysia came down to Troas. Acts 16:9 And a vision appeared to Paul in the night; There stood a man of Macedonia, and prayed him, saying, Come over into Macedonia, and help us. Acts 16:10 And after he had seen the vision, immediately we endeavoured to go into Macedonia, assuredly gathering that the Lord had called us for to preach the gospel unto them. Acts 16:11 Therefore loosing from Troas, we came with a straight course to Samothracia, and the next [day] to Neapolis;

Acts 18:7 And he departed thence, and entered into a certain [man's] house, named Justus, [one] that worshipped God, whose house joined hard to the synagogue. Acts 18:8 And Crispus, the chief ruler of the synagogue, believed on the Lord with all his house; and many of the Corinthians hearing believed, and were baptized. Acts 18:9 Then spake the Lord to Paul in the night by a vision, Be not afraid, but speak, and hold not thy peace:

Acts 26:17 Delivering thee from the people, and [from] the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee, Acts 26:18 To open their eyes, [and] to turn [them] from darkness to light, and [from] the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me. Acts 26:19 Whereupon, O king Agrippa, I was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision:

2 CORINTHIANS

2 Corinthians 12:1 It is not expedient for me doubtless to glory. I will come to visions and revelations of the Lord. 12:2 I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;) such an one caught up to the third heaven. 12:3 And I knew such a man, (whether in the body, or out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;) 12:4 How that he was caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.

REVELATION

Note: Beginning with Revelations 1:10 the entire book of REVELATIONS is one entire vision. John begins by saying I was in the spirit on the Lord's day..... meaning that this was not a dream but a conscious vision.... to clarify his description of "being in the spirit" as indeed being a VISION, in Revelations 9:20 he refers to this experience as being a vision.

Revelation 1:10 I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet,

Revelation 9:17 And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, and of jacinth, and brimstone: and the heads of the horses [were] as the heads of lions; and out of their mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone.

Jerusalem (Hebrew: יְרוּשָׁלַיִם‎ (audio) (help·info), Yerushaláyim; Arabic: القُدس (audio) (help·info), al-Quds)^[ii] is the capital^[iii] of Israel and its largest city in both population and area, with 732,100 residents in an area of 125.1 square kilometers (49 sq mi) if disputed East Jerusalem is included.^[1][4][iv] Located in the Judean Mountains, between the Mediterranean Sea and the northern tip of the Dead Sea, modern Jerusalem has grown up outside the Old City.

The city has a history that goes back to the 4th millennium BCE, making it one of the oldest cities in the world. Jerusalem has been the holiest city in Judaism and the spiritual center of the Jewish people since the 10th century BCE,contains a number of significant ancient Christian sites, and is considered the third-holiest city in Islam. Despite having an area of only 0.9 square kilometer (0.35 square mile), the Old City is home to sites of key religious importance, among them the Temple Mount, the Western Wall, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the Dome of the Rock and al-Aqsa Mosque. The old walled city, a World Heritage site, has been traditionally divided into four quarters, although the names used today — the Armenian, Christian, Jewish, and Muslim Quarters — were introduced in the early 19th century. The Old City was nominated for inclusion on the List of World Heritage Sites in danger by Jordan in 1982. In the course of its history, Jerusalem has been destroyed twice, besieged 23 times, attacked 52 times, and captured and recaptured 44 times.

Today, the status of Jerusalem remains one of the core issues in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Israel's annexation of occupied East Jerusalem has been repeatedly condemned by the United Nations and related bodies, and Palestinians foresee East Jerusalem as the capital of their future state In the wake of United Nations Security Council Resolution 478, most foreign embassies moved out of Jerusalem.

"Yerushalayim" means the "perfect city," or "the city of he who is perfect". The ending -im indicates the plural in Hebrew grammar and -ayim the dual, possibly referring to the fact that the city sits on two hills. The pronunciation of the last syllable as -ayim appears to be a late development, which had not yet appeared at the time of the Septuagint.

Some believe that a city called Rušalimum or Urušalimum which appears in ancient Egyptian records is the first reference to Jerusalem. The Greeks added the prefix hiero ("holy") and called it Hierosolyma. To the Arabs, Jerusalem is al-Quds ("The Holy"). It was called Jebus (Yevus) by the Jebusites. "Zion" initially referred to part of the city, but later came to signify the city as a whole. Under King David, it was known as Ir David (the City of David).

Temple periods

According to Hebrew scripture, King David reigned until 970 BCE. He was succeeded by his son Solomon, who built the Holy Temple on Mount Moriah. Solomon's Temple (later known as the First Temple), went on to play a pivotal role in Jewish history as the repository of the Ark of the Covenant. For over 600 years, until the Babylonian conquest in 587 BCE, Jerusalem was the political capital of the Kingdom of Judea and a religious center of the Israelites.This period is known in history as the First Temple Period.^[37] Upon Solomon's death (c. 930 BCE), the ten northern tribes split off to form the Kingdom of Israel. Under the leadership of the House of David and Solomon, Jerusalem remained the capital of the Kingdom of Judah.

When the Assyrians conquered the Kingdom of Israel in 722 BCE, Jerusalem was strengthened by a great influx of refugees from the northern kingdom. The First Temple period ended around 586 BCE, as the Babylonians conquered Judah and Jerusalem, and laid waste to Solomon's Temple. In 538 BCE, after fifty years of Babylonian captivity, Persian King Cyrus the Great invited the Jews to return to Judah to rebuild Jerusalem and the Temple. Construction of the Second Temple was completed in 516 BCE, during the reign of Darius the Great, seventy years after the destruction of the First Temple. Jerusalem resumed its role as capital of Judah and center of Jewish worship. When Greek ruler Alexander the Great conquered the Persian Empire, Jerusalem and Judea fell under Greek control, eventually falling to the Ptolemaic dynasty under Ptolemy I. In 198 BCE, Ptolemy V lost Jerusalem and Judea to the Seleucids under Antiochus III. The Seleucid attempt to recast Jerusalem as a Hellenized polis came to a head in 168 BCE with the successful Maccabean revolt of Mattathias the High Priest and his five sons against Antiochus Epiphanes, and their establishment of the Hasmonean Kingdom in 152 BCE with Jerusalem again as its capital.

Jewish-Roman wars

As Rome became stronger it installed Herod as a Jewish client king. Herod the Great, as he was known, devoted himself to developing and beautifying the city. He built walls, towers and palaces, and expanded the Temple Mount, buttressing the courtyard with blocks of stone weighing up to 100 tons. Under Herod, the area of the Temple Mount doubled in size. In 6 CE, the city, as well as much of the surrounding area, came under direct Roman rule as the Iudaea Province and Herod's descendants through Agrippa II remained client kings of Judea until 96 CE. Roman rule over Jerusalem and the region began to be challenged with the first Jewish-Roman war, the Great Jewish Revolt, which resulted in the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE. In 130 CE Hadrian Romanized the city, and renamed it Aelia Capitolina. Jerusalem once again served as the capital of Judea during the three-year rebellion known as the Bar Kochba revolt. The Romans succeeded in recapturing the city in 135 CE and as a punitive measure Hadrian banned the Jews from entering it. Hadrian renamed the entire Iudaea Province Syria Palaestina after the biblical Philistines in an attempt to de-Judaize the country.^[45][46] Enforcement of the ban on Jews entering Aelia Capitolina continued until the 4th century CE.

In the five centuries following the Bar Kokhba revolt, the city remained under Roman then Byzantine rule. During the 4th century, the Roman Emperor Constantine I constructed Christian sites in Jerusalem such as the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Jerusalem reached a peak in size and population at the end of the Second Temple Period: The city covered two square kilometers (0.8 sq mi.) and had a population of 200,000 From the days of Constantine until the 7th century, Jews were banned from Jerusalem.

Roman-Persian wars

Within the span of a few decades, Jerusalem shifted from Roman to Persian rule and returned to Roman dominion once more. Following Sassanid Khosrau II's early seventh century push into Byzantine, advancing through Syria, Sassanid Generals Shahrbaraz and Shahin attacked the Byzantine-controlled city of Jerusalem (Persian: Dej Houdkh).

In the Siege of Jerusalem (614), after 21 days of relentless siege warfare, Jerusalem was captured and the Persian victory resulted in the territorial annexation of Jerusalem. After the Sassanid army entered Jerusalem, the holy "True Cross" was stolen and sent back to the Sassanian capital as a battle-captured holy relic. The conquered city and the Holy Cross would remain in Sassanid hands for some fifteen years until the Byzantine Emperor Heraclius recovered them in 629.

Islamic rule

In 638, the Islamic Caliphate extended its dominion to Jerusalem. At this time, Jerusalem was declared Islam's third holiest city after Mecca and Medina, and referred to as al Bait al-Muquddas. Later, it was known as al-Quds al-Sharif. With the Arab conquest, Jews were allowed back into the city.The Rashidun caliph Umar ibn al-Khattab signed a treaty with Monophysite Christian Patriarch Sophronius, assuring him that Jerusalem's Christian holy places and population would be protected under Muslim rule. Umar was led to the Foundation Stone on the Temple Mount, which he cleared of refuse in preparation for building a mosque. According to the Gaullic bishop Arculf, who lived in Jerusalem from 679-688, the Mosque of Umar was a rectangular wooden structure built over ruins which could accommodated 3,000 worshipers.The Umayyad caliph Abd al-Malik commissioned the construction of the Dome of the Rock in the late 7th century.The 10th century historian El Muqadasi writes that Abd al-Malik built the shrine in order to compete in grandeur of Jerusalem's monumental churches.Over the next four hundred years, Jerusalem's prominence diminished as Arab powers in the region jockeyed for control.

Crusaders, Saladin and the Mamluks

In 1099, Jerusalem was conquered by the Crusaders, who massacred most of its Muslim inhabitants and the remnants of the Jewish inhabitants. The Christians having been expelled and most of the Jewish inhabitants having already fled, by early June 1099, Jerusalem’s population had declined from 70,000 to less than 30,000. The surviving Jews were sold into slavery in Europe or ransomed to the Jewish community of Egypt. Christian Arab tribes brought to Jerusalem settled in the Old City.^] In 1187, the city was wrested from the Crusaders by Saladin who permitted Jews and Muslims to return and settle in the city. In 1244, Jerusalem was sacked by the Kharezmian Tartars, who decimated the city's Christian population and drove out the Jews, some of whom resettled in Nablus. From 1250-1517, Jerusalem was ruled by the Mamluks, who imposed a heavy annual tax on the Jews and destroyed Christian holy places on Mount Zion.

Ottoman rule

In 1517, Jerusalem and environs fell to the Ottoman Turks, who remained in control until 1917. With the occupation of Jerusalem by Muhammad Ali of Egypt in 1831, foreign missions and consulates began to establish a foothold in the city. In the 1860s, new neighborhoods began to go up outside the Old City walls to house pilgrims and relieve the intense overcrowding and poor sanitation inside the city. The Russian Compound and Mishkenot Sha'ananim were founded in 1860. According to the Prussian consul, the population in 1845 was 16,410, with 7,120 Jews, 5,000 Muslims, 3,390 Christians, 800 Turkish soldiers and 100 Europeans. The volume of Christian pilgrims increased under the Ottomans, doubling the city's population around Easter time. In 1836, Ibrahim Pasha allowed the Jews to restore four major synagogues, among them the Hurva. Turkish rule was reinstated in 1840, but many Egyptian Muslims remained in Jerusalem. Jews from Algiers and North Africa began to settle in the city in growing numbers. At the same time, the Ottomans built tanneries and slaughterhouses near Christian and Jewish holy places "so that an evil smell should ever plague the infidels." In the 1840s and 1850s, the international powers began a tug-of-war in Palestine as they sought to extend their protection over the country's religious minorities, a struggle carried out mainly through consular representatives in Jerusalem.

British Mandate and 1948 War

Further information: British Mandate of Palestine, 1947-1948 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine, and 1948 Arab-Israeli War

Old City of Jerusalem on December 11, 1917

In 1917 after the Battle of Jerusalem, the British Army, led by General Edmund Allenby, captured the city. and in 1922, the League of Nations at Conference of Lausanne entrusted the United Kingdom to administer the Mandate for Palestine.

From 1922 to 1948 the total population of the city rose from 52,000 to 165,000 with two thirds of Jews and one-third of Arabs (Muslims and Christians).. The situation between Arabs and Jews in Palestine was not quiet. At Jerusalem, in particular riots occurred in 1920 and in 1929. Under the British, new garden suburbs were built in the western and northern parts of the city and institutions of higher learning such as the Hebrew University were founded.

As the British Mandate for Palestine was expiring, the 1947 UN Partition Plan recommended "the creation of a special international regime in the City of Jerusalem, constituting it as a corpus separatum under the administration of the United Nations." The international regime was to remain in force for a period of ten years, whereupon a referendum was to be held in which the residents of Jerusalem were to decide the future regime of the city. However, this plan was not implemented, as the 1948 war erupted while the British withdrew from Palestine and Israel declared its independence.

The war led to displacement of Arab and Jewish populations in the city. The 1,500 residents of the Jewish Quarter of the Old City were expelled and a few hundred taken prisoner when the Arab Legion captured the quarter on 28 May. Residents of many Arab villages and neighborhoods west of the Old City left with the approach of the war, but some remained and were driven out or killed, as at Lifta or Deir Yassin.

Division and controversial reunification

Further information: Positions on Jerusalem

See also: UN General Assembly Resolution 194 and Occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem by Jordan

The war ended with Jerusalem divided between Israel and Jordan (then Transjordan). The 1949 Armistice Agreements established a ceasefire line that cut through the center of the city and left Mount Scopus as an Israeli exclave. Barbed wire and concrete barriers separated east and west Jerusalem, and military skirmishes frequently threatened the ceasefire. After the establishment of the State of Israel, Jerusalem was declared its capital. Jordan formally annexed East Jerusalem in 1950, subjecting it to Jordanian law, in a move that was recognized only by Pakistan.

Jordan assumed control of the holy places in the Old City. Contrary to the terms of the agreement, Israelis were denied access to Jewish holy sites, many of which were desecrated, and only allowed very limited access to Christian holy sites. During this period, the Dome of the Rock and al-Aqsa Mosque underwent major renovations.

During the 1967 Six-Day War, Israel captured East Jerusalem and asserted sovereignty over the entire city. Jewish access to holy sites was restored, while the Temple Mount remained under the jurisdiction of an Islamic waqf. The Moroccan Quarter, which was located adjacent to the Western Wall, was vacated and razed to make way for a plaza for those visiting the wall. Since the war, Israel has expanded the city's boundaries and established a ring of Jewish neighbourhoods on vacant land east of the Green Line.

However, the takeover of East Jerusalem was met with international criticism. Following the passing of Israel's Jerusalem Law, which declared Jerusalem, "complete and united", the capital of Israel, the United Nations Security Council passed a resolution that declared the law "a violation of international law" and requested all member states to withdraw all remaining embassies from the city.

The status of the city, and especially its holy places, remains a core issue in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Jewish settlers have taken over historic sites and built on land confiscated from Palestinians in order to expand the Jewish presence in East Jerusalem, while prominent Islamic leaders have insisted that Jews have no historical connection to Jerusalem. Palestinians envision East Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state and the city's borders have been the subject of bilateral talks.

Jerusalem is situated on the southern spur of a plateau in the Judean Mountains, which include the Mount of Olives (East) and Mount Scopus (North East). The elevation of the Old City is approximately 760 m (2,500 ft). The whole of Jerusalem is surrounded by valleys and dry riverbeds (wadis). The Kidron, Hinnom, and Tyropoeon Valleys intersect in an area just south of the Old City of Jerusalem. The Kidron Valley runs to the east of the Old City and separates the Mount of Olives from the city proper. Along the southern side of old Jerusalem is the Valley of Hinnom, a steep ravine associated in biblical eschatology with the concept of Gehenna or Hell.The Tyropoeon valley commenced in the northwest near the Damascus Gate, ran south-southeasterly through the center of the Old City down to the Pool of Siloam, and divided the lower part into two hills, the Temple Mount to the east, and the rest of the city to the west (the lower and the upper cities described by Josephus). Today, this valley is hidden by debris that has accumulated over the centuries.

In biblical times, Jerusalem was surrounded by forests of almond, olive and pine trees. Over centuries of warfare and neglect, these forests were destroyed. Farmers in the Jerusalem region thus built stone terraces along the slopes to hold back the soil, a feature still very much in evidence in the Jerusalem landscape.

Water supply has always been a major problem in Jerusalem, as attested to by the intricate network of ancient aqueducts, tunnels, pools and cisterns found in the city.

Jerusalem is 60 kilometers (37 mi) east of Tel Aviv and the Mediterranean Sea. On the opposite side of the city, approximately 35 kilometers (22 mi) away, is the Dead Sea, the lowest body of water on Earth. Neighboring cities and towns include Bethlehem and Beit Jala to the south, Abu Dis and Ma'ale Adumim to the east, Mevaseret Zion to the west, and Ramallah and Giv'at Ze'ev to the north.

In May 2007, Jerusalem had a population of 732,100—64% were Jewish, 32% Muslim, and 2% Christian. At the end of 2005, the population density was 5,750.4 inhabitants per square kilometer (14,893.5/sq mi).According to a study published in 2000, the percentage of Jews in the city's population had been decreasing; this was attributed to a higher Palestinian birth rate, and Jewish residents leaving. The study also found that about nine percent of the Old City's 32,488 people were Jews.

In 2005, 2,850 new immigrants settled in Jerusalem, mostly from the United States, France and the former Soviet Union. In terms of the local population, the number of outgoing residents exceeds the number of incoming residents. In 2005, 16,000 left Jerusalem and only 10,000 moved in. Nevertheless, the population of Jerusalem continues to rise due to the high birth rate, especially in the Arab and Haredi Jewish communities. Consequently, the total fertility rate in Jerusalem (4.02) is higher than in Tel Aviv (1.98) and well above the national average of 2.90. The average size of Jerusalem's 180,000 households is 3.8 people.

In 2005, the total population grew by 13,000 (1.8%) — similar to Israeli national average, but the religious and ethnic composition is shifting. While 31% of the Jewish population is made up of children below the age fifteen, the figure for the Arab population is 42%.This would seem to corroborate the observation that the percentage of Jews in Jerusalem has declined over the past four decades. In 1967, Jews accounted for 74 percent of the population, while the figure for 2006 is down nine percent. Possible factors are the high cost of housing, fewer job opportunities and the increasingly religious character of the city. Many people are moving to the suburbs and coastal cities in search of cheaper housing and a more secular lifestyle.

Demographics and the Jewish-Arab population divide play a major role in the dispute over Jerusalem. In 1998, the Jerusalem Development Authority proposed expanding city limits to the west to include more areas heavily populated with Jews.

Political status

On December 5, 1949, the State of Israel's first Prime Minister, David Ben-Gurion, proclaimed Jerusalem as Israel's capital and since then all branches of the Israeli government — legislative, judicial, and executive — have resided there. At the time of the proclamation, Jerusalem was divided between Israel and Jordan and thus only West Jerusalem was considered Israel's capital. Immediately after the 1967 Six-Day War, however, Israel annexed East Jerusalem, making it a de facto part of the Israeli capital. Israel enshrined the status of the "complete and united" Jerusalem — west and east — as its capital, in the 1980 Basic Law: Jerusalem, Capital of Israel.

The status of a "united Jerusalem" as Israel's "eternal capital" has been a matter of immense controversy within the international community. Although some countries maintain consulates in Jerusalem, and two maintain embassies in Jerusalem suburbs, all embassies are located outside of the city proper, mostly in Tel Aviv.

The non-binding United Nations Security Council Resolution 478, passed on August 20, 1980, declared that the Basic Law was "null and void and must be rescinded forthwith." Member states were advised to withdraw their diplomatic representation from the city as a punitive measure. Most of the remaining countries with embassies in Jerusalem complied with the resolution by relocating them to Tel Aviv, where many embassies already resided prior to Resolution 478. Currently there are no embassies located within the city limits of Jerusalem, although there are embassies in Mevaseret Zion, on the outskirts of Jerusalem, and four consulates in the city itself. In 1995, the United States Congress had planned to move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem with the passage of the Jerusalem Embassy Act. However, U.S. President George W. Bush has argued that Congressional resolutions regarding the status of Jerusalem are merely advisory. The Constitution reserves foreign relations as an executive power, and as such, the US embassy is still in Tel Aviv.

Israel's most prominent governmental institutions, including the Knesset, the Supreme Court, and the official residences of the President and Prime Minister, are located in Jerusalem. Prior to the creation of the State of Israel, Jerusalem served as the administrative capital of the British Mandate, which included present-day Israel and Jordan. From 1949 until 1967, West Jerusalem served as Israel's capital but was not recognized as such internationally because UN General Assembly Resolution 194 envisaged Jerusalem as an international city. As a result of the Six-Day War in 1967, the whole of Jerusalem came under Israeli control. On June 27, 1967, the government of Levi Eshkol extended Israeli law and jurisdiction to East Jerusalem, but agreed that administration of the Temple Mount compound would be maintained by the Jordanian waqf, under the Jordanian Ministry of Religious Endowments. In 1988, Israel ordered the closure of Orient House, home of the Arab Studies Society, but also the headquarters of the Palestine Liberation Organization, for security reasons. The building reopened in 1992 as a Palestinian guesthouse. The Oslo Accords stated that the final status of Jerusalem would be determined by negotiations with the Palestinian National Authority, which regards East Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state.

Religious significance

Main article: Religious significance of Jerusalem

Jerusalem plays an important role in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The 2000 Statistical Yearbook of Jerusalem lists 1204 synagogues, 158 churches, and 73 mosques within the city. Despite efforts to maintain peaceful religious coexistence, some sites, such as the Temple Mount, have been a continuous source of friction and controversy.

Jerusalem has been sacred to the Jews since King David proclaimed it his capital in the 10th century BCE. Jerusalem was the site of Solomon's Temple and the Second Temple. Synagogues around the world are traditionally built with the Holy Ark facing Jerusalem, and Arks within Jerusalem face the "Holy of Holies". As prescribed in the Mishna and codified in the Shulchan Aruch, daily prayers are recited while facing towards Jerusalem and the Temple Mount. Many Jews have "Mizrach" plaques hung on a wall of their homes to indicate the direction of prayer.

Christianity reveres Jerusalem not only for its Old Testament history but for its significance in the life of Jesus. According to the New Testament, Jesus was brought to Jerusalem soon after his birth and later in his life cleansed the Second Temple. The Cenacle, believed to be the site of Jesus' Last Supper, is located on Mount Zion in the same building that houses the Tomb of King David. Another prominent Christian site in Jerusalem is Golgotha, the site of the crucifixion. The Gospel of John describes it as being located outside Jerusalem, but recent archaeological evidence suggests Golgotha is a short distance from the Old City walls, within the present-day confines of the city. The land currently occupied by the Church of the Holy Sepulchre is considered one of the top candidates for Golgotha and thus has been a Christian pilgrimage site for the past two thousand years.

Jerusalem is considered the third-holiest city in Islam. For approximately a year, before it was permanently switched to the Kabaa in Mecca, the qibla (direction of prayer) for Muslims was Jerusalem. The city's lasting place in Islam, however, is primarily due to Muhammad's Night of Ascension (c. 620 CE). Muslims believe Muhammad was miraculously transported one night from Mecca to the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, whereupon he ascended to Heaven to meet previous prophets of Islam. The first verse in the Qur'an's Surat al-Isra notes the destination of Muhammad's journey as al-Aqsa (the farthest) mosque, in reference to the location in Jerusalem. Today, the Temple Mount is topped by two Islamic landmarks intended to commemorate the event — al-Aqsa Mosque, derived from the name mentioned in the Qur'an, and the Dome of the Rock, which stands over the Foundation Stone, from which Muslims believe Muhammad ascended to Heaven.

Although Jerusalem is known primarily for its religious significance, the city is also home to many artistic and cultural venues. The Israel Museum attracts nearly one million visitors a year, approximately one-third of them tourists.^[153] The 20 acre museum complex comprises several buildings featuring special exhibits and extensive collections of Judaica, archaeological findings, and Israeli and European art. The Dead Sea scrolls, discovered in the mid-twentieth century in the Qumran caves near the Dead Sea, are housed in the Museum's Shrine of the Book.^[154] The Youth Wing, which mounts changing exhibits and runs an extensive art education program, is visited by 100,000 children a year. The museum has a large outdoor sculpture garden, and a scale-model of the Second Temple was recently moved from the Holyland Hotel to a new location on the museum grounds. The Rockefeller Museum, located in East Jerusalem, was the first archaeological museum in the Middle East. It was built in 1938 during the British Mandate. The Islamic Museum on the Temple Mount, established in 1923, houses many Islamic artifacts, from tiny kohl flasks and rare manuscripts to giant marble columns.

Yad Vashem, Israel's national memorial to the victims of the Holocaust, houses the world's largest library of Holocaust-related information, with an estimated 100,000 books and articles. The complex contains a state-of-the-art museum that explores the genocide of the Jews through exhibits that focus on the personal stories of individuals and families killed in the Holocaust and an art gallery featuring the work of artists who perished. Yad Vashem also commemorates the 1.5 million Jewish children murdered by the Nazis, and honors the Righteous among the Nations. The Museum on the Seam, which explores issues of coexistence through art is situated on the road dividing eastern and western Jerusalem.

Question:- In Revelation 11, the Gentiles are given the power to trample the city of Jerusalem under foot for 42 months

This event has already happened. It started in Spring of AD 67 to September AD 70. that is exactly 42 months. It was the Roman seige of Jerusalem.

Question: Revelation 11:15 ...15The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, which said: The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign for ever and ever.”...

I was wondering where in the sequence of events this happens in Daniel's seventieth week. If it is in the middle of the week then how has "The kingdom of the world become the kingdom of our Lord" I always believed that the Kingdom of the world became Gods when Jesus returns. If this passage is talking about the return of Christ then is there scriptural evidence to support this...

Answer

We need to consider that Daniel 9:24 is seventy WEEKS (as it is written).

All end time Biblical prophetic time frames are in actual (literal) time, in other words, a day is a day, a year is a year, an hour is an hour, as it is “written”

Daniel 9:24's Seventy WEEKS are just that – 70 weeks x 7 days per week = 490 DAYS.

The 490 (literal) DAYS will be fulfilled/completed at the Seventh Trumpet ascension (1 Thess.4:16-17).

Seventy WEEKS (Dan.9:24) are determined upon thy people (within thy holy city, Jerusalem - Zech.14:2 )

Zech. 14:2
For I will gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem;
The city shall be taken,
The houses rifled,
And the women ravished.
Half of the city shall go into captivity,
But the remnant of the people shall not be cut off from the city.

AND upon thy holy city (Jerusalem), to finish the transgression (against the saints of the most High – Matt.24:9

Matt. 24: 9

9 “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake.

Dan.7:21

21 “I was watching; and the same horn was making war against the saints, and prevailing against them,

Dan.7:25

Dan.8:24

24 His power shall be mighty, but not by his own power;
He shall destroy fearfully,
And shall prosper and thrive;
He shall destroy the mighty, and also the holy people.

Rev.12:17

Rev.13:7

Rev.13:15

15 He was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed.

Rev.16:6

Rev.17:6

6 I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus. And when I saw her, I marveled with great amazement.

Dan.12:6-7

6 And one said to the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, “How long shall the fulfillment of these wonders be?” 7 Then I heard the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand to heaven, and swore by Him who lives forever, that it shall be for a time, times, and half a time; and when the power of the holy people has been completely shattered, all these things shall be finished.

The most Holy (Dan.9:24) are the remnant (144,000) seen in the city at Revelation 11:13, below, giving glory to God just prior to the ascension.

Dan.9:24 Seventy WEEKS are determined upon thy people AND upon thy holy city, to FINISH THE TRANSGRESSION, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and TO SEAL UP THE VISION AND PROPHECY, and to anoint the most Holy.

Zech.14:2 For I will gather ALL NATIONS against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and HALF the city shall go forth into captivity, and THE RESIDUE OF THE PEOPLE SHALL NOT BE CUT OFF FROM THE CITY.

Re.11:13 And the same hour was there a great earthquake, and the tenth part of the city fell, and in the earthquake were slain of men seven thousand: and the remnant were affrighted, and gave glory to the God of heaven.

FROM: http://en.allexperts.com/q/Bible-Studies-1654/revelation-plauges.htm

Mathew 23: 34-35

34 Therefore, indeed, I send you prophets, wise men, and scribes: some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from city to city, 35 that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.

Compare:

Rev. 17:4 (Jerusalem) the Harlot

4 The woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls, having in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the filthiness of her fornication.

to:

Exodus 28:5-6 - the ritual dress of the high priest - the colors that decorate the temple.

Rev. 17:1-3 - the great harlot

6-28-08 - DREAM - I had this dream twice, the first time in a school, the second time in an office.

In the dream, in the school, we were older - more than kids, more like college age. It was the end of the school year, and we were all happy to be finished and getting ready to leave school. We were all in a celebratory mood.

All of a sudden, George Bush came into the room with a big smile on his face and grabbed me by the hand and pulled me with him out of the room.

Everyone's faces looked shocked and stunned. They all looked like they were asking themselves questions - like "Where is he taking her? Why did he choose her instead of me?

I didn't know the answers to those questions any more than they did. I was just as shocked.

George continued to pull me along with him outside - no secret service was tagging along.

He was running now and he pulled me with him as he ran up some green metal stairs two at a time. I could hardly keep up with him.

I saw that we were on a foot-bridge - the whole thing was painted bright green. It was a really high bridge and on the far end, the stairs down were very steep and thin so that we had to almost slide down - hanging onto the railing. It seemed that it would be almost impossible to climb those stairs back up once we reached the bottom even if we had wanted to.

We were now in what looked like a park with green grass and sparse half-grown trees.

I could see a river off to our right.

George was still pulling me with him and all of a sudden he stopped and a look of fear came over his face and he looked across the river to our right.

My eyes followed his eyes to see what he was looking at.

Someone across the river was lighting the bottom end of a rocket or missile which was about to take off across the sky in our direction.

Was it the fourth of July?

SEE: http://www.greatdreams.com/political/july-rocket.htm

IS THIS HOW THE WAR WILL START?

JEFF RENSE INTERVIEWS JEFF SKOUSEN
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0q12hLOC7XA&feature=related

THE POWER HOUR - INTERVIEWS JEFF SKOUSEN
PART 1 - PREMPTIVE STRIKE TO START IRAN WAR
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYGa1-zB8so&feature=related

PART II -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yjhIoJHSUq0&feature=related

PART III
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djwQJkW-huM&feature=related

PART IV
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zEIB6SfOs4k&feature=related

Why Study Bible Prophecy? "And now I have told you before it come to pass, that, when it is come to pass, ye might believe." John 14:29 "Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken: Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory? And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself." Luke 24:25-27 "Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets." Amos 3:7 "For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." 2 Peter 1:21 "We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:" 2 Peter 1:19 "The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to show unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John: Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw. Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand." Revelation 1:1-3

Some of the Prophecies that were fulfilled by Jesus' first advent

• Born of a virgin: Isaiah 7:14 (Fulfillment Matthew 1:18-25, Luke 1:26-35)

• Born in Bethlehem: Micah 5:1-2 (Fulfillment Matthew 2:1, Luke 2:4-7)

• Preceded by Elijah: Malachi 4:5-6 (Fulfillment Matthew 11:13-14)

• Preceded by a messenger: Malachi 3:1 (Fulfillment Luke 7:24-28)

• Be anointed with the Spirit of God: Isaiah 11:2 Isaiah 61:1, Psalm 45:7 (Fulfillment Matthew 3:16)

• Anointed on time: Daniel 9:25 (Fulfillment Mark 1:15, Luke 3:1-3)

• Had a healing ministry: Isaiah 42:6-7 (Fulfillment Matthew 11:5)

• Adored by children: Psalm 8:2 (Fulfillment Matthew 21:15-16)

• Adored by great persons: Psalm 72:10-11 (Fulfillment Matthew 2:7-11)

• Numbered with transgressors: Isaiah 53:12 (Fulfillment Luke 23:33)

• Interceded for transgressors: Isaiah 53:12 (Fulfillment Luke 23:34)

20 Fulfilled Prophetic Signs Showing the Nearness of the Second Coming of Jesus

- The Glorious Hope One of the most solemn and yet most glorious truths revealed in the Bible (John 14:1-3)

- Sign #1 The Destruction of Jerusalem (Matthew 24:2, 16)

- Sign #2 A Great Persecution or Tribulation (Matthew 24:21)

- Sign #3 A Great Earthquake (Revelation 6:12)

- Sign #4 The Sun Turned into Darkness (Matthew 24:29)

- Sign #5 Moon Turned into Blood (Joel 2:31)

- Sign #6 The Stars Fall from Heaven (Matthew 24:29)

- Sign #7 Capital Labor Troubles (James 5:4)

- Sign #8 Wars and Commotions (Matthew 24:6)

- Sign #9 Unrest, Fear, and Upheaval (Luke 21:26)

- Sign #10 Increase of Knowledge (Daniel 12:4)

- Sign #11 Moral Degeneracy (2 Timothy 3:1)

- Sign #12 Increasing lawlessness, Bloody Crimes, and Violence (2 Timothy 3:13)

- Sign #13 Craze for Pleasure (2 Timothy 3:4)

- Sign #14 Disasters, Famines, and Disease (Matthew 24:7)

- Sign #15 A Last Day World Wide Warning Message (Matthew 24:14)

- Sign #16 A turning to Spiritualism (1 Timothy 4:1)

- Sign #17 Pride & Selfishness (2 Timothy 3:1-5, Proverbs 16:18)

- Sign #18 Drunkenness and Gluttony (Luke 17:28-30)

- Sign #19 Desecration of Marriage (Matthew 24:37)

- Sign #20 Scoffers & Religious Skeptics (2 Peter 3:3-7)

The Antichrist - (View a comparison of Daniel 7 and Revelation 13)

• The Antichrist comes after a falling away or apostasy. (2 Thessalonians 2:3) - At times forbids marriage (1 Timothy 4:3) - At times commands not to eat certain foods that God says are ok to eat. (1 Timothy 4:3-5) - Has other teachings that are devilish (1 Timothy 4:1; Acts 8:20; 1 John 3:8, 4)

• The Antichrist is revealed before the second coming of Jesus. (2 Thessalonians 2:1-3)

• The Antichrist has a visible leader. (Acts 20:30; 2 Thessalonians 2:4; Daniel 7:8)

• The Antichrist comes from within the church. (Acts 20:30; 2 Thessalonians 2:4)

• and then takes up residence in the church (2 Thessalonians 2:4)

• The Antichrist rules for a long period of time. (Revelation 13:5, 12:6, 12:14; Daniel 7:25)

• The Antichrist receives its power from the Devil. (Revelation 13:2; Revelation 12:9)

• The Antichrist blasphemes God. (Revelation 13:5-6; Daniel 7:8,20,25)

• The Antichrist tries to change God's law. (Daniel 7:25)

• The Antichrist persecutes the people who keep God's law. (Revelation 13:2, 12:17, 14:12; Daniel 7:21)

• The persecution diminishes prior to the end of the Antichrist's rule. (Matthew 24:22)

• The Antichrist's long rule comes to an end. (Revelation 13:3)

• The Antichrist again regains power and prestige. (Revelation 13:3)

• The Antichrist deceives people around the world into worshipping it. (Revelation 13:3)

• Another forces people to worship the Antichrist. (Revelation 13:11-12)

• Miracles are used to deceive people into worshipping the Antichrist. (Revelation 13:13-14)

• Some resist the authority of the Antichrist so economic sanctions are then used. (Revelation 13:16)

• Some people still resist and a death decree is brought against them. (Revelation 13:15)

• The Antichrist has a mark of authority that must be avoided at all costs. (Revelation 13:16-17, 14:9-10)

To learn what the Antichrist's mark of authority is please start our online Prophecy Lessons today.

Miscellaneous Bible Prophecy Questions and Answers

= Audio file (requires Windows Media player.)

Q/A Can we take the book of Revelation literally?

Q/A Is the Antichrist on earth now? (Start our free Bible Prophecy lessons today!)

Q/A Who are the great multitude in white robes in Revelation 7:9, 14?

Q/A Does Joel 2:28 pertain to Jews or USA?

Q/A Explain the meanings of the messages to the seven churches in Revelation.

Q/A Explain about the resurrection of saints described in Matthew 27:52-53.

Q/A When Jesus returns, will God the Father be with Him?

Q/A Is the 'abomination' the attempt to again sacrifice a red heifer?

Q/A How does the mark of the beast relate to buying and selling?

Q/A What do the references to stars in the Bible mean?

For more Bible questions and answers on a variety of topics please begin our free Bible Prophecy studies today!

WWIII Prophecies:

http://www.jrnyquist.com/may14/new_page_2.htm

See all sites: http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=%22is+war+imminent%22++2008

JOEL SKOUSEN WORLD AFFAIRS SITE: http://www.worldaffairsbrief.com/

JEROME CORSI - WORLD DAILY NEWS: http://www.worldnetdaily.com/

Is Temple Mount God's time bomb? New book sees Jerusalem real estate as roadmap to future events Posted: August 14, 2008 7:00 pm Eastern © 2008 WorldNetDaily Was the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem more than a place of worship? Was it, indeed, a roadmap to future events – a kind of prophetic landmark whose significance is only now revealed through the development of satellite imagery? That is the contention of an explosive new book, "Temple at the Center of Time: Newton's Bible Codex Deciphered and the Year 2012," by David Flynn, a book that has risen dramatically to No. 1 among unexplained mysteries, No. 1 in world history and 73 overall on Amazon.com. The book asserts it has "deciphered Isaac Newton’s greatest paradox: None other than 'the unified field theory' of Bible prophecy." Sir Isaac Newton was not only a great thinker in physics, the book explains, but had extensive knowledge of the Scriptures with a special interest in prophecy. Newton believed there was a hidden code, a type of time-encrypted language. He believed the key to deciphering this code was the Temple of Solomon. He wrote extensively on the length measurements of the Temple and suggested it intersected time and dimension, serving as a prophetic and supernatural structure. According to Flynn, although Newton never cracked this code, he was on the right track and was limited only by the lack of sophisticated satellite technology. "The description of Jerusalem as a terrestrial center point, situated in the center of the world, is found in Philo's Legatio and Gaium," Flynn notes. "The world is like a human eyeball. The white of the eye is the ocean surrounding the world, the iris is this continent, the pupil is Jerusalem, and the image in the pupil is the Holy Temple." To make his case, Flynn starts by illustrating what the reader soon learns is the first of numerous extraordinary time-distance anomalies. The prisca sapentia framework of Newton suggests that the distance between the temple of Jerusalem and the capital city of any nation historically effecting the chronicles of Jerusalem would be supernaturally connected. This relationship would be significant with respect to units of time, expressing meaning in line with God's divine plan as recorded in the word of his prophets. See for yourself the theories of Flynn's book: Newton and Flynn point out how Ezekiel recorded the dimensions of the future temple in chapter 40 of his book, starting with the lengths of the temple gates, chambers, courts, walls and its exterior. After this, calibrations of weights and measure for the temple functions were given in detail. Finally, the distance of land outward from the temple was measured. And he brought me thither, and, behold, [there was] a man, whose appearance [was] like the appearance of brass, with a line of flax in his hand, and a measuring reed; and he stood in the gate. (Ezekiel 40:3) The measure of distance away from Jerusalem in this text implies a spiritual significance, says Flynn. A relationship between Jerusalem and the nations existed from the foundation of the temple, but was not completely perceived – and could not be fully known until the conventions of modern science. For instance, if a measurement is made from the point of the temple of Jerusalem's foundation stone to the palace of Balthazar – the political center of Babylon and the exact location where the writing on the wall occurred – the distance should relate to the period in which Babylon most influenced Jerusalem. Such a relationship exists and is the important distance of 539.86 statute miles. What makes this measurement unusual is that Babylon, which played such a significant role in Hebrew antiquity, was measured and numbered in its relationship to Jewish history in Daniel chapter five during the famous handwriting on the wall. When the prophet interpreted the manifestation, he proclaimed in verses 25-28: And this is the writing that was written: MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN. This is the interpretation of the thing: MENE, God hath numbered thy kingdom, and finished it; TEKEL; Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting; PERES; Thy kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians. That very night King Belshazzar was slain, and Darius the Mede became king. Babylon fell to the Medes and Persians on the 16th day of Tishri of the Jewish calendar, which correlates to Oct. 12, 539 B.C. Curiously, the number 539 is also the distance in statute miles between the temple of Jerusalem's foundation stone to the palace of Balthazar, as confirmed by modern satellite measurement. Does this give insight to the handwriting on the wall or the dating and measuring of Babylon's affairs in the history of Israel? Does this imply that Babylon's influence over Israel was supernaturally predated and measured, or foreknown? Or was this just a fascinating coincidence? As the first of such discoveries made by Flynn, he wondered the same thing. So Flynn studied epic moments having to do with the sovereignty of Israel and the nations that played key roles in Hebrew and Jewish history. Over and over he found fascinating date-measurement anomalies connecting pivotal moments in time to the temple in Jerusalem. He went through annals, considering when acts by world leaders had influenced the development of the Jewish state. He continued to find more. A case in point was the relationship between Napoleon Bonaparte and the Jews. Napoleon had previously encountered the prophecies of the Old Testament in the Jewish community of Malta, which he liberated under French law in 1798. For hundreds of years, the Knights Hospitalier of Saint John of Jerusalem had oppressed the Jews by enslaving them and preventing open worship. One of Napoleon's first acts after banishing the Knights was to allow the Jews to build a synagogue, and the community of Jews on Malta welcomed Napoleon as a conqueror equal to Cyrus the Great. They believed their liberation by him was the fulfillment of the "king of the North" prophecy in Daniel 11. This was followed on the first day of Passover, April 20, 1799, when Napoleon issued his proclamation of a Jewish state of Palestine. On May 22, 1799, the Paris newspaper, Moniteur Universel, announced: "Bonaparte has published a proclamation in which he invites all the Jews of Asia and Africa to gather under his flag in order to re-establish the ancient Jerusalem. He has already given arms to a great number, and their battalions threaten Aleppo." Although the proclamation did not come to fruition, it increased a drive for Jews worldwide to pursue a sovereign state in Israel. Napoleon's ideas were also embraced by many who viewed them as a fulfillment of ancient prophecy, even some belonging to the Church of England. This is important because Paris was named after the Paris, a Celtic people who settled on this central island in the 3rd century B.C. The city later spread outward from this point along the banks of the Seine River. This island is considered the birthplace of Paris and was the site of the city's earliest settlements. It was home to the French Kings from A.D. 400 to A.D. 1300. The royal palace and parliament were located on the western side of the island. Extending a measuring line from this historical center of Paris to the Temple Mount in Jerusalem shows the distance in nautical miles, 1,799. The intriguing connection to Flynn's book is clear: Napoleon made a proclamation of historical importance to the Jewish nation in the year 1799, and perhaps not coincidently the distance from Paris to the Temple Mount in nautical miles corresponds perfectly at 1,799. As findings like these stack up and the mathematical improbability of Flynn's disclosure increases, one of the most extraordinary parts of the book is unveiled when we learn how the year 1948 is marked by time-distance relations to the Temple location and several other mind-boggling dates and places, both past and future, which we will not divulge here. However, a peek into this section of the book finds discussion of how Britain was the nation that was "friendly to the Jews" and enabled them to return to Israel over 200 after Newton's death. The British defeated the Ottoman Turks and became administrators of the land of ancient Israel in 1917. Through mandate after World War I and World War II until 1948, London was the heart of the governing intellect over the region. London's original location at its founding is an important point in establishing the exact value of time and distance between it and Jerusalem's Temple. The Romans established Londinium in about A.D. 47. It was a civilian settlement built where the Thames became narrow enough for a bridge to be built across it but was still deep enough to admit large ocean vessels. In the 16th century, William Camden believed that the "London Stone" was a Roman milestone from which all distances were measured in the province. In the 17th century, Christopher Wren was able to observe the foundations of the London Stone underneath Cannon Street during the rebuilding of London after the Great Fire. With this information, it is possible to extend a measuring line from the Temple Mount in Jerusalem to the exact center of ancient London, and by fixing a point on the site of the temple mount, a measuring line extended over Jerusalem to the center of London produces 1,948.40 nautical miles. Therefore, incredibly, recorded in the earth between the Temple Mount of Jerusalem and the historic center of London is what Flynn sees as the fulfillment of Newton's own prediction: Israel became a nation again May 14th, 1948, corresponding perfectly to a distance between the temple and London of 1948 nautical miles. As the reader moves through Temple at the Center of Time, these time-length correlations accumulate quickly, including numerous ancient dates such as 1441 B.C. when the Exodus from Egypt occurred. It turns out is 1,441,000 feet from the Jerusalem Temple to the Great Pyramid in Giza. Flynn finds dozens of other key dates in the past through similar satellite mapping measurements including some related to the United States, Russia and Rome. Before it is even officially released, Flynn's book is causing a sensation in some circles where it is being compared to "The Bible Code." Special offers: Bible comes alive: Entire New Testament on video! 'Are We Living in the Last Days?' American Prophecies: What's next for us? History of the World: Not the phony stuff you've been taught Chart the world's history all the way back to Adam and Eve DVD: The Forbidden Book: The History of the English Bible Geneva Bible of 1599 King James Giant Print Reference Bible Perfect gift! Compass that points to Jerusalem Previous stories: Israel adopts U.S. plan to split nation in 2 Old Testament proof! 'Royal seal' discovered Blood moon eclipses: 2nd Coming in 2015? 'Deception': Christians war over worship day Christmas in America becomes battleground Flood of claims for 'Noah's Ark' Real-life raiders hunt Ark of the Covenant Pharaoh's chariots found in Red Sea?

By Daniel Cancel

Aug. 17, 2008 (Bloomberg) -- Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said Russia has expressed interest in sending a naval fleet to the Caribbean. He said Venezuela would welcome the visit.

The naval fleet would come to Caribbean waters on a trip of ``friendship and work,'' Chavez said in comments on state television. Venezuela has bought Sukhoi fighter jets from Russia and is evaluating the purchase of submarines, Chavez said.

``We've been informed that the Russian government wants to visit Venezuela,'' Chavez said. ``They want a Russian fleet to come to the Caribbean. If they come, they'll be welcomed.''

Venezuela has spent billions of dollars in modernizing its armed forces in recent years, purchasing arms mainly from Russia. The South American country has also criticized the U.S.'s reactivation of the Navy's Fourth Fleet to patrol the Caribbean on anti-narcotics missions.

Chavez said he's interested in buying K-8 Chinese training jets after the U.S. stopped selling replacement parts for existing Venezuelan aircraft. He said he'll visit China in September.

Daniel Cancel in Caracas at .

Russia’s new nuclear challenge to Europe

8/17/08

New Russian threat comes in response to war in Caucasus, US-Poland deal for missile defense shield in Europe. According to Sunday Times, nuclear warheads could be supplied to submarines, cruisers and fighter bombers of Russia's Baltic fleet based between Poland and Lithuania
Ynet

Cold War warming up? Russia is considering arming its Baltic fleet with nuclear warheads for the first time since the cold war, the London-based Sunday Times has reported, quoting senior military sources.

The new Russian threat comes in response to the violent conflict in the Caucasus and a deal signed between the United States and Poland for a missile defense shield in Europe. Poland agreed on Thursday to host elements of a US global anti-missile system after Washington agreed to boost Warsaw's own air defenses.

Accusations

US-Poland missile shield deal seen aimed at Russia / Reuters

Moscow's envoy to NATO says missile defense system will not be deployed against Iran but rather against his country

According to the report, under the Russian plans nuclear warheads could be supplied to submarines, cruisers and fighter bombers of the Baltic fleet based in Kaliningrad, a Russian enclave between Poland and Lithuania.

A senior military source in Moscow admitted that the fleet had suffered from underfunding since the collapse of communism, but told The Sunday Times that “that will change now."

"In view of America’s determination to set up a missile defense shield in Europe, the military is reviewing all its plans to give Washington an adequate response,” said the source.

'Russia's reaction is unfortunate'
According to the report, the proposal to bring back nuclear warheads was condemned by Kurt Volker, the US ambassador to Nato, who said he knew of the threat.

“It is really unfortunate that Russia chooses to react by putting nuclear warheads in different places – if indeed it does that – when the rest of the world is not looking at some kind of old-fashioned superpower conflict,” he said.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said on Friday that Washington's deal with Poland to shows the rocket shield is really directed against his country.

"This decision clearly demonstrates everything we have said recently," Medvedev said when asked about the agreement at a joint news conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in the Black Sea resort of Sochi.

A top Russian general said Friday that Poland's agreement to accept a US missile interceptor base exposes the ex-communist nation to attack, possibly by nuclear weapons, the Interfax news agency reported.

The statement by General Anatoly Nogovitsyn was the strongest threat that Russia has issued against the plans to put missile defense elements in former Soviet satellite nations.

"Poland, by deploying (the system) is exposing itself to a strike — 100%," Nogovitsyn, the deputy chief of staff, was quoted as saying.

He added, in clear reference to the agreement, that Russia's military doctrine sanctions the use of nuclear weapons "against the allies of countries having nuclear weapons if they in some way help them." That would include elements of strategic deterrence systems, he said, according to Interfax.

Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report

Russia's Concept for Dominating Europe

by J. R. Nyquist

Weekly Column Published: 08.15.2008

M oscow’s blitzkrieg in Georgia is more than a military campaign. It is designed to empower Russia’s diplomatic strategy, which seeks to make the European Union (EU) the West’s chief representative in future negotiations with Russia. Quite naturally the Kremlin wants to escape the logic of U.S. and NATO policy, which is to contain Russia within her national borders. Meanwhile, the European Union is an entirely different animal: toothless, utopian and ready to please.

The Kremlin strategists believe that the United States is on the brink of a crippling dislocation. According to a July 29 Pravda article, an anonymous Russian diplomat revealed that the “Russian administration believes the United States may soon suffer from a serious political crisis.” The sequence begins with a financial crash, advances to political unrest and finally to the dissolution of American military power. As the Russian diplomat warned, “America is standing on the verge of a large-scale crisis of its own existence.”

Last month Russia’s ambassadors were called back to Moscow. On July 15 President Dmitry Medvedev spoke to them at the Foreign Ministry. “I would like to use this opportunity for an open and pragmatic conversation,” explained Medvedev to the assembled diplomats. “Russia is indeed stronger and able to assume greater responsibility for solving problems on a regional and global scale.” You see, the Cold War was not an American victory. Medvedev reminded his colleagues that they had “survived the Cold War.” And now Russia is prepared to establish “a new equilibrium.”

Medvedev’s speech was prescient: “the habit … of resorting to force … is increasing…. In such circumstances it is important to maintain restraint and to evaluate situations carefully.” When wars break out, it’s best to know what you’re fighting for; so Medvedev wanted his ambassadors to familiarize themselves with the party line before they headed back to their embassies. We should not worry about Cold War style confrontations, Medvedev lectured. “I am convinced that with the end of the Cold War the underlying reasons for most of the bloc politics and bloc discipline simply disappeared.” In other words, NATO is divided. And NATO’s violation of Yugoslavian sovereignty in 1999 now enables a devastating Russian response.

History ought to be remembered, said Medvedev. “We simply cannot accept the attempts taking place in individual countries to highlight the ‘civilizing, liberating mission’ of the fascists and their accomplices.” He was obliquely referring to anti-Communist patriots in Georgia, Ukraine and the Baltic States, and to the way they’d welcomed the German invaders in 1941. “Characteristically,” he continued, “it is those states that have such a passion for rewriting history and domestic and foreign policies that are at the same time the most zealous advocates of illegal acts, like the Kosovo precedent…. And those same states are the ones who have become ultra-nationalist in their policies, harassing national minorities and denying rights to the so-called ‘stateless’ citizens in their countries.”

Here was an obvious reference to Georgia, which was about to be invaded by Russian motorized and airborne divisions. “For us, this task is particularly important, since in many cases we are talking about abuses against Russians and Russian-speaking populations. And protecting and defending those rights is obviously one of our responsibilities.” And then, Medvedev explained Russia’s overall diplomatic strategy: “I have focused on these aspects because Europe today needs a positive rather than negative agenda.” In other words, the invasion of Georgia is not an end in itself. The real purpose of this operation, the Russian president hinted, was to highlight the dangerous obsolescence of NATO and Europe’s unrealistic expectations with regard to Russia. The old treaties will not keep the peace, he said, because they are unfair. Russia is a great power and deserves greater influence. “I’m absolutely convinced that this requires new approaches,” he explained. “That is why we proposed to conclude a new treaty on European security and to start this process at a European-wide summit.”

The invasion of Georgia now comes into focus. As President Medvedev noted, there are “flaws in the architecture of European security….” The Conventional Forces in Europe (CFE) agreement is unfair because it forbids Russia from positioning large tank armies in Europe. This sort of thing won’t do, said Medvedev. What we need is “a truly open and collective security system.” What Moscow must demand, in fact, is the reform of international institutions. The old Soviet republics must be reintegrated through a strengthening of the Commonwealth of Independent States. According to Medvedev, “A strategic partnership between Russia and the EU could act as the so-called cornerstone of a Greater Europe without dividing lines….”

The formula is simple. Expose NATO’s weakness. Welcome the European Union as a mediator and deplore the meaningless twaddle of a helpless U.S. president. The West is weak and the time has come to prepare a great harvest. It is not the 1940s, Tbilisi is not Berlin, and George Bush is not Harry Truman. A new era has dawned in which the Americans stand at the sidelines. “The United States strongly supports France’s efforts, as President of the European Union, to broker an agreement that will end this conflict,” said President Bush.

What a silly, silly statement. How many divisions does the EU have?

Today the European Union confronts Russia in the same way Neville Chamberlain confronted Hitler in 1938; being outwitted and tricked in the ceasefire negotiations, there is no possible outcome other than appeasement. The Russians insist that their troops be accepted as peacekeepers in Georgia. The French mediators allow this. And so, the stipulated withdrawal of combatants therefore does not apply to the Russian troops. Under this ceasefire agreement Moscow can claim – in a strictly legal sense – that Russian troops can stay in Georgia indefinitely. President Medvedev and Prime Minister Putin are laughing at the French while observing international law. Meanwhile, occupied Georgia is looted and burned; Georgian ships are sunk and the Georgian capital is strangled.

NATO has done nothing, even though NATO has promised to make Georgia a member of the alliance. NATO defers to the European Union. Bush also defers and sends his Secretary of State to Paris instead of Moscow. While all of Europe demanded a negotiated solution, only Poland and the Baltic States (along with Sweden and Denmark) denounced Russian military aggression. All of Europe should have denounced Russia with one voice. All of Europe should have eschewed “negotiations.” All of Europe should have demanded an immediate withdrawal of Russian forces from Georgia. All of Europe should have begun to mobilize troops and combat aircraft for the defense of Georgia. In that event, Russia would have retreated.

But the Kremlin knew, in advance, this wouldn’t happen. There is no “military confrontation” in Georgia. As President Medvedev said, “I am convinced that with the end of the Cold war … bloc discipline simply disappeared.”

The Russian president is right.

Copyright © 2008 Jeffrey R. Nyquist
Global Analysis Archive

contact information

Jeffrey R. Nyquist Email | Website