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Researched by Pastor Gary Boyd
Jan. 2, 2024

More than 3,700 years ago, the grandson of Abraham brought his twelve sons to him and said,

Gather together, that I may tell you what shall befall you in the last days….

“In the last days” is specific, but it is doubtful that Jacob, whose name was changed to Israel, had any idea how far into the future that would be. Apart from a revelation from God, no human being could possibly know what to expect of his progeny so far into the future. Now here is the prophecy for his son Judah, meaning the Jews.

Your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; Judah is a lion’s whelp; from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He bows down, he lies down as a lion; and as a lion, who shall rouse him? The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh comes; and to Him shall be the obedience of the people (Genesis 49:8–10).

Note that the promised lawgiver—that is, the Messiah—would come from the Jews, and he did 1,700 years later. Many recognize this, but what about the part that describes the “time of the end” when the Jews would be as a lion that is best not roused? Is that not the history of the last 75 years and what we see even now? Dear friends, there are even more specific prophecies were given 2,500 years ago by the prophet Zechariah. Notice what God foretold through him in chapter 12 and verses 2–3:

Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of drunkenness to all the surrounding peoples, when they lay siege against Judah [that is, the Jews] and Jerusalem. And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples; all who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it (Zechariah 12:2–3).

Consider how specific and remarkable this passage is. Note these five points:

The Jews will be in Jerusalem

That was far from a given—it has not always been that way. The Romans destroyed Jerusalem in 70 AD and expelled Jews from the Holy Land in 135 AD. For more than 1,800 years there was no Jewish state—not anywhere on earth. As Richard Ames explains in The Middle East in Prophecy:

… Jerusalem was in the hands of Byzantine rulers when it fell to a Muslim army led by Caliph Umar in 638. This crusade brought Jerusalem under Western control in the “Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem,” which held the city from 1099 to 1187, when Saladin reconquered Jerusalem for Islam. Later crusades brought Jerusalem briefly under Western control from 1229 to 1239, and from 1243 to 1244, when it was sacked by the Tatars. In 1247, the city fell to the Egyptian Mamluks, under whose control it remained until 1517, when Ottoman sultan Selim I conquered the city (The Middle East in Prophecy, p. 3).

In 1917, the British took control, and through a series of events, the Holy Land was partitioned, giving the Jews a portion of it. They declared their independence to form a Jewish homeland in 1948. Arab neighbors immediately attacked and tried to drive the Jews out, but the lion rose up and prevailed.

So while we may take it for granted that there is a Jewish state on the eastern end of the Mediterranean, it was not always so, not from 135 AD until 1948. But what else do we learn from Zechariah?

And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples (Zechariah 12:3).

Now, is that true, my friends? When this was written, Christianity was more than 500 years in the future, and Islam nearly 600 years after Christianity. Yet today, Jerusalem is at the heart of three religions—Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. All lay claim to Jerusalem. It truly is a troublesome stone—the great sticking point in all peace talks.

… all who would heave it away [the heavy stone of Jerusalem] will surely be cut in pieces (Zechariah 12:3).

Remember Jacob’s prediction that in the last days Judah would be like a resting lion that is best not aroused? In 1967, Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nassar threatened Israel by moving troops to Israel’s border. Jordan and Syria would join the fight, but the Jews struck pre-emptively and defeated their enemies on all sides in a mere six days. In 1973 Israel’s neighbors attacked on the most sacred Jewish Holy Day—Yom Kippur—when the Jews were weak from fasting. But once again, they cut their enemies in pieces.

PREDICTIONS ABOUT JERUSALEM, JUDAH, AND ISRAEL COMING TRUE

What’s ahead in the Middle East as we enter 2024? What does the Bible have to say about it? As we are seeing, quite a bit. So far, we’ve seen three lessons from Zechariah 12.

The Jews will be in Jerusalem.

Jerusalem would be a very heavy stone in the world (Zechariah 12:3).

… all who would heave it away [the heavy stone of Jerusalem] will surely be cut in pieces (Zechariah 12:3).

Now let’s look at another point from Zechariah 12:

… though all nations of the earth are gathered against it [that is, Israel](Zechariah 12:3).

Are all nations gathered against the Jews? There are more United Nations resolutions condemning Israel than all other countries combined. And consider the massive demonstrations taking place all over the world against the Jews—in Russia, in China, in Germany, in France, in the United States, in Australia, in Britain.

The father of the Jews prophesied 3,700 years ago that they would be a powerful military force. They would be like a lion that is best not aroused. This is also confirmed in Zechariah 12:6:

In that day I will make the governors of Judah like a firepan in the woodpile, and like a fiery torch in the sheaves; they shall devour all the surrounding peoples on the right hand and on the left, but Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in her own place—Jerusalem (Zechariah 12:6).

This has hardly been the Jewish history until the last 75 years! So, we next read number five,

The Jews ability to wield great military might

Dear friends, these are remarkable prophesies, but there is more. Despite their military prowess, there is coming a time in the near future when Jerusalem will be overrun by the Jews’ enemies. What happened October 7, 2023 will happen in Jerusalem. Zechariah 14 gives the details.

Behold, the day of the LORD is coming, and your spoil will be divided in your midst. 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 (Zechariah 14:1–2).

Note that Jerusalem today is a divided city, just as the prophet indicated when he said “Half the city shall go into captivity.” Again, Zechariah speaks of the world lining up against the Jews. Revelation 11:2 tells us that Jerusalem would be overrun by the Gentiles for a period of 3½ years leading up to the return of Jesus Christ, the Messiah.

But leave out the court which is outside the temple, and do not measure it, for it has been given to the Gentiles. And they will tread the holy city underfoot for forty-two months (Revelation 11:2).

The time setting of Zechariah 14 is yet future. It’s that 3½ year period of the Great Tribulation and the one-year day of the LORD when God’s wrath on rebellious mankind leads to Christ’s second coming. This is stated explicitly in verse 4:

And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which faces Jerusalem on the east. And the Mount of Olives shall be split in two, from east to west, making a very large valley; half of the mountain shall move toward the north and half of it toward the south (Zechariah 14:4).

And if that is not clear enough, here is what it tells us in verse 9:

And the LORD shall be King over all the earth. In that day it shall be—“The LORD is one,” and His name one (Zechariah 14:9).

Bruce123

Thanks for this post it’s a great synopsis of what is happening and what is to come.