Hezbollah says it will be victorious in Syria, but what does the Bible say?

Hezbollah Flag

The top leader from Hezbollah declared today that his side will win in Syria:

May 25, 2013

BEIRUT — The leader of the Lebanese Shiite militant group Hezbollah on Saturday defiantly defended sending his fighters to support President Bashar al-Assad’s army in neighboring Syria and proclaimed that they would be victorious.Hasan Nasrallah’s televised address provided the clearest public acknowledgment to date that his men are fighting alongside Assad’s troops and will continue to do so. As he spoke, Hezbollah and government forces were escalating an assault on the strategically important Syrian town of Qusair…

“The resistance cannot stand, arms folded, while its back is broken,” he said in the speech, timed to mark the 13th anniversary of the withdrawal of Israeli troops from southern Lebanon. http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/hezbollah-chief-admits-and-defends-groups-involvement-in-syrian-war/2013/05/25/3748965a-c55e-11e2-9fe2-6ee52d0eb7c1_story.html

Who is Hezbollah?

Hezbollah…is a Shi’a Islamic militant group and political party based in Lebanon. It receives financial and political support from Iran and Syria, and its paramilitary wing is regarded as a resistance movement throughout much of the Arab and Muslim worlds. The governments of the U.S., Netherlands,Bahrain, France, U.K., Australia, Canada, and Israel classify Hezbollah as a terrorist organization, in whole or in part.

Hezbollah was conceived by Muslim clerics and funded by Iran following the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, and was primarily formed to offer resistance to the Israeli occupation. Its leaders were inspired by Ayatollah Khomeini, and its forces were trained and organized by a contingent of Iranian Revolutionary Guards. Hezbollah’s 1985 manifesto listed its four main goals as “Israel’s final departure from Lebanon as a prelude to its final obliteration”, ending “any imperialist power in Lebanon”, submission of the Phalangists to “just rule” and bringing them to trial for their crimes, and giving the people the chance to choose “with full freedom the system of government they want”, while not hiding its commitment to the rule of Islam. Hezbollah leaders have also made numerous statements calling for the destruction of the state of Israel, which they refer to as the “Zionist entity”.

Hezbollah, which started with only a small militia, has grown to an organization with seats in the Lebanese government, a radio and a satellite television-station, and programs for social development. The organization has been called a state within a state. Hezbollah maintains strong support among Lebanon’s Shi’a population, and is able to mobilize demonstrations of hundreds of thousands. (Wikipedia, viewed 05/25/13)

Shi’a Muslims slightly outnumber Sunni Muslims in Lebanon. Hezbollah is basically a Shiite group. While Hezbollah will have some successes at times, they will not truly attain their goal.

While most people in Syria are Sunni Muslim, its President Assad is Shiite Muslim. Iran is predominantly composed of Shi’a Muslims. Syria is believed to get a significant amount of its arms from Iran with some of that coming from Hezbollah (an Israeli bombing a few weeks ago in Syria was supposedly related to missiles heading to Hezbollah (see Israel bombs Syria).

While Hezbollah has its hopes and warring plans, the Bible indicates that Lebanon and Syria will change and be allied with other Arab nations. The Bible does not show that Iran will have significant power as we get closer to the start of the Great Tribulation.

Notice that the Bible talks of a coming confederation of nations that are composed of peoples from North Africa and the Middle East, and it calls the leader the King of the South:

40 “At the time of the end the king of the South shall attack him; and the king of the North shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter the countries, overwhelm them, and pass through. 41 He shall also enter the Glorious Land, and many countries shall be overthrown; but these shall escape from his hand: Edom, Moab, and the prominent people of Ammon. 42 He shall stretch out his hand against the countries, and the land of Egypt shall not escape. 43 He shall have power over the treasures of gold and silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt; also the Libyans and Ethiopians shall follow at his heels. (Daniel 11:40-44, NKJV)

2 ‘Son of man, prophesy, and thou hast said: Thus said the Lord Jehovah: Howl ye, ha! for the day!

3 For near [is] a day, near [is] a day to Jehovah! A day of clouds, the time of nations it is.

4 And come in hath a sword to Egypt, And there hath been great pain in Cush, In the falling of the wounded in Egypt, And they have taken its store, And broken down have been its foundations.

5 Cush, and Phut, and Lud, and all the mixture, and Chub, And the sons of the land of the covenant with them by sword do fall,

6 Thus said Jehovah: And — fallen have supporters of Egypt, And come down hath the arrogance of her strength, From Migdol to Syene, by sword they fall in her, An affirmation of the Lord Jehovah.

7 And they have been desolated in the midst of desolate lands, And its cities are in the midst of wasted cities.

8 And they have known that I [am] Jehovah, In My giving fire against Egypt, And broken have been all her helpers.

9 In that day go forth do messengers from before Me in ships, To trouble confident Cush, And there hath been great pain among them, As the day of Egypt, for lo, it hath come. (Ezekiel 30:2-9, Young’s Literal Translation)

Nearly all the nations alluded to above are dominated by Sunni, not Shiite, Muslims. Notice also the following which quotes the Bible about a confederation and attempts to assign national identities to them:

“They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance. For they have consulted together with one consent: they are confederate against thee: The tabernacles of Edom [Esau or modern-day Turkey, a non-Arab but Islamic nation], and the Ishmaelites [Saudi Arabia]; of Moab [part of Jordan], and the Hagarenes [anciently these peoples dwelt in the area known as Syria today]; Gebal [Lebanon], and Ammon [modern Jordan], and Amalek [part of the Turks]; the Philistines [the modern Palestinians] with the inhabitants of Tyre [Lebanon]; Assur [whose descendants, the Assyrians, migrated to Germany] also is joined with them: they have holpen the children of Lot [Jordan and Western Iraq]” (Psalm 83:4-8) (Stump K. The Arab World in Prophecy. Plain Truth, December 1979).

Since Lebanon and Syria are located in the Middle East, the prophecies in Daniel 11, Ezekiel 30, and Psalm 83 appear to be referring to a confederation of mainly Arabic nations that will include them.

Hence, despite some issues, Lebanon and Syria will end up with some type of Islamic confederation–but one that will not be good for it or its people. And Syria’s capital Damascus, at some point in time, will be destroyed:

1 The burden against Damascus.

“Behold, Damascus will cease from being a city,
And it will be a ruinous heap. (Isaiah 17:1).

Damascus will be destroyed, possibly reasonably soon. The situation in Syria will change and the Assad regime will not ultimately be able to continue as it has.

My reading of the scriptures do not suggest that Iran will lead such a confederation, hence this is one reason why I do not believe that Iran, Hezbollah, and Syria will ‘win’ in the Middle East. Nor will Hezbollah (though the possibility of having opposition, of various types, to the King of the South does exist, hence groups like Hezbollah may still have further roles in the geopolitics of the region).

A coming confederation of Islamic lands is something that the Sunni Muslim Brotherhood also is hoping to bring to pass. And, despite some military advances and support from Shiite sources, a regular review of the news shows that it is the Sunni side that is making progress towards its confederation goal. A goal that will, temporarily, be achieved according to Bible prophecy.

Some links of related interest may include:

Damascus and Syria in Prophecy Will Bashar Assad hold power as he has it? Does the Bible show that Damascus, the capital of Syria, will be destroyed? What will happen to Syria? Will the Syrians support the final King of the South that the Bible tells will rise up? Which scriptures discuss the rise and fall of an Arabic confederation? Does Islamic prophecy predict the destruction of Syria. This is a YouTube video.
Is There A Future King of the South? Some no longer believe there needs to be. Might Egypt, Islam, Iran, Arabs, or Ethiopia be involved? Might this King be called the Mahdi? What does the Bible say?
The Muslim Brotherhood and the Rise of the King of the South The Bible tells of the formation of a power of nations that are in the Middle East and North Africa that are part of the final “King of the South” (Daniel 11:40-43) The Muslim Brotherhood wishes to have an Islamic empire with basically the same nations. This YouTube video explains what to expect from such a confederation.
The Arab and Islamic World In the Bible, History, and Prophecy The Bible discusses the origins of the Arab world and discusses the Middle East in prophecy. What is ahead for the Middle East and those who follow Islam? What about the Imam Mahdi? What lies ahead for Turkey, Iran, and the other non-Arabic Muslims?
Is There an Islamic Antichrist? Is Joel Richardson correct that the final Antichrist will be Islamic and not European? Find out.
Jerusalem: Past, Present, and Future What does the Bible say about Jerusalem and its future? Is Jerusalem going to be divided and eliminated? Is Jesus returning to the area of Jerusalem? There is also a related YouTube video you can watch titled Jerusalem To be divided and eliminated.
Barack Obama in Islamic Prophecy? There is actually a 17th century Shiite prophecy that some believe that Barack Obama will fulfill that will lead to a rising up of Islam.