NATO, Syria, Turkey, Gog, & Magog

Ruins of Smyrna (Izmir, Turkey)

Because Turkey is a NATO ally, the attack against one of its military aircraft has potential NATO ramifications for Syria:

23 June 2012

ANKARA, Turkey – Turkey will take retaliatory steps against Syria for the downing of one of its military jets, President Abdullah Gul said Saturday, even as he suggested that the aircraft may have violated Syrian airspace. http://www.foxnews.com/world/2012/06/23/turkey-vows-necessary-action-after-syria-admits-shooting-down-military-plane/#ixzz1ydctA1cQ

(AGI) Ankara – Tension is high between Turkey and Syria after Damascus’ admission of having downed a Turkish F-4 fighter aircraft. Turkish Government sources do not exclude the possibility of involving NATO forces on the basis of the Atlantic Pact principle that considers an attack against any Member State as an attack against all the other Members, thereby legitimizing them to an eventual intervention. http://www.agi.it/english-version/world/elenco-notizie/201206231034-pol-ren1011-turkish_fighter_downed_by_syria_ankara_might_involve_nato

The West has already indicated a willingness and desire to change the regime in Syria and this will possibly (as the Turkish military jet seems to have been in Syrian airspace) give NATO members (like the USA) “justification” for military intervention.

With Turkey being in the news, WND also posted about a new, and somewhat prophetically inaccurate book, by Joel Richardson. Here is a report about that:

Joel Richardson, the author of the new “Mideast Beast,” says the assumption about the Battle of Magog and Gog, revealed in biblical prophecy in Ezekiel 38 and 39, should be corrected so people understand.

In a commentary in WND today, Richardson explains that the assumption that the biblical reference to Magog would indicate Russia was developed some 100 years ago, and has been taught and discussed ever since.

In reality, however, it more likely is Turkey, he said…Richardson’s book follows his earlier hit, “The Islamic Antichrist,” a book that has changed the eschatological views of many evangelical Christians since its release two years ago. http://www.wnd.com/2012/06/why-russia-will-never-invade-israel/

It is sad that any of his inaccurate books are selling well. Turkey is biblical Edom, not Gog or Magog. Details about Turkey in prophecy are found in the article The Arab and Islamic World In the Bible, History, and Prophecy.

The identities of Gog and Magog are discussed in the articles Russia: Its Origins and Prophesied Future and Asia in Prophecy. Gog basically represents the land of Russia (plus some peripheral lands) as part of Magog, while Magog is mainly the land of Asia. They are not basically Turkey (though many Turks do live in Asia).

A while back, I did a post critiquing Joel Richardson’s incorrect Islamic antichrist book–see Is There an Islamic Antichrist?

While Turkey is in the news, prophecy watchers need to pay more heed to what the Bible and the lessons of history teach, as opposed to popular authors like Joel Richardson.

Some articles of possibly related interest may include:

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 (including Iran and Turkey). What is ahead for the Middle East and those who follow Islam? What about the Imam Mahdi?
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?
Is There an Islamic Antichrist? Is Joel Richardson correct that the final Antichrist will be Islamic and not European? Find out.
Who is the King of the North? Is there one? Do biblical and Roman Catholic prophecies point to the same leader? Should he be followed? Who will be the King of the North discussed in Daniel 11? Is a nuclear attack prophesied to happen to the English-speaking peoples of the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand? When do the 1335 days, 1290 days, and 1260 days (the time, times, and half a time) of Daniel 12 begin? When does the Bible show that economic collapse will affect the United States?
Russia: Its Origins and Prophesied Future Russia in prophecy. Where do the Russians come from? What about those in the Ukraine? What is prophesied for Russia and its allies? What will they do to the Europeans that supported the Beast in the end?
Is Russia the King of the North? Some claim it is. But what does the Bible teach?
Asia in Prophecy What is Ahead for Asia? Who are the “Kings of the East”? What will happen to nearly all the Chinese, Russians, Indians, and others of Asia? China in prophecy, where? Who has the 200,000,000 man army related to Armageddon?