My Way News - Iran Says It Can Mass-Produce Missiles
AP reports, "Iran said Tuesday it can mass produce a missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead and reaching Israel and U.S. forces in the Middle East." :: For your Rumors of War (Matthew 24:6) files.

My Way News - Strong Earthquake Hits Japan; 1 Injured
AP reports, "A powerful earthquake rocked northern Japan early Wednesday in the area still recovering from a stronger tremor last month that killed 39 people. One person was injured in the latest quake." :: For your Quake (Matthew 24:7) files.

Space Weather - Solar Activity, Aurora Watch Extended
Many people are witnessing some spectacular auroras, these are due to solar flares interacting with our atmosphere. The website SpaceWeather has the details: Big sunspot 696 unleashed an X-class solar flare on Sunday, Nov. 7th, and probably hurled another coronal mass ejection (CME) toward Earth. Solar wind conditions are favorable for a geomagnetic storm now (late Nov. 7th) and may become even more so when the CME arrives. Sky watchers: be alert for auroras on Nov. 7th, 8th and 9th. The best time to look is usually around local midnight. :: Submitted for your files on Signs in the Sun (Luke 21:25) and Signs in the Heavens (Luke 21:11).

My Way News - U.S. GIs Push Into Rebel Haven of Fallujah
The Battle for Fallujah continues, submitted for your War (Matthew 24:6) files.

AP - Arafat Wants to Be Buried in Jerusalem
Arafat, not dead yet, and no decision yet on where to bury him once he dies. There is the potential here for a crisis centered on the Temple Mount, as Israel is as determined to prevent his burial there as the Palestinians are to force the issue. This AP report details the controversy. Submitted for your files on the Temple Mount (Daniel 9:27, Matthew 24:15 & 2 Thessalonians 2:4).

My Way News - U.S. Forces Storm Into Western Fallujah
AP reports, "U.S. forces stormed into western districts of Fallujah early Monday, seizing the main city hospital and securing two key bridges over the Euphrates river in what appeared to be the first stage of the long-expected assault on the insurgent stronghold.":: Most observers see this battle as crucial for the development of Iraq. Some, like Secretary General Annan, want to leave the insurgents alone, presumably because they are so eager to join the political process, but most informed people understand that the insurgents must be dealt with before the political process can begin to function on a national scale. :: For your War (Matthew 24:6) files.

Join The Blog Team
This is a team blog and we would like to grow so that we have team members standing by in every time zone and ready to post breaking news. If you are a Christian blogger and a Bible prophecy enthusiast then we need you! We want to make this blog the place to go for breaking prophetic news. If a new battle starts in Iraq (war), or if there is an outbreak of SARS (pestilence), or if a new biometric ID service stars (mark of the beast) we want to be able to post links to news reports as soon as it happens. When you join the team we will place a link to your home blog or your e-mail address (your choice) over to the left on the blogroll, which can be a great way to drive traffic to your blog. Once you join the team, you can post links only or add brief commentary, that is also your choice, all we ask is that you be an active poster and post links to professional news organizations. If you are interested, e-mail portents2ATaolDOTcom with "Join the Blog Team" in your subject line. Join the team today and help us make this blog a 24/7 source of prophetic news and commentary!

My Way News - French Troops Battle Ivory Coast Forces:
AP reports, "French troops clashed with soldiers and angry mobs Saturday after Ivory Coast warplanes killed at least nine French peacekeepers and an American civilian in an airstrike - mayhem that threatened to draw foreign troops deeper into the West African country's escalating civil war." :: Even as our attention has been focused on Iraq, Iran, North Korea and Jerusalem, it's worth noting that there are indeed other hot spots in the world and several civil wars in progress. :: Submitted for your files on Wars and Rumors of War (Matthew 24:6) and Nations in Distress (Luke 21:25).

WorldNetDaily: School daypack features satellite tracking.

In the Mark of the Beast [Revelation 13:16-18] department: The prime issue is, of course, crime, and specifically the kidnap-murder of children. The Japanese-made school packs come with a GPS transceiver that at least allows parents to track the bag. Of course, we all know what the chickenhawks will do--they'll toss the bags out by the side of the road when they snatch the kids. So the next thing that the parents will do is have their children chipped. And this is exactly the sort of technology that the Beast and the False Prophet will use.

BBC - Seamen sail into biometric future
A trial of biometric identification technology is underway aboard cruise ships in the Caribbean. This is of interest because these biometric ID cards are meant to be international, not specifically national, as most ID cards and passports are now. The tests, "are designed to ensure that new cards and their machine readers, produced by different companies in different countries, are working to interoperable standards." A common standard for identity verification and/or access control is a natural requirement for a future technological fulfillment to the Mark of the Beast (Rev 13:16-18).

MEMRI offers this gem: A Palestinian Account of the Four Years of the Intifada. Well, duh! I could have told those people long ago that they were harming no cause but their own. Had they spent as much energy in basic governance as they did in killing innocent people, they might be in a far stronger position. Yet God has told us repeatedly that He hardens hearts and basically causes people to do stupid and crazy things. We saw it from Pharaoh Merenptah in his confrontation with Moses, and we saw it again from the ancient Sanhedrin during the trial of Jesus and the preliminary hearing of Paul. And we will go on seeing it, especially in the Holy Land--because that land, after all, contains the Valley of Megiddo, which Napoleon Bonaparte, one of the greatest of the Western European emperors, once described as the perfect battlefield.

My Way News: "Palestinian Official Says Arafat in Coma"

AFP - Iranians chant "Death to America" on hostage anniversary
As the American president won a second term in office his next foreign policy challenge was signaled by death threats from Iran and a sad reminder of the price of weakness. Submitted for your files on Rumors of War (Matthew 24:6) and Persia/Iran (Ezekiel 38:5).

AP - China Bans Slaughter, Cooking of Civets
China has learned from the 2002-2003 SARS outbreak and is taking precautions to prevent the spread of the deadly virus. For your Pestilence (Luke 21:11) files.

Homicide Attack in Israel
Apparently it doesn't matter where Arafat (the leader of the political wing of the Palestinians) is located, attacks against Israeli civilians continue. First, there was an attack (AP - Suicide Bomber Kills Three in Tel Aviv) and then Israel strikes back (AP - Israel Destroys Home of Suicide Bomber).

AP - WHO Calls Summit to Address Flu Pandemic
According to this AP report, "The World Health Organization has called an unprecedented summit meeting next week of flu vaccine makers and nations to expand plans for dealing with the growing threat of a flu pandemic." :: Submitted for your Pestilence (Luke 21:11) files.

Jerusalem Post - Israel won't allow Arafat burial on Mount
As Arafat clings to life, his followers face an uncertain future and Israel is left to plan for the chaos that is sure to follow his death. It has been rumored for some time that his followers are planning to bury him at the mosque located on the Temple Mount. Israel will not allow this. Riots will ensue, possibly very violent riots. There are those who doubt that another Jewish temple will be built on the holy site or that the area has any prophetic significance, having spiritualized away all those scriptures that suggest (Daniel 9:27, Matthew 24:15 & 2 Thessalonians 2:4) otherwise. However, I'm confident that events in the near future will demonstrate that the Temple Mount remains a focal point for spiritual and physical battles and that the prophetic importance of the site will be evident to all.

AP - Disaster Toll Tripled in 2003 Amid Quakes, Heatwave
The prophecy in Luke 21:11 that there will be fearsome events is an interesting prophecy. It doesn't really say what events will happen, it just says there will be fearsome events. So what is the purpose or role of fearsome events that they should be important from a Bible prophecy perspective? Fearsome events like natural disasters shake people out of thier complacency, they cause people to take a hard look at life and what is important. A disaster can be a wake-up call, a chance to get real with God. The good news is that you don't have to survive an earthquake or a hurricane to do that, you can do it right now. Why wait?

AP - Earth to See Total Eclipse of the Moon
This AP report is interesting, though I'm not sure I would say it was extremely relevant in terms of the Signs in the Moon (Luke 21:25) prophecy. What are signs in the moon? That is a good question and I'm not sure there is a good answer for that at this time. I've always thought that the Signs in the Moon represented a future discoloration of the moon caused by cataclysmic events on Earth. We already know that volcanic ash in the atmosphere can contribute to the red moon phenomenon, even smoke from forest fires can do that, to say nothing of the standard pollution or light reflection that causes the phenomenon in its most standard form. At this stage, we can only speculate what a global war with modern weapons would do to the atmosphere and our view of the moon, or if nuclear winter would cause the moon to disappear from view all together. All we can do is take encouragement from the fact that those things have not happened and keep watching the heavens for those signs in the moon, sun and stars.

AP - Europe May Start Digital Fingerprinting
One of the more interesting aspects of the Mark of the Beast prophecy of Rev 13:16-18 is the idea that any government could require something so drastic and get away with it. Yet today we accept the idea that governments routinely require certain forms of identification for access to borders, facilities and services. In the past, identification took the form of paper, as in, "your papers, please." Now it is starting to take the form of biometric data, identity verification keyed specifically to your body, either your fingerprint, your eyes, or your face. It's really not that much of a leap to say that the next stage of identity verification would be something artificial placed on or in your body.

MercuryNews.com | 10/16/2004 | Ramadan begins in peace with 90,000 at sacred siteThus, the much-feared collapse of the Temple Mount did not happen after all. Apprently the Waqf agreed at the last minute to cordon off the weakest areas of the site.

Many commentators will no doubt make much of the "compromise" that the Israeli Police and the Waqf managed to reach this week. But some day, something drastic will happen to the Temple Mount site. When it does, the talk will be, not of peace, but of war.

From our Holy Land friends at Arutz-7 comes this bombshell: Sanhedrin Launched In Tiberias. Here is a key excerpt:

Rabbi Yisrael Ariel, who heads the Temple institute in Jerusalem, is one of the participating rabbis. He told Arutz-7 today, "Whether this will be the actual Sanhedrin that we await, is a question of time - just like the establishment of the State; we rejoiced in it, but we are still awaiting something much more ideal. It's a process. Today's ceremony is really the continuation of the renewal of the Ordination process in Israel, which we marked several months ago. Our Talmudic Sages describe the ten stages of exile of the Sanhedrin from Jerusalem to other locations, until it ended in Tiberias - and this is the place where it was foretold that it would be renewed, and from here it will be relocated to Jerusalem."

Prophecy students, this is awesome. The last time we ever heard of the Sanhedrin, apart from the 1600-year-old attempt to restart it, was during the Roman era, and specifically during the Principate of Nero, and more specifically at the trial of Paul of Tarsus [Acts 23]. There, you'll remember, the Sanhedrin split down the middle between Pharisees and Sadducees over the question of the Resurrection from the Dead. The controversy was so violent then that the Roman garrison commander, Tribune Lucius Claudius (rendered "Claudius Lysias" by Saint Luke), had to hustle Paul away and, in the end, send him to Caesaria, which had become the seat of Roman authority after Pilate's disastrous procuratorship during the Principate of Tiberius.

Interestingly, the Sanhedrin tried to convene 1600 years ago, but failed for lack of support. Now it's coming back.

Who says that the Temple will not be rebuilt? [Revelation 11:1-2ff]. Watch closely--and also keep watching for the next few hours. If you hear of a collapse of the Temple Mount during the start of Ramadan, look out.

AP My Way News - FDA Approves Use of Chip in Patients
This is an important development for a technology many prophecy students have been following for some time: the implantable biochip. When the VeriChip was first approved for human use it was not approved for medical use, and that has now changed. This is an exciting step forward for the commercial applications available to the company that makes it and it makes the implanted chip that much more attractive as a potential fulfillment of Rev 13:16-18. I'm not saying that the mark of the beast will be a chip, it is just one of many possible fulfillments of that prophecy, and a technology that we should watch closely.

From the Associated Press: Oil Prices Hit $53 a Barrel Then Retreats. True enough, this sort of thing is as old as the economy of man, as once-plentiful commodities grow scarce. The usual solution is that man finds something else to use instead.

But in this case the supply of the commodity involved, which is petroleum, is under the control of the same people who hate the people of Israel worst of all. Even before Western man finds another source of energy, war may come--and with it, the perfect excuse that the Beast from the Sea [Revelation 13] needs.

Get ready for the Black Horse of the Apocalypse [Revelation 6:5-6] and eventually for Armageddon [Revelation 16].

TerraDaily has this, through Agence France-Presse: Strongest typhoon in decade set to strike Tokyo. Here's the gist:

Typhoon Ma-on, packing winds of up to 162 kilometres (100 miles), slammed into the central Japan prefecture of Shizuoka around 4:00 pm (0700 GMT) and was on course to hit the capital, the Meteorological Agency warned.

A 74-year-old newspaper deliveryman went missing in the town of Onjuku in Chiba prefecture, east of Tokyo, local police said.

"He is feared to have been washed away in a swollen river," a police official said, adding his motorbike had been found turning over on its side near the river.

A gust of 243.4 kilometres (151 miles) per hour was recorded at a Shizuoka cape of Irozaki, some 150 kilometres (93 miles) south of Tokyo.

More than 3,800 households in central and eastern Japan were ordered or recommended to evacuate, public network Japan Broadcasting Corp (NHK) said.

"Shinkansen" bullet trains ground to a halt in central and eastern Japan, affecting tens of thousands of passengers. Train station officials with loudspeakers were seen urging holidaymakers to cancel their schedules.

Express roads were partially closed while nearly 200 domestic and international flights were cancelled.

As you can see, a great storm like that can have effects far beyond its immediate center. This is a mere taste of the sort of disasters (which is actually ancient Greek for "evil stars") that await us as prophecy gallops toward fulfillment.

Pat Robertson interviews General Benny Ganz, aka Israel's Watchman on the Northern Front. Specifically, Ganz is the commander-in-chief in the northern theater for the Israel Defense Forces. All prophecy students should watch this area--because it is a likely route for Ezekiel's War [chh. 38-39].

A judge--a JUDGE!--has just told two parents that a "severely ill baby ought to be allowed to die". I don't know what outrages me more--that a team of doctors would actually argue in favor of a "do-not-resuscitate" order against the wishes of the parents, or that a judge would accede to it. But I've met cold-hearted doctors before, one of whom once told me with a straight face that even a patient willing to pay for a quadruple coronary artery bypass operation ought never be allowed to receive it if he's beyond a certain age. Did I just say, below, that life was now becoming cheap, and that murder was rapidly becoming the order of the day?

Steven J. Ertelt over at Lifenews.com has this needed perspective on a recent US Presidential campaign ad: New Michael J. Fox Stem Cell Research Ad for John Kerry Distorts Science. You'd think that after several reputable scientists already dismissed the idea that Alzheimer's Disease would ever lend itself to therapy with embryonic stem cells, even a dishonest politician like John F. Kerry would stop beating that dead horse--or donkey, as the case may be. (And as Steve points out, even Ronald P. Reagan--who, BTW, is not a "junior"--admits that.) But no-o-o-o! (or as the Greeks used to say, me genoito.)

Of course, this is bigger even than the selection of the next President of the USA, as big as that might seem today. As all of us good prophecy students know, a time will come when even a Presidential election will look like a summary relief-of-command aboard the Titanic. No, this stem-cell debate is about regarding human life so cheap that people will think nothing of killing one person to benefit another. In other words, murder, as John the Revelator [ch. 9:22] says in detail, will become the order of the day.

The follow-up from the Aussie Anglicans' compromise on women in the clergy continues to amaze. The Anglicans' oppressed majority, indeed! I don't suppose it would help to remind Dr. Muriel Porter that Paul said in his first letter to Timothy that he did not allow a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man [ch. 2:12].

In case you're wondering what this has to do with prophecy, I remind you that the Tribulation to come will be a period of flat-out rebellion against all of God's standards, including God's plain teaching on the roles of men and women. Watch Muriel Porter closely, dear readers--her name might appear on the report of some Ecumenical Conclave of Peace and Unity or some such thing, right next to that of the eventual False Prophet [Revelation 13].

Well, the Anglican Church in Australia redeemed itself today: Anglicans close the door on gay reforms. Their opponents are already howling about "intolerance" and so on, but all I see is that the Aussies haven't totally gone overboard on the subject of secular culture--yet. This situation bears further watching, in light of this prediction from Revelation: "Neither repented they of their murders, their [abuse of drugs], their sexual immoralities, or their thefts." [Revelation 9:22]

Infowars.com is a jet-setting liberal site where discretion and discernment ought to be the order of the day. Among other things, they seem to accuse George W. Bush of engineering the Manhattan Incident. But every now and again they serve up a piece of good prophetic news, in spite of themselves. Today's article is one example: Microchip Implantation of Club Going Trendies Expands to More Nations Shades of the mark of the Beast [Revelation 13:16-18]! These clubs are using the chips to stop gate crashers--but a time will come when a world-ruling dictator will use chips like these to stop people from "crashing" a grocery-store checkout counter. Somehow I'm not dead sure that these "trendies" have that use of the chip in mind....

As a follow-up to the last post, the CDC has some more practical advice here about infection-control methods designed to stop the flu in your travels or your workplace.

From the Associated Press comes the straight skinny on the loss of half our supply of vaccines against influenza: Adults, Kids Urged to Skip Flu Shot.

The article says that "Health care workers can't legally bar insistent, lower-risk patients from getting shots but will try to persuade them to do otherwise." But when yours truly tried (in Essex County, NJ) to get in line for a flu shot, he was practically thrown out of line and even threatened with arrest, fine, imprisonment, or a combination of the three if he attempted to get a shot by any form of subterfuge.

Of course, this looks forward to a day when something far more dire than influenza will kill one-fourth of the people then inhabiting the planet [Revelation 6:7-8]. As a practical matter, all I can suggest is to carry a canister of pre-treated hand wipes with you when you travel, and talk to your employers or supervisors about some simple, common-sense infection-control policies. The specific recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control can be found here.

CBN News has this very alarming article: A Contentious Battle for the Temple Mount's Survival. Here's the most salient thing that Pat Robertson says:

I am here in Jerusalem, and yesterday I was on the Temple Mount, and went over extensively what is being done there. You cannot believe what the Muslims have done in violation of a treaty. They have carved underneath the floor of the land adjoining the al-Aqsa mosque, a mosque that will hold 10,000 people -- huge steps leading down to it. And in the process, they have excavated enough fill material to imperil the wall structure. The wall is bulging out, and the people of Israel are warning that during Ramadan, if thousands and thousands of people come in there, that the entire structure could collapse. It is very serious.

And this:

I am simply appalled at the desecration of holy sites that are holy to Jews and Christians. What is happening here...is a cultural Intifada, an attempt to erase all knowledge that the Jews were in the holy land, and to try to make believe that they had no right to be here at all. There is a desecration of the tomb of Joseph, and the tombs of Abraham and Sarah, etc. The whole situation is terribly fragile.

And in the process, the Muslims have so weakened the foundation of their own property that it might collapse under their own feet next week.

Prophecy students will remember that Daniel and John the Revelator, among other prophets, make repeated references to various events taking place inside a physical Temple. Of course, no Temple exists right now. But if the Al-Aqsa mosque collapses, two things will happen:

1. Anti-Semitic riots will break out in Jerusalem, in all Arab quarters in Israel, and possibly in all Arab lands.
2. The collapse will be one necessary step in paving the way for the rebuilding of an actual Jewish Temple--but probably under the administration, or at least the "protection", of the Beast from the Sea [Revelation 13].

From the Sydney Morning Herald comes this gem: Assistant bishop role for women. Oh, great--another attempt to find a loophole in the Bible to compromise with popular culture. That never works, of course--the secular culture continues to invade and trash the Bible in other ways. But God predicted this, did He not? It's the Church in Laodicea all over again.

From Ha'aretz comes the latest on Israel and our relationship to it: Robertson: If Bush 'touches' Jerusalem, we'll form 3rd party. I'm not sure that even Pat Robertson knows whether evangelical Christians really feel that way, but it would make sense. Indeed, the prophet Zechariah said specifically that Israel, and specifically Jerusalem, would be a stumblingblock to the nations. Frankly, Israel might become a stumblingblock to this nation as well, and that might explain why America bears no mention either in Revelation or in any other prophetic book of the Bible.

Newsday, NY - Graham Said to Plan Crusade in New York
One of the greatest living preachers is planning another (and perhaps last) crusade to share the Good News of salvation through Jesus. Submitted for your files on the spread of the Gospel (Matthew 24:14).

My Way News AP - U.S. Flu Vaccine Supply Cut in Half
According to this report, "Americans' supply of flu vaccine was abruptly cut in half Tuesday, prompting the government to ask most healthy adults to delay or skip flu shots so that the elderly and others most at risk from influenza can get scarce supplies." At this point, the only thing we can do is pray that this is not a bad flu season. Submitted for your Pestilence (Luke 21:11) files.

Reuters - Defying Army Offensive, Hamas Rockets Hit Israel
Reuters reports,"Palestinian militants fired rockets into an Israeli border town on Monday despite Israel's vow to stop such attacks from the Gaza Strip with a massive military offensive that has killed 64 Palestinians." Also today, Arab states went to the UN to depict the Palestinians as the victim of Israeli aggression. I think we are all wise to the game they are playing. Submitted for your files on the Battle for Jerusalem (Ezekiel 38:8; Zechariah 12; Luke 21:20).

My Way News - U.S., Iraqi Forces Take Charge in Samarra
AP reports, "Iraqi security forces patrolled the streets, and U.S. troops went door to door searching for weapons and fighters Sunday after the military claimed success in wresting control of Samarra from Sunni insurgents in fierce fighting." :: A War (Matthew 24:6) update for you.

Yahoo! News AP - Mount St. Helens Erupts After 18 Years
A series of earthquakes preceded the latest eruption of Mt. St. Helens and apparently more eruptions are on the way. Geologic activity and earthquakes are something BP enthusiasts watch, mostly as a low-level sign (Matthew 24:7), but there are major Earth changes in store for much later, towards the end of this age (Rev 16:18).

CNET - Feds fund secure ID project
There are many students of Bible prophecy who insist that the mark of the beast (Rev 13:16-18) will not be technological at all, but will simply be a tattoo. That's a very low-tech solution and not exactly something many of us get excited about. Give us chips, give us implants, give us tracking technology linked to satellites, but a tattoo? Ok, here is something you may not be aware of, a tattoo can be a form of technology and fully linkable to databases and the online world of e-commerce and m-commerce. There is a technology called digital watermarks and it's been around for some time but is only now being linked to personal identity verification. I think it is something worth keeping an eye on.

Reuters - Israel Takes Issue With Iran Weapons
Tensions between Israel and Iran over the Iranian nuclear program continue to escalate with Israel considering "all options" to prevent Iran from becoming a nuclear power. This Reuters Yahoo News report is submitted for your files on Rumors of War (Matthew 24:6) and Persia (Ezekiel 38:5).

AP - Strong Earthquake Shakes Central Calif.
A 6.0-magnitude quake struck California today, but there was little damage and no fatalities. For your files on Quakes (Matthew 24:7).

Reuters Yahoo News - Israel Threatens Syria Over Militants
One of the more specific prophecies in the Bible that has clearly not yet come to pass is the one in Isaiah 17:1 that relates the total destruction of Damascus. Damascus is one of the worlds oldest cities, it has been inhabited for thousands of years, but there will come a time in the future when it is totally destroyed. Is that time near?

Washington Post & Yahoo News - IBM, HP Chasing Tag Technology
Here is an update on RFID technology, in case you have been tracking this in relation to the Mark of the Beast

AP - Israel May Limit Worshippers in Jerusalem
Any time there is news of activity on the Temple Mount it is prophetically important (Daniel 9:27, Matthew 24:15 & 2 Thessalonians 2:4). Skeptics who doubt the validity of Bible prophecy will be amazed at how the Temple Mount becomes more important as we progress into the 21st Century. Why would a relic of a bygone era become as important in the future as it was in the past? For that, you will have to read the book (don't wait for the movie).

WorldNetDaily has this article today: Syria and Iran are working out a deal involving safe haven for some Iraqi nuclear scientists who are cooling their heels in Damascus. Evidently, Syria's President is afraid that the USA will invade and find those scientists there--and then he'll have some 'splaining to do. Iran, for its part, would love to have the services of those same scientists as it develops nuclear weapons.

While the secular world worries about a nuclear ignition of the whole Middle East, we should look to the Prophet Ezekiel, who predicted that Iran ("Persia") would participate in an all-out invasion of Israel that, fortunately, would come to nothing. But when that invasion takes place, you know that other prophetic events are surely in the offing!

AP - Iran Says It Has Tested Strategic Missile
Iran is determined to change the balance of power in the Middle East. This AP Yahoo News report talks about their latest test of a strategic missile that places American and allied forces under threat. What role does Iran play in the unfolding of Bible prophecy? Based on Ezekiel 38:5 many prophecy students envision Iran as part of an axis of countries which attack Israel at some point in the future. If this is so, it has interesting implications for the chances of regime change in Tehran. At any rate, this story is still unfolding, stay tuned.

AFP - Egypt presses case for permanent seat on UN Security Council
Another country in favor of increasing the number of permanent members of the Security Council to ten. Egypt thinks this is a great idea...as long as they get a seat to represent Africa. Funny how that works. For your Ten Kings (Rev 17:12-14) files.

Reuters - Major Powers Wring Hands Discreetly on Middle East
Will there ever be peace in the Middle East? World powers discussed this at a recent meeting of the Quartet. The search for peace goes on. For your Covenant with Many (Daniel 9:27) files.

Reuters - Woman Suicide Bomber Kills 2 Policemen in Jerusalem
This Yahoo News Reuters report has the details of the latest Palestinian homicide bombing in Jerusalem. For your files on the battle for Jerusalem (Ezekiel 38:8; Zechariah 12; Luke 21:20).

AP - Nations Lobby to Expand Security Council
This MyWay AP report explains that there are several countries proposing major changes to the composition of the UN Security Council. At present, only the five permanent members have veto power over Security Council actions, but there is growing support to adding new members to both that group as well as the rotating group of ten non-veto powered members. Brazil wants to step up, as does Japan, and of course, India also wants a seat. The report states that Japan supports adding five new permanent members and four new non-permanent members. :: For your files on the rise of Ten Kings (Rev 17:12-14).

AP - U.S. Said to Sell Smart Bombs to Israel
According to this Yahoo News AP report, the U.S. will support Israel with new weaponry, smart bombs. If the Iranians don't back down, their going to need it. :: For your Battle for Jerusalem (Ezekiel 38:8; Zechariah 12; Luke 21:20) files.

AP - U.N. Official: 40 Nations Can Make Nukes
This Yahoo News AP report reveals a world with many nuclear powers, and more on the way. I don't know about you, but I'm just a bit apprehensive (Luke 21:26) about that.

Reuters - EU could face flu crisis - health commissioner
Reuters is reporting that, "The European Union could face a 21st century flu crisis killing millions of people if human and animal viruses were to converge, the bloc's health commissioner warned on Friday." :: Submitted for your files on Pestilence (Luke 21:11).

BBC - US blasts Saudi 'religious curbs'
According to this BBC report, "The US has accused Saudi Arabia of severely violating religious freedom. In an unusual public rebuke, the US State Department put its key Arab ally on a list of states causing particular concern over freedom to worship...Christianity and all its symbols - including crosses and Christmas trees - are strictly banned, as are all places of worship except mosques." :: Submitted for your files on religious persecution(Matthew 24:8).

AP - Four Thai Children Show Bird Flu Symptoms
AP reports, "Four Thai children were hospitalized Sunday with symptoms of avian flu, a health official said, days after the disease claimed its latest human victim since resurfacing in Asia two months ago." :: Submitted for your Pestilence (Luke 21:11) files.

Reuters - New Spasm of Violence Sweeps Iraq, Killing 110
Sunday was a very bad day in Iraq as events made it clear that the U.S. and Iraqi forces are facing a rapdly growing insurgency. The situation is getting worse, not better. For your files on Wars and Rumors of War (Matthew 24:6).

AP - U.S.: Korea Cloud Not From Nuclear Blast
Here is one for your files on rumors of war(Matthew 24.6), the rumor is that North Korea did an above-ground test of a nuclear bomb, but this has not been confirmed and this report casts doubt on the rumors, stay tuned.

Boston Herald - Experts: Iran Able to Make Nuclear Bomb
As the EU and the U.S. try to determine the best way to deter Iran's nuclear program, this report gives a good overview of the crisis. Why is this a crisis? As the report states: It's a nightmare scenario for the West - a hostile Muslim state develops nuclear weapons, throwing the Middle East and the world into turmoil. :: Submitted for your files on Wars and Rumors of War (Matthew 24:6) and Persia (Ezekiel 38:5). Iran, as you may know, is the modern descendent of ancient Persia and the Ezekiel prophecy is one of those that have yet to be fulfilled.

Religion Today - Pakistani Christian Tortured To Death By Police
This report from Religion Today reminds us that Christians are actively persecuted in many parts of the world. According to the report, "A young Christian man, died in prison on August 19 -- four days after being beaten and tortured by officers in two different police stations. When local Christians sought to have the police brutality investigated, 40 of the protesting Christians were arrested." :: Submitted for your files on Persecution (Matthew 24:8).

AFP - Thai man dies of bird flu: health ministry
According to this AFP report, "A Thai man who raised fighting cocks has died of bird flu, becoming the 28th fatality in an outbreak of a lethal strain of the virus that has swept Asia this year, according to a health ministry official." Health experts have warned that if this flu mutates it could become a pandemic. Submitted for your files on Pestilence (Luke 21:11).

AP - REVIEW: Microsoft Print Reader Delivers
Not really the Mark (Rev 13:16-18) at all, just another advance in ID tech.

ZDNN - RFID tags--demonic tools?
CNET.COM studied public opinion about the newest implanted chip technology and found that, "When it comes to radio frequency identification tags for humans, the people have spoken. They hate it." This report noted that it was not only Christians who dislike the idea of getting chipped, but also civil libertarians and people who simply distrust the good intentions of government. Submitted for your Mark of the Beast (Rev 13:16-18) files.

Strong Earthquakes Rattle Western Japan
AP reports, "Two strong earthquakes, one magnitude 6.9 and the second magnitude 7.3, rattled western Japan within hours of each other Sunday night, injuring 14 people, shaking buildings in Tokyo and triggering tsunami waves." :: Submitted for your files on Quakes (Matthew 24:7).

Reuters - Global warming thaws Arctic, divides governments
Reuters reports, "Rising temperatures will disrupt life for people, bringing more storms and destabilizing everything from homes to oil pipelines. Melting glaciers could raise global sea levels and spoil habitats for creatures like polar bears..." Luke 21:26 is and interesting prophecy, it says that there will come a time when people will be apprehensive about the future, about what is happening to the world. Unfortunately for us, the prophecy does not say what people will be afraid of. I wonder if perhaps global warming and climate change might be one possible fulfillment of that? Scientists are split about the global warming phenomenon, about whether it reflects a natural cycle or is caused by humans, but I wonder if that really matters? The prophecy says that people will be fearful and apprehensive, it does not necessarily follow that what they are afraid of is real or valid. Fear is often irrational. Any thoughts or comments?

AP - India, Pakistan to Review Peace Talks
AP reports, "Nuclear-armed rivals India and Pakistan say they want to bury five decades of hostility, yet their arms race is accelerating, with ballistic missile tests continuing and defense spending rising." :: Although the world remains focused on the search for the missing and/or alleged WMD in Iraq and the rising concern over Iran's nuclear program, a nuclear arms race is taking place between India and Pakistan. The two nuclear rivals have gone to war several times in the past, though with far less powerful weapons at their disposal. :: Submitted for your files on Rumors of War (Matthew 24:6).

WorldNetDaily: Muslim cleric: Some wives need to be beaten
You read that right, dear readers. In fact, the Koran does advise husbands, and highly specifically, too, on when and how to beat their wives.

In the months that followed the Manhattan/Pentagon Incident (September 11, 2001, or Jumada t'Tania 22, 1424 AH), I once asked Steve Arterburn and Paul Meier and their colleagues, on their radio program, to comment on the verses in the Koran that explicitly say, "Fight and slay the infidels wheresoever ye find them," etc. They responded, "But the Koran also tells a man to beat his wife. Do Muslims beat their wives today?"

Steve, Paul, and Boys, if you're reading this, I think you owe me an apology. Behold the Muslims today, as they get back to fundamentals--and those fundamentals are very ugly indeed. You ought not have been so quick to dismiss my concerns as you were. (Then again, I'm used to that. In 1996 I told some of my medical colleagues, at a hospital that shall remain nameless, that our hospital needed a contingency plan for a biological warfare attack upon the United States. Their reply: "You've been reading too many Tom Clancy novels." I think I'll ask them about that again. But I digress.)

God warned the world about Ishmael, the likely (and indeed claimed) progenitor of Muhammad. He said that he would be a wild man in the desert...with his hand against every man and every man's hand against him [Genesis 25]. And now the wild man is raising his hand, as the world gallops toward the Tribulation [Daniel 9:27] to come.

Space signal studied for alien contact
CNN reports, "An unexplained radio signal from deep space could - just might be - contact from an alien civilization, New Scientist magazine reported on Thursday." :: Submitted for your files on signs in the sun, moon and stars (Luke 21:25).

Relgion Today - Imprisoned Protestant Pastors transferred to Unknown Location
According to this Religion Today report, "Three prominent Protestant pastors detained for months have been transferred from a police station jail in the capital of Asmara to an unknown location. Haile Naizgi and Kiflu Gebremeske, leaders of the Full Gospel Church, have been imprisoned since May 23, and Tesfatsion Hagos, who leads Rema Evangelical Church, has been jailed since May 26, Compass Direct reported." :: For your files on persecution (Matthew 24:14).

AllAfrica - Government Blamed for Famine
There are indeed famines (Matthew 24:7) taking place all over the world, though they don't get much media attention anymore. This news report deals with famine in Africa.

AP - U.S. Preparing for Global Flu Epidemic
This AP Yahoo News report details plans to combat a global flu pandemic. Epidemiologists say that it is only a matter of time before this happens again. Submitted for your files on Pestilence (Luke 21:11).

Webindia123.com - Earth's closest encounter with an asteroid
Scientists reported last Sunday that Earth had a very close call with an asteroid a few months ago. Keep watching for those Signs in the Heavens (Luke 21:11).

AP - Christian School in Pakistan Reopens
Here is some good news, for your files on the spread of the Gospel (Matthew 24:14).

VOA - Koisumi to Demand Increase in Permanent Security Council Seats
While most commentators in the prophecy community continue to promote the New Rome theory of the fulfillment of the Ten Kings (Rev 17:12-14) prophecy, I've always been convinced that the U.N. Security Council represents a far more likely candidate. We may be at a crossroads in time when one outcome will be favored over the other.

CNET News.com - Idea of implanting ID tags raises Orwellian fears
RFID is becoming something more than a supply chain innovation. As usual, submitted for your Mark of the Beast (Rev 13:16-18) files.

Archeologists protest Temple Mt crimes
This article concerns the "construction" work done by the The Moslem Waqf on the Temple Mount. In this report from the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem a group of senior Israeli archeologists weigh in on the matter. The Temple Mount is a site of past and future prophetic events (Daniel 9:27, Matthew 24:15 & 2 Thessalonians 2:4) and the prophecy community follows events there with great interest.

AP My Way - China Detains Buddhist, U.S. Group Says
This news report is about China rounding up members of a Buddhist group, it also mentions the recent government crackdown on the underground Christian church. Posted for your files on persecution (Matthew 24:8).

Wired News - Internet Heading to Light Speed
Here is another report for your Mark of the Beast (Rev 13:16-18) files. Don't see the point? Well, if the mark turns out to be technology linking ID verification with commerce, then perhaps a faster global network will be needed. This reports suggests that a new optical network faster than our present internet may be on the way.

AP: Italy, Netherlands Threatened Over Iraq

AP: Israel Cave Linked to John the Baptist

AP MyWay - Biometrics Creeping Into Everyday Life
I received an e-mail from a woman who asked me if she should be worried that she used her debit card too much and can go weeks without using cash for her purchases. I told her no, not to worry. Every time I post a news report for your mark of the beast (Rev 13:16-18) files I feel like I should also post a warning, something along the lines of, "Don't panic, these are just interesting trends to watch." My position has always been that we don't know what the mark of the beast will be and so we watch the trends to keep up on what is happening. The last thing I want to do is inspire fear and anxiety, that is not what Bible prophecy is about. Be aware, be discerning, but don't be afraid.

MSNBC - Russians add new twist to old UFO mythIn this excellent commentary, James Oberg reviews the history of the Tunguska Incident and of every theory, realistic or crackpot, that anyone has advanced to explain it. Specifically, he tells us that the newest "find"--that "metal box" of an allegedly unknown alloy--that the latest expedition recovered from the site--was probably a chunk from Vostok 5, which landed way off-target back in 1960. (Vostok 5, for you space buffs out there, carried two dogs into space in one of the Soviets' repeated attempts to stay ahead of the West in the Space Race. Those of you with a deep and abiding love for the more vulnerable of God's creatures, don't worry--the Soviet Army retrieved their errant capsule and rescued the two K-9 cosmonauts alive.)

More broadly, Oberg--who, as far as I know, is not a saved man himself--throws welcome buckets of cold water on the UFO theory, and on UFOlogy generally. He also tells us what really happened: The Tunguska Meteorite was a big rock, about 200 feet across, that blew up roughly five miles up, and with such force that ot knocked down trees up to sixty miles away, but left no debris at ground zero.

As refreshing as Oberg's commentary is, it is still incomplete--for neither Oberg nor anyone else who writes about meteors and meteoroids these days seems to have a clue to where they came from. If you really want to know, check out Walt Brown's excellent site where he explains his Hydroplate Theory of pre-Flood earth. Basically, meteoroids--and asteroids and comets, too--are ejecta from the Noachic Flood, and specifically from the breaking-open of the fountains of the deep [Genesis 7]. And I repeat: UFO's are either man-made hoaxes, or else they are demonic manifestations--exactly what we ought to expect as the baleful prophecies of Daniel, John the Revelator, and Jesus Himself, uttered two thousand years or more ago, now approach fulfillment.

NASA: The 2004 Perseid Meteor Shower

Voice of America - Famine in Zimbwean City Claims More Than 150 Lives

Hurricane CHARLEY Advisory 13Text of the latest from the National Weather Service.

WorldNetDaily: Did aliens save planet in 1908?That's the question to which a Russian research team thinks they have the answer. Searching at the site of the Tunguska Meteorite, they have found a large metallic block of unknown composition and have chipped off a chunk and sent it for assay.

For the record, in 1908 a large explosion felled trees for sixty miles around near Tunguska, Siberia, in the last years of Tsar Nikolai II--three years after the Russo-Japanese War. Witnesses described a fireball as bright as the sun, and then the explosion. The modern scientists are now actively speculating that an "enlightened" ET admiral sent a ship to destroy a meteor that, had it struck intact, would have created an Extinction-Level Event. The crew of that ship allegedly sacrificed themselves--hence the lump of metal of an unknown alloy.

But what these scientists do not mention--what such "scientists" never mention--is that they have no better explanation than any Christian might have for how such an ET fleet might have gotten here. Talking about their motives, and assuming those motives to be "enlightened," is not enough. It's bad enough that secular scientists blithely assume that with advancement in technology comes equal advancement in enlightenment and ethics and sensitivity and compassion. Gene Roddenberry, of Star Trek fame, asked us to buy that theory, this although he populated his "advanced technology" world with stand-ins for the Soviets ("Klingons") and the ChiComs ("Romulans"). But such assumptions violate everything that even a secular scientist must admit about the fallen nature of the cosmos and of every life-form in it.

But what is so stunning is that the same scientists who are so quick to claim that they have found crash debris from an ET scoutcraft--or even the space-borne equivalent of a SWIFT Boat--have no idea how such a craft--or the fleet of which it would have been a part--could have gotten here, or from where. The overwhelming consensus in astronomy today relies heavily on Einstein, who said that nothing could ever reach the speed of light in a vacuum, and that the closer anyone got to that speed, the heavier he'd get, with no limit--and once he got to that speed, he might never stop. While this is convenient for claiming that the cosmos must be older than six thousand years (though Einstein himself might quarrel with that view, since General Relativity suggests that space-time continual conditions were far different at Creation than they are today), it becomes most inconvenient to anyone who wants to speculate about extraterrestrial visitation! Here again is a perfect example of how "scientists" ignore their own earlier pronouncements whenever it suits them.

I submit this for your strong delusion [II Thessalonians 2:8ff.] files, as a sample of the kind of deluded theory that secularists will propound in order to explain certain soon-to-be-fulfilled biblical prophecies as having a cause other than Divine intervention.

MSNBC: Two million Kenyans face famine

AP: Britain Grants Human Cloning License

silicon.com: RFID gets skin-deep alternative

BBC: Nature 'mankind's gravest threat'

Religion Today: Massive Evangelistic Effort Targets Olympics

NewScientist - North Korean hybrid missiles 'could threaten US'

VOA: Pentagon Prepares Missile Defense

AP: Gov't: Suspect Corroborates Terror Threat

AP: Death Toll in India Flooding Hits 1,000

AP: Egyptian Columnist Calls Holocaust a Lie

VOANews.com: "National ID Cards Approved in Britain"

My Way News - Gov't Warns of Threats Against Buildings: "The federal government warned Sunday of possible terrorist attacks against 'iconic' financial institutions in New York City, Washington and Newark, N.J., saying a confluence of intelligence over the weekend pointed to a car or truck bomb."

Breaking News: U.S. Terror Alert Level Raised
CNN is reporting that the Department of Homeland Security is raising the alert level in the New York, New Jersey, and the District of Columbia on the basis of intelligence reports indicating a possible al-Qaida attack. More details to follow.