January 10 - 16, 2016

“If the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet to warn the people and the sword comes and takes the life of one of them, that man will be taken away because

of his sin, but I will hold the watchman accountable for his blood.”

(Ezekiel 33:6, New International Version)

Weekly World Watch

Andy Walton’s

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What is a Weekly World Watch?

• Israel: The continuing conflict in the Middle East and focus on Jerusalem.

• Europe: Its developing union, both political and religious.

• Russia: Its return to anti-Western ways as Bible prophecy’s “king of the north.”

• The UK and the US: Bible prophecy’s “king of the south.”

• Moral standards in decline and violence on the increase.

WWW presentations in PowerPoint can be ordered as audio/visual CDs by clicking here. Move your mouse to place the cursor on the blue link and click.

The idea is simple. It is to look at current events and compare them to events spoken of in the Bible. .I hope to build up a picture of God’s hand working in the affairs of this world. God is bringing about a day when all nations will be gathered to Jerusalem to battle. At that time God will send His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, back to this earth. Jesus will then establish God’s kingdom on earth. This kingdom will last for ever. This is our hope and the reason we watch.

• Increasing natural disasters: including earthquake, famine etc

The following six themes will appear repeatedly in WWW:

HEADLINE

EVENT

COMMENT

News Photo

The source of the headline and the date are included.

Each WWW looks at a few key developments that have happened during the past week. It is in no way meant to be exhaustive – just a look at those events I saw as significant from a Biblical point of view.

What is in a Weekly World Watch?

BIBLEQUOTE

This is normally one verse which backs up why the event that has occurred is interesting from a Biblical perspective. Please read in its context. Unless stated otherwise, all quotes are from the King James Version. (Book, chapter, and verse)

This is straight from a news report that caught my eye because it looked significant from a Biblical perspective, usually that of prophecy.

Every WWW event slide has the following format. To reveal each block of text just left click your mouse or press the space bar. You control when it appears.

This is the reporter’s description of the event. It is always a direct quotation from the news report and reflects the understanding of the reporter and editors.

This is my comment on why the event is interesting to a Bible student. The intention of the WWW is to offer brief Biblical perspectives without going into detail. If more detail is desired, please e-mail me: (andy@weeklyworldwatch.co.uk). Please note that these are personal thoughts and the aim is purely to stimulate Bible study.

This Week’s Developments

To print any of the event slides that follow, click the picture on the upper rightPRESS SPACE BAR TO CONTINUE

• Russian forces to stay in Syria 'indefinitely'

• UK accuses Russia of bombing Syria rescue workers

• Oil sinks below $30 as Iran prepares to start pumping

• Russia starts to feel the pain of $30 oil

• W.Europe Jewish migration to Israel hits all-time high

January 10 - 16, 2016

• Wall Street sees worst-ever start to a year

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Russian forces to stay in Syria 'indefinitely'

Russian forces will remain in Syria “indefinitely,” according to a newly published agreement between Moscow and Damascus. Details of the agreement regulating the Russian-Syrian military alliance emerged as Moscow announced its mission in the country would now include “humanitarian operations", a term that appeared to refer to aid drops over regime-held territory. Russia began air strikes in support of Syrian government forces on September 30 last year, in what the Kremlin has described as a war on the so-called Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (Isil). But Western governments say the campaign appears to be aimed at propping up the embattled regime of Bashar Assad, the Syrian president. In public statements, Russian officials have said the deployment will continue only until regime forces complete “offensive operations” and against Isil and other rebel groups.

Daily Telegraph, January 15, 2016

EVENT

COMMENT

And thou shalt come up against my people of Israel, as a cloud to cover the land; it shall be in the latter days, and I will bring thee against my land, that the heathen may know me, when I shall be sanctified in thee, O Gog, before their eyes. See Daniel 11:41-43 – Russia ends up in Egypt.

BIBLEQUOTE

(Ezekiel 38:16)

Russia is staying the Middle East indefinitely according to this agreement. Russia intends to maintain a military presence in the region for the long term. Therefore this bombing campaign in Syria is not a one off action but a step to greater involvement

south of its borders .With Bible in hand we know the direction of travel for Russia. It is to go south. In fact we are told Russia will descend like a cloud to cover the land. Russia not only will invade Israel but also pass through into Egypt. What have have seen so far here is a tiny fraction of what Russia is going to do. But the fact we are seeing this happen is surely a warning to us all that the end of all things is at hand. How excited would our pioneer brothers and sisters be to be watching events begin to take place foretold so many thousands of years ago. We need to be watching and ready at this time.

UK accuses Russia of bombing Syria rescue workers

Russia should be “held to account” for breaking international humanitarian law by “deliberately” bombing schools and hospitals in Syria, Philip Hammond said on Friday.During an official visit to Turkey, the Foreign Secretary voiced his strongest condemnation yet of Russia’s air campaign in Syria. He accused the Kremlin of deliberately killing rescue workers by sending warplanes to bomb schools and hospitals for a second time, knowing that people would be trying to save the casualties from the first strike. Mr Hammond said that Russian jets are “deliberately targeting civilians”, adding: “The evidence points to them deliberately attacking hospitals and schools and deliberately targeting rescue workers. If you go back for a second strike, you know what you’re doing.” The Russians often return for a second attack 15 or 20 minutes after the first. This latter tactic appears designed to kill rescue workers.

Daily Telegraph, January 15, 2016

EVENT

COMMENT

Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish, with all the young lions thereof, shall say unto thee, Art thou come to take a spoil? hast thou gathered thy company to take a prey? to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to take a great spoil?Tarshish = Britain Britain accuses Russia of taking a spoil

Any deliberate attack on civilian facilities, notably schools or hospitals, breaks international humanitarian law. But Putin and his forces care nothing for this. So blatant have these attacks been that volunteers have stopped marking their vehicles because they believe this draws Russian bombs. Hospitals in rebel-held areas of Syria have also removed their markings for the same reason. Russia has yet to respond to these accusations. It is interesting that it is Britain that is accusing Russia of these things. Britain of course is Tarshish in the Bible. Tarshish is one of the nations that opposes the Russian invasion of the Middle East. Tarshish is doing exactly that here. Accusing the Russians of killing civilians. One day Tarshish will accuse Russia of taking a spoil!

BIBLEQUOTE (Ezekiel 38:13)

Oil prices have slumped below $30 for the third time in a week as traders took fright at the prospect of Iranian oil flooding global markets. Fears that the Islamic Republic could add to the world's oil glut as early as next week sent Brent crude falling by 3.30pc to $29.43 - matching lows last seen in 2004. West Texas Intermediate also slipped back to $29.60, a decline of 4.5pc. Oil has shed more than 75pc since last summer - a post war record - as over-supply and fears over global economic growth has depressed traders.The Islamic Republic has vowed to return its oil production to pre-sanction levels, with estimates suggesting Tehran will add a further 500,000 barrels a day (b/pd) to the world's bloated stockpiles within weeks. Iran has resisted calls from rival Saudi Arabia to hold back on production in the face of faltering global energy demand. The rift between the two Middle East powers has paralysed Opec - the world's oil cartel - which has abandoned formal production targets for the first time in its history.

Daily Telegraph, January 15, 2016

EVENT

COMMENT

A grievous vision is declared unto me; the treacherous dealer dealeth treacherously [Iranian deal], and the spoiler spoileth [Russia who spoils]. Go up, O Elam: [south west Iran] besiege, O Media [Iran] ; all the sighing thereof have I made to cease.

BIBLEQUOTE

Last year America and the West did a deal with Iran. The deal was - stop developing the ability to create nuclear weapons – in return sanctions will be lifted and you can start exporting oil again. Before Iran could export oil they had to prove they were complying with the agreement. "Implementation day" refers to the date when Iran can start providing oil once again to the world markets. It is certainly one of the most important dates of the year for the global economy, alongside its major diplomatic and political significance. Iran may begin exporting by the end of this month.All this will do is drive prices down further and it will escalate tensions even more between Saudi Arabia and Iran. The Bible says that the deal Iran did was treacherous. It is. Iran will renege on its deal and actually attack Israel will Russia.

Oil sinks below $30 as Iran prepares to start pumping

(Isaiah 21:2)

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Russia starts to feel the pain of $30 oil

With oil prices slumping and sanctions gripping tightly, Russia is bracing for a grim 2016 as economic indicators point to an even more pessimistic scenario than a year ago. In the week after Russia’s long New Year’s holiday, the bad news could not have come faster. First Russia’s ruble swooned against the dollar. Then the grim prognosis for the nation’s economy worsened and policymakers announced plans for sweeping and sudden budget cuts to an already austere spending plan. Now the nation’s finance minister is warning that a key rainy-day piggy bank may be empty by the end of the year — and that if policymakers do not get the economy on track, Russians could see their savings wiped out in a repeat of their 1998 crisis. The blizzard of bad news is challenging leaders who once blithely said that 2016 would be a year of recovery rather than continued recession.

Washington Post, January 14, 2015

EVENT

COMMENT

And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws, and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords:

BIBLEQUOTE

Meanwhile the collapse in oil prices are beginning to cause real pain now for Russia.Putin saved up a huge war chest which is evaporating quickly. By the end of the year 10 years of savings will be gone. A full blown economic crisis in Russia is brewing if oil stays this low. Experts are saying it could go down to $20 a barrel or even lower.Russia’s 2016 federal budget, of which half is paid for by oil and gas revenue, was designed with a price of $50 per barrel of oil. Some top policymakers in Russia have suggested selling off portions of the government’s stake in major banks and oil companies to raise money and stabilize the struggling banking sector. So what does this mean? Well the Bible says that Russia will invade Israel for a spoil. A spoil is plunder, loot, wealth taken by force. It stands to reason therefore that Russia is desperate for wealth and this is the hook that God uses to pull Russia down…

(Ezekiel 38:4)

Western Europe Jewish migration to Israel hits all-time high

Jewish immigration to Israel from western Europe has reached an all-time high as a result of a rise in anti-Semitic attacks, a leading nonprofit group said Thursday, as France's beleaguered Jewish community grapples with whether to refrain from donning Jewish skull caps for their own safety. The Jewish Agency, which works closely with the Israeli government and acts as a link to Jews around the world, told The Associated Press that 9,880 western European Jews immigrated to Israel in 2015 the highest annual number ever. The figure is more than 10 percent over the previous year and over double the 2013 level. The vast majority, close to 8,000, came from France, where a rise in anti-Semitic attacks has shattered the sense of security of the world's third-largest Jewish population.

Associated Press, January 14, 2015

EVENT

COMMENT

I will show how holy my great name is—the name on which you brought shame among the nations. And when I reveal my holiness through you before their very eyes, says the Sovereign Lord, then the nations will know that I am the Lord. For I will gather you up from all the nations and bring you home again to your land.

BIBLEQUOTE

(Ezekiel 36:23-24 NLT)

"That a record number of European Jews feel that Europe is no longer their home should alarm European leaders and serve as a wake-up call for all who are concerned about the future of Europe," said Jewish Agency Chairman Natan Sharansky. "At the same time, the fact that Israel has become the number one destination for European Jews seeking to build a better future elsewhere is a tribute to the appeal of life in Israel and the values the Jewish state represents.”Jews tend to return to Israel only when they are persecuted. They don’t move to another country but actually decide to move back to “the land”. If it wasn’t for the Holocaust, Israel would never have been recreated. It needed the horror of that persecution to persuade the survivors to return. God says that he would regather his people (the Jews) back to the land of Israel. The process continues today…

Wall Street sees worst-ever start to a year

Never before has Wall Street gotten off to a worse start to a year. The stock market capped the first two weeks of 2016 with a steep slide Friday that sent the Dow Jones industrial average down nearly 400 points. All three major stock indexes – the Dow, the Nasdaq composite index and the Standard & Poor’s 500 – are now in what’s known as a correction, or a drop of 10 per cent or more from their recent peaks. The market has been on a stomach-churning ride since the start of the year, wrenched up – but mostly down – because of alarm over a slowdown in China and the plunging price of oil to its lowest level in 12 years. Investors are already seeing damage to U.S. corporate profits, particularly at energy companies. Many investors had welcomed the new year with fairly high hopes. They expected oil prices would stabilize. After a market correction in August, few forecast it would happen again so soon.

Associated Press, January 15, 2016

EVENT

COMMENT

They shall not build, and another inhabit; they shall not plant, and another eat: for as the days of a tree are the days of my people, and mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands.Read Isaiah 25 to read of total financial collapse of the world

BIBLEQUOTE (Isaiah 65:22)

The sense of financial crisis is in the air. This year has been the worst start for Wall Street - ever. The world puts its trust in wealth but it is truly built on sand. The last major financial crisis was in 2007/8. This was caused by a banking crisis where the banks over lent and people and business’s over borrowed. To sort that crisis governments stepped in to bail the banks out. Interest rates were lowered as low as they could go. New money was printed - they called in quantative easing, The central banks buy assets with money that is “printed” or created electronically. Trouble is when the next crisis comes they have no more levers to pull. We know from Isaiah 25 that total financial collapse is coming. All savings will be bought down to zero. In the coming kingdom no one will buy or sell. Money will fail completely. A total crash is coming.

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They can register on the sitePLEASE NOTE: The Weekly World Watch is written and sent by myself – it is my take on events and I accept that on occasions I will miss significant events

and also misinterpret them as well. However I will endeavour to be faithful to the scriptures and hope that it will be of benefit to both of us.

Weekly World WatchThe end of this week’s