1. April 12 - 18, 2015 “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 To skip the introductory slides and go straight to this weeks developments click here. PRESS SPACE BAR TO CONTINUE

2. 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.clicking here 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:

3. 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? BIBLE QUOTE 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.andy@weeklyworldwatch.co.uk

4. This Week’s Developments To print any of the event slides that follow, click the picture on the upper right PRESS SPACE BAR TO CONTINUE Israel angry as Russia approves missiles for Iran Iran massively ramping up arming of Hezbollah US troops arrive in Ukraine for training exercises Rebel forces prepare Spring offensive in Ukraine Saudi-Iran rivalry over Yemen deepens April 12 - 18, 2015 Looming Greek 'crunch' threatens fresh global crisis

5. Vladimir Putin lifted a ban on deliveries of Russian S-300 air-defence missiles to Iran on Monday, in a controversial move which angered Israel. The Russian president issued an executive order cancelling a prohibition on exporting the weapon to Tehran, a measure brought in under Western pressure in 2010 when the UN introduced an arms embargo. Israel responded sharply to the lifting of the ban. Yuval Steinitz, the intelligence and international relations minister, said it was “a direct result of the legitimacy that Iran is receiving from the nuclear deal that is being prepared, and proof that the Iranian economic growth which follows the lifting of sanctions will be exploited for arming itself and not for the welfare of the Iranian people”. The US White House said John Kerry, the secretary of state, had also raised his concerns with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, over the cancellation of the ban on Monday. Daily Telegraph, April 13, 2015 EVENT COMMENT Persia [Iran], Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet: Gomer, and all his bands; the house of Togarmah of the north quarters, and all his bands: and many people with thee. Be thou [Gog / Putin] prepared, and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and be thou a guard [protector] unto them. BIBLE QUOTE The Russian S-300 system was developed to defend against enemy aircraft and cruise missiles. The S-300 is regarded as one of the most potent anti-aircraft missile systems currently fielded. So why has Putin this week authorised the delivery of these banned missiles to Iran? The answer is these missiles will help protect Iran from attack. Russia has decided to help protect Iran in case the nuclear deal collapses and the US or Israel resort to military action. Mr Lavrov, Russia’s foreign minister, told reporters in Moscow that the missiles were an “exclusively defensive weapon”. Amazingly the Bible said 2500 years ago that Russia would help Iran in this way by acting as a guard or protector to them. In Ezekiel 38 we read that Gog (Putin) head of Russia would act as a “guard” (protector) of Persia (Iran). We also read that Iran will join Russia in invading Israel. Prophecy is being fulfilled in this headline… Israel angry as Russia approves missiles for Iran (Ezekiel 38:5-7)

6. he Israeli officials: Iran massively ramping up arming of Hezbollah in preparation for major assault on Israel Senior Israeli officials warned on Monday evening that, over the last few weeks, Iran has considerably stepped up its operations to arm Hezbollah in order to prepare its terrorist proxy for a large-scale conflict with Israel. According to the officials, cited by Israel’s Channel 2, new intelligence has revealed that Tehran has accelerated its proxy war with Israel on all fronts. Iranian delegations have been arriving in the Gaza Strip, and in recent months, the commander of Iran’s Basij paramilitary volunteer militia spoke of arming the residents of the West Bank to rise up against Israel. Iran has reportedly already begun arming members of Hamas in the West Bank. Iran has also been attempting to establish a new front for Hezbollah with Israel on the Golan Heights, linking it to the existing one in southern Lebanon, according to the report. The Algemeiner, April 13, 2015 EVENT COMMENT 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…..the Philistines with the inhabitants of Tyre; Assur also is joined with them: they have holpen the children of Lot. Selah. Do unto them as unto the Midianites; as to Sisera, Sisera was killed with a tent peg hammered through his temple. BIBLE QUOTE (Psalm 83:4-7-9) Israel is surrounded by hostile enemies who want to see Israel destroyed. These enemies include the Palestinians, Hamas, Hezbollah and Syria. All of these peoples are backed by Iran. Iran openly calls for the destruction of Israel and it provides military training and equipment eg rockets / missiles etc to these groups. As the article says Iran is stepping up the arming of Hezbollah in preparation for a major assault on Israel. The Bible tells us that this assault is coming. It gives us details of the exact peoples involved that launch the attack. It also tells who is helping them behind the scenes. It also tells us the final outcome and what happens next. The exact people are listed in Psalm 83. They include Philistines (Hamas), the inhabitants of Tyre (Hezbollah). Assur helps them. Assur is Assyria which includes Iran / Iraq. We are told in Psalm 83 that they will become like Sisera. Sisera was a Canaanite army general who fought against Israel. His army was defeated by Israel and he was killed with a tent peg!

7. US troops arrive in Ukraine for training exercises About 300 US Army paratroopers on Friday arrived in Ukraine for training exercises with national guard units, a move criticized by Moscow and eastern Ukraine's Russia- backed separatist rebels. The troops, from the Italy-based 173rd Airborne Brigade, are to spend several weeks training a total of about 900 Ukrainian national guardsmen. Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich denounced the guardsmen as "ultranationalists... who stained themselves with the blood of women, children and the elderly during their punitive operations.” Although Interior Minister Arsen Avakov had said the guardsman units could include the Azov Battalion, a far-right formation notorious for using an insignia used by many military units in Nazi Germany, U.S. Embassy spokesman said Azov fighters would not be among those trained. Associated Press, April 17, 2015 EVENT COMMENT And at the time of the end shall the king of the south push at him: and the king of the north shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over. He shall enter also into the glorious land, and many countries shall be overthrown: Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, also criticized the American move. "The participation of instructors and specialists from a third country on the territory of Ukraine, where an unresolved intra-Ukrainian conflict remains, where problems persist in carrying out the Minsk agreement, is far from helping resolve the conflict. To the contrary, it enables destabilizing the situation," Peskov said. On Friday Russia warned that the arrival of US paratroopers in Ukraine to train its forces fighting pro-Russian rebels could reignite the conflict, leading to mass bloodshed. It is seen as a step closer to the US supplying weapons to Ukrainians fighting against the rebels. This could well be leading to the “push” mentioned in Daniel 11:40. We know that the king of the south “pushes” at the king of the north. The push is a military provocation. It is this provocation that is the catalyst to the Russian invasion of Israel and beyond… BIBLE QUOTE (Daniel 11:40)

8. he Rebel forces prepare Spring offensive in Ukraine All parties to the Minsk Two agreement, which has resulted in a shaky ceasefire in southeastern Ukraine since February 12, express varying levels of concern about a possible full resumption of hostilities. On April 10, the pro-Russian Ukrainian rebel leader who heads the Donetsk “People’s Republic” (DPR), Alexander Zakharchenko, warned that the conflict could resume, pointing to Kyiv’s reluctance to implement the Minsk Two agreement. In fact, Zakharchenko implied that the possible targets of a fresh rebel offensive might by the key cities of Mariupol (Mariupil) and Slavyansk—lost to the regular Ukrainian army last year. “The problem is that we must recover territories that were temporarily occupied, preferably by peaceful means,” he said on April 8 (PressTV, April 9). On April 8, a Ukrainian military spokesman said that rebel forces were placed on “full alert” for a military offensive that Kyiv and Washington believe will occur within the next two months. Eurasia Daily Monitor, April 14, 2015 EVENT COMMENT Proclaim ye this among the Gentiles; Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war draw near; let them come up: Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruninghooks into spears: let the weak say, I am strong. Assemble yourselves, and come, all ye heathen, and gather yourselves together round about: BIBLE QUOTE The World Economic Forum has released its yearly assessment of the biggest dangers facing the world over the next decade. In previous years the Global Risk Report has focused on the global economy. This year is very different. It says the biggest threat to world stability over the next 10 years is likely to come from geopolitical tensions. According to the report, the crisis in Ukraine, Russia's simmering tensions with Europe, and strained China-Japan relations are all evidence that the world's biggest powers have once again started engaging in strategic power struggles. This is the first time that geopolitical threats have topped the risk index. The world is destabilising before our eyes. The Bible says that the Gentiles will prepare for war. Weak nations will say they are strong. There is no doubt we are in this time period. We should also prepare… (Joel 3:9-10)

9. Saudi-Iran rivalry over Yemen deepens Saudi Arabia's government insists it is not at war with Iran despite its three-week air campaign against Tehran-backed rebels in Yemen, but the kingdom's powerful clerics, and its regional rival's theocratic government, are increasingly presenting the conflict as part of a region-wide battle for the soul of Islam. The toxic rivalry between Sunni Saudi Arabia and Shiite Iran is playing out on the battlefields of Yemen and Syria, and in the dysfunctional politics of Iraq and Lebanon, with each side resorting to sectarian rhetoric. Iran and its allies refer to all of their opponents as terrorists and extremists, while Saudi Arabian clerics speak of a regional Persian menace. But even if today's power struggle has more to do with politics than religion, the unleashing of increasingly sectarian rhetoric on both sides has empowered extremists and made the region's multiplying conflicts even more intractable. Associated Press, April 16, 2015 EVENT COMMENT The burden of the desert of the sea. As whirlwinds in the south pass through; so it cometh from the desert, from a terrible land. A grievous vision is declared unto me; the treacherous dealer dealeth treacherously, and the spoiler spoileth. Go up, O Elam: besiege, O Media; all the sighing thereof have I made to cease. Elam and Media = Iran BIBLE QUOTE (Isaiah 21:1-2) As the article says, the Middle East has many intractable conflicts and they are worsening. There are intractable problems in Syria, in Iraq / ISIS, between Israel and the Palestinians, between Iran and Saudi Arabia. The word intractable means impossible to cope with, uncontrollable, out of hand. The Bible talks of 10 “burdens” that lead up to the time of trouble such as never was. The word burden means “a source of great worry or stress”. These 10 burdens begin in Isaiah 13 and conclude with worldwide judgement in Isaiah 24. These 10 intractable national nightmares that cause worldwide worry are… Babylon (Iraq) Ch13/14, Moab (Jordan) Ch15/16, Damascus (Syria) Ch17, Ethiopia (Sudan) Ch18, Egypt Ch19, Elam (Iran), Arabia (Saudi Arabia) Ch21, Jerusalem Ch22. All these have become burdens…

10. Looming Greek 'crunch' threatens fresh global crisis George Osborne has warned that Greece's battle with Europe's creditor powers is nearing a "crunch" point and threatens to detonate a fresh global crisis if mishandled over the next days and weeks. The Chancellor said the escalating crisis in Greece is now the biggest threat to the world economy and has become a haunting theme for finance ministers and central bankers meeting at the International Monetary Fund in Washington this week. "The mood is notably more gloomy than at the last international gathering, and it is now clear to me that a misstep or a miscalculation by either side could easily return European economies to the kind of perilous situation we saw three or four years ago," he said. "The crunch appears to be coming in May, and it would be a mistake to think that the UK would be immune. Of course, it would be the very worst moment for there to be any confusion about the direction of British of economic policy, or for a change of direction. We need resilience for moments like this," he said. Daily Telegraph, April 17, 2015 EVENT COMMENT And when money failed in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, all the Egyptians came unto Joseph, and said, Give us bread: for why should we die in thy presence? for the money faileth. …buy us and our land for bread, and we and our land will be servants unto Pharaoh: …. And Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh; BIBLE QUOTE There is a worldwide financial crisis coming. In fact of course the whole financial system will collapse during the final time of trouble - never to rise again. Money will fail. We read about this in Isaiah 24 where we read that the buyer and the seller, the lender and the borrower will both be impacted when God empties and wastes the earth. Interestingly we know that Joseph is a type of Christ. Joseph who was rejected by his brothers eventually ruled of Egypt. Money failed in Egypt and everyone living in Egypt were forced to turn to Joseph for food and help. When Christ returns the people who are left will be forced to turn to him as money will have failed. We are also told the people gave Joseph their lands. One day all the earth will be part of God’s kingdom… (Genesis 47:15,19-20)

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12. Please take a look at this excellent Christadelphian Prophecy website Just click the image To watch again, click here. WWW will be e-mailed to you each week. If you think others may find the WWW helpful please direct them to the website www.weeklyworldwatch.co.uk They can register on the site PLEASE 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 Watch The end of this week’s