Valley of Jehoshaphat?
The attack against the American Embassy in Libya crossed an unfortunate threshold. The terrorists will see it as a success and really it isn't. However it cost 4 American lives and it can't just be waved off. It's the Libyan people who will suffer the most from this as they deal with with rogue elements and young troublemakers hungry for power in their country. When the Soviet Union fell apart in the early 90s many foreign elements came into Eastern Europe trying to gain a foothold. There was the Armenian mafia who had a reputation for callous dealing but also provided access to fine Armenian liquor, fly by night business there to make a quick buck and then leave. All of this influenced the some of the locals to form their own mafias. Most were not violent, however in the capital cities things could get extremely violent. Occaisionally the Russian army and the local army would shoot at each other (without fatalities) until the Russian army was called back into Russia. The mafia was also more aggressively violent in the capital.
You have a similar dynamic in Libya but with different players and more weapons. All the mercenaries probably have not left, but have gone underground, if there is money to be made. Then you have pockets of Gaddafi loyalists fighting with the new government, radical Muslims trying to wedge themselves into power and the foreign gunrunners and other business men trying to make a quick buck. And almost everyone is armed.
The implications for Christians and Jews is serious. Also now that the Muslim Brotherhood is in power in Egypt, many Muslims are increasingly looking to kill anyone who is not Muslim in the area. If the Muslim governments of Egypt and North Sudan form an alliance it would likely be to consider or plan an attack against Israel. Then the Valley of Jehoshaphat scenario (from the Book of Joel) becomes quite likely. The Book of Joel is a complex book filled with conditional prophecy and involving many eras (Joel 2-28 also refers to the Pentacost in the New Testament, Acts 2-17).
Many Christians are waiting for Jesus to arrive shortly, but I reflect on what Churchill said : "It is not likely the beginning of the end but it is perhaps the end of the beginning". Remember what Jesus told us in the parable of the 10 virgins. To get prepared. One thing a believer can do is study the the Book of Daniel. That Book alone can keep you busy for half a year. Walvoord and Zuck's "Bible Knowledge Commentary for the Old Testament" does a notable job of evaluating Alexander and the Diadochi up to the madness of Antiochus IV Epiphanes (nickname Epimanes) and his setup of "the abomination that makes desolation". This appears to be a template for the future, since one of the Gospels tells us: "let the reader understand".
The encouraging thing about the Book of Joel is that (unlike the Book of Revelation) it is not written in stone. Departing from sin (not as man defines sin but as God defines sin) and having a change of heart can prevent the meltdown. Joel 2-13.
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