A California pastor has suggested that the Hamas terrorist attacks in Israel which killed more than 1,000 people, including 14 Americans, were predicted by scripture. Greg Laurie (pictured), the head of California megachurch Harvest Christian Fellowship, made the claims in a sermon he delivered on Sunday.
‘Interesting how it always comes back to Jerusalem. The Bible predicted, thousands of years ago, that the End Time events would revolve around Jerusalem,’ he said. ‘Not San Francisco. Not Los Angeles. Not Moscow. Not Paris. But Jerusalem, this tiny little city, in this tiny sliver of land, will play a key role in the events of the last days. It’s the focal point of End Times events,’ he added, quoting Zechariah 12:3, stating: ‘On that day I will make Jerusalem an immovable rock. All the nations will gather against it to try to move it, but they will only hurt themselves.’
Laurie has ties to former President Donald Trump and attended the Rose Garden ceremony to nominate eventual Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett. He then criticized current President Joe Biden for unfreezing $6billion in funds to Iran, saying ‘what a bad move that is.’ Laurie added that this was a ‘super-sign’ that the ‘prophetic clock ticking is the re-gathering of the nation Israel into their homeland.’ ‘On the heels of the Holocaust, who would have ever thought that these Jewish people who lost 6 million of their people to the Nazis would somehow re-gather in their homeland?’ he said. ‘But it happened against all odds. And on May 14, 1948, Israel became a nation. I’m proud to say the United States was the first nation to acknowledge that.’
He then cited Chapters 37 and 38 of Ezekiel, which has been thought by Bible scholars to be about Russia – using the name ‘Magog’ – invading Israel, according to Christian Post . ‘Why would Russia ever want to invade Israel? Well, there’s another thing the Bible says about Magog, if she is indeed Russia, and that one of her allies that will march with her is Persia,’ he said, noting that Persia is an ancient name for Iran. ‘So the Bible predicted hundreds of years ago that this large force from the north of Israel would attack her after she was regathered, and one of the allies that would attack Israel with mother Russia or Magog, whoever it is, would be Iran, or Persia.’
He somewhat retreated, saying that he’s not claiming this scenario will happen, but that it’s ‘very interesting.’ ‘You’re seeing Bible prophecy fulfilled in your lifetime, in real-time before your very eyes.’ Israel pounded the Gaza Strip on Tuesday with the fiercest air strikes in its 75-year-old conflict with the Palestinians, turning districts to dust despite a threat from Hamas militants to execute a captive for each home hit.
Biden addressed the nation after holding his third phone call in four days with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu . ‘I told him, ‘If the United States experienced what you’re experiencing, our response would be swift decisive and overwhelming,’ Biden said during his remarks Tuesday afternoon. He said they discussed how democracies worldwide were ‘more secure when we act according to the rule of law.’
A day earlier, the White House said it expected to fulfill additional security requests from Israel as quickly as possible. The president noted that Israel has the ‘right to respond – indeed has a duty to respond to these vicious attacks’ and the U.S. is already assisting the nation including by providing Iron Dome interceptors and ammunition. Biden said in his remarks that that the U.S. has ‘enhanced our military force posture in the region to strengthen our deterrence.’ ‘The Department of Defense has moved the USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group to the eastern Mediterranean and bolstered our fighter aircraft presence. And we stand ready to move in additional assets as needed.’
Biden notably skipped explicitly mentioning Iran during his address, but warned hostile actors of taking ‘advantage’ of the situation. ‘Let me say again, any country, any organization anyone thinking of taking advantage of situation? I have one word, don’t.’ The White House has been cautious about laying direct blame on Iran for the attack which has killed over 1,000 Israelis. A day earlier, White House national security spokesperson John Kirby only went as far as to say Iran is ‘complicit’ in Hamas’ deadly attack on Israel.
The United States does not plan to put American military forces on the ground, Kirby also told reporters. Biden went on to say he plans to ask Congress to quickly approve additional funding for the security of American allies. ‘When Congress returns, we’re going to ask them to take urgent action to fund the national security requirements of our critical partners,’ Biden said. ‘This is not about party or politics. It’s about the security of our world, the security of the United States of America.’
This ask may prove more challenging than usual as the House of Representatives just ousted former Speaker Kevin McCarthy and a power vacuum remains. Infighting within the GOP may drag out the process to confirm a new House leader for days. And the House cannot move any legislation to the floor without a speaker in place. Biden also confirmed that there are Americans being held by Hamas as hostages in Gaza. ‘We now know that American citizens are among those being held by Hamas,’ he said without providing additional detail.
National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan revealed to reporters immediately following Biden’s remarks that there are at least 20 Americans who remain missing in Israel. ‘We do not know about their condition, and we cannot confirm a precise number of American citizens,’ he said. He noted that doesn’t mean they all have been captured by Hamas, and that they are just not accounted for. Israel has called up an unprecedented 300,000 of its own reservists. Biden and Netanyahu, despite differences on the way forward in the Middle East, have been thrust into a wartime partnership following the multipronged attack by Hamas militants from Gaza into Israel.
Israel’s embassy in Washington said the death toll from Hamas’ weekend attacks had surpassed 1,000, dwarfing all modern Islamist attacks on the West since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States. Biden also address the potential of threats within the U.S., saying additional security measures especially at houses of worship are being put in place. ‘We’re also taking steps at home, in cities across the United States of America. Police departments have stepped up security around centers of Jewish life,’ he said. ‘The Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Bureau of Investigation are working closely with state and local law enforcement and Jewish community partners to identify and disrupt any domestic threat that could emerge in connection with these horrific attacks,’ the president continued.
Want more stories like this from the Daily Mail? Visit our profile page here and hit the follow button above for more of the news you need.
***
Read more at DailyMail.co.uk