Could Syria’s Regime Change Fulfill a Biblical Prophecy?

Following the fall of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad’s autocratic regime to Islamic extremists, much attention has been paid to the geopolitical ramifications of the new makeup of the Middle East, but some Christians are commenting on the spiritual implications and biblical parallels.

In discussion with Family Research Council President Tony Perkins on Saturday morning’s episode of “This Week of the Hill,” Real Life Network’s Jerusalem correspondent Daniel Cohen explained that there is a “biblical component” to the regime change — and a biblical prophecy may have been fulfilled. “Are you starting to connect the dots?” Cohen asked. He continued, “I’m asking the question to see how the prophecy of the Hebrew prophet Isaiah may be … beginning to unfold.” Cohen observed that Isaiah 17 prophecies the destruction of Damascus, currently the capital of Syria.

“When I think about Isaiah 17, Israel — or another country that for that matter — may be left with no choice but to level Damascus, to leave it in a heap of ruins, as it says in Isaiah chapter 17,” Cohen anticipated, referring to the Islamic extremists now in charge of the Middle Eastern nation. He added that Damascus “is the world’s oldest continually-inhabited city, it has been for over 3,000 years. And now it’s suddenly on the brink of destruction, just as the Bible says.” Cohen said, “It would be just fascinating to me to think about what we could be witnessing here right now: a thousands-year old prophecy unfolding in real time, no question.”

Cohen also discussed the extremist bona fides of Abu Mohammed al-Jawlani, the leader of the Islamic paramilitary group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which toppled Assad’s presidency. “This is a new terror group. Maybe you didn’t have them on your bingo card, along with ISIS, along with al-Qaeda, along with, you know, you name it, all the different acronyms,” Cohen said. He continued, “Al-Jawlani is a former al-Qaeda leader. I believe he trained with ISIS. He’s definitely an Islamic extremist.” Chris Mitchell, Middle East bureau chief for CBN News, had previously said much the same, explaining that HTS “are Islamists. … They’re saying quite openly they want to take over the Al-Aqsa Mosque here in Jerusalem. This is only a stepping stone to take over a greater part of the Middle East.”

The threat posed by a Syria under Islamic extremist control has been amplified due to the nation’s prior role as what Cohen called a “pipeline” for terrorist organizations like Hamas and Hezbollah. “If you know the map, if you know the map of the Middle East, the Islamic Republic used Syria; there was a pipeline that went directly through Syria to Lebanon,” Cohen explained.

He continued to note that Hassan Nasrallah, the former secretary-general of Hezbollah who was assassinated by Israeli forces earlier this year, had once “said famously, he said that if Syria would fall, Hezbollah would fall as well. He was right.” Cohen noted that Hamas, Hezbollah, and now Assad’s regime in Syria — a coalition he referred to as “the ring of fire” and a “group of people who hate Israel” — have all been crippled over the past year. “Israel seems to only be growing stronger while the enemies of Israel seem to be becoming weaker,” he summarized.

Pointing to the decision that the U.S. now faces, Cohen lamented that President Joe Biden “wants to give millions of dollars” to “prop up … this person who trained, who was an al-Qaeda leader.” He added, “I think that’s a terrible idea.” Cohen continued, “President Trump says it’s not our fight and not to get involved. I believe President Trump is right. How everything shakes out with this new rebel who appears to be the one that will take control, we don’t know exactly how all that will shake out yet.”

AUTHOR

S.A. McCarthy

S.A. McCarthy serves as a news writer at The Washington Stand.

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