Gerald Flurry says to ‘read between the lines’ and that Syria will break from Iran, before (he believes) Germany will attack Iran

(From thetrumpet.com)

PCG posted the following.

We Must Have Faith in God’s Prophecy

Your Bible foretells the imminent breakaway of Syria from Iran and Russia. Prove where and when Syria will seek a new alliance—and how the whole world will be rocked by this dramatic shift in geopolitics.

By Gerald Flurry • May 31, 2024 https://www.thetrumpet.com/29593-we-must-have-faith-in-gods-prophecy

(The above is a PCG Key of David program which I viewed today, but was posted online on May 31, 2024)

While we are to have faith in God’s prophecy, Gerald Flurry instead has faith in his incorrect interpretations of them.

In that telecast, Gerald Flurry stated:

We have to, in some cases, read between the lines.

What is he “reading between the lines”?

He stated he believes that before Germany attacks Iran (which is not mentioned in the Bible) that Syria will soon break away from Iran perhaps this year or next–and that Germany and Syria are soon to become close allies. The Bible does not say that.

Gerald Flurry also stated that Syria would back away from Russia.

While the Syria will one day support the coming King of the South consistent with prophecies in Daniel 11:40-43 and Ezekiel 30: 2-8, the way that Gerald Flurry is teaching about it and Germany is wrong.

Gerald Flurry, in that telecast, pointed to an article from some source that confirmed his view that Syria was close to breaking away from Iran. While Syria has recently been re-admitted to the Arab League and has supported a UAE against Iran, it is still tied to Iran. Furthermore, notice the following news reports:

May 30, 2024

Syrian President Bashar Assad met with Iran’s supreme leader in the capital Tehran on Thursday and expressed his condolences over the death of President Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash, state media reported Thursday.

Assad met with Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei …

Iran has been the No. 1 regional supporter of Assad in that Arab nation’s lengthy civil war. Hundreds of Iranian forces have been killed in the war though Tehran has long said it has only a military advisory role in Syria. https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/syrian-president-bashar-assad-visits-iran-express-condolences-110676001

On Thursday, Assad and Khamenei said ties were strong, according to a statement by the Syrian presidency. Assad was able to turn the tide of Syria’s civil war, which erupted from mass pro-democracy demonstrations in 2011, with crucial help from Iran’s proxy militias and Russia’s military intervention in 2015. https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/syrias-assad-iranian-supreme-leader-meet-tehran-say-ties-strong-2024-05-30/

Just because Syria says its ties with Iran are strong is not proof that is true, but many actions Syria has taken also point out it is not about to turn away from Iran.

That said, what does the Bible say will happen to Syria? Check out the following:

7 thus says the Lord God: “It shall not stand, Nor shall it come to pass. 8 For the head of Syria is Damascus (Isaiah 7:7-8).

3 Thus says the Lord: “For three transgressions of Damascus, and for four, I will not turn away its punishment, Because they have threshed Gilead with implements of iron. (Amos 1:3)

1 The burden against Damascus. “Behold, Damascus will cease from being a city, And it will be a ruinous heap. 2 The cities of Aroer are forsaken; They will be for flocks Which lie down, and no one will make them afraid. 3 The fortress also will cease from Ephraim, The kingdom from Damascus, And the remnant of Syria; They will be as the glory of the children of Israel,” Says the Lord of hosts. (Isaiah 17:1-3)

23 Against Damascus. “Hamath and Arpad are shamed, For they have heard bad news. They are fainthearted; There is trouble on the sea; It cannot be quiet. 24 Damascus has grown feeble; She turns to flee, And fear has seized her. Anguish and sorrows have taken her like a woman in labor. 25 Why is the city of praise not deserted, the city of My joy? 26 Therefore her young men shall fall in her streets, And all the men of war shall be cut off in that day,” says the Lord of hosts. 27 “I will kindle a fire in the wall of Damascus, And it shall consume the palaces of Ben-Hadad.” (Jeremiah 49:23-27)

Damascus has been claimed to be the “oldest, continuously-inhabited city” in the world. And while some have questioned that claim, the reality is that Damascus has not been destroyed to the point of becoming the “ruinous heap,” since God inspired Isaiah thousands of years ago to record that it would one day happen. The destruction would be expected to come from some type of warfare.

The Bible shows that God will allow something that looks like an Iranian-Syrian confederation to strike the nation of Israel:

1 The burden against the Valley of Vision.

What ails you now, that you have all gone up to the housetops, 2 You who are full of noise, A tumultuous city, a joyous city? Your slain men are not slain with the sword, Nor dead in battle. 3 All your rulers have fled together; They are captured by the archers. All who are found in you are bound together; They have fled from afar. 4 Therefore I said, “Look away from me, I will weep bitterly; Do not labor to comfort me Because of the plundering of the daughter of my people.”

5 For it is a day of trouble and treading down and perplexity By the Lord God of hosts In the Valley of Vision — Breaking down the walls And of crying to the mountain. 6 Elam bore the quiver With chariots of men and horsemen, And Kir uncovered the shield. 7 It shall come to pass that your choicest valleys Shall be full of chariots,And the horsemen shall set themselves in array at the gate.

8 He removed the protection of Judah. You looked in that day to the armor of the House of the Forest; 9 You also saw the damage to the city of David, That it was great; And you gathered together the waters of the lower pool. 10 You numbered the houses of Jerusalem, And the houses you broke down To fortify the wall. 11 You also made a reservoir between the two walls For the water of the old pool. But you did not look to its Maker, Nor did you have respect for Him who fashioned it long ago.

12 And in that day the Lord God of hosts Called for weeping and for mourning,For baldness and for girding with sackcloth. 13 But instead, joy and gladness, Slaying oxen and killing sheep, Eating meat and drinking wine: “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!”

14 Then it was revealed in my hearing by the Lord of hosts,”Surely for this iniquity there will be no atonement for you, Even to your death,” says the Lord God of hosts. (Isaiah 22:1-14 NKJV)

Elam looks to be a reference to at least some in Iran. The old Worldwide Church of God published the following:

Iranians comprise nearly 70 percent of the country. Iranians, though Islamic, are totally distinct from the neighboring Arab peoples of the Middle East. They are a mixed people of the remnants of Media and Elam and other ancestors of Semitic and Hamitic stock. (Stump K. South Asia in Prophecy. Plain Truth, July/August 1986, p. 5)

The Bible tells that after Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria took over Damascus, he moved Syrians to Kir. While this does not mean that Kir must (or must only) be a reference to Syria, the fact that Syria is an ally of Iran is interesting. Some believe Kir is an area in the south of Iran, while others suggest closer to the Black Sea. God’s word has the expression “the Syrians from Kir” (Amos 9:7), which is basically confirmation that Kir of Isaiah 22 would include Syrians. The Bible also tells of a time when Kir will be destroyed (Isaiah 15:1b) and also says that Syria’s capital Damascus will be destroyed (Isaiah 17:1).

That said, Syria will one day be less attached to Iran (and may totally separate from it). Syria will end up supporting the coming King of the South (Daniel 11:40-43), who is NOT Iran –although Gerald Flurry wrongly insists Iran, which is basically east of Jerusalem will be the King of the South.

Those who have enough of “the love of the truth” (2 Thessalonians 2:10) should clearly be able to see that Gerald Flurry is NOT God’s prophet nor a teacher who truly understands biblical prophecy.

Gerald Flurry’s conclusions by “reading between the lines” of what the Bible does not say, is not correct.

But yes, we are to have faith in God’s prophecies, not Gerald Flurry’s.

Some items of possibly related interest may include the following:

Iran in Prophecy Is Iran in Bible prophecy? If so, what does the Bible teach? What names, other than Persia, may be used to describe Iran? There is also a YouTube video titled Iran in Prophecy. Here are links to two related videos Iran In Prophecy and Iran and Israel Conflict.
Damascus and Syria in Prophecy Will Bashar Assad hold power as he has it? Does the Bible show that Damascus, the capital of Syria, will be destroyed? What will happen to Syria? Will the Syrians support the final King of the South that the Bible tells will rise up? Which scriptures discuss the rise and fall of an Arabic confederation? Does Islamic prophecy predict the destruction of Syria. This is a YouTube video.
Islamic and Biblical Prophecies for the 21st Century This is a free online book which helps show where biblical and Islamic prophecies converge and diverge.
Germany in Biblical and Roman Catholic Prophecy Does Assyria in the Bible equate to an end time power inhabiting the area of the old Roman Empire? What does prophecy say Germany will do and what does it say will happen to most of the German people? Here is a version of the article in the Spanish language: Alemania en la profecía bíblic. Here are links to two English language sermon videos Germany in Bible Prophecy and The Rise of the Germanic Beast Power of Prophecy. Here is one in the Spanish language: Alemania en profecía Biblica.
PCG: Teachings Unique to the Philadelphia Church of God Simply calling oneself ‘Philadelphia’ does not make one so (see Revelation 3:7-9), nor does Gerald Flurry calling himself “that prophet” make it so. This article provides many quotes from this group which tries to look faithful.