Church of God News

As far as the death of its leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, that should not have come as a surprise to the long time readers of this COGwriter Church of God News page as I wrote shortly after his name was known that ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi would be defeated and not become the prophesied final King of the South (Daniel 11:40-43).

Shortly after his rise in 2014 and seeing some of how he operated, it has been my published position that Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi would not succeed to become the leader of the biblically prophesied King of the South. Notice statements from some posts:

The Islamic State … I do not believe its leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi will become the biblical King of the South. (Thiel B. Islamic State kills 500 Yazidis who would not convert; 20,000 hidden escape; USA drops more bombs. August 10, 2014)

The Bible suggests that Iraq will be involved in a confederation of North African and Middle Eastern nations (Ezekiel 30:1-9; Psalm 83:4-8) who will support a leader that the Bible refers to as the final King of the South (Daniel 11:40-43).

At this moment, I do not believe that this will be the ‘Caliph’ of the Islamic State, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. Instead, I believe that many will point to groups such as the Islamic State, al-Qaeda, Hamas, Boko Haram, etc. as extremists and claim that a ‘moderate’ Arabic-Turkish Islamic confederation is the best way to control ‘extremism.’ The West, including probably the UK and USA, will go along with that. (Thiel B. UK will not fight with Assad against Islamic State, many British Muslims fight for the Islamic State, US calls Islamic State ‘apocalyptic,’ and Muslims killed in Iraq. August 22, 2014)

While many are focusing on the face of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and his Islamic State, they are only a part of what is happening. Though in some respects, they may act like a trigger.

Groups like the Islamic State will end up encouraging the West to embrace a variety of proposals, including one that the Bible suggests sounds like a type of Islamic caliphate (at least the peoples it discusses in it are currently predominantly Islamic at this time). A confederation of predominantly Islamic nations will happen per Daniel 11:40-43 and Ezekiel 30:2-8. (Thiel B. Kissinger tells of New World Order, Cameron concerned about ISIS terrorism, while Obama tells of ‘no strategy’ related to bombing Islamic State raises some concerns. August 29, 2014)

I still do not believe that Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is the final King of the South. His actions and practices are turning much of the world against him and his group. This will spur more to rise up against him and the Islamic State–despite the fact that it will still do damage in various areas. Expect some type of defeat for the Islamic State. But also look for the rise of an Arabic leader to become that King. (Thiel B. Islamic State reportedly low on funds, so what might it do? February 16, 2016)

The incidents in Paris and Brussels in the past year or two, combined with the Orlando and San Bernadino killings in the USA, has gotten the international community in a position that it will not put up with him for long. (Thiel B. Islamic State supporter kills two French policemen; US does not confirm death of Islamic State’s leader Abu_Bakr_al-Baghdadi. COGwriter.com, June 14, 2016)

If Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is still alive, it is likely that the USA will step up bombing, etc. to deal with him and his deranged supporters.

As far as the Islamic State itself goes, more and more are getting outraged by actions it and its followers are part of. It has been attacked by the USA, France, Jordan, Egypt, Syria, and others. A coalition is building, and the time will come when a coalition of states in the Middle East and North Africa will form, likely with Western encouragement, partially to deal with Islamic terrorists.

Even if he is not dead let me add that there is no way I believe that the ‘caliph’ of the Islamic State, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, will lead the coalition that the Bible refers to as led by the King of the South (Daniel 11:40-43). (Thiel B. Russia says it may have killed Islamic State’s Caliph Baghdadi.  COGwriter.com, June 16, 2017)

The Islamic State, per se, will be defeated.

Yet, ultimately, a confederation against the USA, its Anglo-Saxon allies, and Israel involving Arab and European forces is coming per Psalm 83. (Thiel B. Islamic State gets US weapons, attacks in Belgium, and has operatives waiting in the USA. COGwriter, August 7, 2016)

As I have written for years, the group calling itself the Islamic State would not survive as it is and its caliph (who Russia claimed it killed, but Western sources are not certain of this–see also Russia says it may have killed Islamic State’s Caliph Baghdadi) will NOT become the King of the South of biblical prophecy (Daniel 11:40-43) (watch also Why does the Islamic State kill and terrorize?). …

Does this mean that the threat is now over?

No.

Many terrorists associated with the Islamic State still exist. Some will continue to fight and terrorize. Plus there are Muslims who have used the Islamic State as an excuse for terror, and others will use whatever ‘replacement’ appears as an excuse. (Thiel B. Islamic State losing more territory and the real meaning of ‘Allahu akbar’. COGwriter, November 3, 2017)

Many terrorists associated with the Islamic State still exist. Some will continue to fight and terrorize.(Thiel B. Donald Trump: Islamic State to be eliminated in days, but . . . COGwriter, February 7, 2019)

Why did I write that over the years?

Because the Islamic State and Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi had the wrong approach to fulfill biblical prophecies related to the coming King of the South (see Daniel 11; as well as the article Is the Future King of the South Rising Up?).

But as I also wrote, the threat from Islamic State terrorists is not over. Here is a news report from a few days ago:

December 24, 2019

In recent weeks, they have been stepping up their attacks, focused on an area of northeastern Iraq in the province of Diyala near the border with Iran, carrying out ambushes by night and firing mortars. Grasses taller than men provide cover for snipers who sneak up on checkpoints and outposts. Government neglect and long-standing grievances foster a measure of sympathy among local residents.

“They have good military plans, they attack when you don’t expect them, and they are posing a real threat to people’s lives,” said Maj. Aram Darwani, the commander of Kurdish peshmerga military forces in the area.

Across many parts of the vast territory it once controlled, the Islamic State is scrambling to reassert its presence in a setting that is no longer as welcoming as it once was. Militant fighters who escaped from the battlefield are assembling in ungoverned spaces such as the no man’s land between areas controlled by Kurdish and Iraqi forces. Others are lying low as so-called sleeping cells in cities such as Raqqa in Syria, waiting for the phone call ordering them to attack. …

As many as 3,000 fighters have gathered along the 150-mile length of the no man’s land running between the Iraqi army and the Kurdish peshmerga, according to Gen. Sirwan Barzani, who commands Kurdish forces farther north, in the Qara Chokh mountains. U.S. military officials say they put the number at closer to 500, strung out in remote terrain and operating in groups of around five. … “I don’t think the strategy of ISIS now is to do big things. They need more time,” Barzani said. …

said Darwani. “Iraq is on the edge of a cliff and it is falling,” he said, urging a hasty departure from Kulajo as the sun set. For the Islamic State to return, he added, “it is a matter of time.” https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2019/world/whats-next-isis/

The terrorists of the Islamic State still want to cause terror. They also are factors in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, and Nigeria.

Plus, they have terrorist cells and plots in many nations around the world.

The Islamic State wants war (jihad). Here is something from the Islamic State’s publication Dabiq:

Jihād in this era is an obligation upon each and every Muslim as numerous lands of the Muslims have been usurped by the kuffār and numerous parties of apostasy have arisen therein. Until all these lands are retaken, cleansed of apostates, and ruled by the Sharī’ah, the obligation does not drop. … Allah said, {And prepare against them whatever you are able of power and of steeds of war by which you may terrify the enemy of Allah and your enemy and others besides them whom you do not know [but] whom Allah knows} [Al-Anfāl: 60].(The Murtadd Brotherhood. Dabiq, issue 14, Islamic year 1437–October 2016, p. 36)

‘Jihad’ supposedly means ‘holy war.’

The Bible shows that terrorism is prophesied:

14 ‘But if you do not obey Me, and do not observe all these commandments, 15 and if you despise My statutes, or if your soul abhors My judgments, so that you do not perform all My commandments, but break My covenant, 16 I also will do this to you: I will even appoint terror over you, wasting disease and fever which shall consume the eyes and cause sorrow of heart. And you shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies shall eat it. 17 I will set My face against you, and you shall be defeated by your enemies. Those who hate you shall reign over you, and you shall flee when no one pursues you. (Leviticus 26:14-17)

25 The sword shall destroy outside; There shall be terror within (Deuteronomy 32:25)

12 “Cry and wail, son of man; For it will be against My people, Against all the princes of Israel. Terrors including the sword will be against My people; Therefore strike your thigh. (Ezekiel 21:12)

12 Behold, these are the ungodly,Who are always at ease; They increase in riches…19 Oh, how they are brought to desolation, as in a moment! They are utterly consumed with terrors. (Psalms 73:12,19)

25 Because you disdained all my counsel, And would have none of my rebuke, 26 I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your terror comes, 27 When your terror comes like a storm, And your destruction comes like a whirlwind, When distress and anguish come upon you. (Proverbs 1:25-27)

5 Also they are afraid of height, And of terrors in the way (Ecclesiastes 12:5).

The prophecy about “terror within” is pointing to terror within the borders of places like the USA, UK, and Canada.

The Syrian-Iraq based Islamic State has provided terror to many places.

The Bible specifically warns about acts from Palestinians and Syrians to affect the British-descended peoples:

8 The Lord sent a word against Jacob, And it has fallen on Israel. 9 All the people will know — Ephraim and the inhabitant of Samaria — … 11 Therefore the Lord shall set up The adversaries of Rezin against him, And spur his enemies on, 12 The Syrians before and the Philistines behind; And they shall devour Israel with an open mouth. (Isaiah 9:8-9, 11-12)

Ephraim is the progenitor of the British-descended peoples (for details, see Anglo – America in Prophecy & the Lost Tribes of Israel). Samaria is a prophetic reference to the USA (see also Spiritual Samaritans: Old and New).

Terrorism from Syrians and others is prophesied.

Despite the ‘official’ state of the Islamic State, whether or not from people claiming to be supporters of ISIS, more terrorism will hit the USA and its Anglo-Saxon-Celtic descended allies.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Why Terrorism? Is Terrorism Prophesied? What does the Bible teach? Which nations may be affected? Here is a link to a related sermon: Terrorism, Christianity, and Islam.
The Prophesied ‘Islamic’ Confederation Where is an Islamic caliphate prophesied? Will one happen? Should you be concerned about it? A related video is Will an Arabic Calphiphate Destroy the West?
Why does the Islamic State kill and terrorize? The 15th edition of the English language publication Dabiq from the group calling itself the Islamic State has an article titled “Why We Hate You & Why We Fight You.” Do you know the reasons the Islamic State claims are why it kills and terrorizes? Dr. Thiel goes over those reasons, plus goes over the REAL reasons that they do, by explaining verses in the Bible that the Islamic State’s articles either ignore or do not understand, including some about Jesus. Additionally, Dr. Thiel agrees with some of the Islamic State’s criticisms of the West, but not their solution. This is a video.
Differences Between Islam and the Continuing Church of God What are some of the main differences? Are there any similarities? A video of related interest is titled: Islam: Any Christian Concerns or Similarities?
Is the Future King of the South Rising Up? Some no longer believe there needs to be a future King of the South. Might Egypt, Islam, Iran, Arabs, or Ethiopia be involved? Might this King be called the Mahdi or Caliph? What does the Bible say? A YouTube video of related interest may be: The Future King of the South is Rising.
The Muslim Brotherhood and the Rise of the King of the South The Bible tells of the formation of a power of nations that are in the Middle East and North Africa that are part of the final “King of the South” (Daniel 11:40-43) The Muslim Brotherhood wishes to have an Islamic empire with basically the same nations. This YouTube video explains what to expect from such a confederation.
The Arab and Islamic World In the Bible, History, and Prophecy The Bible discusses the origins of the Arab world and discusses the Middle East in prophecy. What is ahead for the Middle East and those who follow Islam? What about the Imam Mahdi? What lies ahead for Turkey, Iran, and the other non-Arabic Muslims? An item of possibly related interest in the Spanish language would be: Líderes iraníes condenan la hipocresía de Occidente y declaran que ahora es tiempo para prepararse para el Armagedón, la guerra, y el Imán Mahdi.
The ‘Peace Deal’ of Daniel 9:27 This prophecy could give up to 3 1/2 years advance notice of the coming Great Tribulation. Will most ignore or misunderstand its fulfillment? Here is a link to a related sermon video Daniel 9:27 and the Start of the Great Tribulation.
How Will Middle East Peace be Brought About? Can humans bring peace to the Middle East? Here is a link to a related video: Middle East Peace? When?
The Gospel of the Kingdom of God This free online pdf booklet has answers many questions people have about the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and explains why it is the solution to the issues the world is facing. Here are links to three related sermons: The World’s False Gospel, The Gospel of the Kingdom: From the New and Old Testaments, and The Kingdom of God is the Solution.
Anglo – America in Prophecy & the Lost Tribes of Israel Are the Americans, Canadians, English, Scottish, Welsh, Australians, Anglo-Saxon (non-Dutch) Southern Africans, and New Zealanders descendants of Joseph? Where are the lost ten-tribes of Israel? Who are the lost tribes of Israel? What will happen to Jerusalem and the Jews in Israel? Will God punish the U.S.A., Canada, United Kingdom, and other Anglo-Saxon nations? Why might God allow them to be punished first? Here is a link to the Spanish version of this article: Anglo-América & las Tribus Perdidas de Israel. Information is also in the YouTube sermons titled Where are the Ten Lost Tribes? Why does it matter? and British are the Covenant People. A short YouTube of prophetic interest may be: Are Chinese threats against Australia for real?
Will the Anglo-Saxon-Celtic Nations be Divided and Have People Taken as Slaves? Will the lands of the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand be divided? What about Jerusalem? What does Bible prophecy teach? Are there non-biblical prophecies that support this idea? Who will divide those lands? Who will end up with the lands and the people? Here is a link to a video titled Will the USA and other Anglo-nations be Divided and Their People Made Slaves? Here is a related item in the Spanish language ¿Serán divididas las naciones anglosajonas?
British are the Covenant People What do ‘British’ and ‘Britain’ mean in Hebrew? Are the descendants of the Anglo-Saxons people of the covenant? Does the British royal family connect to the throne of David? What does the Bible teach? What does history show us? Is there any DNA evidence related to British-Israelism? When did Christianity make it to the British Isles? Could Jeremiah have made it to the British Isles? What type of Christians made it to the British Isles? Did the last King of England believe in British Israelism?
Canada in Prophecy: What Does Bible Prophecy, Catholic Prophecy, and other Predictions Suggest About the Future of Canada? There are prophecies that suggest involvement with Canada. And many are not positive about its future. A sermon of related interest is also available: Canada in Prophecy.
Australia and New Zealand in Prophecy Do biblical prophecies help explain the wealth blessings for Australia and New Zealand? Might cursings from disobedience come in the 21st century? Here is a link to a related sermon: Australia and New Zealand: Origins and Prophecy.
Spiritual Samaritans: Old and New Who were the Samaritans? Do the represent true Christianity or something else? Here is a link to a related sermon: USA in Prophecy: Samaria.