The latest Legacy Letter was sitting in my inbox this morning. Leon Sexton starts off by quoting Dan 11:5. He comments how most of the world seems to think of the latest toppling of dictatorships in the Middle East as a positive turn of events, it will eventually lead to a tragic confrontation that will repeat many of the tragedies of history.
He explains how many nations in that part of the world are looking for a return to the “Golden Age of the Caliphate” or the “Golden Age of Islam” where they dominated a good portion of the world. Whether by peaceful means or not, “restore it they will!”
He then goes into a little bit of history you just don’t hear about very often.
Close the [Suez] Canal and Europe goes to war!
It would not be the first time. In 1956, Egypt nationalized the Suez Canal and banned Israeli ships from using it. Egypt also threatened banning British and French shipping because both these European countries refused to finance the building of the Aswan Dam as previously agreed. Britain, France, and Israel invaded Egypt and forced the re-opening of the Canal. Could this happen again? Yes it could!
Yemen, Sexton points out, is important because they control the Strait of Bab el-Mandab between the Red Sea and Indian Ocean. “This is also the area where Somali pirates have been active. Both Yemen and Somalia were part of the Caliphate.”
Whether or not Egypt is the actual King of the South, it seems evident they will play a major role as we draw near to the time of the end.
He ends the letter with information about the Feast of Tabernacles in Chiang Mai, Thailand. It is well worth it, IMO, if you can afford the plane ticket.
This edition of the Legacy Letter has not yet been posted online, but you can sign up for the email edition at www.legacyinstitute.org and clicking on Legacy Letters.
I heard a UCG Pastor declare last weekend NATO is "the King of the North."
I thought the European Union had that title in COG eyes. What changed all of a sudden?
From what I'm aware of, nothing has changed. Perhaps he misspoke? If you speak often enough in public, sooner or later you'll stick your foot in your mouth, so it could be that he said "NATO" and meant "EU".
Also, FWIW, UCG doesn't teach that the EU is the King of the North but that it is laying the foundation for what will become the King of North. Or, in their words:
"This final resurrection of the Roman Empire, like the original empire, will be centered in Europe. It appears that it can be seen today in its embryonic form in the European Union. That is not to say that all current EU nations will be part of the final configuration, but those that choose to participate will combine to form a powerful military force that will involve itself in the Middle East."
~ http://www.ucg.org/booklets/ME/warandpeace.asp
@John; Also, FWIW, UCG doesn't teach that the EU is the King of the North—
Many times they have also insinuated that Iran is the king of the South–which is also something not well thought of in COG circles.
The only way that could happen is if the whole of those Southerly countries from Israel, such as Egypt, Ethiopia, Yemen,Saudi Arabia–etc. would come under the dominance of Iran, which is not likely because Iran is of persian decent and is not South of Judea.
UCG also does not seem to understand the seventieth week properly either–reading their study paper on it. After reading Joel Meekers last letter at UCG crisis–I am beginning to wonder how their situation is going to turn out.
There are so many things that they have watered down over the years it is no wonder that many who have been there do not seem to understand the Scriptures on many points.
Anonymous wrote: "Many times they have also insinuated that Iran is the king of the South–which is also something not well thought of in COG circles."
In the beginning years, there certainly were hints of that, but my impression is that most in UCG have backed away from that as a possibility.
I think it goes to show how dangerous it is to pin your interpretations more on current events than what the Bible says. When Iraq was invaded, the balance of power was upset, leading people to speculate that Iran would take the lead and become the King of the South. There's one problem: Iran is not south of Israel. You bring up a good point about Persia as well.
HWA thought the King of the South couldn't be Egypt. Why? Because of the political landscape of his time. However, recent events have shown how quickly that can change!
Now, don't get me wrong about one thing, though: The King of the North will have a coalition of political power backing him up, and therefore it would be strange that the King of the South wouldn't as well. You notice how many nations the King of the North takes on, and it shows you cannot rule out a religious and political alliance that would rival the Beast to the north.
"UCG also does not seem to understand the seventieth week properly either–reading their study paper on it."
Guess I'll have to re-read it, then. I did once long ago, but I could've missed what you're referring to.
@John; "Guess I'll have to re-read it, then. I did once long ago, but I could've missed what you're referring to."
Make good note of their exlanation of the last week, (their belief that it is already half gone)and you will see, if you examine the Scriptures closely.
John D says;"HWA thought the King of the South couldn't be Egypt. Why?"
There is a simple answer. Egypt was at one time in the past the king of the South and fulfilled certain of Daniels prophesies–HWA brought this out–which led him to believe that they would not again be the king of the South after someone else had been. (Ethiopia) I agree with him.(JMO-based on certain Scriptures)I think that Saudi Arabia will be a kingpin player in the final king of the South–but they may very well be alied with Egypt and some of the other arabic nations over there now.
Anony Jon