OPINION:
Over the weekend, Iran’s attack on Israel was an incredible theatrical success. According to news reports, Iran attacked with 20 ballistic missiles, 170 drones and more than 30 cruise missiles with nearly all of them intercepted with little to no harm. Authorities reported a 7-year-old girl was critically injured and only one Israeli military facility took light damage.
This attack was planned to minimize casualty and damage but maximize visual effects with news and media impact. Iran’s attack was a well-scripted show with no intention to cause serious damage.
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How were Israel, Jordan and the U.S. so prepared for the attack? Simple … Iran told them. They gave advanced notice of the attack days before.
Why would they do this? Because both sides benefit from this attack. Iran shows its supporters it is doing something, while Israel receives international support and resources.
Since both sides (and the U.S.) have said they do not want a full-fledged war, I believe Israel will have a limited response. And I suspect tensions will subside in a few weeks.
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However, what is surprising is that the people of Iran — not the government — want war. The attack on Israel was celebrated on streets by the revolutionary guards. However, the people of Iran have such a miserable life and are so disconnected from its Islamic government that they are hoping that U.S. and Israel will attack Iran and surgically remove the Mullahs without harming the common people.
We operate a satellite channel that broadcasts into Iran 24/7. With over 7 million daily viewers, we hear from thousands of Iranians every week. After 45 years of Islamic rule, Iranians have concluded that Islam is not an answer, rather the source of their problems, and they need to get rid of it. There is a militancy against Islam and an openness to the Gospel. Islamic rule has helped that. Millions of people are rejecting Islam and searching for something better.
We are moving in a direction where Iran will become a Christian nation. In my book, “Iran‘s Great Awakening: How God is Using a Muslim Convert to Spark Revival,” I outline what I see in Scripture regarding these two nations.
In Ezekiel 38, you see prophecies about Iran attacking Israel, and in Jeremiah 49, you see another prophecy about Iran being attacked. This series of events over the weekend is not the fulfillment of those prophecies, but we are moving in that direction.
I have reasons to say that. For example, in Ezekiel 38, we see that Israel will be attacked when it is safe and is prosperous. I believe Israel will destroy its enemies – Hamas, Hezbollah, Lebanon and Iran – and will enjoy a period of peace and prosperity, before being attacked as described in Ezekiel 38 which talks about Persia’s aligning with other nations to attack Israel. However, Jeremiah 49:34-39 is where we can read, in detail, about Iran’s future, including its end-times destiny.
According to Jeremiah 49, Iran will go through an unthinkable period of adversity, hardship, and tribulation. Iranians have been suffering a lot. And they will suffer even more before God’s promise for blessing is fulfilled. Today, they are enduring great calamities in every area of their lives, and they see no end to it. They cannot speak up or complain. When they do, they face bullets.
As a result, Iranians are turning to Christ in such large numbers and with such deep commitment that it is unprecedented in history.
God is breaking the pride and the will of Iranians to humble them so that He can bless them. He is allowing them to be desperate so they will seek Him. He is allowing them to be hopeless so that He will be their only hope. This suffering is bringing a great revival.
In the shadow of these ancient prophecies, recent tensions between Iran and Israel seem to paint a complex picture of conflict and diplomacy. As missiles flew and drones were intercepted, the biblical foretelling’s of Ezekiel and Jeremiah might seem more relevant than ever, suggesting we are edging closer to their prophetic fulfillment.
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Dr. Hormoz Shariat is the founder of Iran Alive Ministries, which uses Satellite TV to reach the millions of lost and broken people in Iran and the rest of the Middle East. He is the author of “Iran’s Great Awakening.”
