In January 2016, I was talking with then-Indiana Governor Mike Pence. We were talking about the nuclear deal President Obama made with Iran six months earlier. Knowing that Governor Pence served in the US House of Representatives and knowing from Scripture that Iran, along with Russia, Turkey, Libya, and several other nations, will invade Israel (Ezekiel 38-39), I asked, “Does anyone in Washington look at Biblical prophecies while attempting to make a decision?”

A summary of his answer was, as you probably already expect, “No.”

Here we are ten years later, and our nation is at war with Iran. We are told that our military has decimated Iran’s capability to wage war. There is no reason to doubt this. We can see it in their responses. They have no planes engaging our aircraft, there are no planes on bombing missions, and no rockets are headed in our direction. All their fighting on the sea is down to speedboats equipped with machine guns. Yes, Iran’s ability to attack or defend is basically zero. There is the question of the enriched uranium, but even if they are able to secretly retain some of it, it appears that their timeline to produce a nuclear weapon has moved from weeks to years.

There are other nations in the world that have nuclear weapons, so why is it so important that Iran does not have them? Every nation has enemies, or at least other nations where the relationship isn’t all lovey-dovey. So, why, other than to end WWII, have we not seen the use of bombs that can kill hundreds of thousands of people? The reasons for war vary, but the goal for all nations involved is the same – to win. When nuclear shots are exchanged by two nations, there are no winners. Countries know this; therefore, nuclear nations with not-so-great relations like the US and Russia or India and Pakistan don’t shoot at each other.

Iran, on the other hand, since 1979 has called for the annihilation of Israel. To Iran, Israel is more than an enemy; Israel no longer needs to exist. Nuclear weapons held by Iran would not be used as a deterrent against war; they would be the needed missing part to a long-lasting goal – to wipe Israel off the map.

There is another reason why nuclear weapons have not been used by Iran, or any other nation, for that matter: God has not allowed it.

God created this universe, and He has a plan. From before the creation, God has had a plan. We can read about God’s plan for humanity in the Bible. The Old Testament contains roughly 400 prophecies concerning Christ’s first coming, and both the Old and New Testaments are filled with prophecies concerning His second coming and eternity. Even when current events are not mentioned in the Bible or involve nations not recorded in the Bible, we are still watching God’s eternal plan unfold before our eyes.

Many Christians, including myself, believe we are in the latter days. The days immediately before the rapture, the tribulation period, the rise of the Antichrist, and the second coming of Christ. The Bible does not tell us when the rapture will come; it could be today or three hundred years from now. But all the Biblical signs are telling us it is close.

When it comes to the Ezekiel prophecy concerning the invasion of Israel by many nations, including Iran, prophecy teachers differ on where it fits in the timeline. Some believe it could (or does) occur before the rapture; some believe it occurs between the rapture and the beginning of the tribulation period; others, including myself, believe it occurs during the tribulation period.

Not long after the current war with Iran started, it was apparent that the United States had the upper hand, and unless Iran surrendered quickly, there would not be much of anything left of Iran’s military might.

This destruction of Iran’s military made me wonder, how could Iran be involved in the Ezekiel 38-39 prophecy without any military to speak of? The events of this war seemed to push back the timeline of the end times, in particular, the Ezekiel invasion. I was thinking humanly. I was not thinking in accordance with God’s prophesied plan. If it is correct that Iran was close to having a nuclear weapon, and that once obtained, it would use it on Israel, then there is no reason for the massive invasion party as told in Ezekiel. Now the reasons for the America/Iran war of 2026 are clear. God’s plan does not have Iran destroying Israel. The current war stops that from happening.

As far as Iran joining the fray, as told by Ezekiel, it will not take long for Iran to build up a military after this war is over. Look at all the military and economic sanctions placed on Germany after World War I. It took Germany less than 20 years to build an even bigger military machine than it had in World War I. Then Germany started WWII. Iran does not need a military large enough to conquer as much territory as Germany did in WWII; it only needs enough to fight alongside those other nations mentioned in Ezekiel.

I know some people reading this will think that America will not allow Iran to rebuild its military. Looking at that realistically in the political sense, the Trump administration only has two years left; the Democrats have never been concerned about Iran’s military strength, and the Democratic Party’s hatred of Israel can already be seen and is growing, so it is safe to conclude they won’t do anything about it. Even if the Republicans remain in control after the Trump administration, we still have to ask, how much will Iran be a priority?

But going back to Biblical thinking. The Bible tells us that before the invasion described in Ezekiel 38-39, the western powers will try to talk the invading forces out of it, but will do nothing to stop it. Once again, regardless of which party is in control, American foreign policy will return to talk without action (Ezekiel 38:13).

Every day we are closer than the day before. Every day, God is moving the world in the direction He wishes. Look to the skies, the rapture, the tribulation period, the rise of the Antichrist, and the return of Jesus Christ are getting closer. God is paving the way. The prophecies of the Bible are not educated guesses; they are not what might be or could be; they are what will be, and everything is moving in the intended direction.

Preacher Johnson is Pastor of Countryside Baptist Church in Parke County Indiana. Website: www.preachers-point.com; Email: preacherspoint@gmail.com; Mail: 25 W 1200 N; Kingman IN 47952.  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Timothy-Preacher-Johnson-101171088326638. All Scripture KJV.