I had a long conversation recently with a dear friend whose religious beliefs have changed quite a bit from his youth. Once, a devout Bible believer, now he’s an atheist. He knows that I have very strong views on the accuracy of the Bible and the prophesies that are identified–most of which will happen in our lifetimes. He asked me how I could be so sure that the Bible is accurate. Doesn’t every religion believe that they too have accurate beliefs? Don’t all the other “holy books” also talk about prophecy?

I told him yes, virtually all people of all faiths believe that their theology and religious doctrine is correct. Otherwise, why would they remain members of any such religion? But, there is a way to identify fact from fiction. While other “holy books” talk about prophecy, only one book, the Bible, does it in a way that stands alone.

For millennia, the religious universe would watch and wait to see world events as they transpired. Then, after the event had happened, they dug deep into their holy texts and announced “Ah HAH! The event that just happened is PROOF of such-and-such chapter and verse that our doctrine is TRUE!” But this is a false way to use prophecy to establish Biblical accuracy. You doubt this is a correct statement? Does the Bible itself tell us the correct purpose of why prophecy exists? Well, yes.

John 13: 19–“Now I tell you BEFORE it come [His return] when it is come to pass, you may believe that I am He” [the One that came to fulfill scripture]. (Emphasis, mine.)

John 14: 29–And now I have told you BEFORE it come to pass [not after the fact], that, when it is come to pass, you might believe [because they had been told of the event BEFORE the event occurred]. (Again emphasis, mine.)

As I was explaining the difference of actual, accurate prophetic understanding, my friend challenged me to prove it. Even though Yahshua criticized people for seeking a sign, something He called “…an evil generation….”, I agreed to describe one: something specific in time, place and location.

I told him that in the year 2018, the nation of Israel will no longer be threatened and at risk of annihiation from its neighbors. He asked how can I be so sure. I said the answer can be found in the book of Zechariah. At first glance, few people would recognize the meaning of Zechariah’s prophecy, but it doesn’t take long to figure it out.

Zech. 1:12–Then the angel of Yahweh answered and said, “Yahweh of hosts, how long will You not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah [a.k.a.: the nation of Israel], against which You have had indignation these THREESCORE AND TEN YEARS?”

How does this prove anything and what does it have to do with the year 2018?

There have been many times throughout history that the Israelites had been rejected and abandoned by Yahweh. One such time was over 400 years that they were slaves in Egypt. Other times, it only lasted for days or weeks, as a result of disobeying Yahweh’s instructions while fighting battles. But, as soon as they obeyed Him, the tide immediately turned and they were victorious once again.

But there has NEVER been a period of time of exactly 70 years that Yahweh had “indignation” on Israel. Therefore, this verse in Zechariah cannot be history. It can only be prophecy. And , it’s a prophecy that can only be for our time; this generation.

After World War II, the United Nations General Assembly passed Resolution 181 on Nov. 29, 1947, granting the Jewish people the right to return to their ancestral homeland, thus establishing today’s modern day Israel. On May 14, 1948, Israel secured control of the first portion of land and established their own Declaration of Independence. It cannot be understated that ever since that day, Israel has suffered “indignation” from all of her Arab neighbors. They have fought various wars, all successfully, in retaining the lands that belonged to their ancestors. Today, Israel fights for her mere existence as Iran, Syria, and other hostile neighbors seek to eliminate Israel from the face of the earth. And today, Israel’s former strongest ally, the USA, has been a champion of supporting Israel’s enemies and only pretending to support her.

Zechariah says that Israel will only have to suffer for 70 years, or from 1948 to 2018. More specifically, from May 14, 1948 to 2018. Why didn’t I write …to May 14, 2018? It’s because of a thing called the Georgian calendar, which did not exist when the Old Testament was written. On the Hebrew calendar–which DID exist during the time of Zechariah–May 14, 1948 is the year 5708 Iyyar 6. When we add 70 years to that Hebrew date, it becomes April 20, 2018. That date, is when the “70 years of indignation” will come to an end.

At this time, you cannot predict that the indignation against Israel will happen on that specific date (even though it might). But what I can state as a fact is that those 70 years of Israel fighting for her own survival will finally come to an end, and a different relationship will be established with all of her Arab neighbors. It could happen suddenly, like the drastic world change on Sept. 11, 2001. It could happen gradually, starting at that time. Or, it could happen from a victorious war.

Regardless of the method of this prophecy being fulfilled, you can rest assured that 2018 will mark a pivotal moment in history and will allow the Biblical skeptics to begin see that if one truly understands prophecy, they can identify what will happen, where it will happen and when it will happen BEFORE it happens, thus validating that there is only ONE book on the planet that is truly the inspired scripture from Yahweh in heaven. No other book can make this claim.

2018. It will be here before you know it. We live in exciting times.