by Michael G. Mickey
(6-24-09)

It was but a few days ago that I wrote a commentary about recent events I believe are acting as a catalyst preparing the nation of Turkey to take its future role in fulfilling Bible prophecy, particularly its role in the battle of Gog-Magog as described in Ezekiel 38-39. The latest news on this front?

French president Nicolas Sarkozy, a prominent player in the previous commentary, has raised tensions between the revived Roman empire of Bible prophecy and Turkey's Muslim population by announcing that burqas aren't welcome in France as reported by The Telegraph:

In a speech at the Palace of Versailles, Mr Sarkozy said that the head-to-toe Islamic garment for women was not a symbol of religion but a sign of subservience for women.

"The burka is not a sign of religion, it is a sign of subservience," he told members of both parliamentary houses gathered for his speech.

He added: "It will not be welcome on the territory of the French republic."

Secondly, Turkey's government leaders are growing impatient with the EU's reluctance to permit it membership in the union, as revealed in the following excerpt from an EUBusiness.com article:

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Monday that European hostility towards Turkey's EU bid has caused a "serious erosion" in the country's enthusiasm in the accession process.

"Turkey's (reform) efforts have not diminished at all... But certain attitudes on the EU side have laid the ground for a serious erosion in public enthusiasm and public consensus" on joining the EU, Erdogan told a gathering of the ambassadors of EU countries in Ankara.

"No country will gain anything from making Turkey's membership issue a matter of domestic politics... It must be seen that this will harm Turkish-EU relations in the mid- and long-term," he said.

"The constant questioning of Turkey's status and efforts aimed at changing this status violate existing agreements," he said.

The leaders of EU heavyweights France and Germany have been particularly vocal in their opposition to Turkey's full membership, arguing that the country should be offered a lesser alternative such as "privileged partnership."

Far-right parties in some countries also angered Ankara in European Parliament elections earlier this month, campaigning against the mainly Muslim country's accession as part of a broader agenda to prevent the "Islamisation" of Europe. [Complete article]

Day by day, event after event, we're witnessing the unveiling of portions of God's prophetic plan. In this case we're seeing how a nation long aligned with the West, a member of NATO no less, is feeling the bitter sting of rejection which may be playing more than a little role in it joining the Gog-Magog confederacy in the prophetic future for a surprise attack on the nation of Israel to occur in the "latter years" (Ezekiel 38:8) - the last days!

The end times drama continues...