As described in Hidden In Plain Sight, and briefly mentioned in this post, the Third Signpost is dominated by the four-nation confederacy. With Turkey leading, Syria and Egypt will be included among the four nations. The confederacy is represented by both the goat (of Daniel 8:5-7) and by the four-headed leopard (of Daniel 7:6).
It will attack Iran (the ram) in a great rage, according to Daniel 8:6. However, that word for “rage” is translated from the word for “bitterness.” The Bible uses the same word to describe how Esau felt about Jacob after losing his birthright through Jacob’s treachery. I believe that for the four-nation confederacy to attack in an “embittered” way, there must be a greater cause than merely national pride. And that cause may very well be that because fundamentalist Shia Iran invaded these nations, a fundamentalist Sunni confederacy needs to fight back.
This suggests that before this war occurs, Turkey, Egypt and Syria will all have governments that are being converted to Islamist governments. We all know about Egypt – how Mubarak’s government was ended and a Muslim Brotherhood president was elected, Mohammed Morsi. Now Syria, after some eighteen months or so of rebellion and now outright civil war, looks like it is headed down the same path.
Here is an excellent news article from the German news source Deutsche Welle summarizing the situation as it stands this week. It looks like Assad’s secular government will be ending soon, and just as in Egypt, the Muslim brotherhood is waiting to come to power in Syria.
First Egypt and now Syria. One by one it seems that the nations that are to form the four-nation confederacy are being prepared. They are being prepared so that indeed, if an army of Shia Muslims invaded, they would fight back not just in a rage, but fight back as if they were embittered.
One final note about the linked article. Look at the picture in that article – it shows a crowd of people waving large and colorful Syrian flags. Just look at all the bold colors – the white, the red, the black, and the green. We will see those colors again and again, as they are the colors of Islam – and of the horses of Revelation 6.
Categories: Signpost #3: Four Nations
THE FOUR SIGNPOSTS 
One think that intrigues me in the prophecy of Daniel 8 is the fact that no one could deliver the middle-eastern nations (other animals) from the hands of the ram (Iran) (Dan 8:4) and also afterwards no one could deliver Iran (ram) from the hands of the Turkish led 4 nation confederacy (goat). Meaning that the great world military powers (US, European nations, NATO, Russia, China, etc.) could not stop this from happening. It’s like the middle-eastern nation fate will be in the hands of Iran and Turkey. No western powers would avoid or stop the future wars in the middle-east. What would have to happen for the world to get to that point? Why western powers as well as Russia and China would not or could not intervene militarily in the region to avoid such crises?
Perry,
Good comment brother. I like how you framed your questions here. I’ve been thinking of this issue for a long time myself. Here is my speculation on it. It will be economic. Fractional reserve banking is what allowed the western powers to rise and dominate the world in the last 300 years. Yes there were natural resources and the scientific method, but none of these would allow taking over half the world via colonization without credit, i.e. banking. And now that same instrument died September 2008. The entire western banking system is insolvent. Using fantasy/lying accounting methods it is covered up. It will only take some black swan event to make it topple.
When it does, Europe will be even more vulnerable to future Muslim takeover, and America will no longer be able to project power as it once did. Russia of course will not interfere because it sees Iran and the Middle East as a place to do business even in war. China might do something because the oilfields will be affected, but then again I believe thats why the kings of the east finally march west near the end.
Blessings
MD
Hi Mark, what do you think of the following scenario:
Iran is kind of fighting a war by proxy in syria against the sunni dominated islamic world, is by all accounts loosing it, and Assas’s days seem to be number. Out of that apparent defeat, the national pride and perfect opportunity arises to seek a pay back from other sunni contries, then it ends up attacking many of the middle east countries, making Syria effectively the one place in history that triggers the second
sign post? If that is the case then we could be approaching this events fairly soon.
Gabriel,
There certainly are any number of ways the Second Signpost main event could be triggered. The trigger may involve Syria, but I don’t believe national pride and pay back are factors. The powers in Iran are seeking to spread the revolution of 1979 – it is purely faith-based. It is the Sunni nations that will be heavily into “pay back” for the Shia invasion to come.
There was a news story from a couple weeks ago where Iran threatened to strike or march out if Syria is invaded. This would be an excellent excuse for Iran. It would march out across Iraq (charging “west” as it says in Daniel 8:4a) to help its friend Syria, and then branch out to other countries to spread its revolution.
Remember, though, regardless of the trigger, there is the sorting out of the ram’s horns that must happen first.
Blessings
MD