Over the weekend we witnessed the reshaping of Syria as the Assad regime collapsed and various rebel groups sliced up the territory on their way to conquering Damascus. Here is a before and after look at Syria:

Red = Assad-controlled area before the weekend vs the Assad-controlled area just before the fall of Damascus. Now there is no Assad-controlled area. (Other colors are various rebel groups. Blue is Israel’s Golan Heights.)

Amidst the Arab Spring, discontent in Syria mushroomed into civil war in 2011. Since then, Bashar al-Assad suppressed wide-spread pro-democracy protests and ultimately ruled with an iron fist. In danger of being overthrown, Russia and Iran propped up the tyrannical Syrian leader, turning a blind eye to Assad’s use of chemical weapons on his own civilians who opposed him. Hundreds of thousands more Syrians either voluntarily left the country or were displaced.

Events of the weekend suddenly bring Bible prophecy to the forefront as we consider the potential significance of what we witnessed in light of God’s Word. Let’s consider 5 things:

Who’s Who?

Syria has long been a hodge-podge of various rebel groups and foreign interests. Russia and Iran held military positions inside Syria and were integral in propping up the Assad regime. In return, Syria was a great place from which the two Ezekiel 38 enemies of Israel operate.

As awful as Assad was, there is no reason to cheer on the rebel groups that attacked and took over major portions of the country. Those “rebels” are actually descendants of al-Qaeda, ISIS, and even Hezbollah. Not exactly the guys you want controlling territory just across Israel’s border. If you think Assad was bad, wait until you see what comes next.

Then, there are the Turks and the Kurds, forever enemies of one another and vying to control critical parts of Syria and northern Iraq, predominately the rich oilfields in that region. Turkey’s President Erdogan eyes those oilfields as a potential boon to his agenda of forming the world’s largest Islamic caliphate, while the US-backed Kurds have fought valiantly to keep those oilfields out of the hands of evil doers.

All those players have different objectives that ultimately lead them to violence and destruction, which leads to the second point to consider…

The Fall of Damascus

Many prophecy experts expect the fall of Damascus to be the event that could trigger the Ezekiel 38-39 War of Gog and Magog as Russia, Iran and Turkey lead an attacking army into Israel from the north. With the takeover of Damascus by the rebel groups, prophecy students may be saying, “Aha! We’re seeing the fulfillment of Isaiah 17:1!” Indeed, Damascus did fall into the hands of rebels, but it has not yet been erased as a city, nor is it an irredeemably ruinous heap. It may become that, but to argue that this is a fulfillment of Isaiah 17:1 is a bit premature. Yet, that leads us to the third point to consider…

IDF is Taking Care of Business

Almost immediately after Damascus was overtaken by rebel groups, the IDF went into action! What did they do? They attacked advanced weaponry and resources that, if in the hands of terrorists, would be an imminent threat to Israel’s safety! At the time of this writing, we don’t know exactly what those targets contained, but there is speculation that weapons of mass destruction are likely hidden all over Syria. Being in the hands of the Assad regime (backed by Russia and Iran) was bad enough, but consider such weapons in the hands of sheer terrorists! No telling what they might do with them! Speaking of Russia and Iran…

Russia and Iran’s Withdrew from Syria

Interestingly, Russia and Iran made no effort to prop up Assad once it was clear the Syrian regime would not fight for itself. Typically, a call from Assad would prompt Putin to put Russian assets in the air or on the ground to bolster Syrian defense efforts. This time, Russia moved out its aircraft and naval assets and Iran loaded IRGC officers on a plane and got them out of Syria once the assault on Damascus began.

At present, Russia’s focus and resources are elsewhere, and Israel has dealt a heavy enough blow to Iran to prevent them from desiring to put it all on the line for Assad. Thus, Syrian forces, until now loyal to Assad, abandoned their posts and their duties and fled for their lives. Which begs the question…

What Triggered the Rebel Attack?

I could be totally wrong, but it seems to me the rebels sat back and watched Hamas and Hezbollah (and their entire leadership structure) be destroyed. They watched a US-dampened Israeli attack on Iran that managed to take out their defense systems, leaving Iran fully and totally exposed. They watched Russia sit back as Hezbollah took a beating in Lebanon. In the Middle East, power talks, and the Shiite axis of Iran was making little more than a whisper!

When Sunni fighters smelled blood in Shiite waters, they took advantage! Al-Quida and ISIS are Sunnis and after reconstituting into newly organized “rebel groups” (aka terrorists), they saw an open door and stormed through and took over a tattered and ill-prepared Syria. Thank you, Israel!

Problem is: they are terrorists and will set their sights on the Jewish state once the sweet taste of victory fades away. That’s why Israel is taking action to destroy weapons and anything else that can be used against them.

Guess who else destroyed those things before heading for the hills…Russia and Iran! They, too, could not bear to have such weapons in the hands of Shiite terrorists, so destroyed many of them on their way out! Iran, particularly, is devastated by the overwhelming damage done and the obscene cost of propping up the Assad regime for years. The last thing they need is a Sunni onslaught, using Iran’s own weapons smuggled into Syria for decades!

Friends, Bible prophecy is stirring! Indeed, the fall of Damascus is an eye-opener, but not yet an uninhabitable city or a ruinous heap (though it could become that). Likewise, though Russia and Iran seem to be spread too thin to mount up a joint adventure at the moment, both may become extraordinarily frantic and opportunistic if Damascus does become a heap.

As I discover more about the situation, I think two people got it right. An Israeli official said:

The fall of the Shiite axis is very good news for Israel. On the day that Hezbollah accepted the ceasefire from a position of weakness, the rebels in Syria understood the meaning and started a war against the Assad regime. Since September 12, 2024, the day Netanyahu decided to take care of our northern border, we are in an amazing sequence of events.

Donald Trump said:

Opposition fighters in Syria, in an unprecedented move, have totally taken over numerous cities…Russia, because they are so tied up in Ukraine, and with the loss there of over 600,000 soldiers, seems incapable of stopping this literal march through Syria, a country they have protected for years. …Syria is a mess, but is not our friend & THE UNITED STATES SHOULD HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH IT. THIS IS NOT OUR FIGHT. LET IT PLAY OUT. DO NOT GET INVOLVED!

Amen to both!