Franklin Graham Says Bible End Times Prophecy of 'Distress of Nations' Reflects World's Conflicts Today
The Rev. Franklin Graham believes that the numerous world conflicts people are witnessing today reflect passages in the Bible that talk about the end times and the "distress of nations."
"The Bible tells us that in the end times there will be 'distress of nations with perplexity,'" Graham said on Facebook, referring to Luke 21:25.
The passage reads: "And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring."
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Graham added that "this is certainly the case today." He offered as examples: "The meltdown of the Middle East. The rise of anti-Semitism in Europe and here in the America. China and Russia building their military at cosmic speed. The financial crises worldwide. The political crisis in Washington."
The evangelical preacher continued: "Israel is desperate to have peace, but the Bible says 'they will seek peace but there shall be none.' There is only one ultimate, eternal solution — Jesus Christ and Him alone."
Graham has spoken out on current international crises, like the rise of terror group ISIS and the persecution of Christians, a number of times in recent months.
He has accused President Barack Obama of refusing to identify ISIS as Islamic, and warned that Obama's "sympathy" toward Islam will lead to persecution of Christians and Jewish people in the U.S.
"There are Muslims that have access to him in the White House. Our foreign policy has a lot of influence now, from Muslims. We see the prime minister of Israel being snubbed by the president and by the White House and by the Democrats, and it's because of the influence of Islam. They hate Israel and they hate Christians. And so, the storm is coming, I believe," Graham said on CBN's "The 700 Club" earlier in March.
For his part, Obama has asserted that he does not call ISIS "Islamic," because he believes that is what the terror group wants.
"These terrorists are desperate for legitimacy. And all of us have a responsibility to refute the notion that groups like ISIL somehow represent Islam, because that's a falsehood that embraces the terrorists' narrative," Obama has said, using another name for ISIS.
Graham has demanded that more be done to protect Christians being targeted by terror groups, particularly after the beheading of 21 Coptic Christians by ISIS, which was depicted in a video released in February.
"Can you imagine the outcry if 21 Muslims had been beheaded by Christians? Where is the universal condemnation by Muslim leaders around the world? As we mourn with the families of those 21 martyrs, we'd better take this warning seriously as these acts of terror will only spread throughout Europe and the United States," Graham said in response to ISIS' "Message to Nation of the Cross" video.
