Afghanistan airlift, a picture of the rapture and tribulation?

The Afghanistan airlift has dominated the news for the last several days, and a prophetic picture seems to be hidden in whats happening. Before we delve into what God may be saying through these events, lets first establish how the country got to this point.

The Trigger

In July, President Biden set the day the United States would exit Afghanistan as August 31^st 2021. US intelligence expected the Afghan government to hold onto power for at least six months after this official departure date. It was hoped that this time would be enough for the exit of US citizens and tens of thousands of Afghans and their families who worked for the US and their allies. Instead, Afghan forces failed to fight the Taliban who had started a campaign against them. With lightning speed, the Taliban seized one province after another, finally entering into Kabul on August 15th. The speed of the Taliban takeover set in motion a panicked effort by tens of thousands of Afghans and foreigners to flee the country as quickly as possible. As a result, the US military deployed thousands of troops to take control of Kabul’s Hamid Karzai International Airport for a massive airlift to save these people, a day before the Taliban took over the capital. (Source: France24.com)

The Airlift and the Rapture

The current operation by the US Military to evacuate people from Afghanistan is one of the largest ever in human history. It is meant to fly citizens of the western powers to safety, along with Afghans who worked with them. The rapture will also be an evacuation of citizens of heaven. It will be a “global airlift” of sorts to save Gods faithful servants from the coming tribulation of the world.

For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.

1 Thessalonians 4:16-17

The Elul Factor

The Jewish month of Elul started on the evening of the 7th of August, just after the Taliban announced their victory over Zaranj, the first Afghan province to fall into their hands. Elul is seen as a time to search one’s heart and draw close to God in preparation for the coming Day of Judgement, Rosh Hashanah (Feast of Trumpets) and Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement) . It is customary for the Shofar (Rams horn) to be blown every morning during this Jewish month to awaken peoples spirits and inspire them to begin soul searching. Is God calling people to repentance so that they will not miss his coming global “airlift” to heaven to save them from the coming judgment of the world during the tribulation?

The Taliban and the Tribulation

The reason people are fleeing Afghanistan is because they want to avoid the Taliban regime which Afghans experienced before the US invasion in 2001. Taliban rule is harsh and oppressive and includes persecution of Christians. Conversion to Christianity is punishable by death and there are reports that the Taliban are already hunting down and killing Christians many of whom have now turned off their phones and gone into hiding. This is similar to what Satan will do to Israel and Christian converts during the tribulation because of their faith in God. They too will have to go into hiding because of the immense persecution that Satan will unleash on the earth.

When the dragon saw that he had been hurled to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle, so that she might fly to the place prepared for her in the wilderness, where she would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time, out of the serpent’s reach. Then from his mouth the serpent spewed water like a river, to overtake the woman and sweep her away with the torrent. But the earth helped the woman by opening its mouth and swallowing the river that the dragon had spewed out of his mouth. Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to wage war against the rest of her offspring—those who keep God’s commands and hold fast their testimony about Jesus.

Revelation 12:13-17

The Horsemen of the Apocalypse

The book of Revelation represents the start of the tribulation with horsemen that come riding to the earth, each triggering some kind of calamitous event. Amazingly, as we look at the prophetic picture God has painted using Afghanistan, the horsemen are present! The word Afghanistan is made up of two words, “Afghan” and “Stan”.

The root name “Afghān” is, according to some scholars, derived from the Sanskrit name of the Aśvakan or Assakan, ancient inhabitants of the Hindu Kush region. Aśvakan literally means “horsemen”, “horse breeders”, or “cavalrymen” (from aśva or aspa, the Sanskrit and Avestan words for “horse”)…The last part of the name, “-stan” is a Persian suffix for “place of”

Wikipedia

So not only do we see the rapture and tribulation in this prophetic picture, but we also see the horsemen of the apocalypse who usher in the tribulation represented through the name of the country!

I watched as the Lamb opened the first of the seven seals. Then I heard one of the four living creatures say in a voice like thunder, “Come!” I looked, and there before me was a white horse! Its rider held a bow, and he was given a crown, and he rode out as a conqueror bent on conquest. When the Lamb opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, “Come!” Then another horse came out, a fiery red one. Its rider was given power to take peace from the earth and to make people kill each other. To him was given a large sword. When the Lamb opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come!” I looked, and there before me was a black horse! Its rider was holding a pair of scales in his hand. Then I heard what sounded like a voice among the four living creatures, saying, “Two pounds of wheat for a day’s wages, and six pounds of barley for a day’s wages, and do not damage the oil and the wine!”When the Lamb opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say, “Come!” I looked, and there before me was a pale horse! Its rider was named Death, and Hades was following close behind him. They were given power over a fourth of the earth to kill by sword, famine and plague, and by the wild beasts of the earth.

Revelation 6:1-8

The Sign

In a previous article, I wrote about the 2020 “Christmas Star” which was a conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn that occurred on December 21st 2020. Based on the information presented in that article, the sign was interpreted as a warning that the antichrist was about to rise and the tribulation was about to start.

It was also observed that the sign was nine months from the month of September, when the feasts of Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and Tabernacles would occur this year. As has been observed with previous signs and many scriptures, God often connects the suffering of the tribulation with pregnancy and labor. Therefore the following conclusion was made,

“This could mean that the month of September 2021 may be prophetically significant in relation to the rise of the antichrist and the tribulation.“

2020 Christmas Star and the rise of the antichrist, The Revelations Site.

President Biden’s deadline to finish the airlift was set to August 31st. Was God pointing to the events in Afghanistan? It cannot be a coincidence that this prophetic picture of the end times being played out will end exactly as the month of September begins, the month the Christmas sign pointed to!

Watch, Pray, Prepare

Lets not forget the people of Afghanistan. The events of the last few days have put their lives in turmoil and they need our prayer and support. Lets also keep watching events as they unfold now and in the next month of September as we prepare for the return of our Savior which is very soon.

For you are fully aware that the Day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, “Peace and security,” destruction will come upon them suddenly, like labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. But you, brothers, are not in the darkness so that this day should overtake you like a thief. For you are all sons of the light and sons of the day; we do not belong to the night or to the darkness. So then, let us not sleep as the others do, but let us remain awake and sober. For those who sleep, sleep at night; and those who get drunk, get drunk at night. But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and the helmet of our hope of salvation. For God has not appointed us to suffer wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with Him. Therefore encourage and build one another up, just as you are already doing.

1 Thessalonians 5:2-9