Watch That You May Be Counted Worthy

Our world is changing so rapidly that it is all too easy to get caught up in minutiae and miss the big trends. And that brings up a crucial question: What are the big trends we ought to watch? How do we separate the wheat from the chaff? And what source can we rely on to explain these trends?

Most people go through life battered by one event after the next with little understanding of the big picture. That is understandable, as few know where to look to discover where their world is heading. Historically, World Fairs have showcased the future of technology and modern developments for us, though these have been somewhat overshadowed by large conventions and trade shows that focus on specific technologies or subjects, like the Detroit Auto Show and the Las Vegas Consumer Electronics Show.

A Challenge to Mankind

God, through the pages of the Bible, gives the following challenge:

“Present your case,” says the Lord. “Bring forth your strong reasons,” says the King of Jacob. “Let them bring forth and show us what will happen; let them show the former things, what they were, that we may consider them, and know the latter end of them; or declare to us things to come. Show the things that are to come hereafter, that we may know that you are gods; yes, do good or do evil, that we may be dismayed and see it together” (Isaiah 41:21–23).

The challenge goes further a few chapters later. “Remember the former things of old, for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure’” (Isaiah 46:9–10).

Are these words no more than the boasting of an ancient author pretending to speak for God? Or is there more to them? Can such bold claims be backed up? Is there a living God who can and does tell the end from the beginning? Or are biblical prophecies that were recorded thousands of years ago—and are coming true even as you read this—“lucky guesses” by ancient men? It cannot be denied that mankind has demonstrated great intelligence when it comes to certain physical accomplishments—but none of our works compare to what God has done.

The Big Picture: Bible Prophecy Tells What to Watch For

When God challenges man to, in effect, put up or shut up—to declare “the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done”—He reveals that there is no contest at all between the created and the Creator. Who but God, our Maker, could have foreseen thousands of years ago the conditions and events that we see in today’s news? Consider these remarkable examples:

• The Jews in the last days would be a ferocious, lion-like military power that is best not aroused (Genesis 49:1, 9; Zechariah 12:6).
• There would be a transportation and knowledge explosion at the time of the end (Daniel 12:4).
• There would be a Jewish state in control of Jerusalem, the Jews in Jerusalem would be surrounded by enemies on all sides, and Jerusalem would be a divided city (Zechariah 12; 14).
• It would become possible for mankind to destroy all life from planet Earth (Matthew 24:21–22).
• We would have the technology for instant worldwide communication (Revelation 11:3, 7–11).

Do not dismiss the importance of these prophecies! Remember that there was no Jewish state from the time Jerusalem fell in AD 70 until 1948—and the Jews did not control all of Jerusalem until the Six-Day War in 1967. Who could have guessed that all these conditions would line up at this very time? While there was a forerunner or “type” regarding Jews in Jerusalem in AD 70, each of the prophecies listed above is clearly stated to take place “in the last days,” “at the time of the end,” at “the day of the Lord,” at the time “of Your [Christ’s] coming,” or at “the end of the age” (Genesis 49:1; Daniel 12:4; Zechariah 14:1; Matthew 24:3).

The Coming of the Two Witnesses

In Revelation 11, we are told that two witnesses will prophesy for three-and-a-half years at the time of the end—right before Christ returns—and the whole world will hear their warnings and judgments. When these witnesses are finally killed, the whole world will rejoice and send gifts to one another. Without the kind of communication systems we possess today, how could the whole world hear of their deaths and see their bodies in just a three-day period?

To fully grasp the big picture of what is prophesied, there are two major locations to watch as we go forward: the Middle East, with a focus on Jerusalem, and Europe, with a focus on Germany. There are other trends worth watching, but this article will focus on these vital two. The Bible gives special attention to the Middle East and Europe, so we would do well to pay attention ourselves. Scripture tells us to be awake, to watch, as we approach the climax of the age (Matthew 24:42; 25:13; Mark 13:35, 37).

Watch the Middle East and Jerusalem

We have already seen that there would be (and now there is!) a Jewish state in control of Jerusalem at the end—and, as Scripture predicted, it is truly a powerful military force that is best not aroused. This has been true of the Jewish state since its founding in 1948. Time and again, when its enemies provoke the lion, the lion tears them to shreds. But this is not at all how it will end.

Jerusalem is clearly the focus of the events we need to watch. Even though the Jewish state looks powerful at the moment, the lion will be overthrown at some point in the near future: “Behold, the day of the Lord is coming, and your spoil will be divided in your midst. For I will gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem; the city shall be taken, the houses rifled, and the women ravished. Half of the city shall go into captivity, but the remnant of the people shall not be cut off from the city” (Zechariah 14:1–2). This will lead to the return of Jesus, the Messiah (vv. 3–4, 9). Exactly how Judah’s demise will come about is not fully known at this time, but the Bible gives us clues:

The princes of Judah are like those who remove a landmark; I will pour out My wrath on them like water. Ephraim is oppressed and broken in judgment, because he willingly walked by human precept. Therefore I will be to Ephraim like a moth, and to the house of Judah like rottenness. When Ephraim saw his sickness, and Judah saw his wound, then Ephraim went to Assyria and sent to King Jareb; yet he cannot cure you, nor heal you of your wound. For I will be like a lion to Ephraim, and like a young lion to the house of Judah. I, even I, will tear them and go away; I will take them away, and no one shall rescue (Hosea 5:10–14).

The Modern-Day Children of Israel

There is a lot packed into this prophecy. Note that two peoples are mentioned here: Judah and Ephraim. When the Bible speaks of Judah, it refers to the Jews, but Ephraim refers to an entirely different group of peoples. Most people think all Israelites are Jews, but this is a colossal error in understanding. Jacob—Abraham’s grandson whose name was changed to Israel—had twelve sons. One of the twelve was Judah—from whom came the Jews. Another was Judah’s brother Joseph. Joseph had two sons: Manasseh the elder and Ephraim the younger. Israel adopted Joseph’s two sons and placed his name on them:

Then Israel stretched out his right hand and laid it on Ephraim’s head, who was the younger, and his left hand on Manasseh’s head, guiding his hands knowingly, for Manasseh was the firstborn. And he blessed Joseph, and said: “God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has fed me all my life long to this day, the Angel who has redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; let my name be named upon them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth” (Genesis 48:14–16).

This is vitally important! Understanding the difference between the sons of Israel is key to recognizing what is happening in our world and what to expect in the near future! Why is the significance of this not taught in mainstream “Christianity”?

We have already seen some of the promises to the Jews “in the last days” (Genesis 49:1, 9). They would have a lion-like Jewish state that is best not aroused, and we can see this prophecy fulfilled over the last 75-plus years. But what about the prophecies of Judah’s eleven brothers? Since the prophecy in Genesis 49 is for “the last days,” their descendants, too, must be alive and well somewhere on earth today! You can gain a greater understanding of this subject by ordering a free copy of our insightful resource The United States and Great Britain in Prophecy. It explains the unique relationship we see between these two countries and the Jews—and so much more about the current state of our world.

The Nation of Israel in Danger?

But back to Hosea’s prophecy. It tells us that Ephraim—not the Jews—sees his sickness and Judah his wound. Sickness comes from within, but a wound comes from without. Prophecies of Ephraim sometimes represent the ten tribes of the northern house of Israel, since Ephraim was at times the leader of those tribes. The downfall of the end-time house of Israel comes from within before it is defeated. Therefore, we should expect the pervasive moral decline—and the disastrous consequences of this degeneracy—to continue for the British-descended and American peoples.

But Judah receives a wound—something dramatic coming from without. What kind of wound will it be? Will it be a “dirty bomb,” a nuclear weapon launched or smuggled into a major city such as Tel Aviv, or something we cannot now imagine? The Bible does not say, but it will be a heavy blow when it happens. Whether this wound will be the impetus for animal sacrifices to begin again in Jerusalem, or whether they come about for some other reason, you can be sure that they will begin, because they are prophesied to be stopped. They cannot be stopped unless they are first begun (Daniel 12:1, 11).

Watch Europe and Germany

There is another area of the world to watch—one that will eventually have a severe impact on the Middle East and Israel. We saw that Hosea tells us Ephraim turns in his sickness to Assyria—or modern-day Germany. There was a former fulfillment of this, and there will also be an end-time fulfillment. We see that turmoil will continue in the Middle East, with a confederacy of nations allied against the Jews and aligned with a German-led power in Europe (Psalm 83:1–8; Daniel 11:41–45). Watch for Europe to become more involved in the Middle East and the state of Israel.

Tomorrow’s World has proclaimed for many decades that Germany would rise again to become a great military power. We said this when virtually no one else saw it coming or believed it—not because we are any more intelligent than anyone else or have a secret source, but simply because we believe the Bible.

Germany to Rise in Power

President Donald Trump was not the first U.S. president to pressure NATO nations, especially Germany, to live up to their agreed-upon 2 percent of GDP spending for military defense. You may well remember that his threat to pull the U.S. out of NATO caused a stir during his first term. But the war in Ukraine was the catalyst that brought about a remarkable and sudden transformation in German and European thinking.

As reported at the time: “Chancellor Olaf Scholz and his government have carried out a revolution in Germany’s foreign policy, discarding in a matter of days the outmoded assumptions of Berlin’s post-Cold War dreams…. Decades of German taboos and sensitivities dissolved amid applause from the mainstream parties and the pro-Ukrainian chants of upwards of half a million demonstrators throughout central Berlin” (“Putin accidentally started a revolution in Germany,” Foreign Policy, February 27, 2022).

The BBC reported similarly: “Within a few days Vladimir Putin has managed to do what Nato allies have spent years trying to achieve: a massive increase of military spending in Germany. This is arguably one of the biggest shifts ever seen in Germany’s post-war foreign policy” (“Ukraine conflict: Putin’s war prompts dramatic German U-turn,” February 27, 2022).

At that time, there were commitments to spend about 2 percent of GDP, but that has increased to a whopping 5 percent. Germany and Europe are building a significant war machine, ostensibly for defense, but the Bible shows that it will eventually go beyond defense and be used for offense. Scholz called this a Zeitenwende—a dramatic and historical turning point.

Europe Preparing for a Major War

This turning point does not occur in Germany alone, nor does it stop with military armaments. Note this sobering report regarding the hastening state of readiness among the healthcare industry in Eastern Europe:

All NATO’s eastern flank countries are revisiting crisis response protocols for health-care facilities, organizing training exercises, investing in ballistic helmets and vests, and shifting operating theaters underground. Since the conflict in Ukraine has shattered the illusion that Europe is safe from war. “It’s not a question of if [Russia] will attack,” said Ragnar Vaiknemets, deputy director general of the Estonian Health Board, which oversees preparedness for crises from pandemics to war. “It’s a question about when.”… For countries on NATO’s east, war readiness isn’t optional—it’s urgent (“Europe’s frontier countries ready their hospitals for war,” Politico, June 16, 2025).

The World War I generation is no more, and precious few remain alive who remember World War II. For those living in North America, the reality of another European conflict erupting into a worldwide conflict seems remote. Most today have had an attitude like so many before World War I. As foreign policy scholar Robert Kagan wrote in The Jungle Grows Back, the people of the World War I generation believed that the world’s great powers had “passed out of that stage of development” in which military conquests would prove of significant benefit to any nation. Those of this opinion “could not imagine that the world’s leading commercial powers, so interdependent in the modern global economy, would wage a war for such primitive goals as territory and military domination, that they would be inspired not by rational calculations of interest but by fear, pride, and ambition, and that war would enjoy the enthusiastic backing of their people fueled by nationalism and tribalism” (2018, pp. 16–17).

How quickly things changed—and how quickly they are changing again. Today we hear knowledgeable voices in Europe preparing for war to begin in as little as four years, and nearly a year has gone by since one knowledgeable voice spoke those words: “‘We are threatened by Russia. We are threatened by Putin. We have to do whatever is needed to deter that,’ Gen Carsten Breuer says. He warns that Nato should be braced for a possible attack in as little as four years…. ‘And the sooner we are prepared the better’” (“Germany decides to leave history in the past and prepare for war,” BBC.com, March 31, 2025).

In June 2025, former German foreign minister Annalena Baerbock was elected as the president of the United Nations General Assembly. Despite Russia’s call for a secret ballot, Ms. Baerbock was elected with an overwhelming majority of 167 votes. Taking office last September, she is arguably the highest-profile leader to fill this role in recent decades, and her election is a major win for both Germany and the EU.

Germany’s presence and influence is clearly growing around the globe. Shortly before Ms. Baerbock was elected, the nation deployed 5,000 troops to Lithuania—Germany’s first permanent foreign troop deployment since World War II (“Merz hails ‘new era’ for German military at brigade launch,” Deutsche Welle, May 22, 2025). Around the same time, Germany signed a defense agreement with the Philippines, concluded another deal with Singapore to provide submarines, and pledged to strengthen its ties with Nigeria for future mutual benefit (“Germany, Philippines sign defence agreement,” Reuters, May 14, 2025; “Singapore orders two additional Type 218SG submarines to TKMS,” NavalNews.com, May 8, 2025; “Germany, Nigeria to deepen cooperation in economy, migration,” Deutsche Welle, May 22, 2025).

Our resource The Beast of Revelation: Myth, Metaphor, or Soon-Coming Reality? explains how a powerful economic and military power in the heart of Europe will rise at the end of the age when ten “kings” or leaders “will give their power and authority to the beast” for a short time (Revelation 17:11–13). Watch for this to happen—and remember where you learned this!

“Worthy to Escape All These Things”

There will be ups and downs ahead for the nations in Europe and the Middle East. Do not be persuaded by talks of peace, or even by peace agreements. While we all yearn for peace, and all true Christians seek peace, a lasting peace will not come until the return of the Prince of Peace—Jesus Christ (Isaiah 9:6).

God tells us—and history proves—that “the way of peace they [mankind] have not known, and there is no justice in their ways; they have made themselves crooked paths; whoever takes that way shall not know peace” (Isaiah 59:8). Paul repeats this in Romans 3:17 and explains why the way of peace is not known: “There is no fear of God before their eyes” (v. 18).

Christ’s Triumphant Return

And why will Christ return? To save mankind from extinction, as you can read for yourself in Matthew 24:21–22. Furthermore, Scripture prophesies that, at some point in the not-too-distant future, people will erroneously believe that peace has finally come—so we must not be deceived by short-lived peace treaties. “But concerning the times and the seasons, brethren, you have no need that I should write to you. For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night. For when they say, ‘Peace and safety!’ then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape” (1 Thessalonians 5:1–3).

We are living in dangerous times. Peace agreements will surely be made—but, sadly, they will be broken. No one wants to see this happen, but the Bible attests to it—and the whole history of mankind attests to the veracity of Scripture.

A Future and a Hope

So, watch the Middle East, especially as it involves the Jews and Jerusalem, and watch what is taking place in Germany and across Europe. When you see ten European nations or leaders give their power over to a charismatic political leader aligned with a charismatic religious leader, you will know that whatever peace there may be at the time will blow up into the greatest time of trouble the world has ever known. We will all do well to heed Jesus’ warning:

But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly. For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man (Luke 21:34–36).