Introduction
You have probably never heard of a tiny town in Syria by the name of Dabiq. With a population of only 3,364 as taken in a 2004 census, it barely registers as a blip on the map. You might be asking yourself why I chose the title “Dabiq: The Creation of a 200,000,000 Man Army” when this town is so small that it would take nearly 60,000 towns this size to create such a large army. In spite of its small size, this town may hold the key to one of the most destructive prophecies in the Bible: the fulfilling of the 200-million man army from Revelation 9:13-21 for a war that will kill one-third of the people on the planet.
The Sixth Trumpet War
In Revelation 9:13-21 we see a war which emanates from the Euphrates River that will kill one-third of mankind and has 200-million troops involved. There has never been a war of this magnitude in all of human history. The closest we have come was World War II which was estimated to have around 80-90 million troops involved in the war, and around 50 million people killed. To put this in perspective, if one-third of the planet were to die today that would be 2.3 billion people, or fifty-one times the number of estimated deaths from World War II. Clearly, this is going to be a war unlike anything the world has ever seen.
This brings us to an interesting question: Who can fill an army this size? There are really only two entities on the planet that could feasibly create an army of that size: China and the religion of Islam. This got me wondering, “What event could possibly create an army of this size?” I imagine something very significant would have to happen in order to unite so many people into a single army. One day while I was driving home from work listening to a radio show called Politics and Religion by Irvin Baxter, I believe I found my answer, and it all revolves around a tiny town in Syria by the name of Dabiq.
Dabiq: The Tiny Town with Major Prophetic Significance
If you have been paying any attention at all to the news recently, you will have heard of a large group of terrorists called ISIS that have been fighting mostly in Iraq and Syria. They are attempting to re-establish a caliphate, a form of an Islamic government that is led by a caliph, a person considered a political and religious successor to the prophet Muhammad and a leader of the entire Muslim community. They have been largely successful at their goal. It is estimated that they currently control anywhere from 50%-75% of Syria, and large swaths of Iraq. They have been attempting to setup a government with their own currency, passports, magazines and more. Their official magazine is called Dabiq, which was named after the tiny Syrian town.
In Islamic eschatology, it is believed that Dabiq is one of two possible locations for an epic battle between invading Christians and the defending Muslims which will result in a Muslim victory and mark the beginning of the end of the world1. This is taken so seriously, that they named their magazine after this town as a way to hopefully draw in support from other Muslims around the world. Isis believes that they are the army that will defeat the invading Christians and usher in end of the world, and ultimately their messiah.
When one starts to understand the significance of this tiny town, many of the actions of ISIS become much clearer. It is the goal of ISIS to draw the west into this battle. They believe that when other Muslims see this battle getting ready to take place, it will garner support of other Muslims 2. Experts have voiced their belief that in order to defeat ISIS, they must have their core beliefs disproven. How could this be done? Use their prophecies against them. If they believe that they will defeat the west in Dabiq in order to usher in the end of the world, and the return of their messiah, then go to Dabiq and make sure we win that battle. If the West were to utterly defeat ISIS in the very place their prophecies state they will defeat the West, they would quickly lose support.
When I first heard this, I was astounded. I quickly realized that if ISIS could potentially suffer a major defeat, and possibly even be ultimately defeated by losing the battle at Dabiq, then the West losing the battle might have exactly the opposite effect: a significant increase in the level of support for ISIS just as their prophecies predict.
It is widely believed by Americans that Obama may actually be a Muslim, although he claims to be a Christian. If this is the case, is it possible that he knows this prophecy? Is it possible that Obama could either intentionally lose a battle in Dabiq, or unintentionally lose a battle by means of incompetence? If so what would the result of that loss be? I contend that this could in fact be the trigger that leads to the formation of the 200 million man army found in Revelation 9.
Many Christians are familiar with a couple of major end time prophecies, namely the signing of a peace treaty with Israel, the Mark of the Beast, and the building of the Third Jewish Temple. If any one of these events were to happen, it would instantly mobilize hundreds of thousands if not tens of millions of Christians who recognized the importance of the event. I believe that just as Christians would mobilize with the fulfillment of these prophecies, Muslims would mobilize with the fulfillment of one of their most significant prophecies.
Is this scenario likely? Where is Dabiq, and how might this battle come about?
Turkey, the United States and the Incirlik Air Base
On July 24th, it was reported that Turkey would allow the United States to launch air strikes on ISIS from their Incirlik Air Base near the Turkish-Syrian Border.3 This announcement was made as ISIS related violence has been increasing along their border. There have been talks about Turkey and the United States attempting to setup a "Buffer Zone" in Syria along the Turkish-Syrian Border. 4 The current estimate is that this buffer zone would initially be a 55 mile long stretch 25 miles deep into Syria.5 Turkey would use their air force to assist the United States in creating this buffer zone. This is where things begin to get very interesting.
Dabiq is only located about 6 miles inside of Syria just off the Turkish-Syrian border. If the 1,375 square-mile buffer zone on the Turkish-Syrian border would contain the town of Dabiq, things could get interesting very quickly because that would mean that Turkey and the United States would have to defeat ISIS militants currently in the town of Dabiq. In other words, it would be inevitable that we would fight ISIS in Dabiq. ISIS knows this, and I am sure that they will be preparing for this battle to ensure victory.
Syria: The Boiling Pot
Tensions are rapidly escalating in Syria. Syria descended into civil war during the spring of 2011, and there have been an estimated 310,000 deaths in Syria as of April 2015. 6 What makes The Syrian and Iraqi conflicts so interesting in terms of Bible prophecy is that the Euphrates River is contained almost entirely by Syria and Iraq, though smaller portions of the Euphrates also run through Turkey, Iran and Kuwait. This fact places significant emphasis on the events occurring in Syria and Iraq with ISIS. Many countries are already engaged in battles with ISIS in one way or another. The United States has constructed a coalition to help launch air strikes against ISIS.7 Russia has begun sending military support to aid Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in his battle against ISIS. Iran has been amassing troops along the Syrian-Israeli border, and this is beginning to concern Israel who is the mortal enemy of Iran.8 Russia has sent the world’s largest submarine containing nukes to Syria.9
It is easy to see that tensions are quickly escalating in Syria. As tensions and military involvement by the world increase in Syria, the chance of accidental military encounters between opponents also increases. This could very quickly lead to a war between some of the world’s super powers. In Matthew 24:4 Jesus states that one of the signs of the end of the age would be wars and rumors of wars. In Revelation 9, we see the war emanating from the Euphrates River. In Ezekiel 38, see a war involving Russia and Persia (Iran) invading Israel. When you analyze current events in the context of Bible prophecy, it is clear that these prophecies are in the beginning stages of their fulfillment.
Conclusion
I believe that we will soon see these prophecies fulfilled. I do not want to see this war, but we do know that it is coming and we need to get prepared. First and foremost, it is important that we are right with the Lord. If you have not yet asked Jesus into your heart and been Baptized into the name of Jesus, this should be at the top of your list.
Once that is done, start developing a relationship with Jesus Christ through prayer and the studying of His Word. In John 1:1 we see that "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God". In Romans 10:17, it states that “Faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the Word of God”. In order to get to know Jesus, we must read His word, the Bible. We must do our best to keep His commandments, and that means we must come out of our sin. In John 14:15 it states "If ye love me, keep my commandments."
Once you know your relationship with Christ is in order, place your trust in Him in the dangerous times ahead. Trusting in Him and having Faith in Him will be of utmost important during the years ahead.