Israel...

     Things are heating up for Israel. Of course, the heat has been on ever since Ishmael and Isaac were born to Abraham, and the Lord foretold of constant enmity between the two. Ishmael went on to be the father of the entire Arab race, the race that fills the Middle East, and Isaac went on to be the father of the entire Jewish race, the race that remains in Israel. The enmity between the two brothers has translated itself into the entire explosive Middle East conflict.
     Ever since Israel's creation in the 1940's, national security has been its primary concern. The nation's mentality has been "The best offense is a good defense", and thus, Israel has some of the best trained soldiers and strongest defense systems in the world. They have also filled their ranks with allies, including the United States, many European countries, Jordan, and most interestingly, Egypt. When peace was made with Egypt under dictator Mubarak in 1979, Israel was extremely wary and the truce between the two nations was uneasy. However, since then, Israel has come to count on Egypt's help if the other neighboring countries of Iran or Syria invade. Yet now, due to the deposing of Mubarak as dictator of Egypt, the alliance is looking shaky. The movement behind the revolt is known as the "Muslim Brotherhood", and like any good Muslim group, this brotherhood hates Israel with a vengeance. It now seems as if Israel may very well lose a key ally that had protected the southern border. The military strategists are now having a great time creating contingency plans for an Egyptian invasion, I'm sure.
      In addition to the loss of an important ally, Israel is also heating up things for itself. Just recently, the nation's president departed from the "Best offense is good defense" policy, and instead indirectly threatened Iran with destruction if Ahmadinejad insisted on going nuclear. Granted, in his speeches to the U.N., Ahmadinejad has already gone nuclear in speaking style, but Israel is more concerned with the weapons side of things. Iran responded by saying it would attack Israel and the U.S. if Israel went after the nuclear weapons (that Iran says it doesn't have), and generally would cause a ruckus in the Middle East.
     In the Bible, Israel is the nation that is most in focus throughout the scripture. And rightly so: Israel is God's chosen people. If you look towards Revelation, the bible mentions an attack upon Israel, which directly precedes Christ's return, from which God protects them. Is this attack coming? Maybe or maybe not; but know the signs and the times, for we certainly are closer to the return of Christ than anyone else in history.
     Watch and wait.