This past few months have seen what has been called a stalemate, or war of attrition in Ukraine. There has been much talk about Ukraine’s “spring offensive” which has yet to materialize. There are only three weeks of spring left. Zelensky has been jetting around Europe soliciting more weapons and ammunition for this big event. He has visited Italy, France, and Britain so far.

Western media has produced story after story of declining Russian morale, lack of ammunition, major defeats, death of Russian troops – while being virtually silent on Ukrainian losses especially around Bakhmut – the kill box Russia has created for Ukrainian forces. Before withdrawing the left major roads and bridges open into the area, allowing the Ukrainians to commit a huge portion of its forces into this area. Systematically, it has been cutting these forces down, while sitting relatively still during the winter and muddy season in Ukraine.

The weather has made a big impact on the war in Ukraine this winter. The top soil in Ukraine can extend from 14 to 20 feet deep, creating a situation where tanks cannot move on unpaved roads during the muddy season. Soldiers will sink up to their wastes or chests if they step into these areas.

In an interview with ABC News, retired US military meteorologist David Helms spoke about the impact of the weather in Ukraine for armed forces:

Mr Helms described Ukraine's mud season as "a time where roads don't exist". As the ground thaws out from the winter freeze, the ground usually turns to mud in early spring, making unsealed roads impassable.

The soil will begin to dry across Ukraine from the south, meaning that within a certain window, if timed correctly, Ukraine could advance while Russian tanks are still stuck in the mud.

This year, April experienced unusually high rainfall, extending mud season by about a month.

Such conditions make ground operations, resupply and air support much more difficult to sustain.

There is a phrase in the Samuel that describes this kind of time:

“And it came to pass, after the year was expired, at the time when kings go forth to battle, that David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they destroyed the children of Ammon, and besieged Rabbah.” (2 Samuel 11:1)

This is the time that is fast approaching in the Ukraine. The milder winter kept troops locked into positions as the ground did not freeze significantly enough to allow movement. Soon the ground will dry up and movement will be possible again. Already we are seeing the machines of war beginning to rumble.  The head of Russia’s Wagner group says the counteroffensive has begun, Zelensky says it has been delayed. The level of strategic disinformation on both sides of the conflict makes it difficult to ascertain the real facts on the ground.

Western governments have been sending billions of dollars of military aid to Ukraine in the form of weapons, ammunition, and cash. However, this is not an inexhaustible supply, and opposition to the continued investment in a losing war is growing. ABC News reported, Dr Jessica Genauer, senior lecturer in international relations at Flinders University, as stating:

"Overall, it's clear that by September or October this year, Ukraine will need to have shown success in a counterattack to ensure continued weapons supplies from Western partners, or the ability to negotiate peace on beneficial terms."

The negotiation of peace does not seem to be something that Zelensky is interested in.

During his trip to Italy, Zelensky met with Pope Francis. Francis has been criticized for not coming out in support of Ukraine, and keeping on friendly terms with Russia.

In a very underreported comment, the following was stated by Zelensky in a special interview with Bruno Vespa on the Italian TV show Porta a Porta show:

"It was an honor for me to meet His Holiness, but he knows my position: the war is in Ukraine and the [peace] plan must be Ukrainian. With all respect for His Holiness, we do not need mediators, we need a just peace, We urge the pope, like other leaders, to work for a just peace but first we must do all the rest", he said, stressing that it didn't make sense to try to involve Russia in dialogue now. "You can't do mediation with Putin, no country in the world can do it".

This doesn’t appear in many western media outlets but is reported throughout many Asian media outlets.

Over the weekend a huge depot in the city of Khmelnytskyi storing missiles and ammunition was struck by Russian drones. Residents reported windows and roofs blown off houses. This is the second depot strike in three days. CNN reported last Wednesday:

"An ammunition depot of the 65th mechanized brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine was destroyed near the village of Preobrazhenka, Zaporizhzhia region," said the ministry in its daily briefing. There’s been no word from the Ukrainian side.

This is part of the ongoing targeting of Ukrainian depots as the Russian Defence ministry also reported on Sunday:

“In the seaport of Odessa, on the territory of a shipyard, a docked Ukrainian warship and a warehouse of Harpoon anti-ship missiles, supplied by the US to the Kiev regime, have been destroyed by sea-based high-precision long-range missiles,” Russia's Defense Ministry said in a statement Sunday. The attack also crippled a repair facility where vessels of the Ukrainian navy have been fixed, Gen. Igor Konashenkov told reporters in Moscow.

Another underreported event is the blowing up of the bridge that connects Moldova and Ukraine, the potential route that NATO forces from Romania could enter Ukraine and support Odessa in the event of a major escalation. The Zatoka rail bridge spanning the massive Dniester river connecting Moldova and Odessa was destroyed by a marine drone in February.  Ukrinform reported on Monday, that a week earlier the strike had taken place:

On Tuesday, May 10, Russian invaders struck the bridge across the Dniester estuary with a missile for the fourth time.

According to Ukrinform, Odesa City Council reported this on Telegram, citing the Operational Command South.

"A cruise missile hit the Odesa region again. The enemy continues to attack the already damaged bridge across the Dniester estuary," the statement said.

Russian troops launched the third missile attack on the bridge across the Dniester estuary on May 2. Prior to that, the enemy's missile strikes hit the bridge on April 26 and 27.

This effectively removes the option of moving troops or equipment to supply Odessa, Ukraine’s Black Sea Port.  As retired US General Douglas Macgregor pointed out in a recent interview: (8:40)

What the Russian’s did this weekend is very telling as to where we are headed. They attacked bridges on the border between Moldovia and Ukraine, and destroyed them, with vast numbers of missiles. Now why is this important? If you go to the Romanian border with Ukraine, along the Black Sea, it is terrible. It is a terrible are a to maneuver in, to move in. The only  good areas to move through, if you are going to move large numbers of troops, is to move up through southern Moldavia and then over this very large bridge that was there for traffic. There was a rail bridge, that was also destroyed, but it is primarily this very “good” bridge, because that bridge is the link to Odessa. What the Russians have just done is foreclose the NATO option of committing large ground forces through Romania and Moldavia into southern Ukraine in the direction of Odessa.  So, Odessa is very definitely on the menu.

Secondly, a build up of Ukrainian forces down in Odessa has been detected, including 14 leopard tanks. These forces have now come under very determined attacks by the Russians.

So, I think what we are witnessing now is the last stage before the great offensive, which is going to move north up to the Dnipro. I think we’ll see another massive movement across the Dnipro then south in to Odessa. I think we’ll see some movement through the center, up through Bakhmut, and that avenue of approach, and then further north and east towards Kerkhof. Remember there are about 300,000 forces down in the south, with 200,000 more Russian reserves behind them, either in Western Russia, or behind those that are already in the south. That doesn’t include the 150,000 Russian troops sitting up in Belorussia.

The Russians have almost, I would say, an inexhaustible mountain of ammunition, missiles, rockets, aircraft, bombs, you name it; and the Ukrainians, on the other hand, as has been pointed out, are running out of what they do have, which is not very much. NATO and its allies, in other words, the Americans and the European allies, simply don’t have additional equipment and weapons and munitions to send.

Russia appears to be strategically positioning itself for its push forward on all fronts with its massive army that has been recruited and trained during the past six months.

After 446 days of war, all the predictions of Russia’s imminent collapse have proven overstated.  The Western Media has been constantly carrying a narrative of imminent success for Ukraine, yet the war keeps on going. The bible paints a different picture of the eventual end game. Ezekiel is clear, as we have discussed before, that eventually Russia will be in control of Europe.

The Bible is explicit:

“Son of man, set thy face toward Gog, of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal,” (Ezekiel 38:2 RV)

The prince of Rosh (or Russia) presides over the land of Magog. The Jewish historian Josephus described Magog as being the region of Scythia. Herodotus, the ancient Greek historian, described Scythia as being between the river Don and the River Danube.  The much-disputed Donetsk and Donbas regions in Ukraine, now mostly in Russia’s possession, are named after the river Don. Donbas literally means the Don basin which lies at Ukraine’s eastern border. The river Danube begins just outside the far south-western region of Ukraine. Magog encompasses an area between these two rivers including the modern countries of Ukraine, Romania, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Poland, and Germany.

In chapter 38:3-7 it is clearly stated:

“And say, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, prince of Rosh (Russia) Meshech (the Muscovites) and Tubal (the Tobolsk region): And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws, and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords: Persia (Iran), Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet: Gomer (Western Europe), and all his bands; the house of Togarmah (the Caucuses region) of the north quarters, and all his bands: and many people with thee. Be thou prepared, and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and be thou a guard unto them.” (Ezekiel 38:3–7)

These areas are under Russian (Gogian) dominance in the latter day. So while the Western Media attempts to distort the narrative to suit its political intrigues, the bible is clear of the eventual outcome.

This war has been going on for 446 days, over a year. It really began back in 2014 with the taking of Crimea. The push west by Russia is inevitable because “the finger of God has indicated a course to be pursued by these nations.”  

We cannot become complacent in the face of such epic movements on prophetic scale. Christadelphians have been looking for these events for over 175 years, and the now Russia is beginning to make its grand move.  Having been awakened from sleep last year, we cannot simply roll back over into complacency, saying in our hearts:

“Where is the promise of his coming? for, from the day that the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.” (2 Peter 3:4)

All things will not continue as they were. Our God has sounded the trumpet in advance of his son’s return to give us ample opportunity to put our houses in order. The avalanche of prophetic events is beginning, and there will be no stopping it. As the sun arises and dries up the mud in Ukraine, making way for the advancement of Russian troops, let us remember there is another sun arising:

“But unto you that fear my name shall the sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings….” (Malachi 4:2)

Ours it to heed the wakeup call. And prepare with excited anticipation for the Lord’s soon arrival. Do not be “lulled” to sleep by the lies of the politicians and media as they all try to manipulate events. Look to the word of God to be our guide. Listen to the trumpet’s sound. Watch and be sober, with our light shining brightly, our lamps full of oil, our loins girded, our staff in our hand, and our shoes on our feet – ready to go at a moment’s notice when the angel comes and knocks on our door.

For the Bible in the News, this has been Jonathan Bowen joining you.