“I want to just say we love you, God, and we love our great military. Protect them. God bless the Middle East. God bless Israel, and God bless America.”
President Trump’s decision was foreshadowed days earlier when US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee sent him a message, later published on Truth Social and shared by the White House, urging the president to “listen to the heavens” when deciding how to proceed with Israel’s war on Iran.
Huckabee, an evangelical Christian, emphasized that he was not trying to pressure the president but to “encourage him.” He wrote, “God saved you in Butler, Pennsylvania, to be the most consequential president in a century, and perhaps ever.”
He added, “There has never been a president in my lifetime like you. Not since Truman in 1945.”
The ambassador also urged President Trump to listen to his “voice,” apparently referring to God, and said the president would “hear from heaven” on the issue.
Some observers believe the letter was publicized to reassure the evangelical base that helped elect President Trump, framing any decision to strike not as an act of aggression but as one inspired by divine purpose.
From the beginning, Israel’s campaign against Iran has been steeped in biblical imagery—something evangelical Christians and religious Jews alike immediately recognized in the war’s name: Operation Rising Lion.
Evangelical pastor and author Greg Laurie pointed to headlines such as “Iran gas field hit in Israeli drone strike” and “Israel eliminates top Iranian air force commanders” as evidence of deeper significance. “This is biblical foreshadowing,” Laurie wrote in a blog post at the beginning of the war.
Israeli leaders appear to be leaning into that interpretation.
On Thursday, June 12, before Israel’s first strike, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the Western Wall in Jerusalem, where he placed a handwritten note between the ancient stones. In hindsight, it hinted at the strikes that would soon follow.
The message, released by his office a week ago Friday, read: “The people shall rise up as a lion.”
That same verse inspired the name of Israel’s operation: Rising Lion.
It comes from Numbers 23:24 in the Torah: “Behold, the people shall rise as a great lion, and lift up himself as a young lion: he shall not lie down until he eats of the prey, and drinks the blood of the slain.”
The verse is part of a blessing given by Bilam, a pagan seer hired by Balak, king of Moab, to curse the people of Israel. But instead of cursing them, Bilam blessed them, declaring that Israel would rise strong and defeat its enemies with divine backing.
Bilam continues with other prophetic blessings, including predictions of the downfall of Moab, Edom, and other nations. One verse, in particular, has long been seen as messianic by both Jews and Christians: “A star shall come out of Jacob, and a scepter shall rise out of Israel” (Numbers 24:17). Many interpret this as a reference to the coming of the Messiah.
As Israel dismantles large parts of Iran’s nuclear program and military leadership, some evangelical Christians—those who interpret the Old and New Testaments as relevant to current events—believe prophecy may be unfolding before the world’s eyes.
“Does this attack align with Bible prophecy?” Laurie asks.
According to the megachurch pastor, the answer is both yes and no.
Laurie wrote that the Bible foretold the scattering of the Jewish people around the world and their eventual regathering—something evangelicals believe was fulfilled with the founding of the State of Israel in 1948 and the reunification of Jerusalem in 1967.
“From then,” he wrote, “the prophetic time clock began to tick.”
He also pointed to the prophecy in Ezekiel 38–39, which describes a vast coalition, including Persia—modern-day Iran—that will rise against Israel. This future war is often called the battle of Gog and Magog. In that vision, God is the ultimate victor, ushering in the messianic era.
“While what we are seeing today is not the full fulfillment of that prophecy, it is certainly a foreshadowing,” Laurie said.
He referenced other biblical predictions he believes are now unfolding: the growing isolation of the Jewish state and a global rise in antisemitism during the end times. While Laurie cautioned against directly equating current events with Ezekiel’s prophecy, he said they should “certainly be a cause for us to sit up and pay attention.”
He added, “Meanwhile, it is in the best interest of the United States of America to stand with our loyal ally, the nation Israel. God made a promise to Abraham years ago; He said, ‘I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you’” (Genesis 12:3).
“One of the reasons God has blessed the United States is because we have stood by our friend Israel. And I hope we continue to do so,” Laurie concluded.
Other Christian leaders share that view, including evangelical author William Koenig. He told The Media Line that “it is an incredible time when you know what to look at in the Scriptures … We are living in the days Isaiah, Jeremiah, Zechariah, Daniel, and others spoke of.”
Koenig noted that while the final battle is often identified as Gog and Magog, another confrontation appears in Jeremiah 49:35–39, which mentions Elam—a region he says is now part of modern-day Iran.
“We know that 85% or 90% of Persians do not favor the Islamic government of [Ayatollah] Khamenei,” he said. “Look at the Scripture. They are a powerhouse, and then they are defeated.”
Steve Wearp, founder of the organization Blessed Buy Israel, observed that most of Israel’s previous military operations—such as Operation Cast Lead—did not use biblical names. This time is different.
He said the name Rising Lion “is incredibly foretelling that the nations need to be aware that Israel is rising and she is shedding off the fear and starting to know who she is.”
He added that the world must wake up because the Lord is revealing “His people, His light, and His plan of redemption.”
“Israel has fought a war against Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon, Syria has fallen. We look down at the Houthis, and they have also been silenced for the most part. Now we have Iran, and Iran is falling before the Jewish people. We also have the containment of Judea and Samaria,” said Wearp. “It is amazing how the Lord is working through and with the Jewish people.”
Christian Zionist Donna Jollay said she believes the battle of Gog and Magog began with the Arab Spring in 2011, and that the prophetic verses are “slowly coming to life in the modern era.”
“The prophecies that have been cued up for millennia are being fulfilled before our eyes,” she told The Media Line. “It is so miraculous it is beyond our comprehension, and the world is missing it. God does not want us to be spectators but active participants.”
For Christians, Wearp added, being active means standing with Israel. He said that the nations, meaning non-Jews, would be judged based on how they treated God’s people and the State of Israel during this time.
“Today is a day to pray for Israel, as attacks on Iran’s terrorist regime will likely result in counterattacks,” wrote Jack Graham, pastor of Prestonwood Baptist Church in Plano, Texas, on X. “We pray for the peace of Jerusalem as we stand with Israel.”
Laurie concluded: “Let’s pray for our friends in Israel. Let’s pray for the Jewish people. If you’re reading this right now and you’re Jewish, I want you to know that your evangelical friends stand with you now in your hour of need.”
