News and Prophecy Staff

Archaeologists excavating near the Temple Mount in Jerusalem recently unearthed small, impressed clay pieces (bullae) bearing the seal of King Hezekiah and the name of Isaiah (Biblical Archaeology Review, March-June 2018). The Isaiah bulla was missing a piece which may have had an additional letter.

Dictators appear to be increasing in number while a growing number of local and national leaders are stepping down under corruption allegations. The global corruption watchdog Transparency International recently released its Corruption Perceptions Index, which reported over two-thirds of nations are corrupt (Deutsche Welle, February 21, 2018). The nations of New Zealand, Western Europe, Canada, Australia, Japan and the U.S.

Multiple research studies now show that those who regularly attend church services are healthier and live longer. A 2016 JAMA Internal Medicine study reported that “women who went to any kind of religious service more than once a week had a 33% lower chance than their secular peers of dying during the 16-year study-follow-up period” (Time, February 15, 2018).

The increasing rhetoric and military actions in Syria have “intensified fears that the Middle East is heading for all-out war”—although few think all-out war will become a reality (The Guardian, February 17, 2018).

President Jacob Zuma resigned last week under pressure from his party, the African National Congress (ANC). ANC leadership threatened to present him with a “no confidence vote” if he failed to voluntarily resign in the wake of numerous corruption charges (Al Jazeera, February 14, 2018). Mr. Zuma has been a part of the ANC since 1958 and spent ten years in prison alongside former South African president Nelson Mandela.