The Mystery of
Elam and the War in Iran
D.P. Weary
March 1,
2026
Jerimiah wrote the prophecies concerning Ammon, Edom,
Damascus, Kedar and Hazor, and Elam about 2600 years ago. History tells us that,
at least in part, these prophecies have been fulfilled. For instance the prophet
Ezekiel describes the status of Elam in the 12th year of the
Hebrew Babylonian Captivity in 587 BC:
There is Elam and all her
multitude, All around her grave, All of them slain, fallen by the sword, Who
have gone down uncircumcised to the lower parts of the earth, Who caused their
terror in the land of the living; Now they bear their shame with those who go
down to the Pit. (Ezekiel 32:24)
However, for Elam the prophecies contain promises of
restoration in the last days.
[Jer 49:39 AMP] 'But it will be in
the last days (the end of days) That I will reverse the captivity and restore
the fortunes of Elam,'" Says the LORD.
Since the early fulfillment of many of these prophecies was
not complete what we see is both an early partial fulfillment and a future
fulfillment to complete the prophecy. This early partial fulfillment, then a
distant or future fulfillment of prophecy is common in Biblical prophecy.
What is being widely debated in prophecy circles today
[March 1, 2026] is if the current war between the USA/Israel and Iran deals
with the of the prophecy of Elam in Jerimiah 49:34-39.
This is what Elam in Jerimiah’s day would have looked like
on a map. The burning question is: does the Elam of the prophecy represent Iran
[Persia] today?
Elam 612 - 539 B.C.
If it does, then this raises the question of how this
prophecy about Persia [Iran] in the last days fits with the prophecy concerning
Persia [Iran] in Ezekiel 38.
[Eze 38:5 AMP] Persia (Iran), Cush
(Ethiopia), and Put (Libya, N. Africa) with them, all of them with shield and
helmet;
[Eze 38:8 AMP] "After many
days you will be summoned [for service]; in the latter years you shall come
into the land that is restored from [the ravages of] the sword, where people
have been gathered out of many nations to the mountains of Israel, which had
been a continual wasteland; but its people were brought out of the nations, and
they are living securely, all of them.
[Eze 38:9 AMP] "You will go up
[against them], you will come like a storm; you shall be like a cloud covering
the land, you and all your troops, and many peoples with you."
Let’s look at the Jeremiah prophecy as if it might be a
prophecy about Iran today.
[Jer 49:34 AMP] The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah
the prophet concerning Elam, in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of
Judah, saying:
This was
written about 600 B.C.
[Jer 49:35 AMP] "Thus says the LORD of hosts, 'Behold
(listen carefully), I am going to break the bow of Elam, The finest [weapon] of
their strength.
Bows are instrument to launch
arrows. Today the ‘arrows’ would be missiles. The only real military strength
Iran has these days is their missiles and the systems that launch them. As I
write this, Iran’s launch systems and missiles are being destroyed.
[Jer 49:36 AMP] 'And I will bring upon Elam the four winds
From the four corners of heaven; And I will scatter them toward all those
winds, And there will be no nation To which the outcasts of Elam will not go.
The only time the people of Iran
were scattered to all part of the world was in February of 1979 when the
Islamic religious fanatics disposed the Shaw of Iran and took over control of
Iran.
[Jer 49:37 AMP] 'So I will cause Elam to be shattered
(dismayed) before their enemies And before those who seek their lives; And I
will bring disaster on them, Even My fierce anger,' says the LORD. 'And I will
send the sword after them Until I have consumed them.
It appears today that Iran is being
shattered by the Lord using Iran’s enemies’ ‘sword,’ the USA’s and Israel’s
military might.
[Jer 49:38 AMP] 'Then I will set My throne [of judgment] in
Elam And I will destroy from there the king and princes,' Says the LORD.
The LORD’s throne here appears to
be His authority and His judgment. Certainly, the ‘king’ and his subordinate
leaders [princes] have been destroyed [killed].
[Jer 49:39 AMP] 'But it will be in the last days (the end of
days) That I will reverse the captivity and restore the fortunes of
Elam,'" Says the LORD.
But, at the end of the last days, when
the Lord returns to rule and reign, the LORD is going to restore Iran. This
promise of restoration at the end of days is also hinted at in the book of
Isaiah.
[Isa 19:23 AMP] In that day there
will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrians will come into Egypt
and the Egyptians into Assyria; and the Egyptians will worship and serve [the
LORD] with the Assyrians.
[Isa 19:24 AMP] In that day Israel
will be the third party with Egypt and with Assyria [in a Messianic league], a
blessing in the midst of the earth,
The dilemma this causes is if Iran is destroyed now, how is
it that it is a part of the forces in Ezekiel 38 that attack Israel and almost
destroys her except that the LORD intervenes and saves Israel?
Perhaps, after the current attacks on Iran, there comes a
season of leadership which will be uncertain and weak. This could lead to
Russia, Turkey, and perhaps others to draw the remnant of Iran’s military and
radical Islamic leadership forces into the attack on Israel just when Israel is
celebrating what they believe to be a time of peace and safely.
[1Th 5:3 AMP] While they are
saying, "Peace and safety [all is well and secure!]" then [in a
moment unforeseen] destruction will come upon them suddenly like labor pains on
a woman with child, and they will absolutely not escape [for there will be no
way to escape the judgment of the Lord].
Perhaps the present attack on Iran is not completely
successful. Perhaps Russia and or Turkey get involved, and Israel and even the
USA suffer great losses. Perhaps the sleeper cells in the USA, Israel, and
other parts of the world are activated, causing chaos, that encourages the
Ezekiel attack.
Perhaps there may be a season of either instability or
stability in Iran and the Middle East that will be a time of a great turning to
Jesus as the Messiah. Even today there are reports of great numbers of people
in Iran turning to the Lord. All of this could lead to a great turning of
people across the globe to Jesus: a final gleaning of the fields before the
Lord’s return.
What we do know is that the next few days - maybe weeks, or
even months - will tell.
God’s Word is sure! The Word tells us what is going to
happen. But often it does not tell us exactly how. This is the mystery. The
days ahead are going to be full of danger and intrigue. These are days when we
are watching prophecy being fulfilled - the ‘how’ is being revealed.
For believers in Jesus, these are the days that precede the
Lord’s coming for His bride, His true church. These are the days when believers
should not be fearful, but be praying and found working diligently at the
Lord’s work.
For unbelievers these are the days to get right with God, to
accept the gift of Salvation offered in finding Jesus as the Messiah. Time is
running out. The day of the ‘fullness of the gentiles’ is quickly approaching. The
trumpet of God is about to sound. Do not be left behind!
[Rom 11:25 ESV] Lest you be wise in
your own sight, I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery, brothers: a
partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has
come in.
[1Th 4:15 ESV] For this we declare
to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the
coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.
[1Th 4:16 ESV] For the Lord himself
will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel,
and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise
first.
[1Th 4:17 ESV] Then we who are
alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet
the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.
