As tensions between Israel and Iran dominate global headlines and the Islamic Republic faces mounting military pressure and internal unrest, author and Middle East analyst Joel Rosenberg is urging believers to step back and view the crisis through a biblical lens.
On a recent episode of The Rosenberg Report, he posed a sobering question: “Are we watching the prophecies of Jeremiah 49 come to pass?”
Rosenberg pointed directly to Jeremiah 49:34-39, a passage he described as “an absolutely fascinating” yet often overlooked prophecy concerning “Elam,” the ancient name for modern day Iran. He noted that both Jeremiah 49 and Ezekiel 38 and 39 speak of events unfolding “in the last days,” raising the possibility that current geopolitical shifts are prophetically significant.
“Behold, I am going to break the bow of Elam, the finest of their might,” Rosenberg read from the New American Standard Bible. He explained that in ancient warfare, the bow represented offensive military power. In modern terms, he said, it speaks to missile systems and strategic weapons capabilities.
“What God is saying for sure is He’s going to destroy the military might, the offensive military might of the Iranians,” Rosenberg said.
Pointing to recent strikes on Iranian nuclear and missile infrastructure, he argued that “you could make a strong argument” that Israel and the United States have already begun breaking that bow. While acknowledging Iran still retains some capabilities, Rosenberg said the regime’s offensive strength has been significantly weakened.
Jeremiah 49 also declares that Elam will be scattered “to the four winds.” Rosenberg connected that prophecy to the 1979 Islamic Revolution and the massive Iranian diaspora that followed. “We have seen an Iranian diaspora,” he said, noting that millions of Iranians have fled to the United States, Europe, South America and beyond over the past four decades. He believes this portion of the prophecy has already been fulfilled or is in the process of fulfillment.
The passage goes further, declaring that God will bring calamity in His “fierce anger.” Rosenberg emphasized the gravity of that language.
“If you face the fierce anger of God, you are facing judgment,” he said, adding that the judgment is directed at the regime’s leadership, not the Iranian people themselves.
Jeremiah 49:38 contains one of the most dramatic statements in the chapter: “I will destroy out of it king and princes.” Rosenberg did not hesitate in his interpretation.
“That’s regime change, people,” he said. “God is saying He will bring regime change in the last days of history.”
According to Rosenberg, God may use internal unrest, foreign adversaries or other means to accomplish that end. He stressed that while nations such as the United States and Israel may play a role, the prophecy presents God as the ultimate sovereign actor orchestrating events.
Yet the prophecy does not end with judgment.
Jeremiah 49:38 also declares, “I will set My throne in Elam.” Rosenberg believes this points not to a political capital but to a spiritual transformation. While other passages clearly place the Messiah’s earthly throne in Jerusalem, he said this verse signals something different for Iran.
“What God is saying is He’s going to put the spiritual epicenter of Christianity in Iran,” Rosenberg explained.
He described what he believes is already the beginning of a historic spiritual awakening. In 1979, he said, there were roughly 500 Muslim background believers in all of Iran. Today, he said, millions have left Islam and come to faith in Jesus Christ.
“There is literally no place in the entire Middle East or North Africa where as many Muslims are leaving Islam and coming to faith in Jesus Christ as inside Iran,” Rosenberg said.
He called it “super exciting” and described it as the first fruits of a much larger movement. If God sets His throne spiritually in Iran, Rosenberg believes the nation will shift from exporting radical Islam to exporting the gospel.
“When they get converted and dramatically transformed by Jesus Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit, they are going to become revolutionaries for a different cause,” he said. “Not for radical or apocalyptic Islam, but for Jesus, for the gospel.”
The final verse of Jeremiah 49 promises restoration. “It will come about in the last days that I will restore the fortunes of Elam,” the Lord declares.
Rosenberg sees this as both political and spiritual restoration. After judgment and regime change, he believes God will bless the Iranian people and bring liberation from oppression.
“I want to see not just the political liberation of the Iranian people,” Rosenberg said. “I want to see the spiritual liberation of the Iranian people.”
As missiles fly and alliances shift, Rosenberg is calling believers to discern the times. If Jeremiah 49 is indeed unfolding, the crisis in Iran is not merely geopolitical. It is prophetic.
James Lasher, a seasoned writer and editor at Charisma Media, combines faith and storytelling with a background in journalism from Otterbein University and ministry experience in Guatemala and the LA Dream Center. A Marine Corps and Air Force veteran, he is the author of The Revelation of Jesus: A Common Man’s Commentary and a contributor to Charisma magazine. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact [email protected].
