Signs of Jesus’ (pbuh) Second Coming -
The Signs from the Islamic Resources 031-040
The Signs from the Islamic Resources 4/12
31. War in the Streets
“Between the Tigris and the Euphrates, a city will be built where the children of Abbas will reign. It is called Zawra [Baghdad]…” “O Rasul al-Akram, the leader of believers, why is it called Zawra?” “It is called Zawra because the war surrounds it, expanding to the borders.” (Mukhtasar Tazkirah al-Qurtubi, p. 426, no. 776)
You do not see for I am seeing the places of turmoil between your houses as the places of rainfall. (Sahih Muslim; Doomsday: Portents&Prophecis; p. 84)
Guerilla warfare became widespread in the twentieth century. The ensuing conflicts often take place in streets and between houses. The most recent example occurred in Baghdad in 2003. Indeed, the first hadith above relates that a war will expand to all the corners of Baghdad. The events of the latest Gulf war and the related news reported by the media confirm the news foretold in the hadiths. (God knows best.)
32. A War between Muslims and Jews
The Last Hour would not come unless the Muslims fight against the Jews… (Sahih Muslim)
By the beginning of the twentieth century, conflicts between Arab Muslims and Jews were characterized by terrorism and violence. Toward the end of the First World War, the Ottoman Empire disintegrated and Palestine, until then an Ottoman Arab territory, was placed under the administration of Great Britain. Failing to bring peace to a land ravaged by violence, Great Britain finally turned the problem over to the UN in 1947. The UN proposed that Palestine be partitioned into two independent states so that the Jews could have a homeland. This was the first Jewish state in 19 centuries.
Arabs in Palestine and the surrounding countries sought to change this situation, and in 1948 a bloody war broke out between them and Israel. Israel, which proclaimed its independence that same year, then violated the UN plan by occupying a large portion of Palestine. All that was left for the Palestinians was the west part of the Jordan River (the West Bank) and some land surrounding Gaza city (the Gaza Strip).
During June 1967, Israel carried out a massive invasion. Egypt, Syria, and Jordan had been making preparations to attack Israel for months when, in a sudden counter-attack, Israel launched the war on the morning of June 5. Israel jets flew over the Mediterranean Sea for a while and then suddenly turned toward Egypt. Egypt, which had prepared for an Israeli air attack from the east instead of from the north, was caught off guard and saw the majority of its air force destroyed before the pilots could get their planes in the air. Within 5 days, the Israeli army defeated the Arab armies one after another. Within 6 days, Israel roughly tripled its size. The invaded, and now occupied lands included the West Bank and Gaza Strip, the Golan Heights (part of Syria), and Egypt’s giant Sinai Peninsula.
Israel also occupied East Jerusalem. After the 1948 war, Jerusalem had been divided into East and West Jerusalem. West Jerusalem, the modern part of the city, and it was held by Israel; East Jerusalem, the Old City and location of many religious shrines, was held by Jordan. After the 1967 War, Israel controlled both parts of Jerusalem, and the Wailing Wall, which has become Israel’s national symbol, came under Jewish control for the first time in 19 centuries.
Nasser, who strengthened his army with Soviet weapons, denied the ceasefire that ended the Six Days War in in March 1969, in order to regain the land to Egypt, which were lost in April 1968. He also initiated a months-long mild “war of attrition.” Attacks on Israeli targets were finally ended by heavy Israeli artillery bombardment of and air attacks on the cities along the Suez Canal. This development caused Egypt to sign another ceasefire agreement with Israel.
During the Yom Kippur feast of 6 October 1973, Egyptian and Syrian armies launched a sudden attack against Israel. Crossing the Suez Canal, the Egyptian army entered the Israeli-occupied Sinai Peninsula and started to cross the Bar-Lev Line, a supposed “impassable” border established after the 1967 War. Meanwhile, Syria moved forward on the Golan Heights. The Israeli army was taken completely by surprise. Soldiers attending Yom Kippur services in synagogues were sent headlong to the various fronts. Israeli radio, meanwhile, broke its traditional Yom Kippur silence and sounded the alarm.
At the expense of considerable loss of life, the Israel Defense Forces (Zahal) stopped the Arab forces on 9 October with their conventional forces. Soon, the Syrian army’s progress on Golan Heights was also ended. Meanwhile Egypt, by now having a stronger army and reinforced by its strategic position, engaged in a long and bloody tank battle. According to the general opinon, Washington’s rapid arms support to Israel that began on the second day of the war enabled Israel to win.
On 26 October, Israel began to drive the Arabs out of the territories that they had recently recaptured. Meanwhile, the threat of Israel being driven into sea was over. Yet this was not a victory for Israel, for in just a few days the two Arab armies had inflicted a severe toll on the nation: 2,700 dead in a small country with a population of little more than 3 million.
Following this psychological shock, the Israeli government took a step back. Israel agreed to return the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt, and in 1979 Egypt and Israel signed the Camp David Peace Agreement. Yet, this agreement and all subsequent ones have failed to bring peace to the region. The conflict between the Arabs and the Israelis continues, albeit with short intervals of peace.
33. The Killing of Innocent Children
When an innocent child of the community of Muhammad is killed, an angel from the sky will cry: “God is with him [the Mahdi] and with those who are with him.” (Muhammad bin Ali Sabban, Ishaf ar-Raghibin, p. 154)
One sign of the End Times is the murder of innocent children. We have seen this on a massive scale in recent years. Young African children are being forced to participate in the civil wars wracking that continent, and their merciless murders can be considered as one of these examples. Another region where children are being targeted is Palestine. Between 2002-03, more than 500 children were shot and killed by Israeli soldiers. During the latest Gulf War, Iraqi maternity hospitals were bombed and damaged, causing the deaths of many children.
34. Pewasive Corruption
The Mahdi, one of my children, comes into being, by the blessing of God, upon the approach of the Day of Judgment; the weakening of the believers’ hearts because of death, hunger, fitna and the disappearance of the Sunnah; and the emergence of innovations and the loss of means by which to enjoin the right and forbid the wrong. His justice and prosperity will ease the believers’ hearts, and friendship and love will settle between the non-Arab and the Arab nations. (Al-Muttaqi al-Hindi, Al-Burhan fi `Alamat al-Mahdi Akhir az-Zaman, p. 66)
Islamic literature defines fitna as “hard times,” such as civil strife, war, or riots, during which evil forces attempt to weaken and even eradicate people's faith.
One hadith, which reveals that the believers' faith will weaken in the End Times, also provides information about the developments that will lead to this:
Briefly, the following events will take place before the End Times and the Mahdi’s appearance:
1- Death: As a consequence of anarchy and mass murder, people will not be safe and will be greatly concerned about dying.
2- Hunger: The struggle to make a living will increase, because the cost of living will rise. Natural disasters and catastrophes will lead to starvation and hunger.
3- Fitna: Such troubles will spread and encourage unlawful and immoral acts among all people, both in public and in private.
4- Innovation (bid`at): Adoption of some rituals or innovations on the grounds that they are essential components of Islam, although they violate the teachings of the Qur'an and the Sunnah.
5- Disappearance of an environment that allows the communication of God's message: Believers will be hindered from enjoining the good and forbidding the evil, and a spiritual decline will occur as a result.
Such fitna will lead to a stronger faith, an increase in patience and rewards in the Hereafter for the believers' having a solid faith, while weakening further the faith of those with weak faith. The latter group might even lose their faith completely.
The Mahdi will appear when such fitna is prevalent.
Other hadiths and Islamic scholars state that the Mahdi will appear when a particular type of fitna has become worldwide.
The Mahdi will come when fitnas appear. (Imam Rabbani, Letters of Rabbani, vol. 2, p. 258)
Disorder, corruption [fitna], and fear will emerge in the West... Corruption will proliferate. (Mukhtasar Tazkirah al-Qurtubi, p. 440)
35. One Type of Fitna Will Spread Everywhere
One kind of corruption [fitna] will surface, from which no party will be able to protect itself, and spread immediately in all directions. This situation will persist until someone comes and says: “O people, from now on your leader is the Mahdi.” (Ibn Hajar Haythami, Al-Qawl al-Mukhtasar fi `Alamat al-Mahdi al-Muntazar, p. 23)
The hadiths speak of a corruption that will touch everybody and spread quickly. In other words, this corruption will be known to everybody, oppose religion and God, and target the people's faith. Today, materialist philosophy is the largest and most comprehensive trend designed to deny God's Existence and creation. Its underlying philosophy, the “theory of evolution,” provides it with a self-proclaimed “scientific” basis. Even though it is not based on any scientific and logical evidence, certain materialist circles continue to work for its acceptance via constant propaganda, deceit, and even fraud.
Today, as this theory has penetrated almost every household, it is safe to say that almost all people have heard of it. This theory is first presented as fact during childhod by means of countless lies and deceit promulgated by society and school textbooks. As they grow older, young people continue to be misled by such funny fallacies that they, and humanity as a whole, came into being merely as a result of coincidence and that they descended from apes. Youths of all ages are brainwashed at all stages of their education by evolutionist lies. (For further information on this important topic and our scientific answers to such propaganda, please refer to Harun Yahya, A Definitive Reply to Evolutionist Propaganda, [Global Publishing: 2003].)
There is a noteworthy point here. As our Prophet (may God bless him and grant him peace) noted in one of his hadiths, corruption's global pervasiveness and rapid spread can materialize only when current technological means (e.g., the press, publications, broadcasting, the Internet, and satellite communication) are available. As the relevant technology did not exist in the past, corruption could not spread throughout the world so quickly. As a result, no other worldwide trend that had declared war on God's Existence, creation, and the morality of religion was seen. All of these are among the important signs that the Mahdi's advent and the second coming of Prophet Jesus (pbuh) coincide with the present time.
At this point, we need to remember that the hadiths heralding this fitna say that it will end when the Mahdi appears.
36. Religious Prohibitions Gain Acceptance
A fitna appears, and other fitnas follow … then comes a fitna that considers all of the unlawful acts to be lawful. (Al-Muttaqi al-Hindi, Al-Burhan fi `Alamat al-Mahdi Akhir az-Zaman, p. 26)
Transmitted by Hudhayfa: “Our Prophet (may God bless him and grant him peace) said: ‘O Hudhayfa, on that day they [the Muslims] will be on the verge of reverting back to their former religion; they will assume that wine is lawful and will fail to perform their regular prayers.’” (al-Uqayli)
Such unlawful acts as prostitution, alcohol, and bribery are widespread in the world today. The western media praises and encourages those who commit these unlawful acts, while criticizing those who do not. Statistics reveal that the number of people engaged in such activities is steadily increasing. This lifestyle that sees no boundaries, disregards what is lawful and unlawful, and considers every form of immorality as normal is quite compatible with the setting depicted in the hadith. This gloomy setting, which indicates the Mahdi’s advent, also indicates that the coming of Prophet Jesus (pbuh) is drawing nigh. Other related hadiths and the explanations of Muslim scholars are as follows:
The Mahdi will not emerge until unbelief invades everywhere and is openly committed in public. What rules in such times is the invasion by unbelief ... That is its power. (Imam Rabbani, Letters of Rabbani, vol. 2, 259)
The Mahdi will emerge following the occurrence of such vile fitna, whereby all of the prohibitions are regarded as lawful. (Ibn Hajar al-Haythami, Al-Qawl al-Mukhtasar fi `Alamat al-Mahdi al-Muntazar, p. 23)
37. Openly Denying God
The Hour will not be established until it is not said on the Earth: God. (Sahih Muslim; Tirmidhi)
Atheism, although around for a long time, started to spread on a heretofore unknown scale by the end of the nineteenth century. The number of people deluded by the spread of materialism and Darwinism, atheism’s philosophical and so-called “scientific” bases, increased markedly in the twentieth century, when they were able to propogate their perverse views without any significant difficulty. However, atheism will be defeated by God’s Will, thanks to the ideological struggle of sincere believers. (For further information about the collapse of atheism, please see Harun Yahya, The Rise of Islam [Kuala Lumpur: A.S. Noordeen Publishing, 2003].)
38. Replacing God with Other “Deities”
The system of night and day will not end until the people have taken to worship of Lat and ‘Uzza… (Sahih Muslim)
Many tribes of my people will adhere to associators and revert back to disbelief before the Hour … (Muhammad ibn `Abd al-Rasul Barzanji, Al-Isha`ah li Ashrat as-Sa`ah, p. 287)
The Last Hour will not come before the tribes of my people attach themselves to the polytheists, and tribes of my people worship idols. (Sunan Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah)
Ascribing associates to God, or deeming someone or something (idols) worthy of worship besides God, is a great sin. Some people think that idolatry involves worshipping statues carved out of stone and wood, as people did in the past. But this is a great mistake, for idolatry also means those who ascribe associates to God. Having faith in God alone, as described in the Qur’an, means dedicating oneself to God alone. In other words, one believes in attaining God’s good pleasure and mercy alone. In the End Times, the number of true believers who do not ascribe associates to God will diminish, and the number of people who embrace superstitious beliefs will increase.
39. A Sign of Materialism’s Spread
The Mahdi will appear when the letters of the Basmillah lose their importance. (Risalat al-Khuruj al-Mahdi, p. 29)
What is meant by “the letters of the Basmillah” may be the people’s stance toward Islamic morality and the condition of their faith. Indeed, in a period when the people’s faith weakens, the Mahdi will appear and ideologically eliminate those movements. Considered from this viewpoint, this hadith may indicate materialism’s and Darwinism’s amazing strength on the people.
One, and perhaps the most important, duty of the Mahdi, is to prepare the ground for Prophet Jesus (pbuh) by eliminating these philosophical and intellectual movements.
40. Days of Anarchy and Chaos
The Hour will come when violence, bloodshed, and anarchy become common. (Muntakhab Kanz al-`Ummal)
Anarchy and conflict were among the most obvious features of the twentieth century. In countless wars, rebellions, and conflicts, a great number of people died, and security and peace became one of the survivors’ greatest longings. The seemingly unending civil wars in some African countries, rebellions in many countries (especially in Central and South America), wars and clashes throughout Asia, and conflict in the Middle East are only the most obvious examples of this chaos.
This aside, during the last decade, anarchy and terror seem to have gone global. Many countries suffered – and continue to suffer – from terrorist attacks that targeted civilians and innocent people. This development, along with the ensuing anarchy and chaos, has caused many people to drift into depression.