Libya war a precursor to Ezekiel 38-39?

The Wall Street Journal Reported today: “Oil futures settled at their highest level in 2 1/2 years Wednesday as air strikes continued against Libya and the U.S. reported a sharp drop in gasoline inventories.” On New York commodities markets, ‘Light Sweet Crude’ settled at $105.75 a barrel, the highest we’ve seen since September 2008.

The US and Allied forces air strikes on Col. Moammar Gadhafi’s military infrastructure and Western sanctions have stopped the 1.3 million barrel per day of Libyan output and have caused commodity futures traders to speculate that oil supply will get worse before it gets better. Kyle Cooper, managing partner at IAF Energy Advisors in Houston stated in the WSJ article, ”If this spreads into Saudi Arabia, $120 a barrel is going to look cheap. People are scared to death to be short.”

In Bible prophecy, Libya is included in the Russian-Iranian alliance against Israel in “the last days.” Ezekiel 38-39, tells us that ‘Put’ is one of the nations that joins the ‘Gog/Magog’ alliance against the nation of Israel. Ancient historian Flavius Josephus records that ‘Put’ or ‘Phut’ is ‘Libyos.’ Ancient Libyos included the territory of modern Libya. Regardless of the outcome of the current military and political struggle in Gadhafi’s Libya, Bible prophecy tells us that one day, Libya will be a part of the alliance with an ‘evil thought’ in its head, to invade the land of Israel to take a ‘spoil’ – maybe oil? Bible prophecy seems to be coming into fullness on almost a daily basis in Israel. Is the current Libyan war a precursor to the fulfillment Ezekiel 38-39? We’ll keep watching.

Natural gas discovered in Israel’s Hula Valley

Canadian exploration company, Adira Energy has found signs of natural gas in their test wells in Northern Israel’s Hula Valley. Adira’s drilling team has reworked three existing wells on its 31,060 acre Eiten license, all of which test positive for gas presence. According to company information, one coal-bed methane (“CBM”) well tested 200 mcfd (million cubic feet per day/about US$800 per day at current market prices) with a static pressure of 600 PSI.

Adira’s Hula Valley gas wells are relatively shallow, reaching ‘coal-bed methane’ between 400 and 800 meters (1,300 – 2,600 feet).

Adira Energy also owns the Hula Valley onshore Notera license (18,500 acres and the Israeli offshore licenses Gabriella, Yitzhak and Samuel (145,000 acres collectively).

Israel could transform global energy markets

In a March 11, 2011 Jerusalem Post article Dore Gold, president of the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs and former Israeli ambassador to the UN stated that Israel’s newly discovered fossil fuel reserves could ‘revolutionize the global energy sector’.

Dor stated in the article, “Libyan oil accounts for less than 2 percent of world oil production, yet the revolt against Muammar Gaddafi has managed to shoot up the price of oil to more than $100 per barrel in the last month.”

The article goes on to report that, at the same time Israel holds the world’s third largest oil shale deposits and, because Israel’s Tamar gas field is capable of supplying the country’s domestic natural gas fields for the next twenty years, 100% of the gas harvested from the Leviathan field (estimate at twice the volume as Tamar) could go to export markets.

What does this mean? As Middle East oil supply from Arab countries becomes more expensive and more politically contentious, Israel’s energy exports from existing and pending discoveries should be coming online.

Bottom line: Israel energy exports in the near future could very well change the political and economic landscape in the Middle East. With Arab political regimes falling apart at the seams and oil prices spiking with the evening news, the fact that the only stable democratic government in the region and America’s best friend (yes, it’s still true) in the Middle East may very soon be one of the world’s energy exporters is a comforting thought. Go Israel!

Click here to read the full Jerusalem Post article.

Broadcasters buzz about Zion Oil & Gas at NRB

Earlier this month the annual National Religious Broadcasters Convention in Nashville, Tennessee was a buzz over Zion Oil’s recent exploration for oil and gas in Israel.

Christian television and radio broadcasters, including American Family Radio, Christian Television Network, the Herman and Sharon Show, Faith Radio with Bob Crittendon, and Charles Crismier’s “Viewpoint” news radio show hosted Zion Oil & Gas Founder John Brown and CEO Richard Rinberg as they had shared Zion’s vision and exploration activities in Israel with their audiences around the world.

“As believers (biblical prophecy being fulfilled in Israel) should be important to all of us as far as carrying the message that we have … other people need to know that truth, that Jesus is the Messiah. And when G-d puts something in Torah and in the Tenach, that is His Word and His Word should not be doubted.” John Brown stated as he discussed the biblical prophecy of a massive oil and gas discovery currently being fulfilled in Israel today.

Charles Crismier’s radio interview with John Brown and Richard Rinberg can be heard in its entirety at: http://archives.inforadionet.com:8080/viewpoint/vp030111.mp3

Noble Energy delays Leviathan oil drilling

Since its massive natural gas discovery in the Leviathan field offshore of Israel, Noble Energy has suspected that commercial oil reserves may lie beneath the gas find. Plans to begin oil drilling in Leviathan’s two lowest strata have been delayed for a month due to technical concerns.

In a March 11 interview with Israeli news agency Haaretz, Epsilon Investment House energy analyst Ron Alkon stated, “A month’s postponement of the results isn’t, in itself, a sign that there is no oil. Since it is almost without precedent to be drilling for oil at these depths, and to avoid environmental problems and other possible malfunctions, they are taking their time to be prudent. It shows that there is still a considerable chance of finding oil. Just the fact that they intend to invest an additional $40 million in advance shows that the possibility is there.”

The Haaretz article continues:

“Drilling from the Sedco Express platform at Leviathan 1 has reached a depth of 5,100 meters – to the first layer of sand where advanced geological testing was performed in discovering natural gas.

“The next stage is drilling 700 meters further, to the layer geologically referred to as the Lower Oligocene Age, where Noble estimates an average economic potential for usable oil reserves of about 3 billion barrels at a geological probability of 17%.

“After this stage the partners intend to drill deeper still to test another prospect at a depth of 7,200 meters. Here Noble estimated the economic potential at equivalent to 1.2 billion barrels of oil, but at a mere 8% probability.”

Noble’s oil exploration drilling into these strata is expected to commence in early May.

Israel’s gas will flow by 2013

Delek’s Delek Group Ltd. (TASE: DLEKG) controlling shareholder, Yitzhak Tshuva, promised to speed up development of the Tamar natural gas field so that gas will flow to Israel in 2013. Production development from Israel’s Tamar gas fields had been debated because of Israel’s gas deals with Egypt. Due to the recent political uprising in Egypt, gas supply to Israel has been cut off (40% of total gas imports) leaving Israel in an energy crisis.

Globes News Wire (http://www.globes.co.il/serveen/globes/docview.asp?did=1000627225&fid=1725) reported Tshuva’s comments to  to the “Calcalist” Energy Conference yesterday March 2. ”We are working round the clock. Despite delays and difficulties in financing the project, because of the Sheshinski recommendations, I say and commit that we will beat the original deadline. Gas will reach Israel’s shores in 2013.”

“We will meet all of Israel’s needs, and we will do what is required of us. I believe that we’ll reach understandings with the Ministry of Finance regarding an agreement with Israel Electric Corporation (IEC) (TASE:ELEC.B22) and financing. We didn’t wait for financing to move forward, and as of now we’ve invested $1.4 billion in the project, and we’ll meet all that is required of us.

“Development of energy is of unparalleled importance. We’re seeing the difficulties in the world which have caused a rise in the global price of oil, and we must appreciate Israel’s achievements to date. We must continue to invest and develop, and believe in what we do, because we’re building the State of Israel and must protect it and make it energy independent. For this purpose, we must have an agreement with investors and developers to keep up the momentum. We want to be a major player in the global energy market, which will give us political power, as well. Use of gas will save more than 50%, lowering vehicle costs accordingly, and this money will stay in Israel.”