On Friday, at 8:49 p.m. local time, a 5.1-magnitude earthquake shook northern Iran near the Semnan Missile Complex, a key launch site for Iran‘s ballistic missile program. The tremor was 10 kilometers deep, and its epicenter was 37 kilometers southwest of the city of Semnan. The report also stated that tremors of a 5.5-magnitude were felt in the city of Sarkheh in Semnan Province. Two other earthquakes have already occurred in Iran this week, in Kashmar (Razavi Khorasan province) on June 19 and in Borazjan (Bushehr province) on June 17, both with a magnitude of 4.2.
This comes five days after a magnitude 2.5 earthquake struck 18 miles away from Qom near the Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant. Explosions followed the relatively light quake. The quake and explosions followed an Israeli Air Force strike in the area.
Iran is one of the most seismically active countries in the world, being crossed by several major faults that cover at least 90% of the country. As a result, earthquakes in Iran often occur and are destructive. Iran is well known for its long history of disastrous earthquake activity. It is located on the Alpine-Himalayan seismic belt. The Arabian and Eurasian tectonic plates collide in this region, causing frequent earthquakes. Every year, around 2,100 earthquakes occur here, of which approximately 15 to 16 are of magnitude 5.0 or greater.
The prophets explicitly mention earthquakes and volcanoes as playing a role in the end of days, preparing the world by burning away impurities, as a crucible is used in metallurgy to purify metal.
“And I will bring the third part through the fire and will refine them as silver is refined and will try them as gold is tried; they shall call on My name and I will answer them; I will say: ‘It is My people’ and they shall say: ‘Hashem is my God.’” Zechariah 13:9
The Prophet Ezekiel specifically described earthquakes as preceding the War of Gog and Magog:
Mountains shall be overthrown, cliffs shall topple, and every wall shall crumble to the ground. Ezekiel 38:20
Some rabbis have attributed this pre-Magog shake-up to God intervening in the fray and using the forces of nature as His chosen weapons.
This seemed to be the case last October, when a magnitude 4.4 earthquake struck Aradan County in Semnan Province five days after the Iranian republic launched at least 200 ballistic missiles at Israel.
Rabbi Pinchas Winston, an end-of-day expert, believes that as times go on, such events indicating divine intervention in mundane events will become more prevalent.
“In the later stages of the geula (redemption) the mixture of miracle and nature will increase to the point where it will become so clear it will be undeniable,” Rabbi Winston said. “You can’t conclusively say anything is hashgacha pratit (divine intervention). But the people who are prepared to look at the big picture will be able to connect the dots in a way that makes more sense than trying to explain everything in strictly natural terms.”
