Suddenly, formerly pro-Arab Greece appears to be very pro-Israel. On Tuesday, Greece and Israel pledged to increase defense cooperation. So, what is behind this? It appears that economics may be the answer. Greece is essentially broke and spiraling downward economically, while Israel’s financial state looks exceedingly good.

But beyond that, Greece is a typical European nation that is dependent on foreign oil and natural gas providers, while Israel has an abundance of both, thanks to discoveries in the past three years. In fact, it has been estimated that Israel has more oil shale than does Saudi Arabia. In addition, the Jewish nation has two massive natural gas deposits. Greece has a keen interest in participating with its traditional Greek ally Cyprus, which has made a deal with Israel to develop the undersea gas deposits in the Mediterranean.

With the increase in natural disasters (the U.S. government reports that 2011 was a record-breaking year in total cost brought about by the assault of disasters in America), the world’s focus on Israel, the fixation by world leaders on a regional treaty with the Jewish nation, the race by Iran toward a nuclear apocalypse, the Arab Spring, and the global financial crisis, many are wondering if 2012 may be the year when the world as we know it may end. While the Bible does not follow the Mayan calendar, the current alignment of key events could indicate the beginning of fulfillment of end-times prophecy—very soon.

If so, God may use the recent discoveries of energy in Israel (and, keep in mind, these are massive sources of energy!) to draw European interest in participating in the end-times treaty with Israel. It appears from Scripture that of the ten world leaders who co-sign that seven-year treaty with the Jewish state—the one that will start the clock ticking on the final seven years leading to the return of Christ—five of them will be from Western Europe. Those particular treaty participants may be motivated by the possibility of reaping energy benefits from the Jewish state. If so, this would explain why the co-signers will give Israel permission to rebuild the Jewish temple on the Temple Mount, which has been a very controversial area for the Jews. (In fact, Muslims rioted when former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon simply stepped foot on the Temple Mount, and he did not even mention the possibility of building a Jewish temple on that site.) In other words, if Israel is willing to provide something as significant as meeting their energy needs, the European participants in the treaty may very well be willing to back Israel’s demand to rebuild the temple.

In addition to Greece’s sudden interest in Israel, there is now an apparent movement of Jordan toward the Jewish nation. It appears that Israel may export some of its natural gas bounties to Jordan, which will boost relations between the two countries. This relationship in particular could be significant to the end-times treaty. After all, Jordan has been one of the Arab states that has met with Israeli leadership about the Iranian issue; and it is interesting that Jordan is mentioned along with Egypt (another of the Arab states that has met with Israeli leadership in regard to Iran) and Israel in a passage of Bible prophecy that takes place during the three and a half years the treaty is operative. (This treaty is a seven-year treaty, but it is broken after three and a half years.) This could indicate the connection of these states to the treaty.

Not only are we seeing the movement of Greece and Jordan toward Israel, but a close relationship has also developed between the Jewish state and India. For example, just this week, Indian Foreign Minister S. M. Krishna revealed that India and Israel are pledging greater cooperation in counterterrorism and trade. The two nations have already made deals on military defense technologies, with Israel as the supplier.

Due to their timing, these are fascinating developments. After all, these movements toward Israel could be indicative of a coming trend, one which will align the international community with the Jewish nation in order to bring about the end-times treaty and the very short-lived “peace and security.” Certainly, we cannot discount that possibility, and it is something worthy of watching in the days ahead.

[John Claeys serves as Executive Director of John Claeys Ministries through writing, speaking, and radio ministries and is the author of Apocalypse 2012: The Ticking of the End Time Clock—What Does the Bible Say?, a riveting look of the events leading up to the return of Christ. See http://johnclaeys.com/ for more information.]