Poll: Many Americans See COVID, Russia's Ukraine Invasion as Signs of 'Last Days' Biblical Prophecy

A recent poll found that American interest in the End Times has grown since the COVID-19 pandemic began two years ago, and it remains evident following Russia's invasion of Ukraine that started in February. 

Joel C. Rosenberg, the founder and chairman of The Joshua Fund, a non-profit educational and humanitarian relief organization, recently commissioned an exclusive national poll with a series of questions for all Americans, including evangelical Christians. It was conducted by McLaughlin & Associates between March 17-22.  

"Some Christian leaders have speculated that the current war is setting into motion the prophetic war described in the Book of Ezekiel (chapters 38 and 39), widely known among Bible scholars as the 'War of Gog & Magog'," Rosenberg wrote in a blog post. 

"My colleagues at The Joshua Fund and I believe it is premature to draw such a conclusion. Ezekiel 38 and 39 do not describe a Russian invasion of Ukraine. As I have written about widely – and discussed on the podcast – Ezekiel described a military alliance led by Russia and Iran against a prophetically reborn State of Israel in the "last days." This war has never happened in human history, and the prophecy has yet to pass," the founder of The Joshua Fund wrote. 

But Rosenberg wanted to find out if Americans see some prophetic significance in the Russian invasion of Ukraine, so the survey asked: 

"Do you agree or disagree that Russia's invasion of Ukraine – which has ignited the biggest land war in Europe since World War II – is one of the signs that Jesus spoke of in the Bible when He warned that there would be 'wars and rumors of wars' in the 'last days' before His return?"

According to the poll's results: 

• Nearly 4-in-10 Americans (39.8%) agreed
• 40.3% – said they disagree.
• 19.9% said they don't know.

Rosenberg noted according to the U.S. Census in 2020, there were 258.3 million Americans who were 18 years of age or older.  Forty percent of that number is 103.32 million people, who agreed it is a sign of biblical prophecy being fulfilled. Many who agreed were not all Christians. 

Rosenberg also broke down the data by religion, race, region, age, gender, and political affiliation. 

The poll's next question was about the COVID pandemic and if it had a profound significance. Was it a sign of the "Last Days?" 

"Do you agree or disagree that the COVID pandemic that has caused more than six million deaths worldwide is one of the signs that Jesus spoke of in the Bible when He warned that there would be severe 'plagues' in the 'last days' before His return?," the poll asked.  

The survey found: 

• 4-in-10 Americans (40.1%) agreed
• 41.1% said they disagree
• 18.7% said they don't know.

Rosenberg recalled how in March of 2020, The Joshua Fund commissioned a national survey as the COVID-19 pandemic engulfed the world. 

"We specifically asked if Americans believed that the coronavirus and the resulting economic meltdown were signs that we are living in what the Bible calls the 'last days'," he wrote. 

"At that time, we found that 29.4% said they agreed. Thus, we have seen a nearly 11-point increase over the last Joshua Fund poll results. 

The other two questions in the survey focused on Americans' thoughts about Iran's nuclear capability. 

The survey asked, "Do you believe that the new nuclear deal that the international community is negotiating with the leaders of Iran will make the world safer, or more dangerous?"

According to Rosenberg, the poll found:

• Nearly half of Americans (47.4%) believe that a new nuclear deal "will make the world more dangerous by lifting economic sanctions, giving Iran's government enormous new oil revenues, and making it easier for Iran to fund – and hide – its efforts to build nuclear weapons."
• Less than one-third of Americans (31.3%) believe that a new nuclear deal "will make the world safer by truly preventing Iran from building nuclear weapons."

The last question of the survey dealt with Iran's nuclear weapons and Israel. 

"If the Iranian regime is ever able to build an arsenal of fully operational nuclear weapons, do you believe such weapons will pose a threat to the six million Jews who live in Israel?" the poll asked. 

The survey showed: 

• Fully 2-out-of-3 Americans (67.6%) said they believe "the Iranian regime wants to use nuclear weapons to carry out their repeated threats to 'wipe Israel off the map' and bring about a Second Holocaust."
• Only 12.5% said, "No, I don't believe a nuclear-armed Iran poses a real threat to Israel."

The poll asked questions of 1,000 Americans 18 years of age or older. It has a 3.1% margin of error, plus or minus, at a 95% confidence interval, according to Rosenberg. 

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