A dried up river in the Middle East could be the key to the end times. The Euphrates River, which spans 1,800 miles through Turkey, Syria, and Iraq has been shrinking at an alarming rate according to researchers. Satellite data dating from 2003 shows that river has lost some 34 cubic miles of freshwater. A drought in 2007 only accelerated the loss, with scientists speculating that huge sections of the basin could disappear by 2040 if conditions do not improve.

The Euphrates River, along with the Tigris River which it leads into, are both mentioned in the Bible, with the Euphrates having the distinction of possibly being linked to the end of days or Armageddon. The Euphrates is mentioned in Jeremiah 50:38, with God saying, “A drought on her waters! They will dry up. For it is a land of idols, idols that will go mad with terror.” Revelation 16:12 mentions the Euphrates during the listing of the seven angels that proclaim the end of days. According to the passage, “The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up to prepare the way for the kings from the East.” Some theologians believe the passage refers to the biblical battle Armageddon, the final battle to occur before the second coming of Christ. Even more concerning is that Revelation 9 reveals that the Euphrates is the site where 4 fallen angels have been bound until a set time. When they are released, according to the Bible, the four angels will be released with a huge horde of fallen angels with the instruction to wipe out a third of mankind.

However, scientists have looked for a more scientific response for the decrease, with a 2013 NASA report showing that both the Tigris and Euphrates River basins had lost 117 million acre-feet of freshwater from 2003 to 2009. Scientists have theorized that much of the loss is brought on by droughts due to the climate change, as well as excessive groundwater pumping. Such loss has devastated the communities near the basin as crops fail and disease spreads. “Diarrhea, chicken pox, measles, typhoid fever and cholera are currently spreading across Iraq because of the water crisis, and the government no longer provides vaccines to its citizens,” said Naseer Baqar of the Tigris River Protectors Association.

Others have scoffed at any alarmism regarding the river. One video on X shows the Euphrates River reaching “levels unseen in a long time” in April. Others on social media minimized the drying up as an annual occurrence. However, the Centre for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS) warns that water levels in the Euphrates have now dropped to one of the lowest points ever recorded.