Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has been the European Union’s dark rider since 2010. He has dissolved Hungary’s free press, manipulated elections, led state-sponsored religious persecution, cozied up to regimes like China, and rehabilitated Hungary’s fascist legacy. Orbán is returning Hungary to the legacy of the 1930s and ’40s, when it was a Nazi ally.

This is the man Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu trusts as one of the Jewish state’s best friends in Europe. He trusts Orbán enough to visit him in Budapest from April 3 to 6, even though Hungary was obligated to arrest him according to the International Criminal Court (icc).

On April 3, Orbán greeted Netanyahu with a lavish ceremony as an honor guard and a band played Israel’s national anthem.

At a press conference, Orbán extolled his nation’s close relationship with the Jewish people, claiming Hungary’s Jews are “now the most secure and safe in Europe.” “As you know full well,” he said, “no Hamas flags have been waved in Hungary so far, and they shall not do so in the future. There is zero tolerance in Hungary, in our homeland, against anti-Semitism, and we shall do everything in our power to assure that we shall protect all of our citizens.”

Orbán then said Hungary would withdraw from the icc.

Netanyahu has been wanted by the icc since last year for alleged war crimes committed in Gaza. The charges are demonstrably ludicrous. Several member states have already indicated they would flout the ruling. But Hungary is the first country to put this to the test.

Hungary has been a member of the icc since 1998. Its withdrawal has to go through parliament, which may take a year. By inviting Netanyahu to this visit, Orbán shows he is serious about protecting Israel.

Netanyahu seemed to get the message. He said in the press conference:

This is a very moving day for me.

I knew foshkash and goulash and some knowledge of Hungarian history and your struggles. You had exited the ravages of World War ii only to be under a new type of occupation. And it took you many decades to liberate yourself and establish Hungary as an independent country. So that offered some similarity to our travails which were on a different scale.

A third of our people were murdered in World War ii, in the Holocaust. We had to overcome great odds to reestablish our sovereignty in our ancient homeland. It was a question of time when these two histories would meet and begin the great alliance that has now developed.

You have, in your leadership, done remarkable things for Israel and the Jewish people. You support Israel proudly, unstintingly, you stand with us at the [European Union], you stand with us at the [United Nations], and you’ve just taken a bold and principled position on the icc. I thank you, Viktor. …

This partnership, this friendship, today is unparalleled. May it grow even further; may it grow even stronger. Thank you, my friend, Viktor.

Friend or Foe?

Unlike much of Europe, Orbán’s Hungary has never opened its borders to migrants from the Muslim world. Islamic terrorist attacks in Hungary today are almost unheard of. Israelis regularly visit Hungary as tourists. Hungary’s Jewish population of approximately 100,000 is the EU’s third-largest. Budapest’s Great Synagogue is the world’s second-largest Jewish house of worship.

“Hungary today is the safest place in Europe for the Jews,” a representative of the Hungarian Jewish community told Netanyahu on his visit, “and it can honestly be said that a person who grew up and was educated in Hungary could not recall a period of time when the Jews have received such respect and great appreciation, and felt so safe—and that during a time when darkness covers the earth. The fondness and appreciation that a leader like Viktor Orbán has for you also sends a message to all the people of Hungary.”

Orbán has done a lot to erode Hungary’s freedoms and rule of law. Certain policies bring haunting memories of Hungary’s years as a Nazi-allied dictatorship. The Trumpet has covered these developments extensively.

Hungary’s transformation is part of a Europe-wide trend. The Bible prophesies that modern Europe is on the path of reverting to an empire Revelation 17 labels as a “beast.” This empire is to have the same spirit as the Third Reich. (Our free book The Holy Roman Empire in Prophecy explains.)

The Bible reveals this empire will attack the State of Israel in the same spirit it sought to annihilate the Jews in during World War ii. Because of this, the Trumpet also warns against Israel trusting such European partners.

But in standing up for Jews at home and abroad, Orbán has done an exemplary job. So much so that Jewish News Syndicate ceo Alex Traiman, commentating on the recent visit, wrote: “Hungary is quickly turning into Israel’s most important ally, and one of the most consequential countries in Europe.”

Orbán has benefited from this stance, and he is always looking for like-minded allies to help him stand up to the EU. Leaving the icc costs Orbán very little; Hungary will not be punished. Orbán may worry that the icc could apply for a warrant against him in the future.

Regardless, Prime Minister Orbán has done a far better job supporting the Jews than most of the West. The man turning Hungary into a quasi-dictatorship is becoming one of Israel’s closest friends.

But can Netanyahu trust him?

Prophecy’s Perspective

A prophecy in Ezekiel 23 shows the State of Israel is prophesied to trust this European power prophesied of in Revelation 17. Aholibah, the prophetic name for the Jewish nation, trusts in “lovers,” or foreign allies, for her protection. “She doted upon the Assyrians her neighbours, captains and rulers clothed most gorgeously, horsemen riding upon horses, all of them desirable young men. … And the Babylonians came to her into the bed of love, and they defiled her with their whoredom …” (Ezekiel 23:13, 17). These are prophetic names for various European peoples comprising this beast, as The Holy Roman Empire in Prophecy explains.

“Therefore, O Aholibah, thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I will raise up thy lovers against thee, from whom thy mind is alienated, and I will bring them against thee on every side; the Babylonians, and all the Chaldeans, Pekod, and Shoa, and Koa, and all the Assyrians with them …” (verse 22).

The Bible shows that, to the State of Israel, these different European peoples do not look like a threat. Even as they militarize and grow in power, they look like allies. They look like somebody Israel can trust. Israel won’t realize its mistake until it is too late.

Revelation 17’s “beast” has seven heads and 10 horns (verse 3). The 10 horns are symbols for 10 “kings,” or dictators, uniting to make this empire (verses 12-13). Hungary may or may not be one of these 10 nations. Orbán has made numerous decisions that suggest it might be, but there are also indications he is at odds with the empire’s other members. Regardless, he is taking Hungary down a path we expect Europe in general to follow.

Israel sees this yet still trusts Hungary as “Israel’s most important ally.” The Bible warned that Israel would trust Europe this way. The Bible warns this trust will lead to the worst attack Israel will ever face.

The same prophecies also show the solution. National repentance and faith in God would eliminate Israel’s problems. The chaotic events ahead will lead to the nation, and the whole world, to know Him (Ezekiel 23:49).

But before any deliverance happens, Israelis—and people around the world—have hard lessons to learn. Europe’s coming empire is God’s tool to teach those lessons and to reveal His hand in world events. Once those lessons are learned, the whole world will receive the peace and the safety they yearn for.

To learn more, request a free copy of The Holy Roman Empire in Prophecy.