| News and Views | October 1946 |
Armageddon, Then World Peace
SATAN, we have learned from Jesus and the Apostle Paul, is the organizing genius of the world order of things which has existed since the flood of Noah’s day. Jesus speaks of Satan as the “prince” of this world. Paul uses the same appellation, describing him as “the prince of the power of the air, the spirit [being] that now worketh in the children of disobedience.” Satan’s control has been accomplished through deception. He is known as “the father of lies,” and is to be “bound” by the new King, Jesus Christ, in order that he may “deceive the nations no more.”
In Revelation, the sixteenth chapter, under the symbols of a great battle and an earthquake—the greatest of all time—we have outlined the complete destruction of present institutions and organizations in the great demolition which must take place—the clearing of the ground, so to speak, before the establishment of the successor world government, Christ’s kingdom. In the fulfillment of this prophetic picture the new government takes supervisory control of the great conflict, directing the battle to “Armageddon,” meaning the mountain or height of Megiddo or “mount of destruction.” The opposing forces in this battle are the various groups and individuals of this world whose interests and claimed “rights” conflict.
According to this forecast of Revelation, the previous preparation for the conflict includes the gathering of “the kings of the earth and the whole world to the battle of the great day of God Almighty.” Their interest in the conflict appears to be the determined effort. to retain their advantages, their “right” to reign and rule over, and frequently to exploit, their fellow men.
The Scriptures tell us that this conflict is to go against the “kings.” This term includes not only royalty, but also religious, financial and other mighty ones, together with their enormous “vested interests” in the world that has been established and governed by them for many centuries under the misleading deceptions and false theories of pride and selfishness, and which has falsely claimed the distinction of being “Christendom,” meaning Christ’s kingdom.
The destructiveness of this battle to these established institutions is pictured in the latter part of this chapter sixteen as a great earthquake which progressively destroys, (1) the “cities [governments] of the nations,” (2) Babylon, the great, but false, system of nominal Christianity, and (3) the mountains and islands, which, in Bible symbology, we have learned, refer to earthly kingdoms and other political divisions.
When they are brought face to face with a conflict of such serious nature that they are in doubt as to the outcome, and fear its disastrous effects on human welfare and civilization, commentators of all shades of religious thought, and some with little or no understanding of the Book from which they are quoting, frequently refer to it as “the battle of Armageddon.”
The great conflict described in Revelation fully deserves the awe and fear which it has aroused in the minds of men. In fact, the only ones who have been able with equanimity to view the approach of that final clash of human interests as we enter into its preliminary skirmishes are those who have placed themselves on the Lord’s side, and to whom “the battle of the great day of God Almighty” is but another and a happy assurance that they are living in the most desirable and momentous period in the history of mankind since the fall in Eden; namely, the “great day of God Almighty.”
It is that “day” for which God’s people have been waiting and hoping and praying for centuries. It is the day of which the prophets wrote long before the Christian era. It is the period of time to which the Apostle Peter refers when he exhorts the brethren of the early church that they should be “looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat … the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.”—II Peter 3:12,10
Fire—Literal and Symbolic
There is much prophetic emphasis upon fire as the agency which would bring about the end of the world, or age. We recognize that primarily this is the symbolic “fire” of human passion. Yet, forty years ago Pastor Russell, considering the discovery of electricity and its great, but little understood power, suggested that electrical energy might also have an important part in the destruction of the “works” of the present imperfect “world” in the “day of God,” in the beginning of which, he was convinced he was then living.
It has become commonplace in recent months to speak of the destruction of human life on a scale which dwarfs our imagination, and strongholds formerly considered invulnerable, a protection from all known weapons, are now comparatively valueless! The destructive power against which no protection can be devised is atomic energy—electric power in the form of radioactivity, producing blinding light above the brightness of the sun, intense, searing heat, and invisible rays which, painlessly, but certainly, destroy life.
In a recent issue of one of our popular magazines an article appeared claiming to give a resume of a report prepared by officers of the armed forces who had been assigned the task of considering all available data on the offensive use of atomic energy, and the steps this country should take for protection against it, etc. The report offered no hope unless worldwide co-operation could be secured for the control of atomic energy, and the prohibition of its application to purposes of destruction. If agreement along this line cannot be achieved, this writer says, the armed forces visualize a vast installation of underground bases with supplies of all kinds, including quantities of atomic bombs.
The report referred to is said to view as reasonably certain that all principal countries will have the secrets of atomic bomb-making within five to thirty years, and that the potential destructiveness of radio controlled bombs directed in quantity against this country would be so great as to cripple its productive capacity, destroy its cities, leaving millions of dead and other millions requiring hospitalization within the ruins, which could not be entered by survivors until the death-dealing radiations had abated. The writer referred to concludes his article in the following wistful, fearful, and, at the same time, warning tone:
“But one can have enough of any nightmare, no matter how accurately it may foretell a possible future. The foregoing is sufficient to convey the broad outlines of the alternative which we shall have to accept and accept in our own lifetimes—if political defenses fail. It is hard to credit today, in this rich, easygoing country. Let the reader understand, however, that the security will not last if there is no assurance of world peace and world co-operation. And let the reader understand also that the picture which has been painted is not drawn from science fiction; on the contrary, it is based on the serious, informed and expert thinking of very hard-headed, highly trained men. When these facts are grasped, it is easy to see why the chosen experts of the General Staff, who must have had similar thoughts, reached their conclusion that ‘the only sure defense of this country is now the political defense.
“There is no satisfactory alternative to the political defense. For the military defense would require much more than heavy personal sacrifices by every American; it would require the sacrifice of principles which are the very flesh and blood and sinew of our society. No true democracy can maintain an immense and powerful armament in a state of twenty-four-hour alert for years and decades on end. No true democracy can confide to a single individual, the rocket controller, such responsibilities as would be his. No true democracy, and especially no American democracy, can base its international relations on a ruthless system of power alliances. No true democracy can enforce military discipline among all its people, or suspend the right of freedom from search and seizure, or condemn by dictate all its great cities and bodily transplant their inhabitants to new homes. And these are only a few of the impossibilities with which the minimum military defense would relentlessly confront us.
“In truth, there is only one way to remove the obstacles to organization of such a military defense. The constant, aching, mounting fear, from which we shall all suffer, if sound political defenses are not constructed, may be expected to act as a sort of chemical solvent, attacking the very foundations of our state. Fear will poison the people, and its inevitable concomitants, mutual hatred and suspicion, will rapidly divide them. And thus, by painful stages, we shall sink into the mood which begets Fascism. That will make all possible. Once we have our own Belsens, our own Gestapo and our own Himmler, we shall be able to console ourselves for our relapse into ultimate barbarism with the happy thought that we are 50 per cent secure. It would be an unbearably bad bargain.”
The writer then goes on to say that the only hope for future security lies in the “internationalization of atomic energy” and “making the United Nations a working world organization, capable of settling world problems by peaceful means.” Rather a hopeless outlook when viewed in the light of human weakness and current moral decline. The Manchester Guardian (England); in an editorial appearing in its issue of August 3, expresses a similar thought to the above. We quote:
“The only long peace the civilized world has known was imposed by Rome, which fought many wars and finally subjected all nations to itself. There are pessimists who believe we are moving to another situation of this sort and that we shall know peace only when one nation has gained domination over the rest. But as we may believe that seeking such a decision would this time mean the end of civilized living, the ensuing peace being enjoyed only by an impoverished remnant encamped in the ruins of what was, we are driven to look for mankind’s need along another road. The alternative is world government, and the way to it is barred by national sovereignty, which at present refuses to limit its pretensions, though always in the past it has ended by seeking to enforce abroad that will which meets no obstacles at home.”
Dr. Harold C. Urey, Nobel prize-winning scientist, is quoted in the Herald Tribune of August 18 as saying that it may be a “strict necessity” for the United States to wage war to control the world before others have the atomic bomb. He re-emphasized the viewpoint of most scientists that there is no defense against the atomic bomb, saying:
“There is no military defense against the atom bomb, and none is to be expected.
“It is impossible to prevent others from discovering our secrets for themselves.
“Atom bombs can be made cheaply and in large numbers.
“If war breaks out again they will be used and they will destroy our civilization.
“Either the United States secures an adequate international control which will prevent all countries of the world from producing atomic weapons, and which may lead on to a complete control of war—or else we begin preparations immediately for the third world war, in which atom bombs will be used.
“There is no solution of this problem except the abolition of war.”
God’s Promises Give Hope
As an antidote for the hopelessness with which thinking men and women view the future, we turn to the prophecy of the Apostle Peter, which foretold these dark days of disaster to follow the laborious human effort which—working against great handicaps of ignorance, superstition and selfishness—has constructed the measure of order, liberty, and progress in the art of living which we call “the civilized world.” There we find a silver lining to this dark cloud of fear and foreboding which is so rapidly obscuring the treasured hope of a world advancing to universal peace and prosperity. But the remedy is not of man’s provision, nor of human vision or promise. The antidote for discouragement and fear is in the promises of God, as we read, “Nevertheless, we, according to his [God’s] promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.”—II Peter 3:13
This is the same assurance voiced by Jesus when, in his great prophecy regarding the end of this age, he implied the development of powers so malevolent and so destructive that, “except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for, the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.” (Matt. 24:22) Evidently—from this and other prophecies relating to our day—it will be at the time of man’s utter inability to ward off the impending destruction of all he holds dear, that the “shortening” of those days will take place.
When the “fire” of human selfishness—using for destructive purposes the great advancement in knowledge which has given to man the power of atomic energy—bids fair to consume the race, as well as the “works” he has constructed, then will that new government for which Christian people have long prayed take control and bring order out of confusion. “Thy kingdom come [the ‘new heavens … wherein dwelleth righteousness’—the reign of Jesus Christ and his faithful followers]. Thy will be done in earth [the ‘new earth,’ or new society organized upon the cornerstone of reverence for God and his righteous laws].” “The fear [reverence] of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom”!—Psa. 111:10
But, we ask ourselves, have we any evidence that the development of atomic energy and its use in bombs has caused any considerable increase in reverence for God, any conviction that obedience to his precepts is the solution for the problem of mutual destruction? That there is present in the world today an intense, paralyzing fear of what the future holds in view of this new means of destruction, there can be no doubt; nor can there be any doubt that this fear is present and magnified in ratio to the intelligence and knowledge of the individual. And, while it would be a grand result,, and awaken a joy in which every right-minded person would share, if the demonstrations of nuclear energy given us thus far would convert men, inspire a reverence for God and the Bible, where do we have any such evidence?
On the contrary, there has been little attempt—at least, little if any reported in the press—to connect this momentous discovery with the prophecies of the Scriptures and thereby to impress upon the nations the claims of the Great Author to the allegiance and obedience of all men. Rather, the world seems to be content with the scientific aspects of this discovery, though not now accepting it as an evidence of man’s great progress toward perfection, as some a generation ago were inclined to do when contemplating their strides from the simple scenes and aspects of civilization prior to the discovery and utilization of steam and electricity.
Today, instead, this discovery of greater import than any development of science in the history of the human race is prompting to the haunting fear that man is not prepared in his ethics and principles to make proper use of this new discovery. This new product of scientific achievement instead of evoking any degree of pride and satisfaction, should be the occasion for humiliation and anxiety in recognition of the danger to which the race is even now exposed.
The prophecies of the Bible, in their marvelous advance record of every important detail of our day as well as the events of history, give us peace and understanding. In fact, genuine peace is dependent upon the understanding of these prophecies! There is no other source to which one can turn for rest of mind today, and for a vision of the future assuring a Power able to cope with the present situation in the world—yes, or any which may develop in the future.
Those prophecies have foretold the great increase of knowledge which would take place in the end of this age; the long reign of sin and death; Satan’s rule over the human race through misleading them from knowledge of their great Creator, and substituting the principles of self-interest, greed, and fear for those of love, generosity, and confidence resulting from a knowledge of God’s Word and an indwelling of his Spirit.
The prophecies have told us that in this end of the age, just prior to the establishment of Christ’s kingdom, the world would be filled with violence and that this degeneration of human thought and behavior would be coincident with continued professions of faith in God and reverence for him. Note the Apostle Paul’s words to Timothy concerning this evil day of unbelief:
“This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof.”—II Tim. 3:1-5; Dan. 12:1; Matt. 24:21
With the deepest relief we note the assurance of our Lord in Matthew 24:21 that this greatest of all times of distress among men will never be repeated! Thank God, there is an end in sight! The more convinced we are that the present time of unprecedented trouble is the one foretold in the Scriptures, the more certain we can be, on the basis of the words of Jesus himself, that the climax is at hand! Yes, the Empire of Satan, worldwide, is to give place to the reign of Christ, when “they shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy kingdom.”—Isa. 11:9
And these wonderful prophecies give further details of what we may expect as this trouble progresses to its climax, and how that climax will be met so as to inspire faith in man, and. cause him to lift his eyes from the terrifying exhibition of human depravity, and the ineptitude of human rulers in their efforts to bring about an order in which he can have confidence and peace. They tell us that the final exhibition of human depravity and selfishness affecting great masses of men will be in the vicinity of Jerusalem, that when the Israelites have returned to their ancient land in large numbers and are prospering there and at peace, the cupidity of their fellow men will be aroused and they will seek to subject them again to their rule, to take captive, and to exploit.
Regathering and Trouble
From Ezekiel, chapters 38 and 39, Zechariah 14, and Jeremiah 30, we may gain a fair picture of what the future may hold as this time of trouble develops. In Jeremiah 30 we seem to have a picture of the regathering of Israelites to Palestine in a time of sore distress, such as the present. In Ezekiel we believe, we have the divinely provided picture of the final attack on regathered Israel, and their deliverance by the miraculous intervention of God on their behalf.
In Zechariah 14 we have another picture of this final attack on Israel in. their own land, and an intimation that the final overthrow of their enemies may involve the turning against themselves of a power which has now been discovered, and which may be referred to in those remarkable words: “And this shall be the plague wherewith the Lord will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes, and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth. And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult from the Lord shall be among them; and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbor, and his hand shall rise up against the hand his neighbor.”—Zech. 14:12,13
How comforting is the immediate sequence to the foregoing prophecy, as recorded in verses sixteen to the end of the chapter! Note carefully that it is apparently immediately following this final affliction of Israel, regathered to their own land, that the Lord miraculously delivers them through the destruction of their enemies by means of weapons comparable only in their effects to the atomic bombs now possessed by man. Perhaps God will do this, as in the case of the Midianites, by turning the destructive forces of Israel’s enemies against themselves.—Ezek.38:21-23
Let us take a full measure of comfort and encouragement from the assurance of the Prophet Zechariah regarding all who are left of those who attempted the injury of Israel after they were regathered; and beyond that, his assurance that the conversion then accomplished will include “all the families of the earth”! We read:
“And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles. And it shall be, that whoso will not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain.”
Let us take courage from these assurances that “the Lord of hosts” is interested in the Jews today. He has informed us in advance that their return to their own land, “a remnant,” would be in a time of terrible distress, but that, not with standing all opposition, they would return. And let us thank God that Israel’s return, its final persecution there, and miraculous deliverance, will be but the precursor of the extension of God’s sway and power, backed by justice and love, over “all the families of the earth.”
It is in that great convulsion in Palestine, following the return of Israel and their prosperous and peaceful establishment, when the Lord assumes his ancient role as the defender of his people and their avenger upon their enemies, that Israel will be reconverted, that God will be recognized in his true character—“sanctified” in the eyes of Israel, and later, in the eyes of understanding of all mankind! Then, we are told, they “shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him” as for their only son. (Zech. 12:9-11) Their long-looked-for Messiah, in the person of the Lord Jesus and his faithful church, will be recognized by them as Jehovah’s instrumentality for the establishment of the Kingdom for which Christians pray. By accepting Jesus as their Redeemer as well as King, and obeying the laws of the divine kingdom, Israel can return to God’s favor, and together with all nations who similarly must accept Christ in order to have God’s favor, enjoy peace and life forever.