| Highlights of Dawn | June 1947 |
Our Day in Prophecy
NEVER before has the human race passed through such an era of universal uncertainty and distress as is currently plaguing the nations the world over. These tragic, fear-instilling conditions cannot be explained by the once trusted formula that it is merely a case of history repeating itself. For the major problems of today there is no historic precedent. A new and terrifying spirit is abroad in the earth. The growing enlightenment of the masses stimulates a desire for more of earth’s bounties than they ever before possessed, yet vast numbers of them are prevented from obtaining even the ordinary; necessities of life.
And there seems no way out of this maelstrom of unhappy paradoxes. In one generation two global wars have been fought, and millions of men have died in battle with the express objective of securing peace and plenty for all mankind. But now it is becoming increasingly plain that all this bloodshed has accomplished nothing except to leave the world impoverished, discouraged, and filled with fear. These wars to end wars have left the world in a chaos from which human leadership is unable to find any satisfactory way of escape.
Surveying the international field we note four outstanding elements which figure almost daily in the news. These are the United Nations; the problem of Palestine; the threat of Totalitarianism; and the much feared destruction made possible through the misuse of atomic energy. Developments associated with any one of these are sensational enough to demand world attention, but together they keep the heads of the diplomats whirling, and the people in general guessing and fearful. There is a widespread feeling of pessimism that the United Nations will probably go the way of the League of Nations and that a third world war will finish wrecking civilization.
The problem of Palestine is much more than a mere local disagreement between Jews and Arabs. That millions of Jews were killed in Europe during the last war, making the remainder feel that they must get out of Europe and back to the land which God gave to their fathers, broadens the range of this problem. That Zionists the world over are so vitally concerned about it, and because anti-Semitism is rife everywhere, gives further world significance to this peace-threatening problem.
Then there is the threat of Totalitarianism. This is a problem that involves the very foundations of modern civilization, politically, economically, and religiously. It is a threat which becomes more ominous as the chaos and distress of the masses increase. It thrives in proportion to the dwindling confidence of the people in the institutions which were thought to be the bulwarks of peace, security, and plenty. The religious leaders, especially, stand appalled at the threat of Totalitarianism, for where its power engulfs a people, the church, at the best, is forced to take a back seat, if, indeed, it is permitted to exist at all.
And then there is the almost universal fear of the atomic bomb. Not only does the world now know of the terrible immediate destruction that is wrought by the explosion of atomic bombs, but it is also now common knowledge that the menace of radio activity which affects practically everything in the general area of the explosions is perhaps worse than the havoc wrought by the explosion itself. Animal and plant life are stunted by it. Loathsome sores break out months later on those whom it was supposed had escaped injury. It is indeed a terrible plague which science, in the name of civilization, and by a professed civilized nation, has given to a selfish, warring world, increasing the awfulness of this dreadful day in which we are living. Albert Einstein, who has warned that the use of atomic bombs in the next war will destroy two-thirds of the human race in a very short time, has more recently said that he now regrets that he had anything whatever to do with atomic energy.
Look where we will in the archives of human knowledge, no solution can be found for the dilemma into which selfishness has plunged this unhappy world. As far as man’s vision is concerned, there is no way out, no happy ending to the unhappy road over which a weary, fear-filled race is now blindly stumbling. But there is, nevertheless, an answer, and, it is found in that Book of books, the Bible. In the wicked, unbelieving world of today this Book is scorned and cast aside as a supposed collection of unreliable historical records and childish superstitions. But it is the only Book wherein is to be found a prophetic chart of the present chaos of the world and a comprehensive preview of the world of tomorrow.
The United Nations
The uniting of the nations in these last days is clearly foretold in the Bible. The Bible also reveals their motive for uniting and what the outcome of the effort will be. A good example of this is the prophecy of Isaiah 8:9,10, which reads, “Associate yourselves, O ye people, and ye shall be broken in pieces; and give ear, all ye of far countries: gird yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces; gird yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces. Take counsel together, and it shall come to nought; speak the word, and it shall not stand.” Two verses farther on in this same chapter, the Lord speaks to his own people, saying, “Say ye not, A confederacy, to all them to whom this people shall say, A confederacy; neither fear ye their fear, nor be afraid.”
There is no escaping the fact that the motive which produced the League of Nations, and the motive which has brought the United Nations into existence, is fear. The first World War hurled civilization toward ruin, and it was foreseen that something should be done in an attempt to avert another devastating war, so the League of Nations was formed. It was a sort of mutual protective society for the nations which joined the League. But as matters turned out, it afforded little or no protection. Another war came, and this time civilization was brought to the very brink of destruction; so fear again prompted protective action, and the United Nations was the result.
But the Lord declares that despite their united efforts to forestall threatened and impending disaster, they shall be “broken.” “Take counsel together, and it shall come to nought,” the prophet declares. When the United Nations first came into being at San Francisco one would probably have been considered a prophet of doom had he called attention to these words of Isaiah, but now their truthfulness is becoming increasingly evident. Undertones of fear and gloom, and sometimes outspoken declarations are now heard from various high ranking statesmen and officials that the United Nations cannot succeed.
At San Francisco, Sir Anthony Eden, then Foreign Minister of the British Government, stated that in the United Nations the world was having its last chance. Now it is becoming increasingly clear to the well-informed that that last chance has been “muffed.” Individual nations who are members of the union have little faith in the ability of the United Nations to protect them, so they are forming their own individual pacts. Great Britain and France have joined in a fifty-year mutual assistance alliance. Great Britain and Russia have also formed a pact between themselves. The United States and Canada have agreed to work together for mutual protection. All of this individual treaty making is tacit acknowledgment that the United Nations already has failed of its purpose.
It is evident that God foreknew this failure thousands of years ago, and to strengthen our faith in his Word, as well as to inform us concerning the meaning of these tragic times in which we are living, he had his prophet record this accurate preview of attempted international unity in our day. And God confirms the matter by the Prophet Zephaniah in another graphic description of assembled nations, and shows what the ultimate outcome will be. In this prophecy God takes the responsibility for the gathering and explains his purpose in so doing. We quote:
“Therefore wait ye upon me, saith the Lord, until the day that I rise up to the prey: for my determination is to gather the nations, that I may assemble the kingdoms, to pour upon them mine indignation, even all my fierce anger: for all the earth shall be devoured with the fire of my jealousy.”—Zephaniah 3:8
The reign of sin and selfishness has always produced unhappiness. Injustice and oppression have almost continuously plagued the dying race, so the expression, “Wait ye upon me, saith the Lord, until the day that I rise up to the prey,” is a strong assurance that the Creator did not intend always to permit sin, selfishness, and death to rule throughout the world: that a time would come when he would take action to set aside all rulership in the earth which attempts to operate in defiance of his will. And God’s method of doing this is quite understandable in the light of modern world developments. He gathers the nations, assembles them in pacts and alliances, so that all become involved in the problems of each, with the result that wars can no longer be mere local skirmishes, but worldwide cataclysms of destructive trouble, each one in turn further weakening the fabric of a world order until finally civilization collapses.
In Zephaniah’s prophecy the Lord describes this as destroying the nations by the fire of his jealousy. Humanly constituted authority has been usurping God’s rulership in the hearts and lives of men and nations since the days of Eden. All this while God has held his peace. Through another prophet he explains that he has restrained himself from interfering in the affairs of men. (Isaiah 42:13,14) He also explains in this prophecy that there would come an end to this non-interference policy, and that then he would act to overthrow the kingdoms of this world, preparatory to the full establishment of Christ’s kingdom.
The gathering of the nations, then, is a prelude to the complete destruction of this “present evil world.” (Gal. 1:4) Viewing the matter from the standpoint of faith in the prophecies and promises of God, it should not be looked upon as a catastrophe, but rather, as a necessary step forward in the outworking of the Creator’s plan for the everlasting blessing of all mankind. After telling us through the prophet that it is his intention to gather the nations and to devour the symbolic earth—civilization—with the fire of his jealousy, the Lord gives us the heart-cheering assurance of better times ahead, saying, “For then will I turn to the people a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the Lord, to serve him with one consent.”—Zeph. 3:9
What a boon to humanity that will be! “I will turn to the people a pure language,” says the Lord. Language is the conveyor of thoughts, and a “pure” language suggests the outflow to mankind of a message of assurance and good will which is to emanate from the kingdom of Christ, a message which will not only give needed direction to the nations as to the proper way to make and keep the peace, but will enlighten all with a knowledge of the true God. The result will be, as the prophet declares, that they will all call upon the name of the Lord to serve him with one consent.
One of the fundamental causes of all world distress is the fact that the people fail to recognize that the supreme authority of the Creator should be the ruling principle of their lives. The whole human race, with the exception of occasional individuals, is in rebellion against God. As long as this condition exists there can be no lasting peace, no security, and no genuine good will. But with the overthrow of the “present evil world” and the establishment of Christ’s kingdom authority among men, this situation will change. Under the influence of the “pure language” then filling the earth the people’s minds will be enlightened to know the true God, and their hearts will respond with one accord to serve him and obey his laws of justice and righteousness. Thus will peace and health and joy and everlasting life come to the people of all nations.
Palestine in Prophecy
Four thousand years ago God made a promise to the patriarch Abraham, saying, “… All the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed forever.” (Gen. 13:15) This was the land which is now Palestine; and the “seed” of Abraham which was to possess this land is the nation of Israel. That promise has never been retracted and still stands today as a title guarantee that the descendants of Abraham are ultimately to possess the Holy Land and dwell therein forever. Any examination of the prophecies which fails to consider the divine purpose concerning this historic people would of necessity fail to discover the true meaning of the tragic experiences through which the Jews have been passing in recent years, and what the outcome of these experiences is destined to be.
The nation of Israel first entered the Promised Land forty years after they left Egypt, or nearly four thousand years ago. Their leader and great lawgiver, Moses, foretold, even before they entered the land for the first time, that they would not be permitted to remain therein, but would be driven out and scattered. Tribulation would come upon them, Moses prophesied, but added that in the “latter days,” when they cried unto the Lord in their distress, they would be restored to the land and peace would again become their heritage.—Deut. 4:27-31
The people were driven from Palestine six centuries before Christ, but later, under a decree issued by Cyrus, king of the Medo-Persian Empire, were permitted to return. Their final dispersion occurred in A.D. 70-73, when Jerusalem was destroyed and the people scattered. Since then they have enjoyed few privileges in the land which God gave to their fathers. Their unhappy lot as a scattered and persecuted people is graphically described in the prophecies of God’s Word, but more important as a key to the meaning of their present experiences as related to world events in general, are the promises of God pertaining to their restoration to Palestine, and the prophecies which describe the distress which would come upon them in connection with the restoration of the land.
The Prophet Jeremiah wrote: “For, lo, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will bring again the captivity of my people Israel and Judah, saith the Lord: and I will cause them to return to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it.”—Jer. 30:3
Verses 4-17 of this same 30th chapter of Jeremiah’s prophecy present a preview of the tragic experiences through which the Jews would pass during the time when their land was being restored to them. It would be a time, says the prophet, when all faces would be turned into paleness; a time when there would be none to plead the cause of Israel. “Alas!” says the prophet, “for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble; but he shall be saved out of it.” Assurance is given in this prophecy that the nations which fight against Israel, endeavoring to prevent the rightful heirs of Palestine from possessing the land, shall be destroyed. It is also made plain that the Jews themselves are not without blame, and that they shall he corrected and not permitted to go unpunished.
The Lord states in this prophecy concerning his ancient people that he would “cause them to return to the land.” There is a hint in this language that when the time should come for the Lord to restore the Land of Promise to its rightful owners they would not be particularly interested in returning until he brought about circumstances that would “cause” them to return How realistically this has been fulfilled! Contrast the attitude of the Jews today—especially the European Jews—with that of fifty years ago, and the great change that has taken place in their viewpoint is most apparent. Now the remnant of the Jews who survived the Nazi persecution are literally clamoring to enter Palestine. The urge to go there has not particularly seized the Jews in America as yet—that may come later—but in Europe it has.
The paradox of this is that while the Jews are insisting upon returning to Palestine, the way is barred, and the circumstances are such that it has created an international issue which again threatens the peace of the world. The prophetic outline of this situation is not given in sufficient detail to enable the student to say in advance what each new turn in the developments will be, but the prophecies do portray in principle exactly what we see occurring in this most interesting and tragic field of human experience.
We have already noted some of the prophecies which foretold the gathering of the Gentile nations in these last days. Another such prophecy is that of Joel 3:1,2. Here we are given the additional information that the experiences of the Jews in connection with their regathering to Palestine would be linked up with the gathering of the Gentile nations. It is most striking, we think, that first with the League of Nations, and now with the United Nations, the plight of the Jews has become an international problem; and that the issue is concerned chiefly with whether or not they are to have the land which God gave to their fathers.
This prophecy reads, “For, behold, in those days, and in that time, when I shall bring again the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem, I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people … Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.” The bringing again of Israel’s captivity is another reference to their regathering to the Promised Land, and it is at the very time when this is due to be accomplished, according to the prophet that the Lord gathers all nations into the “valley of Jehoshaphat.”
Verses 9-14 of the chapter (Joel 3) give us a more detailed description of this gathering, explaining that it is a war-like assembly of the nations, and that these united nations go “all out” to prepare for war, even to the extent of beating their plowshares into swords, and their pruninghooks into spears. Seventy-five per cent of the world’s population is starving today because for years the natural resources of the earth which should have been providing for the needs of the people have been converted into the sinews of war. It is difficult to imagine a more definite fulfillment of a prophecy than what we have witnessed, and are continuing to witness in this respect.
In verse 14 the valley of “Jehoshaphat” is explained as being a valley of “decision.” Names are often used in the prophecies because of the meaning the ancients attached to them, and the name Jehoshaphat meant “Jehovah has judged.” The thought of the prophecy is that in this great gathering of the nations God judges them, and one of the issues involved in his decision is the attitude of the nations toward his ancient people Israel. God pleads with the assembled nations for Israel, and the evident reason is that instead of co-operating in the work of restoring them to their land, the nations continue to scatter them, and to divide the land. In view of this, we think it is significant that already one of the methods suggested by Gentile nations to settle the Jewish problem is to partition the Land of Promise.
The prophecies concerning the full re-establishment of Israel in the Promised Land are far from being completely fulfilled, so it would be unwise to attempt a forecast of developments in detail. But before leaving this point we will call attention to a prophecy which portrays the final act in this drama of Jewish experience. It is the prophecy of Ezekiel, chapter 38. In this prophecy we are told that in the latter days a mighty host will come down against Palestine from the north, under the leadership of a prophetic character styled “Gog,” who hails from the land of Magog. Students of prophecy are almost unanimous in their opinion that this prophetic “land of Magog” is Russia. In the prophecy we learn that other nations are associated with the “land of Magog” in this assault against Palestine—“Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya.”
It is difficult at the present to identify these enemies of Israel too definitely, for this phase of the prophetic picture is yet unfulfilled. However, judging from what is even now occurring, it is not hard to foresee a time when Russia, and Russian satellite nations, perhaps an aggregation of nations including those of the Arab world, might well attempt by force to oust the Israelites from Palestine altogether, and loot them of their possessions.
But the matter of concern to us is not who will try to do this, but the fact that finally the attempt will be made, and that it will be then that God will demonstrate that he is on the side of his ancient people; that having promised to give them the land, he will see that they get it. In Joel 3:2 we read that God would plead with the nations for his people, and in this prophecy of Ezekiel 38 we learn how this pleading will be done. We read: “And I will plead against him [Gog and his satellite associates] with pestilence and with blood; and I will rain upon him, and upon his bands, and upon the many people that are with him, an overflowing rain, and great hailstones, fire and brimstone. Thus will I magnify myself, and sanctify myself; and I will be known in the eyes of many nations, and they shall know that I am the Lord.”—Ezek. 38:22,23
There is much ado among the nations today concerning the secret of the atomic bomb, but when this final phase of the present great “time of trouble” is precipitated by the foretold attack against Israel in the Holy Land, the nations will discover that the Creator, the great God of the universe, has some “atomic secrets” of his own which he will use to disperse and to destroy the enemies of his ancient people.
Then all the people, Jews and Gentiles, will know that God has intervened in human affairs. Other prophecies reveal that from this point forward the kingdom of Christ will be the dominating influence in the world; so effective that the nations which do not yield themselves to its control will be “rebuked,” and the blessings of life withheld from them.—Micah 4:1-4; Zech. 14:16-20
Totalitarianism in Prophecy
Totalitarianism means total or absolute rule by the governing head of a nation or empire, without respect to the wishes of the people affected. The dictionary defines it as “a national socialistic philosophy of government in which the state is omnipotent and absolute.” It is dictatorship. Throughout all the ages of the past mankind has known little else in the way of government except Totalitarianism. There were at times short-lived experiments in democracy in limited areas of the world, but generally speaking, dictatorship, or total rule, has prevailed.
This was true of ancient Egypt, where the Pharaohs were absolute dictators. It was true also of the ancient Assyrian Empire, and later the Babylonian Empire. It is with the Babylonian Empire that the Bible picks up the thread of history and weaves it into a historical-prophetic pattern which reaches even to our day. These prophecies reveal the ultimate outcome of the colossal world drama now being enacted on the stage of human experience. We find this in the Book of Daniel, and there presented from two viewpoints.
In the 2nd chapter, successive world empires, beginning with Babylon, are illustrated by various sections of a human-like image, with head of gold, breast and arms of silver, belly and thighs of brass, legs of iron, and feet and toes of iron and clay mixed. In the 7th chapter this same succession of totalitarian governments is portrayed as four “beasts.”
Daniel 2:37,38, identifies Nebuchadnezzar, the then ruling head of the Babylonian Empire as the “head of gold” in the great image he had seen in his dream. The prophet told this heathen king that the God of heaven had given him to be the ruler over men. This does not imply divine sanction and blessing of all that occurred in Babylon, but merely that from this point onward and for a limited time God permitted Gentile kingdoms to dominate the affairs of men.
Nebuchadnezzar was both civil and religious ruler of Babylon. The religious aspect of his reign was emphasized when he erected a great image representing himself as ruler, and commanded that all the people bow down and worship it. (Dan. 3:4-6) The Babylonian Empire did not continue long after this. It was succeeded by Medo-Persian total rule. Medo-Persian rule was overthrown by the Grecians, and later the Greek Empire was swallowed up by the Roman Empire. This succession was portrayed in the prophecy of Daniel 2:31-40, and in Daniel 7:1-8. In both of these prophecies the kingdom of God is seen to succeed human rulership.
Historically more is known of the viewpoint and methods of the Pagan Roman Empire than of those which preceded it, but one characteristic seems to have been common to them all; namely, Totalitarianism; that is, total rule in both civil and religious matters. From time to time various degrees of religious liberty were allowed, such as in the case of the Jews in Palestine, but this was by sufferance and it did not mean the surrender of the emperor’s right to demand the worship of all the people as he might choose. In Pagan Rome, the emperor assumed the title of Pontifex Maximus, which means chief religious ruler.
When the Roman Empire came under the domination of the papal hierarchy the title Pontifex Maximus was transferred to the popes, hence the Roman Empire was still totalitarian, still an absolute form of government, controlling both the civil and religious affairs of the people. The only change was that whereas the former Roman emperors claimed to represent no particular god other than themselves, the popes claimed to be the vicegerents of Christ.
This rule of absolutism continued until the birth of the Protestant movement and democracy. The spirit of Protestantism and democracy began gradually to weaken the total rule of the popes, for the people, in the exercise of liberty, began to have an increasing voice in civil and religious matters. In a few countries of Europe parliaments were established, and through these the people to some extent, at least, made their power felt.
By the close of the 18th century the absolutism of Papal Rome had become so weakened that Napoleon was able to make the pope a prisoner. The discovery of America and the growth of the American Republic gave impetus to the spirit of liberty, a spirit that was shattering the ideology of civil and religious dictatorship in government. Msgr. Fulton J. Sheen, chief radio voice of the Catholic Church in the United States, describes this period as one of “historic liberalism.” He also says that it has been an irreligious era, which now is coming to a close and that we are entering a religious age in which once more the people will turn to the absolute in government.
And strange to say, the prophecies indicate that in this he is right. As we have noted, in Daniel’s prophecy covering the long period of Totalitarianism in government, beginning with Babylon, the four principal empires of this period are depicted as four “beasts.” By almost common consent of students of prophecy, the fourth of these beasts portrays the Roman Empire—first as pagan and then papal. In this prophecy the change-over from pagan to papal is shown by a “little horn” that grows up among the other horns of the beast, of which there were ten, supplanting three of them.
In the Book of Revelation this prophecy is set forth in greater detail, and here, instead of a “little horn” growing on the head of the original beast, we find the beast giving its power and great authority—its Totalitarianism—to a leopard-like beast, which rules with the same high hand as did the “great red dragon” which preceded it. But, as history records, there came the era of “liberalism,” as Msgr. Sheen describes it. Pagan Rome no longer ruled the nations, and sufficient of the people were in rebellion against Papal Rome to for destroy in measure its absolutism.
But this is not the end of the prophetic picture. In the 17th chapter of Revelation we find a “scarlet colored beast” coming out of a “bottomless pit,” or an abyss, as the Greek text shows. Now however, circumstances have changed. At this point in the progress of human experience, church is separated from state. Totalitarianism is reviving, but there is a rift in its absolutism, for the religious aspect of government is shown as a separate entity, a “woman” which rides on the seven heads of the “scarlet colored beast.”
As we noted in connection with developments in Palestine, until the prophetic events have all occurred, it is unwise to be too specific; so this is also true with respect to the revival of the ancient Roman concept of government. But this much is certain, the rulership of Rome which succumbed under the impact of the combined attack of Protestantism and democracy is shown in the prophecy of Revelation 17 as coming out of the “pit.” It is shown as “making war with the Lamb”—which undoubtedly is an effort to destroy the people of God. The Lamb overcomes this beast, and it goes into perdition.
It is now a historic fact that the dictators Mussolini and Hitler attempted a revival of the Roman Empire. It is a fact that Papacy, which is undoubtedly the “woman” of the prophecy, was ready and willing to go along with this arrangement, to dominate it, if possible. Now the scene has changed. Totalitarianism is still struggling for mastery in Europe, but largely under the banner of Communism In this changed picture, there is open warfare between the dictatorship of the proletariat, and the desired absolutism of Papacy.
It is this struggle that Msgr. Sheen describes as a striving for the souls of men by the man-god vs. the god-man, which he indicates to mean the idea of the worship of the state as god vs. the worship of the Pope, who is alleged to represent God. How all the details will develop we do not know, but finally, according to Revelation 17, the “beast” goes into perdition, or destruction, while the “woman” is burned with fire. Details of this prophetic picture of the destruction of the present order are revealed throughout the 18th and 19th chapters of Revelation, followed by a portrayal in the 20th chapter of the establishment of the kingdom of Christ.
This harmonizes with the prophecy of Daniel 2:44, where we are told that following the overthrow and destruction of Gentile rulership will come the kingdom of the Lord. It also harmonizes with the prophecy of the four beasts in the 7th chapter of Daniel, where we are assured that following the destruction of the fourth beast the time comes for the “ancient of days” to possess the kingdom or rulership of earth. It is in this kingdom that the saints will share, and it is for this kingdom that we continue to pray, “Thy kingdom come; thy will be done.”
Atomic Destruction in Prophecy
It is inevitable that the world-shaking events of our day in prophecy should result in temporary distress upon the nations. Jesus referred to this period as one in which there would be “distress of nations, with perplexity; … men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth.” (Luke 21:26) The Prophet Daniel describes it as a “time of trouble such as never was since there was a nation.” (Dan. 12:1) The Prophet Haggai refers to the same period as one in which the Lord shakes “all nations,” and then adds that following the shaking “the desire of all nations shall come.”—Hag. 2:7
The reason for the distress, the trouble, and the shaking is that a world order is being overthrown preparatory to the establishment of Christ’s kingdom. It is an era of world revolution, and the revolution will not be complete until Christ’s kingdom takes the place of the kingdoms of this world. Revelation 11:17,18, tells us about this transfer and reveals that the nations would be “angry,” and that it would be a time when God’s wrath against sin and sinful institutions would be manifested, causing their overthrow.
These revolutionary events are prophetically described as taking place in the “day of the Lord,” a day that would come upon the world unawares, and the meaning of which the worldly wise would not understand. (I Thess. 5:1-3) It is a time when the nations imagine they can establish peace through their own wisdom and efforts, so they cry, “Peace and safety,” but instead of attaining peace, “sudden destruction” comes upon them, “as travail upon a woman with child”—that is, in spasms. We have already witnessed two of these spasms—that is, two major ones, and there have been others of less magnitude—and there is at least one more to follow.
In the overthrow of humanly constituted rulership as represented in the image seen by Nebuchadnezzar in his dream, this image is said to fall, then it is ground to powder, and finally the fragments are blown away. In Daniel’s vision of the same Gentile rulership in which he sees the four beasts, the fourth beast depicting the Roman Empire which was first pagan, then papal, we also find three phases of destruction indicated. First the beast is slain, his body destroyed, and alien given to the burning flame. (Dan. 7:11) Transferring this picture to the three-phase destruction of the totalitarian government represented by Daniel’s fourth beast, it is described as first taking away its dominion, then a consuming of it, finally its complete destruction.—Dan. 7:26; II Thess. 2:8
Whether the foretold complete destruction of Gentile kingdoms is to be accomplished in exactly three major spasms of destructive trouble is not so important as the fact that we are now living in the time when this destruction is being accomplished. And it is indeed “a time of trouble such as never was since there was a nation.” Jesus said that this trouble would become so severe that unless its duration was shortened no flesh would survive. And it is just this that the whole world now fears.
The possibility that the human race in its selfishness would “commit suicide” did not materialize until the advent of the atomic bomb. Even throughout the second World War, the most destructive the human race has ever witnessed, the total population of the race has steadily increased. But now the scene has changed. Atomic destruction looms up as a race-obliterating agency, and the hearts of the people are filled with fear. The United Nations struggle with the idea of banning the use of atomic bombs, but even if they reach an agreement on this point, they will not trust one another. They realize even as God’s prophet long ago foretold, that although they speak the word, “it shall not stand.”—Isa. 8:10
And it was this possible ultimate end of human experience that Jesus foretold when he said that unless these days of trouble be shortened no flesh would be saved. But the Master gives us the blessed assurance that the “time of trouble” would be shortened, which guarantees that the human race will not be permitted to destroy itself. The trouble will be shortened by divine intervention in the affairs of men.
As we have already noted, that intervention will first manifest itself when divine power will be invoked to protect God’s ancient people gathered in Palestine. (Ezek. 38:18-23) It will be then that the eyes of the nations, including Israel, will be opened to behold the glory of the Lord. From that point onward, Christ will be recognized as the real Ruler of the world. That will be the time when “the God of heaven shall set up a kingdom.” (Dan. 2:44) It will be then when “the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.”—Dan. 7:27
It is interesting to note the plurality of the personnel mentioned in connection with the kingdom of the Lord—the “saints of the most High.” Jesus will be the chief Ruler in that kingdom, but the Scriptures clearly reveal that those who have suffered and died with him during this Gospel dispensation are to live and reign with him. They are his joint-heirs in the kingdom to come. They are raised to immortality in the “first resurrection,” and they “live and reign with him a thousand years.”—Rev. 20:4,6
The kingdom reign will be upon the earth, and for the blessing of human beings. The blessings to be showered upon the people through the agencies of Christ’s kingdom will be peace, security, joy, health, and lasting life. It was to make the blessing of life available for the dying race that Jesus died. It was in order that he might be the King of earth; the Mediator between God and men; and the Judge of all, that he was raised from the dead.