| Highlights of Dawn | April 1965 |
“We Will Not Fear”
“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” —Psalm 46:1
TODAY the world is filled with fear; a fear that is increasing as the danger of world conflict among the nations increases. This mounting tension has been particularly noticeable since the bombing raids and counter raids between North and South Viet Nam began in February. The enlightened public know that developments of this nature can easily draw all the major powers of earth into the conflict, and in such an event there would come the use of ballistic missiles and hydrogen bombs to produce a carnage of destruction such as has never been known on the earth before. Such a war none could win: all would lose.
Whether this suicidal struggle will break out as a result of what is happening in Viet Nam, or in some other festering trouble spot in the world, the general impression seems to be that eventually it will take place. True, many of the leading statesmen of the world hope against hope that with patience in handling the “cold war,” ways of keeping the peace will be found. Their strongest hope for this lies in their strength of armaments, the theory being that enemies will fear to attack lest they be destroyed. This is a slim hope, and thus far in this world of selfishness the philosophy of keeping the peace by being prepared for war has never proved to be true.
The hope of Christians, who are enlightened by the prophecies of God’s Word, is not based upon the effectiveness of military strength, but upon the power of the Lord. “God is our refuge and strength,” our text declares, “a very present help in trouble.” The next verse in this remarkable prophecy reads, “Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof.”
This language reminds us of the expression used by Jesus when answering the disciples’ question concerning the time of his second presence and the end of the age. Matthew quotes Jesus as saying that there would then be a time of great tribulation—tribulation so acute that unless it was brought to an end no flesh would be saved. (Matt. 24:21,22) Luke describes this tribulation in a different way, referring to it as “distress of nations, with perplexity,” adding that men’s hearts would fail them for fear as they looked ahead to the things coming upon the earth.—Luke 21:25,26
Luke quotes Jesus as likening this coming distress of nations with perplexity to the roaring of the sea and the waves. In this expression Jesus may have had in mind the prophecy of Isaiah 17:12,13. This passage reads: “Woe to the multitude [margin, or, noise] of many people, which make a noise like the noise of the seas; and to the rushing of nations, that make a rushing like the rushing of many waters! … but God shall rebuke them, and they shall flee afar off, and shall be chased as the chaff of the mountains before the wind, and like a rolling thing [margin, or, thistledown] before the whirlwind.”
It seems evident from this language that the Bible uses the agitated and roaring sea to symbolize the chaotic and clamorous nations and peoples of earth, as they strike out for their real and fancied rights. The Bible uses mountains to symbolize kingdoms and governments, and the Psalmist’s words, “Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea,” conjure up a picture in our minds of the restless masses of humanity lashing out against the status quo of long constituted governments, and seeking to bring mankind under the control of the restless, dissatisfied elements of human society.
We know, of course, that the “earth” mentioned in this and similar prophecies does not refer to the literal planet upon which we live, but to organized society under various forms of government. “The earth abideth forever,” we are assured. (Eccles. 1:4) The Lord did not create the earth in vain, but formed it to be inhabited. (Isa. 45:18) It is the symbolic earth that is removed. It is the symbolic “mountains” that are carried into the midst of the raging seas of human passion.
Jesus referred to the time of great tribulation, the time when men’s hearts would fail them for fear, as being a sign of his second presence. One of the titles which the Bible ascribes to Jesus is “Michael.” In Daniel 12:1, in reference to the time for the establishment of his kingdom, we read that Michael would “stand up” and there would be a “time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation.” It was this prophecy to which Jesus had reference when he spoke of the “time of great tribulation” which would threaten the destruction of all flesh. And Jesus added that there would never again be such a devastating trouble upon the earth. The reason for this is that this trouble prepares the way for the full establishment of Christ’s kingdom; that kingdom in which lasting peace, health, and life will be extended to all mankind.
In verse 6 of Psalm 46 we find a partial interpretation of the symbols used in verses 2 and 3, which speak of the waters roaring, and the mountains being carried into the midst of the sea. Verse 6 reads, “The nations raged, the kingdoms were moved.” (R.V.) In speaking of the roaring sea (vs. 3), the Lord really meant that nations would rage. Instead of mountains bring carried into the midst of the sea (vs. 2), the kingdoms are removed. To this is added the statement, “He uttered his voice, the earth melted.”
Melted with Blood
In the prophecies this time of great tribulation upon the nations at the end of the age is also described as the day of God’s wrath upon the nations. We quote Isaiah 34:1-3: “Come near, ye nations, to hear; and hearken, ye people: let the earth hear, and all that is therein; the world, and all things that come forth of it. For the indignation of the Lord is upon all nations, and his fury upon all their armies: he hath utterly destroyed them, he hath delivered them to the slaughter. Their slain also shall be cast out, and their stink shall come up out of their carcasses, and the mountains shall be melted with their blood.”
Much symbolic language is used in this prophecy. For example, the “earth” is called upon to hear the Word of the Lord. The physical earth has no ears, but the governments and institutions of earth, which constitute human society, can hear, although they do not give heed to the Lord’s warnings against them. Because they do not, they are to be destroyed, and one of the symbols of destruction here used is that the “mountains” shall be “melted” with the blood of their armies.
Literal mountains do not melt away under a bath of blood, but symbolic mountains do—blood being symbolic of the widespread loss of life which takes place in the time of “great tribulation.” These symbolic expressions are not necessarily limited to an actual loss of life, although this is one of the distinctive features of the “time of trouble such as never was since there was a nation.” The word “melted” here used is a translation of a Hebrew word which, in addition to describing a literal liquefying of substances, also carries a symbolic meaning of being fainthearted; and this ultimately will become the condition of those who are not literally destroyed by the roaring of the sea and the waves.
“Desolations”
Returning to Psalm 46, we find verses 8 and 9 saying, “Come, behold the works of the Lord, what desolations he hath made in the earth. He maketh wars to cease unto the end of the earth; he breaketh the bow, and cutteth the spear in sunder; he burneth the chariot in the fire.” This is a somber picture of destruction, and at the same time a portrayal of a bright and wonderful prospect for all mankind.
It is through the sure word of prophecy that we are able even now to behold the works of the Lord; the “desolations” which he will make throughout the earth. But when we take a close look at these desolations we find that they are not what this word ordinarily implies, for the things made desolate are the evil things of earth—“He maketh wars to cease unto the end of the earth; he breaketh the bow, and cutteth the spear in sunder; he burneth the chariot in the fire.”
Throughout all the centuries of human experience the noble-minded have sought ways and means of abolishing war, and of bringing about the destruction of the weapons of war, but all these efforts have failed. They have failed because of the preponderance of human selfishness. There have always been those who could not be satisfied until they had seized the holdings of others; there have always been those who were greedy for power over their fellows. Because of their ruthlessness men such as these have been able to establish themselves in positions of authority and power, and in these positions have embroiled the nations in war, the more to further their selfish aims.
Only occasionally, and in limited areas, have the rulers of nations been promoters of peace and good will. Most of the time the majority have been otherwise, with the result that every generation of humans has felt the blight of war. How glad we should be that there is to be a reversal of this way of greed and selfishness; that the whole concept of war as a way of life for nations is to be destroyed, made desolate!
Education has not removed selfishness from the human heart. Science and invention have helped to implement selfishness. Formerly the greedy and power-hungry rulers of nations were limited to bows and arrows and chariots, as the means with which to equip their armies. It is against this background that the prophecies of our day are written. Today, with the human heart unchanged, the world possesses modern implements of destruction so unspeakably powerful and horrible that the entire human race is threatened with annihilation.
Jesus said that it would be so; and that unless those days be shortened, there would be no flesh saved. (Matt. 24:21,22) He assured us, nevertheless, that those days would be shortened. Today selfish man has reached his extremity, and it is God’s opportunity to intervene to save the human race from the result of its own selfishness and foolishness. After assuring us that he will make wars to cease unto the end of the earth, the Lord declares to the raging nations, “Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”—Ps. 46:10, R.V.
The expression, “Be still,” contrasts with the picture of the raging nations, or people, which, according to the Scriptures, “make a noise like the noise of the seas.” (Isa. 17:12,13) God’s voice of authority will be heard by mankind through the agencies of the messianic kingdom. The great objective of that kingdom is to establish the will of God throughout the earth, and to fill the earth with his glory.
Today the will of God is seldom considered among the rulers of the earth. Indeed, half the world denies that there is a God. But this situation will change when, with power and great glory, the kingdom of Christ manifests itself as a dominating factor in the affairs of all mankind. The Lord’s kingdom is symbolized by a mountain—Mount Zion, in Jerusalem—and we read that “the mountain,” made up of the Lord’s ruling house—Christ and his faithful followers—will, in the last days, be established “in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.”—Isa. 2:2,3
Yes, when the Lord issues his command to the nations to “be still,” they will hear, and will obey. By then they will have recognized, in part at least, the futility of war, since it would have led to the destruction of all mankind, including the rulers, and they will be ready to recognize the authority of Christ’s kingdom, and will seek to be taught the Lord’s ways. And when they are thus taught, instead of continuing to learn war, they will beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks.
This program of education under the authority of the kingdom will continue until the knowledge of the Lord fills the whole earth as the waters cover the sea, and nothing will be permitted to hurt nor destroy in all this “holy mountain,” or kingdom. (Isa. 11:9; 65:25) To “know” the Lord is to see and appreciate his glory, so the earth will thus be filled with his glory. (Isa. 6:3; 40:5; Ps. 72:19) Truly it is a bright prospect that spreads out before us as, through the prophecies of God’s Word, we look beyond the world situation today!
This is the reason that we do not need to fear! True, much hardship is still ahead for the distressed and fear-filled world of mankind. Some of this distress will be experienced by the Lord’s own people. He has not promised to spare us from suffering, but he has given us assurance of his grace to help in our every time of need. The greatest “help” we will receive in this “time of trouble” will be our deliverance, through death, into the kingdom as joint-heirs with our Lord. Jesus, speaking of the time in which we live, and of the events now taking place, said that when we see these things “begin to come to pass,” we are to lift up our heads knowing that our deliverance “draweth nigh.”—Luke 21:28
So it is, that instead of fearing what we know is coming upon the earth, we are glad to realize that we are living in this transition period when the old social order of Satan is passing away, and Christ’s kingdom is being prepared for its establishment. Instead of our hearts being filled with fear, the Scriptures admonish us to proclaim a message of comfort to those who are fearful. We read, “Strengthen ye the weak hands, and confirm the feeble knees. Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not: behold, your God will come with vengeance, even God with a recompense; he will come and save you.”—Isa. 35:3,4
As we have noted, one of the biblical names given to the period in which we live is “the day of vengeance.” The whole series of calamities which has come upon the distressed world in our generation is a manifestation of God’s displeasure with man’s wicked and selfish ways. He has tolerated selfishness throughout the earth during all the centuries while he was preparing the agencies of his own kingdom. But now the time is here for the establishment of that kingdom; so, in his own way he is making a desolation of man’s warlike rulership.
With this in mind, how meaningful are the words, “Fear not, behold, your God will come with vengeance, even God with a recompense; he will come and save you.” This is our message to a fear-filled world. We are to proclaim the fact that God’s vengeance is being manifested against the raging nations of earth. However, we are also to assure the people as we have opportunity that our Heavenly Father is not a vindictive God; that he is not manifesting his displeasure against the world merely to cause suffering; that in reality the time has come for him to offer salvation to all mankind—“He will come and save you.”
This combination of thoughts is presented to us in Revelation 11:17,18: “We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned. And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy [margin, or, corrupt] the earth.”
Thus in a few words we are presented with a summary of the work of Christ’s kingdom, that thousand-year kingdom in which, if faithful, we will have the privilege of living and reigning with Christ. (Rev. 20:6) It will be a time when the resurrected dead will be equitably judged. What a comforting thought this is to present to those who today are fearful that they, together with their friends and families, will all be destroyed! Many will indeed be destroyed, not because God wants their destruction, but because the time has come to save them. First the unrighteous institutions of earth which have blighted mankind for so long must be destroyed. Incidentally, this leads to the destruction of human life. But God is able to restore these to life, and will do so. Those who die shall live again, whether they die in Viet Nam, in London, in Warsaw, or in Washington.
So let us remember that “God is our refuge” in this time of trouble, and that he has enlightened us with the truth concerning his position in the “great tribulation,” and that therefore we do not need to fear. Rather, we should in every way possible be messengers of comfort to those whose hearts are filled with fear, binding up the brokenhearted on every suitable occasion and opportunity. Happy Zion, what a favored lot is thine!