Tough-talking Benjamin Netanyahu, the new Prime Minister of Israel, favors taking a harder line in the peace negotiations with the Arabs. And He refuses to divide Israel's "eternal, undivided capital city" in order to give back East Jerusalem to the Palestinians. So tensions in the Middle East are rising!

News analysts are having a field day reasoning about what's ahead for Israel and the entire Middle East. Yet there is only one Source that can tell you how events will really turn out over there. I hope you realize there is a Great GOD who controls the rise and fall of nations. The God of the Bible is REAL! And He is going to shake this entire world with dramatic events that the modern news media has no idea are coming.

God tells us that just prior to the return of Jesus Christ to this earth, "Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring.... Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory" (Luke 21:24-25, 27).

Consider also this prophecy written about 2,500 years ago: "Behold, the day of the LORD is coming.... I will gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem; the city shall be taken, the houses rifled, and the women ravished. Half of the city shall go into captivity, but the remnant of the people shall not be cut off from the city. Then the LORD will go forth and fight against those nations, as He fights in the day of battle. And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which faces Jerusalem on the east" (Zech. 14:1-4).

Zechariah's prophecy says that there will be a massive military intervention against the capital city of Israel. Half of Jerusalem will go into captivity! Next, it says that Jesus Christ will literally return to FIGHT against those nations!

From now on Jerusalem will be increasingly pushed to the center of world news. But the vast majority of Jews and professing Christians simply DO NOT understand or believe the inspired prophecies of the Bible. God is NOT real to them.

Yet some extremely religious, nationalistic Jews, and some evangelical Christians, are even now involved in movements that seek to rebuild the Temple of God at Jerusalem! They want to reestablish Jewish control of the Temple Mount, which is presently administered by a Muslim religious authority. As an article in The Wall Street Journal pointed out: "To messianic Jews, continued Muslim control of the Temple Mount constitutes an insufferable indignity. `Until the holy of holies is under our sovereignty, it means we're still living in the Diaspora,' says Rabbi Shlomo Goren, one of Israel's preeminent religious figures and the army rabbi who blew the shofar, or ram's horn, when Israeli troops captured the Temple Mount in 1967. `It means we are not yet living in a Jewish state....'

"Since the Romans destroyed the Second Temple, it's as if Judaism has had its heart extracted and is living on borrowed time.... There is one big problem: For the past 1,200 years, the Temple Mount has been the foundation of the Aqsa mosque and the Dome of the Rock, which covers the spot from where Muslims believe Mohammed ascended to heaven on a staircase of light. Jews haven't been allowed to pray regularly at the site for at least a millennium" (May 19, 1994).

How will this be resolved?

God's Word indicates that some kind of temple or altar will eventually be restored by the Jews on the Temple Mount and even animal sacrifices will be resumed for a while! But then, the coming super-dictator called the "beast" in the book of Revelation will intervene and put a stop to this (Dan. 11:31 ). This leader will wage war against Jerusalem (Zech. 14:1-2). Then, the Living Christ will intervene and destroy this coming beast and his armies (Rev. 19:19-21).

But in the meantime, various leaders and their armies will "have a go" at Jerusalem because they believe neither in God's supreme sovereignty nor in His inspired prophecies. Yet God warns: "Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of drunkenness to all the surrounding peoples, when they lay siege against Judah and Jerusalem. And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples; all who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it" (Zech. 12:2-3).

Speaking of these endtime events, Jesus Christ instructs us, "Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man" (Luke 21:36). I urge you to watch for these prophesied world events and to pray for understanding and protection. And I urge you also to believe in the REALITY of the Creator God who even now is beginning to intervene in world affairs. You need to SEEK and to serve that very real God.

Top of Page     Bottom of Page

by Roderick C. Meredith

Millions of Americans, Canadians and Britons are besieged by financial worries. Almost half the working force is now composed of women. Most women now work outside the home due to financial necessity. Increasingly, women as well as men are moonlighting—being forced to work at two jobs, in order to stay afloat.

What’s wrong?

For over 150 years our nations were blessed immeasurably. Our farmers had rain in due season. Our harvest were bountiful. And the remarkable productivity of our shops and factories made us the most materially blessed people on the earth. But now, all that is changing.

“’All of a sudden, bankruptcy numbers are rising dramatically,’ said Andre Toffel, a trustee in the personal bankruptcy court of Alabama. ‘It’s skyrocketing.’ It’s that way across America as the annual number of personal bankruptcies rises so fast it could well top one million this year for the first time. But as bankruptcy lawyers and judges work overtime to manage the problem, economists and financial analysts are searching for reason to explain the rise” (The Wall Street Journal, May 23, 1996).

Even the farmers are not immune from the overwhelming financial problems facing our peoples. Under the headline, “Wheat Farmers and Ranchers Are Ruined,” The New York Times recently reported” “From Kansas south to Texas, one of the worst droughts on record has pushed thousands of farmers on the Great Plains to the edge of financial ruin and spurred panic selling of cattle in some areas.

“Coming after two years of low rainfall and a number of other weather problems, the ferocity of this year’s drought has slowly begun to evoke memories for some here of the Depression-era Dust Bowl.

“The Oklahoma Agriculture Commissioner, Dennis Howard, predicted last week that 5,000 to 10,000 of the state’s 75,000 farming families would go bankrupt this year because of the drought and record low cattle prices brought on by mass liquidation of some ranchers’ herds. Mr. Howard said half the farm families in the state were in ‘critical financial shape,’ meaning they were in danger of failing to make mortgage or lease payments due this summer” (May 20, 1996).

Most people fail to realize that there is a real GOD who is in charge of men and nations. God also controls the weather—a vital factor affecting the financial well-being of individuals as well as nations. And the basic spiritual approach of the great God to men and nations remains essentially the same through all generations. For in His inspired Word, God tells us, "For I am the LORD, I do not change" (Mal. 3:6). In the New Testament, we read, "Jesus Christ is the same, yesterday, today, and forever" (Heb. 13:8).

God reveals how He deals with men—and with the weather—in 2 Chronicles 7:12-14. "Then the LORD appeared to Solomon by night, and said to him: `I have heard your prayer, and have chosen this place for Myself as a house of sacrifice. When I shut up heaven and there is no rain, or command the locusts to devour the land, or send pestilence among My people, if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.'”

How Our Peoples and Nations Are Sinning

How can our nations—and you, individually—attain a right relationship with God and begin to receive His financial blessings? Are we really involved in “wicked ways” that we need to repent of personally and nationally?

Hopefully, you recognize that our peoples’ proclivity to crime, divorce, adultery and drug abuse are all an abomination to the God of heaven. We should be appalled at this—and at the increase in habitual lying and cheating. Today it seems that justice is more often than not perverted from the lowest offices in our lands to the highest. From a strictly biblical perspective, God has every reason to punish us nationally and individually for such moral and ethical transgressions.

But many professing Christians do not understand that the true Creator God has a prior claim on our income and that our peoples are literally robbing God! After all, He created us and created the earth out of which all our material goods come. He has even given us the air we breathe and the very minds with which we plan, think and reason! As the Apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthians, "Do you not know that... you are NOT your own? For you were bought at a price" ( 1 Cor. 6:19-20).

God owns us because He created us! Additionally, He bought us back—or redeemed us—from the "god of this world" (2 Cor. 4:4) through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. A real Christian knows that he genuinely belongs to God. And everything such a person has comes from God and, in essence, belongs to Him.

God says, "Everything under heaven is Mme" (Job 41:11). Even the gold and silver belong to God "`The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine,' says the LORD of hosts" (Hag. 2:8).

But out of all this bounty, God requires only that we give Him a tenth—a tithe of our increase or gain each year. Tithing is a genuine biblical law that has never been abrogated.

Yet, because of repeated violations of this law and the other laws of Almighty God, our peoples are coming under a biblical curse. The weather is now, and will continue to be, very unpredictable for the farmers of America, Canada, Britain, Australia, and New Zealand. Increasing thousands of farmers will be forced off the land. And the businessmen and workers and general population of our lands will also suffer increasing financial strains. Our national debt will continue its upward spiral. Eventually, other nations will refuse to extend us more credit or accept our currency. We will be brought down to the depths of national humiliation and disgrace—unless we repent! (For further detailed proof of this, write immediately for your FREE copy of our powerful, beautifully illustrated brochure, America and Britain in Prophecy.)

The God who "does not change" reasons with us to consider our actions. "Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed Me! But you say, `In what way have we robbed You?' In tithes and offerings. You are cursed with a curse, for you have robbed Me, even this whole nation. Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, and prove Me now in this... if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you such blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it'” (Mal. 3:8-10).

So God Himself considers it stealing if we withhold our tithes and offerings from Him. This is mighty serious business. No wonder our peoples are suffering financially! Yet, Jesus promises to open the windows of heaven and bless us if we faithfully pay our tithes and give generous offerings to His Work.

As far as the direct matter of tithing is concerned, God does not consider that we are giving anything—but are paying our Creator a nominal amount that He requires as our Maker, our Sustainer, our Landlord, our Protector and our God!

Long before the law of Moses was ever codified, Abraham—the father of the faithful—was faithfully paying tithes to God. We read in Genesis 14:17-20 that Abraham honored God's High Priest Melchizedek, after God had delivered his enemies into his hand. "And he gave him a tithe of all" (v. 20).

Abraham's grandson Jacob when he began to serve his grandfather's God, promised, "And this stone which I have set as a pillar shall be God's house, and of all that You give me I will surely give a tenth to You" (Gen. 28:22).

Still later, when God temporarily instituted the Levitical priesthood, He directed that the tithe be paid to them during that time as His human representatives. "And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the tree, is the LORD's. It is holy to the LORD. If a man wants at all to redeem any of his tithes, he shall add one-fifth to it. And concerning the tithe of the herd or the flock, of whatever passes under the rod, the tenth one shall be holy to the LORD" (Lev 27 30-32).

Now notice Numbers l8:21: "Behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tithes in Israel as an inheritance in return for the work which they perform, the work of the tabernacle of meeting."

Since God’s ministry during this time was performing the service He required of them—teaching His people to worship Him according to the Scriptures then extant—and since the Levites were fulfilling this ministry as their work, God’s tithe went to them as His representatives and servants.

Jesus Taught Tithing

In the New Testament, God inspired the Apostle Paul to show that the law of tithing is now altered or changed so that the tithes are once again to be paid to the same spiritual priesthood—that of Melchizedek—to whom Abraham paid tithes. This account is found Hebrews 7.

Paul describes how Abraham paid tithes to Melchizedek (v. 2). He then describes how great Melchizedek's priesthood must have been (vv. 3-4). Then Paul shows that the Levites themselves—through their ancestor Abraham—paid tithes to Melchizedek, whose priesthood was of a higher order or greater in view of this fact.

In verses 11-12, Paul shows that the Levitical priesthood was only temporary and never brought the people to perfection. Therefore the spiritual priesthood of Melchizedek has been reinstituted through Christ and the tithing law is again CHANGED so that God's tithes revert, as before, to the spiritual priests—the faithful ministers of Jesus Christ!

A Christian, of course, is one who follows the example and teaching of Jesus Christ. It is sadly consistent with our greedy and selfish human nature that so few professing Christians recognize and obey the obvious teaching of Jesus regarding tithing.

In dealing with the self- righteous Pharisees, who made a hypocritical show of publicly keeping all of the minor points of God's law while neglecting its most major, weighty aspects, Jesus stated, “But woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass by justice and the love of God. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone” (Luke 11:42). This same statement of Jesus is also recorded in Matthew 23:23.

Certainly, many today are trying to leave the matter of tithing “undone”—as they are in like manner trying to do away with ALL of God’s laws, and, it seems, all constituted authority of any kind! But the divine Son of God, Jesus Christ, commanded us NOT to leave the matter of tithing “undone” even though the Pharisees had become self-righteous about its observance, as they had about many other points of God’s law.

Jesus commanded His followers to both DO and TEACH even the smaller points of God's law. "Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven" (Matt. 5:19).

According to the Scriptures, Jesus definitely taught tithing and showed that we can become spiritually great only by living by EVERY word of God (Matt. 4:4)!

Who Is Doing God's Work Today?

In these last chaotic years before the end of man's government and way of life on this earth, you can certainly find where the Eternal God is working if you sincerely want to. The evidence and proof is increasingly available—for those with open minds!

The Bible says, "Surely the Lord GOD does nothing; unless He reveals His secret to His servants the prophets. A lion has roared! Who will not fear? The Lord GOD has spoken! Who can but prophesy?" (Amos 3:7-8).

In every age God has promised to directly warn Has people of impending trouble and destruction through His servants and His ministers! The definite and specific warning of what WILL SOON HAPPEN to the British-descended and American peoples is now going around the world with increasing power. This message is going out to increasing numbers of people. Those who have eyes to see and ears to hear are beginning to understand the only way of escape by following the true path: “And what does the LORD require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8).

Jesus’ entire Gospel was about the coming Kingdom of God (Mark 1:14-15). For our time, today, just before the end of this age and God's intervention in human affairs, Jesus prophesied, "And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come" (Matt. 24:14).

The specific Message of God's coming world government, His laws, His way of life, the definite events to affect the major nations just before Jesus' Second Coming, and the tremendous and specific BLESSINGS that will come on all nations and people during Christ's soon-coming rule on this j earth—that Message is now going out in POWER to our nations as a last witness! In reading this very article about one of God's laws and principles of life, you are receiving part of that "witness."

Jesus taught, "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven.... For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (Matt. 6:19-21).

Frankly, just as Jesus said, we have found that those who put their human treasure into the Work of God , preparing the way for Christ's soon-coming Kingdom also have their HEARTS in what God is doing today!

In Daniel 12:1-3, God describes the tremendous "time of trouble" or tribulation to come upon modern Israel in our day. He shows that this time will be just before the resurrection from the dead (v. 2). Then He describes those who are preparing the way for His intervention! "Those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the firmament, and those who turn many to righteousness like the stars forever and ever" (v. 3).

Those whose hearts—whose prayers, whose tithes and generous offerings, and whose service—are wholly in the Work of God in turning many to righteousness shall SHINE in their glorified, resurrected bodies as brilliant stars, forever and ever!

You need to realize the fantastic times in which you are living and the tremendous purpose that Almighty God is now working out here below! You need to really prove to yourself where He is working—where His Message is being proclaimed to the world!

So, not as a gimmick or an argument to get something from you, but as a divine law that brings with it actual BLESSINGS now and forever—God instructs you to set aside the first tenth of your income for Him and for His Work. If you, personally, come to understand, appreciate and obey His laws, the blessings ahead for you from having your heart and your life in the very Work of God are beyond our limited human comprehension!

If you live by every Word of God and pay to Him the full tithe of your income that belongs to your Creator, then you can be confident that you may stand beside Abraham—the "father of the faithful"—at the return of Jesus Christ Himself.

Take God at His Word! He WILL back it up—both now and forever.

Top of Page     Bottom of Page

by Douglas S. Winnail, Ph.D., M.P.H.

You have undoubtedly seen the posters and heard the pleas to "Save the Whales" and "Save the Rain Forests." Every year the list of endangered living things to worry about gets longer. You may have experienced a fleeting twinge of conscience as the thought passed briefly across your mind that it's unfortunate some pretty plants and remarkable animals are disappearing—but, well, that's the price of progress.

You have also probably heard of new buildings, highways or shopping centers being held up because the impact of new construction would further threaten an endangered fish, bird, butterfly or plant. Perhaps you have heard of people who chain themselves to trees to prevent the destruction of forests or individuals who lie down in front of bulldozers that would destroy vital animal habitat. You might have seen news stories of loggers or property owners arguing with ecologists or government agents over the impact of laws protecting endangered species of plants or animals. People do not like to lose jobs or be told how they can or cannot use their own land just because a few living organisms might be harmed.

What is behind all this controversy over endangered plants and animals? Is the loss of a few species really that significant? After all, aren't human needs and desires more important than the welfare of plants and animals? Does God care about such issues? Should Christians be concerned?

For some people emotions run hot over the issue of endangered species. Others wonder what the shouting is all about. Most of us, because of our urbanized lifestyles, probably do not begin to realize the sobering significance of what is happening all around us to the living organisms of this earth.

Yet from a biological, historical and biblical perspective the endangered species problem is incredibly important! This smoldering issue affects nearly every part of the globe today, and it will definitely have a major impact on the future of human civilization. It is an issue we need to understand.

Believe It or Not!

Historically speaking, the loss of species is neither new nor abnormal. Scientists estimate the normal rate of extinction may run from one species every ten years to a few species in a million years. What is causing concern today, however, is the astonishing rate at which species are being eliminated. Prominent scientists now estimate that we may be destroying living species at 100 to 1,000 times the normal rate. Harvard entomologist E. O. Wilson has suggested that human activities are currently pushing thousands of species to extinction every year (Song of the Dodo, 1966, pp. 605-607).

According to paleontologists, the history of life on this earth has been punctuated by five periods of mass extinction beginning with the disappearance of the dinosaurs. However, looking at the present situation, it is obvious that "human activity is now causing an unprecedented decline in biological diversity. If present trends continue, the 150 years from the beginning of the twentieth century to the middle of the twenty-first century will witness the extinction of more species than any other similar time span since life began" (Biosphere 2000, 1993, p. 493).

Biogeographer David Quammen writes, "Human proliferation on this planet, and our voracious consumption of resources, and our large-scale transformations of the landscape, are causing a cataclysm of extinctions that bodes to be the worst such event since the fall of the dinosaurs." He concludes that "the current cataclysm of extinctions is indeed likely to stand among the half-dozen such events in the history of life on earth" (Song of the Dodo, pp. 12, 607).

What's at Stake?

But just how critical are animal and plant species to human welfare? ON a fundamental level, species “provide essential ecological services to humanity by regulating climate; cleansing water, soil, and air; pollinating crops; maintaining soil fertility, and performing other life sustaining functions” (Eisner et. Al., Science, Sept. 1, 1995, p. 1,231).

These essential services are provided free of charge by millions of tiny plants and animals—plankton, fungi, grasses, trees, worms, insects. But these quiet benefactors are endangered by careless human activities. We also depend upon other species for food, clothing, cooking, building materials, preventing and treating diseases, carrying burdens. The uses are almost endless. One author observed that “our development (both social and in more recent times, economic) has been inextricably linked to our capacity to derive benefits from uses of wild species” (The True State of the Planet, 1995, p. 213). The interrelationships between different species are extremely important to the normal functioning of earth’s ecosystems—and the continued existence of life here! When one species is destroyed, its loss can bring about the destruction of many others.

This loss of biodiversity brings about what biologists and ecologists have been describing in detail for the last several decades—floral and faunal collapse, ecosystem decay, the unraveling of ecosystems—in essence, the destruction of this planet (Song of the Dodo, pp. 11-12).

The alarming consequences of this wholesale destruction of species are being sounded by many prominent voices. Britain's Prince Philip, well-known for his interest in conservation and a former president of the World Wildlife Fund, has written that "the immediate victims of human interference in the working of the natural system may be the wild species of animals and plants, but the ultimate victim will be the human species itself” (Down to Earth, 1988, p. 161).

Award-winning science writer David Quammen comments, "Our devastating impact on the biosphere will probably be a singular event, not part of a recurrent pattern... because we probably won't survive long enough, as a species, to do it again" (Song of the Dodo, p. 607).

The Four Horsemen of Extinction

If civilization is to survive, then humanity must alter or halt those activities that are causing this devastating impact on other species. Harvard's E. O. Wilson describes the "four apocalyptic horsemen of extinction " as overharvesting, pollution, introduction of exotic species and habitat destruction (National Wildlife, Dec.-Jan., 1995, p. 10).

Overharvesting can include: excessive hunting and fishing for sport or food; the taking or poaching of animals for skins, horns or tusks; clear-cut logging; collecting animals for the pet trade.

Over 150 years ago, dense flocks of billions of passenger pigeons would actually darken the sky as they migrated over the North American continent. Killed in incredible numbers for their savory flesh, these graceful birds disappeared in the late 1800s (Extinct and Vanishing Animals, 1967, pp. 2-3).

One of the most incredible examples of outright destruction was the American bison. In 1850, "some 60 million bison roamed the western plains. Forty years later, there were only about 150 wild bison and 250 in captivity. Many were killed only for their hides or tongues (worth $1.25 and 25 cents, respectively), and hunters (both white and Indian) left as much as a ton of meat in each carcass to rot on the plains. Much of the destruction was carried out by the U.S. Army to vanquish native peoples who depended on bison for food, clothing, and shelter and thereby, force them onto reservations" (Environmental Science, p. 268; cf. Our Wildlife Legacy, 1962, pp. 10-17). Today, however, the American bison has made a significant comeback because people took a new interest in this species. Many ranchers have taken to raising herds of bison, which are prized for their hardiness and their efficient ability to convert prairie grasses into usable, low-fat protein.

Nevertheless, for all too many animal and plant species the sad story of wholesale destruction continues. The old story of what befell the dodos—large, flightless birds exterminated from Indian Ocean Islands in the 1600s—is repeated today with the great whales and many commercial fish species, which in recent decades have been ravaged by "highly efficient but terribly destructive modern fishing techniques" (Environmental Science, p. 268).

Massive destruction through excessive human exploitation continues unabated with the clear-cut logging of the world's rain forests, which contain the greatest diversity of animal and plant species to be found on the earth.

Our Polluted Planet

Environmental pollution has also played a major role in destroying the living organisms of this planet. Species are lost "as a result of chemical contamination from hazardous waste dumps, industrial and municipal wastewater discharges, agricultural and urban runoff, and airborne toxins" (Biosphere 2000, p. 509). Modern chemical firms boast of "better living through chemistry." Today more than 70,000 different chemicals are used daily. Substances like DDT, PCBs, CFCs, dioxin and toxic metals like lead, mercury, nickel and uranium enter the biosphere and are eventually concentrated in the tissues of living organisms. These dangerous chemicals cause reproductive problems, anatomical and metabolic defects, behavioral abnormalities, various diseases and death—in animal species and human beings (pp. 396-397; Environmental Science, pp. 374-375).

The deliberate or accidental introduction of non-native species into established environments "can alter entire ecosystems and diminish or destroy indigenous [native] species" (National Wildlife, Dec.-Jan. 1995, p. 11 ).

Alien species, like sea lampreys that gained access to the Great Lakes through the Welland Canal, have decimated many commercially important fish species. Zebra mussels, native to the Caspian Sea, have caused millions of dollars of damage since gaining access to American lakes and rivers as a result of ships releasing freshwater ballast. Because of the destructiveness of introduced species, they have been labeled "biological pollutants" and "ecological cancers" (Environmental Science, pp. 271-272).

Probably the greatest threat to wildlife is the degradation and destruction of habitat. When animals' biological needs can no longer be met in the environment, species begin to die off. This happens as a result of unsustainable forestry, agricultural, urbanization and development practices that destroy environments. Humans who fish with dynamite or cyanide—which is destroying coral reefs in the Philippines and Indonesia—and build dams that flood entire valleys are massively affecting animal habitat (Biosphere 2000, p. 509; Environmental Science, p. 270).

As the causes of habitat destruction are examined, they become more incredible and unbelievable. They are shortsighted and wasteful. What seems to escape most people is the sobering fact that we, as well as the animals and plants, are dependent upon many of the same habitat requirements—fresh air, clean water, fertile soils for growing food. When we decimate the biodiversity of the planet we endanger our own survival!

Does God Care?

Most of the books, articles, speeches and television programs that address the endangered species problem do so from a secular perspective. These sources acknowledge that the loss of species will have serious biological, economic and "evolutionary" consequences.

However this approach overlooks a vital dimension to the subject because it ignores important information found in the Holy Scriptures. The Bible plainly reveals a perspective on the endangered species problem that has been painfully absent from mankind's dealing with the natural resources of this planet. It also foretells the serious consequences of this ignorance.

According to God's Word, the Creator gave mankind "dominion" over the earth (Gen. 1:28-30). Humans were given the opportunity and the responsibility to manage the resources of the planet—which God says actually belong to him (Ex. 19:5; Ps. 50:12).

Mankind was charged by the Creator to "dress and keep" the creation (Gen. 2:15). Embedded in that commission was the responsibility to exercise wise stewardship over the resources of this earth, with an eye to the future (Prov. 27:23; 29:18). God created this earth and the ecosystems of this planet to operate by laws and rules that are discoverable through science. We are promised to be blessed if we obey those laws, but will reap problems when we ignore or disobey those laws (Lev. 26).

While there is a growing appreciation for the concept of the stewardship of the earth and the conservative use of the earth's resources according to ecological principles, few seem to realize how seriously God views the wanton exploitation and destruction of the living organisms of this planet. The Bible reveals that God gets angry when His instructions and commandments are violated (Judges 2:12-14; Is. 1:4). Mankind's incessant violation of the God-given responsibility to wisely manage the resources of the earth angers the Creator.

The Scriptures show that God foresaw environmental dimensions to the crisis man would create for himself by rejecting divine guidance. Those same Scriptures also reveal how God is going to respond.

Isaiah warned, "The earth is defiled [corrupted, violated, trampled, polluted] under its inhabitants, because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant. Therefore a curse has devoured the earth, and those that dwell in it are desolate [held guilty]" (Is. 24:5-6). The Prophet Hosea, discussing the same latter-day time period, wrote, "Hear the word of the LORD, you children of Israel, for the LORD brings a charge [a controversy, a case] against the inhabitants of the land... [because of broken laws] the land will mourn; and everyone who dwells there will waste away with the beasts of the field and the birds of the air; even the fish of the sea will be taken away" (Hosea 4:1, 3).

Hosea makes it clear that we will reap what we sow when we ignore the laws of God (vv. 6-9). Bible commentaries recognize that a major reason for human ignorance of the laws of God and our God-given responsibilities is that religious leaders have "not been teaching people about God and his law" (Expositor's Bible Commentary, 1985, vol. 7, p. 185). The law of God includes mankind's responsibility to wisely manage the resources of this earth.

The dramatic and sobering conclusion of God's moral case against mankind, which has environmental dimensions, will become evident at the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. This remarkable event will come as a shock to most.

In the book of Revelation, the Apostle John shows that Jesus Christ is going to take over and rule the kingdoms of this earth ( 11:15, 17) and that He will reward His servants "the prophets and the saints"—but He will "destroy those who destroy the earth" (v. 18). God does care about what is happening to the living organisms of this earth! The Creator cares about His creation (Matt. 10:29), and He is deeply aware of the disruption and suffering inflicted by rapacious human activities. The Apostle Paul said, "For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption.... For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs" (Rom. 8:20-22).

The World Ahead

When Jesus Christ takes over the reigns of government on this earth He is going to be assisted by the saints (Rev. 1:6; Dan. 7:18, 27). The saints are people who are called by God to do a job, who repent and are given God's Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38), which enables them to begin to really understand the Scriptures and grow in the understanding and application of God's Word (2 Peter 3:18). The goal of Christ's government, administered by His saints, will be to restore "all things," bringing about the "times of refreshing" (Acts 3:19-21 ).

This divine government will promote the harmony and peace this planet has long been without (Is. 9:6-7). This will come at the time when "the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea" (Is. 11:9).

The peaceable kingdom established by Jesus Christ will teach the nations of the world the ways of God, based on His divine law (Is. 2:2-3). That law will promote the stewardship of the earth's resources by all mankind, including principles of wildlife management (Deut. 22:6-7). People will be taught proper animal husbandry and conservation principles (Prov. 12:10; Ezek. 47:1-12). Humanity's wasteful use and senseless destruction of the creatures and resources of this earth will be stopped!

The Bible also reveals that God is going to establish a new relationship between humans and animals (Hosea 2:18). Isaiah indicates that even the nature of animals will be changed (Is. 11:6-9). If the predator-prey relationship among animals is altered, as these verses appear to indicate, this will mean quite a management responsibility for mankind.

God created plants and animals for the benefit, enjoyment and service of people (Gen. 9:3; Ps. 104:14-15; Prov. 27:26-27). Our challenge, as beings created in the image of God with the opportunity to become His sons and daughters, is to develop the mind and character of God (Phil. 2:5).

God cares about His creation, its creatures and the human beings He fashioned in His image. In the World Ahead, the survival of living things will no longer be endangered. Problems are not only going to be solved, but prevented by individuals working closely with Jesus Christ. This will be one of the exciting opportunities for those who enter the Kingdom of God.

Why not begin preparing yourself to play a vital role in restoring the ecosystems and the creatures of this earth? Learn about the problems that must be solved. Find out how we have degraded the environment, and what can be done to resolve this problem. God is looking for Christians who care about His creation and who want to make a difference!

Top of Page     Bottom of Page

by Raymond F. McNair

Israel's recent election of a right-wing prime minister has raised fears of an ugly new round of bloodshed between the Palestinians and Israelis. Many Israelis, including Netanyahu, harbor grave doubts concerning the wisdom of Israel making concessions to the Arabs on the basis of land for peace!

Since the creation of the State of Israel in 1948, many world leaders have wrestled with the thorny Arab-Israeli problem. Former President Ronald Reagan once expressed his fervent desire to see a solution to the Mideast conflict: "Tragic turmoil in the Middle East runs back to the dawn of history. In our modern day, conflict after conflict has taken its brutal toll there. In an age of nuclear challenge and economic interdependence, such conflicts are a threat to all people of the world, not just the Middle East itself. It is time for us all... to call a halt to conflict, hatred and prejudice" (Presidential Address, Sept. 2, 1982).

Yet unconcerned by world opinion, Palestinian acts of terrorism, followed by Israeli retaliatory attacks, continue casting a dark cloud over the Middle East, threatening the peace and stability of the whole world!

What Are the Main Issues?

What are some of the main issues that continue to threaten the peace of the Mideast? Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter noted, "The Middle East is perhaps the most volatile and coveted region in the world, one whose instability is almost certainly the greatest threat to world peace" (The Blood of Abraham, 1993, p. 4). He also states that "the basic cause of continuing bloodshed in the region is the struggle for land. With their swift victory in the 1967 war, the Israelis tripled the amount of land they controlled at the expense of Egypt, Jordan, the Palestinians, and Syria" (p. 10). Further, President Carter explained that "the Arab-Israeli conflict is a struggle between two national identities for control of territory" (p. 106)!

What are these "two national identities"? Mr. Carter was speaking of "the brotherhood of Arab and Jew and how they are both the sons of Abraham "—all sharing "the blood of Abraham" (pp. 4-5). According to Carter, "The Palestinian issue is a basic cause of the continuing Middle East conflict, and it must be addressed successfully if there is ever to be peace in the region" (p. 121 ).

What is the Palestinian issue? "The Palestinians are convinced that all the Arab-Israeli wars have boiled up out of the Palestinian problem—in 1948, 1956, 1967, 1973 and the Lebanese invasions of 1978 and 1982—and, of course, the civil wars [among Arab factions] of 1970 in Jordan and 1975 in Lebanon.... With a single-mindedness amounting to tunnel vision, they see the restoration of Palestinian rights as the key to regional and, under some circumstances, even world peace" (p. 120). Today's world leaders are struggling to balance the claims of the Israelis against the grievances of the Palestinians—many of whom are scattered throughout the Middle East.

Who Are Today's Palestinians?

By carefully searching the Scriptures, we can learn which ancient peoples were the ancestors of today's Palestinians! Even though modern Palestinians (both Muslims and Christians) are now known as "Arabs," nonetheless, most of them are not the same people as those Bedouin Arabs who for thousands of years inhabited the Arabian Peninsula. The Bible and secular history reveal that, ethnically speaking, today's Palestinians are a "mixed bag," including significant numbers of the following ancient peoples: Philistines; Ishmaelites and Edomites.

We will first consider the Philistines. They were descendants of the Philistim (KJV), whose ancestor was Mizraim (Gen. 10:13-14), from whom the ancient Egyptians also descended. The ancient Philistines, who lived in the general area known today as the Gaza Strip, were never numerous. However, they were one of Israel's fiercest enemies, as recounted in the Hebrew Scriptures.

"The borders of Palestine, also called the Land of Canaan or the Holy Land, have never been clearly defined. The name Palestine is an ancient one, derived from the Philistines who lived there. Known as the People of the Sea, they inhabited lands primarily on the seacoast of what is now southern Israel and the Gaza Strip.... The Roman conquerors, wanting to obliterate both the capital and the name of the Israelites after they smashed the final Jewish revolt, chose to call the southern part of their new Syrian province Palaestinap. 103). Thereafter, those living in the former land of Canaan became known as Palestinians.

There is no biblical or historical evidence to support the conclusion that the majority of the four million modern Palestinians are descendants of the ancient Philistines—though a significant number of the Arabs in the Gaza Strip are.

The second ancient people are the Ishmaelites (Arab Bedouins). "Bedouin... [Arabic] badawi desert dweller... a nomadic Arab of the Arabian, Syrian, or North African deserts" (Merriam Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, l0th ed.).

"Ishmael was the elder son of Abraham in the Bible. Ishmael's mother was Hagar, an Egyptian serving-maid….. He is honored by the Arabs, along with Abraham, as their ancestor” (World Book Encyclopedia, 1972, vol. 10). Collier's Encyclopedia says, "Ishmael was banished from Abraham's house together with his mother…. Ishmael is the traditional ancestor of the Arab peoples” (1959, vol. 11).

After the Prophet Mohammed died in 632, the Ishmaelites and other desert peoples united in their drive to establish a far-flung Muslim Empire—from the Atlantic eastward into India—thus fulfilling God's promise to Abraham that Ishmael's descendants would become "a great nation" (Gen. 17:20; 21:18). Following the Arab conquest of Palestine in 636, some Arab Bedouins began filtering into Palestine.

Though the Ishmaelites attacked Israel in ancient times, they don't appear to have been a cruel enemy. Biblical and secular history indicate that the descendants of the Philistines and the Ishmaelites are less numerous among modern Palestinians than another ethnic group—the Edomites.

Israel's Implacable Foe

It is the third group who settled the area, the Edomites, that makes up the largest percentage of modern Palestinians.

When considering Old Testament history, one people—the Edomites—stands out as having a persistent hatred toward the people of Israel. In fact, the Bible records numerous incidents in which the Edomites attacked God's people.

Who were the Edomites? Both the Bible and secular history reveal that many of the modern Palestinians are their direct descendants. They were close relatives of the Israelites, being descended from Esau, Jacob's twin brother. Like Jacob, Esau—the father of the Edomites—had many sons, whose many descendants became "clans" (Gen. 36 NRSV). His firstborn son was called Eliphaz, whose concubine bore a son named Amalek, father of the Amalekites—one of the cruelest and most aggressive branches of the Edomites (vv. 10, 12). None of Israel's ancient enemies were as vengeful toward the Israelites as were the Edomites. From the beginning, they bore a deep resentment toward Israel and his descendants.

How did this deep-seated enmity come about?

Even before Esau and his twin brother Jacob were born, God told their mother, Rebekah, "Two nations are in your womb, two peoples shall be separated from your body; one people [the Israelites] shall be stronger than the other [the Edomites], and the older [Esau] shall serve the younger [Jacob]" (Gen. 25:23).

The older twin, Esau, sold his birthright to Jacob in exchange for a bowl of soup (vv. 29-33). "So he swore to him, and sold his birthright to Jacob. And Jacob gave Esau bread and stew of lentils.... Thus Esau despised his birthright" (vv. 33-34). The stew Jacob prepared was of red lentils and this incident gave Esau's descendants their nickname "Edom" or red (v. 30).

Later, Isaac gave a fabulous blessing to his younger son Jacob (Gen. 27:18-29). Those fantastic blessings included the "dew of heaven," the "fatness [literally "fat places"] of the earth, and plenty of grain and wine" (v. 28). The fabulous blessings promised Jacob's descendants would later include the rich lands of North America, Australia and New Zealand, plus much of Northwest Europe—lands inherited by Israel's modern descendants. (Ask for our free brochure, America and Britain in Prophecy.)

Under God's inspiration, Isaac said to Jacob, "Let peoples serve you, and nations bow down to you. Be master over your brethren [including Esau and his descendants], and let your mother's sons bow down to you" (v. 29).

Not long afterward, Esau came in to see his father to receive Isaac's blessing. But Isaac told him that his brother had already received the chief blessing. "Indeed I have made him your master.... What shall I do now for you, my son?" (v. 37).

"And Esau lifted up his voice and wept. Then Isaac his father answered and said to him.... `By your sword you shall live, and you shall serve your brother'” (vv. 38-40).

Jacob's purchase of the birthright and his duplicity in obtaining the birthright blessing—caused Esau to have great enmity toward him. "So Esau hated Jacob... [then said] `I will kill my brother Jacob'” (v. 41). Jacob's mother and father then urged him to flee to Haran (Syria) to live with his uncle Laban until Esau's anger abated. (According to Genesis 28:9, Esau married his uncle Ishmael's daughter—thereby cementing a long-standing closeness between the Edomites and the Ishmaelites.)

Many years later, God told Jacob to return to the Promised Land, where He would bless him (32:12). Before meeting Esau on his return journey, Jacob spent an agonizing night in prayer, then prepared a huge present to give to his brother (vv. 13-23). Almighty God delivered him from his brother, and changed his name to "Israel," meaning "Prevailer with God" (vv. 24-32).

After having met the next day, the brothers parted company amicably—but the descendants of Esau—the Edomites—never forgot the fact that their ancestor had foolishly sold his birthright to Jacob for a bowl of soup, and later lost his father's blessing through Jacob's duplicity.

The Bible admonishes us to beware "lest any root of bitterness [such as the Edomites' bitterness toward Israel] springing up cause trouble... lest there be... [a] profane person like Esau, who for one morsel of food sold his birthright. For... afterward, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected" (Heb. 12:15-17).

An Enduring Hatred Toward Israel

The Amalekite branch of the Edomites was the first to attack the Israelites after they left Egypt. "Now Amalek came and fought with Israel in Rephidim" (Ex. 17:8). "So Joshua defeated Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword" (v. 13). Then God told Moses, "Write this for a memorial in a book and recount it... that I will utterly blot out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven" (v. 14).

Moses told the Israelites, "Remember what Amalek did to you on the way as you were coming out of Egypt, how he met you on the way and attacked your rear ranks, all the stragglers at your rear, when you were tired and weary; and he did not fear God" (Deut. 25:17-19). In fact, there are many different accounts in the Old Testament of Israel warning against the Amalekites—Edomites!

When the Israelites refused to obey God's Word, and made an abortive attempt to force their way into the Promised Land, they were defeated by their enemies, including the Amalekites. "Then the Amalekites and the Canaanites who dwelt in that mountain came down and attacked them, and drove them back as far as Hormah" (Num. 14:45).

Some years afterward, God used a brave man named Gideon, and his small army of 300 valiant men, to deliver the Israelites from a larger invading army. "Now the Midianites and Amalekites, all the people of the East, were lying in the valley as numerous as locusts; and their camels were without number" (Judges 7:12).

Many years later, God had Samuel tell Saul, "I will punish what Amalek did to Israel, how he laid wait for him on the way when he came up from Egypt. Now go and attack Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and do not spare them" ( 1 Sam. 15:2-3). But King Saul did not obey God's command, sparing their King Agag (vv. 7-8). An Amalekite slew King Saul (2 Sam. 1:1-16). The Edomites attacked Judah, but were defeated, in the days of King Jehoshaphat (2 Chron. 20:22).

Many years later, after the Jews had been taken captive to Babylon, a wicked Edomite named Haman planned to slay the Jews. "After these things King Ahasuerus [Xerxes I 486-465 B.C.) promoted Haman, the son of Hamedatha the Agagite [a royal descendant of the Amalekite kings], and advanced him and set his seat above all the princes who were with him" (Esther 3:1).

Haman plotted to slay all the Jews throughout the Persian Empire, which then included the Promised Land (vv. 6-15). But after Haman had built a gallows on which to hang his Jewish rival, Mordecai, matters were reversed, and Haman was himself hanged.

God revealed through Moses that there would be continual problems between Israel and the Amalekites or Edomites in Exodus 17. "Because the LORD has sworn: the LORD will have war with Amalek from generation to generation" (v. 16). Could it be that this prophecy extends even to our day? Are the present-day Palestinian attacks against the Israelis merely another chapter in a long-standing, bloody feud?

When Did the Edomites Migrate into Palestine?

The ancestors of many of today's Palestinians first began migrating into southern Palestine or Judea several centuries before the birth of Christ. These Edomites were then called Idumeans. Both the Old and New Testaments mention a nation called Idumea (Is. 34:5-6; Ezek. 35:15; 36:5; Mark 3:8). The Romans later appointed an Idumean, Herod the Great, as king over all of Judea. Where was Idumea located, and who were the Idumeans?

The Edomites had originally lived south of Judah, in the general area located between the Dead Sea and the Gulf of Aqaba. Later, however, after the Ten Tribes of the Kingdom of Israel and the Two Tribes of the Kingdom of Judah were uprooted from the Promised Land and taken captive, Edomites began settling much of the Jews' former lands (cf. Ezek. 35-36).

The Edomites had once inhabited Mount Seir south of Judah. "So Esau dwelt in Mount Seir. Esau is Edom" (Gen. 36:8). Sometime after the Jews were taken captive to Babylon, many Edomites living near Judah's southern border started moving north into the nearly depopulated land of Judah. The Encyclopaedia Britannica says, "There was some movement upwards from the south of Judah of groups closely related to Edomite and kindred peoples of South Palestine and Northern Arabia. The immigrants, like the new occupants of Samaria, gradually assimilated themselves to the new soil... [subsequently] the Edomites were responsible for a new catastrophe" ("Palestine," llth ed., vol. 20).

They began claiming the lands formerly occupied by the peoples of Israel and Judah. They said, "These two countries [Israel and Judah] shall be mine, and we will possess them" (Ezek. 35:10)!

What did God think of the Edomites, who had appropriated Israel's land as their own? "Thus says the LORD God... `Surely I have spoken in My burning jealousy against the rest of the nations and against all Edom, who gave My land [promised to Judah and Israel] to themselves as a possession, with whole-hearted joy and spiteful minds, in order to plunder its open country'” (36:5)!

God solemnly declares He will punish the Edomites for their hatred and cruelty toward His people. "`Because you have had an ancient hatred, and have shed the blood of the children of Israel by the power of the sword at the time of their calamity... therefore, as I live,' says the LORD God, `I will prepare you for blood, and blood shall pursue you; since you have not hated blood, therefore blood shall pursue you'” (35:5-6; cf. Is. 34:1-10).

Later, during the time of the Hasmonean kingdom of the Maccabees, a Jewish priest-king called John Hyrcanus (135-104 B.C.) forced those Edomites living in Idumea to be circumcised and convert to the Jewish religion and customs. "He conquered Idumea [Edom] and compelled its inhabitants to adopt Judaism" (Encyclopedia Judaica, "Hyrcanus, John," vol. 8). This blurred, temporarily, the distinctions between Jew and Edomite.

Yet numerous New Testament references show conclusively that those same Edomites, including Herod the Great, later committed terrible atrocities against the Jewish people—including Herod's slaughter of the male babies at Bethlehem in his attempt to murder the infant Jesus (Matt. 2:1-23)!

About 70 years later, during Rome's war against Judea in 66-70 A.D. 20,000 heavily armed Idumean troops were treacherously admitted into Jerusalem, and mercilessly butchered tens of thousands of Jews (Josephus, Wars of the Jews, bk. 4, chaps. 4-5).

A Glimmer of Hope?

Is there a faint flicker of hope indicating that the ancient enmity that has troubled the Arabs and Israelis during much of this century may at last come to an end?

Both the Old and New Testaments make it clear that Israel's most spiteful enemies were the Edomites. And it was they who harassed and slaughtered the Israelites time after time. It was the Edomites—not the Philistines or Ishmaelites—who, a few centuries before Christ, pushed northward into the heartland of Judah, even claiming the ancient Jewish city of Hebron as their own.

In modern times some of these same people's descendants have resorted to frequent acts of terrorism, destruction, mayhem and bloodshed, openly declaring that, if they get their chance, they will drive the Israelis into the sea! The bitterness that some Palestinians have shown, both toward Israel and toward the United States, is but a continuation of an ancient hatred between the descendants of Esau and Jacob! Consider incidents such as the bombing of the World Trade Center in 1993, the massacre of Americans on the Achille Lauro cruise ship in 1985, or the Israeli athletes butchered at Munich in 1972 when Palestinian terrorists invaded the Olympic Village.

In a coming article in The World Ahead, we will examine certain Bible prophecies revealing that, after a yet-future bloodbath (Dan. 11-12; Zech. 12, 14), the Arab-Israeli conflict will finally be resolved not by men, but by the mighty Prince of Peace, who, at long last, will teach all nations the way of peace (Is. 9:6-7; Micah 4:1-5)!

Top of Page     Bottom of Page

by Jeffrey H. Patton

The world is changing dramatically. Millions of people are on the move, seeking shelter and opportunity in foreign lands. Why? Oftentimes it is because things back home were just too desperate politically as a result of some affiliation with a losing cause, or simply being the "wrong" ethnicity in the wrong place. For others, who have watched the movies and read the magazines of the prosperous Western world, the economic grass certainly looks greener on the other side.

So they come in hope of a better life—hiding in the wheel wells of jet planes or packed like sardines in some smuggler's car trunk. Sometimes desperate "illegals" even ride under the front hood, squeezed against the engine. They swim across rivers, slip into freight cars, wander across deserts and mountains. The better off simply overstay tourist visas.

The danger some will expose themselves to in order to achieve their dreams for a future is heart-breaking. "Police on Wednesday stormed a Taiwanese ship and arrested the captain, who has been accused along with his officers of setting adrift three Romanian stowaways while on the high seas, government officials said.

"Eight Filipino crewmen deserted the ship on Friday and told a harrowing tale [later corroborated] of the ship's officers setting two Romanian stowaways adrift March 12 on an oil drum raft in waters off Spain. Later in the voyage, a third stowaway was set adrift in another raft in the mid-Atlantic, the crew said.

"Crew members said they hid and fed another Romanian stowaway, who according to Romanian and Canadian authorities is now seeking asylum in Canada.... There has been some concern that the Romanians were cast adrift so that the ship could avoid paying a fine of $5,090 per person imposed by Canada on any illegal immigrants brought into the country" (Los Angeles Times, May 30, 1996).

Of course, many immigrants seek entry into a host country legally. The United States will accept approximately 800,000 people this year. Canada will take in about 230,000. But such large numbers of migrating human beings are causing severe strains to the budgets, infrastructures and employment situations of the host countries. Many established citizens in the host countries involved are demanding a drastic slowdown in the immigrant influx.

"Black people want to work. But the jobs they used to have, paying $5 to $7 an hour for unskilled labor, now go to immigrants for $3 an hour.... If you speak up, you're called a racist. I am an American; I happen to be black. Immigration is a problem for all Americans, whether Latino, Asian, white or black. We are all adversely affected" (Los Angeles Times, "The Culture Clash in South-Central L.A.," May 29, 1996).

Recently, Ghana was loath to accept 5,000 refugees fleeing by boat from the fighting in nearby Liberia. The Ghanaians ordered the ship's captain back out to sea. Pakistan forcibly repatriates refugees from Afghanistan. Hong Kong has been deporting Vietnamese refugees due to a lack of host countries willing to take them. Germany's Federal Constitutional Court just reaffirmed the validity of a controversial 1993 revision of that country's political asylum law that severely curtails immigration. The Germans acted after applications for asylum soared to 438,000 people in 1992—fueling the scary rise of the anti-foreigner, neo-Nazi and skinhead movements.

"More than 9 million former Soviet citizens, one in 30 of the population, have been on the move since the collapse of the communist system, according to a United Nations study.

"Many of them have fled fighting. Ethnic disputes in Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan have led to 1.5 million people leaving their homes. Similar population movements have been caused by fighting in Moldova, Tajikistan and Chechenia....

"People have also been forced to move for fear of nationalist discrimination and because of environmental crises" (Manchester Guardian Weekly, "Millions Cross Ex-Soviet Borders," June 9, 1996).

The Big Fear

Over the last 50 years, most of the prosperous Western nations have become increasingly multiethnic due to their immigration policies. Nations like the U.S., Canada, New Zealand, Argentina, Chile and Australia—which were established by immigrants of mostly European origin (in the U.S., Africans were also imported as slave labor at an early stage) have become increasingly diversified as waves of immigrants of non-European ethnicity moved in.

European countries such as France, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands and the Nordic countries, which tend to have less experience absorbing immigrants, have also had a large surge in non-European newcomers. Most of these new immigrants have sought to preserve important cultural aspects of their native lands, maintaining a distinct identity within the social fabric of the host country.

These increasingly diverse populations have occasioned at times negative reactions from some long-established residents. Many governments fear the rise of interethnic group conflict. After all, the world's track record of people with varying cultures or ethnicity living together peacefully is not good.

"So what do Bosnia or Rwanda have in common with America? On the surface, not much. But let's go beneath the surface. Let's visit with Michael E. Brown of Harvard's Center for Science and International Affairs. MIT Press has just published the massive study of internal wars around the world... [this] masterpiece offers the invaluable if unintentional service of warning more peaceful places like America where they could go wrong.

"More often than not, says Brown, ethnic cleansing [the process of excluding divergent ethnic groups from one's proclaimed home turf] is the product not of the irrational forces of history but of the premeditated decisions of totally rational, immoral leaders dead set on political gain at any cost.... Of the 34 major internal ethnic conflicts since the end of the Cold War, 23 have been consciously and deliberately triggered and engineered by political leaders inside the countries involved" (Los Angeles Times, "It Couldn't Happen Here, Could It?", May 21, 1996).

Of One Blood?

Mankind perceives itself as being divided into a variety of groups, having distinct physical, language, religious and cultural characteristics. Yet sometimes the differences between groups are almost imperceptible to an outside observer. "Even among anthropologists there is no generally accepted classification or terminology [about human races]" (The Oxford Encyclopedic English Dictionary "Race," 1991). After centuries of genetic intermixing, the concept of race is difficult, from the strict scientific point of view, to define.

Nevertheless, "whatever the biological reality, race as a social concept is a powerful force uniting and dividing people. Whether visible on the physical surface or simply felt in the emotional depths, race provides the cohesive groupings in which cultures have been concentrated, transmitted, and carried around the world.... Differences have been the rule, rather than the exception, in countries around the world, though the magnitudes of these differences, and the reactions to them, have varied widely" (Thomas Sowell, Race and Culture, BasicBooks, 1994, pp. 6, 10).

Where did these differences come from? A secularist might suggest that the various ethnicities of humanity are the result of different, divergent evolutionary paths, like Neanderthals and Cro-Magnons. But the Bible claims divine authorship for the variety in the human family:

"God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands. Nor is He worshiped with men's hands, as though He needed anything, since He gives to all life, breath, and all things. And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings" (Acts 17:24-26).

Some modern scholars, such as Dr. Ralph Earle, suggest that the phrase "from one blood" is not accurate. Dr. Earle maintains, "The oldest Greek manuscripts (third and fourth centuries) have only ex henos, `from one' (RSV, NASB). The word `blood' was added by later copyists. The meaning clearly is `from one man' (NIV)—that is Adam [or `one ancestor' NRSV]" (Word Meanings in the New Testament, Baker Book House, 1991, p. 114). However, the Textus Receptus and the Byzantine text do contain the word "blood."

The implication from both points of view remains that all humanity's common physical father is Adam, who was formed from the dust of the earth by God Himself (Luke 3:38)! Our common physical mother is Eve (Gen. 3:20), whom the Lord God formed using Adam's rib (Gen. 2:21-22).

One of the early descendants of Adam was Noah who had three sons named Shem, Ham and Japheth. The Scriptures state, "These three were the sons of Noah; and from these the whole earth was peopled" (Gen. 9:19 NRSV). All the races of the human family sprang from these three men—who were brothers—and their three wives!

Genesis 10 recounts the descendants of Shem, Ham and Japheth and illustrates their ethnic groupings, which they eventually formed. But initially, the Bible states that they all lived together at Babel. "Now the whole earth had one language and the same words.... And the LORD said, `Look, they are one people, and they have all one language.... Come, let us go down, and confuse their language there, so that they will not understand one another's speech.' So the LORD scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth" (Gen. 11:1, 6-8 NRSV).

Why did God do this? Obviously God intended the human family to spread out and occupy the various regions He created. "When the Most High divided their inheritance to the nations, when He separated the sons of Adam, He set the boundaries of the peoples according to the number of the children of Israel" (Deut. 32:8). But perhaps God also acted just as a parent who wants peace in the house after listening long enough to incessant bickering among rival siblings. When number one son just can't help himself from teasing and aggravating number two son, there comes a time to ground the kids to their separate living spaces.

Yet the fact that we humans are all one family, fractious or not, is extremely important. Today, the "Christian Identity" movement which is active in the United States, espouses different forms of the idea that the non-Caucasian races (descendants of Ham and Japheth) are the fruit of sexual relations between Eve and Satan the devil. Such an idea is clearly erroneous and unscriptural.

Why Do Sparks Sometimes Fly Between Groups?

It was God who created the initial physical differences and opened the doors to linguistic diversity in the human family. The Creator also made different geographical regions and climates to pose various challenges and opportunities to their inhabitants.

And different languages create different means of expression and thought-giving rise to cultural diversity. Thomas Sowell writes, "Cultures involve attitudes as well as skills, languages and customs.... Culture is expressed in behavior, not lip service. The values of a culture are revealed by the choices actually made—and the sacrifices endured—in pursuing some desired goals at the expense of other desired goals. The fact that many different groups may regard many of the same things as desirable does not mean that they will all exhibit the same patterns of trade-offs when actually confronted with the inevitable sacrifices of the real world" (p. 10).

For the last few decades it has been "politically correct" to dismiss the notion of stereotypes: that specific ethnic or racial groups tend to excel in certain fields of endeavor, and not in others. Consequently it has been popular to assume that cultural group differences or stereotypes have been imposed or forced upon a group by outside influences. "But behavior has consequences, and when these consequences are the same for the same groups in disparate settings, that is an empirical fact not to be waved aside.

"It is understandable that Russians might wish to explain away the remarkable success of German farmers in their midst by citing special dispensations granted the German emigrants by the czarist government. But when similar success is found repeatedly among German farmers in Australia, Mexico, Brazil, Honduras, the United States, Chile. and Paraguay, then that theory [that specific ethnic groups are assigned employment niches by the surrounding society] cannot bear the weight of history. Similarly, to explain Chinese predominance in retailing in Jamaica by factors peculiar to Jamaica does not explain their predominance in retailing in numerous other societies on the opposite side of the planet.... If Germans were somehow `assigned’ the niche of piano makers in Russia, France, England, Australia, and the United States, how did that assignment tell them how to make pianos?' (pp. 11-12).

Over the course of history, many migrants have moved to someplace where their skills and talents could find greater reward. However, should the newcomers' abilities make then more prosperous than some long-established residents or otherwise disturb the status quo, then the chance arises for an extremist leader to exploit feelings of envy or resentment!

"It has happened in affluent societies and in nations so poor as to be in desperate need of the very skills that are resented. The political mobilization of envy has led to legal restrictions on productive groups, preferential policies for those unable to compete with them, mass expulsions, confiscations and mob violence. Such responses have been common in the most culturally diverse societies—whether directed against the Tamils in Sri Lanka, the Germans in Russia, the Japanese in Peru, the Ibos in northern Nigeria, the Chinese in Indonesia, the Jews in Germany, the Armenians in Turkey, or any other groups in many other places" (p. 17).

Extremist ethnic leaders in all too many places have fanned the fires of what Sowell calls "exaggerated identity." Groups that fall prey to such fever-pitched extremism often find that the consequences are the opposite of the material progress they seek because they seal themselves off from the good ideas of other ethnic groups. "Throughout history, one of the great sources of cultural achievement, both for groups and for nations and even civilizations, has been a borrowing of cultural features from others who happened to be more advanced in given fields at a given time" (p. 30). For centuries nations and individuals have improved their well-being by importing ideas and people from other cultures! But sadly, the reverse has also been true! As in Bosnia today, too many ethnic groups have been pulled down by feeding on each others' fears, while only sharing mutual hatred and loathing.

A Pathway to Peace

For Americans, Canadians and most of the prosperous Western world, we are deeply indebted to a Middle Eastern cultural import of both ideas and people. "Despite the almost constant ill-treatment suffered by the Jews in most of their contacts, their culture left permanent marks where it touched.... Their conception of morality, godliness, and ethics left its mark quietly but firmly. As they [the wandering Jews] moved they carried their particular usage of the Scriptures with them and so not only transplanted it to ever new and fertile soil, but also strengthened their own ideas about monotheism, morality and ethics" (Dagobert D. Runes, The Hebrew Impact on Western Civilization, The Citadel Press, 1976, p. 6).

In America, especially, the impact of the Hebrew Scriptures on the early English emigrants, who set the tone for the renowned American work ethic and religious sensibilities, was as profound then as it is still undeniable today. "When the Pilgrims reached America, a bitterly persecuted people, they drew sharp parallels between themselves and the Jews. They drew constantly on the Bible and their own experience to renew the similarities. Its philosophy soon came to permeate their very beings" (p. 13).

When the Amerindians discovered the presence of the Pilgrim immigrants upon their shores, they made space for them and showed them the agricultural techniques needed to survive in their new home. The Pilgrims happily learned from their hosts and imparted to them highly prized items from their advanced metallurgy-cast-iron pots, pans, knives, traps and guns. They shared language, techniques and ideas. For a generation they both prospered and were at peace until that first generation died and a new group of leaders arose that did not have the same appreciation of one for another.

Perhaps we today, who live in a world where millions are seeking a better life, can consider one of the verses the Pilgrims undoubtedly reflected on, putting themselves in the place of ancient Israel. "So now, O Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you? Only to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments of the LORD your God and his decrees that I am commanding you today, for your own well-being.... Heaven and the heaven of heavens belong to the LORD your God... who executes justice for the orphan and the widow, and who loves the strangers, providing them food and clothing" (Deut. 10:12-14, 18 NRSV)

The situation of a stranger who had immigrated to the Commonwealth of Israel was an important issue. The Scriptures stated clearly that newcomers had equal protection under the law. "You shall have the same law for the stranger and for one from your own country; for I am the LORD your God" (Lev. 24:22).

To fit in with a host country an immigrant today should expect to follow the old proverb: when in Rome, do as the Romans do. The obligation to fit in was specifically required of immigrants by ancient Israel. They had to obey religious and social standards that were to be kept in the land (Lev. 16:29; 17:12; 18:26). But while they did have duties, immigrants also had recourse to that country's welfare system should their situation require it (Lev. 19:10).

In essence, God saw the immigration of strangers to the land of His covenanted people, Israel, as a golden opportunity to teach them His ways and His truth. God loves the stranger and He wanted His people Israel to imitate this divine, cultural attribute. "The stranger who dwells among you shall be to you as one born among you, and you shall love him as yourself; for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God" (Lev. 19:34).

Today, sadly, none of the nations of this world live by the divine code of conduct and social organization. National unity is not based on the worship of the true God, but rather ethnicity, adherence to fuzzy, humanly devised constitutions, or a mutual pursuit of life, liberty and lots of money. As a result, this modern national recipe for competition and strife produces the conflicts and tensions we presently see all about us.

So as individuals, what should our conduct be? "A lawyer stood up to test Jesus. `Teacher,' he said, `what must I do to inherit eternal life?' He said to him, `What is written in the law? What do you read there?' He answered, `You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself'” (Luke 10:25-27 NRSV). Jesus then complimented the lawyer on his good answer. "But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, `And who is my neighbor?'” (v. 29). Jesus responded by giving His famous parable of the Good Samaritan in which a man, who is never identified ethnically, is beaten up, robbed and left for dead by the side of the road. Two men passed by, saw the situation and didn't extend even minor help or courtesy to the injured man. A Samaritan, who was of a despised minority in that society, also passed by. But he, seeing the wounded man, stopped and helped him.

Jesus asked the lawyer, "Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?" He answered, "The one who showed him mercy." Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise" (vv. 36-38).

We too can be thoughtful and considerate to the immigrants who live among us and thereby emulate our heavenly Father who loves the stranger.

Top of Page     Bottom of Page

by Staff

A. This apparent contradiction comes from two verses in the New Testament. Let's see what they really say and mean. James 1:13 reads, "Let no one say when he is tempted, `I am tempted by God'; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone." But we read in Matthew, "You shall not tempt the LORD your God" (4:7; cf. Deut. 6:16).

A. This verse has often been misused to indicate that the Ten Commandments have been done away. But there is ample biblical evidence to the contrary. Let's take a look at

Top of Page     Bottom of Page

by John H. Ogywn

The tourist posters display a fascinating Rome—a city of seven hills covered with the architectural glories of the past and present. Rome is a city of contrasts. Old buildings and ancient ruins jostle side by side with a thriving, modern city. Twenty-seven centuries have come and gone since its legendary founding at the hands of Romulus and Remus. During this long expanse of time, this remarkable city has played an unparalleled role in the history of Western civilization—as Rome: the eternal city of intrigue and power!

Nestled within it is the world's smallest sovereign territory, Vatican City. Maintaining its own diplomatic relations with all of the major powers, this minuscule city-state ruled by the Roman pontiff is a full participant in international affairs. A city within a city, the Vatican has great international clout as the headquarters of a church with almost a billion adherents.

As a major European capital, Rome has been the site of many meetings of great significance. Almost 40 years ago, the Treaty of Rome was approved there. This momentous document launched what has evolved into the powerful European Union. But some see Rome's destiny as impinging upon the whole world!

Vatican expert Malachi Martin speculates, "There is an unspoken alliance today between powers inside the Vatican and leaders of major international humanist organizations who would change the Roman Catholic Church from a sacred institution to one whose primary function is to act as a stabilizing social force in the world. They see the church as the only global structure able to do this" (U.S. News & World Report, June 10, 1996). A vision of Rome leading, stabilizing and, of course, dominating the world is not a new one!

Anciently, Roman influence profoundly shaped the entire Western world. Over 15 centuries ago the Roman Empire fell. It received its fatal wound when invading "barbarians" murdered the last emperor in 476 A.D.

The first three of this ancient empire's would-be successors—the Vandals, Herulii and Ostrogoths—were uprooted from Italy at the urging of Rome's pope. Their power was cut short and they were "plucked up" by the armies of the Eastern Roman Emperor.

Since then, there have been six significant attempts to revive the empire of ancient Rome. According to the Bible, a seventh and final revival is yet to come. What do the Scriptures say about the historic and future impact of Roman influence on the world scene? Will your life be profoundly affected by events taking place in the "eternal" city?

A Deadly Wound Is Healed

At the conclusion of the Gothic Wars in 553 A.D., Italy lay in poverty and disorder. Rome had been repeatedly looted. The invading armies of the Eastern Emperor, Justinian, imally routed the Gothic barbarians. Though secular authority in the West had collapsed, "the survival of ecclesiastical organization [under the bishop of Rome) appeared even to the emperors as the salvation of the state. In 554 A.D., Justinian promulgated a decree requiring that `fit and proper persons, able to administer the local government, be chosen as governors of the provinces by the bishops and chief persons of each province'” (Will Durant, Story of Civilization, vol. 3, pp. 519-520).

This Imperial Restoration was the first of the seven remaining revivals. The emperors in Byzantium continued as nominal rulers of a revived Imperium Romanum in the West from 554 until 800. By the terms of Justinian's decree, however, the bishops of Rome (now called popes) were to be the real riders sitting astride the Imperial "beast" in the West (Rev. 13).

In the decades following the Restoration, the interest of Eastern Emperors focused on Asia Minor rather than Italy. Protection and security for Rome was negligible. In 800 A.D. an action was taken intended to solve this neglect. "On Christmas Day, as Charlemagne [king of the Franks], in the chlamys, and sandals of a patricius romanus, knelt before St. Peter's altar in prayer, [Pope] Leo suddenly produced a jeweled crown, and set it upon the King's head. The congregation, perhaps instructed beforehand to act according to ancient ritual as the senatus populusque Romanus confirming a coronation, thrice cried out: `Hail to Charles the Augustus, crowned by God the great and peace-bringing Emperor of the Romans!' The royal head was anointed with holy oil, the Pope saluted Charlemagne as Emperor and Augustus" (Durant, vol. 4, pp. 468-469). This was the second revival of the Imperium in the West with papal sanction.

As historian Will Durant puts it, "Out of this intimate cooperation of Church and state came one of the most brilliant ideas in the history of statesmanship: the transformation of Charlemagne's realm into a Holy Roman Empire that should have behind it all the prestige, sanctity, and stability of both Imperial and papal Rome" (vol. 4, p. 468).

During the 150 years that followed Charlemagne's coronation, his empire slowly disintegrated under weak successors. By 936 the German Saxons had become the most powerful group in Central Europe. In 955 Otto, king of the Germans, defeated the Magyars who were attempting to invade Western Europe. Several years later Otto entered Italy at the request of Pope John XII to restore him to power, and in the aftermath, received the Imperial crown at Pavia in 962. "Thus once again the ghost of the Roman Empire was summoned to sanction the successful state building of a semi-barbarian king" (William McNiel, Handbook of Western Civilization, p. 317). Otto's coronation marked the third revival of the Roman Empire in the West beginning with Justinian's Imperial Restoration.

What significance did Otto's revival of the Empire have to his contemporaries and their successors? Historian Robert Hertzstein writes, "The Empire was understood not as a mere term, but as a universal Christian regent for God on Earth, to exist until the coming of the Anti-Christ. Like Charlemagne, Otto received his throne through the Papal claim that the Roman Church had been the only Imperial elector since the early fourth century.... The Holy Roman Empire was thus to a large extent German in its ethnic and political base, Christian in its moral justification, and Roman in its claim to legitimacy and universality" (The Holy Roman Empire in the Middle Ages, p. viii).

"The task of the Empire was to be God's protagonist on earth, to fulfill His aims here, to protect Christianity and the Church, and to preserve the righteousness of God and the divine order of the universe on earth. The earthly Empire was the transitory reflection of the eternal City of God.... In the imperial symbols this claim was displayed to the whole world: with the imperial apple, filled with earth from the four corners of the world, the Emperor holds the whole world in his hand... [the Emperor] called the imperial crown corona urbis et orbis [the crown of the city and the globe]; he viewed himself as the caput mundi [head of the world] and as the dominator orbis et urbis [ruler of the globe and the city of Rome]" (pp. 64-65).

Otto's dynasty continued until 1254, when the empire became so rent by rival factions that a nineteen-year interregnum (time without an emperor) resulted. In 1273, Rudolph I, the first of the Hapsburg family, was elected emperor. The Hapsburg's apex during this fourth revival of the Roman Imperium was the crowning of Charles V by Pope Clement VII in 1530. Charles ruled over a vast empire that included all Spanish possessions in the New and Old Worlds plus the vast Hapsburg domains in Germany, Italy and Central Europe.

Over the course of the next two centuries Hapsburg power waned, and the title, Holy Roman Emperor, was increasingly seen as nothing but an empty facade. In the final decade of the eighteenth century all of Europe was shaken by the French Revolution. A man both highly gifted and supremely ambitious came to power in France.

Napoleon Bonaparte aspired to far more than the presidency of a French Republic or even to becoming a new king of France. His ambition could only be satisfied by the reestablishment of the Roman Empire with himself as emperor. As historian Will Durant notes, "He dreamt of rivaling Charlemagne and uniting Western Europe" (vol. 11, p. 243).

Napoleon had the French Senate proclaim him emperor on May 18, 1804. Immediately he began negotiations with Pope Pius VII to come to Paris and consecrate him as emperor. The negotiations were successful and the coronation occurred December 2.

The Hapsburgs of Austria, under pressure from Napoleon, renounced their dynastic claim over the Holy Roman Empire on August 6, 1806. Napoleon's revived empire now stretched from the Atlantic to the Elbe, including Spain, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, western Germany and eventually all of Italy. This marked the fifth revival of the western Imperium since the days of Justinian.

This revival was not destined to be long-lived, however. A British-led coalition brought about Napoleon's defeat and abdication in 1814. This ended a period of 1,260 years since the Imperial Restoration under Justinian in 554. Thus the prophecy in Revelation 13:3-5 of the "beast" receiving a deadly wound, the wound being healed, and then the beast continuing for "forty-two months" was fulfilled. Napoleon's abdication marked the end of an epoch. Yet, according to the Scriptures, there were still to be two more attempts to revive the glory and grandeur of ancient Rome.

Two Final Revivals—One Past and One Yet to Come

After Napoleon's collapse in 1814, Germany and Italy remained divided and impotent for the next half-century. Each was partitioned into a number of small states and principalities and was rent with internal squabbles. By 1871 Bismarck had succeeded in uniting all of non-Hapsburg Germany under the Prussian king, while Garibaldi succeeded in uniting all of Italy under the northern Italian king of Sardinia-Piedmont.

Fifty years after the inauguration of Garibaldi's union, a strong man came to power in this united Italy who had visions of once again restoring the grandeur and glory of ancient Rome. Benito Mussolini led the Fascist party to power in 1922. The Fascists derived their name from the fasces of Imperial Rome. The fasces was an ax wrapped in a bundle of rods signifying unity and authority. It was carried by Roman consuls as a symbol of their office.

Since 1870, when King Victor Emmanuel's Italian army had defeated the armies of the pope and captured Rome, there had been a tense standoff between the popes and the rulers of the newly united Italy. Finally, in 1929, Mussolini signed the Lateran Treaty with the pope, establishing papal sovereignty over Vatican City. Mussolini's government was officially recognized by the pope.

Anxious to gain "glory," Mussolini sent his army to conquer Ethiopia and Somaliland. In 1936 he boastfully proclaimed, "After 15 centuries, the reappearance of the Empire on the fated hills of Rome." Mussolini then proceeded to enter into an alliance with Adolph Hitler, ruler of Germany since 1933, creating the Rome-Berlin Axis powers of World War II. This sixth attempt at uniting Europe by reviving the concept of Imperial Rome went down in flames and ignominy in 1945.

Many said in the aftermath of World War II that Europe's day was past. The continent, especially Germany, was devastated. It seemed that Communism was the wave of the future in Europe. After all, Stalin had established the Red Army's boot on much of Central and Eastern Europe. The idea of a German-led Europe playing a dominant role in world affairs was something that most observers said could never again happen.

But 1957 heralded the inauguration of the Common Market consisting of France, West Germany, Italy, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. Today its powerful successor, the European Union, is playing an increasingly major role in world affairs. It is on the brink of completely supplanting America's post-World War II economic dominance.

Prophecies for Our Day and Beyond

What of the future? Will the European Union set the stage for the seventh and final attempt at resurrecting the grandeur and might of Imperial Rome?

When Daniel 7 and Revelation 13 are compared, it is apparent that the "ten horns" (kingdoms) are mentioned as springing out of the Roman Empire—the seventh head of the "beast." The first three of these "horns," the Vandals, Herulii and Ostrogoths, were "plucked up" at the behest of the papacy. (This subject was discussed in the May installment of this series entitled "The Beast of Revelation—Myth, Metaphor or Coming Reality?" If you do not have this issue, please request a copy.) This fulfilled the prophecy of Daniel 7:7-8, 23-25. That left the final seven "horns." Six attempts to restore the faded glories of ancient Rome have received papal sanction. These revivals have come and gone and are now part of history.

The story of the seven restorations (six are in the past and one is yet future) is told in symbolism in Revelation 17. Here a beast is pictured with seven heads and ten horns. This creature, however, is different from those in Daniel 7 and Revelation 13. This one is ridden by a woman. The woman symbolizes a religious organization called Mystery, Babylon the Great. In other words, it is a perpetuation of the old Babylonian Mystery religion now grown great and powerful.

The seven-headed creature of Revelation 17 is clearly the Holy Roman Empire, because "the seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits" (v. 9). In verse 10, the seven mountains are identified as seven kings or kingdoms. The creatures portrayed in Daniel 7 and Revelation 13 weren't ridden by the woman—but the beast of Revelation 17 is! Like its predecessor, it has ten horns on its final head.

In Revelation 17, the ten horns represent ten future rulers who will collectively give their power and authority to the beast, an endtime revival of the old Holy Roman Empire. The time setting is yet ahead of us because these ten will fight against Christ at His return (vv. 12-14, 17).

This brings us back to the first vision that Daniel interpreted—the image in Daniel 2. The two legs of iron culminated in feet of iron mixed with ceramic clay. The ten toes, five on each foot, were pictured being smashed by Christ at His return prior to setting up the Kingdom of God on earth (vv. 34-35, 42-44). The ten toes of Daniel 2 and the ten horns of Revelation 17 are clearly synonymous. They symbolize ten rulers who will collectively support and give their allegiance to the seventh and final resurrection of the Roman Empire.

The legs of the image in Daniel 2 represented the Roman Empire, divided into the Eastern Empire and the Western Empire by Emperor Diocletian in 286 A.D. Bible prophecy focuses on the continuation of the Western Empire, the beast ridden by the "woman." However, from Daniel 2 it is apparent that the eastern leg has a part to play in the final revival. The Eastern Roman Empire continued with emperors ruling in Constantinople until 1453, when the Ottoman Turks overran the city and killed the last emperor, Constantine XI.

However, that was not the end of the eastern leg. Nineteen years after the fall of Constantinople, in 1472, the pope performed a marriage ceremony between Ivan the Great, Duke of Muscovy, and Zoe, niece and heir to the last Eastern Emperor. "The marriage was of importance in establishing the claim of Russian rulers to be the successors of the Greek emperors and the protectors of Orthodox Christianity.... Ivan took the title Tsar, [or Czar] i.e., Caesar" (William L. Langer, Encyclopedia of World History, p. 342). Thus, down through history the Roman Empire continued as two legs. There were two individuals claiming to be the successors of Caesar. In the Latin, Germanic, Catholic realm of the West the form of the title was Kaiser. In the Greek, Slavic, Orthodox realm of the East it was Tsar.

The One who claims to declare "the end from the beginning" reveals that eventually 10 kings (or rulers) who are the successors to both the eastern and western "legs" will unite. They will form the last resurrection of the Roman Empire, the final embodiment of Babylon.

There is some bad news ahead. These final 10 rulers will give their support to a coming union of church and state in Europe, which will aspire to world dominance. As Johannes Haller, a popular German historian who died in 1947 put it, "In the memory of the German people the old [Holy Roman] Empire lives on as a time of greatness and splendor that must one day come to life again."

After a short interlude of apparent peace and prosperity, this system will plunge the whole world into a hellish nightmare. Unless God were to intervene by sending Jesus Christ back to this earth, utter destruction would result and no flesh would be left alive (Matt. 24:21-22, 29-30).

Yet beyond the bad news is, ultimately, good news! It really is the best news possible. You see, it is in the days of this final union of European rulers that "the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed... it shall stand forever" (Dan. 2:44).

Top of Page     Bottom of Page

by Judy Swanson

Mom! Daniel won't get out of my room," Katy yells. "He said he was going to take my `Barbies' and break them."

"No, I didn't," wails Daniel. "She has my boy `Barbies,' Ken and Joe, and I didn't give her permission to play with them."

"Yes you did," states Katy.

"No I didn't!" screams Daniel.

"You guys better work it out. My hands are full of bread dough. And stop screaming," exclaims Mom, wishing she could don some good old earplugs.

As Mom is shaping her last loaf, Katy runs screaming in to her with Daniel hot on her tail. "Give me that,” he demands. Katy has clung on to her mother trying to avoid the grabbing and pinching her brother is dishing out to her.

At the same moment Mom hears her little David cry out. "I'm done Mommy! I'm done Mommy!"

"Daniel and Katy stop! Just a minute David," she yells back. "Daniel, can you go help your brother in the bathroom? My hands are full of dough and I have to get this done."

"No, it's Katy's turn," replies Daniel.

"He won't let me help him. Besides, Mom asked you, Daniel," states Katy.

"It's your turn, I don't want to," argues Daniel.

"Mom!" another scream breaks through as David wanders out into the kitchen with his pants around his ankles and tissue in his hand. "I did it myself," he says proudly.

Do you ever get so frustrated that you want to pull your hair out? Do you ever wonder if you are going to make it through the day? Do you ever think that you are losing your mind? Do you ever just get the urge to run out the door and keep running until you come to a remote tropical island and just lie in the sun and forget everything and relax, listening to the soothing surf. Do you ever dream that you were somebody else, perhaps a lone sailor setting sail to distant shores? Well, I think that all mothers feel this way at one time or another. Don't despair. Just remember, this too will pass! Children do grow up, and life does settle down—at least somewhat!

In the course of a young mother's daily life of rearing her children, she may feel overwhelmed and wonder if everything she is doing is right and if the kids are going to turn out all right. When the phone is ringing, the baby is crying, the siblings are arguing and yelling at each other, the food is boiling over, the dog is barking, and somebody is at the door—it is enough to make one go crazy! Right? What is a mother to do? Run screaming out the door? That's what she'd like to do. Right?!

First of all she needs to get a hold of herself and cry out to God for patience and relief! Count to ten, take a deep breath and smile. Then decide what is the immediate priority. Remember, this too will pass!

There will always be challenges in life. If you are a mother, don't think of these attitude-testing circumstances that come up as problems or obstacles. Think of them as challenges that are giving you a chance to see what you can do under pressure. For "if you faint in the day of adversity, your strength is small" (Prov. 24:10).

Think of life as a long journey. You are traveling to the Kingdom of God. Everything you do affects your journey. As you develop the attributes of God, you will experience some rough spots and bad weather along the way. Christ had to. As you are rearing your children, think of them as also traveling on their way to adulthood, and eventually into the Kingdom. And, right now, you are their chief petty officer, responsible for this motley crew composed of your own flesh and blood. Your responsibility is to show them daily, as you journey, the correct course in which they should sail. Yes, they will bicker with their siblings, if they have any. And they will disobey you and maybe even break all the rules as they grow from toddlers to adolescents. But, the important thing is not what they do, but how well you handle it! After all, they are just children.

The Bible says we do things as children that later we don't do as we mature and become adults ( 1 Cor. 13:11 ). When the children get in bad moods and attitudes, how do you handle them? Do you work with them? Do you talk to them and show them that their behavior is not in accordance with God's ways? After you discuss and illustrate the problem, encourage them to pray and ask God to help them out of their bad attitudes. Teach the children that bad attitudes come from Satan who broadcasts his feelings to us just as a radio broadcasts its programming. Teach them to tune into God's channel when their attitudes get bad, to go to God and ask forgiveness and to ask Him to help them get back into good attitudes.

When the kids argue and fight with each other, how do you handle it? Do you help them talk with each other and try to settle their differences without hitting and yelling. Sometimes they may need "time out," marooned on a chair in the corner, away from each other until they settle down. Then you can make them apologize to one another.

Are you always the children's referee? Sometimes they just need to learn on their own how to relate to one another. Sometimes it is better to just stand back, watch them work things out together and see how they do, unless they become violent. Of course, violent, hateful aggression shouldn't be tolerated. If they have a lot of energy to expend in their dispute, a pair of large boxing gloves helps do the trick without them really hurting each other.

When they spill their milk accidentally, how do you handle it? Do you yell at them and hit them? Or do you reassure them that we all make mistakes and accidents do happen while encouraging them to be more careful? How you react to these situations unconsciously teaches them that this is the way it is done, whether it is wrong or right! You are their model. It impacts their minds and will automatically help mold and shape them.

Yelling at children, hitting (as opposed to proper discipline), barking orders, provoking or belittling them—all this does is set them up to become dysfunctional adults. What good does it do you or God if you harshly push your crew to the point of mutiny like some Captain Bligh on the H.M.S. Bounty!

Children learn what they live with. If they live with love and affection, they learn to be loving and affectionate. If they live with compliments and praise, they learn to give them. If they live with high standards, they learn to set high standards for themselves. If they live with forgiveness, understanding and mercy, they learn to be forgiving, understanding and merciful. If they live with love and for God and His laws, they learn to love and respect God and His laws. If they live with God's ways in their childhood, being taught to pray and talk to Him as they would to their physical father, they will pray to Him as adults. All of these godly traits become habits with children if they are lovingly reinforced as they are growing up.

Children do need correction and discipline. But what they don't need is abuse, either verbally, mentally, emotionally or physically. Abuse is not only a crime by this society's standards, but also according to God's!

Teach your children to be forgiving and not to hold grudges. Jesus said to forgive seventy times seven times (Matt. 18:21-22). But that doesn't mean they have to take bad treatment from their friends. Teach them that when the neighbor child behaves well, they can play with him. But when he starts treating them badly, teach your children that then is the time to let the potential bully know, politely but firmly, that if he is going to behave in an unacceptable way—then he is not welcome in your home or yard. Teach your kids to stand up for themselves! This will build proper self-esteem. Many children today are suffering from extremely low self-esteem because of abuse by parents or others while growing up.

Teach the children to always be grateful by sending thank-you notes to those who have given them gifts or done thoughtful acts of kindness to them. Helping them make their own thank-you cards is a good way to teach thankfulness and creativity. Sending get-well cards to those who are ill is another way of teaching them kindness and thoughtfulness. Encourage your children to pray for other people. In this way you nurture empathy for others.

Have a sense of humor and learn to laugh at yourself! Don't take yourself too seriously. Many take their responsibility of parenting so seriously that they become overly strict and corrective for every infraction that their children commit. If God corrected us every time we made a mistake, where would we be? Dead! Your positive, upbeat example is the best way of teaching your children. If you yell at them every time they are slow to follow orders, that is what they will most likely do to their children and others. If you are patient with them, they will learn to be patient. If you correct them every time they make a mistake, they will become paranoid. Children who live in fear of making mistakes do not grow up to become mentally healthy adults.

Teach your children to express themselves in a respectful way. Sometimes this may be impossible at the moment. If, for example, your child has an outburst of anger because he is hurt by something you or someone else said or did, don't discipline him immediately. Rather, hear him out, and then after he has settled down, patiently correct him, letting him know that he should respectfully let you know what is bothering him. How often have we as adults let loose an angry verbal broadside about something that we have been hurt by or didn't like? Did God punish us on the spot? Probably not. And if we are hurt by something that has happened to us, does He punish us for crying because of pain or disappointment? No! God understands of our hurts and grief, and He comforts us. Should we do less for our children?

Parents need to teach their children that it is all right for them to be in pain or have hurt feelings. But, they need to stay out of bad attitudes! Correct the attitudes and don't let them blame, accuse or be jealous of others. Crying because of disappointments or hurt feelings does not always call for discipline. Help them through it. Be encouraging and positive. Of course, if they continue being disrespectful, having a bad attitude, then they do need discipline. Always let them know in a firm, controlled manner why you are punishing them. After punishing, always remember to hug them and tell them how much you love them. Also teach them that they should always tell you they are sorry when they have done something that results in their punishment, correction or discipline.

And if you do something you shouldn't, like yell at them or punish them inappropriately, then you should apologize to them. Your example of being willing to apologize to your children shows them that you respect them as human beings worthy of being respected!

When you go out in public, perhaps to a restaurant, teach your children to sit still. If they are little, give them something constructive to do. If you are having a conversation or attending a public meeting, teach them to be quiet and respectful of others who want to concentrate on what is being said. This is not to say that children should not sometimes participate in adult conversations. On the contrary, encourage them to follow along and to ask questions. After all, you want to stimulate and develop their thinking and reasoning abilities!

It takes time and effort to do all of these things, but as parents, this is our responsibility. This is what the Bible means when it instructs us to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul and might. God wants us to meditate and reflect on His Words and to teach them diligently to our children at every opportune moment.

When any situation comes up where you can include God's Word in your training, do it! If they have stolen something, show them in the Scriptures how they are to not only pay back what they have stolen, but that they are to pay back even more! Teach them respect for the Ten Commandments so they will learn not to break them!

Almost every day a situation will arise that gives you the opportunity to use the Scriptures to help in your child rearing. Think of it as an ideal moment for a quickie Bible lesson. At school, situations will arise that help you show your kids how to get through each day. If you always point them to God with their problems and teach them to have faith in God, they will never turn away from Him. Why? Because they will have developed their own relationship with their heavenly Father as they grew up! For most people, good childhood habits are the foundation of a mature adult's behavior. Children who are taught to live God's way discover the priceless hidden treasures of success and happiness.

Our personal example is vital in helping our children build their faith in God. Children are acute observers of their parents. If we walk with God in our daily lives and look to Him, then our kids probably will also. If we are hypocrites who say but don't do, then they will probably follow that example as well.

After the children become adults, they are then in God's hands. This is not to say that they won't stray for awhile as they try to see where they fit in life. We must let God work with them as He sees fit. Once our children reach adulthood, our responsibility to them as a parent is transformed. No longer do we muster the crew for roll call, but our function as role models, advisors, bankers and personal friends continues!

In past decades, many parents tended to place so much emphasis on discipline and correction that as a result, not enough love was used in dealing with their children. More recently, many parents have been way too permissive and have forgotten the role of discipline, both for their children and themselves. The answer lies somewhere in between. Obedience should be learned through loving guidance, not through force. If God has to force us to be obedient, we will not be in the Kingdom! Let's learn to be balanced, loving parents as God is to us—full of mercy, forgiveness, patience and self control.

Bear You One Another’s Burdens

Are we as God’s family and coworkers helping to bear each other’s burdens? Christ tells us that His burden is light. And we are to emulate Him. That means that we also should be helping to make other people’s burdens light.

Are we helping out when we see a need? When we see a child of one of our neighbors misbehaving do we judge and criticize him or the parents, or do we step in and help out? Do we take him by the hand and either correct the situation or help him if he is in need of help? We are a family and rather than looking down on one another, we should be helping each other.

Young mothers are in a very exhausting position, caring for little infants and children. Why not try to visit and encourage one another? Don’t be self-righteous and say, “Well, I reared my kids by myself. She should be able to do it as