*An excerpt from the article “Back to Babylon” is included at the end of this article.
As the terrible happenings in Israel unfold, and we are reminded of just how close we are to the departure of the bride of Christ, it is very important to issue a “Warning to those living in the land of Woe.”
As it should be, the atrocities taking place in Israel are front and center in the minds of all who are studying the last days. However, what is happening there is not the only thing we should be concerned with at this time. Indeed, what is occurring in Israel should cause the rest of the world to remember that we are all living in the end of days. For the faithful, this means Christ will soon issue the call to come up here (the Rapture).[1] For the unfaithful, this means the wrath of God will soon be poured out upon all who reject Christ (the Tribulation).
While all of the earth will suffer the woes of the Tribulation, it is my opinion that one-fourth part of the earth will be hardest hit during the early stages of the greatest world-changing period ever experienced. More on this later. Jesus made sure we were aware of a laundry list of events that were to come when He responded to His disciple’s questions about the last days (Matt 24). In particular, He warned of a time during the Tribulation that was worse than any before or after:
Matthew 24:21 “For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.” [2]
At this point, I would implore you to stop and read, or re-read, all of the articles written about the four horsemen of the apocalypse and the return of world affairs to the land of Babylon. These articles are all contained on a special page of our website, “Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.” [3]
Understanding what is about to happen is crucial for both the faithful and the unfaithful, as the faithful must be busy warning the unfaithful about the fast-approaching time of Woe.[4] Unfortunately, this task has become extremely difficult as much of the world has begun to call evil good and good evil,[5] a condition that, in and of itself, indicates that this great time of Woe is upon us:
Isaiah 5:20 “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!”
Truly, evil masquerades as good throughout the entirety of the land. People of all stripes are busy trying to right the wrongs of their errant beliefs and practices by calling the good evil and the evil good. If you have any doubts about this last statement, just tune in to any type of television program where you are likely to see this very thing taking place. Notice, I said any type of television program. This is because much of what is calling itself the church is just as busy as the world putting darkness for light and light for darkness. In the aforementioned passage of Matthew 24, Jesus indicated that great deception,[6] a sign He warned about more than any other, and the rise of many false prophets would mark the end of days.[7]
I have written extensively about the false ministers and heretical beliefs that have infiltrated the church. You can find these writings on the “eschatology articles” page of our website. [8]
Before going on, if you have visited our website lately, you know that I have taken a break from writing in order to move my family from Ohio to Indiana. This move has taken a great while as we have much to do in our new home by way of upgrades before fully moving in. We are still far from finished; however, it is imperative to respond to the urging of the Lord and issue a “Warning to Those Living in the Land of Woe,” for the time is at hand.
The Land of Woe
Clearly, Jesus spoke of the coming Tribulation as something that impacts the entirety of the earth. While this is true, as noted in the aforementioned articles about the four horsemen and the return to Babylon, I believe the initial impact of the judgments of God will be focused on the areas of the world that rejected Christ though they had the lights of the world, Christians, living among them (Matt 5:14). Indeed, this fact could be the reason the judgment is so severe here during the onset of the Tribulation.
The areas I consider to be in “the land of Woe” are those that I have written about in the article “Back to Babylon.” [9] In short, all of the nations that once called themselves Christian are those that will find themselves in the crosshairs of the beginnings of the Tribulation and the Seal judgments. This is because they have had ample time to respond to the call of the Lord issued forth by the church, which was once prolific in each nation. Incredibly, the judgments meted out on these former Christian nations, making them inconsequential, will also force the narrative back to the Middle East (Back to Babylon), where the last prophecies contained in many books of the Bible are fulfilled.
Throughout all of history, the general biblical principle of woe coming upon those who call evil good and good evil has been demonstrated. However, because the whole of the earth is now inundated with this mindset, those who call good bad and bad good will soon be visited by great worldwide woes, which begin after the faithful are taken out of this world. Think about this for a moment: at the most calamitous time ever known, everyone that is truly good because of the Christ that lives within them is, in a moment, nowhere to be found, just like Enoch and Elijah (Gen 5:24, 2 Ki 2:15-18). As they did with Enoch and Elijah, many will undoubtedly look for the departed to no avail, for the Lord will have taken us (1 Thess 4:16-17).
Perhaps, after realizing that the departed good are nowhere to be found, those left here will begin to call upon the Lord rather than placing their faith in man or religion to lead and guide them. As a result, many will come to saving faith in the early period of the Tribulation as indicated by the great influx of believers seen in heaven during the fifth seal (Rev 6:9-11) and shortly after the 144,000 are sealed (Rev 7:4-17). I believe many of those who make up this populous will be the ones to whom we have witnessed prior to our departure. This is why this warning is for the faithful and the unfaithful.
Warning
To the faithful, please heed this warning and take immediate action to warn those in your sphere of influence about the coming calamities. Yes, your message may seem like bad news; however, following up with the gospel will provide the best news anyone can hear. Truly, because of His sacrifice, Jesus has made a way where there was no way (John 14:6). Our part is to fulfill “The Great Commission” until the last breath, even though the unfaithful reject the message. Persist, we must, in doing the Lord’s will as He leads, even though it seems like we are ineffectual. Remember, our part is to preach the gospel. The Holy Spirit will take care of the rest.
To the unfaithful, please heed this warning, as the coming storm is far greater than you can imagine. The absolute best way to navigate it is to not be here when it occurs, and that means you must turn right now from your own lordship and call upon the name of the true Lord, Jesus Christ. Faith in Him alone can set you free from sin and death (Rom 6:18). If you reject this warning and plea, sudden destruction shall befall you after the departure of the righteous, as all that you once relied upon becomes useless.
The Apostle Paul, through the unction of the Holy Spirit, had this to say about the coming time of Tribulation:
1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 “But of the times and the seasons, brethren [the faithful], ye have no need that I write unto you. For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they [the unfaithful] shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.
“Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation. For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him. Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.” emphasis mine, [author’s comments]
Take note: Paul was speaking to one group, the faithful, about two groups, the faithful and the unfaithful. The faithful will escape the coming calamities. The unfaithful will not. This is why it is so important for both groups to heed this warning. The faithful must remain watchful and sober. The unfaithful must awaken to the fact that they are in need of the one and only Savior, Jesus Christ.
The only way the unfaithful can join the ranks of the faithful is to hear the gospel message and turn from their wicked ways. The only way they can hear the message is if we share it. We must share it:
Romans 10:14-15 “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!”
Conclusion
Just like the sudden arrival of woe to Israel during the recent atrocities experienced there, great is the danger of the sudden judgment of the coming Tribulation for all who reject Christ. This is why it is imperative that we all, like the watchmen of old, issue this “Warning to Those Living in the Land of Woe.”
Ezekiel 33:1-6 “Again the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, speak to the children of thy people, and say unto them, When I bring the sword upon a land, if the people of the land take a man of their coasts, and set him for their watchman: If when he seeth the sword come upon the land, he blow the trumpet, and warn the people; Then whosoever heareth the sound of the trumpet, and taketh not warning; if the sword come, and take him away, his blood shall be upon his own head. He heard the sound of the trumpet, and took not warning; his blood shall be upon him. But he that taketh warning shall deliver his soul.
“But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned; if the sword come, and take any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman’s hand.”
Soon, Jesus will come for His bride, and the judgments of God will commence. Escape is only possible for those who choose to be faithful now when they cannot see and/or touch Jesus. True faith is simply believing that God is, and the way to become faithful is just as simple…
All we must do to become faithful is to recognize that we have need of a Savior. We must come to grips with the fact that we are incapable of making it to heaven on our own merits. Only the precious blood of Jesus is able to cover our sins. Believing that He has done all that is necessary is how we become faithful. It is not our attributes that make us worthy of heaven, but His. Jesus is truly the only “way, truth, and Life: whereby man comes to the Father (John 14:6).”
Please heed this warning, call upon the name of the Lord, and escape the coming Tribulation!
If you have come upon this article after the Rapture, the article “Open Letter to Those Who Miss the Rapture” is for you.
Website: In His Commission
*Excerpt from: “Back to Babylon.”
Forcing the Focus Back to Babylon
Just as God, shortly after the flood, scattered the people to the far ends of the earth to keep them from doing things they ought not, He will force them back to the Middle East where all things began. Shortly after the rapture of the church, marking the end of the age of grace, God will restart the prophetic clock spoken of by the prophet Daniel concerning the seventy weeks of Israel. Sixty-nine weeks passed until the ‘cutting off’ of the Messiah, Jesus. The last two thousand years have been the marvelous mystery of a period of grace extended to all who believe that Jesus is the Son of God who died for all who believe, and He was raised by the Father, and He will return soon to take His bride to the place He has prepared in His Father’s house (John 14:1-3).
Once Jesus concludes the age of grace and the prophetic clock restarts with one seven-year week remaining, the narrative will shift back to Israel, and God will use the forces of evil, which are currently coalescing in the Babylon region, to cause Israel to turn back to Him.
How will the return to Babylon happen? How will the city of Babylon become one that is so influential that the kings of the earth mourn her demise at the end of the tribulation period? (Rev 18:9). How is this possible when the United States is the reigning superpower with great influence in all areas of life? What is the simple explanation?
Most do not want to hear what comes next. The only thing that can explain the absence of the United States in Bible prophecy is the United States will indeed be absent from the world stage. This is not to say the United States will be completely destroyed. However, this once great nation will no longer be a superpower. The rise of world governance is one of the greatest indicators that the nationalistic United States will fall.
What if the information so many have sought for so long has been in plain sight all along? What if the United States is part of the earth that will become irrelevant in the closing moments of world history? Is it possible that the United States and other so-called Christian nations are suddenly made insignificant, seemingly overnight? Perhaps these nations are greatly impacted by two separate but closely related events: the rapture and the subsequent destruction of a fourth part of the earth brought forth by the seal judgments in the early days of the Tribulation. This study is not rapture-centric; therefore, this biblical definition should provide enough clarity to continue the dialogue about the return of Babylon:
“For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord” (1 Thess 4:16-17).
One-fourth of the Earth
When looking at the earth from the four-mile perspective or when looking at the earth from above, it becomes clear that one-quarter of the earth stands apart from the supercontinent that contains the Middle East. In fact, Canada, the United States, Mexico, Brazil, and Australia make up statistically one-fourth of the earth’s surface:
World Land Mass – 57,510,000 square miles – divided by 4 = 14,377,500
Canada – 3,855,101
U.S.A – 3,618,783
Mexico – 758,449
Brazil – 3,287,955
Australia – 2,969,906
Total – 14,490,194 – That is incredibly close to ¼ of the earth’s surface (14,377,500). Especially when adding in the remaining inhabitable islands of the earth.
What if the United States is in Bible prophecy? What if all of the countries listed above are greatly diminished by the rapture, and then further abated by the chaos which will undoubtedly ensue?
Perhaps these once great nations will be so affected by the sudden removal of the good among them that they begin to succumb to the riders of the four horsemen of the apocalypse. The first being one who will conquer; the second removing peace from the world, causing those left on earth to kill one another; the third causing great famine; all culminating with the fourth horseman who, with Death as a rider, is followed by Hell, and they have authority to destroy one-quarter of the earth? John provided more detail:
“And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see. And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth” (Rev 6:7-8).
Notice this passage does not say one-fourth of the population. Instead, it says, “the fourth part of the earth.” Ironically, the destruction of this part of the earth would have the effect of forcing the focus of world events back to the Middle East and, for those who love this world, back to Babylon, the new seat of government, commerce, and religion.
With these things in mind, it is clear to see how the narrative would shift from Western-centric to Middle Eastern-centric. If ‘Death’ visits the aforementioned countries in the magnitude mentioned, they would become inconsequential to the last days narrative. One could even envision the complete annihilation of all inhabitants of these countries. This, however, would not affect the scenarios depicted in the book of Revelation in the least, as none of these countries are mentioned. In fact, this actually clears up many questions posed by theologians about the players involved or, perhaps better said, not involved in the last moments of history.
***
[1] For greater understanding, see the article, “The Five W’s of the Rapture.”
[2] “Unless otherwise noted, all biblical passages referenced are in the King James Version.”
[3] For greater understanding, see the articles located at “Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.”
[4] For greater understanding, see the article “Watch – Warn – Win Souls.”
[5] For greater understanding, see the article “We Must Apologize.”
[6] For greater understanding, see the article “Dealing with Deception.”
[7] For greater understanding, see the article “The Rise of Many.”
[8] For greater understanding, see the eschatology articles page, “Eschatology Articles.”
[9] For greater understanding, see the article “Back to Babylon.”