The Sabbath Year

Down through human history, there have been many societal experiments in caring for the poor and the disabled. Usually, this has involved the matter of taxation and wealth distribution. To this end, there have been many proposed solutions, but all of them have not conclusively worked, at least not over the long-term. Mountains of books on this topic have brought mankind no closer to solving or controlling the heart of man. Says the Bible, “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?” (Jeremiah 17:19). To this day, despite the proliferation of behavioral theories, we are still left with the same question—“Who really knows the human heart?”

Because of sin—particularly greed—we have the poor and disabled still with us (at least, seen in relative terms). Jesus prophesied this outcome, saying: “The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want” (Mark 14:7). Why? Because Jesus knew that sin would continue upon earth until His return. People would generally not want to help the poor.

Humans are calculating creatures, adjusting their behaviors to best suit their self-interests and goals of happiness (assuming they have the freedom to do so). John tells us of the three primary, primordial impulses in the heart of mankind. “For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world” (1 John 2:16).

Recently, the 2017 edition of the Forbes survey of the world’s top 400 billionaires was published. Continuing the trend, we observe that the rich are becoming richer. Quoting Forbes, “The number of billionaires jumped 13% to 2,043 from 1,810 last year, the first time ever that Forbes has pinned down more than 2,000 ten-figure-fortunes. Their total net worth rose by 18% to $7.67 trillion, also a record. The change in the number of billionaires—up 233 since the 2016 list—was the biggest in the 31 years that Forbes has been tracking billionaires globally.”

Will the world soon witness a trillionaire? One wealth management firm has made the prediction that the modern world’s first trillionaire is likely to appear over the next several decades.

While that may apply to the modern age, several people in antiquity could claim that they had achieved trillionaire status. Consider, for example, what some analysts regard as the world’s second richest man of all time: Augustus Caesar. Not only was he in charge of an empire that accounted for 25% to 30% of the world’s economic output during his day, but according to Stanford history professor Ian Morris, Augustus at one point held personal wealth equivalent to one-fifth of his empire’s economy. That fortune would be the equivalent of about $5.3 trillion in 2017.1 Such wealth is beyond imagination.

No Shortage of Hoards

Many commentators and economists point to the widening chasm between the wealthy—namely the “super wealthy,” and the general populace today. In recent years, economist authors such as Thomas Piketty (celebrated author of Capital in the 21^st Century) have gained a following due to their attempts to explain the reasons for this wealth stratification. Nevertheless, Piketty has been somewhat discredited (even branded a Marxist) by the factions that consider any limitation upon wealth the gravest of all possible heresies. And so, the debates continue.

What we do know for sure is that wealth based on its modern definition—this including everything from hard assets to highly-derived financial instruments—is at its highest in the entirety of mankind’s history. Despite the interruption of the Global Financial Crisis (beginning in 2008), total modern asset wealth has continued to soar in value.

Is this mere happenstance? No, we think not. It is largely a function of rampant materialism and greed, expressed through globalization and financialization (the “lust of the eyes,” 1 John 2:16). All of these are coincident developments that are aligned with Bible prophecy. James expressly mentions that this condition of hoarding will exist in the last days:

Now listen, you rich people, weep and wail because of the misery that is coming on you. […] You have hoarded wealth in the last days. Look! The wages you failed to pay the workers who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord Almighty. You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened yourselves in the day of slaughter. You have condemned and murdered the innocent one, who was not opposing you (James 5:1, 3-6).

What is observed here is that hoarding and love of wealth have taken precedence over economic fairness and a deteriorating geopolitical outlook. Somewhat imaginatively interpreted, it is an era where the elite rich try to enclave themselves and find safety in brutal strategies to preserve and build more wealth.

Importantly, the Bible provided a view on these matters long before anyone invented the terms “capitalism,” “Marxism” or anything else. Jesus said: “[…] From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked” (Luke 12:48). Whether legislated or not, those with much have greater responsibility.

Indeed, to be rich is not a sin in itself. However, the fact remains that extreme wealth imbalances are not good for societies or economies. There are many negative consequences. Yet, mankind has never hearkened to God’s solution to these problems. How so?

Firstly, God made us mortal. Every human knows that they will die some day … that their time on this earth is finite and short. There could not be a more effective way of letting humans know that there is no eternal translation of the wealth accumulated on earth. It will all be left behind.

Secondly, God has provided an example of wealth governance in the Bible. The Levitical financial system that the Hebrews were commanded to practice, kept a check and balance on wealth distortions. To recall, God said through Moses, “At the end of every seven years you must cancel debts” (Deuteronomy 15:1). As such, we see that a seven-year debt cycle was instituted. We can conclude that there could be no such thing as perpetual debt: every Sabbath Year, debts had to be laid flat. Anyone who could not pay back their debts by that time was forgiven this amount.

We can imagine just how different our economies would be today were this same convention applied. There would be no massive accumulations of debt … or stratification of wealth.

In the Service of the Monied Rich

The service of managing money has therefore been a growth business. Why? As mentioned, the value of real and financial assets has been climbing over time; and secondly, it has been piling up in fewer hands. There are a number of asset management firms with over a trillion in client assets. Some firms (we will not mention names) have been shown in the past to be only too willing to deal with anyone with money … no matter the source of the wealth.

Despots, dictators and others who may have pillaged their countries—perhaps stolen the proceeds of resource exports, or misdirected foreign aid in the tens of billions—have found willing complicitors. In the past, they have had little difficulty in hiding their assets abroad with the professional help of “highbrow” financial service companies, the names of which would be well recognized. Thankfully, there are some organizations such as Global Financial Integrity, that are seeking to expose such corruption. The scale of global kleptocracy that this organization has unearthed is not to be believed.

Despite the supposed crackdowns on tax havens and offshore financial centers, the mega-rich (and many of the world’s multinational corporations) use covert companies and bank accounts, and complex offshore structures to own mansions, yachts, art masterpieces and other assets of all types. Highly paid accountants and middlemen help to hide identities and business interests, establishing shelter for assets as well as securing tax advantages not available to the average person.

Perhaps surprising to many, experts consider the United States to be the biggest haven of all.

In short, the wealthy have been accruing wealth in leaps and bounds in recent years. Evidence of their rising stature and consumption patterns is everywhere.

Thoughts to Ponder

Consider that global debt levels continue to climb to unprecedented levels. This trend will continue in the decades ahead … should the Lord not intervene. The point to note is that whenever one is analyzing debt levels, it must always be remembered that it is only one side of a twofold condition.

For every debtor there must also be a creditor; there must be someone that has the monetary capital to lend in the first place, as “for seller as for buyer, for borrower as for lender, for debtor as for creditor” (Isaiah 24:2). (This is the very same duality that this writer believes is portrayed in Zechariah’s fifth vision of the great, flying scroll found in Zechariah 5. The flying scroll had writing on both sides.) Therefore, when indebtedness soars, it is most always associated with a rising imbalance in wealth distribution.

Anyone familiar with the board game Monopoly will have observed that one person usually ends up owning all the property. When that happens, the game is over and a new one must be started. Effectively, the Sabbath Year served to slow this “winner take all” tendency of human economies; and, moreover, would reset the game every 7 years.

However, even this 7^th-year Sabbath was insufficient to complete God’s outline for economic fairness on earth. One more ordinance was commanded: the Jubilee Year.

Said the Lord, “Consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you; each one of you is to return to his family property and each to his own clan.” The 25^th chapter of Leviticus lays out a detailed set of rules as to how the Jubilee Year was to be observed.

In effect, every 50 years, a new round of “Monopoly” was decreed. Property was restored to its original owners. The year prior (the 49^th year being a Sabbath Year), all debts would have been laid flat as well. The main difference of the Jubilee Year as compared to the Sabbath Year, was that land was returned to the original tribe and family, and indentured labor (slavery) was broken. Together, these two Sabbath ordinances (both the 7^th Sabbath year and the Jubilee Year) ensured that freedom, wealth distribution, and incentives for production and income stayed in balance.

Industrious and entrepreneurial people would still be rewarded for their efforts. Individuals could still become wealthy. Under these God-given Sabbatical cycles, it was much less likely that an oppressed class of indebted and poor could emerge.

Were the principles behind these two Sabbath years observed today, our current globalized world of money would not be so dangerously imbalanced. There would be no massive accumulations of debt as we see in our time.

We can imagine just how different our economies would be today were wealth governance policies based on the Biblical Hebrew model. Of course, these policies would only apply to our earthbound economies.

The New Testament (NT), however, routinely only acknowledges and endorses riches of a different kind—true riches, unlimited riches that would span across eternity. More than ten times, “riches” are equated with the glories of God, salvation and eternity in the NT. We quote just one of these wonderful references: “And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19).

The richest person of all time cannot purchase this type of wealth with money. All those with their name in the Book of the Lamb can, therefore, claim the greatest riches of all time.

(Who was the richest man of all time? We have mentioned Augustus Caesar as the second richest. According to Ferrum College history professor Richard Smith, Mansa Musa, the king of Timbuktu, was the richest human being of all time. He lived in the late 13^th to early 14^th centuries. His African kingdom—today’s Mali—was likely the largest producer of gold in the world, at a time which gold was in especially high demand.)

About the Author: Wilfred J. Hahn is a global economist/strategist. Formerly a top-ranked global analyst, research director for a major Wall Street investment bank, and head of Canada’s largest global investment operation, his writings focus on the endtime roles of money, economics and globalization. He has been quoted around the world and his writings reproduced in numerous other publications and languages. His 2002 book The Endtime Money Snare: How to live free accurately anticipated and prepared its readers for the Global Financial Crisis. His most recent book, Global Financial Apocalypse Prophesied: Preserving true riches in an age of deception and trouble, looks further into the future. You can contact him at staff@eternalvalue.com

1 http://time.com/money/3977798/the-10-richest-people-of-all-time/

 

Networking Prophecy

Who can do without the Internet today? Many conveniences have been born of current networking technologies. Can we ever again do without online banking? What of the social media networks that allow us to stay in touch with friends? Will we ever go to the library again to research an essay? When was the last time we used a telephone book, and what of the convenience of online shopping?

Lastly, not to be overlooked, is the “marriage saver.” Disputes and debates can now be settled almost instantly by doing a web search. No need to argue.

All in all, who would dislike the many conveniences of a networked world? Readers will know that its many benefits come at a price. Indeed, the rise of “networked man” has many repercussions. Do we know what they are and what facilitations they hold for the prophetic timeline?

A Time Such as This

Just what is the most incredible dynamic of worldwide networking trends? Without a doubt, it is the amazing speed of their adoption and application. One may be excused for not being aware of the sizzling pace. There are many developments and much complexity. Likely also playing a role in the complacency regarding networking, is that many of us may be nonplussed by the speed of change and innovation. After all, isn’t rapid change normal today?

Well yes … but, only recently. One must understand just how unique and extraordinary are our times. A historical perspective is needed. When modern-day developments are benchmarked against the human time line upon earth—over many millennia—the stunning rapidity of advancement seen in our day becomes starkly evident.

In fact, the pace of change is so sudden one would not be faulted for holding some suspicion. Bible readers (most certainly those that allow the Bible to speak literally) would be particularly sensitive and discerning. Bible-believers, after all, are prompted to discern the times … to know the season of the Lord’s return. They are charged to “watch” for the dangers to their faith as well as the signs of the times.

To someone holding millennial perspectives—both retroactively as well as prophesied—today’s networking phenomenon would stick out like an enormous anomaly. From such a millennial vantage point, it would be indefensible to not regard any of the “sudden” trends of the last several hundred years as being prophetically significant.

While we must take all of our perspectives and conclusions from the Bible (not going beyond what it says: 1 Corinthians 4:6), we can nevertheless still be reasonably alerted to trends and developments that “enable” or will “precede” actual fulfilled prophecies.

So doing, we identify at least five or six characteristics that alert us of possible prophetically enabling trends: 1. Acceleration (particularly so after 1948, that being the point that God’s timepiece, Israel, again became a sovereign entity in its original land); 2. A seeming improbability and inexplicability of its emergence … at least at first; 3. Catering to humanism, “lust of the flesh” and political expediency; 4. Having scope for worldwide impact (i.e. not just applying locally or to North America); 5. Likely having confluence and interconnection with other accelerating trends (happening contemporaneously); and, above all, 5. Suddenness and rapidity.

On the basis of these indicators, the phenomenon of globally “networked man” definitely qualifies as a “prophetically enabling” trend. We will explain further.

Prophetically Significant Phenomenon

We have often written of the rapid trend of financialization—this referring to the increasing capture of human activities in the form of financial transactions and the imputed financial value of all actions and forms of assets. It is one of the most significant of all “prophetically enabling” trends, in our view. (The 2001 book The Endtime Money Snare: How to Live Free [now out of print] focused on this very development).

The aspect that we wish to focus upon here, is that the financialization and consumerization of last-day man would not be possible without the advance of networking. A major user of networks are, of course, payment cards—i.e. credit or debit cards. This is hardly news, as it is a facilitating technology already some 40 years old.

However, networking developments have today moved far beyond financialization trends, facilitating networks of all kinds—as already mentioned, the Internet, also burgeoning Internet tracking recording technologies, new payment systems, telecommunications, social media (i.e. Facebook) and many others. These systems are all being embraced rapidly. For example, Facebook today has more than 500 million users, of which half log on every day.

As a result, data volumes are exploding. Network technologies are supporting new services and conveniences. More data has been created in the past two years than in the entire previous history of the human race, according to Forbes.com. Much higher data volume … many countless multiples of current levels … are surely ahead.

Intersection by the Smartphone

Before exploring future trends further, it is first key to recognize that it is a relatively recent electronic invention that has encouraged the embrace of a “networked” world: namely, the Smartphone. It brings together the camera and a video screen, with telephone and Internet connection. In our opinion, it very well may represent “the end of technology.”

Taking this view, we have explored one of the prophetic implications of the Smartphone (“the culture of self”) before in the article “Prophecy and the End of Technology” (MCM, June 2015).

Here, we reproduce a pertinent excerpt:

We ask this question: Just what technologies must yet emerge so that pre-millennial Bible prophecy can be fulfilled? Nuclear power sufficient to blow up the entire habitations of mankind already exists. Globalism and a global community of mankind already exist, attributable in part to telecommunications technologies. Flight was invented a little more than a century ago (i.e., fulfilling Isaiah 60:8). What is missing?

[…] technology has at least one more role to play in the prophetic timeline of the world. […] The most pivotal technological developments over the past several decades, as everyone will know, have been the Internet and the personal cell phone. […] Crucially, these two developments have lately converged into one leading edge—the Smartphone.

That was the significant development—the merging of the cell phone with a web-enabling interconnection.

Why was this significant? This merging opens the gateway to the ultimate ‘dotage upon the individual’ (the self), though within a centrally controlled, global nexus of connections. The Smartphone is a personal device. And thus, it becomes the direct channel between the world and the individual’s personal world. The technology coming into existence allows a mass personalization through a complete monitoring of your needs, likes and identifications.

 

While the “prophetic enablements” of the Smartphone technology are already both gargantuan and global, more significant developments are in prospect.

To get a sense of the pace of change, we quote this expert source: “The Smartphone is revolutionizing our world, causing an explosion of connectedness. By the end of 2017, over two billion mobile phone or tablet users will make some form of mobile commerce transaction. Ninety-five percent of mobile Internet users look up local information on their phones for the purpose of calling or visiting a business. It is estimated that mobile devices will account for 27% of commercial transactions by the end of 2018, representing 1 out of every 4 US retail e-commerce dollars.”1

What is the next “prophetically significant” extension for the Smartphone? It is already underway, and it is “live streaming.”

A Future World of Full-time Video Coverage

Consider that by the end of 2017, it is anticipated that nearly 80% of all photos taken in the world will be taken on Smartphones. Many of these are networked … perhaps sent to friends to view. It is sobering to realize that it was little more than a decade ago that people would use cameras that required film development. Now, virtually all pictures are digital.

What is livestreaming? This refers to the viewing and sending of live video. Readers may already be viewing videos and movies over the Internet. Today, some 75% of all data traffic on the Internet is attributable to video. Given the mass proliferation of the Smartphones, it will be no surprise that the most livestreaming will be consumed through the Smartphone platform.

However, the “livestreaming” of our focus here is a real-time broadcast feed. An example of this would be the news network CNN, sending a live, real-time broadcast over the Internet. More news networks are now rolling out such platforms. Wherever a Smartphone user may be, they will be plugged into real-time video broadcasting.

The next development will be that everyone with a Smartphone will be able to broadcast their own “live video” to anyone else live … even the whole world. South Korea is a leader in this field. AfreecaTV, a popular app in that country, allows anyone to freely broadcast live video. Media experts predict that this technology will soon catch on everywhere else. It is very possible that the day will arrive where most everyone in the world has a Smartphone that is “networked” and continuously “livestreaming.”

The recent (and most-watched in history) boxing match between Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor illustrated a new reality in this regard. Newer social media livestreaming capability has made it easier to instantly share live feeds of the fight, making it impossible to control “bootleg” viewing of the match. This is an indication of how far livestreaming has already advanced.

Given the advancing state of livestreaming, we think of the Bible’s prophecy of the “two witnesses” found in Revelation 11. Scripture indicates that it will be a global media event, as shown in these verses:

Now when they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up from the Abyss will attack them, and overpower and kill them. Their bodies will lie in the public square of the great city—which is figuratively called Sodom and Egypt—where also their Lord was crucified. For three and a half days some from every people, tribe, language and nation will gaze on their bodies and refuse them burial. The inhabitants of the earth will gloat over them and will celebrate by sending each other gifts, because these two prophets had tormented those who live on the earth. But after the three and a half days the breath of life from God entered them, and they stood on their feet, and terror struck those who saw them (Revelation 11:7-11).

It may very well be the case that the world will view a “livestreaming” of the Two Witnesses on their Smartphones. Possibly, they may even be sending each other gifts purchased online through Amazon or eBay.

The technological features of the Smartphone seem to best fit the prophecy mentioned in Revelation 11. Real-time viewing of the Two Witnesses by many people all over the world, and the two-way communication being implied, point to the emergence of a device with the capabilities of the networked Smartphone.

Thoughts to Ponder

The renowned author and historian, Niall Ferguson, recently published an article in Foreign Affairs magazine, entitled “The False Prophecy of Hyperconnection: How to Survive the Networked Age.”2 Taking a secular position, he points to the dangers of a networked world. By his reckoning, the Internet hasn’t achieved the promises of the technocrats and the high-tech industry. Their pitch was that networking would make the world a better place of equal-opportunity. In fact, just the opposite is occurring in his view.

Technology and invention can provide conveniences that do not require moral compromise. But we have to again ask: Is there any significance to be found in the rapidity of changes? Was the technology explosion delayed in world history until a time such as this?

“Does a bird swoop down to a trap on the ground when no bait is there? Does a trap spring up from the ground if it has not caught anything?” (Amos 3:5).

We may enjoy all the conveniences of the digital age. However, the connectedness that it spawns ultimately will exact a vulnerability upon humankind. It will be used as a trap and coercion to worship the Antichrist. This is seen in Revelation 13. The Second Beast, “[…] forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads, so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark […]” (verses 16-17).

The writer of Ecclesiastes says that “[…] no one knows when their hour will come: As fish are caught in a cruel net, or birds are taken in a snare, so people are trapped by evil times that fall unexpectedly upon them” (Ecclesiastes 9:12). That may already apply to most people upon earth today … whether Christian or not.

As for those who are earthdwellers during the Tribulation period, “Terror and pit and snare await you, people of the earth. Whoever flees at the sound of terror will fall into a pit; whoever climbs out of the pit will be caught in a snare” (Isaiah 24:17-18).

For those Christians of the last-days before the Rapture, Christ provides both a warning and a reward concerning snares and traps. First the warning: “Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you suddenly like a trap. For it will come on all those who live on the face of the whole earth. Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man” (Luke 21:34-36).

But finally, we can appropriate the blessed promise given to David: “Praise be to the Lord, who has not let us be torn by their teeth. We have escaped like a bird from the fowler’s snare; the snare has been broken, and we have escaped. Our help is in the name of the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth” (Psalm 124:6-8).

Extra

Some took the view that debit cards, for example, were evil because they led to a one-world financial system that a world ruler could use to lead mankind astray and to force obedience to him. This is a debatable view. We would take the position that it isn’t systems or weapons that are evil, but rather are reflected through the motivations of humans or angels.

For resources on “endtime economics” and to subscribe to the free newsletter, Eternal Value Review, visit Wilfred’s website www.eternalvalue.com or contact him at: staff@eternalvalue.com

About the Author: Wilfred J. Hahn is a global economist/strategist. Formerly a top-ranked global analyst, research director for a major Wall Street investment bank, and head of Canada’s largest global investment operation, his writings focus on the endtime roles of money, economics and globalization. He has been quoted around the world and his writings reproduced in numerous other publications and languages. His 2002 book The Endtime Money Snare: How to live free accurately anticipated and prepared its readers for the Global Financial Crisis. His newest book, Global Financial Apocalypse Prophesied: Preserving true riches in an age of deception and trouble, looks further into the future.

1 www.invespcro.com/blog/mobile-commerce

2 https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/2017-08-15/false-prophecy-hyperconnection