Doomsday is scheduled to happen on December 21, 2012. At least that is the expectation of New Agers and occultists who see the end of the thirteenth baktun of the Mayan long count calendar on that date as signaling the end of “the world as we know it” (teotwawki). But they are not the only ones. What you will read is meant to show the level of awareness and thought others are giving TEOTWAWKI.
In public opinion polls 15% of people worldwide believe they will live to see the end of the world. Those percentages vary from one nation to another based on cultural and religious differences. This expectation is being encouraged by the downward trends in major sections of civilization.
In economics we are facing a worldwide recession with no end in sight. And it could get far worse (see Revelation 6:6).
In nature we are seeing one disastrous event after another (see Matthew 24). The tsunami in Japan, the hurricanes Katrina and Sandy, the growing number of earthquakes registering 6.0 or higher, birds falling out of the sky, fish washing up on shores, sounds of trumpets and metal clanging heard in the atmosphere in many places around the world. NASA has said that the Sun will reach what is called its “Solar Maximum” in 2012 and could emit gamma ray bursts aimed at the earth like it did in 1859. Today such an impact would knock out all our electrical systems sending the world back to the late 1800s.
Political disarray is growing as people watch their political leaders “fiddle as Rome burns.” Petty political advantage trumps statesmanship and the people pay the price. Meanwhile national governments and the UN are laying the foundation for a world government that won’t solve any of our real problems but according to Revelation 13 will increase them exponentially.
Moral corruption is the hallmark of any society that is in its final stages of decay (see 2 Timothy 3:1-2). The USA has been spewing immorality out to the world for a generation in our entertainment media. We have been killing babies in the womb for decades.
Israel is a nation again after almost 2,000 years (see Isaiah 11:11-12). This is an unheard of development in human history. People who know the Bible perked up in the mid-20th century and began to study as if there was little time left. Two characteristics of end time prophecy concerning Israel is that they would return to their ancient land in unbelief (Zechariah 13:1-2), and they would face terrible hostility from all their neighbors and eventually from the whole world. That’s happening.
Religion is in ferment. Islam is becoming radicalized and militant. Cults are growing exponentially. The Church is complacent and unaware. Occultism and the New Age are in the ascendancy in Europe. Biblical Christianity is a relatively minor faith in Europe. Atheism is becoming militant and political correctness is silencing Christianity.
And there seems to be little time left. The convergence of events described above seems like the swelling dramatic music just before the final scenes in a movie. If so then the final scene will fulfill the ominous apprehension of many unbelievers. It also portends the hoped for arrival of our Savior. Redeem the time Christians. Maranatha!
Extra-Biblical Predictions
The Bible is our sole prophetic source. It is reliable and accurate because it has proven true on hundreds of prophecies already fulfilled. It gives us the test criteria for discerning true from false prophecy and has met its own standards of perfection. However, much of the world does not consult the Bible. When they do, and you can watch programs on TV about prophecy, they often mix in Nostradamus, Merlin, Edgar Cayce and other false prophets. However, the interest in such programs on TV and elsewhere illustrates that there is a significant interest among the public. They want a clue as to what their future holds for them.
I would never assert that we should trust any source other than the Bible, however, there seems to be a convergence of prophetic expectation from a wide variety of non-biblical sources. To some extent that we are not told in the Bible Satan does have a clue about his end and perhaps even the timeline for it. He has a strategy for his fight against God. He knows he will lose but what else can he do? He won’t surrender. One strategy he could employ is to tell his followers to expect the arrival of their “savior” (the antichrist) so when he appears he will fulfill their hopes of a deliverer. Even Israel will welcome him as their Messiah.
Tom Horn, former pastor and CEO of Raiders News Network, outlines many extra-biblical prophecies in his book Apollyon Rising. You can read Tom Horn’s blog on this topic at http://www.newswithviews.com/Horn/thomas128.htm. The following is from his blog.
Eastern, New Age and Occultic Religions
– The Mayan long count calendar ends with the return of the underworld god Bolon Yookte’ K’uh ta, also known in the Bible as Abbadon and Apollyon in Revelation 9:11, and the flying dragon god Kulkulkan in 2012.
– The Aztec calendar ends with the return of the feathered serpent god Quetzalcoatal in 2012.
– The Hindu Kali Yuga calendar ends in 2012 at the end of “the age of the male demon.”
– The Cherokee calendar ends in 2012 with the return of the flying rattlesnake god.
NOTE: Isn’t it interesting that each of the above “gods” are serpents.
– The Jewish Kabbalist book, the Zohar, says Maschiach (Messiah) will come in 2012/2013.
– The Chinese zodiac has 2012 as the year of the Dragon, another serpent.
World Religions
One expectation that most have heard of is the Mahdi, or Islamic Messiah who will come at a time of severe conflict and set things right in the world, at least right in the eyes of Muslims. The center of this expectation is Iran where a cult-like group called the Twelvers is led by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Supreme Ayatollah Khamenei. The Mahdi, also known as the Twelfth Imam (hence ‘Twelvers’) will be accompanied in his return by Isa, or Jesus. The Twelvers expect their Mahdi very soon. They also believe they can precipitate his return by starting a great war in the Middle East. The tensions over Iran’s nuclear program could easily play into the development of such a scenario.
In Catholicism there is a prophecy of the Popes that dates back to the 12th century. In his book Petrus Romanus, Tom Horn explores the prophecy of St. Malachy, Bishop of Armagh, Northern Ireland. When Pope John Paul II died Hal Lindsey wrote about it for WorldNetDaily. He said this, “According to his biographer, St. Malachy was visiting Rome in 1139 when he went into a trance and received a vision. Malachy wrote down this extraordinary vision in which he claims to have foreseen all of the popes from the death of Innocent II until the destruction of the church and the return of Christ.”
St. Malachy’s descriptions of each Pope were contained in cryptic phrases that denoted something about each mans papacy. For instance Pope John XXIII was called by St. Malachy “shepherd and sailor.” Pope John was a shepherd of the church as Pope, but before that he was from Venice, the city of canals.
The next Pope was Paul VI. St. Malachy called him “flower of flowers.” Pope Paul’s coat of arms contained the fleur de Lis, or three flowers.
Pope John Paul I was described by St. Malachy as “from the midst of the moon.” His papacy of 33 days began in the waning phase of a half moon. His birth name Abino Luciani means white light, or the kind of light we see reflected from the Moon.
Pope John Paul II was called “from the labor of the sun.” Both his birth and entombment took place on the day of a solar eclipse.
Pope Benedict XVI, the current Pope, is described by Malachy as “the glory of the olive.” This current Pope chose the name Benedict after St. Benedict, who founded the Benedictine Order, whose crest is an olive branch.
St. Malachy prophecies the final Pope will be called Petrus Romanus, or Peter the Roman. The specific words of this prophecy are… “Peter the Roman, who will nourish the sheep in many tribulations; when they are finished, the city of seven hills will be destroyed, and the dreadful judge will judge his people. The end.” Pope Benedict is in poor health. He is wheeled or carried around and has spoken theologically about the possibility of retirement. There are rumors that the College of Cardinals has already take the preliminary for selection of the next Pope. There are also rumors of conflict within the Vatican that may signal a power struggle.
Even the Internet
There is a computer search engine called the “Web Bot” that was originally created to search for clues about financial investment opportunities. In essence it searched the Internet for the current “buzz” as a way of predicting profitable investments. Along the way it began to turn up other “buzz” pertaining to things not financial. Supposedly it “predicted” 9/11, Katrina, the 2004 tsunami that hit Indonesia, and more. It also predicted worldwide devastation for late December 2012.
Christian Leaders
Have you ever heard that Jonathan Edwards had an unusual prophetic expectation? Most think of him as a significant American theologian and pastor, which he was. He is famous for his sermon “Sinners in the hands of an angry God” but he was also involved in a study of eschatology. An interpretation common among prophecy students is the “day/year theory”. We see it illustrated in Ezekiel 4 where God states that each day Ezekiel lays on his side will represent a year of God’s judgment on Israel. Prophecy students apply that theory elsewhere and one of the most common is the 1260 days mentioned in Revelation 12:4-6 and elsewhere. One of Edwards’s prophetic speculations was that the 1260 day/years began in 756 AD when the Pope acquired temporal power to add to his religious power. Thus adding 1260 years to 756 AD you arrive at 2016 AD. Now 2016 is not 2012 but it is interesting that this great man expected the end of Antichrist’s rule in our own time.
Similarly Rev. William J. Reid, pastor of First United Presbyterian Church in Pittsburgh, PA, in his Lectures on the Revelation said that the Papal system would be destroyed in 2012. He used the same day/year interpretive system used by Jonathan Edwards but started in 752 AD. He said, “But if it began, as seems altogether most probable, about the year 752, when the Popes ‘assumed in all their proceedings the style of temporal sovereigns,’ Then it will be destroyed about the year 2012.”
Conclusion? The Bible is Sufficient
It is okay for Christians to conclude that extra-biblical prophecies might be interesting, and some might even be right, but they are not God’s Word. Jesus told us in Matthew 24, “Let no man deceive you” and told us about the signs to look for as signaling what the Old Testament calls “that day” or “the day of the Lord.” The chief sign is the rebirth of Israel (the budding of the fig tree) in their own land as a nation. After that event there will be a growing hostility by Israel’s neighbors who desire to wipe Israel off the map (Psalm 83). Then other nations of the world will get on the bandwagon against Israel as if Israel is illegitimate in its presence on the land. Zechariah 12 says that God will cause Jerusalem to be “a troublesome stone” and all who bother themselves with it will be destroyed. That sounds like the news we hear every day.
Given the attention and sincere interest many people have about our times and the direction this nation and world is taking Christians should be prepared with good information to offer in conversations on the topic. It is our opportunity to provide hope and not only for the near future but also for eternity.
The ominous events that seem to worry the world should encourage Christians. They are like the signs that indicate that Jesus is coming soon for His Church. He said in Matthew 24 that “when you see these things come to pass, look up for your redemption draws near.” Even so come Lord Jesus.
By David Henke
