Issued: 9/12/24

“You must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected…like a thief in the night.”

Matthew 24:44; 1Thessalonians 5:2; 2Peter 3:10

PLEASE NOTE:  Because Bible versions sometimes differ from each other in crucial ways, the version quoted here will be the one that best clarifies the point being made.  For a quick comparison between versions, please go to: http://www.biblehub.com.

   All bracketed material may be authorial comments, attempts at proper syntax, or minimal rewordings of Scripture for the sake of clarity and continuity.  These emendations will not be italicized.

   The “/” will be used to signify “and/or.”  The symbol “↔” is used to connect verses corroborating each other and so establishing doctrinal truths (Matthew 18:16↔2Corinthians 13:1).

   In differentiating between Yahweh Son [Jesus] and Yahweh Father [the Most High God], lower case letters have been used when discussing the former; upper case letters are reserved for the Only Sovereign Deity.  Since Jesus was at pains to differentiate himself from Father, we have followed his lead here.

   The term neo-Christians will be used to differentiate between false Christians and Jesus’ true followers.

   In Part I we addressed past history; but if Father’s objective is to tell us through His Holy Spirit about future events to befall mankind (Amos 3:7; John 16:13), then we must find in Scripture prophecies to that effect. We know that at end-times evil will become pandemic (Matthew 24:12↔2Timothy 3:1-5; Matthew 24:22-24↔1Timothy 4:1-2); to the extreme that, if we read Revelation 14:4-5 correctly, only 144,000 out of those to be saved (Revelation 7:9,13-14) never adulterated [“were virgins”] with “harlot daughters” [i.e., churches/synagogues↔Proverbs 2:16-19, 6:26, Jeremiah 5:7, Revelation 17:5], nor compromised Father’s word in any way [“no lie was found in their mouths”↔Jeremiah 8:8, 1Corinthians1:20-21, 2Peter 3:16]. Needless to say, such a statistic should worry most of us who, like Paul (Philippians 3:9-14↔Job 9:20), understand that our salvation is not necessarily in the bag.

   Jesus also warned us about mindsets prevalent at end-times (Luke 17:26-29); which not only contradicted Father’s expectations regarding repentant behaviors [↔Isaiah 22:12-14], but kept people ‘partying’ until disaster struck. Thus Luke 21:34: “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” [↔2Peter 2:9-13]; lots of whom would be religious leaders (Acts 20:29-30↔2Timothy 4:3-4; 1John 2:18-19↔1Corinthians 11:19) and congregants beholden to them [↔Psalms 146:3; Ephesians 4:14]. The fact that these behaviors endure to this very hour is patent proof of Judeo-Christian apostasy [↔Isaiah 30:10; Jeremiah 44:16-19].

   Further proving that men will never listen until it is too late (Daniel 12:10; Revelation 9:20-21), we have Luke 21:34, echoing the prophecies of Isaiah 2:10 and Hosea 10:8 and finding fulfillment in Revelation 6:16-17—though these in particular refer to the second coming of Jesus post-Great Tribulation. Nevertheless ‘Christians’ are obsessed with doomsday scenarios, even when we are explicitly told, “Woe to you who desire the day of Yahweh! Why do you long for the day of Yahweh? It is darkness, and not light” (Amos 5:18↔Matthew 24:19-20).¹ Granted, we all want Jesus to return and put an end to the madness of this world, but we must consider the suffering mankind at large will have to endure and which both righteous/unrighteous Judeo-Christians [↔Matthew 7:22-23, 1Corinthians 10:13; Hebrews 12:5-8↔Jeremiah 30:11, 1Corinthians 11:32, 2Peter 4:12-17) will have to witness.²

   Paul gave us his own hopeless assessment in 1Thessalonians 5:3: “When people are saying, ‘Peace and safety,’ then disaster will fall on them as suddenly as a pregnant woman’s labor pains begin and there will be no escape.”  And he was not talking off the top of his head but extrapolating from prophecy:  In this order of things, peace and safety were not amongst Father’s primary objectives [↔Jeremiah 12:10-12, 34:17]; but the “scourge”  by which faith was tested [↔1Peter 1:6-7], obedience conditioned [↔Proverbs 23:13-14], hearts and souls purified [↔Proverbs 20:30, Zechariah 13:9], and spiritual legitimacy established (Hebrews 12:8)—in short, the “baptism by fire” Jesus had endured and to which he would subject every single one of this followers (Matthew 3:11; Hebrews 2:10).

   This is why from Acts until Revelation, Jesus is depicted no longer as the congenial man of the Four Gospels but as an uncompromising taskmaster whose will was non-negotiable (Acts 10:14-16; 2Corinthians 12:7-9; Revelation 3:15-16)—in fact, what prophecy said he would be, what Father expected him to be. (Psalms 2:9-12; Revelation 2:26-27, 12:5). Because Jesus’ baptism by fire is inescapable (Matthew 3:11), suffering by way of atonement is the lot of true Judeo-Christians who, like Paul argued, must share in it though in different ways (Hebrews 11:39-40, 12:7-8↔Romans 12:4-8, 2Corinthians 8:12-14). And precisely because suffering is also mankind’s lot in this order of things, only when the new order emerges from the ashes of the old will Father “wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away” (Revelation 21:4). Until that time, death, mourning, crying and pain will continue.

   Bottom line, the ordeals that perplex Judeo-Christians is comeuppance, pure and simple: “For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?” (1Peter 4:17).  Once again, this is nothing new in Scripture: “Slay utterly the old man, the young man and the maiden, and little children and women [↔Deuteronomy 28:53-57, Lamentations 2:17,20-2]: but come not near any man upon whom is the mark [↔Revelation 7:3]; and begin at My sanctuary” [i.e., the Church, the body of Christ, Christendom in general ↔Ezekiel 9:4-6, 1Corinthians 12:12, Colossians 2:9].

   Consequently, if Father allows Satan to beset Judeo-Christians (Ezekiel 21:3-15) because all of us have defaulted on the terms of either His Mosaic or faith covenants (Deuteronomy 30:11-20, 31:16-20↔Romans 3:12,23-24), He wants also to alert us as to the ways Satan will go about it via ordeals, false dogmas and prodigies (2Thessalonians 2:9-13↔Deuteronomy 29:29, Mark 4:11-12); so that even if by Father’s uncompromising standards some form of punishment must be meted out (Numbers 14:28; Jeremiah 26:48), He tilts the scales in our favor by telling us what will befall us and exhorting us to endure it with patience (Psalms 50:5; Micah 7:9; Luke 21:19; James 4:7-10; 1Peter 5:6; Revelation 14:9-12).

   Which brings us to the here and now…

The Two-Horned Beast:  Identity, Enablers and Abettors

   Two thousand years ago Paul, extrapolating from Isaiah 49:8, argued that “now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation” (2Corinthians 6:2); which did not mean that divine deliverance was nigh [↔Matthew 27:52-53, 2Timothy 2:18], but not knowing when anyone would die, it was imperative to jump-start the process towards salvation ASAP.  The same applies to us today: If not having done so yet, now is the time to appeal to Father in order to receive the spiritual guidance/wisdom only His Holy Spirit—not charismatic, silver-tongued preachers—can give us (Jeremiah 33:3↔James 1:5-6; 1Corinthians 2:7,10-13; 1John 2:27).  Paul added that in Jesus “you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit” (Ephesians 1:13, 4:30↔John 15:26, 16:13, Acts 2:33, Galatians 3:14); making it sound like the Holy Spirit was some sort of impermeable ‘sealant’ protecting the faithful from anything toxic to their minds, hearts and souls.   To John, it was the awareness of that protection by virtue of discerning Father’s “hidden wisdom” that assured the faithful they were on the right path (1John 3:24↔1Corinthians 2:14).

   Following Solomon’s template that men’s evil-doing, not historical events, resurfaces time and again throughout history (Ecclesiastes 1:9-10), the two-horned beast of Revelation 13:11-17 is patterned after the horned beasts of Daniel 8, wherein horns = predominant rulers over their respective empires. This two-horned beast is not part of the seven-headed, ten-horned beast of Daniel 7:7,19-25 and Revelation 13:1, which symbolized the synergy between the Papacy and European nations during the Holy Roman Empire. The two-horned beast is patterned after Daniel 8:20, one body sharing ethnicities and heritage with a common purpose in mind: To dominate while suppressing the opposition.

   In the Old Testament, regional focus was on Middle Eastern nations interacting with Israel; but with the onset of Christian evangelization, that focus shifted towards the West, specifically Europe.  We find this in the Holy Spirit’s prohibition that Paul, Silas and Timothy should not evangelize in Asia or Bithynia [region in present-day Turkey], but instead travel to Macedonia (Acts 16:6-10). It may be that areas where Islam would later predominate had been demarcated for that purpose in keeping with the promise made to Agar and Ishmael, ancestor of the Arabs, in Genesis 21:18.

   It is a matter of record that European nations spread Christianity throughout the globe, and in so doing their cultural ‘DNA’ was passed as well; so that according to Paul’s ‘potentiality’ argument, nations to be ‘Europeanized’ were ‘potentially present’ in the mélange of tribal ethnicities and cultural heritages that coalesced into continental Europe—in short, something akin to the body of Daniel 8:20’s beast. But since Revelation 13:11-17 deals with end-times distinct from those allotted to the Holy Roman Empire (Revelation 13:5-7, 17:12-18↔Daniel 7:21, 23-25, 8:23-25),³ we must consider which two Western superpowers at end-times make up the two-horns; and on the evidence of Revelation 13:11-17, one answer suggests itself:  the United States and Russia.  Revelation 13:11 makes the point that the two-horned beast “spoke like the dragon” —i.e., Satan (Ezekiel 29:3; Revelation 20:2); who also had given “the beast his power and his throne and great authority” (Revelation 13:2).  This in turn links us to Luke 4:5-6 depicting Satan as world ruler/empowerer of governing minions [↔1John 5:19); and to the “prince” [i.e., high priest↔Acts 23:5] sitting on Satan’s throne in Satan’s earthly headquarters (Ezekiel 28:2-8↔Revelation 2:13, 17:15, 18:2).

   Revelation 13:12 tells us that the rulers of these two superpowers will at some point enforce worshipping the beast of Revelation 13:3-4,8,14-15; in particular the head which due to its “mortal wound” having healed resurged on the world stage.  These prophecies suggest events concerning the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806 and Napoleon’s imprisonment of Pius VII in 1809; plus Pius’ triumphant return to Rome in 1814, under whose papacy the Catholic Church experienced significant growth abroad and continues to be a contender amongst the powers that be.

   What will lead to the synergy between state and church outlined in Revelation 17:13-18 [↔Ecclesiastes 1:9-10] remains to be seen, possibly natural catastrophes/depletion of natural resources/consequences of climate changes which will overwhelm societies; in short, events rulers cannot cope with, but which usually lead to involving the Almighty in order to deflect attention from personal failures.  It may be that the Bishop of Rome, due to his gravitas as Jesus’ vicar on earth, will be conscripted in an attempt to control fear and social instability; so that there may be a putsch by the two-horned beast to install a one-world religion by enforcing loyalty/obedience to this bishop. Still, two facts are unequivocal:  Satan will be behind it all; and it all works towards accomplishing Father’s objective of doing away with all forms of human governance [↔Revelation 17:17].  Bottom line:  We are being told that things will get exponentially worse until Jesus returns and we have no other choice but to grin and bear it.

   Revelation 13:13,16-17, as argued elsewhere, suggest computerized technologies, either space weapons [“fire from heaven”], or control over consumers’ identities/spending habits [people “could not buy or sell unless they had the mark”]; although what that “mark” consists of (despite a plethora of now existing choices) is unclear.  Add to that the ever-increasing fascination with/danger of Artificial Intelligence (AI), which is now redefining/supplanting reality for most people, where the possibilities for mind/social control are astronomical—something already being deployed in this year’s presidential election; championed by billionaires who will not be personally affected by it and could not care less about the masses standing in the way of their agendas/self-interests/profits.  We have got to hand it to Satan:  While Father appeals to the best in us, Satan relies on technology to play us like the proverbial violin.

   However things pan out, one outcome is inevitable:  The two-horned beast [state] once more syncs with church [the “healed head” of Revelation 13:13-14,8] to persecute Father’s people and to lead the unenlightened [↔Daniel 12:10; Revelation 9:20-21] to perdition.

The 2024 United States Presidential Election

   As it stands in today’s politics, there are candidates who no matter how corrupt they have been proven to be, and who by Jesus’ metrics stand exposed for what they are (Matthew 7:16-18↔James 3:11-12; Luke 6:45), nonetheless hold sway over their supporters.  And when these supporters claim to be evangelical ‘Christians,’ we have one more proof of the most salient characteristic in Judeo-Christian apostasy [↔Isaiah 59:2-15↔Romans 1:18; Jeremiah 44:10-11-17; Malachi 2:17, 3:13-15]: The inability to see oneself for what one truly is [↔Titus 1:16].  Jesus illustrated this disconnect in John 16:2: “The time is coming when anyone who kills you will think they are offering a service to God.” This mindset is in keeping with Satan’s and his enablers’ shenanigans [↔John 8:44]:  “Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light; therefore it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness” (2Corinthians 11:14-15).

   Let us next consider anti-Christian trends which are stock and parcel of current political rhetoric:

1)  Bearing arms for the purpose of blowing away perceived enemies vs. “they that take the sword shall perish with the sword” (Matthew 26:52); even if, as was in his case, Peter was trying to defend Jesus’ life. Why do you think that Revelation 13:10 characterizes the decision not to kill in defense of one’s life as “a call for the endurance and faith of the saints”? Because in obedience to “You shall not kill” (Exodus 20:13), no true Christian has the right to take the life only Father’s gives or takes away [↔Job 1:21]; for which reason, though we might not agree with it and think it bonkers, the righteous allow themselves to be killed without offering resistance—Jesus having set the example (Psalms 44:11,22↔Romans 8:35-36; Isaiah 53:7; Matthew 26:53; John 18:11, 19:11; James 5:6). While this is something none of us wants to hear let alone do, one hopes to receive divine assistance, as did Peter (John 21:18-19), if and when we are called to die for Jesus⁴—which of itself seals our salvation (Matthew 16:25).

   Needless to say, the issue of gun ownership is diametrically opposed to the more ‘Christian-minded’ gun control, which at least seeks to protect adults and children from being blown away in social settings.  Yet the real issue here is business profits which are then shared with pro-gun candidates; so although assault weapons endanger us all, their sales generate more money for all concerned.  And we know what Jesus had to say about that mindset (Matthew 6:24; John 14:23-24).

2)  Let us take next anti-immigration policies and inhumane practices at national borders at home and abroad. What is Father’s position regarding aliens?

Leviticus 19:34: The alien who resides with you shall be to you as the citizen among you; you shall love the alien as yourself, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.

Deuteronomy 27:19: Cursed is anyone who withholds justice from the foreigner.

Jeremiah 7:5-7: For if you truly amend your ways and your doings, if you truly act justly one with another, if you do not oppress the alien… then I will dwell with you in this place, in the land that I gave of old to your ancestors forever and ever.

Ezekiel 47:22: You shall allot it as an inheritance for yourselves and for the aliens who reside among you and have begotten children among you [Dreamers?]. They shall be to you as citizens of Israel…

Zechariah 7:9-10: Render true judgments, show kindness and mercy to one another; do not oppress the widow, the orphan, the alien, or the poor; and do not devise evil in your hearts against one another.

Acts 10:34: I truly understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears Him and does what is right is acceptable to Him.

Romans 12:13: Extend hospitality to strangers.

Colossians 3:11: In that renewal there is no longer Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and free; but Christ is all and in all.

Hebrews 13:1-3: Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it.

   How then can evangelical ‘Christians’ support anti-immigration policies when Father is no respecter of persons (Romans 2:11); when our ancestors or even ourselves might have been immigrants at some point in our lives?—the argument made in Leviticus 19:34.  Do we not disobey and dishonor Father by allowing politicians to stoke our xenophobia, by exhorting us to repudiate immigrants rather than to embrace them? Granted that not all immigrants are exemplars of virtuous behavior but what about those who are? [↔Acts 10:34].  And who are we to cast the first stone (John 8:7; Romans 2:1)?  Do we throw away the baby with the bathwater, or do we honor/imitate Jesus by practicing the self-restraint he advocated in Matthew 13:28-30 and John 8:7?

3)  And finally, let us consider the shameful behavior of evangelical ‘Christians’ storming the U.S. Capitol on January 2021; people who then knelt to thank the Almighty for getting them there. Really? What are told in Romans 13:1-2? “Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God; consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves.” Meaning the Almighty Father, is that no so? (Job 12:16-25; Daniel 4:35, 5:21); the God Who does not take kindly to those who dishonor Him (1Samuel 2:30) and turns a deaf ear to those who disobey Him (John 9:31).

   But even worse, if all authorities past and present have been established because Father allowed them to be, does that not apply to dictatorships/repressive regimes as well?  So are Judeo-Christians ever justified in attacking/undermining any form of government [↔Deuteronomy 28:47-50; Isaiah 10:5-11-15; Jeremiah 28:14]?  No, the only exemption is to disobey them when and if their agendas clash with Father’s will [↔Acts 5:29]; which as we can see from the Apostles’ experience (Acts 5:40) may carry unpleasant consequences for us.

   Thus we see that the old template of state-church agendas vs. Father–Son objectives is very much alive; which may have been excusable in those “times of ignorance” when Jews as a nation were not guided individually by the Holy Spirit, but what is the Christian excuse?  We should know better; we should understand better how Old Testament events prefigure future ones. Is it any wonder that Father has such a low opinion of Judeo-Christians collectively (Psalms 14:1-3↔Romans 3:9-18; Jeremiah 4:22)? Or that Christians bear greater culpability than Jews [↔Jeremiah 3:6-11]?—a dismal assessment confirmed by all the inhumanities ‘Christians’ have unleashed globally in name of God and Jesus.

Collective Wrongdoing

   Where are we going with all of this? First to the realization that like the Jews before us, we too have crucified Jesus by subjecting him to public disgrace [↔Hebrews 6:4-6]; secondly, like them, we like to do things our way and not like Father wishes [↔Deuteronomy 12:8-9; Jeremiah 16:12]; and thirdly, like the Jews of antiquity and modernity, we are so invested in worldly things that Heaven can wait (James 4:2-4; 1John 2:15-16). At least ancient Jews looked for alternatives around them when displeasing Father, but Christians see themselves booked on the shuttle to Heaven even while not living up to Father’s expectations [↔1Peter 2:9; Revelation 4:9-10]. How justified are we—if anti-Semitism were possible (Romans 11:16-24,28-29)—in hating Jews for what their forbears did to Jesus since we are retracing their steps?

   Not at all, for as they did, we too will embrace, support, and choose secular/religious leaders foretold to be false (Jeremiah 5:30-31; Ezekiel 22:26-27-30; Zephaniah 3:3-4).  We, as they did, will follow people undermining everything Jesus stood for by trading souls for personal gain (Acts 20:29-30; 2Peter 2:3)—or as is the case in politics, souls for votes. And many of us, like them, will support political agendas that dismantle Jesus’ objectives.

   To cut to the chase, let us list Scriptures helping us identify today’s culprits:

Exodus 20:16: “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.”

Proverbs 4:16, Micah 2:1: “For they cannot rest until they do evil; they are robbed of sleep till they make someone stumble…Woe to those who devise iniquity and plot evil on their beds! At morning’s light they accomplish it because the power is in their hands.”

Proverbs 11:29: “He who troubles his own house will inherit the wind” [↔Luke 11:17; Romans 16:17-18; Jude 1:18-19].

Proverbs 17:15: “He who justifies the wicked and he who condemns the righteous, both of them alike are an abomination to Yahweh.”

Proverbs 22:16,22: “Whoever oppresses the poor to increase his own wealth, or gives to the rich, will only come to poverty…Do not rob the poor, because he is poor, or crush the afflicted at the gate” [↔James 2:13 ].

Proverbs 29:12: “If a ruler listens to lies, all his officials become wicked” [↔Ecclesiastes 5:8].

Psalms 10:3-7: “The wicked boasts of his heart’s desire; he blesses the greedy and renounces the Lord. The wicked in his proud countenance does not seek God; God is in none of his thoughts. His ways are always prospering; [God’s] judgments are far above, out of his sight.  As for all his enemies, he sneers at them. He has said in his heart, ‘I shall not be moved; I shall never be in adversity.’ His mouth is full of cursing and deceit and oppression under his tongue is trouble and iniquity.”

Isaiah 29:15: “Woe to those who deeply hide their counsel from Yahweh, and whose deeds are in the dark, and who say, ‘Who sees us?’ and ‘Who knows us?’ [↔John 3:20].

Matthew 5:22: “If you call your brother a worthless fool you will be in danger of going to the fire of hell [i.e., Armageddon↔Revelation 20:7-15].”

   It seems incredible, but even Ecclesiastes 10:12-13 speak of present-day political entities: “The lips of fools consume them. At the beginning his words are foolish and at the end his talk is wicked madness; yet fools talk on and on.”

   You get the picture.  There is no need here to name specific politicians because they are all over daily newscasts; besides Jesus was not in the habit of identifying transgressors by name (Matthew 23:1-36).  Suffice it to say that those who divide people; resort to disparaging name-calling; engage in mutual back-scratching with the rich to further self-interests and replenish political coffers; use social media and AI to falsely misrepresent people and their intentions; side with corrupted and corruptible men in order to pursue personal agendas and betray constituents; use money as leverage to get into the halls of power; will advocate violence/regime change to galvanize followers; all for the express purpose of grabbing power, are enemies of Jesus—especially those claiming to be hand-picked by the God Who is committed to incinerating them.  To all of these Father is a handy ploy to hook Satan’s “fishes” (Ezekiel 29:4↔Matthew 4:19); so our choice is whether we choose to bite their bait or not.

   Whoever this candidate is, he/she will be the matching horn to the Russian one already in place; and if readers keep abreast of the news, it can be seen how ideologies on either side of the Atlantic are already in sync to consolidate absolute power by any means possible.

   No matter the political circus into which the coming election has devolved, and no matter appeals to reason or outrageous claims on either side, be certain that the winner will be the candidate most useful to Satan’s and Father’s objectives; the former in order to drag us down with him, the latter to punish us because we never seen to learn from past transgressions (1Kings 8:30-49; Nehemiah 9:17,26-30,34-35; Ecclesiastes 1:11; Isaiah 5:4-6↔Luke 20:9-16; Jeremiah 29:19).  No matter how polls give us false hopes that reason will prevail over foolishness, do not underestimate technologies at work contriving situations where public opinion can be turned on a dime.  In this world, visuals and sound bites are more compelling and believable than spiritual discernment [↔1Corinthians 2:14; Ephesians 4:14]. 

The Bad, the Good, and the Ugly

   In conclusion, this state of affairs offers a mixed bag.  The bad side is the ‘been there, done that’ defect [sic]: The fact that Judeo-Christians, though amply forewarned in Scripture, will rally behind those who in time will betray and endanger them.  Amongst these are ‘prophets’ claiming Father endorses any particular political candidate, when we are being told not only that Jesus did away with prophets as a means of relaying divine wisdom to men [↔Luke 16:16; John 15:26, 16:13; 1John 2:27], but that prophets claiming to speak in Father’s name led people astray (Jeremiah 5:31, 23:21-40; Lamentations 2:14, 4:13).

   Why do you think Jeremiah was chosen to denounce these prophets?  Because his focus was on Judah, Jesus’ tribe (Hebrews 7:14); on Jerusalem/Christendom, the site of Father’s Temple which was not the building on Mount Moriah but the body of Jesus [↔Acts 7:48, 17:24; Colossians 2:9); who witnessed the Jewish equivalent of end-times events; so that he is the prophet most pertinent to modern-day Christians.  Yet amongst us there are ‘prophets’ today, whether in ignorance or by guile, who labor as satanic minions professing to be spokesmen for Father, in itself a violation of Scripture (Matthew 23:8↔John 15:26, 16:13, 1John 2:27; 1Timothy 2:5); but who despite all warnings are lionized and believed.

   The people already at work digging our graves will be successful because the unenlightened irrationally rally behind them.  Unfortunately, cherished democratic principles like giving allies and enemies alike a forum to speak work against our collective wellbeing:  Has anyone wondered why Satan is not given a chance to state his case in the Bible?  Because being father of lies from the beginning (Genesis 3:4-5↔John 8:44), he will misrepresent/twist/adulterate truth in the process of claiming to serve it—the reality being ‘demoed’ by modern ‘truth-telling, defenders of free speech’ pretenders.  So why give Satan or them the chance to deceive us?

   For all the consolation Psalms 37:1-18 offers, the fact remains that evildoers will walk all over the righteous, even if at some future time they will pay for it.  Naturally we understand that the righteous suffer in life as atonement for past sins [↔Exodus 34:7; Jeremiah 30:11] in order to be exempted from eventual, divine vengeance (Deuteronomy 32:35-43); but that does not free us from the fact that suffer we must.  And for those readers who crave punishment for their enemies, there are the inescapable horrors of Revelation 9:1-11 [↔Joel 2:1-11]; though as Christians, ill-will of any kind is never an acceptable thing to contemplate or derive satisfaction from (Proverbs 24:17-18).  Suffice it to say that Satan and his fallen angels will vent their fury on evildoers who steadfastly enabled and abetted them.

   In the final analysis, Father seems to be a believer that people deserve the leaders they choose [↔1Samuel 8:9-20]; and that having made their bed must lie on it.  This is one outcome of the recurring fits of apostasy to which Judeo-Christians are prone to; leading to Father turning a deaf ear to our pleas while His anger lasts (Isaiah 63:10; Jeremiah 11:14; Lamentations 3:28-30↔Micah 7:9; 1Peter 5:6↔Ezekiel 21:26).

   Which brings us to the good news:  No matter how Father allows Satan to rake us over the proverbial burning coals, His plan for us is one of reconciliation and redemption (Hebrews 6:17-18↔Deuteronomy 8:16, Isaiah 54:7-9, Jeremiah 29:11, 31:34, Revelation 21:4).  There is nothing Satan can do that Father does not permit; there is no eventuality that Satan can deploy that Father has not already foreseen and provided for; and there is nothing Satan can beset us with that we cannot overcome with faith, endurance, perseverance, and patience (1Corinthians 10:13).

  And that brings to the inescapable reality that no matter how we would wish otherwise, what lies ahead will be ugly indeed—for ourselves, our loved ones, and mankind at large.

   But why rehash all the dismal scenarios outlined in Old Testament prophecies and Revelation?  Let us not be like Lot’s wife obsessing on destruction or like Peter going down for fearing the turmoil about him (Matthew 14:29-23); but keeping our eyes on Jesus and the helping hand he will extend to us in our time of need.

   If we must grope during the dark night when no one can work, better focus on the light of Jesus’ dawn (John 8:12; 2Peter 1:19↔Genesis 1:16-18, Malachi 4:2, Revelation 22:16).  If our rebirth as Father’s children involves pain, better focus on what we will gain by it (1John 3:2).  And if our Exodus from this world into the Kingdom of Heaven will be fraught with ordeals and tears, draw strength from the conviction (Romans 8:24; 2Corinthians 4:18; Hebrews 11:1) that “here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come” (Hebrews 13:14); under a new heaven and on a new earth “where righteousness dwells” (2Peter 3:13) without  need of sun or moon, “for the glory of God illuminates the city, and the Lamb is its light “ (Revelation 21:23).

¹ Isaiah 5:30, 8:22, 13:6 / Jeremiah 13:16, 30:7. Please note how in Ecclesiastes 12:1-8 Solomon describes those times, especially in verse 2 where he references not only heavenly upheavals at end-times [↔Isaiah 34:4, 51:6; Amos 8:9; Joel 2:10,31; Matthew 24:29,35; Revelation 6:12-14], but the so-called “latter rain” of the Holy Spirit [Deuteronomy 32:2↔Isaiah 44:3, Joel 2:28-31] before the expiration of the time of grace (Zephaniah 2:2-3); after which access to Scripture will be suppressed or impossible (Amos 8:11-12)—i.e., the returning “clouds” of darkness following the Holy Spirit’s last dispensation.

² There will be no ‘Rapture’ like the one fictionalized in the Left Behind series. This false and dangerous ‘pipe-dream’ is contradicted by Revelation 7:3-4, 14:4 regarding the “sealing” of 144,000 “first fruits,” and following the pattern established in Ezekiel 9:4-6. So if readers think they and their loved ones will be transported to Heaven to avoid the Great Tribulation, you had better prepare for the long haul; because if there is any ‘rapture’ at all, it will take place at Jesus’ second coming after mortal bodies are made immortal and so suitable to enter spiritual realms (1Corinthians 15:50-55; 1Thessalonians 4:16-17↔Isaiah 26:19, Ezekiel 37:5-6,12-14, Daniel 12:2, John 5:25).

³ In typical Scriptural fashion, timetables are hinted at but never fully detailed (Daniel 8:26, 12:11-12; Revelation 13:5); because none of these tells us the specific day and hour from which to start counting—in keeping with Matthew 24:36, Mark 13:32 and Acts 1:7. The fact that not even Jesus knows specific dates should alert doomsayers and their fans that Satan is taking them for a ride (Isaiah 3:12, 8:20; Jeremiah 14:14↔1John 4:1).

⁴ There is apparently a ‘quorum’ of those who must die to sanctify others as did animal sacrifices under Mosaic rites (Revelation 6:11↔Hebrews 9:19-22).