A laymans commentary on Matthew 24. Chapter Three, verses 7- 10. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. Isn't that what we are seeing?

 Chapter three.

“For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom:”

Matthew 24:7 “For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.”

We have been talking about this very thing. The subject of verse 7 was a post I made over the course of six weeks sometime ago. I went on to say, "Now, here we are in mid-June of 2019, and a violent group of Muslims is effectively overrunning Iraq. Iran has declared that they are sending troops to Iraq to stop them, and apparently, that has happened." 

Fast forward to February of 2024, and what has changed? 

• Pestilence –

Think bugs, flies, frogs, and generally, pests; plagues fall under this category. As of last year, the world is seeing a rise in the Bubonic plague, and it is coming from multiple fronts, such as Asia, Mexico, and Madagascar. In March of 2013, Egypt was swarmed with over 30 million locusts. Moreover, Guinea is currently suffering from a deadly outbreak of Ebola. To make matters worse, a major French biomedical research body, the Pasteur Institute, has investigated the disappearance of some 2,300 test tubes containing samples of the SARS virus.

• How about famine?

UN calls for $2 billion to help combat hunger in Sahel.

North Korea: fears of food shortages outside Pyongyang as distribution fails;

Pakistan’s Impending Famine

This list could go on forever.

• Let us look at earthquakes for a moment.

Note the date on the screenshot. 01/22/2024 from The USGS reports. 

Does the ring of fire mean anything to you?

Matthew 24:8 “All these are the beginning of sorrows.”

The Complete Jewish Bible calls it birth pains. If a woman goes into labor, she will be experiencing birth pains; that only means one thing, the baby is on the way.

Matthew 24:9 NASB "Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name.”

Luke 21:12,13 "But before all these they will lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my name's sake. And it shall turn to you for a testimony.”

 Matthew 24:10 NASB "At that time many will fall away and will betray one another and hate one another.”

A parallel verse comes from:

Luke 21:16 WBS "And ye will be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinsmen, and friends; and some of you will they cause to be put to death.”

Mark's gospel says something that is repeated by neither of the other two.

Mark 13:10 NASB "The gospel must first be preached to all the

In trying to convey how imminent the Lord's return is, an acquaintance angrily threw this back at me, Jesus cannot come back, for the gospel has not been preached to all nations. He quickly started giving out a large number of people groups that had not received a printed copy of the gospel. As of 2007, it was said that there are 100 million unchurched people in the United States alone. (Unchurched is defined as those who have not been in a church in the last 6 months.) I attempted to appease his argument by pointing out that the angel broadcasts the gospel around the globe. He responded with, I have never read that. So, I give it to you.

• Genesis 3:5-7 NASB:  "For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." (6) When the woman saw that the tree was good for food and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate. (7) Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked, and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin coverings.”

This act of treason, “sin,” brought the knowledge of good and evil to every man, and that lousy gift was passed on through their genetics; therefore, no man can use the lack of understanding as an excuse.

• Romans 1:20 NASB:  “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.”

• Revelation 14:6-10 NASB:  (6) “And I saw another angel flying in mid-heaven, having an eternal gospel to preach to those who live on the earth, and to every nation and tribe and tongue and people; (7) and he said with a loud voice, "Fear God, and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come; worship Him who made the heaven and the earth and sea and springs of waters." (8) And another angel, a second one, followed, saying, "Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, she who has made all the nations drink of the wine of the passion of her immorality." (9) Then another angel, a third one, followed them, saying with a loud voice, "If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, (10) he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is mixed in full strength in the cup of His anger; and he will be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb."

This makes it clear to me that nothing is holding God back from his action plan.