Church of God News

Total US Debt surpasses $33 trillion for the first time.

For those keeping tabs, the US added $1 trillion in debt in three (3) months. pic.twitter.com/9eJVnX1YnZ

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) September 18, 2023

COGwriter

ABC reported the following:

September 20, 2023

The U.S. gross national debt surpassed $33 trillion, a troubling benchmark as lawmakers show little interest in reining in spending, let alone a balanced budget.

The milestone comes as Congress faces a deadline of Sept. 30 to pass another spending measure or face a federal government shutdown.

“$1 trillion more debt… SINCE JUNE!” Rep. Dan Bishop, R-N.C., wrote on social media. “Now $33 trillion. Your family’s share is over $260,000. The swamp’s answer: let’s do another CR.” …

That debt has several economic consequences, including elevated inflation and taxpayers shelling out billions just for interest payments on the debt. As The Center Square previously reported, within a decade the cost of interest payments on the national debt will cost taxpayers more than spending on national defense. In addition, interest payments on the national debt are on track to become the federal government’s biggest expense. https://www.montanarightnow.com/national_news/national-debt-surpasses-33-trillion/article_b6960116-0df5-513a-90bf-1a91ae5231af.html

A “CR” is a “continuing resolution,” which basically means that the USA government can continue to spend.

As the debt and interest rates rise (which they both have this past year), this is putting the USA into a position from which it will not properly ever properly recover from.

Regarding interest rates. the Federal Reserve today said it was not changing them for now, but the rates for the 2 and 10 year Treasury Bills have been rising the past couple of days (https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/stocks-bonds-slammed-powell-pies-next-years-punchbowl 09/20/23).

Michael Snyder referred to many Americans as “pig people,” partially because of the growing debt. He posted the following:

The Rise Of The Pig People

September 19, 2023

In all of human history, has there ever been a society more gluttonous than our own?  We are addicted to sex, we are addicted to drugs, we are addicted to shopping, we are addicted to eating, we are addicted to entertainment, but our biggest addiction of all may be money.  Even though we were handed the keys to the greatest economic machine the world has ever seen, it was never enough for us.  We always had to have more, and so we have run up the largest single mountain of debt in the entire history of the planet.  If you can believe it, on Monday the size of the U.S. national debt crossed the 33 trillion dollar mark for the very first time…

It took from the founding of our nation all the way up to 1980 for the national debt to reach one trillion dollars.

But now we have added a trillion dollars to the national debt in just three months.

And thanks to rising interest rates, interest payments on our debt are projected to increase at an exponential rate in the years ahead…

And that is because we are extremely gluttonous “pig people” that simply do not care that we are literally destroying the future for our children and our grandchildren.

Sadly, the politicians that are racking up all of this debt are extremely gluttonous “pig people” too. …

As a nation, we are also deeply addicted to drugs.

Today, more Americans than ever before are addicted to legal and/or illegal drugs.

And more Americans than ever are dying from those addictions. …

Our addiction to food is also killing many of us.

In fact, we are being told that the number of Americans that die from heart disease each year with obesity as a factor has actually “tripled” since 1999…

The number of Americans who died of heart disease with obesity as a factor has *tripled* since 1999.

Obesity now affects 42% of all Americans, and 20% of children. …

I was quite shocked to see “the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence” standing at the front of the church as the congregation of the Cathedral of Hope “recited a pledge dedicated to drag queens”… That is supposed to be a church! …

What is next?

Are churches going to start reciting pledges to Satan during their worship services?

We can’t fall much farther than we have already fallen, and if we stay on the path that we are currently on there will be no future for our country. https://endoftheamericandream.com/the-rise-of-the-pig-people/

The “pig people” comment brought the following scripture to mind:

15 “The leech has two daughters. ‘Give! Give!’ they cry. “There are three things that are never satisfied, four that never say, ‘Enough!’: (Proverbs 30:15, NIV)

In many ways, the USA is acting like an international leech as it misuses the role of its dollar as the primary trading and reserve currency of the world.

Will that last?

No.

Without national repentance, the USA is doomed.

Despite some political rhetoric, no serious plan to actually reduce the debt is in the works that currently stands a chance to be implemented. The USA never intends to actually pay back all its debt in any fair way. Nor does it wish to repent of its promotion of sexual perversion.

That said, increasing debt in the Biden-Harris Administration was discussed in my book Biden-Harris: Prophecies and Destruction as follows:

Debt is a prophesied problem (cf. Habakkuk 2:6-8). But many in the media as well as politically-inclined economists do not see it that way—but that is too short sighted (cf. Ecclesiastes 8:11).

The time will come when the U.S.A. government will no longer be able to borrow at low interest rates and/or it will create more money electronically and/or via the printing press to try to continue.

Make no mistake about it — massive inflation is coming.

The U.S.A. dollar will ultimately crash and be worthless. That “pride” of American power will be broken (cf. Leviticus 26:19).

A Biden-Harris Administration has asserted it will take debt raising steps. …

Let us also consider that there is a prophecy in Habakkuk, written about 2600 years ago, about debt which is preceded by the following:

² Then the Lord answered me and said:

Write the vision And make it plain on tablets, That he may run who reads it. (Habakkuk 2:2)

The Bible says that the ‘debt prophecy’ to be revealed later in Habakkuk 2 is so significant that those who read it should run—essentially that they should take steps because the results will be horrific. Joe Biden and many other American politicians have not run away from increasing U.S.A. debt—that will be to the nation’s peril.

The Bible warns about something that will happen to a heavily indebted nation. Notice what the Hebrew seer Habakkuk wrote over 2,600 years ago:

³ For the vision is yet for an appointed time; But at the end it will speak, and it will not lie. Though it tarries, wait for it; Because it will surely come, It will not tarry … ⁵ Indeed, because he transgresses by wine, He is a proud man … ⁶ “Will not all these take up a proverb against him, And a taunting riddle against him, and say, ‘Woe to him who increases What is not his—how long? And to him who loads himself with many pledges’? ⁷ Will not your creditors rise up suddenly? Will they not awaken who oppress you? And you will become their booty. ⁸ Because you have plundered many nations, All the remnant of the people shall plunder you… (Habakkuk 2:2-3,6–8). …

Notice that what is to happen is so bad, that people who read the prophecy should run, when it is time for it to be fulfilled. Since that prophecy is to be fulfilled at the appointed time of the end, it is still for the future, but perhaps not too far distant in the future. No nation has ever been in as much total debt as the U.S.A. …

European leaders have been working for years to establish a new reserve currency for the world, partially with the intent to remove the U.S. dollar from its position as the world’s primary reserve currency. …

The Bible clearly warns against cheapening the money supply and encourages having money hold its value (Proverbs 25:4 Isaiah 1:25, Ezekiel 22:18-22). Yet policies enacted under the Obama and Trump Administrations, following certain other administrations, have ignored these warnings.

No nation in the history of humankind has ever accumulated as much debt as the United States of America (because the U.K. may have close to the highest amount of per capita debt {Conway E. Britain showing signs of heading towards 1930s-style depression, says Bank. Telegraph, March 16, 2009 },its fate would be similar). Destruction is coming.

However, the relationship between debt accumulation and prophesied destruction remains unapparent to many. Because there is a time lag, many ignore that there will be real consequences (cf. Ecclesiastes 8:11; Habakkuk 2:3,6-8). Yet, these increases of debt are utterly dangerous.

When the time comes that the Federal Reserve is no longer able to keep interest rates artificially low, the U.S.A. will continue past the point of no return. That will become one of the final factors that will cause creditors to rise up and destroy the U.S.A. (Thiel B. Biden-Harris: Prophecies and Destruction. Nazarene Books, 2021)

(Pixabay photo)

COGwriter

The President of the European Commission, Ursula vonder Leyen gave her annual State of the European Union address. Here are some excerpts (bolding in source):

September 13, 2023

Our Union today reflects the vision of those who dreamt of a better future after World War II. 

A future in which a Union of nations, democracies and people would work together to share peace and prosperity.

They believed that Europe was the answer to the call of history.

When I speak to the new generation of young people, I see that same vision for a better future.

That same burning desire to build something better.

That same belief that in a world of uncertainty, Europe once again must answer the call of history. …

Together, we have shown that when Europe is bold, it gets things done.

And our work is far from over – so let’s stand together.

Let’s deliver today and prepare for tomorrow. …

Europe’s industry is showing every day that it is ready to power this transition.

Proving that modernisation and decarbonisation can go hand in hand.

In the last five years, the number of clean steel factories in the EU has grown from zero to 38.

We are now attracting more investment in clean hydrogen than the US and China combined. …

So far, we have concluded new free trade agreements with Chile, New Zealand and Kenya.

We should aim to complete deals with Australia, Mexico and Mercosur by the end of this year.

And soon thereafter with India and Indonesia.

Smart trade delivers good jobs and prosperity. …

Member States have used that investment to digitise their healthcare, justice system or transport network.

At the same time, Europe has led on managing the risks of the digital world. 

The internet was born as an instrument for sharing knowledge, opening minds and connecting people.

But it has also given rise to serious challenges.

Disinformation, spread of harmful content, risks to the privacy of our data.

All of this led to a lack of trust and a breach of fundamental rights of people. 

In response, Europe has become the global pioneer of citizen’s rights in the digital world.

The DSA and DMA are creating a safer digital space where fundamental rights are protected.

And they are ensuring fairness with clear responsibilities for big tech.

This is a historic achievement – and we should be proud of it. 

The same should be true for artificial intelligence.  …

We are now laying the foundations for a single governance system in Europe. …

These emerging economies – with their people and natural assets – are essential allies in building a cleaner, safer and more prosperous world.

Europe will always work with them to reform and improve the international system.

We want to lead efforts to make the rules-based order fairer and make distribution more equal.

This will also mean working with new and old partners to deepen our connections.

And Europe’s offer with Global Gateway is truly unique.

Global Gateway is more transparent, more sustainable, and more economically attractive.

Just last week I was in New Delhi to sign the most ambitious project of our generation.

The India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor.

It will be the most direct connection to date between India, the Arabian Gulf and Europe: With a rail link, that will make trade between India and Europe 40% faster.

With an electricity cable and a clean hydrogen pipeline – to foster clean energy trade between Asia, the Middle East and Europe.

With a high-speed data cable, to link some of the most innovative digital ecosystems in the world, and create business opportunities all along the way.

These are state-of-the-art connections for the world of tomorrow.

Faster, shorter, cleaner.

And Global Gateway is making the real difference.

I have seen it in Latin America, South-East Asia and across Africa – from building a local hydrogen economy with Namibia and Kenya to a digital economy with the Philippines.

These are investments in our partners’ economy.

And they are investments in Europe’s prosperity and security in a fast-changing world. …

In a world where size and weight matters, it is clearly in Europe’s strategic and security interests to complete our Union.

But beyond the politics and geopolitics of it, we need to picture what is at stake.

We need to set out a vision for a successful enlargement.

A Union complete with over 500 million people living in a free, democratic and prosperous Union. …

We have started to build European Defence Union at 27.

And I believe we can finish it at 30+. …

And, yes, that means including through a European Convention and Treaty change if and where it is needed!

But we cannot – and we should not – wait for Treaty change to move ahead with enlargement. …

Once again – this is Europe’s moment to answer the call of history.

Long live Europe. https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/speech_23_4426

So, the EU President wants Europe to be bold, have better trade with Africa, Asia, and Latin America, more intrusive (which is what the DSA, the Digital Services Act does; for some of where that will lead watch: 666, the Censorship Industrial Complex, and AI ), stronger militarily, have more nations part of it, and reorganize.

Her comments related to 30+ are a reference to increasing the number of member nations of the European Union. While many falsely assert that the final European Beast power will only have have 10 or 11 currently existing nations, that is NOT what the Bible teaches in Revelation 17:12-13 (for details, check out the article: Must the Ten Kings of Revelation 17:12 Rule over Ten Currently Existing Nations?).

Influential European leaders are proposing changes to manage a larger European Union. Some just put out a report titled Sailing on High Seas: Reforming and Enlarging the EU for the 21st Century.

The Guardian put out the following report about it:

UK could become an ‘EU lite’ member of bloc, suggests Franco-German report

19 September 2023

A vision of a future EU with four types of membership – including an “EU lite” for countries such as the UK – has been tabled by a group of academics commissioned by France and Germany to consider future reforms.

The proposal comes as the UK’s opposition leader, Keir Starmer, told France’s president, Emmanuel Macron, that he wanted to build an “even stronger” relationship between the two countries …

With the Ukraine war accelerating the appetite for enlargement, the EU leadership has acknowledged the urgent need to start thinking about the shape of the bloc, which could increase from 27 members to as many as 36 countries.

A report presented by France and Germany on Tuesday called on EU institutions to pass a raft of reforms to be ready by 2030 to accept new members …

The report does not represent the official German or French positions, but will feed into debates at an upcoming summits of 46 European countries and an informal gathering of the 27 EU leaders on successive days in October in Granada in Spain.

“It is clear the enlargement of the EU is in all our interests,” said Germany’s Europe minister, Anna Lührmann, who presented the report in Brussels with her French counterpart.

“We must therefore start now to do everything possible to ensure that the EU is ready for this enlargement.” …

One suggestion is to offer different grades of membership, including an inner circle of countries with “deep integration in areas like the Eurozone and Schengen area”.

The next concentric circle would consist of the current EU, with a third circle of “associate members” who participate in the single market, which could include the likes of Norway, which is in the European Economic Area with access to the trading bloc.

The fourth circle could be a space for countries such as the UK and would involve “political cooperation without having to be bound to EU law”.

The 46 European leaders meeting in Spain next month are already part of the fledgling European Political Community, which includes the UK and other non-EU members such as Iceland, Serbia, Kosovo, Georgia and Moldova.

Other reforms mooted include a change from unanimous to qualified majority voting on key areas such as taxation, finances and foreign affairs in favour of a qualified majority, they said. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/sep/19/uk-could-become-an-eu-lite-member-of-bloc-suggests-franco-german-report

Here is some of the Executive Summary of the actual Sailing on High Seas: Reforming and Enlarging the EU for the 21st Century report:

The European Union (EU) faces a critical juncture marked by geopolitical shifts, transnational crises, and internal complexities. For geopolitical reasons, EU enlargement is high on the political agenda, but the EU is not ready yet to welcome new members, neither institutionally nor policy wise. Against this backdrop, a ‘working group on EU institutional reforms’ was convened by the French and German governments. In September 2023, after several months of deliberation, ‘The Group of Twelve’ submitted the results of its work with this report.

Recognising the complexity of aligning diverse Member States’ visions for the EU, the report recommends a flexible EU reform and enlargement process. It highlights the need for immediate action to improve the EU’s functionality, proposing a list of initial steps before the next European elections. More substantial reforms – including preparations for treaty revisions – should be implemented during the new legislative term (2024 to 2029).

The report’s recommendations are aimed at achieving three goals: increasing the EU’s capacity to act, getting the EU enlargement ready, and strengthening the rule of law and the EU’s democratic legitimacy. The report is structured into three main sections, dealing with the rule of law, institutional reforms, and the process to reform, deepen and enlarge the EU. 09/18/23 https://www.auswaertiges-amt.de/blob/2617206/4d0e0010ffcd8c0079e21329bbbb3332/230919-rfaa-deu-fra-bericht-data.pdf

Yes, the EU wants to expand. What will be the next step?

The Sailing on High Seas: Reforming and Enlarging the EU proposal is for a multi-pronged reorganization to allow it to expand.

Could this be a prelude to the reorganization that the Bible says will come to Europe in Revelation 17:12-13? Here is what those scriptures prophesy:

12 “The ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have received no kingdom as yet, but they receive authority for one hour as kings with the beast. 13 These are of one mind, and they will give their power and authority to the beast. (Revelation 17:12-13)

These ten kings have no kingdom, but are to attain one. Thus, this is a type of reorganization in verse 12. Since they give their power to the Beast in verse 13, this is a second reorganization.  The “beast” is not shown to have much power prior to Revelation 17:12-13. This turnover power to him results in a dictatorship–likely similar to the one led by Adolf Hitler (see also European Unity to be like Hitler?).

Notice that Revelation 17:12-13 does NOT say that ten existing nations will give their power to the Beast, but that ten kings who had not had a kingdom will get power and transfer it. This means that a political/structural shift is expected to happen in Europe.

Now, notice something in Annex 1 of the Sailing on High Seas: Reforming and Enlarging the EU for the 21st Century report:

It is obvious that the EU needs an institutional overhaul to maintain its capacity to act. This is especially important with the perspective of future enlargements. To identify potential ways for reforms, we bring together German and French experts at one table.

The “institutional overhaul” is a reorganization. But even if that one is implemented, that will not be the final one.

When nations and empires lack the capacity to act quickly and boldly enough, they are inclined to change and support a dictator–and that is precisely what Revelation 17:12-13 says will happen.

While the Sailing on High Seas: Reforming and Enlarging the EU for the 21st Century report does not call for a dictator, it calls for institutional reforms to make governance more effective. A dictatorial man will arise in Europe promising to do that, and yes, power will be given to him.

Revelation 17:13 is clearly talking about a dictator–one the Bible calls the beast.

The old Worldwide Church of God published the following decades ago (bolding mine) regarding prophecies including Revelation 17:12-13:

The prophecy of Daniel 11 … This is an important “end-time” prophecy. Following the chronological progression of the chapter, it becomes apparent that the phrase “king of the north” had at first referred to Syria under the Seleucid dynasty, and later, in the New Testament times, to the Emperor of the Roman Empire. … Thus, in its final end-time application, the “king of the north” is the prophesied strong man who will lead a coming union … the seventh and final revival of the ancient Roman Empire prophesied by Daniel and in the book of Revelation (see Revelation 17:12-13).

Finally feeling the chilling embrace of Moscow, the German people may yet call for the Bavarian strongman — the one they feared in good times — to rescue them from their impending doom. (Hogberg G. WHERE Is WEST GERMANY Headed? Plain Truth, December 1980).

A Bavarian strongman would be someone from Bavaria, which is in southern Germany (the southern border of Bavaria runs to the northern border of Austria). The strongman that Gene Hogberg had in mind back in 1980 (Franz Joseph Strauss) died. Yet, let me add that there is another Bavarian strongman who I have kept my eye on who may one day rise up. His name is Karl-Theodor zu-Guttenberg (see Might German Baron Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg become the King of the North?). A reader sent me a link a while back to a presentation that Herr Guttenberg gave in May of 2016 where he called for more passionate leaders in Europe. One such leader will arise.

As far as Moscow goes, the Sailing on High Seas: Reforming and Enlarging the EU for the 21st Century report refers to the Russia-Ukranian war as a reason to speed up the process of EU enlargement–that is consistent with what the old Worldwide Church of God speculated.

When the time comes for the final Beast leader to arise, he will most likely be at least partially German, as all the leaders of the old Holy Roman Empire were as well.

Some COGs (LCG and PCG come to mind) are of the view that scripture teaches that the Beast will only rule 10 or 11 currently existing nations–but that is wrong (see also in the article: Must the Ten Kings of Revelation 17:12 Rule over Ten Currently Existing Nations?). Furthermore, the EU, itself, wants to have at least 30 nations as part of it.

Once many in Europe become more frustrated with civil unrest, economic, and immigration matters, more will be willing to support a strong leader.

The Bible shows that a militaristic totalitarian leader called the Beast will arise and become militarily successful (Revelation 13:1-4). Europeans will be comfortable, for a time, with such a militarily, successful leader.

Democracy will again be eliminated in the coming reorganized Europe. A strong man will be in power.

The Bible warns of a lack of natural unity in Europe:

41 Whereas you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; yet the strength of the iron shall be in it, just as you saw the iron mixed with ceramic clay. 42 And as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly fragile. 43 As you saw iron mixed with ceramic clay, they will mingle with the seed of men; but they will not adhere to one another, just as iron does not mix with clay. (Daniel 2:41-43)

It will take a strong leader to make Europe’s coming, temporary unity stronger.

The European Union wants this.

Furthermore, the Sailing on High Seas: Reforming and Enlarging the EU for the 21st Century report recognizes some of the issues that the EU is facing and is correct that it will need to reorganize, but because it ignores the word of God, the authors of the report do not understand how things in Europe will turn out.

But you can, if you will believe the “sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed” (2 Peter 1:19, KJV).

UPDATE 09/27/23: We just uploaded the following related video:

14:47

Europe to Expand and Reorganize?

In September 2023, European Commission President Ursula vonder Leyen gave her annual State of the European Union. It was a motivational speech to push Europeans to support bold moves for expansion, trade, and international influence. She also mentioned Europe’s Global Gateway project as well as her involvement in getting the G20 to go for the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC). Several days after her speech, a report titled ‘ Sailing on High Seas: Reforming and Enlarging the EU for the 21st Century’ put out be Europeans from Germany and France called for an overhaul of the European Union so that it could manage expanding to over 30 nations. Will Europe reorganize? What does the Bible teach in Revelation 17:12-13? Will this involve more than 10 or 11 currently existing nations? Will this end up being a dictatorship? Could any of this have to do with the coming ‘King of the North’ of Daniel 11? Could a Bavarian ‘strongman’ possibly be involved in the future? Could the year 2030 be relevant? Dr. Thiel and Steve Dupuie discuss these matters and more.

Here is a link to our video: Europe to Expand and Reorganize?

Several items of possibly related interest may include:

Europa, the Beast, and the Book of Revelation discusses the largest church since the second/third century, which in a real sense is the eighth church mentioned in the Book of Revelation (it also endorses “eighth day” worship). What church would support the Beast? Here is a link to a video titled: Can You Prove that the Beast to Come is European?Estado.
Might German Baron Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg become the King of the North? Is the former German Defense Minister (who is also the former German Minister for Economics and Technology) one to watch? What do Greco-Roman Catholic, Byzantine, and biblical prophecies suggest? A video of related interest would be: Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg and Europe’s Future. Two shorter video are also available: Blockchain, Karl Guttenberg, and 666and The Middle East, Prophecy, and Karl Theodor zu Guttenberg.
Must the Ten Kings of Revelation 17:12 Rule over Ten Currently Existing Nations? Some claim that these passages refer to a gathering of 10 currently existing nations together, while one group teaches that this is referring to 11 nations getting together. Is that what Revelation 17:12-13 refers to? The ramifications of misunderstanding this are enormous. A related sermon is titled Ten Kings of Revelation and the Great Tribulation.
Who is the King of the West? Why is there no Final End-Time King of the West in Bible Prophecy? Is the United States the King of the West? Here is a version in the Spanish language: ¿Quién es el Rey del Occidente? ¿Por qué no hay un Rey del Occidente en la profecía del tiempo del fin? A related sermon is also available: The Bible, the USA, and the King of the West.
Who is the King of the North? Is there one? Do biblical and Roman Catholic prophecies for the Great Monarch point to the same leader? Should he be followed? Who will be the King of the North discussed in Daniel 11? Is a nuclear attack prophesied to happen to the English-speaking peoples of the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand? When do the 1335 days, 1290 days, and 1260 days (the time, times, and half a time) of Daniel 12 begin? When does the Bible show that economic collapse will affect the United States? In the Spanish language check out ¿Quién es el Rey del Norte? Here are links to three related videos: The King of the North is Alive: What to Look Out For. The Future King of the North, and Rise of the Prophesied King of the North.
The Great Monarch: Biblical and Greco-Roman Catholic Prophecies Is the ‘Great Monarch’ of Greco-Roman Catholic prophecies endorsed or condemned by the Bible? Two sermons of related interest are also available: Great Monarch: Messiah or False Christ? and Great Monarch in 50+ Beast Prophecies.
Does God Have a 6,000 Year Plan? What Year Does the 6,000 Years End? Was a 6000 year time allowed for humans to rule followed by a literal thousand year reign of Christ on Earth taught by the early Christians? Does God have 7,000 year plan? What year may the six thousand years of human rule end? When will Jesus return? 2031 or 20xx? There is also a video titled 6000 Years: When will God’s Kingdom Come? Here is a link to the article in Spanish: ¿Tiene Dios un plan de 6,000 años?
Lost Tribes and Prophecies: What will happen to Australia, the British Isles, Canada, Europe, New Zealand and the United States of America? Where did those people come from? Can you totally rely on DNA? What about other peoples? Do you really know what will happen to Europe and the English-speaking peoples? What about Africa, Asia, South America, and the Islands? This free online book provides scriptural, scientific, historical references, and commentary to address those matters. Here are links to related sermons: Lost tribes, the Bible, and DNA; Lost tribes, prophecies, and identifications; 11 Tribes, 144,000, and Multitudes; Israel, Jeremiah, Tea Tephi, and British Royalty; Gentile European Beast; Royal Succession, Samaria, and Prophecies; Asia, Islands, Latin America, Africa, and Armageddon;  When Will the End of the Age Come?;  Rise of the Prophesied King of the North; Christian Persecution from the Beast; WWIII and the Coming New World Order; and Woes, WWIV, and the Good News of the Kingdom of God.

COGwriter

Back in 2020, Pope Francis spoke on the Roman Catholic view of why God made the world:

‘The World Was Made to Communicate the Glory of God,’ Says Pope Francis

September 1, 2020

“The world was made to communicate the glory of God.”

Pope Francis gave this reminder in his message for the 6th World Day of Prayer for Creation …

In the message, Francis called for long term action to help the planet, and underlined specific initiatives and areas where he believes steps must be taken.

“Today we hear the voice of creation admonishing us to return to our rightful place in the natural created order,” he said, saying, “to remember that we are part of this interconnected web of life, not its masters. The disintegration of biodiversity, spiralling climate disasters, and unjust impact of the current pandemic on the poor and vulnerable: all these are a wakeup call in the face of our rampant greed and consumption.”

“Particularly during this Season of Creation,” he prayed, “may we be attentive to the rhythms of this created world. For the world was made to communicate the glory of God, to help us to discover in its beauty the Lord of all, and to return to him. The earth from which we were made is thus a place of prayer and meditation.” https://zenit.org/2020/09/01/the-world-was-made-to-communicate-the-glory-of-god-pope-francis-message-for-world-day-of-prayer-for-care-of-creation/

By calling the message a “reminder,” this supports the view that this has long been the Roman Catholic view.

It is consistent with something called the “beatific vision” that the Church of Rome and many others hold to, but that the Church of God does not.

Here is information on that and related matters from my free online book The MYSTERY of GOD’s PLAN Why Did God Create Anything? Why did God make you?:

Notice one Protestant view of why God made humans:

Why Did God Create Humans?

He did so to give himself glory. God created us to live and enjoy relationships as he did. Jesus said, “I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete” (John 15:11). …

To bring glory to God—that is, to exalt him, lift him up, give him praise, to reflect upon him honorable—is in fact our purpose in life. (Bell S. Josh McDowell Ministry. posted April 11, 2016)

We in the CCOG would disagree. God did not create us because He is some ego-driven spiritual entity that needed people to give Him glory. Nor is giving glory to God the purpose of human life. But it is true that God wanted to increase joy. …

The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches:

293 Scripture and Tradition never cease to teach and celebrate this fundamental truth: “The world was made for the glory of God.”¹³⁴ St. Bonaventure explains that God created all things “not to increase his glory, but to show it forth and to communicate it”,¹³⁵ for God has no other reason for creating than his love and goodness: “Creatures came into existence when the key of love opened his hand.” ^…

Some feel that eternity will be spent primarily gazing upon the face of God. This is known as the ‘Beatific Vision.’

While the Bible teaches we can see God’s face forever (Psalm 41:12), the Beatific Vision is taught by some as the Christian reward and purpose of the creation.

Here is how the New World Encyclopedia describes it:

The Beatific Vision is a term in Catholic theology describing the direct perception of God enjoyed by those who are in Heaven, imparting supreme happiness or blessedness. In this view, humans’ understanding of God while alive is necessarily indirect (mediated), while the Beatific Vision is direct (immediate). …

Thomas Aquinas explained the Beatific Vision as the ultimate goal of human existence after physical death. Aquinas’ formulation of beholding God in Heaven parallels Plato’s description of beholding the Good in the world of the Forms, which is not possible while still in the physical body. …

The philosophy of Plato hints at the concept of the Beatific Vision in the Allegory of the cave, which appears in the Republic Book 7 (514a-520a), speaking through the character of Socrates:

My opinion is that in the world of knowledge the idea of good (the Good) appears last of all, and is seen only with an effort; and, when seen, is also inferred to be the universal author of all things beautiful and right, parent of light and of the lord of light in this visible world, and the immediate source of reason and truth in the intellectual (517b,c).

For Plato, the Good appears to correspond to God in Christian theology. …

St. Cyprian of Carthage (third century) wrote of the saved seeing God in the Kingdom of Heaven:

How great will your glory and happiness be, to be allowed to see God, to be honored with sharing the joy of salvation and eternal light with Christ your Lord and God… to delight in the joy of immortality in the Kingdom of Heaven with the righteous and God’s friends. …

In the thirteenth century, philosopher-theologian Thomas Aquinas, following his teacher Albertus Magnus, described the ultimate goal of a human life as consisting in the intellectual Beatific Vision of God’s essence after death. According to Aquinas, the Beatific Vision surpasses both faith and reason. …

Hindu and Buddhist thought have long spoken of the experience of samadhi, in which the soul finds union with the divine while still in the body. The mystical tradition in Islam speaks of literally seeing with God’s eyes: “When I love him, I am his hearing by which he hears; and his sight by which he sees; his hand by which he strikes; and his foot by which he walks” (Hadith of An-Nawawi 38).

George Fox and the other early Quakers believed that direct experience of God was available to all people, without mediation. (Beatific Vision. New World Encyclopedia, 2013. http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Beatific_Vision accessed 04/16/19)

Note: The Bible is clear that God will come down to the earth (Revelation 21:1-3), hence scripture negates the view of a beatific vision in heaven.

The editor of the Lutheran Journal of Ethics wrote:

But the end goal of God’s purpose for the human creature shines through an eschatological understanding of sanctification, where we are promised the beatific vision of holiness and full communion with God in eternity. (Santos C. Editor’s Introduction: Lutherans and Sanctification. © September/October 2017. Journal of Lutheran Ethics, Volume 17, Issue 5)

Many Protestants that believe in the Beatific Vision lean toward the view that this vision is a spiritual, not physical sight (e.g. Ortlund G. Why We Misunderstand the Beatific Vision. First Baptist Church of Ojai, September 26, 2018).

Those who accept versions of the Beatific Vision as the end goal tend to think that seeing God will fill them with His or their own happiness.

Here is an opposing view of that vision from a onetime Church of God writer:

If eternity is to be spent gazing blissfully up into God’s face, or having our every wish immediately fulfilled — as many religions teach — after a few months (or after a few octillion years, it doesn’t really matter), life would get boring. And once life got boring, it would be sickeningly and fiendishly terrifying. Because there would remain nothing but an unending eternity of boredom to come — with death a wonderful but impossible way of escape (see Luke 20:35-38). This would indeed be the ultimate torture.

But our Eternal Father has a better idea. He has designed a plan in which eternity will not grow progressively more boring. But, as unbelievable as it seems, eternity will grow progressively more exciting, more scintillating, and more enjoyable as each eon follows eon. (Kuhn RL. The God Family – Part Three: To Inhabit Eternity. Good News, July 1974)

Yes, God made what He did so that eternity could be better. Notice something from a deceased Church of God writer:

The God who put this world together did so with a plan in mind. That plan was not the hopeless Nirvana of one major religion of the world which promises you will become an unconscious part of the great whole of nothing with no worries forever — because you have no individual consciousness forever. It is not the bliss of slumbering in a hammock slung between two date palms in an oasis, being fed by voluptuous maidens forever, the promise of which the followers of Allah are assured. It is not walking the golden streets with golden slippers, strumming on a harp with your only worry being how to keep your halo straight, as seems to be the promise of the majority of Protestant groups. It is most certainly not the promise of finally being able to look into the face of God and appreciate the beatific vision (whatever that is), as is the promise to those who follow the Catholic faith: What the God who created everything proposes is to bring you into His very family. To be God as God is God! Not just to be a God in the euphemistic sense of us all being brothers and sisters with God as our figurehead Father, but to share His divine nature completely. …

God’s real plan is practical. He says of His family Kingdom that there will never be an end to its expansion. His plan is to continue adding sons and daughters who look, feel, act like Him and who are composed of the same self-regenerating eternal spirit life as He is, forever! That is why the goal God has set before Himself is a hope that not even He will ever fulfill. Endless, eternal, forever creating an ever-expanding family to enjoy and rule the great creation He has already made — and to have you and me share in future creations without end. A busy, practical, interesting, challenging, ongoing plan that gives an eternal reason to live.

There is no boredom in that plan. Never a time when your interest will run out. No mythical, religious-sounding folderol about some spiritual never-never land where you do nothing forever — but an eternal job of creating, governing! problem-solving with visible benefit. … He has the power to resurrect you … (Hill DJ. What the World Needs Now Is…HOPE. Plain Truth, February 1979)

Notice something from a late Church of God leader:

“If a man die, shall he live again?” (Job 14:14). This should be a time of HOPE, because even if THIS WORLD dies — and it shall — there will follow a RESURRECTION of a new and better world — a world at PEACE — a world of contentment, happiness, abundance, JOY! God help us to comprehend! Not merely continuous existence — but the full, happy, interesting, ABUNDANT life! Yes — and that for ALL ETERNITY! (Armstrong HW. What Is the Purpose of the Resurrection? Good News, March 1982)

Because many do not fully understand scripture, they have promoted views, like how they teach the beatific vision, which are not fully consistent with God’s plan.

Us looking at God does not, of itself, make eternity better. Though Him blessing us forever certainly will do that (cf. Psalm 72:17-19).

All Things Created for Jesus

The New Testament teaches this related to Jesus and the creation:

¹⁵ He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. ¹⁶ For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. Colossians 1:15-16)

² … His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; ³ who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, (Hebrews 1:2-3)

Now, were we simply created to look at Jesus for eternity?

No.

Notice why Jesus said He came:

¹⁰ … I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. (John 10:10)

By have “life” and having it “more abundantly,” Jesus is teaching that He came so that we could have a better eternity and that we could help make eternity better.

God did not create humans for the purpose of humans staring at Him for all eternity.

God is not an egotist as He made the world so eternity would be better. Here is a link to a related sermon: Mysteries of God’s Plan,

Sadly, most do NOT know why God created anything or God’s purpose for making humans.

Now, you may want to know why did God make you?

Related to that, the Continuing Church of God put together the following sermon on its ContinuingCOG channel:

1:14:43

The Mystery of YOU

Why did God make YOU? What is the biblical meaning of life? Are you supposed to do good? Is there a place for works? What will you be rewarded for? What about love and the commandments? Does God have a specific role for you personally? Do you really trust God? Will you be able to give love in a unique manner in order to make eternity better for yourself and others? What about character and deification? Why did God create anything? This is third part of a three-part sermon series by Dr. Thiel.

This sermon series is based on the following free online book: The MYSTERY of GOD’s PLAN Why Did God Create Anything? Why did God make you?

Here is a link to the sermon: The Mystery of YOU.

We in Continuing Church of God put together the booklet The MYSTERY of GOD’s PLAN Why Did God Create Anything? Why did God make you? so, for those interested in the truth, “that they may have all the riches that assurance brings in their understanding of the knowledge of the mystery of God” (Colossians 2:2, NET).

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

The MYSTERY of GOD’s PLAN Why Did God Create Anything? Why did God make you? This free online book helps answers some of the biggest questions that human have, including the biblical meaning of life. Here is a link to three related sermons: Mysteries of God’s Plan, Mysteries of Truth, Sin, Rest, Suffering, and God’s Plan, and The Mystery of YOU.
Beliefs of the Original Catholic Church: Could a remnant group have continuing apostolic succession? Did the original “catholic church” have doctrines held by the Continuing Church of God? Did Church of God leaders uses the term “catholic church” to ever describe the church they were part of? Here are links to related sermons: Original Catholic Church of God?, Original Catholic Doctrine: Creed, Liturgy, Baptism, Passover, What Type of Catholic was Polycarp of Smyrna?, Tradition, Holy Days, Salvation, Dress, & Celibacy, Early Heresies and Heretics, Doctrines: 3 Days, Abortion, Ecumenism, Meats, Tithes, Crosses, Destiny, and more, Saturday or Sunday?, The Godhead, Apostolic Laying on of Hands Succession, Church in the Wilderness Apostolic Succession List, Holy Mother Church and Heresies, and Lying Wonders and Original Beliefs. Here is a link to that book in the Spanish language: Creencias de la iglesia Católica original.
Why Were You Born? Why did God make you? Herbert W. Armstrong wrote this as a booklet on this important subject. You may also wish to read the article What is Your Destiny? or watch the video, also titled What is Your Destiny?
What is Your Destiny? Deification? Did the Early Church Teach That Christians Would Become God? What is your ultimate destiny? What does the Bible teach? Is deification only a weird or cultic idea? Are you to rule the universe? Here is a link to the video sermon What is Your Destiny?
Christians are to Rule Are Christians really to rule? If so, how will that turn out? A related sermon is titled A sermon of related interest is titled Are Christians really supposed to rule?
Building Character: Going on to Perfection Once you have accepted Jesus, do you need to strive for perfection and build character? A related video sermon is available: Going on to perfection and building character.
What is the Meaning of Life? Who does God say is happy? What is your ultimate destiny? Do you really know? Does God actually have a plan for YOU personally? If you would like to watch videos covering subjects of this article, you can click on the following links: Why YOU? Why Do YOU Suffer? and What is the meaning of your life?
Biblical Keys to Happiness This is an article for those interested in biblical teachings about being happy. A related sermon is available and is titled: 14 Biblical Keys to Happiness.
COGwriter Position on Other Churches and Religions What is the fate of those who do not know Christ? What about those who profess Christ outside the Church of God?
Universal OFFER of Salvation, Apokatastasis: Can God save the lost in an age to come? Hundreds of scriptures reveal God’s plan of salvation Will all get a fair chance at salvation? This free book is packed with scriptures showing that God does intend to offer salvation to all who ever lived–the elect in this age, and the rest in the age to come. Here is a link to a related sermon series: Universal Offer of Salvation 1: Apocatastasis, Universal Offer of Salvation 2: Jesus Desires All to be Saved, Mysteries of the Great White Throne Judgment (Universal Offer of Salvation part 3), Is God Fair, Will God Pardon the Ignorant?, Can God Save Your Relatives?, Babies, Limbo, Purgatory and God’s Plan, and ‘By the Mouth of All His Holy Prophets’.
Hope of Salvation: How the Continuing Church of God Differs from Protestantism The CCOG is NOT Protestant. This free online book explains how the real Church of God differs from mainstream/traditional Protestants. Several sermons related to the free book are also available: Protestant, Baptist, and CCOG History; The First Protestant, God’s Command, Grace, & Character; The New Testament, Martin Luther, and the Canon; Eucharist, Passover, and Easter; Views of Jews, Lost Tribes, Warfare, & Baptism; Scripture vs. Tradition, Sabbath vs. Sunday; Church Services, Sunday, Heaven, and God’s Plan; Seventh Day Baptists/Adventists/Messianics: Protestant or COG?; Millennial Kingdom of God and God’s Plan of Salvation; Crosses, Trees, Tithes, and Unclean Meats; The Godhead and the Trinity; Fleeing or Rapture?; and Ecumenism, Rome, and CCOG Differences.
Is God Calling You? This booklet discusses topics including calling, election, and selection. If God is calling you, how will you respond? Here is are links to related sermons: Christian Election: Is God Calling YOU? and Predestination and Your Selection. A short animation is also available: Is God Calling You?
Christian Repentance Do you know what repentance is? Is it really necessary for salvation? A related sermon is also available titled: Real Christian Repentance.
Christians: Ambassadors for the Kingdom of God, Biblical instructions on living as a Christian This is a scripture-filled booklet for those wishing to live as a real Christian. A related sermon is also available: Christians are Ambassadors for the Kingdom of God.

COGwriter

The notice the following:

September 19, 2023

The blood of the martyr St. Januarius again liquefied in Naples on Tuesday.

“We have just taken from the safe the reliquary with the blood of our patron saint, which immediately completely liquefied,” the abbot of the chapel of the treasury of the Naples Cathedral announced on Sept. 19.

The declaration that the miracle had again taken place was made at the start of Mass by Abbot Vincenzo De Gregorio. https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/255410/blood-of-st-januarius-completely-liquefied-on-feast-day

September 19, 2023

Januarius is ever preaching the Gospel to every creature; for his miraculous blood perpetuates the testimony he bore to Christ. Let those who say they cannot believe unless they see, go to Naples; there they will behold the martyr’s blood, when placed near his head which was cut off seventeen hundred years ago, to liquefy and boil as at the moment it escaped from his sacred veins. …

During the persecution of the Christians under Diocletian and Maximian, Januarius, bishop of Beneventum, was brought before Timothy, president of Campania, at Nola … he ordered the holy bishop and his companions to be beheaded. https://www.lifesitenews.com/blogs/st-januarius-liquefying-blood-is-an-enduring-legacy-of-his-matryrdom-for-jesus/?utm_source=most_recent&utm_campaign=canada

No, changes in blood are not proclamation of the gospel. That was not the type of sign that would accompany true Christian leaders. This not a miracle from God. Yet, it is because of such signs and lying wonders that many have accepted the authority of the Church of Rome to change many doctrines.

Let me add that the Lifesite News article also showed a c. 1610 painting supposedly of Januarius by Louis Finson. The painting has Januarius wearing a Dagan/Mithra style hat (Cooper JD. Mithras: Mysteries and initiation rediscovered. Samuel Weiser, Inc., 1996) like modern Roman Catholic bishops do. However, they did not start to that until after Emperor Constantine. Januarius, himself, would not have worn such a hat.

Distinctive clothing for the ministry was not employed by early Christians—they dressed the same as their congregants. Original catholic clergy did not have special sacerdotal vestments. It was after influence of Emperor Constantine, the Greco-Roman clergy adopted versions of many of the clothing styles that sun-god priests and other members of his court had worn (including versions of the Phrygian cap). It is known that special clerical clothing came from pagans and was adopted because of Emperor Constantine (e.g. Newman, pp. 358-360; De Rosa, Peter. Vicars of Christ. Poolberg Press, Dublin, 2000, pp. 34,45).

As far as signs and lying wonders go, false ones appeared during the Book of Acts (8:9, 16:16-18). There are also reports that suggest that even after meeting the apostles, Simon Magus had various signs.

Let me add that some now considered to be early supporters of the Roman Catholic Church condemned him and his followers for as using religious statues, revering a woman, the doctrine of the immortal soul, incantations, mysteries, mystic priests, claiming divine titles for leaders, accepting money for religious favors, preferring allegory and tradition over many aspects of scripture, having a leader who wanted to be thought of as God/Christ on earth, and divorcing themselves from Christian biblical practices considered to be Jewish (details are in the article: Simon Magus, What Did He Teach?). Yet, many today have been affected by his teachings.

And it was not just Simon Magus who was associated with signs and lying wonders that affected the beliefs of those I commonly refer to as Greco-Roman Catholics.

Another is the third century bishop known as Gregory Thaumaturgus, whom they also call saint Gregory of Neocaesarea.

Although I had heard of him about two decades ago, until I was doing research related to Fatima, I had not realized how much he affected the history (and doctrine) of the Greco-Roman-Protestant churches, as well as to a degree, the Church of God. Yet, many have never heard of him.

Around 238-244 A.D. Gregory (died roughly 270 A.D.) seems to have been the first to have claimed to have seen an apparition of Mary. This apparition allegedly appeared to him before he became a bishop. Gregory is also known as “Gregory the Wonder Worker” and Saint Gregory Thaumaturgus (wonder worker). He had been trained by allegorical teacher Origen in Alexandria.

Related to Gregory, Roberts and Donaldson reported:

He was believed to have been gifted with a power of working miracles, which he was constantly exercising…the demons were subject to him…he could cast his cloak over a man, and cause his death…he could bring the presiding demons back to their shrine.

Because Gregory’s power over demons and other “wonders” were apparently accepted by many, he had influence. It seems that Gregory’s enchantments and/or sorceries (cf. Isaiah 47:5-12; Nahum 3:4), along with Imperial persecutions, may have greatly assisted the Greco-Roman faction in essentially eliminating the organized faithful in Asia Minor. Gregory was also a factor in the Marian cults that began to rise up around that time. His writings teach praise and excessive devotion to the “Holy Virgin,” including the blasphemous teaching that Mary “blotted out” Eve’s “transgressions.” He was amongst the earliest ones to promote the expression the “Holy Trinity” and the pagan idea that humans had an immortal soul.

Here the mystery of the Holy Trinity was revealed by the archangel to the Holy Virgin according to the gospel (Gregory Thaumaturgus, Homily concerning the Holy Mother of God, Section 35. Translated from the Armenian by F. C. CONYBEARE The Expositor 5th series vol.3 (1896), p. 173. http://www.tertullian.org/fathers/gregory_thaumaturgus_homily.htm viewed 11/13/12).

We prove, then, that the soul is simple…that what is simple is immortal…If, therefore, the soul is not corrupted by the evil proper to itself, and the evil of the soul is cowardice, intemperance, envy, and the like, and all these things do not despoil it of its powers of life and action, it follows that it is immortal. (Gregory Thaumaturgus. On the Soul, Chapters 5, 6. Translated by S.D.F. Salmond. From Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 6. Edited by Alexander Roberts, James Donaldson, and A. Cleveland Coxe. Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1886. Revised and edited for New Advent by Kevin Knight. <http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0608.htm> viewed 06/05/11)

The gospel never uses the expression trinity, much less “Holy Trinity” nor does it teach that the soul is immortal (to the contrary, in Ezekiel 18:4 the Roman Catholic Douay-Rheims Bible teaches ” the soul that sinneth, the same shall die” and “The soul that sinneth, the same shall die” in Ezekiel 18:20), but Gregory put his own interpretation on scripture (in the trinity case, he was referring to Luke 1:35, which does not prove that doctrine; and for the immortality of the soul he did not cite scripture). Gregory was a major reason that the trinity started to be accepted much outside of Montanist circles (Origen, too, was a factor). Protestants, of course, accepted the trinity, yet few realize that Gregory’s ‘Marian visions’ played a role in this.

The Catholic Encyclopedia claims Gregory the Wonder Worker developed the first creed with the word meaning “Trinity”:

The first creed in which it appears is that of Origen’s pupil, Gregory Thaumaturgus. In his Ekthesis tes pisteos composed between 260 and 270, he writes:

There is therefore nothing created, nothing subject to another in the Trinity: nor is there anything that has been added as though it once had not existed, but had entered afterwards: therefore the Father has never been without the Son, nor the Son without the Spirit: and this same Trinity is immutable and unalterable forever (P.G., X, 986).

It is manifest that a dogma so mysterious presupposes a Divine revelation.

The last statement should give many pause as it was allegedly from seeing one or more apparitions of Mary (and supposedly the Apostle John) that Gregory the Wonder Worker gained his “revelations.” Gregory was a supporter of Rome and Alexandria was a major factor in spreading more acceptance of the trinitarian position, especially throughout Asia Minor and Antioch.

Because of his “miraculous abilities,” his ideas apparently had more acceptance than what the Bible taught, and many were adopted. Notice something else he wrote:

O holy virgin … She is the ever-blooming paradise of incorruptibility, wherein is planted the tree that giveth life, and that furnisheth to all the fruits of immortality…Thus the holy Virgin, while still in the flesh, maintained the incorruptible life…the holy Virgin has surpassed even the perfection of the patriarchs (Gregory Thaumaturgus. The Second Homily on the Annunciation to the Holy Virgin Mary. http://www.tertullian.org/fathers2/ANF-06/anf06-24.htm#TopOfPage viewed 11/13/12)

The Bible does not teach that Mary led an “incorruptible life.” The Bible teaches that all have sinned (Romans 3:23), except Jesus (Hebrews 4:14-15). Stating or implying that Mary did not is in biblical error. Perhaps it should be added that Dr. Ludwig Ott’s 20th century book Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma teaches:

The doctrine of the Immaculate Conception of Mary is not explicitly revealed in scripture… Neither the Greek nor the Latin Fathers explicitly (explicite) teach the Immaculate Conception of Mary. (Ott L. L. Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma, 4th ed . TAN Books, Rockford (IL), Nihil Obstat: Jeremiah J. O’ Sullivan. Imprimatur: + Cornelius, 7 October 1954., Printed 1974, TAN Books, pp. 200-201)

But it was more than Marian ideas that Gregory Thaumaturgus influenced.

Bishop “Gregory the Wonder Worker” was involved in the councils looking into Paul of Samosata who at the time was considered the Greco-Roman Bishop of Antioch (Roberts A, Donaldson J, Volume 20, p. 3).

Gregory assisted in getting Greco-Roman influence to succeed there. The Prophet Isaiah warned that the “Lady of the Kingdoms” used sorceries since her “youth” (Isaiah 47:5,12), and Gregory’s use of “powers” in the formative years of the Greco-Roman confederation seems consistent with that biblical prophecy (he also had influence in various parts of Asia Minor. Gregory Thaumaturgus. Canonical Epistles IV,VII. Ante-Nicene Fathers; also Drijvers JW, Watt JW. Portraits of spiritual authority: religious power in early Christianity, Byzantium, and the Christian Orient, Volume 137 of Religions in the Graeco-Roman world. BRILL, 1999, pp. 107-108).

Actually, in Antioch with the successor to Paul of Samosata, we seem to see for the first time, a bishop outside of Italy that was apparently installed because of direction from the Church in Rome, and the mystic Gregory Thaumaturgus was involved in this. This, to a degree, marked a major expansion of influence of the Church of Rome outside of Italy (it also had some previous influence in Corinth).

The Catholic Encyclopedia credits his influence in expanding their church (which it calls “the Christian Church” below):

Among those who built up the Christian Church, extended its influence, and strengthened its institutions,…Gregory of Neocaesarea holds a very prominent place…To attract the people to the festivals in honour of the martyrs, we learn that Gregory organized profane amusements as an attraction for the pagans who could not understand a solemnity without some pleasures of a less serious nature than the religious ceremony.

Sadly, it is partially because of Gregory that “Christianity” took on more of the trappings of pagan worship and the Marian cults had been allowed to grow and flourish.

Gregory greatly influenced theological thought and several widely accepted false doctrines were originated and/or promoted by him. The fact that he reportedly caused the death of enemies by throwing his cloak upon them has not sufficiently diminished his influence–but should have.

The Continuing Church of God put out this sermonette on its ContinuingCOG channel related to him:

20:46

Gregory Thaumaturgus, Signs, and Lying Wonders

Very few people realize how a demonically- influenced leader man from Neocaesarea impacted doctrines in the Greco-Roman church. Gregory the Wonder Worker claimed to receive messages from an apparition he believed was Jesus’ mother Mary. He pushed the trinity, an antichrist creed, and the immortal soul teaching. Gregory also is celebrated as a saint by the Roman Catholics for pushing profane entertainment and festivals to attract pagans. He allegedly had the power to cause death by tossing his cloak on someone. The Apostle Paul warned of signs and lying wonders–and said that started in his day–which it did with Simon the sorcerer (Acts 8) also known as Simon Magus. Gregory Thaumaturgus had demonic signs and wonders and said he learned them from apparitions. The prophet Isaiah warned about the virgin daughter of Babylon who used sorceries–this is the same mystery Babylon of Revelation 17 that comes to her end in Revelation 18. In this video, Dr. Thiel gives some background about Gregory and warns about those who walk by sight and not faith.

Here is a link to the sermonette: Gregory Thaumaturgus, Signs, and Lying Wonders.

Most of the professing Christian world accepts one or more beliefs promoted by Gregory Thaumaturgus.

Here are some quotes from my book Fatima Shock! What the Vatican Does Not Want You to Know About Fatima, Dogmas of Mary, and Future Apparitions related to signs and lying wonders:

Satan  has  a  plan.  The  Beast  (Revelation  16:13-14), False prophet (Revelation 13:11-17; 16:13-14), and others (Matthew 24:24) are involved with signs and lying wonders (2 Thessalonians 2:7-12), while apparitions claiming to be a Lady (cf. Isaiah 47:5,9,12; Revelation 18:7,23) are likely to contribute to this in the end-times.

Some believe that “Mary” will have power during the time of the Great Monarch (and assist him), and this will lead to many conversions:

Gerald Culleton (20th century): During the reign of the Great Monarch and the Angelic Pastor the Catholic Church will spread throughout the world, conversions will be innumerable…The Blessed Virgin will be the chief one in gaining victory over all heresy…665

Blessed Hieronymus Agathaghelos (1279): The Angel, Mary and John, along with the great and first among martyrs…will intercede.666

Anna-Katrina Emmerick (July 12, 1820): When the Mass had ended, Mary came up to Henry (the Emperor), and she extended her right hand towards him, saying that it was in recognition of his purity. Then, she urged him not to falter…667

Catholic writer Yves Dupont (20th century): Henry is the Great Monarch…The Blessed Virgin urges him not to falter.668

Saint Louis de Montfort (18th century): These great souls…shall be singularly devouted to our Blessed Lady, illuminated by her nourishment, led by her spirit, supported by her arm, and sheltered under her protection, so that they shall fight in one hand and build with the other.  With the one hand they shall fight, overthrow and crush the heretics with their heresies, the schismatics with their schisms…669

The Ecstatic of Tours: …the French people will… implore the Sacred Heart of Jesus and Mary Immaculate…The French people will ask for the good King…this King…will ascend to the throne; he will free the church and reassert the Pope’s rights…670

Sister Marie Lataste (died 1847): Peace shall return to the world because of Blessed Virgin Mary will breathe over the storms and quell them.671

Pope Pius IX (died 1878): We expect that the Immaculate Virgin…will gain in influence from day to day among all nations and in all places, prosper and rule from ocean to ocean…to the ends of the earth…there will be one fold and one shepherd.672

Thus, there seems to be an end-time tie between the rise of the European Great Monarch, an ecumenical religion, and apparitions claiming to be Mary. …

The Bible clearly warns of a soon coming time when massive deception will affect the entire world.   Notice several such warnings in the New Testament:

24 for false Christs and false prophets will arise and provide great signs and portents, enough to deceive even the elect, if that were possible. (Matthew 24:24, NJB)

3 Let no man deceive you by any means, for unless there come a revolt first, and the man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition…9 Whose coming is according to the working of Satan, in all power, and signs and lying wonders 10 and every wicked deception aimed at those who are on the way to destruction because they would not accept the love of the truth and so be saved. 11 And therefore God sends on them a power that deludes people so that they believe what is false, (2 Thessalonians 2:3, 9, DRB, 10-11, NJB)

3 …the whole world had marveled and followed the beast.  4 They prostrated themselves in front of the dragon because he had given the beast his authority; and they prostrated themselves in front of the beast, saying, ‘Who can compare with the beast? Who can fight against it?’… 8 and all people of the world will worship it, that is, everybody whose name has not been written down since the foundation of the world in the sacrificial Lamb’s book of life.  (Revelation 13:3-4, 8 NJB)

4 So they worshiped the dragon who gave authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast? Who is able to make war with him?”… 8 All who dwell on the earth will worship him. (Revelation 13:4,8a NKJV)

Thus, Jesus and the Apostles warned that massive deception was coming (and the word that Saint Paul used for delusion was feminine in the Greek744).  Deception that will result in the world worshiping what the Bible calls the beast power.  It appears likely that apparitions which are claimed and/or presumed to be Mary will be a major factor in those deceptions (other signs and lying wonders are biblically-expected; also Byzantine prophecy teaches that signs as well as an “invisible herald from Heaven” will announce the Great Monarch from heaven.) 745    Almost everyone will be deceived and Fatima may be part of the reason!

Just because you may see apparitions and other apparently miraculous signs with your own eyes does not mean that they are from God (Revelation 13:13-15). Search the scriptures to see who/what is and is not true from God (cf. Acts 17:11). …

It has been reported that there are weeping and bleeding statues of the Lady of Fatima. Many people, including some of the Catholic clergy,780  have indicated that these types of occurrences are proof that the apparitions are Mary sent by God to the earth.

Now here is another shock–since I have no reason to doubt all the reports of weeping and/or bleeding Fatima statues, and since none of the statues that reportedly have wept look like the apparition that was originally described as appearing to the three children in Fatima in 1917, there is no way that the weeping and/or bleeding is proof that they are from God.  That would be confusion.  According to the Holy Bible, “God is not the author of confusion” (1 Corinthians 14:33, NKJV) or “God is a God not of disorder (NJB)”, but the devil “is a liar, and the father thereof” (John 8:44, DRB).

Therefore, weeping and/or bleeding statues are further proof that the apparition seen at Fatima was not Mary sent by the God of the Bible, but instead suggest a demonic origin:

“Let them be all confounded that adore graven things” (Psalm 96:7, DRB; Psalm 97:7 is where the equivalent reference is in NJB/NKJV).

This includes statues and images that are supposed to be of Mary.

Also notice the following related to the two-horned beast in Revelation 13 as well as the “lying wonders”:

Priest E. Sylvester Berry (published 1920): The beast rising out of the earth in the false prophet…The two horns denote a twofold authority – spiritual and temporal. As indicated by the resemblance to a lamb, the prophet will probably set himself up in Rome as a sort of anti-pope…Antichrist will establish himself in Jerusalem…with his ‘lying wonders’… (Berry ES.  The Apocalypse of St. John, 1920.  Quoted in Culleton RG. The Reign of Antichrist.  Reprint 1974, TAN Books, Rockford (IL), pp. 199-200)

The idea that there will be lying wonders involving an antipope is clearly in the Greco-Roman Catholic literature. And as that is consistent with sacred scripture, it appears that it is highly possible that an ecumenical, compromising antipope who performs great signs (Revelation 13:11-14) and is involved with lying wonders (2 Thessalonians 2:9) will be the clinching factor for the coming ecumenical unity that the Bible, Church of God writers, and other theological writers have long warned about.

Notice that the Bible clearly points to persuasive signs and lying wonders in the future:

9 The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, 10 and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. 11 And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, 12 that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness. (2 Thessalonians 2:9-12)

Nearly everyone alive at the time will be deceived.

Sadly, signs and lying wonders have worked throughout the church age to deceive and get people to accept doctrinal changes.

And, as we can see from scripture, more will happen in the future.

The Continuing Church of God is pleased to announce the following sermon from its ContinuingCOG channel:

Here is a link to the sermon: Lying Wonders and Original Beliefs.

People have been deceived throughout the ages by signs and lying wonders.

Such “miracles” have been a factor in people departing from the true faith.

Bible prophecy says that more will be.

So, no, Lifesite News, liquefying blood is NOT “preaching the Gospel.”

More of the true gospel can be found in our free  online booklet: The Gospel of the Kingdom of God. Which is available in hundreds of languages at www.ccog.org

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Beliefs of the Original Catholic Church: Could a remnant group have continuing apostolic succession? Did the original “catholic church” have doctrines held by the Continuing Church of God? Did Church of God leaders uses the term “catholic church” to ever describe the church they were part of? Here are links to related sermons: Original Catholic Church of God?, Original Catholic Doctrine: Creed, Liturgy, Baptism, Passover, What Type of Catholic was Polycarp of Smyrna?, Tradition, Holy Days, Salvation, Dress, & Celibacy, Early Heresies and Heretics, Doctrines: 3 Days, Abortion, Ecumenism, Meats, Tithes, Crosses, Destiny, and more, Saturday or Sunday?, The Godhead, Apostolic Laying on of Hands Succession, Church in the Wilderness Apostolic Succession List, Holy Mother Church and Heresies, and Lying Wonders and Original Beliefs. Here is a link to that book in the Spanish language: Creencias de la iglesia Católica original.
Simon Magus, What Did He Teach? Sometimes called “the father early heretics” or the “father of heresies”, do you know what early writers claimed that Simon Magus taught? Sadly, most who profess Christ still hold to versions of his teachings. Here is a link to a related sermon: Simon Magus and ‘Christianity’?
Gregory the Wonder Worker Also known as Gregory Thaumaturgus, this third century Eastern Orthodox leader was one of the most dangerous heretics and his views have been adopted by many who profess Christ. Here is a link to ta related video: Gregory Thaumaturgus, Signs, and Lying Wonders.
Mary, the Mother of Jesus and the Apparitions Do you know much about Mary? Are the apparitions real? What happened at Fatima? What might they mean for the rise of the ecumenical religion of Antichrist? Are Protestants moving towards Mary? How do the Eastern/Greek Orthodox view Mary? How might Mary view her adorers? Here is a link to a YouTube video Marian Apparitions May Fulfill Prophecy. Here is a link to a sermon video: Why Learn About Fatima?
Satan’s Plan Does Satan have a plan? What is it? Has it already been successful? Will it be successful in the future? Here are links to a two-part sermon series: What are Some of the Parts of Satan’s Plan? and Satan’s Plan is More Dramatic than Many Realize.
The Gospel of the Kingdom of God This free online pdf booklet has answers many questions people have about the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and explains why it is the solution to the issues the world is facing. It is available in hundreds of languages at ccog.org. Here are links to four kingdom-related sermons:  The Fantastic Gospel of the Kingdom of God!, The World’s False Gospel, The Gospel of the Kingdom: From the New and Old Testaments, and The Kingdom of God is the Solution.
Fatima Shock! What the Vatican Does Not Want You to Know About Fatima, Dogmas of Mary, and Future Apparitions. Whether or not you believe anything happened at Fatima, if you live long enough, you will be affected by its ramifications (cf. Isaiah 47; Revelation 17). Fatima Shock! provides concerned Christians with enough Roman Catholic-documented facts to effectively counter every false Marian argument. In addition to the print version, there is a Kindle version of Fatima Shock! which you can acquire in seconds.

🚀 Registration to attend OpenAI DevDay in-person is now live! Apply here: https://t.co/hzM7dCUlgJ pic.twitter.com/D0BADNhWfI

— OpenAI (@OpenAI) September 18, 2023

COGwriter

We continue to see more and more interest in the development of software including what is called Artificial Intelligence (AI). The tweet above shows that OpenAI, the group behind ChatGPT (which now includes Microsoft) is looking to hire more to assist it. Yet, there are real dangers with AI.

Interestingly, even the hypocritical USA government has AI warnings. Voice of America posted the following:

FBI Director Christopher Wray issued the warning Monday, telling a cybersecurity conference in Washington that artificial intelligence, or AI, “is ripe for potential abuses.”

“Criminals and hostile foreign governments are already exploiting that technology,” Wray said, without sharing specifics.

“While generative AI can certainly save law-abiding citizens time by automating tasks, it can also make it easier for bad guys to do things like generate deepfakes and malicious code and can provide a tool for threat actors to develop increasingly powerful, sophisticated, customizable and scalable capabilities,” he said.

Wray said the FBI is working to identify and track those using AI to harm U.S. citizens but added that the bureau is being cautious about employing AI itself.

“To stay ahead of the threat at the FBI, we’re determining how we can ethically and legally leverage AI to do our jobs,” he said.

When contacted by VOA, the FBI declined to elaborate on its concerns about employing AI. Nor did the bureau say when or if it has used AI, even on a limited basis.

Other U.S. national security agencies, however, are currently making use of AI. 09/18/23 https://www.voanews.com/a/fbi-echoes-warning-on-danger-of-artificial-intelligence-/7273751.html

Yes, there are concerns, and deep fakes are one of them. Related to that, we put out the following video:

13:27

Lies and Deepfakes

Jesus taught that God’s prophets would be reviled and spoken evil of. He also warned that the devil was a liar that worked to take the word of God away from those who heard it. The Apostle Paul warned that “evil men and seducers would wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived” (2 Timothy 3:13, KJV). He also warned that letters purported from him with false messages were an issue. COG leader Serapion of Antioch denounced a gospel falsely attributed to the Apostle Peter as pseudepigrapha. With the internet, lies can spread faster than before. With technology, like artificial intelligence, can we expect to see deepfakes that will make it look like Christian leaders say or do things that they did not? Do you, “prove all things” so you will not fall for the coming increased deceit? Will YOU hold fast to that which is good or be one who ‘loves and practices a lie’? Dr. Thiel refers to aspects of modern technology and various scriptures to warn Christians to not be misled by what is coming.

Here is a link to the video: Lies and Deepfakes. I believe that the Beast and final Antichrist will use AI and deepfakes.

Before going further, let me add that part of the hypocrisy related to AI is that the government of the USA is trying to use AI to censor information that it does not want people to see, particularly on the internet. Yet it also chastises China and others for doing what it is basically doing.

That said, the Messianic-Protestant leaning Harbinger Daily had some right and wrong warnings about Big Tech and Bible prophecy. Here is some of what it posted:

Big Tech Beast System?: Technology Tycoons Are More Than Capable Of Influencing Society On A Worldwide Scale …

Technology is advancing at a staggering pace. But it merely parallels advances in other arenas the coming Antichrist will leverage to fulfill his evil plans to enslave humanity during the Tribulation.

The coming Beast system will require political, economic, social, governmental, religious, and technological advances that will enable the Antichrist to accomplish all of his desires. …

It’s not rocket science to recognize that technology tycoons, with staggering amounts of money, are capable of influencing society on a worldwide scale. This influence can include shaping the political landscape through outright bribes or the political lobby system. This massive level of impact doesn’t require them to be in actual power or governmental positions. Instead, they wield their influence through proxies who purchase access to greedy politicians seeking to magnify their power.

Technological Oligarchs (Technocrats)

These technocrats partner with governments, NGOs, and financial institutions. One organization with extensive official and unofficial agreements with technocrats is the World Economic Forum (WEF).

The WEF is dedicated to seeing a complete “reset” of the way life on Planet Earth functions. They are brazenly presenting their vision and pursuing technology to accomplish their goals by the year 2030 (known as Agenda 2030 and the Great Reset).

In his book, The Fourth Industrial Revolution, Klaus Schwab highlighted 21 different up-and-coming technologies that he claimed will “break into the public domain to a significant degree,” and cause great shifts “to individuals, organizations, government and society.” The following is Klaus’ list of game-changing technologies:

In addition, some ancillary technologies include: nanotechnology, quantum computing, biotechnology, the Internet of Things, decentralized consensus, fifth-generation (5G) wireless technologies, and satellite Internet technology for worldwide distribution.

It is mind-boggling to think of the influence these technologies will have on world society — and how they will serve the purpose of the Antichrist: 09/18/23 https://harbingersdaily.com/big-tech-beast-system-technology-tycoons-are-more-than-capable-of-influencing-society-on-a-worldwide-scale/

Harbinger Daily is correct that Big Tech, the World Economic Forum (WEF) and others are pushing things that will be supportive of the Beast and the final Antichrist (who are two different individuals– Harbinger Daily gets that wrong). We are seeing a convergence of groups pushing an agenda that the Bible has warnings about. Related to that, we put out the following video:

14:31

Globalism Conspiracy or Convergence?

In May of 2022, the World Economic Forum held a conference where thousands of the world’s elites attended, essentially in support of a ‘great reset’ to change society. In June 2022, the Bilderberg Group met essentially to do the same thing. In June 2022, Pope Francis told a group invited by Cardinal Kurt Koch, “Unity does not come about by standing still.” Whereas the Roman Catholic group, whose co-president in Marc Stengel, called for more cooperation with the United Nations and apparently supporters of Gandhi. The World Council of Churches also supports the globalist agenda as do the Freemasons and others. Could Satan be the real conspirator behind this? Will humanity be able to bring about utopia? Or can true Christian unity and utopia only come about with the return of Jesus and the Kingdom of God? Will the globalist agenda succeed for a time? Dr. Thiel addresses these and other issues.

Here is a link to that video: Globalism Conspiracy or Convergence?

Notice the following prophecies that Jesus had the Apostle John pen:

15 He was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed. 16 He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, 17 and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.

18 Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man: His number is 666. (Revelation 13:15-18)

Getting the image of the Beast to talk will involve AI, other software, and/or demons. Consider that the totalitarian ability to control buying and selling to the degree listed in Revelation was not possible when Jesus had the Apostle John pen the Book of the Apocalypse over 1900 years ago.

But, it is now possible with computers, AI, and Big Tech.

The Day of Atonement lasts from sunset September 24th until sunset September 25th in 2023. (A version of this article is also available in Spanish: http://www.cdlidd.es/el-macho-cabrio-degollado-representa-a-jesus/).

A unique ceremony related to the Day of Atonement is discussed in the Old Testament:

5 And from the assembly of the sons of Israel he shall take two he goats of the goats for sin, and one ram for a burnt-offering. (Leviticus 16:5, Smith’s Literal Translation; Note that this verse does not state that the goats are both for sin offerings. We see in verse 15 only one of the goat’s is described as “the sin offering.”)

8 And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for Jehovah, and the other lot for Azazel. 9 And Aaron shall present the goat upon which the lot fell for Jehovah, and offer him for a sin-offering. 10 But the goat, on which the lot fell for Azazel, shall be set alive before Jehovah, to make atonement for him, to send him away for Azazel into the wilderness. (Leviticus 16:8-10, ASV)

8 ‘And Aaron hath given lots over the two goats, one lot for Jehovah, and one lot for a goat of departure; 9 and Aaron hath brought near the goat on which the lot for Jehovah hath gone up, and hath made it a sin-offering. 10 ‘And the goat on which the lot for a goat of departure hath gone up is caused to stand living before Jehovah to make atonement by it, to send it away for a goat of departure into the wilderness. (Leviticus 16:8-10, YLT)

Christians note the parallels between the first of the two goats with Jesus being the sin offering in verse 9 and the second of the two goats tied in with Satan (the Azazel goat).

Now the goat representing Jesus does get killed, but the goat representing Satan does not (which parallels him being placed in the bottomless pit for 1000 years in Revelation 20).

While Jewish authorities and the old Worldwide Church of God published that the Azazel goat of Leviticus 16 had to do with Satan/demons (see The Day of Atonement–Its Christian Significance), CGG: Church of the Great God claims that goat is actually Jesus, not Satan. Several hours ago, CGG sent out the following:

The two goats of the unique Day of Atonement ceremony are first mentioned in Leviticus 16:5, which contains an often-overlooked detail: “And he shall take from the congregation of the children of Israel two kids of the goats as a sin offering, and one ram as a burnt offering” (emphasis ours throughout unless otherwise noted).

The “two kids of the goats” together are a single sin offering .. .A reason the animals had to be of the highest quality is that they were offered to God, who deserves only the best. A second reason is that every sacrificial animal prefigured the Savior, who was entirely without blemish or defect.

In the symbolism of a substitutionary sacrifice, an innocent participant is chosen to bear the sins of the guilty. However, this utterly fails to apply to Satan, for his millennia of sin make it impossible for him to be pictured as unblemished or innocent. (The Berean. Sent: Monday, September 18, 2023 at 08:17:12 AM EDT Subject: Leviticus 16:5 (Daily Verse and Comment)

CGG misunderstands Leviticus 16. Notice the following:

5 And from the assembly of the sons of Israel he shall take two he goats of the goats for sin, and one ram for a burnt-offering. (Leviticus 16:5, Smith’s Literal Translation; Note that it does not state that the goats are both for sin offerings. We see in verse 15 only one of the goat’s is described as “the sin offering.”)

8 And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for Jehovah, and the other lot for Azazel. 9 And Aaron shall present the goat upon which the lot fell for Jehovah, and offer him for a sin-offering. 10 But the goat, on which the lot fell for Azazel, shall be set alive before Jehovah, to make atonement for him, to send him away for Azazel into the wilderness. (Leviticus 16:8-10, ASV)

8 ‘And Aaron hath given lots over the two goats, one lot for Jehovah, and one lot for a goat of departure; 9 and Aaron hath brought near the goat on which the lot for Jehovah hath gone up, and hath made it a sin-offering. 10 ‘And the goat on which the lot for a goat of departure hath gone up is caused to stand living before Jehovah to make atonement by it, to send it away for a goat of departure into the wilderness. (Leviticus 16:8-10, YLT)

15 “Then he shall kill the goat of the sin offering, which is for the people, bring its blood inside the veil, do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bull, and sprinkle it on the mercy seat and before the mercy seat. (Leviticus 16:15, NKJV)

Notice that one of the goats is for “Jehovah” and the other for one was for Azazel. Jesus was often the “Yahveh/Jehovah” in the Hebrew scriptures. Note also that the second goat is NOT later called a sin offering–only the goat to be killed was later identified that way–but when initially chosen, it was unclear which goat would be the sin offering before the lots were cast.

Christians note the parallels between the first of the two goats with Jesus being the sin offering in verse 9 and the second of the two goats with Satan (the Azazel goat).

As far as CGG’s point about sacrificial animals go, consider that the goat that was released to the wilderness was not sacrificed, which invalidates the position that all sacrificial animals had to be without physical blemish.

Could Satan or his ministers outwardly appear to be without blemish?

Yes, as the Apostle Paul wrote:

14 … For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. 15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works. (2 Corinthians 11:14-15)

That is part of why lots were cast to determine the goat for the sin offering and the other for Azazel.

As far as ‘Azazel,’ notice the following:

R. Menachem interprets Azazel of Samael, the angel of death, the devil, the prince that hath power over desolate places: there are several Christian writers of great note, that understand this of the devil as Origen (b), among the ancients; and of the moderns, Cocceius (c), Witsius (d), and Spencer (e), who think that by these two goats is signified the twofold respect of Christ our Mediator; one to God, as a Judge, to whom he made satisfaction by his death; the other to the devil, the enemy with whom he conflicted in life; who, according to prophecy, was to be delivered up to Satan, and have his heel bruised by him; and who was to come, and did come into the wilderness of this world…(Gill, John. Exposition of the Entire Bible. [1746-63])

So, basically a Jewish rabbi (“R.” is an abbreviation for Rabbi) and certain leaders who professed Christ believed that the Azazel goat represented Satan. And that is consistent with the passages in Leviticus 16 and other scriptures.

Notice more about part of an Old Testament ceremony that occurred on the Day of Atonement:

And when he has made an end of atoning for the Holy Place, the tabernacle of meeting, and the altar, he shall bring the live goat. Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat, confess over it all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions, concerning all their sins, putting them on the head of the goat, and shall send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a suitable man. The goat shall bear on itself all their iniquities to an uninhabited land; and he shall release the goat in the wilderness…And he who released the goat as the scapegoat shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward he may come into the camp (Leviticus 16:20-22,26).

Notice that the atonement is over after the first goat is sacrificed. The atonement is not part of the symbolism of the second goat. While some Protestant commentators understand this correctly, others either do not know what the Azazel goat represents or think it represents the physical life of Christ. Yet, that latter explanation would not seem to be consistent with the statements in Leviticus 16:26 (bolded above).

Why?

Because notice that it is a fit man that takes the goat into the wilderness and he has to wash himself after he has released the aza’zel goat. If the second goat represented Christ, the fit man would have to wash BEFORE touching the goat (cf. Leviticus 16:4) and not AFTER releasing it. Touching the one representing Satan would make one unclean, not touching the one representing Christ. Washing in Leviticus 15 clearly was shown to be required after touching/being exposed to various things considered to be unclean.

The live goat is taken to an uninhabited land by someone, whereas Jesus ascended into heaven after His resurrection–and heaven is not uninhabited.

Some who claim Jesus was the released goat have pointed to the following statement from John the Baptist to support that view:

29 … Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! (John 1:29)

However, Jesus did not take away the sins of the world by leaving, He took away the sins through His sacrifice (cf. Hebrews 10:11-12).

The Bible also teaches:

28 … Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many (Hebrews 9:28)

Not twice as being the second goat–which was the goat representing Azazel.

Notice also:

17 If a person sins, and commits any of these things which are forbidden to be done by the commandments of the LORD, though he does not know it, yet he is guilty and shall bear his iniquity. (Leviticus 5:17)

15 Whoever curses his God shall bear his sin. (Leviticus 24:15)

Unrepentant sinners are to bear their sins. Satan is unrepentant and has had a part if causing others to sin–Satan will bear his sins, which includes his part in pushing others to sin–not to take the sins of others away, but in order to reap what he has sowed (cf. Galatians 6:7).

Moreover, the following is also applicable to him:

52 … bear your own shame also, because the sins which you committed were more abominable than theirs; (Ezekiel 16:52)

Consider the following related to Satan and his influence:

2 … prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, 3 among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others. (Ephesians 2:2-3)

44 You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it. (John 8:44)

The new Testament is clearly assigning blame to Satan–and we also know that God did as well starting with Satan deceiving Eve (Genesis 3:1-14).

The old Worldwide Church of God taught:

The English word scapegoat is not a correct translation of the Hebrew word God inspired. Most Bibles with marginal renderings show that the original word was azazel. Azazel refers to none other than Satan the devil!

The modern word scapegoat carries an entirely wrong connotation. Originally it was escape goat — the goat allowed to escape in the wilderness — that the translators took to be the meaning of azazel. But today the English word scapegoat signifies “one who bears blame or guilt for others.” As we shall see, azazel — Satan — will bear his own guilt! (MINISTUDY: The Day of Atonement in God’s Great Master Plan. Good News, August 1983)

What happened to the live goat in Leviticus 16 is symbolic of Satan for three basic reasons:

1. The term scapegoat is an inappropriate translation into English, as it implies that blame is being placed where blame is not due. The Hebrew term is actually aza’zel. This is a term that some Jewish people have historically ascribed to a Satanic adversary.
2. Satan will reap what he sows (Galatians 6:7) and yes, does bear blame for sin–including sins of others as he has been involved i influencing from the time of Adam and Eve to present.
3. What happens with the Azazel goat and what happens to Satan is quite similar, if one compares Leviticus 16:20-22,26 to Revelation 20:1-3.

The New Testament Fulfillment of the Binding of Azazel/Satan

Place called ‘Devil’s home’ in New Zealand

The New Testament shows that Satan will be bound for a thousand years to be kept away from humanity during the millennial reign of Jesus Christ:

1 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. 2 He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; 3 and he cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal on him, so that he should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years were finished. But after these things he must be released for a little while. (Revelation 20:1-3)

Since the above is consistent with the ceremony in the Old Testament about bringing (essentially casting) the Azazel goat into the wilderness, it appears that the binding and casting of Satan into the bottomless pit will occur on the Atonement.

Notice that the Old Testament shows that it is a fit man that places the Azazel goat, which bares blame for sins into the wilderness and in the New Testament it is an angel that places Satan, who brought sin into the world, into the wilderness of the bottomless pit.

Some Roman Catholic leaders, oddly, believe that this already happened physically or spiritually:

Revelation 20:1-3 . . . God has always respected our freedom of choice between covenant fidelity to him and to apostasy. That seems to be the theological point of this thousand-year period that is relatively free from Satanic temptations. (Kurz, W. What Does the Bible Say About the End Times? A Catholic View. Servant Books, Cincinnati. Nihil Obstat: Kistner H., Schehr T.P. Imprimi Potest: Link F., Paul J.M. Imprimatur: Carl K. Moeddel, Vicar General and Auxiliary Bishop, Archdiocese of Cincinnati, July 19, 2004, p. 168, 173-174)

Millenium {sic}: Since the Holy Office decreed (July 21, 1944) that it cannot safely be taught that Christ at His Second Coming will reign visibly with only some of His saints (risen from the dead) for a period of time before the final and universal judgment, a spiritual millennium is seen in Apoc. 20:4-6. St. John gives a spiritual recapitulation of the activity of Satan, and the spiritual reign of the saints with Christ in heaven and in His Church on earth. When Christianity triumphed over the Beast (in its sixth head, the pagan Roman empire) Satan was chained. With the re-appearance of the Beast in the anti-Christian world empire (the seventh head), he will be unchained, and muster all his forces against the Church until the peak of the persecution under Antichrist. Meanwhile, the church enjoyed its milleniun {sic} with Christ enthroned among the nations. (LeFrois, Bernard J. Eschatological Interpretation of the Apocalypse. The Catholic Biblical Quarterly, Vol. XIII, pp. 17-20; Cited in Culleton RG. The Reign of Antichrist, 1951. Reprint TAN Books, Rockford (IL), 1974, p. 9).

Notice that the above suggests that Satan has been gone a thousand years. Does any thinking person believe that Satan was ever bound and away from the earth for 1,000 years after Revelation (which Roman Catholics often refer to as the Apocalypse) was written? This has never happened literally or spiritually–though it will in the millennium (see also
Did The Early Church Teach Millenarianism?).

Contrary to the claims of those who do not take this portion of Revelation literally, this 1000 year binding of Satan has certainly not taken place since John was inspired to pen Revelation.

The New Testament shows that the Gentile Gospel writer Luke knew about the Day of Atonement, when he wrote:

9…sailing was now dangerous because the Fast was already over (Acts 27:9).

The Statement of Beliefs of the Continuing Church of God states this about the Day of Atonement (and more detail is in the article The Day of Atonement–Its Christian Significance):

The Day of Atonement, called “the Fast” in the New Testament (Acts 27:9), helps show our own weaknesses and need to be closer to God (Isaiah 58:5,11). This day shows that Jesus was the atoning sacrifice for our sins now (1 John 4:9-10; cf. Leviticus 16:15-16) and those that will be called in the “age to come” (Matthew 12:32; Mark 10:30; Luke 18:30; cf. Acts 3:21). It also helps picture that Satan has a role in the sins of humankind and that he will be punished by being bound for one-thousand years (Revelation 20:1-3; cf. Leviticus 16:20-26; Isaiah 14:12-16).

While some believe that what the Old Testament pictures is past, the reality is that the Holy Days help show God’s plan of salvation, and in the case of the Day of Atonement, it also shows Satan’s role in sin and his coming binding for 1000 years.

As far as Satan’s fate goes, the Continuing Church of God put out the following sermon on its ContinuingCOG channel by the late deacon Richard Close:

1:41:10

Destiny of Satan

Is Satan immortal? Does he have eternal life? Or will he perish? Will you believe what the Bible says about this? Richard Close examines many scriptures indicating that Satan’s final fate has been revealed.

Here is a link to the sermon: Destiny of Satan.

Those who have more interest may wish to study the following:

The Day of Atonement–Its Christian Significance The Jews call it Yom Kippur, Christians “The Day of Atonement.” Does it have any relevance for Christians today? Here is a link to a related article in the Spanish language: El Día de Ayuno –Su significado cristiano.
Sermon: The Bible and the Day of Atonement The Jews call it Yom Kippur, Christians “The Day of Atonement.” Does it have any relevance for Christians today? Was it observed in the New Testament? What did some of the ancient Hebrew ceremonies surrounding it mean? Does one goat in Leviticus represent Jesus and the other Satan? How does the New Testament help answer this?
Sermon: Atonement, Fasting, and Jesus What does the Bible teach about the Day of Atonement? What was Jesus’ role? Why fast?
The Atonement Plan How does the Day of Atonement tie into God’s plan of salvation? Two sermons of related interest are available God’s Atonement and Fasting Plan and God’s Atonement Plan.
Atonement Offertory Jesus Was the Atoning Sacrifice Should an offering be taken up on the Day of Atonement? What does the Bible seem to teach about that? Was Jesus a type of atonement offering? If you send an offering, how does that support the work? Dr. Thiel goes over scriptures and facts related to this. Here is a link to the donation page of the Continuing Church of God, which includes the ability to use PayPal: http://www.ccog.org/donations/
Hope of Salvation: How the Continuing Church of God Differs from Protestantism The CCOG is NOT Protestant. This free online book explains how the real Church of God differs from mainstream/traditional Protestants. Several sermons related to the free book are also available: Protestant, Baptist, and CCOG History; The First Protestant, God’s Command, Grace, & Character; The New Testament, Martin Luther, and the Canon; Eucharist, Passover, and Easter; Views of Jews, Lost Tribes, Warfare, & Baptism; Scripture vs. Tradition, Sabbath vs. Sunday; Church Services, Sunday, Heaven, and God’s Plan; Seventh Day Baptists/Adventists/Messianics: Protestant or COG?; Millennial Kingdom of God and God’s Plan of Salvation; Crosses, Trees, Tithes, and Unclean Meats; The Godhead and the Trinity; Fleeing or Rapture?; and Ecumenism, Rome, and CCOG Differences.
Beliefs of the Original Catholic Church: Could a remnant group have continuing apostolic succession? Did the original “catholic church” have doctrines held by the Continuing Church of God? Did Church of God leaders uses the term “catholic church” to ever describe the church they were part of? Here are links to related sermons: Original Catholic Church of God?, Original Catholic Doctrine: Creed, Liturgy, Baptism, Passover, What Type of Catholic was Polycarp of Smyrna?, Tradition, Holy Days, Salvation, Dress, & Celibacy, Early Heresies and Heretics, Doctrines: 3 Days, Abortion, Ecumenism, Meats, Tithes, Crosses, Destiny, and more, Saturday or Sunday?, The Godhead, Apostolic Laying on of Hands Succession, Church in the Wilderness Apostolic Succession List, Holy Mother Church and Heresies, and Lying Wonders and Original Beliefs.
Michael’s Feasts and Fasts Quiz 15 questions, amusing wrong answer screens.
Michael’s Day of Atonement Quiz Another free on-line Bible quiz by my son Michael.
Michael’s Feasts and Fasts Quiz 15 questions, amusing wrong answer screens.
Importance of Fasting An old article by Herbert W. Armstrong on this subject. Here is a link to it in Mandarin Chinese 禁食的重要性.
Is There “An Annual Worship Calendar” In the Bible? This paper provides a biblical and historical critique of several articles, including one by the Tkach WCG which states that this should be a local decision. What do the Holy Days mean? Also you can click here for the calendar of Holy Days. (Here is a related link in Spanish/español: Calendario Anual de Adoración –Una crítica basada en la Biblia y en la Historia: ¿Hay un Calendario Anual de Adoración en la Biblia?
Did Early Christians Observe the Fall Holy Days? The ‘Fall’ Holy Days come every year in September and/or October on the Roman calendar. Some call them Jewish holidays, but they were kept by Jesus, the apostles, and their early faithful followers. Should you keep them? What does the Bible teach? What do records of church history teach? What does the Bible teach about the Feasts of Trumpets, Atonement, Tabernacles, and the Last Great Day? Here is a link to a related sermon: Should Christians keep the Fall Biblical Holy Days?
The Book of Life and the Feast of Trumpets? Are they related? Is so how? If not, where not? What does the Feast of Trumpets, which the Jews call Rosh Hashanah, help teach?
The Feast of Tabernacles: A Time for Christians? Is this pilgrimage holy day still valid? Does it teach anything relevant for today’s Christians? What is the Last Great Day? What do these days teach? A related sermon video is Feast of Tabernacles from Israel.
Should You Keep God’s Holy Days or Demonic Holidays? This is a free pdf booklet explaining what the Bible and history shows about God’s Holy Days and popular holidays. Two related sermons would be Which Spring Days should Christians observe? and Fall Holy Days for Christians.
The Last Great Day: Shemini ‘Azeret What is the ‘eighth day’ of the Feast? What does it help picture? A sermon on this topic is also available: Shemini Azaret: The Last Great Day.
Christians are to Be Strangers and Pilgrims? Should Christians sojourn? What does the Bible and Feast of Tabernacles teach? A related video sermon is titled Christian Pilgrims.
Holy Day Calendar This is a listing of the biblical holy days through 2033, with their Roman calendar dates. They are really hard to observe if you do not know when they occur 🙂 In the Spanish/Español/Castellano language: Calendario de los Días Santos. In Mandarin Chinese: 何日是神的圣日？ 这里是一份神的圣日日历从2013年至2024年。.

Nipah virus causes brain inflammation (encephalitis) and respiratory problems, killing up to 70% of the people it infects—with no approved vaccine to defend against it.

CEPI is a lead funder for #Nipah vaccine development and is supporting 3 vaccine candidates. Learn more ➡️… pic.twitter.com/Bm0LDSqoTK

— CEPI (@CEPIvaccines) August 14, 2023

COGwriter

The Nipah Virus is causing concern in India and elsewhere. Notice the following:

Nipah virus updates: 1,233 contacts traced, 352 high-risk; 61 tested negative

18 September 2023

Kerala has so far confirmed a total of six cases of Nipah infection since the latest outbreak in the Kozhikode district. … the brain-damaging Nipah virus …

• The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and World Health Organisation conducted studies and it was found that nine states in India have the probability of Nipah occurrence and Kerala is one among them, George said.
• A total of 1,233 contacts, of the people infected, have been identified and the Kerala government has categorised them as ‘high-risk’ contacts, 352, and low-risk contacts. All of them are under isolation.
• The state government has set up a control room to battle the virus.
• The Kerala government has set up 19 teams in the core committee as per the Nipah protocol, which was modified in 2021 and in 2023. While the central teams are in the field and have been surveying all the relevant locations https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/nipah-virus-updates-contacts-traced-kerala-kozhikode-101695032766270.html

While Indian officials hope the virus is “under control,” a reader tipped me off to the following report by Michael Snyder who expresses some of his concerns:

A Virus That Has A Death Rate Of 40 To 75 Percent Is Infecting And Killing People In India

September 17, 2023

For years, the World Health Organization has considered the Nipah virus to be a “priority pathogen” because it has the potential to cause a worldwide pandemic. Thankfully, up to this point that has not happened, but now an outbreak in India is making headlines all over the globe. Two victims have already died, and there are four others that have tested positive. A five kilometer containment zone has been established around the homes of the two men that died, and schools and businesses in the region are being forced to shut down. Authorities are hoping that such extreme measures will stop this outbreak before it can really get going. But as you will see below, that may not be so easy.

According to the CDC, …

Nipah virus (NiV) was first discovered in 1999 following an outbreak of disease in pigs and people in Malaysia and Singapore. This outbreak resulted in nearly 300 human cases and more than 100 deaths, and caused substantial economic impact as more than 1 million pigs were killed to help control the outbreak.

While there have been no other known outbreaks of NiV in Malaysia and Singapore since 1999, outbreaks have been recorded almost annually in some parts of Asia since then—primarily in Bangladesh and India. The virus has been shown to spread from person-to-person in these outbreaks, raising concerns about the potential for NiV to cause a global pandemic.

Viruses mutate over time, and so there has always been a tremendous amount of concern that a strain could emerge that would be able to pass very easily from human to human. …

Once a human is infected, symptoms may not show up until 4 to 14 days after the initial exposure…

Symptoms typically appear in 4-14 days following exposure to the virus. The illness initially presents as 3-14 days of fever and headache, and often includes signs of respiratory illness, such as cough, sore throat, and difficulty breathing. A phase of brain swelling (encephalitis) may follow, where symptoms can include drowsiness, disorientation, and mental confusion, which can rapidly progress to coma within 24-48 hours.

So you could potentially spread this to hundreds of other people before you even realize that you are sick.

Unlike COVID, those that get infected are very likely to die.

In fact, the CDC says that the death rate for the Nipah virus falls within a range of 40 to 75 percent…

There is no cure for the Nipah virus, and so let us hope that this outbreak fizzles out very quickly. …

If this thing does get loose and it starts spreading all over the world, it is going to create a tremendous amount of fear.

In fact, it would make what we went through with COVID look like a Sunday picnic. 09/17/23 https://endoftheamericandream.com/a-virus-that-has-a-death-rate-of-40-to-75-percent-is-infecting-and-killing-people-in-india/

Here is more on the Nipah virus from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC):

Nipah virus (NiV) is a zoonotic virus, meaning that it can spread between animals and people. Fruit bats, also called flying foxes, are the animal reservoir for NiV in nature. Nipah virus is also known to cause illness in pigs and people. Infection with NiV is associated with encephalitis (swelling of the brain) and can cause mild to severe illness and even death. Outbreaks occur almost annually in parts of Asia, primarily Bangladesh and India.

Nipah virus infection can be prevented by avoiding exposure to sick pigs and bats in areas where the virus is present, and not drinking raw date palm sap which can be contaminated by an infected bat. During an outbreak, standard infection control practices can help prevent person-to-person spread in hospital settings. accessed 09/18/23 https://www.cdc.gov/vhf/nipah/index.html

Currently there are no licensed treatments available for Nipah virus (NiV) infection. … There are, however, immunotherapeutic treatments (monoclonal antibody therapies) that are currently under development and evaluation for treatment of NiV infections.accessed 09/18/23 https://www.cdc.gov/vhf/nipah/treatment/index.html

No “licensed treatments” are available according to the US Centers for Disease Control, but pharmaceutical approaches are being pursued.

Instead of promoting improving diet and health, the government and pharmaceutical industry are working on more vaccines and apparently drugs. For me telling people how to eat better for COVID-19 in the past, YouTube censored and removed a video I put out (but it is still available on another platform: COVID-19: Eat what is good!).

The YouTube censored video went over much of the following, much of which should also be applicable for Nipah:

1. People should decrease their consumption of junk food. Instead that has increased and many Americans have gained unhealthy weight (see Using scale for weight loss? Americans gain weight during COVID-19 shut downs) which will not bolster their innate or adaptive immune systems.
2. Exercise is beneficial for the immune system (watch The Plain Truth About Exercise), yet during the corona/COVID lockdowns, many have gotten less exercise. Some because of fear of going outside and some because many gyms have been closed by government orders. Yet, the Bible teaches ‘bodily exercise profits a little’ (1 Timothy 4:8).
3. Avoiding smoking (see also Should Christians Smoke Tobacco or Marijuana?) and polluted air (watch Air Pollution, Autism, and Prophecy) help the immune function. Yet, cigarette purchases in the USA went up last year during the COVID lockdowns.
4. People should increase their consumption of high vitamin C fruits (like citrus and berries) and vegetables (like tomatoes and bell peppers) as vitamin C is proven to bolster the immune system, help protect tissues (like lungs), and fight viruses (see also COVID-19 and Vitamin C: The truth, the myth, and the hype). Many also contain fruits and vegetables supply betacarotene, which also supports the immune system.
5. Eleven years ago it was reported in a scientific journal that zinc was effective against coronaviruses to reduce their replication (see‘CDC Triples Number of Possible CCP Virus Symptoms;’ Don’t swallow Lysol to fight COVID-19! What about Zinc? Bloodclots?). Various foods, like pumpkin seeds, contain zinc.
6. Selenium may also be helpful. Eating a couple of Brazil nuts per week can supply adequate amounts of selenium.
7. Substances like methylene blue and hydroxychloroquine help improve zinc absorption (see also Donald Trump taking zinc and hydroxychloroquine to prevent COVID-19: Mainstream media aghast! Vitamin D? Vitamin C?).
8. Sunlight helps convert cholesterol into vitamin D and vitamin D looks to be helpful for those facing the coronavirus (see Donald Trump taking zinc and hydroxychloroquine to prevent COVID-19: Mainstream media aghast! Vitamin D? Vitamin C?). Even the CDC’s Dr. Fauci has admitted that vitamins D and C can be helpful (see COVID interview: Dr. Fauci takes isolated vitamin D and synthetic vitamin C).
9. Many herbs can help with viruses (see ‘Ghanaians Look to Herbal Remedies for COVID-19’ ‘Enti wobԑdi Onyankopↄn Nna Kronkron anaa Ahonhommↄnee Ahomegyeԑ Nna?’).
10. Jesus said His followers would fast (Mark 2:20). Fasting boosts the immune system (see Reuters: Why is New Orleans’ coronavirus death rate seven times New York’s? Obesity is a factor; BNP: ‘How to Change Your Life in 5 Seconds’). Fasting, for those who can, can truly help the immune system (see Fasting aids longevity and provides other benefits).
11. Blood clots can be destructive and even deadly with COVID-19, hence people who get COVID-19 may wish to take nattokinase (see ‘CDC Triples Number of Possible CCP Virus Symptoms;’ Don’t swallow Lysol to fight COVID-19! What about Zinc? Bloodclots?).
12. Lung tissue damage is associated with COVID-19 and bovine lung tissue helps support healthy lungs (see CBS: Blood types may play role in which COVID patients get sickest; Isaiah: Eat what is good.).
13. People should avoid consuming biblically unclean meat (see The New Testament Church, History, and Unclean Meats), which look to have been implicated in the cause of COVID-19 (see NPR: Where Did The Coronavirus Originate? Virus Hunters Find Genetic Clues In Bats; WND: Biblically unclean animals responsible for pandemics and Clean and unclean meat arguments, COVID-19, and the Bible).
14. Humans can help maintain healthy kidneys and other organs with bovine kidney and other organ tissues (see https://doctorsresearch.com/articles/2759/the-truth-about-glandulars-in-nutritional-supplements/). Plural glandular supplements can be helpful.
15. Even vaccine advocates think that the rushed vaccine will have safety risks (e.g. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/jun/22/trump-circle-pressure-fda-rush-covid-19-vaccine-election)–hence caution and wisdom are advised.

All the above have the potential to help support one’s innate immune system, which helps the body fight many types of pathogens–not just one.

It is not wrong to tell people ways to consider to improve their health.

Furthermore, the Bible teaches:

2 Why do you spend money for what is not bread,
And your wages for what does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good (Isaiah 55:2).

Information on how to do so should not be suppressed.

That said, biblically, we know that pestilences are coming, and historically many have involved animals (watch also COVID, Pandemics, and Unclean Meat). We also have the issues of humans intentionally producing biological weapons that can cause pestilences (watch: Biological Warfare and Prophecy).

Michael Snyder is correct that a highly deadly virus will “make what we went through with COVID look like a Sunday picnic.”

And more deadly pestilences are coming.

Please look at something published by the old Worldwide Church of God decades ago:

4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse – The Pale Horse – Disease Epidemics

In the book of Revelation we find a disturbing vision of four fearsome horsemen (Rev. 6:1-8). Each of these horsemen is a symbol of the four major punishments to be inflicted upon a rebellious mankind — probably in the not-too-distant future! …

Over the entire course of history, disease has undoubtedly been man’s greatest enemy in terms of sheer loss of life. According to Folke Henschen, a leading Swedish pathologist: “Infectious diseases… have probably been the most dangerous enemies of mankind, much more so than war and mass murder. …

Hans Zinsser, writing in Rats, Lice, and History, like wise explained: “Swords and lances, arrows, machine guns, and even high explosives have had far less power over fates of the nations than the typhus louse, the plague flea, and the yellow fever mosquito…. War and conquest and that herd existence which is an accompaniment of what we call civilization have merely set the stage for these more powerful agents of human tragedy.” …

Infectious disease is neither a respecter of men nor nations. No part of the world is immune. For example, in the United States malaria cases have cropped up in California, Alabama and Texas in the last few years. Tuberculosis is widespread among Latins and Asians in Los Angeles County, and a strain of typhoid fever currently resistant to antibiotics is being imported into the United States by illegal aliens from Mexico. …

The Roman Empire also had its share of pestilential woes. During the first century B.C., a severe attack of malaria resulted in a drastic drop in the native birthrate. Rome was forced to augment its armies with foreign mercenaries. …

But by far and away the most devastating disease ever to hit the human race was the Black Plague. It was the greatest of all pandemics and was perhaps the worst single disaster the world has experienced since Noah’s Flood. The exact toll it took remains a mystery, but various estimates place it at anywhere from 40 to 60 million souls. …

Disease, rather than superior numbers or generalship, often decided the outcome of many a battle. In 1528, during the pivotal siege of Naples, the French army was destroyed not by the enemy, but by an outbreak of typhoid fever. Thanks to this timely epidemic, Charles V of Spain was able to be crowned Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. …

The world has yet to see the last of widespread disease epidemics. That, in effect, was what Jesus Christ told His disciples in the pivotal Olivet prophecy recorded in Matthew 24 and Luke 21. Right along with wars and famine came pestilence: “For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places” (Matt. 24:7). These were some of the prophetic signs that Christ listed in answering the question, “What shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world [age]?” (Verse 3.) Granted, pestilence, famine and war have been ongoing problems that have plagued mankind ever since the dawn of history. But the main thrust of Christ’s message is futuristic. The overall context of the Olivet prophecy readily attests to this fact. In verses 21 and 22 of Matthew 24, Christ referred to a time when the total annihilation of human life would be a distinct possibility. Only with the recent development of multiple-megaton nuclear weaponry could such an event have become a reality. (Ritter G. 4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse – The Pale Horse – Disease Epidemics. Worldwide Church of God (c) 1975, Ambassador College Press)

Since the above booklet related to the fourth horseman was published, human beings are directly causing antimicrobial resistance and other problems with not only how animals are raised, but also by consuming unclean ones.

For example, because of overuse of antibiotics, many now realize that the USA and many other parts of the world are setting themselves up for the possibility of getting infections from bacteria that are resistant to various antibiotics (yet, the Europeans and their animals are not quite in the same situation). I have warned about this for many years and even made a YouTube video about that: Are Americans & Asians setting themselves up for destruction from antibiotic use?

Gustave Doré’s The fourth Horseman, Death on the Pale Horse (1865)

The Bible teaches that famines and pestilences will happen PRIOR to the start of the Great Tribulation:

4 And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. 6 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of sorrows. (Matthew 24:4-8)

As far as the fourth horseman of the Apocalypse goes, the Apostle John was inspired to write the following:

7 When He opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature saying, “Come and see.” 8 So I looked, and behold, a pale horse. And the name of him who sat on it was Death, and Hades followed with him. And power was given to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword, with hunger, with death, and by the beasts of the earth. (Revelation 6:7-8)

A fourth of the earth–that is something in the neighborhood of 2,000,000,000 people–a huge amount. Some will die from war, but others from diseases.

Since this horseman’s ride begins prior to the start of the Great Tribulation, it is likely that the USA and at least some of its Anglo-Saxon dominated allies would be affected–which are end time descendants of Israel, and also sometimes prophetically referred to as Israel (cf. Genesis 48; see also Anglo – America in Prophecy & the Lost Tribes of Israel). They will also be affected AFTER the start of the Great Tribulation.

Ezekiel was inspired to write the following:

2 “And you, son of man, thus says the Lord God to the land of Israel:

‘An end! The end has come upon the four corners of the land. 3 Now the end has come upon you, And I will send My anger against you; I will judge you according to your ways, And I will repay you for all your abominations. (Ezekiel 7:2-3)

5 The sword is outside,
And the pestilence and famine within.
Whoever is in the field
Will die by the sword;
And whoever is in the city,
Famine and pestilence will devour him. (Ezekiel 7:15)

12 One-third of you shall die of the pestilence, and be consumed with famine in your midst; and one-third shall fall by the sword all around you; and I will scatter another third to all the winds, and I will draw out a sword after them. (Ezekiel 5:12)

Why should Ezekiel’s warning to ‘Israel’ include the USA and its Anglo-Saxon allies?

Well in addition to prophecies in Genesis 48 & 49, consider that Ezekiel 7:2 points to problems in the “four corners of the land.” While some may point to the tiny nation called Israel, consider that the USA, UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand are spread around the corners of the earth.

Do not think it will only be places like India or Africa that will be affected by the ride of the fourth horseman of the Apocalypse.

It is apparent, that like others in the past, the USA and at least some of its Anglo-Saxon allies will be weakened by pestilences before they are finally taken over (cf. Daniel 11:39; 8:24-25; see also USA in Prophecy: The Strongest Fortresses) by the final ‘revival’ of the old ‘Holy Roman Empire’ (watch also Europe and the ‘Holy Roman Empire’).

We are getting closer to that time.

We put together the following video on our Bible News Prophecy YouTube channel related to that and the probability that humans will produce one or more pestilential agents:

14:53

Biological Weapons and the 4th Horseman of the Apocalypse

Tucker Carlson interviewed Democratic presidential party candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. (RFK). During that interview, RFK asserted that the United States has had thousands of scientists working on making bioweapons. Officially, the USA has denied this as it is a party to the Biological Weapons Convention. RFK states that Anthoy Fauci was responsible for biological weapons development. Does the ‘Global South’ consider that the West may intend to exterminate people through biological warfare? Did Jesus prophesy pestilences? Have humans engaged in biological or germ warfare for millennia? What were some things that Raymond McNair warned about over 50 years ago? Can we trust scientists to totally, safely control all the infectious agents they work with? Could humankind be developing, knowingly or unknowingly, biological agents that could be responsible for many of the deaths that are prophesied to occur with the ride of the ‘pale horse of death,’ which is the fourth of the four horsemen of the Apocalypse to ride? Steve Dupuie and Dr. Thiel address these matters.

Here is a link to our video: Biological Weapons and the 4th Horseman of the Apocalypse.

Natural and human engineered pestilences are a risk–and major pestilences are coming.

And yes, the Nipah virus or some variant can affect the USA and its British-descended allies.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Fourth Horseman of the Apocalypse What is the pale horse of death and pestilences? What will it bring and when? Here is a link to a related sermon: Fourth Horseman, COVID, and the Rise of the Beast of Revelation. Here is a version of that sermon in Spanish: El Cuarto Caballo, El COVID y El Surgimiento de la Bestia del Apocalipsis. Some shorter related videos may include Amphibian Apocalypse: Threat to Humans? and Zombie Deer Disease is Here! Are the 10 Plagues on Egypt Coming? Here is a version of the article in Spanish: El cuarto jinete de Apocalipsis, el caballo pálido de muerte y pestilencia.
Christian Health Matters Should Christians be concerned about their health? Does the Bible give any food and health guidelines? Here are links to three related sermons: Let’s Talk About Food, Evil is Affecting the Food Supply, and Let’s Talk About Health.
The New Testament Church, History, and Unclean Meats Are foods considered to have been unclean in the Old Testament considered to be food in the New Testament? This article discusses this from the perspective of the New Testament. It also has a list of clean and unclean animals. It also answers the question, is pork healthy or is pork dangerous? There is also a sermon-length video on this: Christians and Unclean Meats; two short videos are also available: Did Jesus declare all animal flesh food? and COVID, Pandemics, and Unclean Meat.
Biological Warfare and Prophecy Is biological warfare possible? Was it prophesied? Scientists have long warned that pathogenic organisms like the coronavirus could be weaponized. Furthermore, back in 2017, there were concerns that the biological research facility being constructed in Wuhan, China was risky and that a coronavirus from it could be released. On January 25, 2020, China’s President Xi Jinping publicly stated that the situation with the Wuhan-related strain of the coronavirus was grave. Did Church of God writers like the late evangelist Raymond McNair warn that engineered viruses (the “Doomsday bug”) were consistent with prophecies from Jesus? Did a warning from CCOG leader Bob Thiel warn about risks of genetically-modified (GMO) mosquitoes come to pass? Could human research and/or the consumption of biblically-unclean animals such as bats and snakes be a factor in current outbreaks or coming future pestilences? What about famines? How devastating have pestilences been? How devastating are the prophesied ones going to be? Dr. Thiel addresses these issues and more in this video.
Are Americans & Asians setting themselves up for destruction from antibiotic use? In the Spring of 2015, a study came out highlighting the increasing use of antibiotics fed to livestock in order to decrease production costs. This was mainly affecting livestock in the Americas and Asia, but not in Europe. Excessive antibiotic use increases the risks of ‘super bugs’ and presents health risks to humans and livestock. Could those in the USA, Canada, UK, Russia, China, India, Brazil, and South Africa be setting themselves up for pestilence and/or famine? Could Europe miss some plague because of this? What does the Bible prophesy?
Ten Simple Rules that Lead to Health Herbert Armstrong gives his opinions on this.
Lost Tribes and Prophecies: What will happen to Australia, the British Isles, Canada, Europe, New Zealand and the United States of America? Where did those people come from? Can you totally rely on DNA? What about other peoples? Do you really know what will happen to Europe and the English-speaking peoples? What about Africa, Asia, South America, and the Islands? This free online book provides scriptural, scientific, historical references, and commentary to address those matters. Here are links to related sermons: Lost tribes, the Bible, and DNA; Lost tribes, prophecies, and identifications; 11 Tribes, 144,000, and Multitudes; Israel, Jeremiah, Tea Tephi, and British Royalty; Gentile European Beast; Royal Succession, Samaria, and Prophecies; Asia, Islands, Latin America, Africa, and Armageddon;  When Will the End of the Age Come?;  Rise of the Prophesied King of the North; Christian Persecution from the Beast; WWIII and the Coming New World Order; and Woes, WWIV, and the Good News of the Kingdom of God.

Tune in live as world leaders convene at UNHQ to assess progress on the #GlobalGoals and recommit to a fairer, more inclusive & sustainable planet for all.

Watch: https://t.co/uMIrvOeAEA #UNGA pic.twitter.com/PQpkLCH33W

— United Nations (@UN) September 18, 2023

COGwriter

The United Nations is concerned that the world is not implementing its 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SGDs) agenda fast enough, so it wants the process accelerated:

UN warns world way off track to meeting 2030 goals

18 September 2023

The UN has warned that countries are failing to meet the Sustainable Development Goals they set in 2015. As world leaders converge on New York for the UN General Assembly this week, the UN chief has said his main objective will be to speed up progress toward those ambitious pledges. https://www.activistpost.com/2023/09/united-nations-marks-halfway-point-to-agenda-2030-with-sustainable-development-goals-summit.html

This is only the second time the SDG Summit has been convened since the adoption of the 17 SDGs by Heads of State and Governments of all UN Member States in September 2015.

The UN SDGs are a collection of 17 interlinked goals designed to be a “blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all”. The SDGs were set in 2015 by the United Nations General Assembly with the intention of achieving them by the year 2030. The SDGs were part of a larger resolution known as the 2030 Agenda, or Agenda 2030, ostensibly aimed at fighting climate change.

The UN says the SDG Summit will mark the halfway point to the deadline for Agenda 2030 and the SDGs. The Summit will also mark a “new phase of accelerated progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals with high-level political guidance on transformative and accelerated actions leading up to 2030”. The UN is hoping the Summit will “reignite a sense of hope, optimism, and enthusiasm for the 2030 Agenda”. The UN has also stated that achieving the SDGs by 2030 will require “bold, ambitious, accelerated, and transformative actions are needed in key areas, anchored in international solidarity and effective cooperation at all levels”.  …

UN Secretary-General Guterres revealed in April that progress to completion of the SDGs was failing, with only 12 percent of the SDGs on track to be completed.

Guterres said progress on 50 percent of the goals is “weak and insufficient”, while 30 percent of the SDGs have “stalled or gone into reverse”. …

I believe that if we are to counter “The Great Reset” agenda we must counter the United Nations and World Economic Forum by offering alternatives to their plans, including Agenda 2030. 09/17/23 https://www.activistpost.com/2023/09/united-nations-marks-halfway-point-to-agenda-2030-with-sustainable-development-goals-summit.html

Well, biblically, the only way to delay the coming totalitarian globalist power would be for massive international repentance–and scripture does not point to that happening at this time. Individual efforts to stop the globalists will not stop what is prophesied to happen. As for Christians, Jesus said we are to pray for God’s Kingdom to come (Matthew 6:10).

The Bible tells of the rise of a totalitarian European Beast power:

15 He was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed.

16 He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, 17 and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.

18 Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man: His number is 666. (Revelation 13:15-18)

The UN is, unknowingly, working towards that.

The United Nations has been, and still is, pushing a world domination agenda. Notice a report by E. Jeffrey Ludwig about that in the past:

The UN Wants to be Our World Government By 2030

October 28, 2018

In the 1960s, an informed but naïve undergraduate, I was walking across the campus of the University of Pennsylvania with the Chairman of the Chemistry Department, Prof. Charles C. Price. He told me that he was president of the United World Federalists, and asked if I knew what that organization was. When I said that I did not, he replied that they believed in a one-world government that would grow out of the United Nations. …

How would Prof. Price’s vision of a new world government emerge? Although there was a socialistic thread in its founding document, the United Nations was formed based on a vision of human rights presented in the “Universal Declaration of Human Rights” (UDHR) which placed the concept of rights at the forefront for the progress of the world body. …

In 2015, seventy years after their original rights-based document, the UN took a giant step towards the global government that was only hinted at in their first organizing document. They issued a document entitled “Transforming Our World: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.” This document has 91 numbered sections of the UN’s program for world government. …

The entire “Transforming Our World” document is cast in a stream of consciousness of pious platitudes for a utopian future. It is an outsize utopian dream. Five of the 17 items pertain to the environment. There are goals for the cities, for women, for the poor, and even for life under the water. Absolutely no sphere of human activity is exempt from control by the UN. …

The one-worlders of the 1950s and early 1960s are now in the UN driver’s seat, and they have made their move. https://www.sgtreport.com/2018/10/the-un-wants-to-be-our-world-government-by-2030/

Many around the world support the UN’s goals. The World Economic Forum, whose founder literally wrote the book on the “Great Reset” wants a globalist totalitarian government.

Pope Francis endorsed the UN’s 2030 goals at the United Nations in New York back in 2015–that was right before representatives of most nations on the earth voted to accept them.

It was just a few months prior to that speech that Pope Francis released his Laudato Si encyclical. That was quite consistent with the UN’s ‘New Universal Agenda.’

Despite Pope Francis’ involvement, this agenda is NOT one based on the Bible, but a mixture of good and evil. The UN and others have left the true God out of the picture and, like those associated with the Tower of Babel, believe that they know better.

They do not.

Furthermore, to get their plans in, the UN and WEF want to suppress and censor information that they do not like (see UN pushing censorship, while WEF Leader Klaus Schwab Worried About Peasants Waging ‘Revolution Against the System’).

Their approaches have brought the following scriptures to mind:

18 …men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness … 22 Professing to be wise, they became fools, (Romans 1:18, 22)

28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; (Romans 1:28)

I have long called the UN’s 2030 ‘New Universal Agenda’ a ‘false gospel.’

Here is some information about it in our free booklet The Gospel of the Kingdom of God (note that this booklet has been translated into over 700 languages/dialects):

Does humanity have the solutions?

The world faces many problems.

Many people are hungry. Many people are oppressed. Many people face poverty. Many nations are in serious debt. Children, including unborn ones, face abuse. Drug-resistant diseases concern many doctors. Major industrial cities have air too polluted to be healthy. Various politicians threaten war. Terrorist attacks keep happening.

Can world leaders fix the problems facing humanity?

Many think so.

New Universal Agenda

On September 25, 2015, after a key-note speech by the Vatican’s Pope Francis, the 193 nations of the United Nations (UN) voted to implement the “17 Sustainable Development Goals” of what originally was termed the New Universal Agenda. Here are the UN’s 17 goals:

Goal 1. End poverty in all its forms everywhere

Goal 2. End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture

Goal 3. Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages

Goal 4. Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all

Goal 5. Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls

Goal 6. Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all

Goal 7. Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all

Goal 8. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all

Goal 9. Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation

Goal 10. Reduce inequality within and among countries

Goal 11. Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable

Goal 12. Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns

Goal 13. Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts

Goal 14. Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development

Goal 15. Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss

Goal 16. Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels

Goal 17. Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development

This agenda is supposed to be fully implemented by 2030 and is also called the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It aims to solve ailments facing humanity through regulation, education, and international and interfaith cooperation. While many of its objectives are good, some of its methods and goals are evil (cf. Genesis 3:5). This agenda, also, is consistent with Pope Francis’s Laudato Si encyclical.

The “New Universal Agenda” could be called the “New Catholic Agenda” as the word “catholic” means “universal.” Pope Francis called the adoption of the New Universal Agenda “an important sign of hope.”

As a follow-up to the UN agreement, there was a meeting in Paris in December 2015 (officially titled 21st Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change). Pope Francis also praised that international agreement and advised nations “to carefully follow the road ahead, and with an ever-growing sense of solidarity.”

Nearly all the nations in the world agreed to the Paris accords, which had specific environmental goals and financial commitments. (Then US President Barack Obama signed a document to commit the USA to this in 2016, but in 2017, US President Donald Trump stated that the United States would NOT accept the agreed to Paris accords. This caused international outrage and has helped isolate the US from Europe and many other parts of the world.) Pope Francis later stated humanity “will go down” if it does not make his changes related to the climate.

While no one wants to breath polluted air, go hungry, be impoverished, be endangered, etc., will human attempts to meet the goals of the United Nations’ 2030 agenda and/or the Paris accords solve the problems facing humanity?

The Track Record of the United Nations

The United Nations was formed and established on 24 October 1945, after World War II, in order to prevent another such conflict and to try to promote peace in the world. At its founding, the UN had 51 member states; there are now 193.

There have been hundreds, if not thousands, of conflicts around the world since the United Nations formed, but we have not yet had what could be described as the third World War.

Some believe that international cooperation like the United Nations claims to promote, combined with the type of interfaith and ecumenical agenda that Pope Francis and many other religious leaders are trying to promote, will bring peace and prosperity.

However, the track record for the United Nations to do this has not been good. In addition to the numerous armed conflicts since the United Nations formed, multiple millions are hungry, refugees, and/or desperately poor.

Over a decade ago, the United Nations set forth to implement its Millennium Development Goals. It had eight “development goals,” but this did not succeed, even according to the UN itself. So, in 2015, its so-called “17 Sustainable Development Goals” were adopted. Some are optimistic. Some consider it a utopian fantasy.

As far as utopia goes, on May 6, 2016, Pope Francis said he dreamed of a humane European utopia that his church could help that continent attain. Yet, the Pope’s dream will turn out to be a nightmare (cf. Revelation 18).

There May Be Some Cooperation and Success, But …

Merriam Webster’s Dictionary states that utopia is “an imaginary place in which the government, laws, and social conditions are perfect.” The Bible teaches that humanity cannot solve its problems on its own:

²³ O Lord, I know the way of man is not in himself; It is not in man who walks to direct his own steps. (Jeremiah 10:23, NKJV throughout unless otherwise indicated)

The Bible teaches that international cooperation will fail:

¹⁶ Destruction and misery are in their ways; ¹⁷ And the way of peace they have not known. ¹⁸ There is no fear of God before their eyes. (Romans 3:16-18)

Yet, many humans are working towards their view of a utopian society and even sometimes try to involve religion. But almost none are willing to follow the ways of the one true God. It is not that there will be no progress towards any of the United Nation’s or the Vatican’s goals. There will be some, as well as some setbacks.

Actually, and probably after massive conflict, a type of international peace deal will be agreed to and confirmed (Daniel 9:27). When it is, many will falsely tend to believe that humanity will be bringing about a more peaceful and utopian society.

Many will be taken in by such international ‘utopian progress’ (cf. Ezekiel 13:10) as well as by various signs and wonders (2 Thessalonians 2:9-12). But the Bible says such peace will not last (Daniel 9:27; 11:31-44), despite what leaders may claim (1 Thessalonians 5:3; Isaiah 59:8).

The idea that, apart from Jesus, humanity can bring utopia in this ‘present evil age’ is a false gospel (Galatians 1:3-10). …

The ecumenical and interfaith movements that the United Nations, Vatican, many Protestants, and Eastern Orthodox leaders are promoting are clearly condemned by the Bible and should not be encouraged. Jesus warned of ones claiming to follow Him who would “deceive many” (Matthew 24:4-5). Much ecumenism is related to the “white horseman” of Revelation 6:1-2 (who is NOT Jesus) and the harlot of Revelation 17. …

Problems in the world, in places like the Middle East (despite expected temporal gains, e.g. Daniel 9:27a; 1 Thessalonians 5:3), will not be solved by humans—we need the peace of the Kingdom of God (Romans 14:17).

The problems of international terrorism, despite expected gains, will not be solved (cf. Ezekiel 21:12) by the deceived in the United Nations (cf. Revelation 12:9)—we need the joy and comfort of the Kingdom of God.

The problems of the environment will NOT be solved by international cooperation, as the world’s nations will help destroy the earth (Revelation 11:18), but they will be solved by the Kingdom of God.

Issues of sexual immorality, abortion, and selling human body parts will not be solved by the USA (cf. Revelation 18:13), but by the Kingdom of God.

The massive debt that the USA, UK, and many other nations have will not be solved through international brokering, but ultimately (after destruction per Habakkuk 2:6-8) by the Kingdom of God.

Ignorance and miseducation will not be solved by the United Nations—we need the Kingdom of God. Religious strife will not truly be solved by any ecumenical-interfaith movement agreeing to salvation apart from the true Jesus of the Bible. Sin is THE PROBLEM in the world and for that, we need Jesus’ sacrifice and His return in the Kingdom of God. Modern medical science does not have all the answers for human health—we need the Kingdom of God.

Here is a link to our free online booklet The Gospel of the Kingdom of God. Note: Translations of this booklet are available in hundreds of languages at https://www.ccog.org

Well, what about some type of world government by 2030?

There may very well be a world government by then as the 6,000 years God has allowed humanity to rule itself under Satan’s influence is drawing to a close (though it could be perhaps up to a decade or so later than that, though I do not currently believe it can start later that 2036, with 2031 0r 2033 seemingly more likely).

Yet, before the millennial Kingdom of God is in place, the world will see a world government dominated by a European Beast and Antichrist, and then after they are defeated (Revelation 19), the one glorious government known as the millennial Kingdom of God (Revelation 20:1-6) will be put in place.

UPDATE 09/24/23: We just put together the following related video:

15:02

UN Wants to Accelerate Agenda 2030

The United Nations has ’17 Sustainable Development Goals’ as part of its Agenda 2030 adopted back in 2025. In September 2023, a summit was held where the UN pushed for the acceleration of the goals and many were not progressing as the UN wanted them to. Are these goals consistent with what Klaus Schwab’s World Economic Forum, the Vatican (in Pope Francis’ Laudato Si encyclical) and Lynn Rothschild’s Council for Inclusive Capitalism have called for? Might this all be leading to some type of a totalitarian globalist system? Are parts of the goals good? Are some of the goals unattainable according to the Bible? Has the UN been pushing toward a global system of governance? Will a totalitarian system result in utopia before Jesus returns and ushers in the millennial Kingdom of God? Could the year 2030 be relevant? Dr. Thiel and Steve Dupuie discuss these matters and more.

Here is a link to our video: UN Wants to Accelerate Agenda 2030.

The United Nations is unknowingly pushing for accelerating the rise of the Beast power that the Bible warns against.

Some items of related interest may include:

United Nations: Humankind’s Last Hope or New World Order? Is the UN the last hope for humanity? Or might its goals end up with sinister results? Two related videos include UN’s ‘New Universal Agenda’ is a False Gospel! and United Nations and Vatican Are Planning the New World Order.
Did The Early Church Teach Millenarianism? Was the millennium (sometimes called chiliasm) taught by early Christians? Who condemned it? Will Jesus literally reign for 1000 years on the earth? Is this time near? Two related sermons are available Millennial Utopia and The Millennium.
Does God Have a 6,000 Year Plan? What Year Does the 6,000 Years End? Was a 6000 year time allowed for humans to rule followed by a literal thousand year reign of Christ on Earth taught by the early Christians? Does God have 7,000 year plan? What year may the six thousand years of human rule end? When will Jesus return? 2031 or 20xx? There is also a video titled 6000 Years: When will God’s Kingdom Come? Here is a link to the article in Spanish: ¿Tiene Dios un plan de 6,000 años?
Lost Tribes and Prophecies: What will happen to Australia, the British Isles, Canada, Europe, New Zealand and the United States of America? Where did those people come from? Can you totally rely on DNA? What about other peoples? Do you really know what will happen to Europe and the English-speaking peoples? What about Africa, Asia, South America, and the Islands? This free online book provides scriptural, scientific, historical references, and commentary to address those matters. Here are links to related sermons: Lost tribes, the Bible, and DNA; Lost tribes, prophecies, and identifications; 11 Tribes, 144,000, and Multitudes; Israel, Jeremiah, Tea Tephi, and British Royalty; Gentile European Beast; Royal Succession, Samaria, and Prophecies; Asia, Islands, Latin America, Africa, and Armageddon;  When Will the End of the Age Come?;  Rise of the Prophesied King of the North; Christian Persecution from the Beast; WWIII and the Coming New World Order; and Woes, WWIV, and the Good News of the Kingdom of God.
The Gospel of the Kingdom of God This free online pdf booklet has answers many questions people have about the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and explains why it is the solution to the issues the world is facing. It is available in hundreds of languages at ccog.org. Here are links to four kingdom-related sermons:  The Fantastic Gospel of the Kingdom of God!, The World’s False Gospel, The Gospel of the Kingdom: From the New and Old Testaments, and The Kingdom of God is the Solution.
Will the Interfaith Movement Lead to Peace or Sudden Destruction? Is the interfaith movement going to lead to lasting peace or is it warned against? A video sermon of related interest is: Will the Interfaith Movement lead to World War III? and a video sermon is also available: Do You Know That Babylon is Forming?
Laudato Si: Pope’s Agenda or Kingdom of God? Pope Francis’ 2nd encyclical is titled ‘Laudato Si.’ In it, he goes over his views related to environmental, economic, social, moral, agricultural, and spiritual issues. He advocates international cooperation to solve various problems he believes are affecting humanity. Is that Pope’s agenda the solution? What about the Kingdom of God? does the Bible teach? Two related articles include Laudato Si: Will Pope Francis’ economic actions match his words? and Laudato Si: A call for a one-world government?
Lost Tribes and Prophecies: What will happen to Australia, the British Isles, Canada, Europe, New Zealand and the United States of America? Where did those people come from? Can you totally rely on DNA? What about other peoples? Do you really know what will happen to Europe and the English-speaking peoples? What about Africa, Asia, South America, and the Islands? This free online book provides scriptural, scientific, historical references, and commentary to address those matters. Here are links to related sermons: Lost tribes, the Bible, and DNA; Lost tribes, prophecies, and identifications; 11 Tribes, 144,000, and Multitudes; Israel, Jeremiah, Tea Tephi, and British Royalty; Gentile European Beast; Royal Succession, Samaria, and Prophecies; Asia, Islands, Latin America, Africa, and Armageddon;  When Will the End of the Age Come?;  Rise of the Prophesied King of the North; Christian Persecution from the Beast; WWIII and the Coming New World Order; and Woes, WWIV, and the Good News of the Kingdom of God.

COGwriter

Some time back, Bill Nye, who still calls himself the ‘science guy,’ was interviewed about some of his evolutionary views:

Why Bill Nye Calls Evolution ‘Undeniable’ and Creationism ‘Inane’

Darwin’s theory explains so much of the world, from bumblebees to human origins, says the Science Guy. …

In his new book, Nye delights in how this fundamental discovery helps to unlock the mysteries of everything from bumblebees to human origins to our place in the universe.

Who do you hope will read this book?

Grown-ups who have an interest in the world around them, people coming of age who have an interest in science, people who still want to know how the world works. …

How and when did you first encounter creationism?

About 20 years ago. I was a member of the Northwest Skeptics, which is the Seattle-based skeptics organization. We met people who insisted that the Earth was 6,000 years old. The inanity took my breath away. When you understand anything about astronomy or have just a rudimentary understanding of radioactivity, the Earth is patently not 6,000 years old. It’s silly. …

What one or two points do you want people to take away from this book?

Evolution is a discovery. We discovered evolution. Two guys [Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace], at about the same time, reached the same conclusion about nature. …

Anything else?

Evolution fills me with reverence for our place within the cosmos, what I like to call “our place in space.” We’re the product of stardust, brought together by gravity—we’re at least one of the ways that the universe knows itself. That, to me, is astonishing. 01/24/15 http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2015/01/150125-bill-nye-science-guy-evolution-creation-book-talk-culture/

No true scientist can possibly accept evolution as the explanation as to how life began. It’s astonishing that anyone can say the universe formed by happenstance, which is what Bill Nye essentially teaches.

One law of human science is called “biogenesis”–life comes from life. Not from nothing, not from dead things, not from happenstance.

Furthermore, notice a statement from Nobel Prize winner Dr. George Wald, from Harvard University related to the origin of life:

The reasonable view was to believe in spontaneous generation (life from nothing); the only alternative, to believe in a single, primary act of supernatural creation. There is no third position . . . One has only to contemplate the magnitude of this task to concede that the spontaneous generation of a living organism is impossible. (Scott I. The God Solution: Are You Ready? Xlibris Corporation, 2013, p. 41)

Believing something that is impossible is not scientific–accepting evolution as the origin of life is another false religion.

Therefore, the acceptance of a supernatural creation (Genesis 1) is the only scientific option according to statements like the above.

There have long been unscientific people claiming science on their side.

Even back in New Testament times there were those who called error ‘science,’ which is what evolution as an explanation of the origin of life and the origin of the universe is.

Notice:

20 O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science falsely so called:

21 Which some professing have erred concerning the faith. (1 Timothy 6:20-21)

Calling Creation “inane” is a false and vain babbling.

If Bill Nye was truly a scientist, he would admit that Darwin had no explanation of the origin of life that could be tested to be proven true.

Actually, all such attempts have failed to prove Darwin’s hypothesis. Though Bill Nye would have to know this.

If Bill Nye would truly consider that matter cannot self-generate and that energy runs out over time, he would realize that there is no current explanation of a creation without a spiritual Creator that makes sense.

Sadly, scientists who challenge too many claims associated with evolution are shunned by many academic institutions, as there is a tremendous amount of pressure at most “leading” academic institutions to squelch research that is not in support of evolution because it will affect their beliefs. Thus many ‘accept’ evolution and act like it is a scientific fact, when instead it is an unproven model that can scientifically be rebutted at various stages.

It rarely fails to astound me how the supposedly educated can insist that evolution is scientifically accurate and why they want people to mindlessly accept such a preposterous explanation of the origins of life.

The fact is that evolution functions as a false religion that many cling to. Therefore, many who hold to it do not bother to look into the truth about why they are on this planet nor what their life really is supposed to be about.

The Continuing Church of God put out two short animations related to this general topic on our CCOG Animations channel:

Here is a link to our video: Big Bang: Nothing or Creator?

Here is a link to our animated video: A Lifegiver or Spontaneous Evolution?

There is no real scientific doubt that evolution as the origin of life is false. It violates too many known laws of biology. It has gotten so bad, that some so-called ‘scientists’ have claimed that life on Earth probably came from Mars as the Earth did not have certain building blocks like Mars does (see BBC: Life may have come from Mars?). This is additional proof that some scientists who profess evolution as life’s origin realize that it does not hold up to true scientific scrutiny.

Various scientists know that the facts do not support that life could have spontaneously began on planet Earth, so they keep looking for other explanations that they hope are more plausible.

True science is compatible with the Bible–it is only that which is falsely called science that is not (cf. 1 Timothy 6:20-21, KJV). Atheistic scientists, according to the Bible, are fools:

20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, 21 because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Professing to be wise, they became fools (Romans 1:20-22).

They have intentionally overlooked what should be obvious.

Evolution has led to the intentional ignorance of appropriate scientific methods. It became a religion for many in the 19th century, and remains one for many today. Shunning or insulting scientists who come out with the truth is one way that they hope to control public debate on the matter.

Notice that Charles Darwin wrote the following in his book The Origin of the Species:

If it could be demonstrated that any complex organ existed which could not possibly have been formed by numerous, successive, slight modifications, my theory would absolutely break down (Darwin C. The Origin of Species. In Chapter 6, Difficulties on Theory. Cricket House Books LLC, 2010, p. 124).

And although Charles Darwin did not believe that was demonstrated to his satisfaction when he wrote that, the truth is that cellular life was simply much more complex than he at that time realized.

Thus, even Charles Robert Darwin’s writings contain an admission that he understood that additional complexity would disprove his theory (perhaps it should be noted that the discovery of DNA would seem to qualify as sufficient complexity that he was unaware of). Of course, scientists know that random amino acids also do not come with DNA. And while this was not known at Darwin’s time, this is known now.

Darwin himself seemed to acknowledge that life could not have started on its own. He seemed, to some degree, to rely on the biblical account in the Book of Genesis as he wrote:

There is a grandeur in this view of life, with its several powers, having been originally breathed by the Creator into a few forms or into one (The Origin Of Species By Charles Darwin, 2nd and subsequent editions).

Thus, apparently Darwin recognized the impossibility of life starting on its own without a Creator (God). But that is not something that people like Bill Nye like to bring up.

Not only can science not truly explain how life began without a creator, it never will be able to. The evolutionary claims about life starting violates too many known laws of biology.

Now, it should be noted that many ‘creationists’ are also not scientists and have views that are not consistent with the Bible. People like Bill Nye cling to those errors, but they also ignore much of what the Bible teaches about the creation (see also How Old is the Earth and How Long Were the Days of Creation?).

The truth is still the truth, as “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1), etc. Atheists hope to cloud that by insulting true scientists and hoping that they can influence people who do not realize many of the facts that disprove the evolutionary model. But they must violate science and common sense in order to do that. They are not true scientists.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Is God’s Existence Logical? Is it really logical to believe in God? Yes! Would you like Christian answers to give atheists? This is a free online booklet that deal with improper theories and musings called science related to the origin of the origin of the universe, the origin of life, and evolution. Two animated videos of related interest are also available: Big Bang: Nothing or Creator? and A Lifegiver or Spontaneous Evolution?
Does it Make Physical Sense to believe in God? Some say it is not logical to believe in God. Is that true? Here is a link to a YouTube sermon titled Is it logical to believe in God?
Is Evolution Probable or Impossible or Is God’s Existence Logical? Part II This short article clearly answers what ‘pseudo-scientists’ refuse to acknowledge. Here is a link to a YouTube video titled Is There Another View of Evolution? and another titled Quickly Disprove Evolution as the Origin of Life.
How Old is the Earth and How Long Were the Days of Creation? Gap Theory? Does the Bible allow for the creation of the universe and earth billions of years ago? Why do some believe they are no older than 6,000 years old? What is the gap theory? Were the days of creation in Genesis 1:3 through 2:3 24 hours long? Here are links to two sermons: Gap Theory: Doctrine or Modern Heresy? and Genesis, ‘Prehistoric man,’ and the Gap theory. Here is a link to a related article in Spanish: ¿Cuán vieja es la Tierra? ¿Cuán largos fueron los Días de la Creación? ¿Teoría de la brecha?
Proof Jesus is the Messiah This free book has over 200 Hebrew prophecies were fulfilled by Jesus. Plus, His arrival was consistent with specific prophecies and even Jewish interpretations of prophecy. Here are links to seven related sermons: Proof Jesus is the Messiah, Prophecies of Jesus’ birth, timing, and death, Jesus’ prophesied divinity, 200+ OT prophecies Jesus filled; Plus prophecies He made, Why Don’t Jews Accept Jesus?, Daniel 9, Jews, and Jesus, and Facts and Atheists’ Delusions About Jesus. Plus the links to two sermonettes: Luke’s census: Any historical evidence? and Muslims believe Jesus is the Messiah, but … These videos cover nearly all of the book, plus have some information not in the book.
Where Did God Come From? Any ideas? And how has God been able to exist? Who is God?
How is God Omnipotent, Omnipresent, and Omniscient? Here is a biblical article which answers what many really wonder about it.
Has time been lost? It Saturday the seventh day of the week?
Why Were You Born? Why did God make you? Herbert W. Armstrong wrote this as a booklet on this important subject. You may also wish to read the article What is Your Destiny? or watch the video, also titled What is Your Destiny?
What is the Meaning of Life? Who does God say is happy? What is your ultimate destiny? Do you really know? Does God actually have a plan for YOU personally? There is also a video titled What is the meaning of your life?
The MYSTERY of GOD’s PLAN: Why Did God Create Anything? Why did God make you? This free online book helps answers some of the biggest questions that human have, including the biblical meaning of life. Here is a link to three related sermons: Mysteries of God’s Plan, Mysteries of Truth, Sin, Rest, Suffering, and God’s Plan, and The Mystery of YOU.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan

COGwriter

Turkey is getting frustrated with the European Union:

Turkey Could ‘Part Ways’ With The EU: Erdogan

September 17, 2023

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday that Ankara could “part ways” with the EU if necessary, following the release of a European Parliament report rejecting the possibility of Turkey joining the EU soon.

The report instead suggested the EU explore “a parallel and realistic framework,” such as a customs union, to determine its ties with Ankara. “The EU is trying to break away from Turkiye,” Erdogan told reporters. “We will make our evaluations against these developments and if necessary, we can part ways with the EU.” …

The European Parliament report follows renewed Turkish efforts to join the EU. Earlier this summer, President Erdogan sought to link Turkey’s EU accession to approving Sweden’s bid to join NATO.

However, EU officials balked at linking the two issues, citing human rights abuses and the deterioration of the rule of law in Turkiye under Erdogan. “We have recently seen a renewed interest from the Turkish government in reviving the EU accession process,” said the lead lawmaker on the file, Spanish Socialist Nacho Sánchez Amor, upon adopting the report …

Turkey’s occupation of parts of EU-member Cyprus has also led EU officials to criticize Erdogan.

In 2018, the European Council said in a statement that negotiations for Turkey to join the EU “have come to a standstill.” https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/turkey-could-part-ways-eu-erdogan

2 For behold, Your enemies make a tumult;
And those who hate You have lifted up their head.
3 They have taken crafty counsel against Your people,
And consulted together against Your sheltered ones.
4 They have said, “Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation,
That the name of Israel may be remembered no more.”
5 For they have consulted together with one consent;
They form a confederacy against You:
6 The tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites;
Moab and the Hagrites;
7 Gebal, Ammon, and Amalek;
Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre;
8 Assyria also has joined with them;
They have helped the children of Lot. (Psalms 83:2-8)

The ‘who’ that have consulted together and agreed to the conspiracy includes Turkey. “Edom” is a reference to Turkey and Assyria to Europe.

The late WCG evangelist Raymond McNair wrote:

Daniel 11 also mentions some of the Mideast peoples who will be involved in that struggle among the nations at the close of this age. The belligerents will include the “King of the North,” the leader of the European Union (or its final outgrowth, called the “Beast”). The “King of the South” (an Islamic leader—apparently from Egypt {or} some other Muslim state) is also referred to. The following lands/peoples are specifically mentioned: Egypt, the Holy Land (Israel/Palestine), the Ethiopians (modern Cushites, south of Egypt), Libya, Edom, Moab and Ammon. Many descendants of the ancient peoples known as Edomites or Idumeans now live in the West Bank, Jordan, Iraq, Turkey, Syria, Arabia, Yemen, the Persian Gulf states, etc. (McNair R. Solving the Arab-Israeli Impasse! Copyright Raymond F. McNair 2005, Church of God—21st Century).

Notice the following from the old Radio Church of God:

Turn to the astounding prophecy found in Psalm 83:1-8. David, inspired of God, predicted the coming time when ALL of Israel’s enemies would join together in an effort to crush out even the name “Israel” from the face of the earth! (Verse 4) “For they have consulted together with one consent: they are confederate against thee…” (verse 5). Notice the nations making up this confederation. “Edom [Turkey], and the Ishmaelites [Saudi Arabia]; Moab [Jordan], and the Hagarenes [they anciently dwelt in the land known as Syria today]; Gebal {Lebanon}, and Ammon [Jordan] and Amalek; the Philistines with the inhabitants of Tyre; Assur [whose descendants migrated to Germany] is joined with them; they have helped the children of Lot” {Moab and Ammon in modern Jordan). Here we see that the Arab nations mentioned are allied with Germany (Assur) which we know from other prophecies will be the military leader — naturally so — of a United States of Europe…Egypt…will provoke the prophesied United Europe (Dan. 11:40). This European power — called the “king of the north” in Daniel 11 — shall invade and occupy the “glorious land” of Palestine (verse 41). “And the land of Egypt shall not escape”(Boraker R. SYRIA RAIDS ISRAEL – Where Is It Leading? Plain Truth. November 1966)

Turkey will be part of a confederacy that will conspire against the tiny nation of Israel as well as against the USA and its British-descended allies (see also Anglo – America in Prophecy & the Lost Tribes of Israel) but since Assyria is involved in Psalm 83, this is also an alliance with a coming European power.

The Bible also shows that Turkey will also, temporarily and as part of a confederacy, support the prophesied King of the South:

40 “At the time of the end the king of the South shall attack him; and the king of the North shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter the countries, overwhelm them, and pass through. 41 He shall also enter the Glorious Land, and many countries shall be overthrown; but these shall escape from his hand: Edom, Moab, and the prominent people of Ammon. 42 He shall stretch out his hand against the countries, and the land of Egypt shall not escape. 43 He shall have power over the treasures of gold and silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt; also the Libyans and Ethiopians shall follow at his heels. (Daniel 11:40-43)

The King of the South is prophesied to be over lands that are currently under Islamic domination. Yet, despite being Islamic, notice that Daniel 11:41 shows that Turkey (Edom) will escape the coming destruction from the King of the North, despite being aligned for a time with the King of the South.

Interestingly, notice the following Roman Catholic prophecy about Turkey and a “Great Arab” leader:

Nostradamus: The Great Arab shall progress well forward, But betrayed shall be by the Byzantines. (Turks).

Comment on above from Catholic writer Yves Dupont: Here, we are told that Turkey will break its faith with the rest of the Arab world. (Dupont, Yves. Catholic Prophecy: The Coming Chastisement. TAN Books, Rockford (IL), 1973, p. 107).

Dionysius of Luxemberg (died 1682): a. “After the birth of Antichrist the people of the world will be very wicked and godless … The churches will be dreary and empty like deserted barns … From the midst of His Church He will raise up a Christian ruler who will perform most remarkable deeds. With divine assistance this ruler will not only lead erring souls back to the true Faith but also deal a heavy blow to the foes of the empire; the Turks, to take away their empire and restore it to Christianity (Connor p.84).

The “Great Arab” is probably supposed to represent the Mahdi/Caliph, the final King of the South. The Turks currently control Byzantium and have for many centuries. Dionysius of Luxemberg seems to be saying that the Turks will betray an Islamic empire.

Hence, Roman Catholic prophecy indicates that Turkey will betray the Islamic Arabic power. In the Bible, Daniel 11:25-26 is quite clear that an ally of the King of the South will betray the King of the South:

25 “He shall stir up his power and his courage against the king of the South with a great army. And the king of the South shall be stirred up to battle with a very great and mighty army; but he shall not stand, for they shall devise plans against him. 26 Yes, those who eat of the portion of his delicacies shall destroy him; his army shall be swept away, and many shall fall down slain. (Daniel 11:25-26)

If Daniel 11:25-26 has future fulfillment (and as it seems to parallel Daniel 11:40-43, it looks to), it would seem that there will be close allies (like Turkey) that will betray the King of the South according to scripture as well.

So what do we make of all of this?

Well, for a time, Turkey will continue to try to have ties with Europe and with the Islamic world (cf. Psalm 83:4-8; Daniel 11:40-43). But this will not last.

For a short while, Turkey will will align with the King of the South–which will also have one or more ties with Europe (cf. Daniel 11:27; Psalm 83:4-8)–until the King of the South and the European King of the North turn against each other (Daniel 11:40-43), but Turkey will switch by then to support the European King of the North.

My experience with the Turks (my wife and I have been to Turkey 3 or 4 times) is that they are a pragmatic people. In time, they will see problems with the ambitions of the King of the South. This will lead to one or more leaders in Turkey betraying the King of the South to the European King of the North, consistent with scripture.

Turkey ultimately will align with Europe, despite some distancing that will also occur.

Biblical prophecies concerning Turkey will come to pass.