God has used earthquakes many times in the past for His divine purposes.
- He used an earthquake, among other signs, to demonstrate His power to the prophet Elijah (1 Kings 19:11-12).
- There was an earthquake, among other signs, that immediately followed Jesus’ death on the cross (Matthew 27:50-52).
- There was a great earthquake when an angel rolled away the stone from the tomb where Jesus had been laid (Matthew 28:2).
- God used an earthquake to free Paul and Silas from prison (Acts 16:25-26).
The earthquakes that will occur during the tribulation will definitely get people's attention. You don't want to be here when the one that's part of God's final judgment hits.
A look at earthquakes in recent decades
It’s undeniable that the frequency of earthquakes that have been detected worldwide has increased dramatically over the past 30 years. Some argue it’s because we’re better equipped in more recent years to detect the smaller quakes. I agree that we are better at detecting smaller earthquakes than we were decades ago but haven’t you noticed a lot more reports about earthquakes around the world recently?Let’s take a quick look at the number of earthquakes that have occurred over a 110-year span. We’ll just look at the earthquakes that registered at least 7.0 or higher on the Richter scale. This is an interesting measurement because we’ve been good at detecting earthquakes of this magnitude for a long time.
As you can see, the average number of big earthquakes has increased dramatically. I have verified this data myself on the USGS website. Since 1900, there have been 17 earthquakes that have registered 8.5 or higher on the Richter scale. Of those, 5 have been greater than 9.0 and all 5 of them have occurred since 1952.
I’d say there’s substantial evidence that both the frequency and intensity of earthquakes is increasing, wouldn’t you?
Earthquakes of the seven-year tribulation
As bad as things have been and appear to be trending in a more fearful direction, it’s going to get a lot worse in the last days. The sixth seal judgment warns of a great earthquake that will turn the sun black and make the moon appear red (Revelation 6:12).The earthquake described in Revelation 6:12 is not a typical earthquake but a great one. The sun becoming black and the moon becoming like blood indicate that this earthquake is so severe that it will put so much smoke and ash into the atmosphere that it will block the sun’s rays from reaching the face of the earth.
It’s likely that this earthquake will cause one or more volcanoes to erupt putting large amounts of smoke and ash in the atmosphere. In 1980, Mount St. Helens, in Washington USA erupted and put ash so high into the atmosphere that the ash traveled all the way around the globe. It made daytime in the surrounding area appear to be nighttime with extremely low visibility. Not only was it difficult to breathe, but many vehicles were disabled because their carbonators became clogged with the fine volcanic ash.
I’m a resident of Washington State, but I was out of state, serving in the Navy at the time of the eruption. Months after the eruption had happened, I remember visiting the area where most of the ash had settled and there were still piles of ash all along the streets.
So far in 2018, we've seen multiple earthquakes on the big island of Hawaii cause the Kilauea volcano to spew ash ten thousand feet into the air. That's on top of the lava flows that have been destroying neighborhoods on the island or making them uninhabitable. As bad as that is, at least 69 people have been killed and hundreds injured in an eruption that generated multiple pyroclastic flows and heavy ash fall across the area near Fuego, Guatemala. Making the Central American country’s most active volcano the deadliest of the year. Over 3,000 people had to be evacuated.
This prophecy doesn’t tell us how long the sun will be blotted out, but even if it lasted only a few days it could have devastating effects on vegetation, in the short term.
The seventh seal judgment reveals yet another earthquake along with thunder and lightning but it’s just a prelude to what will soon follow.
Seventh bowl judgment: The great and final shaking
The final earthquake of the tribulation will be the greatest of all time. No earthquake that’s ever occurred will even come even close to the severity of this one. It will affect the whole earth, with the possible exception of Israel (Revelation 16:17-20).If you’re an inhabitant of the earth when this thing hits, you won’t be able to miss it.
- The great city, Babylon will be divided into three parts. Some scholars believe this city to be Rome while others believe it to be the rebuilt city of Babylon in modern day Iraq. In the last days, we’ll know for sure because it will be the center of world government.
- All the cities of the Gentile nations will be turned to rubble.
- Every island will disappear from the face of the earth.
- Every mountain on earth will be leveled.
But God’s not finished pouring out His wrath just yet. This earthquake will be followed by a great hailstorm. The largest hail recorded has been about two pounds, but the hail that God will rain down in this judgment will weigh about 75 to 100 pounds (34 to 45 kilograms). This hailstorm will take down any structures that are still standing after this terrible earthquake. Imagine what it will do to anyone standing nearby.
God brings this judgment, not only because a holy loving God must bring wrath upon evildoers. He brings the judgment with the desire that they should repent of their sins and turn to Him. Sadly, many who have survived up to this point are so hard of heart that they won’t repent, even after experiencing this terrible hail. Revelation 16:21 tells us that men who survive this judgment from God will blaspheme His holy name.
References
- USGS Earthquakes
- US scientists predict more big earthquakes in 2018
- EARTHQUAKES - WHAT ARE THE LONG TERM TRENDS?1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens
- 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens
- Growing Concerns Over West Coast Seismic Activity
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