Last time in our study we looked at the primary signs of Jesus’ second coming in the Oliveth prophecies. We looked in great detail at wars and rumours of wars, and kingdoms rising against kingdoms and nations against nations. Today we will go a step further by looking at the other primary signs Jesus pointed out in Matt 24:7d.
Other primary signs- Matt 24:7d
“…….and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places”.
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Pestilences
Most times, during wars and famines, diseases and epidemics are aftermaths because the human immune system breaks down and are not able to fight diseases due to hunger, starvation, and malnourishment.
Fact and figures
* Before covid19, approximately 135 million were experiencing severe hunger.
* 250,000 people die daily with more than 10,000 being children.
Jesus’ Oliveth prediction about an upsurge and escalation in diseases at the end time has been fulfilled and are being fulfilled right before our eyes as we see a rise in the case of deadly diseases.
From the Bubonic plague in 1665-1666 where about 70,000 people died in London, humankind has seen an increase in pathogenic diseases that have killed millions ever since. Medical science and pharmacology have been able to tackle some of these diseases by developing vaccines while also being incapacitated and clueless about most of the other these diseases plaguing mankind.
Humankind has had to battle with deadly diseases such as tuberculosis, Aids, necrotizing fasciitis, cholera, and in recent times; Ebola, Lassa Fever and Coronavirus.
The coronavirus pandemic has killed approximately 1.02m people worldwide, while Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) and Lassa Fever have killed approximately 28,616 and 5,000 people in West Africa, respectively.
The 3 following reasons seem to be responsible for the revival of ancient diseases and the birth of new ones in the world today:
- Cities are rapidly expanding to cope with the 83 million annual increase in the world population, and many city inhabitants (particularly in the “third world”) live in crowded and unsanitary conditions.
- The increase in travel provides the potential for passing on diseases.
- Excessive or incorrect use of drugs has encouraged bacteria to mutate and gain resistance.
Despite the advancement in scientific and technological advancements, medical science has not been able to cope with the surge in diseases and pestilence. As the world has seen during the recent covid19 pandemic, how great nations like the United States and India with cutting edge technology were overwhelmed with the disease and recorded deaths of approximately 208,000 and 99,773 respectively according to United States Centre for Disease Control.
These are clear indications that the answer to human challenges as regards coping with diseases is not in medical science and pharmacology but in the man, Jesus Christ.
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Earthquakes
An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or tremblor) is the shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from a sudden release of energy in the Earth’s lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in size from those that are so weak that they cannot be felt to those violent enough to propel objects and people into the air and wreak destruction across entire cities.
According to data from The National Earthquake Information Center (NEIC), records show an average of 20,000 earthquakes every year (about 50 a day) around the world. There are, however, millions of earthquakes estimated to occur every year that are too weak to be recorded.
Although the technology used to find the source of and record earthquakes has improved since the 20th century, the ability of scientists to predict earthquakes is still severely limited. As earthquakes happen numerous times every day, the issue for policymakers and city planners is not if an earthquake will occur, but how powerful and devastating it will be on the rate of scale.
Large earthquakes usually result in higher death tolls in developing countries or countries where building codes are less stringent. China has suffered from a number of strong earthquakes that have resulted in extremely high death tolls.
According to Statistical, during the nineteen-year period (200-2019) the number of earthquakes worldwide are approximately; 35,204 on the rate of scale magnitude 5+.
Earthquake facts and figures (2015-2019)
Year of Earthquake Fatalities
- 1,637
- 1,808
- 1,566
- 1,696
2015 1,565
These figures and facts show that Jesus’ prediction about an increase in frequency and intensity of pestilences and earthquakes are coming to pass as the age draws to a close.
We will continue our study of the Oliveth prophecy next time by looking at the statement of Jesus in Matt 24:8, “that these are the beginning of sorrows”.
Sources
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earthquake
http://www.christadelphianbooks.org/agora/art_less/p-q22.html