Things Not Always What They Seem—Days of Violence and Bloodshed Await the World
It pains our hearts to refer to present-day conditions in some directions. We prefer not to do so, and often hesitate; but on more sober reflection, we dare not wholly refrain. We look out upon the beauties of nature, on the calm and peaceful things about us. We see quiet peasantry on farm and countryside places. We hear the innocent prattle of beautiful childhood on every side. Churches lift their spires heavenward, and summon the people to come and worship God as their conscience dictates. We visit the galleries of art and science, and sit amid the silence of libraries; and the quietude that reigns is often most impressive. Men talk of peace and a good time coming.
These things all appeal to our hearts; and naturally we would be glad to believe that what our eyes see, and our ears hear, is a correct interpretation of the state of things in the earth after six millennia of sin. But our minds go back over history. We recall that men were pursuing, uninterrupted, the regular business of life, when the heavens were getting ready for the Deluge. The day before, the dark, angry clouds, muttering thunders, appeared as precursors of the destruction that was to sweep the earth with the besom of destruction. The sun shone as brightly as on any day since God brought light out of darkness.
A SUBMARINE RISING TO THE SURFACE. WITH AIRCRAFT, ONE OF THE MOST MODERN BRANCHES OF NAVAL POWER
Obliterated by a Tornado of Fire
THE day before, every appearance was against the terrible tornado of fire and brimstone which came from heaven and put an eternal period to the pleasure and shocking filthiness of Sodom and Gomorrah. Earthquakes take place when least expected. No one knew that Martinique was doomed that day.
So, as we scan with unbiased mind the situation about us, aided by the certain forecast of God's book, we are led to believe that the future will not be so lamblike and peaceful as some things indicate, or as some people would have us believe. Rather, a volcano seems to be muttering beneath us, and an eruption is imminent. The pen of an inspired man has told us that in the last days men would be "fierce." 2 Tim. 3: 1-5. This is a strong word, betokening a ferocity like that of untamed and bloodthirsty animals.
The Saviour has drawn this picture of the days immediately preceding His second coming: "And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man. They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the Flood came, and destroyed them all. Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded; but the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed." Luke 17: 26-30.
This is indeed a dark picture, a cloud with no silver lining. Of the days of Noah, when the earth was corrupted by the wickedness and debasing passions of sin, we read: "The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth. And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before Me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth." Gen. 6: 11-13.
Notice that the earth then was "filled with violence." The victims of rage, greed, and lust could be found everywhere. We deplore the fact that similar excesses are fast filling the earth. The press chronicles the most shocking details of crime, vice, and sensual debauchery, driving men in retaliation to the most inhuman deeds of lawlessness and disorder. The following, from an editorial in the Independent of May 29, 1916, is a sample of many others, and reflects the savage brutality and violence existing in the earth:
"In the town of Waco, Texas, last week, a crowd of 15,000 persons watched a human being burned to death. It was no accident, but deliberate intent. A Negro boy of eighteen had criminally assaulted and killed a white woman seven days before. He had been arrested, indicted, tried, convicted, and sentenced to death in astonishingly brief space of time.
"Then the mob seized him, and burned him to death in the public square, while men, women, and children looked on. It was a peculiarly atrocious case of lynch law. It had none of the usual circumstances that are offered in palliation. The offender had been convicted, and would have been put to death legally in due course. There could be no contention that justice might be cheated. His lynching was simply an orgy of mob brutality and savage lust.
"The young Negro's crime was a horrible one. The crime of the people of Waco was more horrible and a deeper stain upon the fair name of Texas."
The deed of this inhuman monster, standing on the threshold of manhood, is shocking in the extreme. The vengeance visited upon him startles us and unstrings our nerves. If the multiplication of these cold-blooded deeds does not indicate that beneath the surface, a volcano of violence and cruelty is smoldering, in fulfillment of the word of the Most High God, what would? The elements betoken the end, and the approaching vengeance of God, whose wine cup of wrath will destroy sinners out of the land.
Then look at the awful conditions occasioned by the war raging in Europe. Such scenes of carnage, judging from the published reports, are awful in the extreme. They seem never to have been equaled in any age. Every means of slaughter is used. A writer who was present on one occasion, says they were "surprised by a gas attack, and with their eyes streaming, their lungs torn by the knife-like stabs which accompany every effort to breathe, they retired."
Appalling Conditions Face Us
SPEAKING concerning the wounded lying on the battle field, where sharpshooters made it impossible to render them help, the same writer says concerning their sufferings:
"A few of our boys lived through the broiling hot day, with sun pouring down on them, heaps of dead around them, the stink of decaying flesh in their nostrils, and their throats parched with thirst. Yes, a few of them lived, but, oh, it was a pitiful few!475
"In the afternoon, I saw one poor fellow who had been worming his way in inch by inch. He probably went mad, for he suddenly staggered to his feet, faced the trenches, and started shrieking curses at the top of his voice. The words died in his throat, and he went down riddled with bullets. During the day, many of them managed to get a weapon in their hands, and did the deed themselves."
The conditions that face us in the world are truly appalling. We look out upon a sea of violence and bloodshed similar to that predicted in Holy Writ. The sign of the day of God is here. It is time to prepare for the coming of Christ, who will establish a kingdom of peace. Lord, hasten this glad day.
G. B. T.
