What's the creepiest thing a Bible preacher has ever said to you?
Obviously, Christian Doomsayers say the most chilling things, it's just normal for them. They will usually say stuff like, "The sky and the earth won't last forever!"
That sounds pretty much like the end of the world, right?
Well, some Bible-believers think that the "heaven" and the "earth" in Genesis 1:1 are the sky and the ground of the Planet Earth. That's why when you hear Doomsayers shout "Heaven and earth will pass away!" it will frighten you to the core.
But you know what? This "heaven and earth will disappear" (Matthew 24:35) prophecy should not scare you.
Okay, look no further! This "heaven and earth vanishing" story is from an Isaiah prophecy:
Isa 51:6 Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look upon the earth beneath: for the heavens shall vanish away like smoke, and the earth shall wax old like a garment, and they that dwell therein shall die in like manner: but my salvation shall be for ever, and my righteousness shall not be abolished.
And you can check out Peter's prediction too:
2Pet 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.
But if you go to the Book of Revelation, you will read:
Rev 21:1 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.
See the connection with the prophecies from Isaiah, Matthew, and Peter?
And sometimes reading these things are a bit more upsetting than shocking — in any case it's all metaphors and it's about the ancient Israelites, the "heaven and earth" in some passages.
Think about that for a moment!
The prophets certainly have a lot to talk about ancient Israelites — sometimes what they predict about them is frightening, sometimes it's alarming, sometimes it's brutally frank, and sometimes it's totally mystifying.
For those who aren't familiar with Abraham as the founding father of Israel, I'd like you to read Genesis. Those who are familiar with Abraham's story, did you know that his descendants were compared to the stars of heaven and the sand [dust of the earth]?
Gen 13:14 And the LORD said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward:
Gen 13:15 For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever.
Gen 22:15 And the angel of the LORD called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time,
Gen 22:16 And said, By myself have I sworn, saith the LORD, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son:
Gen 22:17 That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies;
You know, from the days of Abraham to the days of King David, they believe that the Israelites will become as the stars of heaven in number.
1Chr 27:23 But David took not the number of them from twenty years old and under: because the LORD had said he would increase Israel like to the stars of the heavens.
These ancient Israelites, and all of their generations, are God's chosen people. They have God's laws, covenants, promises, and prophecies. They are all his servants:
Rom 9:4 Who are Israelites; to whom pertaineth the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises;
Seeing now that the ancient Israelites are being compared to the heaven and the earth, consider this passage too from Psalms:
Ps 119:89 LAMED. For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven.
Ps 119:90 Thy faithfulness is unto all generations: thou hast established the earth, and it abideth.
Ps 119:91 They continue this day according to thine ordinances: for all are thy servants.
Sadly, majority of the ancient Israelites became evil. They had forgotten God's word and ordinances. They had neither understanding nor knowledge of God.
Jer 4:22 For my people is foolish, they have not known me; they are sottish children, and they have none understanding: they are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge.
Jeremiah saw them as an earth without form and void and as the heavens without light.
Jer 4:23 I beheld the earth, and, lo, it was without form, and void; and the heavens, and they had no light.
Go back to Genesis and you'll notice some similarity in verse 2 of chapter 1:
Gen 1:2 The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep…
Let us compare more passages from the Book of Hebrews:
Heb 1:10 And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands:
Heb 1:11 They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment;
You can definitely figure out that the ancient Israelites were facing doomsday [a day of final judgment or a time of catastrophic destruction and death].
Try to connect Hebrews with Isaiah's prophecy and this next passage:
Heb 8:13 In that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away.
Notice: The wording of "heaven and earth" in Hebrews 1:10-11, Hebrews 8:13, and Isaiah 51:6 is virtually alike; moreover, the passages speak of a New Covenant replacing the First Covenant.
Now, compare Hebrews 8:13 with Christ's statement:
Matt 24:35 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.
Clearly, "the first heaven and the first earth" is not the literal sky and ground, it's the First Covenant and those ancient Israelite covenant-breakers who have reproached God; both must pass away.
So rethink about your view of heaven and earth when you're reading the Bible today.
The vanishing heaven and earth prophecy is showing us a change in God's dealings with the Israelites rather than a change in the physical structure of the universe and the Planet Earth that you were taught in science.
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resteeming!
Thanks, David!