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I read about the possibility of global destruction the other day. What I was reading said the earth will be laid waste. It mentioned the world withering and languishing. It’s like there is a curse that is consuming the earth and it’s inhabitants are burning up.

Was I reading the Washington Post’s recent articles about record braking temperatures in Europe and the New England states? No. Perhaps it was a story in Scientific American about global warming. No. It must have been CNN’s special on the melting glaciers of Greenland. Wrong again. I was reading the book of Isaiah, chapter 24.

Isaiah writes, “The LORD is going to lay waste the earth and devastate it.” (vs1)

“The earth will be completely laid waste and plundered.” (vs 3)

“The earth dries up and withers, the world languishes and withers.” (vs 4)

“A curse consumes the earth. The earths inhabitants are burned up, and very few are left.” (vs 6)

Wow. Sounds pretty severe! What would cause God to do such a thing? Verse 5 gives us the answer, “The earth is defiled by its people; they have disobeyed the laws, violated the statutes and broken the everlasting covenant.”

Many people claim that climate change and ultimate global destruction is caused by man. It might be. But maybe it’s not because of greenhouse gases, auto emissions and coal burning factories. God may be using climate change to punish mankind because they have disobeyed the laws, violated the statutes and broken the everlasting covenant. By God’s standard, global warming is the least of our problems. Humans greatest problem is disobedience, violating God’s statutes and braking the everlasting covenant.

It’s clear from Isaiah 24 and many other scripture references that these things make God angry and he plans to “lay waste the earth and devastate it.”

Is there any hope for mankind and the planet? Maybe. Maybe not.

That question makes me think of three stories from the Old Testament that may give us some insight into what future planet earth and its inhabitants can expect.

God, Noah and the Worlds Population

Genesis 6 says that “the LORD saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time…So the LORD said ‘I will wipe from the face of the earth the human race I have created.” (vs 5,7)

God told righteous Noah to build an ark which he did, and he and his family and the animals on board were spared the global destruction by flood waters. No hope for the rest of mankind at that time. Why? They were wicked. They were disobedient, ignored the statutes and broke the everlasting covenant.

God, Moses and the Israelites

In chapter 32 of Exodus, God is angry with the Israelites for making a golden calf and worshiping it. God tells Moses in verses 9 and 10, “I have seen these people and they are a stiff necked people. Now leave me alone so that my anger may burn against them and that I may destroy them. Then I will make you into a great nation.” Moses had a little talk with God and talked him out of destroying all of the Israelites. In the end, there was still a large group dedicated to the LORD, and they took their swords and killed about three thousand people who were disobedient, ignored God’s statutes and broke the everlasting covenant. Verse 14 tells us, “the LORD relented and did not bring on his people the disaster he had threatened.” Maybe there is hope for us.

God, Jonah and the Ninevites

In the book of Jonah we read that the word of the LORD came to Jonah saying, “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.” (1:1,2) After a brief detour, Jonah gets to Nineveh and begins preaching, “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.” (3:4) No, ifs, ands or buts. Nineveh will be overthrown!

But, guess what? The King of Ninevah heard Jonah’s proclamation and ordered the people to “call urgently on God. Give up your evil ways and your violence. Who knows? God may yet relent and with compassion turn from his fierce anger so that we will not perish.” (3:8,9)

Verse 10 of chapter 4 gives us the good news that “when God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened.”

Hope for Us?

So maybe there is hope for the world and humankind. All humanity has to do is to repent, which means drastically change the way they think about God and themselves, and change their behavior. If we all earnestly obey God’s laws, follow his statutes, and keep the everlasting covenant, God may relent, “and with compassion turn from his fierce anger so that we will not perish.”

It’s just that easy. Hmmm. I see more withering, languishing and global destruction in our future.

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