World shaking events are happening so quickly in this age that it is almost impossible to keep abreast of them from one month to the other. Just one month ago when the United States had succeeded in firing the Atlas missile 6300 miles on target, it was hastily concluded that the U.S. was truly out ahead in the space age.
The U.S. News and World Report stated that it seriously doubted that Russia was anywhere near this point in the development of her rocketry. But as this issue of The Tidings goes to press, the pendulum of power has begun its arc in the other direction. and we see the balance of power shift to Russia.
Though it did actually appear that the United States had truly surged far ahead of Russia, we repeat what was stated in the January Tidings : “With the increase of knowledge that Daniel says will characterize the latter days, gaining in momentum, it cannot be too long until the king of the north surges ahead, as she most surely must in order to be the terrible victor of Asia depicted in the scriptures.”
It was not anticipated. however, that this surge would take place so quickly after the successful Atlas launching. When Russia sent her satellite, “Lunic” roaring off into space on Jan. 2, even she did not expect it to orbit around the sun. It was an attempt to hit the moon. Failing this, but coming sufficiently close to be somewhat influenced by its gravitational attraction, the satellite shifted its direction and began a huge orbit around the sun.
The artificial planet, named by Russia “Planet 10,” travels in a huge elyptic, whose nearest point to the mother sun is 90,969,000 miles and whose farthest point is 122,534,000 miles. This Soviet Sun rocket has given her more prestige than any other achievement since Sputnik I.
It is now recognized that the United States is between one and two years behind the Russians in rocket development. Though the Atlas missile, now orbiting the earth, weighs in excess of four tons, the instrument pay load amounts to only 150 lbs. The rest of the weight belongs to the last stage of the propellent. A thrust of 350,000 lbs. was required to place the Atlas in orbit. The “Lunic,” on the other hand, has a pay load of 800 lbs. and required an estimated 400 to 500.000 lbs. of thrust.
The really important factor involved in these feats is the ability to guide the missile to its destination. Russia’s sun rocket came to within 4700 miles of the moon, an error in computation of less than one degree. By comparison, the U.S. Atlas moon shot was off, at the launching pad, three degrees.
With the attainment of such accuracy, Russia has assumed an ominous threat hitherto unknown. Her Christmas Day message to the free world contained a threat that the United States could find herself “showered” with missiles carrying nuclear war heads. In the Berlin crisis the U.S. was warned, “Any provocation in West Berlin and attempted aggression . . . may start a major war.”
A Soviet Communist Party paper, The Pravada, asserted that the Soviet Union has “the most up to date arms including intercontinental rockets which are invulnerable carriers of powerful thermonuclear warheads.”
With such events as these occurring in the world about us, it is quite apparent that we are swiftly entering the space age, an age that is destined to suffer the outpouring of God’s wrath, apocalyptically described as the pouring out of the seventh vial into the air.
Doctor Thomas understood the “air” of this prophecy to be the political firmament of the heavens of the world. That this is surely part of what is intended in the symbolism of the Revelation is unquestionable. When the doctor lived, some 100 years ago, the idea of man’s conquest of air and possibly space was only remotely hinted at. That God would, at the appearance of Christ, pour out his wrath upon the kingdoms of this world, overthrowing their heavens and casting down their political stars, was quite clear to him, and he foretold these events with unerring accuracy.
The texts concerning the pouring out of the vials of Cod are found in the 16th chapter of the Revelation. In the 17th verse John writes: “And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, it is done.’ The pouring out of this vial was accompanied with voices, thunders and lightening’s. There was also a great earthquake unlike any that ever occurred on the earth.
In the 20th verse, we are told that “every island fled away, and the mountains were not found.’ In Bible symbolism, natural earth formations such as islands, mountains and hills typify nations and kingdoms. In the 6th chapter of Ezekiel, the prophet addresses the nations of Israel as “the mountains of Israel”; the various nations of the world are called mountains and hills in Micah 6:1, while the Kingdom of God is referred to as a great mountain which fills the whole earth by Daniel (2:35)
It is quite reasonable that God should employ natural phenomena such as earthquakes to illustrate his breaking of the nations and their subjugation to Christ’s rule, The initial impact of the Kingdom of God on the kingdoms of this world will have the same devastating effect that a gigantic earthquake would have on the physical geography of the earth.
The present “prince of the power of the air,” whom Paul defines as the “spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience” will soon be east out of the political heavens to be replaced with the Prince of Peace. The rulers of the darkness of this world, who are influenced only by the impulses of the flesh, being in positions of authority, are said to be in the “air.”
The out-pouring of the seventh vial upon the air must, in the language of the apocalypse, have reference to the wounding of the heads of many countries ; the striking through of the kings in the day of His wrath (Psalm 110: 5.6).
When the kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and when He shall have taken up His great power and reigned, Jesus will then be seated in the political air. Hence, Paul advises us that “we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; and so shall we ever be with the Lord” (I Thes. 4:17).
The faithful, having been promised places of authority and ruler-ship in the Kingdom of God, and having been told by Christ that “he that overcometh will J grant to sit with me in my throne” (Rev. 3:21) at the appearance of Christ will take their positions in the air of the new heavens, and reign for a thousand years.
Such, indeed, is a proper and harmonious understanding of John’s words in Revelation 16:7. However, it would seem, from the character of the days which are upon us, that there is to be found in this prophecy a note of literality which, far from taking away from the interpretation, adds to it in a way that displays the true harmony of the scriptures.
In our next issue, God willing, we shall pursue this subject further. Perhaps by that time there will be an even greater achievement than either the launching of the U.S. Atlas or the Soviet’s artificial planet. Perhaps by then, our Glorious Lord will have made His majestic descent to this earth and have begun the judgment of the household.
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One