TODAY'S TECHNOLOGY IN BIBLE PROPHECY

  I  John compared the locust-shaped aircraft that will transport
     peace-keeping troops to their destination points to the
     observable features of a modern helicopter.

     7 And the shapes of the locusts were like unto horses
     prepared unto battle; and on their heads were as it were
     crowns like gold, and their faces were as the faces of men.
     8 And they had hair as the hair of women, and their teeth
     were as the teeth of lions.
     9 And they had breastplates, as it were breastplates of
     iron; and the sound of their wings was as the sound of
     chariots of many horses running to battle (Rev. 9:7-9).

     A  John followed his recap of the use of military force to
        restore order after AWWI, with a meticulous review of the
        functional capabilities and physical construction of the
        locust-shaped aircraft that will transport the troops to
        their stations.

     B  The statement "the shape of the locusts were like unto
        horses prepared unto battle" reveals that the locust-
        shaped vehicles will actually perform horselike services.

        1  That is, according to the text they will be outfitted
           in the same way the battle horses of old were "prepared
           unto battle," with seating gear for carrying men.

        2  Thus, though the overall outer appearance of the
           contraptions will be locust-shaped, they will be used
           like the horses of John's day to carry troops to war.

     C  The large locust-shaped, horselike war vehicles are
        further described as having, "breastplates, as it were
        breastplates of iron."  In other words, they will be
        covered with metal.

     D  "And the noise of their wings was like the noise of many
        chariots with horses rushing into battle" RSV, provides
        the additional fact that these metal war machines will
        also have locustlike wings that will make a tremendous
        noise.

     E  Why do these three components of the locust-shaped,
        horselike contraption suggest that John was describing a
        modern helicopter?

        1  Helicopters are the only aircraft routinely designed
           and outfitted with mobile rotating wings capable of
           making a whirring noise similar to the sound of
           spinning chariot wheels.

        2  Further, the combination of the helicopter's running
           engine along with its whirling rotor-blades produces
           a definite thump, thump, thump sound as the chopper
           passes overhead.

        3  This unique, exceptionally loud noise resembles the
           hoofbeats of not one, but "many horses running to
           battle."

     F  The circular mast supporting the helicopter's rotary
        wings, which is mounted above the cockpit, is similar in
        appearance to a circular crown worn on the heads of kings.

        1  "And on their heads, as it were, crowns like gold."

        2  "Like gold" does not, in any way, imply that the mast
           will be a golden color or made of gold, but rather
           that the crownlike mast will have the same round shape
           as a king's golden crown.

     G  Since John said the crownlike mast was "on their heads,"
        the head has to refer to the helicopter's cockpit, upon             which the crownlike mast is mounted.

        1  Logically then, the face of the headlike cockpit has
           to be the exterior, front end of the cockpit where the
           pilot's windows reside.

        2  Thus, in John's view, the front of the approaching
           gunships displayed the deadly grim, fierce determina-
           tion found in the "faces of men" charging into battle.

     H  Exactly what feature of the helicopter John was looking
        at when he wrote "they had hairs as hairs of women"
        IGENT, is uncertain.

        1  This does not present a problem since the exact
           meaning of the hairs is not necessary to determine
           that John's description of the locust-shaped
           contraption properly identifies a helicopter.

        2  One possible explanation is that John may have been
           comparing the engine pods to braided hair, rolled up
           and fastened to the sides of a woman's head.

     I  The teeth like lion's teeth refer to the deadly bombs,
        rockets, and missiles that modern helicopter gunships
        carry as part of their offensive weapons package.



     J  Thus, the description of the ferocious, lionlike teeth
        also emphasizes the overall battle-readiness of the
        locust-shaped war machines which "looked like horses
        prepared for battle" NIV.

     10 And they have tails like to scorpions and stings, and
     the authority of them is to harm men with the tails of them
     five months (Rev. 9:10, IGENT).

     A  The taillike weapons of authority identify the helicopter
        gunships' machine guns and the rifles of the soldiers
        riding inside.

        1  The long round barrels of the guns are similar in
           appearance to a scorpion's tail.

        2  The stinging pain inflicted on men by a scorpion's
           tail likewise closely resembles the pain caused by a
           "stinging" bullet wound which comes out of the end of
           a modern gun's barrel.

        3  These weapons will be used to harm men for "five                   months."

     B  In summary, the opening statement--"out of the smoke
        came forth locusts to the earth ..., And they were told
        that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, nor
        any green thing, nor any tree"--foretells the use of
        helicopter gunships to police the open countryside after
        AWWI.

     C  Radio-dispatched, troop-carrying helicopters will be the
        most effective way to protect vital commodities still
        remaining in rural storage bins after the war.

     D  What does this description of military helicopters tell
        us about the Apostle John?

        1  John's feature by feature description of today's
           helicopters reveals his penchant for meticulously
           reporting every detail he heard and saw.

        2  His conscientious writing style certifies the absolute
           accuracy of the entire Book of Revelation.






 II  A comparison between John's twice repeated forecast that
     their will be five months of famine-driven social and
     political upheaval after AWWI and the scientifically
     predicted duration of "nuclear winter" effects after a
     major nuclear war.

     A  One nuclear war study, christened TTAPS, by Richard P.
        Turco, Owen B. Toon, Thomas P. Ackerman, James B.
        Pollack and Carl Sagan, warns that subfreezing
        temperatures could last almost six months after a
        nuclear war involving a 10,000-megaton yield exchange
        (enough firepower to burn up a third of the earth).

     B  Although John does not explicitly use the word famine to
        describe the scientifically predicted "nuclear winter"
        aftereffects of nuclear war, he does forecast five
        months of famine-driven social and political upheaval in
        terms of its highly visible disruptive effects--e.g.,
        the widespread mobilization of troops to protect basic
        food stocks remaining in the countryside.

     C  In view of other biblical reports (covered later) of
        extensive environmental damages resulting from AWWI, it
        is reasonable to assume that global famine induced by
        nuclear winter, will be a major cause of the five month
        period of intense human suffering described in the Fifth
        Trumpet event.

     D  Why did John mention the five month period of extreme
        misery for the second time in this passage?

        1  By biblical precedent, repeated prophetic messages
           emphasize the severity of a coming calamity and the
           need for the listener to prepare before the event
           arrives.

           a  For example, in Joseph's day Pharaoh had two dreams
              that warned of seven years of widespread famine.

           b  Gen. 41:32 declared "And the doubling of Pharaoh's
              dream means that the thing is fixed by God, and God
              will shortly bring it to pass."

        2  Pharaoh responded by storing grain for seven years
           before the famine arrived.

     E  Noah also responded to God's warning of a great flood by
        warning others and by building an ark that would enable
        him to survive the flood.

     F  Today's Christians should likewise respond to John's seven
        trumpet warning by alerting others and by making the
        preparations and commitment necessary to survive the
        coming nuclear war so that, afterwards, God's Church can
        continue to add souls daily.

III  The Fifth Trumpet angel's description of the character and
     mission of the man who will become dictator of the world at
     some point in time in the post-AWWI period.

     11 They have as king over them, the angel of the abyss; his
     name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in the Greek he has the name
     Apollyon (Rev. 9:11, NASB).

     A  Why, after a lengthy description of the martial law
        forces of individual nations, does the text introduce a
        military commander "as king over them," at the end of
        the Fifth Trumpet message?

        1  This future international leader could not be
           mentioned at the beginning of the Fifth Trumpet
           passage simply because he will not be in a prominent
           position the day after AWWI ends, nor will he be in
           control of the various individual national militia
           at that time.

        2  Thus, the introduction of this world leader at the
           end of the Fifth Trumpet message, is in keeping with
           his rise from a position of relative obscurity to a
           figure of international importance, during the five
           month period of chaos following the First Trumpet
           Atomic War.

     B  How does the reference to this king as "the angel of the
        abyss" describe the world leader's character and mission?

        1  Since the words "angel" and "abyss" by definition mean
           messenger and unmeasurable chaos, the central idea
           here seems to be that this world leader will be a
           messenger of chaos.

        2  Here, "his name in Hebrew is Abaddon," which literally
           means destruction and is the same as the mythological
           god Apollyon, which in Greek means to destroy, also
           emphasizes the leader's violent unstable personality.





        3  All the heathen cultures, from the earliest Babylonian
           times through the Roman period of history feared a
           mythological angel ruler of the abyss, who received
           every one sent down to him but released no one, not
           even a goddess visiting Hades, save by special order
           of the supreme god.

        4  John's comparison of the future world leader to the
           angel ruler of the abyss, therefore, states that this
           man's main accomplishment will be to destroy those who
           follow him, as he systematically leads the nations of
           this world to destruction.

     C  How does the explicit naming of "destruction" here as the
        main feature and embodiment of this "king's" character
        and mission, identify this man as the person who will run
        a future world government spoken of in Rev. 17:8?

        1  Rev. 17:8 states "the beast which thou sawest was, and
           is not, and is about to come up out of the abyss and
           goes to destruction."

        2  The beast coming up out of the abyss is a description
           of how man's final one world government "beast" will
           come to power.

        3  Thus, out of the smoke, atomic ashes, and utter chaos
           following AWWI, an equally violent and unstable "world
           government beast" will arise.

        4  The promise that this government will go to
           destruction is in keeping with John's description
           of the destructive character of this king.

     D  The Fifth Trumpet text teaches that early support for
        this man's initial bid for great power will come from
        the world's military commanders who will be attempting
        to restore order after the Atomic War.

     E  Other scriptures covering the aftermath of AWWI show this
        man steadily acquiring a larger international following
        until he eventually secures control of an
        all-encompassing world government.








 IV  The completion of the Fifth Trumpet events also marks the
     end of the first woe.

     12 The first woe is past; and, behold, two woes are still
     coming after these things (Rev. 9:12, NASB).

     A  The five month period of upheaval following the First
        Trumpet Atomic War is referred to as the first woe.

     B  According to the Fifth Trumpet prophecy and Rev. 17:8
        this woe marks the period when a future "world
        government beast" and its leader will begin "to come up
        out of the abyss," or unfathomable chaos following AWWI.

     C  This is the first of three woes about which the U.S.
        eagle will warn the world, directly after AWWI.

  V  Some significant points to remember about the opening of the
     first five trumpet prophecies during the decade of the '80s.

     A  The first five trumpets have not been understood since
        the Apostle John wrote the Revelation, and, in fact, could
        not be understood until advanced studies of the smoke
        from nuclear warfare started being released in June of
        1982.

     B  Once the scientific studies revealed that smoke from
        atomic warfare has the capacity to block out a large
        fraction of the sun's rays and lower land temperatures
        below freezing for months, then God's warning trumpet
        prophecies to the nuclear generation ceased to be a
        mystery.

     C  While today's experts overlooked the humblest of the
        side effects of nuclear war--the smoke of burning
        cities--for nearly forty years after the detonation of
        the first atomic bomb, the Bible repeatedly emphasizes
        smoke as the most significant side effect.