It seems to me that God chooses to work His will by two separate means. One way is purely supernatural. Raising the dead, multiplying the fishes and loaves, walking on water, etc. Another way might be to supernaturally bring about His will through natural causes. An example of this might be the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. If those two cities were built in a seismically active area, then it would perhaps explain the cause of their destruction. Of course, God's will was the ultimate cause.

 
In trying to imagine the "mechanics" of a gigantic world-wide earthquake, I asked myself if the cause of this event would be supernatural (beyond our ability to explain), or supernaturally imposed on natural mechanics (part of which we could explain).

 

It seems (at least in my own mind) that the earth is already destabilizing and becoming more seismically active. More volcanic and earthquake activity and both increasing in frequency and severity. So I ask myself if this is all supernatural in cause and effect, or is this a case of the divine will being expressed by natural means? I hope I have the ability to express myself well. Let me try to be more specific.

 

The great earthquake might have no better explanation than a heavenly trumpet being blown as the cause. But, might there be a natural phenomenon that would in part explain event. Please understand me as I labor with this second possibility. While I have no doubt about any detail in the explanation in the book of Revelations, I simply wonder if there are details that enhance our understanding of the natural mechanics. I believe with my whole heart and mind that God would be the sole cause in either eventuality, it's just that there might be natural mechanics involved. If this is so, then might there be something that would explain the great earthquake such as through the influence of some celestial body. This does seem like wild speculation on the surface. Yet when I see the unbelieving world doing strange things, I wonder if there is something in the natural environment that would explain their behavior.

 

A few years ago, I understand that a seed vault was built underground in Norway. Why would they do that? Surely it cost millions of dollars. When I looked it up, I saw that it was funded by the Norwegian government with private contributors. One strange and quirky occurrence doesn't make a pattern. But there might be other occurrences which would form one. I am not a conspiracy nut with a tin foil hat on my head. I try hard to be a rational human being looking for solid answers. Back at around the same time that the seed vault was built in Norway, then governor Bredesen of Tennessee built a vast two story underground ballroom under the grounds of the governor's mansion. It was named Conservation Hall, but the local media dubbed it Bredesen's Bunker. It was funded by private contributors. Normally it takes a long time to raise that kind of money. Normally it takes a number of years. But the funding seemed to appear very quickly. I did a quick and by no means exhaustive survey and found other examples.

 

Why does an unbelieving group of people build such things? Is this all in the realm of a conspiracy theory and only fit for pulp fiction novels or Hollywood productions? I guess it could be. I know that if there was any truth to such speculations it would require vast sums of money that would probably bankrupt nations and be very difficult to hide from the public. How could any group of people hope to hide such massive sums and hope to cover it all up?  They would have to create a huge diversion, or host of diversions as it would create the worldwide bankruptcy of entire nations.

 

If there was "something" like a rogue brown dwarf adrift in the universe I suppose it would cause massive earthquakes if it came near and could explain the reactions that I might be imagining. Then again perhaps I am only an armchair dreamer who only wants the world to go back to making sense. I certainly wouldn't fault you for never reading my emails again. But, regarding the end of days, the prophet Isaiah said...

 

The LORD alone will be exalted in that day,
¹⁸ But the idols He shall utterly abolish.
¹⁹ They shall go into the holes of the rocks,
And into the caves of the earth,
From the terror of the LORD
And the glory of His majesty,
When He arises to shake the earth mightily.
²⁰ In that day a man will cast away his idols of silver
And his idols of gold,
Which they made, each for himself to worship,
To the moles and bats,
²¹ To go into the clefts of the rocks,
And into the crags of the rugged rocks,
From the terror of the LORD
And the glory of His majesty,
When He arises to shake the earth mightily.

 

YBIC

Bruce Baber