Gary Varvel: The Wrath of God

Asteroids, fire and hail, oh my!

Dec 02, 2024

ARCHIVE 2015 - Nine years ago, I drew this cartoon when the national debt was only $18 trillion. Congress doubled the debt in less than a decade. It took 40 presidents and 224 years for America’s government to accumulate $5 trillion in debt. Since the year 2000, Congress has overspent by $31 trillion.

Speaking of asteroids hitting the earth, did you know that the Bible prophesies that this will happen in the future? Continue reading.

THE FIRST 4 TRUMPET JUDGMENTS

According to D.A. Carson, the Bible mentions the “Wrath of God” over 600 times. The purpose of God’s Wrath is to lead people to repent of their sin. Noah was a preacher of righteousness (2 Peter 2:5) and warned people about God’s wrath for 120 years while building the ark but only 8 people were saved from the flood. Lot was warned about God’s wrath before the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah but only 4 people were rescued.

Recently, I was reminded of God’s wrath while researching an asteroid named Apophis.

During the 7-year Tribulation period also referred to as the 70th week of Daniel 9 and “The time of Jacob’s distress” in Jeremiah 30:7. The Book of Revelation chapters 4-19 describes God’s wrath in which the 7 Seal judgments, 7 Trumpet judgments and 7 Bowl judgments are poured out on the inhabitants of the earth.

Revelation 8 describes the first 4 Trumpets judgments.

^{Verse 7}The first angel sounded his trumpet, and there came hail and fire mixed with blood, and it was hurled down on the earth. A third of the earth was burned up, a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up.
⁸The second angel sounded his trumpet, and something like a huge mountain, all ablaze, was thrown into the sea. A third of the sea turned into blood, ⁹a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed.

This is not a spiritual metaphor, it will be an actual physical event that sounds like the impact of an asteroid hitting earth.

Notice in verse 8, “something like a huge mountain all ablaze.” It doesn’t just fall, it is “thrown” into the sea. An asteroid entering the atmosphere traveling 10 miles-a-second would cause a blazing fire. As it breaks into our atmosphere, pieces of it would break apart and shower fiery meteors down on earth. The result of the impact is death of a third of the earth trees, grass will be burned up. A third of the ships on earth will be destroyed, a third of the living creatures in the sea will die and the sea will be turned to blood.

Since 2004, scientists have been tracking an asteroid through space that fits this Biblical description. Watch the video below.

VIDEO - American astrophysicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson, who is not a Christian, describes an asteroid called Apophis, named after the Egyptian god of death and darkness. It is the size of the Rose Bowl and is on a trajectory to fly by the earth closer than the orbits of our communication satellites. The closest satellites orbiting the earth are 160-2000 miles above their earth. The farthest satellite orbit is 22,236 miles away.

NASA says that on Friday, April 13, 2029, Apophis will pass less than 20,000 miles from our planet’s surface. If Tyson is right, and the earth’s gravity changes Apophis trajectory slightly, it could hit the earth 7 years later in 2036. He says it could hit earth 500 miles due west of Santa Monica, California and would plunge 3 miles deep into the Pacific Ocean. (Notice that Revelation 8:8 says this object will be thrown into the sea)

Tyson says when it would explode causing a crater on the sea floor 3 miles wide and deep resulting in a Tsunami that would wipe out the west coast of America and the east coast of Asia.

^{Rev. 8:10}The third angel sounded his trumpet, and a great star, blazing like a torch, fell from the sky on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water— ¹¹the name of the star is Wormwood. A third of the waters turned bitter, and many people died from the waters that had become bitter.

This could either be a comet or a large part of the asteroid that broke off or this could be an angel. Some theologians say this could be Satan being thrown out of heaven to the earth. This star is named “Wormwood” which was a name used in the Old Testament to mean “bitterness.” This object poisons a third of the fresh water and many people will die from the water.

^{Rev. 8:12}The fourth angel sounded his trumpet, and a third of the sun was struck, a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of them turned dark. A third of the day was without light, and also a third of the night.

It’s logical to assume that the fallout from the impact of an asteroid the size of the Rose Bowl, would spew so much smoke and debris into the air that it would block out the sun, moon and stars on a third of the earth.

It sounds like the 4 Trumpet judgments are describing 4 parts of the same catastrophic event. I believe that the devastation on our side of the planet, would focus the world’s attention on the Middle East, just as it was when the Bible was written.

Here is another video of Tyson explaining that our scientists plan to divert the asteroid away from earth. Whether Apophis is the asteroid that God will use or if He creates a special object for His purpose if unknown. The fact is, when this begins to happen, some people will put their hope in man to save them while others will realize that God warned about this event and will repent and hope in God.

^{Rev. 8:13}As I watched, I heard an eagle that was flying in midair call out in a loud voice: “Woe! Woe! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth, because of the trumpet blasts about to be sounded by the other three angels!”

Three “woes” that are coming will terrorize the people on earth even worse than the disasters they’ve already experienced.

THERE IS HOPE

“For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. ¹⁰He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him. ¹¹Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” (1 Thessalonians 5:9-11)

Followers of Jesus are NOT appointed to “suffer the Wrath of God” and they are supposed to “encourage one another.”

1 Thessalonians 1:10 says, “and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.”
Revelation 3:10 says, “Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come on the whole world to test the inhabitants of the earth.”

These verses give me hope and confidence that I will not be on earth when God’s Wrath occurs. I believe Jesus will rescue His followers in the rapture (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 1 Corinthians 15:50-58) before the Tribulation.

I hope you have that confidence too.