Man Has Lost Control of the Coronavirus; God Has Not

A police sanitation team spray disinfectant to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus in Bozhou, China.
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Man Has Lost Control of the Coronavirus; God Has Not

Humanity is in the grip of a global pandemic considerably more devastating than the coronavirus. This highly infectious flu has triggered a worldwide contagion of irrational fear and emotion. Man has lost his mind.

The ramifications of this universal abdication of reason are vast and unknown. Right now, the world is in total lockdown: Millions of people are in quarantine, a calamity for countless individuals and businesses; stock markets and economies are in free fall, even as federal governments are racking up unparalleled debt trying to save them; and many experts believe the world has entered recession. Meanwhile, national borders are closing, soldiers are being deployed to the streets in cities across the Earth, and some countries are enacting wartime laws and measures, equipping many federal governments with authoritarian power.

In aviation, when a pilot becomes disoriented and loses spatial awareness, he can panic and make decisions that send the aircraft into an out-of-control free fall, a fatal moment called the graveyard spiral. Has the panic over coronavirus plunged mankind into a graveyard spiral?

It has not. Let me tell you why.

Fulfilling God’s Will

From the moment the coronavirus crisis began, the Trumpet has explained that this disease is fulfilling Bible prophecy. Many biblical passages, such as Revelation 6 and Matthew 24, forecast disease pandemics in the time just before Jesus Christ returns. The truth is, as Trumpet editor in chief Gerald Flurry recently warned, we can “expect diseases like this new Wuhan coronavirus to get worse, and to eventually spread like medieval pandemics and kill millions of people!”

But it is crucial to remember: The prophesied death of millions from disease and pestilence does not happen arbitrarily. In fact, none of the biblical prophecies presently being fulfilled occur haphazardly or by chance. Yes, the Bible tells us that a lot of suffering is imminent and that multiple millions will perish. But the suffering, and death, occurs on God’s terms.

“Are not two sparrows sold for a penny?” Jesus asked His disciples. “And not one of them will fall to the ground without your Father’s will. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered” (Matthew 10:29-30; Revised Standard Version). God knows every man on Earth. He knows you, right down to the number of hairs on your head.

But God is just as aware of humanity in general. In Psalm 33, King David wrote, “From heaven the Lord looks down and sees all mankind; from his dwelling place he watches all who live on earth—he who forms the hearts of all, who considers everything they do” (verses 13-15; New International Version).

God pays close attention to world conditions and often intervenes to make certain events unfold according to His plan. “Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the people of the world revere him. For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm. The Lord foils the plans of the nations; he thwarts the purposes of the peoples. But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations” (verses 8-11; niv).

This isn’t the way most people, even Christians, see God. To most people, God is distant and detached. He takes little interest in humanity. Even to most religious people, God is little more than an idea or concept, or perhaps a feeling generated through study or “prayer.” God simply isn’t a living, dynamic, active Being who takes a serious interest in human affairs and engages with men, both individually and collectively. Sadly, men are ignorant of God’s presence in world events, even though the Bible plainly says that He “sees all mankind” and “watches all who live on earth” and “foils the plans of the nations” and “thwarts the purposes of the peoples.”

So what is God doing now? And why hasn’t He saved mankind from coronavirus? We have answered the second question thoroughly in other material. God is allowing the coronavirus as correction for our sins. Mr. Flurry wrote in “Coronavirus and Other Modern Plagues in Prophecy,” “The Wuhan coronavirus and the other diseases breaking out today are only the beginning. [God] is going to let the world see where its evil ways are leading.”

God takes no pleasure in suffering. His desire is that such crises will generate some humility; that it will cause us to recognize our sins and change our behavior. The Apostle Peter wrote, “The Lord is … not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9).

Does this mean that God is disinterested in the coronavirus and the consequences for mankind? To the contrary, He is carefully monitoring this crisis and its impact on the world, at a national and global level, but also on a family and individual level. He is watching world events far more closely than most people know.

Measured Crises

In recent years, Mr. Flurry and the Trumpet have explained the prophecy in Amos 7. This prophecy outlines certain key developments to occur in America in the end time, including the emergence of a latter-day King Jeroboam ii (fulfilled by United States President Donald Trump). You can study what we have written about this prophecy in our free booklet Great Again.

For now, let’s consider Amos 7:7-8, which describe the moment God reveals this prophecy to Amos: “He showed me: behold, the Lord was standing beside a wall built with a plumb line, with a plumb line in his hand. And the Lord said to me, ‘Amos, what do you see?’ And I said, ‘A plumb line.’ Then the Lord said, ‘Behold, I am setting a plumb line in the midst of my people Israel; I will never again pass by them’” (rsv). God Himself is talking here, and He is focusing our attention on the plumb line in His hand.

A plumb line is a measuring device; it’s an instrument used to calculate measurements and guarantee accurate construction. These verses show that God is “measuring the destruction that is to come upon the nations of Israel,” Mr. Flurry writes in Great Again.This destruction is not random; God is measuring it carefully and precisely. And it will bring about the most wonderful results imaginable.”

Here in Amos 7, God specifically states that He measures the punishments that are to come upon the nations of Israel, predominately America, but Britain and the State of Israel, too. God delivers the punishment with divine precision.

What does this mean practically? It means that God takes a personal interest in the coronavirus and its impact on America and Britain. He is aware of the consequences for President Trump and his administration, and the toll this will take on America’s economy and the public in general. He sees that the radical left is using this crisis to attack the president. It’s impossible for me to say whether America’s resurgence is over, or if this disaster will puncture Mr. Trump’s hope of reelection. But thanks to Amos 7, I can tell you that God is paying close attention to this crisis and that it will fulfill His will.

I can also state: The coronavirus is not going to take down President Trump and neither is the radical left, which has played an instrumental role in manufacturing this crisis, as it uses it to further its agenda. As the market crashes and the shelves empty, remember this: God is monitoring this situation closely; it is unfolding exactly according to His plan. Amos 7 makes it clear that Mr. Trump will be brought down by God, on His time schedule, and on His terms.

What about the world in general? Is God measuring the coronavirus crisis as it rolls through China, Italy, Iran and all the other nations and peoples on this planet?

An enthralling and dramatic prophecy in Zechariah 6 answers: Absolutely! In The New Throne of David, Mr. Flurry writes: “The time frame of Zechariah 6 is very sobering. It is about the urgent period of preparation right before the Great Tribulation and Day of the Lord!” The Tribulation and Day of the Lord precede the return of Jesus Christ and are described in Matthew 24, as well as the books of Joel, Zechariah and Malachi. The events described in Zechariah 6 begin shortly after the “Jeroboam end” begins, the time period in which the events of Amos 7 occur.

Zechariah 6 gives a dramatic account of God’s active and tangible presence in the world right now!

In verses 1-3, Zechariah records the vision: “And I turned, and lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and, behold, there came four chariots out from between two mountains; and the mountains were mountains of brass. In the first chariot were red horses; and in the second chariot black horses; And in the third chariot white horses; and in the fourth chariot grisled and bay horses.”

Who are these chariots and what do they represent? Verse 5 says, “These are the four spirits of the heavens, which go forth from standing before the Lord of all the earth.” God often uses angels to accomplish His will on Earth. In Hebrews 1:14, Paul wrote that angels are “ministering spirits, sent forth to minister ….” In 2 Kings 6, God dispatched an entire army of angels to protect Elisha and Israel. God even opened the eyes of one young man so that he could actually see this angelic army, which was “full of horses and chariots of fire” (verse 17).

In Zechariah 6, God dictates orders to four powerful, high-ranking angels, and then dispatches them to Earth. Each angel has a specific job description, and a detailed set of commands from God Himself. “God sends these chariots,” Mr. Flurry recently wrote. “He is preparing, giving specific commands about what these chariots are to do. It is a global effort. God has given these angels of Zechariah 6 instructions, and is dispatching spirits all over the globe, setting up and arranging for these catastrophic events that are already beginning to unfold before our eyes.”

Zechariah 6 makes it clear that humanity has not been left alone with the coronavirus. This chapter shows that God is not letting mankind accidently stumble into the Tribulation and the Day of the Lord. These terrible times are coming, but they will arrive on God’s terms. Zechariah 6 shows that God Himself, through these four angels and their cohorts, is carefully orchestrating world events!

Some might think it preposterous to say that God monitors world conditions using angels. Some will find it hard to visualize angels crisscrossing the planet, keeping tabs on events to make sure they unfold according to Bible prophecy. A few months ago, many of these same people would have thought it preposterous that a disease epidemic would send the entire planet into lockdown. One of the great lessons of the coronavirus crisis is that we need to think the unthinkable more often.

Hitting the World’s Major Powers

What do these angels do once they have been given their orders? “The black horses which are therein go forth into the north country; and the white go forth after them; and the grisled go forth toward the south country. And the bay went forth, and sought to go that they might walk to and fro through the earth: and he said, Get you hence, walk to and fro through the earth. So they walked to and fro through the earth” (Zechariah 6:6-7).

God’s monitoring of the world right now is detailed and calculated; these four angels have specific territorial assignments. Through these angelic proxies, God is paying close attention to what his happening in the “north country,” which other biblical prophecies tell us refers to Europe. Meanwhile, another angel is operating in the south. Perhaps this includes the area controlled by the “king of the south,” or Iran and its radical Islamist allies, prophesied in Daniel 11:40.

What does this mean practically? It means that God is watching events in Europe and in Iran, as well as in China and the rest of the planet. Through these four angels, He is making sure the coronavirus crisis advances the prophecies in the Bible. This means that this crisis is going to help Europe unite and cause a powerful German strongman to rise and lead his nation and Europe. To men, it might look like the coronavirus could destroy Europe politically and financially, and end the notion of European unity. In fact, the angel stationed over the Continent has everything under control—this being is making sure that this crisis advances God’s prophecies for Europe. (It’s already happening, as Trumpet contributor Josué Michels explained yesterday.)

The same goes for Iran, another nation the Trumpet has monitored for many years and has delivered some strong, specific forecasts about. A few months ago, Iran was tormenting the region and the wider international community, and very obviously fulfilling the role of “the king of the south” prophesied in Daniel 11:40-44. Then the coronavirus struck. Since January, some of Iran’s top leaders have been killed, by either coronavirus or U.S. drones. The virus has wreaked havoc on the population and is thrashing Iran’s economy. Is Iran still the king of the south and capable of inciting war with Europe, as the Bible prophesies?

Do not doubt it! The angel stationed over this region and responsible for measuring Iran’s power and presence has it under control. Perhaps Iran was a little too powerful; perhaps Tehran was moving too quickly toward accomplishing its prophesied role, and God needed to slow it down to ensure prophecy is fulfilled on His time schedule.

Then there’s China, patient zero for the coronavirus and the nation that only a few months ago brandished colossal global influence and power. The Trumpet has long forecast that China would be an economic and military superpower that would rival the United States and would one day impose a devastating economic siege on America. Then the Wuhan coronavirus crisis hit, causing China to enter total lockdown, tanking the economy, and sending China’s leaders reeling. Is China a superpower capable of competing with America? Or has the coronavirus knocked China out? Was our prophecy wrong?

You know the answer: The angels of Zechariah 6 have it all under control! Thanks to Bible prophecy, we can know: The coronavirus and its devastating impact on China will advance the biblical prophecies about this nation. Again, we can already see this happening. Beijing’s relationship with America, which was already capricious, will be even more volatile. This virus also secures Russia as the lead nation in the prophesied Sino-Russian alliance. Economically, China might slow down, especially if there’s a global recession, but it still has the power to siege the U.S. Perhaps this crisis will reconfigure things economically, giving Beijing more freedom to decouple from the U.S.—creating the opportunity to be more openly hostile.

In The New Throne of David, Mr. Flurry writes that Zechariah 6 “shows how God is diligently preparing for the events of the Great Tribulation and Day of the Lord—and for the majestic coronation that will follow immediately afterward.” We too need to be “diligently preparing” for Christ’s return!

How familiar are you with these prophecies in Amos 7 and Zechariah 6, among all the others? The more familiar we are with them, the more urgent we will be in our preparations. Amos 7 and Zechariah 6 show how urgently and intimately involved God is in world events!

A pandemic of irrational fear and illogical behavior seems to have taken root. Our leaders, doctors and scientists may have lost control of the coronavirus. It feels like humanity has entered a graveyard spiral. But be assured: God has not lost control. Like a loving father, He is judiciously measuring the curses descending on humanity.

In this fact, there is solace and peace. All we have to do is believe it.