Earthquakes

The news, the pictures, the pain, the panic coming out of Japan rival nothing I have ever experienced. A 9.0 earthquake that shook part of Japan on Friday is one of the largest in my memory. I researched the historical record and learned:

May 22, 1960 Valdivia, Chile 9.5
March 27, 1964 Alaska, USA 9.3
December 26, 2004 Sumatra, Indonesia 9.2
November 4, 1952 Kamchatka, Russia 9.0
March 11, 2011 Sendai, Japan 9.0
February 27, 2010 Maule, Chile 8.8
(and a smaller one we remember)
January 12, 2010 Haiti 7.0

After researching those, I turned to what God’s had to say about earthquakes. As massive and frightening as they are, they could not go unnoticed by God. They’re not; some of what I found are:

1 Kings 19:11-12 The LORD said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by.” … After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the EARTHQUAKE.

Isaiah 29:6 Suddenly, in an instant, the LORD Almighty will come with thunder and EARTHQUAKE and great noise, with windstorm and tempest and flames of a devouring fire.

Zechariah 14:5 You will flee as you fled from the EARTHQUAKE in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the LORD my God will come, and all the holy ones with him.

Matthew 24:7 Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and EARTHQUAKES in various places.

Matthew 27:54 When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the EARTHQUAKE and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, “Surely he was the Son of God!”

Luke 21:11 There will be great EARTHQUAKES, famines and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven.

Acts 16:26 Suddenly there was such a violent EARTHQUAKE that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everyone’s chains came loose.

Revelation 6:12 I watched as he opened the sixth seal. There was a great EARTHQUAKE …

Revelation 8:5 Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it on the earth; and there came peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning and an EARTHQUAKE.

Revelation 11:13 At that very hour there was a severe earthquake and a tenth of the city collapsed. Seven thousand people were killed in the EARTHQUAKE, and the survivors were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.

Revelation 11:19 Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant. And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an EARTHQUAKE and a severe hailstorm.

You see, God does have quite a bit to say about earthquakes; and, as several of the quotes came from Revelation or from Jesus’ description of the end times, I find myself thinking maybe they are indication of what is approaching. Is God causing devastation or does He simply know what is coming?

Well, I notice in the I Kings verse, “the Lord was NOT in the earthquake.”

I notice in the Acts verse, in the midst of the earthquake Paul and Silas’ (as well as other prisoners’) chains were loosened.

I notice in the first three instances from Revelation, earthquakes accompanied God’s dealing with a sinful planet.

I notice also in 11:19, the immense power from the temple in heaven produces colossal effects on earth.

Look again at Revelation 11:13. A tenth of the city collapsed, 7,000 people were killed, and the survivors were terrified. That reads like today’s news from Japan or recent reports from Chile or Haiti. I have to wonder if the rest of that scripture is fulfilled—“the survivors gave glory to the God of heaven.” I haven’t seen the news media reporting that response.

Japan’s earthquake and following tsunami have been minutely reported with photos, videos and second-by-second twitter posts like no other occurrence before. Truly, the whole world can follow happenings on the other side of the globe in a matter of seconds. Each one of us with cable, internet access to youtube, or cell phone can watch world events happen in real time. We waited and watched for the tsunami to hit the west coast of the USA as it approached, just as we hold our breath to see what will happen with the damaged nuclear power plants.

Given the enormity of what we have already seen following quakes in Haiti, Chile, and Japan, the last earthquake in Revelation is supremely sobering.

Revelation 16:18-19 Then there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder and a severe earthquake. No EARTHQUAKE like it has ever occurred since mankind has been on earth, so tremendous was the quake. The great city split into three parts, and the cities of the nations collapsed.

I said before but it’s still true—I am so often reminded of the last three lines of a short snippet from Jesus Christ Superstar:

Jesus sings
♫ “Neither you Simon,
nor the fifty thousand...
Understand what power is
Understand what glory is
Understand at all, understand at all.”♫

I just have to agree—I don’t understand what power is or glory is, understand at all, understand at all. This much I do know: “For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen