What’s Going on In The World? I am not alone in wondering what is happening in the world right now and how we will fix the problems. The climate, the traffic issue, the political parties’ unrest, the natural disasters, the wars and threats of war, the demise of the family unit, the influence of social media on today’s youth, the rising cost of living, the disappearance of the “middle class,” and immigration problems- to name a few. It shouldn’t be difficult for anybody reading this to say that at least one of these signs is frightening. The biblical key to seeing all these signs as an omen for the end of the world as we know it, is that all have converged as more devastating and with greater frequency.

Just in the last twenty years or so we have seen this convergence- the wars, hurricanes, earthquakes, hot temperatures, political unrest with immigration, tariffs, police brutality, and on top of all this came the pandemic that shut down the world as we know it for two years.

The Bible tells us that Jesus uses the analogy of “birth pains” to describe this convergence of end times signs, in that they start to come more frequently and with greater intensity.

Many have said they wish it were as simple as pressing a “reset” button.

I think most of the world is becoming more aware of the term “end times” as Christians refer to it. And there’s never been more written about the “signs” of the end times than what’s in the media today.

The Bible has a lot to say about the end times. Nearly every book of the Bible contains prophecy regarding the end times. Taking all of these prophecies and organizing them can be difficult. The following is a summary of what the Bible declares will happen in the end times based on at least ten major signs.

1. 1948 Rebirth of Israel as a Nation (Ezekiel 36:24: For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land.) This is the most prominent sign of all, and the first time Israel has been a nation since AD 70. It is said that nations will rise up against Israel, but Israel was God’s bloodline blessing to Abraham. There are 7 billion people in the world, and only .02% are Jews. Israel is smaller than the state of Rhode Island, yet Jews (one of their 4 subgroups called Ashkenazim account for 75% of Jews worldwide) represent 10% of the wealthiest people in the world; make up more than 10% of the Fortune 500 listed CEOs; and they represent 31% of all Nobel Prize winners and 52% of Pulitzer Prize winners for nonfiction.

 

2. The Decay of Society (2 Timothy 3:1-4: But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God.) With the decay of the traditional family and the rise in immorality, abortion, homosexuality, drug abuse, child molestation, gun usage, and mass killings, we’ve become a materialistic and hedonistic society, reminiscent of the great societies of Greece and Rome before they fell.

3. Knowledge Explosion (Daniel 12:4: But you, Daniel, roll up and seal the words of the scroll until the time of the end. Many will go here and there to increase knowledge.) The widespread use of computers and the internet have opened communication channels and increased “learning” availability, bringing huge technological changes. Radio, TV, and the Internet have dramatically increased the proclamation of the gospel message throughout the world. The computer chip could play a role in the “mark of the beast.”

4. False Messiahs (Matthew 24:5: For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many.) Paul warned that in the last days there will be a sharp increase in Christians abandoning the faith. (Timothy 4:1: The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons.) There will be an outpouring of revivals, with the Holy Spirit trying to reach as many unsaved as possible with the gospel message.

5. Birth of Nuclear Age (Zechariah 14: 12: This is the plague with which the LORD will strike all the nations that fought against Jerusalem: Their flesh will rot while they are still standing on their feet, their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongues will rot in their mouths.) In John’s revelations, he used symbols that are now relevant today. We are seeing the potential of a nuclear war coming from Iran and North Korea, as well as some of their allies. Zechariah’s description is identical to the human condition when exposed to neutrons. When the United States dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima in Japan, it was a much smaller bomb than those being developed today, and yet that bomb killed 75,000 people, and 10,000 more died later from the effects of the bomb.

6. European Union: This can be seen as a revival of the old Roman Empire. Pagan Rome split into the old ten “divisions” of Europe, just as was prophesied. (Daniel 7:24: The ten horns are ten kings who will come from this kingdom.) And now we see a 10-nation coalition being brought together in Europe, with the Anti-Christ as the future leader.

7. Wars and Rumors of War: Russia & Iran are building an alliance against Israel (Ezekiel 38:15,16: You will come from your place in the far north, you and many nations with you, all of them riding on horses, a great horde, a mighty army. You will advance against my people Israel like a cloud that covers the land.) The “Kings of the East” (Rev. 9:16: The number of the mounted troops was twice ten thousand times ten thousand. I heard their number.) This is referring to China, with an army of almost 200,000,000—unfathomable when John wrote the Revelations.

8. Climate (Mark 13:8): There will be earthquakes in various places, and famines. These are the beginning of birth pains.) We see the signs with the onslaught of great earthquakes, famines, tornadoes, volcanoes, hurricanes, and tsunamis. Since the Great Solar Eclipse of August 21, 2017, through 2025, there have been 8 huge earthquakes (4 in 2025), 6 of the worst hurricanes in history, and 5 significant Tsunamis. Then there was the Russian meteor that landed on February 15, 2013. and it sounded like a sonic boom. With over 200 scientific studies, no one can figure out where the meteor came from. Some 4,000 buildings were destroyed (mostly apartments) and 1,500 people were injured by flying glass, but there was not one death. God gave us a warning!

9. Jerusalem Rebuilt in 1967 (Zechariah 8:7 This is what the LORD Almighty says: “I will -8: save my people from the countries of the east and the west. 8I will bring them back to live in Jerusalem; they will be my people, and I will be faithful and righteous to them as their God.”) This was God’s promise to bring His people back to Jerusalem. Jerusalem is mentioned 667 times in the Bible (yet never once in the Koran). When Jesus returns, He will preside as king in Jerusalem. (Zechariah 12:3): On that day, when all the nations of the earth are gathered against her, I will make Jerusalem an immovable rock for all the nations. All who try to move it will injure themselves.)

10. The Temple Rebuilt: Daniel was given a vision far into the future when the Jewish Temple would be rebuilt. The Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD. Most say that Daniel 9: 27 clearly states there is a rebuilt Temple. (And at the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation until the end that is decreed is poured out on him.)

In Matthew 24:5–8 Jesus gives us some important clues for discerning the approach of the end times: “Many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains.” An increase in false messiahs, an increase in warfare, and increases in famines, plagues, and natural disasters—these are signs of the end times. In this passage, though, we are given a warning: we are not to be deceived, because these events are only the beginning of birth pains; the end is still to come.

Some interpreters point to every earthquake, every political upheaval, and every attack on Israel as a sure sign that the end times are rapidly approaching. While the events may signal the approach of the last days, they are not necessarily indicators that the end times have arrived. The apostle Paul warned that the last days would bring a marked increase in false teaching. “The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons.” In (1 Timothy 4:1). The last days are described as “perilous times” because of the increasingly evil character of man and people who actively “oppose the truth” (2 Timothy 3:1–9; see also 2 Thessalonians 2:3).

Other possible signs of the end times would include increased hostility toward Israel, and advances toward a one-world government. The most prominent sign of the end times, however, is the nation of Israel itself. In 1948, Israel was recognized as a sovereign state (see number 1 end times sign above), essentially for the first time since 605 BC, when the Babylonians took control of Judah. God promised Abraham that his posterity would have Canaan as “an everlasting possession” (Genesis 17:8), and Ezekiel prophesied a physical and spiritual resuscitation of Israel (Ezekiel 37). Having Israel as a nation in its own land is important in light of end-times prophecy because of Israel’s prominence in eschatology (Daniel 10:14; 11:41; Revelation 11:8).

With these signs in mind, we can be wise and discerning in regard to the expectation of the end times. We should not, however, interpret any of these singular events as a clear indication of the arrival of the “end times.” God has given us enough information that we can be prepared, and that is what we are called to be as our hearts cry out, “Come, Lord Jesus” (Revelation 22:20).