Earthquakes Signs of the End?

Many are asking, "Are earthquakes really signs of the end of the world?" In Matthew 24 Jesus tells us, "See to it that no one misleads you. For many will come in My Name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and will mislead many. You will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes. But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pangs."

TV self proclaimed prophecy experts claim that the "birth pangs" is key to understanding the end times. Just as a woman's birth pangs get closer together till the baby comes so there will be an increase of "earthly" birth pangs or an increase of earthquakes, showing that the end must be near. Then these prophecy experts (non-scientists) become experts at reading geological data provided by sensors in the earth to detect earthquakes. Since the data gives the appearance that earthquakes are on the rise, the end must be at hand. Therefore, their interpretation of Jesus' words in Matthew 24 must be true.

Hold on though. Geology expert Steven Austin of the Institute for Creation Research demonstrates that not only is the scientific data being misinterpreted, so is Matthew 24. First, for so many of us Matthew 24 has been read in the context of bad science for so long that we simply assume that any other alternative interpretation is unbiblical. Are we really thinking that there are more wars today than in the past? Is there an increase in nations rising against nations? Are there more famines today than ever? If you think so, please watch the History channel. We must look at the intentions of Jesus' words, not some forced interpretation that seeks to predict the end of the world.

Second, a more scientific interpretation of the geological evidence shows that there are far less earthquakes today than in the past. The reason according to Austin is simple. There is far more equipment in the earth today than in the past. Yes, amazingly enough, the newer equipment happens to be more sensitive too.

The power of tradition is enormous. Let this year be the year we challenge ourselves to learn how to put Scripture first. Let us learn to exegete the texts in a way that would be God honoring.

See the Christian Research Journal Volume 21/number 4 for the article, Are Earthquakes Signs of the End Times?