Peace and Safety

 We've all heard it more times than we can count, "Why can't we all just get along?" Or, we've heard the chants on college campuses, "No more war!  No more war!"  Or we've seen the bumper sticker, "Coexist", that has Muslim, Buddhist, Christian and other religious symbols in it.

I think it would be fair to say that most folks on earth would like to see the day when nations could just talk through their issues and skip the killing of each other's peoples and soldiers.

But that's never going to happen until Jesus comes back to sit on David's throne.  Then the people left on earth who survived the Great Tribulation and accepted Jesus as Messiah, will see no need for war and will melt down their implements for war and use the materials to make harvesting equipment.  The harvest seasons will come so fast that Isaiah tells us the no sooner have we planted the crops that we will be fueling up the combines!

But until that time there will be wars and rumors of war.  While Satan is the Prince of this earth he will continue leading people astray.  He will convince millions of Muslims that the only way they can guarantee their salvation is to die in jihad against all non-Muslims.  People will hate other people for all sorts of reasons and that won't change one iota until this race of humans vanishes totally from earth.

So the desire for peace and safety will ultimately push people into the hands of the Antichrist and this will happen soon after that rapture when the Holy Spirit has ceased indwelling anyone on planet earth and the people who had the Holy Spirit and were restraining evil, have all vanished.

It seems that nearly everywhere you turn, people are talking about peace.  Though it continues to prove elusive, discussions of it spiked during the recent appointment of Robert Francis Prevost to the position of pope, under the papal name Pope Leo XIV.  In fact, Euro News referred to it as a “pontificate of peace”.  As world leaders congratulated the newly appointed pope, the usual empty platitudes rolled in, some of which I have outlined below:

French President Emmanuel Macron called the pope’s election a “historic moment” and hoped “this new pontificate be one of peace and hope.” 

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer called it a “momentous moment” and said the Holy See “has a special role to play in bringing people and nations together to address major issues of our time; especially on climate change, alleviating poverty and promoting peace and justice across the world.”

Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said, “In a time marked by conflicts and unrest, his words from the Loggia of Blessings are a powerful call for peace, fraternity, and responsibility”.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said, “At this decisive moment for our country, we hope for the continued moral and spiritual support of the Vatican in Ukraine’s efforts to restore justice and achieve a lasting peace.”

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen wishes that the pope’s “pontificate be guided by wisdom and strength, as he leads the Catholic community and inspires the world through his commitment to peace and dialogue.”

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said, “May God bless Pope Leo XIV and may his papacy advance the cause of peace and justice, in the service of all humanity.”

The Chancellor of Austria Christian Stocker said, “The challenges of our time are great.  This makes a strong voice for tolerance and peace in the world all the more important. May his work be an inspiration and hope to many people.”

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, “His leadership of the Catholic Church comes at a moment of profound significance in advancing the ideals of peace, harmony, solidarity, and service”.

Antonio Costa, the president of the European Council, said that “in times of division and uncertainty, his spiritual leadership can help inspire unity, compassion, and peace.”

On every continent and in nearly every country, leaders are holding out hope that somebody will be able to advance the cause of peace throughout the world.  Many are desperate for a resolution to the problems plaguing the world and we know that desperate and spiritually blind people often lack sufficient discernment to make good decisions.  There is already a Prince of Peace but since most of the world has rejected Him, a counterfeit will soon arrive.  The world’s longing for peace and safety will play into the hands of the Antichrist who will convince the world that only he can provide the lasting peace and security that has long been desired.  Unlike the Prince of Peace who bears many crowns and is followed by the armies of heaven (Revelation 19) the Antichrist rides alone, with a single crown and a bow.  Although many have focused on the fact there is no reference to arrows, let us examine the obvious – the reason he holds a bow in the first place.

When we reach Revelation 6:2, the Greek rendering of the word “bow” is “toxon” and this is its only usage in the New Testament: “And I looked, and behold, a white horse.  He who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer.”

In fact, notice that the Antichrist’s rise to prominence is on the basis of three items which affirm the power he will receive – a white horse (used as a symbol of victory in Roman military parades); a crown or stephanos (a symbol of victory for exceptional conduct) and a bow (military might). 

In ancient warfare, the “toxon” was often used to fire poison arrows, known in Greek as “toxikon”.  In fact, history informs us that the feared Scythian archers (who, interestingly, rode horseback) smeared a mixture of dung, snake venom and human blood on the tips of their arrows which the Greeks called “toxikon pharmakon”.  Whilst it is clear that the Antichrist would likely not adopt the formula of Scythian toxins, considering we get our English word “intoxicate” from “toxikon”, what does become clear is that when the Antichrist initially arrives on the scene his power, intelligence, charisma, signs and lying wonders will intoxicate the world through the mere wielding of his mighty bow. 

In the famous Daniel 9:27 passage, we read: “Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week; but in the middle of the week he shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering.  And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate, even until the consummation, which is determined, is poured out on the desolate.”

As is sometimes the case, our English Bible struggles to convey the true sense of the original language.  The word “confirm” relies on the Hebrew word “gabar” and is a primary verb commonly associated with warfare, particularly the strength and vitality of a successful warrior.  In fact, some Old Testament uses of “gabar” convey the sense of showing oneself as arrogant and overbearing, displaying attitudes and actions which reflect pride through insolent behaviour.  This perfectly describes the Antichrist – the lawless one!  The idea inherent in “gabar” is to be strong, to triumph over or to prevail, thus picturing superior strength over someone or something.  Since the Antichrist gives causative effect to the Daniel 9:27 covenant, it will be backed by his considerable might. 

Peace is on the lips of many at present and what is interesting to note is that the UN has scheduled a high-level conference on the two-State solution to take place from June 2-4, 2025 in New York.  So that nobody is left with any doubts as to the intention of the summit, it is being referred to as the “Peaceful settlement of the question of Palestine and implementation of the two-State solution”.  As this date approaches, expect to hear more and more about “peace”.  Whether or not anything tangible will come out of the summit remains to be seen.  But it reminds us that as the world desperately searches for peace, it will soon welcome a person who will ultimately bring it anything but.

Here;  The World’s Longing For Peace And Safety Will Play Right Into The Hands Of The Antichrist - Harbinger's Daily

3 Signs From Daniel That Signal the End of the World

 With a headline like this we certainly had to post it!  Daniel and the end of the world!  What could be more prophetic??  

The first sign is something we have pointed out many times on this blog; the increase in knowledge.

For 6000 years men farmed with horses, if they were lucky.  Much of it happened by hand.  And then in just the last 100 years we went from horses to 550 hp tractors pulling 80 feet wide planters and combines that cost $1 million dollars and can harvest more grain in 1 hour than a whole fleet of men could have harvested in a day!

"But as for me, I heard but could not understand; so I said, 'My lord, what will be the outcome of these events?'" (Daniel 12:8).

The prophet Daniel had been listening intently to the angel Gabriel pronouncing a series of mind-blowing messages. God was revealing the rise and fall of great empires, leading eventually to a global empire led by a despot whom the Apostle John would later call the Antichrist, with its inevitable demise at the divine hand of God.

Of course, all these great empires were still so far off in the future, from Daniel's perspective, that he was obviously quite perplexed by what he was hearing. Rubbing his wrinkled forehead in confusion, Daniel requested God's mighty messenger to provide some elaboration. To his dismay, the angel replied with a firm, "No way!" He explained that Daniel could never truly understand these prophecies because too many events needed to happen first before they could be fulfilled and, therefore, properly understood.

But then, AD 1454 finally arrived, and the German goldsmith Johannes Gutenberg released the very first mobile, reusable type press (like an antique photocopier). At last, words of knowledge could be mass-copied onto paper and distributed far and wide. The age of the printed book revolutionized the world, and Gutenberg started with the fount of all knowledge--the Bible.

Were you surprised to learn from your history classes that the most world-changing advances were made just in the last 150 years or so? And, as we got closer to our day and age, how each discovery came about faster and faster, as one breakthrough was achieved on top of another? This increasingly rapid acceleration in learning is called the Exponential Curve. Our knowledge has been experiencing exponential growth as one breakthrough builds upon another at an increasingly faster and faster pace.

What would you say was the most important discovery that has helped us facilitate the advent of this massive explosion in the growth of knowledge? If you answered "the computer," then you'd be correct.

When it comes to the exponential curve for computers, the old joke is, "How do you know when your computer is obsolete?" The answer is, "When you take it out of the box." That's not too far from the truth, though, for computer companies double computer processing speeds about every 18 months. Known as Moore's Law (after Intel co-founder Gordon Moore), this is just one manifestation of the greater trend in how all change happens to be occurring at an exponential rate. 

In 2023, quantum computers began processing at speeds equivalent to the human brain. By 2045, in a mere quarter of a century, Moore's Law predicts we will possess computers with the computational ability equivalent to the entire human race!

Not only has the exponential curve in all areas of computer technology increased our knowledge to stupendous levels, but computers have aided in all the major scientific discoveries of our day. We don't need to cram so many facts into our brains anymore either, for the ability to easily store and access data means we can continue to learn like we've never learned before in human history.

The exponential curve is not just limited to computers. Other advances in biomedicine, space science, chemical engineering, human engineering, and all the other sciences have been climbing faster and steeper up their exponential curves with every passing day.

It's expected that in the next five years, the world's technology will be 32 times more advanced than it is today. It's also been estimated that 65% of today's kindergarteners, once they finally graduate from college, will ultimately end up working in completely new jobs that, at this time, don't yet even exist.

Consider that just a hundred years ago the information most people learned throughout their entire lifetime equated to the content of one Sunday edition of The New York Times. Our ability today to practically consume that same amount of information daily shows just how far mankind's knowledge has increased in a very short amount of time.

Today's exponential increase in knowledge points to the fact that we are living in the prophesied end times and that Jesus Christ is coming soon.

2) Increase in Transportation

Notice in that same prophecy the angel told Daniel that, besides a great increase in knowledge, "many will go to and fro" (Daniel 12:4). This tremendous increase in travel would also occur in the same context, that being the end times. God was revealing that once people began to go to and fro, both farther and faster, those final years before Christ returned to set up His Millennial Kingdom were finally upon us.

Stop and think how people traveled just a single century ago. Most roads weren't even paved yet and were traveled along by horse-drawn wagons. Watch on YouTube the video of San Francisco recorded back in 1906 and you will see far more horses than horseless carriages. People rarely, if ever, left their hometowns. Animal domestication and the early beginnings of decent roads, then bicycles, balloons, boats, and simple automobiles were developing, but not widely received.

Since the early part of the twentieth century, mankind went on to invent airplanes and jets, and we've even left Earth's atmosphere in rockets and space shuttles. It used to take months for people to travel overseas by boat, but now we travel that same distance abroad in mere hours. In today's world, people are always on the move, just as the angel prophesied to Daniel.

Today's exponential increase in travel points to the fact that Jesus Christ is returning soon.

3) Increase in Understanding Prophecy

Did you know that Bible prophecy constitutes a whopping 31% of the Bible? God's overall plan for the ages appears to be rather like a 100-piece puzzle, and so far, He has only provided 75 pieces. One can make out the outline of a picture, but until certain events unfold, which then add another new piece to the puzzle, the picture remains incomplete.

Still, the 75 pieces we have now are far more numerous than what Daniel ever had. As Jesus explained to His disciples, "For truly I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it" (Matthew 13:17). Even then, the Apostles didn't understand many of Christ's teachings until after His resurrection when He openly explained them and then later sent the Holy Spirit at Pentecost to provide further illumination. Even then, the Apostles were expecting the imminent return of Christ and not a 2,000-year long wait.

Today, the various end times signs related to nature, society, world politics, technology, Israel, and the spiritual signs are coming at us at such a fantastic rate that Bible prophecy teachers such as Dr. Ron Rhodes have begun to call the phenomenon "The Convergence". So many end times signs converging all at once has greatly enhanced our understanding of end times Bible prophecy, just as Gabriel foretold.

Today's exponential increase in the understanding of God's prophetic Word points to the fact that Jesus Christ is returning soon.

Recognize the Times

These three major signs, along with the hundreds more provided in the Bible, being fulfilled in our day, reveal the fact that the Lord could indeed return at any moment. By looking through the filter of the Bible at all the wondrous yet fearful events playing out before us, we should clearly understand the times in which we are living. 

As a result, we are comforted knowing that God's got it all under control, that He has a great big plan in place, and that His children play a vital role in that plan. Christians are called to serve God in these dark times with all our unique giftedness, resources, and experience.

Here;  3 Signs From Daniel That Signal The End of the World

We don't know the day or the hour but we certainly should NOT be surprised if the trumpet were to blow today.

Even so, come Lord Jesus!

Fortunately, Gabriel added there would be three major signs that would mark the "time of the end" in which the finale in this series of events would culminate. We find the source text for these signs in Daniel 12:4. "But as for you, Daniel, conceal these words and seal up the book until the time of the end; many will go to and fro, and knowledge will increase." 

He added that only those living in the end times and who were "wise" (meaning spiritually discerning) would at last understand these prophecies. They would recognize that the exponential increase in knowledge, travel, and prophetic understanding would herald the end of these human-controlled kingdoms with the second advent of the Messiah establishing His earthly millennial reign (Daniel 12:3-10).

1) Increase in Knowledge

Let's explore the first sign--a great increase in knowledge.

Unless you're a toddler playing with your mother's Android, you have lived long enough to realize that the way we obtain information has changed a lot--a whole lot--over the last few decades. Let's not even talk decades but in years. The child attaining adulthood today can, with a shudder, look back to the early 2000s when there was no Wikipedia, no Gmail, no social media like Facebook and Twitter (now called X), no cloud computing, no tablets, no smartphones, and certainly no high-speed Internet connectivity. 

Remember the sound a modem made when connecting a surfer to the World Wide Web? Ask a ten-year-old that question today and they couldn't even tell you. Even Bob Dylan couldn't have imagined how much things would be changing when way back in the stone ages of 1963 he sang, "The Times They Are A-changin'".

Times a-changin' wasn't always the way things were, though. For thousands of years of human history, life remained pretty much the same. Sure, every 300 years or so the world eked out an innovation that revolutionized the world, moving humanity from say the Bronze Age to the Iron Age. But, for the most part, limitations in travel left most inventions cordoned off to a tiny corner of the world. 

Rogue Chinese Devices Found in Solar Panels

 We remember seeing a 20/20 Show over a dozen years ago about China and their cheating and stealing.  China had hired a US Company to install a solar farm.  After the company had installed it all and were ready to turn it on, some Chinese government officials showed up and they escorted the Americans to the airport and sent them home.  Then they hacked into their laptops and stole the US company's codes and patents.  So they had just hired the company to see how they did everything and had plans to steal the technology for themselves all along.

I remember the president of the US company saying that the US Government did nothing to help them and nothing to punish China for it's lawlessness.

We were reminded of this story when we saw this article today.  It would appear that China stole our patents and technology then started producing solar panels for US consumption.  Today we read that China maybe has planted some sort of hack into those panels and could use them for nefarious purposes in it's cold war with USA.

Undisclosed communication devices reportedly discovered in Chinese-manufactured solar panels and related equipment have sparked concerns among U.S. officials about the vulnerability of the nation’s power grid, according to a Reuters report. 

These “rogue” devices, found over the past nine months, could potentially destabilize energy infrastructure and trigger widespread blackouts, sources familiar with the matter told the outlet.

The undocumented devices, including cellular radios, were identified in solar power inverters, batteries, electric vehicle chargers, and heat pumps produced by several Chinese suppliers. 

U.S. experts uncovered the components during security inspections of renewable energy equipment, prompting a reevaluation of the risks posed by these products. 

Inverters, critical for connecting solar panels and wind turbines to the power grid, are predominantly manufactured in China, amplifying concerns about their security.

“We know that China believes there is value in placing at least some elements of our core infrastructure at risk of destruction or disruption,” said Mike Rogers, former director of the U.S. National Security Agency.

“I think that the Chinese are, in part, hoping that the widespread use of inverters limits the options that the West has to deal with the security issue,” Roger’s further urged.

Experts warn that these rogue devices could bypass firewalls, allowing remote manipulation of inverter settings or even complete shutdowns. 

Such actions could disrupt power grids, damage energy infrastructure, and cause blackouts. 

“That effectively means there is a built-in way to physically destroy the grid,” another source told Reuters.

The discovery adds to long-standing warnings from energy and security experts about the risks of relying on Chinese-made green energy products. 

Here;  "Rogue" Devices Found Hidden In Chinese Solar Panels Could "Destroy The Grid" | ZeroHedge

We have blogged about the US power grid for years and will probably continue to do so until Jesus returns.  It really is our Achille's Heel and if the electricity fails to come on one day in America, events would get ugly really fast.

With how complex our entire system of technology is, we feel like it's God holding it together for His perfect timing of things.

MAGA Protests About Trump Taking Jet as Gift

Today we read of some of Trump’s key supporters questioning the idea of Trump accepting a gift from Qatar.

I have to agree that this smells bad and seems to easily cross a line.  If Hunter and Joe Biden were doing this we’d have MAGA folks all over screaming “foul!”

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Top MAGA influencers Ben Shapiro, Laura Loomer and Mark Levin broke sharply with President Trump Monday over his decision to accept a $400 million private jet from the Qatari government.

Why it matters: The revolt marks one of the few times since Trump's return to power that key voices in his base have publicly questioned his judgment — revealing cracks in a MAGA coalition built on unwavering loyalty.

• Trump, who will visit Qatar as part of his Middle East trip this week, has scoffed at criticism of the royal family's extraordinary gift, saying it would be "stupid" to turn down a new Air Force One.
• But for pro-Israel Republicans, Trump's coziness with Qatar — which they see as a chief sponsor of Hamas — crosses a red line.

What they're saying: "I love President Trump. I would take a bullet for him. But, I have to call a spade a spade. We cannot accept a $400 million 'gift' from jihadists in suits," tweeted Loomer, an influential MAGA conspiracy theorist who played a key role in ousting national security adviser Mike Waltz.

• Mark Levin and Ben Shapiro, two of the most prominent pro-Israel voices on the MAGA right, have expressed deep alarm at Trump's growing ties with Qatar — a U.S. ally that denies accusations that it finances terrorist groups.
• "Taking sacks of goodies from people who support Hamas, Muslim Brotherhood, Al Jazeera, all the rest, that's not America First," Shapiro said on his top-rated podcast.

The intrigue: Shapiro also warned that the Trump family's crypto ventures — including the president's meme coin — are inviting "influence peddling" allegations that could damage the MAGA agenda.

• "I think if we switch the names to Hunter Biden and Joe Biden, we'd all be freaking out on the right," Shapiro said. "If you want President Trump to succeed, this kind of skeezy stuff needs to stop."

 https://www.axios.com/2025/05/13/trump-qatar-plane-ben-shapiro-loomer

Trump and the Qatar 747 Gift

 Every day Trump does or says something or threatens to do something that make liberal heads explode.  Today the top news for the exploding heads is that Trump is planning on taking a gift from Qatar of a $400 million 747 to use as Air Force One.

Trump is saying, “why should we spend taxpayer money on a new 747 if someone wants to give us one?”

Well, one reason would be that Qatar supports Hamas and a bunch of other Muslim terrorists who kill Americans and taking anything from such losers looks bad.  The other reason is that it’s illegal for a President to accept gifts from foreign leaders, princes, kings and queens.

Maybe Trump is just trolling the Left again to watch their heads explode but if he accepts a plane from Muslims it sets a bad precedent and I’d have a tough time defending his action.  Also, just imagine the security nightmare of accepting a plane from Muslim terrorist supporters??  How many places could listening devices be hidden in such a massive gift.  The phrase TROJAN HORSE comes to mind.

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When sultans tried to give President Martin Van Buren lavish gifts, he did what the Constitution requires and asked Congress what to do.

Two live lions had been gifted to Van Buren by the Sultan of Morocco at the US consulate in Tangiers in 1839 and the Sultan of Oman tried to give him “horses, pearls and other things of value,” delivered by ships in 1840.

“I deem it my duty to lay the proposition before Congress for such disposition as they may think fit to make of it,” Van Buren wrote to lawmakers after explaining that he understood such gifts were against the law.

Long story short: Congress told Van Buren those gifts were not OK. The lions ultimately went to a zoo and the horses were sold, according to the Washington Post. The Van Buren pearls are in the Smithsonian.

Van Buren was pretty stupid, according to the logic of President Donald Trump, who is tired of riding around in 40-year-old jets. Trump very much wants to accept a luxury $400 million Boeing 747 from the royal family of Qatar to be used as Air Force One, which is the call sign for whatever plane is carrying the president.

“I could be a stupid person and say, ‘Oh, no, we don’t want a free plane,’” Trump told reporters on Monday. “We give free things out. We’ll take one, too.”

After Trump’s term ends, when a long-delayed brand-new set of Air Force One planes might be ready, the luxury jet would go to Trump’s presidential library.

https://www.cnn.com/2025/05/12/politics/jet-qatar-trump-air-force-one-what-matters