Perhaps a different take on the passage out of Matthew. I tended to think the nation rising against nation would only be at the political leadership level rather than a people group out of those nations. The passage of Matthew 24 has/is always being matched up to possible situations throughout the centuries. Must be my turn.
NIV Matthew 24: 3-15
3 As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. “Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”
4 Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. 6 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. 7 Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of birth pains.
9 “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. 10 At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, 11 and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13 but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
15 “So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’[a] spoken of through the prophet Daniel—let the reader understand—
2 July 2023 - Jemele Hill accuses Asians of 'carrying the water for white supremacy' for backing affirmative action decision
Asian Americans praising the U.S. Supreme Court for declaring affirmative action to be unconstitutional "carried the water" for White supremacy, The Atlantic writer Jemele Hill claimed.....
The Supreme Court case originally arose after the accusation that Asian Americans students were being discriminated by being held to a higher standard compared to Black or Hispanic students because of affirmative action.
The complaint against Harvard alleged that the school's practices penalized Asian American students, and that they failed to employ race-neutral practices. The North Carolina case raised the issue of whether the university could reject the use of non-race-based practices without showing that they would bring down the school's academic quality or negatively impact the benefits gained from campus diversity.
I am pivoting off the above story with some other confirmation bias stories if you will. It is just how I am seeing a picture in the political landscape at the moment. Perhaps a certain irony in the way I think God makes judgments. He lets you or watches how you do your judgments and then right back at you. He judges you the same way.
Matthew 24:4-5 Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many.
In terms of judgement what am I talking about with the above passage. I am talking about victim hood. The Messiah needed to be perfect. Unworthy of the judgement of being put to death for him to be the Messiah. The savior of the world was the victim of the judgement of sin even thou he had no sin.
Cue the royal and the African princess. In days of old, a peace treaty could be made up of enemies marrying off members of their families but there was no peace here. Accusations of racism that were walked back after 2 years. Who's water was Megan carrying? The South Park episode was reported worldwide in the press. This is again a different take on "And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations" Treat others as you expect to be treated. ( The Gospel Of The Kingdom ). Remember there are three aspects. The judging, the judgment, and the irony of that judgment. You can argue all three with this post if you like. I am doing the same thing in reality.
The Victim
2 Mar 2023 - Kyle's Brand | South Park | Comedy Central Africa - Comedy Central Africa
Nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom.
What kingdom I would say has been rising. I am just going to put it in simple terms, the kingdom of pronouns. There are many aspects to it. Somewhere maybe a Christian might feel to be on their side and other occasions not. How much of a blank check do we give other people with our interpretations of what we believe? I guess is an individual thing. They are not the savior of the world or the savior of children. We all can play the victim card even with how we think society is a reflection of the lack of religiously held positions.
Matthew 24:15 So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’[a] spoken of through the prophet Daniel—let the reader understand
Now this is starting to get me curious. Spoken through the prophet Daniel.
What Is the Abomination of Desolation?
The abomination of desolation is a prophetic event found in the book of Daniel (Daniel 12:11) and referred to by Jesus Christ (Matthew 24:15). Though it has historical fulfillments, there is also a future fulfillment when daily sacrifices will be offered in Jerusalem and then cut off and replaced by some sort of blasphemous display. This prophecy is significant because it represents an important time marker signaling the nearness of the return of Jesus Christ.
https://lifehopeandtruth.com/prophecy/understanding-the-book-of-daniel/abomination-of-desolation/
Look where the water is.
Daniel 12 : 5-13
5 Then I, Daniel, looked, and there before me stood two others, one on this bank of the river and one on the opposite bank. 6 One of them said to the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, “How long will it be before these astonishing things are fulfilled?”
7 The man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, lifted his right hand and his left hand toward heaven, and I heard him swear by him who lives forever, saying, “It will be for a time, times and half a time.[b] When the power of the holy people has been finally broken, all these things will be completed.”
8 I heard, but I did not understand. So I asked, “My lord, what will the outcome of all this be?”
9 He replied, “Go your way, Daniel, because the words are rolled up and sealed until the time of the end. 10 Many will be purified, made spotless and refined, but the wicked will continue to be wicked. None of the wicked will understand, but those who are wise will understand.
11 “From the time that the daily sacrifice is abolished and the abomination that causes desolation is set up, there will be 1,290 days. 12 Blessed is the one who waits for and reaches the end of the 1,335 days.
13 “As for you, go your way till the end. You will rest, and then at the end of the days you will rise to receive your allotted inheritance.”
Associations might not work all of the time but anyway - Water, river, and temple that is also in Ezekiel 47
Ezekiel 47:1-12
The River From the Temple
47 The man brought me back to the entrance to the temple, and I saw water coming out from under the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east). The water was coming down from under the south side of the temple, south of the altar. 2 He then brought me out through the north gate and led me around the outside to the outer gate facing east, and the water was trickling from the south side.
3 As the man went eastward with a measuring line in his hand, he measured off a thousand cubits[a] and then led me through water that was ankle-deep. 4 He measured off another thousand cubits and led me through water that was knee-deep. He measured off another thousand and led me through water that was up to the waist. 5 He measured off another thousand, but now it was a river that I could not cross, because the water had risen and was deep enough to swim in—a river that no one could cross. 6 He asked me, “Son of man, do you see this?”
Then he led me back to the bank of the river. 7 When I arrived there, I saw a great number of trees on each side of the river. 8 He said to me, “This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah,[b] where it enters the Dead Sea. When it empties into the sea, the salty water there becomes fresh. 9 Swarms of living creatures will live wherever the river flows. There will be large numbers of fish, because this water flows there and makes the salt water fresh; so where the river flows everything will live. 10 Fishermen will stand along the shore; from En Gedi to En Eglaim there will be places for spreading nets. The fish will be of many kinds—like the fish of the Mediterranean Sea. 11 But the swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they will be left for salt. 12 Fruit trees of all kinds will grow on both banks of the river. Their leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail. Every month they will bear fruit, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing.”
The irony of God's judgments right back at you or right back at me?
Judging Others
7 “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2 For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
verse 12
12 So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
Look where the measure is. Now that's got me curious too. The measurement you use would be the same as measuring the temple out of Revelation 11 but some of the context does not seem right.
Revelation 11: 1 - 3
The Two Witnesses
11 I was given a reed like a measuring rod and was told, “Go and measure the temple of God and the altar, with its worshipers. 2 But exclude the outer court; do not measure it, because it has been given to the Gentiles. They will trample on the holy city for 42 months. 3 And I will appoint my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth.
This might also be a different take on what is meant by don't measure the outer court.
29 Sep 2017 - Just A Standard White Guy | South Park | Comedy Central