by

Stanley Harris

One of the great prophecies of the Bible is the prophecy of the seven last plagues. Since the Bible in Revelation 16 calls these the seven last plagues, it indicates that there have been plagues in the world before. There were ten plagues back in the time when God plagued the Egyptians in order to get them to let the children of Israel go. But our subject tonight concerns the final judgments of God that are going to affect the whole world. I would like to qualify this by saying that I do not believe the final plagues will be universal. I do believe that in some measure they will affect the whole world, but certain classes of people will be affected in certain parts of the world by some of the plagues, and others will be affected in other parts of the world by others. I think the prophecy itself makes that clear as we shall discover as we go along.

Prior to the outpouring of the seven plagues, the Bible tells us there is to be a message to warn the world of what is coming. In the days of Noah God gave a warning before the flood. When Jesus came to the world in the first advent He sent John the Baptist to be the forerunner and herald of His coming. And It is reasonable to believe that before Jesus comes this next time He is going to warn the world of this event. It is also reasonable to believe that before God will punish the world with this final judgment that He will warn the world as to how to avoid the judgments.

Now, Jesus said in Matthew 24 in answer to His disciples' questions about the signs of His coming and the end of the world, "And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come." Matt. 24: 14. In other words there is to be a gospel preached down in the end of the world that will prepare the world for the coming of our Lord. When this gospel of the kingdom is preached in all the world the Bible says "then shall the end come."

This gospel of the kingdom that is to be preached in all the world is found in the 14th chapter of the book of Revelation beginning with the 6th verse. You can't find any reference to a gospel that is to be given to all the world in any other place in the New Testament after Jesus made this prophecy until you read it in the 14th chapter of the Book of Revelation. There it describes what it called the everlasting gospel that is to be preached to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people. In this prophecy of Revelation 14 it says that it is a message that is borne to the world by three angels. Now we know that God doesn't use angels to preach the gospel. These angels will empower the message, they will support those who are preaching the message. They will add strength to the giving of the message. My friends, if you please, these angels are flying over this city tonight. They are bringing to this city the last warning message of God called the everlasting gospel.

God has entrusted each message to a different angel. And the first angel gives the warning that the hour of God's judgment is come. (Rev. 14:7) That is a very special message and a very special warning.

Then the second angel, as it says in Revelation 14, warns the world that Babylon is fallen. (Rev. 14: 8) Now Babylon represents the religious confusion of the world.

Then the third angel warns the world against the beast and his mark. Although this is the everlasting gospel that must be preached in all the world many of you have never heard it before until you heard it here. This is the message of the beast and his mark. Many Christians do not know what the mark of the beast is. Some of them ridicule the message. There are even leaders in religious circles who ridicule these messages, who are themselves unprepared to warn the world of these things. And yet God wants the world to be warned. I believe He wants us to know who the beast is and what the mark is. If we do not know, then how can we hope to get the victory over the beast as the Bible says, and how can we hope to stand on the sea of glass and sing the song of victory.

Today Jesus is doing a special work of ministry in heaven as our high priest. He is our mediator between God and man, and He is repeating the prayers of those that pray, and He is ministering to us and guiding in the affairs of this world, and, if you please, He is deciding who are going to be numbered among the jewels; who are to dwell with Him in glory. This is being decided now, for the Bible says that when Jesus comes the reward will be with Him to give every man according to his works. Some day this ministry of Christ will be ended. When His ministry is ended probation will close. And the close of probation means that our chance to be saved is ended. The gospel of the coming kingdom, the everlasting gospel, the gospel as it is recorded in Revelation 14 of the three angels, will have been given to all the world, and probation will have closed, and then the Lord will come. Now when probation closes every man's opportunity to gain salvation will have been ended. He will have been given his last chance. Even now the Lord is giving the world its last chance.

In Revelation 22 it tells us what Jesus will say when He has concluded His work of ascertaining who is going to be in heaven and who is not. At the close of probation Jesus will make the final statement or decree that, "he that is unjust, let him be unjust still; and he that is filthy, let him be filthy still; and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still; and he that is holy let him be holy still." Rev. 22: 11. In other words every man's fate has been sealed for all eternity, their probation is closed. And those that are holy, are going to continue to be holy. Those that are unjust, will continue to be unjust. Those that are filthy and have filthy habits, will continue to be filthy; and those that are righteous, will continue to be righteous, and will be sealed for eternity to dwell with God in His kingdom. So when this final decree goes forth from Jesus, every man's fate will have been sealed.

When Noah went into the ark, the door was closed and for seven days before the flood came, so before the coming of Jesus the probation of the world is going to close, the door is going to close and the mercy of God will no longer be extended to those who have rejected His message.

O my dear friends, this is something for us to think about and ponder over very, very seriously. We must recognize the fact that before Jesus comes, every man's fate will be sealed. Probation is going to close, and after probation is closed, the judgments of God are going to be poured out upon this earth. And this wrath of God is called the seven last plagues. It is going to be the greatest judgment that has ever affected this world. We are told that this wrath of God is poured out without any mixture of mercy. When God has punished the world in times past He has mixed, or tempered, that judgment with mercy. But we are told that when probation closes every man's fate is sealed, and the filthy, and the unrighteous, and the unjust now receive their punishment, that will be climaxed in the lake of fire. When this time comes the Lord will not mix any mercy with these judgments. Their fate has been sealed, there is no longer any hope, or any chance for salvation. They have had their last chance.

There are many who are providentially led to meetings like these. We pray before these meeting begin, months in advance, that the Lord will lead the sincere and honest, those who would accept the truth if they could hear it. And we have seen miraculous ways that the Lord has brought people to these meetings. I could tell you stories how the Lord has performed miracles to lead men and women to a knowledge of this last warning message.

It is also true that when men begin to see the truth, when they begin to listen to the message that God has for them then the devil gets busy. He tries in every possible way to discourage and to turn away souls from God's last warning message. He doesn't want you to hear these things. The devil doesn't care where you go. You could go to a Hindu or Mohammedan church and you wouldn't have as many people try to turn you against that as when you go to hear the truth of God. Many are going to find out that when they begin to study the word of God seriously and begin to learn the message of God for the world in these last days, then the devil really goes to work. You will find that people will try to discourage you, and will begin to talk against the things that you are hearing, but, my dear friends, you must do what God wants you to do. You must adhere to what the Bible says and not what men say.

Now I shall read the last of the three angels messages that will be given as a warning to the world. "And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, if any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb." Rev. 14:9, 10.

Now, dear friends, this is an awful judgment, and it is specifically declared by the Lord through his angel that those who worship the beast, and those who receive the mark of the beast shall suffer the wrath of God that is poured out without mixture of mercy, and it says that they are finally going to be tormented in fire and brimstone. Now let me ask you, "do you think it is important for us to avoid the mark of the beast?" I certainly think so. Evidently in the sight of God this is a serious thing.

But, you say, how do we know that the wrath of God is the seven last plagues? Here it tells us in Revelation 15. It says, "I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels having seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God , . . and one of the four beasts gave unto the seven angels seven golden vials full of the wrath of God, who liveth forever and ever." Rev. 15:1, 7. So the wrath of God as the Bible says is going to be poured out against those who worship the beast. And the wrath of God is the seven last plagues. Now I do not think there should be any question about this. If we let the Bible explain itself we do not have any trouble, do we?

The trouble with men sometimes is that they will take a text and will try to lend their interpretation to it rather than let the Bible be its own commentary. But the Bible explains itself. As I have already said, the wrath of God will be against those who worship the beast. And the Bible says that the wrath of God is the seven last plagues. You will find throughout these meetings that Bible text after Bible text will be given. We do not get up here and preach from one text and spend all evening talking about one text and trying to develop a philosophy. We aren't interested in philosophy. We are only interested in studying the word of God. So, my dear friends, I urge you to study these things and know what is God's message for you in these latter days. God does have a message for you.

The Bible says that there are seven angels with seven vials that are filled up with the seven last plagues that are going to strike this world. Now what are the plagues. Well the first plague is given as follows: "I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels, go your ways and pour out your vials of the wrath of God upon the earth. And the first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and upon them which worshipped his image." Rev. 16:1, 2.

Now notice how it specifically declares that those who worship the beast will receive the first plague, Sores are going to afflict the bodies of men--noisome and grievous sores it says. Their bodies will be covered with them. There will be no way to find healing for them. No man can find any medication that will soothe these sores that will cover the bodies of men. Those that are afflicted with these sores are going to curse God. They aren't going to be changed by the plagues, and be led to be better men and women. We are told that they are going to resent these judgments and are going to hate God. Actually the hearts of the wicked who are lost will be well hardened. They are not going to be sorry for their sins, but they are going to be sorry for the consequences of them.

But, my dear friends, imagine waking up some morning and finding the world afflicted with a terrible plague of sores that cover the entire body. Like boils they will burn and pain. Everything will be disrupted by the plague. Business will be disrupted. The hospitals will be mobbed by those afflicted with the sores. There will be so many people trying to get in they will not be able to take care of them. And no doubt many who work in the hospitals will be afflicted by the sores. The medical people will not know what to do because there will be no medicine to heal the sores. How do I know this? Well the Bible says, "from the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrefying sores: they have not been closed neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment." Isa. 1: 6. There will be no ointment that will mollify these sores. The people that have these sores will have them from the soles of their feet even unto the tops of their heads.

I want you to remember that it says that those who have the mark of the beast will be afflicted with these sores. So, my friends, that is why it is important for us to know God's warning for the world. And I dare say you have never heard this warning any place else. You had to come here to hear it. If you are honest with yourself and if you are honest with me, you will say, Brother Harris, I have not known what the beast is, I have not known what the mark of the beast is. My friends, the Lord is not pleased by these things. He wants you to know. The Bible said the Lord sent and magnified these things unto John the Revelator and he said they are to be presented in the churches,

Now, the second plague was poured out upon the sea, "and it became as the blood of a dead man, and every living soul died in the sea." Rev. 16: 3. Notice that the sea is going to become like blood, and all the creatures in the sea are going to die, causing a terrible stench that will cover the earth. The entire ocean is going to be turned to blood.

Here is an article that appeared in the Saturday Evening Post, Aug. 14, 1954. It speaks about the great red tide. In fact the article is entitled "The Truth About Florida's Red Tide." And it says in the article that the so-called red tide is an evil sea plague that has been appearing at intervals in the waters off the west coast of Florida. It says the tide has slaughtered fish in astronomical numbers. Now notice, friends, that a red tide has appeared off the coast of Florida and millions of the fish in that area have been killed by it. And along the shore there has been such a terrible stench and nauseating odor that many people have been made deathly sick by it. They fed some of the fish that come out of the red tide to cats and the cats died. And so you see the waters are already being turned to blood, It isn't only affecting Florida, but let me read further in this article. It says there are actually thousands of red tides around the world. It says that an annual tide in Walvis Bay in Southwest Africa always kills an enormous number of fish. And the Japanese have been troubled with one that regularly affects their pearl oyster crop. Fishermen of Naples, Italy, reported massive numbers of fish killed, and many dead turtles. Notice that the red tide has struck not only off the coast of Florida and Mexico, but off of the coast of Africa, and off the coast of Italy and Japan.

And so the scientists have seen these great red tides, the waters turned bloody red. Now this isn't some dream of mine. Here is something that appeared in the Tacoma News Tribune Oct. 20, 1959. It says the red tide dead are piling onto the shore. And it says at St. Petersburg, Florida, thousands of fish killed by the red tide washed up in the bay in the wake of tropical storm Irene, and the stench is terrible. Some residents are reported leaving the area. Residents of Bradenton said the fish under the bridge were so thick that the water could not even be seen.

So the red tide is already appearing in the world. What does it mean? It could very well mean that the plagues are soon to begin. I don't know any other explanation. The scientists have tried to give plausible explanation, but to this date they have been unable to give an explanation as to why the ocean is turning to blood. So my friends, perhaps we are seeing an evidence of the plagues that are about to fall on the earth in even a greater measure than anything we have seen to this point. It may be that the Lord is just trying to give us a little bit of warning by allowing some of these things to begin to appear in the earth. We should not scoff at them as so many people are trying to do.

We read on. It says, "The third angel poured out his vial upon the rivers and fountains of waters, and they became blood." Rev. 16:4. In other words even greater will be the extent of this plague of blood because under the third plague the rivers and fountains of waters are going to be turned to blood. Even the smaller streams and rivers and sources of water are going to be turned to blood and the drinking water, if you please, will be turned to blood, Rev. 15:6 says, "For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and God has given them blood to drink for they are worthy."

So the people are going to have to drink blood. And think of those who are suffering from sores on their bodies and who are hot and feverish, and they stagger to the faucet to turn it on and put the glass underneath hoping to get a cool drink to soothe their pain and fever, and out pours blood, and down goes the glass into the sink dashed into a thousand pieces. There is nothing to drink but blood!

Then the fourth plague, we are told, is the plague of the sun scorching the earth. "The fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun, and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire. And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which had power over these plagues; and they repented not to give him glory."

Rev. 16:8, 9. Now notice that under these plagues men do not turn to God. Their probation has closed, They are just as hard-hearted as they have ever been. And it says they are blaspheming the name of God. They are cursing God. They have not repented. They are not confessing sins to God, but they are cursing Him, And notice here that under this plague the power of the sun will scorch men with fire, and it is going to scorch the earth with fire, with great heat. This fire of the sun will scorch the earth so much that everything will be destroyed in the way of vegetation. There will be nothing that will grow. There will be a famine that will affect a large part of the world.

Now again I want to say that I personally do not believe that these plagues will be universal, because if they were there wouldn't be anybody alive when Jesus comes. But they will affect large areas of the world and particularly certain classes of people. God says that the plagues are upon those who have refused to obey Him. Now it says here in Joel the first chapter, "How do the beasts groan! the herds of cattle are perplexed, because they have no pasture; yea the flocks of sheep are made desolate. O Lord, to thee will I cry; for the fire hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness, and the flame hath burned all the trees of the field." Joel 1:18, 19.

So, my dear friends, there will be a great fire as it were, The sun will scorch the earth with great heat, with more intense heat than has ever been known in the history of the world. And I might say here, though I will explain later about the time of the plagues, that each plague will last approximately fifty-two days, and possibly longer. Well you say it is impossible to destroy all vegetation in that length of time. No, my dear' friends, if the sun were to be made many times hotter than it is--in one or two days almost all vegetation would be killed. The cattle will not be able to find any pasture. The cattle will die by the thousands as a result.

The fifth plague is a plague of darkness that falls upon the seat of the beast. Here we read about it, "And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast; and his kingdom was full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues for pain, and blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds." Rev. 16:10, 11. Now notice they are still suffering from terrible sores, Also there is going to be such intense darkness that they will gnaw their tongues with pain. It is going to be inky black. God is going to cause a darkness as has never been known. This will be a fitting symbol of the power that has brought such religious darkness to the world. The capital city of Rome is going to be plunged into terrible heavy darkness. God Will indicate to the world that here is the source of all darkness as far as the world is concerned.

Where are the righteous when these things are going on, Well, in Psalms 91 it says, "A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked." Ps. 91: 7, 8. In other words the saints are going to see these things. They are going to be here to witness the reward of the wicked, "Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; there shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling." Ps. 91:9, 10, Isn't that a wonderful promise. God says that the plagues are not going to come nigh to the dwelling of His saints. He says, a thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand, but the plagues shall not come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold the reward of the wicked.

Then it says in Job 5: 19, "He shall deliver thee in six troubles; yea in seven there shall no evil touch thee." The Lord has promised that in these seven plagues, evil is not going to touch His saints.

We read in Isaiah 26:20, 21: "Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee, hide thyself as It were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast. For, behold, the Lord cometh out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their Iniquity; the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain." There will be so many dead that they will not have time to cover the dead; they will not have time for funerals. It says that they shall not cover the slain.

But the Lord says that His saints are going to be hid as it were for a little moment till His indignation, or His wrath is overpast. Just as Jesus fed the five thousand when He was here on earth, He is going to feed His saints at this time. Just as He fed Elijah by sending ravens to feed him. So the Lord is going to feed us in that time. We are told in Isaiah 33:16 that our bread and water will be sure. Isn't that wonderful! My friends, the saints are going to have water to drink. I don't know how He is going to do it, but He is going to feed the saints and they are going to have water during this time. God says He is going to take care of His own. He says evil shall not befall thee. He will save thee from seven troubles.

Now, we shall consider the sixth plague. We have already presented the subject of the battle of Armageddon. The sixth plague we are told is going to be that great battle. It may be that the heathen see that so-called Christians are being plagued with sores, especially those that worship the beast--it could be that the heathen are going to feel that this is the time to strike, because there is going to be a final furious battle of the nations. And it says here that "the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the East might be prepared." Rev. 16:12. The waters of the Euphrates River are of no significance as far as blocking armies, but waters in prophecy according to Revelation 17 represent peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues. (Rev. 17:15) So these waters represent the people that dwell in the area of the Euphrates River, and these people are the Turks. Turkey stands between the East and the West. If Russia ever strikes; if China and the kings of the East ever come through, they will have to destroy Turkey on their way to the battle of Armageddon. Armageddon is a place north of Jerusalem where the final battle of the ages will take place.

So the drying up of the River Euphrates signifies that the nation through which the River Euphrates flows is going to cease to be. It is going to be dried up. You know It is interesting if you read about the Turks, that they are expecting some day that they are going to be overrun by the kings of the East. They are the only barrier that stands between the eastern nations and the holy land. So the Lord says that they are going to be dried up and they are going to come to an end to make way for the kings of the East to come up to the Battle of Armageddon. And the Lord, we are told, is going to come in the midst of this battle and put an end to sin and war.

It says in Revelation 16 about these plagues, "I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon." The dragon represents pagan or heathen countries. "And out of the mouth of the beast," and that represents Catholicism, "and out of the mouth of the false prophet," which I believe represents apostate Protestantism or fallen Protestantism. In other words, heathenism, Catholicism, and Protestantism are all to be involved in the battle of Armageddon. It says, "for they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth, and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty." Rev. 16:13, 14. So notice that the spirits of the devils are going to go out as leaders of the nations and they are going to gather all nations.

All the world will be involved in this final conflict between the nations, and will be gathered together in a place called in the Hebrew tongue, Armageddon. (Rev 16:16) Armageddon means Mt. Megiddo, and Mt. Megiddo is north of Jerusalem. We are told in this prophecy of Revelation 16 that when this battle is going on that the Lord is going to speak from Heaven, and He is going to say "it is done." Rev. 16:17. The controversy is over now. And Jesus is going to break the power of the nations. They are going to be filled with confusion and great fear by the coming of the Lord, for the Lord is going to speak from His throne and say "it is done." And when the Lord speaks these words the world is going to be shaken by the mightiest earthquake that has ever struck the world in its history, and that, of course, is part of the seventh plague, and we read about it, "And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying it is done, and there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings, and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great . . . And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found. And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent; and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great." Rev. 16: 17, 18.

My friends, under the seventh plague God is going to say "it is done." His speaking is going to shake the world. It says there will be an earthquake such as never has been since there was a nation. Mountains are going to disappear, and islands are going to sink into the ocean. The cities along the sea coast that have been like Sodom and Gomorrah for wickedness are going to be engulfed by huge tidal waves.

I want you to notice, too, that in addition to a great earthquake that will destroy the cities of the earth, there will be great hail stones fall from heaven. And every one of them the weight of a talent. ! Those hail stones will weigh fifty-seven pounds. Great chunks of ice are going to fall from heaven. It is going to be God's artillery. Those participating in the battle of Armageddon are going to be completely destroyed and their power broken, and they are going to flee when the Lord pours down great ice bombs on them from heaven. And the earth is going to be shaken. The wicked are going to be terrorized while the earth is shaking and toppling before their eyes. All their! security will be destroyed--the things that they have placed their hopes in will fail. :My dear friends, have you placed your hope in the things of this world. God says it is going to be destroyed in the greatest earthquake the world has ever known. A shower of hail stones, the size of bushel baskets will break down all the buildings and cities of the world.

But God says, "my people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, in sure dwellings, and in quiet resting places; when it shall hail, coming down on the forest; and the city shall be low in a low place." Isa. 32:18, 19. Notice God says that when the cities are laid low and when the hail comes down, His people are going to be in quiet resting places. He is going to take care of them,

God says: "Therefore shall the plagues come in one day, death and mourning and famine and it shall be utterly burned with fire for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her." Rev. 18:8. Now I want to say that this is not a twenty-four hour day. It would be impossible to have a famine in one day. You know that. We have enough food on the shelf that we could go for many days without food. Now friends, God has said in the prophecy of Ezekiel, "I have appointed thee each day for a year.". So the Lord reveals that the plagues are going to be for a prophetic day, or literally one year. There will be a year of great destruction in the world.

Now is there an avenue of escape? Yes, my friends there is, The Lord is giving you the warning right now about this.

Incidently, before I go on, I have a newspaper clipping here, quite recent, speaking about sixty pounds of ice falling from the sky near an Italian town called Lessa. And it says that a great ball of ice weighing sixty pounds fell on this town not very long ago. The villagers reported it, and said the ice dug a big hole in the ground, but fortunately no one was injured. Experts were at a loss to explain where this great big block of ice came from. Well, dear friends, I believe that these are just omens of what is coming on the earth.

Now there is an avenue of escape, and that avenue of escape is in the word of God. The Lord doesn't want us to perish, He doesn't want us to suffer these plagues; He loves us, and the reason why the Lord is giving you this message, the reason why He is giving you an opportunity to know these things, is because He loves you. 'My friends, we ought to be thanking God for the love He has for us, and for the hope we have.

In Amos it says, "Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine for bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord; and they shall wander from sea to sea, and from north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord and shall not find it." Amos 8:11, 12. Dear friends, when probation closes there will no longer be any necessity of preaching the word of God because every man's fate will be sealed; and at that time there will be those who have heard this message who will cry, "O can't you help me? They will go seeking out the preacher. They will come and fall at our feet and say, O can't you help me to find salvation now, I couldn't give my heart to Christ then, but I would like to do it now, My friend, God says there is going to be a famine, a famine for hearing the word of the Lord. It is going to be a far worse famine than a famine for food.

In Proverbs 1:24-26 it says: "Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded; but ye have set at nought all my counsel, 'and would none of my reproof. I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh." My dear friends, if you have disregarded God's message during these times while probation still lingers, the time is coming when neither man nor God can help you.

Revelation 6:15-17 says: "The kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and 'the chief captains, and the mighty 'men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves 'in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; and said to the mountains and rocks, fall on us, and hide us from the face of Him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb." Notice there is a great prayer meeting going to take place among the wicked at this time. They haven't thought about praying before. At least their prayers weren't sincere. But now 'when that great earthquake is taking place, they are praying that the rocks that are flying in the air may fall on them and hide them from the face of Him that sitteth on the throne, When earthquakes take place in these days the people run to escape. But, my friends, when this earthquake in the end of the world comes, they are not going to want to get away from it. They 'are going to be willing to be destroyed by it rather than to face the glory of the coming of the Redeemer, For the great day of His wrath is come, and who shall be able to stand. That is what they are going to say. "We aren't able to stand. We can't look upon Christ, we can't stand in His presence. We want to be blotted out!" O my friends, I truly hope that in that day we will be able to look up and say this is my God, I have waited for Him, and now He has come to save me. I hope that we will not have to pray for rocks and mountains to fall on us. I hope that we will not have to hide from the presence of the Lord.

I read the promise of the Lord, "A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand, but it shall St come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked." And the Lord says in this same text, "He shall give His angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways." Ps, 91:11. My friend, tonight the angels are watching over you to keep you in the ways of God, Are you willing to walk in the ways of heaven, or are you trying to depart from the ways of God.

I would like to read, before I close, the prophecy of Zephaniah 1: The great day of the Lord is near, it is near, and hasteth greatly, even the voice of the day of the Lord: the mighty man shall cry there bitterly. That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness, a day of the trumpet and alarm against the fenced cities, and against the high towers. And I will bring distress upon men, that they shall walk like blind men, because they have sinned against the Lord; and their blood shall be poured out as dust, and their flesh as the dung. Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the Lord's 'wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy; for he shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land. Zeph. 1:14-18.

"Gather yourselves together, yea, gather to-gather, O nation not desired; before the decree bring forth, before the day pass as the chaff, before the fierce anger of the Lord come upon you, before the day of the Lord's anger come upon you. Seek ye the Lord, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought his judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be ye shall be bid in the day of the Lord's anger." Zeph. 2:1-3.

O my friends, the Lord says to you, seek for meekness, seek for righteousness before the decree goes forth and the wrath of God is poured upon the earth. We are living in a very solemn period. Are you under the protection of God? Are you seeking meekness? Are you seeking righteousness, that you will be able to stand in the great day of the Lord? O my friends, Jesus loves you. He doesn't want you to suffer these things. The Bible says that these things are God's strange act. The Bible says it is a strange act of God when He punishes the wicked for their wicked deeds. You and I do not need to suffer these things, if we will only love Him and serve Him. He says, I will give my angels charge over thee. May God grant that you will be under that protecting care, under His wings, I am safely abiding.