Signs God Is Judging Your Nation
Have you ever wondered if your nation is being judged by God? Perhaps you are like Habakkuk who saw wickedness occurring in his nation. He complained by telling God that evil was occurring and asked for help. He complained that he had to see the evil. Here is his opening complaint in Habakkuk 1:2-4. Read it slowly. As you do, ask yourself if his words seem to describe your nation.
How long, O LORD, will I call for help,
And You will not hear?
I cry out to You, “Violence!”
Yet You do not save.
Why do You make me see iniquity,
And cause me to look on wickedness?
Yes, destruction and violence are before me;
Strife exists and contention arises.
Therefore the law is ignored
And justice is never upheld.
For the wicked surround the righteous;
Therefore justice comes out perverted.
Habakkuk 1:2-4 (NASB)
Notice that the prophet cried out for help, just as many people do today in nations around the world. In verse 2, he complained that God did not seem to hear him. He was crying out about the violence, but God did not respond. So he complained that he had to see the wickedness.
In verse 3, the two Hebrew words for strife and contention include a wide range of nasty behaviors such as quarreling, hostility, legal disputes, and taunting. They are personal attacks on individuals. So, the prophet complains that this is occurring.
In verse 4, he states the law is ignored and justice is never upheld. The Hebrew word that is translated as “ignored” means “numb.” The idea is that justice does not respond. It is as if the law had no feelings or, we would say today, it was anaesthetized. Justice cannot prevail because it is prevented from functioning properly.
Next the prophet complains that justice is never upheld. Why? The answer is that the wicked surround the righteous. So, they dominate the civil discussion. They control the government. Finally, he adds that justice comes out perverted. The Hebrew for perverted in this verse means “twisted.” The point is that the wicked control the judges and the courts. The wicked twist “justice” so that it is really injustice. Their justice is injustice. Since justice is numb or twisted, wickedness abounds and the wicked increase.
God told the prophet Habakkuk how he would respond to his plea.
Look among the nations! Observe!
Be astonished! Wonder!
Because I am doing something in your days —
You would not believe if you were told.
For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans,
That fierce and impetuous people
Who march throughout the earth
To seize dwelling places which are not theirs.
Habakkuk 1:5-6 (NASB)
God said He would destroy Israel. That is God’s solution for a wicked nation that is too wicked and too persistently rebellious toward Him. That is God’s ultimate solution for removing evil.
Therefore, God called Israel to repent in chapters 4-24 of the book of Ezekiel. He called Israel to repent so that they would not be judged. So, the nation would not be destroyed. He did this also through Jeremiah and other prophets. God warned and warned. Then in Ezekiel 33:11, we read God’s pleas with those who were not killed when the Babylonian army invaded the nation and destroyed Jerusalem and Solomon’s temple. He said this through the prophet Ezekiel,
“Say to them, ‘ As I live!’ declares the Lord GOD, ‘I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil ways! Why then will you die, O house of Israel?’ Ezekiel 33:11 (NASB)
It is important to learn that God does not enjoy the death of wicked people. It also important to notice that God reveals He must cause the wicked to die if they refuse to “turn back” or repent. We have a holy God who at some point must punish the wicked.
So, are there any signs that reveal God will take action to judge a nation? The answer is yes! Ezekiel gives us many signs of coming judgment upon an unrepentant nation. Here are fifteen signs from Ezekiel and the book of Romans. These are warnings of pending danger.
- The people of the nation are wicked (Ezekiel 20:15-16).
- A nation has a shortage of supplies the people need in order to live. (Ezekiel 16:27).
- The leaders of the nation are proud (Ezekiel 26:1-6).
- The majority of the nation has abandoned God (Ezekiel 20:7-8).
- The people are killing their children (Ezekiel 20:26).
- Worship of false gods increases (Ezekiel 20:39).
- Sin and violence increases even though the people know God’s standards, yet they reject God and His ways. (Romans 1:28-32).
- God allows sexual sins to increase (Ezekiel 22:9-11, 25-26).
- Faith leaders do violence to God’s Word, profane that which is holy and make no separation between the holy and the profane (Ezekiel 22:25-26)
- The nation is increasingly anti-Semitic (Ezekiel 25:6-8).
- God removes the wealth of the nation (Ezekiel 30:10-12).
- The foundations of the nation are removed and many of the population die as a result of war (Ezekiel 30:4).
- The nation does not keep its promises to Israel. Ezekiel 29:6-8 explains that Egypt was like a flimsy reed to Israel. When the Babylonian army invaded Israel, Egypt abandoned its commitment to Israel. God removed Israel’s support.
- God uses the weather to destroy a nation (Ezekiel 30:12).
- God weakens a nation in preparation for another nation to destroy it (Ezekiel 30:20-26).
How should we respond? We should begin by repenting of our sins. We should call the nation to “turn back”—repent. We should share the good news about Jesus Christ so that others can be rescued from their sins and spend eternity in heaven and not in hell. Pray for your nation and for the salvation of your fellow citizens.
Download
Fifteen Signs God May Judge Your Nation — PDF