114    The Bible and the Future of the World 

The Sins of Solomon 

     For when Solomon was old his wives turned away his heart after other 

gods; and his heart was not wholly true to the L

ORD

 his God, as was the 

heart of David his father.  (1 Kings 11:4). 

    Solomon was holy, but in his later years, he sinned much against God. 

For many decades after the Forty Years, the Church will dwell in great 

holiness. Faithfulness to God shall be multiplied throughout the earth. 

    But as time passes, Christians, like Solomon, will slip into greater and 

greater sinfulness. Sin will increase first in the world and then within many 

members of the Church. As it was near the end of Solomon's reign, when he 

strayed from God and followed false gods, so also will it be for many 

Christians as the time of the ten kings and Antichrist approaches. Yet some 

Christians in every age will remain faithful to the Lord. 

    It is largely because of the sinfulness and unfaithfulness of so many 

Christians that great suffering comes upon the Church and the world during 

those future years. Jesus suffered much because of the (future) sins of 

Christians (as well as the sins of others). 

    In the decades preceding the reign of the ten kings, there will be much 

war, violence, suffering, and great sinfulness. Then the reign of the ten kings 

arrives, the end of which is marked by Antichrist's brief but ruinous reign. 

Similarly, after Solomon died, there was rebellion and civil war in Israel, 

with much confusion and suffering. 

Isaiah's Prophecies about the Earth (Isaiah 24) 

     Behold, the L

ORD

 will lay waste the earth and make it desolate, and he 

will twist its surface and scatter its inhabitants.  (Isaiah 24:1). 

     This chapter of God's Holy Infallible Scripture describes the earth during 

the days of the great suffering of the Church, that is, during the years 

mentioned in the book of Revelation (25th century A.D.). The 24th chapter 

of Isaiah describes events which will occur in the A.D. 2400's. These words 

of Holy Scripture are not an exaggeration. The surface of the earth will be 

twisted. People will flee from place to place and be scattered in disorder. 

     And it shall be, as with the people, so with the priest; as with the slave, 

so with his master; as with the maid, so with her mistress; as with the buyer, 

so with the seller; as with the lender, so with the borrower; as with the 

creditor, so with the debtor.  (Isaiah 24:2). 

    Today, when hardships come to an area, the wealthy and powerful bear 

less of the burden. But in that time, all shall suffer without distinction. The 

strong and the wealthy and the powerful will not be able to use their 

resources to prevent themselves from suffering with everyone else.