THE OIL SPILL IS NOT FULFILLMENT OF BIBLICAL PROPHESY

George Offerman

There are claims by some prominent expositors, as well as discussions in the blogosphere, that the man made oil spill fulfills Revelation 8:8-11 the second and third trumpets and/or Revelation 16:3 the second bowl. These claims are about as hermeneutically unsound as one can get, and it is only going to sow confusion among the faithful, which is definitely against the will of God.

For any of you that had read the series of posts on Biblical Prophesy and revelation, this posting will be somewhat of a rehashing of the principles discussed in them. Evidently, it cannot be emphasized enough, and this is a perfect example of sensationalism over the purity of the word. When proper hermeneutics are used, this myth of a man made catastrophe is easily dismissed as something divinely mandated. However, it still sickens me that many of the faithful may and will get caught up in this very misinterpreted event, and give it credence it does not deserve.

Biblical prophesy is an accurate and exact warning of actions that God will be taking. For it to be truly from God, it has to happen in the exact way, and exact order written or revealed. Also, without exception, God has always sent a prophet to warn of upcoming judgments and this prophet has always explained the nature of the judgments, as well as why they must happen. So, has this occurred?

Rev 8:8-11

8-9The second Angel trumpeted. Something like a huge mountain blazing with fire was flung into the sea. A third of the sea turned to blood, a third of the living sea creatures died, and a third of the ships sank.
10-11The third Angel trumpeted. A huge Star, blazing like a torch, fell from Heaven, wiping out a third of the rivers and a third of the springs. The Star's name was Wormwood. A third of the water turned bitter, and many people died from the poisoned water.

In looking at the above verses, the second trumpet is a large asteroid striking the ocean. It is the impact of the ‘burning mountain’ that causes a third of the ocean to turn to blood, kill one third of the sea creatures and sink one third of all the ships. None of these events has happened, yet due to some formations of the oil slick taking on red coloring, there are those who want to ‘squeeze’ this event into the trumpets. The third trumpet is a land strike most likely by a comet that will cause inland waters to be contaminated. The oil leak does not even come close to fulfilling the requirements of this trumpet, and I am rather perplexed that one would even attempt to make this connection.

The trumpets are cosmic events, and not man made. The trumpets also must occur in order, and I would like for those believing these events are the trumpets or the second bowl, to explain when the first trumpet occurred, and to also explain where the other qualifiers are to fulfill the prophesy in totality. Granted, there is red tint in the water, but is one third of the ocean affected? Have one third of the ships been sank? Have one third of the sea creatures died? Where was the burning mountain that caused all of this? I will not even bother discussing the bowls, because this is so far out of the prophetic timeline that it doesn’t merit mentioning.

If one takes a look at the verses, none of the qualifications have been met, yet there are those who want to pick and choose items from the prophetic writings, which is taking them out of context, and making them into something they are not. The oil well is truly a disaster, and will ultimately have horrific consequences to the earth, environment and economy of the Gulf States. But by no means, is this anywhere close to fulfillment of Revelation, as it does not meet any of the qualifications of the prophesies.

I’m in agreement that things are bad (that is obvious to the regular readers) and spiritually we are in a quagmire. But Revelation is the end of time written in advance, and has to be taken in the order written so we can identify where we are in the apocalyptic time frame. I also have difficulty in believing that God does not know how to count, as he has numbered the seven trumpets and seven bowls and is quite clear that they will happen in the order he has revealed them. They are numbered so we don’t ‘mess them up’. Evidently for some, that is still not enough information to help them get it right.