Does the Bible predict a future war in Korea?
Question:
Hi,
I have a friend online who sent me this message;
"I HOPE you know the SERIOUSNESS of this approaching Korean war!
The Bible mentions it! So it MUST be a MAJOR MAJOR WAR (to be mentioned in the Bible!) My guess, (for it to be SO MAJOR that it's mentioned in the Bible) is that it will end up being a NUCLEAR WAR!
We do not know the future! But it sure makes one realize the NEED to always be ready to meet our Lord and Savior!
Agree?"
I was wondering if you know of anything mentioned in the Bible that he could have interpreted this way. I have asked him to point out where in the Bible it mentions it but wanted to know if you knew anything first so that I could respond properly to him when he does write back. I don't believe there is any truth to this (am I wrong?) and would like to know how I should explain that to him.
Thank you for your time.
Answer:
These types of "prophecies" use the same tricks used by "psychics" and other charlatans. First, notice that these prophecies did not arise until after people became worried about the aggressive moves by North Korea. All they are doing is projecting current events into the future. It is completely unlike biblical prophecies where events were predicted so far into the future that no one could guess what would happen next or statements are made that most people thought had to be wrong. As an example, when Jeremiah foretold the destruction of Israel he was scorned and even arrested for saying things that the people and rulers did not want to hear. There were many more false prophets going around preaching a future peace. Jeremiah was basically a lone voice warning about God's wrath.
Once a trend is detected, these false prophets search for key phrases to bolster their position. The context is completely ignored. All the false prophet wants are phrases from the Bible that can be said to match whatever they want to predict. See "Of Prophecy and Football" for an analysis of the technique.
Since no verses were given, I can't give you a blow-by-blow description of how a verse was misused. Since it is North and South Korea I would not be at all surprised if they take as their text the prophecies at the end of Daniel concerning fractured Greek territories warring across Israel in the centuries before Jesus. Those particular prophecies talk a lot about the king of the north and the king of the south. The fact that these prophecies were fulfilled thousands of years ago won't matter; they just want the key phrases.
Response:
Thank you. I have been in contact with him, but he has yet to give a response to my asking him where in the Bible does he believes the Korean War is mentioned.
