Heaven And Earth Will Be Shaken

Yesterday, we read the verse in Isaiah 30 where it says that the towers will fall. I always think particularly of the ones that have glass walls. And it’s hard to imagine the kind of scene that would confront us if all of them collapsed. But the Bible says they will all fall. You may feel uncertain about that. Let me say for my part, I believe it will happen exactly the way it says.

And then the whole earth will be shaken. In Revelation 6, this is part of the unfolding of the prophetic vision of Revelation. Beginning at verse 12:

“And I looked when he opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth, and the moon became like blood, and the stars of heaven fell to the earth as the fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind. Then the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place.”

I don’t think our minds can fully conceive what will happen when every mountain and every island, including the British Isles, will be shaken.

And finally in this list, the heavenly bodies will be shaken. And you remember that the Lord said, “I will shake not only earth but also the heavens.” In Matthew 24:29, this is part of the prophetic discourse of Jesus on the Mount of Olives leading up to His return. Matthew 24:29:

“And immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light, the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.”

I don’t believe any of us fully understand, but apparently everything that we associate with the heavens will be shaken—which is exactly what God said in Haggai, “I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” The writer of Hebrews says everything that can be shaken will be shaken. Why? Because God wants to reveal and demonstrate a kingdom that cannot be shaken. And one way to prove it is to let everything that can be shaken be shaken.

And the writer of Hebrews says we have such a kingdom. We have something that cannot be shaken. But, it’s not in any of the things that I’ve listed. So you need to ask yourself and I need to ask myself where is my kingdom? What is my kingdom? What am I putting my trust in that cannot be shaken?

I’d like to go on a little further. Go back to Isaiah for a moment, Isaiah 24. This is a staggering chapter. I’ll read the first six verses and then I’ll read a little further on in a minute.

“Behold, the Lord makes the earth empty and makes it waste, distorts its surface and scatters abroad its inhabitants. And it shall be, as with the peoples, so with the priest; as with the servant, so with his master; as with the maid, so with their 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.”

God is very specific. There will be nobody exempted from this. Often, we tend to think that wealth and social position can provide security. But here Isaiah tells us neither. The master will be in the same position as the servant, the mistress with the maid, the creditor with the lender. No form of financial security will be effective.