For the second year in a row the symbolic doomsday clock sits at 90 seconds till midnight, the closest since its inception 77 years ago. This estimation is 1 minute and 30 seconds closer than it was back in 1953 when the US and the Soviet Union first tested thermonuclear weapons.
According to Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, there a number of reasons considered:
Ominous trends continue to point the world toward global catastrophe. The war in Ukraine and the widespread and growing reliance on nuclear weapons increase the risk of nuclear escalation. China, Russia, and the United States are all spending huge sums to expand or modernize their nuclear arsenals, adding to the ever-present danger of nuclear war through mistake or miscalculation.
In 2023, Earth experienced its hottest year on record, and massive floods, wildfires, and other climate-related disasters affected millions of people around the world. Meanwhile, rapid and worrisome developments in the life sciences and other disruptive technologies accelerated, while governments made only feeble efforts to control them.
On continued nuclear threats, the Bulletin stated:
In February 2023, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced his decision to “suspend” the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START). In March, he announced the deployment of tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus. In June, Sergei Karaganov, an advisor to Putin, urged Moscow to consider launching limited nuclear strikes on Western Europe as a way to bring the war in Ukraine to a favorable conclusion. In October, Russia’s Duma voted to withdraw Moscow’s ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, as the US Senate continued to refuse even to debate ratification.
Nuclear spending programs in the three largest nuclear powers—China, Russia, and the United States—threaten to trigger a three-way nuclear arms race as the world’s arms control architecture collapses. Russia and China are expanding their nuclear capabilities, and pressure mounts in Washington for the United States to respond in kind.
Meanwhile, other potential nuclear crises fester. Iran continues to enrich uranium close to weapons grade while stonewalling the International Atomic Energy Agency on key issues.
A “sign of the times” for us
When the late William Branham first mentioned the doomsday clock in the 50’s, it highlighted Scripture prophecies concerning the end times, especially the ones taught by the Lord Jesus Christ and the visions of John in the Book of Revelation. Man is very close to destroying himself. Even more so, the present world is very close to the outpouring of God’s wrath in the great day of the Lord.
Wars and rumors of wars have been going for generations. The only thing worth listening to (if we could call it that) is when and how Russia will step into the quagmire that is the Middle East. Will the war in Ukraine spread through eastern Europe and end in the land of Israel? Will Iran play a role in this conflict?
Jesus’ words ring louder to the believers’ ears today: “watch and pray…”
Some trivia worth knowing…
- The first doomsday clock announcement was first posted in 1947, the same year the prophet of God was commissioned to preach the message to the world.
- At about the same time also, Israel raised its flag as a nation
- The doomsday clock was the brainchild of Albert Einstein, J Robert Oppenheimer, and Eugene Rabinowitch.
Sources: Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists; UPI
Be First to Comment