IS A FAMINE COMING?
By W. G. Guy
Recently I wrote an article entitled, Judgment is Necessary, which was about God’s means of initiating corrective punishment upon His people to bring them to repentance and return to worshipping Him. Since our founding fathers dedicated this nation to God, America is considered a nation of God’s people; and our enemy, Satan, hates it and is working to destroy it.
This article is a follow up on the same topic.
Ezekiel 14:12-14 – The word of the Lord came again to me, saying, Son of man, when the land sinneth against me by trespassing grievously, then will I stretch out mine hand upon it, and will break the staff of the bread thereof, and will send famine upon it, and will cut off man and beast from it: though these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they should deliver but their own souls by their righteousness, saith the Lord God. (Read Ezekiel 14:12-21 for more on God’s means of corrective punishment for an errant society.)
The Bible records the means of corrective punishment that God uses to bring people to their knees calling out to God for forgiveness and repentance in order to correct their errant ways. The forms of corrective punishment are: the sword (war), pestilence (disease), and famine (scarcity or lack of food), and sometime wild beasts. Wars we seem to be involved in all the time; and if we do not change our national sinful ways, war may come to be fought on our soil. Pestilence, or disease, we are familiar with as we have been dealing with such, and may see much more soon.
Famine is what I want to deal with in this article. Even now threats of famine are being talked about in the news media, not only in America, but around the world. Supply chain issues are the threat we hear about as store shelves are empty of many items; and especially talked about is the lack of Baby Formula.
What is famine? It is the shortage or insufficient supply of food that is necessary to sustain life in the population. Famine is mentioned 89 times in the Bible, and nearly always a means of punishment as a result of people’s errant behavior against the Lord.
How long does a famine last? Famines in the Bible have lasted three years, three and a half years, and seven years. What territories are covered by famine? The Bible mentions famines in cities, lands or nations, and the known world. The Bible records that people have migrated to other nations and territories due to famine just so they can find food and water. What is the cause of famine? Lack of water or rain is the cause of famine since water is required to grow crops and to provide drinking water for cattle as well as humans.
There are various degrees or severities of famines. The Bible records famines as being “great” meaning intense; “sore” which means very harsh; and other famines being “grievous”, which means horribly severe. Ancient siege warfare against a city frequently employed cutting off the food supply to the city in order to cause the people to surrender. Consider the siege of Samaria by King Haddad:
2 Kings 6:24-29 – …that Ben-hadad king of Syria gathered all his host, and went up, and besieged Samaria. And there was a great famine in Samaria: and, behold, they besieged it, until an ass’s head was sold for fourscore pieces of silver, and the fourth part of a cab of dove’s dung for five pieces of silver. And as the king of Israel was passing by upon the wall, there cried a woman unto him, saying, Help, my lord, O king. And he said, If the Lord do not help thee, whence shall I help thee? out of the barnfloor, or out of the winepress? And the king said unto her, What aileth thee? And she answered, This woman said unto me, Give thy son, that we may eat him to day, and we will eat my son to morrow. So we boiled my son, and did eat him: and I said unto her on the next day, Give thy son, that we may eat him: and she hath hid her son.
A similar condition existed at the siege of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. by Titus which caused such a severe famine in the city that the women were eating their babies according to the historian Josephus. Consider what is recorded in just a few following scriptures about famines to verify what is written above:
Three most common forms of punishment for refusing to turn from sinful behavior:
Jeremiah 29:17 – thus saith the Lord of hosts; Behold, I will send upon them the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, and will make them like vile figs, that cannot be eaten, they are so evil.
Jeremiah 44:13 – For I will punish them that dwell in the land of Egypt, as I have punished Jerusalem, by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence:
Ezekiel 6:11 – Thus saith the Lord God; Smite with thine hand, and stamp with thy foot, and say, Alas for all the evil abominations of the house of Israel! for they shall fall by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence.
Ezekiel 14:13, 21 – Son of man, when the land sinneth against me by trespassing grievously, then will I stretch out mine hand upon it, and will break the staff of the bread thereof, and will send famine upon it, and will cut off man and beast from it: …… For thus saith the Lord God; How much more when I send my four sore judgments upon Jerusalem, the sword, and the famine, and the noisome beast, and the pestilence, to cut off from it man and beast?
Note that a new element of punishment is added in this passage, “the noisome beast”. Then an even further element of punishment is added in the prophecy about the destruction of Babylon in the future which includes fire.
Revelation 18:8 – Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her.
Duration of famines – some three years, some three and a half years, some seven years, others various durations when siege of war is involved:
Genesis 41:30 – and there shall arise after them seven years of famine; and all the plenty shall be forgotten in the land of Egypt; and the famine shall consume the land;
2 Samuel 21:1 – Then there was a famine in the days of David three years, year after year; and David enquired of the Lord. And the Lord answered, It is for Saul, and for his bloody house, because he slew the Gibeonites.
Geographical areas covered by famines cause migration:
Genesis 12:10 – And there was a famine in the land: and Abram went down into Egypt to sojourn there; for the famine was grievous in the land.
Genesis 41:56-57 – And the famine was over all the face of the earth: and Joseph opened all the storehouses, and sold unto the Egyptians; and the famine waxed sore in the land of Egypt. And all countries came into Egypt to Joseph for to buy corn; because that the famine was so sore in all lands.
2 Kings 8:1 – Then spake Elisha unto the woman, whose son he had restored to life, saying, Arise, and go thou and thine household, and sojourn wheresoever thou canst sojourn: for the Lord hath called for a famine; and it shall also come upon the land seven years.
What causes a famine: the lack of rain:
1 Kings 17:1 – And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the Lord God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word.
1 Kings 18:1-2 – And it came to pass after many days, that the word of the Lord came to Elijah in the third year, saying, Go, shew thyself unto Ahab; and I will send rain upon the earth. And Elijah went to shew himself unto Ahab. And there was a sore famine in Samaria.
Luke 4:25 – But I tell you of a truth, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elias, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, when great famine was throughout all the land;
Since God’s purpose for famine is to punish errant behavior of sinners and to bring about a correction and repentance, we can conclude that famine is not for the righteous who are faithful and obedient to the Lord, those who honor Him, and His Word. God made special provision and gave a warning to preserve His people – Jacob’s family in Egypt.
Genesis 41:29-30 – Behold, there come seven years of great plenty throughout all the land of Egypt: and there shall arise after them seven years of famine; and all the plenty shall be forgotten in the land of Egypt; and the famine shall consume the land;
God’s promised provision for the righteous:
Psalms 33:18-19 – Behold, the eye of the Lord is upon them that fear Him, upon them that hope in His mercy; to deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine.
Psalms 37:18-19, 25 – The Lord knoweth the days of the upright; and their inheritance shall be forever. They shall not be ashamed in the evil time; and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied. ….. I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed (children) begging bread.
Remember God’s great love and promises for His beloved children who trust in Him.
Romans 8:35 – Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
Is famine coming to America? We are certainly deserving of God’s punishment for our grievous transgressions and godless laws. Can God’s punishment be averted? As Abraham interceded for Sodom and Gomorrah, if there but ten righteous souls within the city, it could be God would not judge America due to there being His righteous people in this land. However, based on the promises above that apply only to the righteous, God could provide food supernaturally for them as He did for Elijah and the widow.
This means that we should be warning others to seek the Lord and His righteousness so that they may avoid famine and any of the other forms of corrective punishment; or at least that they be provided by God in the midst of a famine. The behavior of most Americans suggests that there may indeed be a famine in our near future. Heed the warning! Acknowledge the Lord’s provision in His Grace and Mercy! It is all in His Word! Read it; know it, and apply it!
Matthew 6:31-33 – Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
God always provides for His own righteous children!
By W. G. Guy
Recently I wrote an article entitled, Judgment is Necessary, which was about God’s means of initiating corrective punishment upon His people to bring them to repentance and return to worshipping Him. Since our founding fathers dedicated this nation to God, America is considered a nation of God’s people; and our enemy, Satan, hates it and is working to destroy it.
This article is a follow up on the same topic.
Ezekiel 14:12-14 – The word of the Lord came again to me, saying, Son of man, when the land sinneth against me by trespassing grievously, then will I stretch out mine hand upon it, and will break the staff of the bread thereof, and will send famine upon it, and will cut off man and beast from it: though these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they should deliver but their own souls by their righteousness, saith the Lord God. (Read Ezekiel 14:12-21 for more on God’s means of corrective punishment for an errant society.)
The Bible records the means of corrective punishment that God uses to bring people to their knees calling out to God for forgiveness and repentance in order to correct their errant ways. The forms of corrective punishment are: the sword (war), pestilence (disease), and famine (scarcity or lack of food), and sometime wild beasts. Wars we seem to be involved in all the time; and if we do not change our national sinful ways, war may come to be fought on our soil. Pestilence, or disease, we are familiar with as we have been dealing with such, and may see much more soon.
Famine is what I want to deal with in this article. Even now threats of famine are being talked about in the news media, not only in America, but around the world. Supply chain issues are the threat we hear about as store shelves are empty of many items; and especially talked about is the lack of Baby Formula.
What is famine? It is the shortage or insufficient supply of food that is necessary to sustain life in the population. Famine is mentioned 89 times in the Bible, and nearly always a means of punishment as a result of people’s errant behavior against the Lord.
How long does a famine last? Famines in the Bible have lasted three years, three and a half years, and seven years. What territories are covered by famine? The Bible mentions famines in cities, lands or nations, and the known world. The Bible records that people have migrated to other nations and territories due to famine just so they can find food and water. What is the cause of famine? Lack of water or rain is the cause of famine since water is required to grow crops and to provide drinking water for cattle as well as humans.
There are various degrees or severities of famines. The Bible records famines as being “great” meaning intense; “sore” which means very harsh; and other famines being “grievous”, which means horribly severe. Ancient siege warfare against a city frequently employed cutting off the food supply to the city in order to cause the people to surrender. Consider the siege of Samaria by King Haddad:
2 Kings 6:24-29 – …that Ben-hadad king of Syria gathered all his host, and went up, and besieged Samaria. And there was a great famine in Samaria: and, behold, they besieged it, until an ass’s head was sold for fourscore pieces of silver, and the fourth part of a cab of dove’s dung for five pieces of silver. And as the king of Israel was passing by upon the wall, there cried a woman unto him, saying, Help, my lord, O king. And he said, If the Lord do not help thee, whence shall I help thee? out of the barnfloor, or out of the winepress? And the king said unto her, What aileth thee? And she answered, This woman said unto me, Give thy son, that we may eat him to day, and we will eat my son to morrow. So we boiled my son, and did eat him: and I said unto her on the next day, Give thy son, that we may eat him: and she hath hid her son.
A similar condition existed at the siege of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. by Titus which caused such a severe famine in the city that the women were eating their babies according to the historian Josephus. Consider what is recorded in just a few following scriptures about famines to verify what is written above:
Three most common forms of punishment for refusing to turn from sinful behavior:
Jeremiah 29:17 – thus saith the Lord of hosts; Behold, I will send upon them the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, and will make them like vile figs, that cannot be eaten, they are so evil.
Jeremiah 44:13 – For I will punish them that dwell in the land of Egypt, as I have punished Jerusalem, by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence:
Ezekiel 6:11 – Thus saith the Lord God; Smite with thine hand, and stamp with thy foot, and say, Alas for all the evil abominations of the house of Israel! for they shall fall by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence.
Ezekiel 14:13, 21 – Son of man, when the land sinneth against me by trespassing grievously, then will I stretch out mine hand upon it, and will break the staff of the bread thereof, and will send famine upon it, and will cut off man and beast from it: …… For thus saith the Lord God; How much more when I send my four sore judgments upon Jerusalem, the sword, and the famine, and the noisome beast, and the pestilence, to cut off from it man and beast?
Note that a new element of punishment is added in this passage, “the noisome beast”. Then an even further element of punishment is added in the prophecy about the destruction of Babylon in the future which includes fire.
Revelation 18:8 – Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her.
Duration of famines – some three years, some three and a half years, some seven years, others various durations when siege of war is involved:
Genesis 41:30 – and there shall arise after them seven years of famine; and all the plenty shall be forgotten in the land of Egypt; and the famine shall consume the land;
2 Samuel 21:1 – Then there was a famine in the days of David three years, year after year; and David enquired of the Lord. And the Lord answered, It is for Saul, and for his bloody house, because he slew the Gibeonites.
Geographical areas covered by famines cause migration:
Genesis 12:10 – And there was a famine in the land: and Abram went down into Egypt to sojourn there; for the famine was grievous in the land.
Genesis 41:56-57 – And the famine was over all the face of the earth: and Joseph opened all the storehouses, and sold unto the Egyptians; and the famine waxed sore in the land of Egypt. And all countries came into Egypt to Joseph for to buy corn; because that the famine was so sore in all lands.
2 Kings 8:1 – Then spake Elisha unto the woman, whose son he had restored to life, saying, Arise, and go thou and thine household, and sojourn wheresoever thou canst sojourn: for the Lord hath called for a famine; and it shall also come upon the land seven years.
What causes a famine: the lack of rain:
1 Kings 17:1 – And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the Lord God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word.
1 Kings 18:1-2 – And it came to pass after many days, that the word of the Lord came to Elijah in the third year, saying, Go, shew thyself unto Ahab; and I will send rain upon the earth. And Elijah went to shew himself unto Ahab. And there was a sore famine in Samaria.
Luke 4:25 – But I tell you of a truth, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elias, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, when great famine was throughout all the land;
Since God’s purpose for famine is to punish errant behavior of sinners and to bring about a correction and repentance, we can conclude that famine is not for the righteous who are faithful and obedient to the Lord, those who honor Him, and His Word. God made special provision and gave a warning to preserve His people – Jacob’s family in Egypt.
Genesis 41:29-30 – Behold, there come seven years of great plenty throughout all the land of Egypt: and there shall arise after them seven years of famine; and all the plenty shall be forgotten in the land of Egypt; and the famine shall consume the land;
God’s promised provision for the righteous:
Psalms 33:18-19 – Behold, the eye of the Lord is upon them that fear Him, upon them that hope in His mercy; to deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine.
Psalms 37:18-19, 25 – The Lord knoweth the days of the upright; and their inheritance shall be forever. They shall not be ashamed in the evil time; and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied. ….. I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed (children) begging bread.
Remember God’s great love and promises for His beloved children who trust in Him.
Romans 8:35 – Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
Is famine coming to America? We are certainly deserving of God’s punishment for our grievous transgressions and godless laws. Can God’s punishment be averted? As Abraham interceded for Sodom and Gomorrah, if there but ten righteous souls within the city, it could be God would not judge America due to there being His righteous people in this land. However, based on the promises above that apply only to the righteous, God could provide food supernaturally for them as He did for Elijah and the widow.
This means that we should be warning others to seek the Lord and His righteousness so that they may avoid famine and any of the other forms of corrective punishment; or at least that they be provided by God in the midst of a famine. The behavior of most Americans suggests that there may indeed be a famine in our near future. Heed the warning! Acknowledge the Lord’s provision in His Grace and Mercy! It is all in His Word! Read it; know it, and apply it!
Matthew 6:31-33 – Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
God always provides for His own righteous children!
