The US and its military allies have enhanced their strategic deployment around Korea. These military deployments pose a problem for China in that, although US arrangements are aimed at North Korea, China’s own border security is compromised by the allies’ presence. Political analysts say that the relationship between China and North Korea has reached its lowest point since the end of the Korean War in 1953.

Other Areas Also Unstable

Elsewhere, Zimbabwe food production has been destroyed by a combination of economic and political instability. Years of droughts, sporadic floods, poor harvests, and high unemployment have had disastrous results. In 2012, the Zimbabwe Vulnerability Assessment Committee estimated that more than 1.6 million Zimbabweans will be unable to access sufficient food during the peak hunger period of 2013. This marks the highest level of food insecurity within Zimbabwe in the past three years. The Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency announced in 2012 that only 11% of Zimbabweans are employed in the formal sector. Many Zimbabweans do not have the stability of a monthly pay check; they are struggling to survive.

The Political Instability Task Force, a US government-sponsored research project, has built a database on major domestic political conflicts leading to state failures. First established in 1994, in a comparison of unstable and stable countries, the task force identified over 100 "problem cases" — instances of revolutionary wars, ethnic wars, adverse regime changes, and genocides and political instability — in the world from 1955 to 1995.

The group developed The Political Instability Index, which shows the level of threat posed to governments by social protest. Index scores combine measures of economic distress and underlying vulnerability to unrest. For 2010, the most recent data available, 19 of 165 countries measured show very high risk, 70 show high risk of instability (Zimbabwe is number one), while only 17 of the 165 countries show low risk (see chart, previous page, and www.economist.com/node/13349331). Forty-seven of the top fifty show increased risks since 2007.

Such growing instability of the world should not surprise the student of the Bible. The prophet Daniel predicted, "At that time shall Michael stand up ... and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation ... and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book" (Daniel 12:1).

The theme text, describing trouble in dire terms, emphasizes the peril. Today, nuclear warfare is a threat to the human race. The number of nuclear warheads already has the potential to destroy all of earth’s population several times over. Jesus described this as a time when we would see "Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken" (Luke 21:26).

The Bible, however, describes these fearful days as a convulsive transition to better times. Using the nation of Egypt as a metaphor for the entire world, Isaiah writes, "And the LORD shall smite Egypt: he shall smite and heal it: and they shall return even to the LORD, and he shall be intreated of them, and shall heal them" (Isaiah 19:22). Describing present circumstances as a dark night, the Psalmist says, "For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favor is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning" (Psalm 30:5). Later, he assures us, "Thou turnest man to destruction; and sayest, Return, ye children of men" (Psalm 90:3).

The fulfillment of God's statement, "Return, ye children of men" is the theme of a sermon by the Apostle Peter in the temple in Jerusalem. The promise he holds forth is summarized in Acts 3:20, 21: "And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began."