We speak more often about man’s relation to God as defined in Scripture, and we speak less frequently about nations. Yet, there is much in the Bible about the larger society of which we are a part.

There are several descriptions of the fall of nations in the Bible. It is a catastrophic event. In symbols, it is described as the falling of the stars, the sun turning to darkness and the moon to blood. Concerning the fall of Jerusalem, Jesus said, "There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars." (Luke 21:25.) Matthew’s account reads, "The sun will be darkened, the moon will not give its light, the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken." (24:29.)

God ordained governments among men. I realize that there is not complete agreement among brethren concerning this, but it seems obvious that the Bible teaches that God ordained governments. I do not believe that 1 Samuel 8 argues against it. God wanted Israel and everyone else to trust him, not kings. Our confidence should be in God and not in the form of our government. We should remember that under the Old Testament days, nations were ruled most often by single kings just as nations in the Middle East are today. Americans argue strenuously against that form of government; we prefer a democracy. The Bible does not address this particular question; however, it does argue for our confidence to be placed in God. As the Psalmist wrote, "Some trust in horse; others in chariots, but we will remember the name of the Lord our God." (20:7.)

The New Testament says, "Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God. The powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resists the power, resists the ordinance of God. They that resist shall receive to themselves damnation. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil." (Rom. 13:1-3.)

"Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake, whether it be to the king, as supreme, or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of them that do well." (1 Peter 2:13-15.)

Jesus said to Pilate, "Thou couldest not have no power at all against me, except it were given thee from above." (John 19:11.)

God is directly involved in the rise and fall of nations. Daniel said to the pagan king: "This is the decree of the most High which is come upon my lord the king. That they shall drive thee from men and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field, and they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen and they shall wet thee with the dew of heaven, and seven times shall pass over thee, till thou know that the most High rules in the kingdom of men and gives it to whomsoever he will." (Daniel 4:24-25.) This is a great truth—God rules in the kingdoms of men. If Nebuchadnezzar needed to learn that (and he learned it the hard way), then so do we today.

Simeon said to Mary concerning Jesus when he was born, "Behold this child is set for the fall and rising again of many in Israel, and for a sign which shall be spoken against, (Yea, a sword shall pierce through thy own soul also), that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed." (Luke 2:34-35.) (There is a book titled, The Fall and Rise of Israel, William L. Hull, 1954.) How could this small child be at the center of such events! He is at the center because he is the Messiah, the Son of God. He is the One with divine power to judge the nations as well as individuals. He executes the will of God concerning matters of salvation individually and the judgment of nations. Israel has fallen into the hands of the Messiah. Their fortunes or misfortunes are all directly connected with what they do with Him. So also are ours.

Nations prosper when they acknowledge God. Another great truth about God and nations is that no nation can long exist while disobeying and dishonoring God. The wise man, Solomon, wrote, "Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people." (Prov. 14:34.) A nation, our nation, should not be ashamed or reluctant to acknowledge God. There is no way to skirt around or dodge the issue. There are bold choices that must be and will be made.

A nation will acknowledge the true God of heaven and earth or it will have false gods. Every nation must decide. A nation will treat its citizens humanely or it will not. A nation will be guided by ethical principles or unethical ones. It will protect and honor human life or disregard it by its laws; i.e., abortion and euthanasia. A nation will support the biblical concept of marriage as existing between a man and a woman, or it will support something other than this. In other words, there is no way that a nation can operate neutrally to all these questions. There can be no clear separation between God and State!! If God is directly involved in the affairs of nations, and he is, then there must be an acknowledgment of God in our national life.

The prophet of God said, "Let judgement run down as waters and righteousness as a mighty stream." (Amos 5:24.) The prophets of Israel cried out against Israel for mistreating the orphans and widows in the land. There are nations today who are corrupt within, allowing the custom of bribery to exist. National leaders prosper by stealing from the people. God will judge every such nation when their cup of iniquity is full.

Prophets spoke to nations about current events. When we read the Bible, we have accounts of nations falling and rising with prophets present to give divine interpretation to those events. Israel had many such prophets to advise the kings. Some of these prophets spoke to other national leaders as well. For example, Jonah was sent to Nineveh, the capital of Assyria. Daniel spoke directly to the king Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. We have divine interpretations of events concerning Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Israel, Edom, Sodom, Gomorrah, Jerusalem, Rome, and others.

It needs to be pointed out that we do not have inspired men, prophets, among us to interpret modern events. It is easy to make major mistakes when we presume to speak for God. Our human interpretations of national events are not necessarily the same as God’s. We should, therefore, refrain from assuming that we know why certain things happen.

The same spiritual principles apply to nations as to individuals. Have you noticed that the same spiritual principles apply to individuals, families, and nations? Righteousness exalts individuals, families and nations. God does not have a different will for individuals and nations. It is the same. If citizens of a nation honor God, then the nation honors God. In a democracy, the majority wins. But the majority can be wrong! When the majority becomes wicked and turns from God, then God will bring that nation to an end. That is the history all through the Bible. We should not think that it is different today.

God will not prosper our nation if we practice Buddhism, because many gods do not exist. God will not prosper our nation if we reject Jesus Christ, because He is God manifest in the flesh. God will not bless our nation, if we practice polygamy, because that is not God’s will concerning marriage. The practice of homosexuality will destroy any people. Unethical principles in business will bring an economy to ruin. Do you doubt it? Look what has occurred just over the past year in our nation.

Chaos results when a nation falls. Great empires have arisen and fallen in history. They once were prosperous and thriving; now they are no more. In the 1930s and 40s, Germany set out on a course of action that would destroy that nation and bring it into international contempt. The power hungry leaders had foolish thoughts of a super race and set about to destroy those that they decided were inferior. History records that they killed approximately nine million people! Where was God when all of that was going on? He was setting into motion events that would judge that nation. The whole nation was thrown into political, economic and social turmoil.

Think of the chaos that resulted when God judged Jerusalem in 70 AD. Thousands starved as the city was cut off from the outside. Civil strife within killed many. It is believed that these Jewish factions within killed more than the Romans did. What untold suffering! Bodies filled the houses inside the city and thousands were thrown over the city walls in the valley outside. When the Roman general Titus saw all this, he cried to God, You are my witness that I did not do this!

When the Roman Empire fell, the world was plunged into the "Dark Ages." It devastated the world that then existed. For over one thousand years, the whole world suffered until leaders with vision arose and directed people back to God. Here is a partial description of the fall of Rome in the fifth century AD:

"The death of the Roman world brought out many such Lamentations, for everyone understood at once that this was the final event. Saint Augustine of Hippo Regius in Africa mourned that the end of the world, as did Saint Jerome in Bethlehem. . . The sub-title of this study ‘The Day the World Ended’ is not meant to be extravagant. . . What follows the end of a world? Why, chaos again, which is another name for legend. All that happened in the next five hundred years to the great area where the world had stood is legend.

"The Goths remained but six days in Rome, a city from which all the fire had gone, a dead town of empty-eyed people watching mutely. There was no great slaughter, only the deaths of such misled men as chose to resist, who did not understand that it was all ended. The Goths took few lives, but they took much else---all the wealth they could carry, five hundred wagon loads of loot. It was the gold and jewels of Rome, the fine ornaments and the art; and they carried it away to the south when they left."

Lafferty ended his account of the fall of Rome with this penetrating analysis: "But we are all Goths, for all that, whoever we are; which is to say, Outlanders. And like the Goth Sarus we still owe loyalty to an Empire, but we no longer know of what the Empire consists. We are still bound by the statement of Stilicho that the highest duty in the World is the proper ordering of the World. There will be, and are, other worlds; and perhaps it is not a terrible thing that a world should end. But we are still in admiration at the great corpse of it." (The Fall of Roman, R. A. Lafferty, "Epilogue," 293-97, 1971.)

Revelation 18-19 records the reaction of the fall of Rome. Some wept over her fall; others rejoiced and praised God. The ones who wept were those who had traded with Rome and made great riches. The watched the fall of the city from their ships and wept. This shows that it could not have been Jerusalem. There is no seaport in Jerusalem. Ships do not sail into Jerusalem. But ships did sail into Rome. The ones who rejoiced were those in heaven who had suffered at the hands of the evil power.

Conclusion: Christians are taught to pray for political leaders. "For kings and for all that are in authority that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty." (1 Tim. 2:2.)