Times of Tribulation: Christian End Times Thriller (The End Times Saga, #7)

by Cliff Ball

  Smiling, with a hint of mischief in his eyes, the Patriarch replied, “Oh that. My people tell me that it was some kind of massive technological trick, something that Hollywood and the movie studios pull off all the time in their movies. The people who supported both men somehow figured out how to fool everyone into thinking they rose from the dead and then were somehow carried off into the vast beyond. Don’t worry, my friends, the two are still dead, so don’t let a technological illusion like what just happened fool you. Remember, I’m here and that’s all that matters. Do you have anything else to ask, Miss Greenberg?”

  “Yes, sir. What about the earthquake? Do you know the damage done and how many were killed?”

  “The earthquake was just a coincidence. As for the damage done, it’ll be a few days before my engineers can give me that figure, and the same goes for anyone killed. I’m rather busy, young lady, do you have any other questions?”

  “No, Your Excellency, thank you for your time. This is Jessie Greenberg, reporting from Jerusalem, back to you at the studio.”

  “Thank you, Jessie. We here at UETN will keep you updated regularly on the earthquake and the various problems it caused, so please stay tuned. We wish peace and blessings on you.” The network returned to regular programming.

  In Big Bend, the Harrison’s led a Bible study of Revelation and the associated prophecies each time something happened that confirmed one the prophecies. “As you can see in Revelation 11, Elijah and Moses were supposed to carry out their duties for three and a half years. Then, as we saw, the Anti-Christ killed them, after God withdrew His protection for a short time. Now, we’re at the point where the two were resurrected and went to Heaven, which happened three and a half days later like the Bible says. After they ascended, the earthquake hit Jerusalem, causing a tenth of the city to fall, along with seven thousand people. Praise the Lord that all of this has come to pass, since we’re now only three and a half years away from Jesus’ Second Coming. I don’t know about the rest of you, but Gwen and I look forward to that, especially since the judgments ramp up in the second half of the Tribulation, which we’ll begin to take a closer look at as they are set to happen. Now, let’s end our study in prayer.”

  Josh led the group in prayer, praising God for each day they continued to live, and showing His mercy towards them as they tried to survive the oncoming Great Tribulation. He asked for protection from the forces of evil and for the salvation of those who hadn’t yet rejected Christ as the Son of the Living God. Josh thanked God for his and his wife’s salvation and prayed that everyone with him would live to see the Second Coming. He ended the prayer and the group separated so they could go off to do their duties.

  Chapter 17

  The Patriarch’s assassination came as a shock to everyone who followed him, even his security agency, since there had been no credible threats to his life. No one would’ve even guessed that Abraham Levenson, the former Defense Minister of Israel, would’ve had the nerve to assassinate anyone himself, let alone the leader of the whole world. Appearing on television looking like he had a heavy heart and had been crying, High Priest Josten said, “I have heart-breaking news. Our leader, the man who brought the world together in peace, harmony, and unity, has been assassinated by former Israeli Defense Minister Abraham Levenson. Rest assured, he has been executed. Patriarch Karimi’s body will lie in state for the next three days, and those of you who can, are invited to view his body before he is buried. We will have a month of mourning for our dearly beloved leader. We will survive this as we have survived everything else these past few years. Remember to stay united in this time of sorrow. I wish everyone peace and blessings.”

  UETN began airing the Patriarch’s accomplishments, beginning with his role as leader of Iran before he brought the world together. Citizens of the Union of United Earth were interviewed about the effect the Patriarch had on their daily lives, some went so far as to say that he saved them from being under the demoralizing influence of the haters who they thought dominated the planet for far too long. With the haters gone, the global community were grateful that the Patriarch let everyone be who they wanted to be and be with anyone they wanted to be with, no matter where it was, in public or in private. The citizens of the world felt free to live life how they wanted without someone judging them and telling them they were going to Hell. The public hoped that the next leader of the world would be as open-minded as the Patriarch was.

  Even though nine of the ten regional administrators had yet to be replaced after the very quick world war, as most of the originals were killed in nuclear strikes, their temporary replacements praised the Patriarch’s leadership skills, and claimed that no one but Karimi could have brought the world together the way he had. Since Wayne Davis was the only one who hadn’t been replaced, he was asked to share his thoughts.

  “I thought Patriarch Karimi was the perfect man for the job of world leader. His leadership brought us through some very troubling times and he decisively brought the world together as one to deal with the problems. His choice of High Priest for the one world religion was brilliant. While dealing with the haters has probably been one of the more difficult problems during his rule, the Patriarch dealt with those people with an iron hand, ridding the world of them one by one, through executions. I’m honored to have been handpicked by the Patriarch as the second administrator of North America after the first one so thoroughly failed to live up to the Patriarch’s standards. I will miss the leadership of our fallen leader and I do hope that whomever replaces him will be just as effective.”

  A day later, Wayne called the Priest for North America, Dylan Nelson, to come in person to Puerto Rico to discuss something that required upmost security. Once there, Nelson asked, “What can I do you for you in person, Mr. Davis, that couldn’t be discussed over the phone?”

  “What I’m about to discuss with you is too much of a security risk for me to talk about over an unsecured phone line, so I wanted to discuss it in person. What would you think if I told High Priest Josten that I wanted to take over the role of Patriarch?”

  Nelson’s jaw dropped, this was the last thing he expected to hear come out of Wayne’s mouth. “Why would you do that? The Patriarch’s barely been dead for a day, don’t you think that’s a bit tacky?”

  “I think I should strike while the iron’s hot. I want to remind Josten that I’ve been a loyal citizen the entire time and I’ve dealt with the haters in this region most effectively as administrator. I have the skills and I’ve always been an effective leader, so why not?”

  “Aren’t you afraid the High Priest would answer you by having you beheaded for your arrogance?”

  “I know Kevin, he wouldn’t be so rash. He’ll weigh the evidence and will eventually come to know in his heart that I’m the right man for the job. After all, I put myself in position before this job opened up, so I don’t see the downside in trying,”

  “You’ve obviously made up your mind long before you asked me to come, so I think you should try. If it fails, it’s your funeral.”

  “Thanks for being a sounding board, Dylan, but you’re right, I had decided to do this before calling you. You’re dismissed, my destiny awaits.”

  Leaving the office, Nelson thought, What a nut job. He’s going to get beheaded for being so arrogant. Oh well, I look forward to working with whoever replaces him.

  “This is High Priest Josten, how can I help you?”

  “Hi, Kevin, this is Wayne Davis. I wanted to speak to you about the position that just opened up and I wanted to place my name as someone who’s interested,”

  “What position?” Josten wondered what Davis was talking about, not thinking at first that he meant the position as Patriarch.

  “You know, the position as Patriarch. I’ve been loyal and as the North American administrator, I’ve dealt effectively with the haters. My political career shows I can be an effective leader. Do you think it would be possible for me to get it?”

  “Boy, you’re bold,
I’ll give you that. We’re going to be in official mourning for at least a month, so I won’t even be thinking about who will get the job or if we’ll have an election for the position. Wayne, you better be glad I know you, otherwise, your audaciousness and lack of respect for the dead would get you beheaded before the day was out. Now, I want you to hang up and not bother me again for a very long time. Got it?”

  “Fine, I’ll not bother you again.” Wayne hung up and angrily thought, I wonder what crawled up his backside?

  “What do you think, Patriarch, should we punish him after your resurrection?” Josten took the recorded audio from the phone call and played it for the Patriarch.

  Chuckling, the Patriarch replied, “No, I happen to like his attitude, although his timing could be better. When I rise from my coffin, he’ll probably be frightened by the thought that we’d do something to him, so I think he’ll behave, at least for a while. I wish we had more people like him around the world who are willing to lead, but we don’t. I think you need to ramp up the mourning from my loyal subjects, they don’t seem to be crying enough as they pass the coffin. Think you can do that, High Priest?”

  “I will do as I’m asked, Your Excellency.” Josten left the Patriarch’s apartment to begin getting mourners to be a lot more mournful while they walked past the supposed body of their Patriarch.

  Meanwhile, Gwen Harrison was discussing the supposed death of the Patriarch with Janet Robertson and the others in the women’s Bible study. “As you can see in Revelation 13, the dragon that has power will give power to the beast who will be wounded in the head. The dragon is Lucifer, you probably know him as Satan or the Devil, and the beast is the Patriarch. The Patriarch was supposedly shot in the head, so there’s that wound. Once the Patriarch comes back to life, however he manages to accomplish that little trick, he’ll be indwelt with Lucifer. The indwelt Patriarch will give power to High Priest Josten to bring fire down from the heavens so they can put the fear of the Patriarch in the hearts of those who continue to follow them. Since the people have already accepted the delusion about the Patriarch bringing peace to the world, they’ll readily accept him declaring that he’s a god. Karimi and Josten will widen their war against the saints, meaning those who believe in Christ and especially the Jews who are saved during this time. I have good news though, in a little over three years, they’ll be overthrown by Christ himself when He returns with the Raptured saints,”

  “How come God will allow this to happen? Why does Satan get to rule the Earth for the time he does?” asked one of the women.

  “God allows this because He wants only those that are completely committed to Him to be in Heaven. Would you want just anyone to be with you for eternity?”

  “Probably not. If you let everyone in, who could you trust to be whole heartedly committed to worshipping God?”

  “Exactly. Those people who say that anyone can go to Heaven if they just live right and do good things for their fellow man are wrong, because what would’ve been the point of Jesus dying for our sins?”

  “I guess Jesus doing what He did would’ve been a waste of time, if everyone could go to Heaven.”

  “Yeah, it would’ve. Now, we’re going through the Tribulation to sort the wheat from the chaff, basically those that are redeemable versus those that are not. As you’ve seen, there’s way more of the unredeemable than there are of us, which breaks my heart. All we can do is bring unbelievers who never rejected Christ in the first place into the fold so they too can live with God for eternity. When the Patriarch does pull off his resurrection trick, don’t be alarmed, because it’s all in God’s plan.”

  “Do you think the Patriarch and his people will kill every single believer they find on the spot without any kind of trial?” asked Janet.

  “Yes, I do, and they’ve already started, from what we’ve seen on TV. Whoever doesn’t take his marks will face almost immediate execution. Believers during this time will be rewarded for being martyrs for the cause of Christ because they dared face down the enormous pressure of the global community and the Patriarch,”

  “I really wish I had known all this before the Rapture and the Tribulation, I don’t like having to live through this period of time.”

  “I think we all feel the same way. Anyway, all we really need to know is that God wins in the end.”

  The other women all said “amen” and then Gwen said, “Let’s join hands and pray. Heavenly Father, we come to this day to ask for continued protection from the forces of evil. Please forgive us of our sins and help us to remained focus on you. Please protect other believers around the world as they face persecution and death. We look forward to your coming and please come quickly. In your name, amen.”

  Gwen approached Janet, asking, “So, how’s it going with Pete? Is he leaning towards asking Christ into his heart?”

  “I don’t know. Sometimes I think he’s almost there, and then he pulls back. That man is so stubborn sometimes and hardheaded, but I think he’ll convert before the time passes for him to do it.”

  “Well, Josh and I will keep praying for him.”

  “Thanks, I appreciate it, I really do.”

  Two days later, UETN broke into programming again. “We have amazing news to report! The Patriarch has risen from the dead. There seems to be a different air about him, like he’s filled with more confidence than he ever had before. He also arose with some kind of new power, which he also gave to High Priest Josten. This power seems to be in the form of calling forth fire from the sky and I think it’s a very exciting development. The people who were filing past the coffin of the Patriarch reportedly were shocked at first by his rising, but then they fell to their knees, and began worshiping him like a god. We had a camera and our reporter Ezra Goldstein there as the event unfolded, watch the moment and rejoice with the rest of the global community that our leader has come back to us,”

  The video showed the Patriarch dramatically rising from his coffin, the mourners shocked to see it happening, and then the moment when they began to drop to their knees to worship him. The reporter that was tagging along with the cameraman, approached Karimi as he was helped out of the coffin, and asked, “Patriarch, what do you want to tell the world?”

  “In this time of need, I’m here to lead the way and to save you from yourselves. As you’ve seen, I have risen, proving to you that I am your god. I will no longer tolerate those that follow that other man, that false prophet, the one who claims he’s the Son of God. Nor will I tolerate those that practice Judaism, unless they convert and worship me. I am the Chosen One! To prove to you that I have the power that I say I have, I will give a portion of it to my prophet, Kevin Josten, who will lead you in worship of me and my godhood. High Priest Josten step forward,”

  High Priest Josten stepped forward, looking to some who watched like an outlandishly dressed peacock, while everyone could tell he was proud of his position and proud of what he was wearing. The Patriarch’s hand rose to Josten’s forehead, with the now risen leader saying, “I now give to you just a small bit of my power so you can effectively lead the people in the worship of me. Use it wisely, High Priest.”

  Light appeared between the Patriarch’s hand the High Priest’s forehead. The light seemed to travel through Josten’s body, even causing his eyes to have an otherworldly glow for a few seconds. Josten’s countenance seemed different to those who watched, but they weren’t sure how they’d be able to describe it to anyone who hadn’t seen it happen. The Patriarch lowered his hand, and with a commanding voice, said, “High Priest, demonstrate your power. Show the world what I, your god, have given you.”

  Josten headed for the open air, where a pile of books had been setup for the next bit of deception he and the Patriarch had devised to fool the people into believing the Patriarch was a god and the High Priest was his messenger. The camera panned the books as Josten said, “These are banned books that talk about that man we know to be a false prophet, along with Torah’s and other Jewish religious books.
These have been confiscated from those who follow that false prophet or could potentially follow Him. Watch as I consume these books with fire out of the sky.” Josten raised his arms towards the sky and said, “Fire! Come forth and consume!”

  A stream of fire appeared out of the sky and consumed the books. The people who had been mourning for the Patriarch in person cheered as the fire burned the banned religious material to ash. Around the world, other unredeemed also took joy in the book burning, while believers felt shock and sadness over what just happened, but they knew that God was in control. The camera focused back on Josten, who had an evil looking smile plastered on his face, who said, “Did you see the power of our god? He is the one who will save us from our backward ways and lead us to paradise in the after-life. He wants what’s best for all of us, will you follow or will you resist? Join me in worshipping him as the Christ. Your life depends on it.”

  The camera followed Josten as he returned to Karimi’s side. The reporter asked the Patriarch, “Patriarch, what do you command us to do to please you?”

  “To please me, all must worship my image, which will be rebuilt in the coming weeks. All must take the mark of loyalty and the mark that will enable you to buy and sell, this will be mandatory, including everyone who lives in Israel. Israeli’s will no longer be exempted from taking the mark. Those of you found without these marks will be executed, immediately for some, while others will be made examples of and then executed. The followers of the false prophet and his witnesses are to be turned in immediately, including former President David Cohen. Remember, we must have peace, harmony, and unity in this world so our children can be returned to a world without poverty, hunger, and hate. I have spoken.”

  “Thank you for your time, Patriarch. This is reporter Ezra Goldstein of the United Earth Television Network reporting from Jerusalem. Now back to you at the studio.”