Category Archives: The World

Keys to Prophecy: God Often Uses Evil Nations to Punish and Limit Each Other

Posted on by
Reply

The book of Habakkuk, written during Judah’s decline in the seventh century BC, is instructive. Times are really bad in Judah. Judah was a high crime and sin place. Habakkuk cries out to the Lord.

“Yahweh, how long will I cry, and you will
not hear? …” Hab 1:2a

“2 … I cry out to you “Violence!” and will you not save? 3 Why do you show me iniquity, and look at perversity? For destruction and violence are before me. There is strife, and contention rises up. 4 Therefore the law is paralyzed, and justice never goes forth; for the wicked surround the righteous; therefore justice goes forth perverted.”
Hab 1:2b-4

Indeed, why? Then God says He will do something astonishing! God says He will raise up the Chaldeans, the Babylonians, to punish sinful Judah. What are they like? God says they are a bitter and hasty nation. “They are feared and dreaded.” They have horses swifter than leopards. They gather prisoners like sand, and they laugh at kings and fortified cities. Strength is their god. Hab 1:6-11.

But now Habakkuk has a bigger problem!

Yes, Habakkuk recognizes that God’s decision, Hab 1:12; but he asks,

“You who have purer eyes than to see evil, and who cannot look on perversity, why do you … keep silent when the wicked swallows up the man who is more righteous than he,”
Hab 1:13 WEB

So he essentially says, but Lord, the Babylonians are worse than we are! Are you really going to let the Babylonians swallow up everything? Will you really let them “kill the nations without mercy?” Hab 1:17.

Habakkuk decides to wait for God’s answer.

“I will stand at my watch, and set myself on the ramparts, and will look out to see what he will say to me, and what I will answer concerning my complaint.”
Hab 2:1

Then God says, write all of this down, in big letters so that even a running man can read it. This is true, and it will NOT prove to be false. “Though it takes time, wait for it; because it will surely come.” Hab 2:2-3.

Yes, Babylon is puffed up, and is not upright,
“but the righteous will live by his faith.”
Hab 2:4

Babylon, once the mightiest nation on earth, situated on plains as fertile as the American Mid-West, now it is a mound of rubble to be dug through, situated in the midst of salt marshes. God raises up nations, and lowers them.

In essence God says in chapter two, Judah will be punished severely, and God will also get around to Babylon, but the righteous man will survive by his faith in God. God will care for him.

This the grand theme of the book of Romans, Rom 1:17.

Things are out of OUR control, but they are
NOT out of control.

“6 Does the trumpet alarm sound in a city,
Without the people being afraid?
Does evil happen to a city,
And Yahweh hasn’t done it?
7 Surely the Lord Yahweh will do nothing,
Unless he reveals his secret to his servants the prophets.”
Amos 3:6-7

The grand scheme of history is laid out in prophecy, from Genesis to Revelation. This is part of the grand scheme, and is also reflected in Revelation.

Scriptures are from the World English Bible (WEB), a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Keys to Prophecy: God Raises Up Nations, and Lowers Them

Posted on by
Reply

This is not something new. God has given Jesus present rule.

“ … “All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth.”
Mtt 28:18 WEB

Jesus is now, and will be “the ruler of the kings of the earth,” Rev 1:5. He will continue to rule from the heavenly Jerusalem until,

“… he has put all his enemies under his feet.”
1Cor 15:25 WEB

To think that Jesus would step down from ruling ALL from the heavenly Jerusalem (Rev 21:1-2, etc.), to rule from earthly Jerusalem, is a gross misunderstanding of prophecy. The premillenialists confuse prophecies of this present earth, with prophecies of heaven.

These are ongoing processes.

“He increases the nations, and he destroys them.
He enlarges the nations, and he leads them captive.”
Job 12:23 WEB

Sometimes nations seek good things, and God prospers them. Or they turn away from good things, ruin themselves, and God disciplines or destroys them. Once again, these are ongoing processes in history, reflected in prophecy, all the way from Genesis to Revelation, and is definitely still going on. In the words of the prophet Daniel,

“21 He changes the times and the seasons; he removes kings, and sets up kings; he gives wisdom to the wise, and knowledge to those who have understanding; 22 he reveals the deep and secret things; he knows what is in the darkness, and the light dwells with him.”
Dan 2:21-22 WEB

We often act as if God does not know what we are doing, but it says,

“9 He who implanted the ear, won’t he hear?
He who formed the eye, won’t he see?
10 He who disciplines the nations, won’t he punish?
He who teaches man knows.”
Psa 94:9-10 WEB

King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon (ruling 605-562 BC) wrote of Yahweh,

“34 … his dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom from generation to generation. 35 All the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing; and he does according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand, or tell him, What do you?”
Dan 4:34-35 WEB

That is history. It is the Liberal theories that are myths and fantasies, mere narratives to distract us from the truth.

Some of this is scarcely complimentary to either
rulers or the peoples.

A coin of Nebuchadnezzar, the preeminent King of Babylon, and author of Daniel chapter 4

Again this is the words of Nebuchadnezzar.

“… to the intent that the living may know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whoever he will, and sets up over it the lowest of men.”
Dan 4:17 WEB

Isn’t that the truth.

God decides where peoples will live, Acts 17:26.

Yahweh says,

“… “Haven’t I brought up Israel out of the land of Egypt, and the Philistines from Caphtor, and the Syrians from Kir?””
Amos 9:7 WEB

And purpose, what is the purpose?

“that they should seek the Lord, if perhaps they might reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us.”
Acts 17:27 WEB

We are studying the context in which God deals with men, earth age long!

WEB is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Keys to Prophecy: Cycles of History

Posted on by
Reply

I think one of the most majestic of the psalms is Psalm 107. It describes the cycles which nations go through, cycles which still exist. This psalm can only be summarized here, but it is well worth reading in detail in multiple translations and being mulled over.

God will lead the humble

Heavy things fall on sinful people. Some of the troubles are built right into our sins. Often we end up in desolate times.

“4 They wandered in the wilderness in a desert way.
They found no city to live in.
5 Hungry and thirsty,
Their soul fainted in them. ”
Psa 107:4-5WEB

Then they cried out to the Lord.

“6 Then they cried to Yahweh in their trouble,
And he delivered them out of their distresses,
7 He led them also by a straight way,
That they might go to a city to live in.
8 Let them praise Yahweh for his loving kindness,
For his wonderful works to the children of men!”
Psa 107:6-8 WEB

Parts of the psalm explicitly mention their sins.

“10 Some sat in darkness and in the shadow of death,
Being bound in affliction and iron,
11 Because they rebelled against the words of God,
And condemned the counsel of the Most High.
12 Therefore he brought down their heart with labor.
They fell down, and there was none to help. ”
Psa 107:10-12 WEB

But they cried out to the Lord, and He heard them, and broke their bonds, and led them in good ways.

Negative Environmental Changes Sometimes
Happen Because of Sin!

“33 He turns rivers into a desert,
Water springs into a thirsty ground,
34 And a fruitful land into a salt waste,
For the wickedness of those who dwell in it.”
Psa 107:33:34 WEB

You can see this story almost daily on the evening news.

But then are turned around for a humble people

“35 He turns a desert into a pool of water,
And a dry land into water springs.
36 There he makes the hungry live,
That they may prepare a city to live in,”
Psa 107:35-36 WEB

Then it goes on for several verses about the blessings He brings on them.

But then it is implied they turn aside again

“39 Again, they are diminished and bowed down
Through oppression, trouble, and sorrow.
40 He pours contempt on princes,
And causes them to wander in a trackless waste.”
Psa 107:39-40 WEB

It has been so in the past. It is still so in the Christian Age
and in the book of Revelation.

“41 Yet he lifts the needy out of their affliction,
And increases their families like a flock.
42 The upright will see it, and be glad.
All the wicked will shut their mouths.
43 Whoever is wise will pay attention to these things.
They will consider the loving kindnesses of Yahweh.”
Psa 107:41-43 WEB

KJV is the King James Version, 1611.

WEB is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Keys to Prophecy: God Works in Our Lives, Part III of III

Posted on by
Reply

God makes choices concerning our lives.

This is reflected in many ways and in many passages, such as,

“Only, as the Lord has distributed to each man, as God has called each, so let him walk. So I command in all the assemblies.”
1Cor 7:17 WEB

God gives one man, one job, and another man another job. Our tasks and locations are not accidental. We should do the best we can with whatever God has given us to do.

Then of course Jesus specifically says.

“You didn’t choose me, but I chose you, and appointed you, that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain; that whatever you will ask of the Father in my name, he may give it to you.”
Jn 15:16 WEB

He is saying, quite contrary to many of our instincts, especially in modern day America, that HE does the choosing, and further that these things have an impact on our behavior, and our reception.

“If you were of the world, the world would love its own. But because you are not of the world, since I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.”
Jn 15:19 WEB

And God has a definite perspective on who
pleases or displeases Him.

“27 but God chose the foolish things of the world that he might put to shame those who are wise. God chose the weak things of the world, that he might put to shame the things that are strong; 28 and God chose the lowly things of the world, and the things that are despised, and the things that are not, that he might bring to nothing the things that are: ”
1Cor 1:27-28 WEB

Or again, listen to the apostle James.

“Listen, my beloved brothers. Didn’t God choose those who are poor in this world to be rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he promised to those who love him?”
Jas 2:5 WEB

And pride and arrogance God hates.

“Likewise, you younger ones, be subject to the elder. Yes, all of you gird yourselves with humility, to subject yourselves to one another; for “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”
1Pe 5:5 WEB

So now we know a little better, how to appeal to God.

One day God will decide, will choose, that the
Great prostitute, Babylon the Great, the
great the religio-economic-political
power of our age … should be
destroyed for her sins.

The apostle John wrote of those powers which would be operative THROUGHOUT the Christian Age. From an engraving by Gustave Dore.

And God will assign one of His great enemies, the beast and ten kings to that task. He can do that at His will.

“For God has put in their hearts to do what he has in mind, and to be of one mind, and to give their kingdom to the beast, until the words of God should be accomplished.”
Rev 17:17 WEB

God can put ideas into the heads of even those who hate Him, and arrange it so that they serve His purposes.

It is important to read and study what God says, even in prophecy.

WEB is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Keys to Prophecy: God Works in Our Lives, Part I of III

Posted on by
Reply

God works in many everyday things in our lives, and it is He who does these things and not we ourselves, or an ambiguous “nature” that does these things.

“… For he makes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust.”
Mtt 5:45 WEB

These are not just random happenings. God makes, He sends. Also this does not imply that He may not at some point or other makes specific moves to assist us or to correct us. The book of Job also speaks of God using the weather in various ways.

You and I cannot command the clouds of the sky, but God can and does.

“9 Out of its chamber comes the storm,
And cold out of the north.
10 By the breath of God, ice is given,
And the breadth of the waters is frozen.
11 Yes, he loads the thick cloud with moisture.
He spreads abroad the cloud of his lightning.
12 It is turned round about by his guidance,
That they may do whatever he commands them
On the surface of the habitable world,
13 Whether it is for correction, or for his land,
Or for loving kindness, that he causes it to come.”
Job 37:9-13 WEB

But He is the one who encourages things, or blocks them, and sometimes merely allows them for a time.

It is all according to His will.

God overrules the affairs of men. So James argues that we should not be bragging about we are going to do.

“13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow let’s go into this city, and spend a year there, trade, and make a profit.” 14 Whereas you don’t know what your life will be like tomorrow. For what is your life? For you are a vapor, that appears for a little time, and then vanishes away.”
Jas 4:13-14 WEB

So what should we do?

“For you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will both live, and do this or that.” ”
Jas 4:15 WEB

God is the overruling authority over
ALL in heaven or earth.

He is the one who feeds us, and we should receive His bounty with thanks, for they are

“3 … foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. 4 For every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be rejected, if it is received with thanksgiving.”
1Tim 4:3-4 WEB

We are NEVER outside of His power.

A disaster may occur which we never would have allowed if it were in our power! Outside of our power, but none are outside of God’s power!

“7 Where could I go from your Spirit? Or where could I flee from your presence? 8 If I ascend up into heaven, you are there. If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, you are there! 9 If I take the wings of the dawn, And settle in the uttermost parts of the sea; 10 Even there your hand will lead me, And your right hand will hold me.”
Psa 139:7-12 WEB

WEB is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Keys to Prophecy: God Works in History, Part II of III

Posted on by
Reply

The example of the Assyrians

God’s very own people, the descendants of Abraham, had become very wicked in ancient times. They had themselves turned to the very sins of the Canaanites and the Amorites whom they had dispossessed some 800 or so years earlier. The pictures of the moral condition of both the northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah were indeed very dark. It included a great deal of lying, cheating, violence, fornication and adultery, worshipping false gods, and even human sacrifice. The capstone was that there was no inclination to repentance.

The Assyrians at that time were a prosperous people,

and at their height dominated much of what we now call the Middle East. Art and architecture were prospering under them, and they had some very good engineers among them. Also they were a very ruthless and bloodthirsty people, and were able to field some very capable armies, with the engineering skills to attack formidable fortified cities.

This is what Nineveh, the capital of Assyria, is thought to have looked like at its height.

So God raised up the Assyrians to bring judgement
on sinful nations, including Israel.

The Assyrians were very proud of their status as successful conquerers. They were on the top of the heap. They could do as they pleased with their conquests, and the people involved, and brutally suppressed any opposition. Part of their strategy in maintaining their conquests was simple to completely uproot captive peoples and move them en masse to far distant locations, thus removing any impulse to rebellion. They were fierce, successful and proud.

The Assyrians bragged about mutilating captives in their artwork. The above picture shows Assyrians soldiers skinning captives alive. From a bas-relief.

But God said the Assyrians should NOT
get carried away with themselves.

“5 Ho Assyrian, the rod of my anger, the staff in whose hand is my indignation! 6 I will send him against a profane nation, and against the people of my wrath will I give him a charge, to take the spoil, and to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets. 7 However he doesn’t mean so, neither does his heart think so; but it is in his heart to destroy, and to cut off not a few nations.”
Isa 10:5-7 WEB

Isaiah tells us that Assyria is merely
a tool that God is using.

“Shall the axe boast itself against him who hews therewith? Shall the saw magnify itself against him who wields it? as if a rod should wield those who lift it up, or as if a staff should lift up him who is not wood.”
Isa 10:15 WEB

So what about also sinful Assyria?

Why should they get away with the things they are doing? God’s answer is that they won’t. When God is finished using Assyria, He will then bring judgment also on Assyria!

“Therefore it shall happen that, when the Lord has performed his whole work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, I will punish the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his high looks.”
Isa 10:12 WEB

By and large this is not speaking of the “miraculous,” but of an Almighty God working behind the scenes to both protect the righteous and punish the wicked.

WEB is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Keys to Prophecy: Not all Prophecy has Been Fulfilled!

Posted on by
Reply

It is not very hard to find unfulfilled prophecies in Scripture. Now some have misinterpreted, for instance, Luke 24. Jesus is explaining what has happened after His resurrection from the dead.

“26 Didn’t the Christ have to suffer these things and to enter into his glory?” 27 Beginning from Moses and from all the prophets, he explained to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.”
Lk 24:26-27 WEB

Some have gone a little beyond what it says here, and claim that Christ fulfilled (past tense) ALL of prophecy.

Some do the same with Acts 3.

So they quote,

“But the things which God announced by the mouth of all his prophets, that Christ should suffer, he thus fulfilled.”
Acts 3:18 WEB

So they say, see! Christ has already fulfilled all prophecy. But it does not say that. Rather it says that the prophecies about what “Christ should suffer, he thus fulfilled.” That is much different.

Further, they tend to completely ignore the very next three verses.

“19 “Repent therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out, so that there may come times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord, 20 and that he may send Christ Jesus, who was ordained for you before, 21 whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God spoke long ago by the mouth of his holy prophets.”
Acts 3:19-21 WEB

So there are “times of restoration” verse 21, and Jesus must stay in heaven until these times, and God spoke of these things long ago by the mouth of his holy prophets. So there are prophecies which have not yet been fulfilled. It even goes further than this a few verses down, where it says,

“Yes, and all the prophets from Samuel and those who followed after, as many as have spoken, they also told of these days.”
Acts 3:24 WEB

Some of this is anti-prophecy material

Many have a vested interest in our not understanding the prophets. They are pertinent not only to us, but to the entire Christian age.

Peter tells us prophecy is the lamp of our age.

Peter tells us that prophecy is the lamp of our age, but MANY do NOT believe that, even of those who consider themselves solid Bible believers. Did Peter lie? Or are we mixed up?

“We have the more sure word of prophecy; whereunto you do well that you take heed, as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns, and the day star arises in your hearts:”
2Pe 1:19 WEB

That itself tells us that much is yet to be fulfilled. And in context Peter is talking mainly about Old Testament prophecy as a “lamp shining in a dark place” for the Christian Age. For he says,

“20 knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of private interpretation. 21 For no prophecy ever came by the will of man: but holy men of God spoke, being moved by the Holy Spirit.”
2Pe 2:20-21 WEB

Someone is mixed up!

Either Peter is mixed up when he calls prophecy the lamp of our age … or you and I are mixed up.

The rest is common sense, and carefully looking at the passages we are reading.

WEB is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Which Earth is This About? Part III of III

Posted on by
Reply

Some passages of course will not allow us to be dogmatic, or they may allow for a double meaning in the passage. When one person, place, thing, or event in a passage is symbolic of another person, place, thing, or event; then the text may go back and forth between the two subjects will no clear line of division.

A good example is 2Sam 7:12-16, a clear double
meaning in prophecy.

This passages speaks of both Solomon according to 2Kgs 8:17-20, and also it speaks of Jesus according Heb 1:5. Parts of this passage apply only to Solomon, and parts apply only to Jesus, and much of the prophecy applies to both, but in different ways. Similarly, Matthew 24 talks about both the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD, and the end of the world, and Jesus goes back and forth talking about both subjects! See a fuller discussion of both subjects in Prophecy Principles.

Sometimes it is harder to be dogmatic.

Prophecy Principles deals in detail with both 1Sam 7:12-16 and Matthew 24.

So lets just take part of Psalm 21 as an exercise in interpretation. It is a short psalm of only 13 verses. According to the preamble it is by David and is about “The King” verse 1. I take it be about the Great King, Jesus the Christ. It talks about some who hate “the King.”

“Your hand will find out all of your enemies.
Your right hand will find out those who hate you.”
Psa 21:8 WEB

Let us note particularly “the earth” in verse 10.

“You will destroy their descendants from the earth,
Their posterity from among the children of men.”
Psa 21:10 WEB

It easily could be taken to be speaking of this present earth. Many nations have completely disappeared from this present earth, and I am not just talking about Sodom and Gomorrah. Thus it could be talking about those things where God raises up nations and then because of their sins, puts them down.

But look at the context.

The previous verse talks about how he will destroy their descendants

“You will make them as a fiery furnace in the time of your anger.
Yahweh will swallow them up in his wrath.
The fire shall devour them.”
Psa 21:9 WEB

What does that sound like? You might try to call this a great deal of hyperbole (as many liberals might), or it seems to describe final judgement when Jesus comes in flaming fire (2Thes 2:9-11)!

So what is the “earth” from which their
descendants are destroyed?

On a basis of what we have examined I think it would easy to make the case for their descendants never to live in “the new earth” to come. That would fit the context as we have examined it, especially if we apply this psalm to the Messiah, the Great King.

And some prophecies talk of good things yet
to come in this world,

and in the world to come. Misunderstandings here have caused some to take prophecies of heaven (“the new heavens and the new earth”), and apply them to this present earth, and so come up with a heaven on earth which will never be!

WEB is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Which Earth is This About? Part II of III

Posted on by
Reply

In a passage in which we might not even suspect what the intention of the author really is, the author of Hebrews, says,

“For he didn’t subject the world to come, whereof we speak, to angels.”
Heb 2:5 WEB

The word world here is a word for the inhabited world (oikomen?). Of course most of the references to “earth” are of this present earth, with absolutely no doubt as to its meaning.

“God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind, …”
Gen 1:24 WEB

Or many other passages.

On others usages we might have to think a while.

Jesus says,

“You are the salt of the earth, but if the salt has lost its flavor, with what will it be salted? …”
Mtt 5:13 WEB

It does seem to speak of this present earth. Also in the very next verse He says,
“You are the light of the world. A city located on a hill can’t be hidden.”
Mtt 5:14 WEB

Again it seems to speak of our present world. But then let’s look at an earlier verse.

“Blessed are the gentle,
For they shall inherit the earth.”
Mtt 5:5 WEB

Now of which earth is Jesus speaking? In one sense it seems to apply to this present world, and passages like,

“For such as are blessed by him shall inherit the land. Those who are cursed by him shall be cut off.”
Psa 37:22 WEB

This indicates the wicked have a tendency to die off, and those God favors end up living on. All of which is true in a general sense, however there are many senses in this world when the gentle do NOT seem to inherit everything. And Jesus clearly asserts that this present universe will pass away.

“For most assuredly, I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not even one smallest letter or one tiny pen stroke shall in any way pass away from the law, until all things are accomplished.”
Mtt 5:18 WEB

So when you have prophecies of the “earth”
you may have questions to ask.

Often times the context will clearly give the answer. We clearly know, if we are attuned to Scripture at all, that this present earth will NOT last forever.

“10 And,
“You, Lord, in the beginning, laid the foundation of the earth.
The heavens are the works of your hands.
11 They will perish, but you continue.
They all will grow old like a garment does.
12 As a mantle you will roll them up,
And they will be changed;
But you are the same.
Your years will not fail.””
Heb 1:10-12 WEB

So when we have a long passage like Isaiah 24 which talks of the earth being laid waste Isa 24:1, and being polluted Isa 24:5, and then it says,

“The earth shall stagger like a drunken man, and … shall fall, and not rise again.”
Isa 24:20 WEB

Well then we can be pretty sure is speaking the final end of this present earth.

WEB is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Which Earth is This About? Part I of III

Posted on by
Reply

For the law, having a shadow of the good to come, not the very image of the things, … Heb. 10:1 WEB

Learning to sort out types is a necessary skill for understanding prophecy.

Multiple words are used for this earth.

Perhaps the broadest of these is the Hebrew word eretz. Eretz is of course used for what we would call the earth, and is used unambiguously for the whole thing from the first. For instance.

“God called the dry land Earth, and the gathering together of the waters he called Seas. God saw that it was good.”
Gen 1:10 WEB

And that is the word eretz, and it talks about this being formed before the sun was lit (which is not until Genesis 1 verses 14 to 16). Even so there is often more to eretz, for it can be used to describe a “land” in the sense of a nation (much as we might sing, “This land is my land, this land is your land …). Also it can be used to describe land in the sense of, “This my land where my house sits.” Lastly, eretz can be used for land in the sense of earth or ground, as in “This land/ground/dirt is no good. It won’t raise anything.” There are of course other Hebrew words, but eretz is the widest of all that are used.

There are two main words in the New Testament.

Perhaps the broadest of these is the Greek word g?. You might say it is a true Greek equivalent to the Hebrew word eretz. G? can translated as earth, world, land, nation, dirt, etc., much as eretz. But there is another common word used, and that is the word kosmos. Kosmos has the sense of this world in the English sense, but also has the sense of the things and the systems of this world. And there are words in both Hebrew and Greek for what we might call “the inhabited world.”

Of course Peter and others speak of the
destruction of this present world.

Peter says,

“But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will be dissolved with fervent heat, and the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.”
2Pe 3:10 WEB

Then Peter speaks of an entirely new creation.

“But, according to his promise, we look for new heavens and a new earth, in which dwells righteousness.”
2Pe 3:13 WEB

Which opens the possibility of speaking of more than one “earth.”

Now sometimes this may be very simple.

For instance Isaiah says,

“For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; and the former things shall not be remembered, nor come into mind. ”
Isa 65:17 WEB

That seems to be clearly one of the “promises” of a “new heavens and a new earth.” So eretz here seems clearly to be speaking of the new earth.

Other passages may not be near so clear.

WEB is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901