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It is no wonder that some people think Christians are stupid: some of us are. Recently, I heard a sermon
on TV in which the relatively well known preacher used a
verse from the Bible to prove that God brought the attack against the
U.S. on 911 because of faithlessness on our part. Here’s the verse:
“All Israel has transgressed your law and turned aside, refusing to
obey your voice. So the curse and the oath written in the law of Moses,
the servant of God, have been poured out upon us, because we have sinned
against you.
(Daniel 9:11)
The preacher chose this text because it is, as anyone can see, 9:11.
The name "Israel" was interpreted as "God's chosen Nation" --
which the USA once was when it got started. This was then turned
into the USA as a one-time Christian Nation which has abandoned its true
and chosen path.
Now before I continue, let's get something straight: I take the
attacks and attempted attacks against NY and DC very seriously,
and I grieve for those who died and who suffer because of it. At
the same time, I try very hard not to blame my feelings on God, or to
decide what God can or cannot do. I do believe that God is active in the
world every moment.
That said, the issue here is not what God is doing, but how one preacher
decided to prove his point. So this will be really simple. Below,
I am listing all of the relevant 9:11's that occur in the English
protestant Bible, even though the English Catholic Bible (which includes
the Apocrypha), has some interesting examples, too. When you take
into consideration that the modern Hebrew Bible sometimes has different
verse divisions, this could drive an erstwhile prophet mad trying to
decide which 9:11 to use! When we then remember there were no
verse divisions for more than a thousand years, well, that means we are
lucky to live at a time when God could make such a point just by causing
something to happen on a particular date of the western calendar.
(I guess the Chinese just won't get the point. They not only use
the wrong Bible, they have the wrong calendar.)
Oh brother.
9:11 in the Bible
(English Protestant Canon)
Can be used against the attackers
Revelation 9:11 -- They have as king over them the angel of the
bottomless pit; his name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek he is called
Apollyon.
Can be used by the attackers
Esther 9:11 -- That very day the number of those killed in the citadel
of Susa was reported to the king. (Susa was the World Trade Center of
its day)
Ezra 9:11 -- which you commanded by your servants the prophets, saying,
‘The land that you are entering to possess is a land unclean with the
pollutions of the peoples of the lands, with their abominations. They
have filled it from end to end with their uncleanness.
Job 9:11 --
[of Ussama ben Laden) Look, he passes by me, and I do not see him; he
moves on, but I do not perceive him.
Can be used to support either side
Isaiah 9:11 -- So the Lord raised adversaries against them, and stirred up their
enemies,
Hosea 9:11 -- Ephraim’s glory shall fly away like a bird— no birth, no pregnancy,
no conception!
Can be used by a prophet against the US/Israel alliance
Jeremiah 9:11 -- I will make Jerusalem a heap of ruins, a lair of jackals; and I will
make the towns of Judah a desolation, without inhabitant.
Daniel 9:11 -- “All Israel has transgressed your law and turned aside, refusing to
obey your voice. So the curse and the oath written in the law of Moses,
the servant of God, have been poured out upon us, because we have sinned
against you.
Can be used by a prophet for the US
Amos 9:11 -- On that day I will raise up the booth of David that is fallen, and
repair its breaches, and raise up its ruins, and rebuild it as in the
days of old;
Can be used to show that life happens
Ecclesiastes 9:11 -- Again I saw that under the sun the race is not to the swift, nor the
battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to the
intelligent, nor favor to the skillful; but time and chance happen to
them all.
Can be used to show the general goodness of God
Luke 9:11 -- When the crowds found out about it, they followed him; and he
welcomed them, and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed
those who needed to be cured.
Gen 9:11 -- I establish my covenant with you, that never again shall all
flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood, and never again shall there
be a flood to destroy the earth.”
Deut 9:11 -- At the end of forty days and forty nights the Lord gave me
the two stone tablets, the tablets of the covenant.
Psalm 9:11 -- Sing praises to the Lord, who dwells in Zion. Declare his deeds among
the peoples.
Proverbs 9:11 -- For by by me your days will be multiplied, and years will be added to
your life
This is not all the 9:11's in the Bible, just the ones that help make a point.
Don't blame your private revelations on the Bible. Have the decency to
read it contextually. Obviously, there is no problem using any 9:11
as an interesting coincidence. But don't blame it on God.
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