2012 - Separating Fact From Fiction

2012. That has been the hottest topic of conversation at work and among my friends lately. Most of these come from co-workers who like to do Q & A’s with me about the Bible. But this reminds me of 2YK, when the year 2,000 rolled around and people were buying dry goods, stocking up with barrels with food, water and chlorine (to decontaminate old-storage bottled water). The word was that computers would shut down, factories, commerce and produce would grind to a halt and we would be living in our own bunkers, be they storage shelters, tornado shelters or even underground bunkers. It turned into another false alarm. Much ado about nothing…again.

I remember Benny Hinn (TV’s self-proclaimed prophet) three times predicting the return of Christ, even though the Bible says no man or woman knows when Jesus Christ will return. And knowing human nature it would be better that we don’t know, since we might wait till the end to “get right with God”. And nothing is said about Jesus coming as a thief in the night, that is at an hour when no one expects it, but the Bible says that is exactly when He will return and no one knows when that is (Matt. 24:43, Luke 12:39). He and many others have predicted the end of the world hundreds and times and hundreds of times they have been wrong.

So I have been repeatedly asked about this 2012. December 12th, 2012 to be precise. Some think it’s in the Bible, other’s think the Mayan calendar predicts the end of the world. Others say that is the year that the Jewish calendar runs out too. But do they?
First, let us take a look at the Jewish calendar. The Bible speaks of the end of the age, not the end of the world, so the world is not going to end, just the way in which the world runs today. This begins with the Millennium. Eschatology is the part of theology that addresses the end times and the final events in the history of the world and consequently, the final destiny of humans on the earth. Eschatology is Greek for last (eschatoc) days, plus theology (logy). The Hebrew (Jewish) calendar does not end in 2012. It is ongoing.

The ancient Mayans predict the earth would end, and humanity along with it, on December 21st, 2012. The current Mayan calendar ends on this date and thus it is inferred (not by the remaining relatives of the Mayans) that this will be the end of the world. But the modern ancestors of the Mayans say they are sick of hearing about it and worn out by all the seekers of this myth. The Mayans themselves are unconvinced about any specific time that the earth will end, only when the next rains are coming. They compare it with our yearly calendar. Our calendar runs out on December 31st, each and every year, and their calendar was really no different than an actual calendar that we use today. It was created to keep track of the days of the years. That’s all. It has been exaggerated by a few local tales and some archeological evidence that lacks actual documentation.

Then there is the Bible Code, which is said to be hidden in the text of the Bible. It was said to be associated with Sir Isaac NewtonSir Isaac Newton, but Newton said in his 70’s that “Christ comes as a thief in the night, and it is not for us to know the times and seasons which God has put into his own breast”. He was said to have arrived at the year 2060 in a straightforward manner, but there is precious little documentation to support this either. The Hebrew calendar that we have today, as established by the Jews, will have the end of the age (not the world) at 2240. None of us will be here to see that, no doubt. So the Jewish calendar and the Bible Code are not scientific at all. In effect, they are extrapolating data to fit their own means, beside Jesus said no one will know of that day of His return and the end of the age. The end of the world is not found to be in the Bible. A new heaven and new earth are. And when the new Jerusalem descends out of heaven (said to occur in the book of Revelation), then the earth obviously will not be destroyed, it will abide forever.

And now the new blockbuster movie, 2012. It will be a blockbuster, no doubt, but one that is severely lacking in historical, scientific or archeological evidence. The Mayan calendar is actually based upon a 5,125 year cycle, which in part consists of 25,800 cycles. So December 21st, 2012, strictly speaking, is not the end of the Mayan calendar, just the end of one of its cycles. Like calendars we use, ours expire annually on December 31st.

The fact is that Mayan calendar was started in 3113BC, but the original documents that could tell us what year this actually was has been destroyed many years ago. Just because the Mayans started their calendar year in 3113 BC does not mean it was that year that we use (Gregorian calendar). The vast majority of these documents were destroyed by zealot priests who burned nearly ever written document when they tried to convert the local Indians to Christianity.

When the truth about the Mayan’s 2012 end-of-the-world topic is brought up by the local indigenous tribes like the Guatemalan Apoloinaria, the Mayan elder, Chile Pixtun, clearly debunks the rumor. He says that the doomsday theories sprang up from Western Cultures and are not Mayan ideas. Even modern day descendents of the Mayan still living today have no idea what the year 2012 is about at all. If you go to any present day Mayan-speaking communities, they have no clue if asked, “What’s expected to happen in 2012?” they would likely say, and “what do you mean…what about 2012?” The local Yucatan Mayan archeologist in fact says that if you told them the world is supposed to end on December 21st, 2012, they wouldn’t have a clue as to what you are talking about. The local Yucatan archeologist, Jose Huchim, says that their only concerns would be if the rains come that year, indicating they are only worried about their local crops.

So don’t put any stock into the 2012 myth. It is just that, a myth. This is more of a Western invention to sensationalize the new movie release and the many books that, no doubt, will draw much interest and many sales. Jesus said that no one knows when His He will return. Not even the angels in heaven, but only My Father who is in heaven. And it will not come on a day or year that people expect. But Jesus’ return will be in an hour when no one expects it. So, I would prepare today to meet the end of the ages. The world’s not going to end…only the end of this present, evil age. And this will be brought about by the return of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, Jesus Christ. “But of that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (Matt. 24:36). Not Benny Hinn, the Bible Coders, the Hebrew Calendar, nor the Mayans. “…but only the Father”. And that settles it!