2012, the Bible, and the End of the World [Kindle Edition]

Mark Hitchcock (Author)

Book Description

In 2012, the Bible, and the End of the World, bestselling prophecy expert Mark Hitchcock explores a fascinating last-days controversy that is gaining the attention of millions all over the globe.

What should Christians make of the rapidly spreading speculations that the world will end on December 21, 2012? The ancient Mayans were expert astronomers and their advanced calendar cycles predict 12/21/2012 as a catastrophic day of apocalypse. This prophecy has spawned a growing number of fringe-element books, Web sites, and even a major movie—complete with all-star cast—scheduled to release in July 2009.

Missing in the furor is a biblical perspective. Bible teacher Mark Hitchcock—whose books have sold more than 300,000 copies—examines the following questions:

• Why December 21, 2012?
• Can we trust the Mayan alarm clock?
• Does the Bible say anything about 2012
• What signs will tell us that Armageddon is near?

This book provides a fascinating survey of both the historical past and the prophetic future. Readers will discover how to effectively counter baseless speculation with biblical fact.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Mark Hitchcock is the author of nearly 20 books related to end-time Bible prophecy, including the bestselling 2012, the Bible, and the End of the World. He earned a ThM and PhD from Dallas Theological Seminary and is the senior pastor of Faith Bible Church in Edmond, Oklahoma. He has worked as an adjunct professor at DTS, and he and his wife, Cheryl, have two sons.

Product Details

• File Size: 653 KB
• Print Length: 192 pages
• Publisher: Harvest House Publishers; 1 Original edition (October 1, 2009)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B005MJ8Y6Q
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Not Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #399,241 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

47 of 54 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars What a great book! October 10, 2009

By Terri Barnhart

Format:Paperback

1. This book answered all my questions about the 2012 end time speculations.
2. It is full of biblical wisdom and fact.
3. It told me why the Bible is God's Word, accurate, true, and trustworthy.
4. It showed me how current events are lining up to set the stage for God's end time plan.
5. It told me what I can do right now to face 2012 and my future in these uncertain times.
6. It gave me peace and comfort by reminding me that God is in control and not man.
7. It is short, concise, and an easy read.

It can't get much better than this!

34 of 38 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars I Read This Book October 1, 2009

By Strikefast

Format:Paperback

Mark Hitchcock presents an extremely well researched book from a conservative Biblical position. Hitchcock earned his law degree from Oklahoma State University and a PhD from Dallas Theological Seminary. He's uniquely equipped to present the various 2012 end time scenarios, in addition to the Bible's last days prophecies. Mark is considered by many the foremost expert on Bible prophecy today. If you're interested in the controversies surrounding the end of the Mayan calendar this book is for you.

32 of 36 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Read October 7, 2009

By Todd Strandberg

Format:Paperback

One senses the fear building. "The end is near!" A mental image of the little bearded man in a long robe holding a placard affixed to a wooden stake with those words in broad red letters comes to mind. Only it isn't a cartoon we are facing, but the end of the world as we've known it. Planet earth is about to--because of powerful astral alignment dynamics--most likely suffer instant pole reversals, thus horrific tectonic plate shifts. This will cause the catastrophic end for most, perhaps all, human life. This is the fear of proponents of ancient Mayan Calendar predictions.

The year 2012 is but some twenty-seven months away, and the hype is on. December 21, at 11: 11 pm Universal Time of that year will...well, we don't really know. But, it will--according to pundits from scientists, astrologers, and religionists to new agers, fiction writers, and documentarians--be very bad indeed for inhabitants of the earth.

My favorite writer in the Bible prophecy genre has tackled the hoopla surrounding the 2012 specter and, with his always calming perspective based thoroughly on what the Bible has to say, makes unmistakably clear and understandable the truth regarding the Mayan Calendar prophecy. Dr. Mark Hitchcock, in 192 pages, gets to the heart of the doomsday prediction presented by shamans who have been dead for centuries. In this masterful work, while other authors of voluminous tomes on the 2012 matters consider writing second, even third volumes, Hitchcock points with precision in this tightly crafted book to where the reader should devote concentration about 2012.

The author points out the explosion of information about the subject of 2012. He writes that 187 books appeared when he searched Amazon on the topic.... He indicates that when he Googled "2012," there were almost 60,000 hits. He writes that new books are appearing on the Internet and in bookstores almost every month.

Hitchcock writes:

So, why another book? What could I possibly say that has not already been said? Perhaps the best way to answer this question is to point to the title of the book. As the title suggests, my focus is to examine the 2012 phenomenon from a biblical perspective, primarily from the vantage point of end time Bible prophecy....While many other 2012 books mention the Bible or Bible codes, they don't look at 2012 through the lens of Scripture; rather, they look at Scripture through the lens of 2012. They pick and choose selected verses from the Bible, especially from the Book of Revelation, to support their vision of what the future holds....This book is written with one purpose in mind: to examine and expose the 2012 deadline in light of Bible prophecy and present what I believe the Bible reveals about the end of the age.

I agree with the author. My own recent interview for The Nostradamus Effect documentary on the History Channel will doubtless be cut and shaped to point to how Bible prophecy such as that involving the rapture (the primary subject about which they quizzed me) might contribute to giving credence to the "prophecies" of Nostradamus, and to the Mayan 2012 prediction. I've never known a secular documentary to use the Bible in checking for truth of the prophecies that are non-biblical. The Bible, in such cases, is used in such a way as to presume its support for those extra-biblical foretellings. Always they look at Scripture through the lens of whatever non-biblical prophecy they are presenting.

Mark Hitchcock, in dynamic fashion--yet with his trademark graceful use of reason tempered by a profound understanding of God's prophetic Word--shines the spotlight of truth on the ominous things of the 2012 prophecy. To get a quick, thorough, and easy-to-read, Bible-based understanding of what the growing 2012 hysteria is all about, this is the only book you need.

2012: The Bible and the End of the World is the book on the 2012 matter I can without reservation recommend to best bring you, the reader, understanding of what the future holds.

Terry James

Author of "The American Apocalypse: Is the United States in Bible prophecy?"

Partner and General Editor of [...] Read more ›

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting October 16, 2009

By L. Coleman VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

I'm a born again Christian and bought the book hoping to learn some new things. The book didn't go over anything I didn't already know. It's a wonderful reference guide for those who don't know anything about 2012, the bible or the end times. If you are a bible believing Christian like me then you will find most of the stuff on prophecy a little repetitive but overall it was an Ok read.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Look No Further Than This Book October 9, 2009

By Ed

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I've never been let down by Mark Hitchcock's books, including this one. Beware of those who say 2012 is "end of the world." We don't know how much time is left. Mark Hitchcock plainly tells his readers just how opposite New Age thinkers are from what the Bible says. We certainly are in for troubled times ahead but placing a specific date on an event is wrong. This book is a must read to get a biblical perspective of what's ahead.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Don't review unless you've read it... Lonnie D. Christian. November 23, 2009

By An American Wolfe

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

This is an easy read. There is a decent width of information included in the history involving 2012 to today's perspectives.

"Lonnie D. Christian", one reviewer who made me a skeptic prior to purchasing the book disagrees with the author saying that nobody can predict the day or the hour. Lonnie, (and everyone else who jumps the gun bearing false witness to this man's hard work), Page 105 states the author's position regarding date-setting saying, "Anyone who claims to know the specific time of Christ's coming is claiming he knows something that the Father didn't even tell the Son while He was on Earth. That is the height of arrogance and folly."

So there. I thought the book was educational and enjoyable. One other reviewer noted that you could garner most of the information yourself from the web. He's right but it takes a lot less time to read Mark's book. So make your own choice. Don't pass this book up because you think Hitchcock is a date-setter. He isn't.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars 2012 The Bible and the End of the World October 12, 2009

By Stan Schone

Format:Paperback

Mark Hitchcock has written another book that is spot on accurate and a really good read! Once again he has written a book that debunks new age and secular myths of the end times of world history and shoots them full of holes with documented facts from Bible prophecy. I have read every book that he has written on the subject of Bible prophecy and have found them all to be informative and directly in line with what Gods Word has to say on the subject of the end of the world. Being a well informed layman on the subjects of world history and prophecy, I have read many books and watched all of the programs on television that pertain to the end of the world and I must say that no one person explains the subject more clearly and with more facts than Mark Hitchcock. This book like all of Hitchcock's books are written for the layman in a style that anyone can understand, that is his style to reach the masses who want to know the truth and he gives it to them every time! If you want to know the truth about what is going to happen in 2012, then you need to read this book!

More About the Author

Attorney Mark Hitchcock thought his career was set after graduating from law school in 1984 and getting a job working with a judge at the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals. But after what Mark calls a "clear call to full-time ministry," he changed course and went to Dallas Theological Seminary, completing a masters degree in 1991 and a doctoral degree in 2006. Since 1991 Mark has served as senior pastor of Faith Bible Church in Edmond, Oklahoma. He has authored 15 books related to end-time Bible prophecy and was the contributing editor for the Internet-based Left Behind Prophecy Club for four years. Mark and his wife, Cheryl, live in Edmond with their two sons, Justin and Samuel.