5 Theories Of How Planet X Nibiru Will Cause The End Of The World On April 23 — According To The Bible, Numerologists & Science
I don't know about you, but I feel fine.
Unsplash: Joshua Ness What would you do if you found out that end times were just around the corner, meaning not only that the rapture, tribulations and end of the world will occur during your lifetime, but even more specifically, that the world will end on Monday, April 23, 2018?
I ask you this question because, if certain numerologists, apocalypse conspiracy theories and biblical prophecies are correct, that is the date when Planet X, also known as Nibiru, is expected to come crashing into Earth, sparking a "Biblical Armageddon."
Before you set off screaming through the streets, let's break down the details of what these prophecies and predictions say and whether it seems likely the time has indeed come to cash out your 401K early (as there are no taxes to pay in the great beyond).
Here are 5 apocalypse conspiracy theories and biblical prophecies/predictions about the potentially coming rapture and/or the end of the world on April 23, 2018, according to the Bible, numerologists, and even science.
1. Biblical prophecies.
Biblical numerologist and doomsday scholar David Meade believes that April 23rd will mark the end of the world as we know it, because on that day, the sun, the moon and Jupiter (which he states is representative of the Messiah) will be in Virgo. He points to a biblical passage, Revelation 12:1-2, which, "for a certain branch of evangelical Christianity ... describes the beginning of what is known as the Rapture and the second coming of Christ."
This specific passage reads:
"A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth."
Meade believes the woman in the passage is meant to represent Virgo, and by that token, he believes the Bible indicates the world will definitively end on this date, “a unique once-in-a-century sign exactly as depicted in the 12th chapter of Revelation.”
2. The role of Planet X, AKA Nibiru.
Planet X, also known as Nibiru (and sometimes called "the death planet") has been rumored to on track to crash into and destroy Earth for centuries. Believers like Meade say Planet X lies just beyond our solar system, referring to it as a rogue planet capable of disrupting the orbital tracks of those planets we are all familiar with.
In fact, they suspect it is Planet X that is responsible for the dramatic changes in the weather that have been observed to take place on Earth over the past 50 years or so, and not, as the scientific world believes, that phenomenon they call global warming.
Meade and his camp say that when Planet X arrives in our solar system, it will cause cataclysmic environmental disasters like deep freezes, earthquakes and Tsunamis, and that these events will mark the onset of the "seven years of tribulation" predicted to follow the Rapture, according to interpretations of the Book of Revelation.
Officials at NASA, however, deny this possibility, as they say Planet X simply does not exist.
"The biggest missing link in the doomsday prophecy is Nibiru itself," states an article on NASA's website, "Because no giant, rogue planet has been found in the outer solar system to play the role of Nibiru."
3. Numerological and astrological theories.
The specific date of April 23rd has held serious significance for doomsday predictors and numerologists for longer than you would likely imagine. William Miller, whose followers would later go on to form the Adventist Church, believed the world would end on April 23, 1843. When that didn't occur as Miller had predicted, he fell into a deep state of depression.
And this isn't the first time David Meade has picked the number "23" for the end of the world, either! Less than one year ago, he predicted that the world would end on September 23, 2017.
What's more, according to Allen Kerkeslage, professor of ancient and comparative religion at St. Joseph's University:
"Some of Meade's astral speculation ironically might echo at least some of the inspiration of the original, which draws on older Jewish, Greco-Roman, and other traditions. But the author of Revelation was wrong in his predictions, so neither this book nor any other ancient book is of much relevance for predicting the future."
In fact, Meade's astrology actually is incorrect! On April 23, 2018, Jupiter won't be aligned with the constellation of Virgo at all, apparently it will be Libra, while the sun will be aligned with Aries and the moon with Gemini! So ...
4. How the Rapture itself may align with what Nostradamus predicted for 2018.
So, what exactly is the Rapture, anyway? I was raised in a deeply religious home (hello, my dad is a priest!), and while I do not come from a faith that believes in a literal Rapture, I am familiar enough with my scripture to forget that this isn't the case for everyone.
The Rapture is an event written about in the Book of Revelations and in the Letters of Paul to the Thessalonians.
"But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about those who have died, so that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have died. For this we declare to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will by no means precede those who have died. For the Lord himself, with a cry of command, with the archangel's call and with the sound of God's trumpet, will descend from heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up in the clouds together with them to meet the Lord in the air; and so we will be with the Lord forever." (NRSV, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17)
Interestingly, the word "rapture" never appears in the bible, nor does any form of its Latin root, rapare.
Christians who believe in the Rapture believe that when the world ends, the faithful will be assumed into heaven, with the rest of humanity left behind and forced to live through seven years of tribulation on Earth as it is overrun and ultimately destroyed by chaos and evil.
Lately, some have referred back to predictions made by Nostradamus in his book "Les Propheties," in which he predicts 2018 will be the year that brings the Antichrist, World War III and the subsequent end of days.
According to the Daily Express, Nostradamus said, "The big war will start in France and all Europe will be attacked, it will be long and terrifying for everyone and then finally there will be peace but only a few will enjoy it. 'A war will start between the two great world powers and it will last for a period of 27 years.' Some commentators have predicted China, Russia and North Korea will unite to take on the US."
In the New Testament, however, Jesus Christ explicitly states that not even HE could predict when the end of the world would come.
"However, no one knows the day or the hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself. Only the Father knows." (NLT, Matthew 24:36)
5. Prior predictions.
Though David Meade himself seems confident about his latest prediction, this isn't the first time that he or others have loudly proclaimed the end of the world is nigh.
As previously mentioned, he predicted a “magnificent sign in the skies” would appear on September 23, 2017. It did not.
And less than one month later, Meade insisted, “Hold on and watch — wait until the middle of October and I don’t believe you’ll be disappointed."
The date was then extended once again, to November 19, 2017. And so on.
Meade isn't the only person who has previously (and so far, incorrectly) predicated that the specific date on which the world will end.
Back in 2015, doomsday-er Chris McMann predicted that the world would be destroyed by a massive fire on October 7 of that year. When that didn’t happen, McCann told the press that the outcome was “surprising.”
“Well, a strong likelihood means that something was pretty well set to happen (in this case according to the biblical evidence),” McCann told the Guardian when the world was found to remain intact on October 8, 2015, “Yet there is a possibility it may not happen."
"So it was surprising that it did not occur. But the comforting thing is that God’s will is always perfect.”
Rebecca Jane Stokes is a writer living in Brooklyn, New York with her cat, Batman. She hosts the love and dating advice show, Becca After Dark on YourTango's Facebook Page every Tuesday and Thursday at 10:15 pm Eastern. For more of her work, check out her Tumblr.