Namibia—Lamb Among Wolves
The German ambassador to the nation’s former colony of Namibia recently lashed out at the country in accusative tones. He alleged that a recent delegation to Berlin seeking the repatriation of skulls of native fighters taken by German Imperial Forces during the war of 1904-1908 had a hidden agenda.
“Speaking at the signing of a N$660 million cooperation and financing agreement between his government and Namibia on Wednesday, Egon Kochanke described the recent return of the Namibian skulls as a ‘sensitive topic,’ which has had a negative influence on bilateral relations between Namibia and Germany” (allAfrica.com, November 17).
The bones of contention between the two countries underscore Namibia’s struggle in its effort to maintain stability in government, and recall a powerful message it received during its process of independence from South Africa.
“[A] week ago across Africa on the west coast I addressed the 80 or 85 delegates who were drafting a new constitution for another soon-to-be new nation, South West Africa [former name of Namibia],” wrote Herbert Armstrong in 1977. “I addressed them in their famous Turnhalle in Windhoek, their capital city. They held this special session for the sole purpose of hearing my address” (co-worker letter, March 22, 1977).
On March 14, Mr. Armstrong met with Plain Truth subscriber and mayor of Windhoek, Mr. Yssel, and his wife. For just under an hour, the mayor, city secretary and city engineer discussed Mr. Armstrong’s worldwide contributions, along with prophecies of the book of Revelation.
After this meeting, interviews with press and radio reporters followed, in anticipation of his special address that evening as the first non-South West African to attend the Turnhalle Constitutional Conference, originally convened in 1975 to establish a constitution for the nation of Namibia. “Representatives of 11 population groups who were framing the constitution for the new nation, being given its independence by South Africa, came in special session to their grand meeting room to hear my address,” Mr. Armstrong recalled (ibid).
After introductory speeches related to the country’s struggle for independence, he wrote, “I followed by mentioning that I had attended the entire San Francisco Convention where the Charter for the United Nations was drafted, as well as the first meeting of the Security Council in New York. I emphasized the difficulties they face in starting a new nation and new government in today’s world with governments of nations crumbling at the rate of one a month.”
Mr. Armstrong described today’s confused and dazed world as “chaos in government.” He recalled the angelic host that originally inhabited the Earth and the rejection of God’s government by one third of the universal population of angels in rebellion against the very mode of God’s lifestyle—the give way rather than Satan’s get way. He cited the incident of Adam and Eve and the forbidden fruit recorded in Genesis 3, the first humans’ disbelief of God’s truth and acceptance of Satan’s lies, the resulting rejection of God’s government by man, and God’s “hands off” policy toward mankind for 6,000 years. He noted man’s devised governments, religions, education, commerce and systems of industry.
To Namibia’s elite, he declared mankind was in its last generation of this present evil age. He detailed the spread and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and declared that, if not stopped, the result would be nuclear cosmocide, unless God Almighty intervened to enforce upon man the way to peace, happiness and prosperity (Matthew 24:21-22).
“I mentioned how God had intervened in the case of Abraham, Moses and the ancient nation Israel; Christ and the Church. How Christ’s gospel was the announcement of the restoration of the government of God to bring the world peace and happiness—but how they put Him to death and suppressed His gospel announcement of the Kingdom of God before the end of the first century. The world went on ignorant of God and His ways” (ibid).
To the gathered delegates giving birth to this new nation, Herbert Armstrong boldly declared, “He raised me up for the purpose once again in this final generation of getting out the gospel announcement just before it happens.”
“Then I said, ‘You gentlemen are faced with the solemn task of trying to hammer out another new government in the kind of world we live in today. In such a world you have to deal with other nations, and you will not be able to form a government based on God’s law, for you would be a lamb among wolves. But you can try to form a government that gives equal justice, opportunity, protection and concern for the welfare of your own people in your domestic policies. And the nearer you can come to forming foreign policies and pursuing dealings with other nations as nearly like God’s way as possible, the more you will be specially blessed by the God who is Creator and supreme Ruler over all. And you will live into His wonderful World Tomorrow—when the Kingdom of God rules your people and all the world in peace and happiness and well-being and joy. It is the way—and the only way that will lead to God and the welfare of us all’” (ibid).
Herbert Armstrong felt that this message “shook and moved the audience.” Unfortunately, Namibia’s leaders did not implement the advice of that unofficial ambassador of world peace. Namibia became, as Herbert Armstrong feared, a lamb among wolves, but not for basing its government on God’s law. Its very smallness as a nation, dependent on others for support, has rendered it a pawn to its former German overlords, who upped bilateral relations and investment significantly following German reunification. As Germany increases its expansionist focus, seeking economic colonies outside of Europe, Namibia risks reaping the whirlwind of the very prophecies of Revelation 13 and 17 which Mr. Armstrong discussed with its political elite. Recent evidence of a sharpened tone in German-Namibia relations is revealed by Germany’s response to Namibia’s request for repatriation of wartime bones.
Read South Africa in Prophecy along with Germany and the Holy Roman Empire to understand the short-term dominance, once more, of southwest Africa by Germany, and the crushing of its euro-empire by the returning Jesus Christ as Head of the God Family empire, which will usher in a wonderful World Tomorrow for Namibia and all citizens of the world.
