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God and the Nations: The History and Future of Nations according to the Bible
In God and the Nations , Dr. Henry Morris invites you to see the hand of God behind the rise and fall of history's great nations. Discover from a biblical point of view why many of the world superpowers of our ancient civilizations fail to even exist today. Ascertain your nation's future with this powerful study of the history of God's relationship with individual nations throughout time. Morris, an acclaimed Christian apologist, considers the Bible the most accurate source of geography and history. His comprehensive research of the origins, history and destiny of nations should inform the strategy of every nation's government. This compelling Bible study reference tool could ignite a widespread evangelistic revival and serve as the catalyst for the Church to fulfill God's Dominion and Mission Mandates. Within this theological masterpiece, Morris These biblical truths effectively point to the unmistakable sovereignty of the omnipotent God to whom "the nations are as a drop of a bucket" (Isaiah 40:15). From Genesis to Revelation, Morris successfully shows the proof behind God's great call to righteousness and the resulting healing for a nation living under God's authority in 2 Chronicles 7:14: "If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."
176 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2003
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About the author
Henry M. Morris
133 books66 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author with this name in the Goodreads database.
Henry M. Morris (1918–2006) was an American engineer and young Earth creationist, widely regarded as the father of modern creation science. He founded the Institute for Creation Research.
Not to be confused with his eldest son Henry M. Morris III.
Henry M. Morris (1918–2006) was an American engineer and young Earth creationist, widely regarded as the father of modern creation science. He founded the Institute for Creation Research.
Not to be confused with his eldest son Henry M. Morris III.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
January 26, 2018
In this book, the late Dr. Morris tracks what the Bible has to say about God’s dealings with the nations from creation through the eschatological millennium. Some points that got my attention include:
• The pre-flood Genesis account only discusses individuals and families. Consequently, Dr. Morris speculates that the pre-flood civilization was based on family and tribal structure. It is possible that there were nations, but there is no documentary evidence to make a definitive conclusion.
• The first mention of nations is in Genesis 10, which lists seventy nations among the descendants of Noah. In general, these nations no longer exist. In the years since, nations have been destroyed, have merged and have divided to account for the present distribution of nations.
• Dr. Morris connects the seventy nations of Genesis 10 to Deuteronomy 32:8, “When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, when He separated the sons of man, He set the boundaries of the peoples according to the number of the sons of Israel. According to Genesis 46:27, “all the persons of the house of Jacob who came to Egypt were seventy.” Seventy nations, seventy sons of Jacob going to Egypt. This reading of Deuteronomy 32:8 is based on the Masoretic text, but the Septuagint text has “sons of God” rather than “sons of Israel,” as noted by Peter Craigie in The Book of Deuteronomy (The New International Commentary on the Old Testament). Obviously, Dr. Morris is using a translation based on the Masoretic text.
• Dr. Morris notes that one of the descendants of Ham was Nimrod, whose name apparently meant “let us rebel” on account of the cognate Hebrew verb mrd, rebel. On account of Genesis 10:8-10, he speculates that Nimrod was behind the rebellion against God at Babel. In Genesis 9:1, God had commanded Noah and his sons to “be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth.” In concentrating the population at Babel, Nimrod was rebelling against this command. Furthermore, Dr. Morris notes that the tower being built there was not intended to reach God’s home in heaven, but to build a high place, a shrine for worshipful communication with the angelic host of Satan, demons. John Walton, in Ancient Near Eastern Thought and the Old Testament, had noted that the purpose of Babel was built not for people to go up but for the god to come down, which is somewhat different from but still strikingly consistent with Dr. Morris’ assessment
• With regard to eschatology, Dr. Morris was a pre-millennialist who held to a pre-tribulation rapture. I have to admit that I have never decided whether to be a preterist (I grew up in a church that held the preterist position.), post- millennialist or pre- millennialist but am skeptical of the pre-tribulation rapture. Revelation indicates that there will be many Christian deaths during the tribulation period on account of persecution. Dr. Morris speculates that God will send down Enoch and Elijah, both of whom had been transported to heaven without dying, to evangelize and convert people, but I am not convinced. To have lots of martyrs, you need lots of believers. A pre-tribulation rapture would remove them from the picture.
• Dr. Morris has an intriguing take on the judgment scene in Matthew 25:31-46. He places that judgment right after Christ’s return at the beginning of the millennium. According to his interpretation, Christ judges the survivors of the nations to determine which nations get to continue to exist in the millennium and which are punished immediately. There is a separate final judgment on all who have ever lived at the end of the millennium. I am intrigued by this take because a judgment on the nations didn’t make much sense to me. It seemed inconsistent with the judgment of individuals. At any rate, I was pleased with his explanation of the judgment criteria, how the nations dealt with the hungry, thirsty, strangers, naked, sick and prisoners. I so often see people wrongly use this passage to argue for the importance of social programs to help the poor, etc. Does God expect us to take care of vulnerable populations? Yes, according to other passages in scripture. But in this passage, Christ refers to the hungry, thirsty, strangers, naked, sick and prisoners as his brothers (The Greek word for bothers is accusative case, not vocative.). They are Christians. Why are they in that state? Perhaps these nations are persecuting them severely. Jesus is making the point that messing with His people is messing with Him. Dr. Morris gets this.
These observations barely do the book justice. Do I agree with all of Dr. Morris’ arguments and conclusions? No, but I consider this book to be worth reading. In addition, I would like to make note of Dr. Morris’ background. He was an engineering professor, not a theologian, but his theology was thorough and comprehensive. Very impressive and inspiring.
• The pre-flood Genesis account only discusses individuals and families. Consequently, Dr. Morris speculates that the pre-flood civilization was based on family and tribal structure. It is possible that there were nations, but there is no documentary evidence to make a definitive conclusion.
• The first mention of nations is in Genesis 10, which lists seventy nations among the descendants of Noah. In general, these nations no longer exist. In the years since, nations have been destroyed, have merged and have divided to account for the present distribution of nations.
• Dr. Morris connects the seventy nations of Genesis 10 to Deuteronomy 32:8, “When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, when He separated the sons of man, He set the boundaries of the peoples according to the number of the sons of Israel. According to Genesis 46:27, “all the persons of the house of Jacob who came to Egypt were seventy.” Seventy nations, seventy sons of Jacob going to Egypt. This reading of Deuteronomy 32:8 is based on the Masoretic text, but the Septuagint text has “sons of God” rather than “sons of Israel,” as noted by Peter Craigie in The Book of Deuteronomy (The New International Commentary on the Old Testament). Obviously, Dr. Morris is using a translation based on the Masoretic text.
• Dr. Morris notes that one of the descendants of Ham was Nimrod, whose name apparently meant “let us rebel” on account of the cognate Hebrew verb mrd, rebel. On account of Genesis 10:8-10, he speculates that Nimrod was behind the rebellion against God at Babel. In Genesis 9:1, God had commanded Noah and his sons to “be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth.” In concentrating the population at Babel, Nimrod was rebelling against this command. Furthermore, Dr. Morris notes that the tower being built there was not intended to reach God’s home in heaven, but to build a high place, a shrine for worshipful communication with the angelic host of Satan, demons. John Walton, in Ancient Near Eastern Thought and the Old Testament, had noted that the purpose of Babel was built not for people to go up but for the god to come down, which is somewhat different from but still strikingly consistent with Dr. Morris’ assessment
• With regard to eschatology, Dr. Morris was a pre-millennialist who held to a pre-tribulation rapture. I have to admit that I have never decided whether to be a preterist (I grew up in a church that held the preterist position.), post- millennialist or pre- millennialist but am skeptical of the pre-tribulation rapture. Revelation indicates that there will be many Christian deaths during the tribulation period on account of persecution. Dr. Morris speculates that God will send down Enoch and Elijah, both of whom had been transported to heaven without dying, to evangelize and convert people, but I am not convinced. To have lots of martyrs, you need lots of believers. A pre-tribulation rapture would remove them from the picture.
• Dr. Morris has an intriguing take on the judgment scene in Matthew 25:31-46. He places that judgment right after Christ’s return at the beginning of the millennium. According to his interpretation, Christ judges the survivors of the nations to determine which nations get to continue to exist in the millennium and which are punished immediately. There is a separate final judgment on all who have ever lived at the end of the millennium. I am intrigued by this take because a judgment on the nations didn’t make much sense to me. It seemed inconsistent with the judgment of individuals. At any rate, I was pleased with his explanation of the judgment criteria, how the nations dealt with the hungry, thirsty, strangers, naked, sick and prisoners. I so often see people wrongly use this passage to argue for the importance of social programs to help the poor, etc. Does God expect us to take care of vulnerable populations? Yes, according to other passages in scripture. But in this passage, Christ refers to the hungry, thirsty, strangers, naked, sick and prisoners as his brothers (The Greek word for bothers is accusative case, not vocative.). They are Christians. Why are they in that state? Perhaps these nations are persecuting them severely. Jesus is making the point that messing with His people is messing with Him. Dr. Morris gets this.
These observations barely do the book justice. Do I agree with all of Dr. Morris’ arguments and conclusions? No, but I consider this book to be worth reading. In addition, I would like to make note of Dr. Morris’ background. He was an engineering professor, not a theologian, but his theology was thorough and comprehensive. Very impressive and inspiring.
December 26, 2025
Morris offers a compelling primer on a biblical theology of nations from a dispensationalist perspective, tracing their development from their origin in the Table of Nations through their continuation into the New Heavens and New Earth. His central argument is that God has a preceptive will for nations which is that they would 1) seek Him 2) fulfill the dominion mandate 3) bless Israel and 4) respond obediently to the Great Commission. A nation’s present existence and its continuity into eternity, according to Morris, are contingent upon these criteria.
This work is particularly recommended for believers who tend to view God’s redemptive plan primarily through the lens of individual salvation as opposed to a broadened scope which includes God’s purpose for nations. It would also benefit believers who tend to emphasize the Great Commission at the cost of neglecting the ongoing dominion mandate. Nevertheless, readers may wrestle with Morris’ assertion that national suffering ALWAYS occurs as a direct act of divine judgment (unlike individual suffering). He appeals to Amos 3:6: “Shall there be evil in a city, and the Lord hath not done it?” This position does align however with theologian Michael Vlach’s articulation of a contingency principle for nations, drawn from Jeremiah 18:7–10: when a nation obeys God, it is blessed; when it disobeys, it is subject to judgment. There won’t be complete alignment on all the details and Morris doesn’t substantiate some of his claims but overall a recommended read.
This work is particularly recommended for believers who tend to view God’s redemptive plan primarily through the lens of individual salvation as opposed to a broadened scope which includes God’s purpose for nations. It would also benefit believers who tend to emphasize the Great Commission at the cost of neglecting the ongoing dominion mandate. Nevertheless, readers may wrestle with Morris’ assertion that national suffering ALWAYS occurs as a direct act of divine judgment (unlike individual suffering). He appeals to Amos 3:6: “Shall there be evil in a city, and the Lord hath not done it?” This position does align however with theologian Michael Vlach’s articulation of a contingency principle for nations, drawn from Jeremiah 18:7–10: when a nation obeys God, it is blessed; when it disobeys, it is subject to judgment. There won’t be complete alignment on all the details and Morris doesn’t substantiate some of his claims but overall a recommended read.
January 29, 2013
Interesting insight into early chapters of Genesis and the nations.
Giants mentioned in Genesis were deviled possessed individuals
Nimrod and the tower of Babel was constructed to read the stars and astronomical constellations, possible corrupting the original gospel message that was in the stars
The people of Babel refused the ‘Primeval Mandate’ to subdue the Earth and have dominion over it. They did not disperse, but stayed in the same area.
The domino mandate or primeval mandate is the instruction to tend earth originally given to Adam, then later the Noah after the flood. The nations are supposed to cultivate, tend and populate the earth like God’s command to Adam.
Nation of Tables discussed and Noah’s son’s Shem, Ham, and Japeth.
Own thoughts:
In direct opposition to this, the modern philosophies of population control and environmental extremists advocating the supremacy of nature of the development of mankind. Also, the philosophy of homosexuality which make procreation impossible.
Giants mentioned in Genesis were deviled possessed individuals
Nimrod and the tower of Babel was constructed to read the stars and astronomical constellations, possible corrupting the original gospel message that was in the stars
The people of Babel refused the ‘Primeval Mandate’ to subdue the Earth and have dominion over it. They did not disperse, but stayed in the same area.
The domino mandate or primeval mandate is the instruction to tend earth originally given to Adam, then later the Noah after the flood. The nations are supposed to cultivate, tend and populate the earth like God’s command to Adam.
Nation of Tables discussed and Noah’s son’s Shem, Ham, and Japeth.
Own thoughts:
In direct opposition to this, the modern philosophies of population control and environmental extremists advocating the supremacy of nature of the development of mankind. Also, the philosophy of homosexuality which make procreation impossible.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews