Rating: 
Summary: A beneficial book from a variety of perspectives.
Review: A prominent myth regarding modern mainstream Christianity is that "you can make the Bible say anything you want it to." In reality, this concept is untrue, but the common failings of humankind, such as tradition, indoctrination, and denominational loyalties, often lend an illusion of support to such criticism. The vast majority of this work by Hal Lindsey focuses on several fundamental issues (namely the enmity between Israelites and the Arab nations, and the many prophecies pointing to the restoration of national Israel in the latter days), which are virtually irrefutable by anyone who examines the scripture in a sincere and unbiased manner. There will always be honorable disagreements between sincere Christians regarding minor theological issues, but the prophetical concepts detailed in this book are neither minor or obscure, by any stretch of the imagination. The content and instruction provided are very important to every Christian, and depending on the personal situation, such teaching could even be considered crucial. While most readers will probably appreciate the obvious benefits associated with an improved insight into biblical teachings, I believe that several other benefits are provided that may not be so obvious upon first consideration: 1. The reader will gain a greater appreciation for the divine accuracy and relevancy of ancient scripture as it pertains to our modern times.
2. The reader's faith in the divine inspiration of scripture will be more firmly established.
3. A general concept of the unfolding of future events can be easily perceived. This book does not twist and sensationalize modern events into a "scare tactic" in the effort to evangelize the reader (as is the case in many modern prophetic/interperative writings). Hal Lindsey's goal in this work is to instill a sense of awe and appreciation for the wisdom, provision, and dependability of God throughout the ages. It draws the reader into a closer reverence for God by presenting many of His virtuous attributes, which is the proper methodology that should be adopted by more of the evangelical community. I commend Mr. Lindsey for this approach. I might be so bold as to disagree with a few minor points relating to the precise sequence of future events as detailed in the last chapter, but I have no hesitation in admitting that Mr. Lindsey's end-time scenario may be much more accurate than mine. Nevertheless, after 15 years of in-depth study of Christian theology, I must recommend this book as a very accurate, enjoyable, and beneficial read. If you have any doubts regarding the literal method of scriptural interpretation, the crucial nature of Israel in God's end-time plans, the current animosity between Jews and Arabs, or the divine authenticity of the Bible, you really need to read this book.
Rating: 
Summary: everlasting hatred
Review: After reading this book, the only "everlasting hatred" that I can see is Hal Lindsey's hatred for his fellow human beings, the Muslims. This is second rate propaganda, but I'm sure it will fire up people who need something to hate to validate their faith. Whenever I read garbage like this, I remember what Jesus said: "love your neighbor as you love yourself." If only Hal and other hate mongers would follow what Jesus really taught.
Rating:
Summary: everlasting hatred
Review: After reading this book, the only "everlasting hatred" that I can see is Hal Lindsey's hatred for his fellow human beings, the Muslims. This is second rate propaganda, but I'm sure it will fire up people who need something to hate to validate their faith. Whenever I read garbage like this, I remember what Jesus said: "love your neighbor as you love yourself." If only Hal and other hate mongers would follow what Jesus really taught.
Rating:
Summary: A terrible book
Review: As a Christian, I have little respect for Hal Lindsey. He has
made a career out of false and incorrect interpretations of the
Revelation to Saint John. No matter how many false statements
he writes, he will be back a few years later with many more.
Those who follow his every word don't seem to care. They see
the annointing of God on a man who has generated wrong
interpretations of the word for decades.
Now Hal Lindsey wants to apply his ignorance to Islam and
Muslims. A subject he doesn't understand at all. For those
who don't understand his motives, they are not what you would
think they are.
Men like Lindsey are angry. But their anger is at God for
not fufilling Prophecy on their timeline. And out of their
anger, they are taking it on themselves to "help" things along.
They convince themselves that any amount of lies or sin is
somehow excused because they (wrongly) believe that such things
are justified in fufilling what they see as God's plan for the
world.
And such men do have a spirit in them. But its a not a spirit
from God or Christ, its sort of spirit that comes into men
with too much pride.
Men like Hal Lindsay want war in the middle east. They want
war between Christians, Muslims and Jews. The more death and
suffering, the better. In their minds, twisted by unclean
spirits, they have taken it into their hands to act *for*
God.
Any Christian who reads his works should think very carefully
about the consequences. God's will for the world is what
matters. When men replace God's Will with their own and presume
to fufill promises of God themselves, they have ceased to
follow God. Such men will revel in their power and make shows
of the things the world to draw Christians in. But those
who follow them will be dragged down with them unless they
repent of it.
Rating: 
Summary: An accurate account
Review: As a Muslim from Ankara who is disgusted with years of Islamic indoctrination, I must assert that much of what is written in this book is accurate. Particularly the exposition of the later Suras (which are quite bigoted, violent, and narrow minded) through which the earlier texts of the Quran are to be understood. As far as any apocalypticism is concerned, let that be left to the theologians to figure out. Anyone who has lived in a Muslim Society knows oppression not unlike that experienced by those living under the Iron Curtain. Don't be fooled.
Rating:
Summary: A Slow Death for Independant Thought
Review: Depressingly familiar format - paint the current "clash" between Islam and the "West" in apocalyptic terms which portray the enemy as fundamentally flawed and you've won the propaganda war.
Much is made of the hatred that Muslims supposedly have for the West and its institutions, rather than concentrating on the largely political nature of these grievances, arising from a thousand years of imperialism starting with the crusades. No distinction, for example, between anti-Semitism, a concept alien and repugnant to Islam , and the legitimate criticism of the brutal and godless policies of Israel.
How would the author, for example, explain the expulsion of all Jews from Spain in 1492 after the Christian reconquista of Muslim Granada in the light of his theories? How would he account for the resettlement of the vast majority of these Sephardic Jews within the territories of the Muslim Ottoman Empire, where they were welcomed and respected?! His assertion that Islam is vehemently opposed to the concept of democracy is baseless. Islam espouses government by concensus (shura / majlis)within the limits laid down by Islamic law. This compares favourably with the current "anything goes" free for all which represents Western plutocracy. Indeed the whole concept of "West versus Islam" is a fallacy - the Renaissance in Europe was as much driven by contact with Islam (in Spain, the Near East etc.) as it was by a rediscovery of Graeco-Roman culture / philosophy. Worst of all, however, are the author's attempts to portray the world's 1.5 billion Muslims all as latent terrorists. To this end, he uses verses from the Quran which when taken out of context and mistranslated appear to sanction all out war on non-Muslims. The reality however is that these verses pertain to a specific time and place in the history of the Islamic community, when Muslims were routinely tortured and killed by pagan Arabs. These verses simply imply tolerance for defensive military action within strictly defined limits, as currently lauded by Bush, Cheney and Co.The work of fringe groups like Al-Qaeda should be seen for what it is - a gruesome distortion of religion based on political grievance and cloaked in pseudo-religious terminology.No one dubbed Christianity an evil and backward religion after Oklahoma, Waco and other far-right Christian escapades. There is simply no truth in the "fire and sword" concept of the spread of Islam - we all know that coercion cannot work in winning hearts and minds. We in the West of all people should be very familiar with the failures of communism, Naziism and the attempts of the Catholic Church to enforce its power through the inquisition and auto-da-fe. "There is no compulsion in matters of religion", the Quran succintly states. In the post September 11th climate, Islam "experts" are ten-a-penny in the Western media. Finding a balanced, informed opinion among these peddlers of hatred is like gold-dust. Regrettably this book plays on all the old stereotypes and presents a safe, self-congratulatory, "them and us" world view. For a more balanced introduction to the complex world of Islamic culture, religion and politics, reading John Esposito or Karen Armstrong would be a much better start. For a jingoistic, one dimensional and highly jaundiced view, Hal Lindsey's book will do just fine. ...
Rating:
Summary: I don't know what else to compare it to...
Review: First off I'm blown away that I'm the first Amazonian to actually review it. I kind of know Hal, and I respect the guy as a source, even though he is an appologist for a specific Christian world-view. It's not that I think this viewpoint is wrong -- it's just that it's **there** getting in the way of scholarship. But that's Hal's style.
What I can say is that the scholarship, while somewhat thinly spread across the book, is fair. The emphasis on one specific aspect of the problem (that being the historical re-establishment of Israel) is fat enough a subject for a general interest book without becoming a book that you won't finish.
What is missing in the way of scholarship is more Biblical scholarship, for example the common prophesy (Islam knows Jeremiah) found in Jeremiah 30 that makes no bones that Israel belongs where it is.
The impact of a book like this can only be under-rated. There is so much slander about and self-loathing of the State of Israel and "the Jewish problem" even today that it makes me sick and it truly scares me -- it is absolutely based on resonance theory -- acoustical feedback: all you have to do is repeat the lie and it becomes a repulsive roar.
I have heard above average I.Q. people and the argument for their hatred comes down to Pre-WWII German "scholarship" and the extant of rumor. The fact is I am buying another copy as a loaner because I do not loan books I need for reference. This is one those 20% or so of my books that I won't be recycling.
Rating:
Summary: A Call For Rational Thought
Review: Firstly, I would like to apologize for not reading this book before writing this text, however I believe that the main theme is conveyed quite effectively through the bookÂfs title and the emphatic reviews I have read on this page.
Secondly, I would like to state that I am a Muslim currently living in the U.S.
Before you immediately disregard this `review` or skip straight to the next one, based on the (inevitable) assumption that I will present a biased opinion, please consider that you owe it to yourself to briefly consider an alternative viewpoint before you decide that a sizable chunk of humanity `hates` you. I promise I will try to be as clear and concise as possible.
The reason that I did not wait until I had read the book before writing this comment is purely emotional. It saddens me greatly that the issue of faith has been distorted into an ugly instrument pitting individuals, peoples and nations against one another.
As I read the depictions of Muslims quoted from the book and in the reviews with increasing alarm and disbelief, I had to wonder if any of the authors had ever met a Muslim person. I came to the conclusion that they most probably had, at some point in their lives, run into a Muslim, but since they were not the maniacal knife wielding sociopaths that the author expected, they simply failed to register as such.
I was raised in a predominantly Islamic country, with a minority Christian population (about 85% to 15%) who have, as long as I or any living member of my family could remember have lived peacefully together. I went to a school where we were made to take the government approved religion classes ( a policy which IÂfm not sure I fully approve of, but thatÂfs not the issue here) that to my young mind boiled down to basic ethics i.e. be good to your parents, considerate to your neighbors, kind to the poor, just with your children, etc. along with `the five pillars of Islam`.
I assure you that at no point did I have on my mind `black eyed virgins in heaven`, and as for the five pillars of Islam, they are simple, straightforward, and entirely benevolent (for the sake of brevity I will not list them, but please look them up on the net if you want to verify this). I was, as children are likely to be, more concerned with playing in the yard when class was done.
My best friend growing up, and to this day is Christian (he had to take Christian religion classes at school too). We do not avoid the question of religion and discuss it often, sometimes poking fun at each other, but for the most part earnestly seeking an understanding of each others basic beliefs (which by the way, more often than not are strikingly similar) He goes to mass every Sunday, and I go to the mosque every Friday, and neither of us expects the other to convert, but the fact that we can discuss such matters, respectfully with one another, has only strengthened our friendship over the years.
I am not a `one off` case. This attitude is mirrored in almost every Muslim I know.
And I promise, I do not mean to sound `holier than thou` (pun intended) but having lived in both countries for extended periods I can tell you that foreigners (who are automatically assumed to be Christian) are treated with a lot more respect, friendliness and tolerance than I can expect in the states. I guess, what I want to say is that I do not `hate` you, and although I understand why many of you harbor such animosity to me, and people like me, I hope that you will realize that our faith(s) is being abused by fundamentalists on both sides of the fence fanning the flames of hatred in order to achieve their own motives. It seems painfully obvious to me, but I find that I often have to state that the handful of fundamentalists committing horrible crimes in the name of religion are in no way representative of the vast majority of Muslims. I must also point out that atrocities committed in the name of religion are by no means limited to a single faith, and that if we were to judge people based on actions performed in their name, then the entire world would be guilty. Now, more than ever, you have the resources to verify all the contradicting claims being flung about the airwaves and on the pages of books. DonÂft take their word for it; donÂft take my word for it. Do a little digging on the net, beyond the major media outlets, or even (gasp!) try and find a Muslim and talk to him/her (they wonÂft bite, I promise) and make up your own mind. You are an intelligent human being. Please think these things through before you take a position as an individual, and not as a statistic being swayed by media organizations of dubious/uncertain economic and political motives. It doesnÂft feel very pleasant to hate or be hated. It would be a shame if you were doing it for the wrong reasons. Thank you for sticking with me this far. I hope I have not taken too much of your time. A Muslim from Egypt
Rating:
Summary: A Call For Rational Thought
Review: Firstly, I would like to apologize for not reading this book before writing this text, however I believe that the main theme is conveyed quite effectively through the bookfs title and the emphatic reviews I have read on this page.
Secondly, I would like to state that I am a Muslim currently living in the U.S.
Before you immediately disregard this `review` or skip straight to the next one, based on the (inevitable) assumption that I will present a biased opinion, please consider that you owe it to yourself to briefly consider an alternative viewpoint before you decide that a sizable chunk of humanity `hates` you. I promise I will try to be as clear and concise as possible.
The reason that I did not wait until I had read the book before writing this comment is purely emotional. It saddens me greatly that the issue of faith has been distorted into an ugly instrument pitting individuals, peoples and nations against one another.
As I read the depictions of Muslims quoted from the book and in the reviews with increasing alarm and disbelief, I had to wonder if any of the authors had ever met a Muslim person. I came to the conclusion that they most probably had, at some point in their lives, run into a Muslim, but since they were not the maniacal knife wielding sociopaths that the author expected, they simply failed to register as such.
I was raised in a predominantly Islamic country, with a minority Christian population (about 85% to 15%) who have, as long as I or any living member of my family could remember have lived peacefully together. I went to a school where we were made to take the government approved religion classes ( a policy which Ifm not sure I fully approve of, but thatfs not the issue here) that to my young mind boiled down to basic ethics i.e. be good to your parents, considerate to your neighbors, kind to the poor, just with your children, etc. along with `the five pillars of Islam`.
I assure you that at no point did I have on my mind `black eyed virgins in heaven`, and as for the five pillars of Islam, they are simple, straightforward, and entirely benevolent (for the sake of brevity I will not list them, but please look them up on the net if you want to verify this). I was, as children are likely to be, more concerned with playing in the yard when class was done.
My best friend growing up, and to this day is Christian (he had to take Christian religion classes at school too). We do not avoid the question of religion and discuss it often, sometimes poking fun at each other, but for the most part earnestly seeking an understanding of each others basic beliefs (which by the way, more often than not are strikingly similar) He goes to mass every Sunday, and I go to the mosque every Friday, and neither of us expects the other to convert, but the fact that we can discuss such matters, respectfully with one another, has only strengthened our friendship over the years.
I am not a `one off` case. This attitude is mirrored in almost every Muslim I know.
And I promise, I do not mean to sound `holier than thou` (pun intended) but having lived in both countries for extended periods I can tell you that foreigners (who are automatically assumed to be Christian) are treated with a lot more respect, friendliness and tolerance than I can expect in the states. I guess, what I want to say is that I do not `hate` you, and although I understand why many of you harbor such animosity to me, and people like me, I hope that you will realize that our faith(s) is being abused by fundamentalists on both sides of the fence fanning the flames of hatred in order to achieve their own motives. It seems painfully obvious to me, but I find that I often have to state that the handful of fundamentalists committing horrible crimes in the name of religion are in no way representative of the vast majority of Muslims. I must also point out that atrocities committed in the name of religion are by no means limited to a single faith, and that if we were to judge people based on actions performed in their name, then the entire world would be guilty. Now, more than ever, you have the resources to verify all the contradicting claims being flung about the airwaves and on the pages of books. Donft take their word for it; donft take my word for it. Do a little digging on the net, beyond the major media outlets, or even (gasp!) try and find a Muslim and talk to him/her (they wonft bite, I promise) and make up your own mind. You are an intelligent human being. Please think these things through before you take a position as an individual, and not as a statistic being swayed by media organizations of dubious/uncertain economic and political motives. It doesnft feel very pleasant to hate or be hated. It would be a shame if you were doing it for the wrong reasons. Thank you for sticking with me this far. I hope I have not taken too much of your time. A Muslim from Egypt
Rating:
Summary: A pack of spiteful lies
Review: Hal Lindsey has produced a beautiful piece of hatred that would put the "Sacred Protocol of the Elders of Zion" to shame. He distorts history, fabricates, omits, or slants facts to suit a very narrow agenda driven entirely upon hatred of Muslims and Arabs. Interestingly, he doesnt seem to care at all for Arab Christians -- they must be the children of a lesser god. If you ever wonder "Why Do they hate us", look no further than Mr. Lindsey and his ilk. I am dissappointed that this book is required reading for so many churches around here.
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