The title of the London Times article says it all: "Rocketing Price of Food in a Hungry World Brings Riots, Fear and Conflict" (Francis Elliott, Jan. 12, 2011).

The Bible forewarns that the age-old problem of famine will eventually intensify beyond our worst nightmares. This is represented by one of the four horsemen of the Apocalypse in Revelation 6 and is specifically mentioned in the prophecy Jesus Christ gave at the end of His ministry in Matthew 24, Mark 13 and Luke 21.

According to the Times article: "Many factors are being blamed for the global increases [in riots, fear and conflict]...Experts think that the trend is upwards." Right now the effects of famine are mainly seen in poverty-stricken nations. That will change over time. Poor countries will have to cope with two billion more people seeking food in not so many years' time.

Bad weather in the form of droughts and floods (like the one in Queensland, Australia) or earthquakes (like the Haitian disaster) tend to exacerbate the basic problem of sufficient food production.

Shortages drive the price of crucial foodstuffs ever upwards. Ultimately only God can rescue humanity from the cause-and-effect cycle that grips poverty-stricken countries.

To understand more, read our free booklets Are We Living in the Time of the End? and The Book of Revelation Unveiled. (Sources: The Times [London], The Wall Street Journal.)