In prophecies of the gathering of the nations for the last great struggle, Inspiration draws aside the veil, and allows us to see the agencies that have been stirring up the world for the war. As the prophet John was shown in vision the scenes of the last days, he saw the invisible powers of Satan, "the spirits of devils," going forth "unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty." Rev. 16:14. Earnest-minded statesmen have lamented their helplessness to combat the forces and influences pressing the world on toward conflict. In one of his last speeches as premier of Great Britain, the late Marquis of Salisbury was defending yet further calls for army and navy appropriations. He said: "For years public opinion was in favor of a pacific policy, but now that state of opinion has passed away. The tide has turned, and who am I, and who are we, that we should attempt to stem the tide? If the tide has turned, we shall have to go with it. We are in the presence of forces far larger than we can wield." What those forces were, the aged statesman did not recognize, but the prophecy tells us. The prophet was shown the evil spirits from Satan going forth everywhere as the end nears, to stir up the whole world to the last great conflict. Sir Edward Grey, British foreign secretary, described these agencies very accurately. Speaking in the House of Commons, Nov. 27, 1911, he said: "It is really as if in the atmosphere of the world there were some mischievous influence at work, which troubles and excites every part of it." It is all coming to pass exactly as the sure word of prophecy foretold. The conviction that great and decisive events are at hand has taken possession of many hearts in all the world. When the European war broke out in 1914, on a scale unprecedented in human history, it was no wonder that the question sprang to many lips, "Is it Armageddon?" The question was not lightly asked. The committee of the Church Missionary Society (Church of England), one of the greatest missionary organizations in the world, sent a message to its missionaries in all lands at the outbreak of the war. In this message was a call to prepare for the coming of the Lord: "It may be that these events will quickly usher in the return of Christ to gather His saints together from the four quarters of the earth.... Many see in the events preceding and accompanying this terrible cataclysm of war the signs of our Lord's near return. If so, blessed will that servant be whom his Lord when He cometh shall find giving 'their food in due season' to those fellow servants who have been put in his charge."--_Church Missionary Review, November, 1914._