The End of Days: Armageddon and Prophecies of the Return (The Earth Chronicles)

I have been a fan of Zecharia for ten years. He is a profound biblical scholar and one of only a few who can read ancient Sumerian. Zecharia is also an expert on near eastern mythology and takes a highly controversial position regarding these myths and texts which originate from the area of modern Iraq.

According to Zecharia, when considering these accounts of Gods and men, one should take them more at face value and interpret them in the most literal and straightforward way. His interpretation could be classified as an "ancient astronaut" theory; he believes that for thousands of years before the Christian epoch that gods really did walk the Earth; the Sumerians called their gods the "Annunaki", in the Old Testament they were known as the "Nephilim"; but they were not supernatural beings, rather they were a space- faring race of extra- terrestrials who created man as a slave labourer. Amazingly Zecharia states that these "Gods" originate in our own solar system, on "the twelfth planet" which the Sumerians called Nibiru and orbits the sun every 3600 years, This orbit takes it far beyond Pluto and away from the plane of the ecliptic. The planet must have some form of internal volcanic activity so that it can support life.

As the ancient texts say, these "gods" were often quarrelsome and possessed emotions much like humans; a disagreement between the extra- terrestrials Enki and Enlil (gods of the Sumerian pantheon of twelve) led to the unleashing of nuclear weapons in the twenty-first century BCE. Evidence can be seen for this in the Sinai peninsula where the the desert rocks are charred. The extra- terrestrials built "space facilities" in the middle east; Jerusalem was their "mission control" centre and Baalbeck was their landing platform. According to Zecharia all the "gods" of Earth come from Nibiru and at any moment they are likely to return.

The extra- terrestrials encouraged humans to worship them as gods and to build temples for them, their life -spans were much longer than humans' and many of the Annunaki took up physical residence in their temples, where they were fed and served by humans. The gods also procreated with humans; kingship and civilization were introduced by them, and royal bloodlines were composed of the Annunaki's descendants. Zecharia points out the many theophanies of the Old Testament, which were really encounters with these extra- terrestrials.

When the planet Nibiru enters the inner solar system, it's gravity wreaks havoc, the Earth and the moon were cataclysmically formed when one of Nibiru's moons collided with a proto- planet called in Sumerian, Tiamat. Catastrophe or civilization always accompanies the twelfth planet's return.

This is an extremely entertaining book even if you are not convinced about all of the details.

Probably a good primer on the Sumerian tablets, Stonehenge, the Mathematical relationships, et. al. But if you're already familiar with this stuff, not much new here. Ties it all together. Some doom and gloom. I've read half of Sitchin's series. Am fascinated by the whole thing. Chariots of the Gods is also on message but more lightheartedly, and always a good read or view. Way ahead of it's time! Depressing to think that for nearly 2000 years, we've been blindsided by religious zealots who mostly went out and killed people who wouldn't accept their version of history. Hopefully, they'll get their comeuppance soon. Cathedrals are nice, but they should pay property taxes like the rest of us!

The chapter on the antikythera mechanism alone is worth buying the book. The whole Earth Crhonicles series makes sense of what accepted history cannot explain, along with evolution. A must read for those who are not afraid to learn the facts even if it shakes their world from the nonsense they were taught in school. Yes it is upsetting to think of spending money tolearn rubbish in learning institutions but better to know and leave that behind than stay in the dark one's whole life.

All I could muster to make any of this book fit my reality. A good job of historical ancient history.

Zecharia has a vivid imagination, and a genius for manipulating history fragments - a science fiction Jim Jones. What will be next? I for one, refuse to accept that I was genetically engineered from female apes by aliens during ancient times. Ruled by aliens gods who governed the human race with a lust for power and by the navigation of the stars (sounds like Ronald Reagan).

Personally, I rather remained an ape then to be ruled by aliens who lived on a planet which is warmed by radioactive decay.

Christians, we have another false prophet .... Sitchin. Someone sould tap Sitchin on the shoulder and tell him "Christianity is about a spiritual realm; not alien and a rogue planet."