
Is It Time to Leave the Cities?
The question "Is it time to leave the cities?" has been increasingly on the minds of many believers. Given the growing moral decay in urban centers and the prophetic signs of the times, this is an issue that deserves serious reflection and prayerful attention.
A Clear Prophetic Signal
Inspired writings offer timely and relevant counsel:
“As the siege of Jerusalem by the Roman armies was the signal for flight to the Judean Christians, so the assumption of power on the part of our nation, in the decree enforcing the papal Sabbath, will be a warning to us. It will then be time to leave the large cities, preparatory to leaving the smaller ones for retired homes in secluded places among the mountains.”
(Testimonies, vol. 5, pp. 464–465)
The final warning to fully leave the cities will come when the enforcement of the Sunday law begins, especially in the United States—the "earth beast" of Revelation 13. This national decree will signal God’s people everywhere to relocate, first from the large cities, then from smaller towns to rural, secluded places.
Is It Wise to Wait?
Some suggest that the 1888 attempt to enforce Sunday legislation was the beginning of this warning. However, later inspired counsel clarifies that the departure from cities would be a progressive process, not a sudden mass exodus:
“More and more, as time advances, our people will have to leave the cities... families with children should plan to leave the cities as the way opens before them.”
(Review and Herald, Sept. 27, 1906)
This implies that even before national Sunday legislation is passed, believers should take seriously the call to leave the cities as the way opens. This counsel aligns with other clear statements:
“The cities are to be worked from outposts... not by God’s people living in them, but by their visiting them...”
(Country Living, p. 30)
“Get out of the cities as soon as possible and purchase a little piece of land...”
(2 Selected Messages, p. 356)
“Out of the cities is my message at this time.”
(Manuscript Release 1518, May 10, 1906)
The cities are described as places filled with temptation and spiritual peril. Remaining in such places unnecessarily is said to be at the peril of one’s soul.
A Call to Thoughtful Action
God’s guidance is not a call to panic, but to deliberate, prayerful planning. Urban life poses significant spiritual dangers, especially for children. Those who are able should begin preparing for country living now. Those with resources are encouraged to consider how they may assist others who may not be able to move immediately when the final warning comes.
Country living offers moral, physical, and spiritual benefits. It promotes simplicity, purity, and closer communion with God’s creation. Homes away from the pollution, noise, and temptations of city life are becoming increasingly necessary as cities descend further into lawlessness.
Prophetic Warnings and Practical Considerations
Another layer of concern is the practical danger posed by living in large cities. Many urban centers have limited exit routes. In the event of a national emergency or government crackdown, these could become bottlenecks or be shut down altogether, trapping millions inside.
Cities are becoming spiritual and physical death traps. The counsel is clear: “Get out of the cities.” For those who cannot yet leave, this is a matter for earnest prayer and trust in God’s providence.
“The cities are increasing in wickedness... those who remain in them unnecessarily do so at the peril of their souls.”
(Country Living, p. 9)
Conclusion
The call to leave the cities is both a spiritual and practical matter. Inspired writings have given consistent and timely warnings. While not all can leave immediately, all can begin praying, planning, and preparing. The goal is not to abandon the mission field but to position God's people in safer, quieter environments from which they can minister effectively while safeguarding their families.
Urban life is becoming increasingly incompatible with faithful Christian living. The time is now to seek God’s direction and make every effort to follow His lead—before the door of opportunity closes.
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Cities to Be Visited by God's Judgments
The time is near when the large cities will be visited by the judgments of God. In a little while, these cities will be terribly shaken. No matter how large or how strong their buildings, no matter how many safeguards against fire may have been provided, let God touch these buildings, and in a few minutes or a few hours they are in ruins.
The ungodly cities of our world are to be swept away by the besom of destruction. In the calamities that are now befalling immense buildings and large portions of cities, God is showing us what will come upon the whole earth.—Testimonies for the Church 7:82, 83 (1902).
I am bidden to declare the message that cities full of transgression, and sinful in the extreme, will be destroyed by earthquakes, by fire, by flood. All the world will be warned that there is a God who will display His authority as God. His unseen agencies will cause destruction, devastation, and death. All the accumulated riches will be as nothingness....
Calamities will come—calamities most awful, most unexpected; and these destructions will follow one after another. If there will be a heeding of the warnings that God has given, and if churches will repent, returning to their allegiance, then other cities may be spared for a time. But if men who have been deceived continue in the same way in which they have been walking, disregarding the law of God, and presenting falsehoods before the people, God allows them to suffer calamity, that their senses may be awakened.
The Lord will not suddenly cast off all transgressors, or destroy entire nations; but He will punish cities and places where men have given themselves up to the possession of Satanic agencies. Strictly will the cities of the nations be dealt with, and yet they will not be visited in the extreme of God's indignation, because some souls will yet break away from the delusions of the enemy, and will repent and be converted, while the mass will be treasuring up wrath against the day of wrath.—Evangelism, 27 (1906).