The Symbolism of September 11, 2001 and God’s Judgment and Mercy

by Pastor Paul Wolff 

Disclaimer: Unlike my other articles in this blog, this article is not the Gospel truth as revealed in the Bible. This is my own interpretation of the events of history, and should be read as such. I could be right, or I could be wrong. There is no way of knowing from the Scriptures. This is not an interpretation of Scripture, but an interpretation of history. Discriminating readers should be very careful to distinguish between the two. Yet, I present these ideas here for contemplation and discussion, and as a call to repentance and to trust in God’s mercy in Christ Jesus. 

(All photographs by Pastor Paul Wolff)
 

One of the last photographs of the World Trade Center before the attack on September 11, 2001 This photo is on display at the 9/11 Memorial Museum

I remember hearing an audio clip of a speech where President John F. Kennedy noted that everyone in his generation remembered where they were when they first heard about the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. This became ironic when President Kennedy was assassinated on November 22, 1963. The generation who were adults in 1963 had a similar reaction – they remembered where they were when they heard the news. In our generation the day was September 11, 2001. 

Twenty years ago today (as of the day this article was published) I was a pastor at a Lutheran Church in Detroit. It was a beautiful late summer day in Detroit with a perfectly clear blue sky and not a cloud in the sky. The weather was exactly the same as we saw on television in New York City. Our Lutheran school was beginning the day with a chapel service for the students and staff. Most Lutheran schools hold their chapel services on Wednesday mornings, and we usually did, too, but that year there was some scheduling conflict which caused us to hold the chapel services on Tuesday mornings. I did not lead the chapel service that day, but it was led by the school principal. I was sitting in the back of the church during chapel when the school secretary came and whispered in my ear that airplanes had crashed into the World Trade Center Towers in New York. I asked, “Both towers?” When the answer was “Yes” I knew immediately that it was no tragic accident, but was a terrorist attack. 

On Tuesday September 11, 2001, nineteen Muslim terrorists simultaneously hijacked four airplanes in the Eastern United States and flew (or attempted to fly) them into significant buildings to murder and cause terror among the freedom loving people in the United States, and around the world. Those of us who are old enough to remember will never forget that day. It was such a shock that wicked people would do such evil things to cause so much senseless death and destruction against innocent people. Like the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, our nation was not at war with anyone, but someone was at war with us. The man who planned this wickedness in 2001 was Osama Bin Laden, the son of a Saudi construction magnate. 

These watercolor paintings are from New Yorkers answering the question, “What color was the sky on 9/11?” From this we see that subjective feelings cannot be trusted to give an accurate representation of the truth.

Bin Laden had also been the guiding force behind a bombing eight years earlier in a failed attempt to destroy one of the World Trade Center buildings in New York, though he had escaped justice. In the investigations of the 2001 attacks it was discovered that Bin Laden chose his methods and targets specifically for their symbolism as well as their murderous and destructive potential. The hijacked airplanes were from United Airlines and American Airlines, both of which symbolized the United States of America. The targets chosen were the twin skyscraper towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, the Pentagon building in Washington D.C., and another Washington target which was most likely the White House or possibly the Congress building. These targets were also chosen for their symbolism. The World Trade Center was the symbol of American business and wealth. The Pentagon is the headquarters of the United States military, and symbolizes the military strength of the United States. The White House or Congress buildings symbolize the political power of the United States. Thus, in these three coordinated attacks, Osama Bin Laden was attacking the political, military, and economic power of the United States. 

However that was not the only symbolism at work on that day of evil and destruction. Osama Bin Laden intended to cause equal chaos and destruction in each of his targets, but he was only partially successful, and that has symbolic import from another perspective. One of the most shocking things about the attacks of 9/11/2001 was that we in America now felt vulnerable. Because of our geography we are distantly separated from Europe and Asia (and Africa, if any African enemy would ever desire to cause us harm). The great oceans of the Atlantic and the Pacific keep us far away from most foreign enemies and have done very well to protect us historically. The one exception before 2001 was December 7, 1941, and that attack was not on the North American mainland, but on a Naval base in Hawaii in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. However, the attack on Pearl Harbor brought out the hidden strength of the still developing United States. It is common military wisdom that says that a nation cannot win a war by fighting on two separate fronts. In World War II, Germany, despite its great power, was stretched thin by fighting on a western front against England and France, and an eastern front fighting against the Soviet Union. However, once the United States entered World War II, we did not just fight a war on two fronts, we fought a world war against Germany in Europe, and another against Japan in Asia, and were instrumental in victories against both. The victories of World War II gave us a sense of invulnerability that was hardly questioned until 9/11. Yes, there were Cold War fears of an attack by the Soviet Union, but the threat of Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD) successfully prevented either country from ever directly attacking the other (though it didn’t stop both from fighting proxy wars). The MAD threat had kept us safe from our most obvious enemy, but the Soviet Union fell in 1987 due to the unsustainable nature of Socialist Communism. The attacks of 9/11 showed another level of insanity and evil that few had thought possible. 

The other perspective of symbolism that I mentioned above is God’s perspective. I am not talking about the god that Osama Bin Laden would have given credit for the limited success of his terror plans. The Allah of Islam is a false god created by a man who wanted to steal other men’s wives and daughters for himself, and to steal their wealth as well. The Allah of Islam has no real power and is no threat, except what Jihadists may do in his name. The true God is the Triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, three persons in one God. He has real power, and is truly in control of all history. God had protected the United States and given us great power and success, such as had not been seen since the Roman Empire, but the events of September 11 showed that God was beginning to withdraw His protection from the United States, at least partially. In looking at the events of 9/11 I can also see symbolism in how God allowed Bin Laden to accomplish some of what he intended, and in how God caused him to fail. 

Plaque commemorating the dedication of the World Trade Center Towers April 4, 1973 recovered from the wreckage.

The most successful attack of September 11 was the attacks on the World Trade Center buildings in New York. Osama Bin Laden intended for this to be a symbolic attack on the wealth of the United States. The WTC symbolized the economic power of the U.S. and of its profitable trade with the world. The fact that God allowed this to be the most successful of the attacks could be a sign that our greatest weakness as a nation is that our greatest idol is our trust in our money and wealth. We think we are invulnerable because we are wealthy. This is actually where we are most vulnerable, and where Osama Bin Laden was most successful. God did not cause this evil, but He allowed it, to attack our idol and bring us to repentance. That was only partially successful also because people are stubborn, and we do not part with our idols easily or willingly. 

Here some people may ask why God allows such evil. They may imply that God is either unwilling or incapable of stopping evil, or that God is, in fact, evil Himself. These speculations are not true. God is more than capable of stopping evil, but in order to get rid of evil totally He would have to kill us all because our sin makes all people evil. God is merciful and loving, and He has provided for all people to be saved through faith in Jesus. God sets limits to the evil which afflicts us, but He allows evil to play out in some respects so that we can see that sin is deadly and that we cannot save ourselves, but must turn to Him for rescue, which He freely provides. Some ignorant atheists say the existence of evil is proof that God is uncaring or evil, but God has rescued us all from the evil effects of sin and death through the life and death of Jesus Christ, who redeemed us from our sin, and has promised to rescue from death all who believe in Him. There is no one who needs to be condemned because all who trust in Jesus will be saved. 

The next most successful attack on September 11 was the attack on the Pentagon. This was a partial failure. The plane did crash into the Pentagon, and killed a couple hundred people on the ground, as well as the innocent passengers in the plane, and the evil hijackers, but the damage to the Pentagon (the world’s largest office building) was relatively limited (especially compared to the WTC), and the overall effect on the United States Military was negligible. Here I believe God was showing that the U.S. military was partially vulnerable, but still a strong force not easily destroyed, but yet to be reckoned with. One could easily argue that much more damage was done to the United States Military several years later by U.S. President Barack Obama, corrupting the military from within by introducing wicked ideological requirements of the leadership and faulty training of the soldiers, rather than attacking it from without, but that is a topic for another time. In the years following 9/11 the U.S. military conquered Iraq and Afghanistan, but neither did they impose Christianity nor even religious freedom on the countries, and so these conquests were doomed to fail in the long run. I thought that the same constitution that was imposed on Japan after WWII should have been established in Iraq and Afghanistan, but no one asked me, and even that may not have worked in the long run either, because of the established Muslim authorities in those countries. Islam is not just a religion, but also a form of totalitarian government. That is why the establishment of democracy did not bring freedom, because the people simply voted to subject themselves to Islam. 

Flight 93 was headed toward Washington D.C. When the passengers tried to regain control the hijackers flew the plane into the ground in Pennsylvania.

The least successful attack on September 11 was Flight 93, which was presumably headed for a target in Washington D.C. Because the passengers were able to disrupt the plans of the hijackers that plane was not able to reach the target intended by Osama Bin Laden, and the hijackers just crashed it into a forest in Pennsylvania, killing everyone on board, but no one on the ground. The greater symbolism of this tragedy was that Bin Laden intended to attack the seat of political power in the United States, which he saw symbolized by the President or the Congress. Osama Bin Laden viewed the United States as a Christian nation and wanted to make it look like the god of Islam was greater than the Christian God. Bin Laden’s failures showed that the true God is still in control, and although there is much idolatry in the USA that make our nation subject to God’s judgment, there is still a strength here that cannot be shaken. That strength is not in the seats of power of the government or the military, however. The authority of the United States does not reside in the Office of the President, nor in Congress, nor in the Supreme Court (or lesser courts). The true power and authority of the United States rests in the citizens. The government was established by “We, the people” not the other way around. The strength and goodness of the United States has always come from the strong Christian influence which permeated all aspects of American life for so long. This could not be destroyed by terrorist attacks in 1941 nor in 2001. 

However, the Christian foundations of our country are more vulnerable to attacks from within. False teaching such as Neo-Gnosticism (and more) has, over the past century, slowly and steadily worn away the foundations of the Christian influence which helped make the United States a superpower working for peace, prosperity, and good throughout the world. From the beatniks to the sexual revolution; from the destruction of the family through divorce, birth control, wicked incentives for women to enter the workforce, and the insidious spiritual effects of child day care where children are brought up by people who don’t love them; we have become a nation of bastards who feel we are not loved, and are easily triggered to anger and despair. Even if we know better, we cannot act on it because we don’t believe we are loved by God and by our parents because so many of us have not known such love. The wicked abomination of abortion also must anger God, and September 11 may have been the beginning of God’s judgment against this national sin. These dysfunctional national sins are combined with a wicked Marxist–based education system which has not educated several generations of Americans to rule themselves justly, but has instead indoctrinated them to be subjugated and to submit to tyrants, rather than to unite with one another to fight against tyrants like free people. This is further combined with Christian denominations which have been compromised and weakened with false worldly doctrines so that even those who yet still profess Christianity, have a wrong idea about what Christianity is all about, so that, when persecution comes, many who profess Christianity will not have enough of Christ to hold on to, and will seemingly quickly fall away, rather than suffer with Christ. 

Saint Luke’s Gospel tells us in chapter 13 that Jesus was asked a question about a group of Galilean Jews who had been slaughtered by Pontius Pilate as they offered their sacrifices to God. Jesus responded that although they died in this way they were not worse sinners than other Galileans, but He also mentioned a tragedy where a tower fell and killed eighteen people, and said, “... unless you repent, you, too will all perish.” The thing we ought to take away from tragedies is that we are all sinners in need of forgiveness, and unless we repent of our sins, we will all perish. This is also what we ought to remember when we remember September 11, and when other great tragedies come upon us. 

New York Fire Department Ladder Company 3 Fire Truck damaged when the North Tower collapsed. All 11 responding members of Ladder Company 3 were in the building and killed when it collapsed.

Despite the weaknesses and sins of the citizens and government of the United States, God is not the cause of evil, but He is still in control. This is neither a patriotic boast, nor is it a logical conclusion based on evidence. The evidence shows that we live in a wicked world run by evil sinners, and it seems like they can get away with anything they want. This is not true, it is just an illusion, at best; or a great lie of the devil, at worst. God is still in control, though He may let sinful consequences play out from time to time to show us the tragic reality of sin, so that we may truly know the wickedness which lies in the hearts of sinful men, and that we may repent and trust in Christ all the more fervently to save us and rescue us from all evil.  

 
The fact that God is in control and that Jesus Christ is ruling over heaven and earth does not come by seeing the signs, or interpreting the evidence. It comes by faith in God’s Word. Often the evidence seems to contradict God’s Word, but Jesus said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” (Matthew 28:18) Christ’s obedience to God, the Father, earned Him the right to rule heaven and earth, because He is the perfect mediator between God and man, because He is fully God and fully man in one person, and because He paid the price to redeem the world from sin through His innocent suffering and death. The result of Christ’s rule and authority is shown when Saint Paul wrote, “We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28) If this were not true, then Jesus would not have suffered and died for us, but because He did suffer and die, we know that He will protect us from all lasting effects of sin and evil in the world, even when those effects claim our temporal lives.

Jesus said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” This would not be a comfort unless “We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

It can be a frightening thing when evil seems to win out over good in the world. King David noted this in Psalm 2:1-6. “Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the Lord and against his Anointed One. ‘Let us break their chains,’ they say, ‘and throw off their fetters.’ The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them. Then he rebukes them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath, saying, ‘I have installed my King on Zion, my holy hill.’” I like the idea of God laughing at the wicked plans of evil people on earth. In recent years in the United States we have seen much more brazen wicked acts, and more and more the perpetrators are becoming bold enough to begin to be open about their wickedness, and brag about getting away with such evil. They think they are something when they are nothing. God will have the last laugh, though in the meantime we mourn and weep (along with God – see John 11:35) for the death and destruction wrought upon the earth. Psalm 94:11 also tells us, “The Lord knows the thoughts of man; he knows that they are futile.” We pray to God in the Lord’s Prayer, “Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.” God’s good and gracious will is always done in His heavenly kingdom, and it is a blessing even here on earth whenever God’s will is done. Psalm 33:10-12 also tells us, “The Lord foils the plans of the nations; he thwarts the purposes of the peoples. But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations. Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people he chose for his inheritance.”

In the Revelation that Jesus gave to the Apostle John, the angel who was explaining the imagery he was seeing told him, “They (the ten kings) will make war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will overcome them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings – and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers.” (Revelation 17:14) The “Lamb” is Jesus because He offered His life as an atoning sacrifice (like the sacrificial lamb) for the sins of the world. He is the King over all kings of the earth, and Lord over all rulers. This passage is a great comfort to God’s people because it shows that although the rulers of the world will make war against Christ and His followers, Christ will overcome them and bring with Him His faithful followers. This vision that Saint John saw also shows that the ten kings which make war against the Lamb (Jesus) also hate the prostitute, Babylon the Great, and “They will bring her to ruin and leave her naked; they will eat her flesh and burn her with fire.” (Revelation 17:16) This is interesting because it shows that God allows these kings to come to power so they can destroy the evil city, Babylon, whose downfall causes the kings of the earth to “weep and mourn over her” (Revelation 18:9), but these ten kings also try to make war against Christ and His people, but Christ will overcome them. 

God can use evil men to accomplish His greater purpose, but limits the evil that they can accomplish, lest everyone is destroyed. We see that also in the Old Testament where God used King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon to bring His judgment against the Idol worshiping Kingdom of Judah, but then God lets the Persians conquer Babylon lest they think too much of themselves. Then God moved King Cyrus to let the exiled remnant of Judah to return to their homeland, rather than keeping the Babylonian slaves (such as Judah) as his own slaves. 

Osama Bin Laden was a wicked, evil man who used people to cause murder, chaos, destruction, and terror. He convinced 19 young men (plus one more who had been arrested and was in jail on September 11, 2001) to kill themselves in a horrific way to murder thousands of innocent people. Osama Bin Laden lied to his followers and told them that it was the will of their god that they commit these vile acts of murderous destruction against unarmed innocent people who could not defend themselves, and who were not their enemies. Bin Laden promised his gullible, murderous followers that their god would reward them with honor, comfort, riches, and 72 virgin women for their pleasure, even though all such things are immoral, wicked, evil lies of Satan. Osama Bin Laden thought he was something when the events of 9/11 played out. Yet, God (the true God) still had mercy on him. Despite the whole population of the United States, and much of the civilized world, wanting Osama Bin Laden to be called to justice for the evil he had done, and despite a $25,000,000 reward for his arrest, God (the true God) allowed him to live nearly ten years longer before he was killed in an attempt to arrest him and bring him to justice. If you or I had a $25,000,000 reward for our arrest and capture, we wouldn’t remain free for a week, much less nine and a half years, but God allowed Osama Bin Laden to live because Jesus Christ truly is merciful. God does not approve of suicide, murder, and destruction, but God tells His people, “As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that they turn from their ways and live. Turn! Turn from your evil ways!” (Ezekiel 33:11) God gave Osama Bin Laden nearly ten years to repent of his wicked, murderous sins, but in the end he still was a murderous, evil man who preferred the lies of Satan to the mercy and forgiveness of God in Jesus Christ. He died trying to kill those who were sent to bring him to justice. 

There is forgiveness in Jesus Christ for even evil people like Osama Bin Laden. Jesus lived and died an innocent death so that He could redeem all sinners, even the most wicked and evil people. God does not condone such acts of murder and terror, much less approve of them, but God is merciful and forgiving. It is a great comfort to Christians that Jesus offers free forgiveness to all who repent and trust in Him to save them. This includes even the most despised, wicked, servants of the devil, like Osama Bin Laden. I know that even some Christians have a hard time comprehending the full extent of God’s mercy and love, but it still is a great comfort that Jesus could forgive the worst sinners. If Jesus could forgive Osama Bin Laden, then He certainly will forgive me, who has not killed anyone, but who is nonetheless guilty of the commandment against murder by my occasional hateful thoughts against my neighbors. 

God is a loving father who forgives his disobedient children.

God’s will is that all sinners repent and trust in Jesus for the forgiveness of all their sins, so that they will receive that forgiveness and be saved. Jesus said, “I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.” (Luke 15:7) Jesus shows the love and mercy of God in that He was willing to die for the worst of sinners. This is why Jesus will be praised for eternity. Every redeemed sinner in heaven will give eternal glory to Christ for rescuing him or her from death, and for generously giving them an eternal life without sin, suffering and death. 

Though Osama Bin Laden certainly deserved punishment in hell for the innocent lives he took, and the suffering he caused so many people, yet, I, too deserve the same punishment for my disobedience of God’s commands. It is actually a shame that Osama Bin Laden did not likely repent of his sins. Had he repented, he could have given great testimony of God’s love in Christ for forgiving the worst sinners, and Christians around the world, and in heaven itself, would have rejoiced in his redemption and salvation. If Osama Bin Laden had repented and believed in Jesus he still would have had to face temporal punishment for his crimes, but he could have been saved eternally. I published an article in November 2001 about a Biblical example of a terrorist who repented and became a Christian. The beneficial lesson is that sin causes sorrow, destruction, chaos, and death, and we are all guilty. Only Jesus Christ can overcome sin and death, and He has done so through His innocent suffering and death. Jesus lived and died so that we, sinners, can receive full forgiveness and the eternal life and salvation that He offers us freely through faith. Repent, sinner, and trust in Jesus and live. “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:38-39)

“All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations will bow down before him, for dominion belongs to the Lord and he rules over the nations.” (Psalm 22:27-28)