Q. Do you think the current economic crisis and meltdown is a part of biblical prophecy? How does the global picture fit into this? Why would it fit now but didn’t fit before?
Answer:
Those are good, timely questions and we’re glad you asked. The answer is astonishing!
Unique Confluence of Events
The global circumstances do fit biblical prophecy better than ever before. There is a unique confluence of events like no other time in world history.
Israel Example
For example, back in the early 1940s Israel had not yet become a nation once again. It wasn’t until May 14, 1948 that Israel fulfilled the following prophecy:
“For I will gather you up from all the nations and bring you home again to your land” (Ezekiel 36:24, NLT).
The world agreed to allow the Jews back into the Promised Land after the horrors of the German holocaust. It is interesting to note that anti-Semitism has again raised its ugly head today. So the window of opportunity for the Jews to return home lasted just a short time during the late 1940s.
Just try to find movies or news items sympathetic to Jews and their nation today. Yet, in the 1960s we had blockbuster films like The Exodus (starring Paul Newman) and other compassionate movies. Not so today…now we see movies dedicated to compassion for terrorists!
During the 1940s there was no Israeli nation, Russia consisted of poor peasants who were starving, and the Arab countries were mostly poor Bedouin sheepherders and struggling merchants. China was a huge country filled with poor farmers.
Arab Wealth
Since then oil has brought great wealth to the Arab countries. Their wealth has in turn brought about the rise of Islam and its influence in the world. The Arab Emirates, for example, are among the richest areas of the world even though they have recently experienced a slight setback.
Russia
Russia has reemerged to become a threatening power once again. They have rebuilt their country and modernized their military and weaponry. This is important to biblical prophecy because the prophet Ezekiel forecast that God would bring Russia (called “Gog” and “Magog” in the Bible) against the Israelites in the latter days.
“I will turn you around and put hooks in your jaws to lead you out with your whole army…” (Ezekiel 38:4).
“At that time evil thoughts will come to your mind, and you will devise a wicked scheme. You will say, ‘Israel is an unprotected land filled with unwalled villages! I will march against her and destroy these people who live in such confidence” (38:10-11).
“I will go to those formerly desolate cities that are now filled with people who have returned from exile in many nations. I will capture vast amounts of plunder, for the people are rich with livestock and other possessions now” (38:12, NLT).
Nations Allied with Russia
Russia won’t act alone, however. Verse 5 of Ezekiel chapter 38 identifies several nations who ally themselves with Russia against Israel. They are modern day Iran, Ethiopia – which represents the African Islamic nations – and Libya. Verse 6 notes that Gomer, or Germany, joins the war party, too. You might want to pay close attention to the news – we may see war against Israel fulfilling the Ezekiel passages.
E.U.
The Roman Empire was prophesied to rise once again in the latter days. This prophecy is found in the Ten Toes on the metallic image of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream in Daniel chapter two, and in the Ten Horns of the fourth terrible beast of Daniel chapter seven. It is also found in Revelation chapter 13 verse 1. It is from this reemergence of the Roman Empire that the Antichrist will emerge.
The old Roman Empire is comprised today from the E.U. nations. For many years prophecy teachers have felt that Europe would become a prominent power again. For instance, Hal Lindsey spoke of the rise of the European Common Market back in the early 1970s. Others have written about Rome’s revival centuries ago. It is nothing new to Bible scholars. However, we may also witness an emergence of the eastern wing of the old Roman Empire including several Islamic nations. Stay tuned…
At any rate, from this alignment of nations and period of time will come the Great Tribulation – a terrible time when the worst dictator ever known in world history will “devour the whole world, trampling and crushing everything in its path” (Daniel 7:23). Jesus warned that there would be “greater anguish than at any time since the world began.” In fact, unless this time of calamity is shortened, not a single person will survive (Matthew 24:21-22).
Why a World Dictatorship?
What would bring the world to its knees so that it would accept a dictator capable of such evil?
A world financial meltdown!
This could be the “Black Horse” prophesied in Revelation 6:5 which brings terrible famine and hyperinflation to the world. This economic time is so turbulent that the antichrist will arise to rule a one-world government brought together by his new, world economic-system (Revelation 13:16).
Global Financial Crisis
It appears that everything has been “orchestrated” to lead to a single global government and a single worldwide currency – one unit of measure for all worldwide financial transactions.
For example, on May 10, 2007 the director of international economics at the Council on Foreign Relations wrote, “the world needs to abandon unwanted currencies, replacing them with dollars, euros, and multinational currencies as yet unborn” (Foreign Affairs, May 2007). The author concludes that “countries should abandon monetary nationalism.”
Since then we have heard world leaders state the same thing again and again – they see the current economic crisis as an opportunity for global governance.
On May 29, 2010, Jameson Berkow from the Financial Post writes, “A new currency is intended to challenge the U.S. dollar as the world’s foremost reserve currency. …The new currency (WCU) is similar to the IMF Fund’s special drawing rights (SDR), which the IMF uses as a reserve asset to supplement…Both Russia and China have been pushing for the world to switch to a new currency.”
On October 1, 2008 Nicholas Kralev from the Washington Times wrote, “Leaders and economists from Western Europe to East Asia Tuesday urged the United States to go beyond reviving a failed domestic bailout and start working on a new global financial system.”
“The Americans don’t have a choice – they must absolutely have a global plan,” states Christian Noyer of the French central bank.
Prophetic Implications
These statements have huge prophetic implications. Revelation 13 prophesies that a global government with “seven heads and ten horns” (v. 1) will emerge before the return of Jesus Christ. This global government will rule over “all kindreds, tongues and nations” (v. 7).
Finally, this world economic system led by the antichrist will be forced upon all world citizens (v. 16-17):
“He required everyone – small and great, rich and poor, free and slave – to be given a mark on the right hand or on the forehead. And no one could buy or sell anything without that mark, which was either the name of the beast or the number representing his name…His number is 666” (Revelation 13:16-18, NLT).
The I.D.
In concert with this imposed financial system, all world citizens will be given an I.D “mark” allowing them to buy or sell. It will replace currency as we know it. People will not be able to shop at stores or grocery outlets, hold bank accounts or engage in business without this particular I.D. system.
Anyone ready to be “chipped?” (We already allow our pets and livestock to receive what may be a prologue to the antichrist’s “mark”).
China’s Role
Last, China is emerging as a formidable world power who will usher in the last battle before Christ returns to planet earth. This is popularly known as the Battle of Armageddon. Revelation says it like this:
“Then the four angels who had been prepared for this hour and day and month and year were turned loose to kill one-third of all the people on earth. I heard the size of their army, which was 200 million mounted troops” (Revelation 9:13-16).
When the apostle John wrote this passage a 200 million man army was inconceivable. Even WWII contained only about fifty million soldiers. As if he were justifying himself the apostle argued, “I heard the size of their army!”
Yet, due to China’s one-child policy and favored male children, an army of this size became possible only in the twenty-first century. This is a unique period of time.
The Euphrates Dam
In Revelation chapter sixteen verses 12-16 the apostle John writes, “The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up to prepare the way for the kings from the east…For they (the frogs) are spirits of demons performing signs, who travel to the kings of the whole world to assemble them for the battle of the great day of God, the Almighty…So they assembled them at the place called in Hebrew Armageddon.”
Note carefully that there is now a Euphrates Dam capable of drying up the entire Euphrates River – just as prophesied!
Unique Period in World History
Good grief! Only a confluence of the rise of Israel, the Middle Eastern Islamic nations, Russia, the E.U., a severe economic crisis and the emerging giant, China, could bring us to this point. Then throw in incidental items like the reality of the “bio chip” and the Euphrates Dam – and we are set to go!
History on Steroids
Get ready for a New World Order, a one-world currency, a bio-chipped populace, a world dictator and an unfolding series of earth changes mentioned in Revelation chapters six through eighteen, in our future. It will include horrid hyperinflation (Rev. 6:5-6), terrible wars (6:4), bio-terror and pandemics (6:8), Jewish persecutions and the killing of new Christians (6:9-11), earthquakes, asteroids and nuclear winter (6:12-17) and worse. This is history-making on steroids!
Beam me Up, Lord
But, instead of allowing it to make us fearful, we should understand that this is an exciting time to be alive – the most exciting period in world history. Unbelievers have much to fear. But, Christians do not. We see the end-times prophecies in the Bible coming true before our very eyes.
Unlike the rest of the world, we can look forward to Christ returning soon to “snatch” away his followers into the air to escape the worst horrors of the emerging tribulation period and the despotic rule of the antichrist. For you sci-fi lovers we can read 1 Thessalonians 4:17 as a promise that we will be “beamed up” off the planet before the worst of the Great Tribulation hits:
“Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord” (1 Thessalonians 4:17).
Halleluiah! It’s almost over…
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References:
Berkow, Jameson. 2010. World currency unit intended to rival U.S. dollar for supremacy. Financial Post, National Post. 29 May. Available from:http://www.financialpost.com/story.html?id=3086360. (accessed 6/15/2010).
Collins, Steven. 2008. World regional blocs fulfilling Bible prophecy? 10 June. Prophecy Updates and Commentary. Available from: http://stevenmcollins.com-WordPress/?p=247.
Hagee, John. 2008. Financial armageddon. Lake Mary, FL: Front Line.
Kralev, Nicholas. Foreign economists urge ‘Global Plan.’ The Washington Times. Available from:http://washingtontimes.com/news/2008/oct/01/foreign-economists-prod-us-on-global-plan.com.
Morgan, Dale. The new global currency – CFR chief: monetary nationalism, sovereignty should be abandoned. Bible Prophecy News. Available from: http://groups.google.com/group/Bible-Prophecy-News/browse_thread/23cc714c2af993b/
Authors Valorie Mays Emilio holds an M.A. in History from UCLA specializing in Christian origins. Ken received the M.A. in Biblical Studies from Louisiana Baptist University and a V.O.M. Certificate in Persecuted Church Ministries from Oklahoma Wesleyan University. They know they are just a “vapor” that appears for a little while and must make the most of days remaining (James 4:14; Eph 5:15).