The USA has a prominent role to play in the final scenes of the Earth’s history. A union between church and state in America will usher in the final crisis by leading to the enforcement of the mark of the beast.
To get the most from this article you will need to first read ‘The Keys of Prophecy’ and ‘Unmasking the Antichrist’ so that you have the foundation required to appreciate what will be covered here.
Revelation 13 introduces two powers that will ultimately unite in the enforcement of the mark of the beast. These powers are represented as beasts, the first of which is described in this way:
“Then I stood on the sand of the sea. And I saw a beast rising up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and on his horns ten crowns, and on his heads a blasphemous name. Now the beast which I saw was like a leopard, his feet were like the feet of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. The dragon gave him his power, his throne, and great authority.” Revelation 13:1-2
Here we find the same symbolism as what is used in Daniel 7 to describe the rise and fall of kingdoms up until the second coming of Jesus. All the same beasts and horns there are repeated here to describe a single power. If you look closely you will note that here these beasts are listed in reverse order. For example, Daniel 7 has the lion, then bear, then leopard, and here we have the opposite. This shows us where we are now sitting in history. Daniel looked forward to the fulfilment of these prophecies, John is now showing that at the time these events take place we are looking back at prophecies already fulfilled. The events of Revelation 13 occur at the end of the world just prior to Jesus’ second coming.
As we read on we are given key identifying information for this power:
It will receive a deadly wound that will be healed
The whole world will wonder after the beast
It will speak great things and blasphemies against God
It would make war with the saints and overcome them
It would have power to continue 42 months (this is the same as the times, time and the dividing of time which is 1260 years)
Does this sound at all reminiscent? Here we have many of the same identifying features of the Little Horn of Daniel 7 which we previously identified as the Roman Catholic Church. However, here we also have a bit of additional information. We are told that the Church would receive its power from the dragon, which represents both the Pagan Roman Empire and also Satan (Revelation 12:3-4,9). We are also told that the Catholic Church would receive a deadly wound but that this wound would be healed. In our study of the Antichrist, we saw that this wound was received in 1798 at the hand of the French General Berthier when he captured Pope Pius VI and declared the end of the Papal government. Today we are seeing the gradual fulfilment of this healing. The Pope is more influential now than he has been since this wound was inflicted over 200 years ago. The Pope has been working systematically to create unity between churches and religions. To date, unity agreements have been established with most Protestant Denominations and many influential leaders of other religions, including Islam. He is also adopting a leading position in the fight against climate change and the pandemic, while also calling for global peace amid the chaos the world is facing. However, this healing is not yet complete and will not be complete until the Church takes power over the state once again.
Revelation 13 now introduces us to a second beast with lamblike horns that comes up out of the earth (vs 11). Seas represent populous places (Revelation 17:15), the earth, being the opposite of the sea, represents a sparsely populated area. This lamblike beast is said to speak as a dragon and exercise all the power of the beast (Catholic Church) that came before it. The lamb is a symbol for Jesus (John 1:29) and, as we have seen, the dragon represents Satan. So this kingdom will appear to represent Christian principles but will ultimately speak like the Devil and enforce the dogmas of the Apostate Church upon the people as happened during the Dark Ages.
When can we expect this lamblike beast to appear on the stage of history? To answer this we need to go to Revelation 12 where we are first introduced to the earth, from which this beast will arise. In Revelation 12:16 we read:
“But the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed up the flood which the dragon had spewed out of his mouth.”
The woman represents a church (2 Cor 11:2), a pure woman represents a pure church, and an adulterous woman represents an apostate church (Jer 3:8). In this instance, we have a pure woman (see verse 1) that receives aid from the earth (the same place from whence the lamblike beast rises) as she flees the persecution of the dragon. Revelation 12:14-15 gives us the time that this would take place,
“But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness to her place, where she is nourished for a time and times and half a time, from the presence of the serpent. So the serpent spewed water out of his mouth like a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away by the flood."
Toward the end of the woman’s time in the wilderness, as the 1260 years are coming to a close (before 1798), the woman finds sanctuary in the earth. The floods of waters represent the relentless persecution of God’s people by the Catholic Church during this time.
Bringing this information together, we have a nation that is founded just prior to 1798, appears to be based on Christian principles, acted as a safe haven for those Christians fleeing persecution in Europe, and which arose in a part of the earth that was relatively unpopulated.
Founded on July 4, 1776, the United States of America harboured those Christians who were fleeing Papal persecution in Europe. Its constitution is based on Protestant Christian principles, including the right for an individual to worship God according to the dictates of their own conscience. Separation of Church and State has also been written into these laws in order to prevent a repeat of the Dark Ages of Papal tyranny. Here we have the lamblike beast which arose at the time and in the manner prophesied. The two horns of the lamblike beast represent the key principles upon which it was founded; Protestantism and Republicanism.
Now that we have clearly identified who the second beast of Revelation 13 is, we can look at the developments that will soon take place in the USA as this prophecy comes to its complete fulfilment.
“And he exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence, and causes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. He performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men. And he deceives those who dwell on the earth by those signs which he was granted to do in the sight of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who was wounded by the sword and lived.” Revelation 13:12-14
As we have discussed, the USA will ultimately enforce by law the dogmas of the Church upon its citizens. However, we are told that the image to the beast is set up by those who ‘dwell on the earth’. Here is displayed the democratic nature of the USA. The great signs here mentioned will be acts of spiritualism and other miraculous workings that will come from nowhere other than Satan and his fallen league of angels. Jesus warned,
“For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.” Matthew 24:24
For as long as time has gone on there have been people who have claimed to be prophets or gods. Since Jesus first came to the earth 2000 years ago there have been many people appear claiming to be Him. For the most part, these people have been obviously frauds and only a small number have been deceived by them. However, here Jesus presents a time when these false leaders will be attended by great signs and wonders that will be so convincing that even those who are well versed in scripture (the elect) risk being deceived. A time is coming when Satan will exercise his full deceptive power to take the world captive. He knows his time is short and as we come into the final crisis that is to take place between Christ and Satan he will hold nothing back. We cannot forget that Satan is the most powerful of the angels, and the power of angelic beings is beyond anything we fully understand. Satan can, and will, present himself as a glorious being full of light and love (2 Corinthians 11:14); he will even attempt to imitate the second coming of Jesus Himself. This is why miracles or glorious appearances are not the way that we assess if something is of divine origin. God has given us the only way of safety,
“To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.” Isaiah 8:20
“But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed.” Galatians 1:8
If this instruction is followed, you will never be deceived. If teachers/prophets/christs come and teach us to disregard any of God’s law or the testimony of the Scriptures then we know they are not from God. You may recall that one of the key identifying features of the Antichrist (Catholic Church) is that they intended to change God’s law (Daniel 7:25) by changing the sanctity of the Sabbath from the seventh day (as per the fourth commandment) to the first day of the week. This is why most churches today worship on Sunday (the first day of the week). Any preacher or glorious being that should appear and tell us to keep the tradition of the Catholic Church in place of the commandments of God, or maintain any other false doctrine, is working against God.
In Revelation 16:13-14 we read,
“And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs coming out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. For they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.”
Here is displayed in more detail the work of spiritualism in the final crisis. There will scarcely be an atheist or non-believer when supernatural acts are being performed before the whole world. It is through these deceptions that we are told the people will agree, and believe it right, to set up an image to the beast. If you have not done so, please read ‘Can the Dead Speak to Us’ to learn more about the deception of spiritualism in the last days.
The final act of the USA is that it will enforce the worship of the beast and its image through laws and persecution. This issue may start in the USA but it will be global. As we have read, all of the kings of the earth will be involved in the final conflict.
“He was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed. He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.” Revelation 13:15-17
The USA is currently the world superpower, a position that it will maintain to be able to fulfil its final role of forcing the entire world to worship the beast and its image and receive its mark. This power will heed the pressures of the churches, both Catholic and Protestant, who are uniting and will soon bear down upon the state to enforce their dogmas. Are we not already seeing a breaking down of the partition wall of church and state in America? Has America now voted in its second Catholic President while its High Court Judges are also predominantly of the Catholic faith? Could it be that these are signs of just how near we are to the final events?
These prophecies are fulfilling more rapidly now than at any time before. While there is still the chance, we need to be learning to lean on the everlasting arm of God that we may be able to stand through every deception and persecution that the Devil will throw at us. God is able to sustain us and victory already belongs to Him, but we must learn to trust in Him.
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