Is America in End Times Prophecy? Bible Experts Weigh In
Editor’s Note: Our readers responded strongly to this story when it originally ran; we’re reposting it here in case you missed it.
Signs in the heavens, wars and rumors of wars, earthquakes, and that’s all at the beginning of this month. It all sounds like something right out of what the Bible describes as the end times.
If we are entering the end times, what role might the United States play?
The Bible speaks of a time at the end of the present age in the books of Daniel, Revelation, and Matthew — among others — when there will be seven years of tribulation culminating in the battle of Armageddon in Israel and the return of Jesus Christ to the earth.
The United States, currently the most powerful nation in the world, is not clearly referenced in any of this, and there may be multiple reasons why — some bad, some good — according to Bible experts.
Pastor Paul Begley and investigative journalist Troy Anderson, co-authors of the new book “Revelation 911: How the Book of Revelation Intersects with Today’s Headlines,” told The Western Journal they believe we are very close to the end of the age, and America has strayed far from its Christian roots.
“What we’re seeing is, besides earthquakes, increasing wildfires, heat waves, volcanoes, all these different apocalyptic-type events, we’re seeing a tremendous change and discussion, like the world needs a great reset, or the climate change is become a green religion where we’re worshiping Mother Earth instead of Father God,” Begley said.
“There’s talk of a one world government, a new world order,” he added. “The Bible does talk about a beast kingdom that is a one world government led by the Antichrist and his sidekick the false prophet.”
The technology now exists where a one world currency could be created, and people would be forced to have the “mark of the Beast,” described in Revelation 13, in order to buy and sell in the digital marketplace.
“The track is being laid. The only thing is the engineer hasn’t got on the train, and why would he until the track is laid? So we are inching ever closer to the end time,” Begley said. “We’re knocking on Armageddon’s door.”
Anderson, who also co-wrote “The Babylon Code: Solving the Bible’s Greatest End-Times Mystery,” suggested one reference to the United States in all the unfolding events could be the Babylon written about in Revelation 17 and 18.
That nation experiences a sudden judgment by fire, perhaps indicating nuclear weapons strikes from a rogue nation like Iran, Russia or China.
“It talks about the merchants of the world trading with her. And in one hour she burned with fire. And they stand from afar and watch her burn and mourn because they know that they grew rich from trading with all of her luxuries and that kind of thing. So is that a description of modern day America? You know, nobody knows for sure,” Anderson said.
Begley argued that the history of the world is replete with fallen empires.
“We’ve watched empires die,” he said. “As a matter of fact, Jerusalem is the place where empires come to die. Going back to the Babylonians, to then the Romans and the Ottoman Empire.”
“I mean, we’ve seen it also with the British Empire. As soon as every one of these empires turned against Israel, their empires ended as being the world leader. America right now is in its position because of its position of standing with Israel,” he added.
Begley contended the U.S. is in danger of turning on Israel under President Joe Biden, given some of his recent actions toward the Jewish state regarding its war against Hamas.
“We’ve got to figure out which side we’re on. And right now we have an administration that really doesn’t know which side it’s on,” the pastor said.
Begley believes a reference to eagle’s wings in the book of Revelation just might have to do with the United States.
He first pointed out in Daniel 7, the prophet wrote, around 550 B.C., of four empires. He recounted seeing a vision of four beasts, one being like a lion with eagle’s wings. Another was like a bear. Still another was like a leopard, and a final dreadful beast more powerful than all the rest arose with iron teeth.
The Bible instructional site GotQuestions.org said that Daniel’s four beasts vision was fulfilled with the lion representing the Babylonian empire; next followed in history by the bear, the Persian empire; then the leopard, the Greek empire; and finally the Roman empire, the most powerful of them all.
Begley finds it noteworthy that the Apostle John later wrote in Revelation 13, around 96 A.D., of a beast rising at the end of the age that embodied the past empires Daniel chronicled, with elements of a lion, bear, and leopard, but no mention of eagle’s wings.
However, in the previous chapter eagle’s wings are seen rescuing a woman, representative of Israel, from forces led by the devil. The bald eagle is, of course, the national symbol of America.
“When you go to Revelation, three of [the past beasts] come together as part of a one world government. Only the eagle doesn’t,” Begley said.
“It stays with Israel, flying with Israel as like a protector, a big brother. I hope that that’s the role America takes,” he added.
Other Bible scholars believe there may also be reference to the United States in Ezekiel 38, which is about the end times battle of Gog and Magog.
In that fight, Persia (modern day Iran) joins forces with nations believed to be Russia and Turkey, among others, to attack Israel.
Ezekiel wrote of “The merchants of Tarshish, and all their young lions” apparently protesting the invasion.
Tarshish is a land west of Israel, potentially modern-day Great Britain, and its young lions could include the United States, as an offspring, if you will, of the mother country.
Both Britain and the United States played a pivotal role in the birth of modern Israel after World War II.
“Have you come to seize spoil? Have you assembled your hosts to carry off plunder, to carry away silver and gold, to take away livestock and goods, to seize great spoil?” Tarshish and other nations ask the invading forces.
The Biden administration offering such a feeble response to an invasion of Israel is certainly conceivable.
Another possible end time scenario for the United States is that it experiences a massive nationwide revival, as it has in the past.
Christ then raptures his church from the planet before the Great Tribulation, meaning much of the country’s population is no longer here, hence the lack of mention in the Bible.
Anderson is hopeful that America will repent and experience revival.
“I think over this last year we’ve sort of seen these pockets of revival around the country ever since that ‘Jesus Revolution‘ movie came out,” he said.
Anderson pointed to the Asbury awakening and mass baptisms in California last summer, as well as moves of God on college campuses around the country.
“I think God is rooting for us,” he said. “He’s hoping that we’ll turn back to Him. He’s hoping that we’ll repent of our sins and turn from our wicked ways. And then we could have this revival. So I think we very well could be on the cusp of this great harvest revival, but I think God put the ball in our court.”
“I think we can have a big turnaround in this country, but I think the choice is ours.”
America is not definitively listed in the Bible’s end times events, but she may yet have a decisive role to play.
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