The Beast is Bleeding

evelation 13 carries the ominous prediction that the end times "beast" that may be determined to be government, will receive a "deadly wound" to one of its "heads" (Revelation 13:3). The text also tells us this beast's wound is scheduled to be healed:

"And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast" (Revelation 13:3).

For well over a decade, I've been declaring the "heads" of the beast must represent political dominions -- in addition to a consecutive set of rulers in the final generation. Based on the kingdoms identified in scripture, we have defined the heads as the kingdoms of the world beginning with ancient Egypt and progressing all the way to the present economic/military powerhouse that is America.

Scripture tells us the Egyptian power was supplanted by the 2nd head, the Assyrians, who were decimated by the angel of the LORD in 702 BC at Jerusalem (Isaiah 37:36). Then came the neo-Babylonian kingdom of Nebuchadnezzar (the 3rd head), which was overrun by the Persian Union as documented in Daniel 5.

The Persian Empire, the 4th head, ran into Alexander the Great, the leader of the Graeco-Macedonian kingdom, who was the 5th head. With Alexander's untimely demise after a rough and tumble 12 years and 8 months of conquest, the Romans came to an unchallenged power. Rome was, therefore, the 6th head.

The last four of these kingdoms, Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome, were detailed in Daniel's statue dream of Daniel 2. After the Roman dominion, the 2nd list of four that is found in Daniel 7 comes into play. This is the lion, bear, and leopard kingdoms, and they may be identified as Colonial Britain (the lion), Bolshevik Russia (the bear), Nazi Germany (the leopard), and Republican America (the diverse 4th beast of Daniel 7).

However, the count does not start over, it steps back and, in a prophetic process we call sequential recapitulation, doubles the previous four kingdoms. Thus, Babylon/Britain are the third (after Egypt and Assyria), Persia/Russia is the 4th, Greece/Germany, is the 5th, and Rome/America is the 6th -- which still stops short of the 7th "head." At this point, we need to recognize the America of 2005 is not the America at the end of World War II.

In 1947, the USA was transformed into the National Security State -- and it created its own global double in the United Nations, installing the UN's first "head" that same year. This started another cycle of 7 heads, but the American Security State coupled with the UN is the 7th head, which is essentially the transitional phase leading to the 8th, and final, government of man in this present age.

Although all the "heads" have received a "deadly wound," the only one that will be "healed" is the 7th head -- and it will be, for all intents and purposes, an 8th head as it will be a resurrected form of the 7th.

As I write these words, the United Nations is teetering on the brink of collapse, as the fiscally insolvent institution has failed in its stated mission to bring the nations of the world together. Simultaneously, the empire of America is in its twilight years as the once great power is virtually bankrupt, overextended through excessive social spending, foreign wars, and rotting internally from the spiritual degradation that is the natural consequence of turning away from the God of heaven.

In short, the beast is bleeding. These conditions are all only early manifestations of the real deadly wound that will strike shortly. This is characterized in Revelation as a great city on fire, and it will almost certainly involve a horrifying war in which weapons of mass destruction are used against the USA. This "wound" will put an end to the entire era of nationalist oriented dominion. However, the worse will be yet to come.

When the healing of the deadly wound follows, what is left of America will be revived, but the global dominion we know as the United Nations , or some form of successor organization (see the Third Way) will assume all power -- and it will be located in the nation of Israel. This is the the "beast" of global government that will stand up to rule the world in the wake of the tremendous cataclysm that is the deadly wound of World War III. This is the 8th and final head, and "he" will rule the world from Jerusalem.

Concurrent with the epic transition, that same One World Government will be brought to power by a reconfigured Security-Council consisting of ten heads of state. They will give their power and authority to the ruler of this soon to emerge institution, and he will be the Antichrist.

September 22 2005 -- James Lloyd

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