Beast of Revelation.pdf - Friends of the Sabbath Australia

The Beast of Revelation
successors of both the western and eastern legs of the Empire—since
there are five “toes” on the foot of each leg. It is surprising how
closely the east-west division of Europe today—as defined by the
now-obsolete Iron Curtain—matches up with the ancient imperial
division. The coming ten rulers, and their leader, will form the last
resurrection of the Roman Empire—the final successor and embodiment
of Babylon. However, of the former Soviet bloc nations that
will probably be part of the Beast, some will apparently break with
the system before the end and join Far Eastern powers to actually
fight against the Beast—as we’ll see near the end of this booklet.
What will be the nature of the final Roman union? “And as the
toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of clay, so the kingdom
shall be partly strong and partly fragile. As you saw iron
mixed with ceramic clay, they will mingle with the seed of men;
but they will not adhere to one another, just as iron does not mix
with clay” (vv. 42–43). It seems that despite all the work of the
globalists toward superseding national identities, the various ethnic
and local rivalries will assure that this final empire remains loosely
knit and short-lived. Yet while it lasts, it will be very powerful.
So before the good news of Christ’s return, there is bad news ahead.
The final ten rulers will give their support to a coming union of church
and state in Europe that will aspire to world dominance. Johannes Haller,
a popular German historian who died in 1947, stated, “In the memory of
the German people the old [Holy Roman] Empire lives on as a time of
greatness and splendor that must one day come to life again.”
After a short interlude of apparent peace and prosperity, this
system will plunge the whole world into a hellish nightmare.
Without God’s intervention, utter destruction would result and all
mankind would perish (Matt. 24:21–22). But God will intervene—by
sending Jesus Christ back to this earth (vv. 29–30).
The Bible reveals that dark days are before us. It tells us that
those who remain will be compelled to receive the “mark of the
beast.” But it also says that those who do will face horrible torment
at Christ’s return. Just what is this mark? Will you have to
receive it? What can you do about it now? These questions will
be answered in the next chapter.
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