The 700 Club with Pat Robertson

Bring It On: End Times


 

Do you believe that the Antichrist the Bible talks about will be a person, an institution, a religion, or something else?

Maybe all of the above. I think when you read the book of Revelation, you see a false prophet. He's going to be the one who is actually doing miracles. The Antichrist will be a person, but it could also be an antichrist system. We have in the Bible that 'the spirit of the antichrist' is upon the face of the earth. It has to do in some measure with the systems, with anyone who does not confess that Jesus is Lord. You have all kinds of definitions of antichrist. It is very difficult to say it is an institution or whatever. I think they would have thought the Roman Empire in those days was an antichrist system. I think that they would think that Islam today is an antichrist system, at least radical Islam. I think that those people would say that some of the dictators, like Hitler, were antichrist. A person or an institution is motivated by Satan. That is the big thing. Satan is motivating and pulling strings, and it can appear in various forms and various manifestations.

Back To Top

What does it mean that the United States is not mentioned in "end of the world " prophetic scenarios?

In Ezekiel, there is a reference to the "young lions of Tarshish looking on" while there seems to be an invasion of Israel by Gog and Magog, the people to the north of Israel. Tarshish was a seaport town along the Atlantic Ocean, not far from what is now Cadiz, Spain. Settlers from Tarshish went to England and to Ireland, and it is believed that some of them eventually made their way to the United States. As such, "the young lions of Tarshish" could apply to America.

During the final conflict when Israel is invaded by this hoard from the north, the young lions ofTarshish are standing by saying, "What are you doing?" They aren't necessarily in the war, but they are somehow monitoring the situation. That is the only real reference that may possibly apply to the United States.

Other than that, you might think of the United States as the last of the great, enduring, Gentile powers, as noted in Nebuchadnezzar's vision in the Book of Daniel? We are the successors to the Roman Empire, the last of the Gentile powers that come down from Greece and Rome.

Some Bible students theorize that when Revelation describes "the mystery of Babylon, mother of harlots, who made the nations of the world drunk with the wine of her fornication," it may be alluding to New York or Hollywood, or other powerful cities in the United States that have exported our immorality to the world.

Other than these very subjective conjectures, there are no explicit references to the United States in end-times events.

Back To Top


Translate Translate Page     
Print Page     
Email to a Friend    

CBN IS HERE FOR YOU!
Are you seeking answers in life? Are you hurting?
Are you facing a difficult situation?

A caring friend will be there to pray with you in your time of need.

The Christian Broadcasting Network, Inc. © 2008