AMERICA IN DANIEL‘S PROPHETIC VISION: The Eleventh Horn of the Fourth Terrible Beast?

I am writing in reference to the prophecy revealed to Daniel in Chapter 7 of the Book of Daniel. In
this book, Daniel describes a vision in which four beasts emerge out of the sea, each beast representing a
different empire. The fourth beast was more remarkable than the other three in that it had ten horns on its
head. In Daniel's vision, another little horn, more remarkable than the others, then appeared and uprooted
three of the horns on the beast's head. In this article I will be specifically referring to this fourth beast which
initially had ten horns.

On the basis of Hal Lindsey's book on prophecy, The Late Great Planet Earth, and of televised
preaching by commentators like Dr. Jack van Impe, the verses relating Daniel's vision of the fourth beast
have been interpreted to indicate that a revived and unified Roman Empire will arise from a coalition of 13
nations of the European Common Market. The Antichrist, who putatively will arise from one of the unified
nations of the European Common Market or from the Middle East, will then conquer or subdue three of
them, leaving only ten in power. I have read this chapter many times and have found no mention at all of
thirteen kingdoms (horns), three of which should fall before the little kingdom (horn). I understand that this
is currently the most widely accepted interpretation. However, this view is not based on Scripture, as I
intend to show below. To this end, I would like to go over the biblical text with you, a step at a time and
carefully examine the parts of the text pertaining to the fourth beast with ten horns. I am using the New
American Standard Bible.

Before undertaking this examination of biblical text, I would like to provide the necessary
background about a critical link upon which the entire interpretation of text hinges. This link, mentioned in
earlier chapters of the Book of Daniel, is Daniel's prophetic interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar's dream of a
statue. In this dream Nebuchadnezzar saw a human statue composed of different materials. The head of the
statue was made of gold, the breast and the arms of silver, the belly and thighs of bronze, the legs of iron
and the feet of clay mixed with iron. A stone from a quarry was then cut out without hands and dashed
against the feet of the statue. The stone utterly crushed and pulverized the entire statue from the feet upward,
and the remaining dust was then blown away by the wind as chaff. The stone, which had been cut without
hands, then grew into a mountain that filled the entire earth. According to Daniel's interpretation, the statue's
golden head represented Nebuchadnezzar and his empire, while the silver, bronze, iron and iron/clay
mixture represented empires or kingdoms that would succeed it. In chronological order, these were the
Persian-Median, Greco-Macedonian, Roman and later empires.

A further important point should be made in regard to the statue's feet of clay and iron. In Daniel
2:41-43, the Scripture reads as follows:

"And in that you saw the feet and the toes, partly of potter's clay and partly of iron, it will be a
divided [not unified] kingdom, but it will have in it the toughness of iron, inasmuch as you saw the iron
mixed with the clay. And as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of pottery, so part of the
kingdom will be strong and part will be brittle.

And in that you saw the iron mixed with common clay, they will combine with one another in the
seed of men; but they will not adhere to one another, inasmuch as iron does not combine with pottery."
Returning to the terrible beast with ten horns, Chapter 7 verse 6 makes first reference to it:

"After this I kept looking, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrifying and extremely strong;
and it had large iron teeth. It devoured and crushed, and trampled the remainder with its feet; and it was
different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns".

I agree with Hal Lindsey and others that Daniel's interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar's dream of the
statue, identifies the fourth beast with the Roman Empire. The reasoning behind my agreement with them is

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as follows: The Roman empire came after the previous three empires (beasts) identified by the statue. Of the
preceding empires (Babylonian, Persian-Median and Greco-Macedonian identified with the statue's golden
head, silver breast and arms, and bronze belly and thighs, respectively), the Roman (the iron legs) was the
one that followed chronologically and became the largest, longest lasting and most powerful empire,
extending from the Middle East to Northern Africa and Western Europe. The continued association of iron
with clay in the statue's feet, which have ten digits, suggests the persistence of Roman influence in the ten
kingdoms or empires succeeding the Roman Empire. I will later show that ten nationalities, which once held
or tried to establish an empire in Europe or overseas, arose under the lingering influence of Rome after the
Western half of the Empire had fallen to Germanic tribes and the Huns, and after the Eastern half had fallen
to the Turks. These ten nationalities are represented either by the ten digits on the feet of the statue, or by
the ten horns on the head of the fourth beast. Furthermore, on the basis of Daniel 2:41-43, these ten
nationalities will never form a united kingdom, but will remain divided until their power is destroyed.

Now let us examine the next verse, which talks about another little horn:
"While I was contemplating the horns,...". Let us stop here. Which horns was Daniel contemplating? The
ten horns he initially saw on the fourth beast.

Continuing, "...behold another horn, a little one, came up among them,...". Let us stop again at this
point. This verse says that another horn, or in other words, an eleventh horn which was little, arose among
whom? them. Who were them? the ten horns Daniel first saw on the fourth beast.

Continuing, "...and three of the first horns...". Let us stop here again. Three of which horns? the
first. Which first horns? How many horns did Daniel initially see? ten. Then the three horns must have been
of the ten which initially (first) appeared.

Continuing, "... were pulled out by the roots before it;...".

Let us stop again. These horns were completely uprooted or removed. If we interpret this literally we would
be left with three horns less, or seven horns besides the eleventh horn. The sum total would then be eight,
NOT THIRTEEN. None of the horns can refer to the preceding three beasts or empires which no longer
have dominion, since the fourth beast has already "crushed and trampled the remainder with its feet". This
verse generates an apparent paradox. As far as the statue is concerned, the power of all ten kingdoms is
destroyed almost simultaneously when the stone hits the feet of the statue. On the other hand, the present
verse would leave us with eight nations, seven of the original ten plus the eleventh, to destroy. It is perhaps
for this reason that writers like Hal Lindsey "invented" an extra three nations or kingdoms, but adding to the
word of God is not scriptural. On the contrary, it is warned against by Scripture, especially in the Book of
Revelation.

Continuing, "...and behold, this horn possessed eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth uttering
great boasts." The horn may represent a man or nation that is very proud and boastful of its power and
achievements.

I will now skip several verses to reach a point where Daniel again refers to the fourth beast, starting
with verse 11:

"Then I kept looking because of the sound of the boastful words which the horn was speaking; I
kept looking until the beast was slain, and its body was destroyed and given to the burning fire.

As for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away, but an extension of life was granted to
them for an appointed period of time."

I do not fully understand these verses, especially where reference is made to the other beasts. Do
they represent the first three empires, which were superseded by the Roman Empire? I am not sure.

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However, I believe the verses refer to the second return of Christ when the Antichrist and all the nations
allied with him will be destroyed. Those not allied with him will survive, but their dominion will be taken
away as would be expected during the millennium when our Lord Jesus Christ will rule over all the
remaining nations on earth.

I will now skip to the last verses in Chapter 7, which refer to the fourth beast with ten horns, starting with
verse 19.

"Then I desired to know the exact meaning of the fourth beast, which was different from all the
others, exceedingly dreadful, with its teeth of iron and claws of bronze, and which devoured, crushed, and
trampled down the remainder with its feet, and the meaning of the ten horns that were on its head, and the
other horn which came up, and before which three of them fell,..."

Stop again. Who is them? The ten horns Daniel first saw.

Continuing, "...namely that horn which had eyes and a mouth uttering great boasts, and which was
larger in appearance than its associates." Note that initially Daniel calls it a little horn. Now he describes it
as being larger in appearance than its associates. Thus the horn (nation) has grown in size since its first
appearance among the original ten. Note that other horns are associated (allied?) with it.

Continuing,

"I kept looking, and that horn (the eleventh), was waging war with the saints and overpowering
them until the Ancient of Days came, and judgement was passed in favor of the saints of Highest One, and
the time came when the saints took possession of the kingdom."

These verses identify the eleventh horn with a man, the Antichrist, and/or with the nation from
which the Antichrist will arise.

Continuing,

"Thus he said: The fourth beast will be a fourth kingdom on the earth, which will be different from
all the other kingdoms, and it will devour the whole earth and tread it down and crush it."

Most of us agree that the fourth beast represents Rome. How was Rome different from all the other
kingdoms? After overthrowing a hereditary monarchy, Rome began as a democratic republic where citizens
had the right to vote public officers in and out of office until the rise of Julius Caesar and his successors.
Although initially the right to vote was limited to an elite (the Patricians) over time the more common folk
(Plebiscite) also gained power. (The word republic is derived from the Latin words "res publica" meaning
rule by the people). Even after the democratic form of government had been abolished under the despotic
rule of Sulla and subsequently under that of the Caesars, the government retained the outward form of the
earlier republic. (As a city-state of Greece, Athens, also had started as a democracy; however, when Greece
began to acquire empire under Alexander the Great, the Athenian democratic form of government was no
longer in existence. In contrast, Rome already had acquired a large empire by the time the Imperial rule by
the Caesars had begun; therefore its empire can be designated as the first republican empire in history.)

Another unique feature about Rome is that it tolerated and even absorbed local traditions, gods, and
culture of the nations it had conquered. This is in contrast to all the previous empires, in which the rulers
tried to impose their own religion and culture on the conquered peoples. A clear example of this is
Nebuchadnezzar building a golden idol and requiring all his subjects to worship it under the penalty of death
if they refused to do so. This resulted in Daniel‘s associates being thrown into the fiery furnace. Also, after
his conversion Nebuchadnezzar promoted the Hebrew religion but outlawed all the others. Another example
is that of the Seleucid King Antiochus Epiphanes (ruler of the northern part of what previously had been the

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Greco-Macedonian empire). To wield political power over his subjects through religion, he tried to enforce
worship of the Greek gods and indoctrinate his subjects with Hellenistic culture. As a result of this he
committed the "abomination of desolation" in the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem: he brought in a statue of
Zeus into the temple, and thus profaned it and stopped the daily sacrificial offerings to the God of Israel.
The only other of the four empires that showed some tolerance toward the religious practices of the Jews is
the Persian Empire that succeeded the Babylonian. However, when any given religion was approved, such
as the Hebrew one, the tolerance to all other religions believed by its subjects was relatively poor. Also
unique was the fact that full Roman citizenship was eventually also extended to the peoples which it had
conquered. For example, St. Paul, a Jew was also a Roman citizen. More unique was the fact that in spite of
this tolerance for other cultures and religions, Rome was able to maintain its power by introducing a
centrally controlled administration and army which maintained order and ensured uniformity in the
administration of justice, in business practices, in collection of taxes, in transportation, etc... In effect it had
a Federal government and States which, though unified by the former, had a certain degree of autonomy.
Finally Rome also became the fiercest persecutor of Christians living between the first and fourth centuries
after the birth of Christ. The Roman government's extreme intolerance of Christianity and its cruel hatred of
its followers during this time, identifies Rome and it empire with the Antichrist.

Continuing, "As for the ten horns, out of this kingdom ten kings will arise; and another will arise
after them,...". Stopping for a moment here, this adds up to eleven kingdoms.

Continuing, "...and he will be different from the previous ones (How? Probably the same way as the
Roman Empire was different from previous empires) and will subdue three kings.

And he will speak out against the Most High and wear down the saints of the Highest One, and he
will intend to make alterations in times and in law; and they will be given into his hand for a time, times
and half a time."

I believe that the Lord Jesus by His Holy Spirit has revealed to me the following: The ten horns
represent the different nationalities of peoples who possessed empires starting with the Roman Empire
(Italians) and ending with the Soviet Union (Russians). The unifying concept among the horns of the beast
is possession or acquisition of empire and the persistence of Roman influence in some form such as culture,
custom, laws, jurisprudence and/or form of government. This is supported by God's revelation (to my
friend, Sebastian Balliro), that if different top parts of the statue in Nebuchadnezzar's dream represented the
Babylonian, Persian, and Greek empires prior to the rise of Rome, the lower parts of the statue (feet and
digits) would also have to represent the Roman Empire and other empires which would arise after its fall.
Only this interpretation is contextually consistent. Thus, after the fall of the western half of the Roman
Empire, the eastern half remained as the Byzantine Empire ruled mostly emperors of Greek origin. This was
followed by the Turkish Ottoman Empire which survived until the early 20th century. (The Turks are the
only Moslem nation that has converted from the Arabic form of script to the Latin alphabet, and as Moslems
they are the most tolerant of Western European or Roman values and culture). During this time certain
European nations established colonies in other continents in an attempt to form their own empires outside of
Europe: these included Spain, Portugal, Great Britain, France and the Netherlands (Holland) and Belgium
(Belgium has two major populations: one is French speaking and probably of French descent and the other
Flemish-speaking. Since Flemish is a Dutch dialect, the Flemish population in Belgium is of Dutch
descent). They all succeeded to varying extents. The British were the most successful in establishing an
overseas empire. They colonized North America, British Guiana in South America, Australia, New Zealand,
India and parts of the Middle East and of Africa. The Spanish colonized Morocco, most of South America,
Florida, Central and Western North America. The Portuguese established colonies in Brazil (South
America) and Angola (Africa). The Dutch colonized the West Indies, the Dutch Guiana (Surinam) in South
America, South Africa, and parts of Indonesia. The French colonized parts of Northern Africa (Algeria and
Tunisia) and of North America (i.e. Louisiana). The Belgian Congo in Africa was colonized by Europeans
of French and/or Dutch descent. People of Germanic descent (Austria was originally the eastern-most part of
the Germanic kingdom of Bavaria) established the Austrian-Hunngarian Empire. France under Napoleon

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Bonaparte almost succeeded in establishing an empire encompassing all of continental Europe. Then the
Russians under Communist rule formed another empire, the Soviet Union, which extended from Eastern
Europe to the border of China and which fell apart recently. Finally, in World War II the Germans and
Italians again almost succeeded in carving out an Empire out of European and North African nations.
During this war the Italians had attempted to colonize Ethiopia.

In summary, there are ten nationalities which possessed or strove for Empire and whose
governments were strongly influenced by Roman government, jurisprudence, culture or custom: 1. Italians,
2. Greeks, 3. Turks, 4. Spaniards, 5. Portuguese, 6. British, 7. French, 8. Dutch, 9. Germans and 10.
Russians. Despite extensive warring, strife, intermarriage (combining with one another in the seed of men)
and political and religious conflict among the rulers of these ten nationalities over the centuries (i.e. the clay
of the ten digits of Nebuchadnezzar's statue did not adhere well to the iron), not one of these European
nationalities has ever entirely uprooted another three from the European/Asian continent; nor is it likely in
view of the present European attempts to unify Western Europe.

The extensive intermarriage among European rulers becomes evident when one considers that
Queen Victoria of England was the mother of the English King Edward VII and also of the Prussian
Empress Victoria, who acquired this title by marrying Prince Friedrich Wilhelm III, who became the
German Emperor and King of Prussia. Despite the closeness of their blood lineage, their respective
offspring, King George V and and Emperor/King Wilhelm II bitterly fought one another in World War I.
Therefore, again I reiterate, that despite their efforts to form a united European empire, the ten nationalities
will remain a DIVIDED kingdom. The widely held view of a unified Europe is contradicted by Daniel 2:41-
43 and therefore is not scriptural. (Note that I have not included certain empire hungry nationalities, that did
possess empires as well, i.e. the Persians, Arabs, Japanese, and Chinese. However, these nationalities at the
time of their imperial power, were little affected by Roman influence and therefore can be excluded).

Another problem with the notion of Antichrist arising from Europe is that if an eleventh nation were
to arise in that continent and uproot three of the original 10 nations in Europe, 3 other nations would have to
rise to power to maintain the original number of ten. This is not mentioned in the Scriptures and it is
difficult to imagine which other empire possessing nations influenced by Rome they might be. These new
powers would then have to establish a coalition with the other seven and also with the Antichrist; such an
event would also be a rather unlikely possibility, since the seven would not want to share their power with
three additional nations.

With regard to the eleventh horn, the only alternative left is the United States of America. It was
colonized first by the Spanish (Florida, New Mexico, California, etc.), by the French (Louisiana and other
territories east and west of the Mississippi River) and by the British who settled in New England. Each is a
nationality represented among the ten horns. After the American Revolution, the British were uprooted from
the American continent; one horn of the ten fell. Then Thomas Jefferson, won a diplomatic victory over
France when he persuaded Napoleon to sell to America the French territories around the Mississippi River.
This ended French rule in America; the second horn fell. Finally, the third horn fell when the Americans
drove out the Spanish from presently U.S. occupied territory. This began with the annexation of Florida
after the defeat of both the British and their Spanish allies in the war of 1812, continued with the annexation
of Western territories (Texas, California etc.) from Mexico in subsequent decades, and ended with the
Spanish American war in which previously Spanish-held territories in Central America and the Caribbean
were lost to America. (I don't know where the sale of Alaska by the Russians fits, but until the early 20th
century hardly anyone lived there; until then Alaska was sparsely populated by Eskimo-like nomads). It is
interesting to note that the first to colonize the continent, the Spanish, were the last to lose their territories to
the Americans. Conversely, the last to colonize the continent, the British, were the first to lose their
territories to the Americans. This pattern fits perfectly Jesus's saying: The first shall be last and the last shall
be first.

The apparent paradox of ten kingdoms (digits) versus eight kingdoms (horns) being destroyed at the

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end times is now resolved because the uprooting of three of the ten European kingdoms by the eleventh
horn (kingdom) does not occur in their lands of origin, but on a different continent (America) which has
been colonized by the three parent kingdoms. Thus, though there are three fewer kingdoms on the colonized
continent, the ten parent kingdoms remain (in Europe) until the end time when their power is destroyed,
along with that of the eleventh. The above resolution of this paradox almost provides mathematical proof
that the Antichrist will arise from the U.S.; any other candidate nation must be able to resolve this apparent
paradox equally well. (In mathematical terms the apparent paradox can be stated as follows: How does 10 +
1 - 3 = 10 + 1 ?).

At this point one might ask where the eleventh horn or the Antichrist is represented in
Nebuchadnezzar's dream. My answer is that it is represented by the entire human statue of gold silver,
bronze, iron and clay. The statue itself represents the Antichrist who embodies the culmination of Satan's
attempt to dominate the peoples of the earth through worldly powers and rulers. This notion is also
supported by the statue's supernatural destruction into powder when its feet collide with the little stone,
which undoubtedly represents the return of our Lord to destroy the ruling powers of the world and to
establish His rule over all the nations of the earth. (The destruction is supernatural not only because the the
little stone was cut out without hands, but one would normally expect that destruction of the statue's feet
would cause the statue to topple over as one solid piece; instead it causes the statue to disintegrate into fine
powder.)

America has its roots among the Western European nations (is one of the horns of the fourth beast)
and its jurisprudence is based on the Roman system of justice; yet America is DIFFERENT from all the
other nations in that it abolished rule by hereditary royalty, and from its inception it set up a democratic
republic, just like Rome did in its earlier history. America started as a small group of states in New England
and eventually took over the remainder of the continent. In the process it "crushed and broke and trampled
on" the native North American Indians. Also note the parallelism between the Roman expansion westward
from the Middle East to include western Europe, and the westward migration of Americans living in eastern
U.S.A in the 19th century. Like the Roman Empire, it has a Federal government, which unifies the different
states that comprise it. Its difference from the other nations is emphasized by the desire of peoples of all
nations to immigrate to America. It is the wealthiest, and most powerful nation in the world. It has the
largest and most sophisticated nuclear arsenal and weaponry. It is also the most BOASTFUL nation; it is
boastful in terms of its military power, in terms of its technological and political achievements (e.g. the
longest lasting democracy, the first to explode the atomic bomb, the first to send man to the moon). The
U.S. is also boastful in terms of its role as peacemaker and restorer of peace in the world. Does not the latter
boasting compare well with the Pax Romana established under Augustus Caesar?. The U.S. has also been
the most tolerant nation with respect to differences in tradition, ethnicity, culture, or religious belief, just
like the Roman Empire. It also has extended citizenship to people from all nations. Today you can pick an
American citizen at random and trace his ancestry to almost any country in the world. It has been referred to
as a "melting pot", where a variety of cultures meld into a uniquely "American" one. In fact the only place
where Europeans from every part of Europe have ever united under one political system (i.e. the revived
Roman empire) is the United States of America. Also like Rome in its decline, it has become a large welfare
State, and is having problems with illegal aliens (Barbarians in the case of the Roman empire) crossing its
borders and over-taxing its bureaucracy. However, the U.S. is now increasingly becoming intolerant of
Christians and of their values. The power and intrusiveness of the Federal government have progressively
increased since the inception of the American republic, and the government may become totalitarian and
tyrannical in the near future.

Since 1960 or so, America has been a world leader in promoting and disseminating changes "in
times and law", which I think means promoting and disseminating humanistic relativism and materialism.
Laws and traditions accepted by most civilizations as proper for human conduct, no longer apply. Examples
include legalizing abortion; introducing females in jobs for which they are not physically fit (fire-fighting
and military combat); promoting homosexuality as a normal life-style; attempts to destroy the family unit
via pornography, immorality in communications media (i.e. television, movies); the removal of discipline

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from schools and neglect of and loss of respect for the elderly, etc.

Presently and in the past, there is no European country that fits the description of the eleventh horn
on the fourth beast, or that resolves the apparent paradox of ten versus eight nations being destroyed at the
end time. The only country, which does both, is the United States of America. (There is still a remote
possibility that this interpretation may be invalidated by future events). Moreover, it is logical that if the
Antichrist will rule the entire world, he should arise from the nation best equipped for subjugating others to
itself: the one with the most sophisticated weaponry and communications systems (computers, satellites,
etc.) in the world.

On the basis of Old and New Testament Scriptures, many Christian scholars of Biblical prophecy
agree that Israel will make a seven-year pact with the Antichrist, who will promise to protect it and maintain
its peace. Given that the persecution of Jews and strong anti-Semitic feeling was and still is most prevalent
among some of the European nations identified with the ten horns, how likely is it that Israel would form a
peace pact with a leader of a European coalition? In contrast, the United States of America have been a safe
haven for European Jews, and Israel has received extensive military and political support from the U.S.
Therefore, again, an American leader is the most likely one to be forming this seven year pact with Israel.
Before leaving this topic, I would like to show that the foregoing interpretation of Daniel's prophetic vision
is consistent with the events described in the Book of Revelation.

In the gospel of John chapter 5 verse 43 Jesus said that the Jews would acknowledge as the Messiah
a man that would come in his own name, even as they rejected Jesus who came in His Father's name:

"I have come in my Father's name, and you do not receive me; if another shall come in his own name, you
will receive him."

It is therefore likely that apostate Jews will initially consider the Antichrist as their Messiah. If so, he will
also have to be a Jew, and in view of the fact that he will rise to power in the U.S.A., he will most likely be
an American Jew. The basis for this conclusion is as follows: Most Jews have accepted our Lord Jesus as a
good man, as a religious reformer and/or as a revolutionary teacher, but they have rejected Him as the
Messiah, or as Christ, the God-annointed One who would re-establish the kingdom of Israel. By corollary,
whomever the unbelieving Jews will receive in Jesus's stead when he comes in his own name (i.e. as the
Antichrist), they will consider to be the Messiah who should bring them deliverance from their enemies.
Therefore to qualify as their Messiah, the Antichrist will have to be a Jew, who will also imitate our Lord
Jesus in His death and resurrection and in the performance of miracles.

In the Book of Revelation (cf. Chapers 17 and 18), John is shown a vision that causes him to
marvel: It is a woman sitting on a blasphemous scarlet beast having seven heads and ten horns. This beast,
which has come out of the sea, has been described earlier (Revelation, Chapter 13) as one having all the
characteristics of the four beasts seen in Daniel's vision and is identified in this Chapter as the Antichrist.
One of the beast's seven heads becomes fatally wounded but the beast recovers from this fatal wound. After
this miraculous recovery, the beast gains authority to rule over all the peoples of the world and with the help
of another beast, the false prophet that appears to be a lamb but speaks as a dragon, the Antichrist demands
their worship. In addition to the ten horns the scarlet beast now also has seven heads, which represent the
seven mountains on which the harlots sits.

In the book of Revelation, Chapter 17 verse 10, an angel explains that the seven mountains on
which the harlot sits represent seven kings. In the angel's words, "Five of these have fallen, one is, the other
has not yet come; and when he comes he must remain a little while. Of these seven kings, the sixth one that
"is" definitely represents the Roman Empire, since that is the king that is described as being in power in the
present tense, i.e. at the time when St. John was writing the Book of Revelation. The seventh king that
reigns for a short season is most likely the United States of America prior to the reign of the Antichrist.
America's empire is only about 200 years old and in comparison to the age of other European nations that

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owned empires it is the shortest lived nation so far (i.e. 225 years old). According to Chapter 17 verse 11,
the eighth kingdom is the entire world ruled by the son of perdition or the Antichrist: "And the beast, which
was and is not, is himself also an eighth and he goes to destruction". This notion is further supported by the
earlier verse 8: "The beast that you saw was and is not, and is about to come out of the abyss and to go to
destruction. And those who dwell on the earth will wonder, whose name has not been written in the book of
life from the foundation of the world, when they see the beast, that he was and is not and will come."

The woman riding the beast is clothed in expensive apparel and decked with gold and jewels, holds
a golden cup filled with iniquity and abominations and on her forehead is written the following title:
BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE
EARTH. He is also shown the harlot's judgement which is her destruction by fire, the destruction being
inflicted by ten kings represented by the ten horns on the scarlet beast. These kings are described as not
having yet received a kingdom, but as receiving authority as kings with the beast for one hour. It has been
recently suggested that the harlot represents the ancient city of Babylon modernly rebuilt by Saddam
Hussein in Iraq. However, geographically this city is too far away (about 250 miles) from the Persian Gulf
to be a seaport that is visible from the sea, a seaport that the Babylon mentioned in Revelation must be (see
below).

The vision of the harlot sitting or riding on the beast reveals the Antichrist as being under the
control of the harlot. Since the Antichrist will want unlimited power, he will do everything to free himself
from the harlot's controlling and limiting influence. This influence might represent the need of
Congressional and Senatorial approval to wage war or of other civilian limitations on the use of American
military power. To free himself from the harlot's influence, the Antichrist will persuade the 10 European
nations represented by the ten horns (or kings) to destroy the power of the harlot. He will succeed by
promising to each nation co-dominion with him over the entire world (i.e. he will promise that each nation
will rule with the Beast for one hour). In return the 10 nations will give their authority over their divided
kingdom to the beast and will destroy the harlot with fire. The harlot is depicted as being decked with gold,
pearls, jewels and luxurious apparel. All of these indicate that the harlot is extremely wealthy in a
materialistic sense. When she is finally burned with fire in a rapid unexpected way all the sea-merchants
wail as they watch the conflagration from afar and lament over the loss of the business transactions that
helped them and the harlot to become wealthy. It is obviously a large port and the financial capital of the
world. It sounds very much like New York City though it might also represent Washington, D.C. (the center
of which is about 27-30 miles away from Chesapeake Bay) or both cities and the entire megalopolis that
now connects them together. At present, the U.S.A. is the wealthiest nation in the world and is forcing her
ruthless form of capitalistic practices on all the nations of the world; it is doing so through organizations
such as the International Monetary Fund, which has little regard for the adversity and suffering that it
generates among the poor. The entire world is committing fornication with the U.S. by copying its
immorality, greed and idolatrous materialism. It is likely that after the destruction of the U.S. government
and of its financial institutions by the European powers, the Antichrist will be able to remove all civilian
control of the military, naval and air forces of the United States of America and any other impediments to
his wielding full military power. He will now be able to wage war freely and thus start fulfilling the first
phase of the final seven-year period that will culminate in our Lord's return.

This first phase is characterized by conquest as indicated in Chapter 6 verse 2 in the Book of
Revelation, where a white horse appears with a rider; a bow and crown are given to him so that he can go
forth conquering until his authority is established over all the nations and tribes of the world. To maintain
his absolute power over the entire world he will institute an economic system that will require everyone,
who would buy or sell, to receive the mark of a number of the Antichrist's name on his or her right hand or
forehead. A computer-based cashless system of money transfer performed by the scanning of laser-
imprinted numbers on the skin, numbers that would be only visible under infrared light, would enable such
a system to function. Alternatively, a microchip implanted under the skin could be scanned to achieve the
same goal. This system would be fostered and enforced by the false prophet, who appears as a lamb but
speaks as a dragon and enforces worship of the beast. He will probably do this with the help of a

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computerized system of robots built in the image of the Antichrist and capable of killing anyone refusing to
bear the mark of the beast, a mark which will somehow be characterized by the number 666. The conquest
will be followed by pestilence, then famine, persecution and martyrdom of the saints and a natural
cataclysmic event (perhaps an asteroid impacting the earth) which will precede the rapture and the
subsequent pouring of God's wrath.

For further details on the sequence of events during the seven year period, I wish to refer you to the
most objective, thorough and excellent treatise that I have read so far about this topic: Marvin Rosenthal's
Pre-Wrath Rapture of the Church, published by Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville, TN in 1990. From
this treatise it is evident that the rapture will occur in the last stage of the Great Tribulation, which will
begin in the middle of the seven-year period. Mr. Rosenthal's treatise also provides strong evidence that the
Christian church will not be spared from the persecuting wrath of Satan and of his Antichrist; however, it
will be spared from God's wrath (the opening of the seventh seal). In further support of this view, in
Matthew Chapter 24 verses 29-31, it is clear that "...immediately after the tribulation of those days [i.e. the
cataclysmic event preceding the day of God's wrath]..." God's angels will "...gather His elect from the four
winds...".. Furthermore, if the Spirit of God were withdrawn from the earth before the seven-year period that
is associated with Christ's return, how would anybody during that seven-year period be saved and wash his
robes in the blood of the Lamb, if men must be born again of Water and of the Spirit to be saved? The only
way is if the Spirit of God and hence the Church remains on earth during a large portion of this period.
Finally, how would the Antichrist make war with the saints and overcome them if there were no saints on
earth left to war with and to overcome?

The most compelling argument that the rapture will occur sometime during the tribulation period
stems from the seven messages of our Lord Jesus in the opening chapters of the Book of Revelation. Each
of these messages is addressed to the Angel of each of seven churches that had existed in Asia Minor (now
Turkey) when the Book of Revelation was being written. Although these churches no longer exist in the
physical realm, their individually assigned Angels are ever-present, most likely as the Lamb’s seven eyes, or
the seven Spirits of God sent out into all the earth (Revelation 5:6). Only the Angel of one of the seven
churches, that of Philadelphia, is promised: "Because you have kept the word of My perseverance, I will
also keep you from the hour of testing, that is about to come to the whole world, to test those who dwell
upon the earth." This global testing obviously will be the great tribulation. It is also obvious that the first
century church of Philadelphia did not escape the hour of testing to which our Lord referred to, since the
great tribulation is still yet to come. For the Philadelphian church to be spared in the future, it must still be
in existence today and will continue to exist until the Antichrist is revealed or until the church is raptured.
How then is it still in existence, if not physically in Asia Minor? It exists by virtue of its characteristics, as
also do the other six churches described by the Lord. Thus, the Angels of the seven churches each represent
a certain TYPE of church, as categorized by the Lord Jesus in each of the seven messages, and it is likely
that all seven types have co-existed since the beginning of the church era to the present time. Given that
only the Philadelphian type of church will be spared, the other six types will not be kept from the hour of
global testing or great tribulation; nor is it likely that one-seventh of His bride would be raptured first and
six-sevenths later, if the resurrection of all the dead in Christ must precede the rapture. Therefore, the
rapture must occur after the beginning of the great tribulation but before the outpouring of God's wrath.

History shows that many of the Christians, who lived in the Roman Empire during the first three
centuries after Christ, were not spared from being subjected to the cruelest forms of torture, persecution and
death for professing their faith. Why would then God make an exception for those living in the last days
before his return, unless he chose to for those whom He would consider worthy to be exempt from further
testing?

Just before or shortly after the seven-year period begins, it is likely that the Antichrist will be fatally
wounded and miraculously resurrected. Through these events and through his power to perform Satanic
miracles the Antichrist will be proclaimed as savior and ruler of the world and as the Jewish Messiah. By
that time, the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem will have to be rebuilt on the Temple mount. (Presently there are

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Jewish organizations planning this event on a location north of the Muslim mosque, the Dome of the Rock.
Utensils and priestly apparel which are to be utilized in Temple worship have already been or are in the
process of being manufactured and the red heifer required for the Temple's purification ceremonies is now
again available). Only later, at the middle of the seven year period, when the Antichrist proclaims himself as
God in the rebuilt Jewish temple (thus repeating the "abomination of desolation"), will the Jews recognize
that his not the Messiah. Ironically the apostate Jews that will have supported him prior to this event, will
disown him for one same and important reason among the many others that caused them to disown our Lord
Jesus: they have difficulty in accepting the concept of man-God.

The resulting rebellion of the Jewish nation against the Antichrist will probably then trigger the
gathering of the armies of all nations to go to war with the nation of Israel. The nations will now have a
valid excuse to do so: its breaking away from the world order and peace established by the Antichrist. As
the Satanically led armies of the world travel from different parts of the planet to gather themselves in the
valley of Har-Maggedon, they will leave a trail of destruction and devastation among the civilian
population. This trail of destruction will be without precedent in the history of mankind, and such that had
not the days of its duration been shortened for the elect's sake, no flesh should be saved. This gathering of
the armies will take place after the plagues associated with seven vials of God's wrath will have been poured
on all of those who will have received the mark of the beast. After the rapture of the Church, there will
probably be a remnant of people who will not have received the mark of the beast. Most likely these will
receive the gospel, preached by the angel of God, after the rapture will have occurred. It is necessary to
postulate such a remnant if the earth is to be repopulated after Christ's return; this necessity arises, since
those raptured and resurrected to meet the Lord at his coming will neither marry nor be given to marriage,
but will be as the angels of God.

After the seven vials of God's wrath are poured on the unregenerate peoples of the earth, all their
armies will be gathered to make war with the Lord Jesus (who will be riding a white horse) and with his
armies, both of whom will have returned to earth. During this war (the battle of Har-Maggedon) the beast
and the false prophet will be taken and cast into the lake of fire and the world's armies will be slain by the
sharp sword proceeding from our Lord's mouth. The armies will include those of China whose access to the
Holy Land will be facilitated by the drying of the Euphrates river. The recently built dam across the
Euphrates in Turkey is presently accelerating the drying of the river downstream of the dam. It is widely
believed the battle of Har-Maggedon will be precipitated by the Russian invasion of Israel, and this belief is
based on Old Testament prophecies regarding Gog and Magog. However, according to the book of
Revelation this attack on Israel will occur after the thousand year period of Christ's reign over the nations of
the world, when Satan will be loosed again to deceive the nations that will have rejected Christ's rule and
authority (Revelation 20:7-8). This time the opposing armies will be devoured by fire from heaven rather
than by the sharp sword proceeding out of the Lord's mouth. Confusion with regard to the role of Russia in
precipitating the battle of Har-Maggedon has also been generated by misinterpretation of verses 11:21 to
11:45 in the Book of Daniel where the "despicable person" is attributed to be the Antichrist. However, the
verses stating that Edom, Moab and the foremost of the sons of Ammon (Daniel 11:41) will be rescued out
of his hand are in sharp contrast to those referring to the Antichrist to whom authority over every tribe and
people and tongue and nation was given (Revelation 13:7). Therefore the verses in 11:21-11:45 must refer
to Antiochus Epiphanes, who is a type of the Antichrist but not the Antichrist per se. Thus, in the context of
these verses the Kingdom of the North is likely to be Syria and not Russia, as some might believe.

It is important to distinguish the harlot sitting on the beast from the false prophet that appeared as a
lamb but spoke as a dragon. It is clear that the false prophet and the beast continue to act in concert for some
time after the harlot has been destroyed and in the end they are both cast alive into the lake of fire together.
It is therefore very unlikely that the harlot represents the Vatican city, as some believe. The harlot represents
a great city that sits on seven mountains and that reigns over the kings of the world (Chapter 17 verses 9 and
18).

Although Rome sits on seven hills, these hills are east of the river Tiber. On the other hand, the

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Vatican city and its surroundings are built on the west side of the River Tiber and sit
on two hills (Monte Mario and Monte Gianicolo), but not on the seven hills of Rome (the Aventine,
Caelian, Capitolene, Esquiline, Palatine, Quirinal and Viminal). Most of these attain heights ranging
between 39 and 80 feet. There are other cities that have been built on as many as seven hills and topographic
maps of Washington, D.C., suggest that the capitol city of the U.S. might be built on as many as seven hills;
some of these hills attain heights of close to 400 feet above sea-level. In comparison, the highest hill in
Rome attains a maximum height of about 128 feet at Portia Pia. It is interesting that a count of the number
prominent hill summits in the District of Columbia is 24 (a hill may have more than one summit). Of these,
20 are at least 88 feet high (Capitol Hill) and the highest is 382 feet above sea-level (Mount Saint Alban). It
is also interesting to note that just as the river Tiber splits modern Rome into eastern and western parts, so
does the river Anacostia in Washington, D.C. The eastern part of Rome and the western part of Washington,
D.C. both face away from the nearest seashore (i.e. the Mediterranean Sea which is to the west of Rome and
the Atlantic Ocean which is east of Washington, D.C., respectively). In this sense the eastern part of Rome
and the western part of Washington, D.C. correspond to each other. It is therefore interesting that the
Capitoline Hill (one of the seven in Rome) is found in the eastern part of Rome and Capitol Hill (in
Washington, D.C.) is found on the Western part. The Western part of Washington, D.C. has only 12 of the
24 hill summits mentioned above. If in the western half of Washington, D.C. some hills have more than one
summit, then there could be exactly seven hills, just as in the eastern part of Rome. Moreover, these regions
correspond to the areas that have been the seats of the Roman and U.S. governments, respectively.

On the basis of the foregoing I hope you will reconsider the widely held interpretation that the
Antichrist will arise from Europe only, and give serious consideration to the view that America is the most
likely candidate. Consider this quote by my good friend, Sebastian Balliro: “How could America not be
mentioned in Biblical prophecy, if at any time it was destined to become the most powerful nation in the
world?

I wish to end on a positive note with regard to the second resurrection and last judgement, both of
which I think will occur after the armies of Gog and Magog and of their allies are destroyed at the end the
period of Christ's millennial reign over the nations of the earth. It is widely held among contemporary
Christians, that those to whom the Gospel of Jesus Christ's death and resurrection for the redemption of
mankind had not been ever preached, will be condemned to spend eternity in hell. This would mean that
they never had any chance of attaining salvation. I think this view is entirely inconsistent with God's
character, since God is impartial to all humans in that He is not willing that any should perish; therefore, He
would surely offer to every human being ever born a fair chance to receive His redemptive grace and
salvation. I also think that this false and negative view arrogantly and ignorantly preached by some, is a
major stumbling block and obstacle to many unbelievers who would otherwise have accepted the gospel.
To dispel this erroneous view, I will now provide Scriptural support for the notion of God's fairness and
impartiality towards all mankind.

Indications of this truth are suggested in Matthew 11:20-24 when Jesus reproaches various cities of
Israel for rejecting Him:

"Then He began to reproach the cities in which most of His miracles were done, because they did not
repent.

"Woe to you, Chorazim! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles had occurred in Tyre and
Sidon which occurred in you, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.

Nevertheless I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgement,
than for you.

And you, Capernaum, will not be exalted to heaven, will you? You shall DESCEND TO HADES;
for if the miracles had occurred to Sodom, which occurred in you, it would have remained to this day.

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 Nevertheless I say to you that it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of
judgement, than for you."

In the above verses it is possible that "more tolerable" could mean that the punishment of those condemned
to hell will be less severe, or perhaps that some of those judged at that time might yet be redeemable. Either
or both interpretations could be correct.

Later in Matthew 12:38-42, Jesus makes similar statements to the scribes and Pharisees who come
to him asking for a sign:

Then some scribes and Pharisees answered Him, saying, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from
You."

But He answered and said to them, "An evil and adulterous generation craves for a sign; but yet no
sign shall be given it but the sign of Jonah the prophet; for just as JONAH WAS THREE DAYS AND
THREE NIGHTS IN THE BELLY OF THE SEA MONSTER, so shall the son of man be in the heart of the
earth."

"The men of Nineveh shall stand up with this generation at the judgement, and shall condemn it,
because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold something greater than Jonah is here."

"The Queen of the South shall rise up with this generation at the judgement and shall condemn it,
because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold something greater
than Solomon is here."

From the last two verses it is clear that a condemned person is in no position to judge and condemn
another, but only one that has been pardoned and redeemed. This is supported by Jesus's statement (see
Luke 22:30) to the twelve apostles that for having stood by Him and for having partaken of his trials, they
would be given the privilege of judging the twelve tribes of Israel in the future millennial kingdom. Thus,
in the last judgement, both Nineveh's inhabitants to whom Jonas had preached and the Queen of Sheba will
have to be redeemed to be able to pass judgement on the unbelieving generation of Jews who will have been
resurrected along with them.

The most conclusive proof that in the last judgement men and women will be redeemed comes from
the Book of Revelation itself in Chapter 21:10-15 and in Chapter 21:1. In Chapter 21 verses 10-12 read as
follows:

"And I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven
fled away, and no place was found for them.

"And I saw the dead, the great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and
another book was opened which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were
written in the books, according to their deeds."

First note that in addition to certain books, the book of life was opened. I do not believe that the
book of life would be opened if there were none to be redeemed. It would be completely sufficient to open
the other books, presumably those containing the deeds of the damned. I do not believe that in the last
judgement God would just open the book of life only to prove that which from the other books would be
self-evident to the damned, i.e. that their names were not written in the book of life.

Let us now return to the remainder of the verses mentioned above:

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 "And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead which
were in them, and they were judged, every one of them according to their deeds.

"And death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire."

"And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of
fire."

"AND I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and first earth passed and there is no
longer any sea.

Note that only death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire, but NOT the sea, although all three gave up
their dead. Only, in the new heaven and the earth, the sea was no more. Since the dead, which the sea gave
up were not cast into the lake of fire, but were no longer present as the sea in the new heaven and earth, who
would they be?

Isaiah, provides an answer to this question. In the Book of Isaiah, Chapter 60, the verses 1 through
5 read as follows:

"ARISE, shine for your light has come. And the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.
"For behold, darkness will cover the earth,
And deep darkness the peoples;
But the Lord will rise upon you,
And His glory will appear upon you.

"All nations will come to your light,

And kings to the brightness of your rising,

"Lift up your eyes round about, and see:

They all gather together, they come to you.

"Your sons will come from afar,

And your daughters will be carried in the arms.

"Then you will see and be radiant,

And your heart will thrill and rejoice:
Because the abundance of the sea will be turned to you,
The wealth of the nations will come to you."

In the King James version, the two last lines of verse 5 read as:

"...because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee,

the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee."

From these two last lines, and the context of the previous verses, it is clear that the sea refers to Gentiles
who will come to Israel's light, Jesus Christ Himself (the light of the world), and who will be converted to
Him at the last judgement. These are the peoples of the world who never had the gospel presented to them,
like the people of Nineveh who repented in the time of Jonas, the queen of Sheba, and many others who
received rather than rejected the evidence of His invisible attributes, eternal power and divine nature as this
evidence was being given by Him and by the witness of His creation (cf. Romans 1:19-20). These Gentiles
would have willingly received the gospel had they been given the opportunity to do so. These are the
Gentiles whom the apostle Paul describes in Romans 1 verse 14 as follows: "For when Gentiles, who do not
have the Law, do instinctively the things of the Law, these not having a law, are a law to themselves." After

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their full conversion to Christ, these Gentiles would no longer be Gentiles in the strictly Jewish sense of the
word, but would become the adopted children of God; the sea of unconverted Gentiles would no longer
exist after this conversion took place. For those of us who love the oceans and their beauty and also the
beauty of sea creatures, it would be very disheartening if they were to disappear from the new earth.
Happily for sea lovers, this time the sea appears to have a figurative rather than a literal meaning.

Now and forevermore will I give praise and honor and glory to the Spirit of our Lord Jesus and of His
heavenly Father for revealing these truths to me. Amen.

APPENDIX
Speculation on the Possible Meaning of the Number of the Mark of the Beast, 666.

There is a mathematical system in which any finite number greater than zero, no matter how big can
reduced into a single number having values in the range of 1 to 9. The operation by which this system is
defined as the addition of all the digits comprising a number until the sum yields a single digit. For
example, given the number 1953 one would take the sum of 1+9+5+3 = 18 and then the sum of 1+8=9. In
this fashion the number 1953 is reduced to a single number, the digit 9. In this system, the number 9 acts as
zero. Adding 9 to any number and then reducing the sum to one value as described above results in the same
number.

Let us assign to each letter of the English alphabet consecutive numeric values so that a=1, b=2,
c=3, d=4, e=5, f=6, g=7, h=8, i=9, j=10, k=11, etc...until z=26. After the ninth letter i, the next 9 subsequent
letters will again assume reduced values of 1-9 and this process will repeat it self till we reach z whose
reduced value is 2+6=8. We can thus create a table that will assign a reduced value to each of the 26 letters
of the English alphabet:

A,J,S = 1
B,K,T = 2
C,L,U = 3
D,M,V = 4
E,N,W = 5
F,O,X = 6
G,P,Y = 7
H,Q,Z = 8
I,R = 9

Using this table we can now convert any English word or sequence of words to a single reduced
number. For example fox=666, which reduces to 9 as follows: 6+6+6=18 and 1+8=9.
Using the above table:

1. The word "ROME"=9645 and its numeric sequence reduces to 6.

2. Each of the phrases,

"ANTICHRIST, BEAST"
"1529389912, 25112
4 2

and

"ANTICHRIST, ELEVENTH HORN"

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" 1529389912, 53545528 8695"
4 1 1
in a similar fashion, reduce to 6.

Thus the number 666 would establish an identity between the word and/or phrases under the above headings
1 and 2.

Note that by adding the definite article "the" for the words Antichrist and beast or eleventh horn
would cause the above phrases to reduce to the number 9, since "the" reduces to 6 (i.e. 2+8+5=15 and
1+5=6), and two of these would reduce to 3 (i.e. 6+6=12 and 1+2=3). The number 666 also reduces to 9.

3. Consider the phrase,

"WASHINGTON DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA UNITED STATES OF AMERICA"

"5118957265 49129932 66 36334291 359254 121251 66 1459931"
4 3 3 4 1 3 3 5

If all the above numeric sequences are combined into one continuous sequence, are added together and then
reduced, the final result is 8.
Also consider the phrase,

"BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS

"2127365 285 79512, 285 462859 66 8193621 154 66 285 126495129651
8 6 6 6 7 3 3 1 3 6 6

OF THE EARTH"
66 285 51928"
3 6 7

After addition, the above numbers representing the phrase also reduce to 8.
Finally consider the phrase,

"MANHATTAN, NEW YORK CITY"

"415812215, 555 7692 3927"
2 6 6 3

It also reduces to 8. Note that the 8th king in Revelation 17:10 represents the Antichrist and his world
empire.

It is also interesting to note the reduced values of the following phrases:

THE UNITED NATIONS = 9

285 359254 5129651
6 1 2

THE NEW WORLD ORDER = 9

285 555 56934 69459
6 6 9 6

NOVUS ORDO SECLORUM = 6

56431 6946 15336934
1 7 7

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(This last phrase is printed under the Masonic "pyramid with illuminated eye" symbol on the back of each
one U.S dollar bill. It is the Latin phrase for NEW SECULAR ORDER which reduces to 1 in English. The
other Latin phrase on top, ANNUIT COEPTIS means "NODDED ASSENT TO THE BEGINNING OF...").

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