WHERE IS THE UNITED STATES MENTIONED IN THE BIBLE?? HAVE YOU EVER THOUGHT ABOUT IT? A tall and smooth people? Isaiah 18. Some have pointed to ISAIAH Chapter 18 which speaks of a people tall and smooth who are feared far and wide. The passage further states that this is a powerful nation whose land the rivers divide. The chapter ends by stating that the people of this nation will bring a gift of homage to the Lord when He returns to reign from Mt. Zion. Because these verses speak of a powerful nation whose land is divided by a great river, some have jumped to the conclusion that the nation is the United States since it is divided by the Mississippi River. But the opening verses of this chapter indicate it is speaking of Cush, the ancient name of Ethiopia. At the time Isaiah wrote this passage, Ethiopia was a part of the Egyptian empire and the river referred to is undoubtedly the Nile. A village of Tarshish? Probably one of the most popular passages where people claim to have found the U.S. is in Ezekiel 38 where the prophet describes an invasion of Israel that will be launched in the end times by a nation from the remote parts of the north. The descriptive verses about the northern power make it clear that this nation is Russia. What is not so clear is where the U.S. fits into this invasion. Those who find us in the passage point to Ezekiel 38:13 which says that the merchants of Tarshish and all its villages (or young lions depending on translation) will speak out against the invasion. The argument is that Tarshish is Britain and the villages or young lions are the English speaking nations like the U.S. and Australia that were founded by British immigrants. To say the least, this is a highly imaginative interpretation. Its validity is seriously questioned by the fact that no one knows for certain the true identity of Tarshish. Furthermore, recent archaeological developments indicate that Tarshish was most likely Spain, NOT Britain. A great eagle? Another favorite passage for applied imagination is Revelation 12:13-17. These verses state that in the middle of the Tribulation God will provide a means of escape for the Jewish remnant in Israel. They will be carried into the wilderness to a hiding place on the wings of a great eagle. Some people have seized on this imagery to teach that the U.S., whose national symbol is the eagle, will supply the end time air lift that will save the Jewish remnant. But the Bible is its own best interpreter. And when you look up the phrase, wings of an eagle, you will find that it is the same one that God used in Exodus 19:4 to describe how He brought the Israelites out of Egypt. God is the eagle, not the United States (see Deuteronomy 32:11). Babylon the great? This brings us to the final and most widely used passage for identifying the U.S. in Bible prophecy. It is Revelation 18 where the destruction of Babylon the great is described. There is no doubt that the United States shares many similarities with the corrupt commercial empire described in this chapter. But the U.S. is not a fulfillment of Revelation 18. That chapter is describing the last Gentile world empire that will dominate the earth at the time of the Lords Second Coming. It is the empire of the Antichrist. A Conclusion So, where is the United States in Bible prophecy? The answer is that AMERICA IS NOT mentioned directly and specifically in the Bible. However, its covered by several general prophecies that relate to all nations, but beyond that, Americas end time destiny must be a matter of speculation. General prophecies that apply to the U.S. include those that say all nations will be judged (Isaiah 34:2-3) and all nations will cease to exist except the nation of Israel (Jeremiah 30:11 and 46:28). A Speculation I personally believe that the reason the U.S. is not mentioned in end time prophecy is because we will suddenly cease to be The World Power and will therefore play no significant role in end time events. The destruction of American power is most likely to occur in two stages. The first could be an economic catastrophe that will result from the out of control debt situation. The American god is THE DOLLAR, and the Lord is going to DESTROY that god when the weight of our debt collapses our economy. The second stage could occur when Russia launches its invasion of Israel (prophesied in Ezekiel 38 and 39). I believe it is very likely that they will launch a preemptive nuclear attack against America, since United States is the only country in the world that might possibly come to Israels defense. This attack may be hinted at in Ezekiel 39:6 where it says that fire will fall on those who inhabit the coastlands in safety. The Russian attack will probably come from submarines deployed off the East and West coasts. Each Russian sub carries more fire power than all the bombs dropped in World War II. Such an attack would give America only seven minutes warning, not even enough time to launch a counter attack. With the U.S. immobilized, the Russians will then attack Israel and, according to Ezekiel, their army will be wiped out supernaturally by God on the hills of Israel (Ezekiel 39:1-4). The greatest power vacuum in the history of mankind will be created almost overnight. The world will be gripped by panic. Yes, we all know that following this, in revenge, the nation of Russia would be COMPLETELY WIPED off the Map by the Mighty U.S. Military Mighty (Highly Classified U.S. Military Super Power) Into that vacuum will step a dynamic, charismatic European political personality who will be energized by Satan. He will begin to rally the world to his support through his brilliant proposals for world peace. The world will be mesmerized by him (Revelation 13:8). Another Possibility There is another possible fate for the United States. If the Rapture were to occur today, we would be devastated because here in America we have more born again Christians than any other nation in the world — more than all of Western Europe combined. Further, we have many born again Christians in high positions of commerce and government. The Rapture would reduce our nation to chaos, removing us from the international scene as the worlds dominant power
Posted on: Fri, 01 Aug 2014 19:00:14 +0000