CNN: The EU is facing the most serious crises in its history. Many are wondering if anyone’s really in charge
WCG Depiction of Daniel 2 Image
CNN posted the following:
The EU is facing the most serious crises in its history. Many are wondering if anyone’s really in charge
February 14, 2021
The year is only six weeks old, but 2021 is already revealing the European Union’s inherent limitations.
While the EU is no stranger to crises, the past few weeks have thrown up issues that highlight the chasm between the grand ambition of Brussels and its capability. Things have been so bad that two of the bloc’s most senior officials have been called on to resign, while serious questions are being asked of the EU’s executive arm, the European Commission. …
Indeed, earlier this week Commission President Ursula von der Leyen was dragged before the European Parliament to explain herself and told to resign multiple times. She admitted to MEPs that the EU had made errors in its procurement of vaccines, saying that they had been “late with the approval” and were “too optimistic on mass production.” She also expressed deep regret for raising concerns over stability in Northern Ireland.
Adding to her pain, her foreign affairs chief, Josep Borrell, also faced calls to quit after a disastrous visit to Moscow in which the EU was humiliated at a joint press conference with his opposite number, Sergey Lavrov. Borrell had been under pressure not to travel to Moscow just hours after the Russian opposition leader Alexey Navelny was sentenced to more than two years in prison. Borrell was clearly not prepared for Lavrov’s masterful use of the media, using questions to call the EU an “unreliable partner,” as Brussels’ High Representative said nothing. …
Rich nations rule the roost
The way power works inside the EU Council often perplexes outsiders. On most issues, wealthy nations call the shots. “When Greece needed bailing out, it was Germany who insisted on austerity. On foreign policy, it is the economic priorities of Germany and France that trump the concerns for human rights when striking deals with China,” said Daniel Kelemen, Jean Monnet Chair in European Union Politics at Rutgers University.
The impact this has on Europe’s foreign policy is significant. “You have 27 member states acting in their national interest, you have diplomats briefing journalists on every statement you make, and have to coordinate foreign policy that doesn’t really exist,” said Stubb, the former Finnish premier.
Many Europhiles are desperate for reform that makes Europe more fit for purpose. Viewed from the outside, the EU is often seen as a positive project built on an idea of unity after centuries of conflict. Yet many who have taken a closer look believe that as it stands, the EU is a bit of a basket case whose internal power struggles prevent it from being a true global power in the 21st century. And as the continent tries to navigate pan-European crises at the most challenging moment in the bloc’s history, it’s hard to escape the feeling that no one is really in charge. https://www.cnn.com/2021/02/14/europe/europe-crises-intl-analysis/index.html
Many think Europe is doomed do to the divergent nations and their lack of unity.
But when Nebuchadnezzar had a dream where he saw the image of the Beast (a WCG depiction is at the beginning of this post), here is something Daniel was inspired to write about the last part of that image:
40 And the fourth kingdom shall be as strong as iron, inasmuch as iron breaks in pieces and shatters everything; and like iron that crushes, that kingdom will break in pieces and crush all the others. 41 Whereas you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; yet the strength of the iron shall be in it, just as you saw the iron mixed with ceramic clay. 42 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. 43 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. (Daniel 2:40-43)
So, a divided Europe was prophesied.
Yet, the Bible also shows that a monstrous superstate, called the Beast, will arise in Europe:
1 Then I stood on the sand of the sea. And I saw a beast rising up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and on his horns ten crowns, and on his heads a blasphemous name. 2 Now the beast which I saw was like a leopard, his feet were like the feet of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. The dragon gave him his power, his throne, and great authority. 3 And I saw one of his heads as if it had been mortally wounded, and his deadly wound was healed. And all the world marveled and followed the beast. 4 So they worshiped the dragon who gave authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast? Who is able to make war with him?”
5 And he was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies, and he was given authority to continue for forty-two months. 6 Then he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme His name, His tabernacle, and those who dwell in heaven. 7 It was granted to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them. And authority was given him over every tribe, tongue, and nation. 8 All who dwell on the earth will worship him, whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
9 If anyone has an ear, let him hear. 10 He who leads into captivity shall go into captivity; he who kills with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints. (Revelation 13:1-10).
So, we see that the power will be a totalitarian and warring power. It will also be an economic power per Revelation 17 and 18.
Even now, it sees itself rising up as an economic power setting various standards for the world:
4 February 2021
Despite its long list of crises in recent years – including the most recent vaccine snafu – the European Union has become a global pacesetter. Its laws and regulations have established global norms. This has made the bloc a 21st century model. … despite everything, the European Union is in fact a world power …
China is already having to defer to Europe’s ideas and regulations in many areas. For not only is the EU an economic superpower, it is now also the No. 1 global regulator. …
Technology companies in California build their devices according to EU regulations. Cocoa producers in Ghana and Ecuador are transforming their operations to meet European standards. In Argentina, Israel and Russia, plaintiffs are suing internet companies and invoking the “right to be forgotten” that was formulated in the EU. Regional blocs of countries in South America are organizing themselves along the lines of the EU. Laws drafted in Europe are adopted almost verbatim into national law in countries around the world.
Fast food chains like McDonald’s, Subway and Wendy’s are taking chemical additives out of their products because the EU doesn’t allow them. The Brazilian company Citrosuco, the world’s largest producer of orange juice, strictly adheres to European regulations, even in countries where they do not apply. Adidas, Nike, and Zara are changing the composition of the plastic in sneakers around the world to make less toxic, EU-compliant goods. It’s a tremendous list, and it is very long. …
Europe’s view of data protection, as laid out in the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), has quickly become a global standard that no company and no country can ignore. Google alone claims it was forced to spend “hundreds of years of human time” to comply with the Brussels regulations, but it did so nonetheless. …
These examples lead to the equally unbelievable and correct conclusion that globalization today is actually a “Europeanization” – and this was not written in EU advertising brochures, but in Britain’s Economist, the must-read newspaper of laissez-faire capitalists.
A global player like today’s Europe has never existed in this form in the history of the world. By regulating the affairs of its internal market step by step, the EU is formulating globally effective standards along the way.
Whether it’s chemicals, hazardous waste, hormone-treated meat, electronic waste, emissions standards, animal testing, antitrust, privacy, crop protection, competition or air pollution control – the EU is always somehow already there. It sets standards and criteria worldwide based on scientific findings and equipped with recognized scientific, legal and also moral competence – even in areas where, by law, it would actually have no say. https://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/from-brussels-to-the-rest-of-the-world-how-europe-became-a-model-for-the-21st-century-a-1fa5e710-7e18-4ad5-a0be-e26118f3a22f
That being said, how can we prove that the Beast power will be European?
Well, in addition to matters related to Daniel 9:26-27 which are discussed in the article: The ‘Peace Deal’ of Daniel 9:27, notice something from Matthew Henry Commentary’s on Revelation 13:1-10:
The apostle, standing on the shore, saw a savage beast rise out of the sea; a tyrannical, idolatrous, persecuting power, springing up out of the troubles which took place. It was a frightful monster!
Yes, the monstrous Beast power will rise up. This is a European Beast.
Notice the following from the Hebrew scriptures:
2 Daniel spoke, saying, “I saw in my vision by night, and behold, the four winds of heaven were stirring up the Great Sea. 3 And four great beasts came up from the sea, each different from the other. (Daniel 7:2-3)
The “Great Sea” that bordered the ancient lands of Israel (Numbers 34:6-7; Joshua 1:4; 9:1; 23:4; Ezekiel 47:13-16) is the Mediterranean Sea–and that is the sea that Daniel was referring to. Despite some false claims by some, the Beast power is not a nation like Russia, which does not border the Mediterranean Sea, but Europe which does (Russia, however, will be a factor in eliminating the European beast power, see also The Eurasian Union, the Kings of the East, and Bible Prophecy). A comparison of the beasts in Revelation 13 and Daniel 7 shows that they share many of the same characteristics (for some details, you may wish to watch the YouTube video Can You Prove that the Beast to Come is European?).
Europe is the power that will control the “Great Sea.” And while the southern border of the Mediterranean Sea is currently under Arab control, the Bible shows that the King of the North will take over the Arab powers (Daniel 11:40-43; Ezekiel 30:1-9).
Getting back to the Hebrew scriptures:
7 “After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, exceedingly strong. It had huge iron teeth; it was devouring, breaking in pieces, and trampling the residue with its feet. It was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns. (Daniel 7:7)
23 “Thus he said:
‘The fourth beast shall be
A fourth kingdom on earth,
Which shall be different from all other kingdoms,
And shall devour the whole earth,
Trample it and break it in pieces.
24 The ten horns are ten kings
Who shall arise from this kingdom.
And another shall rise after them;
He shall be different from the first ones,
And shall subdue three kings.
25 He shall speak pompous words against the Most High,
Shall persecute the saints of the Most High,
And shall intend to change times and law.
Then the saints shall be given into his hand
For a time and times and half a time. (Daniel 7:23-25)
How can this happen with a divided Europe?
It will take a strong leader to make Europe’s coming, temporary unity stronger.
The old Radio and Worldwide Church of God published the following decades ago (bolding mine):
Watch the emergence of a strong man in West Germany (Hogberg G and Walter EM. NATO at the Crossroads. Plain Truth, May 1969)
The attempt to unify Europe as one economic, military and political power bloc restoring the “Holy Roman Empire,” has been the one aim of all the “great” men who dominated European history from Napoleon’s “Waterloo” until now. Mussolini, dominating Eritrea, Italian Somaliland, Libya, and conquering Ethiopia, did officially name his weak “Empire” the “Roman Empire.” But now the dream of a mighty, powerful, resurrected Roman Empire at last is becoming a hard-driving reality.
… nations of United Europe have succeeded in their aim far beyond the wildest dreams of the original signers of the Treaty of Rome. In far less time, at a far greater pace than anticipated, these nations of Europe have risen from the economic chaos of World War II to the dizzying heights of a standard of living never known to them before! With the present success well beyond the proportions of that expected three years ago, with a future success — in a world of peace — sure to produce a near — utopia, Western Europe is more concerned about war than any other economic and political entity on the face of this earth! “This is very probably the last year in which anyone except Europe will be able to negotiate with the Soviet Union for Europe!” (London Sunday Times). These nations are ENJOYING their economic recovery and they will let nothing stand in its way — they will stop at nothing to keep ‘What they have, and, GO ON TO MORE! SO it is that a blueprint has been drawn up by the Six, that demands meetings among themselves to decide the MILITARY AND FOREIGN POLICY questions that come up regarding Europe! …
“Fascism in Europe is about to be reborn in respectable business attire, and the Treaty of Rome will finally be implemented to its fullest extent.. the dream of a Holy Roman, Empire returning to power to dominate and direct the so-called forces of Christian mankind of the Western world is not dead, but still stalks through the antechambers of every national capital of continental Western Europe… IN THE DETERMINATION OF THE LEADERS IN THE COMMON MARKET NATIONS TO RESTORE THE HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE WITH ALL THAT THAT MEANS!” (Northwest Technocrat, Vol. XXV, No. 205.) United within the ancient boundaries of the Holy Roman Empire; united by the common spiritual bond of universal Catholicism; united in a burgeoning and booming industrial economy that dominates today’s world; united geographically in the most productive and industrial complex of all the earth — at least TEN NATIONS OF MODERN EUROPE WILL MARCH ONTO THE SCENE OF WORLD HISTORY AS THE GREATEST SINGLE HUMAN FORCE EVER SEEN BY MAN! (Hill DJ. What is Germany’s Destiny? Plain Truth, March 1962)
The prophecy of Daniel 11 details events — at that time, still future — from the remaining days of the Medo-Persian empire, through the reign of Alexander the Great and his successors in Syria and Egypt, and on through to the second coming of Christ! Beginning in verse 40 we read of a conflict between two great powers: “And at the time of the end shall the king of the south push at him: and the king of the north shall come against him like a whirlwind….”
This is an important “end-time” prophecy. Following the chronological progression of the chapter, it becomes apparent that the phrase “king of the north” had at first referred to Syria under the Seleucid dynasty, and later, in the New Testament times, to the Emperor of the Roman Empire. … Thus, in its final end-time application, the “king of the north” is the prophesied strong man who will lead a coming union of ten European nations — the seventh and final revival of the ancient Roman Empire prophesied by Daniel and in the book of Revelation (see Revelation 17:12-13).
But who is the “king of the south”? In the earlier portions of Daniel 11, the phrase refers without question to ancient Egypt under the rule of the Ptolemaic dynasty, later including Ethiopia which was annexed to Egypt. But in verse 40 we skip to “the time of the end” … Its greater fulfillment is yet future! Just as there is yet to be a final “king of the north” — called in Bible symbolism “the beast” — who will arise as superdictator over an end-time European confederation, there may very well emerge in the same manner a final “king of the south” — an overall leader of an Arab-Moslem confederation, possibly even bearing the very title Mahdi! And these two individuals will eventually find themselves in a head-to-head confrontation — possibly over oil — which will ultimately lead to devastating war in the Middle East!
And the Bible?
The Bible clearly shows that a reorganization will come to Europe and power will be given to a dictator:
7 But the angel said to me, “Why did you marvel? I will tell you the mystery of the woman and of the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and the ten horns. (Revelation 17:7)
12 “The ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have received no kingdom as yet, but they receive authority for one hour as kings with the beast. 13 These are of one mind, and they will give their power and authority to the beast. (Revelation 17:12-13)
Despite talks of democracy, the Bible shows a totalitarian power will arise in Europe.
There will be economic, religious, health, and civil crises.
Then there will come a couple of prophesied reorganizations in Europe (Revelation 17:12-13, see also Must the Ten Kings of Revelation 17:12 Rule over Ten Currently Existing Nations?), and the militaristic economic superstate that the Bible refers to as the ‘Beast of the Sea’ (Revelation 13:1-10) will arise.
The fumblings of the EU will be replaced by having some type of a “strong man” lead Europe.
Europe is heading in that direction.
Some items of related interest may include:
Europa, the Beast, and Revelation Where did Europe get its name? What might Europe have to do with the Book of Revelation? What about “the Beast”? Is an emerging European power “the daughter of Babylon”? What is ahead for Europe? Here is a link to a video titled: Can You Prove that the Beast to Come is European?
European Technology and the Beast of Revelation Will the coming European Beast power would use and develop technology that will result in the taking over of the USA and its Anglo-Saxon allies? Is this possible? What does the Bible teach? Here is a related YouTube video: Military Technology and the Beast of Revelation.
Must the Ten Kings of Revelation 17:12 Rule over Ten Currently Existing Nations? Some claim that these passages refer to a gathering of 10 currently existing nations together, while one group teaches that this is referring to 11 nations getting together. Is that what Revelation 17:12-13 refers to? The ramifications of misunderstanding this are enormous. A related sermon is titled Ten Kings of Revelation and the Great Tribulation.
Who is the Man of Sin of 2 Thessalonians 2? Is this the King of the North, the ten-horned beast of Revelation 13:1-11, or the two-horned Beast of Revelation 13:12-16? Some rely on traditions, but what does the Bible teach? Here is a related link in Spanish/español: ¿Quién es el Hombre de Pecado de 2 Tesalonicenses 2? Here is a version in Mandarin: 主编： 谁是’大罪人’？Here is a link to a related YouTube video, in English, titled Who is the Man of Sin?
Some Doctrines of Antichrist Are there any doctrines taught outside the Churches of God which can be considered as doctrines of antichrist? This article suggests at least three. It also provides information on 666 and the identity of “the false prophet.” Plus it shows that several Catholic writers seem to warn about an ecumenical antipope that will support heresy. You can also watch a video titled What Does the Bible teach about the Antichrist?
Two Horned Beast of Revelation and 666 Who is 666? This article explains how the COG views this, and compares this to Ellen White. Here is a link to a prophetic video Six Financial Steps Leading to 666?
The Mark of Antichrist What is the mark of Antichrist? What have various ones claimed? Here is a link to a related sermon What is the ‘Mark of Antichrist’?
Mark of the Beast What is the mark of the Beast? Who is the Beast? What have various ones claimed the mark is? What is the ‘Mark of the Beast’?
Who is the King of the North? Is there one? Do biblical and Roman Catholic prophecies for the Great Monarch point to the same leader? Should he be followed? Who will be the King of the North discussed in Daniel 11? Is a nuclear attack prophesied to happen to the English-speaking peoples of the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand? When do the 1335 days, 1290 days, and 1260 days (the time, times, and half a time) of Daniel 12 begin? When does the Bible show that economic collapse will affect the United States? In the Spanish language check out ¿Quién es el Rey del Norte? Here are links to two related videos: The King of the North is Alive: What to Look Out For and The Future King of the North.
The Great Monarch: Biblical and Catholic Prophecies Is the ‘Great Monarch’ of Catholic prophecies endorsed or condemned by the Bible? Two sermons of related interest are also available: Great Monarch: Messiah or False Christ? and Great Monarch in 50+ Beast Prophecies.
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