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Daniel's Dreadful Fourth BeastThe Last Superpower A Look at the United Nations In Its Biblical Role By Ken Raggio This article was first written in 1998, and is still accurate. See also: "SOCIALISM: The Scarlet Red Beast of Revelation" Bible prophecies paint a very gloomy picture about the state of the world immediately before Jesus Christ returns to establish His millennial kingdom. Here is a biblical, albeit
alarming, description of what to expect as these last days come to an end.
Read Daniel 7. It contains a description of the world under rule of the dreadful beast government. BEFORE the Little Horn (the Antichrist) rises in verse 8, the dreadful fourth beast of end-time world government rises up. Take notice of what it does: Daniel 7:7 - "After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns." Let me comment on this end-time world government (AKA New World Order), using this verse as a reference.
2. New World Order is STRONG EXCEEDINGLY. 3. New World Order has GREAT IRON TEETH (Socialism). 4. New World Order DEVOURS and BREAKS IN PIECES. 5. New World Order STAMPS the RESIDUE with its FEET. I believe that virtually every one of us will live to see the World Government that Daniel foresaw. Yes, I do believe that the Church will go through the Tribulation. You can
see several relevant articles on my website.
According to Daniel, this "New World Order" will be dreadful, terrible, strong, iron, and devouring. It will break in pieces and stamp the residue of everything that does not comply with its agenda (including churches and Christians). That calls to mind the Apostle Paul's prophecy in 2 Timothy 3:1, "This know also, that in the last days PERILOUS TIMES shall come." PERILOUS is defined as "hard to bear, troublesome, dangerous, harsh, fierce, savage." Hence, the days ahead are going to be "hard to bear, troublesome, dangerous, harsh, fierce, savage." JESUS CHRIST himself said in Matthew 24:6-9, "And ye shall hear of WARS and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be FAMINES, and PESTILENCES, and EARTHQUAKES, in divers places. All these are the BEGINNING OF SORROWS. (Take note: New World Order is going to pour SORROWS on us all.) THEN shall they deliver you up to be AFFLICTED, and shall KILL YOU: and YE SHALL BE HATED of all nations for MY NAME'S SAKE." Answer for yourself what these statements mean. Some people argue that these verses refer to the sufferings of the EARLY CHURCH! But it does not. Look at Revelation 6:11 at the souls of the early church martyrs waiting for the last days saints to die like they did. "White robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled." Where will this persecution come from? 
Bible prophecies foretell a government of world-wide proportions for the time of the end - one that will have power over all people - "small and great, rich and poor, free and
bond" (Revelation 13). Only the WORLD GOVERNMENT has power over "small and great, rich and poor, free and bond." This will be a global government with power to make and enforce political, military and economic sovereignty over all nations and people. That is exactly what is developing within the United Nations. Since 1945, the United Nations has evolved steadily toward a government of nations - a kind of international federalism. The earlier precursor to the UN, the League of Nations, created as a result of World War I, would have sooner been what the UN is today except for unfavorable world opinion in its day. Public opinion in the first half of the twentieth century was quite adversarial to the notion of an international parliament that might somehow infringe upon the sovereignty of independent nations. The US Congress ultimately said "no" to the League of Nations. That climate has irreversibly changed. Prior to World War I, the United States had never been involved in an international war, and did not want to be. But within a few short years, American not only reversed that policy, but emerged as a major force in policing international conflicts. By the end of the second World War, the United States and the USSR emerged as the only two "superpowers." Lesser nations gradually polarized and aligned themselves with one or the other. "East" versus "West" sentiments created an ever-widening gap that increasingly threatened world peace. Western Capitalism contended with Eastern Communism and vice versa. The Cold War between the "free" world and the Communist world escalated. The world lived in dread of what seemed to be an inevitable showdown between these two opposing forces, especially the possibilities of a nuclear showdown and the resulting holocaust. In America, nuclear fallout shelters were thought to be a necessity of the day. "Duck-and-Cover" exercises were practiced routinely in schools and factories. The war of words heated up. President Ronald Reagan referred to the USSR as the "evil empire," while Eastern voices denounced the USA as "the Great Satan." But suddenly, the "evil empire," the USSR appeared to have forfeited the game. Reagan stood in front of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin and dared Mikhail Gorbachev to "Tear down this wall!" Gorbachev did tear down the wall, and East and West Germany reunited. Then, a sudden coup, and the Socialist superpower, the USSR, suddenly collapsed. For that unexpected feat, Gorbachev won a Nobel Peace Prize. That left the United States as the sole superpower. George H.W. Bush insisted that the United States should no longer exercise unilateral force as a superpower. He insisted that the United States should default to the "New World Order." In reality, Bush was throwing US sovereignty out the window, and welcoming the world government to take control of the United States.  Who is this New World Order? It is an unbelievable alliance of many of America's adversaries in a unified international body, meeting in General Assembly in New York as the United Nations. From the beginning, America has been called upon to voluntarily cooperate with the efforts of the United Nations, even though many of its objectives run contrary to the best interests of the United States. But "voluntary compliance" of all participating nations with the decisions of the UN General Assembly, the UN Security Council, and a variety of other agencies in the UN infrastructure seemed at times, innocuous, and in the best interest of global stability. Our "voluntary compliance" was put to the maximum test during the days of the Gulf War Crisis. The American military establishment was asked to surrender itself to international commanders, with US troops serving in UN uniforms and under a UN flag. Since that time, troops from many nations have politely cooperated with military chiefs of "foreign" nations, and in many cases, traded their respective uniforms and insignias for UN uniforms and UN insignias. Each and every case stands as an example of nations abdicating their sovereignty to a world government which has now become the world's last superpower. Once-reluctant nations now gladly surrender to the United Nations oversight. 
The United Nations emerged from the Gulf War with dramatically-increased abilities to exercise command over "volunteer" troops from many nations. Enthusiastic supporters from around the world began to verbalize the "need" for PERMANENT VOLUNTEER UN FORCES - A UN ARMY. Please note, however, that history shows that enforced volunteerism is, all too often, a prelude to involuntary conscription. "Why," they argued, "should the UN be placed in the cumbersome position of having to repeat its call for international assistance each and every time a crisis developed?" Why not establish a permanent UN military presence that could stand ready at any time for UN leaders to call into action without having to "bother" the individual nations? After all, at any given time, there are DOZENS of troublesome hot spots around the globe where "peacekeeping" forces are needed! Since 1948, the UN has completed operations in dozens of countries, and is presently engaged in dozens of countries with "peacekeeping" personnel. At this writing, in all UN peacekeeping operations around the world, there are now tens of thousands of "UN troops" inside at least 71 nations. Think about it! Tens of thousands of troops under UN command! If you cherish the old-fashioned idea that nations should be sovereign, this should be particularly troublesome to you. Many of these UN operations are initiated without the invitation of the countries involved! There was a day when such an act would have been called an INVASION! This plainly speaks of governance of sovereigns, or world government. Among globalists there is an argument that there is a difference between governance and government. The textbook definition of governance is
2) The state of being governed. It is ominous, then that the UN refers to itself with terms such as "Global Governance."
 Is "Global Governance" World Government? A 1995 international conference in Melbourne, Australia was held on the subject, "The United Nations - Between Sovereignty and Global Governance." The Commission for World Governance addressed the "Imperative for Reform." Their call was for "a system of governance at the global level which offers humanity the chance of a more peaceful and prosperous future than the years which have just passed. A renewed United Nations should be at the centre of any such system." An argument was made for "preventing and settling what once were "internal" conflicts." It becomes apparent that this "Global Governance" (synonymous with World Government) intends to aggressively assert itself into the internal affairs of any sovereign nation that it perceives to be in need of changes. That may sound fair enough if you think that it applies to intervening in a small nation that is in conflict. But you may be horrified to find that the United Nations may soon be empowered to declare military and political intervention on United States soil! In fact, it could happen in ANY NATION ON EARTH. That is the power of the "Dreadful Beast."  PDD-25 - Bill Clinton's "end-run" around National Sovereignty! President Bill Clinton initiated the controversial PDD-25 (Presidential Directive Decision #25) in May of 1994, in which he forwarded the "Command and Operational Control" clauses, simplifying and further legitimizing the handing over of American military forces to United Nations authorities in US approved peacekeeping operations. Critics are concerned that American troops may find themselves forced to fire on their own troops in an international theater, or perhaps even on American soil! That is NOT an unimaginable scenario. Measures such as PDD-25 are of the precise nature referred to in the Council on Foreign Relations journal when former deputy assistant secretary of state Richard Gardener wrote, "...an end run around national sovereignty, eroding it piece by piece, is likely to get us to world order faster than the old fashioned assault." 
Michael New (pictured), a soldier in the US Army, was court-martialed in 1996 for refusing to follow an unlawful order to deploy to Macedonia; refusing the President's order to
wear the UN uniform; refusing to serve under a foreign UN commander; and refusing to be required to carry only the UN identification card. He received a bad conduct discharge and faced mountains of appeals litigation in both military and civil courts. 
His case notifies Americans everywhere that the US Constitution does not protect them from the arbitrary rule of force by the United Nations. Mike New's Action Fund, his legal
defense effort, published this interesting logo: "If you love your country, the UN is NOT your friend!"The "New World Order" figures into God's strategy While there are many voices raised in opposition to these Big Brother tactics and agendas, the Biblical perspective suggests that we have little reason to organize resistance. In the plan of God, these events are utterly inevitable. Nothing can stop them from happening. In the end of this age, we are destined to see a One-World Government, One-World Economy (Currency) and a One-World Religion. Everything about these realities is dreadful and despotic. We are now regularly hearing voices around the world calling for a new global currency. It may come quickly, or it may be delayed, but rest assured - it WILL COME. This new global currency will be a fulfillment of one of the most important prophecies in the Bible. John the Revelator revealed that this dreadful beast would implement a global economic system that requires every person, "both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name," Revelation 13:16-17. If that is not dreadful, I cannot image what is. This is the perfect fulfillment of Daniel's prophecies.
2. The Mark of the Beast will be STRONG EXCEEDINGLY. 3. The Mark of the Beast will have GREAT IRON TEETH (Socialism). 4. The Mark of the Beast will DEVOUR and BREAK IN PIECES. 5. The Mark of the Beast will STAMP the RESIDUE with its FEET. The 19th chapter of Revelation reveals that Jesus Christ will soon take these matters into His own hands, meeting with heads of the nations of the world in the Battle of Armageddon.
Several prophecies depict the European Union seizing control of the United Nations. Whereas the United States has played a very dominant role at the UN in the past, scriptures show the transition to Europe. You can expect to see the European Union displace the United States as the dominant power at the UN. Even though Europeans have, in the past, often objected to the United States' heavy-handed role at the UN, we will soon see Europe become the heavy-handed one, and the United States may be rendered surprisingly weak. See: WILL THE EU DISPLACE THE US? Nevertheless, the destiny of the world superpower, the United Nations, is to meet Jesus Christ on the hills of Israel for the Battle of Armageddon. Nothing and nobody in Washington, New York, Moscow, London, Paris or Rome is going to prevent that showdown. It has been written for thousands of years, and none of the other prophecies have failed. The Book of Daniel shows Messiah as a Rock hewn out of a mountain, crushing the world government in that ominous date with destiny. True Christians have the consolation that all these developments are specifically called for in God's agenda for the end of the age. At that time, those who have been born again according to the scriptures will be "redeemed" from that holocaust, and will actually accompany Jesus Christ to that epic event, where they will participate in that great army of God in winning the ultimate victory over all the armies of the world, and their leaders - the Beast and the False Prophet of Revelation 13. See also: "SOCIALISM: The Scarlet Red Beast of Revelation"
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