A Man Among the Monsters | Part 2
If an ancient prophet were to foresee the emergence of the America in end times, how in the world would he describe it? This is a crucial question. Especially if the seer, such as Daniel or the Apostle John, lived thousands of years before our nation was born. And yet many have searched for her in the pages of Scripture and come back empty handed. And that is not their fault.
It just wasn’t the right time.
Remember—that signs get clearer as the time grows nearer. Like driving through the desert toward a sprawling metropolis, distant forms loom indistinct upon the horizon. Smog and fog cloud the perception. Mirages misinform. And at great removes, one can easily mistake the true nature of things, or even mix men with the monsters.
America is first described in Daniel Chapter 7. The crucial key to understanding the prophecy in Daniel and the nightmarish nations envisaged in this chapter comes in verse 17: “These four great beasts are four kings who shall arise out of the earth.” Many people miss this. They are nations that did not exist in Daniel’s time. Explicitly, the text indicates that the four bestial countries shall form on future dates.
Daniel describes the first beast thusly—“The first was like a lion and had eagles’ wings. Then as I looked its wings were plucked off, and it was lifted up from the ground and made to stand on two feet like a man, and the mind of a man was given to it” (Daniel 7:4 ESV). The scene here is a vision of the American Revolution, wherein the lion (England) has her eagle wings (the United States) ripped away.
Some have maintained that this portrait is symbolic of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, but this is impossible given that he was already dead at the time of this vision. And furthermore, this is regarding a future country, not a past one. These are four brutish nations that will stalk the earth in the end times.
Notice, too, that the eagle wings are elevated to a standing position, and that the mind (or heart in some translations) of a man is given to it. This describes well indeed the first republican democracy of its kind to rise in the earth. It is not like the other kingdoms; it is singularly human. It is the first nation to say “We the People.”
I take great comfort that the eagle wings are not portrayed as a beast. One need look no farther than Japan and Germany to see that the United States does not “devour” or “trample” as do other kingdoms revealed in this chapter. This is because she has a different demeanor…a different disposition….and a decency born of love for God. And therefore—
A different destiny.
We have so much to be thankful for. God hears our prayers. And from our founding to our future, He has created the United States for His own purposes. I will continue in the next few days to further write of these wonderful purposes and about the degradations of the four beasts. But for now, be encouraged—
America was. America is. And America will be.
Read part 1 and part 3 of the end times series by Mark Priest here!
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