Twenty-One Signs of Doomsday (Update XXXI -- The Image of the Beast)

Psalm 118:24:

This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.

Romans 8:28:

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

I Thessalonians 5:18:

In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

Proverbs 4:18:

But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.

The Word of God—the Word of promise—is laden with such verses as these and they belong to the blood-bought—the born-again, the children of God.  Traversing this fallen world successfully requires a solid grip on the Book of sure promises, for this experience is laced with trouble.  But be of good cheer, children of faith, because your God is present and accounted for.  Psalm 46:1:

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

Have you been born again—born a second time, this time of the Spirit of God?  Would you like to live inside the Book of promise?  Would you like to participate in an eternal adventure full of God’s love and Son-shine?  Today is your day of salvation.  Do something about it now.  Click onto “Further With Jesus” for childlike instructions and immediate entry into the Kingdom of God.  NOW FOR TODAY’S SUBJECT.

GOD SAID, Revelation 13:1-4; 11-18

1 And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.

2 And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.

3 And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.

4 And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?

11 And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.

12 And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.

13 And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,

14 And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.

15 And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.

16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:

17 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.

18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.

GOD SAID, Revelation 14:9-11:

9 And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand,

10 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:

11 And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.

MAN SAID:  These foolish doomsday prophets make me laugh!  There is no end to this world and certainly no judgment day! 

Now THE RECORD.  How close is it?  How close is the great tribulation period and the doomsday battle of Armageddon where the world as we know it will be destroyed?  Believers are cautioned not to set dates, but we are also cautioned to watch for Biblical signs that tell of Christ’s returning. The extensive Twenty-One Signs of Doomsday Series highlights a host of these signs.  Central to end-days prophecy is the restoration of Israel as a nation.  For over 2,000 years, they had been absent from the world’s geography, but in 1948, they were miraculously restored to the world’s list of nations.  Jesus said in Matthew 24:32-34:

32 Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh:

33 So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors.

34 Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.

Much of Christianity believes Jesus is referring to Israel’s restoration as a nation in the parable of the fig tree because of references in the book of Jeremiah, chapter 24 and other Biblical passages.  If that assessment is correct, the generation that sees the events Jesus listed in the book of Matthew, chapter 24 and the budding of Israel as a nation shall not pass ‘til all is fulfilled.  The generation that saw the fig tree bud—the restoration of Israel as a nation in 1948—is alive today.  Keep in mind that when we discuss future events, some of our discussion will be, by necessity, speculation. Today’s subject will address the Beast and the image of the Beast. 

This feature will demonstrate the pure accuracy of Holy prophecies laid down by God thousands of years ago—seeming absurd to the unbelievers when written, but with the advance of modern technology, ever so doable.  It appears the end is very near. 

Several paragraphs from previous GodSaidManSaid features follow and then a final observation. 

Twenty-One Signs of Doomsday (Update XXVII -- 666):

Things in the Middle East are so volatile that, in just one hour, the battle could begin, which could be the precursor of the very battle of Armageddon that will end the world as we know it.  The temperature of the Middle East is red hot. 

Things that seemed so bizarre when originally prophesied in the Word of God thousands of years ago are ever so close and even plausible.  Richard Wurmbrand, in his book Proofs of God’s Existence, writes:

The fact is that as science advances, it discovers what was said thousands of years ago in the Bible.  To give just one example:  It was predicted by the Evangelist John in Revelation 21 that a city, called the New Jerusalem, about 2,500 km high and wide and deep, would come to Earth out of heaven.  For 2 millennia, science has denied such a possibility.  Now we launch skylabs from our tiny planet and seriously talk about space-“cities.”  [End of quote]

When Jesus Christ returns to this earth at the great battle of Armageddon, Revelation 6 records that the heavens will part and roll back like a scroll.  Such a statement sounds bizarre, but scientists now theorize that it is possible to tear space.

Over 1900 years ago when the book of Revelation was penned, things were different.  Electricity had yet to be discovered.  There were no steamships, locomotives, automobiles, airplanes, spaceships, telephones, radios, or TVs.  There was no internet.  Personal computers, GPS tracking devices, scanning systems, or sophisticated data managing systems did not exist, yet Revelation 13 prophesies of the ominous mark of the beast by which all global commerce is controlled.  The following paragraphs are from the GodSaidManSaid feature Twenty-One Signs of Doomsday -- Part Three:

Revelation 13:16-18:

16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:

17 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.

18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.

When this passage was penned, there were no checking accounts, direct-deposit transactions, electronic transfers, charge cards, debit cards, computerized banking, scanning systems, and more.  In the above passage, the Word of God prophesies of a new system of commerce to which the whole world will be forced to comply.  This new system of commerce appears to be the perfect moneyless society where consumers no longer deal in hard cash.  All financial transactions are conducted electronically under a consumer account number.  This would be a marvelous idea if it wasn’t for those who would take control of it.  Such an electronic banking system would greatly reduce the cost of banking, personal theft, bad checks, bad credit, and more—even bankruptcy.  This would, in turn, reduce the cost of goods, improve the world’s standard of living, and enhance personal safety—a great idea.  With today’s technology, this cardless system could easily be accomplished.  It could eliminate the carrying of personal identification cards by simply imbedding a code or identification chip of some kind in the right hand or under the skin in the forehead of an individual.  This identifying chip located in your person could also give the government the ability, with global positioning systems, to locate you anywhere on this globe.  Criminals could run but couldn’t hide—a good idea—except:

The world’s societies will all be controlled economically by the antichrist.  Unless you receive the mark, the name, or the number of the beast—which is 666—you will not be able to buy or sell.  [End of quote]

Grant Jeffrey, in his book Countdown to the Apocalypse, weighs in on 666:

Already, North Americans live in a 97% cashless society.  Less than 3% of the money in our economy exists as either paper currency or coins.  John, in the book of Revelation, prophesies that the number 666 will be placed in (beneath the skin?) the right hands or in the foreheads as a way to enforce people’s allegiance to the Antichrist as their god and to control people throughout the Antichrist’s world empire.  [End of quotes]

Twenty-One Signs of Doomsday (Update XXX -- The Ubiquitous Chip):

Just recently, a lot of buzz has risen over RFID microchip technology.  Several new posts on the internet cited the NBC 2007 newscast that was predicting things we might witness in the next decade and posited the idea of an American population tagged with the ubiquitous chip by 2017.  According to NBC, the chip will answer the question of, “Am I who I say I am?”  But, as you’ve already read, it will do so much more.

I received an investment newsletter in January of 2014 and the headline promoting this investment opportunity read, “One Device to End all Disease.”  The subhead reads, “It’s a tiny, 14-millimeter chip that costs less than $50…and ONE company holds ALL the medical patents.”  A few excerpts from the newsletter follow:

A revolutionary new medical device will soon be available at a medical center near you.

It isn’t a drug.  And it’s not a pill.  It’s the world’s smallest medical device…and it could single-handedly end all disease. 

Cleared by the FDA, it’s already in use in the Mayo Clinic, the world’s cutting-edge medical organization. 

“The end of illness is closer than you might think,” says Dr. David Agus, a top cancer specialist at The University of Southern California. 

“We expect it will become a clinical standard of care in cardiology within the next three to five years,” says Dr. George Savage, Chief Medical Officer at Proteus Biomedical. 

Measuring just 14mm, it’s the world’s smallest medical implant.  It needs no batteries, and can power itself forever. 

This tiny device could add 30 healthy years to your life…it could eradicate the dangers of all disease, including cancer and heart disease…and it costs less than $50. [End of quote]

Wow!  What an idea!  The mark of the beast will make good sense. 

The time for the return of Jesus Christ to receive His church in the clouds is close—very close.  Only those who have been born again will meet Him in the air and the rest of the world will drink from the cup of God’s wrath.  If you have yet to make your decision for Jesus Christ, click onto Further With Jesus—and do it now while the door is still open.  [End of quotes]

The chip is here and it appears it’s on its way to you.  The August 30, 2014 feature on FoxNews.Com reads, “Is there a microchip implant in your future?”  The information cited is much of what we have already reported. 

The world is addicted to the internet and this addiction is growing.  If you are in the business world, what would you do without the internet?  Many businesses would simply fold up and the rest would be set back about 20 years, when the work place was slower and more costly.  And it’s more than just the business community.  People are chained to their digital devices, and smartphones are leading the charge. Smartphone owners robotically respond to their every prompt.  Consider the addictive hold that social media like Facebook has on the population at large. 

An individual’s connectedness to the internet has opened up a vast data industry all about you—everything about you.  If knowledge is power—and it is, then all knowledge is all power—even eternal life. 

Jennifer Golbeck, Ph.D., published a feature in the September/October 2014 issue of Psychology Today.  Several excerpts follow:

On my local Washington, D.C. streets, I am constantly watched.  The city government alone has hundreds of traffic and surveillance cameras.  And then there are the cameras in parks, office buildings, ATM lobbies, and, of course, around every federal building and landmark.  On an average day, my image is captured by well over 100 cameras. 

When I’m online and using social media, a wealth of information about my interests and routines is collected behind the scenes.  I employ an add-on on my browser that blocks companies from tracking my searches and visits.  In just one recent month, it reported blocking nearly 16,000 separate attempts to access my data online. 

I’m monitored offline, too.  Anytime I use a reward card at a supermarket, department store, or other retail outlet, my purchase is recorded, and the data either sold to other marketers or used to predict my future purchases and guide me to make them in that store.  Department store tracking based on purchase records can even conclude that a woman is pregnant and roughly when she is due. 

My own devices report on me.  I carry an iPhone, which tracks and records my every movement.  This will help me find my phone if I ever lose it (I haven’t yet), but it also provides Apple with a treasure trove of data about my daily habits. 

Data on any call I place or email I send may be collected by the National Security Agency.  Recent reports have revealed that the federal intelligence arm may be collecting metadata on phone and Internet traffic—when Americans communicate and with whom, if not the actual content of those communications.  As Barton Gellman, Pulitzer Prize-winning intelligence reporter for the Washington Post, said during a recent panel discussion, it’s not that the NSA knows everything about everyone, but that “it wants to be able to know anything about anybody.” 

There’s no question our privacy has been eroded with the help of technology.  There’s also little question that those most responsible aren’t much inclined to retreat.  As Scott McNealy, cofounder of Sun Microsystems, famously said: “You have zero privacy anyway.  Get over it.”

Modern surveillance  does have some clear benefits.  Cameras in public spaces help the authorities detect crime and catch perpetrators, though they catch us in the dragnet as well.  Cell phone tracking and networked late-model cars allows us to be found if we become lost or injured, and mapping apps are incredibly useful for directing us to where we want to go.  These features save lives—but all of them constantly transmit our location and generate a precisely detailed record of our movements.  [End of quotes]

J. Lanier, in the November 2013 issue of Scientific American, had this to say in the feature titled, “How Should We Think about Privacy:”

The point of this thought experiment, which has a long pedigree in science fiction, is that computing and statistics could effectively simulate mind control.  It is arguable that a regime of cloud-driven recommendation engines in ever-more intimate portable devices could get us part of the way in the next few years to the mind-control scenario just described. 

With enough data and computation, it is possible to extrapolate the future of a security, the behavior of a person, or really any smoothly varying phenomenon in the world—for a time. 

Similarly, when selling a system that gathers information about citizens, a government agency—or more likely, a private contractor serving an agency—might make colorful claims about catching criminals or terrorists before they strike by observing and analyzing the entire world.  The terminology of such programs (“Total Information Awareness,” for instance) reveals a desire for a God-like, all-seeing perch. [End of quote]

Keep in mind that if knowledge is power, then all knowledge is all power—even eternal life.  Watch as today’s all-knowing technology keeps nipping at heavenly places.  The following excerpts are from the GodSaidManSaid feature Another Way and the Rapture of the Nerds:

The headline in the June 23, 2014 issue of Time magazine, written by Jessica Roy, reads, “Rapture of the Nerds.”  The subhead reads, “A new religion promises immortality—as a data file.”  Several paragraphs follow:

In the backyard of a cottage overlooking the water here, about 75 miles southeast of Orlando, two poles with metal slats shaped like rib cages jut out from the ground.  Indistinguishable from heat lamps or fancy light fixtures, they’re actually satellite dishes, but not the kind for TV.  They dispatch “mindfiles,” the memories, thoughts, and feelings of people who wish to create digital copies of themselves and fling them into space with the belief that they’ll eventually reach some benevolent alien species.  Welcome to the future.  Hope you don’t mind E.T. leafing through your diary. 

The beach house, backyard, and memory satellites are managed by 31-year-old Gabriel Rothblatt, a leader of Terasem, a new sort of religion that seeks answers to very old kinds of questions with an abiding faith in the transformative power of technology.  Gabriel’s parents, Bina and Martine Rothblatt founded Terasem a decade ago, naming it after a futuristic religion in Octavia Butler’s 1993 sci-fi novel Parable of the Sower.  (Martine knows a thing or two about satellites:  she started Sirius XM radio in 1990, when she was living as a man named Martin.)

“For us, God is in the making by our collective efforts to make technology ever more omnipresent, omnipotent, and ethical,” Martine says.  “When we can joyfully experience techno-immortality, then God is complete.” 

Although one of Terasem’s core tenets is “God is technological,” Gabriel insists that it’s not to be taken literally.  Instead, it’s meant to convey the notion that the way you envision God directly influences your life. But when the possibilities you see in future technology—like omnipotence and the ability to resurrect the dead—resemble those that mainstream religions ascribe to God, it’s less of a leap to suggest that technology becomes religion and God becomes a computer.  [End of quote]

Don’t think that what you’ve just read is just a kook fringe.  An entire field of study is emerging called Transhumanism.  The May 2014 issue of Popular Science had a multi-page feature titled, “The Master Code.”  They were writing about neuroscientist Randal Koene and his quest to emulate the human brain.  Several excerpts follow:

Koene had come to explain to the assembled crowd how to live forever.  “As a species, we really only inhabit a small sliver of time and space,” Koene said when he took the stage.  “We want a species that can be effective and influential and creative in a much larger sphere”

Koene’s solution was straightforward:  He planned to upload his brain to a computer.  By mapping the brain, reducing its activity to computations, and reproducing those computations in code, Koene argued, humans could live indefinitely, emulated by silicon.  “When I say emulation, you should think of it, for example, in the same sense as emulating a Macintosh on a PC,” he said.  “It’s kind of like platform-independent code.”  [End of quote]

What is now emerging as a new science/digital god, is turning into a stranglehold. 

When Apostle John describes the prophetic vision in the book of Revelation, chapter 13, it’s critical to remember, when attempting to understand the prophecy, that at that time, there were no such things as electricity, audio recordings, television, digital imaging, the computer, the internet, and all of the modern technologies we know today.  In Revelation 13:1, John speaks of a beast with seven heads and ten horns.  In verse three, one of the heads is wounded unto death, but was healed.  This is speculation, but the supposition of this feature is that the beast wounded unto death and given life is an all-seeing, all-knowing, digital internet product that is fully forming now.  The wound unto death that was healed could have been the Snowden-NSA scandal that reverberated around the earth, causing major concerns from the general population to the earth’s heads of governments. The world was appalled!  The U.S. has the ability to listen to virtually every phone conversation and read every email on this earth.  Knowledge is power.  Or the wound could be inflicted by terrorists successfully striking major world electrical power grids that would bring the world to a halt. 

Revelation 13:11-15:

11 And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.

12 And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.

13 And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,

14 And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.

15 And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.

The Apostle sees the other beast who arises giving power, giving an image and giving a voice to the beast that was wounded and survived.  And all were made to worship and obey the image of the beast.

The digital god is arising with destruction in its wings.  This all-seeing, all-knowing beast also has a mark—an identifier—a logo—by which all commerce on the earth will be transacted.  Without the mark, you will not be able to buy or sell.  Surely Bible prophecies are being fulfilled in the now.  Bible believers are lining up at the departure gate.  If you’ve ever run the race, it’s time to run it now.

GOD SAID, Revelation 13:15-18:

15 And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.

16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:

17 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.

18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.

MAN SAID:  These foolish doomsday prophets make me laugh!  There is no end to this world and certainly no judgment day! 

Now you have THE RECORD. 

 

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References

Authorized King James Version

Brandon, J., “Is There a Microchip in Your Future?,” FoxNews.com

GodSaidManSaid, “Another Way and the Rapture of the Nerds”

GodSaidManSaid, “Twenty-One Signs of Doomsday (Update XXVII -- 666)”

GodSaidManSaid, “Twenty-One Signs of Doomsday (Update XXX -- The Ubiquitous Chip)”

Golbeck, Ph.D., J., “All Eyes on You,” Psychology Today, September/October 2014

Piore, A., “The Master Code,” Popular Science, May 2014

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