The Electronic Age in Biblical Prophecy

If we are rapidly cascading toward the end of the age, as Scripture prophecy seems to clearly indicate, then you would expect to see some of the more significant features of our age injected into the story. America’s dominance in world power, for one. But another predominant aspect of the end times is the electronic age. Do we see it in Revelation? Is electronics a key component of the last days prophecies?

Absolutely! Undeniably! But not like you might expect, not in modern vernacular. Rather, in an apocalyptic description, a vision that John could see and relate to in terms and picture forms of his own culture.  The electronic age is the false prophet of the last half of Revelation 13, starting with a beast coming up out of the earth with two horns, seeming like a lamb, but speaking like a dragon. And the description ends with the enigmatic number, 666, often called the “mark of the beast”. For me, this is one of the most intriguing visions in Revelation, once it is interpreted into the real-world relevance of today. It is pinpoint accurate. Once again, history interprets prophecy, not man’s conjecture.

Electricity is a rather recent invention, so far as world history is concerned. Actually, electricity was discovered, not invented, in the 18^th and 19^th centuries. But with its discovery many, many inventions have proceeded. The two horns on the beast that comes out of the ground represent positive and negative current. Why out of the ground? Because everyone knows that electricity does not work without the electrical current returning to a ground rod. Why the lamb and the dragon? The discovery and accompanying inventions all seem so innocent, practical, and helpful at the start. But with the development of electronics the innocent lamb became a false prophet, speaking like a dragon. The false prophet imagery does not depict a man, like the Antichrist, or his right-hand henchman. Rather the false prophet is a something, namely the electronic age of the end times. The pronouns throughout Revelation 13, relating to both the first and the second beast, should be translated “it”, not “he”.

How does electronics live up to the designation, false prophet? Prophets purport to dispense truth and wisdom and guidance. But a false prophet is deceiving, misleading, and destructive, all the while pretending to be a lamb. It promises life and truth, but delivers deception, bondage, and slavery.

Revelation 13 speaks of the electronics age as creating images that could speak and control, referring to television and computer screens in everyone’s’ home, and the palm of their hand. Stop and realize how much our world – our morals, our activities, our loyalties – are shaped by those images. The false prophet also performed great signs, most notably, causing fire to come down from heaven to the earth in full view of man. This is most assuredly referring to the atomic bombs deployed on behalf of the first beast, America.

What about the number, 666? It is not a number engraved on the forehead of wicked unbelievers. And it is not to be relegated to a seven-year Tribulation period. “Solve a riddle: Put your heads together and figure out the meaning of the number of the beast. It’s a human number: 666” (Rev 13:18, MSG). The barcode was invented in 1974, and used the number six to signify the beginning, midpoint and ending of the scan. Barcodes, UPC labels, QR odes, smart cards, and all forms of electronic codes have controlled commerce for the last fifty years. You cannot transact business without electronics – buy or sell, inventory, shipping, delivery, cash register – nothing. The number is readily observable, so it is used as an identifier of the electronics age, the false prophet that controls the end of the age.

And there you have it, a very abbreviated version of chapter 3 in my book, Right At The Door. The false prophet of Revelation 13 is the electronics age of the end times, a very urgent sign and warning that the end is very near. If we are rapidly cascading toward the end of the age, as Scripture prophecy seems to clearly indicate, then you would expect to see some of the more significant features of our age injected into the story. America’s dominance in world power, for one. But another part of our end times culture that is massively significant is the electronic age. Do we see it in Revelation? Is electronics a key component of the last days prophecies?

Absolutely! Undeniably! But not like you might expect, not in modern vernacular. Rather, in an apocalyptic description, a vision that John could see and relate to in terms and picture forms of his own culture.  The electronic age is the false prophet of the last half of Revelation 13, starting with a beast coming up out of the earth with two horns, seeming like a lamb, but speaking like a dragon. And the description ends with the enigmatic number, 666, often called the “mark of the beast”. For me, this is one of the most intriguing visions in Revelation, once it is interpreted into the real-world relevance of today. It is pinpoint accurate. Once again, history interprets prophecy, not man’s conjecture.

Electricity is a rather recent invention, so far as world history is concerned. Actually, electricity was discovered, not invented, in the 18^th and 19^th centuries. But with its discovery many, many inventions have proceeded. The two horns on the beast that comes out of the ground represent positive and negative current. Why out of the ground? Because everyone knows that electricity does not work without the electrical current returning to a ground rod. Why the lamb and the dragon? The discovery and accompanying inventions all seem so innocent, practical, and helpful at the start. But with the development of electronics the innocent lamb became a false prophet, speaking like a dragon. The false prophet imagery does not depict a man, like the Antichrist, or his right-hand henchman. Rather the false prophet is a something, namely the electronic age of the end times. The pronouns throughout Revelation 13, relating to both the first and the second beast, should be translated “it”, not “he”.

How does electronics live up to the designation, false prophet? Prophets purport to dispense truth and wisdom and guidance. But a false prophet is deceiving, misleading, and destructive, all the while pretending to be a lamb. It promises life and truth, but delivers deception, bondage, and slavery.

Revelation 13 speaks of the electronics age as creating images that could speak and control, referring to television and computer screens in everyone’s’ home, and the palm of their hand. Stop and realize how much our world – our morals, our activities, our loyalties – are shaped by those images. The false prophet also performed great signs, most notably, causing fire to come down from heaven to the earth in full view of man. This is most assuredly referring to the atomic bombs deployed on behalf of the first beast, America.

What about the number, 666? It is not a number engraved on the forehead of wicked unbelievers. And it is not to be relegated to a seven-year Tribulation period. “Solve a riddle: Put your heads together and figure out the meaning of the number of the beast. It’s a human number: 666” (Rev 13:18, MSG). The barcode was invented in 1974, and used the number six to signify the beginning, midpoint and ending of the scan. Barcodes, UPC labels, QR odes, smart cards, and all forms of electronic codes have controlled commerce for the last fifty years. You cannot transact business without electronics – buy or sell, inventory, shipping, delivery, cash register – nothing. The number is readily observable, so it is used as an identifier of the electronics age, the false prophet that controls the end of the age.

And there you have it, a very abbreviated version of chapter 3 in my book, Right At The Door. The false prophet of Revelation 13 is the electronics age of the end times, a very urgent sign and warning that the end is very near.