The Electronics Age in Bible Prophecy

 

Who could have ever envisioned where the discovery of electricity would lead mankind. Basic electricity was the engine that drove the industrial revolution and the nuclear age. Electronics have driven the digital age, resulting in a smart-phone computer in the hands of 70% of individuals world-wide (more people than have indoor plumbing). AI is now at the finger-tips of every man, woman and child. AI automates factories, businesses, vehicles, missiles and drones, often replacing humans. Generative AI produces images, voices, videos, music. We hardly need human brain-power, or spirit led creativity. If ever Man has reached into the heavens and become like God, it is our present age.

Christians accept the digital age far too casually. They not only endorse it, they are elated over every new-found creative enablement. They have not a clue that Bible prophecy speaks eloquently about the Age of Electronics. God said that electronics would be a strategic factor at the end of the age. What seems so innocent and convenient is actually deceptively alluring, empowering, and manipulative. So much so that it is destined to meet up with God’s wrath, judgment and destruction. I am not making any of this up, I assure you, it is clearly laid out in Scripture. But even if someone were to point it out most Christians would not believe it.  Their bias is just too strong, predisposed to condone the electronics age as totally innocent and inert, not even a blip on the mind of God.

Revelation 13 contains the most detailed prophecy of the electronics age. It does not describe electronics in modern, straightforward vernacular, though. It is an apocalyptic vision using first-century concepts. The electronics age is the false prophet of the last half of Revelation 13. The beast out of the earth is not actually called the false prophet until later (Rev16:13; 19:20), but they are one and the same. The vision starts with a beast coming up out of the earth with two horns, seeming like a lamb, but speaking like a dragon. It ends with the enigmatic number, 666. For me, this is one of the most intriguing visions in Revelation, packed with real-world relevance for today. It is pinpoint accurate. Once again, history interprets prophecy, squashing speculation and conjecture.

The two horns on the beast represent positive and negative current. Why does it come out of the ground? Because electricity does not work without the electrical current returning to a ground rod. Why the lamb and the dragon? Electrical 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 digital age has given birth to computers, unlimited information, the internet, social media, and now artificial intelligence. All of these are replete with deception and corruption. They exert great power and authority, capable of great control, manipulation, threat, and harm. And that’s not even considering the dark web. The false prophet imagery does not depict a man, such as the Antichrist, but rather the dominance and deception of electronics in the last days.

How does electronics live up to the designation, false prophet? Prophets purport to dispense truth, 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. Stop and realize how much our world – our morals, our activities, our beliefs, our loyalties – are shaped by the electronic messages and images we devour each and every day.

What about the number, 666? When history unveiled the number 666 it became the key to identifying the beast, the false prophet. “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, invented in 1974, uses the number six to signify the beginning, midpoint and ending of the scan. Barcodes, UPC labels, QR codes, smart cards, and other forms of electronic codes have controlled commerce for the last fifty years. You cannot transact business without electronics – buy, sell, inventory, shipping, delivery, cash register – nothing. In essence, the bar code solves the riddle of what the two-horned beast represents. (It has nothing to do with a chip implant demanded by the Antichrist during the Great Tribulation.)

Another significant prophecy about the electronics age comes from an unlikely source. Peter prophesied that “the elements in the heavens will be destroyed by fire, and the works of mankind will be laid bare” (II Pet 3:10). This is speaking of the satellite-dependent electronics technology that is the very lifeblood of mankind in these last hours before the Day of the Lord.  The electronics age will come to an end. This unheralded prediction correlates with Revelation, where it is prophesied that the false prophet (remember, that is the electronics age, not a person) will be thrown into the lake of fire (Rev 19:19-21). In the context it seems that this will occur concurrently with Christ’s second coming, when He will establish His Millennial kingdom.  Just think of it, a kingdom of peace and righteousness, free of all electronics.

Is The Rapture Imminent?

Is the rapture really imminent? For many teachers of end-times prophecy this issue is of utmost importance. First of all, we must figure out what they mean when they say that the rapture is imminent? The word imminent means likely to occur at any moment. If you light a firecracker and put it in your pants pocket, then you can be sure that an injury is imminent. If that is what the prophecy teachers meant by imminent then I would agree. The rapture, as part of the second coming of Christ, is not only likely to occur, it will happen. It is imminent. It is to be expected. Jesus said He would come again.

But that is not the concept that is meant when they teach the imminent return of Christ to rapture the Church. What they mean is this – the rapture could happen at any moment, totally unexpectedly. No signature event will precede the rapture. It will be a great big surprise when it occurs. Not a surprise that it will happen, but the timing can sneak up on you at any moment.

This concept is not Biblical, although they would like to suggest that it is. It is part and parcel to a greater doctrine, that the rapture will happen before a misconstrued Great Tribulation. All the prophetic events of Revelation are contained in that seven-year period, they say, so there will not be any events that precede and portend the rapture. It could happen at any time since it is not dependent on any precedent.

But that is not at all what Paul suggests in writing to the Thessalonians. They feared that the Lord had returned and they had been left out, somehow. It seems that there was a false teaching circulating, as though from Paul himself, saying that “the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to Him” had already occurred (2 Thes 2:1-3). Please take note that the coming of the Lord and the gathering of the saints, the rapture, is one and the same event in Paul’s mind. But more importantly, Paul goes on to say, in verse three, that the rapture will not occur until after the man of lawlessness is revealed. Clearly, the “antichrist” will not be relegated to the Great Tribulation. He will be revealed for all the world to see before we Christians are caught up. Furthermore, the great rebellion which he will mastermind will also precede the rapture. That is speaking of the rise of jihadist Islam, the upheaval of nations, and the beginning of Armageddon. So, the rapture is not a total surprise, we have a pretty conspicuous timeframe leading up to the coming of the Lord.

My brother knows that I write about prophecy, though I don’t think he bothers to read much of what I write. He, like most Christians, is unwilling to seriously consider re-examining prophecy and challenging the prevailing interpretations. But he did ask me a question that is worth considering, “You’re not planning to set a date for the return of Jesus, are you?” My answer to him was this: “Not a date and time, but I can give you some pretty precise indicators. God is not one to pull surprises. He makes it very, very clear what He is going to do, and when He is going to do it. He has always been that way.”

Consider the extensive list of events that need to happen before the return of Christ and the gathering of the saints. The seventh beast must be deposed by the eighth beast (Rev 17), in other words, America must be destroyed (Dan 7:11). The sixth trumpet warning must be fulfilled, which is the buildup to and the beginning of the battle of Armageddon. Led by the man of lawlessness, the ten-nation Arab coalition will begin their attack on Israel. With America out of the picture, there will be no one to restrain them. Once that war has begun, we can expect Jesus to return to defend Israel and subdue and slay his enemies. We will be able to anticipate when Jesus will return -- on the Feast of Trumpets (most likely), after Israel has been invaded. That’s when the saints will be gathered, when the rapture will occur.

I don’t see imminence in that scenario. God is very clear in prophesying exactly what is going to happen, step by step, one event after another, to fulfill His righteous judgment. And to fulfill his promise, as well, of salvation and redemption of those who dearly love Him.

Whenever the writers of the NT encouraged the readers to live in expectancy of Christ’s return, they were exhorting them to live with a deep and abiding belief and hope in the eternal plan of God. He was not exhorting them to live in fear of being caught with their hand in the cookie jar when Jesus unexpectedly returns. He was exhorting them to live in hope. The dead in Christ will be resurrected, and saints who will still be alive will be caught up with them. Eternal glory is our hope, not an any-moment, unexpected, imminent return of Christ. 

Eternal Glory

Eternal glory is our blessed hope, the hope of all who put their faith in God. We believe that we will live eternally with Jesus in a new heaven and earth, where Jesus has prepared a place for us. Our citizenship is in heaven, and the things of this earth are temporary, “This world is not my home, I’m just a-passing through. My treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue.” We will live in a kingdom of eternal peace and righteousness. There will be no more pain, or sorrow, or death. We will be conformed into the likeness of Christ, by none other than Jesus Himself. We eagerly await His coming. Why? So that our lowly bodies can be transformed into conformity with His glorious body (Phil 3:20-21).

The rapture is not our blessed hope. The rapture is merely the means by which the saints still living at the return of Jesus can transition into the eternal kingdom. We must ask ourselves, then, where is our hope focused? Is our hope set on being raptured so that we might escape the horrific judgment of God in a period of time we have labeled the Great Tribulation? Is escape from suffering and turmoil our hope, or is our hope properly focused on eternal glory? Let’s be honest, what’s the biggest concern most Christians want answered when it comes to prophecy? It’s the issue of pre-tribulation rapture. They want to know if they escape the beasts and the dragons, the plagues and the judgments described in Revelation.

In several of the scripture passages that address the hope of eternal glory it is set in contrast to, or in succession to our current sufferings. Paul wrote, “our momentary affliction is producing in us an eternal weight of glory.” (2 Cor 4:17). Afflictions may become incredibly heavy in the days ahead, but eternal glory far outweighs them. Peter wrote, “after you have suffered a little while” the God of all grace will fulfill His calling and bring us into his eternal glory (I Pet 5:10). Paul also wrote, our present sufferings are not worth “comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us” (Rom 8:18). I am afraid, though, that Christians in America today are taught to put their hope in escaping before tribulation arrives, rather than being rescued out of tribulation. This results in a shallow faith that enjoys a consumptive lifestyle in these last days. Rather than expecting a refining fire that will produce vessels of righteousness 

Christians in America do not expect the least bit of suffering before the rapture occurs. We will blissfully enjoy the blessings of living in America until the day Jesus calls us upward. Then, and only then, the Day of the Lord can ensue, after we are gone. But that view of the end times will lead to great despair for many. Because their hope is misplaced, focused on escape rather that eternal glory, they will not stand strong in faith, hope, and endurance. They will think that tribulation, trouble, persecution, famine, nakedness, danger, and the sword have indeed separated them from the love of God (compare Rom 8:37). His promises are hollow and his faithfulness has failed them.

Tribulation leads to righteousness. And God wants a righteous bride for His Son. The day of the Lord begins with judgment. It is not just all the other people, all those “wicked” people left behind who will be judged. No, in fact, perhaps the beginning of judgment in the last days begins with America. America is the little horn of Daniel 7, the nation that is utterly destroyed (Dan 7:11). And America is the seventh beast of Revelation 13 and 17, the one that the eighth beast (a ten nation Arab alliance) hates and burns with fire (Rev 17:16). Truth and justice have been trampled underfoot in America. This country that we think is so blessed will be exposed as a great harlot, Babylon the Great. She will be burned and destroyed -- death, mourning, and famine will sweep over her (Rev 18:8). But America glorifies herself and lives luxuriously, and believes that she will never see mourning – Christians included (Rev 18:7).

This tribulation will be great, and it will happen before the return of Christ, before the saints are caught up with the dead in Christ to enter into eternal glory. But we need not fear the judgment of God, for He will protect those who are His own. The seal upon us is the hope that burns in our hearts, the hope of eternal glory.