Reviving the Empire
History has witnessed four world-ruling kingdoms. The final kingdom was the Roman Empire, which fell in a.d. 476. Herbert W. Armstrong’s booklet Who or What Is the Prophetic Beast? explains the imagery of the symbols for the empire in Bible prophecy.
Prophecy depicts the Roman Empire as a beast with 10 horns, symbolizing 10 successive governments. The first three horns were ruled by barbarians. The final seven were ruled by the Holy Roman Empire. Each of those resurrections was saturated with bloodshed. Does that sound like a “holy” alliance of church and state?
The first ruler of the Holy Roman Empire was Justinian. Under his leadership, people were not unified and the empire was weak. But then Charlemagne came on the scene, and he harnessed the power of the Roman Catholic Church to unify the people. He formed the First Reich of that Holy Roman Empire.
Adolf Hitler looked to Charlemagne as a hero. He called his rule the Third Reich. Hitler started World War ii, which led to the death of 60 million people!
Revelation 17 prophesies of a great empire rising in the end time, directed by a great false church. The Catholic Church will be allied with the European power as a church-state combine—as it has been repeatedly. Religion has been the driving force of the Holy Roman Empire’s conquests.
“And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space” (verse 10). This is the central verse that expresses what is happening in the Holy Roman Empire in this end time. God says that after five are fallen, He would send a man on the scene: Herbert W. Armstrong. At that time, Adolf Hitler was leading the sixth resurrection of the Holy Roman Empire, which is the “one is” in verse 10. The seventh resurrection has “not yet come,” but the revival of that empire is happening today!
And remarkably, as they are reviving it, Europeans are doing something they have never done since the vile and murderous sixth head: They are publicizing the Holy Roman Empire! They don’t publicize what Adolf Hitler did; too many people remember that bloody history. Instead they cloak it in the tradition of Charlemagne. And yet it is the same story! Not as many people died in the first Reich because they didn’t have the same military technology then. But it is the same ambition!
This beast has fallen and risen again repeatedly. After the terrible devastation of World War ii, Franklin Roosevelt and Winston Churchill vowed to never allow Germany to rearm and become a militant people again. Germany was smashed and almost every city was left in heaps of destruction. Hundreds of thousands of Germans were taking what sparse belongings they had and were trying to somehow survive. You would think people would learn a lesson from that. But most people have forgotten what happened.
Europeans are publicizing the Holy Roman Empire. They don’t publicize what Hitler did—they cloak it in the tradition of Charlemagne. yet it is the same story.
Right after World War ii ended, Herbert W. Armstrong prophesied that Germany would rise again in one final resurrection of the Holy Roman Empire.
Verse 8 tells us this beast went underground, but then will “ascend out of the bottomless pit.” When Germany was in ashes, Mr. Armstrong boldly proclaimed this prophecy. Sure enough, the Germans went underground, with most of the Nazis escaping through the ratlines of the Catholic Church! Brian Connell wrote that two years after their defeat, in 1947, the Germans were told to de-Nazify themselves. Then in 1996, a stunning intelligence document was finally declassified, revealing that German companies like Volkswagen, Messerschmitt and others actually planned to raise up another Holy Roman Empire.
That is incredible determination! Yet that is how the European powerhouse operates. Even after watching their own people suffer during World War ii, they have the determination to resurrect their bloody ambitions once again.
Germany has repeatedly reemerged as a devastating military power. We are seeing that beast rise again today! Look at Europe: Germany is once again at the helm! A rearmed and militant Germany will prove to be one of the United States’s biggest nightmares!
Revelation 17 tells us exactly what is going to happen in the last two resurrections of this empire. It is extremely sobering—yet we must see that God is orchestrating all this as correction for His people. “For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled” (verse 17). God has put it in the mind of this violent empire to straighten out America, Britain and the Jewish nation in the Middle East. That may seem strange, but it is what God has to do to get rebellious people to repent!
A King of Fierce Countenance
Bible prophecy makes clear: Soon, Europeans will get exactly what they are asking for, another Charlemagne-type leader. This man will come to power and set himself up as a strongman over all Europe. He will effectively hijack the European Union!
“And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up” (Daniel 8:23). This prophecy is for our day today. Are we in a time when “transgressors are come to the full”? Can you think of a sin that is not being committed?
This man who is about to emerge on the scene will be a man like Charlemagne. He will be a man like Hitler. He will be a “king” sitting on the throne of the Holy Roman Empire! And the Bible makes clear, he will be led by Satan the devil!
Sebastian Kurz could possibly fill this role. However, I believe it will be a man like Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg, who actually holds the title “Baron of the Holy Roman Empire.” Daniel 11 describes this man as being eloquent and coming to power by flatteries. Merkel’s coalition in Germany is very weak; it is on the verge of failing. I believe when Merkel leaves office, you will see the strongman of the Holy Roman Empire get control. Guttenberg is one of Germany’s most popular politicians. He could be poised and ready to step in and save Germany from its weak and shaky government.
However, knowing the exact identity of this man doesn’t matter. What matters is that he will get his power from Satan! Scripture reveals the spiritual force that will be behind this man.
Most people don’t want to hear about Satan. But if you want to understand the Bible and Bible prophecy, you have to discuss the devil. But how many people really want to know what the Bible says? The only reason we have been able to warn for so many years about what is approaching is because we look to the Bible, which is Jesus Christ in print.
Regardless of who the strongman is, it is clear that we are seeing a revival of the Holy Roman Empire in Europe in a way that has not been promoted before. Austria wants to bring that heritage back to life.
When this man comes to power, it will affect every human on this Earth in the most horrible ways—unless God protects you! But God only protects those who repent.
Two Thrones
This strongman will sit on the throne of the Holy Roman Empire. With all the recent publicity of Charlemagne and the imperial crown, you are seeing the rise of that throne in Europe! At the same time that this throne is being resurrected in Europe, God is establishing a righteous throne in His Church! The throne in Britain today was once God’s throne, but no longer. That may sound utterly fantastic, but it is true. And you can prove that. Request my free book The New Throne of David for more information.
God has given His very throne to this Church. There is a new throne of David! And you are seeing these two thrones rise at the same time. One throne is led and controlled by Satan the devil, and the other is in this Church led by Jesus Christ because it is the very throne that He is going to return to!
That king of fierce countenance will fight Jesus Christ at His Second Coming. Satan hates that we now have the throne that is going to replace his. He has great wrath against the people that are now sitting on that throne, and he is going to inspire his king to come against the King of kings and Lord of lords. When that happens, you’ll finally see the destruction of the Holy Roman Empire forever. That is going to happen very soon! We cannot predict or set dates; only God the Father knows the day or the hour (Matthew 24:36). But God warns us that we had better know when it is at the door! (verse 33). We must be watching and praying.
The great hope of all of this is that just beyond that time of tribulation is the greatest, most inspiring event to ever take place: “These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful” (Revelation 17:14).
God is going to smash that final resurrection. There will be peace, happiness and joy throughout the whole universe! He is going to plant the heavens and establish His throne forever!
The Holy Roman Empire has made pivotal and defining contributions to Western civilization—but its many reincarnations have also come with painful and catastrophic consequences. European leaders aim to unite the fractured continent of Europe by reviving the legacy of this extraordinary church-state combine. One of the great lessons of this empire is that it always comes back. There is always another resurrection. The Holy Roman Empire is not just a relic of history. It is about to play a central role in world events. Coming to understand about the nature and character of this powerful institution tells you as much about the future as it does about the past.
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