(Español: ¿Qué revela la profecía sobre Europa y el Brexit?)
In this Q&A, we will give you a prophetic panorama on current and future developments in Europe in light of the Brexit.
The Church of God has been proclaiming for many years that, ultimately, Great Britain would not be a part of the European unification. The main reason for this warning has been that the Bible predicts a devastating war between Great Britain and continental Europe.
We have pointed out this fact in many of our booklets, and we have consistently warned about it in our weekly Updates and sermons. The following sets forth a brief synopsis, but the booklets quoted contain much more material and discussion on the particular issues, while offering much additional biblical proof. Following these quotes, further considerations will be discussed.
We stated the following in our free booklet, “The Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord” (first published in 2002):
“Many falsely believe that the house of Israel and the Jewish people are one and the same. Nothing could be further from the truth. Judah, from whom the Jewish people descended, was just one tribe of the descendants of Jacob, whose name God changed to Israel long ago (Genesis 35:10). In due time they separated from their Israelite brothers and, along with the tribes of Levi and Benjamin, formed the ‘house of Judah.’ The other tribes then became known as the ‘house of Israel.’ The ‘house of Israel’ went into captivity first, never to return to the ‘Promised Land.’ Today, they are known as the ‘lost ten tribes.’ The ‘house of Judah’ also went into captivity but did eventually return to Palestine. Many descendants of the house of Judah are living today in the state of Israel. In due time, as history and archeology reveal, the lost ten tribes of the house of Israel migrated to and settled in Europe and the British Isles. One tribe in particular, the descendants of Manasseh—the older son of Joseph—migrated from there to the United States of America, where they still are today. The descendants of Ephraim—the younger son of Joseph—can still be found in Great Britain and the Commonwealth Nations, including Canada, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand…
“Incredible as it may seem, the United States and Great Britain, as well as other Commonwealth nations, will be overthrown and enslaved by their former ally and friend—the United States of Europe, led by the modern Assyrians…
“Looking at the present day, some may say that Europe could NEVER attack and successfully conquer Great Britain and the United States. They forget, however, that there have already been plans to do so, and the ONLY reason that it did not happen at the time was because God did not let it happen. Many times, God intervened by sending bad weather to prevent German attacks on British or American troops. Once God withdraws His protection, these things WILL occur as prophesied…”
We wrote in our free booklet, “The Ten European Revivals of the Ancient Roman Empire” (first published in 2013):
“There is strong historical and biblical indication that Britain will not be part of the final unification of Europe… it is highly unlikely that Britain will be part of it… the Bible says that in the very end, the European power bloc, under the leadership of the biblical ‘beast’ (a military leader), will fight a war against Britain.”
In our free booklet, “Biblical Prophecy… From Now until Forever” (first published in 2013), we wrote:
“At the same time this religious persecution of God’s servants during the ‘Great Tribulation’ is taking place, the modern nations and peoples of Judah (the Jews) and of the house of Israel (the English-speaking nations of the USA, the UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and others) will be attacked and destroyed in war, mainly by a European power bloc (Matthew 24:15–28; Mark 13:14–20; Luke 21:20–24; Daniel 12:1; Jeremiah 30:10; Hosea 9:3; 13: 16; Amos 6:7; 7:17)…
“The military political leader of Europe, called the beast, will invade the Middle East and conquer Jerusalem, and his forces will, at the same time, successfully attack the USA and the UK—apparently using nuclear weapons, as all the major cities of the USA and the UK will be destroyed or laid waste in this war (compare Ezekiel 6:6; 35:4).
“We are told in Hosea 5:5, in the Authorized Version, that ‘Israel and Ephraim’ will ‘fall in their iniquity’ and that ‘Judah also shall fall with them.’ This is an end-time prophecy that has yet to be fulfilled. In the past, Israel and Judah ‘fell’ at different times, but never together or at the same time. The Tanakh says: ‘Israel’s pride shall be humbled before his very eyes, As Israel and Ephraim fall because of their sin (And Judah falls with them).”
We stated this in our free booklet, “The Book of Zechariah–Prophecies for Today” (first published in 2009):
“Many prophecies in the book of Zechariah deal with the Second Coming of the Messiah. Just prior to the return of Jesus Christ, God will inflict terrible punishment on the MODERN descendants of the ancient houses of Israel and Judah. We understand that the modern descendants of the houses of Israel and Judah include the peoples of the USA, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, as well as the modern Jews, who live both inside and outside the present day state of Israel… As God scattered ancient Israel and Judah ‘with a whirlwind’—invasion and war—‘among all the nations,’ so God will scatter the modern houses of Israel and Judah…
“[A] remarkable prophecy for our time, which is directed against the modern English-speaking nations (and the religious and political leaders) of the USA and the British Commonwealth, and their future captivity and slavery, can be found in Zechariah 11… referring to three powerful religious and/or political leaders: ‘(8) “I dismissed the three shepherds in one month. My soul loathed them, and their soul also abhorred me…” (14) Then I cut in two my other staff… that I might break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.’
“This indicates that in the times just ahead of us, the close relationship between the USA and Britain on the one hand, and the state of Israel on the other hand, will cease. The future will have to show who the three shepherds will be who will be ‘dismissed’ ‘in one month.’”
We set forth the following in our free booklet, “Europe in Prophecy” (first published in 2004):
“It has… been learned that the modern German-speaking nations are the descendants of the biblical Assyrians…
“In Ezekiel 39:23, God states, ‘The Gentiles will know that the house of Israel went into captivity for their iniquity; because they were unfaithful to Me, therefore I hid My face from them.’ Even Gentile nations will know why God is allowing this captivity of the modern-day descendants of Israel and Judah. The Germans will be the dominant people of the coming united Europe, which will conquer both the United States of America and Great Britain as well as the Jews, transporting captives to Europe and Egypt. This will all happen just prior to the return of Jesus Christ—for, in the remainder of Ezekiel 39, the prophet reveals that Christ will come to free the captives and bring them back into their land…
“Christ will come back to make an end of the war and destruction going on. Conditions will be so terrible that if Jesus Christ were not to intervene, all of mankind would be annihilated. He states in Matthew 24:22, ‘And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved [alive], but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened’…
“Isaiah 10:5 reveals more about the person who will launch the world into a devastating war: ‘Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger and the staff in whose hand is My indignation.’ God will use Assyria to punish Israel and Judah, but afterward, He will deal with Assyria… God Himself is calling the modern house of Israel an ungodly nation because they have forsaken Him!…
“It is interesting to note that at least three leaders, and possibly as many as seven leaders, of the various revivals of the Roman Empire were descendants of the Assyrians. And the Bible informs us that the last leader, called the king of the North, the Beast and King Jareb, will also be an Assyrian. For this reason, we must pay close attention to what is happening in Europe, and among the Germans in particular.”
Our free booklet, “The Fall and Rise of Britain and America” (first published in 2005), points out the following:
“A prophesied World War will occur just prior to the return of Jesus Christ… God yearns for the modern houses of both Israel and Judah to turn to Him and repent. Speaking of the house of Judah, the house of Israel, and, in fact, all nations, God says through the prophet Jeremiah: ‘It may be that the house of Judah will hear all the adversities which I purpose to bring upon them, that everyone may turn from his evil way, that I may forgive their iniquity and their sin… It may be that they will present their supplication before the LORD, and everyone will turn from his evil way. For great is the anger and fury [a reference to the seven last plagues in the book of Revelation, compare Revelation 15:1] that the LORD has pronounced against this people’ (Jeremiah 36:3, 7).”
In our free booklet, “Germany in Prophecy” (first published in 2011, as an English translation of the original German booklet from 2001), we state the following:
“There is currently an apparent concord between Germany and the State of Israel as well as the United States and, to a lesser extent, Great Britain. But according to the Bible, the time will soon come when this friendly relationship will come to an end. The days of calamity are looming, when the United States, Great Britain and the modern state of Israel will seek the help of the modern Assyrians, without receiving it… We read God’s words in Hosea 5:9-14: ‘Ephraim [modern Great Britain and possibly, by extension, the USA] shall be desolate in the day of rebuke; Among the tribes of Israel I make known what is sure. The princes of Judah [modern Jews] are like those who remove a landmark; I will pour out My wrath on them like water. Ephraim is oppressed and broken in judgment, Because he willingly walked by human precept. Therefore I will be to Ephraim like a moth, And to the house of Judah like rottenness. When Ephraim saw his sickness, And Judah saw his wound, Then Ephraim went to Assyria And [the Menge Bible says: ‘…and Judah…’] sent to King Jareb [Note that the ‘Elberfelder Bibel’ explains that ‘Jareb’ means, ‘fighter; or one who seeks quarrels’]; Yet he cannot cure you, Nor heal you of your wound. For I will be like a lion to Ephraim, And like a young lion to the house of Judah. I, even I, will tear them and go away; I will take them away, and no one shall rescue.”
“Considering the former greatness of the British Empire and comparing it with today’s British Isles, we can see how accurate the following descriptions are in Hosea 7:8-9, 11-12. Beginning with verse 8: ‘Ephraim has mixed himself among the peoples; Ephraim is a cake unturned…’
“The Nelson Study Bible has the following interesting annotation: ‘Instead of depending on the Lord for political stability, Israel [Ephraim] formed [and forms] alliances with surrounding nations. The destructive outcome of this policy is compared to a cake that has been placed over a fire and left unturned.’…
“Modern Israel and modern Judah will try in vain, at their time of distress, to obtain assistance from Assyria. Rather, as the Bible reveals, the current ‘amicable’ relationships among certain nations will turn around. Another war is prophesied—the Assyrians will fight against modern Israel and Judah… Enslavement and mass deportation of peoples will be the result. Assyria, which will invade the territories of the modern Israelites and Jews, will bring some of the prisoners into its own country (as in the Second World War many of the imprisoned Poles and Yugoslavs were deported to Germany as forced laborers). Other Israelite and Jewish prisoners of war will be deported to various countries…”
In the above-quoted sections, repeated reference has been made to a unified Europe fighting in war with Great Britain. We read about “Babylon the Great” in Revelation 17 and 18—a mighty economic, military and religious European power bloc, which culminates in the last European revival of the ancient Roman Empire and its violent destruction just prior to the return of Jesus Christ. This destruction will not occur before the “Day of the Lord”—a time of godly intervention which will begin about one year before Christ’s return. It follows then that this mighty European power will continue to exist until that time.
This shows that current speculation is misplaced to the effect that the “European dream” is dead and that the EU will disintegrate and cease to exist. Rather, what prophecy reveals is that out of the current EU (consisting of 28 member states or “countries”, see below) and out of the current Eurozone member states (consisting of 19 “countries” which have adopted the euro, see below), ten nations or groups of nations will emerge, which will receive authority for one prophetic hour together with the “beast”—a charismatic political and military leader.
To emphasize, these ten European nations or groups of nations will receive power together with the beast “for one hour” (Revelation 17:12). They will not receive such power before the beast manifests himself. When he does, THEN they receive power at the same time, which they will then turn over to the beast. The mighty and powerful Babylonian system—“Babylon the Great”—will continue to exist, and so will the euro—the common European currency which glues the Eurozone states together. The concept is biblically untenable that the euro will fail and that the European nations will return to individual national currencies.
Some have asked why we are referring to “ten nations or groups of nations,” as it is believed that the Bible only refers to ten nations. However, the Bible does not specifically use either of those two terms. It speaks of ten kings or kingdoms in the book of Revelation and ten horns in the book of Daniel. But when reviewing the biblical view point, these kings, kingdoms or horns (powers) do not have to correspond to humanly devised geographical borders, designed by political ambitions.
Note that currently, the EU member states consist of the following 28 EU “countries”:
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and the UK.
Currently, the 19 Eurozone member states are designated as follows:
Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain.
It should be clearly seen that God is not viewing some of those “countries” as single and independent entities, and that is the reason why for many years the Church of God has referred to the prophesied end-time member states (or the core European member states) as “ten nations or groups of nations,” because some of the “countries” might be grouped together and are to be viewed as “one” in biblical terminology. For instance, Germany and Austria would be one entity or one group, even though man lists them as two nations. It should also be clear that little islands like Malta or Cyprus would not constitute individual countries or nations in God’s eyes; in all likelihood, Malta would be considered as part of either Italy or France, and Cyprus might be viewed as part of Greece. (This is not to say that the current Eurozone configuration constitutes the prophesied ten nations or groups of nations.)
In addition, consideration might be given to the possibility that in addition to Great Britain, other Israelite nations in Europe might leave the EU and even the Eurozone. Suggestions were recently made that some Nordic countries might form a trading bloc under British leadership and in competition to the Eurozone, and Eurozone members Finland and The Netherlands were specifically mentioned (in addition to EU members Sweden and Denmark, which are not part of the Eurozone). This would be an interesting development as these Nordic EU members are all descendants of the ancient House of Israel.
The modern tribes of the ancient House of Israel (in addition to Ephraim and Manasseh) can be found in the following European countries (compare our free booklet, “The Authority of the Bible,” pages 71 and 72):
Reuben can be found today in parts of modern France; Dan in Ireland and part of Denmark; Benjamin in Norway and Iceland; Zebulon in the Netherlands; Issachar in Finland; Gad in Switzerland; Asher in Belgium and Luxembourg; and Naphtali in Sweden. We are unable to determine the modern identity of Levi and Simeon, as they were prophesied to be scattered among the rest of the tribes of Israel (compare Genesis 49:7). Strong evidence suggests that many in Wales are descendants of Levi, and some Scots—especially around Glasgow—are descendants of Simeon, as well as of Levi. We should mention, of course, that people from many other countries have joined with and settled among all of the above-mentioned nations. This means that not everyone living in the United States, for example, is a descendant of the tribe of Manasseh.
Since the Bible tells us that the ten nations or groups of nations will fight against the modern descendants of the ancient House of Israel, it might be worth considering whether the war will not only be directed against Great Britain and former British Commonwealth nations (such as Canada, Australia and New Zealand), as well as the USA, but also against some of the Israelite nations in Europe. Such war could perhaps come about following a trading bloc of some of these nations in competition with the EU (but again, this would not really damage the wealth of the EU—“Babylon the Great”—but it could be viewed as a potential threat).
On the other hand, the name of Israel should rest specifically on the descendants of Joseph (Genesis 48:16), and biblical prophecies about the modern House of Israel are mainly directed towards them, so that a departure of Israelite nations from the Eurozone or even the EU is not compelling (as they might not become immediate war victims of the European super power). It is possible that many or all of these Israelite nations will stay members of the EU—in case of France, Belgium, Luxembourg or Ireland, this is very likely. Especially none of the descendants of Dan in today’s Ireland are mentioned in the book of Revelation as part of the 144,000 who will be sealed to receive special protection from God (see Revelation 7:4-8).
To summarize, we have been pronouncing the biblical warning for many years that Great Britain and the USA, among other English-speaking nations, will be defeated by a European super power in a coming World War. Sadly, the vast majority of indifferent and at the same time proud, Americans, are sound asleep. They are pursuing unimportant endeavors, and unless they wake up, listen to God and repent, their fate will be unimaginably terrible and devastating.
Big events have already occurred in the recent past, setting the stage for the final crescendo of end time prophecies—including the fall of the Berlin Wall; the unification of Germany; and the introduction of the euro. As another necessary preparatory step, the momentous prophetic event of Britain’s departure from the EU is in the process of being fulfilled. Even though the British government is willing to delay the actual departure as long as possible and the “Remain” camp is demanding a second referendum, continental European leaders have already demanded the initiation of a quick process, leading to the British exit. It is expected that Germany will fill the vacuum left by Britain, especially in the areas of the economy and “European security.”
Lead Writer: Norbert Link
