Many analysts and respected economists warn that a devastating worldwide economic crash is coming. Although not specifically predicted in the Bible, such an event is in line with key prophecies regarding the Endtime and would almost certainly hasten their fulfillment-particularly the rise of the world government, and its eventual leader the Antichrist and the implementation of his universal economic system, the mark of the beast (“666”) during the last 3-1/2 years of his seven year reign. (Daniel 9:27; 11:31; Matthew 24:15, 21; Revelation 13:5-7; 16-18)

Modern economies are built largely on faith. People have faith in their currencies, but it is misplaced faith. They don’t realize that their currencies are not backed by any substantial amount of physical assets, such as gold or silver, and are issued by governments that are often deep in debt. When people do lose faith in their currency, its value plummets, stocks slump, and their country’s entire economy crashes.

In this era of Internet trading and globally linked economies and stock markets, a sudden and drastic downturn in one major financial market could create a worldwide panic that would send the global economy tumbling down like a house of cards.

Back in 1973/74, the U.S. dollar under Henery Kissingers negotiations became the world’s petro dollar that meant that all oil transactions needed to be done in U.S. dollars. So every country, who imported oil needed U.S. dollars to buy oil from exporting foreign countries, forcing many nations to hold large amounts of U.S dollars. As a result of this deal, the U.S. dollar has remained the world’s reserve currency, even though the U.S. has an enormous financial debt of trillions of dollars.

Another major factor is the international debt crisis. Nearly every nation in the world has been enticed by powerful international financiers, working through the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to take out huge loans that make it impossible for them to ever pay off their debts.

Why do you suppose the World Bank, the IMF, or anyone else would give out billions in loans that they know can never be repaid?-Because when nations fall into bankruptcy and default on their loans, the lenders gain control of their economies. As the Bible says, “The borrower is servant to the lender” (Proverbs 22:7). That’s the real reason the international financiers loaned those countries the money in the first place, to gain control!

The World Bank and IMF are now dictating the economic and other internal policies of these nations-their governments, their industries, their banks, virtually everything. They are running these governments by proxy through financial pressure. Just look at the economic problems that have plagued European countries, Argentina, and other countries in recent years and you can see where all of this is leading.

The world’s present economic woes are not accidental or merely the result of “basic market forces at work,” as we so often hears in the news. Through manipulation of the world’s money-cleverly choreographed crashes followed by temporary rebounds and more severe crashes-more and more of the world’s money is making its way into the hands of a few, while more nations are being pushed toward bankruptcy and forced to surrender control of their economies in return for foreign loans.

As time goes on and the situation worsens, there will be even more economic instability in the money markets of the world and unprecedented ups and downs in the major economies. When that happens, people are going to look for new leadership. Paul Henri Spaak, first president of the General Assembly of the United Nations, once said, “What we want is a man of sufficient stature to hold the allegiance of all people and to lift us out of the economic morass into which we are sinking. Send us such a man and whether he be God or devil, we will receive him.”[Cartledge, D. n.d. Eschatology. Rhema Bible College, Townsville.]] And that’s exactly what the world is going to do!

The people of the world will look for a financial superman to bring stability and prosperity, and when the Antichrist comes on the world scene and appears to do just that, they will hail him as a hero and welcome his rule and new economic system. He will “rescue” them from the economic ruin he led them into, and his plan will have succeeded-for a time.

The Bible has forewarned us of these events, as to be forewarned is to be forearmed. But in spite of the dark times ahead for the world, Jesus has promised those who wait for His return, “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you, not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. … I have told you before it comes, that when it does come to pass, you may believe” (John 14:27,29).