The Beast and His Money
By Hal Lindsey
This summer, the world took a giant step toward Antichrist and Armageddon. It happened when the People’s Bank of China rolled out its new “digital yuan.” A government-backed all-digital currency now exists in the world. And that brings us into a new era.
Digital currencies have been around for a while. Bitcoin is the best-known. But the digital yuan is something different. Bitcoin is a decentralized cryptocurrency, not associated with any government. The digital yuan is the beginning of a new wave of government-supported cybercurrencies that will soon encircle the world.
In July of this year, CNBC’s Dain Evans wrote, “China is beating the US when it comes to innovation in online money, posing challenges to the US dollar’s status as the de facto monetary reserve. Nearly 80 countries — including China and the US — are in the process of developing a CBDC, or Central Bank Digital Currency. It’s a form of money that’s regulated but exists entirely online. China has already launched its digital yuan to more than a million Chinese citizens, while the US is still largely focused on research.”
In a recent article here, we looked at several aspects of Bible prophecy concerning the mark of the beast. Revelation 13 tells how the Antichrist and False Prophet will use the mark as a method of controlling the monetary system of the world. Verse 17 says the False Prophet will decree, “…that no one should be able to buy or to sell, except the one who has the mark….”
That level of monetary control cannot happen if cash remains an option. Cash can get around corners and under tables where governments cannot see. But an all-digital currency can be monitored completely.
For years, I have taught that to make the mark of the beast possible, the world would shift away from cash. To a far greater extent than most people realize, that shift has already taken place. Only a small part of the world’s money supply is printed on paper. Money today exists mostly in the form of computer code.
But for the mark of the beast system to work, governments will have to eliminate all cash. And that’s not so far off. Governments will say that digital currency will be good for the environment. They will promise an end to money laundering, something that helps keep organized crime going. Cash is also the primary means of funding terrorist operations. They will remind us that cash carries viruses and germs. Also, it can be stolen easily.
The US dollar has been the world’s reserve currency for a long time. That gives the United States certain advantages such as the ability to borrow money at lower interest rates. With so many US leaders crying out for “equity,” how long will the United States keep such an advantage? How long will other countries allow it to have such an advantage?
A world full of digital currencies opens up the possibility of linking those currencies. Every nation will want their Central Bank Digital Currency to be linked into a global system. That link would become the new global currency. Proponents will argue that this gives every nation a stable currency. In reality, it will make trade easy and put trillions into the hands of global corporations. And it will be the beginning of world government.
