Since the disintegration of the Soviet Union in 1991, Jehovah's Witnesses have been somewhat at a loss as to the identity of the prophetic king of the north. Up until the dissolution of the USSR we had assumed that it fit the description put forth at Daniel 11:36-39. Certain aspects seemed to fit at the time, except for the fact that the 36th verse foretells that the king of the north "will certainly prove successful until the denunciation will have come to a finish."

Shall Russia reemerge from its collapse and the Cold War start anew? That is not likely. Perhaps China will become the next Superpower? That's not plausible either since China has no historic tendency to dominate the world. Besides, military experts say it will be at least a decade before China can become a military superpower capable of challenging the United States for supremacy. And besides that, China has no connection to the Greco-Roman lineage of the king of the north. So, is there a vacuum in the interim, in that there is no political agent fulfilling the role of the prophetic king of the north? That doesn't seem reasonable either. In view of our dead-end interpretations regarding the Soviet Union , we should consider the question: Was the former USSR ever the biblical "king of the north"? These are vital questions since, according to Daniel's prophecy, the king of the north misleads some of Jehovah's covenanted anointed ones into apostasy.

However, if the USSR was never the actual king of the north, as seems to be the case, that means that we have not correctly identified the political agency that misleads God's servants "into apostasy by means of smooth words." That means that we are more vulnerable to the king's machinations than we may have otherwise supposed. Indeed, because "some of those having insight will be made to stumble" by the smooth words of the devious king of the north, apparently it is due to the very influence of the real king of the north that the Watchtower has thus far failed to discern the king's identity.

The Watchtower has apparently come under an evil influence, to the extent of being subverted into using its authority to disseminate to the public pro-globalist UN propaganda, even becoming an NGO. While, admittedly, the Watchtower has withdrawn its membership as an NGO when its affiliation became publicized, the underlying susceptibility that led to such a thing in the first place has never been examined spiritually, much less exposed, and therefore it still poses as a potential stumbling block to us. Because it does not seem possible to effectively address such matters through private correspondence with the Watchtower, it is therefore deemed necessary to publicize these crucial issues on a public platform such as this web site, even as the Scripture seems to allow in this regard, saying: "And as regards those having insight among the people, they will impart understanding to the many." (Daniel 11:33)

The challenge for Jehovah's Witnesses is to not allow ourselves to be stumbled, but to find a satisfactory explanation as to how the Watchtower could have been over-reached and influenced to such an extent so as to become a subtle proponent of globalism. To that end, it might be helpful to briefly situate ourselves in the historical context of political developments over the last 3,500 years--as they relate to Bible history and prophecy--in order to appreciate where we stand today.

According to Bible prophecy, there have been seven primary world powers, or empires, that have continuously dominated the world during the past several millennia, with an 8th and final king that is yet to rule for a symbolic "one-hour." Each of these world powers have taken their turn in serving as the political head of the present system of things and in having God's people in subjection to them. Beginning with Egypt, then Assyria, followed by Babylon, Persia, Greece, Rome, and finally the modern-day Anglo-American dyad, each world power has been succeeded by another in order to perpetuate the system.

The Tower of Babel and World Government

Shortly after the Deluge, before Egypt became the first world power of Bible prophecy, it quickly became evident by Nimrod's empire building activities that there was a very powerful impulse at work determined to bring all of mankind under an umbrella of tyranny. So, early in post-Flood history, Jehovah took decisive action to thwart the establishment of what might rightly be called a world government. Granted, the world at that time was very small and not nearly as complex as our present civilization, but history bears out that they had a central government and religious system capable of dominating mankind right from the cradle. If Jehovah had not stepped in, the course of history may have been unimaginably worse.

Our Creator certainly knows that his intelligent creation is capable of accomplishing a great deal, both for good and for bad, and that human potential increases exponentially when our energies are harnessed in cooperation. Jehovah noted this very thing when he went down to inspect the city of Babel with its infamous tower. Genesis 11:6 records God's comments, saying: "Look! They are one people and there is one language for them all, and this is what they start to do. Why, now there is nothing that they may have in mind to do that will be unattainable for them."

Thus, Jehovah wisely confused their language and made it impossible for them to continue to cooperate together in the tower-building project. Not only that, but the confusion of tongues prevented mankind from being yoked under one government so early in our history. God mightily imposed his determination upon the world so that mankind dispersed according to their vernacular and formed tribal patriarchal societies. Eventually, nations formed having clearly defined boundaries and with language barriers that would take centuries to overcome. The various competing nations, as unsatisfactory as that arrangement has proven to be, has at least served to provide some checks and balances to the formation of a global, absolutist, totalitarian, religio-political system, which is most certainly what Nimrod's Babel would have become had it been allowed to develop.

However, God's intervention at Babel would only serve to delay the inevitable. The animalistic and demonically-driven tendency for man to dominate man is ever present, always seeking more effective ways to enslave and oppress. As evidence of man's determination to overcome all obstacles to his domination, the Babylonian Empire was able to hold sway over numerous jurisdictional districts and language groups and nationalities, as related in the 4th chapter of Daniel. The Persian power that followed the Chaldean Empire held dominion over 120 satrapies. (A satrapy is the Persian term for a provincial colony, a "satrap" being a provincial governor appointed by the king.) But, it goes without saying that ruling such a far-flung empire from a central location with primitive means of travel and communication was a logistical and administrative challenge.

The Roman Empire has been the most enduring when we take into consideration that imperial Rome transformed itself into a religious empire. And as such, the Pontifus Maximus of the Catholic Church was the supreme ruler of most of Europe for many centuries. Through reinforced ignorance and the feudal system, Europe was held in subjection to the imperial dictates of Rome' s religious empire up until the Renaissance brought about the introduction of the modern independent sovereign nation state.  Gradually, the seat of power was transferred from Rome to London so that, following the end of the Napoleonic wars, Great Britain became the undisputed imperial overlord of much of the world. After World War One, and more especially after the Second World War, the Anglo-American dual world power came into being.

Today, the language barriers have largely been surmounted. Judging by the scientific progress of the recent few hundred years, in validation of the Creator's own assessment, there does not appear to be anything that is unattainable for the sons of men. Of particular interest is that at this very time in history, when mankind seems to have attained the unattainable, there now exists, for the first time since Babel, the potential for a genuine super-national world government---a global government that supercedes all national sovereignties and all language groups. Granted, the nation-state system stands as a formidable bulwark against the establishment of a global empire. Given the modern world's deeply ingrained preference for nationalism, the persuasion to a different point of view will be no small task. But, the most pervasive and insidious political movement of the last 100 years has been the determined efforts to bring about globalism and ultimately world government.

One of the most useful insights the Watchtower has imparted to us in this regard is identifying the 8th king of Revelation, as well as the disgusting thing of Daniel, with the modern day United Nations. This knowledge not only empowers us to discern future events, but should also give us some insight into past and current trends leading up to the formation and empowering of the 8th king. In other words, we know how it is going to turn out. Apparently, the worst fears of patriots are going to be realized. There will ultimately be a world government that will subvert and supercede all national sovereignties and tyrannize mankind like no other, to the extent that it will completely eradicate all organized religion throughout the earth. So, examining how such a political development comes about should help us to shed some light upon the prophecies.

The formal British Empire is said by historians to have reached its zenith during the close of the reign of Queen Victoria , when the empire dominated one-quarter of the earth. But, contrary to popular myth, the British monarchy is still the most powerful institution on earth. Queen Elisabeth still sits as sovereign over 16 nations, and the British Commonwealth is the largest single block of nations in existence, comprised of some 54 nations, which is still approximately one-quarter of the earth.

Ever since the 13 American colonies broke away from the British Empire, the empire has been ceaselessly working to subvert independent nations and re-colonize the world. The independent nations have gone to some lengths to keep the imperial forces at bay. The Bible seems to depict this ongoing struggle between two antagonistic forces in the second chapter of Daniel. The iron and clay amalgam making up the feet of Daniel's metallic image well symbolizes the two incompatible forms of government that are unnaturally fused together, and consequently do not stick together. The iron represents the imperial form of government that Britain inherited from Rome , and the clay symbolizes the democratic-republican form of government championed by the United States . Together the iron and clay represent the Anglo-American dual world power.

So, it was during the waning days of the formal colonial empire that imperialists began looking for ways to reinvent and expand the imperial form of governance, and to finally destroy the independent nation state. In the early part of the 20th century, institutions were formed in London and New York for the express purpose of guiding the world back under the imperial yoke. The Royal Institute of International Affairs in London , often referred to as Chatam House, is one such institution that was set up after WWI for the purpose of promoting world government. The Council on Foreign Relations is the American counterpart of the RIIA. The League of Nations was a result of those early efforts, which, interestingly, the U.S. congress refused to allow the United States to join. Eventually, though, the United States signed on to the United Nations after WWII.

Monetary institutions such as the IMF and the World Bank were given a charter in connection with the establishment of the United Nations Organization, and they have served to undermine independent nation-states by imposing upon them neo-colonial "conditionalities."

From one think tank associated with the Royal Institute of International Affairs came the idea for an "open conspiracy". That was the title of a book written by British historian H.G. Wells in 1932. The Open Conspiracy cited nationalism as the greatest evil afflicting mankind, and proposed the long range goal of conditioning the nations to willing abdicate their own sovereignty in favor of a super-national world government. Hence, the term "open conspiracy" means that the conspirators publicize their intentions in order to persuade the populace to their point of view, through their own propaganda. To that end, the forces bent on tyrannizing mankind have used religion, politics, education, the popular media, and yes, NGOs, to propagandize in behalf of globalization and global government.

One excerpt of Well's book states: "The fundamental organization of contemporary states is plainly still military, and that is exactly what a world organization cannot be. Flags, uniforms, national anthems, patriotism sedulously cultivated in church and school, the brag, blare, and bluster of our competing sovereignties, belong to the phase of development the Open Conspiracy will supersede. We have to get clear of that clutter."  

Those familiar with the teachings of Jehovah's Witnesses will notice a striking similarity to the Watchtower's own view of nationalism. So much so, that the Watchtower seems to echo the call of the Open Conspiracy in denouncing nationalism as the scourge of all mankind. Interestingly, the Watchtower in numerous historical references frequently quotes H.G. Wells, Bertrand Russell, and Arnold Toynbee. All three of these men were avowed imperialists and haters of the American intellectual tradition. Even the phrase " New World Order" is used to describe both the New World of God's promise and the new political order desired by the open conspirators. Granted, "competing sovereignties" have been a source of conflict in the world, but behind the conflicts lurk the forces of empire; relentlessly manipulating, pitting one enemy against the other, exploiting such inherent weaknesses in order to discredit the nation-state system. The ultimate goal of the Open Conspiracy is to bring mankind under their yoke by whatever means deemed necessary.

So it is that the advocates of the Open Conspiracy cite the very same evils as do Jehovah's Witnesses as to the reason we need a "new order." For example, not only nationalism, but also environmental issues are used as a pretext for doing away with the nation-state system. Whereas Jehovah's Witnesses point to global pollution and say that we need God's new order, the Open Conspiracy cites the very same problem and says 'that's why we need a new political order.' The Watchtower points to God's kingdom as the solution for rampant lawlessness, but the Open Conspiracy cites international crime, drug trafficking, and war criminals and advocates an international court of law that supercedes national jurisdictions. So it should be evident that the Watchtower's message is coinage that lends itself very well to being subtly twisted to suit the ends of the counterfeiters. As the prophet foretold, the king of the north is capable of misleading Jehovah's people "into apostasy by means of smooth words."

At this point the reader should be reminded that every empire has used religion to control its subjects and maintain power. The religions of Egypt , Assyria , and Babylon are well documented in the Hebrew Scriptures as being inseparably linked with the ruling elements. The Grecian and Roman Empires were equally adept at using popular religion to further their political ends.

At the time of Christ, the Roman Empire was the king of the north who broke "the Leader of the covenant," as mentioned at Daniel 11:22. This had to do with the fact that Pilate, who was a Roman governor, was responsible for putting Jesus to death and later the Roman Empire mercilessly persecuted Christ's followers, through whom Christ vicariously lived.

Later, as the apostasy developed and Christianity became corrupted from within, Roman emperor Constantine adopted apostate Christianity as the state religion of the decaying empire. In effect the king of the north infiltrated and completely subverted Christ's once-pure spiritual organization. Daniel 11:21-23 seems to speak to this development. It reads: "And because of their allying themselves with him he will carry on deception and actually come up and become mighty by means of a little nation." The "little nation" and those "allying themselves with him" in this instance may well be the little nation of spiritual Israel , and the apostate bishops that gained control of the congregations did indeed ally themselves with their former Roman persecutor. History shows that the Roman king of the north did become mighty by means of exercising ecclesiastical control over Europe , even as the old Roman Empire of the Caesars crumbled.

Essential to the growth of the British Empire was the break with Rome and the establishment of the Anglican Church as the state-sponsored religion. As every empire had before her, London would also exploit religion for the purpose of maintaining dominance. A recent and timely example of how the Church of England seeks common ground with paganism, the Archbishop of Canterbury was recently inducted into Druidism---the ancient pagan religion of the Isles.

Of particular interest to us is the source of the mythological notion fabricated back in the middle of the 19th century that the British people themselves were the descendants of the so-called lost tribes of Israel . That myth of the so-called British-Israelis became the basis for modern-day Zionism and also underpins the Evangelical and Pentecostal movements today. There are in fact numerous cults and armageddonist groups that have spun off from various Zionist sects. But the mother that hatched them all is the Church of England. By inventing and promoting various end-time scenarios, the lords of London have followed the pattern of their imperial predecessors in using religious sects and cults to manipulate and control affairs in their realm.

Since, as we have established, the Roman king of the north has dominated both the Jews as well as Christians during the 1st century, and was even responsible for putting Christ to death, it is not a great leap of faith or fanciful speculation to put forth the idea that the modern-day imperial king of the north has likewise sought to control Jehovah's people. Given that London inherited the imperial mantle from Rome, the previous incarnation of the king of the north, and that the official policy of the British Empire is to re-establish itself as a world government using the United Nations Organization as its new political apparatus, we may anticipate that the UN will at some point fully manifest itself as the king of the north. (This will be discussed in greater detail in part II)

In view of the historic efforts put forth by Rome and London to pervert and control Christianity, it seems inconceivable that the powers-that-be would not try to especially infiltrate and control the Watchtower Society for their own ends. As is evident from the Watchtower's recent NGO caper, apparently satanic agents have had a measure of success. No wonder, at Revelation 2:13, Jesus addressed himself to his anointed brothers living during the culmination of things, saying to them: "I know where you are dwelling, that is where the throne of Satan is..."

The May 22,nd 2002, Awake magazine, which was written after the Watchtower dissolved its official relationship with the United Nations, confirms the ongoing influence of such agents of Satan's throne, in that the Watchtower still carries the same subtly disarming pro-UN propaganda of the Open Conspiracy. The cover article is entitled: Globalization Curse or Cure? The article attempts to present the pros and cons of globalization. The article makes a pretense at reporting the concerns of those who are opposed to globalization, but nowhere in the article is any mention made of the foremost fears of globalizations many critics, namely: world government. It seems incredible that this could have been a mere oversight on the part of the Awake and was not a deliberate act of disinformation.

American populist and former presidential candidate, Pat Buchanan, has been one of globalization's more outspoken critics. According to him, the ultimate goal of the United Nations is the destruction of the nation-state system and the imposition of world government---just as H.G. Wells called for 70-years ago in his Open Conspiracy. Mr. Buchanan sees the UN as the proverbial Trojan Horse, and he offers quotes directly from the horse's mouth, so-to-speak, as to the intentions of the United Nations to bring about an end to national sovereignty.

While the Awake magazine has frequently quoted the UN Secretary General, never have they quoted any such UN official when they spoke so straightforwardly about the UN intentions to bring an end to the nation-state. Whereas, in times past the Watchtower Society used to describe the United Nations as a disgusting counterfeit of God's kingdom, it is becoming increasingly more difficult to discern which "new order" they are presently serving---Jehovah's, or the Open Conspiracy of the king of the north. The antidote for such mischief is our individually knowing our God, even as Daniel 11:32 says: "But as regards the people who are knowing their God, they will prevail and act effectively."

As Jesus foretold regarding his anointed servants, some would be faithful, while others in positions of responsibility in the master's household would prove to be evil slaves. It certainly appears that that scenario is being played out at Bethel , which of course means house of God. Ironically, a saying among Jehovah's Witnesses who have served at the Bethel headquarters, goes something like: 'Half of the brothers are there to test the other half.'  How true that anecdote has proven to be! Indeed, great tests of faith and loyalty lay before all of Jehovah's Witnesses.

Part Two will examine all the prophecies relevant to the 8th and final king and what we may expect in the near future during the time of the end.

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Copyright © 2002, by Robert King
All Rights Reserved.