As it was back in December of 2000, once again it took awhile before the implications of certain events and their connection with the 10-nation Western European Union's (WEU) Assembly Recommendation 666 became apparent. Let me try to explain.

As students of the subject know, much of Bible prophecy has been given in image form. This being the case, it's important for us to know what these strange images of beasts with multiple heads and horns mean. From the O.T. book of Daniel we learn that God uses images to describe the kings and kingdoms that oppose His earthly people and purpose. In other words, God sees godless kings and their kingdoms as dangerous beast that need to be restrained. And, throughout  history God has used different methods of restraint. But, in the time of the end, the Bible tells us God's restraining influence will be removed to allow Daniel's fourth beast empire to reappear and, for a short time, to devour God's people. At the end of this short period, Jesus will return, put an end to the beast kingdom, and set up His earthly kingdom of righteousness.

In Revelation chapter 12 we see God combining His key elements of prophecy all together in three images -- that of a woman, the woman's child and a great, seven-headed dragon. It's widely believed that the woman represents national Israel, the child Jesus and the dragon satan. However, in my study of prophecy, I've come to believe there may be a few more things we should add.

Although I agree that the woman is Israel, I believe she represents believing, national Israel. As the Apostle Paul says:

... there has also come to be at the present time a remnant according to God's gracious choice. But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works, otherwise grace is no longer grace (Romans 11:5-6 New American Standard Bible).

I also agree that the child is Jesus. But, I believe the child may also represent us. The Bible clearly tells us that we are in Christ. And, when speaking to His disciples about His coming death, Jesus used the illustration of a child being born into the world. Jesus said:

Truly, truly, I say to you, that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; you will grieve, but your grief will be turned into joy. Whenever a woman is in labor she has pain, because her hour has come; but when she gives birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish because of the joy that a child has been born into the world (John 16:20-21).

And, I agree that the dragon represents satan. But, most understand that the dragon also represents satan's followers. For example, it's commonly held that the dragon's seven heads represent his seven great empires -- Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Medo-Persia, the Greek empire, the Roman Empire and, as if back from the dead, a revived Rome.

God's image of a dragon doesn't just have heads, it also has a tail. You see, the head represents satan's political followers and the tail his religious followers. We know this because, in Revelation chapter 12, we see the dragon using his tail to sweep a third of the stars of heaven and and throw them to earth. It is widely believed that these stars represent the angels of God that satan deceived into to following him in his rebellion against God. And, in Isaiah, we find God alluding to the dragon while talking about His very own nation as it slipped into apostasy. God said:

So the Lord cuts off head and tail from Israel, both palm branch and bulrush in a single day. The head is the elder and honorable man, and the prophet who teaches falsehood is the tail. For those who guide this people are leading them astray; And those who are guided by them are brought to confusion (Isaiah 9:14-16). 

Now that we have looked at God's three key images of prophecy in Revelation chapter 12, in chapter 13 God moves in for a close-up of the rise of both the dragon's last head and its tail. And, at the end of chapter 13, we find that these two events are both somehow to be associated with the number 666. Friends, I fear that's where Recommendation 666 may come in.

If you read my book, you know that it was while I was wondering about the prophetic implications of the events that I had witnessed in European -- the rise of 10 nation Western European Union, the new Office of High Representative and the making of the WEU the military arm of the European Union, that I discovered that all these events were connected to -- and possibly confirmed by -- the number 666. 

In these last few days I had the same experience while witnessing another event with possible prophetic implications. But, this time the number 666 is connected to -- and may be confirming -- the rise of the dragon's tail, not its head. You see, the UN's Alliance of Civilizations (AOC) is a combination of secular and apostate religious world leaders coming together to fight all forms of religious extremism and fundamentalism, and bring peace and safety to the world. The goal is to have the AOC begin in September 2009 with an additional 12 months to prepare. So, that means, the AOC will be completely up and running in 2010 -- the middle of the coming seven-year period of which FP has been reporting.

And, as I reported yesterday Read about it here, this event too is associated with Recommendation 666.

Are you ready? If not, call on Jesus to save you now.

And, stay tuned.