Post 2016 U.S. Election Thoughts

In this article, I will share some of my thoughts about where I believe America may be heading in the short-term and long-term following the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

Did Trump’s Win Surprise Me?

I was not surprised that Donald Trump won the U.S. presidency. In fact, people who follow my Facebook page saw a post I wrote on October 27, 2016, where I stated that I believed that Trump had a much greater chance of winning than what many American news outlets were portraying to people.

Someone recently asked me where I think we are in the relation to the end times. I think the outcome of the upcoming U.S. presidential election will make that clearer. With that said, I don’t believe the election is “over” as many American news outlets portray. Objectively speaking, I believe #Trump’s chances of winning are much higher than what many American news outlets are currently portraying.

I thought the political polls at the time were oversampling Democrat voters and were underestimating the support Trump had from independent voters and Democrat crossover voters, groups that Trump did well with during the primary election season.

Is Donald Trump the Antichrist?

I wrote an article back in June 2016 addressing whether Donald Trump was the Antichrist. I concluded in my article that Trump was not the Antichrist, but people have asked me whether my view has changed after he won the election. My answer on the issue of whether or not Trump is the Antichrist has not changed. I do not believe Trump is the Antichrist for the same reasons I mentioned in my prior article.

Near-Term Post-Election Uncertainties

Many American voters viewed Trump as the candidate who would be likeliest of the two major candidates to bring change to America if he was able to fully implement his agenda (whether that change is good or bad depends on your perspective). With Trump’s victory, many uncertainties in the near-term future exist because it is unclear how much of his agenda he will be able to implement and what the repercussions will be. Here are a few things to consider:

  • Trade: Will Trump be able to renegotiate the U.S.’s trade deals as he promised, and what will the repercussions be? Do Trump’s trade policies lead to trade wars between the U.S. and other countries, and what damage would trade wars have on the U.S. economy and global economy if they arise? Some believe that free trade reduces the likelihood of conflict between countries as their economies become interdependent. Does potential trade hostilities between the U.S. and China increase the risk of military conflict between the two economic powers?
  • Defense Spending: Will Trump be able to successfully get countries to pay for the U.S. military’s protection? If not and the U.S. removes its military protection, will countries like Japan begin to arm themselves? Will arms races ensue in a region like East Asia? If the U.S. withdraws from N.A.T.O., will individual European countries like Germany begin to arm themselves to compensate for the loss of the U.S.’s military backing? Or will E.U. members work together to create a stronger collective defense force, a real European Army?
  • Foreign Policy: Will Trump be able to destroy ISIS as he promised or will his efforts to destroy ISIS destabilize the Middle East further? Sometimes good intentions have unintended consequences… Will Trump actually move the U.S.’s embassy in Israel to Jerusalem? If so, will this gesture of recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital lead to a Third Intifada?

I am not saying whether or not I think Trump can succeed nor am I providing you with my opinion about whether I think Trump’s policy proposals are good or bad. I am only trying to give you a sense of the amount of uncertainty that exists in the near-term future. With change comes the possibility for more things to happen.

The U.S.’s Long-Term Prognosis

The U.S. has been the dominant superpower in the world since the end of the Cold War. Therefore, much of the political and economic power in the world has been concentrated in one country (the U.S.). This power distribution is much different than the power distribution of the end times. Revelation 17 and Daniel 7 indicate that the Antichrist’s empire, which will have global influence, will comprise of ten kingdoms that surrender their power to the Antichrist.

“(13) And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast. (14) These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.” (Revelation 17:13-14)

“The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.” (Daniel 7:23)

These verses indicate that much of the political and economic power in the world in the end times will be concentrated in ten kingdoms rather than just one like it is now. This suggests that the U.S.’s economic and political standing in the world will decline over the long run. Therefore, I expect the U.S.’s power to diminish over time. I currently do not believe there are any clear references to the U.S. in Bible prophecy, so a decline in the U.S.’s power could be quite significant in the long-term.

I do not know for sure if the U.S. will increase in strength or decrease in strength during Trump’s presidency. However, the long-term prognosis for the U.S. is not positive, so any increase in the U.S.’s strength under Trump is unlikely to last in the long-term.

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Wayne Croley
Wayne Croley

Hi! I’ve studied and written about Bible prophecy since I was a teenager. My goal is to make Bible prophecy easy for you to understand while avoiding the sensationalism seen elsewhere. I am the author of several end time books, including Prophecy Proof Insights on the End Times, a comprehensive book about the end times. I hold an M.B.A. and degrees in Managerial Economics and Political Science.

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  1. Hello Wayne,

    Concerning your article “Post 2016 Election Thoughts” you made these statements:

    “These verses indicate that much of the political and economic power in the world in the end times will be concentrated in ten kingdoms rather than just one like it is now. This suggests that the U.S.’s economic and political standing in the world will decline over the long run. Therefore, I expect the U.S.’s power to diminish over time. I currently do not believe there are any clear references to the U.S. in Bible prophecy, so a decline in the U.S.’s power could be quite significant in the long-term.

    I do not know for sure if the U.S. will increase in strength or decrease in strength during Trump’s presidency. However, the long-term prognosis for the U.S. is not positive, so any increase in the U.S.’s strength under Trump is unlikely to last in the long-term.”

    Have you ever considered that America is the “Babylon the Great” spoken of in Revelation? That America has indeed been mentioned in Bible prophecy and it’s been right under our noses the whole time? At this current time, no nation would seem to fit the description of the Babylon mentioned in Revelation then the USA. It’s incredibly hard to fathom that a super power nation like the US would have no role to play whatsoever in the end times. If the US has no part to play in the coming end times, it could be because of these possibilities:

    1. The US is involved in some cataclysmic war or series of wars that destroys it and/or renders it into a third world nation (Possible but unlikely considering our military capabilities and resources which many vastly underestimate. At this time, the US could probably take over most of the world militarily if it so chose. The two next largest super powers, Russia and China pale in comparison to the US militarily).

    2. The US reverts to an extremist isolationist policy or position of neutrality and refuses to get involved in other nations affairs (Again, very unlikely considering today’s globalist economy, mentality and the internet, and with the US being the largest seller of rank worldiness today).

    3. A long term protracted civil war break outs splitting the US into fractions and thus rendering it ineffective or irrelevant on the world scene. (This one is possible, considering the direction the US seems to be heading and the way it’s people are behaving towards one another).

    4. The US is “Babylon the Great” as mentioned in the book of Revelation (This seems to be the most likely scenario at this current time, giving the amount of sin, filth, love of celebrity, love of self, liberal extremism, and general Godlessness that is coming out of the US today, which much of the rest of the world is eagerly gobbling up in droves).

    I don’t claim to be a prophet and I’m aware that the future can bring rapid, radical changes that may seem inconceivable now. I myself am unsure about these things but it would seem incredibly hard to believe at this current time that the US would play no role whatsoever during the end times. If that be true, then the end times spoken of in scripture would seem a long, long way off. Even an America that was greatly reduced in power would still have some clout on the world stage. America would have to be thoroughly destroyed in a big way (Revelation 18?) for it to be knocked out of the world scene. This seems highly unlikely given the times we live in and how fast things are accelerating towards the final days of this worlds system.

    I feel the second coming of Christ and the end times are close at hand, closer then the time it would take for an America to be greatly reduced in power and influence stage barring a catastrophic war or natural disaster of epic proportions. Can you give me any good reasons why I should not be thinking this way concerning the USA or point me to anything that can teach me who or what “Babylon the Great” really is?

    • I’ve thought of the possibility of U.S. representing Babylon the Great since I was a teenager. If things happened soon, the U.S. would be a strong candidate to represent Babylon the Great. However, I don’t believe the end times necessarily have to start soon nor am I that optimistic about the U.S.’s long-term prospects… A scenario where the U.S. has little end time role is not that difficult for me to imagine because I can envision multiple scenarios where the U.S.’s power declines drastically. One scenario you did not mention is a decline in the U.S.’s power due to economic collapse.

      Take a close look at the prophecies concerning the city of Babylon in the Middle East and consider whether they were actually fulfilled back in the 6th Century B.C. or whether they still await fulfillment in the future.

      • Yes, an economic collapse of the US is a very real possibility. But the US economy is so intertwined with the other major players of the world’s economies, Europe, China, etc. that any major collapse here would likely take out them as well, and they would be just as irrelevant then as we are. Somehow, I don’t think the European nations are going to irrelevant during the end times, so why should we?

        Then there is all those people, weapons and military might that would just be lying around. If something bad enough happened here, the US might just start invading others to take their resources. It’s possible we could be so embroiled in small wars and infighting among ourselves that we don’t bother with or care about what happened to Israel, paving the way for the Antichrist and the European Union to make their moves.

        I can see a few scenarios where something could happen to the US to make it irrelevant on the world stage but it would take decades, even a century or more for that to happen. It’s possible, but I don’t see much evidence to suggest that the events of Christ’s second coming and the Great Tribulation are that far off, not with the way things are moving now and with all this technology and weaponry available. I would like to believe, for the sake of my country, that they are, but as a Christian, I also long for Christs return as well.

        • It is a good point you and Connie make about the USA being Babylon the Great. However, I don’t get two details, that’s why I don’t believe this theory is correct. 1) What about “the blood of prophets and of saints”? When exactly had been the USA, in its 240 years of history, killing prophets and saints in mass numbers? No doubt there are dark pages in the history book of the US but I can’t recall anything that would be an adequate act to fulfill that part of the prophecy. In fact, in the biggest war of its history, the US fought desperately against another power that was indeed killing saints (among others) and lost hundreds of thousands of men in this terrible war.
          Of course it is not entirely impossible that the US will do something in the future that makes it the killer of prophets and saints, but then again, there are many, a lot more possible aspirants for that role in the current world.
          You can say that I’m wrong about understanding the US as a relatively new country with 240 years of history and I should understand that it represents the ancient Babylon spiritually in the current world, that is why God sees her as a killer of prophets and saints. I couldn’t argue against this because it’s a speculative point with no scriptural basis.
          2) The prophecy in Revelation 18 is very clear that Babylon is a city. Not a continent-sized country. Considering the severity of its judgment and plagues, and that it’s destroyed by fire, if these were to affect a whole country instead of a city, it would be such a great cataclysm that it would possibly destroy life on earth. Even the eruption of one single volcano anywhere on earth can reduce the temperature of the whole planet by several degrees for several years because of the debris and ash and steam injected in the atmosphere. If a country as big as the USA were to be destroyed by fire, it would definitely mean the end of life on this planet. That would make the call “Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues” entirely pointless.
          So, considering that the text doesn’t mention a country but a city, and that it is unlikely that God plans to destroy a continent-sized country by fire (at least, at this point in the prophetic events), and that I can’t see how the USA could be understood as a killer of saints and prophets (if only not for an act in the future), I don’t think the USA as a country can be identified as the great city of Babylon in Bible prophecy.

          • Babylon is more than a city or nation, she is a spiritual entity just as the beast is, and has been the female “goddess” of a number of empires over the years. The U.S. is just the last place she has headquartered herself. That is where the understanding of her riding the beast and its multiple heads come in. All those empires they have ruled. That is your Scriptural basis for which you are looking for her murdering the saints and prophets. She has always had a major capitol city as her primary headquarters, but she controls the entire empire through her mysteries, and so that is what she represents, the entire empire or nation. The major city, or her headquarters, will be obliterated, but so will the rest of the land be decimated. And in case you hadn’t realized it from the events in Revelation, there are extinction events occurring which will decimate the earth’s population dramatically, however Babylon will really catch God’s wrath. Nobody will be left in her. Few will be left in the rest of the world to repopulate the millennium when all is said and done. But it is God’s intention that the world go on, and so it shall, regardless of whether people should survive or not. He has ordained that some will. He’s done it before, He can do it again. It is my belief from studying the Scriptures that God is going to use all of these cataclysmic events to restore the earth to her antediluvian state, which was quite different from what we now experience.

            Getting back to Babylon, she has murdered the saints and prophets since Nimrod and Semiramis (the original beast and Babylon) tried to create the one world government in their time. She has been doing it ever since. She is not just the U.S., she is all those empires that she has reigned over for those millennia. She has a lot of blood on her hands. And as to the blood of the saints in this country, give it time, it will happen. It already has been ongoing, if you consider all the abortions in this country. For whom do you think that blood has been shed? How about all the babies that have been sacrificed by the occult in this country? Maybe you are unaware of this latter going on, but trust me, it goes on far more than you may realize.

            Nobody fits the profile of her and her abominations better than the U.S. Too many prophecies fit us.

          • Yeah I know it can be spiritualized like that, I also mentioned this in my comment. But you were stating America is Babylon and she will be destroyed. However, as I had pointed out, the concept of “Babylon” used by John in Rev 18, the destruction of which is described there, clearly means a city, not (or not only) a spiritual entity, nor a whole country it occupies (like the USA). Which city do you think it will be, then?
            (You are most probably right about the USA being the current center of Babylon’s abominations, though, as American pop culture is by far the most influential one in the world today.)
            I tend to agree with what Wayne has stated before (I think, but I can’t recall where and when, and I don’t want to put into his mouth words he didn’t say), that the current world order (which is clearly dominated by the USA, that is, despite all its “sorceries” etc, still the best hegemon imaginable currently, and for the record: I’m not American) will likely be changed during the development of end time events, either by a slow decline or by a series of drastic events, and as a result, much more power and wealth will be concentrated (we could say it will “return”) to the ancient East, including the North (relative to the Holy Land) and it could also possibly mean a new Babylonian Empire in its original geographical region with an ancient/new great capitol city.
            Many people, and forgive me but, as I see it, especially Americans, tend to completely ignore the incredible wealth and luxury and might of the new Persian Gulf States, which are growing and developing extremely fast. I see a high possibility of things getting back to their historic place during the end times, including Jerusalem becoming the cultural-religional-spiritual centrum of the world again, and even the spiritual Babylon returning to her ancient cities and empires, rebuilding and reanimating them again. By the way, did you know which is the tallest structure in the world currently? Yes, you guessed right, it is Burj Khalifa in Dubai, Middle East, coast of the Persian Gulf. Just another interesting fact. People there really love tall structures, don’t they.
            Considering also biblical prophecies’ typical Israel-centeredness and viewpoint, I tend to think that the possibility for the city described in Rev 18, being spectated by many seamen as it burns with the biggest flame and smoke they could ever imagine, being one Middle Eastern megalopolis is much higher than it being any American city.
            However, as I had added before, this is all speculation.

          • It is possible that the dynamic of the world could change, but as of now I see the U.S. as fitting the bill. How long do you think it would take for a city, since you believe it is only a city, to come into being, become so wealthy and be so powerful to be able to export all its sorceries to the world, and make all the merchants of the world wealthy off mainly her alone, as well as live on many waters, both physically and spiritually meaning a center for all cultures and fill all the other criteria? Is just a city capable of becoming so powerful? Do you see there being that much time left?

            And since Israel is also told to come out of
            Babylon to go to Jerusalem at the end, for it appears from Jeremiah that some will be in Babylon at that time, how do you see that happening if it is in the midst of the lands run over by the antichrist for he will have the Middle East under his control.

            Why do you see the beast’s people destroying her on his behalf?

            As for what city would I target, unlike some who say NYC, I would choose D.C. The reason being, that while there is a statue of her in NYC harbor, the capitol building in D.C. is a temple to her. Her statue stands atop the dome. She seems to be the goddess of the Freemasons, (even though they call their god the “Great Architect) and they have a headquarters in DC that has as a part (yes, only a part) of its name “The Supreme Council (Mother Council of the World) of the Inspectors General Knights Commander of the House of the Temple of Solomon of the Thirty-third Degree of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite….” Being the Mother Council of the World would seem to indicate a world headquarters. The city was founded by and laid out by Masons to have all these pagan symbols. So many people in politics and business seem to be Masons. Including the leaders of other countries. The US seems to rule the nations (through influencing the UN), and her capitol city is DC, even though the UN is in NYC. We kind of rule over the kings of the earth, for how we vote determines a lot. Just look at what Obama just did to Israel through the UN vote. If DC were obliterated it would be the end of the country, for our government is concentrated there. We would be in chaos. And we would then be open to all sort of attacks, which would finish off the country. No more would America buy all the stuff from the rest of the world, for it would all be burning. The Middle East would see to that, as would all the rest of the world that hates us.

          • These are really interesting facts and theory I’ll have to think about a lot. Thanks.
            I don’t know much regarding time, but one thing I do know is, basically every generation since Christ thought they were living in the end times and Christ was probably returning in their lifetime. They could find “prophetic signs” in their world, in their time, that were used as indicators of how close the second coming of Christ was. They were wrong. The second coming was not even in a few hundred years to come.
            This doesn’t necessarily mean that people who think today that the second coming is very close are wrong; it just makes me cautious.
            One great sign that there wasn’t and now there is, is some of the Jewish people living in Israel state on the Holy Land again.

          • Yes, that is the real main sign. Possibly also the fact that the world (according to the Bible) is roughly 6000 years old too. Since the millennium would be the 7th, it would be the Sabbath millennium at the end of a millennial week. God did seem to use the seven day week a lot. Seven days, seven years, seven sevens of years, and seven millenniums?

  2. Rev. 3:9
    I will make those who are of the synagogue of Satan, who claim to be Jews though they are not, but are liars–I will make them come and fall down at your feet and acknowledge that I have loved you.

    Rev. 2:9
    I know your afflictions and your poverty–yet you are rich! I know about the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.

    Rev. 11:8
    Their bodies will lie in the public square of the great city–which is figuratively called Sodom and Egypt–where also their Lord was crucified.. 11:8

    Isaiah 1:21
    See how the faithful city has become a prostitute! She once was full of justice; righteousness used to dwell in her– but now murderers!

    Rev 17:1
    Then one of the seven angels with the seven bowls came and told me, “Come, I will show you the punishment of the great prostitute, who sits on many waters.

    Figure out who are these fake jews and this great city that the above scriptures are referring to in our present time. Who are the descendants of the Pharisees today? Where is their seat of power and influence residing right now?

    • You know, I find it really annoying at times that people want to give clues for you to try to guess what their interpretation of Scripture is. If you have something to say, say it. If you want to back up what you say with Scripture, all the better, but don’t ask people to guess what you’re thinking. Personally I can’t be bothered, because I’ve done my own research and am satisfied that I am on the right track. I’m sure others feel the same. This isn’t a guessing game that we are playing.

  3. I know we are not on the same page about who Babylon is. I see her as America, as for me the description fits America better than any other nation. As such, reading the prophecy about Babylon and how, while she is a whore drunk on the blood of the saints, she is also a powerful wealthy nation, as all the merchants and kings of the world are getting rich off of her indulging herself in luxuries. There is trade going on, she is exporting her fornications and sorceries while importing all the delicacies and riches of the world. When she is destroyed, the merchants and kings mourn her passing, as who will buy their wares now, since the rest of the world is not wealthy like her. She still sits as a queen thinking nobody can touch her. For me, as I believe Babylon is America, I saw Trump having to win, to stop the path we were going down with the regime we were under. There would have to be a major turn around in our economy and trade agreements, etc. to bring us back to the country we once were. I think Trump is going to do what he says he will do. That does not mean that I see Christians sitting in safety while the rest of the world suffers. I think there is something special planned for the Laodicean Christians in this country, as she is still drunk on the blood of the saints, but I won’t go into that here.