In this chapter we will study the actual nations forming into the Antichrist's one world religious system; However, it will not be in the form of symbolism or a parable. We will see God bringing forth His eternal plan, which will ultimately cause Satan, the Antichrist [The son of perdition] to turn to ashes. This is why Satan is referred to in John 17, II Thessalonians 2, and Revelation 17 as the "son of perdition".

The "son of perdition" means "the son that shall perish", in the Greek text. All of God's created beings, of men or angels [In soul bodies] are referred to as God's sons. Genesis 6:2 describes the angels who came to earth, not through the process of birth through the mothers womb, as "the sons of God". And we read in that passage that they appeared as men; they married the daughters of men, and even had offspring. They looked like men, because we are all made in the image of God; which is what God looks like.

Satan is the only "son", or one already condemned to perish, except for the few "Nephilim", or angelic beings who defied God, and entered this earth age [world] other then through the birthing process. We saw in Ezekiel 28:18, 19 that Satan has already been sentenced, and "never shall be anymore". Satan is being used as the negative tool in this earth age to test God's children, to see if they will follow Satan, or follow the Living God.

Ezekiel 29:1 "In the tenth year, in the tenth month, in the twelfth day of the month, the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,"

We see by this vision that in came to Ezekiel one year and two days after the siege of Jerusalem, as recorded in Jeremiah 39:1. This was about six months prior to Jerusalem's fall. This is dated from the captivity of Jehoichin, the King of Judah.

Ezekiel 29:2 "Son of man, set thy face against Pharaoh king of Egypt, and prophesy against him, and against all Egypt:"

Ezekiel 29:3 "Speak, and say, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I am against thee, Pharaoh king of Egypt, the great dragon that lieth in the midst of his rivers, which hath said, My river is mine own, and I have made it for myself'."

Egypt has always let Israel lean upon her when the way was getting rough, however in every case, Egypt fell short in providing the help when it was needed. When the Assyrians came against Israel, and later Babylon came against Judah, we see Egypt was all talk, and never came to the battle.

With the Nile flowing through Egypt, and her Suez canal waterway, Egypt has always had plenty of water and crops. With this abundance, she has also been a greedy nation. God is telling Egypt, "Behold, I am against thee, Pharaoh, King of Egypt." The "great dragon" in the Hebrew text, is a crocodile.

Ezekiel 29:4 "But I will put hooks in thy jaws, and I will cause the fish of thy rivers to stick unto thy scales, and I will bring thee up out of the midst of thy rivers, and all the fish of thy rivers shall stick unto thy scales."

So we see, this old "crocodile is the "Pharaoh, and the fish are his subjects, or people of Egypt. this is prophecy both then, and for this end time generation.

Ezekiel 29:5 "And I will leave thee thrown into the wilderness, thee and all the fish of thy rivers: thou shalt fall upon the open fields; thou shalt not be brought together, nor gathered: I have given thee for meat to the beasts of the field and to the fowls of the heaven."

This "wilderness" is a desert. How long can a crocodile last in the desert? Keep in mind that this is a prophecy directed to the rulers [Pharaoh] of the Egyptians, and not to their land. There is a reason for this punishment.

Ezekiel 29:6 "And all the inhabitants of Egypt shall know that I am the Lord, because they have been a staff of reed to the house of Israel."

God is not pleased with the rulers of Egypt, and He is going to show Egypt that the Lord is God. In the expression, "a staff of a reed unto the House of Israel", is in reference to how Egypt turned it's back on the House of Israel, when it was attacked and overthrown by the Assyrians. II Kings 18:21, and Isaiah 20:5, 6 records how Egypt promised the House of Israel [not the Jews] that the Egyptian army would stand beside Israel when and if she went to battle.

Then in 745-722 B.C., Assyria came against Israel, and when the time came to fight, that "staff" or strength that Israel was counting on folded. Egypt's promises were like a "reed that was blown away in the wind". The result of Egypt's failure to support God's people, has been Assyrian captivity, and the scattering of the ten tribes across Europe, to the Americas, and around the world. When Israel leaned on the Egyptian staff, it was little more than a twig of a reed.

Ezekiel 29:7 "(When they took hold of thee by thy hand, thou didst break, and rend all their shoulder: and when they leaned upon thee, thou brakest, and madest all their loins to be at a stand)."

When Israel put it's full weight on that staff, they found only a twig, and like we saw above, the damage resulted in the captivity and migration of the Israelites. The point of this is to stress that no nation can save mankind, or any other nation, not even a "one world system", like the one that has taken shape today. Peace promises, treaties, and trade agreements just won't work. It did not work between the old House of Israel and the Egyptians, and It simply will not work under any fabricated one world satanic system.

Though war is bad, suppression and slavery are worse. When one order of government suppresses the people, the people must rise to the occasion, or be enslaved. What is the point of this all? No nation can save the children of God; not even Satan and his religious system. The only person we have to lean on is our Heavenly Father, and He will see us through.

Ezekiel 29:8 "Therefore thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I will bring a sword upon thee, and cut off man and beast out of thee."

God is just going to cut them off, so there will be no more dependency on Egypt again.

Ezekiel 29:9 "And the land of Egypt shall be desolate and waste; and they shall know that I am the Lord: because he hath said, ' The river is mine, and I have made it."

Our God is a jealous God. He is not pleased when His people go around leaning on things of this world, rather then trusting Him. God has feelings, and throughout the Scripture His feelings are recorded. He is our Heavenly Father, and as such, He has the feelings of a father for His children. It also hurts Him, as it would a earthly father, when His children just don't care for Him.

Ezekiel 29:10 "Behold, therefore I am against thee, and against thy rivers, and I will make the land of Egypt utterly waste and desolate, from the tower of Syene even unto the border of Ethiopia."

The Pharaoh didn't create the river, or the land. God created the land, and made the river flow through it. When we overlook just who made the land and the river, or any property that we think is ours, and lose sight that all is God's, He will take it from us. Man is a living soul, and part of God's creation, and our time on earth is very limited.

Ezekiel 29:11 "No foot of man shall pass through it, nor foot of beast shall pass through it, neither shall it be inhabited forty years."

During the building of the Aswan Dam, the commerce going up and down the river was blocked for forty years, one full generation. The Russians were in control, and any foot crossing over risked being killed. The cold war was at it's height.

Ezekiel 29:12 "And I will make the land of Egypt desolate in the midst of the countries that are desolate, and her cities among the cities that are laid waste shall be desolate forty years: and I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and will disperse them through the countries."

We have seen over the past generation, that the Egyptians were so poor that many migrated around the world just to find work to stay alive. In talking with Egyptian people, including an former government official, this is exactly what is going on today. The massive migration of Egypt has gone on since the fifties. There were more Egyptians in the Iraqi army fighting Iran, then Iraqi people themselves.

When is a land desolate in the spiritual sense? The land is desolate when it is void of the true God, and God's Word. Egypt is against our Lord Jesus Christ.

Ezekiel 29:13 "Yet thus saith the Lord God ; At the end of forty years will I gather the Egyptians from the people whither they were scattered."

Prosperity is returning to Egypt, and the move to return has started. The road to return to Egypt was made clear through the Camp David peace accord. The covenant signed between President Carter, President Anwar Sadat, and Mr Begin of Israel allowed for commerce through the canal to continue flowing, and bring back business and jobs to Egypt.

Along with the wealth they made abroad, they have developed greater tolerance to Christianity. Because of the peace accord, all Arabic [Islamic] nations turned their back on Egypt, however, she is starting to do well.

Ezekiel 29:14 "And I will bring again the captivity of Egypt, and will cause them to return into the land of Pathros, into the land of their habitation; and they shall be there a base kingdom."

From this verse, and on to the end of this chapter, and into the next; we will be given indications of things and events that will happen just prior and following the arrival of the Antichrist. The use of Nebuchadnezzar and Babylon is a prophetic type of Satan, and his one world system. God used King Nebuchadnezzar and ancient Babylon to get the House of Judah [Jews] in line, some 2,600 years ago. God will allow His people, the Christians of today, to face and come under another Nebuchadnezzar in these final days. That king we call the Antichrist.

The Antichrist is a tool of God, to sort His elect, from the false Christians, who do not take Him seriously. Satan will not take the power to deceive the nation, but it was given to him. Revelation 9:1 says; "And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star [Satan] fall from heaven unto the earth: and to him [by God] was given the keys [power] of the bottomless pit."

We read in Revelation 9:4; "And it was commanded them.." God commanded Satan and this massive locust army of fallen angels. It is God who controls all times and events of history. When we see the nations of Egypt, Israel and others fitting a pattern of prophecy, you can see God's hand in the preparation of the world to receive their new ruler, the Antichrist. Some of the types of prophecy are not in the physical sense, but in the spiritual.

Verse fourteen is saying that the Egyptians will be returning back to Egypt, and be a "base kingdom", or small kingdom. They will never again hold a dominate role on the world political scene. Though Egypt is the oldest nation in the world, with a continuing government, she will not hold the position again of world control.

Ezekiel 29:15 "It shall be the basest of the kingdoms; neither shall it exalt itself any more above the nations: for I will diminish them, that they shall no more rule over nations."

With the destruction of king Nassar's reign, and the murder of Sadat, Egypt lost it's influence over the Islamic nations. Syria and Saudi Arabia are now the leaders confounding Iraq and Iran. It is as God has prophesied; "It shall be the basest [smallest] of kingdoms." The Egyptian influence is still diminishing.

Ezekiel 29:16 "And it shall be no more the confidence of the house of Israel, which bringeth their iniquity to remembrance, when they shall look after them: but they shall know that I am the Lord God."

All these prophecies are coming to pass to show the world that our God is the Living God, and has control. Many times the House of Israel has looked to the Pharaoh [rulers] of Egypt for help; and also to Babylon as the oppressor; only God used these nations to correct Israel. It is no different today, for today's Babylon is the one world system that is taking control today. The Christian world [House of Israel] is being overtaken by their forces, through deception and lies, and the Christian world sleeps on.

Though it is in political form now, however, shortly it will be a religious system with the Antichrist as it's leader. Only the Elect of God know what is going on, and the truth that will free them from the Antichrist's grip.

Ezekiel 29:17 "And it came to pass in the seven and twentieth year, in the first month, in the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,"

Ezekiel 29:18 ""Son of man, Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon caused his army to serve a great service against Tyrus: every head was made bald, and every shoulder was peeled: yet had he no wages, nor his army, for Tyrus, for the service that he had served against it:"

In historical fact, God gave Nebuchadnezzar Tyrus, only he did not take it. Tyrus's "shoulder was peeled" because he cut a deal, or treaty with Babylon. In any case king Nebuchadnezzar's army stopped short of taking Tyrus. In other words, the Kenites of Tyrus bought him off. This is sort of like the same fishy agreements the Kenites of today are working out, under the name of GATT, NAFTA, or any other one-sided deal for their benefit.

Ezekiel 29:19 "Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will give the land of Egypt unto Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon; and he shall take her multitude, and take her spoil, and take her prey; and it shall be the wages for his army."

Though this is an ancient historical event, it is also in a future sense. This occurred when Babylon was ruled by Selecus Nicator, the king of the north, and he moved on Egyptian General Ptolemy Soter, the king of the south, of Daniel 11.

Ezekiel 29:20 "I have given him the land of Egypt for his labour wherewith he served against it, because they wrought for Me, saith the Lord God."

God is saying that He is going to give Egypt to Babylon because they work [wrought] for Me. God said that it is their wages for their labor in my service.

Ezekiel 29:21 "In that day will I cause the horn of the house of Israel to bud forth, and I will give thee the opening of the mouth in the midst of them; and they shall know that I am the Lord."

This horn is power, and it come forth out of the house of Israel. The power of these last days is coming forth out of the Christian nations, the United States and England [Canada also]. It is not the House of Judah [Jews] where the power is budding forth, for Judah of today [the Nation of Israel] is little more then a beggar nation, relying on the generosity of the American taxpayer.

Notice that this power [of the United Nations] is coming out of their mouths, and not their minds. They speak with a voice of power and understanding, only because God is allowing it, and the Christian world is sound asleep. We are in the final generation, and the word of God is changing many minds, and lives, before the one world religious system comes into being, with Satan the Antichrist ruling.