The idea of a global event occurring in 2012 based on any interpretation of the Mesoamerican Long Count calendar is rejected as pseudoscience by the scientific community, and as misrepresentative of Maya history by Mayanist scholars.

So what are people so excited about? Well, in brief, Maya myths say that the world was created August 11, 3114 B.C. and the Long Count calendar finishes a “great cycle” of thirteen b’ak’tuns (periods of 144,000 days) in a little more than 5,125 solar years, coming to an end on December 21, 2012. The Maya themselves made no predictions about what would happen on this date, and Maya scholars are becoming weary of all this Doomsday talk, but that doesn’t stop many modern people from drawing the “obvious” conclusion: if the present world began when the Maya calendar started, it will end when the calendar ends.

One line on Tortuguero Monument 6 reads that “black will occur” at the end of the cycle and John M. Jenkins states that Maya astrologers were aware of the existence of a band of black dust clouds in the Milky Way and called it the Black Road. In 2012 the sun aligns somewhat imperfectly with the Black Road (as it does every 36 years, mind you), and New Agers believe this heralds a dramatic consciousness shift—the beginning of the Age of Aquarius, which apparently had some trouble getting started back in the hippy era.

But if the world does end on this date instead, what causes all the destruction? According to people who claim to be in contact with aliens, that’s where Planet X (aka Nibiru or Niburu, named after a Babylonian god) comes in. The aliens have discovered that Planet X, a rogue orb that escaped its own sun, is on a collision course with the Earth. The aliens are convinced that this will bring Doomsday, not a new and enlightened age—and out of the goodness of their hearts, have decided to warn us. Sort of like the movie, “The Day the Earth Stood Still,” with a twist.

A collision, of course, would obliterate all life on Earth—even knock it out of its present orbit. A near-miss will be bad enough, Planet Xers insist, causing Earth to go through a “pole shift.” The Earth’s crust will somehow come loose, shift over the mantle, disrupting continents, destroying cities and causing the deaths of untold millions. Many Nibiru-watchers believe that this cataclysm will happen in 2012 because after all, that’s when the Mayas said the end of the world will happen.

Even some Christians believe in planet Nibiru and say that the following passage from the book of Revelation describes the effects of the planet’s close passage:

“And there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great. And the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell: and great Babylon came in remembrance before God, to give to her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath. And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found” (Rev. 16:18–19).

A near-miss by another planet might definitely have the effect that Revelation describes, but the problem is that if such a planet existed and was en route to earth, arriving here in 2012, astronomers would surely have seen it by now. But they haven’t. Several Nibiru conspiracy theorists have then resorted to accusing the scientific community of a massive cover-up to avoid panic over a doomsday scenario.

The world will eventually experience the cataclysms that Rev. 16:17–19 describes, but it’s futile to attempt to predict dates for the return of Christ or the End of the World. Jesus said, “Of that day and hour knows no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only” (Mat. 24:36).

The first horsemen rode a white horse and had a bow, “and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.” Interpretations vary widely on this horse and rider: some say it describes Christ himself in 33 A.D., riding forth to conquer the world with the Gospel; others insist that it is symbolic of the Antichrist conquering the world in the End Time. For reasons I will describe below, I believe that it is neither one, but the spirit of greed and conquest itself that leads to war.

The second horse was red, the color of blood, “and power was given to him that sat on him to take peace from the earth, and that people should kill one another: and he was given a great sword.” Scholars universally agree that this horseman symbolizes war. The third horse was black, “and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand,” and was told to weigh out a meager portion of wheat for a day’s wages. This rider, Bible scholars agree, is famine. When Jesus opened the fourth seal, the fourth rider was named outright: John saw “a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death.”

Many people believe that the “Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse” will only begin riding and bringing great calamities at the very End of Time, but this is inaccurate. We see these same four horsemen already riding throughout the earth way back in 519 B.C.—over 500 years before Christ was born, and some 2,500 years before our day. (See Zech. 1:8–11 and 6:1–8.) When the prophet Zechariah asked what the four horsemen were, God explained that they were the four spirits of the heavens (Zech. 6:4–5), sent out by him to bring judgments on the earth.

Remember, the scroll contains the prophecies of the End Time events, and the seals are not the scroll itself. Jesus told John in the very beginning, “Write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be after this” (Rev. 1:19). The things John saw belonged in one of two timeframes: “the things which are” (that existed in 95 A.D.) and “the things which shall be” (the things that shall be in the future, in the End Time).

The seals were not the scroll itself; rather, they tell the entire story of human suffering on this earth over the long millennia. Conquest (the first seal), wars (the second seal), famine (seal three), and death (seal four) have plagued earth from the beginning of time to the present. These calamities correspond with the signs Jesus mentioned in Mat. 24:6–7—rumors of war, wars, famines and earthquakes—which he explained “must come, but the end is not yet.” Jesus said:

“And you shall hear of wars and rumors of wars: see that you are not troubled, for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and plagues, and earthquakes, in diverse places” (Mat. 24:6–7).

Take the third horse, for example—famine: famines of mind-staggering proportions have plagued the earth for millennia. In China alone, the disruption and famines caused by the Mongol invasion of the 1200s left 60 million dead; the 1333–1337 famine killed 6 million; famines in 1810, 1811, 1846, and 1849 left 45 million dead.; from 1850–1873, a combination of uprisings, drought and famine killed over 60 million Chinese. In India, there were 14 major famines between the 11^th–17^th centuries During the 1022-1033 Great Famine entire provinces were depopulated. I mention all this to stress Jesus’ point: “All these things must come to pass, but the End is not yet.”

The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse have ridden across the Earth in the past, continue their onslaught in the present, and will still be riding in the End Time—right up until the very Battle of Armageddon—but they don’t describe only future events. They have been the bane of mankind since the beginning of history.

Many nations find Iran’s push on uranium enrichment programs alarming. While Iran states that it merely seeks to create nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, most nations believe that it’s really seeking to create weapons of mass destruction. This fear has been underlined by Ahmadinejad’s repeated statements of hatred for Israel—he has called for the Jewish state to be “wiped off the map”—and his denial of the Holocaust. The very real fear is that under Ahmadinejad’s leadership, Iran could fire nuclear missiles at Israel. But will this happen?

When we turn to the Bible we come across the name “Persia” repeatedly. Iran was known as Persia for thousands of years and only began calling itself Iran in 1935. The ironic thing is that although all the other world empires—Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Greece and Rome—enslaved, killed or oppressed the Israelites, the Persian Empire was unusually benevolent toward them. God called the Persian king Cyrus “My shepherd” and “My anointed,” and when Cyrus became king, he stated that the God of Israel had commanded him to build a temple for him in Jerusalem—so he sent the Jews great treasures (Isa. 44:28; 45:1–4; Ezra 1:1–11). The beautiful Jewess Esther even married Ahasuerus (Xerxes) the Persian king! (Est. 2:16–18). How times have changed!

In recent years, Ahmadinejad has strengthened relations with Russia; in October 2005 he even set up an office expressly dedicated to this purpose. Russia has supplied Iran with enriched uranium in an effort to persuade it to stop pursuing its own enrichment program. These developments are significant, since Eze. 38:1–9 describes a great battle in the End Time, at the beginning of the Last Seven Years, when Magog (Russia) leads a coalition of nations in an overland invasion of Israel—and Persia is specifically named as one of the nations joining in the attack.

Ezekiel tells us that the Russian-led armies will be obliterated in a miraculous earthquake and by infighting in the terror and confusion that follows (Eze. 38:18–22). It is not clear whether the Iranian army actually arrives in Israel for the invasion and is obliterated as well—or whether it will still be fighting its way west through Iraq at the time of this destruction—but whichever scenario happens, the Iranians immediately cease hostilities. For the record, there is no mention in the Bible of Iran firing nuclear missiles at Israel, whether before this End Time invasion or during it.

The Iranians suffer a devastating invasion themselves later on, during the final great Battle of Armageddon, when the armies of the Kings of the East, 200 million strong, sweep west through India, Pakistan and Iran on their way to fight the Antichrist’s armies in the Valley of Armageddon in Israel.

“The number of the army of the horsemen was 200 million: And I saw the horses in the vision … and out of their mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone. By these three was a third of mankind killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued out of their mouths” (Rev. 9:16–18).

These “horses” are believed to be tanks belching out fire and smoke, killing people, and certainly any modern land army would include tanks. Even machine guns issue fire and smoke out of their “mouths.” This army of 200 million horsemen is led by the Kings of the East mentioned in Rev.16:12. These kings are most likely the warlords (regional rulers) of China, since even as far back as the 1960s, Mao boasted that he could raise an army of 200 million men. After cutting a swath of destruction through Iran, this army finally crosses Iran’s western border into Iraq and arrives at the Euphrates River.

To sum these events up: despite many fears to the contrary, by all indications in the Bible, Iran will not use nuclear weapons against Israel. It will, however, join in a land invasion of the Jewish state, which will be stopped in its tracks by a massive earthquake. And like many other peoples of the Near East and Middle East, the Iranians will suffer heavy casualties when the armies of the Kings of the East cross their land.

How does the Antichrist take over the world? Here is a probable scenario: he first rises to prominence on the world stage when he confirms a lasting and comprehensive peace treaty between Israel and the surrounding Arab nations—winning the Nobel Peace Prize in the process. The European Union, and indeed all nations, regards him as the key to peace on earth. He is the leading statesman on the planet, so when he requests his nation’s entry into the European Union (EU), its ten ruling members (the “ten horns” of Dan. 7:7) vote unanimously to allow him to join.

Then the world collapses in a severe economic catastrophe as deep as the Great Depression, and the EU, drafting emergency legislation, invests the office of president of the EU with real powers and elects the charismatic Antichrist as ruler. The rulers of three member states object, arguing against investing so much power in one man, but within days, a popular groundswell of demonstrators flood the streets of these three nations’ capitols, bringing down their governments.

“I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast … and it had ten horns. I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom three of the first horns were plucked up by the roots…. And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be different from the first ones, and he shall subdue three kings” (Dan. 7:7–8, 24).

It is commonly believed that these ten horns are ten nations and that for the Antichrist to “pluck them up by the roots” and “subdue” them that he must invade and conquer them. The text does not say this. It doesn’t even say that the Antichrist was the one who plucked them up—simply that “three of the first horns were plucked up by the roots” and that the Antichrist subdued them. While we tend to think “subdue” must involve war, the actual Hebrew word shephal means “to make low or humble.”

Regarding the Antichrist’s strategy for takeover, Daniel also said that—

“A vile person … shall come in peaceably, and obtain the kingdom by intrigue. He shall enter peaceably even upon the richest places of the province … by peace shall he destroy many” (Dan. 11:21, 24; 8:25).

With the three objecting rulers ousted peaceably and replaced by new leaders, all ten horns (nations) now agree to give their kingdom (the EU) to the Antichrist, urging him to quickly get on with the business of rescuing their floundering economies:

“The ten horns which you saw are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast. These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.” (Rev. 17:12–13)

This all happens during the first 3 ½ years of the Last Seven Years of world history, and the Antichrist’s solution is to create the groundwork and technology for the Mark of the Beast—and in the middle of the Last Seven Years, he is ready to implement it throughout the EU. That’s when some zealous enemy, recognizing him as the Antichrist, attempts to assassinate him. When he “miraculously” recovers, the entire world is amazed and worships him (Rev. 13:3–4, 12).

The Antichrist already rules Europe, but now he takes over the world, a feat he could never have accomplished through war, but can accomplish through powerful persuasion and willing cooperation. The world has already taken note of his solution to the economic disaster and he now states that since the Depression is global in scope, the 666-solution must also be implemented worldwide. Is Obama going to do all that in his term as the president of the United States?

Nostradamus wrote in rhyming quatrains (in French) and though they were often very vague and have been applied to any number of events, some were said to be amazingly fulfilled.  For example, in Century 9, Quatrain 16, he mentions Spanish dictator Franco and his predecessor, Rivera by name, stating that they come from Castille (Spain). Also chilling are four quatrains about an “unjust man” from Germany named Hister who would commit “the world’s lowest crime”—and the resemblance to Hitler cannot be mistaken. (See C.2–Q.2, C.4–Q.68, and C.5–Q.29.)

Nostradamus was a Catholic and was familiar with the book of Revelation, for he also wrote about the Antichrist, the End Time plagues and the Millennium. In Century 10, Quatrain 74, for example, he wrote:

The year the great seventh number is fulfilled,

Appearing at the time of the games of slaughter,

Not far from the age of the great millennium,

When the dead will come out of their graves.

Here he is simply repeating well-known Bible prophecies without saying anything new: when the Last Seven Years are fulfilled, Jesus will return, the dead rise to life, then the slaughter of Armageddon happens, followed by the Millennium. Nostradamus also repeats well-known Bible facts in Century 8, Quatrain 77 when he writes:

The Antichrist very soon annihilates the three,

The blood of his war will last twenty-seven years.

The unbelievers are dead, captives, and exiled;

With blood, human bodies, water and red hail covering the earth.

Dan. 7:24 states that the Antichrist subdues three kings; the book of Revelation describes plagues of hail and blood with large numbers of unbelievers dying. The only thing new Nostradamus mentions is that “the blood of his war will last twenty-seven years”—which does not agree with any Bible passage or timetable of End Time events. The period of the Antichrist’s reign—during which he fights several wars—is only seven years (Dan. 9:27).

Another of Nostradamus’ prophecies, Century 10, Quatrain 72, caused quite a stir in the years leading up to 1999, because it says:

In the year 1999, in the seventh month

From the sky the Great King of Terror will come,

To bring the great king of the Mongols back to life.

Before and after, Mars reigns happily.

The “great king of the Mongols” was Genghis Khan—a type of the final Antichrist. But Nostradamus lost quite a bit of credibility when no new “King of Terror” arose in 1999 and the buzz about Doomsday quickly died down.

Despite the claims of many Nostradamus enthusiasts, I have to conclude that he tells us nothing new about the Antichrist or the End Time. I don’t find anything Nostradamus has written enhancing my understanding of coming apocalyptic events. To truly understand what will happen in the Last Days, we must read what the Bible says—particularly Matthew 24 and the books of Daniel and Revelation.

Since these two political entities needed to be in place for the events of the End to take place, they are said to have initiated the Last Days—and in a general sense this is true. However, whenever Jesus spoke of the final days, he referred to them as “the End” (Mat. 24:6, 13, 14) and made it clear that “the End” he was talking about referred to only the 3 ½ years of the Great Tribulation. (See Mat. 24:15, 21.) Until that time of trouble begins, the Time of the End is not yet upon us.

We are, however, living in the days leading up to the Time of the End, and here are some fulfilled Bible prophecies that indicate this:

Israel becomes a nation again: The great Jewish Diaspora happened in 70 A.D., and for nearly 2,000 years they had no nation—yet for the apocalyptic events described in the Bible to happen, Israel had to exist again. The prophet Ezekiel prophesied two whole chapters (Eze.36–37) about the restoration of Israel. He said, “I will take you from among the nations, gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land” (Eze. 36:24). The British took over Palestine in WWI and began allowing Jews to return and settle there. Then in May 14, 1948, the Israelis declared themselves an independent nation.

The Formation of the European Union: Daniel 7:7–8; 23–25 prophesied that a great beast (symbolizing the Roman Empire) would appear, and that it would have ten horns on its head. Daniel said, “The ten horns are ten kings who shall arise from this kingdom.” Later, John prophesied in the days of the Roman Empire, “The ten horns … are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast [the Antichrist]” (Rev. 17:12).  Yet when the barbarians invaded and Rome fell in 476 A.D., the world had to wait nearly 1,600 years for the former Roman provinces to re-unite. This happened with the creation of the European Economic Community in 1958, which became the European Union in 1993.

Vast Increase in Knowledge and Travel: Dan. 12:4 says, “But you, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.” For 2,000 years following this prophecy, knowledge grew at a steady, gradual pace, but by the 1930s, humanity’s cumulative knowledge doubled every 30 years; in the 1970s, it doubled every 7 years; by 2010, the world’s total reservoir of knowledge will double twice a day! Knowledge is being increased at a phenomenal rate in the years leading up to the Time of the End—at which point, the seals on Daniel’s prophecies will be removed and End Time events be fulfilled. Also, thanks also to our modern high-speed transportation systems, from automobiles to subways to jets, billions are traveling “to and fro” and flying all over the globe. These are sure signs that the Time of the End is rapidly approaching.

Other Biblical prophecies are also being fulfilled these days that strongly indicate that we are living in the days leading up to the End, and I discuss these in my book. I also talk about “indicators” that are commonly, but mistakenly, said to be signs of the End Times. It’s important to know the difference between the two.

“A fierce-looking king, one understanding dark plots, shall rise. And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: and he shall destroy in an astonishing manner … and by peace shall he destroy many” (Dan. 8:23–25).

While this passage is helpful together with other information, by itself it’s vague enough to be misapplied to scores of U.S. Presidents and other world leaders—and has been. The first really clear sign that some world statesman is the Antichrist is when he confirms (strengthens) a seven-year peace treaty between Israel and key Muslim nations, which is precisely what Dan. 9:27 says he will do.

But this still doesn’t totally nail down who the Antichrist is: the Bible doesn’t say that he drafts the peace treaty. He’s not even necessarily the only head of state confirming an existing treaty. But this we know: shortly after he backs this peace accord, a very significant event happens—after 2,000 years without a temple the Jews rebuild it in Jerusalem and recommence sacrifices and offerings to God. The building of the temple is a major portent of the End Time and is a sign that the Antichrist is rising.

Then after 3 ½ years, right in the middle of the seven-year period, the Antichrist breaks the peace accord, enters the temple and stops all religious services: “In the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the offering to cease” (Dan. 9:27). The Bible declares what else he does at this time:

“And forces shall be gathered on his part, and they shall pollute the temple stronghold, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that makes it desolate” (Dan. 11:31).

When he places an “abomination” in the newly-rebuilt temple, desecrating it, this marks the beginning of the Great Tribulation, a time of unprecedented trouble and worldwide persecution of believers in God. Jesus said:

“When you therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place …. then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time” (Mat. 24:15, 21).

It is commonly believed that the “abomination of desolation” that is placed in the temple is another name for the “Image of the Beast”—a large idol of the Antichrist or a supercomputer bearing his image, and that it has something to do with the new world economic system. This is probably true, since the Antichrist’s propaganda minister tells the world—

“… that they should make an image to the beast … And he had power to give life to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause those who would not worship the image of the beast to be killed. He forces all … to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: and that no one might buy or sell, except for those who have the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name…. and his number is 666” (Rev. 13:14–18).

The Antichrist makes a law at the beginning of the Tribulation that everyone must receive his Mark, but clearly, for such a sweeping change to the global economic system to be implemented at that time would require many years of previous planning and discussions. So that’s another sign of the Antichrist: when you hear of world leaders pushing for a one-world economic system in which everyone must receive a mark in his right hand or forehead, know that the hour is late and the Antichrist is already at work in the world.

Not only will people be required to receive the Mark and worship the Image of the Antichrist, but worship the Antichrist himself. His true egomaniacal nature will be fully revealed at this point:

“And that man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God, or that is worshiped, so that he as God sits in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God” (2 Thes. 2:3–4)

When you hear of this final sign, you will know that the Antichrist’s worldwide reign of madness has begun.

Recent economic crises have wreaked havoc with financial markets around the world and wiped out many people’s life savings; that, together with revelations about banking scandals and ponzi schemes has done much to destroy hope in a secure financial future. Many Christians predict, in fact, that the world must collapse into economic chaos to make the world desperate enough to accept the Antichrist’s “solution.” All this makes people on the cusp of retirement—as well as those just entering the job market—concerned about the future.

People ought to be concerned, whether we first pass through another Great Depression or not, because the Bible says that once the Antichrist takes over the world, he passes a law that everyone must receive his number, the Mark of the Beast:

“He forces all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: and that no one might buy or sell, except for those who have the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom: let him who has understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is 666” (Rev. 13:16–18).

Is the Mark of the Beast an actual brand? Not necessarily. For the first time in history, cutting-edge technology enables mankind to implant smart chips in pets—and even in people. There is talk about implanting an ID chip/banking chip in everyone’s hand to stop identity fraud and credit card theft. It would be a tiny computer chip inserted under the skin. You won’t even be able to tell it’s there, but computers will pick it up, and people would simply place their hand on a scanner at the checkout. The chips will very likely double as tracking devices—allowing Big Brother to know where every ‘marked’ person is at any given time. In addition, his super-computers would contain lists of every person who has received the Mark and who hasn’t.

Apart from the Big Brother aspect, implanted credit/ID chips seems like a good idea to many people. They’re tired of identity theft and carrying around so many bank cards, credit cards, and ID. By the millions they will gladly receive the Mark, especially since they can’t buy or sell without it. But there’s a catch: receiving the Mark of the Beast goes hand in hand with worshiping the Beast, the Antichrist, as God. And Rev. 14:9–11 makes it painfully clear that the price for worshiping him and receiving his Mark is to be sent to hell. Remember this when that day arrives! Millions upon millions of people will put off turning to God and receiving Jesus Christ as their savior, and will wake up one morning to find the new law in effect. That’s why Jesus warned:

“Take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be consumed with carousing and drunkenness, and the cares of this life, so that that Day comes upon you unawares. For like a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth” (Lk. 21:34–35).

When that day arrives, many people will finally believe in Jesus, and by the millions, will follow his advice (Mat. 24:16) to flee into the as-yet-unregulated countryside and remote hinterlands and take up farming to survive. If you are still living and here when that day arrives, you should definitely flee the cities, since the Antichrist’s regime will execute those who don’t accept the Mark of the Beast and worship him and his image (Rev. 13:15).

This may not be the happiest information you’ve ever heard, but it’s best to be warned about what’s coming. And the good news is that as much as the Antichrist tries to control the world, untold millions who resist the Mark will survive his regime and come out on the other side!