Jan. 22 marked exactly one century since the Victorian era ended with the death of Britain's Queen Victoria at Osborne House. At the time of her death Great Britain was the world's greatest power. Other countries, notably Germany and the United States, were catching up economically and militarily, but Britain was to remain the dominant power for the first four decades of the 20th century.

As the 19th century passed and the 20th began, nobody would have predicted the end of the British Empire. Some were already warning of Germany's rise as the queen's grandson, the kaiser, sat at her bedside in her final hours. Yet in less than two decades Kaiser William II's beloved Germany would lie in ruins, and he would be forced to abdicate his throne.

Few would have imagined that the United States, only recently breaking out of its isolation with its victory over Spain in the war of 1898, would emerge as the world's foremost power in the new century. Nobody expected Russia to break with history and tradition and embrace communism. Excited at the prospects of a progressive new century, few could have foreseen the awful dictatorships that would arise in the years to come.

A dramatic century was dawning. How dramatic it would prove to be staggers the mind.

Another dramatic century?

The beginning of a new century is an appropriate time to reflect on the world scene. Which nations could dominate the world in the years ahead? Will America remain the world's lone superpower, or will another emerge as the economic, military and political leader?

Bible prophecy offers some insight and strong indications that in this century the lineup of world powers will shift as dramatically as it did in the century just passed.

What does prophecy tell us? Specifically, it reveals that, immediately before the second coming of Jesus Christ to establish the Kingdom of God on earth, the world will be briefly dominated by a union of "ten kings [leaders] who have received no kingdom as yet" (Revelation 17:12).

This passage also tells us that these leaders will "receive authority for one hour" (a brief time) with an entity called "the beast." Verse 14 tells us that this coalition of 10 rulers "will make war with the Lamb [Jesus Christ], and the Lamb will overcome them, for He is Lord of lords and King of kings."

That war will mark humanity's last major organized resistance to the long-prophesied reign of the promised Messiah. The divine reign of Christ is at the core of the prophesied good news of the Kingdom of God, which is the central message of the magazine you are reading. This is the same gospel Jesus proclaimed 2,000 years ago (Mark 1:14).

But before the establishment of this eternal Kingdom another power is prophesied to arise, a union of 10 kings or leaders of nations or groups of nations that will be hostile to Jesus at His return.

The prophesied beast power

The prophesied "beast" is a continuation of the "beasts" of Daniel 7. Daniel's prophecy takes us to the establishment of the Kingdom of God at Christ's return (Daniel 7:9-14).

The beasts Daniel describes are aggressive, gentile kingdoms, the superpowers of their day, dominating much of the ancient world and specifically the Holy Land.

The Greeks and Romans (verses 6-7) were European peoples who conquered much of the Mediterranean area and beyond. The Roman Empire was the greatest of these empires, "dreadful and terrible, exceedingly strong" (verse 7). The final, still-future beast power prophesied in Revelation will show similar characteristics.

With these scriptures in mind, let's look at our world and consider from which area this prophesied new superpower is likely to emerge.

A century ago there would have been no doubt. The world belonged to Europe. The major nations of the Continent had extensive colonial possessions, which made them powerful globe-encircling empires. The British Empire was the largest and most powerful. The French, Germans, Dutch, Spanish, Portuguese and Italians had their own colonial territories.

Two world wars and a changing political climate were to disrupt all that. After World War I the British and French empires remained powerful, even gaining territory in the postwar Treaty of Versailles. But the new political climate after World War II, and the high cost to Britain and France of defeating Hitler, led to rapid decolonization in the '50s and '60s.

The United States and the Soviet Union emerged from the war as the two great powers. But only a few decades later the U.S.S.R. no longer exists. Its successor states, most notably Russia, are too weak economically to pose any serious challenge to other nations, though Russia's nuclear-equipped military remains a threat.

What about the United States? Putting the scriptures we've looked at alongside many others, we see that the Bible shows the United States will lose its ascendancy, to be replaced by the union of 10 kings and the final great beast of Bible prophecy.

Collapse won't come overnight

In identifying the beast power we need to remember that the rise and fall of nations is a gradual process. The British did not decide in one day to hand over their position of primacy to the United States.

Britain's decline happened slowly, as did the rise of the United States. Britain's industrial decline began before the end of the Victorian era. The queen herself died in the middle of a major armed conflict that was not going well for Britain, the Boer War in South Africa (1899-1902), an indication of military difficulties to come.

During World War I Britain had to borrow money from American banks just to keep fighting. It suffered a major upheaval close to home in the Easter Rising in Dublin (1916). After the armistice the British found it more difficult to maintain their military superiority. Their relative decline continued, leading to weakness Hitler's Germany would exploit in the late 1930s.

Germany had recovered quickly from years of economic stagnation after defeat in 1918. Hitler came to power in 1933. His reforms soon turned the country around, and within six years Germany was again the most powerful nation on the Continent, strong enough to conquer most of Europe in a remarkably short time. The outcome of World War II was far from a foregone conclusion even after the United States entered the war.

The final outcome of the second universal conflict was that the United States and the Soviet Union emerged as Nos. 1 and 2 in the power structure of the world. Only six years earlier the British and Germans had held those positions.

Change can come just as quickly again.

A little more than 10 years ago we were reminded how quickly dramatic change can take place when the Berlin Wall came down and the communist governments of Eastern Europe collapsed one after another, the domino theory of the 1960s in reverse.

End to American dominance?

The coming decades-and quite possibly this one-are likely to see further dramatic changes in the world's balance of power to the detriment of the United States and Britain.

Even before the new year began, the American economy was in trouble. The first few months of 2001 saw tens of thousands of job layoffs and terminations. Recession fears grew as the stock market slid, impacting the spending power of many Americans.

The world's second-biggest economy, Japan, has receded for more than a decade. The third major economic powerhouse, Europe, remains largely unaffected and is expected to grow over the next few years. The European Union (EU) is poised to expand its economies with the full implementation of its common currency, the euro, in January 2002 and with the admission of new members in the years to come.

Few Americans realize that the European Union already has a greater gross national product (GNP) than the United States'. However, because the EU is not yet one united political entity, such comparisons are rarely made.

The EU is by far the world's biggest trading bloc, giving its member nations considerable clout. America's continuing high trade deficits mean that each month more American companies are bought out by Europeans. Meanwhile American overspending leaves U.S. corporations and private citizens with less maneuverability as their debts mount. This will make it harder for the United States to break out of recession.

Out of the three main centers of economic power, Europe seems to be the one best placed to lead the world out of the recession it has fallen into. With increased economic power will come more political and military power.

This has already been happening. Europe has gradually increased its power and influence as American power has waned.

What's new in the EU?

Many European leaders are committed to full union-economic, political and military. Such union would make Europe a superpower not only to rival the United States but perhaps to surpass it.

Non-Europeans may dismiss the idea, since Europeans have talked about union for half a century and are still not united. But gradually the EU has grown stronger, taking great strides in recent years. Just as the United States emerged in 1898 as a power on the world scene after more than a century in obscurity, so the EU is slowly emerging as the superpower of the new century.

The euro-the currency that will replace 11 European national currencies with the appearance of notes and coins from January through June of 2002-is likely to play a major role. European companies no longer must change currencies and lose commissions when trading with others outside their own borders, thus boosting European commerce.

At the same time European companies no longer have to worry about losing money when selling products in other euro-based countries as the value of national currencies fluctuates in relation to each other. Goods and services can be priced in euros and sold throughout the EU. Economies of scale enable companies to boost production and lower the prices of products as they sell to a bigger market of 370 million comparatively wealthy people.

Building a better superpower

Along with full economic union comes the development of the European Rapid Reaction Force, a military entity that, unlike NATO troops, will not fall under U.S. control. America has expressed concerns about the force, which some envision as a separate standing European defense.

The idea of a European superpower to rival or even surpass the United States is not unrealistic when we realize Europe's supremacy until recent times. Throughout history various leaders have tried to force a united Europe. Because they used military might, they ended up fighting internal battles as well as wars with the nations outside the Continent that were threatened by them. Napoleon in the 19th century and Hitler in the 20th were examples of the drive to revive a united Europe, a concept that goes back to the days of the Roman Empire.

Aware of the mistakes of the past, today's European leaders are peacefully building a united Europe; no one man is trying to conquer the Continent for his own ends. This means the new Europe is coming together more slowly, but it also means it will be without many of the internal divisions and conflicts that bedeviled previous attempts at unification.

Many modern European leaders take their inspiration from Emperor Charlemagne, crowned by Pope Leo III in 800, who had a vision of a united Christian Europe that would return the Continent to the glory of ancient Rome. European leaders present an annual Charlemagne prize to the individual who has contributed the most to the concept of European unity in the past year. In 2000 Bill Clinton became the third American recipient.

The December summit of EU leaders in Nice, France, marks a more urgent commitment to unity and to further expansion with the agreed admission of more nations in the near future. A change in the voting system makes it harder for any single nation, such as Britain, to veto further progress toward closer union.

Expanding influence

Europeans are looking further afield.

Close economic ties already exist between Germany and Russia. The two countries are forging an economic deal that could shift the balance of power on the Continent.

The two ministers responsible for the economies of their respective countries met in December to debate details of a plan to exchange Russian debt for German equity in Russian companies. This would be a roundabout way for German banks to retrieve some of the money they have lent to Russia that Moscow has not been able to repay.

Such a deal would help Russia recuperate and could lead to a closer relationship between the European Union and Moscow.

European leaders take an increasingly independent role in world affairs, often at the expense of the English-speaking nations. A recent visit by Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe to Brussels and Paris upset London. The British were angry because thousands of Zimbabwe's citizens of British descent are being forced off their land and subjected to violence and intimidation by government supporters in the southern-African country.

Criticism persists over continuing U.S.-led sanctions and American and British military flights over (and occasional bombing raids on) Iraq. Another area of disagreement between Europe and the United States is the Middle East, where the EU has become the largest single financial contributor to the peace process. In that crucial area America is viewed as Israel's main supporter while the EU tends to support Palestinian and Arab interests.

Widening divide

Since World War II Western European leaders have contented themselves to look to America for leadership of the Western alliance. As the nations of Europe slowly rebuilt after the 1939-45 conflict, they needed U.S. military protection from the Soviet Union. With the Soviets gone and Russia's economy in a backward state, Europeans no longer feel the same need for American protection.

At the same time, areas of disagreement between Europe and America grow, particularly in trade and international relations.

Additionally, European perceptions of America have changed. America is increasingly the odd man out in the alliance. In March the Bush administration angered many European and Asian leaders when the president made it clear the United States would not implement the 1997 Kyoto agreement, an international pact aimed at reducing industrial and auto emissions that treaty supporters believe contribute to global warming.

The United States is also the only nation that practices capital punishment and allows widespread availability of firearms in the hands of private citizens-concepts abhorrent to most Europeans. America is also the only one without a government-sponsored and -funded public health-care system and the heavy taxation that makes it possible.

Because of these and other factors, for many Europeans respect for the United States has given way to resentment.

Prophecy awaits its fulfillment

The new decade is likely to see the European Union grow even stronger, probably at the expense of the United States. Only the European nations seem rich and powerful enough to fulfill Revelation's prophecy of the 10 kings, ultimately 10 core political entities uniting to form a superpower that will dominate the world in the end time.

Ultimately it is God who is sovereign and in control of world events. He "removes kings and raises up kings" (Daniel 2:21) and determines when one nation should lose its preeminence to another, all in His own time and according to His prophetic plan.

The Bible shows us that another superpower is waiting in the wings. It will continue in power for "a short time" (Revelation 17:10), soon to be replaced by the divine government-the Kingdom of God-true Christians have prayed for ever since Christ told His followers to pray "Your kingdom come" (Matthew 6:10). GN