Bitcoin and Bible Prophecy: 4 Reasons the Cryptocurrency Could Be Considered the Mark of the Beast

Some Bible prophecy advocates think Bitcoin — an online medium of exchange — could consequently become the "Mark of the Beast" mentioned in the New Testament's Book of Revelation.

Even if the online currency Bitcoin doesn't last, the theory behind it could lay the groundwork for a larger, international digital currency, according to the Christian Science Monitor.

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Here are four reasons the Bitcoin could be considered the Mark of the Beast:

1. Tribulation Years: The Mark of the Beast is thought be among characteristics of the "tribulation years" at the end of time when the world will undergo a radical and massive shift to a one-world government and economy. Bitcoin is outside the current system, which puts it in a position to fulfill the prophecy by becoming or morphing into the one-world currency "the Beast," also known as the anti-Christ and later, Satan directly, will use to gain economic control worldwide.

2. Invisible tattoo or chip: Bitcoin could lead to a future in which store purchases are made using an invisible tattoo or a chip embedded into the buyer's hand, according to These Christian Times.

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That's consistent with the end times prophecy outlined in the Book of Revelation, which Biblia.com quoted as envisioning a system that would require "both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the Beast or the number of its name."

3. Moving into spheres of real people: Bitcoin is gaining respectability and moving into the spheres of "real people," as evidenced by the opening of the first Bitcoin ATM in October 2013 in Vancouver, according to CBC News.

4. Used for evil: Bitcoin is already being used for evil as evidenced by what happened in 2013 when the FBI shut down the Bitcoin-using black market website, Silk Road and arrested its administrators. In March 2015, there were filing charges against two FBI agents accused of laundering Bitcoins while building the government's case against Silk road. Both of these cases were detailed in The Daily Beast.

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