Japan and China begin direct currency exchange.

June 1 marked an historic event between close trade partners—Japan and China. Japan is China’s largest trade partner and the two nations are growing closer together.  On June 1 the two began trading directly in their own currencies instead of in U.S. dollars.  This direct currency exchange will bolster their relationship and could be used by China to press for the eventual replacement of the dollar with the yuan as the world’s reserve currency (Agence France-Presse, May 29, 2012).

How does this relate to Bible prophecy?  The Bible indicates that at the time of the end, “kings of the east” will come from east of the Euphrates River and devastate a European Beast Power (Daniel 11:44-45; Revelation 16:12-16).  This combined army from the east will apparently comprise more than 200 million (Revelation 9:13-19).  China and Japan are not only eastern economic powerhouses, they also both have growing military capabilities and advanced technology.  Whether both nations will be part of this eastern power that ultimately invades the Middle East to counter the Beast, remains to be seen.  

This increasing cooperation and the potential implications are worth watching!