“But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day.” – Dt 8:18

America has experienced stock market crashes, great depressions, and other national financial or economic emergencies. As we enter our 250th anniversary, it seems that we're no stranger to economic difficulty.

But there's something about pride that keeps America from facing up to the fact that she's sliding down the tubes. Add to that the fact that we have someone at the helm of this nation in the person of President Donald Trump that helps us to feel a little bit extra confident about our economic future. He's experienced, he's rich, and he constantly puts the welfare of this nation at the top of his list of important matters.

Ah, what could go wrong?

Everything could go right. Everything could go wrong, but it is pride that makes us think we can push 17 to the dealer.

Back in the sixties, this writer loved to listen to the Canadian folk duo Ian and Sylvia. One of their best songs was written by Ian Tyson, who died in 1989.

It is the one line from that song that always impressed me and made me think how we act this way with everything to do with the future, especially Americans. What is that line? Let's see.

“Never hit seventeen

When you play against the dealer

For you know that the odds won't ride with you”

That's a Blackjack strategy tip — and it's actually a common misconception worth clearing up!

The saying "never hit seventeen" refers to hard 17 (no Ace, or an Ace counted as 1). That part is solid advice — with a hard 17, hitting is statistically worse because you have a high chance of busting.

However, soft 17 (Ace + 6) is different. Basic strategy actually says you should hit (or double down) on soft 17, because the Ace can drop to 1 if you bust, giving you a safety net.

Quick guide:

• Hard 17 → Stand. Always. The risk of busting is too high (~69% chance of busting if you hit).

• Soft 17 → Hit or double down. You can't bust in one card, and you're likely to improve.

• Dealer showing 2–6 → Even more reason to stand on hard 17; let the dealer bust.

The full saying is better expressed as: "Never hit a hard seventeen." The soft 17 rule trips up a lot of players who treat all 17s the same way.

No doubt some people will ask, "Why does a prophet know so much about gambling?" Let me assure you, I am not a gambler. I just love that song, and I wondered what that saying meant. I got to finally look it up. Got a little help from AI.

In an article titled “Prophecy 2022” I reveal the exact words I was given when I was told God was putting me in a prophetic ministry. Those words were hard to say back then because we were in the booming Reaganomics economy of the 80s. It's even harder to say now because we're in a very vigorous Trump economy. But hard or easy, this is what I was told to say.

Prophecy 2022 – Abortions, Tortured Animals, Gender Confusion and Fear of Pandemics Do Not Make for a Bright Future

Part A — Definition of Penury

Penury is a state of extreme poverty and destitution, characterized by a severe lack of money, resources, or material possessions. Derived from the Latin penuria, meaning scarcity or want, the word goes beyond ordinary financial hardship to describe a condition in which a person or community is stripped of even the most basic necessities of life — food, shelter, clothing, and security. Penury is not merely being "broke" or temporarily short on funds; it implies a grinding, persistent deprivation that limits one's ability to participate meaningfully in society. It can be the result of systemic forces such as unemployment, lack of education, or economic inequality, as well as personal circumstances like illness, loss, or displacement.

Part B — Penury in America

In the American context, penury manifests in ways that can seem paradoxical in one of the world's wealthiest nations. It looks like families living in cars or tent encampments beneath highway overpasses, individuals forced to choose between medication and groceries, and children going to school hungry in communities where opportunity has long since dried up. In rural areas — from Appalachia to the Mississippi Delta to tribal lands in the Southwest — entire regions have been hollowed out by economic neglect, leaving generations with little prospect of escape. In urban centers, penury hides in plain sight: in overcrowded shelters, in the working poor clocking double shifts yet still unable to afford rent, and in the elderly surviving on fixed incomes that haven't kept pace with the cost of living. Despite a vast network of social safety programs, gaps in coverage, bureaucratic barriers, and the stigma attached to poverty leave many Americans in a state of true penury — invisible to mainstream society but very much present.

President Trump says we are about to enter America's new golden age of prosperity and influence, and I am not going to be the person to say that is not going to happen or cannot happen. I am the person who says, "Happen or not, it will cease suddenly."

I can't tell you how, because I don't know. We're living in a time when the world has an economy that affects everyone else in the world more and more and more. When antichrist comes, he will set up an economic system. There are those who study prophecy who think America, in its pride, in its self-assurance, will not want to be part of an antichrist system. It could cost them their entire future.

Others think that America may be attacked by a Eurasian pact of nations, it could be nuclear or an attack on the grid, leaving us helpless. We don't know exactly, and I don't know. I do know this: the Bible shows Israel being attacked by all of the enemy she has now, but it sees no one stepping up to help her. As America is now, where is America? Why is America not acting to help Israel in that moment? I don't know the reasons for it, but I would venture it could be found within the meaning of these words, “Ov Ov Penury”

To read more articles by Michael Bresciani, click here.

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