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Inauguration: Donald Trump Claims Divine Power

Inauguration: Donald Trump Claims Divine Power

Last updated on: January 30, 2025 at 3:12 am by Gregory T. Smith

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Inauguration: Donald Trump Claims Divine Power 2025-01-26T19:52:35-08:00 Gregory T. Smith

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If I didn’t know better, I’d swear Trump claimed to be a god in his inauguration speech. Oh wait—I do, and he did!

Image by Sambeet D from Pixabay

That’s a bold claim, I know. But read between the lines, and you’ll see there’s a lot that Trump isn’t telling you. One of those things is his claim to divine power.

My last two articles examined Trump’s inaugural statements as they pertained to religion. My first article in the series, “Trump’s Inauguration Speech: Reading Between the Lines” examined the first three:

“Give people back their faith”
“One nation’s glorious destiny”
“My life was saved for a reason”

The next article, “Inaugural Address: What is Trump NOT Telling You?” took a look at the next three:

“Every race, religion, color, and creed”
“We will not forget our God”
“Two genders: male and female”

In this final article of the series, I’ll tackle some statements in which Trump claims to have godlike power.

Manifest Destiny

“And we will pursue our Manifest Destiny into the stars, launching American astronauts to plant the stars and stripes on the planet Mars.”

Did Trump really just use the phrase “manifest destiny?” Oh, yes, he did! You may ask, “What is manifest destiny?”

According to the Khan Academy, “In 1845, newspaper editor John O’Sullivan coined the term “Manifest Destiny” to describe the ideology of continental expansionism.” This doctrine, part and parcel of American civil religion, stated that God predestined the United States to leave its moorings on the East Coast and stretch “from sea to shining sea.” Of course, there were a few people who got in the way of this divinely inspired expansion.

A whole continent of Native Americans stood between President Polk in Washington, and the West Coast. So, the doctrine of Manifest Destiny became a holy mandate for genocide. Pastors and evangelists, columnists, and politicians all characterized America as the new Israel. Just as God had commanded the conquest of Canaan, God now commissioned Americans to institute Indian Removal.

Native Americans were not the only ones who stood in the way of Manifest Destiny. In those days, Mexico reached far into what is now the United States. Plus, Great Britain still held claim to the Oregon Territory. Part of Manifest Destiny was to get these nations out of the way—either by treaty or by force.

The abominable doctrine of Manifest Destiny continues today, with Donald Trump’s targeting of the Panama Canal and Greenland for annexation—by force if necessary. Not to mention, if he could get his way, making Canada the fifty-first state. There’s a lot between the lines when Trump uses the phrase “Manifest Destiny” in his speech**. What he’s not telling you is that he sees himself as a modern Napoleon.** What Putin did to Ukraine, and what Netanyahu is doing to Palestinians, Trump wants to do to Panama, Greenland, and Canada.

One Glorious Nation Under God

“We are one people, one family and one glorious nation under God. So, to every parent who dreams for their child and every child who dreams for their future, I am with you. I will fight for you, and I will win for you.”

Here, I will repeat the sentiment I shared with Trump’s statement, “We will not forget our God.” I ask—whose god does he mean? Jesus? Adonai? Allah? Shiva? Cernunnos? Aphrodite? Yemoja? According to Psychology Today, “Anthropologists estimate that at least 18,000 different gods, goddesses, and various animals or objects have been worshipped by humans since our species first appeared. Today, it is estimated that more than 80 percent of the global population considers themselves religious or spiritual in some form.” So, which god does he mean?

From grammar and context, I suggest that he answers that question in his next sentences: “I am with you. I will fight for you, and I will win for you.” When you read between the lines, you see that Trump is eluding to Jewish scriptures like Isaiah 41:10, “do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God; I will strengthen you; I will help you; I will uphold you with my victorious right hand.” What Trump isn’t telling you is that he views himself as our god, our savior, our Chosen One.

Our Power Will Stop All Wars

“Our power will stop all wars and bring a new spirit of unity to a world that has been angry, violent and totally unpredictable. America will be respected again and admired again, including by people of religion, faith and goodwill.”

According to Luke 2:14, an angel announced Jesus’ birth with “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!” At his second inauguration speech Trump blew his own trumpet and declared that his reign would bring about universal peace. Stopping all wars is something only a god could do, and this certainly is how he views himself. Make no mistake—Trump isn’t using the word “our” in the phrase “our power” to describe Americans. He’s using the royal “we,” the divine “we.” And he thinks he’s just the deity for the job.

A Good Candidate for the Antichrist

In other articles, I have shared that in terms of my understanding of biblical prophecy, I am a preterist. I believe the biblical prophecies were written for the people to whom they were originally penned. They were not meant to be end-time predictions of events thousands of years from their writing. However**, if I did believe in a twenty-first century interpretation of apocalyptic literature, I would say that Trump is a good candidate for the Antichrist.**

While my preterist views deny that Trump is the Antichrist, it’s undeniable that he is anti-Christ. Everything he does is for his own gain, and to oppose the cause of the downtrodden and oppressed. When Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde pled for mercy for marginalized communities that are threatened by the Trump administration, Trump responded on Truth Social:

“The so-called Bishop who spoke at the National Prayer Service on Tuesday morning was a Radical Left hard line Trump hater. She brought her church into the World of politics in a very ungracious way. She was nasty in tone, and not compelling or smart. She failed to mention the large number of illegal migrants that came into our Country and killed people. Many were deposited from jails and mental institutions. It is a giant crime wave that is taking place in the USA. Apart from her inappropriate statements, the service was a very boring and uninspiring one. She is not very good at her job! She and her church owe the public an apology!”

Rather than listen to the prophetic voice calling for compassion, Trump chose instead to criticize and condemn. He refuses to listen to those appointed as Christ’s representatives, standing on his own spiritual authority rather than hearing the words of the Savior as spoken through his bishop.

Just Warming Up

Make no mistake—Donald Trump and his administration are just warming up. His inaugural speech is just a teaser, a preview of what’s to come. I am not a political expert, so I have kept my commentary in this series to the overtly or covertly religious topics in the President’s inaugural address. Already he has begun making good on his campaign promises (threats). I’ll continue watching—and I hope you will, too—to see how he expands his self-concept as the Chosen One and tries to lay hold of divine power.

For related reading, check out my other articles:

General Christian

Religion News

Politics and Religion

Challenging the Church

Social Justice

Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde

Donald Trump

Inaugural address

Inauguration speech

Is Trump the Antichrist?

Trump Chosen One

About Gregory T. Smith

I live in the beautiful Fraser Valley of British Columbia and work in northern Washington State as a behavioral health specialist with people experiencing homelessness and those who are overly involved in the criminal justice system. Before that, I spent over a quarter-century as lead pastor of several Virginia churches. My newspaper column, “Spirit and Truth” ran in Virginia newspapers for fifteen years. I am one of fourteen contributing authors of the Patheos/Quoir Publishing book “Sitting in the Shade of another Tree: What We Learn by Listening to Other Faiths.” I hold a degree in Religious Studies from Virginia Commonwealth University, and also studied at Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond. My wife Christina and I have seven children between us, and we are still collecting grandchildren. You can read more about the author here.

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