Who is the Antichrist?
Who exactly is the Antichrist that the Bible speaks of? Some say that it's a person that will appear after all the saints are taken to heaven. Others say that he existed centuries ago. The Bible has quite a different story. It's inspired words say that Antichrist is alive now. He will play a very important role in end-time events and is featured in many end-time prophecies of both Daniel and Revelation. This article will be based from Daniel chapter 7, so read it now if you wish.
Daniel 7 begins with Daniel in vision. He sees four beasts coming out of the sea. In prophecy, what does the sea and beast represent?
Daniel 7: 23--"The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon the earth."
Revelation 17: 15--"The waters...are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and
tongues."
So beasts in prophecy represent nations or kingdoms. The sea and waters
represent multitudes or people of large populations. So, therefore, the four beasts that
Daniel saw represent four world kingdoms. The first beast, which is represented by a
lion, is Babylon (Daniel 2: 38, 39). What do the "eagle's wings" mean? And what do
the "four winds" of verse 2 represent?
Deuteronomy 28: 49--"The Lord shall bring a nation against thee...as
swift as the eagle flieth."
Jeremiah 25: 32, 33--"Thus saith the Lord of hosts,...a great whirlwind
shall be raised up from the coasts of the earth. And the slain of the Lord shall be at that
day from one end of the earth even unto the other end of the earth."
The wings of eagles represent speed and the winds represent strife
and destruction. Next, in Daniel 5, Daniel sees a bear. What kingdom
does this represent and what do the ribs symbolize?
Read the prophecy in Daniel 8. The beasts in chapter 8 parallel
those in 7. Daniel 8: 20 specifically names the second kingdom as Medo-Persia. The ribs
in its mouth represent the powers conquered by Medo-Persia: Babylon, Lydia, and Egypt.
Daniel 8: 21 identifies the third beast as being Greece. In
Daniel 7, it is represented by a leopard with four wings and four
heads (verse 6). What do the heads and wings represent?
Alexander the Great, who succeeded his father as leader of
Greece, was a great general and conquered other countries with
"super-speed," which is represented by the four wings on the leopard. When Alexander
died, his kingdom was split up between four of his generals: Cassander, Lysimachus,
Ptolemy, and Seleucus. The four heads represent these generals.
Next, Daniel sees a horrible beast with iron teeth and 10
horns. This represents the Roman empire, the fourth world kingdom.
What do the horns represent?
The 10 horns represent the 10 kings or kingdoms that pagan
Rome was eventually split into (Daniel 7:24). Keep in mind that the 10
horns are the same as the 10 toes in Daniel 2:41-44. Barbarians invaded
Roman lands and carved kingdoms for themselves out of the Roman empire. Seven of the
10 tribes of barbarians developed into present-day Western Europe countries. Three of
them were uprooted and destroyed.
Visigoths--Spain
Anglo-Saxons--England
Franks--France
Alemani--Germany
Burgundians--Switzerland
Lombards--Italy
Suevi--Portugal
Heruli--Rooted up
Ostrogoths--Rooted up
Vandals--Rooted up
What happens next in Daniel 7?
Daniel 7: 8--"I considered the horns, and, behold,
there came up among them another little horn, before
whom there were three of the first horns plucked up
by the roots: and, behold, in this horn were eyes like
the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things."
So a "little horn" power appears. This little horn power is the most important part
of the prophecy. It identifies the Antichrist. God gives us nine identifying points about
the Antichrist so we can be sure to know who Antichrist is. Let's look at them.
A. The "little horn" kingdom "came up among them" (the 10 horns which were kingdoms).
So the kingdom would be somewhere in Western Europe.
B. A man at its head would speak for it (Daniel 7:8)
C. It would uproot three kingdoms (Daniel 7:8)
D. It would be different than the other 10 kingdoms (Daniel 7:24)
E. It would make war with or persecute the saints (Daniel 7: 21, 25)
F. It would emerge from the pagan Roman empire--the fourth world kingdom
(Daniel 7: 7, 8)
G. God's people would "be given into his hand" for "a time and times and the dividing
of time" (Daniel 7: 25)
H. It would blaspheme God (Daniel 7: 25). Revelation 13: 5 also says that the same
power speaks "great things and blasphemies."
I. It would "think to change times and laws" (Daniel 7: 25)
Both the Reformers of old and historians of today could tell you who this
describes--the papacy. Let's make sure of the truth by looking at each point carefully.
A. It came up among the 10 kingdoms of Western Europe.
The heart of the papacy is in Rome, Italy, in the center of Western Europe.
B. It would have a man at its head who speaks for it
The papacy has the pope at its head who speaks for it.
C. It would uproot three kingdoms
Three kingdoms of Western Europe defied the authority of the Catholic
power: the Vandals, Heruli, and Ostrogoths. So the Catholic emperors decided that
these kingdoms had to be destroyed or subdued. Eventually, the power of these three
kingdoms was broken. For more information read God Cares by Dr. Mervyn Maxwell.
D. It would be different from the other kingdoms
While the other 10 kingdoms were secular in nature, the papacy arose as
a religious power.
E. It would persecute the saints
It's well known that the papacy did persecute the saints. There is a lot of
supportive evidence for it and they even admit it. Historians conservatively say that at
least 50 million people died over religious matters. Read this quote:
"That the Church of Rome has shed more innocent blood than any other
institution that has ever existed among mankind, will be questioned by no
Protestant who has a competant knowledge of history." (History of the Rise
and Influence of the Spirit of Rationalism in Europe, W.E.H. Lecky).
F. It would emerge from the pagan Roman empire (the fourth kingdom)
Read this quote:
"The mighty Catholic Church was little more than the Roman
Empire baptised...The very capital of the old Roman Empire became the capital
of the Christian empire. The office of Pontifex Maximus was continued in that
of the pope." (The Rise of the Medieval Church, Alexander Clarence Flick.)
G. God's people would be given into his hand for a time, times, and half a time
Remember that a time is a year, times is two years, and a half time or the
dividing of times is 1/2 year, so translated, it means 3 1/2 years. This period of time
is mentioned several times in Scripture (Daniel 7: 25, 12: 7; Revelation 11:2, 3; 12:6,
14; 13:5). Twice written as 42 months, twice as 1,260 days. These are all the same
period of time. In prophecy, one day equals a year (Ezekiel 4: 6; Numbers 14: 34).
Therefore, the little horn, or Antichrist, would have power of the saints for 1,260
literal years. The papacy began to rule in A.D. 538. It ruled until 1798 when Berthier,
a general of Napoleon, took the pope captive. This fulfilled the 1,260 year prophecy.
Remember in Revelation 13 that it speaks of this same antichrist power. The
deadly wound mentioned there is when the pope was taken captive and the papacy lost
its power for a time. As we know today, however, that wound has healed, just as
prophecy predicted.
H. It would blaspheme God
Blasphemy is defined in Scripture as:
1. Claiming to forgive sins (Luke 5: 21)
2. Claiming to be God (John 10:33)
Does the papacy fit this? Of course! The Catholic church claims that its
priests can forgive sins and receive confessions. This bypasses Jesus, who is our only
High Priest and Mediator (1 Timothy 2:5). What about claiming to be God? Here is a
quote from Pope Leo XIII:
"We [the popes] hold upon this earth the place of God Almighty."
Any rational mind can tell that this point fits the papacy exactly.
I. It would "think to change times and laws."
God's law can never be changed but the papacy
has "thought" to change times and laws. In Catholic
catechisms, the papacy has taken out the second
commandment against idol worship, shortened the fourth
commandment from 94 words to only 8, and has divided the
tenth commandment into two commandments. Compare any
Catholic version of the commandments with those found in
Exodus 20: 3-17 and see for yourself.
As you can see, there can be no doubt about who is the Antichrist. It is none other than the papacy--the Catholic Church. No other organization could fit all nine points. Some people argue, though, that Daniel was told to seal up the book until "the time of the end" (Daniel 12: 4). Doesn't that mean we can't understand it? No. We are in the time of the end now. In prophecy, the end times began after 1798, when the papacy received its deadly wound. Most importantly when hearing about something as important as the Antichrist, or any doctrines for that matter, check your Bible for yourself. Don't trust your friends, pastor, or church to teach you how to live. It is in your eternal interest to know the truth for yourself and not be deceived.
Acts 17:11--"These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received
the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those
things were so."
