The Anti Christ can be a touchy subject, especially when people realize what it truly is. The bible doesn't leave us guessing either. Let me show you.
Daniel 7 clearly and unmistakably identifies the antichrist so it'll be a good idea to go read Daniel 7 first. What you discover today may displease or sadden you, but please remember that the prophecy of Daniel chapter 7 comes from Jesus, who loves you. Pray for God's guidance as you delve into this urgent subject.
As the the chapter begins, Daniel sees four beasts coming up out of the sea. In prophecy, what does a beast represent? What does the sea represent?
Daniel 7:23 says The fourth beast shall be a fourth kingdom on earth. Revelation 17:15 says The waters... are peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues.
Ok so a beast represents a kingdom and the sea represents people.
The four beasts of Daniel 7 represent the four world kingdoms (verses 17,18). Babylon, the first kingdom (Daniel 2:38-39), is represented as a lion in Daniel 7:4. (Look at Jeremiah 4:7; 50:17, 43, 44 for Babylon pictured as a lion elsewhere.) What do the eagle's wings mean? What do the four winds of verse 2 represent?
Look at Deuteronomy 28:49 it says, The Lord will bring a nation against you... as swift as the eagle flies. Then look at Jeremiah 25:32,33 as it says Thus says the Lord of hosts.... a great whirlwind shall be raised up from the farthest parts of the earth. And ... the slain of the Lord shall be from one end of the earth even to the other end of the earth.
The wings of eagles represents speed. Look also at Jeremiah 4:13 and Habakkuk 1:6-9. Winds represent strife, commotion, and deestruction. See also Revelation 7:1-3
What kingdom does the bear represent in Daniel 7:5? What do the three ribs in its mouth symbolize?
Read Daniel 8. Notice that the beasts in chapter 8 parallel those in chapter 7. Daniel 8:20 specifically names Medo-Persia as the kingdom that precedes the rough goat, or Greece, of verse 21. It is the second world kingdom, the same power as the bear in Daniel 7. The empire was made up of two groups of people. The medes came up first (represented in Daniel 7:5 by the bear coming up on one side), but the Persians eventually became stronger (represented in Daniel 8:3 by the ram's second horn which grew taller). The three ribs represent the three principal powers conquered by Medo-Persia: Lydia, Babylon, and Egypt.
Greece, the third kingdom (Daniel 8:21), is represented by a leopard with four wings and four heads (Daniel 7:6). What do the heads represent? What do the four wings represent?
The four heads represent the four kingdoms into which the empire of Alexander the Great was divided when he died. The four generals who headed these areas were: Cassander, Lysimachus, Ptolemy, and Selecus. The four wings, instead of the two like the lion, represent super-speed, which was true of Alexanders conquests. (Jeremiah 4:11-13)
The Roman empire, the fourth world kingdom, is represented by a horrible monster with iron teeth and ten horns (Daniel 7:7). What do the horns represent?
The ten horns represent the ten kings or kingdoms into which pagan Rome was eventually split (Daniel 7:24). These ten kingdoms are the same as the ten toes of the image described in Daniel 2:41-44. Roving barbarian tribes swept in upon the Roman empire and carved out land niches for their people. Seven of those ten tribes developed into the countries of modern Western Europe, while three were uprooted and destroyed. Here are the kingdoms listed:
Visigoths=Spain
Anglo-Saxons=England
Franks=France
Alemani-Germany
Burgundians=Switzerland
Lombards=Italy
Suevi=Portugal
Heruli=Uprooted
Ostrogoths=Uprooted
Vandals=Uprooted
In the Daniel 7 prophecy, what happens next?
Daniel 7:8 says I was considering the horns, and there was another horn, a little one, coming up among them, before whom three of the first horns were plucked out by the roots. And there, in this horn, were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking pompous words.
The little horn power appears next. So we must identify it carefully because God takes more space describing it than the other four kingdoms combined. Why? Because the biblical characteristics identify it as the antichrist of prophecy and history. There must be NO mistake in making this identification. So lets list these characteristics and see who or what it points to.
A. The little horn or kingdom came up among them.... the ten horns which were the kingdoms of Western Europe (Daniel 7:8). So it would be a little kingdom somewhere in Western Europe.
B. It would have a man at its head who could speak for it (Daniel 7:8).
C. It would pluck up or uproot three kingdoms (Daniel 7:8).
D. It would be diverse or different from the other ten kingdoms (Daniel 7:24).
E. It would make war with and wear out 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 (the saints) would be given into his hand for a time and times and the dividing of time (Daniel 7:25).
H. It would speak great words against or blaspheme God (Daniel 7:25). In Revelation 13:5, the Bible says the same power speaks great thing and blasphemies.
I. It would think to change times and laws. Daniel 7:25.
Don't forget, all these identification points come directly from the Bible. They are not some human opinion or speculation. Historians could quickly tell you what power is being described. These points can fit only one power and that is the papacy. But in order to be certain, lets carefully examine all nine points, one by one. There must be NO room left for doubt.
A. "Itcame up among the ten kingdoms of Western Europe." The geographical location of the papal power was in Rome, Italy, the very heart of Western Europe.
B. "It would have a man at its head who could speak for it." The papacy meets the identifying mark because it does have one man at the head, the pope, who speaks for it.
C. "It would pluck up or uproot three kingdoms."
The emperors of Western Europe were largely Catholic and supported the papacy in its growth and authority. Three Arian kingdoms, however, did not support the papacy, the Vandals, Heruli, and the Ostrogoths. So the Catholic emperors decided they must be subdued or destroyed. The Catholic emperor Zeno arranged a treaty with the Ostrogoths in 487 which resulted in the eradication of the kingdom Arian Herulis in 493. The Catholic emperor Justinian exterminated the Arian Vandals in 534 and broke the power of the Ostrogoths in 538. And there we have Daniels three horns. It's not difficult to not notice that the papacy fits here perfectly.
D. "It would be diverse or different from the other ten kingdoms."
The papacy clearly fits this description also. It came on the scene as a religious power and was totally different from the secular nature of the other ten kingdoms.
E. "It would make war with and wear out or persecute the saints."
It's a well known fact that the church did persecute. The papacy even clearly admits it. Even conservative historians claim that the church probably destroyed at least 50 million people over matters of religious conviction.
F. "It would emerge from the pagan Roman empire, the fourth world kingdom."
We obviously know that the papacy rose from the Roman Empire.
G. "God's people (the saints) would be given into his hand for a time and times and the dividing of time."
Several things need clarification here:
1. A time is a year, times is two years, and the dividing of a time is a half-year.
2. This same time period is mentioned seven times (Daniel 7:25; 12:7; Revelation 11:2, 3; 12:6, 14; 13:5) in the books of Daniel and Revelation: three times as a time, times, and half a time; twice as 42 months; and twice as 1,260 days. Based on the 30 day calendar used by the Jews, these time periods are all the same amount of time 3 1/2 years= 42 months= 1,260 days.
3. One prophetic day equals one literal year (Ezekiel 4:6; Numbers 14:34).
4. The little horn, or the antichrist, was to have power over the saints for 1,260 prophetic days or 1,260 literal years.
5. The rule of the papacy began in A.D. 538, when the last of the three opposing Arian kingdoms was uprooted. Its rule continued until 1798 when Napoleon's general, Berthier, took the pope captive with hopes of destroying both Pope Pius VI and the political, secular power of the papacy. This period of time is an exact fulfillment of the 1,260 year prophecy. The blow was a deadly wound for the papacy, but that wound began to heal and is still healing today.
6. This same period of persecution is mentioned in Matthew 24:21 as the worst period of persecution God's people will ever experience. Verse 22 tells us it was so devastating that not one soul would have survived if God had not shortened it. But God did shorten it. The persecution ended long before the pope was taken captive in 1798. It's plain to see that the papacy clearly fits.
H. "It would speak great words against or blaspheme God."
Blasphemy has two definitions in Scripture:
Claiming to forgive sins (Luke 5:21)
Claiming to be God (John 10:33)
Does this point fit the papacy? Yes! Want evidence? In A Complete Catechism of the Catholic Religion by Joseph Deharbe on page 279 it says, "Does the Priest truly forgive the sins, or does he only declare that they are remitted? The Priest does really and truly forgive the sins in virtue of the power given to him by Christ." The papacy further undermines Jesus by setting up a system of confession to an earthly priest, thus bypassing Jesus, our High Priest (Hebrews 3:1; 8:1,2) and only Mediator ( 1 Timothy 2:5).
Now lets consider the evidence of it claiming to be God. Letter written by Pope Leo XIII dated June 20, 1894: We [the popes] hold upon this earth the place of God Almighty.
Here's another straight from the July 1895 issue of Catholic National: The pope is not only the representative of Jesus Christ, but he is Jesus Christ, Himself, hidden under the veil of flesh.
I. "It would think to change times and laws."
This almost requires another entire study, but what about changing the "laws"? The reference is to changing God's law. Of course, no one can really change it, but has the papacy attempted to do so? The answer is YES.
In its catechisms, the papacy has omitted the second commandment against veneration of images and has shortened the fourth commandment from 94 words to 8 and divided the tenth commandment into two commandments. Check this for yourself. Compare the Ten Commandments in any Catholic catechism with God's list of the commandments in Exodus 20:3-17.
There is no doubt that the little horn power of Daniel 7 (the antichrist) is the papacy. No other organization could possibly fit these nine points. And incidentally, this is no new teaching. Every Reformer, without exception, spoke of the papacy as antichrist, according to R. Allen Anderson's, Unfolding the Revelation on page 137.
Now you might be asking yourself, Wasn't Daniel told to seal up his book until "the time of the end" (Daniel 12:4)? When will Daniel's prophecies be opened to our understanding?
Yes, in Daniel 12:4, the prophet was told to seal parts of the book till "the time of the end."In verse 6 an angelic voice asked, "How long shall the fulfillment of these wonders be?" Verse 7 says, "it shall be for a time, times, and half a time." The angel assured Daniel that the section of the book dealing with end-time prophecies would be opened after the end of the 1260 year period of papal control, which was, as we learned earlier, 1798. So the time of the end began in 1798. Obviously the book of Daniel contains crucial messages from heaven for us today. We absolutely must understand it.
Many Christians today have been tragically misinformed regarding the antichrist. To believe an untruth about the antichrist could easily cause a person to be deceived and lost. What should a person do when new Bible teachings are encountered?
Acts 17:11 says These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so.
When a new Bible teaching is encountered, the only safe procedure is to compare it carefully with Scripture to see if it is in harmony with God's Word.
One last thing that I would like to share: If some of you should think that I am attacking fellow Christians by identifying the little horn power, please keep in miind that the prophecy is aimed at a system and not individuals!There are sincere, devout Christians in ALL churches, including the Catholic faith. Daniel 7 is simply a message of judgment and correction upon a large religious institution which compromised with paganism, like so many other churches that arose after her.
Other prophecies point out the faults of Protestant and Jewish faiths. God has true people in all religions. His true people, no matter their faith, will always humbly accept the correction of the Lord and will not shut their ears and hearts against Him by self defensiveness. We should be very thankful that God's Word speaks with impartial honesty on every subject.
What trentdubb05 post on this thread reminds me of my seminary studies about the subject. I'd want to ask if you don't mind sharing some resources that has helped your understanding of this subject. I think that if people take the time to research and study on this subject, their understandings will be enlighten and help them not to talk from half-knowledge.
It has been a long time since I studied this topic. I have always believed the anti Christ will be Islamic and they will attempt to make their religion a one world religion. At one time I had verses to back me. Some are the same that you people use.
