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ANTICHRIST
Across the varied scenes depicted by prophecy there falls the shadow of a figure at once commanding and ominous. Under many different names like the aliases of a criminal, his character and movements are set before us. It is our intention to write a series of papers concerning this one who will be the full embodiment of human wickedness and the final manifestation of satanic blasphemy. Many others have made reference to this mysterious personage in their general expositions of prophecy, but so far as our examination of the literature on this subject has carried us (and we have endeavored to make it as thorough as possible) there seem to have been very few attempts made to furnish a complete delineation of this Prince of Darkness. We do not know of any exhaustive treatment of the subject, and for this reason, and also because there is no little confusion in the minds of many concerning the character and career of the coming Man of Sin, these papers are not submitted to the attention of Bible students.
For upwards of twelve years we have studied diligently and prayerfully what the Scriptures teach about the Pseudo-Christ. The deeper we have carried these studies, the more surprised we are at the prominent place which is given in the Bible to this Son of Perdition. There is an amazing wealth of detail which, when carefully collected and arranged, supplies a vivid biography of the one who is shortly to appear and take the government of the world upon his shoulders. The very fact that the Holy Spirit has caused so much to be written upon the subject at once denotes its great importance. The prominence of the Antichrist in the prophetic Scriptures will at once appear by a glance at the references that follow.
The very first prophecy of the Bible takes note of him, for in Genesis 3:15 direct reference is made to the Serpent's "Seed." In exodus a striking type of him is furnished in Pharaoh, the defier of God; the one who cruelly treated His people; the one who by ordering the destruction of all the male children, sought to cut off Israel from being a nation; the one who met with such a drastic end at the hands of the Lord. In the prophecy of Balaam, the Antichrist is referred to under the name of "Asshur" (Numbers 24:22),—in future chapters evidence will be given to prove that "Asshur" and the Antichrist are one and the same person. There are many other remarkable types of the Man of Sin to be found in the historical books of the Old Testament, but these we pass by now, as we shall devote a separate chapter to their consideration.
In the book of Job he is referred to as "the Crooked Serpent" (Job 26:13): with this should be compared Isaiah 27:1 where, as "the Crooked Serpent," he is connected with the Dragon, though distinguished from him. In the Psalms we find quite a number of references to him; as "the Bloody and Deceitful Man" (5:6); "the Wicked (One)" (9:17); "the Man of the Earth" (10:18); the "Mighty Man" (52:1); "the Adversary" (74:10); "the Head over many countries" (110:6); "the Evil Man" and "the Violent Man" (140:1), etc., etc. Let the student give special attention to Psalms 10, 52, and 55.
When we turn to the Prophets there the references to this Monster of Iniquity are so numerous that were we to cite all of them, even without comment, it would take us quite beyond the proper bounds of this introductory chapter. Only a few of the more prominent ones can, therefore, be noticed.
Isaiah mentions him: first as the "Assyrian," "the Rod" of God's anger (10:5); then as "the Wicked" (11:4); then as "the King of Babylon" (14:11-20 and cf 30:31-33); and also as the "Spoiler"—Destroyer (16:4). Jeremiah calls him "the Destroyer of the Gentiles" (4:7); the "Enemy," the "Cruel One" and "the Wicked" (30:14 and 23). Ezekiel refers to him as the "Profane Wicked Prince of Israel" (21:25), and again under the figure of the "Prince of Tyre" (28:2-10), and also as "the chief Prince of Meshech and Tubal" (38:2). Daniel gives a full delineation of his character and furnished a complete outline of his career. Hosea speaks of him as "the King of Princes" (8:10), and as the "Merchant" in whose hand are "the balances of deceit" and who "loveth to oppress" (12:7). Joel describes him as the Head of the Northern Army, who shall be overthrown because he "magnified himself to do great things" (2:20). Amos terms him the "Adversary" who shall break Israel's strength and spoil her palaces (3:11). Micah makes mention of him in the fifth chapter of his prophecy (see v. 6). Nahum refers to him under the name of "Belial" (Heb.) and tells of his destruction (1:15). Habakkuk speaks of him as "the Proud Man" who "enlarged his desires as hell, and is as death, and cannot be satisfied, but gathereth unto him all nations, and heapeth unto him all peoples" (2:5). Zechariah describes him as "the Idol Shepherd" upon whom is pronounced God's "woe," and upon whom descends His judgment (11:17).
Nor is it only in the Old Testament that we meet with this fearful character. Our Lord Himself spoke of him as the one who should "come in his own name," and who would be "received" by Israel (John 5:43). The apostle Paul gives us a full length picture of him in 2 Thessalonians 2, where he is denominated "that Man of Sin, the Son of Perdition," who coming shall be "after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders." The apostle John mentions him by name, and declares that he will deny both the Father and the Son (1 John 2:22). While in the Apocalypse, the last book in the Bible, all these lines of prophecy are found to converge in "the Beast" who shall ultimately be cast, together with the False Prophet, into the lake of fire, there to be joined a thousand years later by the Devil himself, to suffer for ever and ever in that fire specially "prepared" by God.
The appearing of the Antichrist is a most appalling and momentous subject, and in the past, many well-meaning writers have deprived this impending event of much of its terror and meaning, by confusing some of the antichrists that have already appeared at various intervals on the stage of human history, with that mysterious being who will tower high above all the sons of Belial, being no less than Satan's counterfeit and opposer of the Christ of God, who is infinitely exalted above all the sons of God. It promotes the interests of Satan to keep the world in ignorance of the coming Super-man, and there can be no doubt that he is the one who is responsible for the general neglect in the study of this subject, and the author, too, of the conflicting testimony which is being given out by those who speak and write concerning it.
There have been three principal schools among the interpreters of the prophecies pertaining to the Antichrist. The first have applied these prophecies to persons of the past, to men who have been in their graves for many centuries. The second have given these prophecies a present application, finding their fulfillment in the Papacy which still exists. While the third give them a future application, and look for their fulfillment in a terrible being who is yet to be manifested. Now, widely divergent as are these several views, the writer is assured there is an element of truth in each of them. Many, if not the great majority of the prophecies—not only those pertaining to the Antichrist, but to other prominent objects of prediction—have at least a twofold, and frequently a threefold fulfillment. They have a local and immediate fulfillment: they have a continual and gradual fulfillment: and they have a final and exhaustive fulfillment.
In the second chapter of his first epistle the apostle John declares, "Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that Antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time" (v. 18). In strict harmony with this, the apostle Paul affirmed that the "mystery of iniquity" was "already" at work in his day (2 Thessalonians 2:7). This need not surprise us, for many centuries before the apostles, the wise man declared, "The thing that hath been, is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun" (Ecclesiastes 1:9). History works in cycles, but as each cycle is completed we are carried nearer the goal and consummation of history. There have been, then, and there exist today, many antichrists, but these are only so many forecasts and foreshadowings of the one who is yet to appear. But it is of first importance that we should distinguish clearly between an antichrist and the Antichrist. As we have said, there have already been many antichrists, but the appearing of the Antichrist is yet future.
The first school of interpreters referred to above, have lighted upon Antiochus Epiphanes as the one who fulfills the prophecies respecting the Antichrist. As far back as the days of Josephus (see his "Antiquities") this view found ardent advocates. Appeal was made to the title he assumed (Epiphanes signifying "Illustrious"); to his opposition against the worship of Jehovah; to his remarkable military achievements; to his diplomatic intrigues; to his defiling of the Temple; to his sacrificing of a pig in the holy of holies; to his setting up of an image; and to his cruel treatment of the Jews. But there are many conclusive reasons to prove that Antiochus Epiphanes could not possibly be the Antichrist, though undoubtedly he was, in several respects, a striking type of him, inasmuch as he foreshadowed many of the very things which this coming Monster will do. It is sufficient to point out that Antiochus Epiphanes had been in his grave for more than a hundred years when the apostle wrote 2 Thessalonians 2.
Another striking character who has been singled out by those who believe that the Antichrist has already appeared and finished his course, is Nero. And here again there are, admittedly, many striking resemblances between the type and the antitype. In his office of emperor of the Romans; in his awful impiety; in his consuming egotism, in his bloodthirsty nature; and in his ferocious and fiendish persecution of the people of God, we discover some of the very lineaments which will be characteristic of the Wicked One. But again it will be found that this man of infamous memory, Nero, did nothing more than foreshadow that one who shall far exceed him in satanic malignity. Positive proof that Nero was not the Antichrist is to be found in the fact that he was in his grave before John wrote the thirteenth chapter of the Revelation.
The second school of interpreters, to whom reference has been made above, apply the prophecies concerning the Antichrist to the papal system, and see in the succession of the popes the fac-simile of the Man of Sin. Attention is called to Rome's hatred of the Gospel of God's grace; to her mongrel combination of political and ecclesiastical rule; to her arrogant claims and tyrannical anathemas upon all who dare to oppose them; to her subtlety, her intrigues, her broken pledges; and last, but not least, to her unspeakable martyrdom of those who have withstood her. The pope, we are reminded, has usurped the place and prerogatives of the Son of God, and his arrogance, his impiety, his claims to infallibility, his demand for personal worship, all tally exactly with what is postulated of the Son of Perdition. Antichristian, Roman Catholicism unquestionably is, yet, even this monstrous system of evil falls short of that which shall yet be headed by the Beast. We shall devote a separate chapter to a careful comparison of the papacy with the prophecies which describe the character and career of the Antichrist.
The third school of interpreters believe that the prophecies relating to the Lawless One have not yet received their fulfillment, and cannot do so until this present Day of Salvation has run its course. The Holy Spirit of God, whose presence here now prevents the final outworking of the Mystery of Iniquity, must be removed from these scenes before Satan can bring forth his Masterpiece of deception and opposition to God. Many are the scriptures which teach plainly that the manifestation of the Antichrist is yet future, and these will come before us in our future studies. For the moment we must continue urging upon our readers the importance of this subject and the timeliness of our present inquiry.
The study of Antichrist is not merely one of interest to those who love the sensational, but it is of vital importance to a right understanding of dispensational truth. A true conception of the predictions which regard the Man of Sin is imperatively necessary for an adequate examination of that vast territory of unfulfilled prophecy. A single passage of scripture will establish this. If the reader will turn to the beginning of 2 Thessalonians 2 he will find that the saints in Thessalonica had been waiting for the coming of God's Son from heaven, because they had been taught to expect their gathering together unto Him before God launches His judgments upon the world, which will distinguish the "Day of the Lord." But their faith had been shaken and their hope disturbed. Certain ones had erroneously informed them that "that day" had arrived, and therefore, their expectation of being caught up to meet the Lord in the air had been disappointed. It was to relieve the distress of these believers, and to repudiate the errors of those who had disturbed them, that, moved by the Holy Spirit, the apostle wrote his second epistle to the Thessalonian church.
"Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto Him, That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that Man of Sin be revealed, the Son of Perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God. Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you I told you these things? And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only He who now letteth (hindereth) will let, until He be taken our of the way. And then shall that Wicked One be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: Even him whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they might believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness" (2 Thessalonians 2:1-12).
We have quoted this passage at length to show that the Day of the Lord cannot come until after the Rapture (v. 1), after the Apostasy (v. 3), and after the appearing of the Man of Sin (v. 3), whose character and career here briefly but graphically sketched. The Antichrist is to run his career of unparalleled wickedness after all Christians have been removed from these scenes, for it it under him, as their leader, that all the hosts of ungodliness shall muster to meet their doom by the summary judgment of God. Has then, the Wicked One been revealed? or must we still say, as the apostle said in his day, that while the "mystery of iniquity" is even now working, there is something "withholding" (restraining), that he should be revealed "in his time?" The vital importance of the answer which is given to these questions will further appear when we connect with this description of the Antichrist given in 2 Thessalonians 2 the other prophecies which reveal the exact length of time within which his course must be accomplished. Our reason for saying this is because the majority of the prophecies yet unfulfilled are to be fulfilled during the time that the Antichrist is the central figure upon earth. Moreover, the destruction of the Antichrist and his forces will be the grand finale in the age-long conflict between the Serpent and the woman's Seed, as He returns to set up His kingdom.
The dominant view which has been held by Protestants since the time of the Reformation is that the many predictions relating to the Antichrist describe, instead, the rise, progress, and doom of the papacy. This mistake has led to others, and given rise to the scheme of prophetic interpretation which has prevailed throughout Christendom. When the predictions concerning the Man of Sin were allegorized, consistency required that all associated and collateral predictions should also be allegorized, and especially those which relate to his doom, and the kingdom which is to be established on the overthrow of his power. When the period of his predicted course was made to measure the whole duration of the papal system, it naturally followed that the predictions of the associated events should be applied to the history of Europe from the time that the Bishop of Rome became recognized as the head of the Western Churches.
It was, really, this mistake of Luther and his contemporaries in applying to Rome the prophecies concerning the Antichrist which is responsible, we believe, for the whole modern system of post-millennialism. The Reformers were satisfied that the Papacy had received its death blow, and though it lingered on, the Protestants of the sixteenth century were confident it could never recover. Believing that the doom of the Roman hierarchy was sealed, that the kingdom of Satan was rocking on its foundations, and that a brief interval would witness a complete overthrow, they at once seized upon the prophecies which announced the setting up of the kingdom of Christ as immediately following the destruction of the Antichrist, and applied them to Protestantism. It is true that some of them did not seem to fit very well, but human ingenuity soon found a way to overcome these difficulties. The obstacle presented by those prophecies that announced the immediate setting up of Christ's kingdom, following the overthrow and destruction of Satan's, was surmounted by an appeal to the analogy furnished in the overthrow of Satan's kingdom—if this was a tedious process, a gradual thing which required time to complete, why not so with the other? If the rapidly waning power of the papacy was sufficient to guarantee its ultimate extermination, why should not the progress of the Reformation presage the ultimate conquering of the world for Christ!
If, as it seemed clear to the Reformers, the papacy was the Man of Sin, and St. Peter's was the "temple" in which he usurped the place and prerogatives of Christ, then, this premise established, all the other conclusions connected with their scheme of prophetic interpretation must logically follow. To establish the premise was the first thing to be done, and once the theory became a settled conviction it was no difficult thing to find scriptures which appeared to confirm their view. The principal difficulty in the way was to dispose of the predictions which limited the final stage of Antichrist's career to forty-two months, or twelve hundred sixty days. This was accomplished by what is known as the "year-day" theory, which regards each of the 1260 days as "prophetic days," that is, as 1260 years, and thus sufficient room was afforded to allow for the protracted history of Roman Catholicism.
Without entering into further details, it is evident at once that, if this allegorical interpretation of the prophecies regarding Antichrist can be proven erroneous, then the whole post-millennial and "historical" schemes of interpretation fall to the ground, and thousands of the voluminous expositions of prophecy which have been issued during the past three hundred and fifty years are set aside as ingenious but baseless speculations. This, of itself, is sufficient to demonstrate the importance of our present inquiry.
Not only is the importance of our subject denoted by the prominent place given to it in the Word of God, and not only is its value established by the fact that a correct understanding of the person of Antichrist is one of the chief keys to the right interpretation of the many prophecies which yet await their fulfillment, but the timeliness of this inquiry is discovered by noting that the Holy Spirit has connected the appearing of the Antichrist with the Apostasy: "Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away (the Apostasy) first, and that Man of Sin be revealed, the Son of Perdition" (2 Thessalonians 2:3). These two things are here joined together, and if it can be shown that the Apostasy is already far advanced, then we may be certain that the manifestation of the Man of Sin cannot be far distant.
There is little need for us to make a lengthy digression here and give a selection from the abundance of evidence to hand, which shows that the Apostasy is already far advanced. The great majority of those whom we are addressing have already had their eyes opened by God to discern the Christ-dishonoring conditions which exist on almost every side. It will be enough to barely mention the gathering of the "tares" into bundles, which is taking place before our eyes; the rapid spread of Spiritism, with its "seducing spirits and doctrines of demons," and the significant and solemn fact that thousands of those who are ensnared by it are those who have departed from the formal profession of the faith (1 Tim. 4:1); the "form of godliness" which still exists, but which alas! in the vast majority of instances "denies its power ;" the alarming development and growth of Roman Catholicism in this land, and the lethargic indifference to this by most of those who bear the name of Christ; the denial of every cardinal doctrine of the faith once delivered to the saints, which is now heard in countless pulpits of every denomination; the "scoffing" which is invariably met with by those who teach the imminent return of the Lord Jesus; and the Lacodicean spirit which is now the very atmosphere of Christendom, and from which few, if any, of the Lord's own people are entirely free—these, and a dozen others which might be mentioned, are the proofs which convince us that the time must be very near at hand when the Divine Hinderer shall be removed, and when satan shall bring forth his Son to head the final revolt against God, ere the Lord Jesus returns to this earth and sets up His kingdom. This then, shows the need of a prayerful examination of what God has revealed of those things "which must shortly come to pass." The very fact that the time when Satan's Masterpiece shall appear is rapidly drawing nearer, supplies further evidence of the importance and timeliness of our present inquiry.
The practical value of these preliminary considerations should at once be apparent. What we have written in connection with this incarnation of Satan who is shortly to appear, is not the product of a disordered imagination but the subject of Divine revelation. The warning given that the appearing of the Antichrist cannot be far distant springs not from the fears of an alarmist, but is required by the Signs of the Times which, in the light of Scripture, are fraught with significant meaning to all whose senses are exercised to discern both good and evil. The many proofs that the manifestation of the Man of Sin is an event of the near future are so many calls to God's own children to be ready for the Return of the Saviour, for before the Son of Perdition can be revealed the Lord Himself must first descend into the air and catch away from these scenes, unto Himself, His own blood-bought people. Therefore, it behooves each one of us to make "our calling and election sure," and to heed that urgent admonition of the Saviour "Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning; and ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their Lord" (Luke 12:35, 36).
—Antichrist, The
The Person of the Antichrist In our last chapter we pointed out how that the Antichrist is not a system of evil, nor an anit-Christian organization, but instead, a single individual being, a person yet to appear. In support of this we appealed to the declaration of our Lord recorded in John 5:43; "I am come in My Father's name, and ye receive Me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive." Here the Saviour both compares and contrasts the Man of Sin with Himself. The point of comparison is that, like the Saviour, he shall offer himself to Israel; the contrast is, that unlike Christ who was rejected by the Jews, the false messiah shall be "received" by them. If, then, the Antichrist may be compared and contrasted with the Christ of God, he, too, must be a person, an individual being.
Again; we called attention to the expression used by the apostle Paul in 2 Thessalonians 2:—"That Man of Sin," "the Son of Perdition," he that "opposeth and exalteth himself," "the Wicked One whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of His mouth," "he whose coming is after the working of Satan"—all these point as distinctly to a single individual as did the Messianic predictions of the Old Testament point to the person of our Lord Jesus Christ. Assured, then, that "the Antichrist" signifies a specific individual, our next concern is to turn to the Scriptures and learn what God has been pleased to reveal concerning this Personification of Evil.
I. The Antichrist Will Be a Jew The Antichrist will be a Jew, though his connections, his governmental position, his sphere of dominion, will by no means confine him to the Israelitish people. It should, however, be pointed out that there is no express declaration of Scripture which says in so many words that this daring Rebel will be "a Jew;" nevertheless, the hints given are so plain, the conclusions which must be drawn from certain statements of Holy Writ are so obvious, and the requirements of the case are so inevitable, that we are forced to believe he must be a Jew. To these 'hints', 'conclusions' and 'requirements' we now turn.
1. In Ezekiel 21:25-27 we read: "and thou, profane wicked prince of Israel, whose day is come, when iniquity shall have an end, Thus saith the Lord God; Remove the diadem, and take off the crown: this shall not be the same: exalt him that is low, and abase him that is high. I will overturn, overturn, overturn it: and it shall be no more until he comes whose right it is, and I will give it him." The dispensational place and scope of this passage, is not hard to determine. The time-mark is given in v. 25: it is "when iniquity shall have an end." It is the End-Time which is in view, then, the End of the Age, when "the transgressors are come to the full" (Daniel 8:23 and cf. 11:36—"Till the indignation be accomplished"). At that time Israel shall have a Prince, a Prince who is crowned (v. 26), and a Prince whose day is said to be come when "iniquity shall have an end." Now, as to who this Prince is, there is surely no room for doubt. The only Prince whom Israel will have in that day, is the Son of Perdition, here termed their Prince because he will be masquerading as Messiah the Prince (see Daniel 9:25)! Another unmistakable mark of identification is here given, in that he is expressly denominated "thou, profane wicked Prince"—assuredly, it is the Man of Sin who is here in view, that impious one who shall "oppose and exalt himself above all that is called God." But what should be noted particularly, is, that this profane and wicked character is here named "Prince of Israel." He must, therefore, be of the Abrahamic stock, a Jew!
2. In Ezekiel 28:2-10 a remarkable description is given us of the Antichrist under the figure of "the Prince of Tyrus," just as in vv.12-19 we have another most striking delineation of Satan under the figure of "the king of Tyrus." In a later chapter we hope to show that, beyond a doubt, it is the Antichrist who is in view in the first section of this chapter. There is only one thing that we would now point out from this passage: in v.10 it is said of him "Thou shalt die the deaths of the uncircumcised," which is a very strong hint that he ought not to die the deaths of the "uncircumcised" because he belonged to the Circumcision! Should it be said that this verse cannot apply to the Antichrist because he will be destroyed by Christ Himself at His coming, the objection is very easily disposed of by a reference to Revelation 13:14, which tells of the Antichrist being wounded to death by a sword and rising from the dead—which is prior to his ultimate destruction at the hands of the Saviour.
3. In Daniel 11:36, 37 we are told, "And the king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvelous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined shall be done. Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers." This passage, it is evident, refers to and describes none other than the coming Antichrist. But what we wish to call special attention to is the last sentence quoted—"The God of his fathers." What are we to understand by this expression? Why, surely, that he is a Jew, an Israelite, and that his fathers after the flesh were Abraham, Isaac and Jacob—for such is the invariable meaning of "the fathers" throughout the Old Testament Scriptures.
4. In Matthew 12:43-45 we have another remarkable scripture which will be considered briefly, in a later section of this chapter, when we shall endeavor to show that "The Unclean Spirit" here is none other than the Son of Perdition, and that the "house" from which he goes out and into which he returns, is the Nation of Israel. If this can be established, then we have another proof that he will be a Jew, for this "house," which is Israel, is here termed by Antichrist "my house." Just as Solomon was of "the House of David," so Antichrist shall be of the House of Israel.
5. In John 5:43 we have a further word which helps us to fix the nationality of this coming One. In speaking of the false messiah, the Lord Jesus referred to him as follows, "Another shall come in his own name." In the Greek there are four different words all translated "Another" in our English versions. One of them is employed but once, and a second but five times, so these need not detain us now. The remaining two are used frequently, and with a clear distinction between them. The first "allos" signifies "another" of the same kind or genus—see Matthew 10:23; 13:24; 26:71, etc. The second, "heteros," means "another" of a totally different kind,—see Mark 16:12; Luke 14:31; Acts 7:18; Romans 7:23. Now the striking thing is that the word used by our Lord in John 5:43 is "allos," another of the same genus, not "heteros," another of a different order. Christ, the Son of Abraham, the Son of David, had presented Himself to Israel, and they rejected Him; but "another" of the same Abrahamic stock should come to them, and him they would "receive." If the coming Antichrist were to be a Gentile, the Lord would have employed the word "heteros;" the fact that He used "allos" shows that he will be a Jew.
6. The very name "Antichrist" argues strongly his Jewish nationality. This title "Antichrist" has a double significance. It means that he will be one who shall be "opposed" to Christ, one who will be His enemy. But it also purports that he will be a mock Christ, an imitation Christ, a pro-Christ, a pseudo Christ. It intimates that he will ape Christ. He will pose as the real Messiah of Israel. In such case he must be a Jew.
7. This mock Christ will be "received" by Israel. The Jews will be deceived by Him. They will believe that he is indeed their long-expected Messiah. They will accept him as such. Proofs of this will be furnished in a later chapter. But if this pseudo Christ succeeds in palming himself off on the Jews as their true Messiah he must be a Jew, for it is unthinkable that they would be deceived by any Gentile.
Ere passing to the next point, we may add, that it was the common belief among Christians during the first four centuries A.D., that the Antichrist would come from the tribe of Daniel Whether this will be the case or no, we do not know. Genesis 49:17, 18 may have ultimate reference to this Son of Perdition. Certainly Dan is the most mysterious of all the twelve tribes.
II. The Antichrist Will Be the Son of Satan That Satan will have a son ought not to surprise us. The Devil is a consummate imitator and much of his success in deceiving men is due to his marvelous skill in counterfeiting the things of God. Below we give a list of some of his imitations:--
Do we read of Christ going forth to sow the "good seed" (Matthew 13:24), then we also read of the enemy going forth to sow his "tares"—an imitation wheat (Matthew 13:25). Do we read of "the children of God," then we also read of "the children of the wicked one" (Matthew 13:38). Do we read of God working in His children "both to will and to do of His good pleasure" (Philippians 2:13), then we are also told that the Prince of the power of the air is "the spirit that now woreth in the children of disobedience" (Ephesians 2:2). Do we read of the Gospel of God, then we also read that Satan has a gospel—"Another gospel, which is not another" (Galatians 1:6, 7). Did Christ appoint "apostles," then Satan has his apostles too (2 Corinthians 11:13). Are we told that "the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God" (1 Corinthians 2:10), then Satan also provides his "deep things" (see Greek of Revelation 2:24). Are we told that God, by His angel, will "seal" His servants in their foreheads (Revelation 7:3), so also we read that Satan, by his angels, will set a mark in the foreheads of his devotees (Re. 13:16). Does the Father seek "worshippers" (John 4:23), so also does Satan (Revelation 13:4). Did Christ quote scripture, so also did Satan (Matthew 4:6). Is Christ the Light of the world, then Satan also is transformed as an "angel of light" (2 Corinthians 11:14). Is Christ denominated "the Lion of the tribe of Judah" (Revelation 5:5), then the Devil is also referred to as "a roaring lion" (1 Peter 5:6). Do we read of Christ and "His angels" (Matthew 24:31), then we also read of the Devil and "his angels" (Matthew 25:41). Did Christ work miracles, so also will Satan (2 Thessalonians 2:9). Is Christ seated upon a "Throne," so also will Satan be (Revelation 2:13, Gk.). Has Christ a Church, then Satan has his "synagogue" (Revelation 2:9). Has Christ a "bride," then Satan has his "whore" (Revelation 17:16). Has God His "Vine," so has Satan (Revelation 14:19). Does God have a city, the new Jerusalem, then Satan has a city, Babylon (Revelation 17:5; 18:2). Is there a "mystery of godliness" (1 Timothy 3:16), so also there is a "mystery of iniquity" (2 Thessalonians 2:7). Does God have an only-begotten Son, so we read of "the Son of Perdition" (2 Thessalonians 2:3). Is Christ called "the Seed of the woman," then the Antichrist will be "the seed of the serpent" (Genesis 3:15). Is the Son of God also the Son of Man, then the son of Satan will also be the "Man of Sin" (2 Thessalonians 2:3).
Is there a Holy Trinity, then there is also an Evil Trinity (Revelation 20:10). In this Trinity of Evil Satan himself is supreme, just as in the Blessed Trinity the Father is (governmentally) supreme: note that Satan is several times referred to as a father (John 8:44, etc.). Unto his son, the Antichrist, Satan gives his authority and power to represent and act for him (Revelation 13:4) just as God the Son received "all power in heaven and earth" from His Father, and uses it for His glory. The Dragon (Satan) and the Beast (Antichrist) are accompanied by a third, the False Prophet, and just as the third person in the Holy Trinity, the Spirit, bears witness to the person and work of Christ and glorifies Him, so shall the third person in the Evil Trinity bear witness to the person and work of the Antichrist and glorify him (see Revelation 13:11-14).
Now the Antichrist will be a man, and yet more than man, just as Christ was Man and yet more than man. The Antichrist will be the 'Superman' of whom the world, even now, is talking, and for whom it is looking. The Wicked One who is to be revealed shortly, will be a supernatural character, he will be the Son of Satan. His twofold nature is plainly declared in 2 Thessalonians 2:3—"That man of Sin, the Son of Perdition." In proof of these assertions we ask for a careful attention to what follows.
1. "And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy Seed and her Seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel" (Genesis 3:15). It is to be noted that there is here a double "enmity" spoken of: God says, "I will put enmity between thee and the woman," that is, between Satan and Israel, for Israel was the woman that bore Christ (Revelation 12); "And between thy seed and her seed." Observe particularly that two "seeds" are here spoken of; "Thy seed" (the antecedent is plainly the Serpent) and "her seed," the woman's Seed. The woman's Seed was Christ, the Serpent's seed will be the Antichrist. The Antichrist then, will be more than a man, he will be the actual and literal Seed of that old Serpent, the Devil; as Christ was, according to the flesh, the actual and literal Seed of the woman. "Thy seed," Satan's seed, refers to a s specific individual, just as "her seed" refers to a specific Individual.
2. "In that day the Lord with His sore and great and strong sword shall punish Leviathan the piercing Serpent, even Leviathan that crooked Serpent; and he shall slay the Dragon that is in the sea" (Isaiah 27:1). To appreciate the force of this we need to attend to the context, which is unfortunately broken by the chapter division. In the closing verses of Isaiah 26 we hear God saying, "Come, My people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be over past" (26:20). These words are addressed to the elect remnant of Israel. Their ultimate application will be to those on earth at the end of this Age, for it is the time of God's "indignation" (cf. Daniel 8:19 and 11:36). It is the time when "the Lord cometh out of His place to punish the inhabitants of the earth, for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain" (26:21)—notice "iniquity," singular number, not "iniquities." It is their worshipping of Satan's Man which is specifically referred to. Then, immediately following we read, "In that day the Lord...shall punish Leviathan the piercing Serpent." The connection, then, makes it plain that it is just before the Millennium when God shall punish the Crooked Serpent, the Antichrist. Now the very fact that the Wicked One is here denominated "the piercing and crooked Serpent" hints strongly that he will be the son of "that old Serpent, the Devil."
3. In the first two sections of Ezekiel 28 two remarkable characters are brought before us. The second who is described in vv. 12-19 has received considerable attention from Bible students of the last two generations, and since the late Mr. G. H. Pember pointed out that what is there said of "the king of Tyrus" could be true of no earthly king or mere human being, and must outline a character that none but Satan himself (before his fall) could fill this view has been adopted by most of the leading Bible teachers. But little attention has been paid to the character described in the first ten verses of this chapter.
Now just as what is said in Ezekiel 28 of "the king of Tyrus" can only apply fully to Satan himself, so, what is said of "the prince of Tyrus" manifestly has reference to the Antichrist. The parallelisms between what is said here and what we find in other scriptures which describe the Son of Perdition are so numerous and so evident, that we are obliged to conclude that it is the same person which is here contemplated. We cannot now attempt anything like a complete exposition of the whole passage (though we hope to give one later) but will just call attention to some of the outstanding marks of identification:
First, the Lord God says to this personage, "Because thine heart is lifted up, and thou hast said I am a god, I sit in the seat of God"—cf. 2 Thessalonians 2:4. Second, "Behold thou art wiser than Daniel"—cf. Dan 8:23, and 7:8, "Behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of men, and a mouth speaking great things," which intimates that the Antichrist will be possessed of extraordinary intelligence. Third, it is said of this character, "With thy wisdom and with thine understanding thou hast gotten thee riches, and hast gotten gold and silver into thy treasures" (v. 4- cf. Psalm 52:7; Daniel 11:38).
Sufficient has been said, we trust, to show that under the figure of this "prince of Tyrus" we may discern clearly the unmistakable features of the coming Antichrist. But the particular point we would make here, is this, that as Satan is termed "the king of Tyre," in the second section of this chapter the Antichrist is referred to as "the prince of Tyre." Antichrist, then, is related to Satan as "prince" is to "king," that is, as son is to the father.
4. In Matthew 12:43 the Antichrist is called "The Unclean Spirit," not merely an unclean spirit, but "the Unclean Spirit." We cannot now stop and submit the evidence that it is the Antichrist who is here in view, for this is another passage which we will consider carefully in a later chapter. But in the writer's mind there is no doubt whatever that none other than the Beast is here in view. If this be the case, then we have further evidence that the coming One will be no mere man indwelt by Satan, but a fallen angel, an evil spirit, the incarnation of the Devil.
5. "Ye are of your father the Devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of this own; for he is a liar, and the father of it" (John 8:44). Here is still another proof that the Antichrist will be superhuman, the offspring of Satan. In the Greek there is the definite article before the word "lie"—the lie, "the Lie." There is another passage in the New Testament where "the Lie" is mentioned, namely in 2 Thessalonians 2:11, where again the definite article is found in the Greek, and there the reference is unmistakable.
A threefold reason may be suggested as to why the Antichrist should be termed "the Lie." First, because his fraudulent claim to be the real Christ will be the greatest falsehood palmed off upon humanity. Second, because he is the direct antithesis of the real Christ, who is "the Truth" (John 14:6). Third, because he is the son of Satan who is the arch liar. But to return to John 8:44; "When he (the Devil) speaketh (concerning) the Lie, he speaketh of his own." His "own" what? His "own" son—the remainder of the verse makes this very plain—"for he (the Devil) is a liar and the father of it," i.e. of "the Lie." The Lie then, is "Satan's Son!"
6. "That day shall not come, except there come a falling away (the Apostasy) first, and that Man of Sin be revealed, the Son of Perdition" (2 Thessalonians 2:3). Nothing could be plainer than this. Here the Antichrist is expressly declared to be superhuman—"the Son of Perdition." Just as the Christ if the Son of God, so Antichrist will be the son of Satan. Just as the Christ dwelt all the fullness of the Godhead bodily, and just as Christ could say "He that hath seen Me, hath seen the Father," so the Antichrist will be the full and final embodiment of the Devil. He will not only be the incarnation of the Devil, but the consummation of his wickedness and power.
7. In Revelation 13:1 (R. V.) we read, "And he (the Dragon—see context) stood upon the sand of the sea"—symbolic of taking possession of the Nations: "And I saw a Beast coming up out of the sea, having ten diadems, and upon his heads names of blasphemy." It is deeply significant to mark how these things are here linked together as cause and effect. The coming forth of the Beast (the Antichrist) is immediately connected with the Dragon! But this is not all. Notice the description that is here given of him: "he has ten horns (fulness of power) and seven heads (complete wisdom)" and this is exactly how Satan himself is described in Revelation 12:3—"And behold, a great red Dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his heads names of blasphemy!" Does not a linking of these scriptures prove beyond all doubt that the Antichrist will be an exact replica of Satan himself!
But one other thing, even more startling, remains to be considered, and that is...
III. The Antichrist Will Be Judas Reincarnated 1. In Psalm 55 much is said of the Antichrist in his relation to Israel. Among other things we read there, "The words of his mouth were smoother than butter, but war was in his heart: his words were softer than oil, yet were they drawn swords" (v. 21). The occasion for this sad plaint is given in the previous verse—"He had put forth his hands against such as be at peace with him: he hath broken his covenant." The reference is to Antichrist breaking his seven-year Covenant with the Jews (see Daniel 9:27; 11:21-24). Now if the entire Psalm be read through with these things in mind, it will be seen that it sets forth the sorrows of Israel and the sighings of the godly remnant during the End-Time. But the remarkable thing is that when we come to vv. 11-14 we find that which has a double application and fulfillment—"wickedness is in the midst thereof: deceit and guile depart not from her streets. For it was not an enemy that reproached me; then I could have borne it: neither was it he that hated me that did magnify himself against me; then I would have hid myself from him: But it was thou, a man mine equal, my guide, and mine acquaintance. We took sweet counsel together, and walked unto the house of God in company." These verses describe not only the base treachery of Judas toward Christ, but they also announce how he shall yet, when reincarnated in the Antichrist, betray and desert Israel. The relation of Antichrist to Israel will be precisely the same as that of Judas to Christ of old. He will pose as the friend of the Jews, but later he will come out in his true character. In the Tribulation period, the Nation of Israel shall taste the bitterness of betrayal and desertion by one who masqueraded as a "familiar friend." Hence, we have here the first hint that the Antichrist will be Judas reincarnated.
2. "And your covenant with Death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with Hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it" (Isaiah 28:18). The "Covenant" referred to is that seven-year one which is mentioned in Daniel 9:27. But here the one with whom this Covenant is made is termed "Death and Hell." This is a title of the Antichrist, as "the Resurrection and the Life" is of the true Christ. Nor is this verse in Isaiah 28 the only one where the Son of Perdition is so denominated. In Revelation 6 a four-fold picture of him is given—the antithesis of the four-fold portrayal of the Lord Jesus in the Gospels. Here he is seen as the rider on differently colored horses, which bring before us four stages in his awful career, and when we come to the last of them the Holy Spirit exposes his true identity by telling us, "and his name that sat on him was Death and Hell followed with him" (Revelation 6:8). Now "Hell" or "hades" is the place which receives the souls of the dead, and the fact that this awful name is here applied to Antichrist intimates that he has come from there.
3. Above, we referred to Matthew 12:41-43 to prove that Antichrist will be a super-human being, a fallen and unclean spirit; we turn to it again in order to show that this coming incarnation of Satan has previously been upon earth. The history of this "Unclean Spirit" is divided into three stages. First, as having dwelt in "a man;" second, as having gone out of a man, and walking through dry places, seeking rest and finding none—this has reference to his present condition during the interval between his two appearances on earth. Third, he says, "I will return to my house." This Unclean Spirit, then, who has already been here, who is now away in a place where rest is not to be found, is to come back again!
4. In John 17:12 we have a word which, more plainly still, shows that the Antichrist will be Judas reincarnated, for here he is termed by Christ "The Son of Perdition." But first, let us consider the teaching of Scripture concerning Judas Iscariot. Who was he? He was a "man" (Matthew 26:24). But was he more than a man? Let Scripture make answer. In John 6:70 we read, "Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a Devil?" It is hardly necessary to say that in the Greek there are two different words for "Devil" and "demon." There are many demons, but only one Devil. Further, in no other passage is the word "devil" applied to any one but to Satan himself. Judas then was the Devil incarnate, just as the Lord Jesus was God incarnate. Christ Himself said so, and we dare not doubt His word.
As we have seen, in John 17:12 Christ termed Judas "the Son of Perdition," and 2 Thessalonians 2:3 we find that the Antichrist is similarly designated—"That Man of Sin be revealed, the Son of Perdition." These are the only two places in all the Bible where his name occurs, and the fact that Judas was termed by Christ not a "son of perdition," but "the Son of Perdition," and the fact that the Man of Sin is so named prove that they are one and the same person. What other conclusion can a simple and unprejudiced reader of the Bible come to?
5. In Revelation 11:7 we have the first reference to "the Beast" in the Apocalypse: "The Beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit." Here the Antichrist is seen issuing forth from the Abyss. What is the Abyss? It is the abode of lost spirits, the place of their incarceration and torment—see Revelation 20:1-3, and Luke 8:31, "deep" is the "abyss" and cf. Matthew 9:28. The question naturally arises, How did he get there? and when was he sent there? We answer, When Judas Iscariot died! The Antichrist will be Judas Iscariot reincarnated. In proof of this we appeal to Acts 1:25 where we are told, "that he may take part of this ministry and apostleship from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place." Of no one else in all the Bible is it said that at death he went "to his own place." Put these two scriptures together: Judas went "to his own place," the Beast ascends out of the Abyss.
6. In Revelation 17:8 we read, "The Beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the Bottomless Pit, and go into perdition." This verse is generally understood to refer to the revived Roman Empire,and while allowing that such an application is warrantable, yet we are persuaded it is a mistake to limit it to this. In the Apocalypse, the Roman Empire and its final and satanic Head are very closely connected, so much so, that at times it is difficult to distinguish between them. But in Revelation 17 they are distinguishable.
In v. 8 we are told that the Beast "shall ascend out of the Bottomless Pit," and that he "shall go into perdition." In v. 11 we are told, "And the Beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seventh, and goeth into perdition." Now nearly all expositors are agreed that the Beast of v. 11—the "eighth" (head, and form of government of the Roman Empire)—is the Antichrist himself; then why not admit the same of v.8? In both, the designation is the same—"the Beast;" and in both, we are told he "goeth into perdition."
We take it, then, that what is predicted of "the Beast" in 17:8 is true of both the Roman Empire and its last head, the Antichrist: of the former, in the sense that it is infernal in its character. Viewing it now as a declaration of the Antichrist, what does it tell us about him? Four things. First, he "was." Second, he "is not." Third, he shall "ascend out of the Bottomless Pit." Fourth, he shall "go into perdition." The various time-marks here concern the Beast in his relation to the earth. First, he "was," i.e. on the earth. Second, he "is not," i.e. now on the earth (cf. Genesis 5:24, "Enoch was not for God took him;" that is, "was not" any longer on earth). Third, he shall "ascend out of the Bottomless Pit," where he is now, which agrees with 11:7. Fourth, he shall "go into perdition." We learn then from this scripture that at the time the Apocalypse was written the Beast "was not" then on the earth, but that he had been on it formerly. Further, we learn that in John's day the Beast was then in the Bottomless Pit but should yet ascend out of it. Here then is further evidence that the Antichrist who is yet to appear has been on earth before.
7. "And the Beast was taken, and with him the False Prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the Beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone." (Revelation 19:20). This gives the last word concerning the Antichrist. It makes known the terrible fate which awaits him. He, together with his ally, will be cast alive into the Lake of Fire. This is very striking, and confirms what has been said above, namely, that the Antichrist will be one who has already appeared on earth, and has been in "the Abyss" during the interval which precedes his return to the earth. And how remarkable Revelation 19:20 corroborates this. The Antichrist will not be cast, eventually into the Abyss, as Satan will be at the end of the Millennium (Revelation 20:1-3), but into the Lake of Fire which is the final abode of the damned. Why is it that he shall not be cast into the Abyss at the return of Christ? It must be because he has already been there. Hence, the judgment meted out to him is final and irrevocable, as will be that of the Devil a thousand years later, see Revelation 20:10.
Our next chapter will be devoted to an examination and consideration of the many Names and Titles which are given to the Antichrist in the Word of God, and we would urge the student to diligently search the Scriptures for himself to see how many of these he can find—there are over twenty.
—Antichrist, The
Names And Titles of the Antichrist There is a distinct science of nomenclature, a system of names, in the Word of God. Probably every name in Scripture has either a historic, a symbolic, or a spiritual significance. The names are inseparably bound up with the narrative, and it frequently happens that the meaning of a proper noun is a key to an important passage. Names are not employed by the Holy Spirit in a loose and careless manner—of course not!—but with definite design. A variety of names for the same individual are not given in order to prevent monotonous repetition, but because the significance of each separate appellation is best fitted to express what is recorded in any given instance. "Devil" and "Satan" are not synonyms, nor are they used at haphazard, but with Divine discrimination. Upon the meaning of names found in Holy Writ rests a whole scheme of interpretation; even the order in which names occur is not fortuitous but designed, and constitutes a part of each lesson taught, or each truth presented.
There is here a wide field opened for study, a field which few have made serious effort to explore. It is strange that it has been so neglected, for again and again the Holy Spirit calls attention to the importane and meaning of names. In the first book of the Bible we find that children and places were given meaningful names, which called to remembrance incidents, experiences, characteristics of interest and importance. Examples are given where names changed to harmonize with a change in the person, place, experience, or situation where it occurred. Abram and Sarai will at once occur to mind. For a place, take Luz, which was changed to Bethel!—"House of God"—because by reason of a vision he received there it became that to Jacob. Jacob's name is changed to Israel; and in the New Testament an example is furnished in Simeon being re-named Peter. In Hebrews 7:1, 2 the Holy Spirit calls attention to the significance of the names Melchizedik and Salem (Jerusalem). These are sufficient to show the importance of this line of study.
Names are used in Scripture with marvelous discrimination, and it was this fact which first demonstrated to the writer, the verbal inspiration of Scripture. The precision with which names are used in the Bible is especially noticeable in connection with the Divine titles. The names Elohim and Jehovah are found on the pages of the Old Testament several thousand times, but they are never used loosely or interchangeably. Over three hundred names and titles are given to the Lord Jesus Christ, and each has its own distinctive significance and to substitute any other for the one used would destroy the beauty and perfections of every passage where they are found.
Names are employed to express character; titles are used to denote relationships. It is only as we make a careful study of the various and numerous names and titles of the Lord Jesus Christ, that we are in a position to appreciate His infinite excellencies and the manifold relationships which He sustains. From an opposite standpoint the same is equally true of the Antichrist. As we pay careful attention to the different names and titles which are given to him, we then discover what a marvelously complete delineation the Holy Spirit has furnished us with of the person, the character, and career of this monster of wickedness. It is unfortunate that the great variety of names bestowed upon him has led some brethren to the conclusion that they must belong to separate persons, and has caused them to apportion these out to different individuals; only confusion can result from this. There is almost as much ground to make the Devil and Satan different persons, as there is to regard (as some do) the Beast and the Antichrist as separate entities. That the Devil and Satan are names belonging to the same person, and that the Beast and the Antichrist is the selfsame individual, is proven by the fact that identically the same characteristics under each is found belonging to the one as to the other. Instead of apportioning these names to different persons, we must see that they denominate the same individual, only in different relationships, or as giving us various phases of his character.
An old writer has said the name Devil is most suggestive of his character. If "d" is taken away, evil is left. If "e" is taken away vile is left. If "v" is taken away ill is left. And if "i" is taken away and the next letter be aspirated, it tells of hell. It is equally true of the Antichrist: his names reveal his character, expose his vileness, and forecast his career and doom.
The names and titles given to the Antichrist are far more numerous than is commonly supposed. We propose to give as complete a list as possible, and offer a few comments on their significations. We shall not expatiate on them at equal length, for that is not necessary; instead, we shall say the most on those cognomens which are of the greater importance, or, which because of their ambiguity call for a more detailed elucidation.
1. The Antichrist "Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is Antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son" (1 John 2:22). This name introduces to us one of the most solemn and foreboding subjects in the Word of God. It brings before us one of the persons in the Trinity of Evil. At every point he is the antithesis of Christ. The word "Antichrist" has a double significance. Its primary meaning is one who is opposed to Christ; but its secondary meaning is one who is instead of Christ. Let not this be thought strange, for it accords with the two stages in his career. At first he will pose as the true Christ, masquerading in the livery of religion. But, later, he will throw off his disguise, stand forth in his true character, and set himself up as one who is against God and His Christ.
Not only does anti-christ denote the antagonist of Christ, but it tells of one who is instead of Christ. The word signifies another Christ, a pro-Christ, an alter christus, a pretender to the name of Christ. He will seem to be and will set himself up as the true Christ. He will be the Devil's counterfeit. Just as the Devil is an Anti-theos—not only the adversary of God, but the usurper of the place and prerogatives of God, demanding worship; so the Son of Perdition will be anti-christ—not only the antagonist and opponent of Christ, but His reval: assuming the very position and prerogatives of Christ; passing himself off as the rightful claimant to all the rights and honors of the Son of God.
2. The Man of Sin, the Son of Perdition "Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that Man of Sin be revealed, the Son of Perdition" (2 Thessalonians 2:3). This double appellation is probably the most awful, the most important, and the most revealing title given to the Antichrist in all the Bible. It diagnoses his personality and exposes his awful character. It tells us he will be possessed of a twofold nature: he will be a man, and yet more than a man. He will be Satan's parody of the God-Man. He will be an incarnation of the Devil. The world today is talking of and looking for the Super-man. This is exactly what the Antichrist will be. He will be the Serpent's masterpiece.
"That Man of Sin." What a frightful name! The sin of man will culminate in the Man of Sin. The Christ of God was sinless; the Christ of Satan will not only be sinful, but the Man of Sin. "Man of Sin" intimates that he will be the living and active embodiment of every form and character of evil. "Man of Sin" signifies that he will be sin itself personified. "Man of Sin" denotes there will be no lengths of wickedness to which he will not go, no forms of evil to which he will be a stranger, no depths of corruption that he will not bottom.
"The Son of Perdition." And again we are forced to exclaim, what a frightful name! Not only a human degenerate, but the offspring of the Dragon. Not only the worst of human kind, but the incarnation of the Devil. Not only the most depraved of all sinners, but an emanation from the Pit itself. "Son of Perdition" denotes that he will be the culmination and consummation of satanic craft and power. All the evil, malignity, cunning, and power of the Serpent will be embodied in this terrible monster.
3. The Lawless One "And then shall be revealed the Lawless One, whom the Lord Jesus shall slay with the breath of His mouth, and bring to nought by the manifestation of His coming" (2 Thessalonians 2:8 R. V.). This is another name of the Antichrist which makes manifest his awful character. Each of his names exhibits him as the antithesis of the true Christ. The Lord Jesus was the Righteous One; the Man of Sin will be the Lawless One. The Lord Jesus was "made under the law" (Galatians 4:4); the Antichrist will oppose all law, being a law unto himself. When the Saviour entered this world, He came saying, "Lo I come to do Thy will, O God" (Hebrews 10:9); but of the Antichrist it is written "And the king shall do according to his will" (Daniel 11:36). The Antichrist will set himself up in direct opposition to all authority, both Divine and human.
4. The Beast "And when they shall have finished their testimony the Beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them" (Revelation 11:7). This is another name which reveals the terrible nature and character of the Antichrist and which places him in sharp antithesis from the true Christ. "The Beast" is the title by which he is most frequently designated in the Revelation: there are at least thirty references to him under this name in the last book of the Bible. The Greek word signifies a wild beast. This name "the Beast" contrasts the Antichrist from the true Christ as "the Lamb;" and it is a significant fact that by far the great majority of passages where the Lord Jesus is so designated are also found here in the Apocalypse. The "Lamb" is the Saviour of sinners; the "Beast" is the persecutor and slayer of the saints. The "Lamb" calls attention to the gentleness of Christ; the "Beast" tells of the ferocity of the Antichrist. The "Lamb" reveals Christ as the "harmless" One (Hebrews 7:26); the "Beast" manifests the Antichrist as the cruel and heartless one. Under the Law lambs were ceremonially clean and used in sacrifice, but beasts were unclean and unfit for sacrifices.
It is a point of interest to note that there is one other very striking contrast between the persons in the Holy Trinity, and the persons in the trinity of evil. At our Lord's baptism the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in the form of a dove, and the first mention of the Holy Spirit in Scripture represents Him as "brooding" like a dove over the waters which covered the pre-Adamic earth (Genesis 1:2). How remarkable are those symbols—a "Lamb" and a "Dove!" A Dove, not a hawk or an eagle. The gentle, harmless, cooing "dove." Over against this the Devil is termed "the Dragon." What a contrast—the Dove and the Lamb, the Dragon and the Beast!
5. The Bloody and Deceitful Man "Thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing: the Lord will abhor the Bloody and Deceitful Man" (Psalm 5:6). The Psalm from which this verse is quoted contains a prayer of the godly Jewish remnant, offered during the Tribulation period. In proof of this assertion observe that in v. 2 God is owned and addressed as "King." In v. 7 intimation is given that the Temple has been rebuild in Jerusalem, for turning away from it when it has been defiled by "the Abomination of Desolation," the remnant say, "But as for me I will come into Thy house in the multitude of Thy mercy: and in Thy fear will I worship toward Thy Holy Temple." While in v. 10 we find them praying for the destruction of their enemies, which is parallel with Revelation 6:10. It is during that time the faithful remnant will exclaim, "Thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing: the Lord will abhor the Bloody and Deceitful Man."
The Bloody and Deceitful Man views the Antichrist in relation to the Jews. In the earlier stages of his public career he poses as their friend and benefactor. He recognizes their rights as a separate State and appears anxious to protect their autonomy. He makes a formal covenant with them (Daniel 9:27) and their peace and security seem assured. But a few years later he comes out in his true character. His fair speeches and professions of friendship are seen to be false. He breaks his covenant (Psalm 55:20) and turns upon the Jews in fury. Their benefactor is now their worst enemy. The protector of their interests now aims to cut them off from being a nation in the earth (Psalm 83:4). Thus is he rightfully denominated by them "the Bloody and Deceitful Man."
6. The Wicked One "The Wicked (One) in his pride doth persecute the poor: the Wicked (One), through the pride of his countenance, will not seek after God" (Psalm 10:2, 4). This entire Psalm is about the Wicked One. The opening verse gives the key to its dispensational scope. It contains the cry of the Jewish remnant during the Tribulation period, here denominated "Times of Trouble" (cf. Jer. 30:7). So desperate is the situation of the true Israel, it seems as though Jehovah must have deserted them—"Why standeth Thou afar off, O Lord? Why hidest Thou Thyself in times of trouble?" (v. 1). Then follows a remarkably full description of their arch-enemy, the Wicked One. His pride (v. 2), his depravity: "He abhorreth the Lord" (v. 3 margin); his blasphemy: "All his thoughts are, There is no God" (v. 4 margin); his grievous ways, (v. 5); his consuming egotism, (v. 6); his deceitfulness, (v. 7); his treachery, (v. 8); his cruelty, (vv. 9, 10); his complacent pride, (v. 11), is each described. Then the Remnant cry, "Arise, O Lord; O God, lift up Thine hand: forget not the humble. Break Thou the arm of the Wicked and Evil One" (vv. 12 and 15). The whole Psalm should be carefully studied.
7. The Man of the Earth "To judge the fatherless and the oppressed, that the Man of the Earth may no more oppress" (Psalm 10:18). The "Wicked One" describes his character; the "Man of the Earth" defines his position. The one speaks of his awful depths of depravity; the other of his vast dominions. The sphere of his operations will be no mere local one, He will become World-emperor. He will be a king of kings and lord of lords, (Revelation 13:7). When the true Christ appeared on earth Satan offered Him "all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them" if He would fall down and worship him. When the false Christ appears, this offer will be repeated, the conditions will be met, and the tempting gift will be bestowed (Revelation 13:2). In consequence of this he shall be "the Man of the Earth;" just as later, Christ shall be "King over all the earth" (Zechariah 14:7).
8. The Mighty Man "Why boasteth thou thyself in mischief, O Mighty Man" (Psalm 52:1). This is another Psalm which is devoted to a description of this fearful character. Here again we have mention of his boastfulness (v. 1), his deceitfulness (v. 2), his depravity (v. 3), his egotism (v. 4), his riches (v. 7). His doom is also announced (v. 5). This title, the Mighty Man, refers to his immense wealth and possessions, and the power which they confer upon their possessor. It also points a striking contrast: Christ was the Lowly Man, not having where to lay His head; the Antichrist will be the Mighty Man, of whom it is said, "Lo, this is the man that made not God his strength; but trusted in the abundance of his riches, and strengthened himself in his substance" (Psalm 52:7).
9. The Enemy "Because of the voice of the Enemy, because of the oppression of the Wicked: for they cast iniquity upon me, and in wrath they hate me" (Psalm 55:3). This is another title used of the Antichrist in connection with Israel, a title which recurs several times both in the Psalms and the Prophets. It points a designed contrast from that Friend that "sticketh closer than a brother." This Enemy of Israel oppresses them sorely. His duplicity and treachery are here referred to. Concerning him Israel shall exclaim, "The words of his mouth were smoother than butter, but war was in his heart: his words were softer than oil, yet were they drawn swords" (Psalm 55:21). Let the student be on the lookout for passages in the Old Testament which make mention of the Enemy.
10. The Adversary "They said in their hearts, Let us destroy them together: they have burned up all the synagogues of God in the land. We see not our signs: there is no more any profit: neither is there any among us that knoweth how long. O God, how long shall the Adversary reproach? Shall the Enemy blaspheme Thy name forever?" (Psalm 74:8-10). This title occurs in several important passages. In Isaiah 59:19 we read, "So shall they fear the name of the Lord from the west, and His glory from the rising of the sun. When the Adversary shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard against him." Lam. 4:11, 12 is another scripture which obviously speaks of the End-time. "The Lord hath accomplished His fury; He hath poured out His fierce anger, and hath kindled a fire in Zion, and it hath devoured the foundations thereof. The kings of the earth, and all the inhabitants of the world, would not have believed that the Adversary and the Enemy should have entered into the gates of Jerusalem." In Amos 3:11 we read, "Therefore thus saith the Lord God; an Adversary there shall be even round about the land; and he shall bring down thy strength from thee, and thy palaces shall be spoiled." This is a title which intimates his satanic origin, for the Greek word for Devil means adversary.
11. The Head Over Many Countries "He shall judge among the heathen, he shall fill the places with the dead bodies; he shall wound the Head over many countries" (Psalm 110:6). The context here shows that it must be the Antichrist which is in view. The Psalm opens by the Father inviting the Son to sit at His right hand until His enemies shall be made His footstool. Then follows the affirmation that Jehovah will display His strength out of Jerusalem, and make His people Israel willing in the day of His power. Then, following Jehovah's oath that Christ is a Priest forever after the order of Melchizedek (which contemplates the exercise of His millennial and royal priesthood), we read, "The Lord at thy right hand shall strike through kings in the day of His wrath. He shall judge among the heathen, He shall fill the places with the dead bodies; He shall wound the Head over many countries." The "Day of His wrath" is the closing portion of the Tribulation period, and in the Day of His wrath. He wounds this Head over many countries. The Head over many countries refers to the Man of Sin as the Caesar of the last world-empire, prior to the establishment of the Messianic Kingdom.
12. The Violent Man "Deliver me, O Lord, from the Evil Man: preserve me from the Violent Man" (Psalm 140:1). This is another Psalm which expresses the plaintive supplications of the godly remnant in the "time of Jacob's trouble." Three times over the Antichrist is denominated the Violent Man. In v. 1 the remnant pray to be delivered from him. In v. 4 the petition is repeated. In v. 11 his doom is foretold. Cry is made for God to take vengeance upon this bloody persecutor: "Let the burning coals fall upon them: let them be cast into the fire; into deep pits, that they rise not up again. Let not an evil speaker be established in the earth: evil shall hunt the Violent Man to overthrow him" (Psalm 140:10, 11). The Violent Man is a name which fully accords with his Beast-like character. It tells of his ferocity and rapacity.
13. The Assyrian "O Assyrian, the rod of Mine anger, and the staff in their hand in Mine indignation...Wherefore it shall come to pass, that when the Lord hath performed His whole work upon mount Zion and on Jerusalem, I will punish the fruit of the stout heart of the King of Assyria, and the glory of his high looks" (Isaiah 10:5, 12). We cannot here attempt an exposition of the important passage in which these verses occur—that, in subsequent chapters, we shall treat in detail of the Antichrist in the Psalms, and the Antichrist in the Prophets—suffice it now to point out that it treats of the End-time (see vv. 12, 20), and that the leading characteristics of the Man of Sin can be clearly discerned in what is here said of the Assyrian. Almost all pre-millennial students of prophecy are agreed that the "King" of Isaiah 30:33 is the Antichrist, and yet in the two verses which precede, this "King" is identified with "the Assyrian."
14. The King of Babylon "Thou shalt take up this proverb against the King of Babylon, and say, How hath the oppressor ceased! the golden city ceased!" (Isaiah 14:4). We do not wish to anticipate what we shall discuss at length in our future studies, enough now to state it is our firm conviction that Scripture plainly teaches that there will be another Babylon which will eclipse the importance and glories of the one of the past, and that Babylon will be one of the headquarters of the Antichrist. He will have three: Jerusalem will be his religious headquarters, Rome his political, and Babylon his commercial. For those who desire to anticipate our future expositions, we recommend them to make a minute study of Isaiah 10, 11, 13, 14; Jeremiah 49-51; Zechariah 5, and Revelation 18.
15. Son of the Morning "How art thou fallen from heaven O Lucifer, son of the Morning! How art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations" (Isaiah 14:12). "Lucifer" is a Latin word which signifies the "morning star." "All the ancient versions and all the Rabbins make the word a noun denoting the bright one, or, more specifically, bright star, or according to the ancients more specifically still, the Morning Star or harbinger of daylight" (Dr. J. A. Alexander). This term "Lucifer" has been commonly regarded as one of the names of Satan, and what is here said of the Morning Star is viewed as describing his apostasy. Against this interpretation we have nothing to say, except to remark that we are satisfied it does not exhaust this remarkable scripture. A detailed exposition must be reserved for a later chapter. Sufficient now to point out that however Isaiah 14 may look back to the distant past when, through pride, Satan fell from his original estate, it most evidently looks forward to a coming day and gives another picture of the Antichrist. In this same passage "Lucifer" is termed "the Man that did make the earth to tremble" (v. 16), and in his blasphemous boast "I will be like the Most High" (v. 14), we have no difficulty in identifying him with the Man of Sin of 2 Thessalonians 2:3, 4. The force of this particular title "Morning Star" is seen by comparing it with Revelation 22:16, where we learn that this is one of the titles of the God-man. The "Morning Star" speaks of Christ coming to usher in the great Day of rest for the earth. In blasphemous travesty of this Satan will send forth the mock messiah to usher in a false millennium.
16. The Spoiler "Let mine outcasts dwell with thee, Moab; be thou a covert to them from the face of the Spoiler: for the Extortioner is at an end, the Spoiler ceaseth, the oppressors are consumed out of the land. And in mercy shall the throne be established: and He shall sit upon it in truth in the tabernacle of David, judging, and seeking judgment, and hasting righteousness" (Isaiah 16:4, 5). It will be observed that the verse in which the Antichrist is spoken of as the Spoiler comes immediately before the one where we read of the throne being established, a reference, of course, to the setting up of the Messianic Kingdom. These two things synchronize: the destruction of Antichrist, and the beginning of the real Messiah's reign; hence we read here "the Spoiler ceaseth." A further reference to the Man of Sin under this title of the Spoiler is found in Jeremiah 6:26: "O daughter of My people, gird thee with sackcloth, and wallow thyself in ashes: make thee mournings, as for an only son, most bitter lamentation: for the Spoiler shall suddenly come upon thee." This is another title which views the Antichrist in connection with Israel. After the return of many of the Jews to Palestine, and after their rights have been owned by the Powers, and their security and success seem assured; their enemy, filled with satanic malice, will seek their extermination. "The Spoiler" contrasts him with the Lord Jesus who is the great Restorer (see Psalm 69:4).
17. The Nail "In that day, saith the Lord of hosts, shall the Nail that is fastened in the sure place be removed, and be cut down, and fall; and the burden that was upon it shall be cut off: for the Lord hath spoken it" (Isaiah 22:25). The last ten verses of this chapter should be read carefully. They furnish a striking foreshadowment of the End-time. Shebna was holding some office over (note "government" in v. 21) Israel. Apparently he was a usurper. God announced that he should be set aside in shame, and the man of His choice—Eliakim—should take his place. These historical figures merge into prophetic characters. In v. 22 we read that God says, "And the key of the house of David will lay upon His shoulder, so He shall open, and none shall shut; and He shall shut, and none shall open." As we know from Revelation 3:7 this refers to none other than the Lord Jesus, and of Him it is here said, "And I will fasten Him as a Nail in a sure place; and He shall be for a glorious throne to His father's house" (v. 23). Then, in the closing verse of the chapter we read, "In that day, saith the Lord of hosts, shall the Nail that is fastened in a sure place be removed, and be cut down, and fall." Just as Eliakim foreshadowed Christ, so Shebna pointed forward to the Antichrist; and just as in v.23 we have a prophecy announcing the establishment of Messiah's Kingdom, so in v. 25 we have foretold the overthrow of the false messiah's kingdom.
18. The Branch of the Terrible Ones "Thou shalt bring down the noise of strangers, as the heat in a dry place; even the heat with the shadow of a cloud; the Branch of the terrible ones shall be brought low" (Isaiah 25:5). The first five verses of this chapter contemplate the Enemy's stronghold—Babylon—and the remainder of the chapter pictures the blessedness of the millennial era. In the fifth verse the Antichrist's overthrow is announced: "The Branch of the terrible ones shall be brought low." With this should be compared Isaiah 14:19, where of Lucifer it is said, "Thou art cast out of thy grave like an abominable Branch." This points another contrast. The "Branch" is one of the Messianic names: "Behold, I will bring forth My Servant, the Branch" (Zechariah 3:8); "Behold the man whose name is the Branch" (Zechariah 6:12). By placing together Isaiah 4:2 and Isaiah 14:19 the antithesis will be more evident. Of Christ it is said, "The Branch of the Lord shall be beautiful and glorious." Antichrist is called "an abominable Branch": Christ is "the Branch of the Lord;" Antichrist is "the Branch ofthe terrible ones."
19. The Profane and Wicked Prince of Israel "And thou, profane wicked Prince of Israel, whose day is come, when iniquity shall have an end, thus saith the Lord God; remove the diadem, and take off the crown; this shall not be the same; exalt him that is low, and abase him that is high. I will overturn, overturn, overturn it: and it shall be no more, until He come whose right it is; and I will give it Him" (Ezekiel 21:25-27). The Profane and Wicked Prince of Israel here can be none other than the Antichrist, for we are expressly told that "his day shall be when iniquity shall have an end." The reference is, of course, to Israel's "iniquity," and their iniquity shall end at the appearing of the Messiah (see Daniel 9:24) when "He shall be a priest upon His throne" (Zechariah 6:13). Here in Ezekiel we see how the Son of Perdition shall ape the Christ of God, for he, too, will be a priest-king: "Remove the diadem" refers to the insignia of his priesthood (in every other place in the O. T. where this occurs the Hebrew word here translated "diadem" it is rendered "mitre"—worn only by the high priest of Israel); "take off the crown" is the symbol of his kingship.
20. The Little Horn "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" (Daniel 7:8). For a full description of the Antichrist under this title see Daniel 7:8-11, 21-26; 8:9-12, 23-25. We must reserve our comments on these verses till a later chapter. "Little Horn" refers to the lowly political origin of the Antichrist, and describes him as he is before he attains governmental supremacy.
21. The Prince That Shall Come "And after three score and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for Himself: and the people of the Prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary" (Daniel 9:26). This title connects the Antichrist with the Roman Empire in its final form, and presents him as the last of the Ceasars.
22. The Vile Person "And in his estate shall stand up a Vile Person, to whom they shall not give the honor of the kingdom: but he shall come in peaceably, and obtain the kingdom by flatteries" (Daniel 11:21). This contrasts the Antichrist from "the Holy One of Israel." His identity is established by noting what is predicted of him.
23. The Wilful King "And the King shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvelous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined shall be done" (Daniel 11:36). The Antichrist will not only be the High Priest of the world's religion, but he will be King supreme at the head of its government.
24. The Idol Shepherd "For, lo, I will raise up a Shepherd in the land, which shall not visit those that be cut off, neither shall seek the young ones, nor heal that that is broken, nor feed that that standeth still: but he shall eat the flesh of the fat, and tear their claws in pieces. Woe to the Idol Shepherd that leaveth the flock! The sword shall be upon his arm, and upon his right eye: his arm shall be clean dried up, and his right eye shall be utterly darkened" (Zechariah 11:16, 17). This is in evident contrast from the Good Shepherd who gave His life for His sheep. The Idol Shepherd of deluded Israel will prove himself the monster Desolator, who shall bring upon that people the severest tribulations ever experiences by that race.
25. The Angel of the Bottomless Pit "And they had a king over them, which is the Angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon" (Revelation 9:11). "Abaddon" and "Apollyon" mean Destroyer. It is the "Spoiler" of Isaiah 16:4 rendered "Destroyer" in Jeremiah 4:7. That his name is here given in the Hebrew and the Greek shows that he will be connected with both the Jews and the Gentiles.
Other names of the Antichrist which the student may look up are, "The Rod of God's anger" (Isaiah 10:12); "The Unclean Spirit" (Matthew 12:43); "The Lie" (2 Thessalonians 2:11); "A Star" (Revelation 8:10 and 9:1); and "The Vine of the Earth" (Revelation 14:18).
In our next chapter we shall deal with the genius of the Antichrist, and point out the many striking comparisons and contrasts between him and the Christ of God. Let the student see how many points of resemblance and opposition he can find.
—Antichrist, The
The Genius and Character of the Antichrist For six thousand years Satan has had full opportunity afforded him to study fallen human nature to discover its weakest points and to learn how best to make men do his bidding. The Devil knows full well how to dazzle men by the attraction of power, and how to make them quail before its terrors. He knows how to gratify the craving for knowledge and how to satisfy the taste for refinement and culture, he can delight the ear with melodious music and the eye with entrancing beauty. If he could transport the Saviour from the wilderness to a mountain, in a moment of time, and show Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory, he is no novice in the art of presenting alluring objects before his victims today. He knows how to stimulate energy and direct inquiry, and how to appease the craving for the occult. He knows how to exalt men to dizzy heights of worldly greatness and fame, and how to control that greatness when attained, so that it may be employed against God and his people.
It is true that up to now Satan's power has been restrained, and his activities have been checked and often counteracted by the Spirit of God. The brightest fires of the Devil's kindling can burn but dimly whilever God sheds around them the power of heavenly light. They require the full darkness of night in order to shine in the full strength of their deceiving brightness; and that time is coming. The Word of God reveals the fact that a day is not far distant when Divine restraint will be removed; the light of God will be withdrawn; and then shall "darkness cover the earth and gross darkness the people" (Isaiah 60:2). Not only will that which has hindered the full development of the Mystery of Iniquity be removed, but God will "send them strong delusion that they should believe the Lie" (2 Thessalonians 2:13), and Satan will take advantage of this; he will then make full use of all the knowledge which he has acquired during the last six thousand years.
Satan will become incarnate and appear on earth in human form. As we have shown in previous chapters, the Antichrist will not only be the Man of Sin, but also "the Son of Perdition," the Seed of the Serpent. The Antichrist will be the Devil's masterpiece. In him shall dwell all the fulness of the Devil bodily. He will be the culmination and consummation of Satan's workings. The world is now talking of and looking for the Superman; and the Devil is soon to supply him. The Antichrist will be no ordinary person, but one possessed of extraordinary talents. He will be endowed with superhuman powers. With the one exception of the God-man he will be the most remarkable personage who has ever appeared upon the stage of human history. But to particularize:
1. He will be an intellectual genius He will be possessed of extraordinary intelligence. He will be the Devil's imitation of that blessed One "in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge" (Colossians 2:3). This Son of Perdition will surpass Solomon in wisdom. In Daniel 7:20 he is represented as "A horn that had eyes." It is a double symbol. The "horn" prefigures strength; "eyes" speak of intelligence. Again, in Daniel 8:23 he is referred to as "A King of fierce countenance." who shall "understand dark sentences." That which baffles others shall be simple to him. The Hebrew word here translated "dark sentences" is the same as the one rendered "hard questions" in 1 Kings 10:1, where we read of the Queen of Sheba coming to Solomon with her "hard questions" in order to test his wisdom. It is also the word that is used in Samson's riddle in Judges 14. It indicates that the Antichrist will be master of all the secrets of occult science. Ezekiel 28:3 declares of him "Beholding, thou art wiser than Daniel; there is no secret that they can hide from thee." This will be one of his most alluring attractions. His master mind will captivate the educated world. His marvelous store of knowledge, his acquaintance with the secrets of nature, his superhuman powers of perception, will stamp him as an intellectual genius of the first magnitude.
2. He will be an oratorical genius In Daniel 7:20 we are told that he has "a mouth that spake very great things." As a wizard of words he will surpass Demosthenes. Here also will the Devil imitate that One "who spake as never man spake." The people were "astonished" at Christ's doctrine (Matthew 7:28), and said "Whence hath this man this wisdom?" (Matthew 13:54). So will it be with this daring counterfeiter: he will have a mouth speaking very great things. He will have a perfect command and flow of language. His oratory will not only gain attention but command respect. Revelation 13:2 declares that his mouth is "as the mouth of a lion" which is a symbolic expression telling of the majesty and awe producing effects of his voice. The voice of the lion excels that of any other beast. So the Antichrist will out rival orators ancient and modern.
3. He will be a political genius He will emerge from obscurity, but by dint of his diplomatic skill he will win the admiration and compel the cooperation of the political world. In the early stages of his career he appears as "a little horn" (or power), but it is not long before he climbs the ladder of fame, and by means of brilliant statesmanship, ascends its topmost rung. Like the majority of politicians, he will not scruple to employ questionable methods; in fact it will be by diplomatic chicanery and intrigue that he will win his early successes. Daniel 11:21 tells us that at first they will not give to him the honor of the kingdom, but "he shall come in peaceably, and obtain the kingdom by flatteries." Once he gains the ascendancy none will dare to challenge his authority. Kings will be his pawns and princes his playthings.
4. He will be a commercial genius "And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand" (Daniel 8:25). Under his regime everything will be nationalized, and none will be able to buy or sell without his permission (Revelation 13:17). All commerce will be under his personal control, and this will be used for his own aggrandizement. The wealth of the world will be at his disposal. There are several scriptures which call attention to this. For example in Psalm 52:7 we read, "Lo, this is the man that made not God his strength; but trusted in the abundance of his riches; and strengthened himself in his substance." Again, in Daniel 11:38 we are told, "But in his estate shall he honor the god of forces (Satan): and a god whom his fathers knew not shall be honor with gold, and silver, and with precious stones, and pleasant things." Even plainer is Daniel 11:43, "But he shall have power over the treasures of gold and silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt." In the last verse of Daniel 11 mention is made of his "palace." He will be wealthier than Croesus. Ezekiel 28:4, 5 speaks of him thus, "With thy wisdom and with thine understanding thou hast gotten thee riches, and hast gotten gold and silver into thy treasures: By thy great wisdom and by thy traffic hast thou increased thy riches, and thine heart is lifted up because of thy riches." Thus will he be able to wield the sceptre of financial power and outdo Solomon in all his glory.
5. He will be a military genius He will be endowed with the most extraordinary powers, so that "he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practice, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy people" (Daniel 8:24). Before his exploits the fame of Alexander and Napoleon will be forgotten. None will be able to stand before him. He will go "forth conquering and to conquer" (Revelation 6:2). He will sweep everything before him so that the world will exclaim, "Who is like unto the Beast? who is able to make war with him?" (Revelation 13:4). His military exploits will not be confined to a corner, but carried out on a vast scale. He is spoken of as the man who will "shake kingdoms" and "make the earth to tremble" (Isaiah 14:16).
6. He will be a governmental genius He will weld together opposing forces. He will unify conflicting agencies. Under the compelling power of his skill the world Powers will be united. The dream of a League of Nations will then be realized. The Orient and the Occident shall no longer be divided. A marvelous symbolic picture of this is given us in Revelation 13:1, 2: "And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a Beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy. And the Beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the Dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority." Here we find the forces of the Roman, the Grecian, the Medo-Persian, and the Babylonian empires coalesced. He will be the personal embodiment of the world's political authority in its final form. So completely will the world be swayed by the hypnotic spell cast over it by the Beast that the ten kings of the Roman empire in its ultimate form shall "give their kingdoms unto him" (Revelation 17:17). He will be the last great Caesar.
7. He will be a religious genius He will proclaim himself God, demanding that Divine honors should be rendered to him and sitting in the Temple shall show himself forth that he is God (2 Thessalonians 2:4). Such wonders will he perform, such prodigious marvels will he work, the very elect would be deceived by him did not God directly protect them. The Man of Sin will combine in himself all the varied genius of the human race, and what is more, he will be invested with all the wisdom and power of Satan. He will be a master of science, acquainted with all of nature's forces, compelling her to give up for him her long held secrets. "In this master-piece of Satan," says one, "will be concentrated intellectual greatness, sovereign power and human glory, combined with every species of iniquity, pride, tyranny, wilfulness, deceit, and blasphemy, such as Antiochus Epiphanes, Mohammed, the whole line of popes, atheists, and deists of every age of the world have failed to unite in any individual person."
"All the world wondered after the Beast" (Revelation 13:3). His final triumph shall be that, wounded by a sword, he shall live again (Revelation 13:3). He shall raise himself from the dead, and so wonder-struck will men be at this stupendous marvel they will readily pay him Divine homage, yea, so great will be his dazzling power over men, they will worship his very image (Revelation 13:14, 15).
Having contemplated something of the genius of Satan's prodigy, let us now consider his character. In doing so we shall view him in the light of the Character of the Lord Jesus. Christ is the Divine plumb-line and standard of measurement by which all character must be tested.
In our last chapter we pointed out how that the distinguishing title of the coming Super-man--the Antichrist—has a double significance, inasmuch as it points to him as the imitator of Christ and the opponent of Christ. Hence, in studying his character, we find a series of comparisons and a series of contrasts drawn between the false christ and the true Christ; and these we now propose to set before the reader.
—Antichrist, The
Comparisons between Christ and the Antichrist Satan is the master-counterfeiter, and in nothing will this appear more conspicuously than in his next great move. He is now preparing the stage for his climactic production, which will issue in a blasphemous imitation of the Divine incarnation. When the Son of Perdition appears he will pose as the Christ of God, and so perfect will be his disguise, the very elect would be deceived, were it not that God will grant them special illumination. It is this disguise, this simulation of the true Christ which we shall now examine, pointing out the various parallelisms which Scripture furnishes:
- Christ was the subject of Old Testament prophecy: so also is the Antichrist; many are the predictions which describe this coming one, see especially Daniel 11:21-45.
- The Lord Jesus was typified by many Old Testament characters such as Abel, Joseph, Moses, David, etc. So also will the Antichrist be: such characters as Cain, Pharaoh, Absolom, Saul, etc., foreshadow the Man of Sin. We shall devote a separate chapter to this most fascinating and totally neglected branch of our subject.
- Christ was revealed only at God's appointed time: such will also be the case with the Antichrist. Of the one we read, "But when the fulness of time was come, God sent forth His Son" (Galatians 4:4); of the other it is said, "And now we know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time" (2 Thessalonians 2:6).
- Christ was a Man, a real Man, "the Man Christ Jesus" (1 Timothy 2:5); so also will the Antichrist be—"that Man of Sin" (2 Thessalonians 2:3).
- But Christ was more than a man; He was the God-Man; so also will the Antichrist be more than a man: the Super-man.
- Christ was, according to the flesh, a Jew (Romans 1:3); so also will the Antichrist be—for proofs see chapter three, section one.
- Christ will make a covenant with Israel (Hebrews 8:8); so also will the Antichrist (Daniel 9:27).
- Christ is our "Great High Priest;" so Antichrist will yet be Israel's great high priest (Ezekiel 21:26).
- Christ was and will be the King of the Jews (Matthew 2:1); so also will the Antichrist be (Daniel 11:36).
- Christ will be the King of kings (Revelation 17:14); so also will the Antichrist be (Revelation 17:12, 13).
- Christ wrought miracles: of Him it is said "approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs" (Acts 2:22); so also will the Antichrist, concerning whom it is written, "whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders" (2 Thessalonians 2:9).
- Christ's public ministry was limited to three years and a half; so also will the Antichrist's final ministry be (Revelation 13:5).
- Christ is shown to us riding a "white horse" (Revelation 19:11); so also is the Antichrist (Revelation 6:2).
- Christ will return to the earth as Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6, 7); so also will the Antichrist introduce an era of peace (Daniel 11:21); it is to this that 1 Thessalonians 5:3 directly refers.
- Christ is entitled "the Morning Star" (Revelation 22:16); so also is the Antichrist (Isaiah 14:12).
- Christ is referred to as Him "which was, and is, and is to come" (Revelation 4:8); the Antichrist is referred to as him that "was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit" (Revelation 17:8).
- Christ died and rose again; so also will the Antichrist (Revelation 13:3).
- Christ will be the object of universal worship (Philippians 2:10); so also will the Antichrist (Revelation 13:4).
- The followers of the Lamb will be sealed in their foreheads (Revelation 7:3; 14:1); so also will the followers of the Beast (Revelation 13:16, 17).
- Christ has been followed by the Holy Spirit who causes men to worship Him; so the Antichrist will be followed by the Anti-spirit—the False Prophet—who will cause men to worship the Beast (Revelation 13:12).
—Antichrist, The
The Career of the Antichrist We now come to the most interesting and yet the most difficult part of our subject. When will the Antichrist be manifested? where will he appear? what will he do? are questions which readily occur to all who have given any thought to the matter. It is not our purpose to seek to satisfy the idly curious, still less is it to gratify those who love the sensational. We are well aware that our present theme is one that appeals strongly to the curiously inclined, and were it not for the importance of our inquiry we would leave it alone. But without due regard to the person and place of the coming Superman, it is impossible to understand the eschatology of either the Old or New Testaments.
The chief difficulty is to arrange in chronological sequence the many passages which treat of the Antichrist. It is by no means easy to discover the precise order in which the prophecies which deal with the Man of Sin will receive their fulfillment. There is great need for much prayerful study along this line. We can only write according to the light we now have, and our readers must examine for themselves what we say in the light of the Scriptures. It ill becomes any one to be dogmatic where the Word itself does not plainly state the exact time when certain prophecies are to be fulfilled.
In this chapter we are placed somewhat at a disadvantage, because we shall be obliged to give brief expositions of many scriptures where it will be impossible for us to pause and furnish proofs or reasons for each interpretation. For example, it is our firm conviction that the Assyrian of Isaiah 10, the king of Babylon of Isaiah 14, the Little Horn of Daniel 7, the Little Horn of Daniel 8, and the first Beast of Revelation 13, each and all view the Antichrist himself in different relationships. There are some Bible students who may take issue with us on these points, and complain because that in this chapter we make assertions without endeavoring to prove them. We regret this, but would ask all to bear with us patiently. In the later chapters of this book we shall devote separate studies to the Antichrist in the Psalms, in the Prophets, in the Gospels and Epistles, and in the Apocalypse; when we shall endeavor to examine each passage separately and attempt to give scriptural proofs for every interpretation adopted.
While it is admittedly difficult, and perhaps impossible, to fit each prophecy concerning the Antichrist into its proper chronological place, we are able to determine the relative position of most of them. The career of the Antichrist is divided into two distinct parts, and there is a clearly defined dividing line between them. In previous chapters we have pointed out how that the name "Antichrist;" has a double meaning, signifying one who imitates Christ, and one who is opposed to Christ. This double meaning to his name corresponds exactly with the two chief parts in his career. In the first, he poses as the true Christ, claiming to be indeed the Messiah of Israel. This claim will be backed up with the most imposing credentials, and all excepting God's elect will be deceived. He will sit in the Temple (a rebuilt temple in Jerusalem) showing himself forth to be God, and Divine honors will be paid him. But at a later stage he will throw off his mask, and appear in his true character as the opponent of Christ and the defier of God. Then, instead of befriending the Jews, he will turn against them and seek to exterminate them from the earth. Thus, with many of the scriptures which describe the person and career of the Antichrist it is a comparatively easy matter to decide whether they belong to the first or to the second stage of his history. But beyond this it is difficult, with some scriptures at least to go.
We shall now consider, first the time of Antichrist's appearing. It is hardly necessary for us to enter into a lengthy argument to show that the Antichrist (as such) has not already appeared. Many antichrists have already come and gone, and some are in the world even now; the same is equally true of the many false prophets foretold in Scripture; but all of these are but the forecasts and foreshadowings of the Antichrist and the False Prophet, who are yet to be revealed, and who will receive their final overthrow by the Lord Jesus at His return to the earth. Before the Antichrist can appear the Holy Spirit must be "taken out of the way;" (2 Thessalonians 2:7); the old Roman Empire must be revived and assume its final form—"divided under ten kings;"—before the "Little Horn;" comes into prominence (Daniel 7:24—he rises "after them"): Israel must be restored to their land and the Temple be rebuilt, etc., etc.
At the present time the ultimate development of "the Mystery of Iniquity" is being hindered. God's people are the salt of the earth, and their presence here stays the corruption of the "carcass" (Matthew 24:28—The "Carcass" is the antithesis of the "Body" of Christ). The saints are the light of the world, and while they remain in it is impossible for darkness to cover the earth and gross darkness the people (Isaiah 60:2). The Spirit of God is here, indwelling believers, and His holy presence checks the final outworking of Satan's plans. But when all believers of this dispensation have been "caught up to meet the Lord in the air" (1 Thessalonians 4:16), and the Holy Spirit has departed from the earth, all restraint will be removed, and Satan will be allowed to bring forth his false christ, who will be "revealed in his time" (2 Thessalonians 2:6), and it would seem that even now signs are not wanting to show that God has already given permission to Satan to prepare the stage of action for the ghastly consummation of his evil efforts. There can be no doubt but that the Devil has desired to reveal the Son of Perdition long before this, so that by means of him he may reduce the whole world to submission. But the restraining hand of God, now so soon to be removed, has held him back.
The time, then, when the Antichrist will be revealed is after this present Dispensation of Grace has run its course; after the Mystical Body of Christ has been completed; after the whole company of God's people have been caught up to meet the Lord in the air; after the Holy Spirit has departed from the world. How soon after we cannot say for certain. The majority of prophetic students seems to think that the last great Caesar will come into prominence almost immediately after the rapture of the saints. Personally, we believe there will be an interval, long or short, between the two. As there was a period of thirty years after the birth of the Lord Jesus—a period of silence—before His public ministry commenced, so there may be a similar interval between the Rapture and the Revelation of Antichrist.
The Antichrist will enter the arena of public affairs before the beginning of Daniel's seventieth week, for at the beginning of it he makes a seven-years covenant with the Jews, then in their land. But at that point he will be the Dictator of the world's policies, and as he begins in comparative obscurity (at least from a governmental standpoint), some time—probably years—must be allowed for his gradual rise to political supremacy. His meteoric course will not be terminated until the Lord Himself descends to earth to usher in the Millennium. Just as the reign of Saul preceded that of David, so shall that of Antichrist antedate that of the true Christ.
We turn now to consider the place of Antichrist's appearing. So far as the writer is aware there are only two scriptures which give direct information upon this point, and they are each found in the prophecy of Daniel. We refer to the passages which speak of "the Little Horn." In Daniel 7:7, 8 we read, "After this I saw in the night visions, and, behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and break in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns. I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn." This fourth Beast is the last world-empire, prior to the setting up of the Messianic kingdom. This empire will, at first, be ruled over by ten kings—the "ten horns" of v.7 and defined as ten kings in v. 24. After them arises another, the "Little Horn," which signifies another "king," see v. 24. He is termed "little" because at that stage his kingdom is but small compared with that of the others, and the power he then wields is insignificant when contrasted from the ten kings. But not for long will he remain weak and insignificant. Soon the ten kings will themselves own allegiance to this eleventh—see Revelation 17:12, 13. We reserve for a later chapter the proofs that this "Little Horn" is the Antichrist, asking our readers to study carefully the description furnished of him in Daniel 7:8, 20-27; 8:9-12, 23-25.
Taking it for granted (at the moment) that the Little Horn of Daniel 7 is the Antichrist let us see how what is there said of him helps us to determine the quarter from which he will arise. In Daniel 7:7 the "fourth Beast" is described, and in 7:23 we are told, "the fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces." This Kingdom will be divided into ten parts, over which will be the ten kings (7:24). This kingdom will be, we believe, the old Roman Empire revived in its final form, and divided into two great halves—the Eastern and the Western. This fourth kingdom will include within itself all the territory and will perpetuate all the dominant characteristics of the other three which have preceded it, i.e. the Babylonian, the Medo-Persian, and Grecian. Turning now to Daniel 7:8 we are told, "I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn." The Antichrist, then, will have his rise within the limits of the old Roman Empire. This narrows considerably our circle of inquiry. The next question is, Can we determine from which part of the empire he will arise—the Eastern or the Western? Daniel 8 furnishes light upon this point.
In Daniel 8:8, 9 we read, "Therefore the he-goat waxed very great: and when he was strong, the great horn was broken; and for it came up four notable ones toward the four winds of heaven. And out of one of them came forth a little horn, which waxed exceeding great, toward the south, and toward the east, and toward the pleasant land." Now v. 21 of this same chapter tells us, "The rough goat is the king (kingdom) of Grecia," and v. 22 informs us "and the great horn that is between his eyes is the first king. Now that being broken, whereas four stood up for it, four kingdoms (or kings) shall stand up out of the nation." This, of course, refers to the act of Alexander the Great who divided his kingdom into four parts—Greece, Egypt, Syria, and the rest of the domains of Turkey—under his four great generals: Ptolemy, Cassander, Lysimachus, and Seleucus. This, again, very appreciably narrows our circle of inquiry. Daniel 7 tells us the Little Horn is to arise in a part of the territory covered by the old Roman Empire, which Empire gradually included within its domains that the the preceding empires. Now here in Daniel 8 we learn that the Little Horn will spring from that part of the revived Roman Empire which was included in the Grecian Empire. But this is not all that Daniel 8 tells us. The Grecian Empire is here viewed as disintegrated into four parts or kingdoms, from which of these parts, then, may we expect him to issue—Macedonia, Egypt, Syria, or Thrace? This question, we believe, receives answer in Daniel 8:( where we are told, that the Little Horn "waxed exceeding great toward the south, and toward the east, and toward the pleasant land." Practically all students are agreed that "the south" here refers to Egypt, the "east" to Persia and Greece and "the pleasant land" to Palestine, hence it would seem that the country from which Antichrist will first be manifested is Syria. It will be noted that nothing is said in Daniel 8:9 about the Little Horn "waxing great" toward the north, and we believe the reason for this is because that is the quarter from whence he shall arise. This is confirmed by the fact that "the king of Assyria" in Isaiah 10:12 is clearly none other than the Antichrist. We may say this was the current view of Christian writers on prophecy through the first ten centuries A.D. The late Mr. W. B. Newton in his splendid "Aids to the Study of Prophetic Inquiry" has succinctly summarized the various arguments of the ancients in the following language:--
"In the first place, as Nimrod—the founder of Babel, that is, the Tower of Babylon—a savage tyrant and cruel oppressor of men, was the first person who declared open war against God; so it is meet that there should arise from the selfsame Babylon, the last and most atrocious persecutor of the saints—the Antichrist. Moreover, seeing that Nebuchadnezzar and Antiochus Epiphanes—two monsters who bore down upon the people of God with an overwhelming power of destruction, and who were the antichrists of the old Testament and remarkable types of the Antichrist which is to come; seeing, I say, that these monarchs reigned in Babylon, it is fitting that the true Antichrist of the New Testament should arise from the same Babylon.
Besides, no place can be pointed out more meet for the nativity of Antichrist than Babylon, for it is the City of the Devil—always diametrically opposed to Jerusalem, which is deemed the City of God; the former city, that is, Babylon, being the mother and disseminator of every kind of confusion, idolatry, impiety—a vast sink of every foul pollution, crime, and iniquity—the first city in the world which cut itself off from the worship of the true God—which reared the city of universal vice,—which perpetually (according to the record of Holy Writ) carries on the mystery of iniquity, and bears imprinted on her brow the inscription of blasphemy against the name of God. The consummation, therefore, of impiety, which is to have its recapitulation in Antichrist, could not break forth from a more fitting place than Babylon."
Having dwelt at some length on the time and the place of the Antichrist's appearing, we shall attempt to give now a brief outline of the leading events in his career. We have seen that the scriptures which help us to determine the direction from which he will arise, speak of him under the title of the Little Horn. Now the first thing this title denotes is that he is a king, king of Assyria. Some, no doubt, will wonder how a Jew will succeed in obtaining the throne of Syria. Several answers might be suggested, such, for example, as heading a successful rebellion—the spectacle of an obscure plebeian speedily rising to the rank of national Dictator, has been forcibly exhibited before our own eyes in Russia. But on this point we are not left to speculation. Daniel 11:21 tells us that the "Vile Person" will come in peaceably, and obtain the kingdom by flatteries. With this agrees Revelation 6:2, where the Antichrist is seen riding a white war-horse, and with bow in hand, but with no arrow fitted to it. The symbol suggests bloodless victories.
As soon as this Jew acquires the crown of Syria he will speedily enlarge his dominions. As Revelation 6:2 tells us, he will go forth "conquering and to conquer," and as we are told further in Hab. 2:5, "He is a proud man, neither keepeth at home, who enlarged his desire as hell, and is as death, and cannot be satisfied, but gathereth unto him all nations, and heapeth unto him all people." The first thing which is predicted of him (as "the Little Horn") is that "he shall subdue three kings" (Daniel 7:24). As to what kings these may be, appears to be intimated in Daniel 8:9 where we are told, "And out of one of them came forth a little horn, which waxed exceeding great toward the south, and toward the east, and toward the pleasant land." He waxes great first toward the south, that is, most probably, by a victorious expedition into Egypt. Next, he is seen moving toward the east, reducing, to what extent we are not told, the dominions of Persia and Greece; finally he turns his face toward the pleasant land, which is Palestine. Without being dogmatic, we would suggest that the three kings he subdues are those of Egypt, Persia, and Greece.
Having subdued the three kings by his military prowess a "league" is made with him (see Daniel 11:23). Probably it is the remaining seven kings of the revived Roman Empire, plus the three vassals of the Antichrist who take the place of the kings he had deposed, that enter into this League with the Little horn, or king of Assyria; but he shall work deceitfully, and shall become strong with a small people (Daniel 11:23). So strong does he become that in a short time he rises to political supremacy, and the whole of the ten kings shall "give their kingdom unto the Beast." (Revelation 17:17), and he will then be recognized as the imperial Emperor. Thus as King of kings he will dictate the policies of Europe and Asia.
"The Little Horn will revive in himself all the personified glory of Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece and Rome. And let not this be regarded as an event incredible. We are to remember that Antichrist will be Satan's masterpiece; furnished with every auxiliary of influence and wealth, for wresting the sceptre from the hands of Him who won it by His humiliation of the Cross. Thus it is said he will 'resist the God of gods'. The accumulated and restored honors of each royal successor are thus to crown the brow of this last and greatest of Gentile monarchs. And so shall he stand in his unrivalled magnificence till the Stone shall smite him and his power, and grind all to powder" (Mrs. G. Needham).
After the Antichrist has acquired the political sovereignty of the prophetic earth he will then enter upon his religious role, claiming to be the Christ of God and demanding Divine honors. At first sight it appears strange, if not incongruous, that a military despot should be found filling the character of a religious impostor. But history shows that there is a point at which one character readily merges into the other. Political ambition, intoxicated by success, finds it an easy step from self-glorification to self-deification, and the popular infatuation as easily passes from the abject adulation of the tyrant to the adoration of the god. Or again; a religious impostor, encouraged by the ascendancy he has acquired over the minds of men, grasps the sceptre of secular power and becomes the most arbitrary of despots. Revelation 13:4 makes it plain that the military prowess of the Antichrist first induces men to render him Divine homage: "And they worshipped the Dragon which gave power unto the Beast: and they worshipped the Beast, saying, Who is like unto the Beast? who is able to make war with him?" But no ordinary honors will suffice him. His religious ambitions are as insatiable as his political, for he will "oppose and exalt himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God" (2 Thessalonians 2:4). This claim to be God Himself, incarnate, will be backed up by imposing credentials, for his coming will be, "after the working of Satan, with all power and signs and lying wonders" (2 Thessalonians 2:9). These miracles will be no mere pretenses, but prodigies of power.
The Jews, previously returned to Palestine, and with temple in Jerusalem rebuilt, will receive this Son of Perdition as their long-promised "Messiah" (John 5:43). In imitation of the true Christ who will, at His return to the earth, "make a new covenant with the House of Israel and with the House of Judah" (Hebrews 8:8, compare Jeremiah 31 and Ezekiel 36), the Antichrist will make a covenant with the Jews (see Daniel 9:27 and 11:22). Under a seven years' treaty, and in the guise of friendship, he will gain ascendancy in Jerusalem, only later to throw off the mask and break the covenant.
About seven months after the Antichrist, the "Prince" (i.e. of the Roman Empire) of Dan 9:27 has made the Covenant with the Jews he will begin to "practice" in Jerusalem (Daniel 8:24). This we believe is the explanation of the two thousand three hundred days of Daniel 8:14 which has puzzled so many of the commentators. This two thousand three hundred days is the whole period during which the false messiah will practice in Jerusalem and have power over the "sanctuary": two thousand three hundred days is seven years less seven months and ten days.
There, in Jerusalem, he will pose as the Christ of God, the Prince of Peace. The world will suppose that the long looked- for Millennium has arrived. There will be every indication that the eagerly desired Golden Age has, at last, dawned. The great Powers of Europe and Asia will have been united under the ten-kingdomed Empire. It will be expected that the League of Nations guarantees the peace of the earth. For a season quietness and amity will prevail. None will dare to oppose the mighty Emperor. But not for long will the hideous war-spectre hide himself. Soon will the "white horse" of Revelation 6 be found to change his hue. A "red horse" will go forth, and then "peace shall be taken from the earth" (Revelation 6). At the very time the world is congratulating itself that all is well, and the slogan of the hour is "Peace and Safety," then "sudden destruction cometh upon them" (1 Thessalonians 5:3).
In the midst of the seven years the Antichrist will throw off his mask, break his covenant with Israel, and stand forth as the most daring idolater who has ever trodden this earth. After he has "practiced" in Jerusalem for two years and five months, he will take away the daily sacrifice (Daniel 8:11; 9:27) from the Temple, and in its place rear an image to himself in the holy place, which is the "abomination of desolation" referred to by Christ (see Matthew 24:15).
This brings us to the great dividing line in his career, to which reference was made near the beginning of this chapter. It is a point not only of interest but of considerable importance to ascertain what it is that causes this startling change of front, from posing as the true Christ to that of the open defier of God. There are several scriptures which throw light on this point. Satan will cause the Man of Sin to crown his daring imitation of the Christ of God by being slain and rising again from the dead.
Both the Old and the New Testaments refer to the death of the Antichrist, and attribute it to the sword. In Revelation 13:14 we read that the false Prophet shall say to them that dwell on the earth that they should make an image to the Beast, which had the wound by the sword and did live. In harmony with this we read in Zechariah 11:17, "Woe to the Idol Shepherd that leaveth the flock! The sword shall be upon his arm, and upon his right eye." It is to be noted that before we read that "the sword shall be" upon him, we are told that he "leaveth the flock," and the previous verse tells us that he was raised up "in the land," which can only mean that he was ruling in Palestine. Hence it is clear that he leaves the Land before he receives his death wound by the sword. In perfect accord with this is what we read in Isaiah 37:6, 7 (in a later chapter we shall treat at length of the future Babylon, restored; the connection of Antichrist with it, and the typical and prophetical significance of Isaiah 37 and 38); "Behold, I will send a blast upon him, and he shall hear a rumour, and return to his own land; and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land."
Leaving Palestine, the Antichrist will "return to his own land," that is, the land of his nativity—Assyria—which confirms what we have said previously about Assyria being the country where Antichrist will first be manifested. There, in his own land, he will fall by the sword. Most probably he will be slain there by his political enemies, envious of his power and chafing under his haughty autocracy. In death he will be hated and dishonored, and burial will be refused him. It is to this that Isaiah 14 (speaking of the King of Babylon, see v.4) refers: "But thou art cast out of thy grave like an abominable branch, and as the raiment of those that are slain, thrust through with a sword, that go down to the stones of the pit. As a carcass trodden under feed, thou shalt not be joined with them in burial, because thou hast destroyed thy land, and slain thy people" (vv. 19, 20). But his enemies will suddenly be filled with consternation and then admiration for to their amazement this one slain by the sword shall rise from the dead, and his deadly wound will be healed—note how this is implied in Isaiah 14, for v. 25 shows him once more in the land of the living, only to meet his final doom at the hands of the Lord Himself. It is to this amazing resurrection of the Antichrist that Revelation 13:3, 4 refers: "And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the Beast. And they worshipped the Dragon which gave power unto the Beast: saying, Who is like unto the Beast? who is able to make war with him?" Details of his resurrection are supplied in Revelation 9, from which we gather that just as Christ was raised from the dead by God the Father, so the Antichrist will be raised from the dead by his father the Devil, see v. 1 where the fallen "Star," which refers to Satan, is given the "key to the bottomless pit," and when this is happened there comes out of it the mysterious "locusts" whose king is the Destroyer (v. 11), the Antichrist.
A further reference to the resurrection of the Antichrist, his coming forth from the Bottomless Pit, is found in Revelation 17:8: "The Beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the Bottomless Pit, and go into Perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the Beast that was, and is not, and yet is." It is to be noted that the earth-dwellers wonder when they behold the Beast that was (alive), and is not (now alive), and yet is (raised again). The world will then be presented with the spectacle of a man raised from the dead. All know him, for his career and amazing progress were eagerly watched; his wonderful achievements and military campaigns were the subject of daily interest; his transcendent genius elicited their admiration. They had witnessed his death. They stood awe-struck, no doubt, at the downfall of this King of kings. And now he is made alive; his wound of death is healed; and the whole world wonders, and worships him.
It is about this time, apparently, that the "False Prophet" (Revelation 13:11-16), the third person in the Trinity of Evil will appear on the scene. From a number of scriptures it is evident that the Antichrist will not spend all his time in Palestine during the last three and a half years of his career. It seems that shortly after the middle of the "week" the Beast will turn his face again toward Babylon, leaving the False Prophet to act as his vicegerent, compelling all in Jerusalem to worship the image of the Beast under pain of death (Revelation 13:15). It is to be noted that Hab. 2:5 tells us that the Antichrist is "a proud man, neither keepeth at home, who enlarged his desire as hell, and is as death, and cannot be satisfied, but gathereth unto him all nations, and heapeth unto him all people."
The reason for the Antichrist's return to Babylon is not far to seek. Having thrown off his mask of religious pretension, he now stands forth as the Defier of God. His first move now will be to blot out from the earth everything that bears His name. To accomplish this the Jewish race must be utterly exterminated, and to this end he will put forth all his power to banish Israel from the earth. He will make war with the saints (the Jewish saints) and prevail against them (Daniel 7:21; 8:24): this is the going forth of the "red horse" of Revelation 6:4.
Those of the godly remnant who are left will "flee to the mountains" (Matthew 24:16), and there they will be hunted like partridges. It is then they will cry, "Keep not Thou silence, O God: hold not Thy peace, and be not still, O God. For, lo, Thine enemies make a tumult: and they that hate Thee have lifted up the head. They have taken crafty counsel against Thy people, and consulted against Thy hidden ones. They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance" (Psalm 83:1-4). Then, because many of the Jews will be found in that day dwelling in Babylon (see Jeremiah 50:8; 51:6, 45; Revelation 18:4) the Antichrist will go thither to wreak his vengeance upon them. But not for long will he be suffered to continue his blasphemous and bloody course. Soon will heaven respond to the cries of the faithful remnant of Israel, and terrible shall be the punishment meted out on their last enemy. This, however, must be left for consideration in our next chapter, when we shall treat of the last days and doom of the Antichrist.
—Antichrist, The
The Doom of the Antichrist If there is a measure of difficulty attending the placing and elucidation of some of the prophecies which depict the various phases and stages of the Antichrist's career, the cloud lifts as the end is neared. And this is in full accord with many other things which pertain to the closing days of the Age. The nearer we come to the blessed event of our Lord's return to this earth, the more light has God seemed to cast on those things which immediately precede the Second Advent. It is as though, at first, God furnishes only a bare outline, but ultimately He fills in the details for us. It is thus with the end of the Antichrist. The Holy Spirit has been pleased to supply us with a most comprehensive and vivid description of the closing scenes in the career of the Son of Perdition. It is with mingled feelings that we turn and ponder what has thus been recorded for our learning.
The awful course which is followed by the Man of Sin cannot but shock us. The frightful hypocrisy, the shocking duplicity and treachery, the terrible cruelty, and the amazing impiety of this Monster of wickedness, make us marvel at the forbearance of God, who endures "with much long-suffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction." But when we come to the final scenes, and behold the Antichrist openly challenging heaven, publicly defying God, and making a deliberate and determined effort to prevent the Lord Jesus returning to this earth, we are well nigh rendered speechless by the unthinkable lengths to which sin will go. On the other hand, as we learn that all of this is the ending of that long dismal night which precedes the Day of Christ, the Millennium, we see that it is but the dark background to bring into more vivid relief the glories of the God-Man. The destruction of the Antichrist will be followed at once by the setting up of the Messianic Kingdom which shall bring peace and blessing to all the earth. And the contemplation of this cannot but fill us with joy and thanksgiving.
"The end of the Man of Sin marks an era of sublimest interest to the believing children of God. It shall be the day of our triumphant manifestation, and the Jubilee of all creation. The day, Oh, Hallelujah! when Satan's crown of pride shall be smitten, and his glory trailed in the dust; when his long-continued and persistent temptations shall have an end; and his power receive the wounding from which it shall never recover itself. That blessed, blessed day when He whose right it is, shall reign, and the kingdom of Israel be no more overturned and dishonored. The sweet, sweet day, when the mockings, the scourgings, the bonds, the imprisonments, the afflictions, and the torments of the great multitude of whom the world was not worthy, shall cease to annoy forever, and the whole earth be at rest, and break forth into gladness" (Mrs. E. Needham).
But before that blessed Day arrives, the last hour of the night of Christ's absence has to run its course, and as the darkest hour precedes the dawn, so the last hour of this "night" shall be the most foreboding of all. The period which immediately precedes the return of Christ to the earth will witness the most awful events ever chronicled. It was of this period that Daniel spoke when he said, "There shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time" (12:1). It was to this same time that Christ referred when He declared, "For in those days shall be affliction, such as was not from the beginning of the creation which God created unto this time, neither shall be. And except that the Lord had shortened those days, no flesh should be saved: but for the elect's sake, whom He hath chosen, He hath shortened the days" (Mark 13:19, 20). This is "the hour of temptation which shall come upon all the world" (Revelation 3:10). It will be a time of unparalleled wickedness, and a time of unprecedented suffering. It is the time when God shall avenge the murder of His Son, when He shall take to task a world that has so long despised His Word, and trampled His commandments under foot. The very Antichrist will be one of the instruments of His vengeance—"the rod of His anger" (Isaiah 10:5).
It is because men received not the love of God's truth. He shall send them strong delusion that they should believe the Devil's lie. It is because men had "pleasure" in "unrighteousness" they shall be deceived by the Lawless One. It is because Israel refused that blessed One who came in His Father's name that they shall receive the one who comes in his own name. This is why the Antichrist will, for a season, be suffered to prosper, and apparently to defy God with impugnity. But when God has used him to perform His own pleasure, then shall He empty upon his kingdom and upon his subjects the vials of His wrath. Just as God has set the bounds of the sea, saying thus far shalt thou go and no further, so has He fixed the limits to which He will allow the Antichrist to go. And when that limit is reached the Son of Perdition will find himself as helpless to pass beyond what God has decreed as a worm would be beneath the foot of an elephant. This will be made evident as we proceed.
At the close of our last chapter we followed the career of the Antichrist to the point where he turns upon the Jewish people and seeks to cut them off from being a nation. Fearful will be his assaults upon them, and bitter will be their wailings. It is at that time the Remnant will cry, "O God; why hast Thou cast us off forever? why doth Thine anger smoke against the sheep of Thy pasture? Remember Thy congregation, which Thou hast purchased of old; the rod of Thine inheritance, which Thou hast redeemed; this mount Zion, wherein Thou hast dwelt. Lift up thy feet unto the perpetual desolations; even all that the Enemy hath done wickedly in the sanctuary. Thine enemies roar in the midst of Thy congregations; they set up their ensigns for signs. A man was famous according as he had lifted up axes upon the thick trees. But now they break down the carved work thereof at once with axes and hammers. They have cast fire into Thy sanctuary, they have defiled by casting down the dwelling-place of Thy name to the ground. They said in their hearts, Let us destroy them together; they have burned up all the synagogues of God in the land. We see not our signs: there is no more any profit neither is there any among us which knoweth how long. O God, how long shall the Adversary reproach? Shall the Enemy blaspheme Thy name forever? Why withdrawest Thou Thy hand, even Thy right hand? Pluck it out of Thy bosom" (Psalm 74:1-11).
It is at this time that the prophecy of Amos 8 will receive its final fulfillment: "The Lord hath sworn by the excellency of Jacob, Surely I will never forget any of their works. Shall not the land tremble for this, and every one mourn that dwelleth therein? and it shall rise wholly as a flood; and it shall be cast out and drowned, as by the flood of Egypt. And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord God, that I will cause the sun to go down at noon, and I will darken the earth in the clear day: And I will turn your feasts into mourning, and all your songs into lamentation; and I will bring up sackcloth upon all loins, and baldness upon every head; and I will make it as the mourning of an only son, and the end thereof as a bitter day. Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but the hearing the words of the Lord: And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, and shall not find it. In that day shall the fair virgins and the young men faint for thirst" (Amos 8:7-13). How remarkably does Psalm 74 interpret this prophecy of Amos! The reason why the godly Remnant shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord and shall not find it, and the meaning of the famine of hearing the words of the Lord is that all the synagogues in the land shall have been burned up.
But not for long will this frightful persecution continue: "Therefore thus saith the Lord God of hosts, O My people that dwellest in Zion, be not afraid of the Assyrain: he shall smite thee with a rod, and shall lift up his staff against thee, after the manner of Egypt. For yet a very little while, and the indignation shall cease, and Mine anger in their destruction" (Isaiah 10:24, 25). Once the Antichrist turns upon Israel his days are numbered, for to touch that nation is to touch the apple of God's eye (Zechariah 2:8). God shall "stir up a scourge for him" (Isaiah 10:26). What this scourge is we learn from Daniel 11:40: "And at the time of the end shall the king of the south push at him; and the king of the north (the Antichrist) shall come against him (i.e. the king of the south) like a whirlwind with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow, and pass over" (Daniel 11:40).
The king of the south who pushes it—assails—the Antichrist is the king of Egypt. The Antichrist, here termed the king of the north, i.e. Assyrai, shall leave Babylon, and marshalling his imperial forces, which he has ready for immediate action, shall lead them against him (the king of Egypt) like a whirlwind. The rapidity of his movements and the immensity of his armies, is intimated by the words, "He shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over." His progress will be as the rushing of an overwhelming torrent from the mountains, that spreads over the land, and carries everything before it. "He shall enter also into the glorious land, and many countries shall be overthrown" (Daniel 11:41). His route from Babylon to Egypt will take him through Palestine, the land which is soon to be the glory of all lands; and, although we are not told here what he will do there at that time, his hand will, no doubt, be heavy upon it, as also upon the many other countries which he will overthrow. "But these shall escape out of his hand, even Edom, and Moab, and the chief of the children of Ammon" (Daniel 11:41). These three peoples will escape his fury. The reason for their escape seems to be a double one. In Ps. 83, which describes an event at a little earlier period, we are told, "they have taken crafty counsel against Thy people, and consulted against Thy hidden ones. They has said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance. For they have consulted together with one consent, they are confederate against Thee: the tabernacles of Edom and the Ishmaelites; of Moab, and the Hagarenes; Gebal, and Ammon, and Amalck; the Philistines with the inhabitants of Tyre; Assur (the Assyrian) also is joined with them" (Psalm 83:3-8). Thus we see that these three peoples acted in concert with the Antichrist when a determined effort was made to utterly exterminate the Jewish people. The Antichrist, therefore, spares these submissive allies of his when he goes forth to overthrow the other countries.
So much for the human side as to why "these shall escape out of his hand, even Edom, and Moab, and the chief of the children of Ammon." But there is a Divine side, too. These peoples are spared at that time in order that they may be dealt with later by God Himself. Thus did Jehovah declare of old through Balaam the heathen prophet: "There shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth. And Edom shall be a possession, Seir also shall be a possession for his enemies" (Numbers 24:17, 18). This will be right at the beginning of the Millennium. Israel, too, shall be used by God in this work of judgment upon their ancient enemies: "But they shall fly upon the shoulders of the Philistines toward the west; they shall spoil them of the east together: they shall lay their hand upon Edom and Moab; and the children of Ammon shall obey them" (Isaiah 11:14).
"He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the land of Egypt shall not escape. But he shall have power over the treasures of gold and of silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt: and the Libyans and the Ethiopians shall be at his steps" (Daniel 11:42, 43). The victorious King will then take possession of those countries which were overthrown by him during his march from Babylon to Egypt. Having now reached this land which dared to push at him—the land never completely subjugated by the previous kings of the north referred to in the earlier part of Daniel 11—its king and subjects must now bow before his iron sceptre. He becomes master of its treasures of gold, silver, and precious things. The Libyans and Ethiopians, who were the allies of Egypt, will be compelled to follow in this train. Thus will he crush this Egyptian rebellion, and demonstrate once more his military prowess. Yet not for long will he be permitted to defy Heaven with impugnity.
"But tidings out of the east and out of the north shall trouble him: therefore he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to make away many" (Daniel 11:44). What these troublous tidings are we learn from Jeremiah 51. A serious attack will be made upon his Babylonian headquarters, and during his absence from there, the kings of Ararat, Minni, and Ashchenaz—no doubt emboldened by the insubordination of Egypt—will besiege and capture one end of the Capital. The time is nigh at hand when God shall utterly destroy that City of the Devil, and a preliminary warning of this is now given: "And I will render unto Babylon and to all the inhabitants of Chaldea all their evil that they have done in Zion in your sight, saith the Lord. Behold, I am against thee, O destroying mountain, saith the Lord, which destroyeth all the earth: and I will stretch out Mine hand upon thee, and roll thee down from the rocks, and will make thee a burnt mountain. And they shall not take of thee a stone for a corner, nor a stone for foundations; but thou shalt be desolate forever, saith the Lord" (Jeremiah 51:24-26).
As a beginning to this end, the Lord says, "Set ye up a standard in the land, blow the trumpet among the nations, prepare the nations against her, call together against her the kingdoms of Ararat, Minni, and Ashchenaz (all situated in the vicinity of Armenia); appoint a captain against her; cause the horses to come up as the rough caterpillers. Prepare against her the nations with the kings of the Medes, the captains thereof, and all the rulers thereof, and all the land of his dominion. And the land shall tremble and sorrow: for every purpose of the Lord shall be performed against Babylon, to make the land of Babylon a desolation without an inhabitant. The mighty man of Babylon hath forborne to fight, they have remained in their holds: their might hath failed; they became as women: they have burned their dwelling places; her bars are broken" (Jeremiah 51:27-30).
It is this ominous news—the tidings which trouble him of Daniel 11:44—which reaches the ears of Babylon's King, then absent in Egypt. The alarming tidings that part of the city has already been destroyed arouses him to fierce anger, for we are told, "therefore he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to make away many" (Daniel 11:44). As he nears the capital, "one post shall run to meet another, and one messenger to meet another, to show the King of Babylon that his city is taken at one end, and that the passages are stopped, and the reeds they have burned with fire, and the men of war are affrighted" (Jeremiah 51:31, 32). The end is not far distant: "For thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; the daughter of Babylon is like a threshing floor, it is time to thresh her: yet a little while, and the time of her harvest shall come" (Jeremiah 51:33). God now calls on the Jews who are found dwelling within that city to leave at once, lest they be caught in the storm of His fierce anger: "My people, go ye out of the midst of her, and deliver you every man his soul from the fierce anger of the Lord" (Jeremiah 51:45). A graphic description of Babylon's destruction is found at the end of Jeremiah 51 and also in Revelation 18.
The fury of the Antichrist at the destruction of Babylon will know no bounds. Enraged at his loss, and incensed against God, he will now turn his face toward Palestine, and at the head of his vast forces will bear down upon the glorious land. Even so, it is God who is directing him and his blinded dupes—directing him to finish the work of judgment upon Israel, and directing him to his awful doom. Habakkuk gives a fearful description of the spirit in which the King of Babylon and his hosts shall fall upon the dwellers of Palestine:—"For, lo, I raise up the Chaldeans, that bitter and hasty nation, which shall march through the breadth of the land, to possess the dwelling places that are not theirs. They are terrible and dreadful: their judgment and their dignity shall proceed of themselves. Their horses also are swifter than the leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves: and their horsemen shall spread themselves, and their horsemen shall come from far; they shall fly as the eagle that hasteth to eat. (How this verse anticipates the cruel aerial war-weapons!). They shall come all for violence: their faces shall sup up as the east wind, and they shall gather the captivity as the sand. And they shall heap dust, and take it. Then shall his mind change, and he shall pass over, and offend, imputing this his power unto his god" (Note how this last verse serves to identify the "Chaldean" with the "King" of Daniel 11:38, 39). So terrible will be this onslaught that we are told, "And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the Lord, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein" (Zechariah 13:8).
His course is vividly sketched by Isaiah in the tenth chapter of his prophecy: "He is come to Aiath, he is passed to Migron; at Mickmash he hath laid up his carriages: They are gone over the passage: they have taken up their lodging at Geba; Ramah is afraid; Galim: cause it to be heard unto Laish, O poor Anathoth. Madmena is removed; the inhabitants of Gebim gather themselves to flee. As yet shall he remain at Nob that day" (Isaiah 10:28-32). Nob is his camping-ground for that day, and it is there he will "plant the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the goodly holy mountain" (Daniel 11:45). Nob must be some elevation commanding a distant view of Jerusalem from the west. As he stands on the hill that night and looks at the Holy City, he "shall shake his hand against the mount of the daughter of Zion, the hill of Jerusalem" (Isaiah 10:32).
We now come to the closing scene. The following morning the Man of Sin leads his forces to the famous Armageddon, there awaiting his final re-inforcements before attacking Jerusalem. It is of this that Joel speaks: "Proclaim ye this among the Gentiles; Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war draw near; let them come up: Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruning hooks into spears: let the weak say, I am strong. Assemble yourselves, and come all ye heathen, and gather yourselves together round about: thither cause Thy mighty ones to come down, O Lord. Let the heathen be wakened, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat; for there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about. Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe: come, get you down; for the press is full, the fats overflow; for their wickedness is great. Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision" (Joel 3:9-14).
It is to this that Micah refers: "Now also many nations are gathered against thee, that say, Let her be defiled, and let our eye look upon Zion. But they know not the thoughts of the Lord, neither understand they His counsel: for He shall gather them as the sheaves into the floor" (4:10, 11). But it is not in the valley that the battle is fought, but around Jerusalem, where the Beast and his armies deliver the final blow of God's judgment on that city ere the Deliverer appears. It is then that God will say, "O Assyrian, the rod of Mine anger, and the staff in their hands is Mine indignation. I will send him against an hypocritical nation, and against the people of My wrath will I give him a charge, to take the spoil, and to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets. Howbeit he meaneth not so, neither doth his heart think so; but it is in his heart to destroy and cut off nations not a few. For he saith, Are not my princes altogether kings? Is not Calno as Carchemish? Is not Hamath as Arpad? Is not Samaria as Damascus? As my hand hath found the kingdoms of the idols, and whose graven images did excel them of Jerusalem and of Samaria; Shall I not, as I have done unto Samaria and her idols, so do to Jerusalem and her idols? Wherefore it shall come to pass, that when the Lord hath performed His whole work upon mount Zion and on Jerusalem, I will punish the fruit of the stout heart of the King of Assyria, and the glory of his high looks" (Isaiah 5-12). The Antichrist is but the Lord's instrument after all. Just as Moses picked up and held in his hand the rod which became a serpent, so shall this offspring of the Serpent be wielded by the hand of God to accomplish His predetermined counsels.
Once again, though, the Beast appears to be successful. Jerusalem falls before his onslaught as Jehovah had foretold that it should—"For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city" (Zechariah 14:2). Intoxicated by their success, it is then that the heathen shall rage and the people imagine a vain thing: "The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord, and against His anointed, saying, Let us brake their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us" (Psalm 2:2, 3).
And then comes the grand finale. The heaven will open and from it will descend the King of kings and Lord of lords, seated on a white horse, with His eyes "as a flame of fire" (Revelation 19:11, 12). Attending Him will be the armies of heaven, also seated on white horses (Revelation 19:14). Far from being appalled at this awe-inspiring spectacle, the Beast and the kings of the earth and their armies shall gather together to "make war against Him that sat on the horse, and against His armies" (Revelation 19:19). "Then shall the Lord go forth, and fight against those nations, as when He fought in the day of battle" (Zechariah 14:3). At last the Christ of God and the christ of Satan will confront each other. But the instant the conflict begins, it is ended. The Foe will be paralyzed, and all resistance cease.
Scripture has solemnly recorded the end of various august evil personages. Some were overwhelmed by waters; some devoured by flames; some engulfed in the jaws of the earth; some stricken by a loathsome disease; some ignominiously slaughtered; some hanged; some eaten up of dogs; some consumed by worms. But to no sinful dweller on earth, save the Man of Sin, "the Wicked One," has been appointed the terrible distinction of being consumed by the brightness of the personal appearing of the Lord Jesus Himself. Such shall be his unprecedented doom, an end that shall fittingly climax his ignoble origin, his amazing career, and his unparalleled wickedness.
"Hitherto proud boastings have issued from the lips of Satan's king; but now he falls helplessly to the ground blasted by the lightening which streams from the King of kings; and together with the False Prophet and in the full sight of his countless armies, he is seized by the angels of the Lord, to be hurled alive into the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone" (G. H. Pember).
The overthrow of the Antichrist is described as follows:—"But with righteousness shall He judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and He shall smite the earth with the rod of His mouth and with the breath of His lips shall He slay the Wicked" (Isaiah 11:14).
"And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many; he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand"—an expression which always refers to that which is supernatural (Daniel 8:25).
"And he shall plant the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the glorious holy mountain; yet shall he come to his end, and none shall help him" (Daniel 11:45).
"And then shall that Wicked (One) be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of His coming" (2 Thessalonians 2:8).
"And the Beast was taken, and with him the False Prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the Beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone" (Revelation 19:20).
"For Tophet is ordained of old; yea, for the King it is prepared; he hath made it deep and large: the pile: the pile thereof is fire and much wood; the breath of the Lord, like a stream of brimstone, doth kindle it" (Isaiah 30:33).
"And the Devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the Beast and the False Prophet are, and (they) shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever" (Revelation 20:10).
Frightful, too, shall be the doom meted out to the followers of the Antichrist. Zechariah 14 tells us, "And this shall be the plague wherewith the Lord will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes, and their tongues shall consume away in their mouth. And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult from the Lord shall be among them; and they shall lay hold every one on the hands of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour" (vv. 12, 13). So, also Revelation 19:21 declares, "And the remnant were slain with the sword of Him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of His mouth; and all the fowls were filled with their flesh."
—Antichrist, The
Antichrist in the Apocalypse The scope of the Apocalypse is indicated by its place in the Sacred Canon. Coming as it does right at the close of the Scriptures, we should naturally expect to find it outlining the last chapters of the world's history. Such is indeed the case. The Revelation is mainly devoted to a description of the judgments which God will yet send upon the earth. It furnishes by far the most complete description of the conditions which are to obtain during the Tribulation period. It treats at greatest length with the character and career of the Antichrist, who will be the "Rod" in the hands of an angry God to chastise recreant Israel and apostate Christendom. All of this is, of course, preparatory to the establishment of Messiah's kingdom, which will exist during the last of earth's dispensations.
It is impossible to understand the Apocalypse without a thorough acquaintance with the books that precede it. The more familiar we are with the first sixty-five books of the Bible, the better prepared are we for the study of its sixty-sixth. There is little that is really new in the Revelation. Its varied contents are largely an amplification of what is to be found in the preceding scriptures. Each of its figures and symbols are explained if not on its own pages, then somewhere within the compass of the written Word. For Scripture is ever self-interpreting. Most of our difficulties with the Revelation grow out of our ignorance and lack of acquaintance with the earlier books. Daniel and Zechariah especially should be examined minutely, for they shed much light upon the various and prophecies of the Patmos seer.
The Apocalypse not only reveals much concerning the person and work of the Man of Sin, but it describes his doom, as it also announces the complete overthrow of the Trinity of Evil. This, no doubt, accounts for much of the prejudice which obtains against the study and reading of this book. It is indeed remarkable that this is the only book in the Bible connected with which there is a distinct promise given to those who read and hear read its prophecy (1:3). And yet how very rarely it is read from the pulpits of those churches which are reputed as orthodox! Surely the great Enemy is responsible for this. It seems that Satan fears and hates above every book in the Bible this one which tells of his being ultimately cast into the Lake of Fire. But "we are not ignorant of his devices" (2 Corinthians 2:11). Then let him not keep us from the prayerful and careful perusal of this prophecy which tells of those things "which must shortly come to pass."
1. We turn first to the sixth chapter of the Revelation, where a fourfold view is presented of the Son of Perdition. Just as at the beginning of the New Testament the Holy Spirit has given us a fourfold delineation of Christ in the Gospels, so at the commencement of His description of the judgments of God on the earth He has furnished us with a fourfold picture of Christ's great opponent. We believe that the contents of the first four of the "seals" describe four aspects of the Antichrist's character, and also outline four stages in his career. First, he is seen aping the Christ of God as the Righteous One. The "white horse" on which he is seated, speaking of righteousness. Just as we are told in 2 Corinthians 11:14 that "Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light," and "therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness," so the Antichrist will pose as the friend of law and order. Second, he is seen mimicking the Christ of God as the mighty Warrior. Just as the Lord Jesus at His return will make a footstool of His enemies, and trample in fury all who defy Him (Isaiah 63:3), so the Man of Sin shall slay all who dare to oppose him. Third, he is seen imitating Christ as the Bread of Life, for the third seal views him as the Food-controller. Fourth, he is seen with his mask off, depicted as one whose name is Death and Hades, that is, as the Destroyer of men's bodies and souls.
Let us see how the identity of this Rider of the various colored horses is established. In 6:2 we are told, "And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer." Notice first, that he is here viewed as seated upon a "white horse." This is in imitation of the Christ of God, who, at the time of His second advent to the earth, will also appear seated upon "a white horse" (Revelation 19:11). Second, it is said that "a crown was given unto him." This at once serves to connect him with the first Beast—the Antichrist—of Revelation 13, for of him it is written, "And they worshipped the Dragon which gave power unto the Beast" (v. 4). Again; in 6:4 we are told, "And there went out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword." Notice first, the last clause—"There was given unto him a great sword." This stamps him plainly as the pseudo christ, for of the true Christ it is written, "Out of His mouth goeth a sharp sword" (19:15). Second, it is said "power was given to him to take peace from the earth." So, too, of the first Beast of Revelation 13 we read, "And power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and all nations" (v. 7). In the third seal he is viewed as the Food-controller, weighing out the necessities of life at famine prices. This, no doubt, corresponds with what we read of in 13:17. Finally, in the fourth seal he is named "Death and Hell." This double title removes all doubt as to who is in view. When God remonstrates with Israel for having made the seven-years treaty, He does so in the following language: "And your covenant with Death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with Hell shall not stand" (Isaiah 28:18). Thus the Riders of the four horses of Revelation 6 are not four different persons, but one person presented in a fourfold way, as the Lord Jesus is in the four Gospels.
Before we pass from Revelation 6 a few words should be added by way of amplification of our remarks above, namely, that in the first part of Revelation 6 we have outlined four stages in the Antichrist's career. The preparation of the Man Christ Jesus for His public ministry—the long years spent quietly at Nazareth—are passed over by the four Evangelists. So here in Revelation 6 the early days of the Man of Sin—in his "little horn" character—are not noticed. Under the first seal he is viewed as seated on a white horse, having a bow. The color of the horse and the fact that no arrow is seen attached to the bow, suggests bloodless victories, for he goes forth "conquering and to conquer." This first seal at once conducts us to the time when the Prince of Darkness poses as the Christ of God and presents himself to the Jews for their acceptance. He does not come out in his true satanic character, rather does he simulate the Prince of Peace. The first seal is parallel with Daniel 11:21, 23, where we learn that he will gain the kingdom by flatteries and political diplomacy. But not for long will he fill this pacific role. War is in his heart (Psalm 55:21), and nothing short of universal dominion will satisfy his proud ambitions. As God has plainly warned, at the very time when men shall be saying, Peace and safety, "then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape" (1 Thessalonians 5:3).
It is to this the second seal brings us. Here the Antichrist is seen no longer upon a white horse, but upon a red horse. And in perfect accord with this, it is added, "And power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth...and there was given to him a great sword" (v. 4). Little wonder that he is called "the Destroyer of the Gentiles" (Jeremiah 4:7). At the time of his overthrow it will be exclaimed, "Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms; that made the world as a wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof?" (Isaiah 14:17, 18). Jeremiah 25:29 throws light upon this "great sword" which is given to him—"For, lo, I begin to bring evil on the city which is called by my name, and should ye be utterly unpunished? Ye shall not be unpunished: for I will call for a sword upon all the inhabitants of the earth, saith the Lord of hosts" (read verses 15 to 33).
In the third seal he is portrayed as the Harbinger of famine conditions. This is intimated by the change of the color of the horse: for "black" in connection with famine see Jeremiah 14:1, 2 and Lamentations 5:10. The symbolic significance of the "black" horse is intensified by the figure of the "pair of balances in his hand" (compare Hosea 12:7, Amos 8:4-6). What follows describes the wheat being doled out at famine prices. But it is added, "See thou hurt not the oil and the wine." This intimates that the famine is by no means universal: yea, it suggests that side by side with abject suffering there is abundance and luxury. We therefore regard this third seal as denoting the Antichrist's persecution of the godly Jews which, from other scriptures we learn, will be the fiercest during the last three and one half years of his career. Revelation 13:17 makes it known that they who will not be suffered to buy or sell are the ones who refuse to receive his mark. These, of course, are the faithful remnant of the Jews. But they who do render allegiance to the Beast will not want—"oil and wine" shall be their portion.
The fourth seal, plainly conducts us to the end of Antichrist's course. The fact that he is named Death and that we are told Hades (that which receives the soul) followed with him, makes known the awful doom which shall overtake this Son of Perdition and all his blinded followers—see Revelation 19:20, 21.
2. The next allusion to the Antichrist is found in Revelation 9:11 where he is given a threefold appellation, namely, King over the locusts, The Angel of the Abyss, and the Destroyer. A few remarks upon the context are required if we are to expound, even briefly, the significance of these three titles. The majority of pre-millennial commentators are agreed upon the identity of the personage named in Revelation 9:11, though there is considerable difference of opinion among them concerning the meaning of the context. We can here only offer a few remarks on the preceding verses according to our present light and submit the reasons for our conclusions.
The immediate context takes us back to the opening verse of Revelation 9 where a "star" is seen falling from heaven unto the earth, unto whom is given the key to the Bottomless Pit. This we believe refers to Lucifer, or "Day-star" (see Isaiah 14:12 margin). The reference, we think, is not to his original fall, but to what is described in Revelation 12:9. The fact that the key of the Abyss is given to him is in keeping with the fact that during the Tribulation period God allows him free rein and suffers him to do his worst. The R. V. correctly renders verses one and two as follows—"And there was given to him the key of the Pit of the Abyss. And he opened the Pit of the Abyss," etc., or, as it may literally be rendered, "the well of the Bottomless Pit." This expression occurs nowhere else in Scripture. The "well of the Bottomless Pit" is to be distinguished from the Bottomless Pit itself, mentioned in 9:11; 11:7; 17:8, 20:3. What the distinction is we shall presently suggest.
Out of the well of the Bottomless Pit issued a smoke, so great that the sun and the air were darkened (v. 2), and out of the smoke came "locusts upon the earth." We regard these locusts as identical with the creatures referred to in the prophecy of Joel (2:1-11). By noticing what is said of them in Joel 2 and Revelation 9 it is at once apparent that they are no ordinary locusts. Joel says of them, "A great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it" (2:2). It is said, "When they fall upon the sword they shall not be wounded" (2:8). The fact that they issue from the Pit also denotes that they are supernatural beings. In the description furnished in Revelation 9 they seem to be a kind of infernal cherubim, for "the horse" (v. 7), the "man" (v. 7), the "lion" (v. 8), and "the scorpion" (v. 19) are combined in them. Their number is given as two hundred thousand thousand. Who, then, are these infernal beings? No commentator that we are acquainted with has attempted an answer. It is therefore with diffidence that we suggest, without being dogmatic, that they are, most likely, fallen angels now imprisoned in Tartarus. We give three reason which, in our judgment, point to this conclusion.
First, we know from 2 Peter 2:4 that the angels which sinned were "cast down to Tartarus," and in Revelation 9:2, 3 we are told there "arose a smoke out of the Pit...and there came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth." Now, as pointed out, these infernal locusts issue from "the well of the Pit," an expression occurring nowhere else in Scripture, and only the locusts are said to come from there. So also the term Tartarus is found nowhere but in 2 Peter 2:4. It seems likely, then, that the well of the Pit may be only another name for Tartarus (with which only fallen angels are connected), just as the Lake of Fire is only another name for Gehenna. Who else could these locusts be but the fallen angels? To say we do not know may savor of humility, but shall the writer be deemed presumptuous because he has sought to furnish an answer by comparing scripture with scripture?
In the second place, it is surely significant that the "king" of these "locusts" is termed in Revelation 9:11 "the angel of the Bottomless Pit!" A title which is nowhere else given to him. Just as Christ, the Angel of the Covenant (Malachi 3:1—cf Isaiah 63:9, etc.) is, again and again, termed an angel in the Apocalypse (see 8:3, 10:1, etc.), so the Antichrist is here denominated "the Angel of the Bottomless Pit." And just as we learn from Matthew 25:31 that "the Son of Man shall come in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him" (cf Matthew 24:31), so when the Son of Perdition is manifested, all the unholy angels will be with him!
In the third place, let the language of 2 Peter 2:4 be carefully examined: "For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to Tartarus, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment." It is to the last clause we wish to direct attention. Let it be compared with the 9th verse of the same chapter—"The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished." Wicked human beings are said to be reserved "unto the Day of Judgment to be punished." But this is not what is said of the angels that sinned, though, of course, eternal punishment awaits them as we learn from Matthew 25:41. 2 Peter 2:4 simply says they are "reserved unto judgment," and we believe this means that God is holding them in Tartarus until His time comes for Him to use them as one of His instruments of judgment upon an ungodly world. The time when God will thus use them is stated in Jude 6—it will be in "the judgment of the great day" (compare Revelation 6:17 for "the great day"). Confirmatory of this, observe that in Joel 2:11 the Lord calls the supernatural locusts "His army," then employed to inflict sore punishments on apostate Israel. If our interpretation of 2 Peter 2:4 be correct, namely, that it makes no reference to the future punishment of the fallen angels, this explains why the Lord in Matthew 25:41 when referring to future punishment was careful to mention them specifically.
Returning now to Revelation 9:11 the Antichrist is here termed the "King over" the locusts. Let the reader pay careful attention to what is predicted of these infernal beings in Joel 2 and here in Revelation 9, and let him remember they number no less than two hundred millions, and then see if it does not throw new light on Revelation 13:4, where concerning the Antichrist the question is asked, "Who is able to make war with him?!!" How utterly futile to engage in conflict one who commands an army of two hundred millions, none of whom are subject to death! In the second place, he is here termed "the Angel of the Bottomless Pit," a title peculiarly appropriate as the leader of the fallen angels; and, as well, a title which denotes the superhuman nature of the Son of Perdition. In the third place, we are here told that his name "in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon." This title serves to establish beyond a shadow of doubt the identity of this "King" of the infernal locusts, this Angel of the Bottomless Pit. The Hebrew and the Greek names signify the same thing in English—the Destroyer. It is the Destroyer of the Gentiles of Jeremiah 4:7, translated "Spoiler" in Isaiah 16:4 and Jeremiah 6:24. Suitable name is this for the one who is the great opponent of the Saviour. "Destroyer" is close akin to "Death" in Revelation 6:8. The reason why his name is given here in both Hebrew and Greek is because he will be connected with and be the destroyer of both Jews and Gentiles! But why give the Hebrew name first? Because the order in judgment, as in grace, is "the Jew first"—see Romans 2:9 and 1:16 for each, respectively.
3. "And when they shall have finished their testimony, the Beast that ascendeth out of the Bottomless Pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them" (Revelation 11:7). This is the first time in the Revelation that the Antichrist is seen in his character of "the Beast." The last scripture which we have examined serves at once to identify him. He is termed "the Angel of the Bottomless Pit," because in a peculiar sense the Abyss is his home. There he has been during all the centuries of this Christian era. In Acts 1:23 (cf chapter 3, Section 3) the Pit is called "his own place." Here the Beast is shown ascending out of the Bottomless Pit. What, then, is the Abyss? It appears to be the special abode of infernal creatures. As we have seen, out of its well issue the fallen angels. From it comes the Beast. And in it Satan himself is incarcerated for the thousand years (Revelation 20:3). The Abyss is quite distinct from Hades in which the souls of lost human beings are now being tormented; as it must also be distinguished from Gehenna or the Lake of Fire in which all the lost shall suffer for ever and ever.
4. We come now to Revelation 13. A lengthy paper might readily be devoted to its exposition, but as we have had occasion to refer to its contents so frequently in earlier chapters, we shall here be as brief as possible. The contents of this chapter center around two "Beasts." As to which of them represent the Antichrist there is a difference of opinion. The majority of those who have written upon the subject regard the first Beast as the Man of Sin, and with them we are in hearty accord. We shall devote our next chapter to a setting forth of some of the many proofs that the first Beast is the Antichrist. Here we shall take the point for granted.
"And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy" (v.1). There is here, as frequently in Scripture, a double reference. Two objects quite distinct though intimately connected are in view. We believe that this Beast which arises from the sea points to the Roman Empire revived and in its final form, that is, resuscitated and confederated under the form often kingdoms. In Daniel 7:3 we read, "And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another." These four great beasts are interpreted in the verses which follow as four kingdoms. In v. 7 we are told this fourth Beast (the Roman Empire) "had ten horns." So the Beast of Revelation 13:1 also has ten horns. Each of the successive Beasts or kingdoms of Daniel 7 retained the territory of the previous one, though enlarging on it. In the symbolic description there furnished the first Beast is likened unto "a lion" (v. 4); the second to "a bear" (v. 5); the third to "a leopard" (v. 6). So also in Revelation 13 the Beast there is "like unto a leopard," has feet like "a bear," and has the mouth of "a lion" (v. 2). Thus we learn that the Roman Empire in its final form will include within its borders the territory controlled by the earlier Empires and will also perpetuate the dominant characteristics of the ancient Babylonians, Medo-Persians, and Grecians.
But it is very clear from what follows in Revelation 13 that there is something more than the Empire here in view. In vv. 3-8 it is a person that is before us. We are satisfied that this same person is also described, symbolically, in the opening verses. As is frequently the case in the prophetic scriptures, the king and his kingdom are here inseparably united. Revelation 13:1, 2 portrays both the Empire and its last Emperor. One of the proofs for this is found in Daniel 9:26, 27, where (as we have shown in Chapter 9) the Antichrist is denominated "the prince" of that people who destroyed Jerusalem in A. D. 70. We shall therefore interpret here according to this principle.
"And I saw...a Beast rise up out of the sea." In Scripture, the troubled "sea" is frequently a figure of restless humanity away from God. The Antichrist will come upon the scene at a time of unprecedented social disturbance and governmental upheaval. He will appear at a crisis in the history of the world. From other prophetic scriptures we gather that, following the removal of the Church from this earth, and some time before Daniel's seventieth week begins, there will be a complete overthrow of law and order, both civil and political. All Divine restraint being removed, lawlessness will prevail. We have no doubt that Satan will designedly bring this about. It will create a situation beyond the diplomatic skill of earth's statesmen. This will provide the desired opportunity for the coming Superman, who will be a diplomatic genius. Just as many leaders today are satisfied that a League of Nations would be the best device for preserving peace, so in the day to come the Man of Sin will satisfy the world that this is the only solution to the baffling problems then confronting the Powers of earth. Thus will the Antichrist resurrect the old Roman Empire at a time of universal confusion and tumult. He will himself be the acknowledged head or Emperor, the last of the Caesars. Hence the double significance of this figure—"a Beast rising out of the sea." Out of a state of anarchy will come forth this might Despot, who will speedily arrogate to himself all authority, both Divine and human; and in the end it will be seen that he embodies a lawlessness even worse and more fatal than that out of which he sprang. A Beast indeed will he soon appear to be. Pregnant with meaning is this title. Having rejected God's "Lamb;" a Beast shall be the world's ruler. This will be God's reply to the satanic teaching of Evolution now so popular almost everywhere. The leaders of modern thought insist on the beastial origin of man, and so a Beast shall yet lead the majority of his generation to Perdition!
"Having seven heads and ten horns." It is most significant that identically the same features are attributed to the Dragon in 12:3. He, too, is there said to have "seven heads and ten horns." This clearly implies his satanic origin: he will be a human replica of the Devil himself. As wrote the late G. H. Pember (from whom we have borrowed a number of valuable points), the Beast will be "the effulgence of the Antigod's glory, and the very image of his substance." We take it that the "seven heads" are symbolic of full intelligence, and the "ten horns" speak of imperial dominion.
"And the Beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion" (v. 2). Like the Beast rising up out of the sea of the previous verse, we believe the terms of this second verse have a double significance. First, as intimated above, they denote that the Empire will include the territory and preserve the dominant features of the earlier Empires. Second, they supply a figurative description of the Emperor himself. The Antichrist will combine in his personality the characteristics of the leopard (beauty and subtlety), of the bear (strength and cruelty), and of the lion (boldness and ferocity).
"And the Dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority" (v. 2). This is the Devil's travesty of what God the Father will yet do to His Son:—"I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of Man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of Days, and they brought Him near before Him. And there was given Him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve Him" (Daniel 7:13, 14).
"And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the Beast" (v. 3). It is clear from a number of scriptures that during the early part of the second half of Daniel's seventieth week the Antichrist will be slain by the sword—cf Isaiah 14:18, 19; 37:7; Ezekiel 21:25 R. V.; Zechariah 11:17: see our comments on these in the closing portion of Chapter 6. It is equally clear that this wound of death will be healed (Revelation 13:4) and that the Beast shall again live (Revelation 13:14). Satan will be permitted to bring his son from the dead. This is no wild speculation of ours but a view which has been propounded by quite a number of devout students. In his "Coming Prince," Sir Robert Anderson said, "The language of Revelation 13:3, 12 suggests that there will be some impious travesty of the resurrection of our Lord." It is useless to reason about it: we simply believe the record of Scripture upon it. The raising of the Beast from the dead will remove whatever doubt men may have entertained concerning his supernatural character. "All the world wondered after him" is the statement which immediately follows the reference to the healing of his wound of death.
"And they worshipped the Dragon which gave power unto the Beast: and they worshipped the Beast, saying, Who is like unto the Beast? Who is able to make war with him?" (v. 4). This cry of the world, "Who is like unto the Beast?" is a travesty of the song of Moses. When celebrating Jehovah's overthrow of their enemies at the Red Sea, Israel sang, "Who is like unto Thee, O Lord, among the Gods! Who is like Thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders!" (Exodus 15:11). The additional exclamation, "Who is able to make war with him?" is evoked by the vast army of infernal creatures at his command, and by his own triumph over death in battle.
"And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies" (v. 5). This is the one great distinguishing mark of the Antichrist—cf. Psalm 52:1-4; Isaiah 14:13, 14; Daniel 7:11, 20; 11:36; 2 Thessalonians 2:4, etc. But not for long will he be suffered to continue his God-defying course. Another forty-two months and his career shall be ended. This number—here designedly used by the Holy Spirit, rather than three and one half years or twelve hundred and sixty days—is a very significant one. Its factors are 6 and 7, which stand for man and completeness. It is man in his fallen condition, here the Man of Sin, fully manifested. Forty-two stands for intensified apostasy. Thus Numbers 33 gives the various stopping places of unbelieving Israel in the wilderness as forty-two in number. Judges 12:6 tells us that the number of the apostate Ephraimites which fell before the Gileadites were 42 thousand. See also 2 Kings 2:4 and 10:14.
"And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and there was given to him authority over every tribe and people and tongue and nation. And all they that dwell on the earth shall worship him, every one whose name hath not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb that hath been slain" (vv. 7, 8, R. V.). The "saints" here mentioned are the godly Jewish remnant who will refuse to worship the Beast. Those "overcome" are they who disobeyed the command of Christ recorded in Matthew 24:16; those who obey will be preserved by God—see Revelation 12:6. Note how election is seen here: only they whose names were written from the foundation of the world in the book of life will be preserved from the unpardonable sin of worshipping the Antichrist—cf Matthew 24:22, 24.
"And I beheld another Beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon" (v. 11). This brings before us the second Beast, called in 19:20 the False Prophet. He is the third person of the Trinity of Evil. As there is to be an Antichrist who will both counterfeit and oppose the Christ of God, so there will be an Anti-spirit who will simulate and oppose the Spirit of God. Just as the great work of the Holy Spirit is to glorify Christ, so the one aim of the Anti-spirit will be to magnify the false christ (see 13:12). Just as the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost was visibly attended by "cloven tongues like as of fire" (Acts 2:3), so we read of the Anti-spirit that "he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men" (v. 13). And just as it is the Holy Spirit who now quickens dead sinners into newness of life, so of the Anti-spirit we are told, "He had power to give life unto the image of the Beast" (v. 15).
5. "And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the Beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of His indignation, and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb" (Revelation 14:9, 10). This looks back to what we read of in the closing verses of the preceding chapter. "And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: and that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the Beast, or the number of his name" (13:16, 17). This "mark" will be the official sign of allegiance to the Emperor stamped either upon the hand or forehead of his loyal subjects. It will be the satanic travesty of the "seal" which the angel will stamp on the foreheads of God's servants. This "mark" on the persons of the subjects of the Beast will be, we believe, the name of the Devil, (cf. Revelation 13:4), as the seal on the foreheads of God's servants is defined in 14:1 as "having their Father's name written on their foreheads." Here in Revelation 14:9-11 we have one of the most solemn warnings in all the Bible. An angel from heaven will announce the terrible punishment which shall be visited upon those who honor the Beast. It is set over against the threats of the Beast and the False Prophet, who will terrify men by the sentence of physical death for all who defy them. But here God, by His angel, declares that all who heed the Beast and his coadjutor will share their awful doom. This no doubt will strengthen the faith and patience of the saints, and enable them to endure unto the end.
6. "And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry, to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe. And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God" (14:19, 20). The "Vine of the earth" refers, we believe, to the Man of Sin at the head of apostate Israel. This appellation points one more contrast. In John 15, we find the Lord Jesus saying, "I am the true Vine, ye are the branches." The true Vine, then, consists of the Christ of God and His people in fellowship with Him. Over against this is "the vine of the earth," which is the Antichrist and those allied to him, particularly, renegade Israel. In Deuteronomy 32 there is a reference to the "Vine of the earth"—"For their rock is not as our Rock, even our enemies themselves being judges. For their Vine is of the vine of Sodom, and their clusters are bitter" (v. 31, 32). That this is speaking of apostate Israel is clear from v. 28—"For they are a nation void of counsel, neither is there any understanding in them." That the passage is speaking of apostate Israel in the days of the Antichrist appears from v. 35—"To me belongeth vengeance, and recompense; their foot shall slide in due time: for the day of their calamity is at hand, and the things which shall come upon them make haste" (v. 35).
7. In Revelation 15:2 there is a brief allusion to the Beast, in connection with the godly Remnant: "And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them that had gotten the victory over the Beast, and over his image, and over his mask, and over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass having the harps of God," etc. The reference is to those who had been slain by the Antichrist because they had refused to render him any honor or worship. The same company is seen again in 20:4.
8. Revelation 16 describes the "vial" judgments which are executed just before the end of the Tribulation. The Beast is noticed several times in the chapter. In v.2 we read, "And the first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark of the Beast, and upon them which worshipped his image" (v. 2). This is a foretaste of the grievous torments awaiting the worshippers of the Beast. Again in v.10 we read, "And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the Beast; and his kingdom was full of darkness and they gnawed their tongues for pain." Here the Beast himself receives intimation of the doom awaiting him. In vv. 13 and 14 we are told, "And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the Dragon, and out of the mouth of the Beast, and out of the mouth of the False Prophet. For they are the sprites of demons, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty." Here we behold, in symbolic guise, each of the persons in the Evil Trinity. The figure of the "frog" is very suggestive. Frogs are creatures which love the darkness rather than the light: they wallow in the mire and filth: their croaking is heard in the dusk of twilight and by night. Thus they are an apt symbol of the persons in the Trinity of Evil. Their very form suggests inflation by pride. The reference here in Revelation 16:13, 14 indicates the superhuman character of the False Prophet as well as of the Beast and the Dragon.
9. Revelation 17 calls for a lengthy exposition, so we must defer to a later chapter the consideration of its details. The central figures in it are "the great whore" and the Beast. While freely granting that, historically, the great whore has received its fulfillment in the Roman Catholic system, and while allowing that it will yet represent the whole of apostate Christendom, nevertheless, we believe that the ultimate reference is to apostate Israel. Here in Revelation 17 the "woman" is first seen sitting upon the scarlet colored Beast—the Antichrist in his imperial glory (v.3); but later we see him suffering his ten kings to destroy her (v. 16). This accords perfectly with the dual relation of Antichrist to Israel: first posing as their Benefactor (here seen in v. 3 supporting her), later standing forth as her great Enemy. The eighth verse (see our comments on it in Chapter 3, Section III, 6) is one of the scriptures which show that Antichrist is a re-incarnation of Judas.
10. Revelation 19:19, 20 describes the end of Antichrist's career. We need not enlarge now upon these verses for we have already commented on them in Chapter 7. The final reference to the Antichrist is in Revelation 20:10 where we read of the Devil being cast into the Lake of Fire where the Beast and the False Prophet are, to be, with them, tormented for ever and ever.
—Antichrist, The
Types of the Antichrist "In the volume of the book it is written of Me" (Hebrews 10:7), said the Lord Jesus. Christ is the key to the Scriptures—"Search the Scriptures...they are they which testify of Me," are His words; and the Scriptures to which He had reference were not the four Gospels, for they were not then written, but the writings of Moses and the prophets. The Old Testament Scriptures, then, are something more than a compilation of historical narratives, something more than the record of a system of social and religious legislation, or a code of ethics. The Old Testament Scriptures are, fundamentally, a stage on which is shown forth, in vivid symbolry, stupendous events then future. The events recorded in the Old Testament were actual occurrences, yet were they also typical prefigurations. Throughout the Old Testament dispensations God caused to be shadowed forth things which must yet come to pass. This is in full accord with a basic law in the economy of God. Nothing is brought to maturity at once. As it is in the natural world, so it is in the spiritual: there is first the blade, then the ear, and then the full corn in the ear. So there is first the shadow, and then the substance; the type, and then the antitype.
"Whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning" (Romans 15:4). Israel's tabernacle was "a figure for the time then present" (Hebrews 9:8, 9), as well as the example and "shadow of heavenly things" (Hebrews 8:5). Concerning the history of Abraham, his wives and his children, the apostle was inspired to write "which things are an allegory" (Galatians 4:24). These and other passages which might be quoted witness plainly to the typical meaning of portions of the Old Testament. But there are some brethren who will own the typical significance of these things, who refuse to acknowledge that anything else in the Old Testament has a typical meaning save those which are expressly interpreted or mentioned in the New. But surely this is a mistake. Ought we not to regard those Old Testament types which are expounded in the New Testament as samples of others which are not explained? Are there no more prophecies in the Old Testament than those which in the New Testament are expressly said to be "fulfilled?" Assuredly there are. Then why not admit the same in connection with the types? Nothing is said in the New Testament that the history of Joseph has a profound and wonderful typical significance, yet who with anointed eyes can fail to see in the experiences of Jacob's favorite son a remarkable foreshadowing of the person and work of Christ!
There will probably be few who read this chapter that will dispute what we have said above. No doubt the majority of our readers have already been instructed in much of the typology of the Old Testament. Many of God's servants have written at length upon the Passover, the brazen serpent, the Tabernacle, etc., as well as upon the many ways in which such men as Abel, Noah, Isaac, Moses, David, etc. prefigured the Saviour. But strange to say, very little seems to have been written upon those who adumbrated the Antichrist. So far as we are aware practically nothing has been given out concerning the many Bible characters of ill fame, who foreshadowed that coming one, that occupies such a prominent place in the prophetic scriptures. A wide field is here opened for study, and we take pleasure in now submitting to the careful perusal of the reader the results of our own imperfect researches, hoping that it may lead others to make a more complete examination of the subject for themselves.
It was well said by one of the Continental Puritans that "When we read the Scriptures, we are to judge beforehand, that then only do we understand them, when we discover in them a wisdom unsearchable and worthy of God" (Witsius).Such is the inexhaustible fulness of the written Word of God that not only are its words significant of things, but even the things, which are first signified by the words, also represent other things, which they were appointed to prefigure long before they happened. Besides the plain and literal sense of Scripture, there is also a mystical sense, hidden beneath the surface and which can only be discovered as we, in dependence on the Holy Spirit, diligently compare scripture with scripture. In pursuing the latter we need not only to proceed with due caution, but in "fear and trembling," lest we devise mysteries of of our own imagination, and thus pervert to one use what belongs to another. The principle which will safeguard us is to thoroughly acquaint ourselves with the antitypes. Let nothing be regarded as a type unless we are sure there is an exact correspondence with the antitype. This will preserve us from erroneously supposing that any person who is clearly a type of either Christ or the Antichrist is so in every detail of his life. Thus Moses was plainly a type of Christ as our Mediator, and in many other respects too, but in his failures and in other details of his personal history he was not a type of Christ. So, too, with those who foreshadowed the Antichrist: not everything recorded of them prefigured the character or deeds of the Man of Sin. Should it still be inquired, How are we to ascertain in which respects the actions of Old Testament characters were, and were not, typical? the answer, as given above, is, By comparing the antitype. This will save us from the wild allegorizing of Origen and others of the "Fathers." We shall now look at ten Bible characters, each of which strikingly typified the Antichrist.
1. Cain. It is indeed solemn to discover that the very first man born into this world prefigured the Man of Sin. He did so in a least seven respects. First, we may observe that in 1 John 3:12 we are told "Cain was of that Wicked One," i.e. the Devil. Of none other is this particular expression used. The Antichrist will also, in a special sense, be "of that Wicked one," for the Devil is said to be his father (John 8:44). Second, Cain was a religious hypocrite. This is seen in the fact that at first he posed as a worshipper of God, but the emptiness of his pretensions were quickly evidenced; for, when the Lord refused his offering, Cain was "very wroth" (Genesis 4:5). As such he clearly prefigured that one who will first claim to be the Christ, only to stand forth later as His denier (1 John 2:22). Third, by his primogeniture Cain occupied the position of ruler. Said the Lord to him, "Unto to thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him," that is, over Abel (Genesis 4:7). Such, too, will be the position filled by the Antichrist—he shall be a Ruler over men. Fourth, in murdering his brother Abel, Cain foreshadowed the wicked martyrdom of the Tribulation saints by the Son of Perdition. Fifth, Cain was a liar. After the murder of Abel, when the Lord asked Cain, "Where is Abel thy brother?," he answered, "I know not" (Genesis 4:9). In like manner deceit and falsehood will characterize him who is appropriately named "the Lie" (2 Thessalonians 2:11). Sixth, God's judgment descended upon Cain. So far as we know from the Scripture record, no human eye witnessed the dastardly murder of Abel, and doubtless Cain deemed himself secure from any penal consequences. But if so, he reckoned without God. The Lord announced to him, "Thy brother's blood crieth unto Me from the ground," and then He declared, "And now art thou cursed from the earth" (Genesis 4:10). So, too, in his reckless conceit, the Antichrist will imagine that he can defy God and slay His people with impugnity. But his blasphemous delusions will be quickly dispelled. Seventh, Cain was made to exclaim, "My punishment is greater than I can bear" (Genesis 4:13). Such indeed will be the awful portion meted out to the Antichrist—he shall be "cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone" (Revelation 19:20).
2. Lamech. And Lamech said unto his wives: Adah and Zillah, hear my voice; "Ye wives of Lamech, hearken unto my speech: For I have slain a man for wounding me, and a young man for bruising me. If Cain shall be avenged sevenfold, Truly Lamech seventy and seven fold" (Genesis 4:23, 24, R. V.). The record of this man's life is exceedingly brief, but from the little that is recorded about him we may discover at least seven parallelisms between him and the Antichrist. First, the meaning of his name. Lamech signifies "powerful." This was an appropriate name for one who foreshadowed the Man of Sin who, as the Head of the United States of the World, will be powerful governmentally. He will also be mighty in his person, for we are told that the Dragon shall give power unto him (Revelation 13:4). Second, in the fact that Lamech was a descendant of Cain (Genesis 4:17-19), not Seth, we see that he sprang from the evil line. Third, he was the seventh from fallen Adam, as though to intimate that the cycle of depravity was completed in him. So the Antichrist will be not only the culmination of satanic craft and power, but as well, the climax of human wickedness—the Man of Sin. Fourth, the first thing predicted of Lamech is his "lawlessness." "Lamech took unto him two wives" (Genesis 4:19). As such he violated the marriage law and disobeyed the command of God (Genesis 2:24). Clearly, then, he foreshadowed the "Lawless One" (2 Thessalonians 2:8, R.V.). Fifth, like Cain before him, Lamech was a murderer. His confession is, "I have slain a man for wounding me, and a young man for bruising me" (Genesis 4:23). In this, too, he foreshadowed the Man of blood and of violence. Sixth, he was filled with pride. This comes out in two details. First, he says to his wives, "Hear my voice; Ye wives of Lamech, hearken unto my speech" (Genesis 4:23). Second, in his arrogant self-importance—"If Cain shall be avenged sevenfold, truly LAMECH seventy and seven fold" (Genesis 4:24). This appears to mean that Lamech had slain a man for wounding him, and mad with passion, he jeered ironically at God's dealings with Cain. Seventh, in the fact that the very next thing recorded after the brief notice of Lamech is the birth of Seth (the one from whom, according to the flesh, Christ descended) who set aside the line of Cain—for on his birth Eve exclaimed, "God hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel whom Cain slew" (Genesis 4:25)—thus we have a beautiful foreshadowing of the millennial reign of the Lord Jesus following the overthrow of the Antichrist.
3. Nimrod. This personal type of the Antichrist is deeply interesting and remarkable full in its details. His exploits are recorded in Genesis 10 and 11, and it is most significant that his person and history are there introduced at the point immediately preceding God's call of Abraham from among the Gentiles and His bringing him into the promised land. Thus will history repeat itself. Just before God again gathers Abraham's descendants from out of the lands of the Gentiles (many, perhaps the majority of whom, will be found dwelling in Chalden, in Assyria, the "north country" see Isaiah 11:11; Jeremiah 3:18, etc.) there will arise one who will fill out the picture here typically outlined by Nimrod.
Let us examine the details of this type. First, the meaning of his name is most suggestive. Nimrod signifies "The Rebel." A fit designation was this for a man that foreshadowed the Lawless One, who shall oppose and exalt himself above all that is called God (2 Thessalonians 2:4), and who shall "stand up against the Prince of princes" (Daniel 8:25). Second, we are told that he was a son of Cush—"And Cush begat Nimrod" (Genesis 10:8), and Cush was a son of Ham, who was curst by Noah. Nimrod, then, was not a descendant of Shem, from whom Christ sprang, nor of Japheth; but he came from Ham. It is remarkable that these men who typified the Antichrist came from the evil line. Third, we are told that Nimrod "began to be a mighty one in the earth" (Genesis 10:8). Four times over is this term "mighty" connected with this one who prefigured him "whose coming is after the working of Satan, with all power and signs and lying wonders" (2 Thessalonians 2:9). But observe that it is first said, "He began to be mighty," which seems to suggest the idea that he struggled for the pre-eminence and obtained it by mere force of will. How this corresponds with the fact that the Man of Sin first appears as "the little horn" and by force of conquest attains to the position of King of kings needs only to be pointed out. It is also significant that the Hebrew word for "mighty" in Genesis 10:9 is "gibbor" which is translated several times "Chief" and "Chieftain." Fourth, it is also added, "Nimrod the mighty hunter before the Lord" which means that he pushed his designs in brazen defiance of his Maker. The words "mighty hunter before the Lord" are found twice in Genesis 10:9. This repetition in so short a narrative is highly significant. If we compare the expression with a similar one in Genesis 6:11,—"The earth also (in the days of Noah) was corrupt before God"—the impression conveyed is that this "Rebel" pursued his impious designs in open defiance of the Almighty. The contents of Genesis 11 abundantly confirm this interpretation. In like manner, of the Antichrist it is written, "And the King shall do according to his will, and he shall exalt himself and magnify himself above every god (ruler), and shall speak marvelous things against the God of gods" (Daniel 11:36). Fifth, Nimrod was a "Man of Blood." In 1 Chronicles 1:10—"And Cush begat Nimrod; he began to be mighty upon the earth." The Chaldea paraphrase of this verse says, "Cush begat Nimrod who began to prevail in wickedness for he slew innocent blood and rebelled against Jehovah." This, coupled with the expression "a mighty Hunter before the Lord," suggests that he relentlessly sought out and slew God's people. As such, he accurately portrayed the bloody and deceitful Man (Psalm 5:6), the violent Man (Psalm 140:1). Sixth, Nimrod was a King—"the beginning of his kingdom was Babel" (Genesis 10:10. Thus he was King of Babylon, which is also one of the many titles of the Antichrist (Isaiah 14:4). In the verses which follow in Genesis 10 we read, "He went out into Assyria and builded Ninevah, and the city Rehoboth, and Calah," etc. (Genesis 10:11). From these statements it is evident that Nimrod's ambition was to establish a world empire. Seventh, mark his inordinate desire for fame. His consuming desire was to make for himself a name. Here again the antitype marvellously corresponds with the type, for the Man of Sin is expressly denominated "King over all the children of pride" (Job 41:34).
What is recorded in Genesis 10 about Nimrod supplies the key to the first half of Genesis 11 which tells of the building of the Tower of Babel. Genesis 10:10 informs us that the beginning of Nimrod's kingdom was Babel. In the language of that day Babel meant "the gate of God," but afterwards, because of the judgment which the Lord there inflicted, it came to mean "Confusion." That at the time Nimrod founded Babel this word signified "the gate (the figure of official position) of God," intimates that he not only organized an imperial government over which he presided as king, but that he also instituted a new and idolatrous system of worship. If the type be perfect, and we are fully assured it is so, then, as the Lawless One will yet do, Nimrod demanded and received Divine honors. In all probability, it was at this point that idolatry was introduced.
Nimrod is not directly mentioned in Genesis 11, but from the statements made about him in chap. 10 there cannot be any doubt that he was the "Chief" and "King" who organized and headed the movement and rebellion there described: "And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth" (11:4). Here we behold a most blatant defiance of God, a deliberate refusal to obey His commands given through Noah—"Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth" (9:1). But they said, "Let us make us a name lest we be scattered upon the face of the whole earth." As we have seen, Nimrod's ambition was to establish a world-empire. To accomplish this two things, at least, were necessary. First, a center, a great headquarters; and second, a motive for the inspiration and encouragement of his followers. The former was furnished in the city of Babylon: the latter was to be supplied in the "let us make us a name." It was inordinate desire for fame. The idea of the Tower (considered in the light of its setting) seems that of strength, a stronghold, rather than eminence.
To sum up. In Nimrod and his schemes we behold Satan's initial attempt to raise up an universal ruler of men. In his inordinate desire for fame, in the mighty power that he wielded, in his ruthless and brutal methods, in his blatant defiance of the Creator, in his founding of the kingdom of Babel, in his assuming to himself Divine honors, in the fact that the Holy Spirit has placed the record of these things just before the inspired account of God's bringing Abraham into Canaan—pointing forward to the re-gathering of Israel in Palestine, immediately after the overthrows of the Lawless One—and finally, in the Divine destruction of his kingdom—described in the words, "Let Us go down and there confound their language" (Genesis 11:7), which so marvellously pictures the descent of Christ from heaven to vanquish His impious rival—we cannot fail to see that we have a wonderfully complete typical picture of the person, the work, and the destruction of the Antichrist.
4. Chedorlaomer. The history of this man is recorded in Genesis 14 which is a chapter of deep interest to the student of typology. The chapter opens with the words "And it came to pass in the days of." "This is an expression which occurs six times (in the Hebrew) and always marks a time of trouble ending in blessing—cf Ruth 1:11; Isaiah 7:1; Jeremiah 1:3; Ester 1:1; 2 Sam. 21:1" (Companion Bible). Such is plainly the case here. The first half of Genesis 14 depicts Tribulation conditions, and this is followed by a scene foreshadowing millennial glory. The time when Chedorlaomer lived is the first point in the type. His history is recorded just before the first mention of Melchizedek, the priest-king, who came forth and blessed Abraham—an unmistakable foreshadowment of Christ in millennial glory, blessing Israel. Second, the name of this man is highly significant. Gesenius, in his lexicon, says of the word "a handful of sheaves"...perhaps its true etymology should be sought in the ancient "Persian." The latter is doubtless correct, for "Elam," of which Chedorbaomer was king (Genesis 14:1), is the ancient name for Persia. Colossians Rawlinson searched for his name on the tablets of ancient Assyria, and there he found that his official title was, "Ravager of the west!" Thus was he a true type of the coming one who shall wade through a sea of blood to his coveted position as Emperor of the world. Third, it is indeed remarkable to find that just as Revelation 13:1 shows us that the empire of which the Antichrist will be the Head (see our notes on this verse in Chapter 13) includes within it the territory and perpetuates the characteristics of the earlier empires (Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome), so dominions: "And it came to pass in the days of Amraphel king of Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of nations." Now "Shinar" is one of the names of Babylon (see Daniel 1:2); "Elam" is the ancient name of Persia' "Ellasar" is translated "Hellas" in the Sept., which is the ancient name of Greece; while "Tidal king of the nations" evidently stands for Rome, the last of the world empires. Fourth, but what is even more striking, is the fact that in Genesis 14:5 Chedorlamoer is seen at the head of the kings mentioned in v. 1. They act as his vassals, and thus bow to the superiority of this one who was evidently a King of kings. Fifth, Chedorlaomer was a warrior of renown. He was the Attila, the Napoleon of his day. He defeated in battle the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah and brought them into subjection and servitude (see 14:2-4). Later, they rebelled, and gathering his forces together he went forth, vanquished, and slew them (14:9, 10). Thus did he foreshadow the Destroyer of the Gentiles (Jeremiah 4:7). Sixth, in Genesis 14:12 we read, "And they took Lot, Abraham's brother's son, who dwelt in Sodom, and his goods, and departed." This prefigured the persecution of Israel by Antichrist and his subordinates in a coming day. Finally, we learn how that Abraham and his servants pursued Chedorlaomer and his forces, and that "Chedorlaomer and the kings that were with him" were slain "in the kings dale" (14:17), which strikingly adumbrated the future overthrow of Antichrist and the kings who shall be with him, in the dale of Megiddo (see Revelation 19:19).
5. Pharaoh. We have in mind the Pharaoh of the book of Exodus. His history and character are described at much greater length than the other personal types of the Antichrist which have been before us, and therefore more parallelisms are to be found here. We shall aim to be suggestive rather than exhaustive. First, Pharaoh was king of Egypt which, in Scripture, is the lasting symbol of the world. In like manner, the one whom he so strikingly prefigured will be Head of the world-kingdom. Second, the Pharaoh of Exodus came from Assyria (Isaiah 52:4); so also will the Antichrist first rise in that land. Third, Exodus 1 presents him to our view as the merciless persecutor of the Hebrews, embittering their lives by hard bondage. Fourth, he is next seen as the one who sought to cut off Israel from being a nation, giving orders that all the male children should be slain in infancy. Fifth, he was the blatant defier of God. When Moses and Aaron appeared before him and said, "Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Let My people go, that they may hold a feast unto Me in the wilderness," his arrogant reply was, "Who is the Lord, that I should obey His voice to let Israel go?" (Exodus 5:1, 2). Sixth, God's two witnesses performed miracles before Pharaoh (Exodus 7:10); so, too, will God's two witnesses in the Tribulation period work miracles before the Beast (Revelation 11:6, 7). Seventh, Pharaoh had magical resources at his disposal (Exodus 7:11), as the Antichrist will have at his (2 Thessalonians 2:9). Eighth, Pharaoh made fair promises to the Hebrews, only to break them (Exodus 8:8, 15). In this, too, he foreshadowed the Antichrist in his perfidy and treachery toward Israel. Ninth, he met with a drastic end at the hands of God (Psalm 136:15). Tenth, he was overthrown at the time that Israel started out for the promised land: so Antichrist will be cast into the Lake of Fire just before Israel enters into everlasting possession of their promised inheritance. In all of these ten respects (and in others which the student may search out for himself) Pharaoh was a striking and accurate type of the Antichrist.
6. Abimelech. First, Abimelech signifies "father of the king." Gideon, deliverer of Israel, was his father. But his mother was a concubine, and this name was given to him, no doubt, for the purpose of hiding the shame of his birth. Looking from the type to the antitype—"Father of the King"—all attention to the satanic origin of the Antichrist. Second, Abimelech slew seventy of his own brethren (Judges 9:5), and was therefore a bloody persecutor of Israel. Third, Judges 9:6, 22 tell us that he was "king over Israel." Fourth, it is significant to note that he occupied the throne at the time of Israel's apostasy (see Judges 8:33, 34). Fifth, it is also most suggestive that we are told he commenced his career at the stone (Judges 9:6), or pillar, which Joshua erected in Ebal (facing Gerizim), the mount where all the curses of a broken law were announced--Deuteronomy 11:29; 27:4, 12, 13; Josh. 8:30. Sixth, he was a mighty warrior, a violent man (see Judges 9:40-50, and cf Psalm 140:1 for the Antichrist as such). Seventh, he was slain by the sword (Judges 9:54 and see Zechariah 11:7; Revelation 13:3 for the antitype).
7. Saul. In at least ten respects Saul foreshadowed the Antichrist. Almost the first thing told us about Saul is that he was "from his shoulders and upward higher than any of the people" (1 Sam. 9:2, which is repeated in 10:23). As such he fitly prefigured the coming Super-man, who in intelligence, governmental power, and satanic might, will so tower above all his contemporaries that men shall exclaim, "Who is like unto the Beast?" (Revelation 13:4). Second, Saul was king of Israel (1 Sam. 10:24), so also will the Antichrist be. Third, Saul was a priest-king, blatantly performing the office of the Levite (see 1 Sam. 13:9, and cf Ezekiel 21:25, 26 R. V.). Fourth, the time of his reign was immediately before that of David, as that of the Antichrist will immediately precede that of David's Son and Lord. Fifth, he was a mighty warrior (see 1 Sam. 11:11; 13:1-4; 15:4; 7:8). Sixth, he was a rebel against God (1 Sam. 15:11). Seventh, he hated David (1 Sam. 18:7, 8, 11; 26:2, etc.). Eighth, he slew the servants of God (1 Sam. 22:17, 18). Ninth, he had intercourse with the powers of evil (1 Sam. 29). Tenth, he died by the sword (1 Sam. 31:4).
8. Goliath. First, his name means "Soothsayer" which at once connects him with the powers of evil. Second, he was a giant, and thus, like Saul, prefigured the Super-man. Third, he was the enemy of Israel. Fourth, his consuming egotism was displayed in his blatant challenge, "I defy the armies of Israel" (1 Sam. 17:10). Fifth, the mysterious number 666 (the number of the Antichrist) is connected with Goliath. Note the three sixes. (a) He was six cubits high (1 Sam. 17:4). (b) Six pieces of armour are enumerated—helmet, coat of mail, greaves, target, staff, and shield (1 Sam. 17:5-7). (c) His spear's head weighed six hundred shekels of iron (1 Sam. 17:7). Sixth, he was slain by the sword (see 1 Sam. 17:51). Seventh, he was slain by David—type of Christ. In each of these respects he foreshadowed the Antichrist.
9. Absalom. First, the meaning of his name is very significant. "Absalom" means "father of peace." A careful reading of his history reveals the fact that, again and again, he posed as a man of peace, while war was in his heart. So the Antichrist will pose as the promised Prince of peace, and for a time it will appear that he has actually ushered in the Millennium. But ere long his violent and bloody character will be revealed. Second, Absalom was the son of David, and therefore a Jew. Third, but Absalom was a son of David by Maacah, the daughter of the Gentile king of Jeshur (2 Sam. 3:3). So, too, will the Antichrist be a veritable king among men. Fifth, Absalom was a man of blood (2 Sam. 13, etc.). Sixth, Absalom sought to obtain the kingdom by flatteries (2 Sam. 15:2-6); cf Daniel 11:21, 23. Seventh, he cloaked his rebellion by a pretense of religion (read 2 Sam. 15:7, 8). Eighth, he was the immediate cause of the faithful followers of David being driven from Jerusalem into the wilderness (2 Sam. 15:14-16). Ninth, he reared up a pillar unto himself (2 Sam. 18:18), which clearly foreshadowed the image which the Antichrist will cause to be set up unto himself. Tenth, he met with a violent end (2 Sam. 18:14).
There are quite a number of others who foreshadowed the Antichrist in one or more of the outstanding features of his character and career. For instance, there is Balak who, accompanied by Baalam the prophet sought to curse and destroy Israel—a striking foreshadowing of the Beast with his ally the False Prophet. There is Adoni-zedek, mentioned in Joshua 10, and who headed a federation of ten kings; it is remarkable that his name signifies "lord of righteousness" which is what the Antichrist will claim to be as he comes forth on the white horse (Revelation 6). Then there is Adoni-kam, with whom is associated the mystical number 666—see Ezra 2:13; and how profoundly significant that his name signifies "the Lord hath risen." We believe that this mystic number in connection with the Antichrist will apply to him only after his resurrection—and six the number of man! Sennacherib (2 Kings 18) prefigured the Antichrist in a number of ways: as the king of Assyria, the blatant defier of God, smitten by the sword, etc. Haman, four times denominated "the Jews' enemy" (Esther 3:10, etc.), and termed "the adversary" (Esther 7:6), was another typical character. Nebuchadnezzar, king of kings, who demanded universal worship, who set up an image to himself, and decreed that all should worship it under pain of death, etc., manifestly pointed forward to the Man of Sin, and so we might continue. Almost every prominent feature of the Antichrist's person and career was foreshadowed by some Old Testament character. The subject is intensely interesting, and we trust that many of our readers will be encouraged to pursue it further for themselves. In closing this chapter we shall look at one New Testament type of the Antichrist.
10. Herod. At the beginning of the New Testament there meets us a typical foreshadowing of the Antichrist. We refer to what is recorded in Matthew 2. The description there furnished of Herod obviously contains a prophetic adumbration of his great prototype. Notice, first, that three times over he is denominated "the king" (vv. 1, 3, 9), as such he prefigured the last great king, before the appearing of the King of kings. Second, observe his hypocrisy. When the "wise men," who had followed the star which heralded the Saviour's birth, were summoned into Herod's presence, we are told that he said unto them, "Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found Him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship Him also" (v. 8). That nothing could have been further from his mind is plain from his subsequent acts. But, nevertheless, he first posed as a devout worshipper. Such is the role that the Antichrist will first fill in Palestine. Third, next he threw off his religious mask and displayed his wicked heart: "Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem," etc. (v. 16). Similarly will the Antichrist act in Jerusalem. Three and one half years before his end comes he will discard his religious pretensions and stand forth in his true character. Fourth, in this edict of slaying the young children in Bethlehem and the coasts thereof, he was aiming, of course, at Christ Himself. Thus did he accurately foreshadow that one who will yet fulfill the terms of Genesis 3:15, where we read of a double "enmity"—between Satan and the woman (Israel), and between her Seed (Christ) and the Serpent's "seed" (the Antichrist). In the fifth place, we may also discover in Herod's destruction of the children, a forecast of the fiendish assaults which the Antichrist will make upon the Jews, when he seeks to cut them off from being a nation. In the sixth place, we may note how the consequence of Herod's cruelty will reappear in the future—"In Ramah was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not" (Matthew 2:18). This is a quotation from Jeremiah 31:15. But like most, if not all, prophecies, this will receive another and final fulfillment at the close of the Tribulation period. Our authority for this is found in the words which immediately follow in Jeremiah 31: "Thus saith the Lord, Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears: for thy work shall be rewarded, saith the Lord; and they shall come again from the land of the Enemy. And there is hope in thine end, saith the Lord, that thy children shall come again to their own border." Thus it is clear that "bitter weeping and lamentation" will again be heard in Ramah just before Christ returns and restores Israel. Seventh, the accuracy of the typical picture supplied by Matthew 2 may be discovered in the failure of Herod to destroy the Christ-child. Just as God foiled Herod, so will He yet bring to nought the wicked designs of the Antichrist; and just as we read of Christ coming and dwelling at Nazareth after the death of Herod, so Christ shall again dwell in that land after the death of the false King. Surely, this remarkable typical picture of the Antichrist should cause us to search more diligently for other esoteric allusions to him in the New Testament.
—Antichrist, The
In bringing to a close this book on the Antichrist, we are conscious that "there remaineth yet very much land to be possessed" (John 13:1). We have sought to present as comprehensive an outline of the subject as our present light and somewhat limited space would permit. But little more than an outline has been given. Abundant scope is still left for the interested reader and student to work out and fill in the details for himself. This, we trust, is what many will do. The subject, though solemn, is one full of interest.
No doubt the subject is new, and hence, mysterious to some of our readers. These we would ask to turn back to the first chapter, and re-read the whole book. That God will yet permit the Devil to bring forth his satanic Masterpiece, who shall defy God and persecute His people, should scarcely be surprising. In each succeeding age there has been a Cain for every Abel; a Jannes and Jambres for every Moses and every John the Baptist. It has been so during this dispension: the sowing of the Wheat, was followed by the sowing of the Tares. It will be so in the Tribulation period: not only will there be a faithful remnant of Israel, but there shall be an unfaithful company of that people, too. And just before the Christ of God returns to this earth to set up His kingdom, God will suffer His arch-enemy to bring forth the false christ, who will establish his kingdom.
And God's hour for this is not far distant. It was when "the iniquity of the Amorites" was come to the "full" (Genesis 15:16) that God gave orders for their extermination (Deuteronomy 7:1, 2). And Israel's transgressions (Daniel 8:23) and the transgressions of Christendom (2 Thessalonians 2:11, 12), will only have come to "the full" when those who rejected the Christ of God, shall have received the christ of Satan. Then, shall God say to His avenging angel, "Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time has come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe" (Revelation 14:15). It is this which makes the subject so solemn.
What God has been pleased to make known concerning the Antichrist is not revealed in order to gratify carnal curiosity, but is of great moment for our daily lives. In the first place, a proper apprehension of these things should cause us to seriously search our hearts, and to examine carefully the foundation upon which our hopes are built, to discover whether or not they rest on the solid Rock Christ Jesus, or whether they stand upon nothing more stable than the shifting sands of human feelings, human resolutions, human efforts after self-improvement. Incalculably serious is the issue at stake, and we cannot afford to be uncertain about it. A mere "hope I am saved" is not sufficient. Nothing short of the full assurance of faith ought to suffice.
Unspeakable solemn is what we read of in 2 Thessalonians 2:8-12: "And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of His coming: even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan, with all power and signs and lying wonders, and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe the Lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness."
There are three points in the above verses by which the writer and the reader may test himself. First, have I "believed the Truth?" "Thy Word is the Truth." Have I set to my seal that God is true? Have I applied the Word of God to myself, and taken it to my own heart? Have I personally received the Saviour that it reveals?
Second, do I have "pleasure in unrighteousness?" There is a vast difference between doing an act of unrighteousness, and having "pleasure" therein. Scripture speaks of Moses "choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasure of sin for a season" (Hebrews 11:25). And again, it speaks of some who "knowing the judgment of God that they who commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them" (Romans 1:32). So it is here in the passage before us. They who "believe not the Truth," have "pleasure in unrighteousness." And here is one of the vital differences between an unbeliever and a genuine believer. The latter may be overtaken by a fault, his communion with Christ may be broken, he may sin grievously, but if he does, he will have no "pleasure" therein! Instead, he will hate the very unrighteousness into which he has fallen, and mourn bitterly for having done that which was so dishonoring to his Saviour.
Third, have I "received the love of the Truth?" Do I read God's Word daily, not simply as a duty, but as a delight; not merely to satisfy conscience, but because it rejoices my heart; not simply to gratify an idle curiosity, that I may acquire some knowledge of its contents, but because I desire above everything else to become better acquainted with its Author. Can I say with the Psalmist, "I will delight myself in Thy statutes...Thy commandments are my delights" (Psalm 119:16,143). The wicked love the darkness; but God's people love the light!
Here, then, are three tests by which we earnestly entreat every reader to honestly examine himself, and see whether he be in the faith. Awful beyond words is the only alternative, for Scripture declares of those who have "believed not the Truth," who have "pleasure in unrighteousness," and who have "received not the love of the Truth," that "for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe the Lie: that they all might be damned."
Again; if we diligently search the Scriptures to discover what they teach concerning the Antichrist—his personality, his career, his ways, etc.—the more we are informed about him the better shall we be prepared to detect the many antichrists who are in the world today, now preparing the way for the appearing and career of the Man of Sin. There is no reason why we should be ignorant of Satan's devices. There is no valid excuse if we are deceived by his "false apostles," who transform themselves into the apostles of Christ (2 Corinthians 11:13). Christians ought not to be misled by the many false prophets who are gone out into the world (1 John 4:1). Nor will they be, if they study diligently those things which God has recorded for our enlightenment and to safeguard us against the subtle deceptions of the great Enemy.
Again; as we give diligent heed to the prophetic Word, as we take its solemn warnings to heart, the effect must be that we shall separate ourselves from everything which is anti-Christian. "Be not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you" (2 Corinthians 6:14-17).
This call is not directed toward Christians separating themselves from their fellow-Christians. How could it be? Scripture does not contradict itself. God's Word explicitly says, "Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching" (Hebrews 10:25). But the same Word which tells us not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together, commands us to have "no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness" (Ephesians 5:11). God forbid that His people should be found helping forward the plans of the Prince of Darkness.
Finally, as we read prayerfully the teaching of Scripture concerning this Coming One, who shall embark upon the most awful course that has ever been run on their earth; as we learn of how he will ascend the Throne of the World, and be the director and dictator of human affairs; as we discover how he will employ the mighty power, with which Satan invests him, to openly defy God and everything which bears His name; and, as we are made aware of the unspeakably dreadful judgments which God will pour upon the world at that time, and the fearful doom which shall overtake the Antichrist and all his followers; our heart will be stirred within us, and we shall not hesitate to lift up our voices in warning. The world is in complete ignorance of what awaits it. The nations know not what is in store for them. Even Israel discern not the dark night which lies before them. But as God instructs us concerning what He is about to do, it is positively criminal to remain silent. The voices of all whom God has been pleased to enlighten ought to be raised in solemn and united testimony to the things which God has declared "must shortly come to pass."
—Antichrist, The