Who, or what, is the Antichrist?
Evil alliance, or sinister individual? Some say his appearance is still in the future. Others say he appeared long ago in the days of ancient Rome. But the Bible indicates that he is alive today! Do you know who he is? Are you sure? You need to be, for you can't understand last-day events until you understand this power.
Q. As Daniel chapter 7 begins, Daniel sees four beasts coming up out of the sea. What do these beasts and the sea represent?
- "The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon the earth" (Daniel 7:23). "The waters ... are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues" (Revelation 17:15).
Please note that God interprets the symbols in Daniel's vision. Daniel saw a vision of four beasts coming up out of the sea. Daniel doesn't have to guess what they mean. They aren't mysterious symbols that cannot be understood by man. God Himself tells Daniel that the
“beasts” represent earthly kingdoms, and the
“waters” are “peoples, multitudes, and nations, and tongues.”
Q. In Daniel 7:7, the fourth world kingdom is represented by a horrible monster with iron teeth and 10 horns. What do the horns represent?
The 10 horns represent the 10 kings or kingdoms into which pagan Rome (the fourth kingdom) was eventually split (
Daniel 7:24). (These 10 kingdoms are the same as the 10 toes of the image described in
Daniel 2:41-44.) Roving barbarian tribes swept in upon the Roman empire and carved out land niches for their people.
- "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).
Seven of the 10 tribes developed into the countries of modern Western Europe, while three were uprooted and destroyed (
“plucked up”) by a
“little horn” that had
“eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things.”
We must identify this
"little horn" power carefully, because God takes more space describing it than the other four kingdoms combined. Why? Because the biblical characteristics identify it as the Antichrist of prophecy and history. There must be no mistake in making this identification.
God gives us nine characteristics of Antichrist in Daniel 7 so we can be certain of his identity. They are not some human opinion or speculation. Historians could actually tell you quickly what power is being described.
The Roman Empire, the fourth kingdom, is represented by a powerful monster with iron teeth and 10 horns (Daniel 7:7). What do the horns represent?
The 10 horns represent the 10 kings or kingdoms into which pagan Rome was eventually split (
Daniel 7:24). (These 10 kingdoms are the same as the 10 toes of the image described in
Daniel 2:41–44.) Roving barbarian tribes swept in upon the Roman Empire and carved out land niches for their people. Seven of those 10 tribes developed into the countries of modern Western Europe, while three were
“uprooted” and destroyed.
Visigoths - Spain
Anglo-Saxons - England
Franks - France
Alemani - Germany
Burgundians - Switzerland
Lombards - Italy
Suevi - Portugal
Heruli - Rooted up
Ostrogoths - Rooted up
Vandals - Rooted up
The nine points that clearly identify the antichrist in Daniel.
A. The little horn would come “up among them”—that is, from among the 10 horns that were the kingdoms of Western Europe (
Daniel 7:8). So it would be a little kingdom somewhere in Western Europe.
B. It would have a man at its head who could speak for it (Daniel 7:8).
C. It would pluck out or uproot three kingdoms (Daniel 7:8).
D. It would be different from the other 10 kingdoms (Daniel 7:24).
E. It would make war with and persecute the saints (Daniel 7:21, 25).
F. It would emerge from the pagan Roman Empire—the fourth kingdom (Daniel 7:7, 8).
G. God’s people (the saints) would “be given into his hand” for “a time and times and half a time” (Daniel 7:25).
H. It would “speak great words against” or blaspheme God (Daniel 7:25). In Revelation 13:5, the Bible says the same power speaks
“great things and blasphemies.”
I. It would
“intend to change times and law” (Daniel 7:25).
Don’t forget—all these identification points come directly from the Bible. They are not some human opinion or speculation. Historians could tell you quickly what power is being described, because these points fit only one power—the papacy. But in order to be certain, let us carefully examine all nine points one by one. There must be no room left for doubt.
Does the papacy fit these points?
Yes—it fits every point. Let’s take a closer look:
A. It came up among the 10 kingdoms of Western Europe.
The geographical location of the papal power is in Rome, Italy—in the heart of Western Europe.
B. It would have a man at its head who speaks for it.
The papacy meets this identifying mark because it does have one man at the head—the pope—who speaks for it.
C. Three kingdoms were plucked up to make way for the rise of the papacy.
The emperors of Western Europe were largely Catholic and supported the papacy. Three Arian kingdoms, however, did not—the Vandals, Heruli, and Ostrogoths. So the Catholic emperors decided they must be subdued or destroyed. Here is how theologian and historian Dr. Mervyn Maxwell describes the results in volume 1, page 129, of his book God Cares:
“The Catholic emperor Zeno (474–491) arranged a treaty with the Ostrogoths in 487, which resulted in the eradication of the kingdom of the Arian Heruls in 493. And the Catholic emperor Justinian (527–565) exterminated the Arian Vandals in 534 and significantly broke the power of the Arian Ostrogoths in 538. Thus were Daniel’s three horns—the Heruls, the Vandals, and the Ostrogoths—‘plucked up by the roots.’ ” It is not difficult to recognize that the papacy fits this point.
D. It would be different from the other kingdoms.
The papacy clearly fits this description, as it came on the scene as a religious power and was different from the secular nature of the other 10 kingdoms.
E. It would make war with and persecute the saints.
That the church did persecute is a well-known fact, and the papacy admits doing so. Historians believe the church destroyed at least 50 million lives over matters of religious conviction. We quote here from two sources:
1. “That the Church of Rome has shed more innocent blood than any other institution that has ever existed among mankind, will be questioned by no Protestant who has a competent knowledge of history.” 1
2. In The History of the Inquisition of Spain, D. Ivan Antonio Llorente provides these figures from the Spanish Inquisition alone:
“31,912 persons were condemned and perished in the flames,” and 241,450 were “condemned to severe “penances.”
Words of Care and Concern
Lest anyone should think that we are attacking fellow Christians by identifying the little horn power, please keep in mind that the prophecy is aimed at a system and not individuals. There are sincere, devout Christians in all churches, including the Catholic faith. Daniel 7 is simply a message of judgment and correction upon a large religious institution that compromised with paganism, as many other churches have also done.
Prophecy Reveals Faults of All Faiths
Other prophecies point out the faults of the Protestant and Jewish faiths. God has true people in all religions. His true people (no matter what their faith) will always humbly accept the correction of the Lord and will not shut their ears and hearts against Him. We should be thankful that God’s Word speaks with impartial honesty on every subject.
Prophetic Time:
Time = 1 year
Times = 2 years
½ time = ½ year
F. It would emerge from the fourth kingdom of iron—the pagan Roman Empire.
We quote two authorities on this point:
1. “The mighty Catholic Church was little more than the Roman Empire baptized. ... The very capital of the old Roman Empire became the capital of the Christian empire. The office of Pontifex Maximus was continued in that of the pope.” 2
2. “Whatever Roman elements the barbarians and Arians left ... [came] under the protection of the Bishop of Rome, who was the chief person there after the emperor’s disappearance. ... The Roman church ... pushed itself into the place of the Roman World-Empire, of which it is the actual continuation.” 3
G. God’s people (the saints) would “be given into his hand” for “a time and times and half a time.”
Several things need clarification here:
1. A time is a year, times is two years, and half a time is half of a year. The Amplified Bible translates it:
“Three and one-half years.” 4
2. This same time period is mentioned seven times in the books of Daniel and Revelation (Daniel 7:25; 12:7; Revelation 11:2, 3; 12:6, 14; 13:5): three times as a
“time, times, and half a time”; twice as 42 months; and twice as 1,260 days. Based on the 30-day calendar used by the Jews, these time periods are all the same amount of time: 3½ years = 42 months = 1,260 days.
3. One prophetic day equals one literal year (Ezekiel 4:6; Numbers 14:34).
4. Thus, the little horn (antichrist) was to have power over the saints for 1,260 prophetic days; that is, 1,260 literal years.
5. The rule of the papacy began in ad 538, when the last of the three opposing Arian kingdoms was uprooted. Its rule continued until 1798 when Napoleon’s general, Berthier, took the pope captive with hopes of destroying both Pope Pius VI and the political power of the papacy. This period of time is an exact fulfillment of the 1,260-year prophecy. The blow was a deadly wound for the papacy, but that wound began to heal and continues healing today.
6. This same period of persecution is mentioned in Matthew 24:21 as the worst period of persecution God’s people experience. Verse 22 tells us it was so devastating that not one soul would have survived if God had not shortened it. But God did shorten it. The persecution ended long before the pope was taken captive in 1798. It is plain to see that this point, likewise, fits the papacy.
H. It would speak "pompous words" of blasphemy "against [God]."
Blasphemy has two definitions in Scripture:
1. Claiming to forgive sins (Luke 5:21).
2. Claiming to be God (John 10:33).
Does this point fit the papacy? Yes. Let’s first look at the evidence for it claiming to forgive sins, taken directly from its own literature:
“Does the Priest truly forgive the sins, or does he only declare that they are remitted? The Priest does really and truly forgive the sins in virtue of the power given to him by Christ.”5 The papacy further undermines Jesus by setting up a system of confession to an earthly priest, thus bypassing Jesus, our High Priest (
Hebrews 3:1; 8:1, 2) and only Mediator (
1 Timothy 2:5). Next, consider the evidence for it claiming to be God:
“We [the popes] hold upon this earth the place of God Almighty.”6 Here is more evidence:
“The pope is not only the representative of Jesus Christ, but he is Jesus Christ, Himself, hidden under the veil of flesh.”7
I. It would "intend to change times and law." The Amplified Bible translates
“law” as
“the law.” The reference is to changing God’s law. Of course, no one can really change it, but has the papacy attempted to do so? The answer is yes. In its catechisms, the papacy has omitted the second commandment against veneration of images and has shortened the fourth commandment from 94 words to eight and divided the tenth commandment into two commandments. (Check this for yourself. Compare the Ten Commandments in any Catholic catechism with God's list of the commandments in
Exodus 20:2-17.)
There is no doubt that the little horn power (the antichrist) of Daniel 7 is the papacy. No other organization fits all nine points. And, incidentally, this is not a new teaching. Every Protestant Reformer, without exception, spoke of the papacy as antichrist.
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