Eschatology (End Time Prophecy)

Antichrist

In this article ...

Today we commonly hear from some Fundamentalist Christians about a yet-future world ruler called the Antichrist and referred to by the number 666 who will persecute Jews and Christians and start World War III. But is this really supported from the Bible? (read more here)

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From John . . .

The term "Antichrist" appears in only four verses in the Bible. None of these supports the idea that there will be a yet-future person called Antichrist . . .

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. (1 John 2:18)

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)

And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world. (1 John 4:3)

For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist. (2 John 1:7)

What we know from these verses . . .

1. At the time this was written it was already the last time. (1 John 2:18)
2. Christians had been taught that there would someday come (soon?) a person called Antichrist. (1 John 2:18) It is unknown whether the source of this teaching was apostolic or not.
3. At the time this was written there were many people on the scene that John calls Antichrist. (1 John 2:18)
4. Anyone who denies that Jesus was the Messiah of Israel is Antichrist. (1 John 2:22)
5. Anyone who denies the Father and the Son [Jesus] is Antichrist. (1 John 2:22)
6. Anyone who denies that Jesus came in the flesh is Antichrist. (1 John 4:3; 2 John 1:7)
7. The spirit of Antichrist was to come into the world and had already appeared at the time John wrote this. (1 John 4:3)
8. There are many Antichrists and will continue to be many Antichrists. (2 John 1:7)
9. Antichrists are deceivers. (2 John 1:7)

Many of these points seem to refer to teachers of heresy (points 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9).

The only point that even hints that there will someday be a unique yet-future person called Antichrist is point 2 and we are unsure whether this teaching was apostolic or just hearsay (read more here and here).

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From 2 Thessalonians 2. . .

This passage is in the context of the day of the Lord, a yet-future day (from the time Paul wrote this letter) in which Christ would come and gather together the believers unto himself (read more here and here).

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. (2 Thessalonians 2:1,2)

They were troubled because they thought this day was at hand. This is very peculiar. We would expect that the day when Christ comes and gathers us together unto himself would be a glorious day but they had the opposite reaction; they found this troubling. They knew this day would someday come but they hoped it would not occur in their lifetimes.

Also note that this day of Christ had not yet come but was about to — it was at hand; they would experience the dreaded events very soon.

Some possibilities of what this bad thing was and my analysis (I reject all of these possibilities) . . .

• The second coming of Christ — that they were taught incorrectly about this event and expected it to be unpleasant, perhaps because they expected to be sent to hell based on false teaching about whether or not their sins were actually forgiven. This possibility is unlikely for several reasons: (1) in this passage Paul does not attempt to correct their false view, and (2) Paul merely encourages them that this day will not occur in their lifetimes; but since the final judgment would be bad no matter when it occurred his letter would not comfort them at all.
• The destruction of Jerusalem and the temple by the Romans (ala Preterism) — that the day of the Lord corresponds to that event in 70 A.D. which was yet-future for them. This possibility is unlikely for the simple fact that it did occur soon; it happened in their lifetimes.
• A still-future great tribulation (ala millennialism) — that it would not occur in their lifetimes. The related views of the rapture also have this aspect of protecting Christians from experiencing this terrible event. At first glance the pre-tribulational and mid-tribulational views of the rapture appear to fit this passage perfectly, however they have a fatal flaw: they equate the day of the Lord with the rapture — but in those views the second coming of Christ doesn't occur for many years (this objection led to the post-tribulation rapture view which solves nothing because now the Christians would have to experience the great tribulation).
• Persecution — that they would soon experience persecution. This view is unlikely for three reasons: (1) they did experience persecution soon, (2) the book of Revelation encourages Christians to endure this persecution, and (3) it equates the day of the Lord with this time of persecution.

So how is it possible to have a glorious and much-awaited day of the Lord (the second coming of Christ) which is dreaded by Christians? The only possibility is that their view of the second coming of Christ was incorrect — that they had adopted Jewish eschatological views. It should not surprise us that the Jewish influence was so strong in Thessalonica since Paul was run out of town by them and because he praises others (the Bereans) for paying more attention to the correct, Christian interpretation of the Old Testament prophecies.

Some of these Jewish views were strictly materialistic; they taught that there was no bodily resurrection at all. But in verses 1 and 2 Paul reminds the Thessalonians of two points . . .

• They would be gathered together with Christ at his second coming, and
• That day was not to be equated with a Jewish political kingdom of the kind that the Jewish revolutionaries in Jerusalem were attempting — this day would not occur in their lifetimes (but the efforts of the Jewish revolutionaries would come to a head in their lifetimes, in 70 A.D.).

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This passage provides perhaps the strongest support for the notion of a yet-future person called Antichrist . . .

That day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition [destruction]. (2 Thessalonians 2:3)

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. (2 Thessalonians 2:4)

And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. (2 Thessalonians 2:6)

For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. (2 Thessalonians 2:7)

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. (2 Thessalonians 2:8)

Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders. (2 Thessalonians 2:9)

What we know from these verses . . .

1. A time of apostasy (falling away) will occur before the second coming of Christ. (2 Thessalonians 2:3)
2. There will be a man of sin some day but he will ultimately be destroyed. I will refer to this man as the Antichrist (2 Thessalonians 2:3)
3. It is not clear whether the apostasy occurs before the Antichrist appears. It is not clear whether the apostasy leads to the appearing of the Antichrist or whether the Antichrist causes the apostasy (2 Thessalonians 2:3)
4. The Antichrist opposes anything that is considered or worshipped as God. (2 Thessalonians 2:4)
5. The Antichrist exalts himself as God (much as Lucifer did). (2 Thessalonians 2:4)
6. The Antichrist wishes to be considered as God and worshipped by humans. His movement is religious (but may also be political to give him the power he needs to accomplish his goals). (2 Thessalonians 2:4)
7. The Antichrist sits in the temple of God to demonstrate that he is God. Millennialists teach that the Antichrist actually takes possession of a rebuilt Jewish temple. But note that Jesus referred to himself as the temple of God (Matthew 26:61) and that Paul referred to the church as the temple of God (1 Corinthians 3:16,17; 2 Corinthians 6:16). Based on this idea some have claimed that the Antichrist is the papacy. Perhaps the Antichrist appears as a church leader. (2 Thessalonians 2:4)
8. The Antichrist shows that he is God. Perhaps he claims to be the true Jewish Messiah. (2 Thessalonians 2:4)
9. Something prevents Antichrist from appearing but this will be taken out of the way. This is referred to as he in verse 7. Paul had already taught them about all this. (2 Thessalonians 2:6,7)
10. The Antichrist will appear at the time chosen by God. (2 Thessalonians 2:6,8)
11. The Antichrist is wicked. (2 Thessalonians 2:8)
12. The Antichrist will be destroyed by Christ at his second Coming just as all the wicked people of all ages are, but the second coming of Christ doesn't necessarily occur immediately after the Antichrist is destroyed. (2 Thessalonians 2:8)
13. The Antichrist is empowered by Satan (as are all who sin). (2 Thessalonians 2:9)
14. The Antichrist will manifest supernatural powers and miracles. This will convince many that he is who he claims to be. (2 Thessalonians 2:9)

In this passage Paul emphasizes someone who blocks the Antichrist from appearing but who is taken out of the way. (2 Thessalonians 2:6-8) It is not stated who this person is or who takes him out of the way. Perhaps the third person of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit, restrains the Antichrist but stops doing this when God the Father wills it? Or perhaps there is a righteous world leader on the scene at the time the Antichrist is living but before he begins his ascension to power and that this restrainer somehow thwarts the Antichrist until he dies? It seems that this restrainer is a sign to be watched for so we will recognize that the Antichrist is about to appear on the scene. Christians will heed this warning just as they heeded the warning to flee Jerusalem just before it was destroyed in 70 A.D.

So who is Antichrist? Some possibilities . . .

• The papacy — but the Antichrist is referred to as a person (he) rather than an institution or as group of people.
• Nero — the 666 of the book of Revelation refers to Nero.
• Any and every evil and charismatic leader who appears in our day — but so far none of these match the criteria.

Paul gave us a timeline of events . . .

• When he wrote the letter — no apostasy yet, no Antichrist yet, no second coming of Christ yet.
• Apostasy (or perhaps this occurs as a result of the Antichrist's influence).
• Antichrist appears and does his evil deeds.
• Antichrist dies.
• An indeterminate period of time, perhaps hundreds or millions of years.
• Second coming of Christ in which the Antichrist is destroyed.

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Will there someday be a unique individual called the Antichrist? Not necessarily. There are alternate interpretations of this passage (and there are no other passages in the Bible clearly teaching of a yet-future Antichrist). Other views . . .

• That there are many Antichrists. Each Antichrist is a Christian heretic who teaches false views of Christ and the gospel and who causes Christians to apostatize. This view fits the passage perfectly . . .
  • Christians must take care to not be deceived by false teachers (heretics). (2 Thessalonians 2:10-12,15)
  • There were no Christian heretics with mass followings until the subsequent generation of Christians. (2 Thessalonians 2:3)
  • Christian heretics perhaps claim to have special revelation; as if they were God. (2 Thessalonians 2:4)
  • The Holy Spirit allows heretics to appear when Christians are lax. (2 Thessalonians 2:6-8)
  • Heresy is ultimately the work of Satan. (2 Thessalonians 2:9)
  This view implies that the second coming of Christ would not occur until after these heretics began to appear.
  
  
• That the Antichrist is a particular Jewish revolutionary who influences the other radicals to rebel against the Romans resulting in the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple in 70 A.D. This view fits the passage perfectly . . .
  • That time was still yet-future. (2 Thessalonians 2:1,2)
  • The Jews in general and the Jewish leaders in particular had not yet fallen-away to the point of opposing the Romans. (2 Thessalonians 2:3)
  • The Jewish revolutionaries actually took up residence in the temple. (2 Thessalonians 2:4)
  • The destruction of Jerusalem and of the temple was the work of Satan (he comes to steal, kill, and destroy). (2 Thessalonians 2:9)

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From Daniel . . .

Some claim that certain passages in the book of Daniel refer to a yet-future Antichrist. These passages include chapters 7, 8, 9, 11, and 12 (read more here and here). I am unconvinced.

My view of who or what is referred to in each of these passages . . .

• Daniel 7:7,11 — The Roman empire (4th beast) and the Roman emperors (10 horns).
• Daniel 7:8 — Domitian, the 11th emperor of the Roman Empire (another little horn).
• Daniel 8:9-14,23-25 — Antiochus Epiphanes (little horn).
• Daniel 9:26,27 — Titus (prince that shall come), whose armies destroyed Jerusalem and the temple in 70 A.D. about 40 years after the Messiah was cut off.
• Daniel 11:2-35 — the time from Cyrus the Great to Antiochus Epiphanes
• Daniel 11:31-35 — Antiochus Epiphanes
• Daniel 11:36-39, 41-45 — Roman kings or Herod the great.
• Daniel 11:40 — Cleopatra (queen of the south)
• Daniel 12:7,11 — The Jewish war ending in 70 A.D.

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From Revelation . . .

Some claim that certain passages in the book of Revelation refer to a yet-future Antichrist. These passages include chapters 13, 16, 17, and 20 (read more here, here and here. I am unconvinced.

My view of who or what is referred to in each of these passages . . .

• Revelation 13:1-10,17;17:3-17;19:19-20 — The wicked Roman empire/culture/civilization consisting of (1) wicked rulers/kings, and (2) wicked people (1st beast)
• Revelation 13:18 — Nero (666)
• Revelation 13:10-18;16:13;19:20 — Wicked Roman rulers/kings and the cult of emperor worship. (2nd beast, false prophet)
• Revelation 17:1-9 — Sin personified. The wicked people and culture of the Roman empire and by application, of all time (whore)
• Revelation 20:3,8-9 — Satan is loosed (presumably to empower the Antichrist)

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