December 21
Zephaniah 3
Psalm 145:1-7
Proverbs 30:18-20
Revelation 13:11-18
The Antichrist and the False Prophet
“The whole world was filled with wonder and followed the beast. People worshiped the dragon because he had given authority to the beast, and they also worshiped the beast and asked, ‘Who is like the beast? Who can wage war against it?’ The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies and to exercise its authority for 42 months. It opened its mouth to blaspheme God, and to slander His name and His dwelling place and those who live in Heaven. It was given power to wage war against God’s holy people and to conquer them. And it was given authority over every tribe, people, language, and nation. All inhabitants of the Earth will worship the Beast.” Revelation 13:3-8 NIV
The Bible tells us about a man called the Antichrist who will rule the Earth during the seven-year Tribulation. He is referred to by several different names in scripture including the Beast, the Man of Lawlessness, Son of Destruction, the False Christ, and the Antichrist. We are not told his identity, but we are given several clues about what he will be like. He will be revealed after believers have been raptured so we will not be here while he is ruling the Earth. There will be a future Roman Empire made up of ten countries similar to the European Union. From this power structure will come a “little horn” or an unknown politician who will rise to power very quickly. He will broker a peace deal between Israel and her enemies for seven years. During that time, he will allow the Jews to rebuild their temple and to resume animal sacrifices. Halfway through the seven-year period, he will be assassinated. The False Prophet will breathe life into his body and raise him from the dead in Jerusalem. He will proclaim himself to be the Messiah and will enter the temple. He will commit the “Abomination of Desolation” (Daniel 9:27, 11:31, Matthew 24:15-16). We aren’t told exactly what this will be, but it will be something that defiles the temple (perhaps an unclean animal sacrifice, or an altar or statue of the Antichrist to be worshipped.) Whatever it is, it will be so abominable that the Jews will realize immediately that he is not their Messiah, and they will flee into the desert. Satan is a counterfeiter or a copycat. He wants to be like God so he copies what God does to deceive whoever he can. He will require that everyone worship him and that they receive a mark on their forehead or hand to declare their allegiance to him. Below is a list of characteristics he will possess.
1. Physical appearance- Stout and imposing (Daniel 7:20), fierce-looking (Daniel 8:23)
2. There is much speculation about where the Antichrist will come from. Some scriptures seem to suggest he comes from a revived Roman Empire and is Western European. Others suggest he will be Middle Eastern and still others think he will be Jewish. I tend to think he will be Western European, but it is possible that he will have Jewish lineage and still be from Western Europe. Trying to guess who it might be seems pointless because it is likely he is not someone that will be well-known until after the rapture. He is probably behind the scenes and will rise to power quickly.
3. Crafty politician/problem solver (Daniel 9:27, Revelation 17:12-17) He will appear to have a solution to bring about world peace. He will be very charismatic and be able to talk people into following him.
4. Military genius who can deceive people into fighting for him- (Revelation 6:2, 13:4, 19:19, Daniel 11:38-39)
5. He hates God and blasphemes against Him (Revelation 13:5-6, Daniel 7:25)
6. He will display miraculous powers given to him by Satan. (2 Thessalonians 2:9-12)
7. He will die and be resurrected (Revelation 13:3-4) This will be to confuse and deceive people into believing he is the Messiah.
8. He will enter the temple, claim to be God and demand to be worshiped (2 Thessalonians 2:4, Daniel 9:27)
9. He will control the economy (Revelation 13:16-17)
10. Arrogant and boastful, selfish egomaniac (Daniel 11:36, 8:25, Daniel 11:36, 2 Thessalonians 2:4)
11. Satan will give him authority to rule the Earth for a time (Revelation 13:7, 17:12-13)
12. He is going to lose and will spend eternity in the Lake of Fire (Revelation 20:19-20)
The False Prophet is the second beast referred to in verses 11-17. He is a religious leader who will come alongside the Antichrist to give him legitimacy. He will appear like a lamb, but his words are like a dragon (vs. 11). He exercises the authority of the first beast and compels everyone on Earth to worship the Antichrist (vs. 12). He will perform miraculous signs like calling down fire from Heaven (vs. 13). He will make an Image of the Beast and cause everyone who will not worship the Image to be killed (vs. 15). He will require everyone to accept the Mark of the Beast to buy or sell (vs. 16-17). He will be thrown into the Lake of Fire with the Antichrist where he will spend eternity (Revelation 19:20). The Antichrist and False Prophet are utterly evil men who have power because they are indwelt by Satan. They will deceive many including the Jews, but when the Antichrist enters the temple and declares that he is God, the Jews will realize that he is not God, and many will turn to Jesus as their true Messiah. It is not important for us to try to figure out who the Antichrist might be. There are all kinds of guesses about his identity. It is not likely that he is well-known yet. It is probably someone in the background who will rise to power after the rapture. Our focus should be on telling people about Jesus so that they will not be here for his reign.
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