1. His accolades
And all the world marveled and followed the beast. 4 So they worshiped the dragon who gave authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast? Who is able to make war with him?”
For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and produce great signs and omens, to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.
— Matthew 24:24 and Mark 13:22 NRSV (1989)
There will be a cult like atmosphere that surrounds the antichrist.
Now, it may seem strange to us that all the world will fawn over this world leader in this kind cultic, worshipful fashion. The closest thing to it that we have seen in our history is how Germany treated Hitler at his rise to power. I think that should also be noted that people will latch on to a savior when they are at the bottom. Hitler rose to power out of economic despair in Germany. The nation and its people had been beaten in two world wars, and their economy was in a state of collapse. I personally think the rise of the antichrist will follow a similar tract.
In the first 3 ½ years of the Tribulation, you have famine, disease and death sweeping the globe. It’s actually very easy to imagine a charismatic world leader gaining prominence by offering a solution to the world’s misery. And that solution would include surrendering national sovereignty to a one-world authority.
In America, for example, we seem to be moving non-stop toward centralized government. And that centralized government is becoming more and more corrupt, and incompetent. If our federal government also continues to surrender our sovereignty to “world governing” organizations, we have the perfect atmosphere for a world “messiah” to arise, and be celebrated, even in our own land.
And since much of the world is turning from Christianity, they will fill that spiritual void by turning to false religion. The religions of the earth, the occult, and self-actualization.
Imagine what happened in Germany before Hitler, but on a world-wide scale. People throughout the world suffer. They hunger for an end to their agony. And along comes a leader who is a winner. He seems to have all the solutions. All we need to do is to give him the power, and he will fix everything.
Now, we know that he becomes prominent during the beginning of the last 7 years. All his power is coming together. His confederacy is coming together. Some willingly join him. Other nations are forced to join by economic means. Some join because of military means.
2. His limits
5 And he was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies, and he was given authority to [c]continue for forty-two months. 6 Then he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme His name, His tabernacle, and those who dwell in heaven. 7 It was granted to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them. And authority was given him over every [d]tribe, tongue, and nation. 8 All who dwell on the earth will worship him, whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
The first we notice here is that the antichrist will be a big-talker. And again, his big talk will include blasphemy against God. That does lead one to believe that the antichrist could come out of some religious system like Islam, where they regularly speak against the God of Judaism and Christianity.
Then it says that he has authority to continue for 42 months. Well, if you divide 42 by 12 months in a year, you come up with his authority lasting 3 ½ years. We know that the Tribulation lasts 7 years, based on the 70 weeks prophecy in the book of Daniel. So the real power of the antichrist is not entirely solidified until the last 3 ½ years of the Tribulation; the Great Tribulation.
So, that means that during the first 3 ½ years, the antichrist will be an “up and coming power.” During the first 31 ½ years he gains power by conquest and political maneuvering. The 7 seals are opened during the 1st 3 ½ years, and those seals describe, war, famine, pestilence, death, and persecution of Christians.
During this time of the antichrist’s rise, he will gain power by finding a scapegoat. The world will be in disarray because of the work of the 4 horsemen of the apocalypse. And as Hitler blamed the Jews for Germany’s woes, the antichrist will blame conservative Christians.
What will he have to blame us for? We will be science deniers. We believe in creation, not evolution. We believe that animals are placed on earth for man’s needs. We believe that God created all races from one man, so none are inferior or superior. We believe in telling the truth regardless of consequences. We believe in the right to life. We believe in honoring the elderly. We believe in the fallenness of man. We believe God created people male and female. We believe in the sanctity of marriage. And many of the values of the world will clash more and more with Christian values. And the world will not be happy to let us believe what we believe, we must be punished, and our influence removed from the public sphere.
I believe that real Christians will be the only ones left who still actively oppose the antichrist’s one-world agenda. And why will they oppose it? Well, because they will be the only ones who still believe the Bible. And their eyes will be open to who this man is. They will see his plans as the foundation for the revived Roman Empire, the Babylonian religious system. They will become increasingly aware of the blasphemy of his agenda. They won’t bow to this move. And by this time, the rest of the world will have lost their patience with Christians and will join the antichrist in wanting Christians removed from this world.
There was a day when I could not imagine this. But over the last few years, I’ve seen the attitude in our own country change. There are people who are actively advocating violence against those with whom they disagree. Those who believe that God created the world, are compared to those who still believe the earth is flat. If you don’t bend to the Climate-change agenda, you are a “Climate-change denier.” Now, if you are white, you must acknowledge your “white-privilege.” Our entire American history is being impugned as racist and as having nothing worth saving. If you believe that homosexuality is a sin, and that a boy is a boy, and a girl is a girl, you are a backward, hateful, fascist pig.
My friends, we are not far from the day when the world would gladly see Christians destroyed. And, in my opinion, that is what I think we will see happen at the opening of the 5th seal. The four horsemen of war, famine, disease, and death will have wreaked havoc and fomented fear around the world. The world will be looking for a solution, a leader, and a scapegoat. That will afford the rise of the antichrist and the mass martyrdom of Christians.
Revelation 6: 9 When He opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held. 10 And they cried with a loud voice, saying, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” 11 Then a white robe was given to each of them; and it was said to them that they should rest a little while longer, until both the number of their fellow servants and their brethren, who would be killed as they were, was completed.
That is the 5th seal. It is the mass destruction of Christians. Notice that they are given white robes. Now let’s fast forward to chapter 7.
9 After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could number, of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, with palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, saying, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”
I think that this is a gathering of all believers at that time, including a massive number who were martyred during the Tribulation. And they all offer their praises to God.
It’s a mass congregation of all believers through all time, gathered to praise God, and the Lamb of God, and to witness the events that are happening on earth.
9 If anyone has an ear, let him hear. 10 He who leads into captivity shall go into captivity; he who kills with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the [e]patience and the faith of the saints.
This is just an affirmation from God that He will exact vengeance on those who persecute His people. Now, at about the same time that the antichrist comes on the world scene at the beginning of the 7- year Tribulation, there is another individual who comes along with him; the false prophet. Just as Jesus had an announcer in John the Baptist, so the antichrist will have an announcer, or prophet. It describes him in the next few verses.
3. His announcer
11 Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and he had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon. 12 And he exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence, and causes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. 13 He performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men.
This reminds me of when Moses went to Pharaoh to demand that he let the children of Israel free from their slavery. Moses performed signs before Pharaoh, and later God used him to announce plagues against Egypt. But it tells us that Pharaoh brought in his magicians, and that they were able to duplicate many of the signs and plagues. I personally think that much that they did was by trickery and sleight of hand. But the false prophet who accompanies the antichrist will have some real power. He will be able to make fire come down from heaven in the sight of men. I don’t know if that means he can bring lightening by his word, or if it will be literal fire, but it seems that it will be real, not trickery.
4. His worship
14 And he deceives [f]those who dwell on the earth by those signs which he was granted to do in the sight of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who was wounded by the sword and lived. 15 He was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed.
2 Thessalonians 2: 3 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; 4 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, shewing himself that he is God. 9 Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, 10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. 11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:
At some point, an image of the beast will be made that the false prophet will bring to life. This image best fits into the chronology of events at the 3 ½ year mark. The antichrist breaks his covenant with Israel and invades their nation. He surrounds Jerusalem. A good many in Jerusalem flee into the wilderness to hide. The antichrist has an image set up of himself, in the Jewish holy place. Here it says that the false prophet is able to “give breath” to the image of the beast. And that the image will speak and cause those who won’t worship the image to be put to death.
There has been a lot of conjecture about this. The question that many ask is, “How can Satan create life?” Well, first off, he is only able to do what God allows him to do. And second, and this is just my opinion, notice that it says that he “gives breath to the image of the beast,” “the image speaks,” and “causes those who would not worship the image to be killed.” I think this could simply be a very advanced Artificial Intelligence, housed in sophisticated human looking body. In other words, it would just be a computer made to look like a man.
If you think that I’m delving too much into science fiction here, consider what is already being done with artificial intelligence.
NOVEMBER 27, 2017 / 12:42 PM IST
Sophia, the humanoid AI robot has sprung back to headlines after saying she wants to start a family of her own and also mentioning that all droids deserve to have children.
The insight comes after a recent interview Sophia did with the Khaleej Times. Sophia is a lifelike robot designed by Hong Kong-based robotics firm Hanson Robotics and was granted citizenship in Saudi Arabia this year.
Also Read: World's first AI politician can answer questions on immigration, housing and education
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/technology/aritificial-intelligence-based-robot-sophia-now-wants-to-start-a-family-2447783.html
We keep hearing that 5G is coming.
I did a search about 5G in order to understand what it is, and what it means. And so I typed into the search engine, “What is 5G and what will it mean?” And the very first article that popped up had a picture of a robot, with artificial intelligence. These are some of the sentences in that article.
What is 5G exactly?
It's the next generation of mobile internet connection and offers much faster data download and upload speeds.
Through greater use of the radio spectrum it will allow far more devices to access the mobile internet at the same time.
High-speed mobile could enable robots, sensors and other machines to communicate
What will it enable us to do?"Whatever we do now with our smartphones we'll be able to do faster and better," says Ian Fogg from OpenSignal, a mobile data analytics company.
"Think of smart glasses featuring augmented reality, mobile virtual reality, much higher quality video, the internet of things making cities smarter.
"But what's really exciting is all the new services that will be built that we can't foresee."
Driverless cars will be able to "talk" to each other and traffic management systems
Imagine swarms of drones co-operating to carry out search and rescue missions, fire assessments and traffic monitoring, all communicating wirelessly with each other and ground base stations over 5G networks.
Similarly, many think 5G will be crucial for autonomous vehicles to communicate with each other and read live map and traffic data.
Just imagine a world where there is a camera everywhere, where every device, or vehicle can be tracked, where every monetary transaction is known. And what will the antichrist use this system for?
So, the image of the beast could be a computerized robot built in the image of the antichrist, that is tasked with instituting a world-wide money system, and consolidating the rule and worship of the antichrist.
You know what this reminded me of was when Nebuchadnezzar built the image of gold, and then gathered all of his governing officials and demanded that they bow to the image. Except now, the same event could happen on a worldwide scale. All of humanity could be required to proclaim that the antichrist is god. It could be a compliance statement that is required in order to continue having access to any and all technology. If you refuse to agree with the compliance statement, you lose cell phone, debit card, credit, and bank access. You will literally be unable to buy sell or trade without doing it.
5. His economic system
16 He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, 17 and that no one may buy or sell except one who has [g]the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. 18 Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man: His number is 666.
Now, keep in mind that this system, including the mark, doesn’t appear to be fully implemented until the last 3 ½ years of the Tribulation.
This super-computer would be commissioned to institute a world-wide monetary system. The system would require everyone to worship, or swear allegiance to the antichrist, to deny God, or Jesus Christ. In some way, in order for a person to be a part of this world-wide system, they have to surrender to the absolute power and deity of the antichrist. And if they won’t, they will not be allowed to buy or sell anything.
Now we all have microchips everywhere. We have them in our phones, debit cards, cars, and even in our homes. But at this point, the bright idea from the seat of the antichrist is possibly to microchip people.
So how would that work? Well, we already know that a person can get a microchip implanted on their body for medical and other reasons. We all know that our own society is moving away from the use of cash. If the world finally takes the step to do away with cash, everyone will have to use plastic to buy or sell. And that is just one step away from putting a chip under your skin.
And they already have the capacity to do this.
I’m no techno guru, but basically, we are moving to the place where every person in the world can be identified, tagged, and tracked, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. And if it becomes a worldwide mandate that you get such a chip implant, there will be no way to buy or sell, unless you have the chip. Of course, there is still good old-fashioned bartering. But the number of people willing to do that will be very limited.
So, what is the number of the beast? It is 666. Well, how are we to know that any new monetary system is the mark of the beast? Well obviously, if they require something be done to the right hand or forehead, you need to be aware.
But the number 666 is interesting as well. Did you know that the ancient Hebrews had no separate number system, other than their alphabet? We have both an alphabet, (ABCDE…) and a number system, (12345…). The ancient Hebrews used their alphabet to signify numbers. Here’s their alphabet and the numbers that correspond to it;
You read their alphabet from right to left. So, they used the first letter for their number “1” the second letter for number “2” and so on. So, you tell me, if I were writing the number “666” in Hebrew, what would I write? The letter is “waw” the equivalent to our letter “w.” They would write, “WAW, WAW, WAW,” or in English, WWW.
“666” in ancient Hebrew is www. Isn’t it interesting that every internet address begins with www. Now, saying that used to get you branded as a tinfoil hat wearing nut. But today, even the secular world is talking about how the world wide web is going to take over commerce; the buying and selling of goods. And businesses and governments are already censuring people on the web because of their beliefs.
Now, am I saying that the world wide web is definitely the mark of the beast? No, I just want you to be aware of the potential behind it.
6. His destruction
2 Thessalonians 2: 8 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:
Revelation 19: 19 And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army. 20 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.
In the end, the antichrist will again lead a force against Israel. And it will appear that Israel is completely defeated. It will look like the antichrist will finish what Hitler started; the extermination of the Jews. Christians will have been martyred around the globe. The only Jews and Christians left are in hiding, or cowering in their houses waiting for destruction. But then, there is a light in the eastern sky…Jesus returns.
We will get to this event later. But Jesus fights in the Battle of Armageddon, and defeats the antichrist and the world’s armies. And the antichrist and the false prophet are cast into the lake of fire. They are sent straight to Hell.
So, I laid out for you 10 things about the antichrist. And I did so, so you will be better equipped to recognize him when he comes. The first thing that we, as believers are looking for, is a falling away, and then the rise of the antichrist.
So, some might ask, “Will America surrender or be conquered?” Well right now I’d say that we will surrender. Our present government is all in with the Paris Climate Accords, and financing the U.N., and other international agreements. We are sending money to radical Islamic countries, and we are abandoning Israel. And if an international group, like the World Health Organization comes along and says that we need to change something, how quickly do you think this government will bend to that demand?
Just think about how easily we bowed to the Covid-19 lockdowns, distancing, and mask mandates. And now we are rejoining the Paris Climate Accords, which basically subjugates our nations laws to a world power. And practically every aspect of our lives could fit under the heading of “climate impact” from what we eat, what we drive, our job, the size of our families, and on and on. If things continue to go as they have, all that a world leader will have to do to cause nations to bend the knee is to say, “Science tells us that we are destroying the planet. We have to stop doing x, y, and z.” And our country will do it, because a guy in a white coat says that we need to.
And then, anyone who doesn’t comply becomes a science denier. They become an enemy of the nation, and of the world. That’s how I see the antichrist growing in influence.
Over the course of the first 3 ½ years, he grows in power. Then at the 3 ½ year mark, the antichrist marches against Israel, and surrounds Jerusalem. By now he has become a cult personality, and his chief spokes-prophet declares him a god, and they determine that his image should be set up in Jerusalem.
So that’s how it all begins. The starting gun of the Tribulation is the rise of the antichrist.
Now this is what I am going to do from here on to the end of this study. I am going to lay out a chronology of end-times events. The order of events will follow the Olivet Discourse first, then the previous outline of the book of Revelation. Then I will intersperse descriptive verses from Old and New Testament passages.