The Antichrist, The Temple, Wormwood, And More... Series

"Number seven", or... the next world ruler is not antichrist

There is a new world order in the works. Angelic forces fight for it. When all is said and done, the world will look exactly as God saw it when He revealed it to us in the first century, not to mention Daniel’s century.

Revelation 17 speaks of seven mountains. World Kingdoms. World Rulers. In John’s day, five had already passed off the scene. One existed. One was yet to come, and it/he has not yet come in our own day.

Matching Daniel’s “statue” vision, his “animal” vision, and John’s comments here and in chapter 13, it becomes clear that Rome was the kingdom that “now is” in John’s day, and that that same kingdom was seen by Daniel as the last, but not the last. For out of that kingdom, in its extremities, as toes on a body, was to come another kingdom. Here in Revelation 17, the statement is simply made that a seventh kingdom will arise, then an eighth.

The seventh ruler will mount the throne of the seventh Empire. This will be an Empire formed around the Mediterranean Sea, Revived Rome. It would seem now that this ten-nation conglomeration will be made up of both kingdoms and democracies, pseudo-Christian and Muslim. It will be a force unparalleled, headquartered in Rome, dominating all.

I believe its original charter will include a solution to “the Jewish problem.” In a masterful stroke of diplomacy, the “Emperor” will allow Jews to have their Temple worship, complete with sacrifice and offering, at the top of their precious Temple mount. Judaism will thus defy the provision God has already made for sin.

Though this man is wise and popular and powerful, he is not the last ruler. For John talks of a man who arises during his reign to become the “eighth”. He says that number seven will only rule a short while.

Yet number eight, says John, is one of the seven. This is a resurrection. This is a miracle man. This is the man of sin, the antichrist of all antichrists, Satan’s final creation. He will easily be able to overpower kingdoms and take the Empire to himself. But he will have an agenda far different from number seven.

One obvious goal will be the annihilation of Israel. Though Bible prophecy kicks in with number seven and his treaty with Israel (see Daniel 9), a flood of prophecies are fulfilled when he breaks said treaty, takes away sacrifice and offering, surrounds Jerusalem with an army, and thereby initiates three and one half years of hell on earth.

Which of the seven will be resurrected? Whoever he is, he “was” and “is not” in John’s day. Therefore, he must be one of the five already fallen. Daniel 10-12 fairly screams the answer to this mystery, but that is the subject of another essay. (Read my book Who is the Antichrist. )

My point here is to warn the gullible, who form conclusions on half-baked ideas, that the rise of a world leader does not signal that antichrist is on the way immediately. First the seventh world ruler, then the usurper comes and sets in motion the final events of pre-millennial history.

My apologies to those for whom absolute literal interpretation is anathema. It’s the only way I know…

Jesus is coming soon

Jesus is coming soon?

You hear it in a lot of churches. And not to say "amen" is akin to blasphemy in some minds. Jesus is coming soon! I've said it a lot through the years, and although I believe He may be coming for me pretty soon, I feel it's important that I be a part of correcting pop theology, so here goes.

In the English Bibles with which I am familiar, Jesus is never quoted as saying, "I am coming soon." Instead, it is usually, "I am coming quickly." That's a different idea. In the Greek original, the word is tachu. And yes, both ideas can be conveyed by the word. One can be talking about "when" or "in what manner" with that same word. We're left with a need to interpret.

Here is how I interpret all this.

First, Jesus cannot lie. He is the Truth. "Soon" to us means within the next few minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, or to stretch it to its max, a few years. 2,000 years could not be considered "soon" by any mortal. And it was to mortals He said these words. Believers in the "soon" doctrine will be ridiculed for no reason. In fact that very thing has happened and was prophesied by Peter (I Peter 3). We have been saying in every generation, "Jesus is coming SOON." And He didn't come. Now they mock the whole idea of His coming at all, just as Peter said.