| Matthew 24: | 6: “And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 7: For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. 8: All these are the beginning of sorrows.” |
Commenting on the behaviour of mankind in the last days the Apostle Paul writes the following:
| 2 Timothy 3: | 1: “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. 2: For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3: Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, 4: Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; 5: Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.” |
No one will doubt that these are accurate descriptions of our time. Even the unbelieving world is becoming increasingly aware that something is terribly wrong with the human race. But what is the next event before Jesus Christ (Yeshua the Messiah) returns to earth? Millions of Christians think that the next event will be the Secret Rapture. The rapture, they think, could occur any moment now any day, any night. When it does occur, they believe, millions of faithful Christians will be secretly caught up to heaven, leaving the rest of mankind to go through the Great Tribulation described in the book of Revelation. Is that what you are waiting for the Secret Rapture? If you are, then read this article with special care.
The Apostle Paul warns the church not to be deceived by any false teaching about the vital matter of the Messiah's return. He tells us that before the Saviour returns to earth the Antichrist, the Man of Sin, will appear. In other words, close though we are to the return of Jesus Christ, expect the appearanceof the Antichrist first. Consider Paul's words in:
| 2 Thessalonians 2: | 1: “Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, 2: 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. 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.” |
Notice that before Jesus Christ returns to earth these two (2) events must take place:
| 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;” |
He is called the man of sin (another word for lawlessness) because he vainly thinks that he can break and finally change the law of the Almighty God. According to the prophet Daniel the particular commandments the Antichrist vainly imagines he can break and change are the ones which deal with the element of time. This means the Sabbath commandments; for they are the only ones in the law of God which deal with the element of time.
| Daniel 7: | 25: “And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws:” |
The Aramaic word ‘sh@na‘ {shen-aw'} means to
change, transform, frustrate. And the Aramaic word
z@man {zem-awn'} means a set time or season.
In other words the Antichrist would attempt to change, transform
and frustrate the Almighty's set or appointed times in
God’s law. And that is exactly what the Lawless One has
tried to do by introducing the pagan festivals of
Christmas,
Easter and
Sunday.
| Revelation 17: | 8: “The beast that thou sawest was, and is not…” |
This is a vital clue; for it tells us that the Beast lived before the year AD 96; ‘he was’ (was alive) before the Revelation was given. It also tells us that the Beast was dead in that year; he ‘is not;’ (was not alive) when the prophecy was given. A small but vital clue, so remember it.
| Revelation 11: | 7: “And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them.”
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| Revelation 17: | 8: “The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition…” |
What is the bottomless pit? Where is the bottomless pit?
According to Strong's Bible Dictionary the Greek word abussos (ab’-us-sos) translated Bottomless Pit is the bottomless, unbounded abyss: a pit of immeasurable depth: a very deep gulf or chasm in the lowest parts of the earth used as the common receptacle of the dead and especially as the abode of demons. In the Gospel of Luke we read how evil angels in times past begged Jesus not to order them to the ‘deep,’ the ‘abussos,’ the Bottomless Pit, the Abyss, the angel penitentiary where the Beast is being held captive.
| Luke 8: | 31: “And they besought him that he would not command them to go out into the deep.”
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| 2 Peter 2: | 4: “For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment.”
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| Jude 1 | 6: “And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day.” |
In other words, many evil angels are currently being held captive in the Abyss (the Bottomless Pit, a place in the lowest parts of the earth) where they await their Day of Judgment. Free-roaming demons are terrified of being sent there. This clue tells us that the Antichrist comes from that place - the Bottomless Pit.
| Revelation 17: | 8: “The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.”
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| 2 Thessalonians 2: | 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. 5: Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things? 6: And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. 7: For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. 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.” |
So important is this clue that it must be repeated: When the Antichrist ascends from out of the Abyss, he will claim to be God and will reveal himself to mankind! Notice that the Antichrist doesn't merely speak as though he were an infallible spokesman of God. Many Roman Catholic and Protestant leaders already do that. Oh no, the Antichrist goes much further; he will reveal himself to mankind and say: I AM GOD!
| Daniel 7: | 25: “And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.” |
| Revelation 13: | 5: “And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months. 6: And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven. 7: And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. 8: And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.” |
| Daniel 8: | 10: “And it waxed great, even to the host of heaven; and it cast down some of the host and of the stars to the ground, and stamped upon them. 11: Yea, he magnified himself even to the prince of the host, and by him the daily sacrifice was taken away, and the place of his sanctuary was cast down.” |
The temporary victory against the heavenly sanctuary and its host deludes the Antichrist into thinking he can even prevent the true Messiah from returning to the earth. In a vain attempt to accomplish this futile plan, the Antichrist, Beast marshals the armies of the world to make war against the Saviour at his second advent.
| 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.” |
That is how the Antichrist will meet his death: in the lake of fire. From that death the Antichrist will never rise again.
POPULAR BELIEFS ABOUT THE ANTICHRIST
Incredible as it may seem, none of the popular interpretations about the Antichrist fit these six scriptural clues. Most do not fit even two clues, let alone all six. Let us now consider some of the popular opinions about the Antichrist that are circulating in the Christian world.
International Communism
Many groups believed that International Communism was the
Antichrist. In view of the break up of the former Soviet Union that
interpretation is now dead. Communism, in fact, does not match
clues 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6.
United Nations Organisation (UN)
Others think that the UN is the Antichrist. But the
UN’s impotence is all too evident these days.
Besides, the UN doesn't fit a single one of those
six clues; so it cannot be the Beast.
European Economic Community (EEC):
Still others think that the European Economic Community (EEC)
is the Antichrist; that as the resurrected Roman Empire it
will some day govern the whole world. But the EEC also doesn't
match a single one of those six clues. Besides the EEC has been
in existence a lot longer than three and a half years.
The Papacy
Millions of Protestants believe that the Papacy is the Antichrist.
This is a tragic mistake. How do we know? Because of the following reasons:
THEY ARE
Satan (Lucifer) the Devil
Others believe that Antichrist is Satan the devil. They are also
mistaken, because of the following reasons.
WHO OR WHAT, THEN, IS THE ANTICHRIST?
Now that we have examined what the Scriptures have to say about the Antichrist; and how the popular interpretations concerning him do not match those six clues, the question still remains: Who or What is the Antichrist? The following answer takes into account the scriptural clues detailed in this article. We trust that you will prayerfully consider it. Before giving the answer let us summarize what we have already learned from six clues:
ANSWER: With those six scriptural clues in mind we answer as follows:
Abaddon is the leading demon to be released from the Abyss from where the Beast comes. Abaddon is called the King of the Bottomless Pit. He alone can fit those six scriptural clues. If you will read Revelation chapter 9 you will get some idea of how this sadist of unspeakable depravity will behave when he is released from the Abyss. The only safeguard against Abaddon the Destroyer is to accept the Seal of God in your forehead. (your mind) Yahweh’s seal is His law; and the Sabbath Days in His law are His Signature, His Sign.
| Isaiah 8: | 16: “Bind up the testimony, seal the LAW among my disciples.”
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| Hebrews 8: | 10: “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my LAWS into their mind, and write them on their hearts...”
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| Ezekiel 20: | 12: “Moreover also I gave them my Sabbaths, to be a SIGN between me and them, that they might know that I am the Lord that sanctify them.” |
When the Abyss is opened the world is going to witness scenes of extreme terror, because that is when Abaddon the Exterminator will arise from the Abyss to brutalize mankind. Yes, ABADDON IS THE ANTICHRIST for he alone fits those six identifying clues.
| Revelation 9: | 11: “And they had a king over them, which is the Angel of the bottomless pit (the Abyss) whose name in the Hebrew is ABADDON, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon.” (The Destroyer) |
The prophecy also tells us that three unclean spirits like frogs, the spirits of devils, issue from the mouths of the Dragon, the Beast and the false Prophet. In other words, the Antichrist (the Beast) is an evil, unclean being like Satan the Devil and the False Prophet. Unclean output (lies) issues from each of their mouths.
| Revelation 16: | 13: “And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.” |
As king of the evil host which emerges from the bottomless pit, Abaddon is the personification of evil, a sadist of unspeakable depravity and he speaks with an unclean, lying tongue!
In the light of Scripture NO other logical conclusion is possible. We live in a world of escalating turmoil and rebellion. In the home, the classroom, the state and the church, rebellion is the order of the day and millions are falling away from the faith. This is the first phase of the Apostle Paul's prophecy (2 Thessalonians 2) and we have already entered it. The next phase is the coming of the Antichrist, Abaddon the demon from the Abyss. Are you taking steps to escape the terrors of Abaddon? Remember only those who have the Seal of God in their foreheads (the mind) will escape Abaddon's tortures. (Revelation 9: 4)
