Who Is, Are, Was, Were the Antichrist(s)?--I

This creature called “the Antichrist” is very popular today among those who claim to be followers of Jesus of Nazareth. As we shall see, he always has been. The modern manifestation is embodied within the premillennial theory, the “1,000 year reign” doctrine. The idea, briefly, runs something like this. Very soon, the “rapture” will take place (all the faithful will disappear from the earth to be with Christ for a while). Then there will be seven years of “tribulation,” horrors upon the earth such as there have never been before. The “Antichrist”—a human leader--will become publicly known during this period, and because of the “tribulation” and the charisma of this “future fuehrer” (as he has been called), multitudes will follow him. However, he will be a bitter enemy of Christianity, and will lead the world towards the final, great earthly struggle, the Battle of Armageddon, which will take place in the country of Israel and will involve nearly all the nations of the world. Right before the nations of the earth utterly obliterate themselves in this battle, the Lord Jesus will return with His saints, destroy the Antichrist, and inaugurate a reign of peace and tranquility that will last 1,000 years. There is much more to premillennialism than this, and there are variations upon the above scenario. But this is the basic idea, and regarding the “antichrist,” he is anticipated by nearly all to be a charismatic leader who will deceive many.

I am not among the “nearly all,” and I will demonstrate why in this series.

The “antichrist” is supposedly found in many passages in the Bible, but under a different name. The king of Babylon (Isaiah 14:4), the little horn of Daniel 7:8 and 8:9, the man of sin (II Thess. 2:3), and the beast of Revelation 13:1. Matthew 24 provides the “signs” that precede the 2nd coming of Christ to set up His millennial kingdom, while the book of Revelation provides much of the detail. Check my blog on Revelation for a different perspective. Interestingly, the “antichrist” has had a long and varied history since the 2nd century. There has probably not been a single generation since the 1st century in which someone has been pegged with this title. The range of views is incredible. We will take a look at the “antichrist” down through history in part two of this series.