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The Bible Teaching of the ANTICHRIST

by BOB L. ROSS

(written in the early 1990s)

One of the clearest teachings of the Bible is what it teaches about the
ANTICHRIST, yet it appears to be one of the most misunderstood and
mistaught. The Book of Revelation is NOT — (contrary to popular prophecy
teachers) — the best place to learn about the Antichrist. The most
complete, down-to-earth description is in Daniel 11:21-45. Just read it
like you would read your morning newspaper... it's that simple.

But to do that, you'll have to FORGET Scofield's notes, Ryrie's notes,
Clarence Larkin's charts, "Late Great Planet Earth" and Lindsey's
continual rewrites, Van Impe's perpetual videos, Jerome's commentary
(and those who copy it), the European Common Market, Russia, the "New
World Order," the Restored Roman Empire, Antiochus Epiphanes, King Juan
Carlos of Spain, the "A.D.70 theory," Grant Jeffreys, Tim LaHaye, Peter
Ruckman, Walter Price, Pat Robertson, J R Church, "Rapture Guessers" ...ETC.

None of these sources will give any "LIGHT" beyond what you can read and
understand in Daniel 11:21-45. In fact, if you try to make Daniel
11:21-45 "fit" with the foregoing views you will be off up in Russia and
Europe when you should be in the Middle East. Daniel says "ZILCH" about
Russia and Europe but he does write about the Middle East, and names
countries and locales.

Daniel 11:5-20 is a broad sketch of post-Grecian Empire history [Daniel
11:2-4] which leads right up to the time of the Antichrist ("Little
Horn") in Daniel 11:21. You say, "I thought Scofield, Ryrie, etc said
Daniel 11:5-20 referred to the wars between the Ptolemies & Seleucids?"
That's the "detour" that gets the unsuspecting reader on a "dead-end"
path. The "wars" between the "north" and "south" are tied-in as
preceding history to Daniel 11:21-45 leading right up to the Antichrist
who becomes king in the "north." This "north" is NOT Russia, Europe,
China, or the North Pole. It's the "north" area discussed in this
context, the Middle East area. The Middle East has always been occupied
by the Arabs, so this "north" refers to "northern" Arabs.

If you don't know about the Arab Empire, it's probably because you
weren't taught that history in school. And you weren't taught because
somebody back in the past decided that the Western world would be better
served by "burying" Arab history in the desert. Better not to know about
the Muhammedans and Islam or so someone seemed to think.

The Arabs became a "great dominion" (Arab Empire) in the 7th century
A.D. [Genesis 17:20, "I will make him (Ishmael) a great nation"], but it
became divided between "north" and "south" as the leaders fought over
the position and power of "caliph." The "dividing line" was probably the
Basra (Iraq) vicinity, as the southern Ishmaelites occupied the huge
Arabian peninsula where Mecca and Medina were located. The Arab
conflicts are broadly sketched in Daniel 11:5-20.

In Daniel 11:21 the man who develops as the Antichrist comes on the
scene in the north. "I thought that man was Antiochus Epiphanes," you
object. You "thought" that because the Jewish writer of the Maccabees
said so, and the Roman Catholic Jerome, Scofield, Ryrie, and 10,000
other writers believed him. But Daniel didn't say it, and Jesus blasted
the whole thing to smithereens in Matthew 24:15 when he placed Daniel
11:31 into the FUTURE. He put the Antichrist and his "abomination of
desolation" BEFORE His second coming, not in the Maccabean period prior
to His first coming. So Daniel 11:21-45 is not Antiochus, but the
ANTICHRIST.

After the Antichrist takes control in the northern area in the Middle
East, he struggles to the top of the heap. He fights a major war with
the "south" which is settled by negotiations which leave him in power
and with "great riches" [Daniel 11:25-28]. Afterwards, he makes another
move "toward the south" but is thwarted by "ships" sent by the Western
Gentiles [Daniel 11:29-30].

His next major move focuses on Jerusalem [Daniel 11:31]. He takes
advantage of the weak leadership in Israel — "them that forsake the
covenant" — and in the course of time and events he desolates the place
of Jewish worship [Daniel 11:31].

After this, he becomes emboldened to persecute [Daniel 11:32] and to
"magnify himself" above everything, man or God [Daniel 11:36]. He will
become militant in his aggression against others in the Middle East,
such as the southern Arabs [Daniel 11:40], Israel [Daniel 11:41], Egypt,
the "east" and the "north" [Daniel 11:44]. After becoming undisputed
"king" in the Middle East and having power over the "gold and silver,"
he will build his "palace" at Jerusalem [Daniel 11:45]. There he will
await his judgment at the second coming of Christ [2 Thessalonians 2:8].

Now that brief exposition of Daniel 11 should not be hard to understand.
But if you get "detoured" by the illusions presented by the "normal"
premill prophecy expert, you'll wind up in a "Euro/Russian" maze of
confusion which necessarily sets aside Daniel 11:21-45.