Wars and Rumors of Wars

A Study of Matthew Chapter 24, Part 9 -- Matthew 24:6-7a
(Stay tuned for more posts until study of Matthew 24 is completed.)

"You will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end.
"For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom..." (Matthew 24:7-7a)

The wars and rumors of wars described by Christ in the Olivet discourse correspond with the second horseman of the apocalypse in Revelation 6:

When He broke the second seal, I heard the second living creature saying, "Come."
And another, a red horse, went out; and to him who sat on it, it was granted to take peace from the earth, and that men would slay one another; and a great sword was given to him. (Revelation 6:3-4)

In our most recent study, we saw how the first horseman (Revelation 6:1-2), on the white horse, and wielding an empty bow, is symbolic of Antichrist initially emerging as one who will be reputed to be a peace maker. The second horseman, on a red horse, carrying a great sword, shows Antichrist's true colors: Antichrist will be a man of war! The final world empire under the authority of Antichrist will crush every opponent in its path. Included will be an agenda to destroy believers in Christ and to annihilate the Jewish race.

The warfare of Antichrist will eventually lead to the Campaign of Armageddon (Revelation 16:12-16; Zechariah 12:2-9). An early stage of this campaign is described in Zechariah 14:

Behold, a day is coming for the Lord when the spoil taken from you will be divided among you.
For I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem to battle, and the city will be captured, the houses plundered, the women ravished and half of the city exiled, but the rest of the people will not be cut off from the city. (Zechariah 14:1-2)

Notice that all the nations will be gathered in battle (verse 2). Preterists, who believe that that this prophecy was fulfilled in AD 70, when Rome destroyed Jerusalem, have a hard time explaining Zechariah's phrase: all the nations. They'll try to get off the hook by telling you that this is an exaggeration, a common feature of apocalyptic literature. But in the next verse, the Preterist runs into another problem:

Then the Lord will go forth and fight against those nations, as when He fights on a day of battle (Zechariah 14:3)

Preterists generally agree that the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70 was the fulfillment of the many prophecies which predict God's judgement against Jerusalem. In fact, many Preterists believe that "the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory," in Matthew 24:30, is symbolic of the Lord's judgment on Jerusalem through the Roman army. But Zechariah 14:3 describes the Lord fighting the nations attacking Jerusalem. Yes, fighting the nations, plural, and fighting the nations attacking Jerusalem, not fighting Jerusalem! By any stretch of the imagination, this passage could not have already been fulfilled. This is a phase of a final campaign, in which the "kings of the whole world" will be gathered together "for the war of the great day of God, the Almighty" (Revelation 16:14).

Furthermore, at the conclusion of this campaign, the Lord will restore the wealth of His covenant people and will gather all the nations and take them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat to judge them:

"For behold, in those days and at that time,
When I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem,
I will gather all the nations
And bring them down to the valley of Jehoshaphat.
Then I will enter into judgment with them there
On behalf of My people and My inheritance Israel,
Whom they have scattered among the nations;
And they have divided up My land." (Joel 3:1-2)

Because of the ruthlessness of Antichrist, "the son of destruction"(2 Thessalonians 2:3), the world will suffer unprecedented carnage from the ravages of war. However, Antichrist will meet His end in the lake of fire (Daniel 7:11; Revelation 19:20). Although the Antichrist will initially disguise himself as a man who will bring peace to the world, it is only Jesus Christ who is able to bring genuine and permanent peace to mankind. Until He does, there will be wars and rumors of wars.

Scripture quotations taken from the NASB.http://www.lockman.org/

The Roman-Greek-Assyrian-Jewish Antichrist

A Study of Matthew Chapter 24, Part 8 -- Matthew 24:4-5
(Stay tuned for more posts until study of Matthew 24 is completed.)

And Jesus answered and said to them, "See to it that no one misleads you.
"For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and will mislead many." (Matthew 24:4-5)

Jesus warned His disciples against being misled by those who claimed to be the Christ. Commentators often suggest that there have been false Christs in every time, including the present: but is that really true? There have certainly been many leaders of cults who have been worshiped; even worshiped as deity. But in Matthew 24:5, Jesus, the Christ, the Jewish Messiah, was speaking to His disciples, who were Jews. His statement must be understood in the context of the Messiah of Israel. Christ (Greek christos, "anointed") translated the Hebrew word mashiyach in the Septuagint (the Hebrew Scriptures translated into Greek, completed about the middle of the second century BC). Mashiyach means "anointed," and is usually used to describe a consecrated person. Mashiyach translates into the English word Messiah in the prophesies about Christ in Daniel 9, verses 25 and 26. In these verses, "Messiah" identifies God's anointed, the One God has appointed to deliver and rule Israel. This person is known in the New Testament as Jesus Christ.

During Daniel's seventieth week there will be many false Messiahs competing for the attention of the Jews. You may be wondering how this can be. Isn't the Antichrist going to be the one who will have every one's attention? Won't he be the counterfeit Messiah? No, that is oversimplifying it all. Antichrist, though he will have some Jewish ancestory (we'll get to that later), will appear on the scene as a Gentile and will initially be a benefactor to the Jews, confirming a covenant with them (Daniel 9:27).

As the Antichrist rises to power, false claimants, professing to be the Messiah, will likely oppose him. In the middle of the seven year period, Antichrist will take his seat in the temple and declare himself to be God (2 Thessalonians 2:4). Yet his claim to deity is not a claim to be the Messiah of Israel. In fact, the Antichrist will attempt to wipe out the Jewish race. All the while, Israel will have the opportunity to either follow false Messiahs (which may cost them their lives) or to submit to and worship Antichrist.

Now, just who is the Antichrist? The term "antichrist" is found in John's first epistle:

Children, it is the last hour; and just as you heard that antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have appeared; from this we know that it is the last hour. (1John 2:18)

John uses the term last hour figuratively to emphasize that the consummation of human history is near. The rapture of the believers of this present dispensation, which could come at any time, will be followed by a period of only seven years which will end the present age and introduce the age to come. The term "antichrist" is the nominative masculine singular of antichristos, an adversary of Christ. This is a reference to the person, foretold by the prophetic word, who will become a world leader during Daniel's seventieth week. John noted that, at the time he wrote, many antichrists had already appeared. His plural use of "antichrists" is a broad term referring to false teachers in his own time who were contradicting the teaching of the apostles. He addressed some of their false doctrine in the epistle. It can be said that, while there have not been many throughout history who have claimed to be Israel's Messiah, there are many antichrists in every generation who have an agenda that is opposed to Christ. However, John's reference to Antichrist is to one person who will come in the future. This person is known by a number of names and descriptions:

• He is the little horn, in Daniel 7:8; 8:9-12.


• He is a king who is insolent and skilled in intrigue, in Daniel 8:23.


• He is the prince who is to come, in Daniel 9:26.


• He is the man of lawlessness, in 2 Thessalonians 2:3.


• He is the son of destruction, in 2 Thessalonians 2:3.


• He is the beast, in Revelation 13:3.

What is his race? What is his nationality? From what part of the world will he come? The most direct reference to the national and ethnic background of the Antichrist is found in the Book of Daniel:

"Then after the sixty-two weeks the Messiah will be cut off and have nothing, and the people of the prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. And its end will come with a flood; even to the end there will be war; desolations are determined." (Daniel 9:26)

Jerusalem and the sanctuary were destroyed by Titus of Rome in AD 70, about 600 years after Daniel wrote. But notice how the careful wording of this prophecy provides an opening for the Antichrist to come long after the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70! It does not say, "The prince who is to come and his people will destroy the city and the sanctuary," but rather, "...the people of the prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary." The people--that is, the Romans--destroyed the city and the sanctuary in AD 70. The prince of these people will come in the future. This testifies of the revived Roman Empire, which is illustrated by the multi metallic image in Daniel 2:40-43 and the fourth beast with the ten horns and the emergence of the little horn in Daniel 7:7-8. The concept of the revived Roman Empire has been dismissed by some commentators in recent times, but the concept is Scriptural.

So, Daniel was told that "the people of the prince who is to come" would destroy Jerusalem and the temple. This means that the Antichrist will be descended from the Romans who destroyed Jerusalem in AD 70. However, just because Antichrist will be descended from these people does not automatically mean that Antichrist will be of Italian ancestory--or even European ancestory! The Romans conquered most of the known world, and Roman citizenship was extended to people of many ethnicities. The fact that the Antichrist will be descended from the Roman people as they existed when Titus destroyed Jerusalem opens up the door to innumerable possibilities as to his ancestory!

Will the Antichrist be Greek? The angel Gabriel explained a vision Daniel had received involving a ram and a shaggy goat. It has been precisely verified by history that Gabriel described Alexander's empire divided into four parts after Alexander died, and that the Antichrist would descend from one of the four parts. This is found in Daniel 8:

"The ram which you saw with the two horns represents the kings of Media and Persia." (Daniel 8:20)

The emblem of Persia was the ram. Ancient Persian coins bearing the head of a ram have been found. The Persian king would go in front of his army wearing, instead of a diadem, a golden figure of a ram's head set with gems.

"The shaggy goat represents the kingdom of Greece, and the large horn that is between the his eyes is the first king." (Daniel 8:21)

The national emblem of Greece was the goat. Now it is very impressive that Greece would actually be named, because Daniel's vision was about two hundred years before the rise of Alexander the great! In fact when Alexander did come along, he was very impressed by this prophecy about himself, according to the historian Josephus.[1] When Alexander headed toward Jerusalem, he was angry at the Jews because they had refused to help him fight the city of Tyre, and he had lost a lot of troops. The high priest Jaddua was terrified because of what Alexander might do. When Alexander approached the city, Jaddua and another priest went out from Jerusalem in a grand procession and showed him the prophecies of Daniel. Alexander recognized the prophecies that were about himself and thus showed favor on the Jews.

"The broken horn and the four horns that arose in its place represent four kingdoms which will arise from this nation, although not with his power." (Daniel 8:22)

Upon his death, Alexander's kingdom was divided among four of his generals:

• Cassander received Macedonia and Greece in the West.


• Lysimachus received Thrace and Asia Minor in the North


• Seleuceus received Babylon, Syria, and the area bordering India in the East.


• Ptolemy received Egypt, Libya, Arabia, and Palestine in the South.

"In the latter period of their rule,
When the transgressors have run their course,
A king will arise,
Insolent and skilled in intrigue." (Daniel 8:23)

These four kingdoms will be resuscitated in some manner and apparently will be four of the ten kingdoms into which the revived Roman Empire will be divided. These four kingdoms were swallowed up by the historic Roman Empire and will live through, and be represented through, the revived phase.

"His power will be mighty, but not by his own power,
And he will destroy to an extraordinary degree
And prosper and perform his will;
He will destroy mighty men and the Holy people." (Daniel 8:24)

So, the Antichrist will be of Greek descent. Does this contradict the fact that he is of Roman descent? Of course not! You are probably quite aware that there were many Greeks in the Roman Empire. In fact, the Romans loved the art, literature, architecture, and religion of Greece and adopted many elements of these into their own culture.

Daniel chapter 11 provides more details on the break-up of Alexander's empire and links him to the kingdom given to Seleuceus, which includes the areas of Syria, Mesopotamia, and Persia (which includes modern day Iraq and Iran). It is likely that Antichrist will emerge from that geographical area.

Will the Antichrist be Assyrian? There is an interesting passage in the book of Isaiah about the king of Assyria:

So it will be that when the Lord has completed all His work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, He will say, "I will punish the fruit of the arrogant heart of the king of Assyria and the pomp of his haughtiness."
For he has said,
"By the power of my hand and by my wisdom I did this,
For I have understanding;
And I have removed the boundaries of the peoples
And plundered their treasures,
And like a mighty man I brought down their inhabitants,
And my hand reached to the riches of the peoples like a nest,
And as one gathers abandoned eggs, I gathered all the earth;
And there was not one that flapped its wing or opened its beak or chirped." (Isaiah 10:12-14)

Isaiah does not directly identify the king of Assyria as the Antichrist, but the resemblance is striking. Some students of the Scriptures believe that Isaiah 10:12-15 coupled with portions of Daniel 8 and 11 imply that Antichrist may well be of Assyrian descent and may come from the Assyrian region which is located in northern Iraq. There are presently people who are actually working toward an independent state in Northern Iraq!

If the Antichrist will be Assyrian, does that conflict with him being the ruler of the revived Roman Empire? No! In fact, Josephus noted that many of the soldiers in the Roman army who destroyed Jerusalem under Titus were Middle Eastern.[2]

Will the Antichrist be Jewish? The Bible gives us reason to believe he will be:

"Then the king will do as he pleases, and he will exalt and magnify himself above every god and will speak monstrous things against the God of gods; and he will prosper until the indignation is finished, for that which is decreed will be done.
"He will show no regard for the gods of his fathers or for the desire of women, nor will he show regard for any other god; for he will magnify himself above them all." (Daniel 11:36-37)

In the New American Standard translation, "He will show no regard for the gods [plural] of his fathers..." In the King James version, "Neither shall he regard the God [singular] of his fathers..." Elohyim is a Hebrew word which is plural in form, just as it is elsewhere in the Old Testament where it is translated God [singular], referring to the one, true God. The phrase, "the God of his fathers," is a Hebrew idiom which refers to the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. So, there is good reason to to believe that the Antichrist will be of Jewish descent, as well as the other ethnicities previously mentioned. There are other passages in the Scriptures that suggest he may be descended from the tribe of Dan.

Does the Jewish ancestory of Antichrist conflict with his being the ruler of the revived Roman Empire? Not at all! The apostle Paul is an example of a Jew who became a Roman Citizen. The renowned historian Josephus was also a Jew who acquired Roman citizenship. The Antichrist will apparently conceal his Jewish ancestory. In his early career, the Antichrist will deceive the world into thinking he is a man of peace:

Then I saw when the Lamb broke one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures saying as with a voice of thunder, "Come."
I looked, and behold, a white horse, and he who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer. (Revelation 6:1-2)

The first of the four horsemen in Revelation 6 portrays Antichrist as emerging as a powerful figure, but he is not yet waging war. He is described as possessing a bow, but no arrow is mentioned. He will initially conquer without bloodshed. It is not until the breaking of the second seal, which releases the second horseman, a man on a red horse with a sword, that Antichrist wages war. During the beginning of Daniel's seventieth week, the Antichrist will negotiate a peace for Israel with her neighbors. He would have a hard time doing that if it his Jewish ancestory is apparent!

Antichrist will initially recognize Israel's existence as a nation and will protect Israel with a confirmed covenant. But he will turn on Israel and will start a reign of terror in the last half of the seven year period. Many believers in Christ will be martyred, and the Antichrist will attempt to wipe out the Jewish race.

Thus, while false Messiahs will abound during Daniel's seventieth week, Antichrist will not be one of them. He will actually oppose them, along with many other factions and forces, as he gradually acquires total political, military, economic, and religious control over the earth.

Footnotes:
1. Flavius Josephus, The Antiquities of the Jews, Book 11, Chapter 8.
2. Flavius Josephus, The Wars of the Jews, Book 2, Chapter 13.7.
Scripture quotations taken from the NASB.http://www.lockman.org/

The Parallel Between Matthew 24 and Revelation 6

A Study of Matthew Chapter 24, Part 7 -- Matthew 24:4
(Stay tuned for more posts until study of Matthew 24 is completed.)

And Jesus answered and said to them, "See to it that no one misleads you." (Matthew 24:4)

On the Mount of Olives, Jesus was concerned that His disciples not be misled. To prevent the believers of Daniel's seventieth week from being misled, an apocalypse was given to John, on the island of Patmos. Much of that apocalypse parallels, and adds details to, the events Jesus set forth in the Olivet Discourse.

John Walvoord[1] and Marvin Rosenthal[2] are among those who have recognized a remarkable parallel between what Jesus described on the Mount of Olives and what was revealed to John in Revelation chapter 6. The basic events and actions in both Matthew 24 and Revelation 6 progress in the same chronological order. There is war, famine, death, and martyrdom, followed by cosmic disturbances. Bear in mind that the four horsemen in John's apocalypse are symbolic of four phases of the activity of the Antichrist during Daniel's seventieth week. I'll expound on that in future parts of this series, but for now, let's look at a comparison of passages of Matthew 24 and Revelation 6. So that the reader may easily view the contrast between the two accounts, I've rendered Christ's sayings from the Mount of Olives in red and passages from John's apocalypse in blue:

"For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and will mislead many." (Matthew 24:5)
Then I saw when the Lamb broke one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures saying as with a voice of thunder, "Come."
I looked, and behold, a white horse, and he who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer. (Revelation 6:1-2)

"You will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end."For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom... (Matthew 24:6-7a)
When He broke the second seal, I heard the second living creature saying, "Come."
And another, a red horse, went out; and to him who sat on it, it was granted to take peace from the earth, and that men would slay one another; and a great sword was given to him. (Revelation 6:3-4)

"...and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes.
"But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pangs." (Matthew 24:7b-8)
When He broke the third seal, I heard the third living creature saying, "Come."
I looked, and behold, a black horse; and he who sat on it had a pair of scales in his hand.
And I heard something like a voice in the center of the four living creatures saying, "A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not damage the oil and the wine."
When the Lamb broke the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature saying, "Come."
I looked, and behold, an ashen horse; and he who sat on it had the name Death; and Hades was following with him. Authority was given to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword and with famine and with pestilence and by the wild beasts of the earth. (Revelation 6:5-8)

"Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name." (Matthew 24:9)
When the Lamb broke the fifth seal, I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God, and because of the testimony which they had maintained;
and they cried out with a loud voice, saying, "How long, O Lord, holy and true, will You refrain from judging and avenging our blood on those who dwell on the earth?"
And there was given to each of them a white robe; and they were told that they should rest for a little while longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brethren who were to be killed even as they had been, would be completed also. (Revelation 6:9-11)

"But immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken." (Matthew 24:29)
I looked when He broke the sixth seal, and there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth made of hair, and the whole moon became like blood;
and the stars of the sky fell to the earth, as a fig tree casts its unripe figs when shaken by a great wind. (Revelation 6:12-13)

Thus, these two accounts in the New Testament provide a brief outline of some of the major features of the seven year period that will close the end of the age. In the next installments of our study of Matthew 24, we'll explore these things in more detail.

Footnotes:
1. John F. Walvoord, The Revelation of Jesus Christ (Chicago: Moody Press, 1966), p.123.
2. Marvin Rosenthal, The Pre-Wrath Rapture of the Church (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1990), pp.150-152.
Scripture quotations taken from the NASB.http://www.lockman.org/