The reason Jesus wrote the book of Revelation is that things are happening in the end times such that if someone refuses to know Bible prophecy, they could be lost. The Bible has been given to us because human beings are unable to discern right from wrong by themselves. Since the fall of Adam and Eve, human discernment has been clouded by sin.
So God gives us the Bible to direct us to truth, to be able to discern right and wrong. Jesus sends Bible prophecy as proof that the Bible is true. When people ask me, “How do you know the Bible is true?” I say the Bible is true because no human being can tell what will happen 1,000 years ahead, to the very day. In the book of Revelation, the antichrist is identified. If God can tell us many times what will happen in the future, and every time the prophecy is fulfilled, then we know the Bible is from God.
Isaiah 42:9 — “Behold, the former things are come to pass, and new things do I declare: before they spring forth I tell you of them.” God tells us things before they happen so that we can escape calamities. Christians escaped Jerusalem when Titus invaded the city. Not one Christian died in the siege of Jerusalem, because Jesus had told them to flee.
Matthew 24:15-17 — “When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place… Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains. Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house.” Jesus loves us and tells us things before they happen so that we can escape terrible situations.
2 Timothy 3:15-16 — “And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.”
The Bible tells us what truth is. Human beings have no power — and no right — to decide what is right and wrong on their own. The book of Revelation tells us that a false religious system will make people think it is from God when it is not. Watch for the ultimate deception that will sweep millions into hell.
Why Does Jesus Talk About the Antichrist?
In the books of Revelation and Daniel especially, Jesus tells us that a power would come that makes itself appear Christian. Most Christians will be deceived. They will think they are in Christian churches, but Jesus calls this system Babylon. The antichrist is the power that mixes the Bible with the doctrines of demons to deceive people.
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.” This power claims to be God and claims it can forgive sins. This is what blasphemy is — claiming (1) “I am God” and (2) “I can forgive sins.” When Jesus said “I am God,” people accused Him of blasphemy.
Matthew 9:3 — “And, behold, certain of the scribes said within themselves, This man blasphemeth.” Likewise, when Jesus said “Your sins are forgiven,” people responded the same way.
Luke 7:48-49 — “And he said unto her, Thy sins are forgiven. And they that sat at meat with him began to say within themselves, Who is this that forgiveth sins also?” The antichrist blasphemes in the same way — a religious power that says “I am God” and “I forgive sins.”
2 Thessalonians 2:3-4 — “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; 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.” The antichrist is also called the man of sin, the son of perdition, and Babylon.
The Names of Blasphemy: Son of Perdition, the Man of Sin
2 Thessalonians 2:3 confirms that after Paul died, false teachers would rise up. Even among the early church fathers, many taught false doctrines — what Paul calls “damnable heresies.” Babylon, in the book of Revelation, is exposed as a system mixing the Bible with paganism. Since roughly the death of Paul, there have been two churches: the true church and Babylon.
Identifying the Antichrist Through Daniel’s Prophecies
Daniel 7:20 — “And of the ten horns that were in his head, and of the other which came up, and before whom three fell; even of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very great things, whose look was more stout than his fellows.” We can only identify the antichrist by starting with Daniel 2, the foundation of all these prophecies.
Nebuchadnezzar dreamed of an image made of four metals. Daniel explains that Babylon is the head of gold, followed by three more kingdoms: Media-Persia, Greece, and Rome. In Daniel 7, Babylon’s empire is revealed again as the fourth beast — the same fourth beast representing Rome from Daniel 2. Daniel 7 says the antichrist comes out of Rome.
Babylon: The Mother Church
Revelation 17:5 — “And upon her forehead was a name written, Mystery, Babylon The Great, The Mother Of Harlots And Abominations Of The Earth.” Babylon is the mother church, and she has daughters who came out of her — a daughter usually resembles her mother.
The Fourth Beast
Daniel 7:19-20 describes “the fourth beast, which was diverse from all the others, exceeding dreadful, whose teeth were of iron, and his nails of brass; which devoured, brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with his feet; And of the ten horns that were in his head…” This fourth beast follows Babylon, Media-Persia, and Greece. The antichrist comes from this fourth kingdom: Rome.
The Little Horn
Daniel describes “that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very great things, whose look was more stout than his fellows.” This pagan Roman beast gives rise to a power that comes out of it — Papal Rome. Much of what Papal Rome, or the Catholic Church, represents traces back to paganism in ancient Rome and ancient worship systems like Babylon and Greece.
How Long Does the Antichrist’s Power Last? The 1,260 Years
Daniel 7:25 states that this power would be “given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time” — totaling 1,260 days, or years, in Bible prophecy, since a prophetic day represents a year.
A day cannot mean a literal day here, because in Daniel 12, the angel Gabriel says to seal the book “until the time of the end.” If a day were literal, the end times would have occurred just three years after Daniel wrote this, around 540 BC — yet the end of days had not occurred even by the time Jesus was born.
Daniel 12:4 — “But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.” This confirms the prophecy points to the end of the world, not Daniel’s own time.
The book of Revelation reveals this power from shortly after Paul’s death until the end of the world — a period the Bible identifies as 1,260 years:
- 538 AD — Emperor Justinian grants political supremacy to the pope.
- 1798 AD — General Berthier, under Napoleon, takes the pope captive, ending the era of papal political supremacy (known as the 1,260 years of papal rule).
The papacy was then prophesied to experience a revival.
Revelation 13:3 — “And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.” This marks the healing of that wound after 1798.
A Man Leads the Antichrist Power
Daniel 7 describes “in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things” — a man at the head of this power. What other religious leader claims the authority to forgive sins and to be God on earth? The papacy held authority for 1,260 years and makes exactly this claim:
“The Pope is of so great dignity, and so exalted that he is not a mere man, but as it were God, and the vicar of God.” (Ferraris, Ecclesiastical Dictionary)
“All names which in the Scriptures are applied to Christ, by virtue of which it is established that He is over the church, all the same names are applied to the Pope.” (On the Authority of the Councils, book 2, chapter 17)
“The Pope takes the place of Jesus Christ on earth… by divine right the Pope has supreme and full power in faith, in morals over each and every pastor and his flock. He is the true vicar, the head of the entire church, the father and teacher of all Christians. He is the infallible ruler, the founder of dogmas, the author and judge of councils; the universal ruler of truth, the arbiter of the world, the supreme judge of heaven and earth, the judge of all, being judged by no one, God himself on earth.” (Quoted in the New York Catechism)
The Antichrist’s Blasphemy
Revelation 17:3 — “So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.” What angers God is the arrogance of this power — and of those who follow it — in claiming to be above God, including by changing the biblical Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday. This same arrogance was present when Lucifer fell. God is to be respected and honored; when men in their insolence believe they are above God, judgment follows.
“God keeps a reckoning with the nations…. In this age a more than common contempt is shown to God. Men have reached a point in insolence and disobedience which shows that their cup of iniquity is almost full…. The Spirit of God is being withdrawn from the earth. When the angel of mercy folds her wings and departs, Satan will do the evil deeds he has long wished to do. Storm and tempest, war and bloodshed—in these things he delights, and thus he gathers in his harvest. And so completely will men be deceived by him that they will declare that these calamities are the result of the desecration of the first day of the week. From the pulpits of the popular churches will be heard the statement that the world is being punished because Sunday is not honored as it should be.” — Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy, p. 355
The Antichrist Persecutes True Christians
Daniel 7:25 describes a power that “wear[s] out the saints of the most High.” History records this through the Inquisition against the true church — the Huguenots, the Waldenses, the Albigenses. Many believe this persecution will be revived, mirroring what took place during the Middle Ages.
The Prelates Wear Purple and Scarlet
Revelation 17:4 — “And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour.” The prelates of Rome traditionally wear purple and scarlet. What other religious power has lasted 1,260 years, claims to forgive sins and be God on earth, sits in a city of seven hills, originates from Rome, and experienced a deadly wound? Only the Catholic Church fulfills every detail of this prophecy concerning the antichrist and Babylon.
Jesus is deeply loving — He died on the cross for you, and He wants you in heaven. As these events unfold, Jesus wants you to understand what will happen, so you can escape the antichrist’s power. Will you listen to His loving call to leave Babylon? Revelation 18:4 — “Come out of her, my people.”
The City of Seven Hills
Revelation 17:9 — “And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth.” Rome is historically known as the city of seven hills.
The Antichrist Will Join the USA
Revelation 13:12 — “And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.” This second beast of Revelation 13 is identified as the United States of America — a country known for freedom and good people. Yet the Bible warns that the USA, symbolized as a lamb, will eventually speak like a dragon, or like Satan. Babylon will join hands with the USA to enforce the mark of the beast.
The Coalition Will Enforce the Mark of the Beast
Revelation 13:15 — “And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.” This alliance marks the end of God’s mercy and probation for the United States and the world, as the USA and the papacy join to pass a law requiring Sunday worship. True Christians who keep the Sabbath will be persecuted, and ultimately, some will be killed.
I urge you to read two important books: The Great Controversy by Ellen G. White and Daniel and the Revelation by Uriah Smith. These will help you understand the end of the world — as most Christians by then will have received the mark of the beast for rejecting the three angels’ messages and rejecting God, all while claiming to be good Christians.
Repeat after me: Father God, I pray that You help me understand the issues of these last days. Help me to study these two important books. Help me not to receive the mark of the beast. In the name of Jesus, amen.
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