WHO IS THE
ANTICHRIST?
PART 1
by Steve
Ashburn
According to the
book of Revelation, the Antichrist will be the leader of
the one-world government of the tribulation period. He
will be a ruthless dictator and a deceitful and cunning
politician. Elsewhere in Scripture, he also is called
the Assyrian, the man of sin, the beast and the son of
perdition. At the midpoint of the tribulation, he will
sit in the temple in Jerusalem and demand that everyone
on earth worship him as God or else be killed. Jesus
called this the “abomination of desolation, spoken of by
Daniel the prophet” (Matthew 24:15; cf. Daniel 9:27).
Revelation 6:2
provides a description of the Antichrist’s malignant
character: “And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he
that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto
him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.” The
Greek word translated “bow” (toxon) occurs only
this one time in the Bible, and also can be translated
“bow: of the simplest fabric”; therefore, our text verse
can be translated, “he that sat on him had a simple
fabric bow.” The Greek word translated “conquer” (nikon)
also can be translated “subdue.”
In light of
current events, this “fabric bow” most likely is a face
mask, which the Antichrist uses to “subdue” the world
through medical tyranny. We see the same strategy
employed today, whereby people are “locked down” because
of a coronavirus hoax, their constitutional rights
suspended, “social distancing” enforced and independent
businesses destroyed. Scripture suggests that the
Antichrist will use this same ruse to “subdue” the
world. Eventually an “immunity passport” will be encoded
into an RFID chip, combined with financial information,
and injected beneath the skin, so that “no man might buy
or sell” without it (Revelation 13:17). So you see where
all this is leading.
I believe that the
Antichrist will appear during the end times period,
which in my opinion and according to Ezekiel 29, is a
40-year period beginning with a nuclear war in the
Middle East and ending with the second coming of Christ.
According to my understanding of Scripture, this war
will result in the destruction of Israel’s neighboring
nations, including Iraq. Psalm 83 and Amos 1-2 provide a
general account of this war, while other chapters in the
Old Testament provide more specific details about
individual nations. I describe this war in detail in my
book, END TIMES DAWNING (available from
www.endtimesrecord.com). Please read it!
Apparently the
Assyrian will be a young professional (e.g., engineer or
financial type) who will be instrumental in rebuilding
Iraq (in part) after the third US-led coalition of
nations invades and destroys it—which is described in
Isaiah 13 and Jeremiah 50-51, and occurs just after the
Psalm 83 war. He probably will be from the northern
region of Iraq, since this area was ancient Assyria
(It’s interesting to note that the city of Mosul is
located very close to the ancient capital of
Nineveh—more on this later.)
In my opinion,
Isaiah 23:13 describes this: “Behold the land of the
Chaldeans; this people was not, till the Assyrian
founded it for them that dwell in the wilderness: they
set up the towers thereof, they raised up the palaces
thereof; and he brought it to ruin.” In this passage,
the Antichrist is described as “the Assyrian”; his
capital apparently will be an international city built
in a vacant area of Iraq (“the wilderness”), populated
by non-Iraqis (“this people was not”) and set up to
distribute oil and other spoils of war to coalition
member nations. It is this city, which Revelation calls
“Babylon” that will be destroyed at the end of the
tribulation (“and he brought it to ruin”).
But where exactly
would his capital be located? Zephaniah 2 has an
intriguing account of this:
And he will
stretch out his hand against the north, and destroy
Assyria; and will make Nineveh a desolation, and dry
like a wilderness. And flocks shall lie down in the
midst of her, all the beasts of the nations: both the
cormorant and the bittern shall lodge in the upper
lintels of it; their voice shall sing in the windows;
desolation shall be in the thresholds: for he shall
uncover the cedar work. This is the rejoicing city that
dwelt carelessly, that said in her heart, I am, and
there is none beside me: how is she become a desolation,
a place for beasts to lie down in! every one that
passeth by her shall hiss, and wag his hand. (Zephaniah
2:13-15)
The context of
this chapter is end times, and in particular the Psalm
83 war in which the Arab nations who surround Israel
will invade her, and then be destroyed. Zephaniah 2:1-12
mentions Gaza, Moab & Ammon (present-day Jordan) and
Ethiopia (present-day Sudan) specifically as being
destroyed in this war. But what about Nineveh, whose
account also appears here?
Ancient Nineveh
was sacked in 612 BC by a coalition of Babylonians,
Medes, Scythians and Cimmerians. However, the Assyrians
fought back, and were not finally defeated until the
battle of Carchemish in 605 BC by Nebuchadnezzar.
After this,
though, Nineveh continued as a city, and was
continuously inhabited over the centuries until it
developed into the modern city of Mosul. Today, the
ruins of Nineveh are in the Mosul city limits, and
appear as a couple of giant mounds of rubble (“tells”)
on the east side of the Tigris River. However, it was
never destroyed permanently, without an inhabitant, as
Zephaniah 2 suggests. Therefore, this judgment must
still be in the future.
The wording of
Nineveh’s destruction here is very similar to that of
the end-times destruction of Babylon, the capital city
of the Antichrist as recorded in Isaiah 13 and Jeremiah
50-51:
And Babylon, the
glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldees'
excellency, shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and
Gomorrah. It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it
be dwelt in from generation to generation: neither shall
the Arabian pitch tent there; neither shall the
shepherds make their fold there. But wild beasts of the
desert shall lie there; and their houses shall be full
of doleful creatures; and owls shall dwell there, and
satyrs shall dance there. And the wild beasts of the
islands shall cry in their desolate houses, and dragons
in their pleasant palaces: and her time is near to come,
and her days shall not be prolonged. (Isaiah 13:19-22)
Therefore the wild
beasts of the desert with the wild beasts of the islands
shall dwell there, and the owls shall dwell therein: and
it shall be no more inhabited for ever; neither shall it
be dwelt in from generation to generation. As God
overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and the neighbour cities
thereof, saith the LORD; so shall no man abide there,
neither shall any son of man dwell therein. (Jeremiah
50:39-40)
And Babylon shall
become heaps, a dwellingplace for dragons, an
astonishment, and an hissing, without an inhabitant.
(Jeremiah 51:37)
In fact, there are
only two places in the Bible which will be permanently
destroyed and remain like “Sodom and Gomorrah” forever:
the capital of the Antichrist (Isaiah 13:19-20) and Edom
(present-day southern Jordan):
Also Edom shall be
a desolation: every one that goeth by it shall be
astonished, and shall hiss at all the plagues thereof.
As in the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah and the
neighbour cities thereof, saith the LORD, no man shall
abide there, neither shall a son of man dwell in it.
(Jeremiah 49:17-18)
These two places
are destroyed at or just before the battle of
Armageddon. During the millennium, they will not be
restored, but remain as sort of a “national monument” to
God’s judgment upon these areas.
In addition,
Isaiah 34 is a parallel passage to God’s judgment upon
Edom. Notice the similar wording here to God’s judgment
upon Nineveh in Zephaniah 2, and upon Babylon in Isaiah
13 and Jeremiah 50-51 (emphasis mine):
And the streams
thereof shall be turned into pitch, and the dust thereof
into brimstone, and the land thereof shall become
burning pitch. It shall not be quenched night nor day;
the smoke thereof shall go up for ever: from
generation to generation it shall lie waste; none
shall pass through it for ever and ever. But the
cormorant and the bittern shall possess it; the
owl also and the raven shall dwell in it: and he
shall stretch out upon it the line of confusion, and the
stones of emptiness. They shall call the nobles thereof
to the kingdom, but none shall be there, and all her
princes shall be nothing. And thorns shall come up in
her palaces, nettles and brambles in the fortresses
thereof: and it shall be an habitation of dragons,
and a court for owls. The wild beasts of the
desert shall also meet with the wild beasts of the
island, and the satyr shall cry to his
fellow; the screech owl also shall rest there,
and find for herself a place of rest. There shall the
great owl make her nest, and lay, and hatch, and
gather under her shadow: there shall the vultures also
be gathered, every one with her mate. (Isaiah 34:9-15)
Notice that the
“cormorant and the bittern” and “beasts” are present in
both Edom and Nineveh—indicative of God’s final
judgment. And, in both Babylon and Nineveh, “beasts,”
“hissing” and “astonishment” (“wag his hand”) imply that
these are identical, and the same as the end-times city
of Babylon.
Nineveh is further
described as “the rejoicing city [wealthy] that dwelt
carelessly [securely and without fear], that said in her
heart, I am, and there is none beside me [capital of
world government]: how is she become a desolation, a
place for beasts to lie down in! every one that passeth
by her shall hiss, and wag his hand.” This description
matches the Babylon of Revelation, which is described
as:
And the kings of
the earth, who have committed fornication and lived
deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for
her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning,
Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying,
Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city!
for in one hour is thy judgment come.
And the merchants
of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man
buyeth their merchandise any more: The merchandise of
gold, and silver, and precious stones, and of pearls,
and fine linen, and purple, and silk, and scarlet, and
all thyine wood, and all manner vessels of ivory, and
all manner vessels of most precious wood, and of brass,
and iron, and marble, And cinnamon, and odours, and
ointments, and frankincense, and wine, and oil, and fine
flour, and wheat, and beasts, and sheep, and horses, and
chariots, and slaves, and souls of men.
And the fruits
that thy soul lusted after are departed from thee, and
all things which were dainty and goodly are departed
from thee, and thou shalt find them no more at all.
The merchants of
these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand
afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and
wailing, And saying, Alas, alas, that great city, that
was clothed in fine linen, and purple, and scarlet, and
decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls! For
in one hour so great riches is come to nought.
And every
shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors,
and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off, And cried
when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What
city is like unto this great city! And they cast dust on
their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying,
Alas, alas, that great city, wherein were made rich all
that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness!
for in one hour is she made desolate. (Revelation
18:9-19)
Do you see the
similarity between the Nineveh of Zephaniah 2 and
Babylon, the capital city of the Antichrist? As is the
case with Nineveh, Babylon is also “the rejoicing city
that dwelt carelessly, that said in her heart, I am, and
there is none beside me…” until, of course, “in one hour
is thy judgment come.”
In view of all of
the above evidence, and the end-times context of
Zephaniah 2, I must conclude that the “Nineveh”
mentioned in this chapter is not the historical Nineveh
of the seventh century BC, but in fact is the capital of
the Antichrist—which Revelation calls “Babylon”—and will
be located in the vicinity of present-day Mosul, Iraq.
But what about
Mosul?—and present-day Iraq? How do we get from there to
the Babylon of Revelation?
Apparently the
answer is that Iraq will be completely destroyed in the
third US-led coalition invasion, as described in Isaiah
13 and Jeremiah 50-51. And by that I mean every man,
woman, child and animal in Iraq will be killed:
Every one that is
found shall be thrust through; and every one that is
joined unto them shall fall by the sword. Their children
also shall be dashed to pieces before their eyes; their
houses shall be spoiled, and their wives ravished.
Behold, I will stir up the Medes [Iran] against them,
which shall not regard silver; and as for gold, they
shall not delight in it. Their bows also shall dash the
young men to pieces; and they shall have no pity on the
fruit of the womb; their eye shall not spare children [a
total slaughter]. (Isaiah 13:15-18)
For out of the
north there cometh up a nation against her [the US],
which shall make her land desolate, and none shall dwell
therein [empty]: they shall remove, they shall depart,
both man and beast [even animals!]. (Jeremiah 50:3)
And Chaldea shall
be a spoil: all that spoil her shall be satisfied, saith
the LORD [Iraq = spoils of war]. Because ye were glad,
because ye rejoiced, O ye destroyers of mine heritage,
because ye are grown fat as the heifer at grass, and
bellow as bulls [arrogant]; Your mother [the US] shall
be sore confounded; she that bare you shall be ashamed
[after all that work to establish a democratic
government, Iraq turns around and attacks Israel]:
behold, the hindermost of the nations [most recent]
shall be a wilderness [empty], a dry land [semi-arid],
and a desert [arid]. Because of the wrath of the LORD it
shall not be inhabited, but it shall be wholly desolate:
every one that goeth by Babylon shall be astonished, and
hiss at all her plagues. (Jeremiah 50:10-13)
The sea is come up
upon Babylon: she is covered with the multitude of the
waves thereof. Her cities are a desolation [wasted], a
dry land, and a wilderness, a land wherein no man
dwelleth, neither doth any son of man pass thereby.
(Jeremiah 51:42-43)
This, of course,
includes Mosul, the site of ancient Nineveh. This being
a “wilderness” then would allow the Antichrist to build
an international city there according to Isaiah 23:13,
for the purpose of distributing Iraqi oil as spoils of
war to coalition members.
We also know from
Revelation 7 and from Isaiah 30 that during the
tribulation, atmospheric circulation will be canceled
and the sun’s heat output increased sevenfold, most
likely melting the Antarctic and Greenland ice caps, and
raising sea level by about 200 feet. At this time, the
site of ancient Babylon (eighty feet above sea level)
will be under water (“The sea is come up upon Babylon”),
as will Baghdad (112 feet above sea level); however,
Mosul (elevation 732 feet) will not, and that is another
reason for the Antichrist to locate his capital here, in
ancient Assyria.
We’ll cover more
about the Antichrist in Part 2 of this series, including
his capital city, background and place of birth. You
read that correctly! So stay tuned for Part 2!
I provide more
details of this and many other end-times prophecies in
my recently published book, END TIMES DAWNING: Get
Ready! (available from
www.endtimesrecord.com). Please read it! Also if you
would, please leave a book review on Amazon!
Yours in Christ,
Steve Ashburn
