Is the Antichrist one individual or many?


The Antichrist

“Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour”.

1 John 2:18

The word Antichrist is a combination of two words: “anti” which means “against” or “in the place of,” and “Christ,” which means “anointed one.” Therefore, in a general sense anybody that opposes Christ or attempts to take His place is an Antichrist. The original “Antichrist” is Satan, who has opposed Christ through various human agencies. And long before man was created, Satan sought to displace Christ (Isaiah 14:12–14; Ezekeil 28:12, 13) and has since inspired all opposition to God and to Christ.

However, Paul points to one specific power that will defy God. “And then the lawless one will be revealed… The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders” (2 Thessalonians 2:8, 9). And he describes the work of this fallen entity as “the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God” (2 Thessalonians 2:3,4).

Paul’s words depict an arrogant power that opposes all entities in the field of religion and permits no rival to receive the worship it claims for itself. This power assumes divine prerogatives, with reference to the true God and not simply pagan deities by the entrance of this power into the temple of God and seating its representative there. The representative taking his seat in the inner sanctuary of the temple reveals that he claims to sit “as God,” that, indeed, “he is God,” which is the ultimate blasphemy. So, the Antichrist is a blasphemous power and not just one man.

In addition to Paul’s prophecy, Daniel’s prophecy of the blasphemous power that succeeds that of pagan Rome (Daniel 7:8, 19–26), and John’s prophecy of the leopard like beast (Revelation 13:1–18), all reveal the similarities between these three descriptions. This leads to the conclusion that Daniel, Paul, and John are speaking of the same power. This power is identified by many Bible commentators as the papacy or Antichrist.

The Antichrist (Daniel 7): https://bibleask.org/who-is-the-antichrist/

The Antichrist (Revelation 13): https://bibleask.org/who-is-the-beast-of-revelation-13/

In His service,
BibleAsk Team

Disclaimer:

The contents of this article and website are not intended to be against any individual. There are many priests and faithful believers in Roman Catholicism who serve God to the best of their knowledge and are seen by God as His children. The information contained herein is directed only towards the Roman Catholic religio-political system which has reigned in varying degrees of power for nearly two millennia. This system has established an increasing number of doctrines and statements that directly go against the Bible.

It is our purpose to lay the clear Word of God before you, the truth-seeking reader, to decide for yourself what is truth and what is error. If you find anything here contrary to the Bible, do not accept it. But if you desire to seek for Truth as for hidden treasure, and find herein something of that quality and feel that the Holy Spirit is revealing Truth to you, please make all haste to accept it.

Leave a Comment