Who is the Antichrist of Daniel 7?

The prophecy of Daniel 7 begins with the statement of a dream. In the dream, four mysterious beasts arise from out the water.

For details on the identify of the four beasts, check: What do the Beasts of Daniel 7 represent?

The Fourth Beast – Daniel 7:7-25

“⁷ After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns.

⁸ I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things…

¹⁹ Then I would know the truth of 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;

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.

²¹ I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them…

²³ Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.

²⁴ And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.

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.”

Characteristics of the Antichrist – The “Little Horn”

A. The “little horn” or kingdom “came up among them “the 10 horns which were the kingdoms of Western Europe (Daniel 7:8). So, it would be a little kingdom somewhere in Western Europe.

B. It would have a man at its head who could speak for it (Daniel 7:8).

C. It would pluck up or uproot three kingdoms (Daniel 7:8).

D. It would be “diverse” or different from the other 10 kingdoms (Daniel 7:24).

E. It would make war with and “wear out” or persecute the saints (Daniel 7:21, 25).

F. It would emerge from the pagan Roman empire, the fourth world kingdom (Daniel 7:7, 8).

G. God’s people (the saints) would “be given into his hand” for “a time and times and the dividing of time” (Daniel 7:25).

H. It would “speak great words against” or blaspheme God (Daniel 7:25). In Revelation 13:5, the Bible says the same power speaks “great things and blasphemies.”

I. It would “think to change times and laws” (Daniel 7:25).

Explanation

Historians can clearly identify what power is being described, because these points fit only one power—the papacy. But in order to be sure, let us carefully examine all nine points.

A. It “came up among” the 10 kingdoms of Western Europe.

The geographical location of the papal power is in Rome, Italy—in the heart of Western Europe.

B. It would have a man at its head who speaks for it.

The papacy have one man at the head, that is the pope, who speaks for it.

C. It would uproot three kingdoms.

The emperors of Western Europe were largely Catholic and supported the papacy in its growth and authority. But three Arian kingdoms did not support the papacy, the Vandals, Heruli, and Ostrogoths. So, “The Catholic emperor Zeno (474–491) arranged a treaty with the Ostrogoths in 487, which resulted in the eradication of the kingdom of the Arian Heruls in 493. And the Catholic emperor Justinian (527–565) exterminated the Arian Vandals in 534 and significantly broke the power of the Arian Ostrogoths in 538. Thus were Daniel’s three horns—the Heruls, the Vandals, and the Ostrogoths—‘plucked up by the roots.’ ” – God Cares by Dr. Mervyn Maxwell, volume 1, page 129).

D. It would be “diverse” or different from the other kingdoms.

Unlike the other secular ten kingdoms, the papacy had a religious power.

E. It would make war with and persecute God’s saints.

Historians estimate that during the inquisition, Middle Ages, and Early Reformation Era, more than 50,000,000 martyrs perished for their faith at the decree of the Papacy. – Halley’s Bible Handbook, 1965 edition, page 726. 

F. It would emerge from the fourth kingdom of iron – the pagan Roman Empire.

“The mighty Catholic Church was little more than the Roman Empire baptised … The very capital of the old Roman Empire became the capital of the Christian empire. The office of Pontifex Maximus was continued in that of the pope.” – Alexander Clarence Flick, The Rise of the Medieval Church, pp. 148, 149. 

G. God’s people would “be given into his hand” for “a time and times and the dividing of time” (Daniel 7:25).

1. A time is a year, times is two years, and the dividing of time is a half-year. The Amplified Bible translates it: “Three and one-half years.” – The Amplified Bible, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan 1962.

2. This same time period is mentioned seven times in the books of Daniel and Revelation (Daniel 7:25; 12:7; Revelation 11:2, 3; 12:6, 14; 13:5): three times as a “time, times, and half a time”; twice as 42 months; and twice as 1,260 days. Based on the 30-day calendar used by the Jews, these time periods are all the same amount of time:

3 1/2 years = 42 months = 1,260 days.

3. One prophetic day equals one literal year (Ezekiel 4:6; Numbers 14:34).

4. Thus, the little horn (Antichrist) was to have power over the saints for 1,260 prophetic days or 1,260 literal years.

5. The rule of the papacy began in A.D. 538, when the last of the three opposing Arian kingdoms was uprooted. Its rule continued until 1798 when Napoleon’s general, Berthier, took the Pope Pius VI captive with hopes of destroying him and the political power of the papacy. This period of time is an exact fulfillment of the 1,260-year prophecy. This blow was a deadly wound for the papacy, but that wound began to heal and continues healing today.

This same of persecution is recorded in Matthew 24:21 as the worst time of persecution for God’s children. Verse 22 records that it was so destructive that not one soul would have survived if God had not shortened it. But praise the Lord, it was shortened it. The persecution ended long before the pope was taken captive in 1798.

H. It would speak “great words” of blasphemy “against the most High [God].”

Blasphemy has two definitions in Scripture:

1. Claiming to forgive sins (Luke 5:21).

2. Claiming to be God (John 10:33).

Let’s read the evidence for the papacy claiming to forgive sins, taken directly from its own literature: “Does the Priest truly forgive the sins, or does he only declare that they are remitted? The Priest does really and truly forgive the sins in virtue of the power given to him by Christ.” – Joseph Deharbe, S.J., A Complete Catechism of the Catholic Religion (New York: Schwartz, Kirwin & Fauss, 1924), 279.

The papacy further undermines Jesus by setting up a system of confession to an earthly priest, thus bypassing Jesus, our High Priest (Hebrews 3:1; 8:1, 2) and only Mediator (1 Timothy 2:5). Let us read one evidence: “We [the popes] hold upon this earth the place of God Almighty.” – Pope Leo XIII, Encyclical Letter “The Reunion of Christendom” (dated June 20, 1894) trans. in The Great Encyclical Letters of Pope Leo XIII (New York: Benziger, 1903), 304.

Here is more evidence: “The pope is not only the representative of Jesus Christ, but he is Jesus Christ, Himself, hidden under the veil of flesh.” – Catholic National, July 1895.

I. It would “think to change times and laws.”

In its catechisms, the papacy has omitted the second commandment against veneration of images, has shortened the fourth commandment of the Sabbath from 94 words to eight, and divided the tenth commandment of coveting into two commandments (Exodus 20:1-17).

The most bold change was regarding the Sabbath commandment – the weekly day of worship (Exodus 20:8-11). The Catholic Church openly admits it is responsible for changing the observance of the Sabbath from the seventh day (Saturday) to the first day of the week (Sunday). An authoritative catechism for priests says: “But the Church of God [the Catholic church] has in her wisdom ordained that the celebration of the Sabbath day should be transferred to ‘the Lord’s day’” – Catechism of the Council of Trent, Donovan translation, 1829 ed., p. 358). Compare the Ten Commandments in any Catholic catechism with God’s list of the commandments in Exodus 20:1-17.

In summary, the little horn power (Antichrist) of Daniel chapter 7 is without a doubt the system of the papacy. No other organization could fit these nine points. All Reformers spoke of the papacy as Antichrist. – R. Allen Anderson, Unfolding the Revelation, p. 137.

Please note that there are sincere, devout Christians in all churches, including the Catholic faith. But God calls His children out of their corrupted systems of religion (Revelation 18:4) and the faithful will hear His words and follow Him (John 10:16).

Fore more on the Antichrist or the beast of Revelation 13, check:

Who is the first beast of Revelation 13?

Disclaimer:

The contents of this article and website are not intended to accuse individuals. There are many priests and faithful believers in Roman Catholicism who serve God to the best of their ability and are seen by God as His children. The information contained herein is directed only towards the Roman Catholic religio-political system that has reigned in varying degrees of power for nearly two millennia. Under the influence of its successive popes, bishops, and cardinals, this system has established an increasing number of doctrines and statements that clearly go against Scripture.

It is our sincere desire to lay the clear Word of God before you, the truth-seeking reader, so you may decide for yourself what is truth and what is error. If you find herein anything contrary to the Word of God, you need not accept it. But if you desire to seek for Truth as for hidden treasure, and find herein something of that quality, we encourage you to make all haste to accept that Truth which is revealed to you by the Holy Spirit.