While Israel was being ruled by Greece, the governor, Antiochus IV, added "Epiphanes" (God manifest in the flesh) to his name. When he declared himself to be God and entered the Holy of Hollies in the Jewish Temple, thus ending the worship and sacrifice, he became guilty of commiting the Abomination of Desolation (8:9-12;11:31, 36; 12:11). In doing this, Antiochus Epiphanes became a "type" or a prophetic picture of the Antichrist of Revelation 13:1-10. Jesus made this connection in Matthew 24:15-16 when He said, "When ye therefore shall see the Abomination of Desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains."
Here are some facts we know about Antiochus Epiphanes:
* He ruled as a Greek in what would become part of the Roman Empire.
* His rule included, what is now, Eastern Turkey, Syria, Iraq, and Iran.
* His territory has been ruled by Assyria, Egypt, Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome.
(This is important in that the Antichrist represents all six empires, and as such, will be destroyed by the Second Coming of Jesus Christ (Dan. 2:34-35, 44-45; 2 Thes. 2:8-9; Rev. 17:10; 19:11-21)!
* His wife's name was Laodice IV.
* His mother's name was Laodice III.
* His daughter's name was Laodice VI.
(This is important because it is clear, at least to me, that the seventh church of Revelation, Laodicea, whose members refused to allow Jesus within their church (Rev. 3:14-20), will not be caught up to heaven in the Rapture of the true Church, but will continue, as usual, during the first part of the reign of the Antichrist."
As a "type," these details may give us some clues to the Antichrist's identity.
No comments:
Post a Comment