Unleashing the Beast

44 / U NLEASHING THE B EAST

Scripture, we see that:  the Antichrist will be a Gentile, not a Jew;

 the Antichrist will arise out of the Middle East; and  the Antichrist will rule from a small nation before he takes over Jerusalem. Let us examine these three statements in light of Biblical predictions. T HE A NTICHRIST W ILL B E A G ENTILE The fact that the Antichrist will be a Gentile and not a Jew is seen in Biblical typology, imagery, and understanding of the "times of the Gentiles." The Bible makes it clear that, at the time of the end, Gentiles will once again control Israel and Jerusalem for a final 42 months (see Luke 21:24, Revelation 11:1, 2). Once again we refer back to the dream of Nebuchadnezzar. The king saw an image with a head of gold, a chest and arms of silver, thighs of brass, legs of iron, and feet and toes of iron and clay (Daniel 2: 36-45). This metallic image was a revelation of the future empires that would rule the world from the time of Babylon to the coming of the Lord. Babylon was the head of gold; Media-Persia, the chest and arms of silver; Greece, the thighs of brass; and Rome was symbolized by legs of iron. The Roman Empire eventually split between the East and the West (Rome and Turkey). In the time of the end, the 10 toes on the image spoke of 10 kings who would rule with one leader, the Antichrist.