Eschatology Archives - AMILLENNIAL.org

Who is Antichrist?

JOHN

Likely written around 62 AD to an unnamed church in Asia Minor, John’s audience has suffered division and abandonment. As he counsels, notice John’s references to antichrist; this is a present reality his readers are experiencing, just as we’ve seen in our previous examples.

¹⁸ “Children, it is the last hour, and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come. Therefore, we know that it is the last hour. ¹⁹ They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.” (1 John 2:18-19; remember the false Christs and false prophets of Matthew 24:23-25.)

From verse 19, it seems members of this congregation abandoned the faith, deserting the Church and drawing others after them. In verse 22, John zeroes in on exactly what he means when he says “antichrist” (antichristos, Strong’s 500):

“Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son.” (1 John 2:22)

John writes these things concerning those “who seduce you” (1 John 1:26). He is confronting an active threat by those who would undermine this body of believers. Now John defines the difference between true believers and false:

¹ “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. ² By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, ³ and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already.” (1 John 4:1-3)

Here we not only see a definition of what it means to be anti-Christ, but we also catch a glimpse of what it means to be in Christ. In his second letter to this church, John doubles down on his definition of antichrist:

“For many deceivers have entered into the world, those who do not confess Jesus Christ has come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.” (2 John 1:7)

Throughout John’s three epistles, the author drives home several key themes including admonition to reject false teachings, how to identify true believers, and encouragement to stand firm in the faith.

Top Antichrist Theories

Next, let’s briefly discuss the top theories surrounding the identity of John’s antichrists… [See complete transcript at ProphecyCourse.org…]

Jesus said He would return in power with His kingdom before all those who heard His preaching died. (Matthew 16:28, Mark 9:1)

John the Baptist

27 AD “The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.” (Matthew 3:2)

27 AD “Who warned you to flee from the wrath about to come?” (Matthew 3:7)

27 AD “The axe is already laid at the root of the trees.” (Matthew 3:10)

27 AD “His winnowing fork is in His hand.” (Matthew 3:12)

27 AD “The kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matthew 4:17)

27 AD “The kingdom of God is at hand.” (Mark 1:15)

27 AD “Who warned you to flee from the wrath about to come?” (Luke 3:7)

27 AD “The axe is already laid at the root of the trees. ” (Luke 3:9)

27 AD “His winnowing fork is in His hand….” (Luke 3:17)

Jesus the Christ

28 AD “The kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matthew 10:7)

28 AD “You shall not finish going through the cities of Israel, until the Son of Man comes.” (Matthew 10:23)

28 AD “….the age about to come.” (Matthew 12:32)

28 AD “The kingdom of God has come near to you.” (Luke 10:9)

28 AD “The kingdom of God has come near.” (Luke 10:11)

30 AD “The Son of Man is about to come in the glory of His Father with His angels; and will then recompense every man according to his deeds.” (Matthew 16:27)

30 AD “There are some of those who are standing here who shall not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.” (Matthew 16:28; cf. Mark 9:1; Luke 9:27)

30 AD “‘When the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those vine-growers?’ ‘….He will bring those wretches to a wretched end, and will rent out the vineyard to other vine-growers, who will pay him the proceeds at the proper seasons.’ ‘….Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you, and be given to a nation producing the fruit of it.’ ….When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard His parables, they understood that He was speaking about them.” (Matthew 21:40-41,43,45)

30 AD “This generation will not pass away until all these things take place.” (Matthew 24:34)

30 AD “From now on, you [Caiaphas, the chief priests, the scribes, the elders, the whole Sanhedrin] shall be seeing the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.” (Matthew 26:64; Mark 14:62; Luke 22:69)

30 AD “What will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the vine-growers, and will give the vineyard to others. ….They [the chief priests, scribes and elders] understood that He spoke the parable against them.” (Mark 12:9,12)

30 AD “This generation will not pass away until all these things take place.” (Mark 13:30)

30 AD “What, therefore, will the owner of the vineyard do to them? He will come and destroy these vine-growers and will give the vineyard to others.” …The scribes and the chief priests …understood that He spoke this parable against them.” (Luke 20:15-16,19)

30 AD “These are days of vengeance, in order that all things which are written may be fulfilled.” (Luke 21:22)

30 AD “This generation will not pass away until all things take place.” (Luke 21:32)

30 AD “Daughters of Jerusalem, stop weeping for Me, but weep for yourselves and for your children. For behold, the days are coming when they will say, ‘Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that never bore, and the breasts that never nursed.’ Then they will begin to say to the mountains, ‘Fall on us,’ and to the hills, ‘Cover us.’” (Luke 23:28-30; Compare Revelation 6:14-17)

30 AD “I will come to you. …In that Day you shall know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you.’ …’Lord, what then has happened that You are about to disclose Yourself to us, and not to the world?'” (John 14:18,20,22)

30 AD “If I want him to remain until I come, what is that to you?” (John 21:22)

The Disciples

30 AD “We were hoping that He was the One who is about to redeem Israel.” (Luke 24:21)

Paul the Apostle to the Gentiles

52 AD “…we who are alive, and remain until the coming of the Lord… …We who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds… …You, brethren, are not in darkness, that the Day should overtake you like a thief.” (1 Thessalonians 4:15,17; 5:4)

52 AD “May your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Thessalonians 5:23)

52 AD “It is only just for God to repay with affliction those who afflict you, and to give relief to you who are afflicted and to us as well when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels in flaming fire.” (2 Thessaloniams 1:6-7)

56 AD “The time has been shortened.” (1 Corinthians 7:29)

56 AD “The form of this world is passing away.” (1 Corinthians 7:31)

56 AD “Now these things …were written for our instruction, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.” (1 Corinthians 10:11)

56 AD “We shall not all fall sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed.” (1 Corinthians 15:51-52)

56 AD “Maranatha!” [The Lord comes!] (1 Corinthians 16:22)

56 AD “Godliness …holds promise for the present life and that which is about to come.” (1 Timothy 4:8)

56 AD “I charge you …that you keep the commandment without stain or reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Timothy 6:14)

56 AD “…storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for that which is about to come, so that they may take hold of that which is life indeed.” (1 Timothy 6:19)

57 AD “He has fixed a day in which He is about to judge the world in righteousness…” (Acts 17:31)

58 AD “Not for [Abraham’s] sake only was it written, that [faith] was reckoned to him [as righteousness], but for our sake also, to whom it is about to be reckoned.” (Romans 4:23-24)

58 AD “If you are living according to the flesh, you are about to die.” (Romans 8:13)

58 AD “I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is about to be revealed to us.” (Romans 8:18)

58 AD “It is already the hour for you to awaken from sleep; for now salvation is nearer to us than when we believed. The night is almost gone, and the day is at hand.” (Romans 13:11-12)

58 AD “The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.” (Romans 16:20)

60 AD “There is about to be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked.” (Acts 24:15)

60 AD “As he was discussing righteousness, self-control and the judgment about to come…” (Acts 24:25)

61 AD “…not only in this age, but also in the one about to come.” (Ephesians 1:21)

61 AD “In the last days difficult times will come. For men will be lovers of self… …Avoid these men. For of these are those who enter into households and captivate weak women… …These also oppose the truth… …But they will not make further progress; for their folly will be obvious to all…” (2 Timothy 3:1-2,5-6,8-9)

61 AD “I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is about to judge the living and the dead…” (2 Timothy 4:1)

62 AD “The Lord is near.” (Philippians 4:5)

62 AD “The gospel …was proclaimed in all creation under heaven.” (Colossians 1:23; Compare Matthew 24:14; Romans 10:18; 16:26; Colossians 1:5-6; 2 Timothy 4:17; Revelation 14:6-7; cf. I Clement 5,7)

62 AD “…things which are a shadow of what is about to come.” (Colossians 2:16-17)

63 AD “God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son.” (Hebrews 1:1-2)

63 AD “Are they not all ministering spirits, sent out to render service for the sake of those who are about to inherit salvation?” (Hebrews 1:14)

63 AD “He did not subject to angels the world about to come.” (Hebrews 2:5)

63 AD “…and have tasted …the powers of the age about to come.” (Hebrews 6:5)

63 AD “For ground that drinks the rain which often falls upon it and brings forth vegetation useful to those for whose sake it is also tilled, receives a blessing from God; but if it yields thorns and thistles, it is worthless and near a curse, and it’s end is for burning.” (Hebrews 6:7-8)

63 AD “When He said, ‘A new covenant,’ He has made the first obsolete. But whatever is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to disappear.” (Hebrews 8:13)

63 AD “The Holy Spirit is signifying this, that the way of the [heavenly] Holy Places has not yet been revealed, while the outer tabernacle is still standing, which is a symbol for the present time. Accordingly both gifts and sacrifices are offered which cannot make the worshiper perfect in conscience, since they relate only to food and drink and various washings, regulations for the body imposed until a time of reformation.” (Hebrews 9:8-10; Compare Galatians 4:19; Ephesians 2:21-22; 3:17; 4:13)

63 AD “But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things about to come…” (Hebrews 9:11)

63 AD “Now once at the consummation of the ages He has been manifested to put away sin.” (Hebrews 9:26)

63 AD “For the Law, since it has only a shadow of the good things about to come…” (Hebrews 10:1)

63 AD “…as you see the Day drawing near.” (Hebrews 10:25)

63 AD “…the fury of a fire which is about to consume the adversaries.” (Hebrews 10:27)

63 AD “For yet in a very little while, He who is coming will come, and will not delay.” (Hebrews 10:37)

63 AD “For here we do not have a lasting city, but we are seeking the one that is about to come.” (Hebrews 13:14)

Peter the Apostle to the Circumcision

30 AD “This is what was spoken of through the prophet Joel: ‘And it shall be in the last days…’” (Acts 2:16-17)

62 AD “…salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” (1 Peter 1:5)

62 AD “He …has appeared in these last times for the sake of you.” (1 Peter 1:20)

62 AD “In the last days mockers will come. …For this they willingly are ignorant of…” (1 Peter 3:3,5)

62 AD “They shall give account to Him who is ready to judge the living and the dead.” (1 Peter 4:5)

62 AD “The end of all things is at hand; therefore, be of sound judgment and sober spirit for the purpose of prayer.” (1 Peter 4:7)

62 AD “For it is time for judgment to begin with the household of God.” (1 Peter 4:17)

62 AD “…as your fellow elder and witness of the sufferings of Christ, and a partaker also of the glory that is about to be revealed.” (1 Peter 5:1)

62 AD “We have the prophetic word …which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the Day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts.” (2 Peter 1:19)

62 AD “Their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.” (2 Peter 2:3)

62 AD “But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up. Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God.” (2 Peter 3:10-12)

James

62 AD “Speak and so act, as those who are about to be judged by the law of liberty.” (James 2:12)

62 AD “Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries which are coming upon you. …It is in the last days that you have stored up your treasure!” (James 5:1,3)

62 AD “Be patient, therefore, brethren, until the coming of the Lord.” (James. 5:7)

62 AD “You too be patient; strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.” (James. 5:8)

Jude the brother of James

62 AD “For certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation. …About these also Enoch …prophesied, saying, ‘Behold, the Lord came with many thousands of His holy ones, to execute judgment upon all, and to convict all the ungodly…’” (Jude 1:4,14-15)

62 AD “But you, beloved, ought to remember the words that were spoken beforehand by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ, that they were saying to you, ‘In the last time there shall be mockers, following after their own ungodly lusts.’ These are the ones who cause divisions…” (Jude 1:17-19)

John the Apostle whom Jesus loved

62 AD “The darkness is passing away, and the true light is already shining.” (1 John 2:8)

62 AD “The world is passing away, and its desires.” (1 John 2:17)

62 AD “It is the last hour.” (1 John 2:18)

62 AD “Even now many antichrists have arisen; from this we know that it is the last hour.” (1 John 2:18; Compare Matthew 24:23-34)

62 AD “This is that of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and now it is already in the world.” (1 John 4:3; Compare 2 Thessaloniams 2:7)

63 AD “…to show to His bond-servants, the things which must shortly take place.” (Revelation 1:1)

63 AD “The time is near.” (Revelation 1:3)

63 AD “Nevertheless what you have, hold fast until I come.” (Revelation 2:25)

63 AD “I also will keep you from the hour of testing which is about to come upon the whole world.” (Revelation 3:10)

63 AD “I am coming quickly.” (Revelation 3:11)

63 AD “And she gave birth to a son, a male child, who is about to rule all the nations with a rod of iron.” (Revelation 12:5)

63 AD “And in her [the Great City Babylon] was found the blood of prophets and of saints and of all who have been slain on the earth.” (Revelation 18:24; Compare Matthew 23:35-36; Luke 11:50-51)

63 AD “…to show to His bond-servants the things which must shortly take place.” (Revelation 22:6)

63 AD “Behold, I am coming quickly. ” (Revelation 22:7)

63 AD “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near.” (Revelation 22:10; Compare Daniel 8:26)

63 AD “Behold, I am coming quickly.” (Revelation 22:12)

63 AD “Yes, I am coming quickly.” (Revelation 22:20)

Source: 30-70AD Apostles expected the Kingdom in their lifetime. ProphecyHistory.com. Retrieved from https://prophecyhistory.com/node/275.