Segment 4 - Daniel 8
The Antichrist
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Section VII – The Termination of the Daily

 

The Antichrist Will Take the Daily Away from Jesus

 

The wording of Daniel 8:13 is difficult to understand at first:“Then I heard a holy one [angel] speaking, and another holy one [angel] said to him, ‘How long will it take for the vision to be fulfilled – the vision concerning the [cessation of the] daily sacrifice, the [vision concerning a great] rebellion that causes desolation, and the surrender of the sanctuary and of the host [of saints] that will be trampled underfoot?’” (Insertions mine) To help you understand this question better, here is a paraphrase of Daniel 8:13: Daniel heard one angel speak to another angel. The first angel said, ‘How long will it take for the vision of the ram, the goat, and the horn power to be fulfilled?” When the question is phrased this way, the answer that follows makes sense. Daniel writes, “And I heard a man’s voice from the Ulai [canal] calling, ‘Gabriel, tell this man the meaning of the vision.’ As he came near the place where I was standing, I was terrified and fell prostrate. ‘Son of man,’ he said to me, ‘understand that the vision concerns the time of the end.’” (Daniel 8:16,17, insertion and italics mine) It is clear that the question in verse 13 is finally answered in verses 16 and 17. You may wonder why the actual question in verse 13 is worded in such a complex way. God is both deliberate and purposeful in everything He does. With one question and one answer, God informs us that the appointed time of the end involves four great issues:

 

1.      The termination of the daily

2.      A rebellion that causes desolation

3.      The surrender of Heaven’s sanctuary

4.      God’s people will be trampled underfoot

We have examined Daniel 8:11 within the context of Antiochus IV. Let us examine it again, this time within the context of the Antichrist and the appointed time of the end. This approach will yield a much better fulfillment of Scripture. Gabriel said, “It [the horn power will] set itself up to be as great as the Prince of the host [Jesus]; it took away the daily sacrifice from him [Jesus], and the place of his [Jesus ‘] sanctuary was brought low.” (Daniel 8:11, insertions mine) The word “daily” is a term that describes the daily cycle of services that occurred in the earthy temple. Every day, evening and morning, a lamb was slain on the Altar of Burnt Offering and its blood was sprinkled on the Altar of Incense. Every day, sinners presented their sacrifices at the Altar of Burnt Offering. These rituals, and many other services became known as the “daily” or the “continual.” They shadowed the intercession that Jesus began making on behalf of humanity the day sin occurred as well as His death on Calvary. The immediate intercession of Jesus spared Adam and Eve from sudden death the day they sinned. (Genesis 2:17) The Father allowed Adam and Eve (and their offspring) to live because of Christ’s intercession on their behalf. (Genesis 2:17; Hebrews 7:25) Gabriel indicates the coming Antichrist will take away Jesus’ daily intercession in Heaven’s temple. Christ’s intercession for man is terminated in one of four ways. Notice how two ways concern the individual and two ways concern corporate bodies of people:

 

1.      When a person dies, life terminates. The dead know knowing. There is no need for further intercession. (Ecclesiastes 9:5,6)

2.      If a person commits the unpardonable sin, intercession for that person ends because there is nothing more that god can do to bring a person to repentance. There is no forgiveness for the unpardonable sin. (Hebrews 10:26, Matthew 12:31,32)

3.      When a decadent nation exhausts the limits of God’s patience, corporate intercession ends and the nation is destroyed. (Genesis 15:16; Leviticus 4:13,14; 18:24-28; Jeremiah 25)

4.      When God’s patience with the decadence of the world reaches its limit, He sends destruction. (Genesis 6; Matthew 24:37)

Corporate and Personal Intercession Ends

 

You may wonder how the Antichrist can take away the daily intercession from Jesus during the appointed time of the end. The termination of the daily happens twice because daily services in Heaven’s temple involves atonement at two pillars. The corporate altar is called the Altar of Incense and its services will be concluded first. (Daniel 12:11; Revelation 8:2-5) The individual altar is called the Altar of Burnt Offering and its services will be terminated at the seventh trumpet. (Daniel 8:11-13; Revelation 11:15-19). The corporate daily ends when the majority of the world stands in rebellion against the authority of God. As it was in the days of Noah, God’s patience will come to an end. We know His patience can come to an end with a city of people (e.g., Sodom and Gomorrah) or with the whole world as it did in Noah’s day. When this happens, He sends a series of judgments to destroy those who have exhausted His grace. (Genesis 6; Revelation 7:1-4 and 8:2-13) On the individual level, the termination of the daily is similar: When the devil leads a person to finally commit the unpardonable sin (persistently rejecting the demands of the Holy Spirit) God’s patience with that person comes to an end and God turns that person over to be subject to the devil. (Matthew 12:31,32; Hebrews 10:26) When a person, a nation, or the whole world refuses to surrender to the clearest evidences of God’s will, Jesus will no longer offer intercession for them. Why should He? For this reason, Jesus’ corporate intercession for Babylon, Medo-Persia, Grecia, Rome ended and the kingdoms fell. (See Daniel 5.)

 

We see a parallel on the individual level as well. During the Great Tribulation, God will empower His servants, the 144,000, to proclaim the terms and conditions of salvation to every nation, kindred, tongue and people. The Antichrist will lead the wicked of Earth into committing the unpardonable sin. He will lead them to rebel against the authority of God and despise the generous offer of salvation from Jesus. (2 Thessalonians 2:11,12; Romans 1:18-32; Hebrews 10:29) Thus, the daily intercession of Jesus on behalf of the world and individuals will be taken away.

 

Some people will not voluntarily go along with the devil’s schemes. God knows this and He empowers the Antichrist to bring an end to Christ’s intercession by forcing people to make a hard choice. There will be no middle ground. The devil will require worship (obedience) and all who refuse to submit to the assumed authority are to be killed. (Revelation 13:15) The “salvation” which the Antichrist offers will be the temporal privilege of obtaining the necessities of life during the final days of the Great Tribulation.

In other words, if a person chooses to join forces with the devil and receive the mark of the beast, that person will be able to buy and sell so that he can survive. If a person refuses the mark of the beast, that person will be shut off from all earthly means of survival to starve or be killed. When every decision for or against salvation has been made, the daily intercession of Jesus ends.

 

Gabriel also said, “… and the place of his [Jesus] sanctuary was brought low.” The exalted ministry of man’s Savior in Heaven’s temple will become a matter of mockery (brought low through contempt). During the Great Tribulation, a majority of people will be convinced the devil is God! (2 Thessalonians 2) In other words, the unseen ministry and temple of Jesus in Heaven will not be able to compete with the dazzling show of miracles that the Antichrist conducts. However, the heavenly temple will be physically displayed to everyone living on Earth after the daily has ended. (Revelation 11:19)

 

Rebellion Will Overtake the World

 

Consider this next verse: “Because of rebellion, the host of the saints and the daily sacrifice were given over to it [the Antichrist]. It prospered in everything it did, and truth was thrown to the ground.” (Daniel 8:12, insertion mine) This verse aligns with many details in Revelation. The following is a short scenario of this verse:

 

When the Great Tribulation begins, the Holy Spirit will be poured out on all the nations and people. The purpose of the Spirit’s influence is to pry open every heart to receive the gospel message that God’s servants, the 144,000 will present. Jesus will send the Holy Spirit for one purpose, to save as many people as possible. Sadly, billions of people will refuse to submit to the demands of the Holy Spirit, and they will choose rebellion (lawlessness) against God. When the advance of the gospel stalls, God allows “the stern-faced king,” the destroyer, to physically appear. The mission of the Antichrist is to deceive and destroy. As the devil’s popularity grows (it starts out small), the wicked people of Earth will be divided into two camps. One camp will be the “religious wicked” and the other camp will consist of wicked people who want nothing to do with the devil. They just want him to go away and leave them alone. The “religious wicked” will be people like the Pharisees in Christ’s day who stubbornly hang on to false religion. These would rather believe that Lucifer is God than to submit to the authority of Jesus Christ. These people appear to be religious, but they do not love the truth. The other camp, the “non-religious wicked,” consists of people like Hitler and Stalin who have no use for God and they detest Lucifer’s heavy-handed ways. They will not accept the authority and dominion of the Antichrist. The “non-religious wicked,” are represented in Daniel 11:36-12:3 as the kingdom of the South. In other words, the kingdom of the South is poles apart from the kingdom of the North. The Antichrist will use their rebellion against his authority to justify their destruction. Of course, the devil will destroy many saints for the same reason. The war described in the sixth trumpet (Revelation 9) is conducted to establish Lucifer’s undisputed dominion over Earth. (Revelation 9:13-21) Revelation says the devil and his angels will kill one-third of mankind (the non-religious wicked). When he has gained control of Earth, the devil will divide the spoils of Earth and he will appoint ten kings to rule over ten sectors. His puppet kings will control Earth. The surviving saints will run for their lives and hide in the desolate places of Earth. God will feed them and sustain them just as He did Elijah. (1 Kings 17:6)  With this setting in mind, consider Daniel’s words again. I have inserted phrases that complete the ideas already presented: “[At the time of the end] It [the horn power, the antichrist will] set itself up to be as great as the Prince of the host [Jesus]; it took away the [need for the] daily sacrifice from him, and the [exalted purpose or] place of his [intercession for sinners in Heaven’s] sanctuary was brought low [ridiculed]. Because of [extensive] rebellion, the host of the saints [were defeated] and the daily sacrifice were given over to it [brought to an end]. It [the Antichrist] prospered in everything it did, and truth was thrown to the ground [because truth was despised].” (Daniel 8:11,12, insertions mine.)

 

Arrogance and Blasphemy

 

“He [the Antichrist] will cause deceit to prosper, and he will consider himself superior [above the gods of all religions]. When they [his followers] feel secure [in his lies], he will destroy many [the non-religious-wicked] and take his stand against the Prince of princes [Jesus]. Yet he will be destroyed [by the sword that comes out of the mouth of Jesus], but not by human power.”(Daniel 8:25, insertions mine) The following specification about the horn power cannot be overlooked: “The king [of the North] will do as he pleases. He will exalt and magnify himself above every god and will say unheard-of things against the God of gods. He will be successful until the time of wrath is completed, for what has been [pre-] determined must take place… He [the Antichrist] will pitch his royal tents between the seas at the beautiful holy mountain. Yet he will come to his end, and no one will help him.” (Daniel 11:36,45)

 

Four elements stand out in these verses.

1.      Jesus Himself destroys the horn power in Daniel 8. (Daniel 8:25; 2 Thessalonians 2:8)

2.      The horn power of Daniel 8 will lead the whole world into a great deception. (Daniel 8:25; Revelation 13:14)

3.      The horn power of Daniel 8 will exalt himself above all of the gods that people worship. (Daniel 8:25, 11:36; 2 Thessalonians 2:4)

4.      The Antichrist will pitch his royal tents “between the seas at the beautiful holy mountain.”

 

Daniel indicates the devil will establish a throne in Jerusalem. What better way to stop the controversies between Christians, Arabs and Jews? The term “Holy Mountain” is used several times in the Old Testament as a reference to Jerusalem (the city of God, Mount Zion, Mount Moriah, etc.) It is well known that Jews, Muslims and Christians have roots in this ancient city. Perhaps the best reason for interpreting this specification just as it reads is that at the end, two kings will take their stand against each other. The stern-faced king of Daniel 8 establishes his kingdom and rules from ancient Jerusalem. The King of kings, however, will rule from His city, New Jerusalem. This is the good news! The stern-faced king will come to an end and no one among the wicked will be left to help him!

 

Gabriel’s Final Words

 

“The vision of the evenings and mornings that has been given you is true, but seal up the vision, for it concerns the distant future.” (Daniel 8:26) With these words, Gabriel left Daniel. It is interesting that Gabriel gave this vision a title. While the prophetic sequence concerns a ram, a goat, the appointed time of the end and a stern-faced king, Gabriel called it “The vision of the [2,300] evenings and mornings.” Evidently, Gabriel used this title to highlight the critical element within this vision. The most important element in Daniel 8 is the daily services in Heaven’s temple. The daily intercession of Jesus is the only thing that protects mankind from God’s wrath and the wrath of the destroyer! Even the words, 2,300 evenings and mornings reflect the time of the day when daily services were conducted. The date fro the cleansing Heaven’s temple was given in temple language! The bottom line in Daniel 8 is that a time is coming when the stern-faced king (the Antichrist) will cause Jesus’ daily intercession to cease. This is the worst possible thing that can happen to Earth’s inhabitants, because when Jesus terminates His intercession on behalf of sinners, the seven bowls of God’s wrath will be poured out without mercy. (Revelation 15 and 16)

 

Daniel was deeply distressed and very disturbed after seeing this vision. He did not understand what he had seen, but he did recognize enough to know the world would continue to spiral downward until Lucifer himself would be released upon humanity. The thought of this must have made him sick. Daniel writes, “I, Daniel, was exhausted and lay ill for several days. Then I got up and went about the king’s business. I was appalled by the vision; it was beyond understanding.” (Daniel 8:27)

 

Conclusion

 

This segment has been lengthy because Daniel 8 contains several critical building blocks in the matrix that is unfolding. If you still have questions, please review this segment to make sure you understand how the apocalyptic rules work and the results they produce. If the apocalyptic foundations in Daniel 2, Daniel 7 and Daniel 8 are not laid properly, the remaining prophecies in Daniel and Revelation cannot yield their intended meaning. If the foundation of a skyscraper is not solid, no amount of paint or ornamentation will compensate for it. We have seen all four rules at work in this chapter. The four rules have produced these conclusions for us:

 

Rule One. Daniel 8 is a prophecy that has a beginning point in time (538 B.C.) and an ending point in time (the destruction of the Antichrist at the Second Coming). The events in this prophecy occur in the order they were given: Ram – Goat – Horn Power.

 

Rule Two. The appearing of the Antichrist during the appointed time of the end is the only interpretation that meets all of the specifications given in this prophecy.

 

Rule Three. The Bible uses various types of language in this prophecy. For example, by reviewing seven Bible texts we found the direction of “north” not to be significant for the origin of the horn power. We also found “the starry hosts” to be used in five texts as a broad definition for false religions.

 

Rule Four. God measures the 2,300 days as years because God measures time according to the presence or absence of the Jubilee Calendar. This point will be amplified in our study of Daniel 9. 

 

Note: The Origin of the Antiochus IV Interpretation

 

From the 1500’s to the 1900’s, Protestants widely agreed the horn power of Daniel 8 was the papacy because Protestantism struggled against the Roman Catholic Church in much the same way that Christians struggled against Judaism. If history teaches anything, it is this: Religious institutions place loyalty and allegiance above the importance of truth. The reason behind this is simple. Over time, religious organizations embrace a collection of doctrines or teachings that they believe to be God’s will and any significant deviation from the body of knowledge are considered divisive and/or heretical.

 

During the 1,260 years of papal dominion, “the protestors” as they were first called, suffered imprisonment or death for challenging the authority of the church. Protestors claimed the Bible was the final authority in matters of faith. Church leaders were convinced that ecclesiastical authority and traditions were higher authority. This simple difference became the all-important distinction between Protestants and Catholics. As Protestants began to see that the church was unwilling to change, a number of “protester” preachers began to conclude that the church was anti-Christ. The Protestant position was bolstered by the prophetic fact that the little horn of Daniel 7 is the papacy. Protestors traced the history and power of the church (the little horn) back to its Roman origin. Because there is some similarity between the little horn of Daniel 7 and the horn power of Daniel 8, Protestants assumed that Daniel 8 was a repetition and enlargement of Daniel 7.

 

About the turn of the seventeenth century, two Jesuit scholars from Spain, Francisco Ribera and Luis de Alcasar, introduced counter-reformation theories to refute the claims of Protestants. Their objective was to use the Bible to defeat Protestants by openly refuting their prophetic interpretations with Scripture! As a result of their endeavors, two conflicting prophetic schemes emerged within the Catholic Church. Ribera’s findings, published in 1590, claimed that the Antichrist was a single male individual who would appear just before the Second Coming of Jesus. By showing the antichrist to be a single individual, Ribera thought he could defeat a principal argument of the Protestants. Most sixteenth century Protestants believed the popes occupied the seat of the Antichrist. In other words, Protestants did not believe the Antichrist was a single individual (the little horn of Daniel 7 is not a single individual). Ribera also claims that the Jews would receive the Antichrist as Messiah because of his miracles and then he would conquer the world in three and one half years.

 

Alcasar’s preterist position, published in 1614 was just the opposite. Alcasar’s position was based on the supposition that Revelation’s story was essentially fulfilled during the first century A.D. Alcasar concluded that Revelation described the victory of early Christians over the Jewish nation and the overthrow of pagan Rome in A.D. 476. He concluded that Nero was the Antichrist of Revelation. He also concluded that Antiochus Epiphanes IV was the horn power of Daniel 8.

 

When the opposing views were presented to the Protestants, they were not moved or impressed. For about two hundred years, Protestants stood firm and united on their prophetic position that the Roman Catholic Church was the Babylon of Revelation and the Antichrist was a succession of popes. In the early part of the nineteenth century, Protestantism began to change its mind because it became apparent to some Protestants that the Roman Catholic Church could not meet all of the specifications about the Antichrist in Daniel and Revelation. A survey of prophetic literature written by Protestants since 1826 shows how Protestant expositors began to drift away from their long-standing claim that the Roman Catholic Church was the Antichrist. Today, most Protestant expositors do not believe the Roman Catholic Church is Babylon and they do not believe the succession of popes is the Antichrist. It is ironic that three hundred years after Ribera published his works, the Protestant, C.I. Scofield, endorsed a modified version of Ribera’s counter-reformation claim and, as a result, most Protestants today accept the ideas advanced by Ribera.

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