By Mark W Swarbrick
The Mystery of the Antichrist & the Seventh Kingdom
If you find this article interesting you would probably like my book, End of Days: What the Bible Says Happens Next
Available on Amazon for just five dollars – Click HERE.
Most Christians know that Israel becoming a nation again in 1948 was a major fulfillment of end-time prophecy. But did you know that something happened in 1933 that was also a very important fulfillment of prophecy? This prophecy has to do with the coming of the Antichrist and its fulfillment may indicate the return of Christ is much closer than we think.
Daniel 8:23 has this ominous prophecy: “And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up.” This is the Antichrist, an evil ruler, opposed to God’s people that arises in the last days to rule the world with impunity.
Revelation Chapter 17 gives us a mysterious complex symbolic picture that gives clues to the identity of the Antichrist. The Apostle John did not understand all of the vision but he recorded it as he saw it. Daniel Chapter 12 also speaks of end-time events and in verse 9 the angel says, “Go your way, Daniel, for the words are shut up and sealed until the time of the end.” Now that the last days are so much closer, many of these prophecies are now unlocked and are being understood. The angel said: “None of the wicked shall understand, but those who are wise shall understand.” (Daniel 12:10)
The Apostle Paul told us, “The mystery of lawlessness is already at work…” (2 Thess 2:7). Ever since God’s creation Satan has been scheming against God and His people. God’s plan really got moving when he chose the Hebrews to be his chosen people, to be “a light to enlighten the gentiles.” (Luke 2:32) So as God moved forward with his plan, Satan moved forward with his. The “mystery of lawlessness” is Satan’s plan. The passage we are about to study will give us some insight into the devil’s plans.
Satan has been endeavoring for thousands of years to bring forth a nation to destroy Israel and derail God’s plans. Jesus said, “Salvation is from the Jews.” (John 4:22) Since Israel is central to God’s plan, the destruction of Israel is part of the “mystery of lawlessness.” Whenever you hear someone bashing Israel you are hearing someone influenced, either directly or indirectly, by the mystery of lawlessness, the demonic spirit of antichrist at work in the world. Nations have been hating on Jews and trying to wipe them out for thousands of years. Government leaders today try to solve the “middle-east problem” but they can’t. They can’t because they don’t understand the true enemy is Satan and it is a spiritual war with powerful demonic forces at play. It is the mystery of lawlessness at work.
Over the centuries Satan has endeavored to conger up a nation that would harass and defeat Israel. The study of history shows many such nations and scripture speaks of seven of them in particular. We are going to study Revelation 17:8-11. This scripture speaks of a “beast” which has seven heads. It says, “Then I saw a beast coming up out of the sea, having…seven heads.” (Rev 13:1) This beast represents Satan’s attempts to get nations to destroy Israel. The seven heads represent seven specific kings or kingdoms that Satan uses to do this.
If you are finding this article interesting you would probably like my book, The Pre-Trib Rapture. Available on Amazon for just $4.99. Click HERE to purchase.
Associated with each of these seven “beast kingdoms” is an antichrist figure, a king that directs the hatred and animosity toward the Jews. Now here is where it gets complicated. Sometimes the scripture uses “beast” to refer to all of these beast kingdoms, and other times it uses “beast” to refer to the king of one of the kingdoms, specifically to the one that will be The Antichrist. By studying the context you can determine which is meant.
Although the Bible speaks of many antichrists coming, it also says that there will be one big one – “The Antichrist” – that will come at the very end of the age. The Bible says he will be an extremely evil dictator, a man of “fierce countenance” with supernatural power. By lies, cunning and military might he gains control of the earth, establishing a one-world government with “authority over every tribe, people, language and nation.” (Rev 13:7) Scripture says “he will destroy to an extraordinary degree.” He is called “the man of sin,” the Beast,” “the little horn,” and “the Antichrist.” Of those days Jesus said, “For then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will.” (Matthew 24:21)
Revelation chapter 17
Clues to the identity of The Antichrist are found in Revelation chapter 17. If you are not familiar with that portion of scripture, you might want to take out your Bible and read that chapter before proceeding. The “beast” in the following passage is The Antichrist. The key passage is this:
Here is the mind which has wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits, and they are seven kings; five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; and when he comes, he must remain a little while. The beast which was and is not, is himself also an eighth and is one of the seven, and he goes to destruction.” (Rev 17:9-11)
This passage begins with “Here is the mind which has wisdom,” which means we need to put our thinking caps on and think outside the box to decode this passage. The woman that sits on the beast is a false religious system that is associated with each beast kingdom. More about that later. The main point I want you to examine now is that the seven heads represent seven kings. Look closely at verse 9 where it tells us the heads are seven kings:
“The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits, and they are seven kings…” Rev 17:9
The seven headed beast symbolizes seven “beast kingdoms.” A beast kingdom, as has been said, is a kingdom which Satan has used (or will use) to attempt to annihilate God’s people Israel. It is a kingdom that Satan infuses with his antichrist spirit. John said, “You have heard that Antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come.” Each of these seven empires has had an unholy hatred of the Jew and has taken action to destroy the race. All of them have been intensely anti-Semitic, pagan and worshiped false gods.
Attributes of a Beast Kingdom
- Persecutes God’s People with a strange supernatural hatred
- Characterized by false religion with emperor worship at its core
- A powerful militant dictatorial and cruel regime
The Identity of the 7 Beast Kingdoms
Now consider this line from the passage carefully:
“…five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; and when he comes, he must remain a little while.“ (Rev 17:10)
“Five have fallen.” This tells us that five beast kingdoms in John’s time had already come and gone. The Five were Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Media-Persia, and Greece. All of these kingdoms persecuted Israel and had fallen by John’s time.
“One is…” This means that the sixth beast kingdom existed in John’s time, and that was Rome. Rome ruled cruelly over Israel and in AD 70 destroyed Jerusalem and the Jewish temple. Rome worshiped it’s Caesars, idols and various gods and tortured and fed Christians alive to lions while Roman citizens watched in glee. Roman soldiers crucified Christ on the cross and the Roman empire cruelly persecuted the Christian Church. Daniel 7:7 calls the Roman empire a “beast, dreadful and terrifying and extremely strong; and it had large iron teeth.”
“The other has not yet come…” This speaks of the Seventh Kingdom. Now here it gets real interesting. The mysterious coming beast kingdom had not yet arisen in John’s time. Has it come yet?
A Clue…
“…and when he comes, he must remain a little while.” (Rev 17:10)
The “he” refers to the king of the seventh beast kingdom. This is a clue as to the identity of the mysterious seventh kingdom. That kingdom won’t last hundreds or thousands of years. As kingdoms go, it will have a very short life. It will only be around “a little while.” Since this is the seventh and last beast kingdom, when it arises earth will be very close to the end of the age. Has this last kingdom arisen yet? Here are the clues..
The seventh kingdom will be a beast kingdom that comes after John’s time. Remember the 6th kingdom was the one that “now is,” which was Rome. So the 7th kingdom would be a kingdom after the fall of Rome. Since it is a beast kingdom, it will have the three trademarks of a beast kingdom, but being the 7th beast kingdom, it will have a fourth attribute. The 7th Kingdom would be a kingdom that…
1. Persecutes God’s People (Jews or Christians) with a strange supernatural hatred…
2. Characterized by false religion or philosophy with Caesar (dictator) worship at its core…
3. A powerful militant cruel dictatorial regime
4. A kingdom that has arisen for only a short while and then was gone. “…and when he comes, he must remain a little while.” (Rev 17:10)
Have any kingdoms come since Rome that fit the criteria? Can you think of a regime that hated the Jews with unbelievable hatred? A regime, associated with a false religion, led by a fierce cruel deified dictator, whose reign lasted only a little while? Anything coming to mind?
You probably guessed it. The Nazi regime led by Adolf Hitler. Here are the four prophesied attributes of the 7th Kingdom as they manifested in NAZI Germany:
- 1. Persecution of God’s People – Hitler’s holocaust killed 6 million Jews. He hated the Jews with a supernatural hatred. He also hated the Christian Church. He tolerated it and gave lip service to it as he rose to power, but gradually his intentions to destroy the Church became evident. After he was finished with the Jews he intended to start in on the Christians. As he subtly began replacing Christian holidays with Pagan NAZI festivals, Hitler said, “Do you really believe the masses will ever be Christian again? Nonsense. Never again. The tale is finished…but we can hasten matters. The parsons will be made to dig their own graves.” and “It is through the peasantry that we shall really be able to destroy Christianity, because there is in them a true religion rooted in nature and blood.” and “One is either a German or a Christian. You can’t be both.”
- 2. False Religion – The core of NAZI religion was total devotion to Hitler and worship of him as a god. School children were taught to sing, “Adolf Hitler is our saviour, our hero. He is the noblest being in the whole wide world. For Hitler we live. For Hitler we die. Our Hitler is our Lord. Who rules a brave new world.” (See video of German children singing this HERE.) Before Hitler spoke a party leader would announce: “The party is Hitler, Hitler is Germany, and Germany is Hitler!” The NAZI religion or philosophy was Aryanism, with a mixture of occult mysticism mixed in. Their goal was to to breed a super god-man from pure German stock. The god of the NAZI religion (besides Hitler himself) was a pagan impersonal natural god, constituted of the harsh forces or laws of evolutionary nature that gave preeminence to the survival of the fittest which, they believed, gave the German people the moral right to rule the world and exterminate whoever was weaker. Hitler said, “The old beliefs will be brought back to honor again…The whole secret knowledge of nature, the divine, the demonic…we will wash off the Christian veneer and bring out a religion peculiar to our race.” Hitler’s statements reveal a religion featuring Satan’s lie originally fostered upon Eve in the Garden of Eden that man can become God. Said Hitler, “We don’t want people who keep one eye on the life hereafter. We need free men who feel and know that God is in themselves.”
- 3. A Powerful, Cruel, Dictatorship – Hitler’s blitzkrieg, or “lightning war,” featured overwhelming military force that occupied other nations at an alarming rate. Hitler’s fascination with armament knew no bounds and he was infamous for his cruelty. Forgetting to give the NAZI salute with “Heil Hitler!” could get you in a lot of trouble. Hitler’s Nazi Germany was like nothing else. Its rapid rise to power, Hitler’s uncanny mesmerisation of the German people, and its fierce wickedness which took the combined power of the rest of the world to stop, stands unique. More books have been written on Hitler than any other antichrist-type figure that ever lived. Is any face better known than his? Take a picture of Roosevelt, Stalin, Mussolini, Churchill and Hitler and show them on college campuses around the world. Everyone will know Hitler’s face, but not so with the others. It would be strange if such a kingdom as Hitler’s was not mentioned in scripture for he stands alone as something strange and unique.
- 4. A Kingdom of Short Duration – Nazi Germany only lasted 12 years; from 1933 to 1945. “and when he comes, he must remain a little while.” (Rev 17:10) NAZI Germany was clearly a beast kingdom that only lasted a short while, just as the prophecy predicted. The seventh king was Hitler. He fulfills the predictions of the prophecy perfectly. His kingdom was Nazi Germany. In 1933 when Hitler came to power the prophecy of the seventh kingdom was fulfilled.
The Beast
Let’s read the passage again before we proceed:
“The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to come up out of the abyss and go to destruction. And those who dwell on the earth, whose name has not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, will wonder when they see the beast, that he was and is not and will come. Here is the mind which has wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits, and they are seven kings; five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; and when he comes, he must remain a little while. The beast which was and is not, is himself also an eighth and is one of the seven, and he goes to destruction.” (Rev 17:8-11)
Thats a lot to wrap our brain around so lets just consider this one line for now:
“The beast which was and is not, is himself also an eighth and is one of the seven, and he goes to destruction…The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to come up out of the abyss and go to destruction…”
A Question –
This passage tells us that the Antichrist is one of the seven kings, but yet he is also an eighth king? How can the eighth king also be one of the seven? There is only one way. One of the seven kings is going to reign a second time, thus making him also an eighth king. But how is that possible? How can a kingdom reign twice? Think about it. One of the seven beasts, is going to also be an 8th beast with an 8th kingdom. Somehow one of these beasts is going to have a second coming. Satan often copies what God does. Just as Jesus has a second coming, the Bible is here giving us clues which speak of a second coming of The Antichrist.
Which of the seven kingdoms will also be an eighth? I submit that the 7th Kingdom of Adolf Hitler will also be the eighth beast kingdom, which will be the kingdom of the final main Antichrist of the Great Tribulation. Let me present the evidence.
Another Clue –
“The beast, which you saw, once was, now is not, and yet will come up out of the Abyss .” (Rev 17:8)
The Antichrist beast comes up out of the Abyss. What does that mean? What is the Abyss? The scripture says about the Abyss:
“’Who will descend into the Abyss?’ (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead).” (Romans 10:7)
In this passage Paul uses it specifically to mean “the realm of the dead.” This scripture shows that the Jewish mindset was that the Abyss was considered a place for the dead, or at least some dead. However, the term Abyss is also used in another way:
And he said, “Legion”; for many demons had entered him. They were imploring Him not to command them to go away into the Abyss. (Luke 8:31)
In this instance the Abyss referred to is something different than just merely the place of the dead. It is a place where evil spirits may be confined. Revelation 20:1-3 reveals more information about the Abyss:
“Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding the key of the Abyss and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold of the dragon, the serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; and he threw him into the Abyss, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he would not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were completed; after these things he must be released for a short time.”
Not only is the Abyss a place where evil spirits do not want to go but we see in the above passage that it is also a place where Satan will be confined for a time. God can imprison spirits in the Abyss and he can let them out if he chooses to.
What are evil spirits? In demonology, many demonic spirits are considered by some to be the disembodied spirits of the antediluvian giants, the Nephilim which were killed in the flood of Noah. (See Genesis Chapter 6) Demons want freedom to roam the earth, and to inhabit bodies, since they no longer have a body of their own. They can’t do that if they are imprisoned in the Abyss and that’s one reason they dread going there.
In the context of Revelation 17:8 we can think of the Abyss as a place where the disembodied spirits of at least some of the very wicked dead are held. It appears to be a particularly deep and dark recess of Hell which God uses to imprison extraordinarily wicked beings.
Scripture says that the beast comes up out of the Abyss. The question arises, how did he get there in the first place? Who, what and where was this beast before God through him into the Abyss? We know that the Antichrist is a man, the man of sin. So God must have thrown a man, or the soul of a man into the abyss at some point in time prior to him coming up out of the Abyss. All this would seem to indicate that the beast will be someone coming back from the dead, not as a ghost or spirit but as a human being. Either the Antichrist’s body is still intact in the Abyss, (Hitler’s body was never identified conclusively) or (I think this more likely) Hitler’s spirit will come back up out the Abyss and then re-inhabit his resurrected body.
Since Scripture says clearly that the Antichrist “was, and is not, and is about to come up…” and that he has a kingdom for only a short while and then later returns, and that the world is amazed because he is healed from a fatal wound, it all seems to add up to the Antichrist being someone who comes back from the dead.
An Objection –
Some believe that what comes out of the Abyss is Satan himself that possesses the Antichrist, so it is Satan who comes out of the Abyss. That is not possible because Satan is not now confined in the Abyss. He is eventually thrown into the Abyss, but that doesn’t happen until the end of the tribulation. Satan is the prince of the power of the air and he is free to roam at this time. Furthermore, scripture makes a clear distinction between Satan and the Antichrist (the beast). For example: “They worshiped the dragon because he gave his authority to the beast…” (Revelation 13:4)
Some say it is a fallen angel that comes up out of the Abyss, and then possesses the Antichrist, but that doesn’t jibe with scripture, which specifically says that it is the beast himself, the Antichrist, the man himself, which comes out of the Abyss. The Scripture says that the Antichrist is a man. Scripture calls him the “man of sin,” emphasis on “man.” Therefore It is a man that comes up out of the Abyss, not an evil spirit.
Now, if a man is in the Abyss, how did he get there? Souls of men are not born in the Abyss. They are created at conception and are in the body. So there is only one way for the beast, the man of sin, to get to the Abyss. He has to be born on earth and then die and then his spirit is confined in the Abyss.
For all of these reasons I think the beast coming up “out of the Abyss” means that the man of sin himself is coming out of the Abyss. God resurrects that man’s body and the spirit of that man is released from the Abyss and that wicked soul is reunited with his resurrected body.
Question –
We have seen so far that one of the 7 kings has a second coming: “The beast which was and is not, is himself also an eighth and is one of the seven.” But why do I say that it is the seventh king that is the one that is resurrected and reigns twice?
A Third Clue
“And they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.“ (Rev 17:8 KJV)
The world will be astonished with wonder when they SEE the beast. Why do they wonder? Because they realize that he WAS, and then he WAS NOT and now HE IS!
Now all of the seven kings were, that is they used to exist. All of them are not, that is, they don’t exist today. But one of them will come back to life and reign a second time and everyone will be amazed that he lives again. In order for people to be amazed at that, they will have to know what that king looked like when he reigned the first time. Now consider this: Only one of these seven can come back and have everyone know that he is a former king because only one of these kings existed during the time of photography and television. We know how this one looks and how he talks!
Adolf Hitler was the 7th beast, the “king of fierce countenance” (Daniel 8:23) that was prophesied to come. He is the only one of the seven that can come back from the dead and astound the world because everyone knows that he was and then he was not, and they will wonder when they see that he is again. He is the only one that can fulfill the prophecy such that, “those who dwell on the earth…will wonder when the see the beast, that he was and is not and will come.” (Rev 17:8 NASB) It has been over seventy years since Hitler reigned, yet you can turn on television nearly any day of the week and go to Discovery or History channel and see documentaries about Hitler and NAZI Germany. Hitler is the most infamous man of history. His face and his fierce countenance is recognized the world over as the epitome of evil and he is still worshiped by numerous vile organizations.
Adolf Hitler will rise from the dead, his soul shall come up out of the abyss and be reunited with his resurrected body. Hitler will be the coming Antichrist. In his second coming he will be The Antichrist! He may not be recognized at first. He will have supernatural powers of deception. His true countenance may at first be concealed but at some later point in time he might mimic Christ and have his own transfiguration. Perhaps when he sits down in the Jewish temple proclaiming himself to be God (2 Thess 2:4) his countenance will be fully revealed and show that he is indeed Hitler. Nothing could be more astounding, revolting and frightening for the Jews. Hitler, the architect of the holocaust, will have a statue of himself erected in the Jewish temple. That will truly be an abomination to the Jews, and that is exactly what the Bible calls it in Matthew 24:15: The abomination of desolation.
Although the idea of God resurrecting Hitler sounds so astounding as to be unbelievable, there is precedent. At the time of Christ’s resurrection God resurrected many people from the dead.
“And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth shook and the rocks were split. The tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out of the tombs after His resurrection they entered the holy city and appeared to many.” (M’t 27:51-53)
Scripture tells us in 2 Thess 2:7-8, “he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way. Then that lawless one will be revealed…” The presence of the Holy Spirit alive in all believers has been a restraining force, holding back evil. Once the Church is raptured, the restraining influence of the Holy Spirit upon evil is removed with the Church. Then the Antichrist can be revealed and the world will accept him. God will then give the wicked world the man they want. God will resurrect Hitler and the world will be amazed when they see him and say, “Who is like the beast, and who is able to wage war with him?” (Revelation 13:4)
Although some may object that God has never resurrected a wicked man before, we must realize that many strange things happen during the Great Tribulation. Angels fly through the sky declaring God’s truth. Scorpion-locusts sting people and torment them so badly that they try to kill themselves and yet they can’t die. Two Witnesses preach in Jerusalem and fire comes from their mouths to kill anyone who would harm them. Eventually they are killed and then after three days they are resurrected and caught up to heaven. The sea turns to blood. Unprecedented things happen during this time. Jesus said it would like no other time of trouble in history. One of the most wicked men of history coming to life is not out of place in such a scenario.
Recap
Seven Beast kingdoms are mentioned in Scripture. A beast kingdom opposes God and His people. The kingdoms are:
- Egypt – Pharaoh (Thutmosis III) enslaved the Jews and he tried to destroy the race by ordering all the male children drowned. See Exodus 1
- Assyria – Exceedingly wicked kingdom and it’s destruction of Israel was severe. In 722 B.C. Tiglath-pileser (See 2 Kings 15:29) took the 10 northern tribes into captivity. (See 2 Kings 17:7-23).
- Babylon – Nebuchadnezzar marched on Israel on 3 occasions – 606, 589 and 586 B.C. He destroyed Solomon’s temple and took the two southern tribes into captivity, and put an end to the rule of King David’s royal reign. This empire was represented in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream as the “head of gold.” See Dan 2:31, 36-38.
- Medo-Persia – In 474 B.C. in the reign of Xerxes, the evil Haman of Persia plotted to kill all the Jews in 127 provinces in Persia. Esther interceded on behalf of her people – Esther 7:3-6. This empire was represented in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream as the “breasts and arms of silver.” See Dan 2:39, 8:20.
- Greece – After Alexander the Great died, his kingdom was divided among 4 generals. It was from one of these 4, Seleceus, who was given Syria to rule. Following him, a very wicked and prideful king, Antiochus Epiphanes ruled over Syria and he was a great persecutor of Israel. He was responsible for sacrificing a pig on the altar, desecrating the rebuilt temple and murdering a large numbers of Jews (Dan 11:31). This empire was represented in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream as the “belly and thighs of brass.” See Dan 2:39, 8:21-25.
- Rome – Several Roman rulers personified the evil persecution of the saints; Nero, Domitian…Titus was responsible for the utter destruction of Jerusalem and the temple in 70 AD. This empire was represented in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream as the “2 legs of Iron, representing West-Rome and East-Constantinople.” See Dan 2:40-43. Israel was dispersed and not to be restored again until 1948.
- A mysterious kingdom, likely Nazi/Germany – After the Roman empire, John reveals that a mystery kingdom will arise before the final 10-nation revived Roman empire. See Rev 17:10,11. I believe John was prophesying of Adolf Hitler and the Third Reich, who had an unholy hatred of the Jew. The holocaust was a period of extreme anti-Semitism and a time of the most uncivilized acts in history toward the Jewish race. Hitler/Germany only ruled for a short span of time, just as the Bible predicted. The king of the seventh kingdom was Adolf Hitler and scripture says he will have a second coming and when he comes again (as the eighth kingdom) out of the Abyss, that is, up from the dead. He will then be The Antichrist.
The Resurrected Beast
Consider how plainly Scripture speaks of the Antichrist coming back to life:
“Then I saw a beast coming up out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads…I saw one of his heads as if it had been slain, and his fatal wound was healed. And the whole earth was amazed and followed after…the beast who had the wound of the sword and has come to life.” (Rev 13:1,3,14)
Interesting to note is this: The word “slain” in Rev 13:3 is the Greek word “esphagmenen” which means literally “slaughtered to death.” Young’s Literal Translation reads at verse 3, “And I saw one of its heads as slain to death.” Hitler shot himself in the head while ingesting cyanide poison and then his body was soaked with gasoline and burned. I would call that being “slaughtered to death.” To see a short interview with the Nazi SS officer who burned Hitler’s body, click HERE.
In the past, books, movies and teachings have suggested that the Antichrist would be shot in the head and then very shortly thereafter come back to life, and that this amazes the world. Let’s consider that scenario and I will demonstrate that depiction is not completely accurate. The portrayal of the Antichrist being wounded in the head is not necessarily correct. If you look at the passage closely you can see that it is not the Antichrist himself who is wounded in the head. The prophecy says, in verse one, it is the beast coming up out of the sea that has “one of his heads” slaughtered to death. The beast in verse one is not the Antichrist. That beast is all seven kingdoms together as the mystery of lawlessness. Each head of that beast is a king of one of those kingdoms. In subsequent verses where it speaks of “one of his heads” having a fatal wound, it is referring to one of the seven kings as the Antichrist, which is also called a beast. So it is not speaking of the Antichrist’s head being fatally wounded, it means the Antichrist himself is fatally wounded. I reiterate, it is the Antichrist himself being totally killed, slain and slaughtered to death, not just wounded in the head.
If you find this article interesting you would probably like my book, Heavenly Miracles: True Stories of Supernatural Intervention. Available on Amazon for just five dollars – Click HERE.
Furthermore the “quick revival” scenario doesn’t fit the facts. If the Antichrist is killed and comes back to life in only a day or so, that does not allow time for the eighth kingdom to also be one of the seven. Remember, the first reign of the seventh king is only for “a little while” and then he returns, coming up out of the Abyss. None of that fits in a scenario where the Antichrist is killed for a few hours or days. But if you understand that Antichrist is killed, or slaughtered to death, during a time of past history, as Hitler was, and then coming back to life many decades later, then suddenly everything falls into place. Also the “quick revival” theory does not really fit the “Was, is not, yet is (or will come)” passages.
A final point is that nearly all views recognizes that the Antichrist has a resurrection of some sort. The prophecy specifically says that the Antichrist “came back to life.” (Rev 13:14 NLT). The only difference is that in my suggested scenario it is not a short term quick revival situation. Instead of hours or days between death and resurrection of the Antichrist, I propose decades of years. A final point is that in ages of modern medicine many people have been wounded severely, even shot in the head, even had their heart stop beating, and were brought back and survived. The quick revival scenario would not be all that impressive to the modern world, not so much as coming back after decades, which would truly cause the whole world to wonder and say, “Who is like the beast?”
So to give a quick synopsis: Four passages of scripture point to the Antichrist being a resurrected man coming back from the dead at a later time in history with a second coming of his kingdom.
1. “The beast that comes up out of the abyss…” (Rev 11:7) – Back from the dead
2. “The beast which was and is not, is himself also an eighth and is one of the seven…” (Rev 17:11) – Second Coming
3. “Was, is not, yet is…” (or “will come”) (Rev 17:8) – Back from the dead & Second Coming
4. “His fatal wound was healed…(he) has come to life.” (Rev 13:14) – Resurrection
Ten Similarities Between Hitler and The Antichrist
If the second coming of Hitler is the final Antichrist, then we should expect to see a semblance between Hitler and what the Bible says the Antichrist will be like. Interestingly enough, there are an astounding plethora of eerie similarities. What Hitler tried to do, wanted to do, and had tendencies toward, we will find in his second coming to come to complete fulfillment.
1. The Holocaust – Hitler killed six million Jews (God’s chosen people) and persecuted and murdered Christians as well. Scripture says of the Antichrist: “Then the beast was permitted to wage war against the saints and conquer them…” (Rev 13:7) The Antichrist will institute a second holocaust.
2. World Domination – Hitler desired to conquer the entire world by war. So will the Antichrist. “The beast was permitted to wage war…and it was given authority over every tribe and people and tongue and nation.”
3. A Fierce Countenance – Hitler’s ferocious face and his angry animated oratories spiced with hatred to the Jews are legendary. The book of Daniel describes the Antichrist as “a king of fierce countenance” (Daniel 8:23)
4. Has a False Prophet – Heinrich Himmler was second in command after Hitler. Himmler was devoted to Hitler and also was fanatically dedicated to infusing the NAZI party with the religious and occult undertones of their philosophy. Hitler spoke of Himmler as being “my Ignatius of Loyola.” Hitler was referring to Himmler’s religious function in the Third Reich.
Ignatius of Loyola was the Catholic priest who founded and commanded the religious order of the Jesuits. The Jesuit priests were bound by a vow of special obedience to the Pope. Hitler’s analogous comparison between Himmler and Ignatius shows both Himmler’s religious position within the NAZI party as well as his special devotion to Hitler. Heinrich Himmler was Hitler’s false prophet. The Antichrist will also have a false prophet. Rev 13:11-18 tells of the false prophet who seduces the world to worship the Antichrist and his image.
5. Revived Roman Empire – Hitler referred to his reign as the “Third Reich.” According to Wikipedia, “Reich is typically used in German to designate a kingdom or an empire, especially the Roman Empire.” The First Reich was the Holy Roman Empire of the German nation, which lasted from the coronation of Otto I as a holy Roman emperor in 962 to 1806, when it was dissolved in the Napoleonic wars. The Second Reich was from 1871 to 1919, when Germany was defeated in WW I. The Third Reich was Hitler’s reign from 1933 to 1945.
The Fourth Reich will be when Hitler returns as the Antichrist. Scripture says that the last beast kingdom of Antichrist will be a revived Roman Empire. (Daniel 9:26 & 2:40-43) Daniel 9:26 calls the Antichrist “the prince who is to come,” and says that the people of that evil prince will “destroy the city and the sanctuary.” That happened when Titus of Rome destroyed Jerusalem in AD 70.
This means that the people of the Antichrist will be Romans. Therefore the Antichrist arises out of a revived Roman Empire, and such an empire is the very thing that Hitler saw himself as bringing back, and he will do it to the uttermost when he comes again. Germany was in the heart of the old Roman empire. Hitler tried to revive it. When he comes again, he will succeed.
6. No Interest in Women – Hitler’s relationship to women was strange. Hitler created a public image of a celibate man, dedicated entirely to his political mission and the nation. He did have girlfriends. Four of them attempted suicide. Two succeeded. Eva Braun was with Hitler for 14 years and they often cohabited during that time, however Eva became so frustrated with Hitler’s lack of interest in intimacy that she asked Hitler’s physician Dr Theodor Morell to give him hormone injections. Eva would complain to her close friends that Hitler gave more affection to his dog than to her. Her jealousy prompted her to kick the dog when Hitler was not around.
Hitler refused to marry Eva, saying he was married to Germany, but relented mere hours before they both committed suicide. Scripture says the Antichrist will have no interest in women: “Neither shall he regard…the desire of women.” Although women desired Hitler and even tried to kill themselves over losing him, he had no regard for their desires. The tendency in Hitler to avoid a normal domestic life will be more pronounced when he returns. (Daniel 11:37)
7. No Regard for Any God – Hitler gave lip service to God in writing and speeches only to fool the public for political reasons. Privately he derided Christianity as a foolish myth. The entire emphasis in Nazism was to extol Hitler as their messiah and fuhrer. Scripture says of the Antichrist: “Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers…nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all.” (Daniel 11:37)
8. Honors the God of Forces – In his book Mein Kampf Hitler speaks of the forces or laws of nature in reference to the biological evolution of man, the survival of the fittest, and, he says, these evolutionary laws prove the right of a strong nation to conquer a weaker one. In his rhetoric, he seems to elevate these evolutionary laws or forces to be equivalent to God. Himmler, who some called “Hitler’s witch doctor,” led a mystical brotherhood which devoted itself to strange and elaborate occult rituals. Fortune tellers, psychics and astrologers all sat on the advisory committee of the SS. Large sums of money were portioned off for Himmler’s occult research. When Hitler’s Italian ally, Mussolini, was captured and imprisoned in a secret location, occultists were used to successfully discern his hidden location. Crack SS troops were quickly flown out on a successful rescue mission to retrieve Mussolini. Scripture says of the Antichrist: “But in his estate shall he honour the god of forces: and a god whom his fathers knew not…” When Hitler returns as the final Antichrist he will have Satan’s power, but he won’t call it that. He will say, as a highly evolved human, he has learned to “use the force” as they would say in Star Wars.
This God of forces is not a god in the classical sense, since the sentence before says that Antichrist honors no god at all. The “god of forces” is just what Hitler and his regime called god; principles of nature, metaphysical laws to occulticly force their evil will upon the natural world. Young’s Literal Translation calls it “the god of strongholds.” which is reminiscent of Ephesians 6:12, “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” and 2 Co 10:4 which tells us that the Christian’s weapons are “mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds.” This falls right in line with what the New Testament tells us; that the Antichrist is “the one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders…” (2 Thess 2:9).
So to review this point, scripture says the Antichrist does not “regard any God” yet it also tells us he will “honor the god of forces.” Antichrist’s god is an impersonal power that can be appropriated by occult practices. Thus, the Antichrist does not honor “any god” in the sense of a conventional deity – yet he honors the interpretive system of metaphysical esoteric pseudo-science that seeks to relegate the true power of the universe to an eternal force that can be harnessed for personal ambitions. In other words, Satan’s power wrapped in a cloak of occult mysticism.
9. Uses a Foreign God as an Ally – Hitler met with the al-Husseini, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, the highest ranking Muslim political leader in Palestine who was virulently anti-Semitic, being devoted to their scripture which says, “kill the Jews wherever you find them.” Hitler had Al-Husseini regularly broadcast propaganda over Nazi-controlled radio stations. Al-Husseini said the Muslims under his sway “were prepared to cooperate with Germany with all their hearts and stood ready to participate in the war.” At Himmler’s suggestion, Hitler raised a division of Muslim SS. While Hitler used Islam to further his aims he simultaneously planned to invade America. (See Target America HERE.)
The Bible says this about the Antichrist: “He will take action against the strongest of fortresses with the help of a foreign god” When Hitler returns as the Antichrist he will do the exact same thing again. Although he himself has no regard for any god, he will use the help of a foreign god, Allah, to accomplish his purposes. The Antichrist will use Muslims as an ally in attacking Israel and, a super-power that defends Israel (America?). As we see the rise of radical Islam with hate for Israel we can see all the players falling into place and we realize how close we are to the end.
10. The Religion of the Third Reich and 666 – The religion of Nazism had a three-fold center upon man. First and foremost, Hitler was their god. It was all about him. Everyone had to greet one another with Heil Hitler or risk death or imprisonment. Secondly, the German people were the master race. They had descended from gods from the heavens that had inhabited mythical Atlantis. Third, they were going to engineer a race of supermen. They intended to create the Ubermensch, which translates as over-man, beyond-man, or superman.
To accomplish this they merely had to exterminate inferior races and individuals while manipulating the gene pool through control of who is allowed to mate. The Nazi plan implemented eugenics programs designed to improve the genetic quality of the human population through forced sterilization and abortion of those considered inferior. The Nazi’s Lebensborn program encouraged single German girls of “pure blood” to mate (not marry) with SS officers who were selected for their especially Aryan pure blood in order to provide more highly evolved offspring. Hitler said, “It is my ultimate aim to perform an act of creation, a divine operation, the goal of a biological mutation which will result in an unprecedented exaltation of the human race and the appearance of a new race of heroes, demi-gods and god-men.” The Antichrist will take this to a whole new level, putting himself forward as the example of the next level of evolution and he will have a breeding program that is literally out of this world.
The Mark of the Beast
Now consider the mark of the beast: 666. Revelation 13:18: “Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for the number is that of a man; and his number is six hundred and sixty-six.” The beginning phrase, “Here is wisdom” tells us this is a riddle to solve. Indeed it is the mother of all riddles. It is, to borrow a phrase from Winston Churchill, “a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma.”
The number was originally penned in Greek and looks like this: χξϛ and it is transliterated as Chi–Xi–Stigma which are the numbers 600, 60 and 6. Lets not add them and make six hundred sixty six, as is usually done. Instead, lets take them individually, as a triad of numbers. Scripture gives us a clue, “the number is that of a man.” Man was created on the sixth day. In scripture the number 6 represents man or mankind.
So consider that each of these three numbers represents a man or men. Remember that the philosophy of Hitler’s regime was centered on three groups of men – Hitler, the German race, and the soon-to-be created super-race of men that they intended to make. So think of Hitler as the single fuhrer. He was the 6 (Stigma or ϛ). The German or Aryan people were the 60 (Xi or ξ). The superman race they wished to breed to take over the whole world would be the 600 (Chi or χ).
When Hitler comes back as the Antichrist he will have a new breeding program. He will promise to alleviate sickness and prolong life through the creation of a superman race, claiming this is the next step in human evolution. He will claim his demonic super powers are an example of the new man. Scripture says “God will send them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie…” (2 Thess 2:11). This will be Antichrist’s big lie, built upon the foundation of the theory of evolution.
The Antichrist’s program will be much more extensive and diabolical than Hitler’s first attempt. Through the help of supposed benevolent aliens, who are actually evil spirits, he will encourage strange genetic manipulation, perhaps once again through fallen angels interbreeding with humans as in Genesis Chapter 6 (See my article on that HERE). Daniel 2:43 may indicate this when it says, “they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men…” He will promise miraculous health and wealth to those who follow him and declare their allegiance to him and his plans through taking the mark of the beast.
Consider the increase in UFO sightings, the interest in paranormal activity, Hollywood’s promotion of the idea that alien life seeded earth with the DNA instructions to trigger man’s evolution, the constant promotion of evolution, and the indoctrination of our need to use space travel to reach a new world due to supposed global warming destroying this one. When you take all that together, it is easy to see that Satan is laying the groundwork for the Antichrist’s master plan of deception.
To recap, in the Antichrist’s second reign, the 6 (Stigma) is the Antichrist, the 60 (Xi) will be those who follow him and take his mark, and the 600 (Chi) represents the Antichrist’s promise that we will mingle our seed with the aliens (fallen angels) and become a super-race that will (he will say) travel to the stars and rule the universe. Satan was the first to pompously say, “I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars…I will be like the most high…” (Isaiah 14:13-14). Antichrist will promise the stars to mankind if they worship him.
Antichrist is said to be “a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences” (Daniel 8:23). Young’s Literal Translation has it, “understanding hidden things.” It may be that due to Hitler’s soul being confined with demons in the Abyss for a time, he comes back as Antichrist with an otherworldly intelligence and understanding of quantum physics and dimensions that allows him to manipulate reality through Satanic power which he will use to sell his big lie.
There seems to be a correlation between Hitler and the mark of the beast and 666 (or 600, 60, 6). Both Hitler and the Antichrist have an occult religion that is man centered, first upon Hitler or the Antichrist, Secondly upon the Germans or Antichrist’s followers, Thirdly upon all of mankind being a super-race or the Antichrist as the example and leader of all men to rule the universe.
This interpretation of the 666 is my own idea that came to me as I studied and prayed. I have not seen it suggested anywhere else. Whether it is correct, I do not know. I submit it to the judgment of the Church and put it out there for everyone’s consideration. In any event, the correlation between Hitler’s plans and what the Antichrist will likely do is interesting to ponder.
The Woman Who Rides the Beast
While we are considering the religion of Hitler and the Antichrist I must say a few words about the woman who rides the beast. Revelation 17:3,16-17 says: “I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast, full of blasphemous names, having seven heads and ten horns…And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire. For God hath put in their hearts to fulfill his will…“
The ten horns represent the revived Roman Empire which will be a ten-nation confederacy that is led by the Antichrist. The woman represents false pagan religion in each of the beast kingdoms. In the eighth kingdom of Antichrist this will manifest as an end-time worldwide religious system that is associated with a great city. Antichrist will at first have a symbiotic relationship with this world-wide religion, probably for political reasons. This church will claim to be Christian, but will be completely apostate. Scripture says the Antichrist can’t come “Unless the apostasy comes first…” (2 Thess 2:3).
We see the forerunner of this in mainline denominations that ordain homosexuals, deny the accuracy of the Bible and promote an ecumenicism that seeks to include Muslims and is willing to sacrifice biblical truth in order to unite the churches into one organization. This tendency coalesces after the Rapture into an apostate one-world super church. With all Christians gone from all Catholic and Protestant churches they will come together as one great religious organization which cooperates with the Antichrist. Nevertheless Antichrist still hates her for the simple reason that she represents Christian history and still carries the Christian name. It is a challenge to Antichrist’s power so he destroys her.
Interestingly, Hitler had a similar attitude to the largely lukewarm Christian churches in Germany. He tolerated them, worked with them and they with him. Nevertheless, Hitler had plans for their destruction at some point. Of the Christian ministers Hitler said, “If I ever have the slightest suspicion they are getting dangerous, I will shoot the lot of them…we have no sort of use for a fairy story invented by the Jews.” The same strange antithetical dichotomy existed between Hitler and occultists and astrologers. His regime was infused with them and used them, yet later Hitler turned on them and put them in concentration camps.
Change Times and Law
Daniel 7:25 says, “He will speak out against the Most High and wear down the saints of the Highest One, and he will intend to make alterations in times and in law…” The NIV has it, “try to change the set times and the laws…” Hitler tried to change Christian holidays to pagan Nazi festivals and he instituted what came to be known as the Nuremberg Laws. These laws were designed to preserve the supposed Aryan purity of the German race by controlling who could marry. For this Germany copied the laws passed by the American Democratic party to prevent blacks and whites from marrying. They simply substituted the word “Jewish” for “Negro.”
The Antichrist will no doubt attempt to alter the world’s calendar, which counts time from the advent of Christ, for he will absolutely hate that. It can be expected that any holidays with any Christian history will be outlawed. Laws that support individual freedom will give way to laws that support a hive mentality centered upon one-world government and worship of the Antichrist.
Conclusion
In conclusion, I reiterate, that if it is true that Nazi Germany was the seventh kingdom, a major end-time prophecy has been fulfilled, which makes us realize that our Lord’s return may indeed be very close! As Jesus says in Luke 21:28, “And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.”
“Understanding the present time…The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave decently…not in dissension and jealousy. Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ…” (Romans 13:11-14)
Who will follow Hitler in his second coming? Practically the whole world and you can see the world turning increasingly antisemitic. Once all the Christians are raptured, no one will be left that even cares what Hitler did to the Jews. When the war ended in 1945, John F Kennedy wrote:
“Within a few years Hitler will emerge from the hatred that surrounds him now as one of the most significant figures who ever lived. He had boundless ambitions for his country which rendered him a menace to the peace of the world, but he had a mystery about him in the way that he lived and in the manner of his death that will live and grow after him. He had in him the stuff of which legends are made.” – John F. Kennedy ‘Prelude To Leadership – The European Diary of John F. Kennedy – Summer, 1945. Regnery Publishing, Inc. Washingon, DC. p 74
The last words of Hitler to his aid, Heinz Linge, just before he killed himself are ominous. He had informed him that he was committing suicide and that his followers should “break up and scatter to the West.” To which his aid replied, “For whom should we fight now?” Hitler, in a monotone voice, said, “Für den Mann der kommt nach mir” which translates, “For the man who comes after me.” Was Satan speaking through him of the coming of his Antichrist?
Below is the comment section and I encourage comments and discussion on this in the spirit of mutual respect and Christian love. I will be the first to say that I may be mistaken about many things I have written in this article. Prophecy is sometimes a complicated riddle to solve. I have written it as I see things now. I will look forward to hearing the ideas and comments of others.
The Mystery of the 7th Kingdom
Video Compiled by Mark W Swarbrick
Want to leave a comment? Scroll to the bottom of the page.
If you found this article interesting you would probably like my book, End of Days: What the Bible Says Happens Next
Available on Amazon for just five dollars – Click HERE.
Books by Mark Swarbrick…
For more information on Jimmy Swaggart Ministries, get my book, Swaggartism: The Strange Doctrines of Jimmy Swaggart Ministries, available now on Amazon in paperback, Kindle eBook, and audio book, starting at only $6.99. For information click HERE.
Available in Paperback and Kindle eBook – 266 pages of documented facts!
Evolution Exposed: The Biblical and Scientific Evidence against Evolution
Author Mark Swarbrick unequivocally and convincingly illustrates the intrinsic incongruity between evolution and biblical Christianity.
275 pages of truth! Available in Paperback, Kindle eBook, and Audio Book. Only $6.99 – Click HERE to purchase at Amazon.
Real Science vs Evolution: The Scientific Evidence against Evolution
Real Science vs Evolution offers a succinct analysis outlining why evolution, in its divergence from established scientific laws, fails to align with the foundational principles of genuine scientific inquiry.
Available in Paperback, Kindle eBook, and Audio Book. Only $3.99 – Click HERE to purchase at Amazon.
Seventh-Day Adventism Examined: A Concise Summary of Adventism’s Unbiblical Doctrines
Author Mark Swarbrick meticulously dissects the myriad of false teachings within Adventism, contrasting these interpretations with scriptural truth.
Available in Paperback, Kindle eBook, and Audio Book. Only $3.99 – Click HERE to purchase at Amazon.
The Pre-Trib Rapture: Biblical Truth of the Blessed Hope
In his book, The Pre-Trib Rapture, author Mark Swarbrick meticulously outlines the extensive biblical support for a Pre-Trib Rapture, emphasizing the deliverance of the Church before the onset of the impending Tribulation period.
Available in Paperback, Kindle eBook, and Audio Book. Only $3.99 – Click HERE to purchase at Amazon.
Hidden History: The Untold Story of the Democratic Party
The political narrative in America has transcended the realm of politics to become a battle between the forces of good and evil. It is essential that all Christians are informed on the anti-Christian direction of the Democratic Party.
200 pages of factual history! Available in Paperback, Kindle eBook, and Audio Book. Only $3.99 – Click HERE to purchase at Amazon.
The Covid Conspiracy: The Cure for Covid and the Plot to Hide it from the World
The Covid Conspiracy tells the incredible story of diabolical collusion between multinational drug companies, governmental regulatory agencies, and unscrupulous politicians.
Available in Paperback, Kindle eBook, and Audio Book. Only $2.99 – Click HERE to purchase at Amazon.
The Carnivore Diet: The Science, the Promise, and the Pitfalls
Author Mark Swarbrick thoroughly explains the diet, telling of his experiences with it and how it has radically improved his health in a short amount of time. One chapter deals with the current war on meat and what the Bible has to say about those who forbid eating meat.
Available in Paperback, Kindle eBook, and Audio Book. Only $2.99 – Click HERE to purchase at Amazon.
Heavenly Miracles: True Stories of Supernatural Intervention
When the author saw how demons flee at the name of Jesus, his growing faith resulted in numerous miracles in his life and ministry.
Available in Paperback, Kindle eBook, and Audio Book. Only $2.99 – Click HERE to purchase at Amazon.
King James Onlyism: Is the KJV the Best Bible Version?
KJV Onlyists have troubled the hearts of many a Christian and have split churches in half. Controversy, factions, and strive are their forte. No doubt, they are sincere, but they are sincerely wrong.
Available in Paperback, Kindle eBook, and Audio Book. Only $2.99 – Click HERE to purchase at Amazon.
End of Days: What the Bible Says Happens Next
Within the pages of this book, you will find sound biblical exegesis of end-time prophecy. With careful historical analysis and fresh insight, the author reveals previously unknown prophetic fulfillments that transpired during World War II.
Available in Paperback, Kindle eBook, and Audio Book. Only $2.99 –Click HERE to purchase eBook or Audio Book. To purchase paperback, click HERE.
The Hidden Truth about Catholicism
If you are a Catholic this book is for you. With loving respect, this book gives a detailed account of the history of Catholicism with an in-depth analysis of Catholic teachings.
Available in Paperback, Kindle eBook, and Audio Book. Only $2.99 – Click HERE to purchase at Amazon.
Life after Death: What Happens When We Die?
A refutation of soul sleep, the idea that people are unconscious or nonexistent until God raises their bodies from the dead at the resurrection.
Available in Paperback, Kindle eBook, and Audio Book. Only $2.99 – Click HERE to purchase at Amazon.
Mormonism Examined: The Bizarre History and Unbiblical Doctrines of Mormonism
This is not an anti-Mormon rant, but a thoughtful analysis of Mormonism in the light of the Holy Bible and historic Christian doctrine.
Available in Paperback, Kindle eBook, and Audio Book. Only $4.99 – Click HERE to purchase at Amazon.
Truly Amazing: The Real Story of Adam and Eve
Children get bombarded with confusion about gender, marriage, and evolution at a very young age. This book shows what God has to say on these crucial matters. This book is a creation story for kids that explains the creation and the fall in an interesting way that children can relate to.
Available in Paperback, Kindle eBook, and Audio Book. Only $2.99 – Click HERE to purchase at Amazon.
Global Warming: Socialism in Disguise
In “Global Warming Examined,” Mark Swarbrick compellingly illustrates how genuine scientific data contradicts the prevalent political narrative of an imminent climate crisis. Drawing on insights from esteemed scientists, he dismantles the fallacious belief in man-made global warming as a cataclysmic threat.
Available in Paperback, Kindle eBook, and Audio Book. Only $3.99 – Click HERE to purchase at Amazon.
Beyond Redemption: Love and Longing in the Old West (Book 1) A thrilling historical western and romance packed with Gospel truth. A perfect gift for someone you want to share the Gospel with. Here is what one reader said about Beyond Redemption: THIS READ IS A GRIPPING JOURNEY back in time to the rugged Wild West, where love, justice, and redemption entwine in a tale that will leave you captivated. Author Mark Swarbrick skillfully weaves historical detail into this action-packed narrative, giving readers an authentic and suspenseful experience. The story revolves around Cal Chandler, an unlikely outlaw forced into a life of crime, and his love for Jessica Lorena McKenzie, a devout Christian, creating a captivating clash of faiths and emotions. For fans of historical depth, “Beyond Redemption” is a must-read that brings the people of the Wild West to life as they truly were.” — Jerry Rubenstein
Available in Paperback, Kindle eBook, and Audio Book. Only $6.99 – Click HERE to purchase at Amazon.
Beyond Redemption: War & Peace in the Old West (Book 2)
The Second Book in the Beyond Redemption series. How the characters prayerfully deal with their challenges is a testament to the changing power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Available in Paperback, Kindle eBook, and Audio Book. Only $9.99 – Click HERE to purchase at Amazon.
Other books by Pastor Mark Swarbrick, click the image below…
Very well done. Very convincing argument.
Just one thing: The TRIGGER for the introduction of the best SPIRIT from the Abyss is the “death” and resuscitation of the AntiChrist who’s deadly head-wound is miraculously healed. This doesn’t not mean that the man history knew as Hitler is going to be resurrected.
The “beast” that ascends out of the Abyss actually turns out to be a demon or unclean spirit:
“And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.” (Revelation 16:13)
Therefore, it would seem that it would be better to conclude that the same DEMON SPIRIT that inhabited Hitler of the 7th Kingdom (Nazi Germany) will simply reprise its role on earth as an anti-Semitic megalomaniac dictator.
I don’t think anyone would argue that Hitler was a demoniac, that is, possessed by a demon spirit from the Abyss. Remember how there was a distinction made between the earthly ruler of Tyre (a mortal, historical king) and the supernatural, invisible King of Tyre (Satan) in the Book of Ezekiel?
In like manner, Hitler was a mere puppet of the Third Reich, manipulated and controlled by the true rule of Nazi Germany, an invisible demon not unlike the “Prince of Persia” in the Book of Daniel. It’s this UNCLEAN SPIRIT that inhabited Hitler, not the human spirit of the man Hitler, that will ascend from the Abyss.
And, yes, the Lord has indeed resurrected SAVED people before, but never has He revived a demoniac like Hitler who are condemned and serving out their eternal sentences. There are no second chances for the damned tormented in Hell to roam the earth again. They died in their sins, have been judged (John 3:18).
Finally, there is one final reason why Hitler cannot live again in the body of the revived AntiChrist:
“And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:” (Hebrews 9:27)
This passage plainly states that, after JUDGEMENT in Hell, you cannot be resurrected and die a SECOND time. There is no loophole to this stipulation.
Aside from this, I generally agree with the theory you have proposed. Just know that, according to Revelation 16:11, the “beast” will be an UNCLEAN SPIRIT that ascends from the Abyss and not a HUMAN spirit.
peace
Hi Curtis and thank you for your compliment and your comments. I appreciate your well-thought-out observations and your taking the time to share them. Let me begin by saying, I may be mistaken and my theory of Hitler’s return may be in error. Eschatology is a tricky subject and theologians have puzzled and debated over Revelation Chapter 17 for millennia so far be it from me to be dogmatic about it.
I understand that you believe the reference to the Beast coming out of the Abyss is a reference to a demonic spirit from the Abyss possessing the Beast/Antichrist. You are not alone in this supposition, as a few commentaries suggest that possibility as well. I on the other hand am somewhat alone in my Hitler hypothesis, having not found it in any commentary. Strike one for my theory, yet some things are “concealed and sealed up until the end time.” (Daniel 12:9). I have carefully considered your points and would like to take the opportunity to explain why I feel my theory is still plausible.
You quoted Rev 16:13 –
“And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.”
I do not find that verse conclusive that the Beast himself does not arise from the Abyss. Unclean spirits coming “out of the mouth” could also mean that the words of the Beast were calling forth an evil spirit; that the evil spirit was summoned forth, attracted, or drawn out by the evil intentions, actions and words of the Beast. If “coming out of the mouth” meant the subject was possessed, then this scripture would be forced to say that the dragon (Satan) was possessed (controlled and inhabited) by demons also, as unclean spirits are said to come out of his mouth as well.
Scripture states twice that the Beast comes up “out of the abyss.” Since the Beast is a man (called “the man of sin” in Scripture), it seems to me definitive that it is as stated – the Beast is a man coming up out of the Abyss, not a demon that inhabits him, but the Beast himself.
Your 5th paragraph seems to indicate you may agree with me that the 7th Kingdom was NAZI Germany, but to quote you, “it would seem that it would be better to conclude that the same DEMON SPIRIT that inhabited Hitler of the 7th Kingdom (Nazi Germany) will simply reprise its role on earth as an anti-Semitic megalomaniac dictator.” My answer would be that Scripture clearly says it is the Beast that arises out of the Abyss and since Revelation often delineates between demons and men it seems to me that Scripture would have simply stated it was a demon arising from the Abyss that possesses the Beast, if that were the case. The text seems clear:
“The beast that comes up out of the abyss…” (Rev 11:7)
“The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to come up out of the abyss.” (Rev 17:8)
Since Scripture equated the Abyss with a place of the dead (Romans 10:7), I see this as going hand in hand with the “mortal wound” scriptures…
“…had been slain, his fatal wound was healed. And the whole earth was amazed…” (Rev 13:3)
“…worship the first beast, whose fatal wound was healed.” (Rev 13:12)
“…had the wound of the sword and has come to life.” (Rev 13:4)
I find it hard to apply “slain” and “come to life” to a demon spirit but easily applicable to someone who had died and then arisen. If Scripture was going to make a statement about an evil man coming back from the dead, I don’t know how it could be said any more clearly than this.
Interesting to note is this: The word “slain” in Rev 13:3 above is the Greek word “esphagmenen” which means literally “slaughtered to death.” Hitler was shot in the head while ingesting cyanide poison and then his body soaked with gasoline or diesel fuel and burned, i.e. – “slaughtered to death.”
Now add in this scripture:
“The beast which was and is not, is himself also an eighth and is one of the seven…” (Rev 18:11)
This seems to say the beast will reign once, then he “is not” (dead) and then reigns again (is alive again), making him an eighth yet also one of the seven.
As an aside, I would add that whether or not Hitler was demonically possessed is speculation. No doubt he was most probably demonically influenced, but full possession? Perhaps at some point, but the classical symptoms of such have never been reported to my knowledge. But that is neither here nor there, I suppose.
It is often also thought that the final Antichrist will be possessed by Satan. That too, I believe is supposition. It may be so at some point, but I don’t think that it can be authoritatively established from Scripture. I know of no specific scripture that states it. Scripture says Satan gives his power and authority to be used by the Antichrist, but never says he possesses him. Satan, having been at one time a beautiful powerful angelic being, I would surmise, finds his current state of being more pleasing than inside a frail human body. Even if it was so, that does not make the Antichrist and a demon the same being. On the contrary, the world at that future time seems to be capable of differentiating between the entity of Antichrist and Satan, to wit:
“They worshiped the dragon (Satan) because he gave his authority to the beast…” (Rev 13:4 – Parenthesis mine)
Now, on to what I think is the most conclusive point: The world is amazed that the Beast lives again. A demon inhabiting someone again is not going to amaze the world. The Scripture specifically says they are amazed that he has come again…
“The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit… and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder… when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.” (Rev 17:8) KJV
“The beast, which you saw, once was, now is not, and yet will come up out of the Abyss and go to its destruction. The inhabitants of the earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the creation of the world will be astonished when they see the beast, because it once was, now is not, and yet will come.” (Rev 17:8 NIV)
It sounds to me like this could be talking about Hitler, or some evil well-known person like him, returning from the dead. That would certainly amaze the world as described.
You are correct that the resurrection of an evil person would be unprecedented. But many unprecedented things happen during the Tribulation. Perhaps during the time of God’s wrath on an unrepentant earth the world is given the man they have deserved.
Concerning your point on Hebrews 9:27 which says,
“And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:”
I don’t believe this precludes a resurrection of Hitler (and subsequent second death) because…
First of all, God will resurrect all evil men at some point. He just resurrects Hitler a bit early. Although it is appointed unto men once to die…nevertheless there is that “Second Death.” (Rev 2:11). Since God is sovereign I don’t see why He could not do this if He so chose.
Scripture tells us that all wicked men will be resurrected…yet the Antichrist, the man of sin, will not be at the great white throne judgment because according to Rev 19:20 he has already been..
“…thrown alive into the lake of fire…”
Thus we see Antichrist going through the same process as all other wicked men, but only on a different time schedule. He still dies, is resurrected, and then thrown alive into the lake of fire. Perhaps the mention of him being thrown alive into the lake of fire, rather than killed and resurrected along with the rest of the wicked for judgment, is because Antichrist already died and was resurrected.
Secondly, I believe Hebrews 9:27 is a general statement concerning man, for which there are exceptions. Enoch and Elijah never died, but were taken to heaven. All Christians alive at the time of the Rapture will never die. Lazarus and others raised by Jesus died twice. Those people in the New Testament that were resurrected by the apostles, eventually died again. These are all exceptions to that general rule in Hebrews 9:27 which says that men are appointed to die once. Hitler could be another exception. I see it as a possibility.
In conclusion, I see four facts supporting the theory that the Antichrist is a resurrected man…
1. The Bible’s several “slain, fatal wound” scriptures that are applied to the Antichrist. For example: “…had been slain, his fatal wound was healed. And the whole earth was amazed…” (Rev 13:3)
2. The Bible’s several “was, is not and will come.” scriptures that are applied to the Antichrist. For example: “…the beast, because it once was, now is not, and yet will come.” (Rev 17:18) This certainly sounds like someone who died and came back to life.
3. Twice in Revelation it is reiterated that the Beast / Antichrist comes up out of the Abyss. (Rev 11:7 & Rev 17:8). Romans 10:7 associates the Abyss with a place of the dead which seems to indicate the Antichrist comes up from the dead.
4. The Beast reigns twice, being both an eighth king, yet also one of the seven. This seems to suggest he died and came back again. “The beast which was and is not, is himself also an eighth and is one of the seven…” (Rev 18:11)
Again, thank you for your comments. I have enjoyed the discussion with you. If you have not seen it, I think you will find my video on this subject entertaining. You can find it on this page entitled, The Mystery of the 7th Kingdom. Scroll down till you see that title.
https://christiananswerman.com/christian-answer-man-videos/
“>
God bless you as you continue in His service.
Sincerely,
Pastor Mark
Hi Pastor Mark,
I wrote you a long time ago and agreed with you that Hitler seems to be a prime candidate for the Antichrist. I got that idea from Scripture as well, through the teachings of Robert Van Campen, a fellow brother, Moody Bible graduate and superb Bible researcher known for his Pre-Wrath Rapture views. I do have one nagging question about Hitler, though. Perhaps you have already answered it for others, but could you give me your thoughts? The question is: “Given the fact that Hitler was such an evil, repulsive man, why would people love him, adore him, and want to follow him?” Wouldn’t they want someone who was seemingly good and kind? I can see how through sheer terror they would be amazed at seeing him alive again, but is he not going to be a deceiver? Van Campen’s thought on that makes sense to me, but that still doesn’t completely settle with me. He suggests that before and up to the mid-point of Daniel’s 70th week he will NOT appear as Hitler but will disguise himself so as to fool the world into liking him. But when he sets up his “abomination of desolation” in the Jewish temple he will then take off the mask (so to speak), and THEN all will see he is really Adolf Hitler come alive again. At that point they will have no choice but to worship and obey him, and will do so at the command of the False Prophet or die. What are your thoughts? God bless!
Hi Dan, nice to hear from you again. I also have postulated the idea that Hitler may be in disguise initially, and then, counterfeiting Christ’s transfiguration, his countenance will change revealing who he is. That is a partial explanation.
To further understand how and why the world would follow Hitler we must realize the conditions at that time. According to 2Thessalonians 2:1-15 the Day of the Lord (the Tribulation) cannot come until “the man of lawlessness is revealed.” So shortly after the Antichrist appears, the world will enter the Tribulation. We know from many scriptures that the Rapture happens before the tribulation. Let us consider the conditions:
1. All Christians and innocent children and babies have left the earth. All the guardian angels have left with them. The influence of the prayers of millions of Christians are no longer happening. The evil liberal politicians all over the world will have total control. This will result in a world that we cannot even imagine. Extreme wickedness will be the rule of the day. Those who walk in darkness do not know where they are going. Yes, today’s world would not follow Hitler, but the world that will exist at that time is a world of evil beyond our imagination. Strength, power and railing against God’s laws will be what is admired and Hitler will be the best at that.
2. We live very close in time to WW II and the wickedness of Hitler is upper most in people’s minds. To compare someone to Hitler is a way of describing someone as totally depraved. However 25, 50 or 100 years from now that idea may have faded from people’s minds. Even today there are books and websites that say Hitler wasn’t as bad as people say. I’m not saying the Rapture is 100 years away, I’m only saying it could still be farther off than we think and attitudes towards Hitler may be different than what they are now.
3. The Bible says God will send a strong delusion that people will believe a lie. That adds another element that will help Hitler to deceive the world.
4. The Antichrist’s coming is “is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders…” (2 Thess 2:9). No doubt his working of spectacular miracles will aid him in fooling the masses. Even when it is revealed who he is and some people are horrified, others will say, but, “Who is like the beast? Who is able to make war against him?” (Rev 13:4)
5. The Bible says that during the Tribulation that the restrainer of lawlessness will be taken out of the way. (2 Thess 2:7). The effect of the Holy Spirit through the Church will be gone. Lawlessness (Violation of God’s laws) will be what people love and Hitler was and will be the king of lawlessness against God.
When you add all these together: Hitler’s face initially disguised by the power of Satan, a world devoid of Christian influence, at a time in the future where attitudes have softened to Hitler, a time when God sends a strong delusion on the world, and Hitler comes with all the power of Satan, when the restrainer of Lawlessness is gone, then most anything is possible, even a world that accepts Hitler. Yes, the world of today is one in which we cannot image people following Hitler, but the world that that will exist during the Tribulation is one that is far different from today.
Another possibility is that I am wrong about Hilter being the Antichrist. But at this time, I think not. Thanks for the question Dan. I hope these answers are helpful.
…Pastor Mark
I too believe that we will see Hitler coming up out of the Abyss for some of the reasons you list.
Our Pastor at Salt Life Fellowship here in Cheyenne Wyoming did an extensive teaching on the subject. His name is Don Kremer. If you wish I could send you the link to his message.
Hi Lenard, That is very interesting. Yes, please send me the link. Send to Pastor-Mark@ChristianAnswerMan.com
God bless,
Pastor Mark
I sent a link to your email. It is coming from fulmerlenard@gmail.com
I don’t know if this same link will be of any value here.
Thanks Lenard, Listening to the sermon now.
…Pastor Mark
Curt / Pastor Mark,
I just want to throw this out there in light of the discussion about the demon spirit vs. the man of sin’s spirit. Lately I’ve been studying Genesis 6, where it talks about the “Sons of God” (B’nai Elohim) who saw the women of men and took for themselves wives who bore for them “Ha Nephalim” (The Fallen Ones) from the Hebrew verb “Lenaphel – To Fall”. In my studies I’ve discovered that when God brought the Flood of Noah, one of His primary purposes was to cleanse the earth of these “Fallen Ones”, who had giant bodies ( in size and/or capabilities) and were wreaking havoc on the human population and making life especially difficult for mankind. It is the disembodied souls of these Nephalim that roam the earth to this day (as they are neither fully human nor fully Angel) and are, what we call – Demons. That is why the demons are always looking for a body to inhabit – they long for the feeling of inhabiting a physical body again as they once did. Human is ideal, but they’ll settle even for a herd of pigs! Anyhow, evidently demons are very different creatures than “Fallen Angels”. Fallen Angels are MUCH more powerful entities and they have no desire to inhabit a human being’s body, which by the way they consider disgusting and refer to as “pig flesh”. Examples of fallen angels are Azazel and Samyaza, two leaders of The Watchers from The Book of Enoch. The most evil example of the fallen angels is of course Lucifer himself.
I’m not sure how this distinction of Demon Spirit affects the analysis of the entity which arises from the abyss (“abusso” in Hebrew), but I wanted to make the distinction, because I had always equated demons and fallen angels as the same but this appears not to be the case.
So then, If demons roam the earth, not the Abusso (yet, anyway), and Fallen Angels don’t possess or inhabit human beings, it would seem to support Pastor Mark’s theory that the spirit that comes from the Abusso to be The Beast ( Antichrist) on Tribulation era Earth is in fact the spirit of a man.
One could also make the case for distinction in that the kind of empowerment by an evil spirit exhibited by Adolf Hitler was materially different than the symptoms exhibited by the demonically possessed individuals described in the Bible and even throughout church history to the present day in movies like The Exorcist, etc. Hitler’s behavior and demeanor was a far cry from the foaming at the mouth, biting, scratching, animalistic nature of the typical demoniac, who is better described as a victim who may have “played with fire” via witchcraft or ouija board, etc. who was then victimized by an entity bent on inhabiting, dominating, and possessing their physical body. The possessed is essentially a prisoner, invaded by an entity after his or her body. That’s a demon’s goal.
The goals and methods of the evil spirits behind Hitler are completely different than those of the demons in the ways an adult human’s goals and methods of achieving them are completely different to those of a young toddler’s. (Hmmm, maybe that analogy is more literal than I think?) Fallen Angels are not interested in embodiment of one human body. They roam the 10 dimensional spiritual universe in spiritual bodies many many times greater and more powerful than our weak ones. They’re not interested in torturing a single human by making him foam at the mouth and scratch himself full of lacerations. They’re busy corrupting whole empires, fomenting wars between continents or the whole world if they can, and they are especially busy working on exterminating the Jews and persecuting or diluting Christianity. In Hitlers case, what need was there to take possession? Satan had a willing and devoted human soul dedicated to Evil and sold out to him – right out of the box!
For these reasons I tend to think Pastor Mark you may be on to something? Right or wrong Curt you made a great challenge and Pastor Mark you made a very intriguing rebuttal.
Mark,
Thank you for writing this amazing article. Truly an original idea.
First, let me say I am a Christian, asked Jesus into my heart as my personal Lord and Savior, and entrusted my Life to Him when I was a child. I’ve let Him down so many times since then, but He has never let me down even one single time. His gift of eternal life through His sacrifice of death on that cross is the Best Deal in the Universe and I am so grateful for this undeserved gift!
I want to also tell you that I feel I was led to your article in an amazing perhaps supernatural way. Though I am a believer, I am also of Jewish descent (biologically) and throughout my life have always been fascinated by the events of and leading up to WWII and its place in biblical history, particularly as it applies to Adolf Hitler and where he fits in the pantheon of biblical and historical villains. I’ve long believed studying Hitler’s evil genius and the evil spirits which fueled it was key to understanding aspects of and recognizing the coming Antichrist. Perhaps recognizing the Antichrist won’t be nearly the challenge many scholars think it is!
Anyway, to get to my point, tonight I was watching a documentary on the History channel about Hitler’s rise to power, a rerun of a program I must have seen at least twice in the past. But while watching the program this third time, I had a striking thought: What if Hitler IS the Antichrist? What if Hitler is somehow resurrected, mimicking the way Jesus rose from the grave? How truly and literally would this make whoever performs such a feat the “Anti”-Christ! And some people say you can’t take the Bible literally?!? Lol….
Being raised studying the Bible, I recalled many of the same scriptures you referenced and started tossing and turning in my bed. Realizing I couldn’t sleep, I felt compelled to search the Internet for similar Ideas and that’s how I found your article! And I have to say it’s the only one I’ve found!
Another aspect I would like to emphasize which you indirectly brushed on is the “great deception that if it were possible would deceive even the elect”. Some believers in UFO theory and Ancient Aliens “religion” (that’s really what it is) believe there would be a huge falling away of religion upon revelation of extraterrestrial life as religion would be “obsolete”. I think this idea is ridiculous. I personally know many fellow believers and members of other faiths who would be just kosher with alien life. Alien life is merely a pebble on the journey road of faith. But what does a believer in an all powerful supremely Good and Loving, Holy God do with the resurrection of possibly the most evil human being to ever breath air and not only that, but he’s made Supreme Dictator of the entire Earth, given authority to inflict his evil will with no one to stop or restrain him? That might make even all but the most committed Believer to have a crisis of heart and question whether Good is even the supreme force in the Universe? After all, Jesus went home 40 days after resurrecting, but THIS guy rose from the dead and he’s Here To Stay!! This would truly be a possible stumbling block to even truly born again believers.
Excitement aside however, I’m also a logical thinker and one thing bothers me about the idea of a resurrected Hitler: I believe the prophecies mention that the Beast (Antichrist) makes a peace treaty with Israel, which last 3 1/2 years, but is broken midway, at which time the Antichrist exalts himself in the newly rebuilt temple at Jerusalem in place of God. But my question / challenge to the theory is – in what possible circumstance, resurrection or not, would the Jewish nation of Israel knowingly sign a treaty of *any* kind with Jewish Enemy Number One Adolf Hitler? It’s simply the most intriguing idea I’ve discovered in decades of studying the bible, reading prophecy books, and listening to sermons, but I can’t help this nagging feeling there I s some key element we’re still missing. Your thoughts?
-Jeremiah
Hi Jeremiah – I very much appreciate your thoughtful and perceptive reply. I am honored to converse with a Jewish person who knows the Messiah – you are doubly blessed!
How you came to find my article is interesting, for it is similar to how I came to my conclusion about Hitler being the coming Antichrist: For many nights I also tossed and turned in bed and the scriptures about the Antichrist kept coming to mind. I would find myself getting up at 3 AM to read the scriptures on this. Then I’d go back to bed and my mind wouldn’t leave it alone. As I would dream the scriptures would just keep going through my mind. I have no doubt the Holy Spirit was preparing my mind. I would ponder, “How could the eighth king be one of the seven kings?” And this passage kept going through my head – “…the beast, that he was and is not and will come.” (Rev 17:8) One night, while dreaming about all this, I woke up and it came to me in a flash: It’s Hitler! So I plugged in Hitler to the equation, reviewed the scriptures, and it seemed to match up with fulfillment of all the prophecies of the Antichrist. It is interesting that you too came to this conclusion. As it is written, “These words are concealed and sealed up until the end time…but those who have insight will understand.” I think God is now opening our minds to these facts. By the way, I also searched the Internet to see if any one else had come up with this and I found nothing.
You raise a very good question about how the Jews would not make any agreement with Hitler. I have been pondering that and I have a number of ideas that may resolve that discrepancy in the theory.
The prophecy in Daniel does not specifically say that the Antichrist makes a covenant with Israel. It says he makes a “covenant with many.” I have often heard it taught that it is Israel that this agreement is made with, but that has always bothered me a bit because it doesn’t actually say Israel. It could be Israel, but the text does not specify. It just says “many.” It could be an agreement with Muslim nations to allow the Jewish temple to be rebuilt, or any number of other possibilities. It does say in the middle of the week he puts a stop to sacrifice and offering, presumably in the temple, and at that time sits in the Jewish temple proclaiming himself to be God, which is the abomination of desolation. But the scripture does not specify that this act breaks the covenant, it merely says it happens half way through the seven years, so from that passage it cannot be absolutely affirmed that the covenant is made with the Jews. It might be with the Jews. Or it might not be. So that is one possibility, that the agreement isn’t with the Jewish nation.
Another possibility is that the Antichrist, at the beginning of the “week” or seven years, is not recognized as being Hitler when he makes the covenant with “the many.” If “the many” is Israel, then they may make an agreement with the Antichrist not realizing he is Hitler. The scripture says that the Antichrist comes “in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders…” So it may be that his countenance is supernaturally altered or hidden, perhaps not looking like Hitler, until after the three and a half years when he sits in the temple proclaiming himself to be God. Thus the Antichrist would mimic not only Christ’s resurrection, but also Christ’s Transfiguration.
So that’s my thoughts on it. I enjoyed reading your insightful comments on this. Have you seen my video on Hitler? I think you would find it most interesting. Its called The Seventh Kingdom and you can watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=UUaMk4tk2y9h3UIojJB0Xm3Q&feature=player_embedded&v=kUV4W22usTE
…Pastor Mark
Thank you for pointing out the scripture in Daniel 9, Pastor Mark. I’ve heard so many “traditional” prophecy teachers repeat the “treaty with Israel” so many times I guess I just accepted it as fact instead of opinion. It does in fact say “many” not “Israel”. You make another great point about the transfiguration and recognition, and to add to that further, Jesus was not recognized at first on the Road to Emmaeus. I wonder if genetic engineering ( which Satan is *very* interested in) could be part of his evil plan?
I had a strange feeling that lead me here. I literally had these pertaining verses of Revelation pop into my head; with the question: “could the antichrist be hitter?!”
I had to look around and see if anyone else out here has had this thought cross their mind! Wow, it seems you’ve thought the same thing, and you’ve started to affirm it for me! My only problem with the the theory is this: if Hitler is resurrected, I guess I just have a hard time imagining so many people following him; but I just have to remember; it is going to be during this time that people will be very lost, and many very evil. It’ll be as Jesus said, like the days of Noah. Also, my other thought is this, could the antichrist already be here? This is kind of a strange thing to say but Could it be possible that he is masquerading as someone else in power to gain position and get ready? Revelation says ‘Satan gives him power,’ what if he is appearing as someone else, until the day he reveals himself at the temple? Could this also be a possible element to the theory?
Hi Josh, Thanks for your comment. Yes, I agree with you. Antichrist could be here. Hitler may mimic the transfiguration of Jesus. At some point his true countenance will be revealed. That is a viable theory.
…Pastor Mark
Great article, and I think that your analysis and conclusion are right on target concerning a resurrected Hitler being the antichrist. You may be interested to know that the late Robert Van Kampen laid out the same explanation in his 1992 book, “The Sign”. While I do not agree with Van Kampen’s pre- wrath view of the rapture, it is an interesting book.
Hi Keith, thanks for your comment. I will have to check out that book.
Pastor Mark,
I just stumbled upon your article when I searched for “the beast who was, is not and will be again” + Hitler. If you go to the website “informedchristians.com” – Daniel Valles has an article there “The Anti-Christ Returns”. In this article he states that Hitler will be brought up out of the Abyss and willl be the man of sin in the 8th kingdom.
Barb
Hi Barb, Thanks so much for this information. I have looked at the article and am looking forward to reading it. Very interesting! Here is the exact link if others want to see it as well: http://informedchristians.com/index.php/Articles/the-antichrist-returns
…Pastor Mark
“The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to come up out of the abyss and go to destruction.”
Revelation 17:8a
This is clear evidence that the final Antichrist (at the time Revelation was written) was dead. This rules out Hitler because he was not yet born when John wrote Revelation.
Hi Logan, I want to thank you for your very informative, interesting and challenging comment. My first thought was, “Wow, that is a puzzle. Perhaps I am mistaken.” The point you made seemed to really throw a wrench into the works of my neat little hypothesis! Thanks for making me think!
First of all, let me say, perhaps I am mistaken about this. However, after giving this some reflection and study I have come to the conclusion that perhaps my theory may be correct after all. I will try to explain why.
I would propose that when the angel spoke these words to John he was using present tense, as though they had been transported forward into time, and were looking at future events as though they were in the present. John says, “I saw a woman…” John is speaking of a future event but he saw it as though in the present. He was seeing the future, as though he were present in the future. The angel begins by saying, “The beast that you saw…” Again, not speaking of what will come, but of what he saw as if it had already happened.
In the King James it is easily apparent, “They that dwell on the earth shall wonder…when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.” Some translations say, “will come” instead of “yet is.” However “yet is” is the more accurate. Young’s Literal Translation says, “beholding the beast that was, and is not, although it is.” So you see, the point of reference for this sentence is in the future. The phrase “although it is” makes this apparent. They are speaking of this event as though they were in the future and seeing it happen right then, in the present, even though the actual event is in our future. To quote Doc Brown from Back to the Future, “Marty! You’re not thinking 4th dimensionally!”
Thus, since our point of reference is in the future, then the beast that “is not” is relative to the time of the final Antichrist, which would mean then that the prophecy could refer to Hitler, for at the time of the final Antichrist it will be true that Hitler “was, and is not.”
Consider also that in verse 7 the angel says, “Here is the mind which has wisdom.” In other words, careful thinking and analysis is in order if one wishes to unravel the mysteries of this passage. It is a common practice for biblical prophets to speak of a future event as if they were seeing it in the present, and even to change their position from past tense to present tense to future tense within the same prophecy. This understanding of the nature of prophecy may be the very “wisdom” the angel says is necessary to understand the meaning.
There is an article that explains this well. It is found here at this link:
Link To Article
Let me just give some excerpts from it. In a discussion of Young’s Literal Translation and its faithfulness to rendering tenses accurately the article states:
“Robert Young is saying, in plainer words, that the inspired writers of the Old Testament wrote prophecy in either the present, or past tense. They wrote as if they were alive and present at the time future events, which they predicted, would take place. Young suggested the writers, such as Moses and the Prophets, were so certain of the predicted events becoming a reality that they wrote as if the events had already occurred (past tense) or they were so assured of the event becoming a fact that they wrote as if it were taking place during their lifetime (present tense)…The Hebrew writers…uniformly wrote as if they were alive at the time of the occurrence of the events mentioned, and as eye-witness of what they are narrating.”
To summarize, I would propound that the phase, “seven kings, five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come..” is spoken with John’s time as the point of reference. However where the phrase appears which says that those who dwell on the earth shall wonder, “beholding the beast that was, and is not, although it is,” here I would proffer the point of reference is in the future at the time of the final Antichrist. Again, this changing of tense is common in bible prophecy.
Another point that can be made is that it is emphasized that the people of earth will wonder when they see someone return from the dead. That would mean that the final Antichrist would have to have first lived during the time of photography or television so that the world is familiar with his countenance. If you do not interpret the phrase with a future reference point as I suggest, but interpret with a reference to John’s time, as you propose, then you are stuck with believing that the future Antichrist, the eighth king, is one of the first five kings, for if he “was, and is not” at John’s time, yet is one of the seven, then he must be one of the five. It gets even more difficult than that, for if the statement that the Antichrist “was, and is not, yet is,” is relative to John’s time, that would be saying the final Antichrist was alive during John’s time. Since that is impossible we must interpret that statement to be made from the standpoint of the time of the final Antichrist in the future. To interprest that statement from a reference point of John’s time turns it into a paradoxical conundrum.
Furthermore, interpreting this statement with John’s time as the referrence point forces it to say that the Antichrist died long before John’s time and thus we have no record of what he looks like, so how then could people in the future be amazed at him coming back to life? Someone claiming to have lived thousands of years ago won’t impress anyone. He would need proof. You can find people today who claim to have come back from the past. They are in our insane asylums. No, you have to have some kind of proof and an image would certainly be convincing. If someone shows up walking and talking and looking like Hitler and works miracles and calls fire down from heaven, then people will certainly wonder.
Well, that’s my take on it. When we see these events unfold on earth from our vantage point in heaven, having become part of that “great cloud of witnesses,” then we will know exactly how it will be. Thanks again for your insightful comment. I really appreciate your input. God Bless!
…Pastor Mark
What a great explanation, Pastor Mark! You make a very convincing argument that Hitler could still be the final Antichrist.
I still do believe it could be one of the six other kings, though; your argument for the need of picture documentation doesn’t quite convince me. I think that the resurrection of anyone, including someone previously photographed, would be quite wondrous to behold for the people of the earth.
Best wishes,
Logan
Hi Logan and thanks for the compliment. I am curious, tell me how it could be one of the previous five kings, since photography didn’t exist then? How would the whole world know they rose from the dead without photographic evidence?
Pastor Mark
His ancient corpse could be found and come back to life. It would be all over the media most likely since the whole earth will wonder at him.
I think you are assuming that the resurrection will happen in private and people will only know about it afterwards when they see Hitler walking around again. If the resurrection is in public, the person’s previous identity won’t really matter; the public resurrection of anyone would probably make the earth wonder.
Logan
Hi Logan, thanks for the answer. Yes you are correct, I am assuming the resurrection won’t be visible, at least not to the whole world. Whether it be Hitler or someone else, I don’t imagine the actual resurrection will be seen by the populace at large. I think there is good reason to assume that an event such as a resurrection from a remote gravesite would not be caught on camera with sufficient witnesses to validate its credibility. The problem is compounded by the fact that no one knows where these kings are buried. The location of Alexander the Great’s body (ruler of Greece) is unknown, and the same is true for the earlier kingdoms. We do not have a burial sight for the kings of Persia, Babylon, Assyria, etc.Even if a particular burial sight were known, and there happened to be some people there to see it happen, it is not likely that the world at large would be convinced. At least thats how I see it in my mind. Whereas with Hitler, if he came back larger than life, looking, talking and acting just as before, I can see where that would get the world wondering in amazement, as the Bible describes.
Pastor Mark
Hi Logan, This is interesting stuff. See my other answer – I think these burial sites are remote and we don’t know which is who and where they are, and a few people saying they saw a resurrection would not convince the world. It would take something more significant. That is my guestimation on it.
Pastor Mark
I was thinking more like archaeologists find an incredibly old body, it gets featured on the news, it has a travelling exhibit, and then resurrects. (Or any number of other similar scenarios.) Hitler was also cremated and thrown into the wind, which would make a resurrection (in the normal sense of the word) pretty unlikely.
Logan
Hi Logan, sounds like it would make a great movie! LOL. Yes, Hitler was “slaughtered to death” as Revelation says. Of course, God will resurrect all the dead someday, no matter the condition. And of course it would be God resurrecting Hitler, as only He has the power…So God can resurrect Hitler no matter his condition. And of course no one would see the resurrection of Hitler’s body, since the skull in in Moscow, and the body is disintegrated. So what I am saying is that Hitler’s resurrection would be a resurrection in the normal sense of the word. It just would not be visible to be seen, which I think is what you meant anyway.
Pastor Mark
Hi Mark, I just read your article and all the back-and-forth exchanges up to this point. I am a former pastor, MK, PK, and a deep lover of the Lord Jesus Christ. I am also a lover of God’s Word and have been an enthusiastic student of it for over 40 years. I am very impressed with both your reverent and careful handling of the Scriptures and your gracious style of communicating it. You are professional as well as thorough. You are a man who listens well to criticism and responds humbly to it. For all those reasons alone I have to pay attention to your thoughts. I also have read Van Kampen’s book, “The Sign”, as well as the one written by his good friend, Marv Rosenthal (“The Pre-Wrath Rapture”). I would, by the way, strongly encourage you to read both – with a very open mind to their Rapture views. But in regard to Hitler being the Anti-Christ, Van Kampen makes an excellent case just as you do. That being said, I think it is more important that we think rightly about the timing of the Rapture in relation to the 70th week of Daniel than we do about who the Anti-Christ is or will be. For many years I used to be a dyed-in-the-wool Pre-Tribber, mainly because I was taught that strongly by my Dad, other preachers and teachers, and the Bible Schools I attended. But I always had nagging questions which nobody had any clear answers to. One day a friend gave me Rosenthal’s book and asked me to share my opinion after reading it. The long story short is that after many years of further prayer, Bible study, research by others, and personal heart-agonizing I came to the conviction we are indeed going to see the Anti-Christ and experience HIS wrath, but be spared the LORD’S wrath via the Rapture which will happen sometime after the middle of the 70th week. Actually, Revelation (which has always been confusing to me) now is far more understandable than it ever has been. Please read both books very carefully and see what you think. I would recommend Rosenthal’s first. It is a little easier reading and he shares a very intriguing personal testimony of how he came from being a Pre-Tribber to being a Pre-Wrath-er). That testimony alone deeply affected me, as he writes with great humility, intense love for his differing brothers, and yet quiet firmness for the truth. God bless you brother, Mark!
Hi Dan, Thanks for your kind and gracious comments! I get some pretty vicious hate mail from the Swaggarites, so its nice to hear your nice compliments. God bless you! I will get those books and read them that you mention. I have a question for you – How do you reconcile the Rapture happening at a time that is not expected, when we think not, when all is normal and people are saying peace and safety and marrying and giving in marriage, buying and selling, as in Noah’s time, unaware of what is coming, when, according to a post or a mid trib rapture scenario, wherein Jesus is coming after the Antichrist is on the scene and has made his covenant with many? All Christians will know at that point (when the Antichrist is revealed) that the end of the age is coming within a few very short years. I have never heard an answer to that which I found intellectually satisfying. So, I would be interested in your resolution of that conundrum.
God Bless,
…Pastor Mark
Pastor Mark,
This article is so intriguing. I have a question: “How could the Jews, who have lost so many of their ancestors to Hitler, accept him as a man of peace and sign a treaty promising peace? If he will be so easily recognizable, how could he be believable with the holocaust having occurred relatively recently?” Thanks for your response.
Hi Bob, Great question. Here is another question, that I think will shed some light: How will anyone belief its really Hitler? Hitler is dead. No one has ever come back to life (Except Jesus and a few in the Bible). Many will say that he is not Hitler, that he can’t be Hitler because Hitler died long ago. They will insist that he just looks like him, etc. Or perhaps he won’t look exactly like him at all, but will later have a transfiguration (imitating Jesus) and later look like him. But at some point he will be recognized by many as Hitler, but probably not initially. What do you think? Does that help make it more plausible?
Furthermore, the Bible doesn’t say the Jews make a treaty with him. I know that is what many teach, but its not what the Bible says. Maybe he will make a treaty with Israel, but the Bible isn’t clear on that point. It says Anticrhist makes a “covenant with many.” (Daniel 9:27) The covenant may not be with Israel.
…Pastor Mark
Mark,
This is definitely an interesting theory about who the Antichrist may turn out to be. Who do you think the false prophet would be with this scenario? Revelation 13 says that he causes everyone on the earth to worship the Antichrist when he sets up the mark of the beast system. I have a good candidate for that-a religious leader from Islam. Many don’t know that Hitler had direct communication with Muslim leaders during his time like the grand Mufti of Jerusalem in November of 1941 where they discussed their mutual hatred of Jews.
I think Joel Richardson’s teaching that the nation of Turkey forming a Middle East Islamic caliphate and becoming the 8th empire that rises again from the Old Ottoman Empire is the best overall theory of where the Antichrist will arise from.
I wanted to respond to your question of Dan’s statement about the timing of the pre-wrath rapture. I, like Dan, used to only believe in the pretrib rapture. After studying scripture more closely and listening to some sound teaching on the subject, today I lean more toward the pre-wrath position.
First Jesus said that no man knows the exact day or the hour, however we should know the season of when the rapture is going to happen. Paul said that we are not in darkness concerning that time in 1 Thessalonians 5 “But you, brethren, are not in darkness, so that this Day should overtake you as a thief.” So when discerning Christians see the Antichrist claim to be God and breaks the agreement with Israel then they will know that the rapture could happen anytime in the next 3.5 years according to the pre-wrath position. Paul also said in 2 Thess. 2 that the day of the Lord and our gathering together with him would not happen until the falling away and the man of sin is revealed. So it’s clear from that scripture that we are not raptured until there is a falling away from the faith, (which I believe has already started and will continue) and when the Antichrist reveals himself to the world. I know the counter argument from the pre-trib position to the pre wrath viewpoint is the identity of the restrainer in the following verses. I would suggest that regardless of who the restrainer is and what he does, this does not change what Paul said in the previous vs. about how “that day” would not happen until these two events take place first. Again that is the apostasy and the man of sin being revealed.
Also when Jesus said that it would be like the days of Noah or the days of Lot the main point I think He was making was that normal everyday human activity would still be going on around the world. We know what else was happening during Noah and Lots day: Extreme violence and extreme sexual perversion, just like we have today. During the tribulation not every part of earth will be affected, at least not at the same time, and no doubt some parts of earth will be affected a lot worse than other parts. I think it is reasonable to assume that the Middle East will be the epicenter of where most of the persecution from the Antichrist, and subsequent trumpet and bowl judgments (the wrath of God) will be happening with the most intensity. For example when I read Revelation 9:20 “And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk” it makes me believe that people on earth will be seeing the awful things happening on the news but it doesn’t move them to repent of their sins. Isn’t that the way people are today, especially in America? We hear of terrorist attacks around the world and all kinds of catastrophes but as long as it doesn’t come our way life is still good and we still indulge in our sports and entertainment. When we read about the ongoing commerce of the Great Babylon in Revelation 18 it seems as though everyday human activity is going on just fine there until its utter destruction comes “in one hour.” This destruction of Great Babylon seems to occur near or at the very end of the latter 3.5 year period when the beast turns on the harlot controlling her (I have narrowed down the identity of Babylon the Great to either New York City or Mecca.)
So yes I do believe that the discerning christian will know that the Lord’s coming will be in “a few short years” as you put it, just not the exact day or hour. Also these years may not seem too short while the Antichrist is hunting down Jews and Christians to put to death during this time! Both Daniel and John show us that this period would last 3.5 years and Daniel further breaks it down into periods of days in Daniel 12:11, 12 with 1,290 and 1,335 days respectively.
Hi Robert, Thanks for you input. I really wish I had time to go over all this with you point by point. It would be fun and good for both of us, however, I’m so busy trying to make a living and with other ministerial projects, I just don’t have time. Just a quick point – “That Day” refers to the The Day of the Lord, ie, the Tribulation. It does not refer to the Rapture.
God Bless you my friend!
…Pastor Mark
Greetings, brother. Love your content and thoughtfulness and insight.
Question…and I know this a long-debated issue, but isn’t also possible that it is the kingdom that is resurrected, and not a physical leader? It could be BOTH, but what if the beast that is worshipped is the empire, such as a revived Rome?
When I read the book of Daniel, it speaks of fallen angels who have been given authority over various world kingdoms, and perhaps one of these is the being who is in the abyss (a fallen angel from a previous kingdom) whom God allows to be released to revive a dead kingdom…like Rome, for instance?
There could be a resurrected leader, but the context seems to indicate a revived world power that causes the world to be amazed. What do you think?
Hi Randy, Thanks for your comment. What is there in the context that you find that makes you believe the Antichrist is a revived world power rather than a man? Scripture specifically calls him “the man of sin.”
…Pastor Mark
Thanks for your prompt reply…
Revelation speaks of one of the heads as being wounded, and then the deadly would being healed. These heads, according to various biblical scholars represent either Babel (Nimrod) or Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, Rome. I can see the real possibility of the beast (Man of sin) being a Satanic imitation of Christ, including his death and resurrection. I am not questioning that as a possibility.
That being said, it seems that the context in the Revelation refers to the head, or the kingdom, being healed of a deadly wound. Now, it could be that the kingdom and its king (Antichrist) could be inextricably linked, so that speaking of one is speaking of the other.
Either a kingdom being “resurrected” or a leader would both cause the world to wonder and be amazed. It is interesting though, how the Spirit goes from speaking of the kingdom as the Beast, to the man, and by chapter 19, it is the Beast (a man) who is cast into the Lake of Fire.
I have enjoyed this blog, and it has provided rich material for some deep and thoughtful discussions with believing co-workers and others. I look forward to further articles.
I’ve considered this before, but would the Jews ever make a covenant with Hitler…Remember the final seven years begins when the anti christ confirms a covenant with many. How would the Jews ever accept Hitler? Also when God speaks of anti christ, he says “Woe to the idle shepherd who leaves the flock”…I’d say that would fit Pope Francis more than Hitler…However history does sometimes repeat itself, and I agree for the world to wonder after the beast, they have to have seen and know him. Like if Caligula came out of the pit, nobody would even recognize him…
Hi Al, Thanks for your comment. How would the Jews accept Hitler? You raise a very good question about how the Jews would not make any agreement with Hitler. I have been pondering that and I have a number of ideas that may resolve that.
The prophecy in Daniel does not specifically say that the Antichrist makes a covenant with Israel. It says he makes a “covenant with many.” I have often heard it taught that it is Israel that this agreement is made with, but that has always bothered me a bit because it doesn’t actually say Israel. It could be Israel, but the text does not specify. It just says “many.” It could be an agreement with Muslim nations to allow the Jewish temple to be rebuilt, or any number of other possibilities. It does say in the middle of the week he puts a stop to sacrifice and offering, presumably in the temple, and at that time sits in the Jewish temple proclaiming himself to be God, which is the abomination of desolation. But the scripture does not specify that this act breaks the covenant, it merely says it happens half way through the seven years, so from that passage it cannot be absolutely affirmed that the covenant is made with the Jews. It might be with the Jews. Or it might not be. So that is one possibility, that the agreement isn’t with the Jewish nation.
Another possibility is that the Antichrist, at the beginning of the “week” or seven years, is not recognized as being Hitler when he makes the covenant with “the many.” If “the many” is Israel, then they may make an agreement with the Antichrist not realizing he is Hitler. The scripture says that the Antichrist comes “in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders…” So it may be that his countenance is supernaturally altered or hidden, perhaps not looking like Hitler, until after the three and a half years when he sits in the temple proclaiming himself to be God. Thus the Antichrist would mimic not only Christ’s resurrection, but also Christ’s Transfiguration.
Remember also that people are revising history and falsifying it. Many today claim Hitler wasn’t a bad guy. We are only 73 years from the end of World War II. It may be quite some time yet before the end. As the decades go by, and the world turns more evil, there will be more revision of history. When the time comes, popular opinion may not be so anti-Hitler as now.
So that’s my thoughts on it. I enjoyed reading your insightful comments on this. Have you seen my video on Hitler? I think you would find it most interesting. Its called The Seventh Kingdom and you can watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=UUaMk4tk2y9h3UIojJB0Xm3Q&feature=player_embedded&v=kUV4W22usTE
…Pastor Mark
Good day Pastor Mark; I really got to tip my hat to you from reading the above questions & your replies to those questions. I take it in your younger years you scored heavy in debate classes? I’ve heard some informed & elegant Pastors speak in person like Chuck Missler in Idaho(not far from my abode), but you can reach out & touch someone in typed word better than other Pastors can in person! You must have the Holy Ghost sitting on your shoulders like INSTANT Ghost to Pastor communication hotline!!!
As far as your opinion about beast-antichrist/Hitler I’d have to say in all sincerity that you have both the range/trajectory & windage zeroed, like your rounds are landing dead center on target. I have studied the holocaust since sept of 1960 the start of my 3rd grade. I found myself in scriptures in late 1970 which REALLY helped me understand WHY the holocaust happened (Jer. 30:7/2nd Thessalonians etc). I tried to pull out of studying the holocaust about 1993 but ABRUPTLY found my self right back at it. This same thing again happened to me a little later on. After that second attempt to pull out I thought to myself that maybe studying the holocaust is more than just a curiosity like maybe I am SUPPOSSED to be studying it?
That was my first inclination that I am not alone, like when I am alone I am still not alone; Isaiah 49:16. I know that passage pertains to Jerusalem but that is REALLY close to the passage that popped up in my mind @ that very instant back then. Not long after the 2nd episode I was into studying jealousy. I won’t even get into that one. What I am saying is looking back to 1960 to current there is an obvious ‘linked'(I was not aware of this to more recently) trail of studies(more than I have listed) I have been involved in that does not seem compatible with my love of horsepower/torque & quarter mile racing, as I spend three hours in these studies for every hour I spend out in my shop working on hot rods. So now @ least you know a little bit about my make up & past history.
So, I now have to ask you this question in all sincerity; do you feel that you more or less found out about Adolf by chance or by just simple curiosity, or do you feel that you had help like were guided/driven to finding out about Hitler? You sound to have @ the least a fairly comprehensive understanding of Hitler & probably as well with Aleister Crowley the vril society & the general occult as well. It is’nt every day of the week that a run of the mill person or even a Pastor has enough knowledge about Adolf/antichrist to make the connection you have made.
I instinctively knew Adolf fit into the end times & those times were closing in but I simply could not get off of third base to score a home run until you caught that ball off the tip of the bat & drove that ball clear over the bleachers. I mean your Hitler & antichrist connection revelation is a home run with the bases loaded! You possess a real gift @ solving puzzles(your nickname now; Puzzle Solver!) & also EXPLAINING that puzzle in simple easy to understand logical order that anyone with even a rudimentary understanding of Hitler & antichrist could easily understand. That’s the way our Maker operates though, each member of the family receives certain gifts. Till next time Pastor Mark, blessings on you & loved ones.
Very interesting but I think you’ve gone off on a tangent somewhat, with all due respect!
The Bible states many antichrists have already come. In this case I think we’re talking about the caesars of ancient Rome. Later on, we see rulers, leaders and assorted kings and tyrants and warlords, wrapped up in ideology, some kind of quasi-religion or religion of convenience, to the heady blend of politics and religion in Europe and even America today.
Do we see much compassion, goodness, mercy or any kind of Christ-like love in our leaders today, let alone down the dark corridors of history. In fact, we see little that is Christ-like in any of them, yet millions follow Trump, Macron, Johnson et al, in an almost fervent and religious way. Thatcher in the UK was as wholly despised as she was worshipped.
In answer to your very thoughtful post, some of which I agree with, much of which I don’t, the figure of antichrist, or antichrists, or Antichrist, is firstly a template of evil, injustice, gross malignancy and destruction masquerading as goodness, common sense, a return to decency etc. You, I and everyone else concerned about the rise of evil must be on our guard and also be prepared to accept that the evil we seek is amongst us, not out there somewhere. It is in the very fabric we call society, civilisation, religion and all.
We need to follow Christ in a radical and utterly obedient way, or we too may fall for the wiles of a smooth talking conman.
Tim recently posted…Christianity is Not a Middle Class Religion
Hi Tim, I appreciate your comment. You are misunderstanding what Paul said in 1 John 2:18. John said:
“Children, it is the last hour, and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come.”
John did not say, “You have heard Antichrist is coming and that is wrong, many will come.” You see, he did not deny that The Antichrist is coming. Indeed the Apostle Paul confirmed this, calling the final Antichrist the man of lawlessness, saying:
“The man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God.” (2 Thessalonians 2:4)
There will be, and have been, many antichrists, but there will also be one great final Antichrist.
Now concerning your interpretation of Revelation as a whole, it appears that you adhere to what is known as the Idealist View. I believe the Futurist View is the correct one, as do most evangelicals. If you are not familiar with those terms, here is a link that explains the differences. https://octabernacle.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/4-Views-of-Revelation.pdf
I follow the maxim of Hermeneutics: “If the literal sense makes good sense, any other sense is liable to be nonsense.”
Thanks for commenting and may you have a blessed day,
Pastor Mark
It’s certainly worthy of debate. I don’t believe Hitler will be reincarnated. But we can certainly pray about it.
Radical obedience to Christ and following Him earnestly, come what may, will also help all of us avoid following who and whomever comes along, whispering seductive promises.
Hi Tim, I quite agree, I could be mistaken about Hitler. It is a theory. Yes, radical obedience to Christ is a must. Those of us who follow Christ won’t be here when the Antichrist shows up. I am pre-trib. God bless,
…Pastor Mark
Hello pastor Mark,
I was listening to a good Christian podcast this am and the pastor said we need to stay away from conspiracy theories and people that love end time prophecy. Although he has so much to teach about the bible I know he is wrong about our current time. Do you know Klaus Schwab of the World economic forum and writer of the book “The 4th Industrial Revolution” is from a Nazi family? These Eugenicists are acting in the spirit of the antichrist for a one world government. This is a new Nazi party for the modern era. All our days must be filled with prayer now. The tribulation is at hand. I believe God is using social media to build his remanent church. We can listen to beautiful sermons anointed by God all day long and pray for our brothers and sisters. This satanic technology that hypnotizes can actually bring us closer to God and help us fight our enemy.
Hi Moniquie, Yes, there are some wonderful sermons on the Internet and that is a blessing. Jesus may come at any moment. Let us not forget that we are commanded to be “not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together.” There is no replacement for being a member of local church where you can gather together with other believers to worship God.
…Pastor Mark
Glad to have found your article….I have thought for a while now that what we are experiencing since Spring of 2020 is a world-wide rise of the same spirit that fueled Nazism. I am a student of WW2 and the similarities are striking. Personally, I believe it may be the spirit that inhabited Hitler that rises again to inhabit another diabolical leader, rather than Hitler himself.
Hi Linda, I am pleased you enjoyed the article. I agree – we are seeing the same Nazi spirit across the world. Look at Australia – they are a police state…a prison island. So sad. Concerning “the same spirit that inhabited Hitler” – many people have that view. However, Scripture seems to paint a picture of a man literally coming back from the dead:
“those who dwell on the earth…will wonder when they see the beast, that he was and is not and will come.” (Rev 17:8 NASB)
Why would people be amazed and wonder at someone acting like Hitler or having a similar spirit? Many people have done that. Scripture says they wonder because he has come back.
Also consider these passages:
“His fatal wound was healed…has come to life.” (Rev 13:14) This says he literally come back to life again. Also note this:
The Antichrist has a “fatal wound (that) was healed. And the whole earth was amazed and followed after…the beast who had…come to life.” (Rev 13:1,3,14)
To me that seems pretty clear. The Antichrist is someone who has died and then comes back to life and this amazes the world. I could be wrong, but that’s how I see it. I appreciate your comment. By the way, you may like my book, End of Days: What the Bible Says Happens Next. You can get it here: http://www.amzn.com/B08HRZGX18
God Bless,
…Pastor Mark
I think you are spot on in recognizing that the third reich and hitler are the 7th beast of Rev. 17:10-11. I don’t think that the Holy Spirit is the restrainer of 2 Thes. 2. In Mark 13 Jesus says that the Holy Spirit will inspire believers what to say when they face capital punishment before tribunals during the great tribulation. I believe that the restrainer is the archangel Michael who guards Israel. I am post trib pre wrath in my rapture belief. I recommend Zion’s hope ministry. I do think you are right about Nazi Germany being the 7th kingdom which few teach and I think the 8th kingdom will emerge from Europe.
Hi Thornton, Thanks for commenting. Glad you liked my article on Hitler and the 7th beast kingdom. I have a video on that too: https://christiananswerman.com/christian-answer-man-videos/
On that page, scroll down to The Mystery of the 7th Kingdom.
When the Church is raptured, the presence of the Holy Spirit is much reduced, as for a moment, there are no Christians on earth with the Holy Spirit in them. Jesus taught that it is believers who are the salt of the earth, to make it tolerable. They don’t do that on their own, but it is the Holy Spirit working through them. This diminished presence of the Spirit on earth after the Rapture is what gives an opportunity for the Antichrist to seize power. However, soon people repent and begin to get saved, and the Holy Spirit is still available to them to guide them as they face tribunals.
Here is an article I have on pretrib vs postrib that you may find interesting…
https://christiananswerman.com/pre-tribulation-vs-post-tribulation-rapture/
God bless you my friend,
Pastor Mark