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              4                                              The Antichrist Most Definitely Is Not a Person!



              Verses 1-8: “Then I stood on the sand of the sea. And I saw the Roman Empire rising up out of the
              sea, having seven heads (or the seven forms or phases of government through which it was to pass)
              and ten horns (or the ten kingdoms into which it was to be divided), and on his horns ten crowns, and
              on his heads a blasphemous name. Now the Roman Empire which I saw had the appearance of the
              Babylonian, Persian and Greek empires that were before it. And the dragon gave him his power, his
              throne, and great authority. I saw one of its forms of government as if it had been mortally wounded,
              and his deadly wound was healed. And all the world marveled and followed the Roman Empire. So
              they worshiped the dragon who gave authority to the Roman Empire; and they worshiped the Ro-
              man Empire, saying, “Who is like the Roman Empire? Who is able to make war with him? And he
              was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies, and he was given authority to continue
              for forty-two months. Then he opened his mouth in blasphemy against YEHOVAH God, to blas-
              phemy His name, His tabernacle, and those who dwell in heaven. And it was granted to him to make
              war with the saints and to overcome them. And authority was given him over every tribe, tongue
              and nation. And all who dwell on the earth will worship him, whose names have not been written in
              the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.”


              Verses 11-14: “Then I saw another empire coming up from out of the earth (world system), and he
              had two horns like a lamb (Yeshua the Messiah) and spoke like a dragon. And he exercises all the
              authority of the Roman Empire in his presence, and causes the earth and those who dwell in it to
              worship the Roman Empire, whose deadly wound was healed. He performs great signs, so that he
              even makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men. And he deceives those
              who dwell on the earth by those signs which he was granted to do in the sight of the Roman Empire,
              telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the Roman Empire who was wounded by
              the sword and lived.”


              Verses 15-16: “He was granted power to give breath to the image of the Roman Empire, that the
              image of the Roman Empire should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image
              of the Roman Empire to be killed. And he causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and
              slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads.”

              Verses 17-18: “And that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the Ro-
              man Empire, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate
              the number of the Roman Empire, for it is the number of a man: His number is 666.”

                     This chapter in the Book of Revelation outlines the history of western Europe. The Roman
              Empire fell in 476 A.D. and the Bishop of Rome entered the power vacuum left by the wounded Ro-
              man Empire. Over a period of time this relationship developed into a worldwide religio-political
              power. The Papacy of Rome rose up into a divided Roman Empire.

                     As the little horn of Daniel it actually did take over three of these kingdoms. The little horn
              was to pluck up three of the other horns -- the interpretation being that “he shall subdue three kings
              [kingdoms]” (Daniel 7:24). Did the Papacy, in fact, subdue three of these ten kingdoms? Writes Ed-
              ward B. Elliot in his Horae Apocalyticae: “I might cite three that were eradicated from before the
              Pope out of the list first given, viz., the Heruli under Odacer, the Vandals, and the Ostrogoths” (Vol.
              3, page 139). The Heruli were overthrown in 493, the Vandals in 534, and the Ostrogoths in 553.
              The final configuration of the Papacy was in place shortly after 800 A.D. and consisted of the




                                                                       The Berean Voice July-August 2002
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