Antichrist
From Conservapedia
The Antichrist in Premillenialism will persecute faithful Christians during the Tribulation.
Etymology
The word Antichrist comes from the Greek αντί-χριστος (anti-khristos), meaning opposite of Christ. The Greek word anti can also mean 'instead of' or "equal to, like" so that the phrase can also be interpreted as meaning in place of, or like, Christ so while opposing Christ the antichrist will try to appear to be like Christ. Some Christians believe that the use in John refers to a single being that will appear in the End Times. This view is most commonly found among premillennialist Christians. In modern useage, the term is usually used to refer to one who is pure evil.
The Antichrist in the Bible
The following verses are the only verses which directly use the word Antichrist (KJV)
- I John 2:18 'as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now there are many antichrists'
- I John 2:22 'Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieith the Father and the Son.'
- I John 4:3 'And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.
- 2 John 7: 'For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.'
Based on the lack of direct references, some Christians argue that the Bible refers only to a generalized concept of Antichrist, applicable to anybody who is 'against Christ', not to a particular person. Moreover, such 'antichrists' were already present in the world nearly two thousand years ago. Other Christian, such as the Catholic Church and many Protestant denominations, have argued that these verses mainly prefigure the actual Antichrist and that one can see a single unifying Antichrist figure with the proper exegetical methods if one looks at the books of Daniel and Revelations.[1] So while there is a spirit of antiChrist, there is also one AntiChrist who is to come.
The Antichrist is often associated with, and in some intrepretations considered equivilent to, the Beast of Revelation or the Man of Sin referenced in 2 Thessalonians 2:3.
References
- Cruden, A., Complete Concordance to the Old and New Testaments (Lutterworth, 1930)
- The Holy Bible (King James Version)
- The New English Bible (Oxford & Cambridge University Presses, 1970)
- The New Jerusalem Bible (Darton, Longman & Todd, 1990)
- Peake, A.S., Commentary on the Bible (Nelson, 1962)
- Young, R., Analytical Concordance to the Holy Bible (Lutterworth, 1939)
