The Assyrian (Antichrist) will attack Israel. Messiah will be the one to defeat him and establish true peace. It also says that in the midst of this, “seven shepherds, even eight principled men” will be raised up by God to participate in the defeat of the Antichrist.
Remember what the verse says, “we will raise against him seven shepherds, even eight principled men. They will rule the land of Assyria with the sword, the land of Nimrod with drawn sword.”
They, the seven shepherds will destroy Assyria and Nimrod.
This is crucial. God will raise seven allies to help Israel in fighting against the Antichrist. These seven shepherds are rarely if ever discussed. The Bible describes in many cases that He will raise nations from the ends of the earth, far from the Middle East, to destroy Antichrist. Is it possible that seven righteous nations will stand on the side of Christ and Israel in the end? Could America be on this list of righteous defenders?
I’ve had many people argue with me that the ‘Seven Shepherds’ are from amongst Israel. But in Biblical symbolism, Shepherds are leaders of nations. A passage from the Book of Jeremiah reveals this. Consider first the following passage: “Woe be unto the pastors that destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture! says the LORD. Therefore thus says the LORD God of Israel against the pastors that feed my people; Ye have scattered my flock, and driven them away, and have not visited them: behold, I will visit upon you the evil of your doings, says the LORD. And I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all countries whither I have driven them, and will bring them again to their folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase. And I will set up shepherds over them which shall feed them: and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall they be lacking, says the LORD.” The “pastors” in this passage are the leaders of the nations that did not care for the Jews during the many years of their having been scattered among the Gentile nations. In verse 3, God says that he is going to gather the remnant of his flock out of all countries where He has driven them. He will bring them again to the folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase. Verse 4 tells us that He is going to give them “new shepherds” that will feed them, take care of them and remove the cause of their fears.
During the Diaspora, God drove the Jewish people into all of the gentile nations of the world. During this time, He will hold all of these nations responsible for Israel’s welfare and safe keeping. In this passage, he refers to the leaders and governments of these nations as “Pastors or Shepherds.” He is warning the nations that have mistreated Israel that, “He would visit upon them the evil of their doings.” In other words, He is going to punish them for the way they have treated His people Israel.
Then God promises to give Israel new shepherds who would take good care of them. How have the Jewish people been treated since coming to the United States? Throughout history, the Jews have been persecuted in nearly every nation of the world, but not so in America. America was the first country in the world to give the Jewish people equal citizenship. And we are blessed because of it. At the present time there are more Jews living in America than any nation in the world including the nation of Israel itself. We have six million living in America compared to 4.8 million there.
God has indeed given Israel new Shepherds and has delivered them from the fear of persecution in these countries. In America the Jewish people prosper more than they have ever prospered in their entire history. So much so that most Jewish people in America have no desire to return to Israel. God is blessing them here, but there are other countries that treat the Jews well also. We are the countries (shepherds) that God has provided in order to bless the Jewish people. During the tribulation, by the grace of God, the U.S. will continue to defend Israel against the Antichrist. In fact, if we are among the seven righteous nations, then we will actually participate in fighting against the Antichrist. This is why he will call for help from other nations. At the latter part of the Tribulation, Israel will be nearly wiped out. Yet according to Daniel 11, the Antichrist will send for nations to come and help him go down against Jerusalem for the Battle of Armageddon. Think about this for a moment. We all know that the Antichrist is going to invade Israel and go into the temple to declare himself as God. Since he has already taken Israel, why would he be in a position to have to re-take it at the end of the seven years? The answer to this question is that he will be forced to leave Israel sometime between the middle and the end of the seven years of tribulation. Israel’s allies will be the reason that he will come down. He will be coming to make war with us and the other nations who are helping Israel.
Now let’s return to Micah 5: “And this man shall be the peace, when the Assyrian shall come into our land: and when he shall tread in our palaces, then shall we raise against him seven shepherds, and eight principal men. And they shall waste the land of Assyria with the sword, and the land of Nimrod in the entrances thereof: thus shall he deliver us from the Assyrian, when he cometh into our land, and when he treads within our borders” (Micah 5:5-6).
The seven shepherds are the seven nations who take care of the Jews that live within her boundaries. They will also stand with Israel against the Antichrist. The eight principal men are the seven leaders of these nations with Jesus himself as the eighth. These Scriptures declare it to be so. In the 5th verse it says, “And this man shall be our peace, when the Assyrian shall come into our land.”
What many fail to realize is the regional nature of the Antichrist Kingdom. The final Antichrist Empire will be centered in the Middle East. The Antichrist will not literally rule every last nation on the planet. While the Bible does lay out for us the general framework for what the final days will look like, it does not necessarily fill in every last detail. We do not know for sure, for instance, what will become of Greenland or New Zealand. We cannot confidently conclude what will happen to America, Germany, England, or Russia in the Last-Days. Many Americans believe that America will not exist and will be destroyed by Antichrist; they conclude this because America is not mentioned in the Bible. But one could ask why any number of prominent nations is not mentioned in Bible prophecy. Does their lack of having been discussed necessarily mean that they will all be destroyed, or is this primarily due to the fact that the Middle East is the primary emphasis of Bible prophecy? After all, some Western nations are mentioned in the Bible—Spain and Rome. Yet they are never specifically mentioned in connection with judgment. The only nations that are ever mentioned by name in connection with Christ’s judgment are Muslim nations. As the Apostle Paul warned, “We must be careful not to go beyond what the Scriptures state.” (I Corinthians 4:6)
56
When Lucifer Becomes A Man
ANTICHRIST IN THE BOOK OF ISAIAH
Lucifer will possess the Antichrist, but where is this possession mentioned in Scripture? Rarely when I ask this question do I get a response. The answer to this question can be found in Isaiah 14. The ultimate context of Isaiah 14 cannot be ancient Babylon, although ancient Babylon was a type. Isaiah 14:1 declares that this passage is speaking about the return of the Jews to Israel with Gentile believers joining them: “For the LORD will have mercy on Jacob, and will yet choose Israel, and set them in their own land: and the strangers shall be joined with them, and they shall cleave to the house of Jacob” (Isaiah 14:1).
Then in Isaiah verse 25, we have the Assyrian (The Antichrist) who is also called the King of Babylon. The passage refers to this King of Babylon/Assyrian as Lucifer: “O [Lucifer] Morning star, the son of the dawn, How you have fallen from heaven” (v. 12). The passage is clearly speaking about the fall of the angel Lucifer who we often call Satan or the Devil.
The passage begins with Lucifer’s rebellion: “I will ascend into heaven. I will exalt my throne above the stars of God. I will also sit on the mount of the congregation on the farthest sides of the north I will ascend above the heights of the clouds I will be like the Most High” (v. 13-14).
But then, just a couple of verses later, in the midst of describing Lucife
r’s humiliation and destruction, it says: “Those who see you stare at you, they ponder your fate: ‘Is this the man who shook the earth and made kingdoms tremble?’”
When was Lucifer a man? At what time in human history has Satan the cherub ever manifested himself as a man? Clearly, this passage is speaking about the Antichrist who is in essence Satan in the flesh: “Have you also become as weak as we? Have you become like us?” (v. 10)
The context makes it clear that Isaiah is not referring strictly to Nebuchadnezzar, the King of Babylon but rather to the Antichrist of whom Nebuchadnezzar was merely a shadow or a type. Nebuchadnezzar certainly has never fallen from heaven. Nor was Nebuchadnezzar or any Assyrian king ever defeated in Israel: “I will break the Assyrian in My land, and tread him underfoot” (v. 25).
So clearly the primary context of this passage is yet future. It is about the End-Times. The theme of this is yet-future defeat of the Antichrist by the Messiah in Israel runs throughout the prophecies of Isaiah and Micah.
This passage also contains the five ‘I wills,’ which are five claims of pride that are made. The mystery of these five ‘I wills’ are resolved by viewing them as coming from the mouth of the Antichrist who will be a man.
“I will ascend into heaven.” Mohammed already claimed to have ascended to heaven in the Isra wa Al-Mi’rajj. It is likely that the Mahdi will also make the same claim.
“I will exalt my throne above the stars of God.” Mohammed already claimed to possess a position that is far above all angels (stars).
“I will also sit on the mount of the congregation on the farthest sides of the north.” The Mahdi or the Antichrist is said to rule from Pergamum (Revelation 2:12-13) which Christ proclaimed would be the future seat of Satan. This is on the sides of the northern lands (Asia Minor/Turkey) as we shall later study in detail.
“I will ascend above the heights of the clouds.” This declaration is essentially a repeat of the first proud declaration: “I will be like the Most High.” Both Mohammed and Mahdi have given themselves or have been ascribed titles that belong to Jehovah alone.
ISAIAH 14
1)For the LORD will have mercy on Jacob, and will still choose Israel, and settle them in their own land. The strangers will be joined with them, and they will cling to the house of Jacob. 2)Then people will take them and bring them to their place, and the house of Israel will possess them for servants and maids in the land of the LORD; they will take them captive whose captives they were, and rule over their oppressors. 3)It shall come to pass in the day the LORD gives you rest from your sorrow, and from your fear and the hard bondage in which you were made to serve, 4)that you will take up this proverb against the king of Babylon, and say: How the oppressor has ceased, the golden city ceased! 5)The LORD has broken the staff of the wicked, the scepter of the rulers; 6)He who struck the people in wrath with a continual stroke, He who ruled the nations in anger, is persecuted and no one hinders. 7) whole earth is at rest and quiet; they break forth into singing. 8)Indeed the cypress trees rejoice over you, and the cedars of Lebanon, Saying, Since you were cut down, No woodsman has come up against us. 9)Hell from beneath is excited about you, to meet you at your coming; It stirs up the dead for you, All the chief ones of the earth; It has raised up from their thrones All the kings of the nations. 10)They all shall speak and say to you: Have you also become as weak as we? Have you become like us? 11)Your pomp is brought down to Sheol, and the sound of your stringed instruments; the maggot is spread under you, and worms cover you. 12)How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, you who weakened the nations! 13)For you have said in your heart: I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation on the farthest sides of the north; 14) I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High. 15)Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol, To the lowest depths of the Pit. 16)Those who see you will gaze at you, And consider you, saying: Is this the man who made the earth tremble, Who shook kingdoms, 17)Who made the world as a wilderness And destroyed its cities, Who did not open the house of his prisoners? 18)All the kings of the nations, All of them, sleep in glory, Everyone in his own house; 19)But you are cast out of your grave Like an abominable branch, Like the garment of those who are slain, Thrust through with a sword, Who go down to the stones of the pit, Like a corpse trodden underfoot. 20)You will not be joined with them in burial, because you have destroyed your land and slain your people. The brood of evildoers shall never be named. 21)Prepare slaughter for his children Because of the iniquity of their fathers, lest they rise up and possess the land, and fill the face of the world with cities. 22) I will rise up against them, says the LORD of hosts, And cut off from Babylon the name and remnant, and offspring and posterity, says the LORD. 23)I will also make it a possession for the porcupine, and marshes of muddy water; I will sweep it with the broom of destruction, says the LORD of hosts. 24) LORD of hosts has sworn, saying, Surely, as I have thought, so it shall come to pass, And as I have purposed, so it shall stand: 25) I will break the Assyrian in My land, And on My mountains tread him underfoot. Then his yoke shall be removed from them, and his burden removed from their shoulders. 26)This is the purpose that is purposed against the whole earth, and this is the hand that is stretched out over all the nations. 27)For the LORD of hosts has purposed, And who will annul it? His hand is stretched out, and who will turn it back? 28)This is the burden which came in the year that King Ahaz died. 29)Do not rejoice, all you of Philistia, Because the rod that struck you is broken; For out of the serpent’s roots will come forth a viper, And its offspring will be a fiery flying serpent. 30)The firstborn of the poor will feed, and the needy will lie down in safety; I will kill your roots with famine, and it will slay your remnant. 31)Wail, O gate! Cry, O city! All you of Philistia are dissolved; for smoke will come from the north, and no one will be alone in his appointed times. 32)What will they answer the messengers of the nation? That the LORD has founded Zion, and the poor of His people shall take refuge in it.
ANTICHRIST’S TITLES—LINK TO MUSLIM NATIONS
There are more Biblical hints to show that this Antichrist is Muslim from the titles that the Bible ascribes to him. Consider the following titles: the Assyrian, the Prince of Tyre, the King of Babylon, and Pharaoh of Egypt. This may seem rather simple, but if the Bible calls the Antichrist the Assyrian, then isn’t it irresponsible to conclude that the Antichrist will come from Rome or any other European nation? Doesn’t it only make sense to conclude from this title that he will come from the region of the ancient Assyrian Empire?
Why is it that the most popular end-time paradigms completely ignore these titles when attempting to discern the Antichrist’s nation of origin?
If the Antichrist is the King of Babylon, then isn’t it only reasonable to conclude that he will rule over the region of ancient Babylon? Wouldn’t it be awfully strange to conclude that “the King of Babylon” will rule over Luxemburg, Germany or Rome? Yet innumerable Bible teachers who claim to be literalists do exactly this.
So what regions will the Antichrist come from and what regions will he rule over? This is actually quite simple: As the Assyrian, the Antichrist will come from the regions of ancient Assyria which today encompasses the areas of several modern Muslim nations. As we move on, we will see this location substantiated over and over again.
As the King of Tyre, the Antichrist will also rule over Lebanon. Of course, as we have already seen, there is much in the prophetic verses regarding Lebanon. And of course, we see all the trouble that is stirring today in the land of Lebanon, the stronghold of Hezbollah. As the King of Babylon, the Antichrist will rule over Iraq, Iran, and the Arabian Peninsula. As Pharaoh, King of Egypt, the Antichrist will rule over Egypt.
The title King of Tyre (Lebanon) is not some allegory for a European Antichrist, nor is the Biblical declaration that “Lebanon shall fall by The Mighty One” (Isaiah 10:34) an allegorical description of th
e fall of Rome. It is just what it says it is—Christ Himself will deal with the anti-Israeli elements in Lebanon.
How can Antichrist fit all these titles? How can He be a king of Babylon, a Pharaoh of Egypt, and the Assyrian?
Well, in order to respond to this question, I will ask you, how could Jesus come from Egypt, Nazareth, and Bethlehem as the various Scriptures prophesied?
Yet, all of the above are true.
Antichrist also can be a ruler of Babylon, Assyria, Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, and Turkey.
This is why critics of the Bible keep finding what seem to be contradictions. God ordained it this way so that evil will never get it. They are always busy finding problems.
Books have been written to criticize the Bible. Yet when I attempted to hammer this anvil, it was the anvil that bent my pride. A soul that refuses to submit to daily tilling of its inner fields will end up with nothing but thorns and thistles. They asked Jesus why do you speak in parables. He explained that he did so in order that the spiritually blind would not get it. (Matthew 13:13-15) Only those who truly seek truth will find it.
Does that mean that God is not fair? Rather God knows the hearts of men, and He has chosen to reveal His secrets to the humble and the lowly. But the wicked will continue to serve evil. Hardcore Nazis chose to die for Hitler, even after they witnessed the truth. In the end, they still chose suicide. Even the ones who were sentenced after Nuremberg still chose to praise Hitler moments before their death.
God's War on Terror: Islam, Prophecy and the Bible Page 28
