Grace and peace, Saints.

It seems that the Roman Catholic pope, Benedict XVI, has announced his resignation as the Bishop of Rome.  This came as a shock to most people, as there were no signs of illness or failing health, and there was no indication that the pontiff was slowing down in any way.

In light of this, one may wonder if I still believe he is the Antichrist, and my answer is, a resounding yes.  And I will tell you why.

First, there can be no doubt that the Roman Catholic office of pope is antichrist, as the titles, “Vicar of the Son of God” and “Holy Father” clearly prove.  And the office of the pope clearly fulfills the major characteristics of the Antichrist found in Daniel 11:37-38. But this pope, Benedict XVI, most specifically fulfilled Daniel 8:23:

“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.”

You see, whereas, Daniel 11:37-38 and other Scriptures speak of qualities which clearly identify the Antichrist as a Roman Catholic pope–any pope, for that matter–Daniel 8:23 gives a specific personal attribute which considerably narrows down the field: he has a fierce countenance, and he understands “dark sentences.”  This is what sets Joseph Ratzinger apart from every other pope in recent memory, and what made me identify him as the Antichrist.  He has an incredibly fierce countenance, though it has softened considerably in recent years.  He also speaks Latin, a dead language, and a language which only a small percentage of humanity understands.  This qualifies as “dark speech.”

And not only that, but Daniel 11:41-43 holds special prophetic significance, for they give us the reason for the unprecedented turmoil that we see in Africa right now:

“He (the Antichrist) shall enter into the glorious land, and many countries shall be overthrown…

“[And] He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the land of Egypt shall not escape

“But he shall have power over the treasures of gold and of silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt: and the Libyans and the Ethiopians shall be at his steps” (Daniel 11:41-43).

According to these passages, the reason for all of the unrest Libya, Egypt, and other countries in Africa, is that the Antichrist is taking control of the wealth of these countries.  

Now, Pope Benedict XVI meets the requirements of the Antichrist, including this one specific personal trait, a fierce countenance, while, at the same time, the prophetic events that are to take place in Africa just happen to be going on during his tenure as Pope.  Coincidence? I think not.  There are just too many markers fulfilled in this pope for him not to be the man.

Now it is said that his resignation would become effective February 28.  That is still over two weeks away.  A lot could happen before then.  He could change his mind.  After all, he is voluntarily stepping down.  Moreover, even if he resigns his position and goes into retirement, he could always come back, if it were deemed that he were badly enough needed.  The office of pope is a lifetime office, and most popes die while in service.  The last pope to resigned did so over six hundred years ago.  If Benedict XVI resigns, is there anything stopping him from coming back if his successor passes away suddenly, is assassinated, or is simply deemed unfit for the office?

Then, there is always the chance that this whole thing is a ruse.  There is always the possibility that Pope Benedict XVI’s resignation has been staged just to pull the wool over the eyes of those who are watching this pope, understanding that he fulfills the requirements of the Antichrist.  If you think about it, it is way too sudden.  The whole thing could be designed to take the attention off Joseph Ratzinger.  There are endless scenarios.  

There is always the possibility that this pope is not the Antichrist.  As I said before, every other characteristic of the Antichrist identifies him as the Roman Catholic Pope.  What singled Benedict XVI out is his fierce countenance, also the prophetic events taking place during his tenure cannot be overlooked.  However, in that he was selected from a pool of eligible candidates, it is possible that those in power chose him specifically for his fierce countenance, because they wanted to establish the vision.  Let’s look at Daniel 11:14:

“And in those times there shall many stand up against the king of the south: also the robbers of thy people shall exalt themselves to establish the vision; but they shall fall.”

It would seem that the Babylonians, the “robbers of [Daniel’s] people,” are said to have wanted to “establish” Daniel’s vision.  In other words, they knew about the prophecy and wanted to install their man as the Antichrist, and their kingdom as the last kingdom that Daniel saw in his vision.  But they were not able to do so.  Babylon is modern-day Iraq, and we know that before he died, Saddam Hussein was rebuilding the city of Babylon and was said to consider himself the new Nebuchadnezzar.

Now we know that the Gulf War was about more than just oil.

It is said that Adolph Hitler was working to establish the vision also, wearing that perpetual sadistic scowl, and endeavoring to set up his “thousand year reich.”  But he too, was unsuccessful.

So it could be that Pope Benedict XVI was specifically chosen because he met this one important requirement, but that he was not the man God had in mind for the task.  I don’t know.  But I’m not convinced that Joseph Ratzinger is not the man.  In fact, I would be extremely surprised if the Antichrist turns out to be anyone other than Pope Benedict XVI.  

By the way, the Vatican says that they want to have a new Pope installed by Easter.  Many Christians celebrate Easter as the day Jesus was resurrected.  In our post concerning the Antichrist, we contend that the Pope will also be killed and resurrected by the power of Satan, who will indwell him.  This is when he will become the full-fledged Antichrist.  It will be interesting to see how this all plays out.

The Still Man