In Antichrist’s Shadow

I must admit up front that I’ve delved into now ancient archives of my own thoughts in writing this week’s column. The things under consideration, however, are more relevant than ever. As a matter of fact, it becomes quite fascinating to look back at earlier times of analyses of issues and events. New perspectives and postulations can sometimes be derived from such a retrospective.

Quite a few years ago, I put together (as general editor) a book with a number of prophecy scholars, broadcasters, and writers. That book was called Foreshocks of Antichrist. Its chapters dealt with issues and events of the times that the other authors and I believed were significant in considering prophecies about Antichrist coming to power, as described in the books of Daniel, Revelation, 1 John, and others.

That was about 1996, I think, and I believed at the time that conditions couldn’t ripen much more so far as the world being ready to reap the bitter harvest concerning what the Antichrist will bring.

I was wrong, of course, which proves we must never be too quick to think things can’t get much worse. They can get worse—and they have, since my late mentors/colleagues such as Dr. John Walvoord, Dr. Dave Breese, Zola Levitt, Dr. Tim LaHaye, and many others dissected the issues with the scalpel of God’s Word in that Harvest House book.

The shadow of the coming Antichrist looms more ominously than ever.

All one must do is to consider the following report I used many years ago to see that dictatorship might be right around the proverbial corner. An Austrian newspaper reported the following result of a question posed to the citizenry of that nation: What was their opinion of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi annexation during World War II?

Reuters Report—May 21, 2013:

Forty-two percent said life was not all bad under Hitler, while sixty-one percent said they would be interested in a strong-armed leader who did not have to deal with democratic challenges like political opponents and elections. The survey, published this weekend, is getting prominent play in the media in Israel, which is home to some 250,000 Holocaust survivors.

Antichrist and the False Prophet of Revelation chapter 13 will be the ultimate, final dictatorship. Their regime will be the driver of the geopolitical and religious juggernaut that will crush anyone and anything that opposes it during the Tribulation era. The engine that will power Satan’s cruel, soul-rending Beast of Revelation 13:1-2 will be an all-controlling, enslaving economy. We see the Beast described as follows:

“And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy. And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority” (Revelation 13:1-2).

The control that Beast will wield is described in this way:

“And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name” (Revelation 13:16-17).

The technologies for setting up just such a system of control over the people of the world have grown exponentially during the past several decades. Computer-satellite hook-ups between continents, linking most of the world in a geometrically progressing network of electronic funds transfer capability, bring this generation ever closer to the type of control prophesied in those familiar passages of Scripture.

The United States of America, the most materially blessed nation on Earth, has been concentric to the global networking. Most of the great contributions to the computer and satellite revolution have been spawned from this country. But other super-industrious peoples around the globe continue the “progress.” Other nations are now taking the relevant technologies to new levels of “achievement.” Now, it is America who seems to be dragging its feet in bringing in economic Utopia—or so it would seem…

As we looked at these matters of international finance more than a decade ago, it appeared that the US was the hold-up to bringing in a new world financial order. The refusal to relinquish paper and coinage as currency was viewed as blocking the establishment of that changed monetary order.

With the unbelievable swiftness of movement involving all things fiscal since those earlier times, it becomes obvious that the powers that drive monetary movement are determined to keep hard currencies in place with the US dollar as the standard (until other dynamics of financial interlinkages brought sufficient chaos) to create a critical need for a system other than paper and coins to avert world economic disaster.

The United States’ great wealth and power, represented in the mighty dollar, was thus held high as a criterion for international trade until just the right political changes within America had been engineered. That political change has, as of the coming of the Obama administration, now begun—and in a big way. The dollar’s fate is sealed. The advent of such profound technological intrusions as AI and Bitcoin is assuring the fate of paper and coinage.

Is America, then, a stumbling block to, or a catalyst for, the emerging system that will almost certainly serve as the framework for Antichrist’s Revelation 13 hegemony over the earth?

Rationale prompts one to believe something must happen to cause the US citizenship to come around to accepting a total e-money solution to the confusing state of currency exchanges, et cetera. But the process is agonizingly slow and would likely have to take place with powerful opposition from the American Congress and its constituencies and lobbyists.

Many observers of Bible prophecy, including yours truly, can’t see it taking decades for such a situation to develop. That is, we can’t imagine a scenario that would allow, in America, a lengthy transition to the coming global order essential to the future Antichrist regime’s system of control. This is because most other prophesied signals for the Tribulation appear to now be in place for setting the stage for the Tribulation.

In assessing all of this, Pete Garcia and I have just completed a book to soon be published by Defender Publishing with the title The Machine That Speaks: Building the Beast’s Image in Silicon Valley.

Again, the factor that fits perfectly into a scenario in which America is instantly brought to such a state of chaos that it acquiesces to the world’s call for a cashless system of digital economics, is—you guessed it—the Rapture!

—Terry

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2025: A Prophetically Significant Year

Although the Rapture has not happened in 2025 (at least not yet), it was a significant year in terms of Bible prophecy. The past twelve months have brought the world closer to the Tribulation period and, for us, closer to the time we meet Jesus in the air.

Although a great many events from this past year point to the rapidly approaching Day of the Lord, I want to focus on those that pertain directly to Israel. The nation’s existence is the key indicator that we live in the last days, and what we saw during 2025 points to the soon unveiling of the antichrist on the world scene, which cannot happen until after the Rapture (2 Thessalonians 2:3-8).

The Inauguration of President Donald Trump

President Joe Biden’s administration held back key shipments of sorely needed armaments to Israel, ones that Congress had already approved. After Donald Trump became president, he immediately released the weapons, bombs, and bulldozers for delivery. In the months leading up to the war between Israel and Iran, Amir Tsarfati’s Telegram posts reported a constant flow of anti-missile systems and bombs into the Jewish nation.

These things wouldn’t have happened if President Trump had lost the 2024 election and his opponent had taken office in early 2025. It’s highly unlikely that Harris would’ve supported Israel in such a dramatic way.

I believe the Lord saved Trump’s life in the assassination attempts of 2024 because of the backing he would later provide to Israel in fighting its wars during the past twelve months.

The War Between Israel and Iran

On June 13, 2025, Israel launched surprise airstrikes on Iranian military sites and facilities while at the same time assassinating senior Iranian leadership, including IRGC commander Hossein Salami and armed forces chief Mohammed Bagheri. During the course of the war, Iran retaliated by firing over 550 ballistic missiles and 1,000 suicide drones, some of which struck Israeli civilian centers, military bases, energy sites, and even a hospital. Israel’s Iron Doom, however, intercepted almost all of the missiles.

The U.S. joined the war effort on June 22, 2025, by bombing three Iranian nuclear sites. Although the bombs inflicted considerable damage, it seems as though some of the weapon-grade uranium might have survived. Israel agreed to a U.S.-brokered ceasefire two days later.

The pause in hostilities, however, has not stopped Iran’s determination to destroy Israel. Its mass production of missiles continues, with recent reports of it supplying many of them to the Houthi terrorists in Yemen for future attacks on Israel. Iran’s threats to annihilate the Jewish state continue unabated.

Why is all of this significant prophetically? In Ezekiel chapters 38-39, we read of Iran’s leadership in a future coalition of nations that invades Israel. Most students of Bible prophecy place this attack between the Rapture and antichrist’s covenant agreement with Israel. The fact that Iran survived to fight another day is significant because of the role it will play in the future Gog/Magog war. Could the fact that this future battle seems to be a land-based invasion of Israel rather than an attack from the air point to further Israeli/U.S. attacks on Iran’s missile and nuclear capabilities?

The Gazan Peace Deal

Until recently, I didn’t understand the reference to “the many” in Daniel’s prophecy concerning the deal that a future “prince,” the antichrist, will make with Israel (Daniel 9:26-27). President Trump’s ceasefire accord, which has somewhat decreased hostilities between Israel and Hamas, adds clarity to what this future covenant might look like.

His deal involves many nations, mostly from the Middle East, in the process of bringing peace to Gaza and the region. The latest details of the President’s plan are raising eyebrows among those of us watching for Jesus’ imminent appearing.

A recent article on the Prophecy News Watch (PNW) website provides the following details.

President Trump is forming a “Board of Peace” made up of ten international leaders from Arab and Western nations–leaders who will collectively oversee the next phase of governance, security, and reconstruction in Gaza and the broader Middle East peace framework.

• • Ten leaders.
  • Ten seats of authority.
  • Ten influencers shaping a new order over the most prophetically central land on Earth.

President Trump will announce the identification of the ‘ten” in early 2026. My prayer is that his desire to be a peacemaker doesn’t interfere with Israel’s future security.

Everything about his peace plan seems eerily similar to what we read in the books of Daniel and Revelation. Could it be a template for what the globalists and antichrist will use in the future?

I believe the fulfillment of Daniel 9:27 will allow Israel to build the third temple. If that ever becomes a part of any future deal, it will surely be the time for us to “look up” (Luke 21:28).

The Nonstop Determination to Destroy Israel

The nonstop aggression of Israel’s enemies also signifies that we live in the last days preceding antichrist’s rise to power.

• Despite a devastating defeat, Hezbollah continues to rebuild and rearm in preparation for a future attack against Israel.
• Despite repeated bombings by both the US and Israel, the Houthis in Yemen continue to rearm with missiles from Iran.
• Despite great losses during its summer war with Israel, Iran continues to build missiles, rearm Israel’s enemies, and continues to boast of its intention to destroy the Jewish nation.
• Despite a thorough and catastrophic defeat, Hamas refuses to disarm and boasts of future attacks against Israel similar to that of October 7, 2023.

What does this tell us prophetically?

1. All current and future efforts to bring lasting peace to the Middle East will fail.
2. Sometime in the future, Israel will welcome the terms that the antichrist offers to them as relief from its almost constant warfare and threats of destruction, but that will lead to the nation’s worst nightmare.
3. Only Jesus, at His Second Coming, will bring lasting peace to the Middle East and to the world.

All of these things signify that everything is falling into place for what Scripture says will happen after the Rapture. If we already see such widespread stage-setting for the Tribulation period, and we do, how much longer can it be before Jesus appears to take us home to Heaven?

-Jonathan

Author’s note: Christmas 2025 is upon us. This article, now slightly updated, was first posted/published December 25, 2006. I thought it still most relevant at this moment–perhaps more so than ever before.

The Visitation

One solitary birth is the basis upon which the future hangs for every person ever to enter this mortal realm we call planet Earth. How each man, woman, and child–who has reached the age of understanding salvation–views this visitation determines where their home will be for eternity.

Many believe Jesus was sent by God to show us how to live a good life. Some think He was a great prophet and teacher. Others regard Him as a philosopher right up there with Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, and the rest. A few among the billions who have lived since His birth have believed Jesus is the Son of God, but perhaps one among others of a created angelic order assigned to influence the affairs of humankind. Still fewer believe He was who He claimed to be: the only begotten Son of God; the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14: 6).

No birth of any individual has ever caused the excitement and controversy that the birth of Jesus has engendered. Was this baby a stranger of an otherworldly order sent to Earth to provide moral guidance? Was Jesus sent to philosophize on the vicissitudes of the human existence? Or was this visitation something more?

Jesus came into the world through the Jewish race. Only those inalterably antagonistic to the truth of history will argue against that. So, we should examine this birth–this visitation—through the prism of Israel and that Jewish nation’s dealings with the one called Jesus.

Although there are other histories about the era, the Bible’s historical account has, through archaeological unveilings, proven time after time to be accurate in details concerning matters surrounding Jesus, the Jews, and Israel. (One such example is the relatively recent discovery of artifacts and evidence that one called Pontius Pilate ruled the area of Judea during the times attributed to Jesus’ crucifixion. Until the discovery, Pilate’s existence as a historical figure was seriously doubted, even denied by many historians.)

We can know the accuracy of how Israel—and the religious Jews in particular—dealt with Jesus. We can know with assurance that He performed miracles and claimed to be God Himself by using the Bible’s documented veracity as proof that Jesus was born exactly as described in detail by Old Testament prophets. The Jewish religious leaders’ treatment of Christ’s First Coming as a baby lays groundwork for understanding what that means to the souls of all humankind. Understanding that First Coming also helps frame the importance of how each of us views Christ’s prophesied Second Advent.

Tragically, the pious Jewish leaders refused to accept that Jesus was the Christ, the Messiah sent from Jehovah to be their King and Savior. They rejected Him despite the precise prophecies He fulfilled in His coming and His ministry. They chose to have Rome rather than Jesus rule over them. The results of their rejection continue to reverberate not only in the Holy Land, but throughout the entire world. Armageddon is building, its nucleus grounded in satanic rage against God’s chosen people.

Jesus wept over God’s people of Israel and the city Jerusalem. He saw times ahead that would eventuate in calamity for them.

“And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it, Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes. For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side, And shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation” (Luke 19:41-44).

Christ’s First Visitation was ignored and scoffed at by the religious leaders of the time. Their choice was their own way rather than God’s. They preferred to do what was right in their own eyes. True to Jesus’ prophecy, Jerusalem was laid waste, the Temple destroyed, and the Jews scattered to every part of the world. Genocide was committed against them to the point that their very existence as a race was threatened.

Israel continues to pay the price. Anti-Semitism is growing in Europe and around the world. The nation is becoming marginalized, just as the prophet Zechariah said in Zechariah chapters 12 and 14.

But there is a bright day coming for that people–those who accept the Messiah’s Second Visitation. Paul the apostle warned believers not to feel superior to Jews. He forecast a time when Israel would shine among the nations:

“For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles be come in” (Romans 11:25).

God said, again through the prophet Zechariah, that believing Israel will yet recognize the Lord Jesus upon His Second Visitation to the earth:

“And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for [his] only [son], and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for [his] firstborn” (Zechariah 12:10).

The Apostle Paul said:

“And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob” (Romans 11:26).

A parallel can be drawn between the ecclesiastical Jewish leaders of the time of Jesus’ First Visitation, and many among mainstream evangelical clergy today.

Neither group has considered prophecies of Christ’s coming as relevant to their times. Their attitude is much akin to the one described by the Apostle Peter:

“Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation” (2 Peter 3:3-4).

This sin-darkened sphere is on the brink of another visitation. Unlike the first, when He came as a humble baby who was the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world, He will come the next time as the King of all kings and Lord of all Lords. Let us who claim Christ as Savior heed His words about His coming again. And the first phase of that Second Coming will be unannounced, in the twinkling of an eye–the Rapture!

“Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning: Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping. And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch” (Mark 13:35-37).

—Terry

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Popular for All the Wrong Reasons

The widespread popularity of Christmas movies in our day reflects this troubling truth: The Christmas holiday is popular for all the wrong reasons. Of course, I enjoy watching several of these movies, especially the ones that don’t make Santa Claus the main attraction or leave us wondering about a nebulous “Christmas spirit” as though that’s the reason for the season.

This morning, I saw an article from the PNW (Prophecy News Watch) website that discusses the disconnect between the significance of Jesus’ birth and the world’s celebration of Christmas. Below are some excerpts from it:

Ask the average American whether Jesus was really born in Bethlehem, and most will say yes. Christmas, for them, is not mythology. It is history. The manger is not a fairy tale–it marks a moment in time when something extraordinary entered the world.

Even more striking, a large majority of Americans will tell you they believe Jesus is the Son of God. That belief stretches well beyond church walls, into living rooms where faith may be vague but respect for Jesus remains strong.

In a skeptical age, that alone is astonishing.

America has not rejected the event of Christmas. It has largely accepted it. The problem is not disbelief–it is incompleteness.

The article also states that the majority of Americans celebrate Jesus’ birth as that of a great man who didn’t exist until His birth in the manger. I believe that might even agree with the sentiment that “Jesus is the reason for the season,” but still miss the necessity of His death on the cross as payment for our sins.

There have been many great men and women in history whose accomplishments and discoveries have greatly benefited humanity. We enjoy our freedom in America because of the sacrifices of many who gave their lives fighting wars far away from home. We remember a few of our past leaders on their birthdays, and we have a holiday dedicated to those who died in battle so we could be free. Yet all of these remembrances and recognitions of past achievements fall far short of what happens each year in late December.

What If?

What if Jesus had remained in the grave after His crucifixion? There would be no such thing as the Christmas season with its gift exchanges and feasting with family with great food and delicious desserts and cookies. Jesus claimed to be one with the Father and the only path to eternal life. If He had not risen from the dead, no one would have believed Him or His claims to be “one with the Father” and the exclusive path to eternal life (John 10:30; 14:6). If anyone else in history had proclaimed his deity as well as the ability to forgive sins in such an unmistakable way, would the world celebrate that person’s birth in such a way?

Apart from Jesus’ resurrection, history would not even recognize Jesus as a great teacher. Josh McDowell, in his book Evidence that Demands a Verdict, argues that if Jesus is not Lord (all that He claimed to be), He must either be a liar or a lunatic. If He is not the eternal God and Savior sent from the Father, then no one today would celebrate His birth. His name might be a matter of trivia or a correct response on Jeopardy, but not the reason for exchanging of gifts and family get-togethers.

Jesus is the Word that Became Flesh

The Gospel of John describes Jesus’ birth in this way,

“In the beginning was the Word, and Word was with God, and the Word was God . . . . And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of the only Son from the Father (1:1, 14).

Jesus’ birth represents God becoming flesh so that through His death on the cross, we might receive eternal life. John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

Jesus came to give us life; He walked out of the grave to prove He alone is able to forgive our sins and bring us safely to heaven. This is why the angel proclaimed Him as “Savior” in announcing His birth to the shepherds (Luke 2:11). He is indeed the Savior of the world; there is salvation in no other name apart from His (Acts 4:12).

The celebration of Christmas devoid of the Gospel misses the whole purpose of Jesus’ birth; yet the holiday remains insanely popular among many who reject the saving message of the cross. Could it be that it gives people a little bit of Jesus without really trusting Him? Or have they fallen for Satan’s lie that being somewhat religious is enough, even if they don’t truly believe God’s Word?

My prayer is that all of you have a truly blessed and wonderful Christmas as you celebrate the birth of our Savior in anticipation of His imminent appearing to take us home!

-Jonathan