The notorious harlot, apostate church-turned-government power known as “Babylon the Great” is sitting on a beast in Revelation chapter 17. Yes, it is the same creature we saw in chapter 13. It has seven heads and ten horns, and other characteristics that mark him as the Satan-man, not just Satan. I have spent much time in previous work describing the Rome-centered harlot system. I want to jump here to the pithy descriptions given by an anonymous angel to a puzzled and awed apostle (note this other similarity to Daniel!). It’s in verse 8:

“The beast you saw [the Satan-man] was [he once existed on the planet] and it is not [in John’s day, he is not alive] and will ascend from the abyss [he will come back to earth from the grave or a special holding place where he has been preserved all these centuries] and go to perdition [ placed by Jesus in the Lake of Fire.]”That’s not so easy to believe, but it’s not hard to understand. Let’s learn to ignore our brain if it conflicts with our faith. Someone who lived before the Apostle John is coming back to earth. Once again notice that Satan is trying to do what Jesus did in as many ways as possible. Jesus died and rose again. Satan’s man died but will rise again. [And if the people don’t believe that he can “demonstrate” it again.]

Where will Antiochus come from, if he has a new body? We know his former nationality, but when the antichrist returns, will he “start” as a baby again? I think not, unless the pagan doctrine of reincarnation is allowed to replace the biblical concept of resurrection in end-time culture, and there is an accompanying miracle to confirm it.

It seems to me that he will come in his new body, full of his new master. They’ve had plenty of time to work out the details of his appearance, while he waits in the “well.” Yes, Antiochus died and went to the place where all the dead go, or so we assume. His spirit just waits to join his body renewed him. In that he is like every human being. Then, like all of us, he stands up to be judged. The only difference is that he will be allowed several years to wreak havoc on the land before his public judgment.

The world will be mesmerized by this man, from his mysterious origins, to his invincible body and captivating, Hitler-like manner as a speaker.

The Spirit gives us another way of looking at this mystery in verse 9. We are told that we can look at the seven heads as seven mountains on which the woman sits. These could be the actual seven hills of Rome or the seven world powers that the beast represents. Or, says the angel, we can look back in history to seven kings.

Now, of all the kings that have ever sat on a throne, how do we narrow the search down to seven? I’m not sure I have the full answer, but I think that to qualify for this position, a king would have to have had severely negative relations with Israel, challenge Israel’s God, and perhaps even be mentioned or alluded to. in the scriptures. The kings would probably have to coincide with the seven world powers that we have identified above as heads. That would bring us to Pharaoh (Raamses) of Egypt, Sennacherib of Assyria, Nebuchadnezzar of Baylonia, Xerxes (Ahasuerus, who signed a bill to eliminate the Jews!) of Persia, Antiochus Epiphanes of the Greek Empire, Domitian of Rome, and the future ruler of “Revived” Rome. These are seven men/heads for whom Israel was a problem to be solved. Seven figures of the “antichrist” of history.

The angel who explains all this to John then says that five of the previous kings have fallen, they are dead. One of them exists (in John’s day), he is alive now. One of them is yet to come, but he will reign for a short time. This fact led many to speculate that it is a future ruler who will be assassinated and rise from the dead. That is to say, the number seven arrives, dies, is resurrected and is immediately the number eight. But that won’t fit with what we just learned, that the “beast” was already alive but not anymore. Whoever he is predates John, who lived in the first century.

Now all seven of these rulers have failed or will fail in their goal of world domination and annihilation of Israel. Even the “seventh” will not succeed in hurting the Jews enough. His reign will be brief, to soon give way to “the eighth”. But aren’t they seven? Yes there are seven. But there are eight. This is the heart of the mystery. One of those seven men mentioned above is number eight again. He was one of the seven. He is number eight. Let it sink in, and your choices of “who is the antichrist?” they narrow significantly.

We then learn that the final Roman kingdom is energized at the end of all things as a power base for the antichrist. He seems to take over three nations very quickly (Daniel 7:8). After having had their short day, ruining “Babylon” forever, the world political-religious system and they themselves will be destroyed along with his master, by Christ at his return.

Thus ends John’s part of the explanation of the mystery of the man of sin, also known as “the beast.” Along with Daniel, Matthew, Luke, and Paul, there is a pretty clear picture of who he will come from and what he will do.