The Christ in Prophecy Journal

Antichrist Book: Not Naming the Antichrist

Dr. David Reagan has recently released his eleventh and latest book titled The Man of Lawlessness: The Antichrist in the Tribulation. I interviewed him about his new book on the Antichrist and asked him his opinion on some very controversial eschatological questions.

Why did you decide to write a book on the Antichrist?

Nathan Jones: First, let me say, I read the book in merely two sittings and found it easy to read and understand.

Dr. Reagan: Well, that’s a good question, because writing a book about the Antichrist was the last thing I thought I would ever do in my life. I just didn’t expect to do that. I guess the reason I did it was because I saw so many things coming out recently that were about the Antichrist that were so confusing and so unbiblical in nature; particularly people trying to name the Antichrist over and over and things of that nature. And so, I thought I needed to get a book out there that covers the fundamentals of what the Bible says about the Antichrist rather than a bunch of wild speculations. That is one of the reasons why I decided to write it.

Another reason is the fact that the Antichrist is a very important person in Bible prophecy in general. This is the person who will finally take over the world. The very first person ever to rule the entire world is going to be the Antichrist. He is going to fulfill the dream that Hitler had and other tyrants of that nature. The Bible says he is going to rule every tongue, tribe and nation. It says that during the seven years that he will be reigning he is going to be responsible for killing half of the population of the world and two-thirds of all the Jews. So, he’s an important topic in Bible prophecy.

Nathan Jones: I love where your heart is as in the preface you say, “Your focus of attention should be on Jesus Christ and not the Antichrist.” That is just so true. We have so many people obsessed with the Antichrist, and you didn’t want to feed that fire, right?

Dr. Reagan: That’s right.

Nathan Jones: Over and over you have said our focus should be on Jesus Christ and not the Antichrist.

Why did you not name the Antichrist?

Nathan Jones: I noticed as I read through the book that no where did you name the Antichrist. Did you want to do that? Is there a reason not to guess who he may be?

Dr. Reagan: Oh, no, no, no. Two of my greatest pet peeves in the whole field of Bible prophecy is firstly people who try to set dates for the return of the Lord. I don’t think we can know the date. We can know the season of the Lord’s return, but not the date.

Secondly would be those who try to name the Antichrist. I think the Bible makes it very clear that no one is going to know the Antichrist until he reveals himself. I don’t think that we are going to be around then. I think we are going to be taken out of here before then. But, the people who try to name the Antichrist get into all kinds of wild speculations. In fact, I have a whole chapter in here that is just about naming the Antichrist.

Nathan Jones: That was a fun chapter!

Dr. Reagan: I think it is the funniest chapter.

Nathan Jones: Tell us the craziest naming of the Antichrist given.

Dr. Reagan: Well, I at least think it is hilarious. I started off with a very funny example of what people get into. My former colleague here at Lamb & Lion was Dennis Pollock. He was with the ministry for 11 years back during the 90’s. During that time we had a daily radio program. He came to me one time and said, “You know, I’m fed up with all these people trying to guess who the Antichrist is. I’d just like to do a radio program about that.” I replied, “Well, that’s fine, Dennis, do it.”

Dennis gets on the radio and he starts off in a satirical way by saying, “I can prove to you who the Antichrist is. I can prove to you beyond a shadow of a doubt that the Antichrist is none other than Barney the purple dinosaur (who was very popular among kids at that time). He gave all the calculations that show beyond a shadow of a doubt that Barney’s name adds up to 666, and so Barney must be the Antichrist.

What is funny is in the middle of all that some guy tunes in, so he didn’t hear the opening of the program. He tuned in while Dennis is going through his calculations and he thinks that Dennis is serious. The man wrote us this enraged letter saying how irresponsible we were that we would be naming Barney the purple dinosaur as the Antichrist!

What I do in this chapter is to move from something silly like that to some really serious theories on who the Antichrist may be. For example, one of the major candidates is Nero. I go into detail as to why I don’t think there is any possibility that Nero is the Antichrist.

Nathan Jones: Well, that’s obvious, as he’s dead.

Dr. Reagan: Yes, but many people believe the Bible indicates that the Antichrist is going to be resurrected from the dead, which I personally don’t believe.

Then there is one from a new book that just came out by a graduate of Dallas Theological Seminary, where of all things names the Antichrist as Augustus Caesar.

One of the silliest I ran across is The Antichrist and a Cup of Tea. That’s the actual name of the book.

Nathan Jones: Tim Cohen’s book, right?

Dr. Reagan: The fellow actually names Prince Charles as the Antichrist. That really floored me! I meet this fellow in Colorado. He came up to me and asked, “Have you read my book?” And I said, “Yes.” He asked, “What did you think?” I replied, “Well, brother, let me tell you something. If Prince Charles is the Antichrist, than all I can say is Satan is in big trouble.” And he asked, “Why do you say that?” I answered, “He is such a patsy.” He surprisingly stated, “Oh, that is all an act. He is acting like he is weak. But, boy, when the time comes, it’s going to be like Clark Kent stepping into the phone booth and coming out as Superman!” We went on to discuss his arguments and why I didn’t think they held any water.

In The Man of Lawlessness, my conclusion is that we should not be involved in trying to guess who the Antichrist is. In fact, I end with a quote from a Church Father named Irenaeus. Written in the year 189 AD, he basically said, “Don’t spend your time trying to guess who the Antichrist is as it’s a waste of time.”

Nathan Jones: Right, the Church won’t be here for the days of the Antichrist.

Dr. Reagan: I hope not. I’m not looking for the Antichrist. I’m looking for Jesus Christ!

In the next part of this interview concerning Dr. David Reagan’s newest book, The Man of Lawlessness: The Antichrist in the Tribulation, I ask him if he believes the Antichrist is alive today.

Resource

The Man of Lawlessness: The Antichrist in the Tribulation Book

This book contains a survey of everything the Bible has to say about the Antichrist, presented in a down-to-earth, easy-to-understand style. One of its special features is a prophecy forum where the opinions of 22 Bible prophecy experts are presented concerning key questions about the Antichrist. It also features a series of in-depth essays about the Tribulation and the Antichrist.

  1. Part 1: The Antichrist in Scripture
  2. Part 2: A Prophetic Forum About the Antichrist
  3. Part 3: An In-Depth Look at Four Issues
  4. Part 4: Good News for Christians
  5. Part 5: Are You Ready?
The Man of Lawlessness
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ABOUT AUTHOR View all posts Author Website

Dr. Nathan E. Jones

As the Internet Evangelist at Lamb & Lion Ministries, Nathan reaches out to the over 4.5 billion people accessible over the Internet with the Good News of Jesus Christ. He also co-hosts the ministry's television program Christ in Prophecy and podcast The Truth Will Set You Free.

6 CommentsLeave a Comment

  • Off topic alert but gotta comment

    What made me feel great today? Seeing all those thousands of people at Chik Fil A in support of a man who had the courage to stand up for the Word of God re: marriage.

    I know, however, when the gays have their anti-Chik Fil A day we are going to see some sick perverted stuff and my heart will sink again.

  • Anon… i thought it was awesome seeing all that support for chik fil a too…. i said a prayer God will foil any big show the "opposition" would have in mind! 🙂

  • Wouldn't you agree that the reasons for supporting Chick-Fil-e because of pro-traditional marriage or pro-First Ammendment speech are secondary, and that the primary reason was support of God's moral law? In essense it was a vote for God.

  • Christians will take a stand for traditional marraige between a man and a woman, in addition voting down legislation that supports any perversion of this truth, wielding the sword mightily, yet the fruit of a traditional marraige is left abandoned. Abortion continues to loom large and the destruction of these children is unabated. Maybe the promise of a fine chicken sandwich would help elevate the Christian voice to this slaughter!

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