“And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end. Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried; but the wicked shall do wickedly: and none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand. And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days. Blessed is he that waiteth, and cometh to the thousand three hundred and five and thirty days. But go thou thy way till the end be: for thou shalt rest, and stand in thy lot at the end of the days” (Daniel 12:9-13).
Introduction
An abomination, as spoken of in Scripture, is something that is disgusting and evil in the sight of God. In Daniel’s prophecy it speaks of a very specific event in world history which will be fulfilled in the Last Days.
What is it?
The abomination is described in the Bible as relating to a thing and a person. “And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days” (Daniel 12:11) … “Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God” (2 Thessalonians 2:3-4). Therefore, the abomination is an image of the Antichrist set up in the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem. According to Revelation 13:15 the image will be interactive, “And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.” It will probably be some new holographic technology.
When will it be?
The image will be installed in the middle of the seven year period. “And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate” (Daniel 9:27). This will probably come shortly after the church of Christ has been caught up to Heaven, “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord” (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). This will usher in a time of suffering and torment the world has never before experienced, “For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be” (Matthew 24:21).
Who will worship it?
Those who do not know Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour will be forced to worship the Antichrist. This is where the first rebellion finds its fulfilment. “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit” (Isaiah 14:12-15).
Those who follow the Beast will honour him by taking his mark, “And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world … 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 13:8, 16-17). This number is made up of all who reject the Gospel of Christ before the church is raptured, “And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness” (2 Thessalonians 2:8-12).
Conclusion
We have read about Satan’s rebellion in Heaven, but Genesis 3:4-5 reveals the rebellion he caused on earth when he tempted Adam and Eve to resist God’s word, “And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” From that moment man, through the guidance of the devil, was destined to make a god of himself. The Antichrist image in the temple is the climax of idolatry, that is, this is where the worship of false gods and images has been heading towards. The Abomination of Desolation is Satan’s final offensive against God. “But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing where it ought not, (let him that readeth understand)” (Mark 13:14).
We can thank God that when He pours out His wrath upon the Antichrist and his dominion, we will already be with Christ in Heaven. “The wrath of God upon the children of disobedience” (Ephesians 5:6) … “Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also” (John 14:1-3).
© 15/3/2008