The Twelve Names of the Antichrist

According to Dr. E. W. Bullinger, the "power commonly known as 'The Antichrist' " has twelve names in the Bible. This is a brief overview, with Bible verses. The twelve names are: 

1. The Little Horn - Daniel 7:8

7. The Vile Person - Daniel 11:21 

2. The King of Babylon - Isaiah 14:4

8. The Willful King - Daniel 11:36 

3. The Assyrian - Isaiah 14:25

9. The Man of Sin - 2 Thessalonians 2:3 

4. Lucifer - Isaiah 14:1210. The Son of Perdition - 2 Thessalonians 2:3 

5. The Prince That Shall Come - Daniel 9:26

11. That Wicked (or Lawless) One - 2 Thessalonians 2:8 

6. The King of Fierce Countenance - Daniel 8.23

12. The Beast With Ten Horns - Revelation 13:1

1. The Little Horn - Daniel 7:8

In the first year of Belshazzar the king of Babylon (c. 430 BC), Daniel had a vision of four great beasts rising out of the sea. The sea represents all of the people and nations of the Earth. It is the great sea of nations which give rise to these beasts that are four kings or leaders (see Daniel 7:17). These leaders will arise in the time of the end. They are not, like many prophecy teachers teach, the civilizations of history. They have not yet appeared on this earth to this day. See Daniel 7:1-6. Then:

Daniel 7:7-8

After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns. 8 I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things.

This fourth beast or king tramples on all of the other beasts. This means that all of these kings will exist at the same time. This fourth beast is the same as that of Revelation 13:1-10. The little horn is speaking great blasphemies according to Revelation 13:5. Do you know what blasphemy he speaks? He claims to be Jesus the Christ.

2. The King of Babylon - Isaiah 14:4

Isaiah 14:1-3

For the LORD will have mercy on Jacob, and will yet choose Israel, and set them in their own land: and the strangers shall be joined with them, and they shall cleave to the house of Jacob. 2 And the people shall take them, and bring them to their place: and the house of Israel shall possess them in the land of the LORD for servants and handmaids: and they shall take them captives, whose captives they were; and they shall rule over their oppressors. 3 And it shall come to pass in the day that the LORD shall give thee rest from thy sorrow, and from thy fear, and from the hard bondage wherein thou wast made to serve.

These verses set up the time and place of this happening. It is in the end times, when God has mercy on Jacob after Jacob's trouble. When used prophetically, Jacob means both houses, Israel and Judah. Both houses will be back in the land at the time of the end. What land? The Land of the LORD, Zion. God has given them rest from all their sorrows. Their sorrows are captivity, and dispersion throughout the nations, and the trouble at the end, the Great Tribulation or Jacob's trouble. He has delivered them from bondage. Has this happened yet? No. Only a small portion of the house of Judah has currently been gathered from the nations.

Isaiah 14:4-6

That thou shalt take up this proverb against the king of Babylon, and say, How hath the oppressor ceased! the golden city ceased! 5 The LORD hath broken the staff of the wicked, and the sceptre of the rulers. 6 He who smote the people in wrath with a continual stroke, he that ruled the nations in anger, is persecuted, and none hindereth.

This cannot be either Nebudchadnezzar or Belshazzar, the two rulers of Babylon during the captivity of Judah. That happened in 477 BC. As we found in the previous verses, this is the time of the end. It is now 1999, and these events have not yet happened. Revelation talks about a one world system run by antichrist called Babylon. See Revelation chapters 14 - 18. In Revelation 14:8, an angel is crying "Babylon is fallen, is fallen . . ." That is a second witness of the event spoken of in these verses in Isaiah. This ruler of Babylon, is the ruler of the end time Babylon spoken of in Revelation, which is antichrist.

3. The Assyrian - Isaiah 14:25

Isaiah 14:12-23

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! 13 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: 14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. 15 Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit. 16 They that see thee shall narrowly look upon thee, and consider thee, saying, Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms; 17 That made the world as a wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof; that opened not the house of his prisoners? 18 All the kings of the nations, even all of them, lie in glory, every one in his own house. 19 But thou art cast out of thy grave like an abominable branch, and as the raiment of those that are slain, thrust through with a sword, that go down to the stones of the pit; as a carcase trodden under feet. 20 Thou shalt not be joined with them in burial, because thou hast destroyed thy land, and slain thy people: the seed of evildoers shall never be renowned. 21 Prepare slaughter for his children for the iniquity of their fathers; that they do not rise, nor possess the land, nor fill the face of the world with cities. 22 For I will rise up against them, saith the LORD of hosts, and cut off from Babylon the name, and remnant, and son, and nephew, saith the LORD. 23 I will also make it a possession for the bittern, and pools of water: and I will sweep it with the besom [broom] of destruction, saith the LORD of hosts.

Verses 12-20 are about the fall of Lucifer. It is interesting to note here, that the Assyrians worshipped Lucifer at sunrise and at sunset. Lucifer was a male at sunrise and a female at sunset. In verse 21, God says he will destroy Lucifer's or Satan's children. Who are they? You may know them as the Synagogue of Satan of Revelation 2:9 and 3:9. as the sons of Cain -- the Kenites.

Again, we are speaking of the Babylon of the end times. How do we get the connection between Babylon and Assyria? God has told us about gathering all twelve tribes back to Him. (see Jeremiah 32:36-37, Ezekiel 39:25-29, Micah 2:12, etc.) Babylon carried Judah away; do you know who carried Israel (the ten northern tribes) away? The Assyrians under Sennacherib. In our scripture not only has God rescued His people from Babylon, but also from Assyria. That is our connection.

Isaiah 14:24-25

The LORD of hosts hath sworn, saying, Surely as I have thought, so shall it come to pass; and as I have purposed, so shall it stand: 25 That I will break the Assyrian in my land, and upon my mountains tread him under foot: then shall his yoke depart from off them, and his burden depart from off their shoulders.

This takes place in the end times so this Assyrian can only be broken at a future date. What leader is in God's land during the time of the end? Who is destroyed at that time? Antichrist. The Assyrian is just another name for antichrist. God uses the names of real leaders in His symbolic illustrations of prophecy. Compare the King of Tyre (Satan) in Ezekiel 28:12-19.

4. Lucifer - Isaiah 14:12

Since we have discussed Lucifer above, I will only place Isaiah 14:12 here:

Isaiah 14:12

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!

We know that this passage (Isaiah 14:12- 20) refers to the fall of Satan. Is antichrist Satan? Yes, he is. In Revelation 6:2 we see the rider on the white horse. It is Satan. Why is he riding a white horse? It is because he is trying to be like Christ, who rides a white horse in Revelation 19:11. Why is Satan trying to look like the Christ? Because he is a wannabe coming INSTEAD OF Christ. That is what the word antichrist means: instead of Christ. Is this antichrist? Yes, so Lucifer, or Satan, IS antichrist. Antichrist is the incarnation of Satan.

5. The Prince That Shall Come - Daniel 9:26

Because of Daniel's prayer and supplication, the angel Gabriel, the man of God, came to him to explain the vision of the seventy weeks (Daniel 9:1-23)

Daniel 9:24-25

Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy. 25 Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.

Gabriel told Daniel that seventy weeks were to pass and the eternity will come. Then he tells Daniel that sixty-nine weeks will pass before Messiah will be cut off (crucified). In other words, 490 years will pass before the end of this age. 483 years will pass until the Messiah is killed. Then the last week, the seventieth week, which is seven years is, put on hold. That week will come at the end of time. It will happen just before the Millennium, and it will be shortened (Mark 13:20)

Daniel 9:25-27

Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. 26 And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined. 27 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

The Messiah will be cut off and then an undetermined period will elapse. Then the seventieth week will take place and the antichrist will come. He will make a covenant with the world, but will then break it. Here he is called "the prince that shall come." This prince is not the tinhorn Roman general, Titus. There are still parts of the city and sanctuary (temple) standing that Titus did not destroy. The sacrifice and oblations are no longer happening because the Communion Table has replaced them. Antichrist will attempt to stop all Communion by claiming to be Christ, who has returned (there is no need to practice the sacrament if Christ is present). This has not yet happened, but will happen just before Jesus returns. This prince is antichrist.

6. The King of Fierce Countenance - Daniel 8.23

Daniel 8:23-25

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. 24 And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practice, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy people. 25 And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand.

The first part of verse 23 puts it all in perspective. This takes place during the latter times or the end times. The kingdom spoken of in the verse is the broken up kingdom of Greece after Alexander's untimely death. The next part of the verse tells us this happens when the transgressors are come to a full, which is the end times.

This man of fierce countenance gets his power from Satan, and he seeks to destroy God's people. He will claim peace, but there will be no peace. He will claim to be Christ coming in peace, and through this peace, he will deceive many. He will then try to stand against the Christ, who will destroy him with His spoken Word. Who is this? It is none other than antichrist.

7. The Vile Person - Daniel 11:2

Daniel 11:21

And in his estate shall stand up a vile person, to whom they shall not give the honour of the kingdom: but he shall come in peaceably, and obtain the kingdom by flatteries. 

The king of the north dies as does his successor, in his estate will come one who is a vile person. He will not be royalty. He will enter with peace, claiming to be the Prince of Peace. He will "obtain the kingdom with flatteries" is a reference to his claiming to be Christ, and people follow this treachery. The word translated "flatteries" actually means treachery. This is antichrist.

8. The Willful King - Daniel 11:36 

Daniel 11:36-37

And the king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined shall be done. 37 Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers, nor the desire of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all.

9. The Man of Sin - 2 Thessalonians 2:3 And 10. The Son of Perdition - 2 Thessalonians 2:3

2 Thessalonians 2:1-4

Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, 2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. 3 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;

Paul and his compatriots had written a letter to the church at Thessalonica concerning the end times and the events of those end times. We call it First Thessalonians. The letter was misconstrued by some at Thessalonica, and the worry spread that the return of Jesus had already happened, or was happening. Paul hastily wrote this letter to quell those fears.

He wants them to be sure that they understand that the return of Jesus, and our gathering to him WILL NOT HAPPEN until there is a general falling away form the church [like in our time] and the antichrist is revealed. How do we know that this man of sin, the son of perdition, is the antichrist? Because it is he:

2 Thessalonians 2:4

Only antichrist, which means instead of or in the place of Christ, would sit in the Temple of God and call himself God. Antichrist will come in looking like Jesus the Christ, claiming to be Christ, and deceiving many into believing he is Christ. Those who have been taught the false doctrine of the rapture will be taken in by him.

The doctrine of the rapture teaches that Christians need not worry, they will not be here when antichrist arrives, and they will have flown away with Christ. Since they believe this lie, they will believe that antichrist MUST be Christ. After all, didn't their preacher say that Jesus would come before antichrist to get them? Then, this must be Christ.

Satan will use this to deceive as many as who will believe him. If you believe the rapture doctrine, he will deceive you. In fact, this teaching IS Satan's plan. It is part of the famine of the end times: the lack of hearing of God's TRUE Word (Amos 8:11). Do not be decieved. See my teaching on the rapture

Paul wanted to stop the rumor that Christ had already come, so he wrote the second letter to the Thessalonians.

Who is this man of sin? He is the antichrist and he is also the son of perdition. The son of perdition IS NOT Judas Iscariot, even though many call Judas that. Judas was already dead when Paul wrote these words, so they could only refer to a future son of perdition. The Greek word for perdition is apoleia which literally means eternal loss or damnation. It means that antichrist is doomed to eternal damnation. In other words, he has been sentenced to death. All souls will have the opportunity of salvation while here on earth, even Judas, who repented, by the way. There is only one soul who has already been sentenced to death, and who will not be at the judgment, and that is Satan. He was already judged By God in Ezekiel:

Ezekiel 28:18-19

Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffic; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee. 19 All they that know thee among the people shall be astonished at thee: thou shalt be a terror, and never shalt thou be any more.

God will cause a fire to come from Satan's midst and devour and destroy him and he will be no more. This is eternal loss or damnation. I took this study this far to let you know who antichrist really is. He is Satan in the flesh. Paul calls him the man of sin and the son of perdition. Satan is the only soul who will not be at God's judgment because he has already been judged and sentenced to die, the only true son of perdition.

Continuing the words of Paul:

2 Thessalonians 2:6-8

And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. 7 For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. 8 And then shall that Wicked [one] be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:

When Michael, the one that holds Satan back, is taken out of the way (Revelation. 12:7-9), Satan will be hurled to earth, making his appearance as antichrist. The one who is called Wicked or Lawless (the word may be translated either way) is Satan in the flesh, that is antichrist. Here Paul tells us he is condemned to die by the spoken word and the light of the Lord Jesus.

12. The Beast With Ten Horns - Revelation 13:1

Revelation 13:1-9

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. 2 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. 3 And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast. 4 And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him? 5 And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months. 6 And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven. 7 And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. 8 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. 9 If any man have an ear, let him hear.