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Amillennialism and the Islamic Antichrist

What will happen in the last days? Will the world be ruled by atheists as suggested by the Left

Behind series? Will Islam play a major role? The scope of this writing is to provide evidence suggesting

Islam will indeed play a large role in fulfilling biblical prophecy.

The first task at hand is to provide a background on my millennial position. Originally I held to

the dispensational premillennial position, including the pre-tribulation rapture. An excellent 600+ page

book on the topic is Things to Come by J. Dwight Pentecost. He covers the major eschatological views,

but he spends most of the book explaining the dispensational position. There are definitely some major

conflicts with his position, however, the majority of Christians in America seem to lean towards this

eschatological view. There are challenges in all positions, but I have come to hold Amillennialism as the

best understanding with less conflicts in Scripture. As further research is necessary, the primary aspect

of Amillennialism to emphasize for the purpose of this writing is the idea of the millennial kingdom not

being a literal 1,000 year reign of Christ on earth from Jerusalem, but rather, the millennial kingdom is

symbolic of the church age—the time between Christ’s first coming and His second coming. Psalm 50:10

says, “For every beast of the forest is mine, the cattle on a thousand hills.” What about the cattle on the

rest of the hills? Do they not belong to God? Indeed they do. The Psalm is just one of the evidences that

“a thousand” is symbolic and not literal.

In addition, the binding of Satan is a present reality. Revelation 20:2 speaks of Satan being

bound for a thousand years, and Revelation 20:3 declares the purpose of his binding is so he can no

longer deceive the nations. The Bible often speaks of Israel and the nations. Before Christ, Satan was

deceiving the nations, which is why God’s people were mostly Jews with only some Gentiles. Now that

Satan is bound and unable to deceive the nations any longer, the gospel has gone out to the world and

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the Church consists of mostly Gentiles with only some Jews. The premillennial view on Satan’s binding

and the millennial kingdom creates a major conflict. The millennium is described as a time when peace

reigns on earth since Satan is bound. This contradicts the doctrine of original sin. The implication is

humans are only sinful because of Satan, and without Satan, human sinfulness is very mild or moderate.

Suddenly when Satan is released from his prison, a huge army of humans rebel as if they are just

puppets of Satan. Humans are very sinful apart from Satan, although the serpent definitely plays a

serious role in how sin is carried out in history. With this understanding of the human condition, there

could not be a 1,000 year reign of peace on earth while sinful humans are still here. Understanding

these two issues with an amillennial worldview ties the binding of Satan and the millennial kingdom to

the spread of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The purpose of these visions is to encourage believers to spread

the gospel for Satan is bound, Christ is with us, the dead saints are reigning with Jesus, and those who

die as martyrs will reign with Christ over this present church age.

There is no reason for a literal 1,000 year kingdom on earth. An argument may be that the

kingdom is necessary in order for God to fulfill the covenants with Israel. The problem with such

argument is the Bible teaches that the church is the new Israel. This is not replacement theology. The

church did not replace Israel, but rather, the church is Israel. The olive tree in Romans 11 was originally

mostly Jews. As a result of the unbelief of the Jews and their rejection of Jesus, the unbelieving Jews

were cut off from the olive tree, and many Gentiles were grafted in. The church, therefore, is not

separate from Israel, but one and the same. Believing Jews and believing Gentiles are together the new

Israel. The Abrahamic and Davidic (and some would add Palestinian) covenants are fulfilled in the new

Israel. A literal kingdom in order to fulfill the covenants for ethnic Israel is not supported in Scripture.

The promises are fulfilled in Christ, and those who are in Christ will inherit not a little plot of land in the

Middle East, but those in Christ will inherit the whole earth. Romans 4:13 says that Abraham will be the

heir of the world. The purpose of the millennial kingdom is to spread the gospel and build the church,

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and after the millennium the new Israel will inherit the new heavens and new earth in its entirety. The

Promised Land in the Old Testament was a shadow of the true Promised Land in the age to come,

namely the eternal state.

Another challenge of the premillennial position is Gog and Magog. This army of nations occurs

before the millennium and at the end of the millennium. This does not make much sense. The reality,

according to the amillennial position, is there is only one such war, and as we will briefly discuss later,

this group is tied to Islam.

Revelation 20 speaks of one resurrection and one death. We find the “first resurrection” but no

mention of the second resurrection. We find the “second death” but no mention of the first death. The

second death is obviously spiritual, so it seems best to interpret the first resurrection as spiritual. The

verse does not make much sense if it says, “Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first [physical]

resurrection! Over such the second [spiritual] death has no power.” If the latter is spiritual, the former

should be as well. What does a spiritual resurrection mean? Are not Christians already born-again when

they exercise repentance and faith? How can there be two spiritual births? The answer is found in

understanding the spiritual nature of the resurrection and death. Verse 14 says the lake of fire is the

second death. Unbelievers are already spiritually dead, so the second death is a different kind of

spiritual death which completely severs them from the grace of God. In the same way, believers are

already spiritually resurrected, so the first resurrection is a different kind of spiritual resurrection which

completely unites them to the grace of God. This can be defined as a translation to heaven after death.

Additionally, the words for “first” and “second” in Greek can be interpreted as “chronological

order” or as different “kinds.”1 The First Adam and the Second Adam do not have anything to do with

chronological order, but rather, two kinds of Adam’s are being spoken of. The First Adam is the kind of

1 Riddlebarger, K. (2003). Revelation 20:1-10. In A case for Amillennialism: Understanding the end times (pp. 195-226). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.

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Adam who imputed sin to his physical offspring. The Second Adam is a different kind of Adam who

imputed righteousness to His spiritual offspring. In Revelation 20, the evidence suggests that “first” and

“second” should be interpreted as different kinds. The first and second resurrections cannot be of the

same kind, and thus the first is obviously spiritual in nature according to the context. The first and

second death cannot be of the same kind, and thus the second death is obviously spiritual in nature.

Once a person physically dies, they cannot physically die again, so unbelievers being thrown into the

Lake of Fire cannot be a second physical death, but it must be a kind of spiritual death.

Going into great depth on other very interesting matters related to eschatology are beyond the

scope of this writing. Examples are the Olivet Discourse, further exegesis of Romans 11, the 70 weeks of

Daniel, the most holy place in the temple, the Feast of Tabernacles, other Old Testament shadows, and

the rest of the book of Revelation except what is covered below.

What role may Islam play in biblical eschatology? We will identify and discuss the beast of

Revelation as the Islamic Mahdi, the false prophet of Revelation as the Muslim Jesus, and Jesus Christ of

the Bible as the Dajjal. Other relative aspects of Islam will be discussed as well. All of the quotes from

Islamic tradition and Muslim scholars will come from the book The Islamic Antichrist by Joel Richardson.

The following three sections of the three characters will largely be quotes from Islamic tradition and

Muslim scholars. Afterwards, a comparison will be undertaken in the context of Amillennialism.

The Mahdi

Who is the Islamic Mahdi? When will he arrive? What will he accomplish? What do the Islamic

sources and scholars teach about the Mahdi?

The Mahdi can be described as the messiah of Islam. There are a few groups which deny the

Mahdi, but the majority believe in him. According to a Muslim scholar,

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“The coming of the Mahdi is established doctrine for both Sunni and Shi’a Muslims,

and indeed for all humanity.”

The Mahdi will be of the family of Muhammad. As it is written,

“The world will not come to pass until a man from among my family, whose name will

be my name, rules over the Arabs” and “The Prophet said: The Mahdi will be of my

family, of the descendants of Fatimah [Muhammad’s daughter].”

The Mahdi is the final caliph to come into the world. A caliph is a vice regent of Allah. As it is written,

“If you see him, go and give him your allegiance, even if you have to crawl over ice,

because he is the Vice-regent [Khalifa] of Allah, the Mahdi” and “He will pave the way

for and establish the government of the family [or community] of Muhammad…Every

believer will be obligated to support him.”

He will be the ruler of the world. According to Muslim scholars,

“The Mahdi will establish right and justice in the world and eliminate evil and

corruption. He will fight against the enemies of the Muslims who would be

victorious.”

And,

“He will reappear on the appointed day, and then he will fight against the forces of

evil, lead a world revolution, and set up a new world order based on justice,

righteousness, and virtue…ultimately the righteous will take the world administration

in their hands and Islam will be victorious over all the religions.”

And,

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“He is the precursor of the victory of the Truth and the fall of all tyrants. He heralds

the end of injustice and oppression and the beginning of the final rising of the sun of

Islam which will never again set and which will ensure happiness and the elevation of

mankind…The Mahdi is one of Allah’s clear signs which will soon be made evident to

everyone.”

The traditions [hadith] and scholars speak of an army with black flags, which are flags of jihad carried by

Muslim armies. We see radical Islamic groups such as al-Qaeda and ISIS carrying black flags. According to

a scholar,

“Hadith indicate that black flags coming from the area of Khorasan will signify the

appearance of the Mahdi is nigh. Khorasan is in today’s Iran, and some scholars have

said that this hadith means when the black flags appear from Central Asia, i.e., in the

direction of Khorasan, then the appearance of the Mahdi is imminent.”

According to tradition,

“The Messenger of Allah said: The black banners will come from the East and their

hearts will be as firm as iron. Whoever hears of them should join them and give

allegiance, even if it means crawling across snow.”

The Mahdi and his army will conquer and rule from Jerusalem. As it is written,

“Rasulullah [Muhammad] said: “Armies carrying black flags will come from Khurasan.

No power will be able to stop them and they will finally reach Eela [Baitul Maqdas in

Jerusalem] where they will erect their flags.”

A Muslim scholar states,

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“The Mahdi will be victorious and eradicate those pigs and dogs and the idols of this

time so that there will once more be a caliphate based on prophethood as the hadith

states…Jerusalem will be the location of the rightly guided caliphate and the center of

Islamic rule, which will be headed by Imam al-Mahdi…That will abolish the leadership

of the Jews…and put an end to the domination of the Satan’s who spit evil into people

and cause corruption in the earth, making them slaves of false idols and ruling the

world by laws other than the Shari’a [Islamic law] of the Lord of the worlds.”

According to tradition,

“The Prophet said…the last hour would not come unless the Muslims will fight

against the Jews and the Muslims would kill them until the Jews would hide

themselves behind a stone or a tree and a stone or a tree would say: Muslim, or the

servant of Allah, there is a Jew behind me; come and kill him.”

The Mahdi will be loved by Muslims. As it is written,

“In the last days of my ummah [universal Islamic community], the Mahdi will appear.

Allah will give him power over the wind and the rain and the earth will bring forth its

foliage. He will give away wealth profusely, flocks will be in abundance, and the

ummah will be large and honored.”

And,

“In those years my community will enjoy a time of happiness such as they have never

experienced before. Heaven will send rain upon them in torrents, the earth will not

withhold any of its plants, and wealth will be available to all. A man will stand and say,

‘Give to me, Mahdi!’ and he will say, ‘Take.’”

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And,

“Allah will sow love of him in the hearts of all people.”

And,

“Al Mahdi appears; everyone only talks about Him, drinks the love of Him, and never

talks about anything other than Him.”

The following quotes are very interesting regarding the Mahdi’s reign:

“Rasulullah [Muhammad] said: ‘There will be four peace agreements between you

and the Romans [Christians]. The fourth agreement will be mediated through a person

who will be from the progeny of Hadrat Haroon [Honorable Aaron—Moses’s brother]

and will be upheld for seven years.’”

And,

“The Prophet said…He will divide the property, and will govern the people by the

Sunnah of their Prophet and establish Islam on Earth. He will remain seven years, then

die, and the Muslims will pray over him.”

And,

“The Prophet said: The Mahdi…will fill the earth with equity and justice as it was filled

with oppression and tyranny, and he will rule for seven years.”

A few traditions mention the Mahdi’s reign as eight or nine years, but seven years is the most

common tradition. This is very interesting in light of the prophecy in Daniel 9:25-27 about the seven

year covenant with Israel. Premillennials believe the antichrist makes this seven year treaty with Israel.

Amillennials do not believe the passage speaks of the antichrist at all, but rather, it is the Anointed One

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who makes the seven year treaty with Israel. In-depth discussion of this passage is beyond the scope of

this writing. One possibility, assuming the Amillennial’ position is correct, is that the Mahdi also makes a

seven year treaty with Israel, since Satan is clearly involved in a unholy trinity (dragon, beast, false

prophet) to mimic the Holy Trinity’s work, it makes sense for the antichrist to make a seven year treaty

with Israel just as the Anointed One has done.

Also, in regard to the most recent quote, the equity and justice established by the Mahdi will be

for the Muslims only. There will be no equity and justice for the non-Muslims. In addition, the

oppression and tyranny is referring to the Muslims as throughout history Muslims like to claim they are

victims of oppression and tyranny. Islamic groups today complain about the crusaders and the West

who they believe hate and fight Islam. We shall not be fooled into thinking the traditions are referring to

Islam as a peaceful religion, for Islam is only a peaceful religion for Muslims.

I will not elaborate much on the last two aspects of the Mahdi, but some Muslims interpret the

rider on a white horse in the Bible’s book of Revelation as the Mahdi, and some traditions say that the

Mahdi will rediscover some Bible scrolls and the Ark of the Covenant and will convince some Jews and

Christians to convert to Islam by these so-called uncorrupted scriptures.

In our discussion we do not have time to go into the Holy Scriptures and evaluate every passage,

but one interesting point is the antichrist will try to change the laws and the times (Daniel 7:25). Islam

has Sharia Law and uses the Islamic calendar. Since the goal of Islam is to dominate the world, it makes

sense that the Mahdi will attempt to change the law to Sharia and change from the Gregorian calendar

to the Islamic calendar.

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The Muslim Jesus

Now we will discuss what Islamic tradition and scholars say about the Muslim Jesus. Who is this

man and what will he do? As with the previous discussion on the Mahdi, this section will contain many

quotes which largely speak for themselves.

Jesus will return outside of Damascus. As it is written,

“At this very time Allah would send Christ, son of Mary, and he will descend at the

white minaret in the eastern side of Damascus wearing two garments lightly dyed

with saffron and placing his hands on the wings of two angels. When he would lower

his head, there would fall beads of perspiration from his head, and when he would

raise it up, beads like pearls would scatter from it.”

And,

“The Messenger of Allah said: A section of my people will not cease fighting for the

truth and will prevail until the day of resurrection. He said: Jesus son of Mary would

then descend and their [Muslims’] commander [the Mahdi] would invite him to come

and lead them in prayer, but he would say: No, some amongst you are commanders

over some.”

According to scholars,

“Jesus Christ will decline the offer and invitation of Imam Mahdi to come and lead the

Muslims in prayer, and say his prayer behind Imam Mahdi.”

And,

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“Jesus (peace be upon him) will come and will perform the obligatory prayers behind

the Mahdi and follow him.”

And,

“[Jesus] will be following the Mahdi, the master of the time, and that is why he will be

offering his prayers behind him.”

Jesus will perform the pilgrimage to Mecca as all Muslims are required to do at least once in their

lifetime, if possible. As it is written,

“The Prophet said: Verily Isa Ibn Maryam [Jesus] shall descend as an equitable judge

and fair ruler. He shall tread his path on the way to hajj [pilgrimage] and come to my

grave to greet me, and I shall certainly answer him!”

Jesus will be a leader judging according to Islamic Law. As it is written,

“Ibn Qayyim mentioned in Manar al-munif that the leader…is the Mahdi who will

request Jesus to lead the Muslims in prayer. Jesus will remain on the earth, not as a

prophet, but as one of the community [ummah] of Prophet Muhammad. Muslims will

follow him as their leader. According to Shalabi, the Mahdi will lead the Muslims in

prayer, and Jesus will rule the Muslims according to the divine law [shariah].”

And,

“Jesus, the son of Mary will descend and will lead them judging amongst them

according to the holy Qur’an and the Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad.”

As it is written in the Qur’an,

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“There is not one of the People of the Scripture [Christians and Jews] but will believe

in him before his death, and on the Day of Resurrection he will be a witness against

them. (Sura 4:159)”

In regard to this verse, scholars have said,

“Like all prophets, Prophet Jesus came with the divine message of surrender to God

Almighty, which is Islam. This verse shows that when Jesus returns he will personally

correct the misrepresentations and misinterpretations about himself. He will affirm

the true message that he brought in his time as a prophet, and that he never claimed

to be the Son of God. Furthermore, he will reaffirm in his second coming what he

prophesied in his first coming bearing witness to the seal of the Messenger, Prophet

Muhammad. In his second coming many non-Muslims will accept Jesus as a servant of

Allah Almighty, as a Muslim and a member of the community of Muhammad.”

And,

“Jesus will descend from heaven and espouse the cause of the Mahdi. The Christians

and the Jews will see him and recognize his true status. The Christians will abandon

their faith in his godhead [sic].”

As it is written,

“The Prophet said: There is no prophet between me and him, that is, Jesus. He will

descent [sic] [to the earth]…He will break the cross, kill swine, and abolish jizyah. Allah

will perish all religions except Islam.”

And,

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“Jesus, the son of Mary will soon descend among the Muslims as a just judge…Jesus

will, therefore, judge according to the law of Islam…all people will be required to

embrace Islam and there will be no other alternative.”

And,

“[T]he time and the place for [the poll tax] is before the final descent of Jesus (upon

whom be peace). After his final coming, nothing but Islam will be accepted from them,

for taking the poll tax is only effective until Jesus’ descent (upon him and our Prophet

be peace)”

Jizya is a tax for non-Muslims living under Islamic rule. When the Muslim Jesus arrives, the tax

will no longer be accepted. Convert to Islam or die.

The Muslim Jesus will fight the Dajjal, whom we will discuss soon. As it is written,

“The Yahudis [Jews] of Isfahaan will be his [the Dajjal’s] main followers. Apart from

having mainly Yahudi followers, he will have a great number of women followers as

well.”

And,

“His followers the Yahudis, will number seventy thousand…[Then] Hadrat Isa

[Honorable Jesus] kills the Dajjal at the Gate of Hudd, near an Israeli airport, in the

valley of ‘Ifiq.’ The final war between the Yahudis will ensue, and the Muslims will be

victorious. “

Jesus will have a family and finish his life on earth. As it is written,

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“The Prophet said: There is no prophet between me and him, that is, Jesus…He will

destroy the Antichrist [Dajjal] and will live on the earth for forty years and then he will

die. The Muslims will pray over him.”

And,

“After his descention [sic] on earth, Jesus will marry. He will have children, and he will

remain on the earth nineteen years after marriage. He will pass away and Muslims will

perform his funeral prayer and bury him next to the Prophet Muhammad.”

Dajjal

The last character we will cover is the Dajjal. He is the antichrist in Islam. He will be a great

deceiver. According to scholars,

“The Prophet was warning us that in the last days there would be someone who

would deceive all of humanity. The Dajjal will possess power over this word. Thus,

Muslims must be careful not to have the love of the world in their hearts so they

won’t leave their religion and follow him. He will be able to heal the sick by wiping his

hand on them, like Jesus did, but with this deceit the Dajjal will lead people down the

path to hell. Thus the Dajjal is the false Messiah, or Anti-Christ [Massih ad-Dajjal]. He

will pretend to be the Messiah, and deceive people by showing them amazing

powers.”

He will be blind in one eye. Some traditions say the left eye, others say the right eye. It is quite

possible there is no contradiction but only a different viewpoint, namely the Dajjal’s right or the right of

the person facing the Dajjal. As it is written,

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“Allah’s Messenger made a mention of Dajjal in the present of the people and said:

Allah is not one-eyed and behold that Dajjal is blind of the right eye and his eye would

be like a floating grape.”

And,

“Allah’s Messenger said: Dajjal is blind of left eye with thick hair and there would be a

garden and fire with him and his fire would be a garden and his garden would be fire.”

The Dajjal is said to have the word “kaafir” which means “infidel” written between his eyes. As

it is written,

“Allah’s Messenger said: Dajjal is blind of one eye and there is written between his

eyes the word “kaffir” [unbeliever/infidel]. He then spelled the word as k. f. r., which

every Muslim would be able to read.”

And according to a scholar,

“Very important is that this word “kaafir” will be readable only by the believer,

literate or illiterate. Non-believer: let him be educated from “Oxford” or “Harvard”

will not be able to read it.”

He will be a false miracle worker. According to scholars,

“The Dajjal will have powers of the devil. He will terrorize the Muslims into following

him, converting them into unbelief. He will conceal the truth and bring forth

falsehood. The prophet said that the Dajjal will have the power to show the image of

one’s dead ancestors on his hand, like a television screen. The relative will say, ‘Oh my

son! This man is correct. I am in Paradise because I was good and I believed in him.’ In

reality that relative is in hell. If the relative says, ‘Believe in this man, I am in hell

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because I didn’t believe,’ one must say to the Dajjal, ‘No, he is in Paradise. This is

false.”

And, according to hadith,

“The Prophet said: the Dajjal will say to a Bedouin Arab, ‘What will you think if I bring

your father and mother back to life for you? Will you bear witness that I am your lord?

The Bedouin will say, ‘Yes.’ So two devils will assume the appearance of his father and

mother, and say, ‘O my son, follow him for he is your lord.”

The Dajjal will be unable to enter three cities. Muslims are encouraged to take refuge from the

Dajjal in these locations. As it is written,

“The Prophet said, ‘Ad-Dajjal will come to Medina and find the angels guarding it. So

Allah willing, neither Ad-Dajjal nor plague will be able to come near it.’

And, according to scholars,

“The coming of the Antichrist [Dajjal] must occur in the Last Days. This dreadful event

is approaching, and in that time only three cities will be safe: Makka, Madina, and

Sham [Damascus]. If anyone wants safety in that time he will have to run to one of

these three cities.”

Muslims can also protect themselves from the Dajjal by reciting a specific portion of the Qur’an. As it is

written,

“If the Dajjal comes upon someone who has memorized the first ten verses of Surat al

Kahf [Chapter of the Cow] he cannot harm him. And whoever memorizes the last

verses of Surat al-Kahf will have light on the day of Judgement.”

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The Muslim Jesus will kill the Dajjal. As it is written,

“Allah’s Messenger said: …the time of prayer shall come and then Jesus son of Mary

would descend and would lead them in prayer. When the enemy of Allah [Dajjal]

would see him…Allah would kill them by his [Jesus;] hand and he would show them

their blood on his lance [the lance of Jesus Christ].”

Lastly, although there are no specific traditions, scholars have come to conclude the Dajjal will

be Jewish and will claim to be divine.

Comparison

Three characters have been introduced: Mahdi, Muslim Jesus, and Dajjal. As pointed out near

the beginning, the Mahdi is the beast of Revelation, the Muslim Jesus is the false prophet of Revelation,

and the Dajjal is the Jesus Christ of the Bible. Presently, Satan is bound in the bottomless pit, so he is

unable to deceive the nations during this present millennium as described in Revelation 20. As a result,

the gospel is going forth to the nations, and many are coming to Christ from all ethnicities around the

world.

The spirit of antichrist is present throughout this millennial age. There are many antichrists, but

this age will end with a final antichrist who will achieve world domination. This antichrist is the Mahdi.

He cannot arrive until Satan is released or is about to be released. Only after the dragon is released can

he deceive the nations and unite them together to achieve world domination. The Islamic caliphate will

arise, most likely being centered in modern-day Turkey. The evidence for this is beyond the scope of this

writing, but it is sufficient to say that Gog and Magog of Ezekiel and Revelation is tied to the nations

which today are mostly Islamic nations, including Turkey which used to be the Islamic caliphate of the

Ottoman Empire. Premillennialism would require two Gog and Magog armies, one before the future

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millennium and one near the end of the future millennium. In reality, Amillennialism understands there

is only one Gog and Magog at the end of this present millennial age. Only after Satan is released can this

final empire emerge—the new Islamic caliphate with the Mahdi as its highest leader.

The Muslim Jesus will come on the scene and follow the Mahdi. He will support the Mahdi with

miraculous signs and wonders. They will carry out the tasks, more or less, as described in the Islamic

traditions covered earlier. Obviously some of the predictions are not accurate as ultimately the Mahdi

and his followers will lose the battle to Jesus Christ and the Church. What we see in these traditions is

the plan of Satan. The angel which spoke to Muhammad was not the angel Gabriel, but Satan or some

other fallen angel pretending to be Gabriel. Muhammad received the Qur’an and many of his traditions

from Satan and his angels. The idea that Satan’s plan is revealed through Islam definitely holds weight.

During the rule of the beast and false prophet, Christians and Jews will face heavy persecution.

What we have seen throughout the church age, especially in regard to Islamic persecution against Jews

and Christians, is a microcosm of what is to come. Al-Qaeda, Al-Shabaab, ISIS, and many others have

massacred Jews and Christians. What prevents such activity from becoming universal is the binding of

Satan. After the release of Satan, this persecution against Jews and Christians will become worldwide on

a massive scale. Jews and Christians will only have two options: convert to Islam, or die. Revelation

speaks of beheading as the form of death, and beheading is one of the favorite means we see used by

Islamic radical groups.

During this time it is likely we will see or have already seen the conversion of many Jews to

Christianity as prophesied by the Apostle Paul, Apostle John, and other parts of Holy Scripture. Despite

no future millennium, the restoration of modern Israel may play a major role in this future conversion of

many Jews. Israel today also strongly reveals to the world the anti-Semitic spirit of Muslims, both

moderates and radicals. According to Here Comes Ishmael by Faisal Malick, he explains how all Muslims

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are spiritual descendants of Abraham’s disowned son Ishmael, and how radical Muslims are spiritual

descendants of Jacob’s brother Esau. The spirit of Esau is a hostility toward Jacob and all Israel. In fact,

Esau married one of the daughters of Ishmael (Genesis 28:9). There is a close spiritual intimacy between

Esau and Ishmael and between moderate Muslims and radical Muslims. The hostility of Esau will last

throughout this millennial age and culminate in the universal persecution by the Islamic Caliphate in the

last days.

Eventually, from an Islamic point of view, the Dajjal will arrive to lead the people astray, claim to

be divine, and fight against the Mahdi, Muslim Jesus, and the Muslim army. The Scripture speaks of Gog

and Magog surrounding Jerusalem. This revelation from God can have two meanings, and the answer is

probably both-and rather than and-or. Jerusalem can be the literal city, it can represent the Church (Jew

and Gentile), or it can be both. Most likely, the Muslim army will attack the literal city (ethnic Jews) and

the spiritual city (believing ethnic Jews and believing Gentiles). Hebrews 22 and the surrounding context,

including other scriptures, teach that the Church is Mount Zion, the city of the living God, and the

heavenly Jerusalem. This is the same Jerusalem which Revelation says will come down from heaven with

streets of gold and the size of a perfect cube. The image is not literal, but is tied to the Most Holy Place

in the Old Testament Temple. The Holy of Holies was a perfect cube, just as the heavenly Jerusalem.

The furniture was overlaid in gold, just as the streets of the heavenly Jerusalem. God dwelled in the

Most Holy Place in all of His fullness, and God will dwell in the New Jerusalem in all of His fullness. The

Church is the Temple of God and the New Jerusalem. Interpreting scripture with scripture is a better

hermeneutic than a literal interpretation. A good example is the apocalyptic descriptions of the sun,

moon, and stars being darkened or turning blood red in reference to the judgement in the end of days.

How is this to be interpreted? Literally? Probably not. Isaiah 13 describes the prophecy against Babylon

in which the Medo-Persians will destroy Babylon. In this prophecy is found the apocalyptic language of

the sun, moon, and stars. Obviously this heavenly phenomena did not literally occur in those days, and

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thus neither is it likely such phenomena will literally occur at any point in the future. The Mahdi and his

army attacking Jerusalem, therefore, probably refers to both the literal city of Jerusalem and the

universal church.

Finally, the true Jesus Christ of the Bible will return at the end of the millennium to proclaim the

new Jubilee. Prophet Daniel speaks of the 70 weeks, or seventy sevens, which is 490 years. After 49

years was a jubilee according to Mosaic Law. This means there are ten jubilees (490 divided by 49 equals

10). When Jesus returns after the 70th week, the final and eternal jubilee consummates the kingdom of

God, bringing about the new heavens and new earth. Before the reformation of creation, however,

Christ must first destroy the Mahdi, the Muslim Jesus, and the Muslim army, as well as every other

unbeliever from the Muslim to the atheist. Additionally, the Church (Jew and Gentile) will be raptured

and the dead in Christ (Old Testament and New Testament saints) will be resurrected. The unbelievers

will also be resurrected to face the Great White Throne Judgment, and none of them will have their

names in the book of Life but will be condemned to the Lake of Fire forever. God will dwell with His

people in the new heavens and new earth forever and ever. Everyone but the unbelievers will live

happily ever after. The beginning [as opposed to the end]!

This writing has come to a conclusion, but there is much more material and research to be done

on the complementary theories of Amillennialism and the Islamic antichrist. As with all eschatological

theories, there are difficulties to work through related to the Islamic antichrist. I have provided an

overview of the theory by focusing on the three characters of Mahdi, Muslim Jesus, and Dajjal. The book

I largely quoted from contains more important information, and there are many specific passages in

scripture to be examined in great depth which none of the material I am aware of on this subject has

been able to tackle as of yet. God willing, I hope to tackle many of these on my own, but I hope for

insight from others as they do the same. It is hard to imagine a bunch of atheists ruling the world as in

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the Left Behind series, but an Islamic domination of the world seems very feasible. Muslims are likely to

outnumber Christians in the not so distant future. Muslims are spreading through Europe and the

radicals are creating problems including their proclamation that Islam will dominate the world. It is only

a matter of time.

None of the evidence presented is implying the end of the world is coming any time soon.

Perhaps a single or many major natural disasters, wars, famines, or plagues will wipe out a major portion

of the Muslim population, extending this present age another several thousand years. What the

evidence presented does suggest is that the Church should continue to allocate more resources and

recruit more laborers to reach Muslims since they are still largely unreached. Satan is bound. The time is

now.

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Bibliography

Crossway Bibles. (2007). ESV: Study Bible: English standard version. Wheaton, IL: Author.

Malick, F. (2007). Here comes Ishmael: The Kairos moment for the Muslim people. Belleville:

Guardian Books.

Pentecost, J. D. (1964). Things to come: A study in biblical eschatology. Grand Rapids, MI:

Academie Books.

Richardson, J., & Richardson, J. (2009). The Islamic Antichrist: The shocking truth about the

real nature of the Beast. Los Angeles, CA: WND Books.

Riddlebarger, K. (2003). A case for Amillennialism: Understanding the end times. Grand

Rapids, MI: Baker Books.

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