Thinkingstuff
Active Member
antiaging said:Revelation 13:17 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 13:18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.
These protestant bible scholars believed that the pope is an antichrist or that the antichrist would be the last pope:
Martin Luther, John Calvin, John Wesley, Cotton Mather, John Knox, Wycliffe, Tyndale, Finney, Moody, Spurgeon, Sir Isaac Newton, and Fox.
During the Reformation, Martin Luther noted that "Benediktos" added up to 666 in Greek gematria, and he thought it might refer to a Pope named Benedict or to Benedictine monks.
Β
ε
ν
ε
δ
ι
κ
τ
ο
σς
TOTAL
2
5
50
5
4
10
20
300
70
200
666
Benedict xvi is the pope now.
However I believe from what the bible says that the Ezekiel chapters 38 and 39 prophecy must happen before antichrist comes to power over the 10 nations of the EU, the revived Roman empire. The Ezekiel prophecy is about nations, Russia, Iran/Iraq, Ethiopia, Germany or France uniting in a coalition to attack Israel. That is not about to happen yet, although the middled east is moving in that direction. Recently Israel threatened by a military exercise to attack Iran's nuclear facilities and Russia warned them to back off. If Israel does attack Iran, this could make Russia angry enough to form the coalition to attack Israel in just a few years, while Benedict is still pope. This guy pope Benedict was a Hitler youth and grew up in a country where the catholic Govt. of Germany was murdering people of other religions in the holocaust. [I read that the third reich was the most catholic controlled Govt. Germany ever had.] Before he became pope, he was the head of the modern "office of the inquisition" which now has another name, something like the society for the propagation of the faith or something like that. Seeing his background it seems to me that he could have the mentality of the antichrist.
The antichrist is supposed to obtain the kingdom by flattery, Dan. 11. Is pope Benedict using flattery on the leaders of the European Union? If the Ezekiel prophecy happens soon enough, he could be the antichrist.!! We will need to wait and see. I know he is an old man, but aging can be greatly slowed down by vitamins, calcium and alot of sleep. He could last a long time.
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Cut it out. its nonsence. People have always had formularies to determine the number of the beast and who it might have been. It never has panned out for any of them. European union, United Nations, you can keep going on to what one world government it could be. the Lord will return. I'm looking forward to it. I'm looking for the resurection from the dead too. But looking for the beast is a waste of time. I've heard people say it was Obama. Phaaaa! I'm more interested in this verse. "not every one who calls me lord, lord will enter the kingdom" and again "they will say when lord have we not fed you, or gave you drink? and he will say when you have not done it to the least of these my bretheren you have not done it for me." It's my paraphrase but you get the point. If the Anti-christ is still to come and a tribulation is still to come then it will be obvious who it is and if it is to be the pretrib we'll be with Jesus, if not we will be worried about survival for 3 1/2 years. Christianity is waiting for Jesus expectant return not the Anti-christ which may have already come. Caligula errected a statue of himself at the temple in Jerusalem. Titus began a harsh persecution of christians as did Nero. The temple was destroyed and the Roman Empire succumbed to christianity.