We advance to another point in the parallelism between Christ and Antichrist. We find it in the pretended miracles by which the Papacy has sought to persuade the world that it was not the adversary but the friend of Christ. This pretence of miracles was to form a far too prominent feature in the coming Antichrist to be left out in Paul's great portraiture of him. "Whose coming is after the manner of Satan," says the apostle, speaking by the Spirit (2 Thess. 2: 9),"with all power and signs and lying wonders".
The essential characteristic of Antichristianism, we have said, is its assumption of a character the very opposite of its true character. It was to be a secret undermining of Christianity under the show of being itself Christianity; a deadly war waged against Christ, under the bold assertion that itself is Christ. This necessitated, on the part of the Papacy, a profound study of the mission and character and life of Christ, in order to make its imitation as close and perfect as possible, and so draw the world away from him, and after itself. It must not be a vague and shadowy resemblance, traceable in only a few points. If the world is to be deceived, the counterfeit must be skillfully executed –the work of a great master -and it must be consistently sustained throughout. Ancient paganism was no lame or despicable counterfeit of the divinely-appointed worship at Jerusalem. Ancient paganism, however, was but a first attempt; and it was far from having exhausted the ingenuity and resource of its author. His subtlety and craft were to be set a-working a second time, and the result was to be a perfect and finished counterfeit –a masterpiece.
"Whose coming is after the working of Satan." The two comings here contrasted –we say contrasted, for the parallelism is only on the surface, beneath, all is contrast, and contrariety –are the coming of God in the mission of his Son, and the coming of Satan in the mission of Antichrist. God is the author of truth, and the manner of his comings is by the propagation of great truths which dispel the darkness around the soul of man, and chase the night of error from the world. Satan is the author of falsehood; he has been a deceiver from the beginning, and he comes in the propagation of deceits, chicaneries, lies, errors and delusion, which, blinding the mind, only prepare men for being plunged into still greater errors and delusions.
"With all power." Let us mark how like Antichrist was to be to Christ in the particular just noted "all power". Antichrist was to come with an assumption of power, an air of majesty, as if to say: "I am the Son of the Highest." His look how lofty! His words how stout! So had Daniel, in the night visions, beheld him. "He waxed exceeding great," says Daniel, "toward the south and toward the east, and toward the pleasant land." He stood before the prophet, his feet planted on the earth, his head among the stars, claiming lordship over both worlds. "He waxed great even to the host of heaven; and he cast down some of the host and of the stars to the ground, and stamped upon them." (Daniel 8:10)
"All power," said Christ to His disciples, "is given unto Me in heaven and in earth." This power was the eternal gift of the Father to the Son as Mediator. This power he wielded from the first moment of his entering on his work of mediation. Though veiling it during the days of his humiliation on earth, this power was in him, and showed itself at times in some stupendous act. The elements of nature were obedient to Him, so, too, were the spirits of darkness, and not less the angels of heaven. If need were, he had only to pray to his Father, and the celestial squadrons would have hastened to his aid. Satan could gather enough from ancient prophecy and song to show him that such power was to be the attribute of the Messiah. "I will make Him, my first-born, higher that the kings of the earth." So sang David. "He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth. The Kings of Tarshish and of the Isles shall bring presents; the Kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts. Yea, all kings shall fall down before him; all nations shall serve him." Such was the glory which the coming Messiah cast before him in prophecy, ages before he came. Satan must needs send forth his counterfeit Messiah with the mock symbols and attributes of a like power.
Antichrist, too, cast his shadow before him in prophecy before his actual coming as the triple-crowned chief of the Papacy. Daniel had seen his day afar off. How he contemplated and spoke of him we have already seen. With a few graphic strokes he paints the whole history of the Papacy. He traces it from its insignificant beginnings till it reaches its amazing and portentous height. We see the first sprouting of the "little horn." We see Caesar vacate his seat; we see the "Vandal," the "Ostrogoth," and the "Longobard" plucked up before it. We see it rising by "leaps and bounds," and now its head is among the stars. We see its "stout looks," we hear its "great words," and we witness with an awe bordering on terror its truculent deeds. He tramples on thrones; he roots up nations, he plucks the stars from their orbits; in fine, he does all his pleasure, and there is none who can withstand his power, or say to him, "What doest thou?"
John had a nearer view of the Antichrist in the visions of Patmos. He, too, like Daniel, is struck with mighty and apparently irresistible power, and he makes this attribute prominent in his portraiture of him. John had known the vast prerogative of the Roman emperors; but here was a measure of power which surpassed that of the old "masters of the world," and which appeared to the apostle more that human. In fact he expressly calls it the "gift" of the "dragon". "The dragon gave him his power." What the dragon gave to the Antichrist was not the power of the old Roman empire, but his own –that is, the dragon's power. "And they worshipped the dragon which gave power to the beast" –that is, the dragon's power. "And they worshipped the dragon which gave power to the beast" –that is, the temporal and spiritual monarchy which forms the Papacy. "And they worshipped the beast, saying: Who is like unto the beast? Who is able to make war with him? "And power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations." (Rev. 13:2, 4, 7)
In His intercessory prayer we find Christ saying, –"Father, glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee. As thou hast given him power over all flesh that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him." The power here said to be given the Son over all flesh was not his power as God. That could not be given him, for he possessed it inherently. It was his power as Mediator, and the end for which it was given is specially noted, "that He should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him." (John 17:1, 2)
In like manner the power "over all kindreds and tongues and nations" which the dragon gave to the deputy whom he sent into the world, was a gift; and it was given for a draconic end. And, accordingly, no sooner is this power conferred, that we hear a chorus of worship ascending to the dragon from all them that dwell upon the earth, "whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world," (Rev. 13:8) an obvious contrast to the company referred to in our Lord's intercessory prayer, "them whom thou hast given me." And, next, in meet accompaniment of the worship offered by those who had made the dragon their god is the roar of blasphemy which is heard rising and swelling to heaven. There is given to Antichrist a mouth, and the opening of his mouth is as the opening of the doors of the pit; there issue out of it "great things and blasphemies." "He opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven." And the scene finds fitting outcome in the proclamation of "war" against the saints, which continues to be carried on all through his predicted term of power.
Yes, verily, prophecy makes no mistakes. And history makes none in interpreting it. He who "hath understanding" may read off the visions which were seen on the banks of "the river of Ulai" and in the "Isle of Patmos," in the events which have since passed over Europe. Let us open the roll of Christendom. Let us survey its ages from the fifth to the fifteenth century. We are conscious at first of gazing only at chaos. The crowd of actors and the conflict of events but distract and perplex the mind. Europe is a tumbling sea in which the old nations are being engulphed, and new and barbarian races are arriving to take their place. We can discover neither unity nor progress in the drama; all is tumult and darkness. Let us shut up the roll. But stay; before putting it away, let us search it again, and, it may be, we shall find footsteps in these great waters. The cloud begins to lift, and order to appear. The ferment in the minds of men gives birth to a great system, as yet without form or name. The materials of which this system, not yet constituted, is composed, are drawn from a great variety of sources. Ancient Paganism, Druidic and Scandinavian superstition, Jewish Rabbinism, and Oriental philosophy, all contribute their share to it. A corrupt "Church" arranges, combines and concatenates these heterogeneous elements, and stamping them with its own impress, presents it to the world as Christianity.
The new worship must have celebrants. A human agency gathers round it, and that agency comes gradually to be summed up and embodied in one great personality.
Let us mark this Colossus. His visage grows as the centuries revolve, and comes at last to look forth upon us, distinct and stout and terrible; but it is not new. We have seen it before. It is the same that looked forth upon us from the prophecies of Daniel and John. It is the same that shows itself incarnated in the Popes of the Middle Ages. Let us mark how complete and perfect an incarnation we have of it in Innocent III, in whom the popedom came to its full growth, and showed itself to the world in all it superhuman magnificence and grandeur. During the terrible pontificate of this man all that prophecy had spoken of the Antichrist was verified in fullest measure. Its predicted height of arrogance, of blasphemy and of domination was reached. While this mighty Pope stood over it, Christendom was still with fear. The stricken kings and nations cowered beneath him. He was God's vicegerent, and claimed to be obeyed with the instant and profound submission which is due to the Eternal King. He promulgated the dogma of transubstantiation; he initiated the 'holy" office of the inquisition; he launched the crusades against heresy and heretics, and dealt his thunder bolts of interdict and excommunication all round Christendom, and beyond it, crushing everyone and everything that dared to lift up the heel against his pontifical will. If this is not the Antichrist, then Antichrist we never can see; for what more can we have of any prophecy than a complete and perfect fulfilment? And this is a complete and perfect fulfilment of the prophecy of the power and pride of Antichrist.
The "power" of the "Man of Sin" will come again before us farther on; meanwhile we pass to another point in the parallelism.