Bible prophecy does mention the West… but not in the way you’ve been taught.

(Excerpt taken from “Daniel 11 Reveals the Geographic Location of the Antichrist’s Rise to Power“)

Everyone wants to know where the West is in Bible prophecy. There are a few references to the West and, remarkably, we can find two of them in Daniel 11, the focus of our study!

Consider what one particular king of the north did in 11:18, which is now history to us:

Then he (king of the north) will turn his face to the coastlands (west) and capture many. But a commander will put a stop to his scorn against him; moreover, he will repay him for his scorn. [Daniel 11:18 NASB, parentheses added]

This king of the north, a type of Antichrist, made a military move westward and was stopped by… wait for it… a Roman commander! In other words, this type of Antichrist was in direct military conflict with the West!

In addition to this, 11:30, a verse firmly within the passage considered to be describing the Antichrist, mentions the “ships of Kittim” that come against him:

For ships of Kittim will come against him (king of the north); therefore he will be disheartened and will return and become enraged at the holy covenant and take action; so he will come back and show regard for those who forsake the holy covenant. [Daniel 11:30 NASB, parentheses added]

Where did these ships come from? According to Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Dictionaries, the word “Kittim” denotes “the Greeks or Romans on the shores opposite of Palestine,” or Cyprus. Both the NIV and the NLT use “[ships] of the western coastlands” instead of “ships of Kittim.” Both the CEV and the NCV use “from the west.” Here, again, we have the West coming against the king of the north. Simply, if the Antichrist were to come from the West, ships from the West would come with him not against him.

If we are to remain consistent in our interpretation of Daniel 11, coupled with the prophetic geography we’ve already uncovered, we must admit that the Antichrist will rise to power in the Middle East and that the West, at some point, may come against him, not the other way around. These additional verses in Daniel suggest the same:

“His power will be mighty, but not by his own power, And he will destroy to an extraordinary degree And prosper and perform his will; He will destroy mighty men and the holy people. [Daniel 8:24]

He will take action against the strongest of fortresses with the help of a foreign god; he will give great honor to those who acknowledge him and will cause them to rule over the many, and will parcel out land for a price. [Daniel 11:39]

This also hints at the idea that the Antichrist will not fully control the entire world but that is the subject of another study.

You can learn more about the near fulfillment of parts of chapter 11 from the notes of a good study Bible including the names of the various kings of the north.

(Excerpt taken from “Daniel 11 Reveals the Geographic Location of the Antichrist’s Rise to Power“)