God's War on Terror: Islam, Prophecy and the Bible

by Walid Shoebat

  As one who gives his allegiance to this war-god, the Antichrist, like his father the Devil, is portrayed as one who causes death and destruction. In the Bible, Satan is described as the one that possesses “the power of death, that is the Devil” (Heb. 2:4).

  And yet in the Qur’an we find one title for Allah is Al-Mumeet. It is a name that is counted among the 99 beautiful names of Allah. It literally means, “the one who possess the power of death, causer of death, the slayer, and the taker of life or the destroyer of life.” This title of Allah is nearly identical to the title that is given to Satan in the Book of Revelation: “They (the demons) had as king over them the angel of the Abyss, whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon (the destroyer), and in Greek, Apollyon” (Revelation 9:11).

  What else do Satan and Allah have in common? Nearly every time that the Bible speaks about the Antichrist, it perfectly fits the spirit of Islam. Keep reading, you’ll see.

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  Both Use Military Force

  Even the most moderate and ecumenical Muslim thinkers believe in the coming Mahdi to rule the world by military force. Harun Yahya, an allegedly moderate and prolific Muslim author, responds to a question posted on his website: “The Mahdi will invade all the places between East and West.” Elsewhere, Yahya refers to the Mahdi’s irresistible qualities as one who subdues the whole world: “Nobody can stand in the way of the Mahdi and dominion he will have over the world.”

  This is also strikingly similar to the Biblical description of the Antichrist who is said to declare war, “Who is like the Beast, and who can make war with him” (Revelation 13:4). In the Bible we are told the Antichrist “will devour the whole earth, trampling it down and crushing it” (Daniel 7: 23). It will be a confederacy known for its ferocity.

  The Mahdi is portrayed throughout Islamic traditions as being the military leader of an Islamic “world revolution” that will defeat all other religions and political systems. Muslim author, Sideeque Veliankode, in his book Doomsday: Portents and Prophecies, writes: “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.”56 Al-Sadr adds, “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.”57

  The Mahdi’s means and method of accomplishing this world revolution will include multiple jihad campaigns. Abdualrahman Kelani, author of The Last Apocalypse, describes the many battles of the Mahdi: “Al-Mahdi will receive a pledge of allegiance as a caliph for Muslims. He will lead Muslims in many battles of jihad. His reign will be a caliphate that follows the guidance of the Prophet. Many battles will ensue between Muslims and the disbelievers during the Mahdi’s reign.”58

  Without question, Islam views the Mahdi as one who advances Allah’s glory over all the earth. He will use his military might and his mighty Islamic Empire to do so. On this point, both the Antichrist and the Mahdi are once again, completely indistinguishable.

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  Both Honor Their God With Gold And Silver

  In the Bible, the Antichrist dedicates gold and silver to his war god: “Instead of them, he shall honor the god of forces [war]: and a god whom his fathers knew not shall he honor with gold, and silver, and with precious stones, and pleasant things” (Daniel 11:38).

  One of the five main obligatory pillars of Islam is for every Muslim to pay ‘zakat’ by giving one-fifth of their income—their gold, and their silver to honor and advance the cause of Allah: “Zakat is for the poor and the needy, and to free the captives and the debtors, and for the cause of Allah, and [for] the wayfarers; a duty imposed by Allah. Allah is omniscient, most wise” (Qur’an 9:60).

  This is not only for the poor, but it’s a tax to expand the rule of Allah. In fact, the Qur’an admonishes Muslims regarding zakat: “And those who hoard up gold and silver and do not spend them in the cause of Allah promise them a painful punishment. One day that [treasure] will be heated up in the fire of hell and their foreheads, their sides, and their backs will be branded with it: This is the treasure that you hoarded up for yourselves. Now taste what you have hoarded” (Qur’an 9:34-35).

  Gold and silver that comes out of ones own savings, or is acquired through the booty of war for the cause of Allah, should have an amount allotted to share for the advance of Allah’s cause through Jihad War. If this is not done, the Muslim would be punished for eternity.

  So, who is carrying the pitch-fork and the branding iron? Believe it or not, the terrorists themselves are victims of terror. If you are a terrorist reading this, you have a way out—call on Jesus. Do it, try it, believe it, live it, trust Him and have everlasting life.

  Just as Daniel predicted, zakat is a portion of gold and silver that is dedicated to Allah, the war-god of jihad.

  While Christians tithe in order to fund the going forth of the gospel and to assist the needy and the poor, zakat under Islamic laws is often spent on global jihad. Since 9-11, the United States Homeland Security Administration has frozen dozens upon dozens of prominent Muslim zakat “charities” after it was revealed that a large percentage of their funds were actually going to terrorist groups such as al-Qaeda or Hamas. In 1999, Yousef-al-Qaradawi, the most highly respected “moderate” Muslim scholar in the Muslim world wrote the following regarding zakat: “The most honorable form of jihad nowadays is fighting for the liberation of Muslim land from the domination of unbelievers, regardless of their religion or ideology and fighting for such purposes in those occupied territories is the way of Allah for which zakat must be spent.”82

  Can there be any doubt that Muslims honor Allah, their “god of war” with their “gold and silver?” Do you see how Islam is a perfect match to the Biblical description of the Antichrist? Do you see how the Bible has already warned you, do you still want to argue that the Bible says nothing about Islam?

  Hello, Captain Kirk? I am Mister Spock; I know the aliens better than you. I know I am a little bit different, but I am on your side and I want to save your ship before it’s blown out of space. May I use your manual to point out the warnings? The author of this manual is, after all, from my neck-of-the-woods.

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  Both Honor A God Of War And Advance His Glory Through War

  Antichrist “acts against the strongest fortresses with a foreign god, which he shall acknowledge, and advance its glory” (Daniel 11:39).

  If the Antichrist is the strongest entity on earth, why does the Bible predict that he “acts against the strongest fortresses [military might]”? This would mean that he is not the strongest military. Why do Western prophecy analysts insist that Antichrist hold the most powerful military in the world? Who are the strongest fortresses? Which nations hold the strongest military might? Is it not the West? Muslims mourn the deadly wound that Islam received from the West. And they vow to revive their glory days through Jihad.

  Also, who is this “foreign god”? How does Islam advance Allah’s glory?

  These are crucial questions to ask.

  When viewing Islam, you must always keep in mind their creed: “There is no god but Allah and Mohammed is his messenger.” It’s the core of their faith. If you ask any Muslim what Islam is, they will immediately recite to you this creed. It is the First Pillar of Islam. This creed to advance Allah as the only god is carried out through Jihad which begins by an invitation to Islam (political Jihad), if the offer to take the mark of Islam is rejected, then advancing Allah’s glory comes by Jihad war, in which the enemy is decapitated.

  Volumes could be written on how Islam advanced Allah’s glory. The first thing we need to focus on is Jihad itself. After years of analysis into the web of Islamic terror, I concluded that Islamic Jihad is religious conditioning, using allusions of misery and glory days of the past in order to convert masses into beco
ming rage and pride-filled, remorseless killers and seekers of salvation by their own death. The goal is to re-establish a utopian theocratic world order where Allah and Muslims reign supreme and non-Muslims become subservient.

  That’s what fundamental Islam is, and you will find out that everything in this dangerous movement fits within this definition. It’s crucial that you keep this definition in mind; it will undoubtedly help as you watch biased news media coverage.

  Today Islam focuses on the past when it ruled the ancient world.

  DIDN’T CHRISTIANS HONOR A GOD OF WAR?

  I am tired of Muslims pointing to the Crusaders as evidence for Christian hostility. Christians openly point out the errors made by the Crusaders; in fact, Christians use their own Scriptures to show the errors made by their fellow Christians. Yet rarely is it ever mentioned that the Crusaders were largely a response caused by Islamic injustices. Here we shall see which religion is truly violent and war-mongering—Christianity or Islam.

  THE MAHDI—ADVANCE ALLAH’S GLORY THROUGH JIHAD

  As we have seen, zakat to advance the cause of Allah by supporting jihad is one of the five main pillars of Islam. It is an obligatory aspect of Islam.

  If we review Daniel 11:38-39 by applying Islam as the subject of these verses, we can clearly see that the Antichrist would be a Muslim. In verse 37 it predicts the dishonor of women and the disregard for their rights exactly as we see in the spirit and laws of Islam. Then in verses 38-39, the prophet Daniel amazingly predicted the combination of Zakat and Jihad to advance Allah’s glory. We also see that the Antichrist honors a foreign god which he advances his name through war. Daniel could not have nailed it more precisely.

  ANTICHRIST BY WAR ADVANCES HIS GOD

  Many Westerners believe that the Antichrist is an atheist. They base this misconception on a phrase in Daniel 11:37: “he shall not give heed to any other god, for he shall magnify himself above all.”

  The first mistake in this analysis is dropping the word “other” from the interpretation; the text says he will not give heed to any “other” god.

  How could the Antichrist be an atheist if the next verse says, “he shall honor the God of fortresses?” (Daniel 11:38)

  How does Antichrist honor a god of fortresses, or a god of war?

  You might counter that this is not a god, but is symbolic of power and might. Yet, when we continue to the next verse it says that he “act[s] against the strongest fortresses with [the help from] a foreign god, which he shall acknowledge, and advance its glory” (Daniel 11:39).

  This verse is so clear and so shocking that it should unlock a major part of the prophecy puzzle. Yet few even pay attention to this. The Antichrist will show no regard “for any other god” (v. 37) except this foreign god whom his ancestors did not know, but which he will “advance his glory” by war. The text logically speaks for itself. There is no doubt that a war god is involved and is fought for, to advance him. What do Westerners think when they see the most important creed of Islam carried through their Jihad that says there is no god but Allah?

  The Antichrist cannot be an atheist. This is also confirmed by the prophet Habakkuk. There the Antichrist breaks the peace treaty and proclaims war in the name of his god: “Then his mind changes and he transgresses; He commits offense, ascribing this power to his god” (Habakkuk 1:11). He claims strength from his false god who promotes violence. The vision is “for the End-Times” (Habakkuk 2:3). “He always changes his mind and cannot be trusted. The Antichrist is the most proud” (Habakkuk 2:4).

  They want to put down all other gods and religions throughout the globe and advance their god through war. The text is clearly portraying what we see in Islam today; even when we read that he declares war “against the strongest fortresses.” What could that mean except what it plainly says—to declare war against the most powerful nations on earth? Jihadists already declared war on Europe and the U.S. However, the West seems oblivious to this fact. Who else could be as maniacal as Muslim fundamentalists to declare war on the powerful West? And it is all for the purpose of advancing their god, Allah. This is exactly what we see. How did the Bible predict all of this? Either the prophets guessed it perfectly, or indeed, there is an omniscient God. There is no third choice.

  Keep in mind, the Muslims declared war on the Roman Byzantine Empire and won. They also won against Russia in Afghanistan. This is a formidable enemy with centuries of battle experience and political deception under their belts.

  Another issue that often confuses students of prophecy is the notion that the Antichrist will magnify himself above all gods. How then could he follow a god?

  What needs to be considered is that the Antichrist is Satan in the flesh (a man) and from the seed of Satan. He magnifies himself above every god and demands worship in the end. Satan attempts to emulate God and the relationship between the Father and the Son. This seeming contradiction between him honoring himself and honoring a god of war is resolved once we understand this. One can find seemingly contradicting verses when we examine Messianic prophecies as well. Yet, when we understand that Jesus was both God and God the Son, all the seeming contradictions are resolved.

  Antichrist, Satan’s “son of perdition,” like his father, also displays a classic split-personality. He robs attributes that belong to the true Messiah in order to demand obedience and worship. Satan’s exaltation of himself and his son of perdition to a god-like status is evident from the text.

  We also see that the Antichrist does not honor “the god of his fathers.” Fathers, of course, need not refer to a literal father, nor even to a grandfather—instead, “fathers” here is simply being used in the sense of “ancestors.” This is a commonly used phrase in the Bible that usually refers to Jehovah: “Say to the Israelites, ‘Jehovah, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you’” (Exodus 3:15). This would be the god of Moses’ ancestors.

  JEWISH ANTICHRIST OR A MUSLIM ANTICHRIST

  Jews love peace. In fact when I speak at Jewish events I always quote Golda Meier: “We will have peace when the Arabs love their children more then they hate us.” Their faces shine at such a phrase, they love Golda’s wisdom. Yet it is naïve to think that this will happen through hollow peace treaties. I always tell them that “We will have peace when the Jews love their children more than they love false peace.”

  Because the Antichrist is said not to worship the god of his fathers, some have concluded that the Antichrist will be an apostate Jew. Even if we accept this argument that he is a Jew by heritage, this would force the interpretation to make him a convert to another religion that honors a war-like god; Judaism does not honor a war-like god.

  Islam fits, Judaism does not. Mohammed rejected his ancestral gods and advanced a new fabrication of a god named Allah. He then went on to “advance its glory.” I repeat, Allah commands all of his followers to engage in Jihad until there is literally no one left on the earth who does not worship Allah: “Allah’s Apostle said, ‘I have been ordered to fight the people till they say: ‘None has the right to be worshipped but Allah.’”59

  Indeed, any honest analysis of the Antichrist must acknowledge that he is religious and a believer in a god. How else does the Antichrist “act against the strongest fortresses with a foreign god, whom he shall acknowledge”?

  Although Israel signs a peace pact with the Antichrist, there is no textual evidence that the Jews will even accept the false Messiah as their Messiah. In fact the opposite is true. Throughout Scripture the Antichrist is portrayed as persecuting Israel. Shamefully, for centuries the Christian world has pointed its finger at the Jews as the source of the coming Antichrist, but the basis for a Jewish Antichrist comes from a couple of very weak arguments. The first is that the Jews would never trust a non-Jew to sign a false peace treaty. However, Israel signed a treaty with Yasser Arafat. Was Arafat Jewish? (Of course not!) The next argument comes from the interpretation of Daniel 11:37, that Antichrist does not �
��honor the god of his fathers” (Daniel 11:37), and since Antichrist’s ancestors worshipped a “god” (singular) and not “gods” (plural), then the Antichrist must be a Jew because only Jews were monotheists who worshipped One God, while all other groups were polytheists.

  Well Arafat, and all Muslims for that matter, also honor a singular god. The Antichrist could just as easily be a Muslim who rejects the pagan god of his ancestors. Zoroastrians worshipped a single god called Ahura Mazda. This would be the case of every Iranian Muslim. Even within the Arab Nations, it was common for each tribe to have its own god.

  In no way does the Bible say that the Antichrist is a Jew, especially because Jews do not honor a god of war. Neither can we have a Jewish Antichrist ruling in what the Bible calls “The time of the gentiles.”

  Daniel 9 also rules out a Jewish Antichrist: “the people of the prince” were from the Eastern provinces of the Roman Empire from which the Antichrist must come. All these were gentiles who persecuted Jews. This should put an end to a Jewish Antichrist argument.

  Yet this whole argument could be based on a problem with translation, the King James translators have it as “God of his fathers” rather than “the gods of his fathers.” Unfortunately, the indictment of a Jewish Antichrist has persisted for centuries from this translation. If this is true, the question remains, what god does the Antichrist reject? There are two possible answers to this question. One answer is to point out the fact that the words used in this verse for god could also be translated as gods (plural) as most translations have it—NLT, NIV, ESV, NASB, RSV, ASV, HNV, GWT, BBS, TANAKH, WEB, Arabic Bible—all of these Bible translations have it interpreted the word as “gods,” plural.