I am fond of Dr. Randy White and his ministry even though I find myself disagreeing with him quite often. There are times I think he is being unnecessarily cantankerous in his response to traditional hermeneutics and I quite often disagree with his conclusions, but for some reason I still appreciate him. Many times, his skeptical approach to the evangelical church forces me to dig a little deeper to determine where I stand on a particular issue and I appreciate that challenge. I found his online presence and then his books while doing some research for a series I was teaching on dispensationalism which Dr. White has a wonderful grasp on.
In this book, Dr. White examines the Antichrist from all angles taking all relevant Scripture, both Old and New Testament, into account. He practices sound methods and avoids the error of taking verses on an island and out of context that so many others have fallen into.
As is true of most of his work, I cannot say I agree with all of his conclusions. My biggest quibble was his argument that the antichrist will be Jewish. White is certainly not alone in this conclusion as many other scholars would agree with him. White references Daniel 11:37 as the proof text for his conclusion, “Neither shall [the antichrist] regard the God of his fathers … (KJV)” however, I am not sold on this interpretation. While the KJV does translate the word “Elohim” in this verse as God, both Thomas Ice and Dr. Thomas Constable argue the word can be translated as ‘God’ or ‘Gods’ which is why the NASB translates the same word differently. A singular translation may be possible, but it isn’t certain … and it surely isn’t certain enough to support an adamant theology upon. Meanwhile, there is multiple passages in Scripture that suggest the antichrist will be a gentile (Luke 21:24, Revelation 13:1, 17:15, Daniel 9:27).
I have long thought that many scholars that insist on a Jewish nationality for the antichrist are forcing a poor interpretation of Scripture to justify their antisemitism. I do not believe at all this is the case in this instance. There is no hint of that in this book … I just think Dr. White is wrong on this one. At the very least, he should be a little less dogmatic on the subject.
I will say that Dr. White does a good job of making complex concepts simple and I appreciate that. Honestly, if it wasn’t for Dr. White’s cantankerous nature, I would probably put this book on my recommended reading list … but he says things at times that would unnecessarily confuse and offend some Christians. For this reason, I am only giving this one four stars.
DYING 2 SELF 