In the video below, Joel Richardson continues his review and exposition on Revelation, this time addressing theories that the Antichrist might be Jewish.
But the gist of the video, so far, is that because the Antichrist--the Beast--is described as a Gentile and leads a coalition of Gentile nations (which scripture tells us are the Muslim nations surrounding Israel), the Beast and his religious system cannot be Judaism, and the Beast cannot be Jewish.
Moreover, Richardson believes that there is a unity between the Beast and the Harlot of Revelation 17 ("Mystery Babylon") such that the two must share the same religious system. For this reason, he believes that the Harlot, or Mystery Babylon, cannot be Jerusalem.
Along the way, Richardson attacks anyone suggesting that Jews or Israel are part of the Harlot or the Beast's system, or otherwise critical of Jews and Israel. He discusses in some detail about how the Jews were and remain God's chosen people and reminds us that, per Joel 3, the nations will be judged based on how they treated God's chosen people (which he presumes are the Jews and only the Jews). Furthermore, he suggests that any criticism of the Jews or their faith is anti-Semitism and will automatically lead to persecution of Jews.
Overall a good and interesting video. But I have a few concerns and criticisms of Richardson's arguments and assumptions. First, I disagree with his assumption that there is a common unity of the religious system between the Harlot and the Beast because they are briefly shown to be working together. It is a truism that politics (or war) makes for strange bed fellows. Witness our allying with the Soviet Union against Germany in World War II, or the liberal left allying itself with Muslim groups on many political issues. Thus, the fact that the Harlot and Beast appear to be working together and wear the same bloody color does not mean that they are the same. In fact, the later description of the Beast's allies turning on the Harlot and destroying her suggests the opposite: that there is some deep division between the two systems.
In fact, I think it is a mistake to assume that the Harlot is heading up a religious system in the traditional sense of the word. Although there are many secret combinations and conspiracies, The Book of Mormon suggests that there will be a great secret combination in the last days which Satan will use to tear down Christianity generally and the Lord's works in particular. My personal belief is that, whatever is the system pushed by the Beast/Antichrist, the Harlot represents this great secret combination, which as I've discussed before, is probably Marxism or some variant of it.
It certainly fits the bill because Marxism/Communism not only denies the existence of God, but puts itself in the position of a substitute for God. And it is quite definitely Anti-Christian.
And this brings up a further point of whether the Harlot could represent a Jewish movement. As I've discussed before, Jews have been disproportionately involved in Marxism and Communist movements, such that I think that one could describe Marxism as a branch of Judaic thought. Certainly, Jewish scholars seem to think so. Thus, even if the Antichrist or Beast is not Jewish, that does not mean that the Harlot is not Jewish.
Finally, I have concerns with Richardson's adoration of Jews. While I agree that it is not our role to "punish" Jews, I think that Richardson makes the mistake of going to the opposite extreme of venerating Jews. It is true that God has named Israel as His chosen people. See, Deuteronomy 14:2. But Christians are also a chosen people. See, e.g., John 17:6-11; 1 Peter 2:9. Through Christ, we in fact become heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ. Romans 8:17. That is, we become part of Israel.
Moreover, in order to be saved, Jews will have to become Christian for, as Christ states in John 14:6, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." We are told in scripture that a group of Jews will flee Jerusalem following the great earthquake which will split the Mount of Olives, and they will see Christ and His wounds and believe in Him and be converted. See, Zechariah 14:4-11; Zechariah 13:6, 9; D&C 45:44-53. These Jews will then go and preach of Christ to other Jews in preparation for his Second Coming, including building a temple in Jerusalem. The parable of the workers in the vineyard, Matthew 20:1-16, is, I believe, aimed at Christians who might object to Jewish converts at the beginning of the Millennium receiving all the promises and benefits promised to long time Christians although the Jewish converts came, so to speak, late in the day.
So, although I fully agree with Richardson that it is not our role to punish the Jews for their ancestors' sin in rejecting the Messiah (the Bible is quite clear that the child shall not answer for the sins of the father), I would also caution about being so in thrall to Jews or Judaism that you accept and tolerate what should be unacceptable or intolerable just because it comes from Jews or the country of Israel. This is no different from the arguments we hear on why shouldn't discuss Islamic terrorism or link Islam to terrorism, or discuss black crime or post photographs of violent criminals, or, thinking of the tragedy of the other day, link the Tennessee Christian school shooter to the transgender movement.
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