Dan 8:8-12
8 Therefore the he goat waxed very great: and when he was strong, the great horn was broken; and for it
came up four notable ones toward the four winds of heaven.
9 And
out of one of them came forth a little horn, which waxed exceeding great, toward the south, and toward the east, and toward the pleasant land.
10 And it waxed great, even to the host of heaven; and
it cast down some of the host and of the stars to the ground, and stamped upon them.
11 Yea, he magnified himself even to the prince of the host, and
by him the daily sacrifice was taken away, and the place of his sanctuary was cast down.
12 And an host was given him against the daily sacrifice by reason of transgression, and it cast down the truth to the ground; and it practised, and prospered.
(KJV)
God gave a historical example of that, with Antiochus IV from the Seleucid kingdom (from Seleucus over the area of Syria). Antiochus IV conquered Jerusalem ("the pleasant land"), and desolated the insides of the temple and setup an idol to Zeus worship. He is the historical pattern for the final Antichrist and abomination of desolation in Jerusalem, an idol abomination being setup in another temple in Jerusalem in the last days.
The "little horn" example in
Dan.7:8 confirms the ultimate timing of that little horn...
Dan 7:8-12
8 I considered the horns, and, behold,
there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things.
9
I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, Whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of His head like the pure wool: His throne was like the fiery flame, and His wheels as burning fire.
10
A fiery stream issued and came forth from before Him: thousand thousands ministered unto Him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened.
11 I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake:
I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame.
12 As concerning the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken away: yet their lives were prolonged for a season and time.
(KJV)
Out of the ten horns, another little horn comes up, and continues... until their thrones are cast down, and GOD's Judgment is set with the books opened. That's the Antichrist as that "little horn". Antiochus served as a sample, but died in Egypt, so not all the prophecy can be applied to Antiochus. The Caesars have died out and Christ's return is still expecting, so it's not them, but as samples only like Antiochus, for the Romans in 69 A.D. did do some events in Jerusalem like Antiochus did. The Reformers believed it was the pope after the Roman empire ended, but that can only have been just another sample of the prophecy, and not the real fulfillment that's still future to us, for a world beast empire is busy forming up again in our days.
