THEOSISJerome of Stridon
His heart opposes the sacred covenant, and he will execute his schemes and return to his homeland. At a designated time, he will advance southward again, but his final campaign will differ from the previous one. Ships and Roman forces will confront him, leading to his defeat, or as another translation puts it, they will intimidate him. Both Greek and Roman historical accounts reveal that when Antiochus returned to Judea after being expelled by the Egyptians, he turned against the holy covenant, plundered the temple, seized a substantial amount of gold, and, after stationing a garrison of Macedonians in the fortress, went back to his own territory. However, just two years later, he amassed another army against Ptolemy and moved southward once more.
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While besieging Ptolemy's two brothers, the sons of Cleopatra, in Alexandria, Roman envoys arrived. One of these envoys, Marcus Popilius Lena, encountered him on the shore and presented the senate’s decree, which demanded that he withdraw from the allies of the Roman people and submit to their authority. When Antiochus sought to delay his response at the urging of his advisors, Popilius famously drew a circle in the sand around the king with a stick and stated, “The senate and the people of Rome order that you answer right here: what do you intend to do?” Startled by this ultimatum, Antiochus replied that if it pleased the senate and the people of Rome, he would then retreat, and so he promptly withdrew his forces. He is regarded as struck down, not due to destruction, but as a loss of his arrogance and pride. Regarding the Antichrist, there is no doubt he will oppose the sacred covenant, initially warring against the king of Egypt, only to then be suddenly terrified by Roman assistance. This was foreshadowed in the actions of Antiochus Epiphanes, a most wicked king who persecuted God's people, serving as a prefiguration of the Antichrist who will target the Christian community. Consequently, many believe that Domitius Nero, known for his extreme cruelty and vile acts, will manifest as the Antichrist. He will return embittered against the covenant of the sanctuary, executing his plans and plotting against those who have turned away from the sanctuary covenant. This is further elaborated in the Acts of the Maccabees, which records that after being expelled from Egypt by the Romans, he, filled with resentment, attacked the covenant of the sanctuary and was joined by those who had deviated from the law of God to embrace pagan beliefs. This will find its full expression in the Antichrist, who will be enraged against God's covenant and scheme against those he seeks to lead into apostasy from His law. Thus, Aquila’s translation renders it more clearly: he will devise plans for the sanctuary covenant to be abandoned.