THEOSISGregory the Great
In those days, the final ones will experience great fear, and dread will grasp the foremost (Job 18:20). He shall confront the righteous with such overwhelming wickedness that even the hearts of the chosen will be filled with deep anxiety. Thus it is written, "So that, if it were possible, they would also entice the elect" (Matthew 24:24), which He stated not to imply that the elect would fall, but rather that they would be filled with trepidation.
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As the last elect and the first elect engage in a righteous struggle against him, it is recognized that those who are destined to reside among the elect at the end of time will succumb to the death of the body, while those from ancient times—namely Enoch and Elijah—will be returned to humanity and once again subjected to harsh suffering in their earthly forms. His entire force will be unleashed upon them with such alarming ferocity that: "In his days the latter shall be terrified, and terror shall seize the former." Although they may scorn his earthly might due to the pride that he embodies, being still bound to mortal flesh makes them vulnerable to the anguish they may endure. They experience both steadfastness born of virtue and anxiety stemming from their human condition; yet, as members of the elect, they cannot be defeated by temptations, even while their mortal selves fear the very anguish they ultimately conquer. Hence, let it be stated: In his days the last shall be terrified, and terror shall seize the first. For he will announce such signs and execute such cruel acts that those he encounters at the end of the world will indeed tremble, and he will inflict the agony of physical death upon the earliest ancestors who come to extinguish him. Therefore, after detailing many aspects concerning all the wicked and their leader, he promptly provides a broader depiction: