Deeper Reflection
The word “god” is repeated eight times in verses 36 to 39, of which only once it refers to the true God – “the God of gods” (v.36). In the context, this repetition points to a theological reality: God is in human existence such that how humans conduct themselves, positively or negatively, inevitably reflect their attitudes toward God. These verses “summarise and evaluate Antiochus’ character” and “religious attitudes and policies”, with verse 36 as a “general statement” “filled out in verses 37 to 39.”³  But in these verses, Antiochus takes on “larger than life characteristics”, which anticipates the New Testament climactic antichrist (2 Thess 2:3-4; 1 Jn 2:18).⁴While the climactic antichrist takes on “larger than life characteristics”, he is just a human being like all of us. We too have the same fallen human nature like his that makes him to be against God and above God (v.36). The root of all human sin is “be like God” (Gen 3:5). This “be like God” spirit is found not only in certain powerful rulers of this world, but in all human beings in various forms and degrees. To be like God is to be independent of God. It means I do not need God and God has no say in my life. And this effectively means “I am God”. This is idolatry at its highest. But Jesus points us to a theological irony. Human beings will always serve a master, no matter how we want to be like God: God or wealth (Matt 6:24). Wealth becomes a god when it is undergirded by greed, for “greed is idolatry” (Col 3:5).

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³ Earnest C. Lucas, 289 ⁴ Tremper Longman, 282