"Some Christian commentators have suggested that the Antichrist will lead the project to rebuild the Temple. However, the evidence from Scripture causes me to take quite a different view. While numerous prophecies describe the Antichrist defiling the Temple, John refers to the sanctuary as the Temple of God. "And there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and the angel stood, saying, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein" (
Revelation 11:1). In addition, when the apostle Paul wrote about the Antichrist being revealed, he referred to evil acts that would be carried out in "the temple of God" (see
2 Thessalonians 2:4). These passages strongly suggest that the Jews in genuine worship of God will build the Third Temple and that the Antichrist will later defile it during the Tribulation. Fortunately, the Word of God reveals that when the Messiah comes, "then shall the sanctuary be cleansed" (
Daniel 8:14).
One of the greatest of the early church writers, Irenaeus, taught that the new Temple would be a genuine Temple built by the religious Jews. Citing
2 Thessalonians 2:4, he stated that "the Apostle himself, speaking in his own person, distinctly called it the temple of God."
Further, in his book Against Heresies, Irenaeus affirmed his understanding of the Scriptures' prophecies about animal sacrifices being reinstated in a future Temple. He cited Daniel's words in
Daniel 9:27, stating, "the sacrifice and the libation shall be taken away, and the abomination of desolation (shall) be brought in the Temple: even unto the consummation of the time shall the desolation be complete." Again, for these prophetic events to occur, the Third Temple must be rebuilt by the Jews as a legitimate Temple of God" (Grant R. Jeffrey, The New Temple and the Second Coming, pages 19, 20)