The Nobel Committee will announce the Nobel Peace Prize for 2026 this Friday, at about 5 AM EDT.

The wiki page says Trump has received about 3 nominations, but that list is incomplete. He has received about 11 public nominations since 2025, possibly the most amongst all candidates.

There's very little chance that he'll win this year, mainly cos of the war with Iran. Last year, he threw a tantrum when Venezuela's María Corina Machado won the prize. She promptly gifted the medal to Trump. So it's possible that this year, the Nobel committee awards it to someone who won't do the same thing - maybe to the Pope or an international organization like Sudan's Emergency Response rooms.

If Trump wins though - that'll make some heads turn.

https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/117225384741591978

https://x.com/visegrad24/status/2095946283844350073?s=20

https://x.com/MiddleEast_24/status/2084323412151857192?s=20

Lebanese MP and Sunni leader Fouad Makhzoumi said that Lebanon could join the Abraham Accords after Hezbollah is disarmed. He makes it clear that peace with Israel would be nothing but good for the country. Whether it happens is another matter - Hezbollah is very tough to disarm completely.

With all that's been happening in the last couple of months, I've been feeling kinda off about Trump. And I was surprised to hear the same thing from people I know.

• Age is not on his side. He's been caught on camera dozing at meetings
• The war with Iran went badly for the US; the MoU was basically Trump capitulating to Iran
• Trump tried to force Middle East nations to join the Abraham Accords, but he was met with near-ridicule.

I've always referred to Trump as the "antichrist candidate." At this point, is he even strong enough to still fit that description?

• Since late 2024, Trump seemed to be on a roll with a series of events that reinforced that image: the assassination attempt, winning the election, corruption allegations, self-exaltation, the Board of Peace, the Epstein files, and so on. He even treated Maduro as if he could simply seize him and act as though Venezuela were a U.S. vassal state.
• Taken together, those events conditioned many people to think, "He's the antichrist, and it's only a matter of time before the rest of the prophecies are fulfilled."
• But the way the Iran conflict unfolded changed that, in my view. The MoU made Trump look much weaker than before.
• Trump has shown signs of aging for some time, but the outcome of the Iran situation made that seem even more apparent.

Antiochus Epiphanes

Epiphanes was a Greek ruler who happened to be the first antichrist type. This is what Daniel writes of him in chapters 7 and 8 -

• he grew until he "reached the heavens"
• a master of intrigue who becomes very strong
• causes astounding devastation and succeeds in whatever he does

So basically someone who is unmatched in power and unstoppable.

But then, look at Daniel 9 about Epiphanes -

>^(29) “At the appointed time he will invade the South again, but this time the outcome will be different from what it was before. ^(30) Ships of the western coastlands will oppose him, and he will lose heart. Then he will turn back and vent his fury against the holy covenant. 

So in that battle, he basically lost. He "loses heart". Does that sound like someone who is unstoppable? No. And that's exactly what history tells us as well - he wasn't all successful and faced setbacks, just like how other antichrist types did - Nero, Hitler, et al.

How do we apply to that to the antichrist?

• It isn't necessary for the antichrist to be completely successful in every conquest. He is still human, not divine. He is permitted by God to carry out certain things, but he is not divine in the way Jesus is.
• Because of that, it's entirely possible that he encounters setbacks or appears weak at times. That doesn't necessarily mean his conquests and lawlessness come to an end.
• I haven't read the entire Left Behind series, but from what I remember, the antichrist, Nicolae Carpathia, is portrayed as someone who rises to global power with little meaningful opposition. He's also depicted as young, handsome, and highly charismatic. However, that's a fictional interpretation, not biblical canon, and it shouldn't be treated as such. The real antichrist could be very different from those expectations and might not fit the image people have in mind.

Where do we go from here?

We merely do what Jesus commanded -

>Mark 13 - ^(35) “Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back-whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. ^(36) If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. ^(37) What I say to you, I say to everyone: ‘Watch!’”

That's it - we just keep watch and see what happens. Some things to watch for in the near term -

• The war with Iran is heating up again; the MoU is essentially dead. A few US military personnel were killed yesterday. We could see the war escalate greatly in the region. Israel could enter into the war again.
• It is still possible for a "covenant" to materialize between Israel and surrounding nations.
• Israel has elections in October. Should a more Centrist government be elected (which is looking likely), that could help the Abraham Accords.
• This is purely my speculation - but if Iran was at the end of its mettle, it could launch an all out missile attack against Israel and one of those could hit the Dome of the Rock.
• The US has mid terms in November. Trump could attempt to sway that as much as he could, using whatever means necessary. He could lose the House - but its very unlikely the Dems get 2/3rds in the Senate, so Trump isn't going to be removed. Such a loss might anger him to force his lawlessness and power even more.
• We could see a fragile peace/ceasefires in places; but because they are fragile, they lead to greater devastation and war eventually. That is exactly what the second Seal of Revelation is - a great war.
• To be the antichrist, Trump doesn't need a third term; a third term for a President would be impossible without Constitutional amendment. Daniel and Revelation tell us that ten rulers will take hold of world power during the end times and the 'little horn' will usurp power from them. It is possible that after Seals 2,3 and 4 we see the ten rulers arise and then Trump usurping power from them.