Daniel 9:24-27 reveals that the event that will mark the beginning of the tribulation period is the signing of a covenant between the antichrist and Israel. We know it is the antichrist who does the signing, for verse 26 tells us that the signer will be “the prince who is to come.” The antichrist will thus be the covenant maker, and he will come into power by heading up a revived Roman Empire (see Daniel 7:8).
