UNDERSTANDING THE BOOK OF REVELATION



UNDERSTANDING THE BOOK OF REVELATION

Part III: THE SECOND BEAST

In our last installment we read where the Apostle John “saw a beast rising out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns” (Rev. 13:1). This beast represents Satan’s end time worldwide kingdom, mankind’s long-dreamed-of one world government. It is the “eighth” head (Rev. 17:11) of the beast which the great whore rides, the one which “is going into perdition”—utter destruction—at Jesus’ return (Rev. 19:20). Next, John writes,

“Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and he had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon….He performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men. And he deceives those who dwell on the earth by those signs which he was granted to do in the sight of the [first] beast…” (Rev. 13:11,13,14).

The key to identifying this second beast lies in its Satan-empowered ability to perform miracles, which will grant it great credibility and fame, and which will then be used to deceive the whole world. This beast represents a real flesh and blood person called “the false prophet who works signs in his [Beast’s] presence,” and who, along with the Beast will suffer utter destruction (Rev. 19:20). To summarize, the first beast symbolizes Satan’s final, worldwide empire, and the second beast is its leader.

Long ago God warned His people,

“If there arises among you a prophet or a dreamer of dreams, (and he gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or the wonder of which he spoke to you comes to pass), saying, ‘Let us go after other gods which you have not known, and let us serve them,’ you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams, for the LORD your God is testing you to known whether you love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul” (Deut. 13:1-3).

Men have always been dazzled and deceived by real or imagined signs and miracles performed by their cultish leaders. They have failed the test over and over. But what about the saints? In his Olivet Prophecy, which includes signs of the end time, Jesus prophesied, “For false christs and false prophets will arise and show great signs and wonders, so as to deceive, if possible, even the elect” (Mtt. 24:24). Christians in the end time will be sorely tested by the miracles of the False Prophet. But Jesus went on to say, “See, I have told you beforehand” (Mtt. 24:25).

The description of the False Prophet contains a dichotomy: “he had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon.” Rather than a wolf, he is a dragon/man in sheep’s clothing. Jesus is called the “Lamb” no less than 26 times in Revelation. The False Prophet will be a man who claims to be Christ, the Lamb, while being possessed by the dragon, Satan. There have always been servants of Satan who have posed as servants of God. The apostle Paul wrote,

“For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works” (II Cor. 11:13-15).

Ironically, this consummately evil man will arise out of Christianity! Though possessed of Satan, only God knows if he ever possessed the Spirit of God. We can read a surprising parallel in the book of Acts, in the story of a Samaritan named Simon, who was a forerunner of the False Prophet (Acts 8:9-24). He was a sorcerer who performed miracles which so awed the people that they considered him a “God.” When Philip came to the city and preached Christ, Simon ended up being baptized. The account says he “was amazed, seeing the miracles and signs being done” by Philip. When the apostles Peter and John came later, Simon offered them money so he could have the power to perform miracles too. But Peter rebuked Simon sternly and sent him away.

In II Thessalonians 2 the apostle Paul wrote in detail about this end time False Prophet,

“Let no one deceive you by any means; for that day [of Christ’s return] will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God….And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of his mouth and destroy with the brightness of his coming. The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this reason God with send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness” (v3,4,8-12).

This is a familiar description: a man in the end time, claiming to be a savior, “God” himself, but possessed by Satan, and empowered by him to perform real miracles. This will be such a powerful and persuasive cocktail, intoxicating the whole world—“strong delusion”—to the degree that they will submit to this man’s every decree. Mankind will “believe the lie”: that happiness and fulfillment come from pride, self-reliance, wealth, fame, sensual pleasure, and rejection of God. Those who “receive the love of the truth” know this truth: happiness and fulfillment come from loving God and neighbor, living a life of humility and service.

Paul wrote that the False Prophet “sits…in the temple of God.” What is this temple? A lot of pop eschatologists have made a big deal out of this one statement, saying it means there will be a third Jewish temple built in Jerusalem, from where the False Prophet will dictate. This conclusion reflects a narrowed understanding. More careful Bible students know that a frequently used metaphor for the collection of the saints is as a “holy temple in the Lord” (Eph. 2:19-22; I Cor. 3:16; II Cor. 6:16). What Paul meant was that the False Prophet will don a Christian cloak—two horns like a lamb—in order to hide his true identity.

Let’s continue reading Revelation 13 and see what else the second beast/False Prophet does. He tells “those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast…He [False Prophet] was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed” (v14,15). What is the purpose of this image? Remember, the Beast is the end time one world government—the state. So the image is a symbol of the state. Thus to worship the image is to worship the state. Revelation says as much: “If anyone worships the beast and his image” (14:9); “who had not worshiped the beast or his image” (20:4).

State worship has been around since the dawn of civilization. The tower of Babel was a kind of image of the state. Nebuchadnezzar’s “image” of either himself or some symbol of the empire was worshiped (Dan. 3:1-6). State worship existed in Roman times, and more recently in fascist Germany and Italy, and communist China and the Soviet Union. The ultimate end of all state worship—statolatry—is the control over all personal welfare and independent thought! This will be accomplished by the “mark of the beast.” But let’s continue examining the image of the beast.

This image could likely be a molded or carved statue which symbolizes the Beast/state. What will make it unique and awe-inspiring will be the False Prophet’s power to animate it and give it “breath”—life—in order for it to “speak”! Imagine the affect and impact this will have on the whole world. Do not try to imagine some modern or future technological wizardry. This will not be some magical sleight of hands or parlor trick. This image will literally be an inanimate statue of metal, stone, or other material. Through an undeniable miracle it will come alive!

But much more chilling is what it might say and do. It will “cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed.” The image will speak, perhaps commanding its worship. But more is implied. The image will be the agent by which all non-worshipers—Christians—will be executed. How will it do that? We cannot know in advance, but only speculate. Will it speak, identifying the names of the non-worshipers? If so, how will it know those names? The False Prophet will not need to employ some vast army of informants to tell him who the Christians are. Satan will know who each and every one of them is. He could inform the False Prophet, and the image could in turn announce the names of those marked for execution.

Let’s continue the story of the False Prophet in Revelation 13,

“And he causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may by or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name” (v16,17).

Before we consider what this mark is, let’s consider its overarching consequences. Without the mark, one cannot buy or sell anything, do any business with anyone. Think about what that would mean for any of us. There will be extreme pressure to “get on board, get with the program” of the Beast! Even today, some have met with the power of this mark, and have been devastated economically. For example, if it becomes known that a business owner is conscientiously apposed to abortion, homosexuality, transgenderism, or some other “social issue,” so-called social justice warriors may organize to force that owner out of business. Two white women’s taco truck business was shut down over accusations of cultural appropriation of all things!

These are just a few small opening shots fired against those who oppose the philosophy of the great whore. When the Beast and False Prophet come on the scene, we will look back and wonder at how mild was the persecution now compared to what is to come. Now, just what is this mark of the Beast. There has been no end to speculation on the topic, and yet any good Bible student ought to be able to identify it. Let’s understand.

We may begin by considering a passage in Deuteronomy 6,

“Here, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one! You shall love the LORD you God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might. And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart…You bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes” (v4-6,8; 11:18; Ex. 13:9).

God wanted the His people to love Him and to keep His laws with all their mind (forehead) and all their might (hand). Worship can be defined by what we think and do. Jesus called these bindings “phylacteries” (Mtt. 23:5), which is translated from the Greek word which means to fortify or guard with a garrison. That is what love for God and His laws does for Christians. It is our safeguard. With this concept in mind we may identify what the mark of the Beast in the forehead and right hand means. It is an identifying mark of what one thinks and does. In this case it will identify just who worships the Beast and works on its behalf. Will the mark include anything that is real or physical? It may, but it need not. Time will tell.

We have come now to the last aspect of the second beast in Revelation 13: which is alternately called “name of the beast”; “number of his name”; “number of the beast”; “number of a man” (v17,18). Then we are told that number is 666. Then we are challenged: “Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast.” Many have tried to calculate this number by assigning letters to the numbers—Gematria. None of these efforts have ever been profitable. Other translations for “calculate” are “adjudge, decipher the code, work out the significance of the cipher.”

Remember, Revelation is a book which contains much numerology—using numbers as symbols. When it comes to 666, we must decipher the symbolic meaning of the number itself. We saw in an earlier installment that in Revelation the number 7 is used as a symbol of completeness or perfection. So what could the number 6 symbolize? Since it falls one short of 7, it could denote incompleteness, imperfection, something flawed, a demonic parody of the perfect 7. What about the number 3—three sixes—666? In Revelation 3 is used as a symbol for emphasis (4:8; 8:13). So 666 could symbolize an emphatic heaping up of condemnation against the Beast. My personal take is that 666 is a taunt, an expression of derision toward the Devil and his pathetic attempt to subvert God.

We have learned it will mean death to those who do not worship the Beast and its image. Yet the same fate awaits those who do worship it.

“If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand, he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of his indignation” (Rev. 14:9,10).

This wrath of God upon the Beast and its worshipers will be administered by the “seven last plagues” (Rev. 15:1; 16). Revelation describes one final battle which takes place following Jesus’ return, where “he himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God” (19:15). “And…the beast, the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against [Jesus]… Then the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet…These two were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone” (v19,20). This is why the second beast, the “man of sin,” is also called the “son of perdition.” This False Prophet, along with the Beast, is marked for utter destruction.

And on one final note we read, “And the devil, who deceived [the whole world] was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are” (Rev. 20:10). This is the ultimate victory of the saints “who did not love their lives to the death” (Rev. 12:11). They will have been made immortal, fulfilling the words of Jesus, “He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life” (Jn. 12:25).

Tease:

Part III: THE SECOND BEAST

In our last installment we read where the Apostle John “saw a beast rising out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns.” This beast represents Satan’s end time worldwide kingdom, mankind’s long-dreamed-of one world government. It is the “eighth” head of the beast which the great whore rides, the one which “is going into perdition”—utter destruction—at Jesus’ return. Next we read about a second beast.

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