Painting #40 Beast Rises Out Of The Sea, 7 Heads, 10 Crowns

The Unholy Trinity

Revelation 13

     This is another key chapter of the Revelation, describing the rise of two ungodly men who will play two extremely important roles in the climactic events of the end-times, epitomizing all the cleverness and wickedness of the long succession of tyrannical leaders before them, from Nimrod to Nero to Mao Tse-tung. They are both called “beasts” in this chapter, though later the second is also called “the false prophet.” Both receive their brilliance and power from Satan, the old dragon. Many writers have noted the parallel between this unholy trio and the divine Trinity. The dragon, the beast, and the false prophet seem almost intentionally to be counterfeiting the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, respectively. In any case, these three willfully and maliciously pull out all stops in their last-ditch efforts to dethrone God and destroy His saints.

The Man of Sin

     The first of these wicked men has, of course, already been mentioned in Revelation. God’s two witnesses had been slain by the beast (Revelation 11:7), leading to his assumption of full power for the last forty-two months of the tribulation (Revelation 11:2; 13:5). He is mentioned often in earlier prophetic passages also. Daniel calls him “the prince that shall come” (Daniel 9:26), Isaiah calls him “the wicked” (Isaiah 11:4), and Christ called him “the abomination of desolation” (Matthew 24:16). The Apostle Paul designated him as “the man of sin, the son of perdition” (2 Thessalonians 2:3), perhaps the most definitive of all his titles.

Revelation 13:1.     And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the names of blasphemy.

     John’s gaze had been fixed, as it were, on the two great signs in the heavens, the sign of the woman and the sign of he dragon, watching the agelong conflict between them. Now, however, it seems as though he were standing on the sands of the seashore, observing a third great sign, this time on the sea. Even though the word “sign” is not used on this occasion, the whole context makes it evident that the scene is symbolic. The continuity with the sign of the dragon is evident by comparison of the description of the dragon “having seven heads and ten crowns and seven horns” (Revelation 12:3), with the description of the beast here in Revelation 13:1.

     The beast rising out of the sea is not the same as the dragon, however, even though their appearances are similar. The dragon is Satan (Revelation 12:9), whereas the beast is a man (Revelation 13:8). Nevertheless the similarity is very significant, evidently stressing the similar character and purposes and activities of the beast and the dragon. In fact, the former is specifically said to have received his power and throne and authority from the latter (verse 2).

     If the beast from the sea is symbolic, then the sea also must be symbolic. Usually the sea in Scripture, if not more specifically identified, is the great sea west of Israel, that is, the Mediterranean Sea. John sees what appears to be a great monster of the sea, like a hydra-headed plesiosaur, arising out of the depths of this great sea near the shore on which he stands.

     Perhaps at first the similarity of the beast to the dragon would make John think of Isaiah’s prophecy, where the Scripture speaks of “leviathan, the piercing serpent, even leviathan that crooked serpent . . . the dragon that is in the sea” (Isaiah 27:1). But then, as he looks more closely, he sees that the beast is not a reptile at all, but rather what appears to be a strange hybrid land mammal of some kind. A land mammal ascending from the Mediterranean Seacould only speak of some powerful personage emerging from the peoples of the Mediterranean lands, with the hybrid characteristics of the beast suggesting that he is somehow a product of all of them.

     The obvious similarity of this frightful beast to the beasts in Daniel’s vision is sufficient confirmation that the “sea” here represents the peoples of the lands around the sea (compare Daniel 7:3 and 7:7). Although the seven heads and ten horns clearly relate the beast to the dragon, the hybrid animal body just as surely identifies him with the four beasts of Daniel 7.

     Daniel’s vision consisted of four beasts representing four great nations striving for supremacy. The first was like a lion, the second a bear, the third a leopard, the fourth an unnamed animal, but very strong. It is the last animal (Daniel 7:7) that seems to be the same as the beast of Revelation 13:1, the key point of identification being its ten horns.

     Both the four nations of Daniel 7 and the seven heads and ten horns of Revelation 13 seem obviously to entail a complex of nations and leaders under the domination of the great blasphemer Satan. On each head, therefore, is emblazoned an unnamed name, designed solely to exalt man as a god, thereby blaspheming the true God.

Revelation 13:2.     And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority. 

     John would remind us again that he was actually witnessing this important sign as it developed. Thought he does not mention it, it does become more obvious that the beast he sees is, at least in part, a composite of the beasts Daniel saw. With a leopard’s body, a bear’s feet, and a lion’s mouth, this beast clearly partakes of the natures of Daniel’s beasts. Thus, to understand the one, we must first understand the others.

     It is usual to interpret the four beasts of Daniel 7 as the historical empires of Babylonia, Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome, in order. This corresponds precisely to the meaning of the four parts of the image of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, in Daniel 2. Practically all Bible scholars agree on this, and the contextual chapters in Daniel confirm it at least as far as the first three empires are concerned, and as far as Nebuchadnezzar’s image is concerned.

     However, there are difficulties in applying the same interpretation to the beasts of Daniel 7. Although they do appear in order, the four beasts seem to be contemporaneous rather than sequential. The four appear first in correspondence to the parallel statement: “Behold, the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea” (Daniel 7:2). Furthermore, all four beasts continue to strive with each other to the end; in fact, the lives of the first three beasts “were prolonged for a season and a time” after the fourth beast had “his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame” (Daniel 7:11, 12). Finally all four beasts were still future at the time of Daniel’s writing (Daniel 7:17), even though at that time Babylonia had already fallen and Medo-Persia had come into dominance.

     Thus it seems probable that the four beasts of Daniel 7 represent four great kingdoms (or, possibly, confederations), one each from the north, south, east, and west, like the four winds striving over the sea. The beast of the west (the lion with eagles’ wings) might, for example, represent the British lion and the American eagle, or the western alliance in general. The second is a great devouring bear, which could well be the Russian colossus and her communist satellites. The third is a four-headed, four-winged leopard, possibly symbolizing a future eastern alliance (Revelation 16:12 prophesies the coming of “the kings of the east” and Daniel 11:44 speaks of troublesome “tidings out of the east”). The leopard is the most wide ranging of the great carnivores and is yellow with black spots. The fourth beast, evidently unidentifiable in terms of animals known to Daniel, was “dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly,” eventually dominating the other three beasts. It would then, presumably, as the “south wind,” represent the Mediterranean nations themselves, occupying roughly the territory of the old Roman empire, both north and south of the Mediterranean Sea. It was “diverse from all the beasts that were before it [literally, ‘confronting it’]” and soon would conquer and assimilate the others, at least to a degree.

     It is apparently this last beast that John sees emerging from the sea. By this time (the middle of the tribulation) this beast – the beast – had sufficiently subjugated the others that his body appears as a hybrid of all of them. He is part lion, part bear, part leopard, but also part dragon.

     It was not by his own strength or his own strategy that the beast has come into such a position of world eminence. It is none other than Satan himself who has given him his great might and his throne and preeminent rulership over the other nations. How he will acquire such authority, humanly speaking, is only intimated in Scripture. Probably, he will seize the advantage of the leadership void left by the catastrophic defeat of Russia in Israel and the insipid response of the western nations to the Russian invasion (see discussion in Chapter 6). In any case, it is his dark league with Satan that really opens the way for him, the Devil making him appear so attractive as a world leader that the other kings and presidents willingly submit to his authority in the stressful times just before and during the first half of the tribulation period.

     The beast, as did the dragon who empowered him, was seen by John to have seven heads and ten horns. However the dragon had seven crowns upon his seven heads (Revelation 12:3) whereas the beast had ten crowns upon his seven heads (Revelation 13:1). During the long centuries corresponding to the sign of the dragon, there had been seven great kings, but the kings represented by the ten horns were still future and still uncrowned. In the time of the beast, the ten kings were now ruling, whereas the seven ancient kings survived only in their evil heritage.

     That these seven heads represent seven historical kingdoms is indicated also in Revelation 17:9-11, where the beast again appears. The identity of these kingdoms is not specified, but it seems reasonable that they should be seven great world powers of past history. It is also probable that they represent the seven great powers that came into particular opposition to the plan of God as it was unfolding throughout history, as recorded in Scripture. Since the symbol assures their connection with the dragon, and since that old serpent has been perpetually attempting to thwart the divine program, we would expect to find these histories at least referenced in the Bible.

     With these considerations in mind, the most likely identification of these seven historical kingdoms is as follows:

     1. Sumeria. Under Nimrod, Babel in the land of Shinar became the first 

         post- diluvian center of human rebellion.

     2. Egypt. This ancient nation was Israel’s first oppressor, leading to God’s

         supernatural deliverance under the hand of Moses.

     3. Assyria. The invading armies of Pul, Tiglath-Pileser, Shalmanezer, and 

         Sennacherib devastated the land of Israel and carried the people of the    

         northern kingdom into captivity.

     4. Babylonia. Under Nebuchadnezzar, the later Babylonians revived

         Nimrod’s empire and destroyed Jerusalem and its temple, carrying the 

         people of Judah into captivity. Throughout Scripture, therefore, 

         “Babylon” is synonymous with enmity to God, and Satan himself is

         adumbrated under the title “king of Babylon” (Isaiah14:4-17).

     5. Medo-Persia. As prophesied by Daniel (Daniel 2:39; 5:28), the Medo-

         Persian empire succeeded Babylonia in world dominance, and was the

         nation under which the Jews would have been exterminated by Haman, 

         except for providential intervention through Queen Esther. It was also

         the nation which allowed them to return from their captivity.

     6. Greece. Daniel also prophesied (Daniel 2:39; 8:21; 11:2, 3) that Greece 

         would supersede the Persians, and this occurred under Alexander the

         Great. The Greek language became the language of the New Testament 

         and Greek philosophy has dominated the Judaeo-Christian world ever

         since.

     7. Rome. The greatest of the seven empires politically was Rome, which 

         ruled at the time of Christ, and which destroyed the temple in A.D. 70, 

         sending the Jews into their age-long dispersion. The Roman emperors, 

         especially Nero, also severely persecuted the early Christians.

     The above suggested identifications are not intended dogmatically, as there have been other great nations or groups of nations in history that have opposed either Israel or Christianity or both (Syria and Tyre before Christ, the Islamic Nations, Nazi Germany, Russia, and other Communist nations after Christ). In terms of their biblical emphasis, however, the seven mentioned above seem most probably the ones symbolized by the seven heads of the dragon and the seven heads of the beast, “crowned” in the first instance, “uncrowned” in the second. Further discussion on this subject is provided in Chapter 17, in connection with the parallel description of the “seven heads” in Revelation 17:3, 9-11.

Revelation 13:3.     And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.

     If the interpretation of the seven heads and seven kingdoms suggested above is correct, then one of them is apparently going to be revived in the last days. It is this revived head, no doubt, on which is based the ten horns and ten crown, since they also refer to the last days. It is probably this head which speaks with the mouth of a lion (verse 2), though perhaps the others do also.

     Which of the heads is revived is not stated, although many expositors consider this to be a reference to the revival of the old Roman empire.

     It is interesting, as a matter of fact, that most of these ancient nations are today experiencing something of a revival. Egypthas attempted to become spokesman for the Islamic world and has been the first Arab nation to attempt rapprochement with Israel. Persia, which is modern Iran, has likewise captured world attention because of its oil resources and militant Moslem fundamentalism. Modern Iraq corresponds to ancient Babylonia and Assyria (the ruins of Babylon are near its capital city Baghdad) and it has become probably the strongest Arab nation militarily. Greeceis still an important Mediterranean nation, as is Italy, and their religious cultures permeate the nations of the north and west through the various Orthodox churches and the Roman Catholic Church, respectively.

     None of these “revivals,” however, are sufficiently striking to make all the world “wonder after the beast.” It will take something more than that, something almost miraculous. The NATO Alliance and the European Common Market have also been suggested as potential revivals of the Roman empire, but again neither of these is a really spectacular development. They may possibly be precursors of the “ten horns” which will give their power to the beast (Revelation 17:12, 13), but they are not the “revived head” and they are certainly not the beast.

     The beast, of course, is a man, though he will become so identified with the empire he heads that the two are almost synonymous. It has been noted already (Revelation 11:7) that he “ascends out of the abyss,” and that his ascent is marked by such satanically-imparted powers that he is able finally to put an end to the three-and-a-half year influence of God’s two witnesses. All of this will so enthrall the nations that he will quickly gain worldwide preeminence over them all. His experience with Satan “in the abyss,” as he will claim, will be some kind of occult supernatural phenomenon whereby his body seemed to be dead (actually in suspended animation) while his spirit is taken by the devil for the impartation of the knowledge and powers he would need to fulfill his dark mission in the world.

     Although he himself is not the wounded head of the beast (since he is the beast), his own recovery from the deadly wound (a wound not unto death but “as it were” unto death) will bear such striking analogy to the revival of the ancient nation represented by the head as to make a profound and stirring impression on every nation. He is also called “the beast that was, and is not, and yet is” (Revelation 17:8) and then also said to be one of the “seven kings” (Revelation 17:10, 11).

     The head that will be revived will certainly be also the kingdom that will best epitomize the nature and purposes of the dragon who empowers the beast. It will serve as the center of his rule over all nations – his capital, as it were.

     It would seem that this could not be Rome, since Romedoes not need “resurrecting.” Rome had been one of the world’s greatest cities ever since the Caesars. After the fall of the old Roman empire, the “Holy Roman Empire” succeeded it, and it has been the central capital of the quasi-political religious institution of the Roman Catholic Church ever since.

It will be noted that the middle head on the beast is Babylon which, from the point of view of symmetry at least, would most appropriately be the chief head on the beast. Babylon was defeated by the Persians over two-and-a-half millennia ago, but continued at least as an inhabited city for many centuries. Eventually it seemed to die completely, although various poor communities continued to exist in or near its environs. The ruins of its ancient glory are a top tourist attraction today.

     The possibility of reconstructing Babylon has been seriously considered in recent years, both by the Iraqi government and by various internationalist organizations. It is ideally situated, being very near the geographical center of the earth’s land masses, to serve as a world capital. Although we cannot be sure that this will happen, there are good reasons for believing that the beast may select this site as his world capital. Rapid construction, using the most advanced technologies, could almost overnight raise ancient Babylonback to life again. Not only could Babylon serve as the political center of the world, but also as its commercial, cultural, and religious center. Since the religious philosophy of Nimrod and the first Babylonians (that is, evolutionary humanistic pantheism) permeated every great empire from Sumer to Rome, such a renaissance would in effect be a restoration of all the heads of the beast. And since the beast himself would have also experienced a remarkable personal (pseudo) death and resurrection, all the world would indeed marvel at the great power of the beast and the magnificence of his capital city, together with the establishment of his great cultural and trade center. This would not merely be a revived Roman empire, which so many Bible teachers have postulated, but a revived Babylonian, Egyptian, Assyrian, Persian, and Greek empire, all comprising a mighty revival of ancient evolutionary paganism, humanism, and (ultimately) Satanism.

Revelation 13:4.     And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?

     For many years prior to the rapture, a revival of various forms of ancient occultism (spiritism, astrology, witchcraft, eastern mysticism, and even Satan worship) will have been developing. This movement will be tremendously accelerated with the departure of the multitudes of true Christians when Christ returns to meet them in the air just prior to the tribulation period. During the first three-and-a-half years of the tribulation, the preaching of Christ’s two witnesses (along with that of 144,000 sealed Israelites and many others), combined with the great judgments of the seals and trumpets, will finally eliminate every vestige of the scientific skepticism that has dominated the intellectual world for two centuries or more.

     Men and women will have seen and heard mighty angels flying through the skies. They will have seen and heard the miracles and the preaching of Christ’s witnesses. Quite possibly such preaching, along with the testimony of the rapture itself, will have stimulated many to read the Bible and other Christian literature left behind. They will have had many other evidences which will finally convince even the most skeptical of the reality of both God and Satan. They will come to understand something of the true nature of the cosmic conflict of the ages, between the dragon and the woman.

     But then they will choose Satan. They will elect to cast their lot with him, believing that his agelong rebellion against God will ultimately triumph. If Satan can resurrect the great prince, wounded to death as he had been, and impart to him such remarkable powers as to enable him to destroy God’s two hitherto invincible witnesses, then he can also be trusted to give them eternal life and mighty power. Amazing and incredible as it seems, men will in great multitudes decide to worship the dragon. They will acknowledge him as the rightful king of the cosmos, and will consciously encourage and help him in his battle against God.

     Furthermore, they will acknowledge that the dragon had indeed granted universal earthly authority to his human counterpart, the beast, and so will worship the latter as well. After all, if he can destroy the two mighty witnesses from heaven, then who else on the earth could possibly mount a successful battle against him?

     For three-and-a-half years he had been striving for supremacy with other nations (west and north and east of his own domain) as well as with the two witnesses and their converts. Probably he had also been attempting to develop his great center and capital at Babylon. He had been hindered not only by these struggles but also by the devastating plagues from heaven. But now, finally, he is triumphant, and the whole world comes to look to him for its guidance and deliverance, trusting in his own master, Satan, for all needed power and wisdom. The three-and-a-half year drought has been relieved, the plagues have stopped, the witnesses are gone; the beast is in charge, and the dragon and his angels have come to the earth.

Revelation 13:5.     And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies: And power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.

     The mouth of the beast, like the roaring of a lion (verse 2), began to roar out great things. The dragon, who gave him his authority, also now gives him great pronounce-ments to make to the world. Counterfeiting God’s divinely inspired prophets of old, he makes satanically-inspired proclamations and predictions, filled with blasphemies against the true God and His Christ, foretelling their imminent destruction and the freedom of mankind from all restraints of righteousness and fear of judgment.

     Men will believe him, sad to say. With minds deceived and blinded by Satan (2 Corinthians 4:4; Revelation 12:9), further confused by drug addiction (Revelation 9:21) and benumbed by sins of every description, they will believe his blasphemies. They will believe “Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness” (2 Thessalonians 2:9-12). Actually, the definite article is present in the Greek – “they will believe the lie.”

     His authority was to endure for only forty-two months. Satan knew this was all the time he had left before the climactic battle (Revelation 12:12). This is obviously the same forty-two months during which the Gentiles would defile Jerusalem and the temple (Revelation 11:2).

     It is also the same period in which God will specially protect His people in the wilderness (Revelation 12:6, 14) from the fangs of the serpent, in particular by destroying the army sent after them by the beast.

Revelation 13:6.     And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.

     Not content merely to rail against God, the dragon-inspired beast must utter diatribes and obscenities against all He stand for (His name), defaming His holiness, His love, His law, His grace. He curses the heavens (the dragon has recently been expelled from heaven) where God dwells. Those who dwell with God in heaven, including not only the holy angels but also all the raptured saints, share in his vilifications. This continual barrage of slander must now take place on earth, since the Devil no longer has access to heaven where he used to accuse the brethren.

     Daniel also prophesied of his vile mouth: “In this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things . . . a mouth that spake very great things . . . And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High” (Daniel 7:8, 20, 25). And again Daniel says: “And the king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvelous things against the God of gods” (Daniel 11:36).

     No doubt, one of the purposes of this campaign of vituperation will be to intimidate any on earth who might be followers or potential followers of the true God. The dragon can ill afford any other defections from his ranks.    

Revelation 13:7.      And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.

     Before the beast can establish the world empire which he covets, he must subjugate both those who still resist him in his own kingdom and also those other nations which have not yet surrendered. His greatest resistance will be offered by “the saints,” a great number of believers in the true God and His Christ who will have been converted during the first half of the tribulation. There is no indication that these offer armed resistance, but their moral resistance, coupled with the apparent immunity which they seem to have against the plagues that have been sweeping the earth, will make them the special object of his hatred and wrath. Many believers will be martyred during the first half of the tribulation and many more during the second half as a result of the beast’s vicious campaigns against them.

     Daniel speaks of this warfare against the saints: “I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them” (Daniel 7:21). Particularly after the death and subsequent translation of the two witnesses (Revelation 11:7-12), the beast will systematically seek to destroy every one who worships the true God (or any god except himself and the dragon, for that matter), and the only ones who escape death must do so by fleeing and hiding. We have noted already that the “woman,” mainly symbolizing at this time Israel’s believing remnant, is supernaturally protected in a special wilderness retreat prepared by God (Revelation 12:6, 13-16). No doubt many others will survive by hiding in other places around the world, but multitudes will die as martyrs for their faith (see Revelation 6:9-11; 7:9-17; 12:10-11).

     The beast must also conquer the other nations of the world and their armies and this conquest will occupy much of his attention during the first half of the tribulation. To some degree he must acquire a position of leadership at least among the Mediterranean nations even before the seven years of the tribulation itself actually begin. This period corresponds to the seven-year covenant which he will make with Israel(Daniel 9:27) as discussed previously (see Chapters 6 and 11). It is possible, of course, that he will rise to this position of prominence before the rapture of believers (1 Thessalonians 4:16, 17) takes place, but it is also possible that some period of time will elapse between the rapture and the signing of the seven-year treaty. The rapture is undated in Scripture and always imminent (“Watch!” commanded Jesus).

     Some of the beast’s struggles to attain supremacy over the nations are outlined in Daniel 7:3-8, 19-25, and Daniel 11:45. The account in Daniel 7 culminates its account of this struggle by stating: “And they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time” (Daniel 7:25). The account in Daniel 11 is concluded with the statement: “At that time shall Michael stand up . . . and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time” (Daniel 12:1). Then, in answer to the question, “How long shall it be to the end of these wonders?” The angel replies: “it shall be for a time, times, and an half” (Daniel 12:6, 7). Both accounts obviously take us up to the last half of the tribulation, indicating again that this “prince that shall come,” the beast, will have attained his coveted position of world supremacy by the middle of the tribulation or very shortly thereafter.

     Thus was “power” (the word actually means “authority”) given to him over every nation, every language group within that nation, and every clan within the language group. This, no doubt, will be an uneasy reign. Many other ambitious leaders will submit grudgingly, and there will not be adequate time nor enough military police to completely consolidate these triumphs. Nevertheless, he will be the first man since Nimrod’s abortive attempt at Babel long ago who is able to exercise even nominal rule over all people.

Revelation 13:8.     And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

     We have already been told (verse 4) that “they” will worship both the dragon and the beast. Here we are told who are included in the term “they.” All men and women everywhere, in every nation, will worship this very brilliant but very evil man. They will reject the true God as God, even though they no longer doubt His existence. But they will believe that this man (and his master, Satan) are greater and more powerful than God, and therefore they should be worshiped (that is, their will should be obeyed) rather than God. As did the ancient pagans, and as do modern evolutionists, they “changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshiped and served the creature more than the Creator” (Romans 1:25).

     Here is humanism gone mad. Man desires human autonomy and so concludes that man himself is the pinnacle attained by the cosmic process of evolution and thus that man himself is God. But then he must have a visible representative of mankind to whom his representative worship can be given. In thus worshiping the world’s greatest man, he is subliminally worshiping himself. Thus he gladly yields fealty to the monster of evil, finding vicarious satisfaction in the ability of a man like himself to attain such cosmic eminence. Also, of course, he can find practical release from any pangs of conscience due to the evil in his own heart and the wickedness of his own hands.

     All will worship the beast, that is, except those whom the Lord has reserved for Himself. The terminology here is significant. Not all those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life will have, to this point, made an open profession of faith in Christ. But they will in good time, (or at least may do so) since they are not among those who have submitted to the beast. (See the discussion on the significance of the “book of life” in Chapter 3, under Revelation 3:5.) Many of these are godly Israelites, preserved by God in the wilderness until such time as they come to understand and acknowledge the Lord Jesus Christ as their Messiah and Savior. In any case, there will even in these very last days be a substantial number of people who recoil at worshiping the beast, even though it may cost their lives.

     Since the Lamb had, at least in principle and in God’s foreknowledge, been slain from the foundation of the world, He had been able in perfect justice to write in His book of life the names of everyone who would someday be born. The redemption price which He would pay (His innocent blood, shed on the cross in substitution for the sins of the whole world) was of more than sufficient merit to cover every person, and so their names were written in His book before the world began. However, one name after another had been “blotted out of the book of life” as people had lived and died without validating their entry, as it were, through personal appropriation of Christ by faith. By far the majority of men and women through the ages have either rejected or neglected Him and thus died in their sins. This will be even more the case in the awful tribulation period, when men will have to worship the beast or die.

Revelation 13:9.     If any man have an ear, let him hear.

     This is the same pleading message which John had earlier conveyed from the Lord to the angels of the seven churches. And if it was important for people in the churches of the Christian dispensation to heed such a message, how much more urgent it will be for people in this future age. In this case, the message was not addressed “to the churches,” since there will be no organized churches as such in the fearful times of the tribulation. Nevertheless, the admonition is needed more than ever. If men will worship the beast, they have no part in the book of life, and thus face the certainty of an eternal hell. If they do not worship the beast, they will be persecuted and slain. It is a solemn choice they must make, and they need to hear and understand its implications. If any have been putting off this decision for some reason, the beast is about to force it. Refuse his mark, renounce his worship and die, or else accept his mark and worship him, hoping that he and the dragon can vanquish Christ and empty hell.

     Other martyrs have fearlessly made a similar choice in the past, and the witness of their blood will bear its testimony to many last-day martyrs as they confront the beast and his minions.

Revelation 13:10.     He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.

     The Lord graciously interjects here a word of encouragement to those saints who are being persecuted. Those who are the instruments of their suffering will soon be repaid in like measure. God long ago had enumerated such a principle (an eye for an eye and a life for a life), and He will diligently enforce it in these days of judgment. The day of grace is completely past, as far as these are concerned who become enforcers for the beast. Those police agents who pursue and imprison the suffering believers of the tribulation period will soon be thrown into a dungeon infinitely worse. Those who capture and execute men who refuse to worship the beast will themselves be slain – perhaps by the awful sword proceeding from the mouth of the coming conqueror (Revelation 19:15).

     It is this promise and confidence which will help to sustain the saints through such a bitter time of persecution. Here(in this promise) rests the faith of the saints, making them patient in tribulation. The patience of which this verse speaks means “patient endurance.” Like their Lord, “who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross” (Hebrews 12:2), they know that they “have in heaven a better and an enduring substance” and that their confidence in His promise “hath great recompence of reward” (Hebrews 10:34, 35).

     In yet another sense, the emphatic “Here!” would urge us to realize that the awful stress of these final days will dwarf anything endured by believers in former days and will provide the greatest test of patience and faith ever experienced. Here patience and faith are defined.

     The sign of the dragon and the beast now veers to another aspect and wicked personage, the third member of the infernal trinity. In an evil parody of the Holy Spirit, who glorifies Christ (John 16:14), this third personage seeks to cause men to worship the beast, who has received his authority from the dragon. Although he is not identified by this name here (at this point he is merely called the “beast coming up out of the earth”) he is three times later in Revelation called “the false prophet,” and is directly associated with the beast and the dragon (Revelation 16:13; 19:20; 20:10).

Revelation 13:11.     And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.

     John sees another (that is, “another of the same type”) beast (Greek therion, “dangerous beast”) arising from the earth, instead of from the sea like the first beast. Since the first beast is a man, so is the second, but their backgrounds are different. As noted previously, “the sea” probably refers to the Mediterranean, the implication being that the first beast comes from one of the Mediterranean kingdoms. In fact, Daniel 9:27 suggests that he comes from the people of the ancient Roman empire, possibly a direct descendant of the Romans. By the same token, the second beast must come from somewhere in the great land masses outside the Mediterranean nations, but we apparently have no other clue to his origin.

     There has been much speculation as to the identity of this second beast. Since he is later called the false prophet, he apparently first comes to world attention as a miracle-working religious leader, professing to convey supernaturally inspired messages to mankind. His “prophecies,” of course, are not from God but from Satan, though it may well be that he will first become known (possibly before the tribulation) as a man supposedly receiving messages from God. He professes to be a true prophet but is in reality a false prophet. Jesus warned of false Christs and false prophets (Matthew 24:24) in the great tribulation, and these two (the Antichrist and the false prophet) are the very prototypes of these two classes of deceivers.

     Actually the term “antichrist” occurs only in the epistles of John (1 John 2:18; 4:3; 2 John 7) and is applied to anyone who deceives men by professing to serve God while at the same time denying the supernatural incarnation and the divine/human nature of Christ. However, the concept of “the Antichrist” does occur often in both ancient and modern Christian literature, usually referring to the great antichristian world dictator of these last days. The second beast is interpreted by some writers (as Scofield, in his reference Bible) as the Antichrist, but this seems arbitrary. In any case, John calls them the beast and the false prophet here in Revelation and it does seem significant that he, as the author of the only New Testament verses in which the term “antichrist” is used, does not apply it in Revelation to either of these men. He had already, in fact, said that anyone who denied the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh is “the antichrist” (the definite article is used this way in the 2 John reference).

     This second beast is clearly a religious spokesman of some kind and possibly he is the leader of the world religious system as it will culminate in the last days, coming into its ultimate character as the great harlot of Revelation 17.

     The modern ecumenical movement, active first among apostate Protestant churches in the first half of the twentieth century, then essentially combining (or at least fellowshipping) with the Catholic and Orthodox churches in the second half of the twentieth century, will eventually amalgamate with all other world religions, especially after the departure of all true churches to be with Christ.

     This second beast, or false prophet, will most likely emerge as the patriarch (or pope, or ayatollah, or guru or, more likely, simply “prophet”) of this universal religion. He will originally counterfeit the gentle character of Christ (“two horns like a lamb”), but his “inspired” words will be those of Satan, the old dragon. First they will be sweetly deceptive words, soon they will become deadly, tyrannical, dragon words.

Revelation 13:12.     And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.

     The two Satan-empowered men had somehow become allies, probably at some time before the actual onset of the tribulation period. The alliance of religion and state has a long and sad record of despotism and suppression, but the ecclesiopolitical union of these two human beasts will culminate in the worst period of persecution in the history of the world.

     By the time the political power of the first beast is reaching its zenith, the syncretistic religious union of world religions is also being concentrated under control of the second beast. Each leader assists and supports the other, the king enforcing the religious authority of the prophet and the prophet persuading the world’s superstitious masses that the king should be worshiped and obeyed as a god.

     With his worldwide reputation as a miracle-working prophet already established, he will see that the remarkable pseudo-resurrection of the beast is widely publicized and idolized in every church and temple around the world as the chief argument to persuade people to acknowledge him as divine and deserving of worship. The two will soon become an unprecedented team, working in partnership to establish universal control over all people everywhere.

Revelation 13:13.     And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men.

     The false prophet will be able to perform certain types of miracles by the power of Satan, and this will further enhance his reputation and authority. Among these wonders will be the ability to call down fire from the sky. Special understanding and control of atmospheric phenomena by satanic angels will probably be imparted to the false prophet to enable him to accomplish this and other miracles.

     No doubt he will exploit his ability to produce fire from heaven because this had been one phenomenon which had been used by Christ’s two witnesses to intimidate the unbelieving world for three-and-a-half years (Revelation 11:5). Even though the beast had prevailed against them and killed them, their resurrection and rapture was known around the world, and people still feared their power. It was important that men everywhere should see (perhaps on television) that the beast and false prophet had powers similar to those of the witnesses.

Revelation 13:14.     And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.

     Thirteen times in Revelation we read about those who “dwell on the earth,” twice in this verse. These earth-dwellers easily are subject now to satanic deception and are especially impressed by the prophet’s ability to perform miracles.

     Men through the ages have always been profoundly awed by the supernatural. Often it is true that the more skeptical a person has been about the miracles of God the more gullible he will become when he sees a demonic miracle. Although neither Satan nor his angels can perform miracles of creation (since only God can create), they can and do sometimes manipulate natural processes so as to produce unusual and apparently inexplicable phenomena. Thus miracles (except for genuine miracles of creation) are not necessarily evidence of divine origin and must always be tested in relation to their purpose and fidelity to Scripture (Isaiah 8:20).

     Especially in the last days will such demon-produced miracles be abundant. The Lord Jesus Christ warned: “For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect” (Matthew 24:24). Paul, speaking probably of this same false prophet, says his “coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders” (2 Thessalonians 2:9). His miracles are lying miracles, in that their purpose is to cause men to “believe the lie” (2 Thessalonians 2:11) that the “man of sin,” with his image “sitting in the temple of God” is, as he is claiming, truly God (2 Thessalonians 2:3, 4).

     Men have always been prone to idolatry, even in an age of science, desiring to see something or someone in whom they can place their trust. When intellectuals decide that no real God exists, they replace Him by evolution. Then, regarding man as the apex of evolution, they decide that man is God and idolize great men, worshiping at the feet of Darwin or Marx, Hitler or Stalin, Hirohito or Mao, Einstein or Schweitzer. They erect great statues to their honor, making long pilgrimages to see their tombs or their birthplaces, paying them homage.

     This idolatrous system of evolutionary humanism will come to its climax and its ultimate culmination in the worldwide worship of the beast as the greatest of all men, the man who had conquered death and conquered the great witnesses of God and conquered the world. He is man in perfection, the great leader for whom all mankind had been searching for thousands of years, the king who would bring universal peace, prosperity and freedom from fear of God.

     Now that the dream seems reality, and all the world is worshiping the beast and the dragon (verse 4), it seems fitting to formalize and systematize this worship. The prophet instructs people to make or purchase small statues of the emperor and to use them in their homes as reminders of his power and beneficence.

     But all these household gods will be mere replicas of the great prototype image of the beast, an image which, like the great image of Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 2:31; 3:1) will be set up in the most strategic place possible, symbolizing man in all his perfection, the most fitting object conceivable for humanistic worship of all men everywhere.

     The establishment of this worldwide system of humanistic idolatry has at least two purposes: (1) satisfaction of the immense ego of the man of sin (the sin of pride is the sin of the devil, the root sin of all sin, and the man of sin will certainly be a man of pride); (2) consolidation of his rule by causing people to accept him as a god as well as king.

     The great act of blasphemy was prophesied long ago by Daniel. “And he [that is, the prince that shall come] shall confirm the covenant with many for one week [that is, shall make a seven-year treaty with the Jews allowing them to reestablish their temple and ancient system of worship]: and in the midst of the week [that is, at the midpoint of the seven-year treaty period] he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease [break the treaty, terminating the sacrifices and worship ceremonies], and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate” (Daniel 9:27).

     The word “overspreading” here is the usual Hebrew word for “wings,” commonly used for the overspreading wings of the cherubims, as they hovered over the ark of the covenant in the holy of holies in the temple. But now, instead of cherub wings, there will, in this holy place, be established the overspread arms of the great image of the man of sin. The term “abominations” means the worst types of crimes and pollutions men can commit, and is often in Scripture applied to the making and worship of idols. The prophecy thus anticipates the unspeakable blasphemy of making the temple and its holy place a “desolation” (the same word is used for “astonishment”), emptying it of its sacred furniture and true worshipers, and installing in their place a hulking statue of the beast to which all must bow.

     The Lord Jesus Christ also referred to this coming event: “When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand). Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains: . . . For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no nor ever shall be” (Matthew 24:15-21).

     This is undoubtedly also the event about which Paul wrote to the Thessalonians: “Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God” (2 Thessalonians 2:3, 4).

     The military and political might of the first beast is thus exploited by the religious cunning and wonder-working capabilities of the second beast. When the image is set up in the holy place, the temple is soon emptied of its worshipers and the Israelite remnant will flee into the wilderness (Revelation 11:2; 12:6), but most of the earth-dwellers will quickly be obediently worshiping the great man of sin and the devil himself.

Revelation 13:15.     And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.

     The false prophet next performs perhaps the greatest of all his feats of magic. Soon after the image is carved and installed in the temple, the image begins to speak.

     This image is more then a mere robot with a computer voice. That would be no great marvel today, with all the accomplishments of automation and kinemetronics (or audio-animatronics). Millions of people have observed an image of Abraham Lincoln move and “speak” at Disneyland, but they were hardly moved to bow down in worship of his image.

     The image of the man of sin will speak intelligibly and his words will not be preprogrammed. He will issue commands, among them the command to slay all who do not worship him. Those who observe this remarkable phenomenon, whether in person at Jerusalem or on another side of the world by television, will be convinced the image is really speaking of its own volition.

     It does not actually possess life, of course (only God can create life). The word in the Greek is pneuma, meaning “spirit” or “wind.” The false prophet is enabled (by his own master, Satan) to impart a spirit to the image, but the spirit is one of Satan’s unclean spirits, probably a highly placed demon in the satanic hierarchy. This is a striking case of demon possession, with the demon possessing the body of the image rather than that of a man or woman. And, just as the evil spirit possessing a human being can use the vocal chords of that person to convey his own messages, so the spirit indwelling the image of the beast will utilize the complex “audio-animatronics” apparatus with which it will be equipped to convey Satan’s messages. Possibly these will be relayed worldwide to receivers in the individual household replicas of the image so that everyone can hear the beast speaking.

     Whether this is the exact means Satan will use remains to be seen, but the prophecy is entirely plausible in any case. In some way, the edict will be conveyed around the world that it will be considered a capital offense not to worship the beast via his image, and the dragon via the beast. It would also be feasible to have monitors installed in every home to feed information back to a centralized network of computers recording whether or not such worship is actually being rendered as well as any other information desired by the vast intelligence network of the beast.

Revelation 13:16. And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads.

     In order better to control the activities of the people of his vast dominion, each person is required to register and to receive a brand which will identify him as a loyal citizen of the world kingdom. This registration is intended to be absolutely universal, although one can imagine it will be carried out only with some difficulty in the far-flung lands of Asia and Africa. No one is exempted, no matter how wealthy or how eminent. No doubt registration centers will be set up in every community, and people will be instructed to report for registration and marking on or before a certain date.

     The nature of the mark is not described, but the basic principle has been well established for years in various nations. The social security card, the draft registration card, the practice of stenciling an inked design on the back of the hand, and various other devices are all forerunners of this universal branding. The word itself (“mark”) is the Greek charagma. It is used only in Revelation, to refer to the mark of the beast (eight times), plus one time to refer to idols “graven by art and man’s device” (Acts 17:29). The mark is something like an etching or a tattoo which, once inscribed, cannot be removed, providing a permanent (possibly eternal) identification as a follower of the beast and the dragon. One may contrast this mark with the protective “seal” (Greek sphragis) provided for the servants of God on their foreheads (Revelation 7:3). That seal is apparently the name of the Father (Revelation 14:1), and it seems the beast intends to imitate this by branding his name either on their foreheads or in their right hand.

Revelation 13:17.     And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.

     As far as convenience of enforcement is concerned, an openly visible mark is obviously much superior to a wallet card or other device. One would think that being branded would be so demeaning that widespread resentment and rebellion would hinder its implementation. No doubt there will be much grumbling and many will refuse to report to the registration centers. This will certainly be true of those who are still trusting in God, as they will understand the spiritual significance of this act and firmly reject such permanent identification with the beast.

     But is will be extremely difficult to survive at all without the mark. Once the enforcement machinery is set up, no one will be able to get or hold any kind of employment, nor will he be able to conduct even a one-man sales business of any kind. Even if he has money or other valuables stored away somewhere, he will be unable either to spend his money or sell his property. No transaction of any kind will be legal unless all parties to the transaction can display either on their foreheads or in their right hands the mark of the beast. If one party does not have the mark, the other will surely report him to the ubiquitous police and that will be his death sentence, for the image of the beast has decreed that all who would live must worship the beast, and worship certainly includes obedience. Others, as enemies of the people, must die.

     There will undoubtedly be many who survive by living off the land or by setting up secret communes in the wilderness or by other means, but it will involve extreme hardship and danger. The rural areas, with their produce and livestock, will offer the only potential havens, but the whole world will have just endured a three-and-a-half year drought (Revelation 11:3, 6) and the famines associated with the judgment of the third seal (Revelation 6:5, 6). It is perhaps these traumatic times to which the Lord refers in Matthew 25:31-46, the so-called “judgment of the nations” (or “Gentiles”), when He will commend those who have provided help to His brethren, but will consign to everlasting punishment those who do not.

     Evidently the brand may take any one of three forms, perhaps based on certain further categories into which the emperor wishes to divide his followers – say, perhaps, military, governmental, and civilian, with different types of privileges and duties applied to each. One group receives the mark, some peculiar design (or logo) which is appropriate for the beast, and this is probably applied to the bulk of the population. Another group is imprinted with the beast’s own name, probably the group associated most closely with his purposes and actions. The third group is marked with a number, that number which is peculiarly fitting both for his character and for his own name. Unless a person can display one of these three brands, thus marking him permanently as committed to Satan, he is marked for privation and death.