already foreshadowing how many in this demonic religion will readily accept the Beast as their God. Therefore in the Revelation, the "mark" of the beast refers to either the name of the person of the beast or to the number of his name that corresponds to his kingdom . It will be like in the days of the plagues of Egypt. … And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people” (Revelation 18:1-4). Unless you have access to the world financial system by having the proper identification you will be totally shut 8 And all those who dwell on the earth will worship it. The dragon takes his stand on the sand of the sea (12:17), and a beast rises out of the sea. every creature—"all His works in all places of His dominion" (Ps 103:22). The description matches that of the beast in chapter 13. A worldwide pit incarnates a body. They all will oppose the true Christ and they will come as a triune John's use of I saw (vv. Only the number and placement of the crowns vary. The beast is given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies (v. 5), and he opens it to blaspheme God, and to slander his name and his dwelling place and those who dwell in heaven (v. 6). foundation for the Beast system is now being put in place and it is called Islam. Revelation commentary: chapter 13 - beasts rise out of the sea and land. In our day it is mostly those who have abandoned the belief that God will destroy evildoers with fire from heaven who take it upon themselves to do exactly that. As the Holy Spirit does not speak of Himself and promotes I believe this may be because those Feet of a bear....like unto a leopard. Then But the thing to remember here is many of these images are symbols—things that represent something else, often something larger and more complex. . He had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on his horns, and on each head a blasphemous name. Several points in the scene are worth noticing. will be able to perform miracles on the temple mount. The burning question in the minds of John's readers must have been, If all these terrible things are going to happen in the world, what should be our response? Number 13 is known as a number that may carry important messages from the spiritual realms. For μιαν — mian as indefinite article see Revelation 8:13. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head. and False Prophet to come to torment the world at the end of the age. In our previous studies in mentioned that we would wait until Revelation 5:6 before we fully explored the meaning of this symbol. There was a foreshadow of this when a statue of Zeus was set up in the “Holy Place” Under Antiochus 10, 15). these languages each letter also has a numerical value). Therefore, the beast rises from the region of the Mediterranean. to produce a new race on the earth (Gen 6:2). years of peace that will be promised by the Beast and his False Prophet. Satan offered to enter Jesus and to give him a shortcut to all the kingdoms of the world but Jesus As the vision of chapter 13 unfolds, neither John himself nor someone reading his prophecy for the first time has the benefit of the detailed explanation that is supplied four chapters later (17:7-18). satellites do for location today. The last phrase probably refers to angels, viewed as heavenly counterparts to Christian believers on earth. light. View Revelation 13:1-10. Antichrist. He understood the church existed in Satan's stronghold. The two In the account of the dragon and the woman, the expression "I heard" in 12:10 was the only reminder that John himself was still in the picture. If he did not, was he guilty of deceiving his readers by playing on their superstitions and fears? A world There are notions that the number of the Beast’s name will add up in Hebrew and/or Greek to 666 (in his world system and worship him. This will make the mark of the Beast communications system were no one can buy Popular books and movies on end times have programmed most of the world to expect the Antichrist but the judgments came from God by the word of His prophet Moses to deliver His people from bondage. The book is most emphatically not a call to arms, but a call for patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of the saints (v. 10). In like manner, in the Revelation the "beast" refers to the kingdom of the beast or to the individual (Rev 13:3-4), who is its leader. The symbolism of the heads and horns is the same as with the dragon. What does Revelation 2:13 mean? [⇑ See verse text ⇑] John saw a beast rising from the sea: the sixth of seven major figures described in this part of Revelation. And the absence of crowns signifies a republican form of government. But now he abruptly becomes an eyewitness to the events he describes: And I saw a beast coming out of the sea. gateway for control over the mind and/or even to somehow bring an altering of the human genetic code. Time and again, from the ill-fated Muenster kingdom of the sixteenth-century Anabaptists to David Koresh at Waco in the 1990s, the book of Revelation has been linked in the public mind to violence, war and armed rebellion. year reign by the Aryans. the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six. Revelation 22:13(KJV) Verse Thoughts There are a plethora of false religions with atheistic doctrines and blasphemous accusations, that proclaim their antichrist agenda and introduce a myriad of counterfeit gods and false Christs in their attempts to defame the true and the living God. 16  And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark rejected Satan’s offer (Mat 4:8). This False Prophet will have the power to work miracles in the sight of the Beast Antichrist. point everyone will already know the identity of this person who claims to be God. No other figure in the book of Revelation has captured readers' imaginations quite like the beast of chapter 13. IVP New Testament Commentaries are made available by the generosity of InterVarsity Press. i. John's oracle here gives the lie to all such interpretations, whether offered by those who would justify violence or those who would consign Revelation to the scrap heap because of the violent world it evokes. At that time a one world cash less economic system will be set up and it will be controlled by computers. by Don Koenig . He is the last ecclesiastical head, as the Beast of Revelation 13:1-8 is the last civil head. 1, 2) marks a return to the first-person narrative style that dominated chapters 4-10. It will have 66 (Is the number 66 New International Version (NIV), Revelation 13 - IVP New Testament Commentaries. For the present, John is saying, until the beast's forty-two montes are up (v. 5), those destined for imprisonment will go to prison and those destined for death will be killed. 666" (v. 18) has drawn a chorus of responses from John's time down to the present, many forged in the heat of later but now long-forgotten controversies, and none very convincing. These are names of blasphemy Those who do not take the mark will have to barter to get anything they need and that will be outlawed. Man was created on the sixth day and he fell from perfection. Revelation is an example of apocalyptic literature, which was popular amongst Jews and Christians from around 200 B.C. Both the Lamb and the beast were "slaughtered" or "slain" in that encounter, yet both are "alive" (1:18; 13:14), and each in his own way is a "victor" or "conqueror" or "overcomer" (for the Lamb, see 3:20; 5:5; 17:14; for the beast, 6:2; 11:7; 13:7). The Beast from the Sea. who take the mark may no longer have the genetic code of a human descendent of Adam. The very opposite is true. What does Revelation 12:13-17 mean to us now? 15  And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should Before the flood Satan tried to alter the DNA code of man by having angels take wives and have offspring Sincere Bible scholars, in fact, disagree about the meaning of some of the symbolic passages. both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. is physically remote he will have to have the password or account number to buy or sell (i.e. If he did, are Christians today obliged to believe it? witnesses had the power to smite the earth with plagues as often as they wished for 1,260 days. And I saw a beast rising up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and on his horns ten crowns, and on his heads a blasphemous name. What then does 666 mean? Zeus, is just a counterfeit of YHWH. tribulation and have reached the “thousand year new age” of peace. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is Revelation 11:19-15:4 pictures the battle between Satan and the church (Revelation 12:13 – the women represents the people of God, cf. Biblical scholars agree that the third of the stars he swept from the sky represents the angels that he tempted to follow him in his rebellion against God (Revelation 12:3-9; Luke 10:18). psis (apocalypse), means “Uncovering” or “Disclosure.”This name indicates the meaning of Revelation —it uncovers matters that had been hidden and discloses events that would happen long after it was written. name of the beast, or the number of his name. They will be led to believe that they have survived the great This person will have power to make the image of the first Beast have life and speak (the image set Anyone who will not worship the image of the Beast will Let me further explain what I am saying. What does Revelation 14:6-13 mean to us now? the temple. Those with wisdom will not I speculate that the mark will be some type of biological computer chip that will allow a satanic hate the truth will be deceived. past history in mind it would not take much deception for the polytheistic and pantheistic pagan world to believe 1, 2) marks a return to the first-person narrative style that dominated chapters 4-10. The beast's agenda corresponds to that of the dragon: the dragon was the deceiver of "the whole world" (12:9), and the beast throughout chapter 13 carries out that deception. The latter interprets in explicitly political terms the things John sees in 17:1-6, but it is by no means evident that the explanation there is also meant as a key to the visions of chapter 13. be like it was in the days of Nebuchadnezzar. The whole satellite network is supposed to be be up by 2015AD. anyone’s name adds up to before this takes place is probably totally meaningless. Why? Apparently, he will have the power to call down fire from fall and worship the image he made of himself or be killed. is God and that the Kingdom of God has come to earth. until the event happens. The “kinsman redeemer” (Jesus) who came from the bloodlines of Adam might no longer “lawfully” Second, although it is not stated in so many words that the beast is the dragon's "offspring," this is suggested by a setting in which the dragon seems to call the beast out of the sea and gives it his power and his throne and great authority (v. 2). This False Prophet will do great wonders. I am saying that the intolerant religion of Islam is rapidly Satan does not have original creative abilities he counterfeits God. … And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen. He too "comes up," in this case out of the sea (v. 1); he too "attacks" (that is, "makes war") against the people of God: he too "overpowers" or "conquers" them (v. 7) and "kills" many of them (vv. Real spiritual warfare has more to do with the battle of the will. in their right hand, or in their foreheads: This False Prophet will cause all to receive a mark in their right hand or in their foreheads. Revelation 13:18 tells us that 666 is the number of the beast, a human number. What does that mean? (Revelation 13:7-11) It was permitted to wage war with the holy ones and conquer them, and it was given authority over every tribe and people and tongue and nation. The beast's wounded head suggests a previous encounter between the Lamb and the beast, probably centered in Christ's death on the cross. The dragon gave the beast his power and his throne and great authority. Clearly the beast from the sea bears the battle scars of the combat prophesied in that ancient text. No wonder all who The similar number of heads and horns reveals that the beast is from the dragon and like the dragon in wickedness. just some coincidence? ) Something more is presupposed here than the "war in heaven" and the conflict between the dragon and the woman described in chapter 12. 17  And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the What does Revelation 13:1 mean? 14  And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live. but, Where have we seen this beast before? The call to patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of the saints (v. 10) is a call to peace, a call to leave the judgment of our enemies in the hands of God and the Lamb. All this is done Zeus was the national god of the Greeks. In chapters 11-12 John could say something "appeared" in the sky or in heaven (11:19; 12:1, 3) without specifying that it appeared to him personally. The Two Beasts and Their Deception. place of the temple. No one will be able to buy or sell anything unless they have taken the mark, the name or the number. John implies that the healing of the beast's mortal wound is itself a deception, producing amazement over the whole world (v. 3) and leading people on earth to worship both the dragon and the beast (v. 4). by Daniel the prophet stands in the holy place (where it ought not). How, then, does Revelation 13:17 fit into this interpretation? Could it possible be some idiots-Jew's reference to Jesus? to Babylon Iraq? Who really knows what all that means? (13:1-3). The universal chorus of creation, including the outermost circles as well as the inner (of saints and angels), winds up the doxology. AR 290. If it happens that this number appears in your life frequently, it means that it has been sent to you right from your divine angels. After the passing mention in chapter 11 (and possibly even earlier under the name "Apollyon" in 9:11) John now provides the beast with a more formal introduction. up in the holy place). America established freedom of worship. The answer is clear: in 11:7, where John was told that "when [the two witnesses] have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up from the Abyss will attack them, and overpower and kill them." The killing and beheading of Christians and Jews by fundamental Moslems in the name of God is Yet it does not follow that the book fosters violence among its readers. Revelation 13, the 13th chapter of the final book in the Bible, begins by describing a beast rising out of the sea.Most consider this beast to be the antichrist.The antichrist is fatally wounded in the head, but somehow, miraculously recovers. Also 1 Maccab. I think it will go more toward spiritualism and "New The number 7 means perfection and completeness. Age" concepts. to A.D. 200, and is marked by the use of sym… In the beast of Revelation 13, the horns represent America’s two governing principles: civil and religious liberty. be deceived; they will know that this counterfeit is not God. IV Epiphanes in 168 BC, which is also one of the reasons why I say the world may believe the Beast is Zeus. get carried away with speculation about who the man is before Satan is cast out of heaven and the Beast from the and at some audio signal they will have to get into a position of worship toward his image in Jerusalem. counterfeit to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. slaughtered" (5:6 NRSV; the same Greek word). Revelation 13:18 Here is wisdom Not only in the above description of the two beasts, but in what follows as to the number of the beast, these two now coalescing in one, and have one and the same number; and to wrap it up, and conceal it in such an obscure manner, shows great wisdom in God, as it requires much in men, and serves greatly to exercise all his intellectual powers to find it out: the sight of men. This calls for patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of the saints. This should further caution us against identifying John's beast too quickly or too exclusively with one specific empire or political system, whether past or future. When Paul healed a cripple, the Greeks of the city said the gods had come down to them in the form of men. That is probably a correct assumption but I would not Lamb-like horns point to an innocent, non-oppressive, and spiritual nation. Revelation 13. If the person for sure exactly what these two prophets will demand from the world but the world will not wish to comply. Academic biblical scholars, by contrast, are more than willing to leave both the imagery and what it represents back in the distant past, on the grounds that John was making a veiled political statement about the Roman Empire in his own time. 18  Here is wisdom. power of this individual is over the entire world. At the very least it will Once an individual takes this mark we are told that he can no longer be saved. The verse is probably saying that those with “understanding” will know all about these mysteries The number of the Beast will be 666. The number 6 depicts something that has fallen hopelessly short of perfection. low orbit satellites that will cover the whole world for communications much like GPS The beast has ten horns and seven heads with ten diadems on its horns. The beast has great power, authority, and strength… Because they the power that comes from God’s Holy Spirit - he is anti God’s true Christ. On this view, the beast is the empire, its many heads are a series of emperors, the wounded head is Nero, the first persecutor of Christians, who had died and, according to some versions of a popular legend, was expected to return to power with an army of the hated Parthians (for a summary, see Keener 1993:796, who concludes that "Rome would have taken serious offense at the implications of this exiled prophet John had the authorities read and grasped the symbolism of his book"). may believe the classic Antichrist and False Prophet are dead. This will come in the next six chapters, which have given the book of Revelation its reputation as the most violent book in the New Testament. There most likely will be a time in the day when all in the world will have to stop what they are doing Rarely will we see the fire and brimstone that we expect; rather, we see what we want to see. The of a man claiming to be God (666) and about the counterfeit kingdom he will set up. If Nero is the mortally wounded head, how could he have been wounded by Christ, the woman's offspring, in keeping with Genesis 3:15? Without question, the reputation is deserved. Years | Bible prophecy & end time worldviews, Revelation commentary: chapter 13 - beasts rise out of the sea and land. a phone or computer The number 666 might mean man claiming to be the triune God (777). an image of a man. In chapters 11-12 John could say something "appeared" in the sky or in heaven (11:19; 12:1, 3) without specifying that it appeared to him personally. Hitler had plans that included a thousand Our will is the prime motivator; our needs are motivators and our desires are agendas. Or, to put it another way, Daniel's terrible, unidentified fourth beast seems to have "swallowed" its three predecessors and to have taken on the distinguishing characteristics of each. “And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen.” (Revelation 14:8). two prophets may demand a world kingdom by the Jews from Jerusalem. Because of developments in the Roman Empire since Paul's time, John has lost confidence in the state. The "many antichrists" precede and prepare the way for the Antichrist, who is "the Beast out of the earth" of Revelation 13:11-17 and the "false prophet" of; Revelation 16:13; Revelation 19:20; Revelation 20:10. We are also told that this beast has amazing authority over all peoples and tribes, and they worshipped him. Taking the The book has been blamed for everything from social revolutions in Latin America to the nuclear arms race during the Cold War. 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