REVELATION
Chapter 13
THE FIRST BEAST
~The beast from the sea
REV 13:1 Then I stood on the sand of the sea (Genesis 32:12 And thou saidst, I will surely do thee good, and make thy seed as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.) 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. (Compare Daniel 7:7-10)
2 Now the beast which I saw was like a leopard, his feet were like the feet of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave him his power, his throne, and great authority. (Compare Daniel 7:1-6; Chapter 8)
- Genesis 32:12 "For You said, 'I will surely treat you well, and make your descendants as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.' "
- The view that the four kingdoms are (1) Babylon, (2) Medo-Persia, (3) Greece, and (4) the Greek successors of Alexander,
DAN 7:2 Daniel spoke, saying, "I saw in my vision by night, and behold, the four winds of heaven were stirring up the Great Sea. (Great Sea; Mediterranean, See Numbers 34:1-12 ,Josh 1:4)
DAN 7:7 "After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, exceedingly strong. It had huge iron teeth; it was devouring, breaking in pieces, and trampling the residue with its feet. It was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns.
- The Fourth Kingdom of Iron (vv. 40-43; cf. v. 33).
Though divided into legs of iron, and feet and toes of iron mixed with clay, it is one kingdom. It is the form of world dominion known to Bible and history as Rome, and which, through the progressive Westernization of mankind, appears to prevail to the present day. It is referred to historically first (chronologically) at Luke 2:1.
40. Strong as iron. Of all the four metals this is strongest. Considered in the context of its own time, none of the previous kingdoms was as strong as Rome. And to the present hour government tends more and more to exercise control over every area of human activity. This is a necessary accompaniment of the progressive industrialization of society. “Breaketh in pieces”. Rome fragmented and reassembled-socially, culturally, and politically-all the peoples, institutions, etc., it took over. The only notable exception was Christianity itself as a spiritual movement (albeit truly Romanized in the perversion of the Roman Church). And subdueth all. "The empire of the Romans filled the world, and when the empire fell into the hands of a single person, the world became a safe and dreary prison for his enemies. To resist was fatal and it was impossible to flee". Some see in the two legs a prophecy of the division of the empire into two empires, with capitals at Rome and Constantinople.
3 I saw one of his heads as if it had been mortally wounded, and his deadly wound was healed. And all the world marveled and followed the beast.
4 So they worshiped the dragon (Rev. 12:9) who gave authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, "Who is like the beast? Who is able to make war with him?"
There will be much religion on earth, but it will be godless and blasphemous. This first beast is against God.
5 And he was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies, and he was given authority to continue for forty-two months [31/2 years].
6 Then he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme His name, His tabernacle, and those who dwell in heaven.
The beast is satanically energized.
7 And it was granted to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them (Revelation 6:10. And authority was given him over every tribe, tongue, and nation.
8 And all who dwell on the earth will worship him, whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
At this point in the seven year tribulation period he possesses world-wide power and he persecutes the saints of God.
Who would deny that the stage of world history is rapidly being set by tendencies that will ultimately lead to the rule and adoration of such a monster? All who do not belong to the Lamb of God will worship the beast.
9 If anyone has an ear, let him hear.
10 He who leads into captivity shall go into captivity; he who kills with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.
THE SECOND BEAST
~The Beast from the Earth
11 Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and he had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon.
A wolf in sheep’s clothing.
(John 4:24 "God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.")
While the first beast is undoubtedly a political world power,
the second beast (v. 11), as Lee has said, "is a spiritual world power, the power of learning and knowledge, of ideas, of intellectual cultivation. Both are from below, both are beasts, and therefore they are in close alliance. The worldly anti-Christian wisdom stands in the service of the worldly anti-Christian power".
12 And he exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence, and causes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. (Roman Papacy)
The second beast enforces the commands of the first beast, and accompanies his evil work with various forms of miraculous manifestations (vv. 12,13). The period of the "times of the Gentiles" began with the forced worship of an image set up by a powerful ruler (by Nebuchadnezzar, in Daniel 3); and this period will close with a similar enforced worship, this time on a universal scale.
13 He performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men.
14 And he deceives those who dwell on the earth by those signs which he was granted to do in the sight of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who was wounded by the sword and lived.
2TH 2:9-10 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.
Throughout the Bible we see miracles performed as proofs of God's power, love, and authority. But here we see counterfeit miracles performed to deceive. This is a reminder of Pharaoh's magicians, who duplicated Moses' signs in Egypt. True signs and miracles point us to Jesus Christ, but miracles alone can be deceptive. That is why we must ask with respect to each miracle we see: Is this consistent with what God says in the Bible?
The second beast here gains influence through the signs and wonders that he can perform on behalf of the first beast. The second beast orders the people to worship an image in honor of the first beast--a direct flouting of the second commandment (Exo 20:4-6). Allowing the Bible to guide our faith and practice will keep us from being deceived by false signs, however convincing they appear to be. Any teaching that contradicts God's Word is false.
The Greek word “beast”, therion {thay-ree'-on}, as used in this context is a metaphor; a brutal, bestial man, savage, ferocious.
15 He 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.
While the first beast is undoubtedly a political world power, the second beast is a spiritual world power, the power of learning and knowledge, of ideas, of intellectual cultivation. Both are from below, both are beasts, and therefore they are in close alliance. The worldly anti-Christian wisdom stands in the service of the worldly anti-Christian power.
The second beast enforces the commands of the first beast, and accompanies his evil work with various forms of miraculous manifestations (vv. 12,13). The period of the "times of the Gentiles" began with the forced worship of an image set up by a powerful ruler (by Nebuchadnezzar, in Daniel 3); and this period will close with a similar enforced worship, this time on a universal scale.
16 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,
17 and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
18 Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man: His number is 666.
This mark of the beast is designed to mock the seal that God places on his followers (Rev. 7:2-3 Then I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God. And he cried with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it was granted to harm the earth and the sea,saying, "Do not harm the earth, the sea, or the trees till we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads.")
Just as God marks his people to save them, so Satan's beast marks his people to save them from the persecution that Satan will inflict upon God's followers (Revelation 6:10 And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?). Identifying this particular mark is not as important as identifying the purpose of the mark. Those who accept it show their allegiance to Satan, their willingness to operate within the economic system he promotes, and their rebellion against God. To refuse the mark means to commit oneself entirely to God, preferring death to compromising one's faith in Christ.
