The Two Beasts From Sea and Land
Notes
Transcript
When Tribulation begins, the world is going to be in a frenzy. Everyone will be at war with everyone, the rapture will have taken place, putting the entire world in a whirlwind, and everyone will be longing for someone to rise up and bring some type of normalcy back to life. They will be looking for a leader that is able to unite the entire world together and have some kind of vision for how to move forward in the immediate future.
Their prayer will be answered when the Antichrist steps onto the stage. Here in Chapter 13, this beast rising out of the sea is none other than the Antichrist himself.
1 Then I stood on the sand of the sea. 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.
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. The dragon gave him his power, his throne, and great authority.
It does need to be noted that there is a big difference between “Antichrist” (capital A) and “antichrist” (Lower case A). Many will come in the spirit of Antichrist, denying the existence and Lordship of Jesus the Christ, but there is only one Antichrist. This distinction is made clear by John:
18 Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour.
Jesus also referenced to this idea that many would come in His name, but the end was not yet:
4 And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you.
5 For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many.
6 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.
Interestingly, the word “Antichrist” is not found in Revelation. Matter of fact, it is not found anywhere in the NT except for the writings of John’s epistles. Here in Revelation 13, he is referred to as “a beast”. But we have enough information from the whole of Scripture to know who this is:
8 I was considering the horns, and there was another horn, a little one, coming up among them, before whom three of the first horns were plucked out by the roots. And there, in this horn, were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking pompous words.
This is the first mention of the Antichrist (to my knowledge) in Scripture. Daniel sees a fourth beast in his vision and it is unlike the first three. Notice how that animals listed in Revelation 13:2 mimic the beasts of Daniel’s prophecy here in Daniel 7. This means that the fourth beast will have all the power and strength of the first three beasts combined. This beast has ten horns, but then one smaller horn seems to grow, pushing out three of the former ones that were there. This horn continues to grow in power, far above the other 6 horns that are present and becomes the world power.
19 “Then I wished to know the truth about the fourth beast, which was different from all the others, exceedingly dreadful, with its teeth of iron and its nails of bronze, which devoured, broke in pieces, and trampled the residue with its feet;
20 and the ten horns that were on its head, and the other horn which came up, before which three fell, namely, that horn which had eyes and a mouth which spoke pompous words, whose appearance was greater than his fellows.
21 “I was watching; and the same horn was making war against the saints, and prevailing against them,
22 until the Ancient of Days came, and a judgment was made in favor of the saints of the Most High, and the time came for the saints to possess the kingdom.
23 “Thus he said: ‘The fourth beast shall be A fourth kingdom on earth, Which shall be different from all other kingdoms, And shall devour the whole earth, Trample it and break it in pieces.
24 The ten horns are ten kings Who shall arise from this kingdom. And another shall rise after them; He shall be different from the first ones, And shall subdue three kings.
25 He shall speak pompous words against the Most High, Shall persecute the saints of the Most High, And shall intend to change times and law. Then the saints shall be given into his hand For a time and times and half a time.
As Daniel continues, we are able to see that this horn makes war against the saints, and prevails against them. This is the same reference that we see of the beast in Revelation 13:
7 It was granted to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them. And authority was given him over every tribe, tongue, and nation.
We also see that this little horn will speak pompous words against the Most High… for a time and times and half a time. This too is referenced in Revelation 13:
5 And he was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies, and he was given authority to continue for forty-two months.
Daniel receives more information concerning this Antichrist as more visions come:
23 “And in the latter time of their kingdom, When the transgressors have reached their fullness, A king shall arise, Having fierce features, Who understands sinister schemes.
24 His power shall be mighty, but not by his own power; He shall destroy fearfully, And shall prosper and thrive; He shall destroy the mighty, and also the holy people.
25 “Through his cunning He shall cause deceit to prosper under his rule; And he shall exalt himself in his heart. He shall destroy many in their prosperity. He shall even rise against the Prince of princes; But he shall be broken without human means.
25 “Know therefore and understand, That from the going forth of the command To restore and build Jerusalem Until Messiah the Prince, There shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; The street shall be built again, and the wall, Even in troublesome times.
26 “And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; And the people of the prince who is to come Shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end of it shall be with a flood, And till the end of the war desolations are determined.
27 Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week; But in the middle of the week He shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate, Even until the consummation, which is determined, Is poured out on the desolate.”
36 “Then the king shall do according to his own will: he shall exalt and magnify himself above every god, shall speak blasphemies against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the wrath has been accomplished; for what has been determined shall be done.
37 He shall regard neither the God of his fathers nor the desire of women, nor regard any god; for he shall exalt himself above them all.
38 But in their place he shall honor a god of fortresses; and a god which his fathers did not know he shall honor with gold and silver, with precious stones and pleasant things.
39 Thus he shall act against the strongest fortresses with a foreign god, which he shall acknowledge, and advance its glory; and he shall cause them to rule over many, and divide the land for gain.
All of these Scriptures help to paint the picture of what this man will actually be like. In the beginning he will seem as the answer to a prayer, uniting the people of the world with a common goal, but after a short time, he will turn on them all and introduce them to his true self. He will exalt himself above everyone, even above God and demand that all on the earth worship him as God. He will receive his power from the dragon, Satan, so no human force will be able to stand against him. Because of this, many will indeed bow before him and worship him as the ultimate leader.
Revelation 13 gives us a glimpse into these events:
3 And 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 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?”
5 And he was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies, and he was given authority to continue for forty-two months.
It tells that John sees one of his heads as if it had been mortally wounded, and his deadly would was healed. After further study, and the way John words this here, I am not sure if this is an actual wound. It is possible that the Antichrist will trick the world into believing that he was mortally wounded and healed, mimicking the death and resurrection of Christ. It could be a counterfeit miracle devised for all the world to marvel and follow him.
Indeed, they worshiped the dragon and the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast? Who is able to make war with him?”
God allows the Antichrist to speak great things and blasphemies… for forty-two months.
It will be at this time that the abomination of desolation will take place and he will move against the people of God to destroy them.
6 Then he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme His name, His tabernacle, and those who dwell in heaven.
7 It was granted to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them. And authority was given him over every tribe, tongue, and nation.
8 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.
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.
Remember that during the first half of the tribulation period, there were two witnesses who greatly preached the Gospel. None were able to stand against them because of the power that was given unto them to protect themselves during that time. It is at this halfway point, that the Antichrist will be given the power to make war with the saints and overcome them. This is when things will take a drastic turn for the worse.
Everyone still on the earth at this time will worship him as king, except for those who are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. They will remain faithful.
Verse 10 then offers some direction as to how the saints are to respond during this time. We are to exemplify the patience and the faith of the saints.
John then sees a second beast:
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.
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.
This next beast represents the false prophet. As the Antichrist will be the political leader of the day, the false prophet will be the religious leader of the day. These two will come together, working under the power of the dragon, Satan himself, to form the unholy trinity of the Tribulation Period. The Dragon is the counterfeit of the Father; The Antichrist is the counterfeit of the Son; The False Prophet will be the counterfeit of the Holy Spirit. These three will work in unison to deceive as many as possible during these days.
We know that this is the false prophet because other Scripture throughout Revelation tell us so:
13 And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs coming out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.
20 Then the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who worked signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image. These two were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone.
10 The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
The “false prophet” is a term given to this beast of God Himself. It is a fitting name, seeing that this final evil entity will serve to deceive the world. That is Satan’s game: deception. He is a liar and a deceiver:
44 You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.
14 No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.
From the first mentioning of Satan in Scripture to the last, he is shown as a liar and deceiver:
1 Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?”
7 Now when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison
8 and will go out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle, whose number is as the sand of the sea.
And all throughout the Scriptures, he has not changed. He has moved about lying and deceiving as many as possible:
4 whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.
These lies and deception will play a major role in the moving away of the people from God during the last days. Not only is Satan a liar and a deceiver, but his wicked servants are too.
15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works.
These wicked servants will come as if they are bringing godly revelation, but they will indeed sow seeds of wickedness into the thoughts of men’s hearts. In the last days, these evil spirits and false prophets will deceive the masses with their lies and deceit:
1 Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons,
All throughout Scripture we are warned to beware of the false prophets. Moses went as far as to say that when a false prophet rose amongst the people, attempting to draw them away from the One true God, they were to put that person to death so that they might “purge the evil from among you.” (Deut. 13:1-5)
Jeremiah also spoke on several different occasions concerning false prophets (Jeremiah 23:16; 23:21-22; 23:25-32; 27:14-16; 29:8-9). He warned the people that these false prophets were leading them astray, and repeatedly told them, “Do not listen to the words of the prophets...”
Unfortunately, the people did not listen to him, as they will not listen during these final days. So many people will be misled and deceived into believing the words of these lying spirits and they will follow them without question.
Other New Testament writers also warned of the false prophets. As Jesus concluded His Sermon on the Mount, He declared:
15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.
The apostle John also warned of the presence of false prophets among the people when he said:
1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.
All of these false prophets throughout history have caused damage, but none of them can hold a candle to this final false prophet. He will by far be the worst of them all and will lead almost everyone during these last days away from God. He will be the ultimate deceiver.
There are obvious differences between the first and second beasts in appearance. He comes up out of the land instead of the sea; He only has two horns where the Antichrist had ten horns; He is pictured as a lamb instead of dragon. All of these differences speak to how he will be much more subtle than the Antichrist. He will not come as a ruler, but as a subtle, gentle spirit that is there to unite the people in religious things. This will draw many unto him.
Despite his more gentle approach, he will be no more less deadly or demonic than the Antichrist. This is proved by the fact that he spoke as a dragon, a strange voice indeed for a lamb. He will be the mouthpiece of Satan, and will go about lying and deceiving all of those who will entertain his voice.
His entire purpose will be to cause the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast.
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.
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.
16 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 false prophet will be given the power to do great signs and wonders, which will only cause more and more people to listen to what he has to say. His power to do miraculous things will only serve to the masses as proof of his claims (vs. 14).
He will persuade those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast. He will then use his power to give breath to the image of the beast, and this beast will be able to speak and kill those who refuse to worship it.
He will also administer the mark of the beast, which will serve as the means to buy or sell in the marketplace. Without it, one will be banned from commercial trade. This mark will be the number of a man: 666.
