The Mark of The Beast

Revelation 13:16–17 NKJV

He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.

What was the mark of the beast?

To understand the original meaning of this “mark of the beast,” we need to know some Biblical background. The central Jewish text that is recited twice daily declares, “Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD is one.” The next part is less famous but also essential, “And you shall bind them [God’s commandments] as a sign on your hand, and they shall be on your forehead” (Deut. 6:4-8).

If the book of Revelation is read with awareness of the first-century Jewish context, the meaning of many seemingly odd phrases becomes evident. To grasp this passage, we need not wonder whether one day all people will undergo a medical procedure in which a chip will be inserted under human skin. Instead we can understand the mark of the beast as a clear, outwardly expressed opposition to the commandment to worship the God of Israel alone.

In the first century many Christ-followers and their children wondered deeply about the nature and limits of this commandment in Deuteronomy. They considered whether it was possible to publicly honor some Roman deities while privately maintaining their worship of Israel’s God through the Jewish Christ. If that were possible, it could ensure their economic survival and prosperity under the watchful eye of the Roman authorities. However, the book of Revelation advocates an unapologetically Israelite, anti-Roman position – only worship of the one true God of Israel is permitted.