Revelation 13

Revelation 13

1 And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads. 2 And the beast that I saw was like a leopard; its feet were like a bear's, and its mouth was like a lion's mouth. 

NOTE: mostly using Welwyn Commentary on Rev by Richard Brooks...and others...

Two parts to this chapter, 

-vv1-10, where we see a beast rising out of the SEA

And 

-vv11-18, where we see another beast rising out of the EARTH

The Beast rising out of the sea is representative of Satan’s persecuting power through world authorities...throughout history via governments, rulers, totalitarian states, dictators and atheistic regimes.

And...

The Beast rising out of the earth is representative of Satan’s perversion of true Christianity

The two work in close co-operation with each other.

The Beast from the sea had...

ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads. 2 And the beast that I saw was like a leopard; its feet were like a bear's, and its mouth was like a lion's mouth. And to it the dragon gave his power and his throne and great authority.

This beast is presented as having great power and dominion and note that the names on the heads are blasphemous. (So he is obviously in opposition to God!)

The leopard, bear, lion characteristics come from Daniel 7 where they were pictures of successive world empires...

And to it the dragon gave his power and his throne and great authority. 

That is, Satan gives his power to the nations, regimes, dictators, etc. As was true in John’s day with Nero and the Romans empowers, the power they were given to resist and blaspheme God and to destroy His people was given them by the Devil. But we must never forget that Revelation is very clear that the devil’s power is given by God and limited by God.

3 One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed, and the whole earth marveled as they followed the beast. 4 And they worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who can fight against it?”

Mortal wound that was healed (mockery of Christ’s resurrection)...this is very possibly the defeat and disappearance and then reappearance of oppressive regimes/nations, etc. (many thought this would be a return of Nero in the first century)

-eg: Russia, 

5 And the beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words, and it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months. 6 It opened its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name and his dwelling, that is, those who dwell in heaven. 

These nations, like China, North Korea, etc in our day...Rome in John’s day...spoke for Satan...arrogant words like Satan (Isaiah 14:12-14)...and this arrogance and blasphemous anti-Christ beast...the nations and its rulers...was allowed to exercise this authority for 42 months (3.5 years, 1260 days)...ie, during the entire church age...

7 Also it was allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them. 

Ie, as in ch 12, Satan executes his wrath on the church by the pagan nations and their rulers...and conquers them...not causes true believers to give up their faith, for they have been sealed by God (Revelation 7:3)...but actually is allowed to put to death some...many saints...but they are sealed and cannot lose their faith.

And authority was given it over every tribe and people and language and nation, 8 and all who dwell on earth will worship it, everyone whose name has not been written before the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who was slain. 

World-wide authority and control/influence...always in competition with the God and the Lord Jesus...(note the Great Commission)

Worship it: the state, ie...that is the GOAL of the beasts’ activity

And note who worships the anti-god, anti-Christ state: those whose name not written before the foundation of the world in the book of life

9 If anyone has an ear, let him hear:

10 If anyone is to be taken captive,

to captivity he goes;

if anyone is to be slain with the sword,

with the sword must he be slain.

Here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints.

Wow...we are to listen...hearing that persecution and even death for the cause of Christ is coming...

-captivity

-slain by the sword

-NOTE: we are being told before hand that this is coming and not to consider it, like Peter says: “something strange” (I Peter 4:12)

So...it is a CALL for the ENDURANCE & FAITH of the saints...remember ch 12: blood of the Lamb, word of their testimony, love not their lives to death...

11 Then I saw another beast rising out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb and it spoke like a dragon. 

Another beast...out of the earth: false religion with Satan at the helm...false Christ’s (2 horns like a Lamb)...but SPOKE like a dragon...

NOTE: appearance of godliness ( 2 Timothy 3:1ff, esp v5)

LOOKS religious, even “righteous” but the voice is Satan’s...that is LIES!!!

12 It exercises all the authority of the first beast in its presence, and makes the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose mortal wound was healed. 

A Working together of the state, civil rulers and religion...religious rulers...through false religion...

the Catholic Church, Rome with Emperor worship, etc.

13 It performs great signs, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in front of people, 14 and by the signs that it is allowed to work in the presence of the beast it deceives those who dwell on earth, telling them to make an image for the beast that was wounded by the sword and yet lived. 15 And it was allowed to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast might even speak and might cause those who would not worship the image of the beast to be slain. 

-great signs...see Matthew 24:24; 2 Thessalonians 2:9f

-by these signs it DECEIVES...

-A direct violation of 2nd commandment, Exodus 20:4-5

-and those who will not worship are put to death (Daniel & friends with Nebuchadnezzar; emperor worship in first century; those who will not bow to the state and to the leaders of false religion...

16 Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, 17 so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name. 

-mark on right hand or forehead - to be sealed by commitment to the beast, to the false religion of the state...such as Caesar is Lord or God in the Roman times...

-the counterpart to the sealing of the saints (Rev 7:3)

-but not necessarily a physical mark...as the mark sealing the saints was on their forehead also, but was not visible...it was the Holy Spirit...

-could not buy or sell...economic sanctions...as their have always been and are not all over the world for God’s people who will not WORSHIP the beast...ie, Satan

18 This calls for wisdom: let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is 666.

What is this number? Some say it is “Nero Ceasar” transliterated from Greek to Hebrew, the letters calculate to “666”

But 666 could very well be a pointed way of symbolism for the power of man...or any power less than or competing with God...

As 7 is the biblical number of perfection and completeness...so 777 would be perfect perfection...almost like “holy, holy, holy”

And so 666 would equal less than perfection, that is: not equal to God and therefore doomed to always fall short! In all his fury & wrath, in all his persecution and killing of the saints...Satan and the nations that follow him and do his will and the false religion that looks real but teaches Satans lies...will ALWAYS LOSE! And we are to know that...from the first century til not til Christ’s final return...