The Beast from the Sea (Revelation 13:1–10)

It is accepted throughout the New Testament that in the last days there will be a special outbreak of the powers of evil. Sometimes this is associated with an individual who may be called the antichrist (1 John 2:18) or ‘the man of lawlessness’ (2 Thess. 2:3). It is this figure who is behind the opening vision of this chapter. John does not name him but calls him ‘the beast’. A wealth of picturesque detail brings out the horror associated with him. He is closely linked with Satan, and indeed is something like an incarnation of the evil one. All sorts of interpretations have been offered as to why the first monster arises out of the sea. The uncharted oceans held terrors for ancient people, and storms at sea easily symbolized evil (see Jonah 1). The prophet Daniel received a vision of four wicked creatures rising from the sea (Dan. 1–6), but John saw only one, a beast. English translations customarily use the translation beast, but what John saw can better be rendered by the term monster. John described it, starting with the horns and finally moving on to the feet, as it came up from the water.

I. His Wound (vv. 1-3)

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. 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.

A. The Symbolic description of the “Beast” allows us to learn something about his origin and character.

1. We should be clear that John’s interest is in symbolism. He is not going into detail to help his readers visualize the beast. In fact it seems impossible to put together all the features John mentions to make up one animal. But that is not his intention. He is making use of a variety of the features of the animals mentioned in Daniel 7.

4 The first was like a lion, and had eagle’s wings. I watched till its wings were plucked off; and it was lifted up from the earth and made to stand on two feet like a man, and a man’s heart was given to it.

5 “And suddenly another beast, a second, like a bear. It was raised up on one side, and had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. And they said thus to it: ‘Arise, devour much flesh!’

6 “After this I looked, and there was another, like a leopard, which had on its back four wings of a bird. The beast also had four heads, and dominion was given to it.

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.

2. The beasts of Daniel 7 are to be understood of the various world empires and it may well be that this is in mind with John’s beast. In that case he stands for a final empire in which will be concentrated the frightfulness of all its predecessors. But John does not see the beast as having any power of its own. The dragon gave it its power, its throne, and great authority.

B. The Beast is a man, but he is energized from hell, because he comes from the pit. (Rev. 11:7)

7 When they finish their testimony, the beast that ascends out of the bottomless pit will make war against them, overcome them, and kill them.

God does not see him as a man, made in the divine image, but as a wild animal under the control of Satan. Just as Jesus Christ is God in the flesh, so “the beast” will be Satan in a human body.

He has ten horns and seven heads, as does Satan (12:3). That the two have the same appearance probably means that the evil we see on earth is but a copy of the evil one.

John says that one of the heads … seemed to have had a fatal wound, which, however, had been healed. He does not say how the beast received its wound (in v. 14 we find it was ‘by the sword’). He does not even say whether it received the wound after it came to land or how it came to be healed. His interest is in the fact that a wound that appeared to be mortal had been healed.

II. His Wonders

A. The world will marvel at the beast.

You get the sense that the people are going to just be captivated by the beast. They will wonder at the power of anti-christ power and his sudden rise to international fame and authority.

Because of the wound to the beast, which had been clearly fatal and yet was now healed, the whole world is astonished and follows the beast. However, even though they are amazed at the beast, clearly men intuitively know that the beast embodies something more than what is natural.

B. Not only will there be wonder, but there will also be worship.(v.4)

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?”

Worship is the one thing Satan has always wanted and he will receive it through the beast.

They worship the dragon because he had given authority to the beast, so both the beast and the dragon become the object of worship in the last day, a worship conditioned doubtless more by fear than by faithfulness.

III. His War (vv. 5-10)

5 And he was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies, and he was given authority to continue for forty-two months. 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.

A. God will permit Antichrist to war against His people and even defeat some of them.

Forty-two months are allotted for the beast to utter his words of blasphemy and to exercise authority. Forty-two months (1,260 days or times and time and half a time) is equal to three and one-half years or one-half of the tribulation period. Since the judgments seem to intensify from the opening of the seals to the sounding of the trumpets and finally to the sounding of the seven thunders and the outpouring of God’s bowls of wrath, apparently the 42 months are the last 42 months of the tribulation period.

The blasphemy uttered by the beast is not only to the person of God but even God’s dwelling place in heaven and those who are associated with him in that presence. As for the saints who remain on earth, the text says, “He was given power to make war against the saints and to conquer them.”

B. The question of who provided this authority begs an answer.

God wields all authority, and hence God provides this authority. Whatever Satan does, while not caused by God, is allowed by God for the ultimate outworking of his own purposes. The devil is ‘God’s devil.

In his great teaching concerning the end of the age, Jesus had warned his disciples: “For false Christ’s and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect—if that were possible” (Matt. 24:24) The present scene is the final fulfillment of Jesus’ prediction. The ones who will be led astray by the beast’s blasphemies are those whose names have not been written in the book of life. Of course, the reverse is also true: those whose names are written in the book will not worship the beast.

Conclusion:

Let me close with this. It is true that these people have set themselves in opposition to God. It is true that they are willing worshippers of the beast. But the significant thing is that their names have not been written in the book of life (cf. 3:5; 21:27). John wants his little handful of persecuted Christians to see that the thing that matters is the sovereignty of God, not the power of evil. When a person’s name is written in the book of life they will not be forgotten. Their place is secure.