Revelation Chapter 13 (NASB)

Revelation Chapter 13, Verse 1 (NASB)

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And he stood on the sand of the seashore.

And I saw a BEAST coming up out of the SEA,

• having ten horns and seven heads, and

The ten horns may be the ten toes in Daniel 2:36-45 and thus are ten kingdoms. Much has been said which countries these kingdoms may be. It probably will not be revealed until the tribulation time which of the then existing nations make up the 10 countries. Since the Bible is an "Abraham book", one would think these are from Abraham's seed. Thus, the 10 nations most likely are those with a majority of "Ishmael peoples".

Symbolically, the seven heads may be seven demonic realms. Each country has its own culture where the country is known for some social value (or lack thereof). There is a list of evil realms in Revelation 21:8 which may define these demonic realms. Contrast this SEA BEAST (counterpart of Christ) to what Christ is:

Sea Beast (Antichrist)	Christ
"cowardly and unbelieving" - faithless	believe - John 3:16-21; Matthew 21:18-22
"abominable" - things not right from a priestly standpoint.	perfect High Priest - Hebrews 5:1-10
"murderers" - purveyors of death at all levels (fetus through old age)	Life - John 11:25-26; John 6:48-58
"immoral persons" - sexual impurity	No sin though tempted - Hebrews 4:14-16
"sorcerers" - use of power gained by divination from evil spirits	Authority or power derived from God the Father - John 10:7-18
"idolaters" - worshiping something or honoring someone other than God	Honored the Father - John 8:48-59
"all liars" - the inability to say the truth.	Jesus is the Truth - John 14:1-11



• on his horns were ten diadems, and

The ten nations will have someone in authority with special demonic powers. These do not necessarily have to be political leaders. they could be spiritual (Hebrews 5:7-10), economic (1 Timothy 6:10), or judicial (Luke 6:37-38).
 
 
• on his heads were BLASPHEMOUS NAMES.

This prominent feature shows up again in Revelation 17:3. There the sea beast is scarlet and still spouting off those BLASPHEMOUS names.

Note that the devil has a thing for NAMES. If you are looking for a build up of your pride, someone has to know your name to brag about you. Apparently it is very irritating to the devil that OVERCOMERS (Revelation 2:17) have a name which no one knows, the 144,000 have a name on their foreheads (Revelation 14:1) known to Jesus and the Father, and the Book of Life contains the names of people the devil cannot get to (Revelation 3:5).

Revelation Chapter 13, Verse 2 (NASB)

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And the BEAST which I saw was
 
• like a leopard, and
• his feet were like those of a bear, and
• his mouth like the mouth of a lion.

Likewise, these attributes have been equated to great empires: leopard (Greek), bear (Medo-Persian), and lion (Babylonian). This is not a real satisfying equivalence because the BEAST, in fact, as a whole entity comes up out of the Abyss to try to defeat "the Lamb" one more time (Revelation 17:8,14).

If the SEA BEAST is a counterfeit of Christ, as put forth in the previous verse, then the leopard is spotted or blemished (sin - Jeremiah 13:23) versus Christ the spotless One (1 Peter 1:19); the bear is a lumbering destroyer (mocking God's anointed prophet destroyed 42 lads by a bear - 2 Kings 2:23-25) versus Christ the restorer (Mark 1:21-28); and lion's mouth (roaring to strike fear into people turning them into cowards - Revelation 21:8) versus Christ's words so different, so life giving (John 7:37-52).

If you want to look at directional equivalents:

 Leopard = peoples from the south
Bear = peoples from the north
Lion = peoples from the west
6th bowl (Revelation 16:12) = peoples from the east.

And the DRAGON gave him
 
• his POWER and
• his THRONE and
• GREAT AUTHORITY.

The SEA BEAST will look to Israel as the long awaited Messiah, and they will follow the BEAST because of these three attributes. Oh, that we may pray for our Jewish brothers that they may see it is a GREAT DECEPTION!

Revelation Chapter 13, Verse 3 (NASB)

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And I saw one of his heads as if it had been SLAIN, and his fatal wound was HEALED.

There are several candidates for this "as if slain" head:

 
• It is one of the leaders of a revived Roman Empire which was in power at the time of the Revelations' original writing. (This view has difficulty inasmuch the "whole earth" was not involved at that time. See the rest of this verse.)
• It is one of the leaders of the Moslem coalition. Babylon was a great country/city and has since disappeared (fatal wound). It could be rebuilt (healed) (Revelation 18:1-10 would be possible literally).
• It is a "revived" Judas Iscariot. Judas Iscariot, from being in the presence of Jesus, knew that the Messiah would rise in three days after death (Matthew 20:17-19). Also Judas and Antichrist are the only two referred to as son of perdition/destruction. (John 17:6-12-19; 2 Thessalonians 2:1-3-12).
• It is one of the nations undergoing a "plague" -- the original Greek word here translated as wound, is usually translated as "plague" (a divinely inflicted judgment). This country recovers and comes back very powerful (verse 14; Revelation 17:7-18)
• It is a spiritual kingdom here on earth, cult like with wealth and a mercenary force (verse 7).

And the whole earth was amazed and FOLLOWED after the (Sea) BEAST;

Revelation Chapter 13, Verse 4 (NASB)

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 This is a continuation of the previous verse.

and they worshiped the DRAGON,

because he gave his authority to the (sea) BEAST;

and they worshiped the (sea) beast, saying,

"Who is like the (sea) BEAST, and who is able to wage WAR with him?"

Apparently, he has discovered (or bought) the ultimate weapon (probably the atomic bomb or some other doomsday weapon) so powerful that no one wants to wage war with him. Interestingly, a similar expression is used about God (Exodus 15:8-11-18 and Micah 7:14-18-20).
WHO IS LIKE GOD?

Revelation Chapter 13, Verse 5 (NASB)

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 This verse begins the fourfold purpose of the "sea" beast. It is to

 
1. Defy the God of heaven (verse 5).
2. Destroy the saints of God (verse 7).
3. Dominate the nations of the earth (verse 7).
4. Delude the masses of mankind (verse 8).

And there was GIVEN to him a MOUTH speaking ARROGANT WORDS and BLASPHEMIES;

Check out the influence that his word will have (2 Thessalonians 2:1-12).

and AUTHORITY to act for forty-two months WAS GIVEN to him.

Watchman Nee points out in his book "Come, Lord Jesus" that 42 is 7 times 6. Seven is the perfect number (creation completed, etc.), while six is the Satanic one (verse 18). Hence 42 as a conflict between these two numbers results in wandering (during the Exodus, Israel passed 42 stations as written in Numbers) and judgment (42 lads killed (2 Kings 2:23-25)). This 42 month period during the tribulation is no different.....people deceived (wandering, verse 14), and if not deceived, killed (judgment, verse 15).

Revelation Chapter 13, Verse 6 (NASB)

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And he opened his MOUTH

in BLASPHEMES AGAINST GOD,

Jesus indicated that even blasphemy can be forgiven except for blasphemy against the Holy Spirit (Mark 3:28-30). Since the Holy Spirit is part of the triune God, the BLASPHEMY AGAINST GOD seals the "sea beast's" doom.

to BLASPHEME
 
1. HIS NAME and

His NAME encompasses all that is Christ from his humanness to the fulness of Deity (Colossians 2:8-15).
2. HIS TABERNACLE, that is, those who dwell in heaven.

His TABERNACLE is the believer's place of worship. It is appropriate to identify the tabernacle as those who dwell in heaven (1 Corinthians 3:16), because believers have been removed from the earth in the GREAT UPTAKING.

Revelation Chapter 13, Verse 7 (NASB)

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And it was GIVEN TO HIM to MAKE WAR with the SAINTS and to overcome them;

The SAINTS referred to in this verse are those people after the rapture event who realize who Christ is and the price Christ paid for their sins. These SAINTS make a commitment to follow Jesus Christ. Perhaps they heard the two witnesses (Revelation 11) or someone from the 144,000 sealed Jews talked to them (Revelation 7) or they dug out and read their Bible or they may have pulled up this web site. Some way or other, they make a commitment to Jesus Christ.

While the "Sea Beast" is GIVEN the great power to make war (not necessarily military but perhaps economic, health, or legally with euthanasia laws (Daniel 7:25)) to overcome the SAINTS (Job 1:6-12) and kill them, the SAINTS do "win" in the end as Revelation 7:9,14 points out.

and AUTHORITY over every tribe and people and tongue and nation was GIVEN TO HIM.

The devil tried to get AUTHORITY over all the nations before in Luke 4:5-8. He didn't succeed then, but this time he accomplishes it because he is permitted to have this authority (for a short time).

This will be the last attempt to establish a devil-controlled world empire. The first attempt by Nimrod (Genesis 10:6-14; Genesis 11:1-9) resulted in the "tongues" referred to in this verse. But, as this verse points out, even the diversity of spoken languages will be overcome by the "Sea Beast".

Revelation Chapter 13, Verse 8 (NASB)

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And ALL who dwell on the earth WILL WORSHIP HIM (sea beast or AntiChrist),

everyone whose name has not been written from the FOUNDATION of the WORLD in the BOOK OF LIFE of the Lamb who has been slain.

Thus everyone has been "saved" or "written" in the Lamb's Book of Life because Christ died for all. Then by a person's own CHOICE, their own name is removed from the Book (Revelation 3:5).

This is not a new concept: Moses understood it (Exodus 32:30-32-35) and Daniel understood it (Daniel 12:1-3). The question becomes What is your CHOICE? Don't wait until the tribulation to choose NOT to worship the AntiChrist!

Revelation Chapter 13, Verse 9 (NASB)

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If anyone has an ear,

An interesting sidelight in the description of the current Jesus, Revelation 1:12-16, the facial features are given spiritual equivalents. But the ears are not discussed, perhaps because they are covered by white hair. Consider that Christ doesn't need the ears, as such, because He goes right to the thoughts, which do not make any sounds (Luke 11:14-17-26).

let him HEAR.

This is the last time we read this expression in the Bible. Previously, Jesus used it to say "PAY ATTENTION" to prophesy (Matthew 11:15 and Matthew 13:16) and about the sowing of seed, the Word of God - Jesus, Himself (Luke 8:8). How appropriate for John to use this expression after discussing the fake Jesus, the Sea Beast!

Revelation Chapter 13, Verse 10 (NASB)

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If any one is DESTINED for CAPTIVITY, to CAPTIVITY he goes; if anyone KILLS with the sword, with the sword he must be KILLED.

HERE is the PERSEVERANCE and the FAITH of the saints.

 
• Flight (Matthew 24:15-28; Mark 13:14-23; and Revelation 12:14).
• Perseverance (patient endurance) (Revelation 1:9; Revelation 2:2,19; Revelation 3:3,10; and Revelation 14:9-12).
• Faith (Revelation 2:10,13,19; Revelation 17:14).

Revelation Chapter 13, Verse 11 (NASB)

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And I saw another BEAST

coming up out of the earth; and

John the Baptist in discussing Christ makes an interesting statement about what "comes from the earth" (John 3:25-36).

• he had two horns like a lamb, and

Note the "other Lamb" in Revelation 5:6 has seven horns (complete authority over seven realms not fully known to mankind?).

Lambs were considered unblemished and spotless as fit for sacrifice (1 Peter 1:13-21). However, this one as a lamb ....

• he spoke like a dragon.

Paul says "God will send" this beast to deceive "even the elect" (2 Thessalonians 2:1-11-12). These "elect" must refer to the sealed 144,000 Jewish men (next chapter) because the rest of the elect are gone in the "uptaking" by this time. The remaining people on this earth will buy in to the anti-Holy Ghost completely!

Revelation Chapter 13, Verse 12 (NASB)

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And he exercises all the AUTHORITY of the first beast in his presence.

What we see here is the apparent swapping of roles. Remember the "spirit" nature of the sea beast (verse 1)?  Here the earth beast receives all the spiritual qualities of the first beast.

Furthermore, things of this earth are usually tied to money. Watchman Nee points out that "the son of perdition" is used twice in the New Testament. In John 17:12, "the son of perdition" refers to Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve disciples and also the money manager for the group. The second reference in 2 Thessalonians 2:3 points at the antichrist. Thus an argument can be made that the economic and religious systems of the world will combine to totally overwhelm all peoples of the earth except for those whose names are in 'the book' (verse 8).

Note also that this pair may be the devil's way to counterfeit the two witnesses (Revelation 11:3).

And he makes the earth and those who dwell in it to WORSHIP the first beast, whose fatal wound was healed.

The lure of wealth will cause many people to lose their faith (1 Timothy 6:10). Or rather, the fear of losing their earthly means of accumulating wealth may cause people to take the mark (verse 16). Either the lure or fear will cause the WORSHIPPING of the beasts to occur.

Much has been written about the "fatal wound". It is not clear when or how....perhaps it occurred in the war in the heavenlies (Revelation 12:7-9).  If this is true, we, humans, probably wouldn't recognize the "fatal wound" because it is spiritual in nature (Revelation 21:8).

Incidentally, a religious and economic consortium knows no geopolitical boundaries. The WORSHIP is not unlike that demanded by Herod in Acts 12:21-23 until the Lord steps in.

Revelation Chapter 13, Verse 13 (NASB)

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And he performs GREAT SIGNS, so that

These are no mere tricks; these are supernatural such that humans, individually or collectively, would have a difficult time devising them. Their purpose is the LEAD ASTRAY even the elect (next verse, Matthew 24:24).

Interestingly, when it was demanded of Jesus to show a SIGN (Matthew 12:38-45), he didn't do it but rather pointed the requester to Jonah and the Old Testament prophets. When a person is living an "unbelieving" life, they will constantly ask for SIGNS. That is what keeps fortunetellers and the like busy. The true believer, on the other hand, is trying to please God through FAITH (Hebrews 11:6).

he even makes FIRE come down out of HEAVEN to the EARTH in the presence of men.

Now this FIRE must be permitted by God. It is not unlike that described in Job 1:16 at least as it was perceived to be. That the earth beast can do this shows the kind of AUTHORITY he has received (previous verse).

This kind of FIRE is well understood by Jewish people. They have heard how Elijah called it down (1 Kings 18:30-40, 2 Kings 1:9-16). They have had, most recently, two witnesses who breathed fire out of their mouths in self defense (Revelation 11:5). So fire has been used as a SIGN and defense before.

But the ultimate use of FIRE is in judgment, and, in particular, judgment associated with authority. The disciples, James and John, after receiving their "authority", wanted to call down fire on a Samaritan village (Luke 9:51-56). Incidentally, the village didn't get burned.

The final judgment for the sea beast and the earth beast (false prophet), as you recall, will be FIRE, Revelation 20:9-10.

Revelation Chapter 13, Verse 14 (NASB)

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And he DECEIVES those who DWELL ON THE EARTH because of the SIGNS

If the people in Christ's day didn't accept Him after he performed various miracles, then it follows the earth beast must perform as great or greater SIGNS to deceive the earth-dwellers. As believers, how do we tell the SIGNS apart? 1 John 4:1-6 tells us how.

E. W. Bullinger in "Commentary on Revelation" writes, "Christ's miracles, as miracles, were no evidence of His Divine mission. The real evidence was that the miracles which He wrought were the very miracles which the Prophetic Word had declared He should work, and which were on that account the sign and seal of His ministry, and formed His credentials from on high. This is clear from Matthew 11:1-6."  One wonders what 'prophetic word' will the earth beast use? But, on the other hand, if this is a deception, and it is, then the earth beast won't need any 'prophetic word'. He only needs the beast standing by.

which it was given him to perform in the presence of the beast,

Note the parallel 'in the presence' in the previous verse. This presence implies that the earth beast couldn't do these SIGNS without the presence of the sea beast. In contrast, Christ didn't need anyone else's presence to do the miracles he did because He always did what was pleasing to the Father (John 8:29). While it was not necessary for the Holy Spirit to be there, I would imagine that He was there as the 'fulness of Deity' dwelt in Him (Colossians 2:9).

telling those who DWELL ON THE EARTH to make an image to the beast

It isn't clear if this image is a likeness of the beast or, more likely, one like Nebuchadnezzar put up in Daniel 3. The critical point is that 'earth-dwellers' have this need to belong and to pay homage to 'a hero'.  This image will do the trick, literally. However, after God's commandment in Exodus 20:3-5, you know this is going to bring judgment. In fact this is the 'abomination of desolation' Jesus referred to in Matthew 24:15-28.

Now those who refuse to participate in the image worship will be killed by this very image (next verse). Contrast this with Christ's purpose to come to this earth as He explains in John 3:16-21.

who had the WOUND of the SWORD and has COME to LIFE.

How this will happen is not known at this time. That technology is doing amazing things with genetics is brought to us on television and the Internet everyday. This will be very believable to the 'earth-dwellers'. Be aware that the beast has to remove any doubts of his coming to life from earth-dweller's minds or he won't convince any. However even among Jesus' followers, Thomas has to be shown the nail prints in Jesus' hands before he would believe (John 20:19-25).

A final thought -- the expression 'dwell on the earth' is used twice in this verse. This means it has emphasis. The image of the beast will be restricted to this earth. It will not go into heaven or any other part of the universe. Only the Creator controls all; the devil and his beasts are earthbound as the devil himself explains in Luke 4:1-13.
 
 

Revelation Chapter 13, Verse 15 (NASB)

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And there was GIVEN TO HIM

Who this refers to, sea beast or Satan himself, is not clear. Whomever did have the power to do this; thus, most likely this was Satan himself.

to give BREATH to the image of the beast,

Now this is not an idol in the scriptural sense because Psalms 135:15-18 and Jeremiah 10:1-5 indicate that idols cannot speak. So this is a supernatural image. Some Bible scholars believe this is symbolic of political entity 'reborn'. Others believe this is another human being especially 'gifted' by Satan not unlike how Judas Iscariot was 'gifted' to betray Christ (John 13:27).

Others say it could be advanced technology in its finest hour.  Even as I put this onto the web site, the multimedia capabilities of this personal computer along with all the other similar personal computers interlinked by Internet could see and hear this image. Yet even this is not sufficient because much of the world doesn't have these personal computers, and they, too, will understand that BREATH was given to an image.

that the image of the beast might even
    *  SPEAK and
    *  CAUSE as many as do not worship the IMAGE of the BEAST to be killed.

Now the image apparently doesn't do the killing but convinces everyone whose name is not written in the Book of Life (verse 8) to kill on its behalf.

How will they know who is to be killed? See verses 16 and 17. If you haven't accepted Christ as your personal Savior and end up in the tribulation period and still wish to have your name written in the Book of Life, you will give your own life to attain heaven. Wouldn't it be better to accept Christ today (and put your name in the Book)?
 

This is the first of seven times that the IMAGE is referred to (Revelation 13:15; Revelation 14:9,11; Revelation 15:2; Revelation 16:2; Revelation 19:20; and Revelation 20:4). The IMAGE always is tied to the earth beast and has a predetermined destination.

Revelation Chapter 13, Verse 16 (NASB)

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And he causes ALL,

There is no exclusion, and once the MARK is taken, that person's eternal destiny is determined (Revelation 14:9-11).

    *  the small and the great, and

According to Hebrews 8:11, ALL shall know Me (Jesus), from the least to the greatest of them.  This is Satan's counterfeit of that passage of Scripture.

    *  the rich and the poor, and

This is both materially and spiritually (Luke 16:19-31).

    *  the free men and the slaves,

This is unknown in Christ's world (Galatians 3:28), so this must be a worldly distinction.

to be given a MARK
    - on their right hand, or {if they don't have a right hand}
    - on their FOREHEAD, {which all living persons have.}

Much has been written about this MARK. There is speculation from ultraviolet tatoos to implantable ID chips to universal credit card, but that doesn't explain primitive peoples in the ALL part of this verse. Thus one should consider this as a symbolic commitment to worshiip the IMAGE (like a gang symbol) or a food voucher program (see next verse).

Moses indicated that it was a reminder of belonging to a special group, those who exited from Egypt, and was to be taught continually (Exodus 13:3-16).

Revelation Chapter 13, Verse 17 (NASB)

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and he provides that no one should be able to buy or to sell, except the one who has the MARK,

The MARK will be necessary to do trade. Consider that at this time, the world may have very little food. Previously there was drought (Revelation 11:3,6), famine (Revelation 6:5-6), and total disruption of food production (Revelation 6:12). NO SUN, NO FOOD!

So it is likely that the official economies of the world have broken down (see lament in Revelation 18:11), and the only thing left is the "underground market" controlled by the "earth beast". How appropriate that he should come "out of the earth" (verse 11).

    *  either the name of the BEAST

Probably the "godfathers" of the Black Market are privileged to carry the "name" of the BEAST.

    *  or the number of his NAME.

The rest of the population will just get THE NUMBER of his NAME.

Don't think it is unusal that the population will so readily accept the MARK. When one is hungry, you will do almost anything. Taking the MARK is a matter of survival.

Remember what was said of the tribulation saints, "They shall HUNGER no more," (Revelation 7:16).

Revelation Chapter 13, Verse 18 (NASB)

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Here is WISDOM.

This is WISDOM for the reader, and its source is clear (Proverbs 2:1-6).  It is not from the beast or the devil.

This expression is used after Daniel's writings (Daniel 12:10) and again by John in discussing the beast's seven heads and the great harlot (Revelation 17:9). Ironically, the WISDOM in this verse has caused more discussion and speculation than perhaps any other verse in the Revelation. Sad to say, the world (and probably most believers) know very little about the Revelation but almost all have heard about 666.

This is not a parable but more like a puzzle. It will be revealed when necessary just like Jesus explained why he spoke in parables (Matthew 13:11).

Let him who has understanding calculate the NUMBER of the beast, for the NUMBER is that of a man; and his NUMBER is six hundred and sixty-six.

The number six, itself, is interesting in that man was created on the 6th day (Genesis 1:24-31); the archenemy of Israel, Goliath, was 6 cubits and a span, and had a spear head weighing 600 shekels, and wore 6 pieces of armour (1 Samuel 17:4); and lastly, the foulness of the devil is demonstrated in the 6th bowl (Revelation 16:12-16).  Perhaps this is what Daniel saw in Daniel 11:21-28 as directly impacting the world leaders.

Finally, if the 666 were some sort of ID chip to be inserted under the skin, Old Testament law forbids the Jewish people from cutting the skin 'for the sake of evil' or to have markings (tattoos). Yet those whose names are not written in the Book (verse 8), will accept the 666 NUMBER.