Revelation 13

Revelation 13:1-3

13 And the dragon stood on the sand of the seashore.

Then I saw a beast coming up out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads, and on his horns were ten crowns, and on his heads were blasphemous names. ² And the beast that I saw was like a leopard, and his feet were like those of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave him his power and his throne, and great authority. ³ I saw one of his heads as if it had been fatally wounded, and his fatal wound was healed. And the whole earth was amazed and followed after the beast;

13:1a is sometimes put at the end of chapter 12 as verse 18. (The NLT and some others do this).

Let’s compare the beast from the sea with the dragon described in 12:3

13:1 beast coming up out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads, and on his horns were ten crowns, and on his heads were blasphemous names.

12:³ Then another sign appeared in heaven: and behold, a great red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads were seven crowns.

Distinction seems that the dragon (Satan) was the king of Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, Rome I and the future Rome II, whereas the Antichrist will only exist in the last 7 years before the Millennium.

*Presumably, only one head bears the ten horns which have the crowns, indicating to me that the AC was NOT king of the six prior kingdoms, but only the last.

And remember of these ten kings, the AC will subdue three to get them in line…

 

 

Daniel 7:7-8

⁷ After this I kept looking in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and extremely strong; and it had large iron teeth. It devoured and crushed, and trampled down the remainder with its feet; and it was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns. ⁸ While I was thinking about the horns, behold, another horn, a little one, came up among them, and three of the previous horns were plucked out before it; and behold, this horn possessed eyes like human eyes, and a mouth uttering great boasts.

Daniel 7:24

²⁴ As for the ten horns, out of this kingdom ten kings will arise; and another will arise after them, and he will be different from the previous ones and will humble three kings.

 

Revelation 13:2a

² And the beast that I saw was like a leopard, and his feet were like those of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. ( a prophetic chimera)

 

Daniel 7:3-7

…four great beasts were coming up from the sea, different from one another. ⁴ The first was like a lion but had the wings of an eagle. I kept looking until its wings were plucked, and it was lifted up from the ground and set up on two feet like a man; a human mind also was given to it. ⁵ And behold, another beast, a second one, resembling a bear. And it was raised up on one side, and three ribs were in its mouth between its teeth; and they said this to it: ‘Arise, devour much meat!’ ⁶ After this I kept looking, and behold, another one, 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 kept looking in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and extremely strong; and it had large iron teeth. It devoured and crushed, and trampled down the remainder with its feet; and it was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns

 

The Revelation passage lists the beasts in reverse order compared to Daniel, perhaps as a nod to their relative perspectives in time.

Revelation 13:2b

And the dragon gave him (the beast from the sea) his power and his throne, and great authority

 

Revelation 13:12 ¹² He (the second beast) exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence. And he makes the earth and those who live on it worship the first beast, whose fatal wound was healed.

So here we see that the first beast (AC) has all the authority of the dragon, and the second beast (FP) has all the authority of the first beast, therefore, all three have the same authority. Satanic trinity – he loves to imitate God.

Some people say they don’t believe in the Holy Trinity, but Satan himself does and tries to emulate it.

As the HS points people to Jesus and not Himself, the FP likewise ‘makes everyone worship the first beast’ (the second person of the Satanic trinity).

 

 

Revelation 13:3

³ I saw one of his heads as if it had been fatally wounded, and his fatal wound was healed. And the whole earth was amazed and followed after the beast;

I love Dr. Andy Woods’ take on this. He says, ‘does this mean the Antichrist was physically slain and physically resurrected, or is it referring to a kingdom that once ruled the earth and has been resurrected in the last days to rule again?’ And he says ‘the answer is ‘yes’’.

As Rome was a great empire, it will be again, this seems to say.

Andy Woods uses the analogy of JFK – what if he had come back to life – he’d never lose another election.

 

Zechariah 11:17

¹⁷ Woe to the worthless shepherd
Who abandons the flock!
A sword will be on his arm
And on his right eye!
His arm will be totally withered,
And his right eye will be blind.”

Other translations say ‘idol’ shepherd (not idle as in lazy but idol as a false god).

‘The Idol Shepherd’ is one of at least 30 names of the antichrist in the Bible.

*Many Bible scholars take this to mean that the Antichrist will bear permanent scars of his assassination as Jesus still bears His scars in His resurrection body of the nails and wound in His side, the one Thomas insisted on reaching into.

Revelation 13:4-10

⁴ they worshiped the dragon because he gave his authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who is able to wage war with him?” ⁵ A mouth was given to him speaking arrogant words and blasphemies, and authority to act for forty-two months was given to him. ⁶ And he opened his mouth in blasphemies against God, to blaspheme His name and His tabernacle, that is, those who dwell in heaven.

⁷ It was also given to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them, and authority was given to him over every tribe, people, language, and nation. ⁸ All who live on the earth will worship him, everyone whose name has not been written since the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who has been slaughtered. ⁹ If anyone has an ear, let him hear. ¹⁰ If anyone 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. *(NASB)*

 

⁴ They worshiped the dragon for giving the beast such power, and they also worshiped the beast. “Who is as great as the beast?” they exclaimed. “Who is able to fight against him?”

⁵ Then the beast was allowed to speak great blasphemies against God. And he was given authority to do whatever he wanted for forty-two months. ⁶ And he spoke terrible words of blasphemy against God, slandering his name and his dwelling—that is, those who dwell in heaven. ⁷ And the beast was allowed to wage war against God’s holy people and to conquer them. And he was given authority to rule over every tribe and people and language and nation. ⁸ And all the people who belong to this world worshiped the beast. They are the ones whose names were not written in the Book of Life that belongs to the Lamb who was slaughtered before the world was made.

⁹ Anyone with ears to hear
    should listen and understand.
¹⁰ Anyone who is destined for prison
    will be taken to prison.
Anyone destined to die by the sword
    will die by the sword.

This means that God’s holy people must endure persecution patiently and remain faithful. 

*(NLT)*

 

One comment from last week – the blending of the lion, bear, and leopard into one beast indicates to most commentators that the kingdom of the AC will have elements of all those prior world kingdoms, namely Babylon, Medo-Persia, and Greece, along with the big scary beast of Rome. Just like in the USA we have assimilated many cultures’ foods as a tiny example. But the kingdom of the AC will have elements of Babylon, Persia and Greece. What specifically? Who knows.

**We will be jumping around through the Bible again this week, so stay focused.**

13:⁴a They worshiped the dragon for giving the beast such power, and they also worshiped the beast.

This makes sense – they acknowledge the source of power that could even give the AC power, and now, because the AC has that power, they turn their attention and adulation to him too.

Have you ever had two bosses? One above you and one above them? You respect your immediate boss because with one word they can have you canned. But you REALLY respect that person’s boss.

Now the analogy fails because the three components of the satanic trinity are all equal in power for this moment in time as we discussed last week. If A = B and B = C, then A = C. That’s in last week’s notes.

But they’re really not equal unlike with the holy Trinity – Satan, the dragon, remains the most powerful and is eternal, so maybe the analogy of bosses does hold after all.

 

13:4b (cont’d) “Who is as great as the beast?” they exclaimed. “Who is able to fight against him?”

Daniel 11:38– a god of fortresses – (11:36-39)

³⁶ “Then the king will do as he pleases, and he will exalt himself and boast against every god and will speak dreadful things against the God of gods; and he will be successful until the indignation is finished, because that which is determined will be done. ³⁷ And he will show no regard for the gods of his fathers or for the desire of women, nor will he show regard for any other god; for he will boast against them all. ³⁸ But instead he* will honor a god of fortresses, a god whom his fathers did not know; he will honor him with gold, silver, precious stones, and treasures. ³⁹ And he will take action against the strongest of fortresses with the help of a foreign god; he will give great honor to those who acknowledge him and will make them rulers over the many, and will parcel out land for a price.

We will dissect this more when we study Daniel in depth. The lines between the description of Antiochus Epiphanes and the AC are difficult to discern. There will be more commentary in the notes for those who want to wade into it now.

*Dual reference to Antiochus Epiphanes and the AC

[‘Though some Jews joined Antiochus in order to save their lives, others stood firm no matter what it cost them (31-33).
Jewish resistance to Antiochus was led by a courageous priest and his five sons, known as the Maccabees. They persuaded many to join them in their fight for religious freedom. Amid all the persecution some Jews failed, but others stood firm and were martyred for their faith. The effect of the persecution among the people at large was one of spiritual cleansing. Purified faith enabled the faithful to stand firm, with the result that in 165 BC, after more than three years of fighting, they regained their religious independence and rededicated their temple (34-35).’

(Bridgeway Bible Commentary)

However…

(Coffman’s Commentaries on the Bible)

“These words in no sense agree with Antiochus, nor do they permit us to think of any heathen deity in this connection.”[9] The “god of fortresses” is perhaps only another way of saying the “god of force.” “Might makes right” is the policy of such a character. Keil’s view was that:

“The god of fortresses is a personification of war; … he will regard no other god, but only war. The taking of fortresses will be his god; and he will worship this god above all as the means of his gaining world power.”[10]

Daniel 11:39 means that this Lawless One, this Antichrist, shall reward with glory, riches, and honor all who acknowledge him and do his will.

 

From ‘Enduring Word’ by David Guzik…

1. The Antichrist: the end times Antiochus Epiphanes.
2. (36) The willful king: a shift to a future fulfillment.

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.

1. He shall exalt and magnify himself above every god: The angel explained to Daniel that this king would blaspheme God and exalt himself until the wrath has been accomplished and what has been determined shall be done.
2. Above every god: Here we shift from what was fulfilled in the Ptolemies and the Seleucids to what will be fulfilled in the Antichrist, the final world dictator. Daniel was told that this revelation pertained to the latter days (Daniel 10:14), and Daniel 11:36 begins to look more towards this final world dictator, who is sort of a “last days Antiochus Epiphanes.”
3. We know that everything about this prophecy was not fulfilled during the career of Antiochus Epiphanes. Jesus specifically said the real abomination of desolation was still in the future (Matthew 24:15). The Apostle Paul paraphrased Daniel 11:36in reference to the coming Antichrist: Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God (2 Thessalonians 2:3-4).
4. Antiochus Epiphanes is important, but mostly as a historical preview of the Antichrist. This is why so much space is given to describing the career of one evil man – because he prefigures the ultimate evil man. Antiochus Epiphanes is the “trailer” released well before the Antichrist, who is like the “feature.”
5. He shall exalt and magnify himself above every god: Antiochus Epiphanes certainly did this in the general sense that all sinners oppose God. Yet he remained loyal to the Greek religious tradition, which revered the entire Olympian pantheon. Antiochus Epiphanes put a statue of Zeus in the temple, not of himself. This statement will be far more precisely fulfilled in the Antichrist, who sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God(2 Thessalonians 2:4).
6. Shall prosper till the wrath has been accomplished: Antichrist will do much damage, but he is on a short chain and will only work into God’s plan. God’s purpose will be accomplished.
7. (37-39) The character and authority of the “willful king.”

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. 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. 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.

1. He shall regard neither the God of his fathers nor the desire of women: Based on this, some Bible scholars believe that the Antichrist will be of Jewish descent, and perhaps will also be a homosexual. These things may not be popularly known about the man, but they may be true nonetheless.
2. But many commentators believe that the desire of women refers to Jesus, in that all women desired the honor of bearing the Messiah and understanding “desire” as it is used in Haggai 2:7. Seeing the desire of women as Jesus makes most sense in light of the flow of context.
3. He shall honor a god of fortresses: The Antichrist will take and hold power with military might and the shrewd use of great riches.
4. (40-45) The final conflict.

At the time of the end the king of the South shall attack him; and the king of the North shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter the countries, overwhelm them, and pass through. He shall also enter the Glorious Land, and many countries shall be overthrown; but these shall escape from his hand: Edom, Moab, and the prominent people of Ammon. He shall stretch out his hand against the countries, and the land of Egypt shall not escape. He shall have power over the treasures of gold and silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt; also the Libyans and Ethiopians shall follow at his heels. But news from the east and the north shall trouble him; therefore he shall go out with great fury to destroy and annihilate many. And he shall plant the tents of his palace between the seas and the glorious holy mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and no one will help him.

1. At the time of the end: The angel described to Daniel a confederation of kings coming against this great leader, with a battle in and near the Holy Land.
2. King of the South shall attack him; and the king of the North shall come against him like a whirlwind: Prophetically speaking, a precise identification of peoples mentioned is difficult. The king of the South may be Egypt or represent the Arab community. The king of the North may be the Antichrist’s domain (as the “new Antiochus Epiphanes”) or it may be Russia.
3. The precise points may be cloudy, but the general idea is clear. The end will be marked by great conflict, culminating in the world’s armies gathering in the Promised Land to do final battle.
4. Yet he shall come to his end, and no one will help him: In the end there is no hope for the Antichrist or for any of his followers.

©2018 David Guzik – No distribution beyond personal use without permission   ]

 

13:⁵a Then the beast was allowed to speak great blasphemies against God

Man who disrespected God in the OT – Leviticus 24:10-16, 22-23

¹⁰ Now the son of an Israelite woman—his father was an Egyptian—went out among the sons of Israel; and the Israelite woman’s son and an Israelite man had a fight within the camp. ¹¹ And the son of the Israelite woman blasphemed the Name and cursed. So they brought him to Moses. (Now his mother’s name was Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan.) ¹² Then they put him in custody, waiting for Moses to give them a clear decision in accordance with the command of the Lord.

¹³ Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ¹⁴ “Bring the one who has cursed outside the camp, and have all who heard him lay their hands on his head; then have all the congregation stone him. ¹⁵ You shall also speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘If anyone curses his God, then he will bear the responsibility for his sin. ¹⁶ Moreover, the one who blasphemes the name of the Lord must be put to death; all the congregation shall certainly stone him. The stranger as well as the native, when he blasphemes the Name, shall be put to death.

[An Eye for an Eye

¹⁷ ‘Now if someone takes any human life, he must be put to death. ¹⁸ But the one who takes the life of an animal shall make restitution, life for life. ¹⁹ If someone injures his neighbor, just as he has done, so shall it be done to him: ²⁰ fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth; just as he has injured a person, so shall it be inflicted on him. ²¹ So the one who kills an animal shall make restitution, but the one who kills a person shall be put to death.] 

²² There shall be only one standard for you; it shall be for the stranger as well as the native, for I am the Lord your God.’” ²³ Then Moses spoke to the sons of Israel, and they brought the one who had cursed outside the camp, and stoned him with stones. So the sons of Israel did just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

Job 2:9

⁹ Then his wife said to him, “Do you still hold firm your integrity? Curse God and die!” 

*So clearly God takes seriously the holiness of His Name.

But this passage in Revelation recalls the same way Jesus, during His crucifixion allowed the Jews and Romans to mock Him.

Matthew 26:67-68, 27:27-31 and 27:39-44

⁶⁷ Then they spit in His face and beat Him with their fists; and others slapped Him, ⁶⁸ and said, “Prophesy to us, You Christ; who is the one who hit You?”

²⁷ Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole Roman cohort to Him. ²⁸ And they stripped Him and put a red cloak on Him. ²⁹ And after twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and put a reed in His right hand; and they knelt down before Him and mocked Him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” ³⁰ And they spit on Him, and took the reed and beat Him on the head. ³¹ And after they had mocked Him, they took the cloak off Him and put His own garments back on Him, and led Him away to crucify Him.

³⁹ And those passing by were speaking abusively to Him, shaking their heads, ⁴⁰ and saying, “You who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross.” ⁴¹ In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes and elders, were mocking Him and saying, ⁴² “He saved others; He cannot save Himself! He is the King of Israel; let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe in Him. ⁴³ He has trusted in God; let God rescue Him now, if He takes pleasure in Him; for He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” ⁴⁴ And the rebels who had been crucified with Him were also insulting Him in the same way.

We likewise need to be prepared to be insulted. Don’t be like Peter before the crucifixion who claimed not to even know Jesus three times. Be persecuted WITH Jesus.

Matthew 5:11¹¹ “Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. ¹² Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in this same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

***This is the charge for today too, in case we don’t get to it at the end.

 

13:5b And he was given authority to do whatever he wanted for forty-two months.

Or 3.5 years or 1260 days as in prior passages. This is the Great Tribulation as prophesied by Jesus in Matthew 24:21-22  the last half of the seven-year span known as The Time of Jacob’s Trouble and Daniel’s 70^th Week.

Matthew 24:²¹ For then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will again. ²² And if those days had not been cut short, no life would have been saved; but for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short. 

 

Revelation 13:6 ⁶ And he opened his mouth in blasphemies against God, to blaspheme His name and His tabernacle, that is, those who dwell in heaven.

“‘Earth dweller’s” vs.  ‘”Heaven dwellers’”. The distinction is where their treasure is.

Matthew 6:19-21.

¹⁹ “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. ²⁰ But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; ²¹ for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

*And once again, how did the saints overcome him?

 

Revelation 12:11-12a

¹¹ And they overcame him {(spiritually)} because of the blood of the Lamb and because of the word of their testimony, and they did not love their life even when faced with death. ¹² For this reason, rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them.

Who is dwelling in heaven? The church, the angels. God, and the spirit bodies of all Tribulation and OT saints who will get their eternal corporeal bodies just prior to the Millennium – Trib saints (Rev. 20:4), OT saints (Ezekiel 37:12-14). 

*Get ready to be mocked by the insult master of all time. You think Don Rickles or Buddy Love was bad, wait til you hear what Satan has prepared for you and me.

Revelation 13 all coincides with events of chapter 12 where Israel must flee to Bozrah

 

Revelation 13:7

⁷ It was also given to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them {(physically)}, and authority was given to him over every tribe, people, language, and nation

*Note again, that believers are not protected through the Tribulation – only the 144,000. When we get to the 5^th seal we will see them crying out for vengeance!

**Note too, that the US will cease to be a sovereign nation during the Tribulation. So many people say ‘God won’t let the US fall!’ Sorry. Not true.

Daniel 7:21-22

²¹ I kept looking, and that horn was waging war with the saints and prevailing against them, ²² until the Ancient of Days came and judgment was passed in favor of the saints of the Highest One, and the time arrived when the saints took possession of the kingdom.

Daniel 8:24

²⁴ And his power will be mighty, but not by his own power,
And he will destroy to an extraordinary degree
And be successful and do as he pleases;
He will destroy mighty men and the holy people.

And, further, if believers are preserved through the Tribulation, then why are there beheaded saints under the altar at the fifth seal in Revelation 6?

 

Revelation 13:8 ⁸ All who live on the earth will worship him, everyone whose name has not been written since the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who has been slaughtered.

Again, ‘Earth dwellers’ vs. ‘Heaven dwellers’ – where their treasure is.

You realize that many do not repent despite the judgements of Revelation?

Revelation 16:10-11

¹⁰ And the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom became darkened; and they gnawed their tongues because of pain, ¹¹ and they blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pain and their sores; and they did not repent of their deeds.

*In fact, many continue to live as normally as possible, AND THEY CAN because they are at the top of the socialist hierarchy.

Reflect back on Revelation 6:5-6

⁵ When He broke the third seal, I heard the third living creature saying, “Come!” I looked, and behold, a black horse, and the one who sat on it had a pair of scales in his hand.  ⁶ And I heard something like a voice in the center of the four living creatures saying, “A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not damage the oil and the wine.”

The people at the top will be living large. This explains the near normalcy of life for them during the Olivet Discourse in Matthew 24:38-41

³⁸ For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, ³⁹ and they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the coming of the Son of Man be. ⁴⁰ At that time there will be two men in the field; one will be taken and one will be left. ⁴¹ Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one will be left.

As we’ve said before, this is not the rapture, but the gathering at the end of the age of Revelation 14:14-20

¹⁴ Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and sitting on the cloud was one like a son of man, with a golden crown on His head and a sharp sickle in His hand. ¹⁵ And another angel came out of the temple, calling out with a loud voice to Him who sat on the cloud, “Put in your sickle and reap, for the hour to reap has come, because the harvest of the earth is ripe.” ¹⁶ Then He who sat on the cloud swung His sickle over the earth, and the earth was reaped.

¹⁷ And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, and he also had a sharp sickle. ¹⁸ Then another angel, the one who has power over fire, came out from the altar; and he called with a loud voice to him who had the sharp sickle, saying, “Put in your sharp sickle and gather the clusters from the vine of the earth, because her grapes are ripe.” ¹⁹ So the angel swung his sickle to the earth and gathered the clusters from the vine of the earth, and threw them into the great wine press of the wrath of God. ²⁰ And the wine press was trampled outside the city, and blood came out from the wine press, up to the horses’ bridles, for a distance of 1,600 stadia.

 

 where people were marrying and being given in marriage – a lot of critics say ‘there’s no way that during the tribulation described in Revelation that life will be going on as normal for anyone’ – yes, for the upper class, those who consume oil and wine of which God has ordered the rider on the black horse not to damage.

But look again at what it says – , everyone whose name has not been written since the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb

Other versions such as the NLT put 13:8 differently however, so be aware..

‘They are the ones whose names were not written in the Book of Life that belongs to the Lamb who was slaughtered before the world was made.’ No implication that our names have been there since the foundation of the world.

Which version is correct? Different meanings.

I know I prefer that first version just because it sounds cooler.

Because if the NASB is correct, do you realize what this is saying? Our names have been there since the foundation of the world. Wow! Does that encourage you to start living like it? Perhaps that could be a charge for today too.

BUT Contrast 13:8 with 17:8. The Bible in both the NASB and NLT make clear that not everyone’s name is in the book of life and both imply that the book of life was written before the world was made…

Revelation 17:8

⁸ “The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to come up out of the abyss and go to destruction. And those who live on the earth, whose names have NOT been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, will wonder when they see the beast, that he was, and is not, and will come.(NASB)

Compare that to the NLT version…

⁸ The beast you saw was once alive but isn’t now. And yet he will soon come up out of the bottomless pit and go to eternal destruction. And the people who belong to this world, whose names were not written in the Book of Life before the world was made, will be amazed at the reappearance of this beast who had died.

Here, the NLT implies that some names WERE written in the book before the world was made, weakening its own translation of 13:8 that the book simply belonged to the Lamb who was slain before the foundation of the world, not that our names were written in a book before the foundation of the world.

So because of the inconsistencies of  the NLT, I am going with the NASB on this one. 

 

Revelation 13:9 ⁹ If anyone has an ear, let him hear.

Where have we heard something similar before? In chapters 2 and 3. But what’s the difference?

2:7 ⁷ The one who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.(Ephesus)

2:11 ¹¹ The one who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.(Smyrna)

2:17 ¹⁷ The one who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.(Pergamum)

2:29    ²⁹ The one who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’ (Thyatira)

3:6  ⁶ The one who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’ (Sardis)

3:13  ¹³ The one who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’ (Philadelphia)

3:22 ²² The one who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’ (Laodicea)

 

 Revelation 13:10  ¹⁰ If anyone 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.

**Discuss your thoughts on this.

Bridgeway Bible Commentary:

‘The antichrist tries to imitate Christ by giving an appearance of death followed by resurrection. He appears to lose his power, only to regain it and do greater and more horrible evil. People in general are impressed with his show of power and believe that none, not even God, can fight against him. They are overcome with a sense of awe, and gladly give their allegiance to the antichrist and his master, Satan (3-4; cf. 2 Thessalonians 2:3-53.2.4,2 Thessalonians 2:9-53.2.12).

Suffering Christians are encouraged to endure by the news that God has set a limit to the time of the antichrist’s rule. But while The AC rules he curses God and demands that people worship him instead. All people give him homage except the Christians, and these he mercilessly attacks (5-8). Christians are given a special reminder that it is useless to resist when they are about to be captured or killed. They cannot establish God’s kingdom in the world by force (9-10).’

Coffman’s Commentaries on the Bible:

If any man is for captivity, into captivity he goeth … This means, “Whatever is involved in following Christ, the Christian must accept.

 

But, I also like how the NLT puts it here ‘This means that God’s holy people must endure persecution patiently and remain faithful.’

2 Thessalonians 2:7-10

⁷ For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is removed. ⁸ Then that lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will eliminate with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming; ⁹ that is, the one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and false signs and wonders, ¹⁰ and with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not accept the love of the truth so as to be saved.

What are some of the names given to the AC in the Bible?

(By the way the word ‘antichrist’ doesn’t mean ‘opposed to Christ.’ It means ‘in place of Christ. A false messiah.’)

1. The Assyrian (Micah 5:4-6…

⁴ And He will arise and shepherd His flock
In the strength of the Lord,
In the majesty of the name of the Lord His God.
And they will remain,
Because at that time He will be great
To the ends of the earth.
⁵ This One will be our peace.
When the Assyrian invades our land,
When he tramples on our citadels,
Then we will raise against him
Seven shepherds and eight leaders of people.
⁶ They will shepherd the land of Assyria with the sword,
The land of Nimrod at its entrances;
And He will rescue us from the Assyrian
When he invades our land,
And when he tramples our territory.

*The Assyrian Empire, the second Biblical World Kingdom, encompassed modern day Israel, Lebanon, Syria, Turkey, Jordan, Iran and Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Egypt.

Some people take this to be evidence that the antichrist will be a Muslim, as Joel Richardson does. There are two reasons that I don’t think so.

1. The Jews will accept him as a Messiah and 2. Islam is so neutered in the Ezekiel 38 and 39 war, as well as the fourth part of the Psalm 83 war (we discussed this in the spring – see notes page 31 as well as pages 58-67 in ‘Israel and the Church, the Prodigal Heirs’) that Islam as a world power will be reduced to near nothing.

 

2. The (first) Rider on the White Horse -Revelation 6:2 ² I looked, and behold, a white horse, and the one who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer.

We determined that the rider on the white horse in Revelation 6:2 is very likely the antichrist for various reasons we discussed, and not Christ as Matthew Henry and other commentators have posited. The bow he carries is unlikely to be a weapon, as no arrows are mentioned, but rather a covenant. Same Greek word for ‘rainbow’ as ‘weapon’,  ‘toxon’.

This rider has a ‘stephanos’ not a diademata like Jesus wears in chapter 19 on His return. A stephanos is a wreath like crown made of greenery which only lasts a short while then withers away, which is significant as the AC is only on the scene for a short while. We talked about how satan is a counterfeiter and always has been. Names for the AC include the Assyrian, which we explored last week. We’d gotten about halfway through another name for him, the Little Horn, when we ran out of time. Did anyone read the notes I sent? If so, you have a head start for today. Quickly review what we went over about the Little Horn before we ran out of time…

3. The Little Horn (Daniel 7:8-11,

⁸ While I was thinking about the horns, behold, another horn, a little one, came up among them, and three of the previous horns were plucked out before it; and behold, this horn possessed eyes like human eyes, and a mouth uttering great boasts.

⁹ “I kept looking
Until thrones were set up,
And the Ancient of Days took His seat;
His garment was white as snow,
And the hair of His head like pure wool.
His throne was ablaze with flames,
Its wheels were a burning fire.
¹⁰ A river of fire was flowing
And coming out from before Him;
Thousands upon thousands were serving Him,
And myriads upon myriads were standing before Him;
The court convened,
And the books were opened.

¹¹ Then I kept looking because of the sound of the boastful words which the horn was speaking; I kept looking until the beast was killed, and its body was destroyed and given to the burning fire. ¹² As for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away, but an extension of life was granted to them for an appointed period of time.

 

Daniel 7:21-26,

²¹ I kept looking, and that horn was waging war with the saints and prevailing against them, ²² until the Ancient of Days came and judgment was passed in favor of the saints of the Highest One, and the time arrived when the saints took possession of the kingdom.

²³ “This is what he said: ‘The fourth beast will be a fourth kingdom on the earth which will be different from all the other kingdoms, and will devour the whole earth and trample it down and crush it. ²⁴ As for the ten horns, out of this kingdom ten kings will arise; and another will arise after them, and he will be different from the previous ones and will humble three kings. ²⁵ And he will speak against the Most High and wear down the saints of the Highest One, and he will intend to make alterations in times and in law; and they will be handed over to him for a time, times, and half a time. ²⁶ But the court will convene for judgment, and his dominion will be taken away, annihilated and destroyed forever. 

*Time, times, and half a time – 3.5 years

*This is an argument AGAINST the thought that believers will be preserved THROUGH the tribulation like Shadrack, Meshack, and Abednego were. AC in Daniel 7:21 will ‘wage war against the saints and prevail against them’ and ‘wear down the saints of the Highest One’ in 7:25. As well as Daniel 8:24 which says,

²⁴ And his power will be mighty, but not by his own power,
And he will destroy to an extraordinary degree
And be successful and do as he pleases;
He will destroy mighty men and the holy people.

 And, further, if believers are preserved through the Tribulation, then why are there beheaded saints under the altar at the fifth seal in Revelation 6?

Daniel 8:24 tells us that AC will NOT be universally loved, but will be opposed by ‘mighty men’ who he ‘destroys’.

So often, AC is depicted as a man universally loved, who is so charismatic, no one can resist following him. That is not true.

I didn’t mean for this to detour extensively into a study of Daniel, but it must at least in a small way, to get a picture of the AC.

 

Daniel 8:8-12,

⁹ And out of one of the (prominent horns) came a rather small horn which grew exceedingly great toward the south, toward the east, and toward the Beautiful Land. ¹⁰ It grew up to the heavenly lights, and some of the lights, that is, some of the stars it threw down to the earth, and it trampled them. ¹¹ It even exalted itself to be equal with the Commander of the army; and it removed the regular sacrifice from Him, and the place of His sanctuary was overthrown. ¹² And because of an offense, the army will be given to the horn along with the regular sacrifice; and it will hurl truth to the ground and do as it pleases and be successful. 

 

¹⁰ It grew up to the heavenly lights, and some of the lights, that is, some of the stars it threw down to the earth, and it trampled them. 

Here we see a reference to Revelation 12:4…

⁴ And his tail *swept away a third of the stars of heaven and hurled them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she gave birth he might devour her Child.

As well as references to Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28 which I won’t reiterate here exhaustively, but just be reminded that Isaiah 14 is the ‘I will’ chapter, where Satan declares..

‘I will ascend to heaven;
I will raise my throne above the stars of God,
And I will sit on the mount of assembly
In the recesses of the north.
¹⁴ I will ascend above the heights of the clouds;
I will make myself like the Most High.’
¹⁵ Nevertheless you will be brought down to Sheol,
To the recesses of the pit.

Where Daniel says in  8:11…

¹¹ It even exalted itself to be equal with the Commander of the army

 

4. The Insolent King

Daniel 8:23-25  ²³ And in the latter period of their dominion,
When the wrongdoers have run their course,
A king will arise, Insolent and skilled in intrigue.
²⁴ And his power will be mighty, but not by his own power,
And he will destroy to an extraordinary degree
And be successful and do as he pleases;
He will destroy mighty men and the holy people.
²⁵ And through his shrewdness
He will make deceit a success by his influence;
And he will make himself great in his own mind,

(narcissist – pride of Ezekiel 28 and Isaiah 14 – why leaven is a synonym for sin throughout the Bible, it conveys the notion of being ‘puffed up’)

And he will destroy many while they are at ease.
He will even oppose the Prince of princes,
But he will be broken without human agency.

 

 

5. The Prince that Shall Come (Daniel 9:26)

²⁶ Then after the sixty-two weeks, the Messiah will be cut off and have nothing, and the people of the prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. And its end will come with a flood; even to the end there will be war; desolations are determined. 

 

6. The Man of Perdition / Lawlessness / Sin (2 Thessalonians 2:3)

³ No one is to deceive you in any way! For it (the Day of the Lord) will not come unless the apostasy (apostasia – the departure) comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, ⁴ who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God. 

Why was 2 Thessalonians written? Because I am told that after Paul sent 1 Thessalonians, someone forged his name on another letter that said the world was already in the tribulation, and they needed reassurance. So Paul makes clear in 2 Thessalonians verse 2 that they should not believe that lie that was sent in his name.

7. The Beast from the Sea (Revelation 13:1-8

Then I saw a beast coming up out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads, and on his horns were ten crowns, and on his heads were blasphemous names. ² And the beast that I saw was like a leopard, and his feet were like those of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave him his power and his throne, and great authority. ³ I saw one of his heads as if it had been fatally wounded, and his fatal wound was healed. And the whole earth was amazed and followed after the beast; ⁴ they worshiped the dragon because he gave his authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who is able to wage war with him?” ⁵ A mouth was given to him speaking arrogant words and blasphemies, and authority to act for forty-two months was given to him. ⁶ And he opened his mouth in blasphemies against God, to blaspheme His name and His tabernacle, that is, those who dwell in heaven.

⁷ It was also given to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them*, and authority was given to him over every tribe, people, language, and nation**. ⁸ All who live on the earth will worship him, everyone whose name has not been written since the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who has been slaughtered.

*Note again, that believers are not protected through the Tribulation – only the 144,000. When we get to the 5^th seal we will see them crying out for vengeance!

**Note too, that the US will cease to be a sovereign nation during the Tribulation.

 

 

8. The Idol Shepherd (Zechariah 11:16,17)

¹⁵ And the Lord said to me, “Take again for yourself the equipment of a foolish shepherd. ¹⁶ For behold, I am going to raise up a shepherd in the land who will not care for the perishing, seek the scattered, heal the broken, or provide for the one who is exhausted, but will devour the flesh of the fat sheep and tear off their hoofs.

¹⁷ Woe to the worthless shepherd
Who abandons the flock!
A sword will be on his arm
And on his right eye!
His arm will be totally withered,
And his right eye will be blind.”

**(Compare this to Revelation 13:3

³ I saw one of his heads as if it had been fatally wounded, and his fatal wound was healed. And the whole earth was amazed and followed after the beast; 

 

(KJV)  ¹⁷ Woe to the idol shepherd that leaveth the flock! the sword shall be upon his arm, and upon his right eye: his arm shall be clean dried up, and his right eye shall be utterly darkened.

 

Could it be that the AC has persistent weakness on his left arm and right eye from a wound that appeared to kill him?

 

9. The Willful King (Daniel 11:36-39

 

³⁶ “Then the king will do as he pleases, and he will exalt himself and boast against every god and will speak dreadful things against the God of gods; and he will be successful until the indignation is finished, because that which is determined will be done. ³⁷ And he will show no regard for the gods of his fathers* or for the desire of women**, nor will he show regard for any other god; for he will boast against them all. ³⁸ But instead he will honor a god of fortresses, a god whom his fathers did not know***; he will honor him with gold, silver, precious stones, and treasures. ³⁹ And he will take action against the strongest of fortresses with the help of a foreign god****; he will give great honor to those who acknowledge him and will make them rulers over the many, and will parcel out land for a price.

*could describe any Jew or Muslim or Hindu or Christian

**homosexual or pedophile or bestial

***military might (see Revelation 13:4)

⁴ they worshiped the dragon because he gave his authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who is able to wage war with him?” 

**** Is Satan the foreign god? CERN portal? Demonic / Alien grand delusion?

10. One come in his own name

John 5:43

⁴³ I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, you will receive him.

Mankind rejected the real Messiah but will eagerly embrace the false Messiah.

 

 

 

On whether AC has already been revealed:

2 Thessalonians 2 excerpts (NLT)

² Don’t be so easily shaken or alarmed by those who say that the day of the Lord* has already begun. Don’t believe them, even if they claim to have had a spiritual vision, a revelation, or a letter supposedly from us. ³ Don’t be fooled by what they say. For that day will not come until there is a great rebellion against God and the man (anthropos) of lawlessness is revealed—the one who brings destruction. ⁴ He will exalt himself and defy everything that people call god and every object of worship. He will even sit in the temple of God, claiming that he himself is God.

⁵ Don’t you remember that I told you about all this when I was with you? ⁶ And you know what is holding him back, for he can be revealed only when his time comes. ⁷ For this lawlessness is already at work secretly, and it will remain secret until the one who is holding it back steps out of the way. ⁸ Then the man of lawlessness will be revealed, but the Lord Jesus will slay him with the breath of his mouth and destroy him by the splendor of his coming.

⁹ This man will come to do the work of Satan with counterfeit power and signs and miracles. ¹⁰ He will use every kind of evil deception to fool those on their way to destruction, because they refuse to love and accept the truth that would save them. ¹¹ So God will cause them to be greatly deceived, and they will believe these lies. ¹² Then they will be condemned for enjoying evil rather than believing the truth. (NLT)

2 Thessalonians 2:1-12 (NASB)

2 Now we ask you, brothers and sisters, regarding the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, ² that you not be quickly shaken from your composure or be disturbed either by a spirit, or a message, or a letter as if from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord* has come. ³ No one is to deceive you in any way! For it will not come unless the apostasy [(apostasio – physical or spiritual or both)] comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, ⁴ who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God. ⁵ Do you not remember that while I was still with you, I was telling you these things? ⁶ And you know what restrains him now, so that he will be revealed in his time. ⁷ For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is removed. ⁸ Then that lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will eliminate with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming; ⁹ that is, the one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and false signs and wonders, ¹⁰ and with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not accept the love of the truth so as to be saved. ¹¹ For this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false, ¹² in order that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in wickedness.

*Tribulation period

*Zephaniah 1:14-16

¹⁴ “That terrible day of the Lord is near.
    Swiftly it comes—
a day of bitter tears,
    a day when even strong men will cry out.
¹⁵ It will be a day when the Lord’s anger is poured out—
    a day of terrible distress and anguish,
a day of ruin and desolation,
    a day of darkness and gloom,
a day of clouds and blackness,
¹⁶     a day of trumpet calls and battle cries.
Down go the walled cities
    and the strongest battlements!

 

 

**John 5:43  ⁴³ I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, you will receive him.

 

 

On Revelation 13 – Horns and Heads

The Beast from the Sea

13 And the dragon stood on the sand of the seashore.

Then I saw a beast coming up out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads, and on his horns were ten crowns, and on his heads were blasphemous names. ² And the beast that I saw was like a leopard, and his feet were like those of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave him his power and his throne, and great authority. ³ I saw one of his heads as if it had been fatally wounded, and his fatal wound was healed. And the whole earth was amazed and followed after the beast; ⁴ they worshiped the dragon because he gave his authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who is able to wage war with him?” ⁵ A mouth was given to him speaking arrogant words and blasphemies, and authority to act for forty-two months was given to him. ⁶ And he opened his mouth in blasphemies against God, to blaspheme His name and His tabernacle, that is, those who dwell in heaven.

⁷ It was also given to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them, and authority was given to him over every tribe, people, language, and nation. ⁸ All who live on the earth will worship him, everyone whose name has not been written since the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who has been slaughtered. ⁹ If anyone has an ear, let him hear. ¹⁰ If anyone 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.

The Beast from the Earth

¹¹ Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spoke as a dragon. ¹² He exercises all the authority of the first beast ^[i]in his presence. And he makes the earth and those who live on it worship the first beast, whose fatal wound was healed. ¹³ He performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down out of the sky to the earth in the presence of people. ¹⁴ And he deceives those who live on the earth because of the signs which it was given him to perform in the presence of the beast, telling those who live on the earth to make an image to the beast who *had the wound of the sword and has come to life. ¹⁵ And it was given to him to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast would even speak and cause all who do not worship the image of the beast to be killed. ¹⁶ And he causes all, the small and the great, the rich and the poor, and the free and the slaves, to be given a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads, ¹⁷ and he decrees that no one will be able to buy or to sell, except the one who has the mark, either 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 the number is that of a man; and his number is six hundred and sixty-six.

 

The Bible is its own best commentary

Names of AC in OT and NT (33 and 13) The Assyrian, the Little Horn, the Man of Perdition / Sin/ Lawlessness, the Insolent King, The Prince that shall come,

John 13:27 Satan enters Judas

John  17:12  Judas called ‘son of perdition’

2 Thess 2:3  Antichrist called ‘son of perdition’ – ‘day of the Lord’ cannot happen until the AC is revealed.

Revelation 13 first beast, introduced in chapter 6 as the rider on the white horse, then when Satan is finally expelled from heaven, he indwells the man and ‘the beast’ arises. First beast is primarily political – likely Gentile – as ‘the sea’ consistently refers to ‘the goyim’ the nations.

Seven heads (Compare with Revelation 17:3)* (Egypt (enslavement of Joseph’s family’s progeny for 400 years as predicted to Abraham in Genesis 15:13), Assyria (who God used to punish northern Israel), Babylon (who God used to punish Southern Israel (Judah)(the gold head in Nebuchadnezzar’s statue (Dan 2:32) , the lion with eagles wings in Daniel’s vision (Dan 7:4), Medo-Persia (when Esther was written)(the silver chest and arms of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream statue (Dan 2:32) /the bear with 3 ribs in mouth (Dan 7:5) and ram with two horns (Daniel 8:3-4) in Daniel’s visions, Greece (the bronze belly and thighs of Nebuchadnezzar’s statue (Daniel 2:32) / the four headed leopard (Daniel 7:6 ) and swift goat (Daniel 8:5-12)  in Daniel’s visions), Rome (legs of iron in Nebuchadnezzar’s statue (Daniel 2:33), and Rome 2 (toes of iron and clay (Daniel 2:33) / ten horns (Daniel 7:7 and 7:24)

 Each head has a blasphemous name.

Revelation 13:1 …with 10 horns and ten crowns: the ten-nation confederacy of Daniel 7:1-7 and, Daniel 7:24 ‘who have not yet received a kingdom’ (Revelation 17:12)

Heads are kingdoms of the 5 past, one present, and one future

Second beast – spiritual – likely Jewish – the ‘False Prophet’

Compare creatures in Daniel with those in Revelation 13 and 17

Ten kings who ‘have not yet received a kingdom’ Revelation 17:12

*Revelation 17:3-13 (NASB)

³ And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness; and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast, full of blasphemous names, having seven heads and ten horns. ⁴ The woman was clothed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold, precious stones, and pearls, holding in her hand a gold cup full of abominations and of the unclean things of her sexual immorality, ⁵ and on her forehead a name was written, a mystery: “BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF PROSTITUTES AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.” ⁶ And I saw the woman drunk with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the witnesses of Jesus. When I saw her, I wondered greatly. ⁷ And the angel said to me, “Why do you wonder? I will tell you the mystery of the woman and of the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and the ten horns.

⁸ “The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to come up out of the abyss and go to destruction. And those who live on the earth, whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, will wonder when they see the beast, that he was, and is not, and will come. ⁹ Here is the mind which has wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains (oros) upon which the woman sits, ¹⁰ and they are seven kings*; five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; and when he comes, he must remain a little while. ¹¹ The beast which was, and is not, is himself also an eighth and is one of the seven, and he goes to destruction. ¹² The ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but they receive authority as kings with the beast for one hour. ¹³ These have one purpose, and they give their power and authority to the beast.

 

*Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, Rome, Revived Rome = 7 heads – traditional antisemitic enemies of Israel

10 horns = 10 part kingdom of that AC will preside over (himself being an 11^th) (world will be divided up into ten regions, AC will make war with three and defeat them, leaving 7)

Daniel 2:37-38 – ‘king’ and ‘kingdom’ are used synonymously. So does Rev. 17.

*Isaiah 2:2, Isaiah 41:15, Jeremiah 21:55, Daniel 2:35 and 45 – ‘mountains’ are referred to as kingdoms. 

 

Daniel 7:7-8 (NLT)

⁷ Then in my vision that night, I saw a fourth beast—terrifying, dreadful, and very strong. It devoured and crushed its victims with huge iron teeth and trampled their remains beneath its feet. It was different from any of the other beasts, and it had ten horns.

⁸ As I was looking at the horns, suddenly another small horn appeared among them. Three of the first horns were torn out by the roots to make room for it. This little horn had eyes like human eyes and a mouth that was boasting arrogantly.

Daniel 7:24-25

²⁴ As for the ten horns, out of this kingdom ten kings will arise; and another will arise after them, and he will be different from the previous ones and will humble three kings. ²⁵ And he will speak against the Most High and wear down the saints of the Highest One, and he will intend to make alterations in times and in law; and they will be handed over to him for a time, times, and half a time. 

 

Daniel 2:39-45 (NASB)

³⁹ And after you another kingdom will arise inferior to you, then another third kingdom of bronze, which will rule over all the earth.

⁴⁰ Then there will be a fourth kingdom as strong as iron; just as iron smashes and crushes everything, so, like iron that crushes, it will smash and crush all these things. ⁴¹ And in that you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron, it will be a divided kingdom; but it will have within it some of the toughness of iron, since you saw the iron mixed with common clay. ⁴² And just as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of pottery, so some of the kingdom will be strong, and part of it will be fragile. ⁴³ In that you saw the iron mixed with common clay, they will combine with one another in their descendants; but they will not adhere to one another, just as iron does not combine with pottery.

The Divine Kingdom

⁴⁴ And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which will never be destroyed, and that kingdom will not be left for another people; it will crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, but it will itself endure forever. ⁴⁵ Just as you saw that a stone was broken off from the mountain without hands, and that it crushed the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold, the great God has made known to the king what will take place in the future; so the dream is certain and its interpretation is trustworthy.”

 

Chiastic structure of chapters 2 -7 that were written in Aramaic, ten horns of iron beast reflect on ten toes of statue

ch 2 reflects on 7,

3 reflects on 6,

4 reflects on 5

 

13 Characteristics of the First Beast/AC:

1. His sudden appearance in John’s vision – he is a man, not just a ‘spirit’ Irenaeus said so too (first century Christian, student of Polycarp, who was a student of John) (1a) Appears ‘suddenly’ because satan has been evicted from heaven and has lost his privilege to accuse and now indwells the antichrist man, just like he did Judas (who was also called a Son of Perdition) and now realizes his time is short and he must eradicate Israel and prevent them from crying out for their Messiah (Matthew 23:39, cf Hosea5:15)
2. His gentile ethnicity (1b) – he is from ‘the sea’ which always refers to nations other than Israel

            (Many say he must be Jewish because of the peace treaty he signs with Israel in Daniel     9:27). Isaiah 28:15 calls it a treaty with hell itself.

3. His fulfillment of Daniel’s prophecies (1c – 2a) (Daniel 7)
4. His Satanic empowerment (2b)
5. His resurrection (3) both a national and bodily resurrection – re an actual bodily resurrection – not a ‘trick’ as the same word ‘zao’ is used everywhere else in the NT for an actual resurrection, including that of Jesus Christ. Possibly killed during a power st
6. His power-based adoration (4)
7. His oratory (5a)
8. His time of authority (5b)
9. His blasphemies (6)
10. His persecution of God’s People (7a) More proof of a pre-trib rapture, as the ‘saints’ here are those saved after the rapture, and they ARE overcome, whereas the Church will never be overcome (The gates of hell will not prevail against it – Matthew 16:18)
11. His global jurisdiction (7b)
12. His unregenerate audience (8)
13. His oppressive influence (9,10)

See ETICO page   for other thoughts on ethnicity of AC

 

AC has 33 names in the OT and 13 in the NT

Names of AC in OT and NT (33 and 13) The Assyrian, the Little Horn, the Man of Perdition / Sin/ Lawlessness, the Insolent King, The Prince that shall come, The Rider on the White Horse, The Beast from the Sea,

 

 

 

The Second Beast / False Prophet: he is a man, not a ‘system’ or a ‘religion’ as he has an eternal soul- he burns in the lake of fire for a thousand years and is still there after the Millennium

1. His ethnic identity (11a) likely a Jew as he is said to come ‘from the earth’ (same Greek word for ‘earth’ is used for ‘land’ and when land is referred to in Bible, it usually refers to Israel. (cf Matthew 2:6 and Zechariah 12:12) Dwight Pentecost and Andy Woods think so.
2. His character (11b) 2 horns vs. 10 possibly communicating he is a lesser authority than the first beast. (jch – could also be mimicking the two shofar of God). Spoke as a dragon = spoke as Satan, who IS the dragon. We already know that Satan powers the first beast (Revelation 13:2,4), and here we have evidence that he empowers the second beast as well. He comes like a lamb, but he source of his authority and his words are empowered by Satan. Jesus himself said ‘beware of false prophets, who come in sheep’s clothing, but inside are ravenous wolves’ (Matthew 7:15).
3. His purpose (12) 1. He exercises authority on behalf of the first beast, and directs worship to him. His purpose is to attract attention to the AC, much like Ed McMahon. The FP mimics the Holy Spirit’s role toward Jesus (cf John 15:26). Also imitates the role of John the Baptist by heralding the one greater. (2 Corinthians 11:14 – Satan disguises himself as an angel of light)
4. His miracles (13) (mega semeion, teras and dynamis, same words used for Christ’s signs in Matthew 11:20 (dynamis), John 20:30 (semeion) and Acts 2:22 (teras). See also 2 Thessalonians 2:9.

            Satanic / demonic miracles: Exodus 7 -8, Deuteronomy 13:1-3, Matthew 7:21-23,           24:24, Acts 8:9, 16:16, Galatians 1:6-9, 2 Thessalonians 2:9, Revelation 13:3, 13, 15 and         16:13-14.

            Test the spirits: Deut. 13:1-5, Isaiah 8:19-20, Acts 17:11, Galatians 1:8-9, 1 Thess. 5:20- 21, 1 John 4:1, Revelation 2:2

5. His deception (14a)
6. His image statue (14b-15) (eikon) Just like when Antiochus Epiphanes set up an image in the temple of Jupiter (Greek)/ (later called Zeus by the Romans) in 165 BC. (the Maccabees freed the temple >> Hanukkah, (Feast of Lights)

            Daniel (11:31) predicted AE’s desecration of the temple in 550 BC,  ‘the Little Horn’ of   Daniel 8, then Titus Vespasian destroys temple in 70 AD, then Antichrist desecrates the       third temple at midpoint of Tribulation and ends sacrifices (‘the Little Horn of Daniel 7)         (because he orders an end to sacrifices like AE did (and all Jews know the history of       Hannukah very well) – this is why the Jews reject who they             thought was their Messiah all             this time)

            {Daniel 8 little horn: ⁵ While I was observing, behold, a male goat was coming from the west over the surface of the entire earth without touching the ground; and the goat had a prominent horn between his eyes. ⁶ He came up to the ram that had the two horns, which I had seen standing in front of the canal, and rushed at him in his mighty wrath. ⁷ And I saw him come up beside the ram, and he was enraged at him; and he struck the ram and smashed his two horns, and the ram had no strength to withstand him. So he hurled him to the ground and trampled on him, and there was no one to rescue the ram from his power. ⁸ Then the male goat made himself exceedingly great. But once he became powerful, the large horn was broken; and in its place four prominent horns came up toward the four winds of heaven.

The Little Horn

⁹ And out of one of them came a rather small horn which grew exceedingly great toward the south, toward the east, and toward the Beautiful Land. ¹⁰ It grew up to the heavenly lights, and some of the lights, that is, some of the stars it threw down to the earth, and it trampled them. ¹¹ It even exalted itself to be equal with the Commander of the army; and it removed the regular sacrifice from Him, and the place of His sanctuary was overthrown. ¹² And because of an offense the army will be given to the horn along with the regular sacrifice; and it will hurl truth to the ground and do as it pleases and be successful. ¹³ Then I heard a holy one speaking, and another holy one said to that particular one who was speaking, “How long will the vision about the regular sacrifice apply, while the offense causes horror, so as to allow both the sanctuary and the army to be trampled?” ¹⁴ And he said to me, “For 2,300 evenings and mornings ((6.38 years of 360 day years)); then the sanctuary will be properly restored.”

(jump to verse 20)

²⁰ The ram which you saw with the two horns represents the kings of Media and Persia.

The Goat

²¹ The shaggy goat represents the kingdom of Greece, and the large horn that is between his eyes is the first king. ²² The broken horn and the four horns that came up in its place represent four kingdoms which will arise from his nation, although not with his power.

²³ And in the latter period of their dominion,
When the wrongdoers have run their course,

(Now The little horn of Daniel 8 – Antiochus Epiphanes)…

A king will arise, Insolent and skilled in intrigue.
²⁴ And his power will be mighty, but not by his own power,
And he will destroy to an extraordinary degree
And be successful and do as he pleases;
He will destroy mighty men and the holy people.
²⁵ And through his shrewdness
He will make deceit a success by his influence;
And he will make himself great in his own mind,
And he will destroy many while they are at ease.
He will even oppose the Prince of princes,
But he will be broken without human agency.

Also reminiscent of Nebuchadnezzar’s statue in Daniel 3

Revelation 13:15 – he causes as many who do not worship the beast to be killed. Enslavement of the whole world. Contrasted with freedom in Christ – John 8:32, John 8:36, Galatians 5:1,          2 Corinthians 3:17,

7. His economic system (16-18)

            The global economy (16a) phasing out of the dollar, and a cashless society will make it    impossible to hide transactions (will be sold as ‘impossible to steal cash or not report it           for taxes, so it is more fair to you.’

            Global numbering (16b-17) because satan is not omnipresent nor omniscient, he cannot    know who he has in captivity otherwise

            The beast’s number (18) The gematria must be Greek, not Hebrew. Vs. symbolic of man falling short of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit (777)

            Satan’s goal of globalism: Daniel 7:23, Revelation 13:7-8, Revelation 5:9, Revelation     13:16-18, Revelation 17:15

 

Comparison of number of heads and horns of Beasts of Daniel 7 and Revelation 13 and 17

Daniel 7 In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel saw a dream and visions in his mind as he lay on his bed; then he wrote the dream down and told the following summary of it. ² Daniel said, “I was looking in my vision by night, and behold, the four winds of heaven were stirring up the great sea. ³ And four great beasts were coming up from the sea, different from one another. ⁴ The first was like a lion but had the wings of an eagle. I kept looking until its wings were plucked, and it was lifted up from the ground and set up on two feet like a man; a human mind also was given to it. ⁵ And behold, another beast, a second one, resembling a bear. And it was raised up on one side, and three ribs were in its mouth between its teeth; and they said this to it: ‘Arise, devour much meat!’ ⁶ After this I kept looking, and behold, another one, 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 kept looking in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and extremely strong; and it had large iron teeth. It devoured and crushed, and trampled down the remainder with its feet; and it was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns. ⁸ While I was thinking about the horns, behold, another horn, a little one, came up among them, and three of the previous horns were plucked out before it; and behold, this horn possessed eyes like human eyes, and a mouth uttering great boasts.

Total heads: 7

Total horns: 10 + 1 little (AC)

Revelation 13

13 And the dragon stood on the sand of the seashore.

Then I saw a beast coming up out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads, and on his horns were ten crowns, and on his heads were blasphemous names. ² And the beast that I saw was like a leopard, and his feet were like those of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave him his power and his throne, and great authority.

Revelation 17

3….and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast, full of blasphemous names, having seven heads and ten horns. 

(skip to verse 8)

⁸ “The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to come up out of the abyss and go to destruction. And those who live on the earth, whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, will wonder when they see the beast, that he was, and is not, and will come. ⁹ Here is the mind which has wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains (kingdoms) upon which the woman sits, ¹⁰ and they are seven kings; five have fallen [(Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece)], one is [(Rome)], the other has not yet come [(Rome 2)]; and when he comes, he must remain a little while. ¹¹ The beast which was, and is not, is himself also an eighth [(little horn of Daniel 7)] and is one of the seven, and he goes to destruction. ¹² The ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but they receive authority as kings with the beast for one hour. ¹³ These have one purpose, and they give their power and authority to the beast.

Number of the Beast

Revelation 13:18

¹⁸ Here is wisdom. 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.

Gematria calculation of 666

The beast’s number (18) The gematria must be Greek, not Hebrew. Vs. symbolic of man falling short of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit (777)