Week 8 Revelation 13
Lions and
Tigers and Dragons … Oh My!
7 ”Also it was
allowed to make war on the saints… 10 …Here is a call for the endurance and
faith of the saints.
The book of
Revelation is a revelation of Jesus. John gives description after description
of His Majesty. He unfolds God’s plan in Christ to make all things new. However,
in chapter 13, John describes Satan and his plan to challenge God. He describes
Satan as the Dragon who will attempt to imitate Christ through an antichrist.
This antichrist will draw a crowd to worship him and take power over the
nations. The goal is to turn people away from God and destroy their lives.
As we look closer,
we see that the antichrist uses tactics that contradict Christ more than
imitate. For example, he will deceive, tempt, demonize, and cause people to
fear him. The antichrist will even persecute those who reject his rule. As the
chapter ends, it looks like the Dragon is taking control, but keep reading.
Chapter 13 is part of a bigger story, where Jesus will destroy Satan’s plan and
show that the imitation is inferior to Himself.
Something to note
is how the antichrist is a spirit we experience today. It is the spirit of the
Devil in every age. We have relationships, religions, and desires that promise
the same life only Christ can give. However, right in the middle of the
chapter, John sends out a call to all the saints for endurance and faith. The
call is the point of the chapter. We will face temptation, deception,
demonization, and persecution but remain faithful. Jesus is the one sitting on
His throne even now. Satan does not win!
This is the Revelation
of Jesus Christ
Opening Questions:
What are some examples of cheap imitations of a genuine product?
Why do cheap imitations never measure up to the real thing?
Bottom
Line
Satan can only
imitate, never replicate.
Revelation
13
The First Beast 13
And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with
ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads. 2 And the beast
that I saw was like a leopard; its feet were like a bears’, and its mouth was
like a lion’s mouth. And to it the dragon gave his power and his throne and
great authority. 3 One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its
mortal wound was healed, and the whole earth marveled as they followed the
beast. 4 And they worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the
beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who
can fight against it?” 5 And the beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and
blasphemous words, and it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two
months. 6 It opened its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his
name and his dwelling, that is, those who dwell in heaven. 7 Also it was
allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them. And authority was given
it over every tribe and people and language and nation, 8 and all who dwell on
earth will worship it, everyone whose name has not been written before the
foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who was slain. 9 If
anyone has an ear, let him hear: 10 If anyone is to be taken captive, to
captivity he goes; if anyone is to be slain with the sword, with the sword must
he be slain. Here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints.
The Second Beast 11
Then I saw another beast rising out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb,
and it spoke like a dragon. 12 It exercises all the authority of the first
beast in its presence and makes the earth and its inhabitants worship the first
beast, whose mortal wound was healed. 13 It performs great signs, even making
fire come down from heaven to earth in front of people, 14 and by the signs
that it is allowed to work in the presence of the beast it deceives those who
dwell on earth, telling them to make an image for the beast that was wounded by
the sword and yet lived. 15 And it was allowed to give breath to the image of
the beast, so that the image of the beast might even speak and might cause
those who would not worship the image of the beast to be slain. 16 Also it
causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to
be marked on the right hand or the forehead, 17 so that no one can buy or sell
unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its
name. 18 This calls for wisdom: let the one who has understanding calculate the
number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is 666.
The Holy Bible:
English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Revelation 13.
STUDY
NOTES
Revelation 13
presents a picture of two beasts executing the will of Satan. It presents a scary
picture and one, like much of Revelation, that leaves us wondering what exactly
is meant. There has been much debate about whether the one described in
Revelation 13 is the antichrist or the spirit of the antichrist; while pursuing
such debate here would be outside of our focus, it is important to see the
overall theme behind what Satan is trying to do. In chapter 13 we see “cheap
imitations” of what Christ has promised and shown us. We find schisms of the
throne and glory that are rightly ascribed to Christ. In chapter 13, we see
them in torment and chaotic times, without the glory or majesty that is
ascribed to Christ. This is a clear picture of Satan trying to imitate the
power of Christ. Another way we see a “cheap imitation” of Christ is Satan
trying to deceive in the picture of the second beast. Satan longs for the
worship of the earth and the authority that goes with it. Lastly, we see that
Satan doesn’t satisfy as Christ does. There is a longing for something more
than we find in chapter 13. All that is found in chapter 13 is chaos,
suffering, and slavery. Quite the opposite picture than what we find with the
Christ who is presented to us in Revelation.
1.
Satan tries to imitate Christ.
2.
Satan contradicts Christ.
3.
Satan is Inferior to Christ.
Quotes:
“Do I care more
about the mark of the beast or living for the Lamb?” – Corey Watson
“Just because
something is convincing doesn’t mean its true.” – Will Bray
“Anything that
contradicts God’s Word is not from God. It is sin of self and from Satan.” –
Dustin Dozier
“At his best, Satan
will always be completely incomplete.” – Wayne Bray
“Just because
something looks good doesn’t mean it’s godly.” – Dallas Wilson
THE POINT
Satan can
only imitate, never replicate.
Questions
for Discussion
Why is it important to understand the tactics of Satan in chapter 13?
How is the
deception from Satan in Revelation 13 still present today?
How can we see
Jesus in the midst of such a chapter as this?
What is the most
encouraging thing to you about Revelation 13?
How should we
respond to such a passage as this?
END
Teacher's Notes:
The book of
Revelation is a revelation of Jesus. John gives description after description
of His Majesty. He unfolds God’s plan in Christ to make all
things new. However, in chapter 13, John describes Satan and his plan to
challenge God.
Satan as the Dragon who will attempt to imitate Christ through an antichrist. This antichrist will draw a crowd to worship him and take power over the nations. The goal is to turn people away from God and destroy their lives.
Revelation
13
The First
Beast
And I saw a beast
rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its
horns and blasphemous names on its heads. 2 And the beast that I saw was like a
leopard; its feet were like a bears’, and its mouth was like a lion’s mouth.
And to it the dragon gave his power and his throne and great authority. 3 One
of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed,
and the whole earth marveled as they followed the beast. 4 And they worshiped
the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the
beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who can fight against it?” 5 And the
beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words, and it was
allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months. 6 It opened its mouth to
utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name and his dwelling, that is,
those who dwell in heaven. 7 Also it was allowed to make war on the saints and
to conquer them. And authority was given it over every tribe and people and
language and nation, 8 and all who dwell on earth will worship it, everyone
whose name has not been written before the foundation of the world in the book
of life of the Lamb who was slain. 9 If anyone has an ear, let him hear: 10 If
anyone is to be taken captive, to captivity he goes; if anyone is to be slain
with the sword, with the sword must he be slain. Here is a call for the
endurance and faith of the saints.
The Second
Beast
Then I saw another
beast rising out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb, and it spoke like
a dragon. 12 It exercises all the authority of the first beast in its presence
and makes the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose mortal
wound was healed. 13 It performs great signs, even making fire come down from
heaven to earth in front of people, 14 and by the signs that it is allowed to
work in the presence of the beast it deceives those who dwell on earth, telling
them to make an image for the beast that was wounded by the sword and yet
lived. 15 And it was allowed to give breath to the image of the beast, so that
the image of the beast might even speak and might cause those who would not
worship the image of the beast to be slain. 16 Also it causes all, both small
and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right
hand or the forehead, 17 so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark,
that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name. 18 This calls for
wisdom: let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast,
for it is the number of a man, and his number is 666.
The Holy Bible:
English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Revelation 13.
Is this
the picture you had of the antichrist?
In Revelation, the
term beast refers to two related entities. Sometimes “the beast” refers to the
end-times’ empire. The seven heads and ten horns indicate that the beast will
be a coalition of nations that rises to power to subdue the earth under Satan’s
control. Later references to “the beast” in Revelation picture an individual —
the man who is the political leader and head of the beastly empire.
666 – What does it
mean?
1.
The mark of the beast is something people must receive to buy and sell.
2.
The number 666 is somehow associated with the beast/Antichrist as “his”
number.
6 – One less than
the number 7
6 – is incomplete.
7 = number of
completion
6 = number of
incompletion
3 = Trinitarian
Completion
666 = Completely
incomplete
“At his best, Satan
will always be completely incomplete.”
Wayne Bray
Some people fear
that they have already taken the mark of the beast. They may have blasphemed
God at some point or made some impulsive statement of allegiance to the
Antichrist.
Is this possible?
There is one significant
reason why it is impossible to get the mark of the beast now: The mark of the
beast does not exist yet.
The mark of the
beast cannot exist until the beast himself is in power during the tribulation.
Is it
possible for a person to be saved/forgiven after taking the mark of the beast?
The answer to this
question seems to be “no.”
Receiving the mark
of the beast is essentially worshiping Satan. Those who take the mark have made
the choice to serve Satan rather than obey God and receive Christ as Savior.
When people make that decision during the tribulation, God will grant their
request to be eternally separated from Him.
The Book
of Revelation is the Revelation of Jesus Christ.
How can we see
Jesus in the midst of such a chapter as this?
At the end of the
tribulation, “the Lord Jesus will overthrow the antichrist with the breath of
His mouth and destroy him by the splendor of his coming” (2 Thessalonians 2:8).
The ultimate doom
of evil is sure.
Close with…
YOU WERE BORN into
a battle.
You didn’t ask for
it. But a cosmic battle that started before you were born and will continue
long after you die is taking place all throughout the universe. You can’t
escape the battle between God and Satan, good and evil. Even people who don’t
know it exists can’t escape it!
Because we’re
talking about God, there’s good news. It’s important to know God and Satan are
not equal sides. You don’t have to wonder who’s going to win this war. There is
no suspense, no wondering who’s going to be standing at the end. God is far
superior in all ways. And the Bible tells us that at the end of this world, God
is going to have the last word. One day God will completely wipe Satan out.
Until then, He
allows us to have a choice of whose side we’re on.
People are often
pawns in this cosmic battle. Why? Because Satan can’t hurt God. What do you do
when you can’t hurt someone? You hurt his children — so Satan goes after you.
The bad news is,
you were born for a spiritual battle. But you were also born to win the battle.
The Bible says, “The one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the
world” (1 John 4:4 NIV).
Satan isn’t afraid of you. He is afraid of Who is in you: God.
When you become a
Christian, God gives you the Holy Spirit to live in you. With the Holy Spirit
in you, you don’t have to be afraid of Satan. Because with the Holy Spirit, you
have the power that raised Jesus from the dead. That power guarantees you victory
not just over the war but over every battle you face in your life — every
temptation, every sorrow, every pain you experience.
All you have to do
is call on the Holy Spirit. God is ready to give you the help, comfort, and
power you need for life.
You’re on the winning side of this war. Now it’s time to live like it.
Rick Warren
Devotions
END
Bible Commentary
The beast was
initially identified with Rome because the Roman empire, in its early days,
encouraged an evil lifestyle, persecuted believers, and opposed God and His
followers. But the beast also symbolizes the antichrist – not Satan, but
someone under Satan’s power and control. This antichrist looks like a
combination of the 4 beasts that Daniel saw centuries earlier in a vision (Daniel
7). As the dragon is in opposition to God, so the beast from the sea is against
Christ and may be seen as Satan’s false messiah. The early Roman empire was
strong and also antichrist (or against Christ’s standards); many other
individual powers throughout history have been anti-Christ. Many Christians
believe that Satan’s evil will culminate in a final antichrist, one who will
focus all the powers of evil against Jesus Christ and His followers.
Chapter 13
introduces Satan’s (the dragon’s) two evil accomplices:
1.
The beast out of the sea
2.
The beast out of the earth
Together, the 3 evil
beings form an unholy trinity in direct opposition to the holy trinity of God
the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
When Satan tempted
Jesus in the desert, he wanted Jesus to show His power by turning stones into
bread, to do miracles by jumping from a high place, and to gain political power
by worshiping him (Matt. 4:1-11). Satan’s plan was to rule the world through
Jesus, but Jesus refused to do Satan’s bidding. Thus, Satan turns to the
fearsome beasts described in Revelation. To the beast out of the sea he gives
political power. To the beast out of the earth he gives powers to do miracles.
Both beasts work together to capture control of the whole world. This unholy
trinity – the dragon, the beast out of the sea, and the false prophet – unite
in a desperate attempt to overthrow God, but their efforts are doomed to
failure. (19:19-21 and 20:10)
Because the beast,
the antichrist, is a false messiah, he will be a counterfeit of Christ and will
even stage a false resurrection (13:14). People will follow and worship him because
they will be awed by his power and miracles (13:3-4). He will unite the world
under his leadership (13:7-8), and he will control the world economy (13:16-17).
People are impressed by power and will follow those who display it forcefully
or offer it to their followers. But those who follow the beast will only be
fooling themselves: he will use his power to manipulate others, to point to
himself, and to promote evil plans. God, by contrast, uses His infinitely
greater power to love and to build up. Don’t be misled by claims of great
miracles or reports about a resurrection or reincarnation of someone claiming
to be Christ. When Jesus returns, He will reveal Himself to everyone.
The power given to
the beast will be limited by God. He will allow the beast to exercise authority
only for a short time. Even while the beast is in power, God will still be in
control.
The beast will
conquer God’s people and rule over them, but he will not be able to harm them spiritually.
He will establish worldwide dominance and demand that everyone worship him. And
many will worship him – everyone except true believers. Refusal to worship the
beast will result in temporary suffering for God’s people, but they will be
rewarded with eternal life in the end.
The book of life is
referenced in 13:8.
In this time of
persecution, being faithful to Christ could bring imprisonment and even
execution. Some believers will be hurt or killed. But all that the beast and
his followers will be able to do to believers is harm them physically; no
spiritual harm will come to those whose faith in God is sincere. All believers
will enter God’s presence perfected and purified by the blood of the Lamb.
The times of great
persecution that John saw will provide an opportunity for believers to exercise
patient endurance and faithfulness. The tough times we face right now are also
opportunities for spiritual growth. Don’t fall into Satan’s trap and turn away
from God when hard times come. Instead, use those tough times as opportunities
for growth.
The first beast
came out of the sea, but the second beast came out of the earth. Later
identified as the false prophet, he is a counterfeit of the Holy Spirit. He
seems to do good, but the purpose of his miracle is to deceive.
Who is
the beast of Revelation?
During the future
tribulation period, the world will be ruled by a godless man presiding over an
evil governmental system. The Bible associates this end-times ruler with a
terrible beast in Revelation and in Daniel.
In Revelation 13
John sees a nightmarish vision of a dragon and two beasts. The first beast
comes out of the sea and receives power from the dragon, or Satan. This beast
is a true monstrosity: “It had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on
its horns, and on each head a blasphemous name. The beast I saw resembled a
leopard, but had feet like those of a bear and a mouth like that of a lion”
(Revelation 13:1–2). Daniel’s vision of the beast is similar in many ways to
John’s (Daniel 7:7–8, 19–27). Studying both Daniel and Revelation in tandem is
profitable.
In Revelation, the
term beast refers to two related entities. Sometimes “the beast” refers to the
end-times’ empire. The seven heads and ten horns indicate that the beast will
be a coalition of nations that rises to power to subdue the earth under Satan’s
control. Later references to “the beast” in Revelation picture an individual — the
man who is the political leader and head of the beastly empire.
The beast will
receive a deadly wound and be healed of it (Revelation 13:3). He will exert
authority over the whole world and demand worship (verses 7–8). He will wage
war against God’s people, and he will prevail against them for a time
(Revelation 13:7; Daniel 7:21). However, the beast’s time is short: according
to Revelation 13:5 and Daniel 7:25, he will only be permitted absolute
authority for 42 months (three-and-a-half years).
We believe that the
beast in Revelation is the Antichrist, the one who will “oppose and will exalt
himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets
himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God” (2 Thessalonians 2:4).
He is also called “the man of lawlessness” and “the man
doomed to destruction” (2 Thessalonians 2:3). In Daniel’s vision, the Antichrist is the
“little horn” that rises from the head of the terrifying beast (Daniel 7:8).
When the Lord
returns in judgment, He will defeat the beast and destroy his empire
(Revelation 19:19–20; cf. Daniel 7:11). The beast will be cast alive into the
lake of fire. The identity of the individual who will
become the beast of Revelation is not yet known. According to 2 Thessalonians
2:7, this man will be revealed only when God removes the restraining influence
of the Holy Spirit from the earth.
It is interesting
to compare the differing biblical visions of the kingdoms of the world. In
Daniel 2, King Nebuchadnezzar dreams of the kingdoms of the world as “a large
statue — an enormous, dazzling statue, awesome in appearance” (Daniel 2:31).
The prophet Daniel later sees a vision of the same kingdoms, except he sees
them as hideous beasts (Daniel 7). In John’s vision of the final worldly
kingdom, the empire is portrayed as a grotesque and misshapen beast. These
passages present two very different perspectives on the kingdoms mankind
builds. Man sees his creations as imposing monuments and works of art fashioned
of valuable metals. However, God’s view of the same kingdoms is that they are
unnatural monsters. And the beast of Revelation will be the worst of them all.
What is
the meaning of 666?
At the close of
Revelation 13, which discusses the beast (the Antichrist) and his false
prophet, we read, “This calls for wisdom: let the one who has understanding
calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his
number is 666” (Revelation 13:18). Somehow, the number 666 is a clue to the
identity of the beast. Revelation 13 also mentions the “mark of the beast”
(verses 16–17), and popular thought often links 666 with the mark; however, the
mark of the beast and 666 appear to be two different things. The mark
of the beast is something people must receive to buy and sell. The number 666
is somehow associated with the beast/Antichrist as “his” number.
The meaning of 666
is a mystery, and it appears that the apostle John, writing under the
inspiration of the Holy Spirit, intended it to be that way. Calculating it,
John says, requires “wisdom.” Some, using gematria (assigning a number value to
each letter of a name or word and then combining the number values to arrive at
a total number), have identified the Antichrist as various people in world
history. Some of the popular targets have been “Caesar Nero,” “Ronald Wilson
Reagan,” “Mikhail Gorbachev,” and various popes in Roman Catholic history. The
lengths some will go to in order to get a person’s name to add up to 666 are
amazing. Virtually any name can add up to 666 if enough mathematical gymnastics
are employed.
Six hundred,
sixty-six will somehow identify the beast, but precisely how 666 is connected
to the beast is not the main point of Revelation 13:18.
The Bible often
uses the number 7 to refer to God and His perfection. Traditionally, 6 is
thought to be the number of man, created on the sixth day and always “falling
short” of God. The beast/Antichrist will strive to be like God. He will likely
even claim to be God. But, just as the number 6 falls short of the number 7, so
will the beast/Antichrist, with his “trinity” of 6’s, ultimately fail in his
effort to defeat God.
Addendum:
Interestingly, in some ancient Greek manuscripts of the Book of Revelation, the
number is given as 616 instead of 666. The manuscript evidence is strongly in
favor of 666, but the alternate reading of 616 should give us pause before we
start pounding away on the calculators.
Is it
possible for a person to get the mark of the beast today?
The mark of the
beast is some kind of seal that followers of the Antichrist will take in
allegiance to him. The prophecy of Revelation 13:16–17 says that the second
beast, the false prophet, “forced all people, great and small, rich and poor,
free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads,
so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark, which is the name
of the beast or the number of its name.”
We don’t know what
this mark will look like. A while ago, some thought it was a stamp or tattoo of
the number 666. More recently, people thought it might be a bar code. Now a
popular speculation is that the mark of the beast will be an implanted microchip
that allows people to access their digital currency. But we honestly have no
way of knowing what form the mark of the beast will take.
Some people fear
that they have already taken the mark of the beast. They may have blasphemed
God at some point or made some impulsive statement of allegiance to the
Antichrist. They may worry about the chip in their credit card. Others have
been told that their act of worshiping the Lord on Sunday instead of the
Sabbath constitutes accepting the mark of the beast. There is one significant
reason why it is impossible to get the mark of the beast now: The mark
of the beast does not exist yet.
A literal reading
of Revelation and other end-times prophecy in the Bible shows that there is a
schedule for the end-times events. Daniel prophesied of seventy weeks (seventy
sets of seven years) that mark the time of God’s interaction with Israel. Sixty-nine
of those weeks have passed since Daniel’s writing. The final week will be what
we call the tribulation, which is when the Antichrist, or the beast, will rise
to power. This ruler will join together ten nations (Daniel 7:24–25;
Revelation 17:7) and make a deceptive treaty with Israel (Daniel 9). The mark
of the beast cannot exist until the beast himself is in power during the
tribulation.
Another reason
believers in Jesus Christ should not fear getting the mark of the beast now is
the rapture of the church. In the rapture, Jesus will take all believers,
living and dead, from the earth (1 Thessalonians 4:13–18; 1 Corinthians
15:50–54). Although people will still come to know Christ after the rapture,
all those who trust Jesus before the rapture will be taken to be with the Lord.
According to pretribulationism, believers who live in the church age
will never have an opportunity to receive the mark of the beast.
So, there is
nothing anyone can do today to get, take, or receive the mark of the beast.
Implanted chips, bar codes, tattoos, blaspheming, saying out loud, “I follow
the Antichrist and accept the mark of the beast” — none of these will give you
the mark of the beast. The mark of the beast cannot exist without the
beast/Antichrist demanding it.
Is it
possible for a person to be saved/forgiven after taking the mark of the beast?
The mark of the
beast is a mark that will be placed on a person’s forehead or right hand in the
end times as a sign of allegiance to the Antichrist (Revelation 13:15–18).
Further, no one will be allowed to engage in commerce without the mark
(Revelation 13:17). It appears that some form of worship of the Antichrist is
associated with receiving the mark (Revelation 14:9; 16:2), and those who
refuse to worship the image of the beast will be killed (Revelation 13:15).
The question then
arises as to whether a person who has received the mark of the beast can be
forgiven. The answer to this question seems to be “no.” Revelation
14:10–11, describing the fate of someone who takes the mark of the beast,
declares, “He also will drink the wine of God’s wrath, poured full strength
into the cup of his anger, and he will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the
presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of
their torment goes up forever and ever, and they have no rest, day or night,
these worshipers of the beast and its image, and whoever receives the mark of
its name.”
The eternal destiny
of those who take the mark of the beast is the lake of fire. Why is taking the
mark of the beast a damnable sin against God? Why would God condemn a person to
hell for taking the mark of the beast? It would appear that taking the mark of the
beast will be a blasphemous act of willful defiance against God. Receiving the
mark of the beast is essentially worshiping Satan. Those who take the mark have
made the choice to serve Satan rather than obey God and receive Christ as
Savior. When people make that decision during the tribulation, God will grant
their request to be eternally separated from Him.
