Rev 13.1-18 tells us about the the beast rising from the sea (False Messiah); the beast and his wound; the authority of the beast; his blasphemies and his war against the tzadikim (righteous); a warning to everyone; another beast (False Prophet) rising from the land and his authority; the economy is used for control by the first and second beast; the number of the False Messiah.
v 1…And I (John) stood on the sand of the seashore (of Patmos). And I saw a beast coming up out of the sea (the sea is seen as the nations-Isa 57.20 and the domain of Satan and Leviathan, who is a type of the false messiah-Job 26.12; Job 41.1-34..Leviathan; Psa 74.13. In Genesis 1, we see the “spirit of God” hovering over the waters, showing dominion. Israel was blocked by the sea escaping Egypt until Moses raised his staff (type of Messiah) over the sea. Yeshua walks on and calms the sea, again showing dominion) having ten horns and seven heads, and on his horns were seven diadems (the key to understand this is found in Dan 7.1-28) and on his heads were blasphemous names (like “God” and “Messiah” because he will impersonate them. There is a concept in Jewish thought called the “pseudo-rosh.” Rosh means “head” and God is the head of Israel. But, when Israel exchanges its true “rosh” for an another, Israel is no longer the head of the nations-Deut 28.44; Num 14.4. In the world today, Israel has done just that, relying on the United States and others for help. This scenario is what brings the false messiah to the forefront as seen in the verses in this chapter. The ten crowns on the beast are the ten kingdoms he rules at the beginning of the Birth-pains. The seven, after three are “plucked out” are what he has by the mid-point of the Birth-pains-Dan 7. 8, 20, 24).
v 2…And the beast which I saw was like a leopard (Greece-Dan 7.6), and his feet were like those of a bear (Medo-Persia-Dan 7.5), and his mouth like the mouth of a lion (Babylon-Dan 7.4. The beast is the fourth beast of Daniel’s vision, representing Rome-Dan 7.7-Leviathan. The final configuration will be a composite of these four beasts). And the dragon (Satan) gave him his power (the horns) and his throne (the diadems) and great authority (the crowns).
v 3…And I saw one of his heads (Rome, the fourth) as if (but not really) it had been slain (Rome fell, but only temporarily. There are types of the false messiah in Scripture. Satan has his head crushed, Haman is hung, Sisera has a tent peg driven through his head and Absalom gets caught by his hair (pride). Though not in the Bible, Hitler was shot in the head), and his fatal wound was healed (the ten kingdoms, or revived Rome, will come back. In Dan 9.26 it says that the “people of the prince who is to come” will destroy the temple and Jerusalem. That is a clear reference to the Romans, so the false messiah (the prince) will come out of a Revived Rome. In Jewish literature, the false messiah is called “Armillus” which is a composite of Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome. There have been many attempts to revive Rome. Charlemagne, Napoleon and Hitler tried to unite Europe. The false messiah will do it the first half of the Birth-pains). And the whole world was amazed and followed after the beast (the false messiah will not be a world leader the first half of the Birth-pains, only the last-Dan 7.25; Rev 11.2; Dan 9.27)
v 4…and they worshipped the dragon, because he gave his authority to the beast (the dragon is the power behind the beast-Psa 74.13-14; Isa 27.1; Job 41.1-6,34; Job 9.13; 26.12-13; Isa 51.9; Ezek 29.1-7; Ezek 32.1-8. Rahab, meaning prostitute, broad-wall and pride, is an idiom for Egypt, which is symbolic of Europe. Pharaoh is a type of the false messiah-Isa 19.4; Lev 24.10-14; Isa 14.29; Isa 30.6) and they worshipped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who is able to wage war with him?”
v 5… And there was given to him a mouth speaking arrogant words (eloquent speech) and blasphemies (saying he is “Jesus” and “God” are some of the false claims of apostate Christianity in Revived Rome); and authority to act for 42 months was given to him (the last three and a half years of the Birth-pains; time times and half a time; 1260 days).
v 6… And he opened his mouth in blasphemies against God (replacement theology), to blaspheme his name and his tabernacle, that is those who dwell in heaven.
v 7…And it was given to him to make war (by changing the times and seasons, the festivals, and the Torah-Dan 7.21,25) with the saints (the “tzaddikim”, intending to finally destroy the Torah observant Jewish people, but he cannot be revealed until the eschatological congregation is removed-2 Thes 2.1-3) and to overcome them; and authority over every tribe and people and tongue and nation was given to him.
v 8…And all who dwell on the earth will worship him, whose name is not written in the book of life (Dan 7.10; 12.1) of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world (this “all” is not literal but means “many.” We know that the Kings of the East and the South come against him so they don’t worship him. We also know that he fights a war with Russia and her allies, so they aren’t going along with him either).
v 9… If any one has an ear (to perceive doctrinal truth) let him hear (be instructed and obey).
v 10… If any one is destined for captivity, to captivity he goes; if any one kills with the sword, with the sword (this comes at the hands of the beast in kind, a case of the Jewish concept of “midah knegged midah” or “measure for measure”). Here is the perseverance and the faith of the saints (“tzaddikim”, here is where their faith and patience is tried, tested and evaluated-Rev 14.12. It’s going to get worse).
v 11…And I saw another beast (this is the false prophet) coming out of the earth (meaning out of society, civilization. The false messiah needs a false Elijah and the Behemoth in Job 40.15-24 is a picture) and had two horns (The biggest denomination in Christianity is Catholicism. By the second century Gentile Christianity was called the “universal” or “catholic” church. This was true up until the fourth century. Then as we go further, it divides into the eastern Church and the Western Church. These are going to come together again and all the various denominations all over the world will come together “under one roof”) like a lamb (a wolf in sheep’s clothing) and he spoke as a dragon (he is a liar and empowered by the dragon to speak as a prophet for the false messiah).
v 12…And he exercises all the authority of the first beast (false messiah) in his presence (supporting the false messiah). And he makes the earth and those who dwell in it (the unsaved, earthly minded) to worship (through blatant anti-Torah theology) the first beast whose fatal wound was healed (power restored).
v 13…And he performs great signs so that he even makes fire come down out of heaven to the earth in the presence of men (God will allow these signs because signs alone do not prove that a person is from God. The signs are meant to call attention to what that person is saying, whether or not it lines up with the Scriptures. If what he says isn’t biblical, it doesn’t matter what signs are done, he is not from God-Deut 13.1-5).
v 14…And he deceives those who dwell on the earth because of the signs (they follow the signs but didn’t test the words he was saying against the Scriptures) which was given to him to perform in the presence of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image (an icon, this is the Abomination of Desolation that will be placed in the Holy Place of the temple in Jerusalem, above the altar of incense-Matt 24.15. He declares himself God in 2 Thes 2 and 2 Chr 33.1-9 is a picture of this. Antiochus Epiphanes hated the Torah and the Jewish people. He tried to get the people to forsake it, like the false messiah will do. He was “anomos” or Torah-less, just like the false messiah will be. We believe this image will be a crucifix based on Isa 40.18-20 where an image is made with chains to wear around the neck, made in the form of a man-Isa 44.9-13 and called an abomination in Isa 44.14-19. This image is carried by Gentiles, not the Jews in Isa 46.6-7. Hezekiah destroyed the Brazen Serpent on the pole, which symbolized the crucifixion according to Yeshua in John 3. 14 because the people turned it into an idol. In other words, Isa chapters 40-48 describe an idol made into an image of a man, fastened to a tree, put in houses and worn with chains around the neck, carried, and fastened with nails and called an abomination. During the Inquisition, Jewish prayers were censored by the Catholic Church. One prayer called the “Oleynu” contained some of these verses from Isaiah 40 through 48 and the Catholics thought it was an attack on the Crucifix. Antiochus put his face on statues of Zeus. One was found and a comparison was done and it showed that it was the same face as on the Shroud of Turin. The Popes would put their face on pictures of Jesus. Pictures today are based on the Shroud of Turin. People who say they died and went to heaven have said that Jesus looked like the Shroud of Turn. There are many more reasons for this, but see the article “Abomination of Desolation” on this site for more as to why we think this image is a crucifix placed above the altar of incense in the Holy Place of the Temple) to the beast (God had already forbid this in the Torah, so we can readily see they were being led by a non-Torah observant religious leader) who had the wound of the sword and has come to life (power restored).
v 15…And there was given to him to give breath to the image of the beast that the image of the beast might even speak and cause as many as do not worship the image of the beast to be killed.
v 16… And he causes all (meaning “many”), the small (in reputation, social status) and the great (in reputation, social status), the rich and the poor, and the free men and the slaves, to be given a mark on their right hand (meaning “action”), or on their forehead (the seat of intellect and intelligence, comprehension, profession and mental assent. This is an idiom meaning “non-Torah observant”)
v 17…and that no one would be able to buy or sell, except the one who has the mark, either the name of the beast or the number of his name (this may be a literal mark, or this is spiritual. People who are not of God are marked already by what they do. The Lord uses metaphorical images to convey a meaning. Like in the Shema where he says that we should bind the commandments on our hand and they shall be as frontlets on our foreheads. This is not literal, but conveys exactly what is said in our verse. God’s commandments should be done (the hand) and on our minds (the forehead. Proverbs is full of this imagery where it says that teaching should be a wreath and ornaments around the neck-Prov 1.8-9; 3.22; 6.21; 7.2-3. In Ezekiel 9.4-6 believers were marked by God on their foreheads to be spared from judgment. It is the same here. There are many more examples of this language in the Scriptures. A Torah observant person will be “marked” by what he does, and a lawless one in the Birth-pains will be marked by what he does also so it is possible this has this meaning).
v 18… Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast (this is done through Gematria, where we get the word “Geometry” from), for the number is that of man (six, the number of man, the Hebrew letter Vav); and his number is 666 (three vavs, the number of man, would make up a counterfeit Hebrew letter “shin” which is symbolic for the name of God. This is a false way to make a Hebrew “shin.” We know that God’s name is on Jerusalem, and the three valleys there make up the letter “shin.” We also know that his name is put on the foreheads of those who believe and they are Torah observant by their actions-Rev 14.1. Satan will do the same thing with those who are not Torah observant by their actions, which is how they are marked. We are marked by what we do. So, this may not mean this is a literal mark. True believers have always been marked by what they do (the hand) and the profession (the forehead). It will be no different in the Birth-pains. Shaddai and Shalom are names of God, and they begin with the Hebrew letter “Shin.” So does the name for Satan. Let’s get into this concept a little deeper. The Abomination of Desolation is an image that is standing, set up. God commanded us not to make images of him. In Hebrew, the Abomination of Desolation is “Sikutz Somem.” The Shroud of Turin is not an image of Yeshua. The Scriptures say that he was marred and his beard plucked out. He was barely recognizable. Psa 22 says that he could see his bones from the scourging, whipped and flayed. The Shroud has coins over the eyes which is a pagan practice and not a part of Jewish burials. He was wrapped like a mummy with strips of cloth and spices were administered, like Lazarus, not wrapped in a shroud. They had to unbind him after he walked out, face cloth and all in John 11.44. This destroys the shroud. Yeshua was slain in 30 A.D. A Duke University professor named Dr. Alan Whanger did a study on statues of Zeus Kyrios meaning “Lord of Heaven”. There was statue of Zeus made in 31.A.D. according to an inscription on it and Whanger determined that the face on the statue was exactly the same as the Shroud of Turin, with 79 points of similarity and congruence. You only need 45 to 60 to prove the identity of someone. He believed that the Shroud of Turin was used as a model for this statue of Zeus. In Dan 11.31 it mentions the Abomination of Desolation. Antiochus Epiphanes set up this abomination and placed a statue of Zeus Kyrios with his face on it in the temple. This was a common practice. The Tyndale Dictionary says Antiochus did this and from that time on, about 167 B.C, statues of Zeus always carried the face of Antiochus. So, the face on the shroud matched the face on the statue. Antiochus is a type of the false messiah. Images of “Jesus” today are based on the shroud and are actually a picture of the false messiah. 2 Thes 2 says that the Lord is going to send a “strong delusion” upon the people. The false messiah will come out of Europe and Europe is considered to be “Christian.” In a Christian framework, the false messiah will declare himself to be God. When you look at pictures and statues, you are not looking at Yeshua, but the false messiah. If you think the Shroud is a picture of Yeshua, you may be participating in a delusion and a pagan rite, something forbidden by God. Stories about the shroud appear on Christian television all the time and they are helping to spread an image of the false messiah. So, an image on a crucifix is an image of the false messiah. In our opinion, the Shroud of Turin is a demon, wanting people to think that this is what Yeshua looks like. This was allowed by God as part of the delusion of 2 Thes 2. That’s why we don’t know where Moses is buried. God doesn’t want us to know what they looked like because people would make images. The false messiah will want this image to be made and Christians during the Birth-pains will recognize it as “Jesus” because they have seen his face before. Now, this false shin of v 18 will be close to the Shin of God, but it is a counterfeit. If you don’t know the Scriptures you won’t detect the difference until it is too late, which is exactly what Rev 13.18 warns us about. It is man trying to be God. In 2 Chr 9.13, 666 talents of gold went to Solomon. It is the only other verse associated with this number. In the Greek it says the number “of a man.” Could Rev 13.18 be alluding to “a man” called Solomon also?).
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