Revelation

The Beast from the Sea
The Beast from the Earth

Chapter Introduction

Chapter 12 presented the signs in heaven revealing the spiritual events going on behind the scenes and introducing the major players of this End Times scenario.  The Dragon was specifically in view and will remain spotlighted.  In chapter 13, we’ll meet two more of the major players: the Beast from the sea and the Beast from the Earth.

The whole history of the world is discovered to be but a contest between the wisdom of God and the cunning of Satan and fallen men.  The outcome of the contest is not in doubt.  (A.W. Tozer)

Revelation 13:1-4

Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time.” (Revelation 12:12)

This beast is the manifestation of woe upon the sea.

If you were to look at a NIV or NASB, they say, "The Dragon stood on the sand of the sea."  This appears to be a better translation of the sentence.  Remember that we left off chapter 12 with the dragon, Satan, enraged at being kicked out of heaven and not being able to devour Israel.  After that, he will pursue anyone who has the testimony of Jesus.  Then, the dragon stood by the sea.  Like a general standing before the field of battle conducting his business.  How did Satan do this?  The rest of Chapter 13 is going to tell us how.

We see the same language as the signs and symbols in chapter 12.  This is still the symbolic language of the sign before John.  This beast is a sign, and he rises out of the sea.  In those days, the sea was an uncontrolled place of danger and chaos.  Who could know what peril lurked below the surface?  That's what makes the sea a great symbol of the nations.  The Bible often speaks of the nations as a sea, specifically Gentile nations.  These nations rise and fall, and danger and chaos lurk.  What brave new king or prince will rise?  The rising and falling seemed random, somewhat repeatable – each proving they could not rule righteously.

We know this beast rises from the sea of nations and peoples at the beginning of the tribulation.  He rises from the vast and somewhat common.  From the turmoil and disorder of an uncontrollable sea rises a beast that proves to be extraordinary.  He’ll be famous for doing what no one has ever been able to do:  bring a covenant of peace to the Middle East.  He won't look like a beast at all.  To those on Earth, he will look like a savior, a great leader, a peacemaker, and a political leader.

John sees him symbolically, and this symbol reveals the character and nature of a very real man.  He will seem very nondescript and will rise almost spontaneously from nowhere.  Yet we know this man is an emissary of Satan.  This man becomes the hands, feet, and evil mind that will do Satan's work.  The dragon stands by the sea, plotting and deceiving, and the beast rises to power.

This beast has seven heads and ten horns.  On his horns are ten crowns.  On his head, a blasphemous name exists.  This beast has many similarities with the Dragon of chapter 12.  As the dragon will have seven heads with ten horns, so will this beast.  However, we saw only seven diadems on the dragon's horns, while this beast has ten diadems. Otherwise, the beast and the dragon are indistinguishable.

In the book of Daniel, God answered Daniel's prayer by showing him a vision of the great kingdoms of man throughout history.  The first kingdom was like a lion, the second like a bear, and the third like a leopard.  With each successive kingdom, many attributes, especially the evil ones, carried on to the next. 

• The lion was Babylon
• The bear Medo-Persia
• The leopard was Greece

Israel had persevered through each of these kingdoms and more.  In studies of nations, there are patterns and cycles that every nation is subject to, except Israel.  They stand apart, or should we say they are set apart.  They refuse to assimilate into the quagmire of humanity.  They were regathered to Israel in May of 1948, rocking the world of many scholars who had long since given up.  However, God’s not done with Israel until Jesus comes again.

In the bear, you can find traces of the lion.  In the leopard, you see the lion, the bear, and so on.  For example, many false gods and goddesses can be traced through these kingdoms.  The names changed with the kingdoms, yet these false gods' character and nature were the same because they came from the same place.  You see this in Ashtoreth, Isis, Venus, Aphrodite, Diana, and many others.  This shouldn't surprise us.

This final beast is like a leopard, bear, and lion.  This points us right back to Daniel.  The kingdoms are listed as the lion, bear, leopard, and terrible beast.  In Revelation, the beast is first, and he is like the leopard, bear, and lion.  The order is reversed.  Some suggest this is because Daniel is looking forward toward those kingdoms when he wrote while John is viewing them from the other direction in his vision.

Here's what Daniel saw in the fourth beast:

After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, exceedingly strong. It had huge iron teeth; it was devouring, breaking in pieces, and trampling the residue with its feet. It was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns. ⁸ I was considering the horns, and there was another horn, a little one, coming up among them, before whom three of the first horns were plucked out by the roots. And there, in this horn, were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking pompous words. (Daniel 7:7-8)

The beast we see here in Revelation is the same beast of Daniel.   This is the final kingdom of man, the final fallen kingdom that rises from the chaos and confusion.  It is the culmination of all previous kingdoms, the capstone of humanism.  It will be a kingdom of the spiritually lost and confused. That chaos and confusion is part of the turmoil of the sea.  It may well be caused by a great war or from the rapture of the church.  Satan will mount his final seven-year battle against God and mankind, and he will work partly through the hands of this beast.  This is how people will come to follow another god, another way.  They will be deceived by this great world leader who will turn out to be a dreadful and terrible beast, exceedingly strong with iron teeth for devouring, breaking in pieces.  This beast, this kingdom, and all its evil ways have lurked beneath the surface for thousands of years, always at work, always working against God's plan and purpose. 

This beast becomes hard to distinguish from the dragon because they are nearly identical. This beast exists for one purpose, the purpose of evil: to lie, steal, kill, destroy, and lead souls to hell. It cannot alter God’s plans; it can only attach individuals. The beast is the tangible and visible manifestation of Satan during the seven-year End Time scenario. 

Some see this beast as the person of the Antichrist, while others see it as a system or nation.  This beast is the AntiChrist leader of a beast kingdom.  They are one and the same.

One of the heads, one of the powers of this beast, was mortally wounded, we are told, and the deadly wound is healed.  Most believe this world leader is killed by a head wound and then resurrected.  It's not hard to imagine.  This man is a counterfeit Christ, an instead of Christ, the Anti-Christ.  He will rise again and probably do it in three days, not just copying Christ but mocking Him.  When he rises from the dead, the world will be enamored with him and follow him.  This will strengthen his hold on the deceived.

Behind the scenes, Satan stands by the sea, conducting his symphony of evil.

There was a day when I would have said I don't think people would knowingly worship Satan.  I’m not sure of that now.  The world is so full of hatred and spite.  People do many things today I would have never dreamed possible.  I don’t think they will care who he is as long as it benefits them or serves their purpose.  This man will seem too good to be true.  This great beast will have all the answers.  Every day, people follow demons and false gods of this world.  The beast will lead them to Satan.  This will appear as a great victory for Satan in this war. 

The words of Paul-Henri Spaak (1899 - 1972) are chilling.  He was a former Belgian Prime Minister and one of the principal architects of the European Union.

 "We do not want another committee, we have too many already.  What we want is a man of sufficient stature to hold the allegiance of all people, and to lift us out of the economic morass into which we are sinking.

Send us such a man, and be he god or devil, we will receive him."

***

Who is like this beast?  Who can make war against such a great kingdom and this great man?  This is a parody of several Old Testament passages asking the rhetorical question of Yahweh:

“Who is like You, O LORD, among the gods?

Who is like You, glorious in holiness,

Fearful in praises, doing wonders? (Ex 15:11)

This displays the great deception the beast will bring upon the world.  This king and kingdom will be a source of hope for people desiring life on their terms.  They will long for answers and a plan.  This man will meet their needs, and they will fall before him. 

Note:  See also Psalm 35:10 and Isaiah 40:25.

Revelation 13:5-8

This section further alludes to Daniel 7. The message to first-century Christians, as well as believers today, is that God has not lost control. He remains sovereign. This beast will be given authority for a time. He will be motivated by the enraged Dragon, who knows his time is short.

The beast will use his authority to::

• Speak great things:  These great things are extraordinary things that get the attention of those dwelling on earth.  Daniel said he would speak “pompous words,” which makes us think he is boasting of himself while blaspheming God.
• Speak Blasphemies:  This is speaking openly against God.  This talk will be embraced by a fallen world.  His words against God will be bold, without pause or hesitation.  This will empower the hardhearted to join him in agreement.  This beast will speak against all that God stands for.  This means the beast will despise love, law, liberty, family, marriage, morality, grace, kindness, charity, joy, and much more.  These are all God's institutions and ideas.  The attacks on these things have already begun. 

The beast is given the authority to work out his agenda for 42 months.  His authority will be over every tribe, tongue, and nation.  The sides will be clearly distinguishable.  There are the saints, whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life, and there are those who are not found in the book that worship the beast.  We see Christ and the Antichrist.  There are no other choices.  The beast will make war against the saints who will not worship him. 

As he speaks, he disrespects God’s name, His tabernacle, and those who dwell in heaven. 

1. The beast is a believer in God.  His act of disrespect is an admission of his belief in God.  It’s his belief that moves him to such outrageous rebellion and disrespect.  To disrespect His name is to disrespect His character.
2. What is the tabernacle of God?  There was no temple when John wrote this.  We repeatedly see evidence there will be a rebuilt temple at the end.  But John said “tabernacle,” which means tent.   It was John who wrote, “And the Word became flesh and tabernacled among us.”  Was John referring to Jesus, the tabernacle of God?
3. He hates those who dwell in heaven.  Beginning with God, his created servants, and all the saints who trust in Him.  A large part of those heaven dwellers are the church who escaped the wrath to come when the Lord raptured them. 

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened.  Professing to be wise, they became fools,  and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things.  (Romans 1:18-23)

I think this man will sound like a politician, promising jobs, prosperity, and change.  He will be slick, a smooth talker with authority.  He will offer people a means to suppress the truth.  He will make it easy for them to ignore what is manifest in them.  He will offer them hope in a world crashing down around them.

It's through the beast that these things will be done.  The anti-Christ is the means by which Satan conducts his plans.  And Satan stands by the sea as a general on the field of battle.  God will allow the beast to martyr those who rejected the Dragon’s agenda but instead trusted in the shed blood of Christ.  He is, in fact, empowered them to have authority over the world, of those who worship and follow him. 

This beast, the antichrist, is the leader of a one-world government.  All the nations and all the people will be called to bow before him.  The pressure to bow down and conform will be intense.  The lines are being drawn even today.  The day is coming when professing Christ will be a death sentence.  To choose the beast and subsequently worship him and his ways will be Antichrist. 

The freedom we have to seek the Lord is amazing.  The opportunity to openly pursue God and be transformed by Him is slowly being taken away.  Sadly, many churches are passing on that opportunity and surrendering to the culture.

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, ⁴ 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)

Revelation 13:9-10

What else are ears for if not to hear?  However, mankind has a unique and quite developed ability to practice selective hearing.  Ears become filters to cancel out anything we don’t want to hear or upsets our plans.  A solemn warning is issued that should not be filtered.  If you follow the beast and lead other people into captivity and the sword, you will be held accountable.  Even though all these end times events are ordained by God, it doesn't remove the personal responsibility from each person. 

Why would a warning like this be issued from John to the church?

Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour.  They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us. (1 John 2:18-19)

It may appear that the beast is in total control.  It may appear that the dragon is sovereign as he stands by the sea and conducts the affairs of the world.  It will probably appear that one must bow before this man in order to survive.  It will take incredible faith and patience to survive as a saint in those days.  Persecution will be severe, suffering extreme, and many will die for their faith.  This warning and exhortation is that whatever happens, under whatever threat, stay faithful to the Lord.

Revelation 13:11-12

Another beast comes on the scene.  While the first came from the sea, this one came from the Earth. 

Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time.” (Revelation 12:12)

This beast is the manifestation of woe upon the earth.  This beast has two horns like a lamb. 

And I looked, and behold, in the midst of the throne and of the four living creatures, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as though it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent out into all the earth. ⁷ Then He came and took the scroll out of the right hand of Him who sat on the throne. (Revelation 5:6-7)

As disciples of Jesus, we follow a lamb who rose from the earth.  This beast rises from the earth and speaks like a lamb in a parody of the real Lamb.  This beast, portraying a lamb, is the antichrist spirit.  He speaks like Satan and has the same authority as the first beast.  This second beast is many times called the False Prophet.  This false prophet leads the world to worship the first beast.

The beast “from the earth,” as opposed to “from the sea” (13:1), is often thought to be the local provincial council who supervised the imperial cult in Asia, as opposed to the Roman administration. It was called the commune Asiae, headed by the Asiarchs from local towns (see comment on Acts 19:31). John may not imply any great difference between earth and sea (cf. Dan 7:3, 17). The “horned lamb” probably parodies Christ (Rev 5:6); the two horns might reflect the power of ancient Persia in Daniel 8:6. Fire from heaven parodies and so apparently relativizes the miraculous power of God’s witnesses (Rev 11:5), as Pharaoh’s magicians tried to do with Moses’ miracles as long as they could (Ex 7:11, 22; 8:7, 18; cf. 2 Kings 18:33–35).

 Keener, C. S. (1993).

The IVP Bible background commentary:

New Testament (Re 13:11–12). InterVarsity Press.

The two beasts testify of the Dragon, speaking like him.  They appear as a parody of the two witnesses God will have in Jerusalem for 42 months.  The dragon and these two beasts also appear as an unholy trinity.  The Dragon likens himself to God, the Antichrist likens himself to Jesus, and the False Prophet as a kind of unholy spirit pointing to the work of the beast and Satan, the authority behind him.

The resume of the Beast of the Earth:

1. Authority and power are displayed “in the presence” of the first beast (12, 14)
2. The worship of the first beast appears as a result of the deadly wound being healed (3, 4, 12).
3. The healing may have led to many great signs and wonders.
4. He commands followers to build an image, he would give breath to it.  By this breath, it would speak and kill those who would not worship the beast.
5. He institutes the mark of the beast. 

This false prophet will bring another level of deception by performing false signs and wonders.  It's not hard to imagine lost people proclaiming, "He must be from God. Did you see what he did?  He called down fire from heaven."  By calling down fire, the false prophet associates himself with Elijah and parodies the two witnesses who did the same.  He could also be mocking the tongues of fire of Pentecost.  In reality, he is nothing original, driven by pride, he only counterfeits God’s miracles, much like Pharaoh’s magicians.  The signs and wonders are authentic; they’re just not from God, and they’re not original. 

All those who dwell on Earth will be deceived.  No one will have seen anything like this.  In addition, an image was made of the Antichrist.  In John’s day, this wasn’t anything uncommon.  Several of the Roman empowers came to think of themselves as gods.  There were temples in many of the major cities built to worship the Caesars.  The image set up in these temples gave them a connection to their god as they burned a pinch of incense and hailed him. 

Possibly hyperbolic language used to express the authority that the false prophet and the images had. The command to worship and the threat upon the disobedient was so real that the images themselves seemed to be demanding allegiance.

Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S.,

Custis, M., Ritzema, E., … Bomar, D. (2012, 2016).

 Faithlife Study Bible (Re 13:15). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.

Somehow, the false prophet gives breath to this image.  By that, it is able to speak and even punish those who don't worship it.  There's no way of knowing if this is some kind of supernatural idol or some technological statue.  Either way, it's a spiritual idol.   This is one of those passages we couldn’t imagine how it could be fulfilled.  Now, with computers, robotics, or AI,  this idol will seem intelligent and present a kind of false omniscience. 

This is probably the idol set up in the temple at the midpoint of the tribulation, the abomination that causes desolation.  As the world is called to worship the Antichrist, the Jews offering sacrifices in the temple will cease.  This idol will become a permanent presence in the temple that was created for the worship of Yahweh.  The holy of holies was where God's presence once descended.  That same place at the midpoint will be used to worship the Antichrist.  The holy of holies may well become unholy of unholiest with this idol of the Antichrist set up there.

Revelation 13:16-17

We’ve only seen this idea of marking people come to fruition in the last few years. It’s becoming normalized and advancing its technology. This is strange because many resisted the idea of making voters identify themselves, but they embraced the idea of marking people who took a vaccine (to identify those that didn’t).

Similarly, the mark of this beast doesn’t seem to be about the Dragon and his beasts marking their own but about identifying those who are not his so he may kill or persecute them.  Our justice system has become politicized to support this kind of persecution.  Look for this to get worse to the point of being normal when the beast comes upon the scene. 

This beast will force worship through fear and coercion.  It’s not farfetched at all and may be closer than we think.  We are quickly moving toward a one-world government (if we aren’t already there).  We are moving toward a cashless culture where authorities can control who can spend money and how it can be spent.  People will line up for this mark.  It will seem harmless.  It won’t appear to be worship of Satan or the Antichrist. 

This mark of the beast is probably the most widely known part of the end-times scenario.  It's also the most widely speculated, which means there's a lot of junk out there.  Under the government of this unholy trinity, one must have a mark to function in the end time's economy.  This second beast, the False Prophet brings this about.  It doesn't matter who you are or how much money you have; you will need a mark to buy or sell.

Once again, we see Satan has no original thoughts.  This idea of marking his followers came from God.  We saw specifically that God marked the 144,000 on the forehead back in chapter 7. 

Look at another place, though.

"Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one! 5 You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength."

"And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. ⁷ You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. ⁸ You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes."  (Deuteronomy 6:6-8, 14)

God called His people to be marked by His word. The Jews literally wore it on their hands and as frontlets between their eyes, and they wore Tefillin that bound the word to their hands. It's interesting that the false prophet requires something very similar.

The word for mark is just what it sounds like: a mark or a stamp.  Whatever this is will reveal ownership and allegiance to the beast.  There are three acceptable things:

1. You will have to have the mark
2. Or the name of the beast
3. Or the number of his name.

The number of a name was well understood at that time. In Greek and Hebrew, letters were associated with a numerical value. For example, if A=1 and B=2 and C=3 and so on, then Doug would be 4 15 21  7......or 47. The number in my name would be 47. Of course, the values weren't that simple, and the Greek alphabet is different from ours.

What do you do with this?  Here is wisdom.  If you have understanding, you calculate.  If one could figure out the name behind the number, then one would know the identity of the Antichrist.  This is a popular topic of rampant speculation.  I'm guessing we won't figure out any more than anyone else in the last 2000 years.

It's entertaining to see some of the stuff people have come up with.  The Roman numeral for 666 is DCLXVI.

• Six times six is 36; if you then add all the numbers from 1 to 36, it equals 666. So, they say, the beast is a 36-year-old Roman man.
• Others have taken the numbers of names and thought they found the antichrist.  People have named popes, John Knox, Martin Luther, Napoleon, Hitler, Mussolini, Stalin. 
• I remember hearing Ronald Wilson Reagan since there are 6 letters in each name. 

You could spend hours studying all the tortured math and contortion of facts people have put on the internet, all to match the number 666 to a man.  There are better ways to spend your time.  Spend it reading and studying the word.

John wrote, "Here is wisdom."  It isn't wise to spend endless hours of speculation on who this man is.  The information given is for those who will live through that time.  When this man rises to power, those who have wisdom will be able to associate this man, whoever he is, with the number of his name.  This call to calculate and have wisdom is for the Saint in that day.  What we need to know is the power behind this number.  Satan stands by the sea and conducts his war against God’s creatures and creations.

Satan will stand by the great sea of nations.  One will rise that will be the "instead of Christ".  And another will rise from the earth dwellers and "instead of spirit".  Satan, the Antichrist, and the False Prophet make up the unholy Trinity.  This unholy trinity will deceive and lie and destroy.  They will be very successful, but their time is short.  This same spirit is at work today.  And the world is rushing to its divine appointment with the end.

©2005 Doug Ford, revised and updated in 2007, 2012,2020, 2024