The Terrible Day of the Lord-The Little Horn-1
While we have studied the beast and the appearance of the ‘little horn’, we must now make sure we know his traits, characteristics, and methods of deceit and enslavement. He will not tolerate any dissension, opposition, or disobedience to his absolute mandates. This is not a democratic leader or one who rules thru mutual agreements, but an absolute totalitarianism dictator. We will search out this information from Revelation and Daniel
Daniel 9:26 And after sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself. And the people of the ruler who shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. And the end of it shall be with the flood, and ruins are determined, until the end shall be war.
We begin near the end with his destruction of the city of Jerusalem and the sanctuary. Who hates the nation of Israel, the people of God, the City of Jerusalem, and the Temple or Tabernacle of God more than Satan?
9:27 And he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week. And in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the offering to cease, and on a corner of the altar desolating abominations, even until the end. And that which was decreed shall be poured on the desolator.
Here we read that he starts with a peaceful proposition, that after a few years he violates and rescinds. So he lies and deceives from the beginning of his public reign. In doing so, he convinces most (upwards of 95%) of the world to follow him.
John 8:44 You are of the Devil as father, and the lusts of your father you will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and did not abide in the truth because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks of his own, for he is a liar and the father of it.
This one who speaks lies is the ‘little horn’ the antichrist who is empowered and controlled by the Devil. What are his other traits and plans?
Daniel 8:23 And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors have come to the full, a king, fierce of face, and skilled at intrigues, shall stand up.
8:24 And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power. And he shall destroy marvelously, and shall prosper and work, and destroy the mighty and the holy people.
8:25 And also through his understanding, he shall cause deceit to succeed in his hand. And he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many. He also shall stand up against the Ruler of rulers. But he shall be broken without a hand.
Here we find more on the antichrist’s true nature. He is a king, a ruler. He is skilled at deceit, which is from his true father, and has a fierce face. He has an evil nature that will be displayed whenever he is not fully followed in blind obedience.
He is very powerful, so powerful he reigns unopposed. But, his power is all sourced from the Devil. By his dishonest claims for peace, he will lure many to their own destruction. He will even challenge God in public, in effect, denying His existence. His power will be used to subjugate the world to his desires for worship and honor.
His true goal is to destroy all of God’s people. The powerful and the holy will be pursued, persecuted, and destroyed.
Daniel 7:7 After this I looked in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, frightening and terrifying, and very strong. And it had great iron teeth; it devoured and broke in pieces, and stamped the rest with its feet. And it was different from all the beasts before it; and it had ten horns.
The antichrist will trace his heritage from this fourth beast. He will arise from within these 10 horns or nations.
7:23 And he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom on earth, which shall be different from all kingdoms and shall devour the whole earth, and shall trample it and crush it.
7:24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise. And another shall arise after them. And he shall be different from the first, and he shall humble three kings.
7:25 And he shall speak words against the Most High, and shall wear out the saints of the Most High, and plot to change times and laws. And they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and one-half time.
Here we find more confirmation of his tremendous power, his evil intentions, his plans, and his history. He is different from all prior kings or rulers. He comes out of one of these 10 kingdoms or nations. He will have defeated 3 kings that may have tried to oppose him. Not because they are part of the holy, but that they are vying for power and position.
He will work to alter times and laws, mostly God’s times and laws. The world has already challenged and changed most of them.
God has allowed him to have a very time constrained rule, but it will still be terrifying to those he hates.
We will continue next time.
The Terrible Day of the Lord-Satan's Leaders in Rebellion-8
We left off last time with the ‘little horn’ coming out from the four kings following the terrible attack by the he-goat. Who are these kings, who is this he-goat, who is this ‘little horn’? God did not let this be a complete mystery to Daniel or to us.
Daniel 8:15 And it happened when I, even I Daniel, had seen the vision, and sought for the meaning, then, behold, there stood before me the form of a man. 8:16 And I heard a man's voice between the banks of Ulai, which called and said, Gabriel, make this one understand the vision.
Who gives orders or assignments to Gabriel? Could it be Michael or is it God?
8:17 So he came near beside my place. And when he came, I was afraid and fell on my face. But he said to me, Understand, O son of man, for the vision is for the time of the end. 8:18 And as he was speaking with me, I was stunned, on my face toward the ground. But he touched me and set me upright.
All too often angels (heavenly messengers) are both ignored and trivialized. They are depicted as cuddly cherubs at Valentine’s Day, as female comforters, as winged protectors, etc. You can find them in paintings, sculptures, cards, murals, pageants, and in movies. God has not given us permission to try and portray them, in fact, He has said the opposite.
How did this affect Daniel? He fainted and fell to the ground.
Exodus 20:2 I am Jehovah your God, who has brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. 20:3 You shall have no other gods before
20:4 You shall not make to yourselves any graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in the heavens above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.
20:5 You shall not bow yourself down to them, nor serve them.
For I Jehovah your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the sons to the third and fourth generation of those that hate me, 20:6 and showing mercy to thousands of those that love Me and keep My commandments.
No images of any kind. Never! Not even if it is by some famous artist or in a ‘church’! Angel networks, personal angels, names of angels, and praying to or soliciting angels are all abominations to the only true GOD.
8:19 And he said, Behold, I will make you know what shall happen in the last end of the indignation. For it is for the time appointed for the end.
This is still coming in its entirety, but was initiated in history.
8:20 The ram which you saw having two horns are the kings of Media and Persia.
The beasts in the other prophecies are here disclosed.
8:21 And the shaggy goat is the king of Greece. And the great horn between his eyes is the first king.
This is Alexander the Great who arguably was the most successful, charismatic military leader of history.
8:22 And as for that being broken, and four stood up in its place; four kingdoms shall stand up out of the nation, but not in its power.
This is also history as Alexander died young, most likely from his evil lifestyle. None went to his children, but to his four ‘generals’.
8:23 And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors have come to the full, a king, fierce of face, and skilled at intrigues, shall stand up.
This is the ‘little horn’ mentioned in Daniel 7. Daniel 7:8 I was thinking about the horns, and behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom three of the first horns were uprooted. And behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things.
8:24 And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power. And he shall destroy marvelously, and shall prosper and work, and destroy the mighty and the holy people.
8:25 And also through his understanding, he shall cause deceit to succeed in his hand. And he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many. He also shall stand up against the Ruler of rulers. But he shall be broken without a hand.
Out of all of these kingdoms will arise this last kingdom ruled by this last king or ruler. He will succeed on a platform of lies and demonic total control. He will succeed in killing off both the mighty and the holy, that is true Christians; not Muslims or Hindus or Atheists or Spiritualists or any of the false, liberal, social, prosperity gospel mis-believers.
8:26 And the vision of the evening and the morning which was told is true. But you shall shut up the vision; for it shall be for many days.
This did not happen in Daniel’s day, nor during the time of Jesus Christ on earth. But now, some 2000 years after Jesus, it seems to be coming into these days.
8:27 And I Daniel fainted, and was sick for days. Afterward I rose up, and did the king's business. And I was amazed at the vision, but there was no understanding.
Again, Daniel was sickened by what he was allowed to see, even with the explanation given by Gabriel.
More on this ‘little horn’ next time.
The Terrible Day of the Lord-Satan's Leaders in Rebellion-7
I skipped number 5 in my counting so don’t think you missed one. We have now studied Daniel 7 & Revelation 13 on this beast, but one more chapter is available to both confirm this beast but also amaze the world on God’s perfect knowledge of past, present, and future. In fact, most of the unbelieving and mis-believing world proclaims that this chapter was written after the fact, not hundreds of years before that event.
Fortunately, God has already told us that He alone knows and controls the future, not the globalists, the socialists, the elitists, or the World Economic Forum, although they maintain and believe that they are in control.
Numbers 23:19 God is not a man that He should lie, neither the son of man that He should repent. Has He said, and shall He not do it? Or has He spoken, and shall He not make it good?
Isaiah 46:9 Remember former things from forever; for I am God, and no other is God, even none like Me, 46:10 declaring the end from the beginning, and from the past things which were not done, saying, My purpose shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure; 46:11 calling a bird of prey from the east, the man of my purpose from a far country. Yes, I have spoken, I will also cause it to come; I have formed; yes, I will do it.
Psalms 89:34 I will not break My covenant, nor change the thing that has gone out of My lips.
Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ the same yesterday and today and forever.
While all of us should already know this truth, it is good to reaffirm our understanding with the very words of God. What can we learn from Daniel 8?
Daniel 8:1 In the third year of the reign of King Belshazzar a vision appeared to me, to me, Daniel, after that which appeared to me at the first. 8:2 And in a vision I looked. And it happened when I looked, I was at Shushan the palace, which is in the prvince of Elam. And in a vision I looked, and I was by the Ulai Canal.
This is the third year, while Daniel 7 was the first year. We should all consider the very accurate and specific manner in which Daniel provides for the occasion of this vision. It is not abstract or generalized.
Dan 8:3 Then I lifted up my eyes, and looked. And behold, a ram with two horns stood before the canal having two horns, and the two horns were high, but one was higher than the other, and the higher came up last. 8:4 I saw the ram pushing westward and northward and southward; so that no beasts could stand before him, nor any that could deliver out of his hand. But he did according to his will, and became great.
As with Daniel 7 and Revelation 13, God used animals to depict kingdoms. Why? Not sure, but God rewards those who seek to know and understand His Word. So constant searching and studying will be rewarded by God.
8:5 And as I was watching, behold, a he-goat came from the west, over the face of the all earth, and did not touch the ground. And the he goat had an outstanding horn between his eyes. 8:6 And he came to the ram that had two horns, which I had seen standing before the river, and ran to him in the fury of his power. 8:7 And I saw him come close beside the ram, and he was moved with anger against him, and struck the ram and shattered his two horns. And there was no power in the ram to stand before him. But he threw him down to the ground and stamped on him. And none could deliver the ram out of his hand.
This would be a very disturbing scene to Daniel as it should be to us. The fury and power of this attack is terrifying. It reveals just how kingdoms are possessed to gain power and control over others. Nothing has changed in that regard. The globalist world today seeks to control, but many within don’t realize that once in control the leaders no longer need them either.
8:8 Then the he-goat became very great. And when he was strong, the great horn was broken. And in its place came up four outstanding ones towards the four winds of the heavens.
8:9 And out of one of them came forth a little horn, which became very great, toward the south and toward the east and toward the bountiful land.
8:10 And it became great, even to the host of heaven. And it made fall some of the host and of the stars to the ground, and trampled them.
8:11 Yea, he magnified himself, even to the ruler of the host, and the daily sacrifice was taken away by him, and the place of his sanctuary was cast down.
8:12 And an army was given to him against the daily sacrifice because of transgression, and it cast the truth to the ground. And it worked and succeeded.
This powerful kingdom came to an end and four weaker kings followed. Out of them will eventually come this ‘little horn’ which is mentioned in Daniel 7 and may also be the ‘another beast’ in Revelation 13. He became great toward the south and east and to the bountiful land, which can only refer to the land we now know as Israel. He takes away the daily sacrifice and casts down the sanctuary. He also casts truth to the ground, that is, only lies and deceit are spoken. This is censure-ship of the truth and silencing all who would oppose his demonic reign.
We are seeing this unfold right before our eyes today, with all the ‘social media’ tyrants refusing to allow anyone to publish or post anything that calls to question the election or the true cause and purpose of this ‘global pandemic’.
8:13 Then I heard a certain holy one speaking, and another holy one said to that one who spoke, Until when shall the vision last, concerning the daily sacrifice and the transgression that astounds, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trampled? 8:14 And he said to me, For two thousand, three hundred evenings and mornings. Then the sanctuary shall be vindicated.
Daniel is now given a timeline as to how long this terrible reign will continue. While there is vast disagreement as to the real times of this passage, we can be certain that is of a God limiting duration. We also can read that God will vindicate His Temple, display His power, and reveal how all of this brings glory and honor to Him.
What countries are included in this vision? Next time, God will tells us.
The Terrible Day of the Lord-Satan/s Leaders in Rebellion-6
First, a correction. I mistakenly used Lithuania while I intended to insert Ukraine as Russia’s current target to reclaim as their own. Now onto to today’s study. We left with Daniel’s dream which entailed 4 beasts, which is somewhat different from his interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream in chapter 2. First, what did this dream also reveal?
Daniel 7:9 I watched until the thrones were set in place, and the Ancient of Days sat, whose robe was white as snow, and the hair of His head like the pure wool. His throne was like flames of fire, and His wheels like burning fire.
7:10 A stream of fire went out and came out from before Him. A thousand thousands served Him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him. The judgment was set, and the books were opened.
7:11 Then I was looking because of the voice of the great words which the horn spoke. I watched until the beast was slain, and his body was destroyed and given to the burning flame.
7:12 And the rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away. Yet their lives were made longer for a season and time.
7:13 I saw in the night visions, and behold, One like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of Days, and they brought Him near before Him.
7:14 And dominion and glory was given Him, and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations and languages, should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which shall not pass away, and His kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.
In the middle of Daniel’s dream we come to the end of time, while being in the middle of time. We read that this terrible beast is slain physically and all power was removed from them. Then our glorified High Priest and King will take His rightful place over all of creation. This should calm our fears even as we read on.
Daniel 7:15 I Daniel was distressed in my spirit in its body, and the visions of my head troubled me. 7:16 And I came near one of those who stood by, and asked him the truth of all this. So he told me, and made me know the meaning of the things. 7:17 These four great beasts are four kings; they shall arise out of the earth. 7:18 But the saints of the Most High shall take the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever, even forever and ever.
Even though Daniel trusts in God, he is still distressed by what is being revealed to him. Yes, it all eventually ends well in human terminology, but the process is full of terror, persecution, and destruction.
7:19 Then I wanted to know the truth of the fourth beast, which was different from all the others, very frightening, whose teeth were of iron, and his nails of bronze; who devoured, broke in pieces, and stamped the rest with his feet; 7:20 and of the ten horns that were in his head, and of the other which came up, and before whom three fell; even of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth speaking very great things, whose appearance was greater than his fellows.
Daniel skips right thru the first three kingdom or beasts to go to the most fearsome, powerful, ruthless, and evil of them all. Much like John’s vision in Revelation 12, we again see ten horns.
Revelation 12:3 And another sign was seen in the heavens. And behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on his heads!
Here we see that the terrifying beast in Daniel 7 is described as a great red dragon. Dragon is a term uniquely applied to Satan himself.
7:21 I watched, and that horn made war with the saints and overcame them 7:22 until the Ancient of Days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the Most High. And the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom.
7:23 And he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom on earth, which shall be different from all kingdoms and shall devour the whole earth, and shall trample it and crush it.
7:24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise. And another shall arise after them. And he shall be different from the first, and he shall humble three kings.
7:25 And he shall speak words against the Most High, and shall wear out the saints of the Most High, and plot to change times and laws. And they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and one-half time.
What have we just read? This beast/dragon will make war against the saints. That is us! This war will continue up to the very second coming of our King. He will devour or take complete control and dominate over the whole world.
Again in vs. 25 we read of his blasphemous tirades against God and relentless attacks on the people of God. He will change the Law, the conditions of God’s worship, and redirect everything toward himself. This is Satan’s lifelong desire and pursuit. He will not tolerate or permit any other worship.
7:26 But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his rulership, to cut off and to destroy until the end. 7:27 And the kingdom and rulership, and the greatness of the kingdom under all the heavens, shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom. And all kingdoms shall serve and obey Him.
He will come to an end, a terrible end of his reign but only the beginning of his eternal punishment. Now all the kingdoms will serve our King forever and ever. Never again will Satan rule the world, but after the Millennial kingdom, he will get one more disastrous try and fail. So why do we worry?
7:28 Here is the end of the matter. As for me Daniel, my thoughts troubled me much, and my face changed on me. But I kept the matter in my heart.
If Daniel remained troubled, so should we. Persecution is not something most are comfortable with especially in the US. We are not used to it, although it is very common is the worldwide church today. Persecution has permeated history throughout the world and is often cited as the very reason the early Puritans and pilgrims took the dangerous risk to come to this new land. Over half died in the very first winter!
But, from their sacrifice and trust in God, we still have a country that has been blessed by God and are somewhat free to worship Him. At least for now with ungodly and unconstitutional restrictions.
Give God all the praise, honor, glory, thanks, and worship He alone deserves.
The Terrible Day of the Lord-Satan's Leaders in Rebellion-4
Of course we know that Satan has a multitude of servants, both spiritual and physical. Since we also know that he will deceive the whole world (Revelation 12:9), we should not be surprised of what the world is coming too in our time.
Daniel 7:1 In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel had a dream and visions of his head on his bed. Then he wrote the dream and gave the sum of the matters.
Here we find out the time of this dream and that Daniel himself wrote it out. This gives us the prophetic reference that many deny.
7:2 Daniel spoke and said, In my vision by night I was looking: and behold, the four winds of the heavens were stirring up the Great Sea. 7:3 And four great beasts came up from the sea, different from one another.
One common thread from Daniel to Revelation is the number of four kingdoms. While often described somewhat differently, there are just 4 of significance.
7:4 The first was like a lion and had eagle's wings. I watched until its wings were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth and made to stand on its feet like a man. And a man's heart was given to it.
Since God revealed this to Daniel for help in the future, we must seriously consider how it may have already been played out in history and continuing through history.
The nation that has for hundreds, even thousands of years, that has been associated with the lion is the UK. The wings being plucked out could very well be the US.
7:5 And behold another beast, a second, like a bear. And it raised itself up on one side, and it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. And they said this to it: Arise, eat up much flesh.
Of course, most would consider Russia being the bear. Interestingly, Russia is once again trying to regain some of its prior dominance over territory that they had lost. Lithuania is one of the three currently being pressured to come back under ‘mother’ Russia.
7:6 After this I saw, and lo, another, like a leopard, which had four wings of a bird on its back. The beast also had four heads; and rulership was given to it.
Germany is the leopard and has proceeded through 4 kingdom changes. We all remember that Hitler’s reign was the third Reich, so now they are in their fourth Reich or kingdom.
7:7 After this I looked in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, frightening and terrifying, and very strong. And it had great iron teeth; it devoured and broke in pieces, and stamped the rest with its feet. And it was different from all the beasts before it; and it had ten horns. 7:8 I was thinking about the horns, and behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom three of the first horns were uprooted. And behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things.
Here we come to all the controversy and will need more time to search out the truth. But, the ten horns represent 10 kingdoms. They are somehow all part of this 4th beast. They could represent 10 provinces or ‘states’ within this dangerous, strong political system.
The little horn will be the one to watch as history unfolds in front of our eyes in today’s efforts to implement the great reset.
More next time.
The Terrible Day of the Lord-Satan's Leaders in Rebellion-3
As we read in Revelation 13, the beast has been described in terms of the characteristics of animals. The major book of these days is Daniel. But, even within Daniel there is much confusion and controversy. While we may not come to a complete agreement in these areas, we should agree on what God has said. Daniel’s prophecies begin with Nebuchadnezzar’s dream in Daniel 2.
Daniel 2:27 Daniel answered before the king and said, The secret which the king has demanded cannot be shown to the king by the wise men, the conjurers, the horoscopists, or the fortune-tellers. 2:28 But there is a God in Heaven who reveals secrets and makes known to King Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days. Your dream, and the visions of your head upon your bed are these. 2:29 As for you, O king, your thoughts came on your bed, what should happen after this. And He who reveals secrets makes known to you what shall happen. 2:30 But as for me, this secret is not revealed to me for any wisdom that I have more than any living man, but so that the meaning might be known to the king, and that you might know the thoughts of your heart.
Daniel humbly begins where we should always begin, that is, only God knows the future, plans the future, and is totally sovereign over the future.
2:31 You, O king, were seeing. And, behold! A great image! That great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before you. And its form was dreadful. This image's head was of fine gold; his breast and his arms were of silver; his belly and his thighs were of bronze; 2:33 his legs were of iron; his feet were part of iron and part of clay. 2:34 You watched until a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image upon its feet which were of iron and clay, and broke them to pieces. 2:35 Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were broken to pieces together. And they became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors. And the wind carried them away, so that no place was found for them. And the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.
Imagery is often used in prophecy and especially in the last days. Thankfully, Daniel is given a very definite starting point.
2:36 This is the dream. And we will tell its meaning before the king. 2:37 You, O king, are a king of kings. For the God of Heaven has given you a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory. 2:38 And wherever the sons of men, the beasts of the field, and the birds of the heavens live, He has given them into your hand, and has made you ruler over them all. You are this head of gold.
Now we have a very definite starting point for our study. This kingdom historically covered the time of 612-539 BC.
2:39 And after you shall arise another kingdom lower than you, and another third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth.2:40 And the fourth kingdom shall be as strong as iron. Since iron crushes and smashes all things; and as the iron that shatters all these, it will crush and shatter. 2:41 And as to that which you saw: the feet and toes, part of potters' clay and part of iron; the kingdom shall be divided. But there shall be in it the strength of the iron, because you saw the iron mixed with miry clay. 2:42 And as the toes of the feet were part of iron and part of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly brittle. 2:43 And as you saw iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mix themselves with the seed of men. But they shall not cling to one another, even as iron is not mixed with clay.
So each of these other parts of this image are also kingdoms and are progressing from strength to weakness and ultimate defeat.
2:44 And in the days of these kings, the God of Heaven shall set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed. And the kingdom shall not be left to other peoples, but it shall crush and destroy all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.
This explanation ends with Jesus’ final complete victory and the beginning of the Millennial Kingdom.
2:45 Because you saw that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it crushes the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold, the great God has made known to the king what shall occur after this. And the dream is certain, and its meaning is sure.
Daniel is 100% convinced of the truth and certainty of this prophecy, as should we.
Now that we know this is all about the kingdoms that will come and go as the end of the world comes near, we must try to discern where we are today in this timeline.
While great certainty and accuracy cannot be assume, Jesus Himself said we should be able to discern signs and seasons. We will go to Daniel 7 to study further next time.
The Terrible Day of the Lord-Satan's Leaders in Rebellion-2
We left off last time with a fearsome beast rising up to make war with the saints. This of course implies that true believers will still be on earth at this time. But, now another beast comes onto the prophetic scene. Who is he?
Revelation 13:11 And I saw another beast coming up out of the earth. And it had two horns like a lamb, and he spoke like a dragon. 13:12 And it exercises all the authority of the first beast before him, and causes the earth and those dwelling in it to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.
So here we have what appears to be an individual who comes to power over this worldwide political system, i.e. the One World Government. As now the uncontested leader, he enforces his will onto all in the world. That is to worship this Satanic belief and to not worship God.
13:13 And it does great wonders, so that it makes fire come down from the heaven onto the earth in the sight of men.13:14 And it deceives those dwelling on the earth, because of the miracles which were given to it to do before the beast, saying to those dwelling on the earth that they should make an image to the beast who had the wound by a sword and lived.
He will have available to him all the power of Satan at his disposal, even though he is totally under the control of Satan. We will discuss the wound next time.
13:15 And there was given to it to give a spirit to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast might both speak, and might cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed.
This beast now has an image, perhaps similar to the image made by Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel 3. The same warning made then will now be enforced with the same deadly force. Remember, only 3 men refused to worship the image for King Nebuchadnezzar.
13:16 And it causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark on their right hand, or in their foreheads,13:17 even that not any might buy or sell except those having the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of its name.
Here we read of the mark of the beast. What it looks like to consists of is not clear, but with technology rapidly advancing daily, it is not hard to see something new appearing to make this happen today.
13:18 Here is the wisdom. Let him having reason count the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man. And its number is six hundred and sixty-six.
The Hebrew alphabet also has a numerical equivalent. Hence the number to his name. It seems like this number is appearing more frequently today in a number of areas. I don’t believe this is just some random coincidence.
We will go to Daniel 2 and 7 next to gain further understanding
The Terrible Day of the Lord-Satan's Leaders in Rebellion
There is a lot of confusion in regards to who Satan will reveal in the last days to bring the whole world under his evil, hateful, murderous control. What are there names? What will they do? How are they identified? Let us begin where we left off, who or what is the beast(s)? While some of the following verses have been reviewed in light of the mark of the beast, this time we will try and understand this beast(s) in greater detail.
Revelation 13:1 And I stood on the sand of the sea, and I saw a beast coming up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns. And on its horns were ten crowns, and on its heads was the name of blasphemy. In this verse we see a beast rising from the sea.
This imagery suggests that this nation, belief system, or worldwide association will rise up from within the world i.e. the sea. It is comprised of ten authority figures or worldwide leaders, such as, kings, emperors, presidents, or rulers. It could very well be the World Economic Council, G-7, or any similar organization that believes they should be in control of the world. They are vulnerable to Satan’s lies and deception. The World Council of Churches is the religious equivalent to them.
13:2 And the beast which I saw was like a leopard, and its feet like those of a bear, and its mouth like the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave him its power and its seat and great authority.
They get their power and authority from Satan. They are his servants, his followers, his slaves. It is not immediately noticed from where they get this power or authority, as they just seem like the intellectual elites that are often depicted and seldom deplored.
Rev 13:3 And I saw one of its heads as having been slain to death, and its deadly wound was healed. And all the earth marveled after the beast.
Something happened here that is hard to identify with absolute assurance. One of the heads was so wounded or made ineffective that it appeared to be forever destroyed or made insignificant. But, miraculously it rose up like the mythical Phoenix and resumed with power. It could be a religious organization, like the Roman Catholic Church. It could be a nation-state. It could be a system of beliefs in government, cultural, or societal areas that once was ‘destroyed’ but now is back.
13:4 And they worshiped the dragon who gave authority to the beast. And they worshiped the beast, saying, Who is like the beast? Who is able to make war with it? 13:5 And a mouth speaking great things was given to it, and blasphemies. And authority was given to it to continue forty-two months. 13:6 And it opened its mouth in blasphemy toward God, to blaspheme His name and His tabernacle, and those dwelling in Heaven.
Now we read about the goal or main purpose of this organization or nation. It’s sole purpose is to blasphemes God and bring worship to Satan. This has been Satan’s life goal. This is the very reason for Satan’s fall. It has now finally come to fruition, but only for a very short time and only at the very end of time.
13:7 And it was given to it to war with the saints and to overcome them. And authority was given to it over every tribe and tongue and nation. 13:8 And all dwelling on the earth will worship it, those whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain, from the foundation of the world.
A number of sobering truths.
It will make war against the remnant of true believers.
It will overpower them and take control over them.
It will assume absolute power over the entire world, which is now solely comprised of non-believers.
It will require worship.
This is now where the mark of the beast is clearly evident.
Do any of these terrible warnings look like what we are seeing and experiencing today?