Here is Wisdom…
The number of the beast is 666, and it is the number of a man. John of Patmos introduces these two important points with “Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number…” To understand what it means, we must first ask the question: what is the “wisdom” John writes about in Revelation 13:18? The Bible speaks of more than one type of wisdom. Sometimes it is a “foolish” wisdom – Paul calls it the “wisdom of this world” in 1 Corinthians 3:19. Other times, wisdom is a gift from God, like the wisdom given to Solomon in 1 Kings 3:28. One thing is for sure: being that the Bible is inspired by God, it could not possibly be inviting the reader to employ foolishness to understand what follows.
If we can discern what nature of wisdom John is writing about, then it could help us to decipher the message. Nineteenth-century professor Moses Stuart of Andover Theological Seminary explains what John might have meant by “Here is wisdom.” In his essay he calls attention to the cultural context, noting John’s Hebrew dialect.
“Here is wisdom conveys an idea somewhat different, according to Hebrew usage, from that which the words in English seem to suggest. The Jews, as appears by the Rabbinical dialect, were accustomed to call any thing חָכְמָה wisdom, which was said summarily, obscurely, or in the way of a mere hint… when the writer exclaims: Here is wisdom, he evidently means to say, that here is a matter which is somewhat enigmatical [difficult to understand] or obscure, for the explanation of which wisdom is needed… ‘Let him who has the requisite intelligence (νοῦν being an equivalent for the preceding σοφία,) reckon the number,’ etc. In other words: Not every person can read and understand what follows; but let him who is skilled in matters of this nature, compute what name the letters which may designate 666 will make; for this is the name of the beast.” (Prof. M. Stuart, The Number of the Beast in the Apocalypse, an essay from Bibliotheca Sacra: Or, Tracts and Essays on Topics Connected with Biblical Literature and Theology, 1843)
To sum up Stuart’s commentary, we ought not read too much into “Here is wisdom,” because computing the number 666 is simply reserved for “him who has understanding.” If there are some who are wise enough to “count” the number 666, John exhorts the reader to leave it up to them to do the counting. But seeing that John presents the number with a preceding hint, “it is the number of a man,” it would only encourage us to seek out what it means. The meaning of which is no secret if God will grant us the wisdom it requires.
The Mark of the Beast
As Stuart mentioned, the number 666 is a designation of the name of a man, not just the number of a man. In Revelation 13:16-17 we read that the beast causes everyone to receive one of three things to buy or sell: the mark, the name, or the number of his name.
“And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.” (Revelation 13:16-17, KJV)
The “number of his name” is none other than the 666 found in verse 18, as well as “the mark of his name” in the chapter that follows (Revelation 14:11). It is an example of John using the terms ‘mark’ and ‘number’ interchangeably.
So, what is the mark of the beast? Will it be a physical marking in the skin? According to Rev. George Floyd Taylor in The Second Coming of Jesus, the number, the name, and the mark all indicate a literal marking on the flesh. Strong’s Concordance seems to back this up as well. It defines the Greek root word for ‘mark,’ χάραγμα (charagma), as an ‘engraving’ or a ‘stamp’ (or a ‘sign’…).
It could be true that the mark will be an engraving, a stamp, or something penetrating the skin. However, our understanding of the physical mark is of lesser importance than that of the beast and his image, and how they will be worshipped. In other words, it is more importantly an indication that a man has committed idolatry by choosing to “worship the beast and his image” in place of God.
“And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:” (Revelation 14:9-10, KJV)
Notice how the mark is not mentioned alone, but rather, it tags along with the worship of the beast and his image. Revelation gives us repeated occurrences of this same three-fold framework. Almost every time the mark is mentioned, it is accompanied by the worship of the beast and his image (Rev. 13:15-16, Rev. 14:9, Rev. 15:2, and Rev. 20:4).
Could it be that the mark is merely a sign of the idolatrous beast/image worship? Maybe the questions we should be asking are these: what is the image of the beast, and what will it look like to worship the beast or his image?
The Image of the Beast
To understand the image, perhaps we should examine the beast’s behavior. The second beast is the one “saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the [first] beast,” (Rev. 13:14). Notice what the beast does here: it is his act of speaking that prompts the people to make the image. Before this, the same beast is described as “speaking like a dragon” (Revelation 13:11). From this we know it is the message, or the content of his speech, that characterizes him as a dragon. And the dragon is, of course, Satan, a.k.a. the “serpent” (Rev. 12:9, Rev. 20:2).
“The second beast is represented as “speaking like a dragon,” Rev. 13, 11. The meaning of this simile is not obscure. A dragon, according to the idiom of the New Testament, means a huge old serpent. The sly cunning and deceitfulness of the serpent have been proverbial, from the time when Satan, under the guise of a serpent, misled our first parents in paradise. The second beast, then, speaks as the dragon did on that occasion; that is, he speaks craftily, deceitfully, in a manner adapted to allure and ruin those whom he addresses.” (Prof. M. Stuart, The Number of the Beast in the Apocalypse)
According to Prof. M. Stuart, in The Number of the Beast in the Apocalypse, the beast’s dragon-like speech is a reference to the third chapter of Genesis. That is where the serpent speaks to our first parents in paradise. Remarkably, it happens to be the only other occurrence in scripture where Satan speaks while appearing as a reptile. If we examine the deceptive words of Satan in Genesis 3:4-5, it may give us an idea of what the beast will say to the people that prompts them to make an image to worship in Revelation 13.
Let’s remember what the serpent said in Genesis. The main idea of the serpent’s message was the deceitful assertion that men can become “as gods” by eating from the “tree of knowledge of good and evil.” The serpent insinuates that man’s worship should point to himself, rather than God, because he can become as a god.
If we apply this interpretation, that the serpent’s philosophy will characterize the speech of the second beast (Rev. 13:11), then what are the implications? The serpent telling Eve that she will become as a god through the obtaining of a forbidden knowledge points to Gnosticism, without a doubt. According to Gnosticism, the serpent represents the agent who gifted humanity with a “divine spark,” or “pneuma,” (spirit) which saves us from the bondage of ignorance. The creator of the physical world, the “Demiurge” according to the Gnostics, enslaved us to this world before the serpent freed us through the introduction of the divine knowledge of self (tree of knowledge of good and evil). This knowledge of self, the divine spark (Greek ‘pneuma,’ or spirit) points ultimately to man, or the spiritually ascended self, as god. If it were possible to capture all forms of Gnosticism in one generalization, you could say that the god of the Gnostic is himself and the full potential of his intellect. For this reason, we infer the image of the beast will appear to be an image of a man. Again, it is worth noting that the “number of the beast” is called “the number of a man” in Revelation 13:18.
The Beast Will Give Life Unto the Image
In Revelation 13:15, three things are written which make it difficult to argue that the beast image will be an inanimate object (like graven images in the Old Testament):
- The beast will “give life unto the image.”
- The image will “speak.”
- The image will “cause” anyone who does not worship the image to be killed.
“And he [the second beast] had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.” (Revelation 13:15, KJV)
If it is safe to conclude that the image will have no likeness to the inanimate graven images of Old, then there is no need to cover the various eschatological arguments as to whether or not the image will be a repeat of the past (or whether or not it is a fulfilled prophecy). We know that the image of the beast (Rev. 13) is nothing like the world has ever seen. That being said, what will it look like to give life to an image? Or, given our interpretations already covered, what will it look like to give “pneuma” to the image of a man? Perhaps a brief word study will help.
The word “life” used above in the KJV is translated as “breath” or “spirit” in other versions. In the Greek it is “pneuma,” which happens to be the same term used by the Gnostics for the “spirit” in man, or the “divine spark.” Mind you, we should be extremely careful not to allow Gnostic doctrines to interpret the scriptures for us. Even so, the parallel usage of the term could help us to understand how the beast animates his image. After all, let us be reminded we are discussing Satan and the beast! Notice what the Official Magazine of the Rosicrucian Order says about Gnosticism and the term, pneuma.
“Human beings, according to this view [Gnosticism], are composed of a body and a soul [meaning the body and the fleshly mind], both of which belong to the material world, and a divine spark, or pneuma [spirit], which is the godly element within. As long as humans are kept in ignorance of their true position, by the demiurge, they continue to be prisoners.” (Rosicrucian Digest: Official Magazine of the Worldwide Rosicrucian Order, Vol. 89, No. 2, 2011)
Also, look at what Hans Jonas, PhD, says about pneuma in his book, The Gnostic Religion. His book is an excellent academic introduction to the religion of Gnosticism.
Enclosed in the soul is the spirit, or ‘pneuma’ (called also the ‘spark’), a portion of the divine substance from beyond which has fallen into the world; and the Archons created man for the express purpose of keeping it captive there… In its unredeemed state the pneuma thus immersed in soul [mind] and flesh [body] is unconscious of itself, benumbed, asleep, or intoxicated by the poison of the world: in brief, it is ‘ignorant.’ Its awakening and liberation is effected through ‘knowledge.'” (Hans Jonas – The Gnostic Religion)
The Worship of the Beast and His Image
As we covered earlier, the worship of the “first beast” (Revelation 13:12), or his “image” (Revelation 13:15), will be indispensable to receiving the mark of the beast. Considering that the beast and his image are two different things, we can expect that the people on earth at that time will be required to pay homage to the beast in one of two ways.
The first requirement for the people to take the mark will be to worship the first beast. In two previous articles, The Antichrist Demystified and SEA BEAST / EARTH BEAST: A Brief Study on Revelation 13, we established that an apocalyptic beast is always a symbol for a king or a kingdom. And the first beast of Revelation 13 is identified as the Roman empire. We could take this information and conclude that the worship of the first beast will be a form of statism; the worship of the Roman style world government. Even though the people will worship the first beast (Rome), we know the second beast will have power given to it by the first beast. Because the second beast will “causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast,” and he exercises “all the power of the first beast before him” (Revelation 13:12).
The second requirement for receiving the mark will be to worship the beast image (Revelation 13:15). Examples of idolatrous image worship are scattered all throughout the scriptures. Sometimes they were “graven images,” carved idols, and sometimes “molten images,” which were idols cast from metal (Isaiah 42:17). The Bible frequently dubs these images the “work of men’s hands” (Psalms 135:15, 2 Kings 19:18, 2 Chronicles 34:25). In contrast, Jesus Christ the image of God (2 Corinthians 4:4, Colossians 1:15), was called the “stone” cut out “without hands” when Daniel interpreted a prophetic dream (Daniel 2:45). And Jesus prophesied of his own body being raised from the dead after three days, calling it the temple “made without hands” (Mark 14:58).
Seeing that the beast will say to “…them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast…” (Revelation 13:14), it is clear that the beast’s image will be the work of men, like the graven and molten idols. At the same time, there is nothing in the text to suggest the beast image will be molten or graven from sculptors’ material of any kind. The fact that the image will “both speak, and cause” others to worship it (Revelation 13:15) strongly suggests that it will be human, evidenced by its ability to communicate. But if the image is simply a man, there remains a problem with our interpretation: a man cannot be the work of men’s hands; otherwise he is not ‘man’ (אָדָם in Hebrew transliterated ‘Adam,’ God’s creation). The man image that people will worship would, therefore, be an enhanced or super state of the human being in some way that is not yet entirely conceivable. And as we covered earlier, the fact that the beast will give “pneuma” to the image could mean it has something to do with the fallen man’s natural tendency to gravitate towards philosophies aligned with Gnosticism.
As we have already stated, it is almost entirely unfathomable how it will look when the future image of the beast is given “pneuma” (“life” or “spirit”). Even so, if we have liberty to theorize about how it will look, let us refer to a real world example of humanity planning to do such a dastardly thing as that.
Dmitry Itskov, founder and chair of 2045 Initiative and president of the Global Future 2045, made a statement in a video interview that affirms the transhumanist theories of Ray Kurzweil. He said that the next stage of human evolution will be a controlled evolution; a pursuit of technology aimed at producing a hologram body for the human being. Perhaps, you could say, an image of a man.
“Now we are facing the time where [the] unconscious evolution period has almost finished. And we come to the new era when a new period of controlled human evolution can happen. I think that [the] main efforts of their scientists and main technological progress will be concentrated on their making new body for the human being.
So the first step is to make human-like robot, which we call avatar, and to make their perfect control system via brain computer interface.
Their second step will be to develop their system of human brain life support and to connect it to the avatar so disabled people and people who are at the edge of dying can enhance their lifespan.
And the third one… finally making the artificial brain to which we can transfer the individual consciousness. And we have one more project which is actually our dream. It is producing [a] hologram-like avatar body.” (Dmitry Itskov)
Interestingly enough, Hans Jonas references a certain Gnostic religious text that addresses the concept of an image in a man’s likeness. He describes the Gnostic “image” as a sort of doppelganger, alter ego, or human double in the heavenly realm. Primarily referred to as the “heavenly garment,” the image is described in his book as a double of an individual’s personal identity with whom they are met face-to-face after death. What is most interesting, even if it speaks of something spiritual after death, is how the description eerily resembles the concept of a digital avatar.
“The doctrine was taken over by the Manichaeans: ct F 100 of the Turfan fragments, where it is said that the soul after death is met by the garment, the crown (and other emblems)… And in the Coptic-Manichaean genealogy of the gods we find among the divine emanations the “figure of light that comes to meet the dying,” also called “the angel with the garment of light.” In our narrative the garment has become this figure itself and acts like a person. It symbolizes the heavenly or eternal self of the person, his original idea, a kind of double or alter ego preserved in the upper world while he labors down below: as a Mandaean text puts it, “his image is kept safe in its place” (G 90). It grows with his deeds and its form is perfected by his toils. Its fullness marks the fulfillment of his task and therefore his release from exile in the world. Thus the encounter with this divided-off aspect of himself, the recognition of it as his own image, and the reunion with it signify the real moment of his salvation.” (Hans Jonas – The Gnostic Religion)
Counting the Number of the Beast
Our last question yet remains unanswered: what is the meaning of the number of the beast? Albert Ernest Stafford Smythe, co-founder and president of the first Toronto branch of the Theosophical Society, wrote an extraordinary admission of what the number means in the world of occultism. Theosophy – an esoteric movement founded in the late 19th century combining religion, philosophy and occult sciences – is not to be considered an authority on interpreting the Bible, because of its anti-Christian foundation. Nonetheless, it is worth noting what the occult world believes the number to mean; because it is after all the number of antichrist.
Beginning in 1910, Smythe wrote hundreds of columns under the title Crusts and Crumbs, many of them with the intent to proselytize for the cause of the movement. In his January 26, 1918 issue, he wrote:
“Hence the absurd efforts, for example, made in every generation to identify the ‘beast’ of the book of Revelation whose number is 666, a figure recognized long before Christianity in the Pythagorean table of numbers which is based on magic squares, and indicates the key numbers of evolution. It evidently refers to the critical state when the evolution of the animal passes over into the human, a stage of transmutation.” (Albert Ernest Stafford [Smythe] – from his column Crusts and Crumbs, January 26, 1918 issue of Theosophical Outlook)
It is not our purpose to learn every detail about the kabbalistic science of numbers mentioned by Smythe. At the same time, he made an important admission in his arrogant attempt to dazzle the readers with hidden knowledge. He said the number 666 indicates the stage of “transmutation” when the animal passes over into the human. The transmutation he spoke of is not the natural biological evolution of an animal changing to human. This transmutation is a practice in Philosophical Alchemy; an initiatory practice of transforming the animal in man (the lower self) into what they believe it really means to be human (the higher self), becoming as a god. There is that Gnostic doctrine once again, which is no surprise because Theosophy is known to stem from Gnosticism.
Deborah Harkness, an American historian, confirms this to be true as she writes about the 16th-century occultist, John Dee. Here is what she says about the purpose of transmutation in philosophical alchemy:
“Dee linked the seven rotations or revolutions in the alchemical process of transmutation to the ultimate goal of philosophical alchemy: the divinization of the alchemist. While ‘vulgar’ alchemy was concerned only with the material transformation of base metals into silver and then gold, ‘philosophical’ alchemy attempted to transform the alchemist’s soul from human to divine.” (Deborah E. Harkness, John Dee’s Conversations with Angels: Cabala, Alchemy, and the End of Nature)
An article published in the Jan. 1920 issue of The New Age Magazine quoted another occultist magazine titled Azoth. Therein it referenced the work of James M. Pryse, The Apocalypse Unsealed. James Morgan Pryse, another Theosophist, puts forward virtually the same admission made by Smythe:
“”Azoth,” a magazine devoted to mysticism and occultism, printed the following on “The Mark of the Beast” (August, 1917): …Mr. James M. Pryse, in his book, The Apocalypse Unsealed, has very clearly shown that the whole story is of man’s regeneration, and the stages of initiation upon the path to illumination or Christhood. The number 666, as this gifted author points out, is but the value of the letters composing the Greek words, Hé phrén, meaning the lower mind of man, which is the Beast to be conquered.” (A Corner of the Library: The Mystical Relations of Numbers and Letters, The New Age Magazine, January 1920)
Again we see the number 666 associated with transforming man’s animal nature (“the beast to be conquered”) into a state of becoming like god. Here he calls the god-like state “Christhood,” a spiritual state of being known to the New Age movement as the Christ Consciousness. It is a concept that carries the messianic title of Christ but, in fact, has no biblical basis other than how it perverts the teachings of Christ. The only doctrine in the Bible that could parallel with the Christ Consciousness is the doctrine of antichrist (1 John 2:22). It is based on a belief that Jesus was not God; that he was only an illuminated master of the ancient mysteries. The spirit of antichrist (1 John 4:3) denies that Jesus is the only begotten Son of God who “is come in the flesh.” And what better example of antichrist is anyone who claims to have attained a status equal to Jesus Christ?
Conclusion
In closing, we know from Revelation 13:18 that anyone who has the wisdom to calculate the number of the beast should attempt to understand what it means. And we should ultimately allow the Holy Spirit to grant us guidance in doing so, never forgetting to check ourselves that we do not follow the wisdom of men (1 Corinthians 1:17-25). Our study of the image of the beast should take precedence over the mark of the beast and the widely popularized theories associated with it. As it relates to the lie told by the serpent (“…and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” Genesis 3:4-5), we undogmatically conclude that the image of the beast will be the image of a man – even as the number of the beast is called “the number of a man” in Revelation 13:18. Examples of this philosophy are in our present world, and this is the extent of what we conclude on the matter. In coming to this understanding, however, we are not exempt from error. If any reader can make known a better way of understanding the scriptures, let them speak. But let us not have conjecture instead of argument, nor private interpretations in the place of Biblical interpretation. Most of all, let the Holy Spirit continue to lead us to a greater understanding of God’s Word.
Dark Innovation: The Role of Technology in Revelation 13
Imagine a world of the future. It is a desperate world where human beings are controlled by a single, tyrannical power. If we look behind the curtain to see what energizes this power, we find something much more sinister than a corrupt political agenda or master plan of greed. We find a plot hatched by the dark prince of the universe whose ambition it is to become God.
The book of Revelation prophesies a future government that Satan will control and use to deceive and manipulate the nations through the False Prophet and Antichrist:
And he [the False Prophet] deceives those who dwell on the earth by those signs which he was granted to do in the sight of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast [the Antichrist] who was wounded by the sword and lived. He was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed. He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man: His number is 666 (Rev. 13:14–18).
Verses 16–18 are undoubtedly the most familiar passages in Revelation, not only to believers, but also to millions of unchurched people who know nothing about future prophecy and may never have opened a Bible.
Those who receive the mark commit the ultimate, tragic, irrevocable choice to reject Christ and embrace the Antichrist as God, thus reaping everlasting judgment (14:9–11).
Revelation 13:14–15 describes the world stage that precedes the mark of the Beast. The False Prophet, the Antichrist’s coconspirator, will perform counterfeit miracles and exercise global power as a religious leader.1 The most spectacular of his feats will be the Antichrist’s faux resurrection after it appears he was assassinated (v. 14).
Although the False Prophet gives lifelike “breath to the image of the beast” (v. 15), it will be left to individuals around the world to build the image (v. 14). And those who refuse to worship the image will be killed.
This joint project for interactive imagery will be coordinated by a central command that connects everyone worldwide to a despotic system of control, raising the specter of innovation run amok.
How might technology play a part in these events? The manufacturing of this image is obviously significant since Revelation mentions the image six more times (14:9, 11; 15:2; 16:2; 19:20; 20:4).
As I worked with my coauthor, Tim LaHaye, on our recent novel, Mark of Evil—the last of our four-book, futuristic fiction series released earlier this year—we wrestled with the relationship between technology and future events. Though it is only fiction, the novel earnestly seeks to examine current innovations to see if and how they might fit into this prophetic landscape.
In the last decade and a half, technology has provided us with a glimpse of how this particular part of the most demonic scheme in human history might be accomplished.
Big-Data Revolution
Until the digital information explosion in the last half of the 20th century, the thought of a global system of imagery projection and instant, worldwide human control (let’s call it digital devilry, or DD) seemed like science fiction. But with the rise of personal computing, Internet communications, and the stunning increase in digital data transmission, such global control is indeed realistic.
The science of “big data”—the ability of computers to accumulate and then analyze titanic amounts of information extremely rapidly—has made DD possible.
The retrieval and analysis of huge amounts of voter data helped tip the U.S. presidential election in favor of incumbent Barack Obama in 2012, according to a Democratic insider:
Big data gave Obama 2012 the names of all 69 million people who voted for the candidate in 2008 and allowed the campaign to rebuild that winning coalition, vote by vote. Big data told the campaign which voters were undecided, and even which voters with otherwise Republican attitudes could be swayed to vote for the president.2
The author admitted big data can be used for good or evil: “Not all the consequences will be good. New technology can manipulate, empower, or do both.”3 Today we can instantly process and control all of the essential data concerning not just the American electorate, but the entire human race. Google advertises that its “cloud platform” for data storage and retrieval can handle some 4 trillion message transactions per month. The Knowledge Society has also tabulated some startling facts about the meteoric rise of big data. In 1986, the growth rate of data storage was 23 percent per year. By 1996, it had increased 800 percent; and by 2004, data storage was up by 4,100 percent.4 The report cites Google’s former Chief Executive Officer Eric Schmidt, who said in 2010 the total of all documented information between “the dawn of civilization” through 2003 equaled about 5 exabytes of data—roughly the amount of data being created and stored every two days today.
If DD is going to play a part in the fulfillment of Revelation 13:14–15, then it will require a massive information-retrieval-and-storage capacity to track and manipulate the billions of people on planet Earth. We are rapidly approaching that point. In fact, we may have arrived there without knowing it.
Connectivity Revolution
Simply having the ability to marshal and control big data, however, is not enough. DD would also require a heightened ability to connect people, collect data about them (such as their identities, locations, behavioral patterns, and movements) and then tie everything to a central portal. Enter the World Wide Web and the universe of digital connections.
This principle of connectivity is a mainstay of new-media Internet communications—notably Facebook, Twitter, and a variety of smartphones like the iPhone. Their developers pride themselves on having created the capability to digitally link people and groups instantaneously—transcending time zones, travel restrictions, and geographic distances. The result is a different way of viewing the world because of technology.
A string of events in 2011 helps shed light on the social and political force of these new-media connections. All these events were coordinated and fueled by cellphone or smartphone texting, emails, Twitter messaging, or Facebook postings:
- Anti-government protests in Tunisia and Tahrir Square in Cairo, Egypt
- Protests in Yemen, Bahrain, Libya, Morocco, and Syria
- The cessation of the “jasmine revolution” in China after cell service was shut down
- Protests in Athens, Greece, over pay and pension cuts
- Hundreds of teens swarming to a beach party in Boston, Massachusetts, after instantly responding to a Facebook invitation, thus warranting the response of a SWAT team
- A similar incident in Shaker Heights, Ohio
- Organized riots due to digital messaging in the United Kingdom cities of Tottenham, Enfield, and Liverpool
- Hundreds of thousands of people marching or protesting in Israel, as well as in U.S. cities like New York City; Portland, Oregon; Boston; Chicago; and San Francisco5
But social protest is not the only evidence of the power of connectivity. Technology companies are making a concerted effort to link the world’s people together through a wide variety of gadgets, activities, and places, using an increasingly smaller number of wireless networks. One commentator described the phenomenon (now dubbed “Internet of things”) this way, regarding only one area—the automobile:
Consider this: The American Automobile Association [AAA] said in its letter to the FTC [Federal Trade Commission] that vehicles are rapidly becoming two-ton smart phones. The number of cars connected to the Internet will grow from less than 1 million in 2009 to an estimated 42 million by 2017, the letter said. And that’s just vehicles. Millions of people connect through security cameras, home appliances, medical devices, and other products. AAA wants to know who controls all that data.6
Meanwhile, tech giants like Qualcomm and Cisco are trying to create a universal global standard (a “language”) to enable all digital devices to “talk” to each other. Such a project has the potential to link together an ocean of digital objects across the globe, such as automatic garage doors in homes, heating and air conditioning thermostats, lawn sprinklers, baby monitors, video games, personal vehicles and taxicabs, central offices’ building controls, restaurants and retail stores, as well as televisions, radios, cellphones, computers, and—of course—millions of security cameras around the world.7
Facial- and Voice-Recognition Revolution
In the world of the future, Earth’s inhabitants likely will be connected through digital communications and Internet tracking, with the information stored through the big data capacity of ultrafast computer systems.
If that data is ultimately used to manipulate and control them, what about the dissenters? What about those who refuse to engage in technology?
Today in America, by virtue of the human-recognition innovation, technology can come to people whether they like it or not. Federal agencies like Homeland Security, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Central Intelligence Agency, and now local police departments, can use biometric technology to match people on the street with a catalog of photographs and identify them in seconds.8
The U.S. government has even granted Apple Corporation a patent for facial recognition features on its iPhone. Presumably, iPhones will eventually recognize callers through photo ID images and instantly identify them based merely on their facial characteristics.9
Facebook has already been using facial recognition technology to mine facial imagery data posted on Facebook, although its current uses are still sketchy.10
But facial recognition is not the only way technology can trace you. Voice recognition systems can identify you through your speech patterns.11 In Mark of Evil, Tim LaHaye and I wrote a fairly disturbing scenario of the possible sinister uses of these types of technology.
Kingdom Renewal
However, we need not view technology exclusively as the Devil’s tool. Though Satan’s plan will be impressive, it will not be flawless. Where Satan rules, God can overrule. And we have reason to believe God will provide for the needs of His people who refuse the mark of the Beast, just as He provided for the Israelites during their Exodus from Egypt and their wanderings in the wilderness.
In fact, technology may well play a powerful part in God’s redemptive plan for the human race and in accomplishing His great commission of carrying the gospel of salvation to the ends of the earth.
Christian apologist Ravi Zacharias has called the new-media world of Facebook, Twitter, Apple, and Google “the new tower of Babel.” But he also sees their positive potential and said they are “not intrinsically evil.” His advice: “Be wise, be careful, but harness it for good. It is here to stay and will only multiply in its capacity.”12
Almost daily in my work with the National Religious Broadcasters, I see ways in which gospel communicators are using the tools of new-media technology to penetrate the globe with the Good News of Jesus Christ. When the inventions of radio and television became available to the masses in the 20th century, preachers rushed to the forefront, seeking ways to use them to communicate truth to the world. This trend is continuing today by followers of Jesus who use Internet-based communications and wireless devices for the glory of God.
Whatever the means of fulfillment of the prophecies in Revelation 13, one thing is certain: God will wrap up human history and establish His Kingdom exactly as He has promised. Unlike the short-lived kingdom of the Evil One, God’s Kingdom will be everlasting and the grand setting for our eternal reunion with Him.
Just imagine for a moment what a world like that will look like. The Bible gives us an electrifying glimpse:
And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away” (21: 3–4).
All that God has planned and all that He has accomplished through His intervention in the affairs of the human race have been for one purpose: to bring us to Himself. That is the single most important example of “connectivity” in the history of the universe. And that divine and eternal connection is the one that counts.
We have looked at chapter 13 of Revelation earlier in connection with Daniel chapter 7. Now we will look at another side of this chapter. The image of the beast.
Revelation 13 tells us about two beasts that will rise from respectively the sea and the earth. The beast that rises from the sea does so in a densely populated area, and then it is always in connection with war or political unrest. When a beast rises from the earth, it means that this beast grows in a sparsely populated area and in a peaceful way. The beast from the sea, verses 1 – 10, we have looked at as mentioned, while we just have mentioned the beast from the earth earlier.
Despite the fact that they appear in different ways, there are certain similarities between these two beasts. The beast from the sea is described as follows: … a beast rise up … while the beast from the earth is described as follows: … another beast that coming up … The description of the beast from the earth differs significantly from the first beast, which rose from the sea, but it is something that will change over time.
We find a clear parallel to these two beasts, the one from the sea and the one from the earth, in Revelation 17,10, one is … and the other is not … The expressions one and a beast are covariations, and the expressions the other and another beast are covariations, and consequently express the same meaning and describe the same entity.
Verses 14 – 16 show what the other beast is capable of doing. We are talking about a world power that not only has the ability to issue laws and injunctions and impose penalties for violations but can also enforce this on a worldwide basis. Of course in collaboration with the first beast. The second beast, the one from the earth, will, when the time is right, put up an image of the first beast, the one from the sea. An image is something that reflects a thing, and what is reflected appears in the text in chapter 13.
The main features are that the second beast exercises its power in the presence of the first beast. This means that there will be extensive cooperation between these beasts. The second beast even causes the people of the earth to worship the first beast.
Then we are back to the start again, so to speak. It is all about worshiping others than God the Creator. The other beast maketh fire come down from heaven, and this is part of the seduction the other beast causes. This is perhaps the most cryptic in this sequence. Fire from heaven what is it? Many choose to believe that these are the atomic bombs that were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945, others choose more imaginative explanations for this. However, what is mentioned here, fire from heaven, is very similar to what happened on the day of Pentecost. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them, (Acts 2,3). We see something similar manifesting in the charismatic denominations of the world today. As mentioned earlier, there are pastors who blow the Holy Spirit on the congregation with the result that they fall over as if shot by a cannon, others barely touch the foreheads of people with the same result, still others lie on the floor and writhe in spasms and/or laughs hysterically. When we see what consequences these actions have, and what scenes unfold in such congregations, it should be clear that it is not the Holy Spirit who is behind this. There are completely different spiritual forces behind this.
The other beast will set up an image. What type of image is it? What is it that reflects the first beast in a way that characterizes it? The first beast, which is the little horn, think to change law and times, and there is only one place where law and times are linked together and that is in the Ten Commandments.
God’s fourth commandment in Exodus 20,8-11 says: Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day [is] the sabbath of the LORD thy God: [in it] thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that [is] within thy gates: For [in] six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them [is], and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.
The law is the law of God and the fourth commandment, times is the seventh day of the week. The first beast has changed this by introducing Sunday as a day of rest instead of the Sabbath, the seventh day of the week, which God has blessed and sanctified.
How can a picture of the first beast speak? How can the Sunday speak? Verse 14 says that the beast from the earth will make those that dwell on the earth set up this image. God has commanded us to keep the seventh day of the week – Saturday – as a holy day. The first beast changed this to the first day of the week – Sunday. The other beast will be behind a worldwide Sunday law or a set of Sunday laws. That this image speaks means that there are sanctions behind the law (s), and that the beast from the earth has the power to enforce this. Everyone must follow this law / these laws, otherwise a punishment awaits. According to Revelation 13,17, those who do not submit to this will not be allowed to buy or sell. In other words, this is in the long run – a death penalty.
Do we find anything similar in the Bible? Of course we do. In Daniel chapter 3 we read about Nebuchadnezzar setting up an image (= a statue) of himself – in gold – that everyone had to fall down to and worship when the music began (verses 5 and 6). It also tells us that music will play an important role in end-time worship, especially in the fallen church. Here, too, there was an appropriate punishment: And whoso falleth not down and worshippeth shall the same hour be cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace, Daniel 3:,6.
As we see, nothing has changed. Satan is the same. Everyone will be forced to worship him, and those who will not, will be killed. But how should this be enforced? It is mentioned that those who are allowed to buy, and sell must have the mark of the beast on their hand or forehead, or the number of his name.
The mark of the beast.
The Bible says about the mark of the beast: And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: Revelation 13,16
What is the mark of the beast? The Bible says nothing about it, so therefore there are innumerable opinions about what is the mark of the beast. This is constantly changing as technology advances, and the bank card, microchips and barcode are some of the options that have been launched over the last 50-60 years. Many people are afraid of being vaccinated as they believe that in this way they will have a microchip injected into the body and believe that they have then taken the mark of the beast. An older alternative is that anyone who takes the mark of the beast will have the number 666 stamped or tattooed on their hand or forehead. Common to all these alternatives is that they are not based on the Bible.
It does not say what the mark of the beast is in the Bible, and this is what creates fertile ground for all the imaginative variants of the mark of the beast, but we read in the Bible that God has a mark. When God has a sign or a mark, then Satan cannot be any worse. He imitates the mark of God, and it is this imitation of a mark he has left to his agents to launch into the world.
When we obey God and keep His law and commandments, this is a form of worshiping God, as God wants us to worship him. We show that we put God above everything in this world. If one obeys a law that comes from human nature that goes against what God’s law says we should do, such as worshiping the image of the first beast that the second beast sets up, then one obeys another power, and consequently one worships then the first beast instead of worshiping God. It is all about who people worship. Those who worship the image of the beast are therefore in opposition to God, and in that way they take a mark either on the hand or forehead.
The first time we read about a mark in the Bible is in Genesis 4,1-15. Cain killed his brother, and afterwards God gives Cain a mark so that no one would kill him to avenge what he had done to Abel. … … And the LORD set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him. (verse 15). As we see, God gave Cain a mark so that no one would do anything to him, but it does not appear what this mark was.
In Ezekiel 9,4-6 we find another mark: And the LORD said unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof. And to the others he said in mine hearing, Go ye after him through the city, and smite: let not your eye spare, neither have ye pity: Slay utterly old [and] young, both maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man upon whom [is] the mark; and begin at my sanctuary. Then they began at the ancient men which [were] before the house.
As we see, this mark will be given to those who … sigh and cry for all the abominations that be done … Those who receive this mark will therefore be saved when the judgment of those who do these abominations comes. We must remember that Ezekiel was in Babylon and Jerusalem lay in ruins when he received this prophecy. It can therefore not be the physical Jerusalem that is meant in these verses. Jerusalem in these verses represents the whole church and consists of all denominations, while my sanctuary represents the faithful remnant of God. Here again it is not clear what the mark was, but like the mark Cain received and which protected him, this mark was to protect those who received it against the coming judgment. Then the question is whether we can find out with the help of the Bible what God’s mark is.
In Ezekiel 20,12 we find this text: Moreover also I gave them my sabbaths, to be a sign between me and them, that they might know that I [am] the LORD that sanctify them … and in Ezekiel 20,20 we find the following text: And hallow my sabbaths; and they shall be a sign between me and you, that ye may know that I [am] the LORD your God.
Here Ezekiel is very clear on what Gods sign / mark is. God’s sign or mark is God’s Sabbath, the seventh day of the week, our Saturday. But, many will say, a sign is probably not a mark! Well, that is exactly what a sign is, a sign is a mark. Sign and mark are synonymous terms. It is implicit in the text that God’s mark is not a visible mark, but it should be a sign between God and the people who keep God’s Sabbath. The observance of the Sabbath is thus the sign itself. This means that the mark of the animal is not a visible mark either, but the mark is understood from the actions of humans.
Since God has one of the days of the week as his sign / mark, Satan cannot be any worse and therefore he also has chosen a day of the week as his mark. Satan imitates God in every possible way and places his deceptions as close to the truth as he can, while the deceptions are as far away from the truth as possible. In the Garden of Eden, God told the people not to eat from the one tree that gave knowledge of good and evil. When the serpent, Satan, tempted Eve, he asked her if they were not allowed to eat any tree in the garden. It is both a subtle change and a big change at once, as close to the truth as he could come and at the same time as far away as it was possible to get. This is how he has been since the fall, and this is how it will be in the end.
In our case, then, Satan chooses to take a mark that is confusingly similar to God’s mark. First, it must be as close to God’s mark as possible, and since God’s mark is one of the days of the week, Satan therefore also chooses one of the days of the week. Then Satan’s mark must be as far away from God’s mark as possible. God chose the last day of the week, our Saturday, as His Holy Day. It was this day that he blessed and sanctified, or set aside for holy use, during creation. The day that is furthest away from the last day of the week is the first day of the week, our Sunday, and it is this day that Satan chose.
Now surely someone will raise their voice and say that it is Sunday which is the last day of the week. Yes, according to our almanacs it is – in Norway – but it did not happen until January 1, 1973 that Sunday was placed as the last day of the week. From Wikipedia: According to the international standard ISO 8601, Monday is the first day of the work week. In some countries, including the United States, Monday is considered the second day of the week. Also according to the Hebrew and Muslim calendar, Sunday is the first day of the week. The name for Monday in Arabic, Greek, Hebrew and Portuguese is Second Day. Previously, Sunday was the first day of the week also in Norway, but that was changed from 1 January 1973. Then the day of rest on Sunday was moved from the beginning to the end of the week in Norway. Prior to the change, there was a parliamentary debate in which some strongly opposed keeping Sunday as the first day due to the Christian tradition, but the majority voted to change the calendar system to follow the working week. https://no.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandag
This theme, which day of rest we shall keep holy, will be the last great test of loyalty to God’s people as the great conflict draws to a close. Everyone will be put to an election once in the near future, and everyone must choose side. No one can say that it does not matter which marc of loyalty we choose, the mark of God or the mark of the beast. And it is far from irrelevant which day we choose as our day of rest because the choice we make will follow us into eternity. Do we choose to worship God or the image of the beast? If we choose to worship God, we follow Him. If we choose to worship the mark of the beast, we will follow Satan. It is either or, no middle ground.
It is quite clear that the Sabbath question will be crucial in the absolute end time, and God has spent a lot of time telling us this through the Bible. The Sabbath, the seventh day, the day of rest, and the holy day of the Lord are used about 200 times to teach us to keep this day holy, what we should do on this day, what we should refrain from doing on this day, and to show us the importance of this day.
Daniel 7,25 states that he, the little horn, will think to change times and laws. Since the turn of the millennium, much has been done to draft a Sunday law that can have universal validity, and the current Pope Franz travels around and promotes Family Day, which of course is Sunday, with the reason that everyone needs a full day off from their work to spend more time, a whole day, with the family, and the papacy unabashedly takes the credit for giving this day off to humanity. Already during creation, God gave people a day off, the seventh day of the week – the Sabbath – our Saturday, so what the pope is doing is overriding God’s provision by changing the day of rest.
Pope Franz has had personal conversations with former US President Obama, he has spoken to the UN General Assembly, and the theme has been Family Day. For the time being, the United States cannot introduce religious laws as this is prohibited by the United States Constitution. The United States cannot mix state power and religion. This gives us three possibilities. Either the President of the United States and / or the Supreme Court changes the Constitution and abolishes this amendment that prohibits the state from enacting religious laws, or the amendment can simply be ignored, or a religious law can have a secular wrapping such as The Family Day. Family day will be acceptable and edible to the whole world regardless of faith – with one small exception; God’s faithful remnant in the end times.
The current US President in 2020, Donald Trump, has made statements that he wants to suspend the Congress as he believes prevents him from performing his duty as president. He is frustrated at not having the appointments of judges to the Supreme Court and other officials approved during the corona crisis and therefore he threatens to temporarily dissolve both the House of Representatives and the Senate until he gets the officials he wants in place. We should not read too much into such a statement, but it is worth including in a line of thought.
The work of changing the day of rest has been going on since early in the church’s history. The following quotes from the history of the church are in this context thought-provoking.
- The Sunday law of Emperor Constantine came on March 7, 321 AD. and it says: On the venerable day of the sun (venerabili die Solis) the officials and the people of the cities should rest, and the workshops should be closed. But in the countryside, the people who farm are allowed to continue working. (Codex Jusunianus i Schaff, History of the Christian Church)
- In 364 AD came the first ecclesiastical Sunday law, issued by the council of Laodicea, where the custom of no working on Saturday was condemned.
- In 538 AD The Council of Orleans issued a stricter and stricter Sunday law, as among other things also stopped the work in agriculture.
- The historian Socrates (380 – 439 AD) said according to Ecclesiastical History. Almost all the churches in the world celebrate the sacraments on the Sabbath every week, but the Christians in Alexandria and Rome have for some tradition stopped doing this.
In Norway, we have a Sunday law that prohibits all activity that can disturb the holiday peace. This law is called the Law on Holidays and Public Peace (of 24 February 1995 – and replaces the law of 4 June 1965, and the previous regulation of 12 March 1735). The most important points are in brief:
§1 which states that the law exists to protect the worship life and the general peace on holidays and to give the holiday peace and dignity. §2 which tells which days it covers, and as paragraph a is, not surprisingly, mentioned Sunday. §3 which states that on public holidays from kl. 00 to kl. 24 as well as Easter, Pentecost and Christmas Eve after 16.00 there shall be a holiday peace which no one anywhere shall disturb with undue noise. §6 states that anyone who intentionally or negligently violates §§ 3 to 5 of this Act, or provisions given pursuant to these sections, shall be punished by fines.
Although the Norwegian Sunday Law can impose fines (and imprisonment) for violations, this law is still almost harmless in relation to the Sunday Law we know will come. We see that it is starting to heat up, but the little horn has plenty of time, so it is not in a hurry to complete this. The Sunday law is in the mold, to put it this way, it will come and that with much stricter penalties than what we see the Norwegian law can impose on people. The law is coming, and it is coming soon, the Bible tells us so … And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.. Revelation 13,17
The image of the first beast, which the second beast sets up, is the Sunday law (s). Worshiping the image of the first beast, which is the law of Sunday, must be understood in a figurative sense. The hand stands for work and the forehead for knowledge. Those who receive the mark on their right hand perform work on the Sabbath, while those who receive the mark on the forehead deliberately disobey God’s commandment in knowing that they will not perform work on the Sabbath, but still do.
But why is the mark taken on the hand or forehead?
How can this day become a mark on the hand or on the forehead? Well, as I said, it has to do with how we understand the words. On the hand must be understood with work, and on the forehead must be understood with knowledge. Just before Israel was to take possession of Canaan after the Exodus of Egypt, God’s ten commandments was repeated for the nation in Deuteronomy chapter 5. In chapter 6 we find a passage that tells them to bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes to be able to remember God’s ten commandments and His laws.
Now these [are] the commandments, the statutes, and the judgments, which the LORD your God commanded to teach you, that ye might do [them] in the land whither ye go to possess it: That thou mightest fear the LORD thy God, to keep all his statutes and his commandments, which I command thee, thou, and thy son, and thy son’s son, all the days of thy life; and that thy days may be prolonged. Hear therefore, O Israel, and observe to do [it]; that it may be well with thee, and that ye may increase mightily, as the LORD God of thy fathers hath promised thee, in the land that floweth with milk and honey. Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God [is] one LORD: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates. Deuteronomy 6,1-9
This is the origin of the expression on the hand or forehead, and gradually having a mark on the hand or on the forehead has been understood with work (on the hand) and knowledge (on the forehead). As we see here, Israel was asked to remember the Exodus from Egypt, and that this should be a sign for them to carry on their hands and foreheads. The reason why they should have these signs or marks was twofold. They should have these signs to 1) remember God’s ten commandments, where the fourth commandment points back to creation and God as the Creator of the whole universe, and 2) to remember the Exodus from Egypt, because the Exodus from Egypt is a picture of salvation in Christ, which is very important to keep in mind, especially considering that the mark of God in the end times – God’s seal – will save us from a raging world.
We also know for sure that a change has been made with regard to the Sabbath day. The Roman Catholic Church openly admits that it is this church that has changed the day of rest from Saturday to Sunday. They also admit that if we are to follow the Bible, then we should keep the seventh day, Saturday, as God’s Sabbath, not Sunday.
The following are taken from The Convert`s Catechism of Catholic Doctrine page 50, 1977 edition and Doctrinal Catechism page 176. Both books belong to the Catholic Church’s faith textbooks.
Question: What day is the Sabbath? Answer: Saturday is the Sabbath. Question: Why do we keep Sunday instead of Saturday? Answer: We keep Sunday instead of Saturday because the Catholic Church at the Synod of Laodicea (336 AD) transferred the sanctity of the Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday. Question: Can you in any other way prove that the church has the power to institute feast days by law? Answer: If it did not have such power, it could not have done what all the religious confessors of today agree with the church; It could not have introduced the observance of Sunday, the first day of the week, instead of the observance of Saturday, the seventh day of the week, a change for which there is no authority in Scripture.
Sometime in the near future, Sunday laws will be introduced globally, with sanction options for those who do not obey these Sunday laws. Then the other beast, the one from the earth, according to Revelation 13,17 will do so that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. We will thus be put to a hard test, and the question is whether we choose and not least dare to trust all of God’s promises, promises that He will provide for us and deliver us from all trials that come, and let God seal us with its mark. God has the seventh day of the week, the Sabbath, as his mark, and the beast has the Sunday as his mark, but no one will be marked with either the mark of God or the mark of the beast until we have come all the way down to the end of the end time when the battle between the Sabbath of God or the Sabbath of the Pope reaches its climax with the forced observance of Sunday. Then everyone who has knowledge of which day is God’s day of rest, the seventh day of the week – Saturday, but who still chooses to work that day, when the time is right, will take / be marked with the mark of the beast on their hands and / or foreheads. Those who choose to keep God’s day of rest will be sealed forever and ever with God’s seal / sign / mark, and only those who have this seal will be with Jesus when he returns to redeem His faithful remnant.
The number of the beasts name, 666.
Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number [is] Six hundred threescore [and] six. Revelation 13,18
The number of the beast is the number of a man, it says. This has nothing to do with Kabbalism but is additional information that can help us find out who the beast from the sea is, because it is this beast´s image that has been set up.
There are many who rave about this number and say that this number 666 fits almost the whole world. That is right. But we cannot use only one characteristic to pick out the power behind the beast from the sea. It is not until we can use all the characteristics the Bible gives us in one and the same power that we can be sure.
Through Dan 2, 7, 8 and 11 we have looked at most of the characteristics, and we see that the prophecy attributes all these qualities to the fourth beast in Daniel chapter 7. But what about titles and other things associated with this church? That the pope calls himself Vicarius Filii Dei is old news, and although it is denied by many, there is in fact the title of several official Catholic documents.
That Vicarius Filii Dei with Roman numerals becomes 666 is also well known to most people but let us look at other and more unknown names. It is simply fascinating to see what the numerical values of titles and expressions that describe the papacy, and / or which are connected to the papacy in one way or another, become by inserting the numerical values for the individual letters, both in Hebrew, Greek and Latin.
We have Romiith which means Roman Empire, Romiti which means the Roman (the Roman man). With Hebrew numerical values where O = 6, I = 10, M = 40, R = 200, T or TH = 400 this becomes: Romiith = 200 + 6 + 40 + 10 + 10 + 400 = 666 Romiti = 200 + 6 + 40 + 10 + 400 + 10 = 666
Ancient Greek words and expressions associated with the catholic church are: He Latine Basileia, which means the Latin Empire; Italika Ekklesia, which means the Italian Church; Apostates, which means apostasy! Paradosis; which means tradition! With Greek numerical values, it will be like this. He Latine Basileia 0 + 8 + 30 + 1 + 300 + 10 + 50 + 8 + 2 + 1 + 200 + 10 + 30 + 5 + 10 + 1 = 666 Italika Ekklesia 10 + 300 + 1 + 30 + 10 + 20 + 1 + 5 + 20 + 20 + 30 + 8 + 200 + 10 + 1 = 666 Apostates 1 + 80 + 70 + 6 + 1 + 300 + 8 + 200 = 666 Paradosis 80 + 1 + 100 + 1 + 4 + 70 + 200 + 10 + 200 = 666
In addition to this we find Lateinos, which means the Latin speaking man. And what language is the official language of the Vatican? Yes, of course it is Latin! The Greek numerical values here are: L = 30, A = 1, T = 300, E = 5, I = 10, N = 50, O = 70 and S = 200. And the sum? Truly there will be 666 here too.
Soon the image of the beast will be established.
I have already mentioned a lot about this topic when we looked at the two beasts in Revelation 13 and the similarities between them. We also saw that the second beast, when the time is right, will put up an image of the first beast. We will now look at another side of this topic. The image of the beast.
And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. Revelation 13,15
Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, whose height [was] threescore cubits, [and] the breadth thereof six cubits: he set it up in the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon. Daniel 3,1
[That] at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, dulcimer, and all kinds of music, ye fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath set up: And whoso falleth not down and worshippeth shall the same hour be cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. Daniel 3,5-6
Revelation 13,15 tells us that in the end times, the beast from the earth, as we have previously explained as the United States, will put up an image of the beast from the sea, a picture that everyone must fall down to, and worship. This gives clear associations to Daniel chapter 3, where Nebuchadnezzar put up an image of himself – in gold – that everyone had to fall down to, and worship when the music began to play, (verses 5 and 6). It also tells us that music will play an important role in end-time worship, especially in the fallen church.
We have also explained the first beast which is the same power as the little horn, and we claim that this is the papacy. However, we are not alone in thinking so. As early as the seventh and eighth centuries, the papacy was given these qualities by those who were persecuted by the Roman Church. Martin Luther and several other reformers who lived towards the end of the Dark Ages said the same thing. So we are far from the only ones, nor the first who say this about the papacy.
The book of Daniel is the key to understanding Revelation, and if the book of Daniel is not understood, the revelation will be more difficult to understand, not impossible, but much more difficult. Daniel sees world history unfold from his own time to the return of Jesus, and he sees the four kingdoms that in Daniel’s prophecies pose a threat to God’s people, Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, and the Roman Empire. There is no room for any other realms or powers within the framework drawn up in the book of Daniel, as long as God himself does not make anything else known (Amos 3,7).
By within that framework, I mean: 1) The area where God’s people live at all times, and it is mainly the Middle East and Europe until the 17th century. After this time, God’s people are scattered throughout the world. 2) The geographical area that the individual kingdom in Daniel’s prophecies at all times possesses, 3) These kingdoms must have a direct and destructive influence on God’s people over a long period of time, a handful of years is not enough.
For the record, Daniel’s book basically deals only with the Middle East and Europe. As for John and the Revelation, he not only sees history evolve from his time and to the second coming of Christ, he also looks back in time, which appears in the expression five are fallen (Revelation 17,10), which means that it has been five kingdoms before the kingdom John sees reigning the world in his time. In addition, John receives information about two other kingdoms that will have different influences on God’s people. France in Revelation 11,7-9 and USA in Revelation 13,11-18.
France also receives modest coverage in the prophecies, and then had no particularly devastating effect on God’s people over time. It was only a short time around the French Revolution that France persecuted the Christians. The four beasts of Daniel 7, all of which persecuted God’s people over time, allowed pagan religions. In contrast, France forbade all religion for a short period. France did not mix political power with religious power either. On the contrary. It is a prerequisite that this is done in order to be considered one of the beasts in the chronology of Daniel and Revelation. The United States, on the other hand, will play a prominent role in the end times based on what the prophecies tell about the beast from the earth.
The United States receives far greater attention in the prophecy than France, and it is worth noting what it says about the beast from the earth. It had two horns and spoke like a dragon. This is explained so that in the first years of this nation, it is humble as a lamb, and has a clear distinction between religious power and state power, hence two horns. When the first fled from religious oppression in Europe came to the new land in the west, there was one thing they set higher than anything else, and that was religious freedom. When the US Constitution was made, a separate point was made that forbade the state to interfere in people’s religious lives. The state was not to regulate Christian life, and everyone was allowed to believe what they wanted to believe.
But one thing is what is said, another thing is what is done. As early as the rise of Seventh-day Adventists and the establishment of the SDA as a church in 1863, some states began enacting Sunday laws, presumably to counteract the SDA’s influence on religious life in relation to which day is God’s day of rest, (George R. Knight, A search for Identity). Now it is said that these are not federal laws, but local laws that the individual states can introduce without conflicting with the constitution. However, the US Constitution prohibits the requirement of religious affiliation in order to hold public office, but in recent decades there has been a significant shift so that a religious language is actively used in public contexts.
Eventually, this beast will begin to speak like a dragon, something we have seen the United States do to an increasing degree after World War II, and especially after 2001.
When Pope Francis visited the UN in 2015, it was decided to establish a multinational military group that would be able to move out in a short time to solve current problems. Not unexpectedly, it was President Obama who was behind the proposal. What one puts into current problems is not clear from the document, but we can certainly expect that the current problems will be defined based on the wishes of the current pope, Secretary General (UN) and President (USA) (in any order ).
Ever since the United States proclaimed independence, this nation has clearly distinguished between religion and state power, and it is only when the United States mixes religion with the state power that it takes an official position against God and God’s faithful people. This means that the image of the first beast has not yet been set up.
However, we know that one (or more) international Sunday law (s) will come, and they are actively working on various teams to bring such laws forward. For the time being, the United States cannot enact religious laws at the federal level, but this can be changed with a stroke of a pen, or quite easily overruled by the US Supreme Court by order of the President, or by the President himself.
The Sunday law can also have a secular wrapping, and that means it can have a form that is edible for the US Constitution, such as a law that goes on to determine a special day for the family. One such day is Family Day. It has already been launched and promoted by Pope Francis and has resonated in most countries of the world. In short, the law states that all families have the right to a day together during the week where shops and everything that is not absolutely necessary are closed, and that the papacy says this must be Sunday. The latter may not be surprising, but it is in fact what God’s fourth commandment imposes on us, it is just that the pope has messed it all up and mixed it with the wrong day.
Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day [is] the sabbath of the LORD thy God: [in it] thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that [is] within thy gates: For [in] six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them [is], and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it. Exodus 20,8-11
As we see, no one should perform his work on the Sabbath, which is the day of the Lord and the day of rest, unless it is of social interest, as the duties of health personnel, firefighters and police are. Satan copies this through his agents but uses the day furthest from the Sabbath. Those who do not want to worship this image of the first beast will, once it is set up in the near future, neither be allowed to buy nor sell.
Typology: Type and antitype.
Soon is a stretchy concept in the same way as eternal. I have many times waited an eternity for the bus, but in reality I have only waited 5 minutes. That it feels like an eternity may have to do with time pressure, or that it is a northerly wind and snowstorm. Then even short periods of time seem like eternities. The same is with the word soon. When we go waiting for something, time fades away, and then it will soon feel like an eternity. Still, I would argue that the image of the first beast will soon be set up by the second beast. This image will impose on people a special day as a day of rest, and although it seems good, it is in opposition to God’s day of rest.
In Babylon, King Nebuchadnezzar had a statue built for all to worship. This is a type of a future event – antitype. In addition to the statue, which is an image of Nebuchadnezzar, the king made a law that required all people to kneel before the statue (the image) and worship it. Those who did not follow the king’s law were killed. This is a historical event that is reproduced in the Bible. But the Bible also gives us a warning: This is going to happen again, and as we see in Revelation 13, exactly the same thing will happen in the near future as what happened in the distant past.
In our day, it is not the King of Babylon who puts up an image that must be worshiped, it is instead the King of the United States who is given the dubious honour of doing so. This king will not put up an image of himself, but of the power that has persecuted God’s faithful people since early in the first millennium. Apart from these differences, the rest will be identical. Fall on your knees and worship this image that has been set up otherwise a death penalty awaits you. Fortunately, God will intervene in history, as He has done time and time again, to save His faithful people from being wiped out.
Type, Daniel chapter 3 verses 4.5.6.12.20
4 Then an herald cried aloud, To you it is commanded, O people, nations, and languages, 5 [That] at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, dulcimer, and all kinds of music, ye fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath set up: 6 And whoso falleth not down and worshippeth shall the same hour be cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. 12 There are certain Jews whom thou hast set over the affairs of the province of Babylon, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego; these men, O king, have not regarded thee: they serve not thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up. 20 And he commanded the most mighty men that [were] in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, [and] to cast [them] into the burning fiery furnace.
Antitype, Revelation chapter 13 verses 12.14.15.16.17
12 And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. 14 And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by [the means of] those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live. 15 And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. 16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: 17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
A HOLOGRAM is a three-dimensional image created by light sources. In 2020, a hologram can now look EXACTLY like a person and even SPEAK a foreign language unknown by said person, but represented in his own voice tones and inflections! End times DECEPTION via hologram technology might be the very way the false prophet will DECEIVE people with "counterfeit miracles" (2 Thess. 2:9) centering around a breathing and speaking IMAGE of the beast: And he [the false prophet] performed great and miraculous signs, even causing fire to come down from heaven to earth in full view of men.
Because of the signs he was given power to do on behalf of the first beast, he DECEIVED the inhabitants of the earth. He ordered them to set up an IMAGE [Greek = resemblance] in honor of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived. He was given power to give breath to the IMAGE [Greek = resemblance] of the first beast, so that it could speak and cause all who refused to worship the IMAGE [Greek = resemblance] to be killed. (Rev 13:13-15) ** IMPORTANT: The Greek meaning of the word "image" [eikon] is - statue; likeness; representation; resemblance; image. **
The DECEPTION will come from "miraculous signs" associated with the "IMAGE", that is, the likeness, representation; resemblance; image of the Antichrist so that it has BREATH and can SPEAK.
Again, that can now be accomplished in 2020 with HOLOGRAMS. [See "Demo: The magic of AI neural TTS and holograms at Microsoft Inspire 2019" on youtube.com] Hologram technology, etc. could be the perfect fit with the coming of the Antichrist [the man of sin or lawless one] in accordance with the work of Satan and LYING wonders: The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all kinds of COUNTERFEIT MIRACLES, SIGNS AND WONDERS, and in every sort of evil that DECEIVES those who are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. (2 Thess. 2:9,10) The people who receive the mark of the beast will be DECEIVED by "miraculous signs": But the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who had performed the miraculous signs on his behalf. With these signs he had DELUDED those who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped his image. The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur. (Rev 19:20) The saints who make it to heaven are those who choose "beheading" over the mark of the beast: ...And I saw the souls of those who had been BEHEADED because of their testimony for Jesus and because of the word of God.
They had NOT worshiped the beast or his image and had NOT received his mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years. (Rev 20:4) Do NOT receive the mark of the beast or you will be eternally lost: A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice: "If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on the forehead or on the hand, he, too, will drink of the wine of God's fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. He will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment rises for ever and ever. There is no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and his image, or for anyone who re ceives the mark of his name."
This calls for PATIENT ENDURANCE ON THE PART OF THE SAINTS who obey God's commandments and REMAIN FAITHFUL TO JESUS. (Rev 14:9-12) [FYI: The numeric value of the name BILL GATES III (all caps) in ASCII is 666; the term "corona" as in corona virus has 6 letters and the numeric value of it is 66 using the English alphabet of a=1, b=2, c=3, etc. thereby yielding three 6s (666); the last 6 digits of the Microsoft patent ID2020 is 060606.
Since Christ first promised His disciples He would return, Christians have wondered if their generation is the one that would witness the fulfillment of that promise.
And probably every generation since has thought itself to be the last generation, basing their belief on the perceived or actual declining moral standards of society in their day.
Yet for all the speculation and hearsay, only one generation can be the final generation, and all the evidence points to ours.
For centuries, Christians have used anecdotal evidence, such as "things have never been so bad" or "look at all the evil in the world," as a basis for believing their generation was the last generation of this age. Yet very few biblical signs of Christ's return, if any at all, were present for these generations.
Now, fast forward to the present day when almost every sign of Christ's return is present. Israel is once again a nation, poised to fulfill the final seven years of God's divine plan (Daniel 9:24). Travel and knowledge have dramatically increased (Daniel 12:4). Russia, Iran, and a unique coalition of anti-Israeli nations are gathering in concert (Ezekiel 38-39). The European Union, cultural and geographical heir to the ancient Roman Empire, has emerged on the world scene as a legitimate superpower (Daniel 9:26), and many other end times prophecies (too numerous to list here) have been fulfilled or are in the process of being fulfilled in our time.
But one of the most recognizable signs that our generation is in the last days is that ours is the first generation with, or about to acquire, the technology necessary to fulfill many of the end times prophecies. In fact, the Book of Revelation describes several key events which will transpire on earth during the tribulation period which require mankind to be in possession of advanced technology. Some of these technologies mankind has already acquired; others will be developed in the very near future.
Let's examine these technologies:
The Whole World Looks Upon Them
Revelation 11 describes one such technology, which will allow the whole world to look upon the bodies of God's two witnesses:
"When they complete their testimony, the beast that comes up out of the bottomless pit will declare war against them. He will conquer them and kill them. And their bodies will lie in the main street of Jerusalem, the city which is called 'Sodom' and 'Egypt,' the city where their Lord was crucified. And for three and a half days, all peoples, tribes, languages, and nations will come to stare at their bodies. No one will be allowed to bury them. All the people who belong to this world will give presents to each other to celebrate the death of the two prophets who had tormented them." Revelation 11:7-10 (NLT)
The fact that all peoples, tribes, languages, and nations will stare at these bodies has been fertile ground for modern speculation, with many Christians believing that, for the first time in history, this prophecy can be fulfilled through satellite news coverage on CNN or MSNBC. It's true that this is unprecedented in human history. Yet the ability to view any area of the planet via a cable news network feed does not, of its own merits, mean that this prophecy can presently be fulfilled.
The verse specifically says "all peoples, tribes, languages, and nations" will stare at their bodies, not "some of" the peoples, tribes, languages, and nations. In our day, the technology capable of bringing this event to fruition remains unavailable to much of the world's population.
However, in the very near future, the cost of this technology will significantly decrease in proportion to its power, providing much of the Third World with the media access it currently lacks. As a result of a trend toward more powerful and cost-effective technologies, human progress will ultimately lead to the ubiquitous use of high-bandwidth video feeds on cell phones, PDAs, and other handheld devices most of us probably have yet to imagine.
In addition, the development of molecular manufacturing (MM) will make poverty as we know it a thing of the past. Humanity will still be divided into rich and poor, but today's rich will envy the poor of a society where even the most destitute of citizens is in possession of extremely powerful, high-bandwidth networking devices. Moreover, the exponential advance of technology will allow for the creation of virtual reality realms that will enable the end-user to "experience" live events in another location.
As a result, for the first time in history, it will be possible for the entire world to simultaneously view or "be present at" a particular geographical location, just as Revelation 11 predicts. This fact alone is strong evidence that our generation is the first generation ever with the capability to witness Christ's return.
No One Can Buy or Sell
In addition, the bible has long foretold of a time when a specific individual will institute a worldwide system controlling all of human commerce:
"He required everyone - great and small, rich and poor, slave and free - to be given a mark on the right hand or on the forehead. And no one could buy or sell anything without that mark, which was either the name of the beast or the number representing his name." Revelation 13:16-17 (NLT)
The "he" described in this passage is the Antichrist, who will have unprecedented control over all worldwide financial transactions. In fact, he will have so much power he will be able to determine on a case-by-case basis which individuals will be allowed to buy or sell anything.
As the development and advancement of human technology continues, not only will such an elaborate and detailed system of financial control become possible, it might well become necessary. Such a system would be the natural result of the development of molecular manufacturing (MM) and the widespread adoption of home-based desktop 3-D printing capability - a technology counterfeiters of our day would kill for.
In the near future, governments will find it near impossible to distinguish counterfeit paper currency and metallic coins from their genuine counterparts. Today's counterfeiters have access to the latest and most sophisticated printing technologies, making it quite difficult for the average citizen to identify counterfeit currency anyway. But as printing technologies move from the two-dimensional realm into the three-dimensional realm, where every atom and molecule is in its proper place, no amount of watermarking or tamper proof technology will be able to prevent a counterfeit currency from being indistinguishable from the real McCoy.
Given that most of the world's currencies are fiat currencies (meaning value is completely derived from the public's willingness to accept the underlying value of the currency), such an environment of rampant counterfeiting would destroy the international monetary system unless drastic change is implemented.
The only method of currency verification a government could implement would have to involve direct tracking and oversight of all currency in the monetary system.
And under such a system, what would be the actual point of paper currency or metallic coins?
The vigilant fraud prevention necessary to protect the monetary supply would have to involve sophisticated electronic banking encryption software and/or stringent personal identification verification technologies. One, the other, or both in the hands of government regulators would provide the government in question with unprecedented power over its citizenry.
As a result, for the first time in history, a government would be in a position to eliminate the existence of black markets (with the exception of those that involve bartering). For the first time ever, a government could literally control who is able to buy and sell.
The Mark of the Beast
In fact, such a scenario is exactly the one which the bible describes for the last days. As previously mentioned, the Book of Revelation states:
"He required everyone - great and small, rich and poor, slave and free - to be given a mark on the right hand or on the forehead. And no one could buy or sell anything without that mark, which was either the name of the beast or the number representing his name." Revelation 13:16-17 (NLT)
Verifying whether or not someone is authorized to buy or sell based on a mark has theoretically been possible throughout history. However, given the level of control described by the bible, enforcement of such a system (and the suppression of the inevitable black markets that will emerge) has been completely out of reach for previous generations. Taking this passage in its full context, even today's world lacks the technology to completely enforce such a system of commerce. But the day is rapidly approaching when such a system will be within man's reach.
A tattoo, by itself, is simply not sufficient to enforce such a system. In order to succeed, the distinguishing mark most also be pared with a worldwide database containing the necessary information relevant to the individual and his or her ability to make a financial transaction. While it's certainly possible that a dictator could've mandated such a system in years past, the enforcement mechanism would've been lacking. Those without the mark might have faced discrimination or have otherwise been ostracized from their community. But a mark by itself can do nothing to prevent the emergence of a black market.
As long as the worldwide monetary system involves currency that can be stored, hidden, and traded in secret, government attempts at control will always lead to the emergence of a black market for commerce.
However, once a stand alone currency is taken out of the equation and financial transactions are moved completely into the electronic realm, it will no longer be possible to store, hide, or trade currency in secret. An electronic monetary system of this type would have been inconceivable to our forefathers. But our generation is completely emerged in its predecessor.
Technology to Conquer and Control the World
Just as the massive global destruction chronicled in the Book of Revelation remained beyond the comprehension of man until the development of the atomic bomb, the idea of one man becoming the undisputed leader of the world was beyond the realm of possibility for previous generations. Yet the bible clearly states that one man will temporarily rule the entire world:
"And he was given authority to rule over every tribe and people and language and nation." Revelation 13:7 (NLT)
This man is known as the Antichrist, and not one person will escape the reach of his rule.
Even now, the technology required to conquer and control the population of the world does not exist. Most people remain under the allusion that it does, but destroying one's enemies or conquering a territory is quite different from the process of administering that territory. Especially when that territory's citizens are hostile to the foreign intrusion. In 2008, the world's most dominant military power is the United States, yet it's efforts to govern and reshape the population of Iraq illustrate just how difficult such an undertaking can be. Administering and governing this relatively small state has proven costly, both in man power and financial resources.
Now, imagine the United States attempting to administer, regulate, and govern all the states and territories in the world. That's a tall order.
Nevertheless, some will still argue that it's certainly possible for a world power to conquer and govern all the states of the world. A totalitarian regime could simply murder all who pose the slightest threat to the status quo. Regimes of this kind (such as Saddam Hussein in Iraq or the Taliban in Afghanistan) have succeeded in taking state control of a population to heights never before achieved. But still, both of these societies were home to black markets, secret resistance movements, and other elements of dissent. No society has ever achieved the level of population control the bible predicts for the Antichrist's kingdom. The logistics of such a detailed and individual level of control have simply made such a scenario impossible.
However, the day is fast approaching when this will no longer be the case.
In his Future Brief article A Global Surge Protector, Mike Treder makes the following observation: "For, until our time, conditions have not made it possible for true world domination to exist."
Treder is comfortable making this assessment because he is intimately familiar with the emerging technology of molecular manufacturing. Molecular manufacturing will lead to the immediate creation of extremely cheap advanced technologies capable of aiding an individual or a small group in the task of dominating and controlling the world population.
Here's a glimpse of what the world would look like under such a scenario:
Government surveillance will be "god-like" in its scope and capability - seeing everything, hearing everything, and knowing everything. Try to envision "nanodust" - particles the size of a single speck of dust complete with onboard cameras and listening devices. This nanodust is as plentiful and difficult to remove as the natural dust people encounter every day. The construction of trillions of these sophisticated devices will be possible to achieve at negligible cost, thereby making them ubiquitous.
Outfitted with advanced artificial intelligence software, these devices sift through continuous video and audio feeds, searching for predetermined patterns which indicate potentially "aberrant" behavior as defined by the state. Such a world isn't difficult to imagine. Similar pattern recognition technologies are already in widespread use. In the future, they will simply be extended to applications that encompass all human behavior on a global scale.
The aforementioned scenario isn't as futuristic as some believe. The technologies described will emerge suddenly with little time for the world to plan or adjust to their impact. Nevertheless, if current trends continue, they will come. This is just another reason why our generation is unique in its ability to fulfill the prophecies catalogued in the Book of Revelation.
Conclusion
No generation before ours could have realistically expected the fulfillment of the aforementioned end times prophecies. While the tribulation features supernatural acts by both God and Satan, our generation is the first generation capable of fulfilling the Book of Revelation's prophecies without a need for supernatural acts to accomplish the feats described therein.
This is one of the strongest arguments that ours in the last generation prior to the return of Jesus Christ. However, it's also one of the least accepted because it's difficult for people living in our times to recognize just how completely unique and unrecognizable our world is compared to that of previous generations. But if a person takes the time to study and examine human history, it becomes clear as day that Christ is knocking on the door.
Would it have been realistic for the whole world to literally watch an event unfold prior to our generation? Of course not, yet it would seem like business as usual for our generation.
Would it have been realistic for a single individual to control world commerce prior to our generation? Of course not, yet our generation is the first to conduct the majority of its sales and purchasing transactions electronically. In this day and age, is it really difficult to believe a single government could control all financial transactions?
Would it have been realistic for a previous generation to create a giant worldwide database containing the financial history of every single individual on earth who accepted a mark? Of course not. Such a system, without the aid of powerful computers and sophisticated software, would have been costly bureaucratic sea of inefficiency, incapable of monitoring financial transactions. Yet our generation is the first which can conceivably implement such a system.
Would it have been realistic for a previous generation to set up a truly global government, governing its citizens with ruthless efficiency and little threat of revolt? Of course not. Not only has nationalism stood in the way, but the logistics of such an undertaking are well beyond the capabilities of human beings unaided by powerful technologies. Yet, in the very near future, not only will such an undertaking be possible, many will argue that it's absolutely necessary.
For our generation, the writing is on the wall. Jesus Christ is coming soon! The question every person should ask is whether His Coming will bring them indescribable joy or abject horror. The choice is ours to make.
NOW THAT WE HAVE THE ANTICHRIST BECOMING COMPLETELY POSSESSED BY SATAN, it is time to examine what he does next.
In the middle of the week, he shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate, even until the consummation, which is determined, is poured out on the desolate.
Daniel 9:27
As was explained in the first chapter of this book, the week represents the Antichrist’s seven-year reign, so the middle of it would be three and a half years into it. If the “sacrifice and offering” are ended, then they first have to start. And if it’s going to start, then the Jews have to have the temple. So this indicates that the construction and use of the temple is one of the issues covered in the seven-year Covenant.
This ban on worship will not just be for Jewish temple. The Antichrist will forbid and abolish all religious worship, declaring himself God and requiring worship of himself, with suppression, persecution, and even death to all who won’t bow to him. “He even exalted himself as high as the Prince of the host; and by him the daily sacrifices were taken away, and the place of His sanctuary was cast down. Because of transgression, an army was given over to the [Antichrist] to oppose the daily sacrifices; and he cast truth down to the ground. He did all this and prospered” (Daniel 8:11–12). The “Prince of the host” is believed to mean Jesus or God. So the Antichrist is now saying to everyone that he is God.
“And forces shall be mustered by him, and they shall defile the sanctuary fortress; then they shall take away the daily sacrifices, and place there the Abomination of Desolation” (Daniel 11:31). By stringing these Scriptures together we can determine that three and a half years after confirming the seven-year Covenant—“in the middle of the week”—he not only forcibly enters the newly rebuilt temple on Mount Moriah, Jerusalem, and “takes away the daily sacrifice” and sets himself up as God, but he also “places” something called “the Abomination of Desolation.”
Over five hundred years after Daniel gave this prophecy, Jesus, in His famous dissertation on “the signs of His [second] coming and of the end of the world” in Matthew chapter 24, said: “Therefore when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place”— the Jewish temple in Jerusalem—“whoever reads [the book of Daniel], let him understand” (Matthew 24:15).
Jesus said that we’d better understand, because He was placing this event in the future. He is saying that at the time of His life here on Earth, this event, the placing of the Abomination of Desolation, had not occurred. Some Bible scholars and historians contend that Antiochus Epiphanes (circa 215–164 B.C.), the Macedonian king of the Hellenistic Seleucid Syrian kingdom (one of the successor states of Alexander the Great’s empire), fulfilled the prophecies in Daniel 8 and elsewhere about the Abomination of Desolation in 166 B.C., when he captured Jerusalem and forbad the worship of God and all the Jewish rites on pain of death. In the temple an altar to Zeus Olympios was erected, and sacrifices were to be made at the feet of an idol in the image of the king. This event was certainly an abomination in the eyes of the Jews, but because it happened before Jesus spoke of it as happening in the future, that rules it out as being the Abomination of Desolation spoken of by Daniel.
What did Jesus say would happen when this Abomination of Desolation appears? “Therefore when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place ... then there will be Great Tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be” (Matthew 24:21). So the placing of this Abomination of Desolation introduces the Great Tribulation period, the second three and a half years of the Antichrist’s reign. When you see it standing there, you’ll know the Tribulation has begun.
So the big question now is, what is this Abomination of Desolation? Jesus said you’d see it “standing in the holy place.” Daniel 11:31 says the Antichrist “places there the Abomination of Desolation.” Daniel 12:11 says that “the Abomination of Desolation is set up.” He places it, he sets it up and it stands there, so it’s some kind of standing object.
the 13th chapter of Revelation we find out that it’s an image of the Antichrist himself. And it’s not just a dumb statue like the one that old Seleucid king erected, but it will be a most amazing machine.
Now we must introduce another evil Endtime personality—another beast that exercises all the authority of the Beast we have just been describing in Chapter 3 of this book.
Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and he had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon. And he exercises all the authority of the first Beast [the Antichrist] in his presence, and causes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first Beast, whose deadly wound was healed. He [this two-horned beast] performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men.
Revelation 13:11–13
Who is this two-horned beast? We find the answer in Revelation 19:20, which states: “Then the Beast [the Antichrist] was captured, and with him the false prophet who worked signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who received the Mark of the Beast and those who worshiped his image.” This two-horned beast is called the “False Prophet.” We don’t know who he will be, but it’s clear from the passage above that he performs the multiple roles of being the Antichrist’s propaganda minister and high priest of the worship of the Antichrist. He has some sort of extraordinary powers or genius, similar to the Antichrist himself, as he “performs great signs.”
And he deceives those who dwell on the earth by those signs which he was granted to do in the sight of the Beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the Beast who was wounded by the sword and lived. He was granted power to give breath to the Image of the Beast, that the Image of the Beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the Image of the Beast to be killed.
Revelation 13:14–15
The order to kill all those who refuse to worship the Image of the Beast is given at the beginning of the Great Tribulation. This meshes with the Scriptures about the Abomination of Desolation being set up at exactly the same time. So this Image and the Abomination of Desolation are the same thing.
From the description of the Image having “breath,” it sounds like it’s some kind of an automaton, a computer-operated cybernetic robot, programmed so that it can speak and act like it’s alive and command the worship of the world.
As far fetched as this would have sounded in John’s day, to give “life” to this image is now feasible with the advances that are being made in robotics and artificial intelligence. Futurists—scientists and others who predict what the future holds—even have a name for when artificial intelligence (AI) will no longer be the product of man but will assume control over itself. They call it the “Singularity.”
The Image of the Beast will be able to not only speak, but also kill—or cause to be killed somehow. It may even be demonically inspired to where it actually has demonic intelligence, more than just what man has programmed it with. It’s apparent that it will be a real wonder, and could really be worshiped by many. It will be the ultimate in idolatry: Man worshiping an abominable demon-possessed machine that desolates the world.
“‘I know where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is. Yet you hold fast my name, and you did not deny my faith even in the days of Antipas my faithful witness, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells.” (Revelation 2:13)
“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.” (Revelation 13:15)
At first, those two verses may not seem connected. And they may not be. But here is a bit of history, and then a speculation. You decide.
The Antipas that John spoke of via Jesus in Revelation 2, was the bishop of the church at Pergamum. Pergamum, now known as Bergama, was part of the Greek Empire. It is located in what is now Turkey, having been overcome in 1453 when the Ottomans swept in and absorbed Greece. The Ottoman Empire, AKA the Turkish Empire, retained Greece under its rule from 1453 until Greece declared independence in 1821.
The Revelation verse mentions the throne of satan, Antipas, and the martyrdom of Antipas. Because of the mention of Antipas, the common interpretation is that the place where satan dwells is Pergamum where Antipas was bishop.
This city was an important political center that influenced all of Asia Minor. Though the city itself was beautiful it was one of the darkest, creepiest cities of all- spiritually. The city was home to a plethora of complex of pagan cults, including worship of Zeus, Athena, Dionysus and Asclepius, the healer, being of special importance. The people there were known as the “temple keepers of Asia.” The largest temple was the Temple of Zeus, and it is this temple that is thought to be the one Jesus was referring to in Revelation 2:12 when Jesus says that the people of Pergamum live in the place where satan has set his throne. If a ‘god’ has sat down, it indicates he feels comfortable enough to sit, that he is ‘at home.’
Antipas was the leader of the Christian church there, ordained by John and killed for the faith in around 92AD. Antipas’s death must have been very recent when John was inspired to write Revelation 2. This was during the reign of Domitian. Christians were heavily persecuted toward the end of Domitian’s reign (89-96).
In Pergamum, the tradition goes, Antipas had been very successful in casting out demons. So the priests in the city decided that Antipas was a threat to their way of life, and a threat to all the religions, and to the emperor. Tradition says that Antipas was given the opportunity to make a sacrifice to the emperor, but he refused. He was condemned to death. The common method of executing someone in that city was at the Temple of Zeus, one of the marvels of architecture of the day.
What they would do is put someone inside a huge brass, hollow bull, tie them up, and light a fire under the bull. The person inside would slowly roast. However, to add to the drama and mystique, the builders had designed the bull in such a way that made it seem to come alive. Author Rick Renner explains,
“They would take the victim, place him inside the bull, and they would tie him in such a way that his head would go into the head of the bull. Then they would light a huge fire under the bull, and as the fire heated the bronze, the person inside of the bull would slowly begin to roast to death. As the victim would begin to moan and to cry out in pain, his cries would echo through the pipes in the head of the bull so it seemed to make the bull come alive.”
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You can just imagine with the smoke and the fire, and the marble allowing for sounds to bounce off all the walls, how eerie it must have seemed to see this huge bull and listen to what sounded like moaning and crying emanating from it behind the smoke.
In Revelation 13 we read that there will be another image and that it will seem to have breath and to have come alive, and cause all to worship it. It is not so hard to imagine that this once again may be the method of making the bull seem alive. Though some have proposed that modern technology will have advanced to the point where the “image” spoken of in Revelation 13:15 will be a hologram, or a complex robot, or some such, it is not so hard for a man like the antichrist who will have been given power to cause false signs and wonders, to make a bull or other image seem alive. However, I am sure that it will be amazing, just as millions were overcome with mesmerizing sensuousness at Hitler’s speeches or Obama’s appearances, millions again will be swayed by flatteries and false miracles. Let’s take a look at the beast that can seem to speak in Revelation 13, even though Habakkuk 2:19 says,
“Woe to him who says to a wooden thing, Awake; to a silent stone, Arise! Can this teach? Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all in it.”
As for the beast that can seem to speak, “Now this is amazing. This powerful Antichrist, this world leader is established as the focus of world worship and the false prophet is given somehow the power to give him breath in the very form of that image so that the image can speak. Please notice the word is breath here, it’s not life, it’s not zoe, it’s not bios, the two Greek words for life. It’s pneuma. And I believe what you have here is the presence of the appearance of some kind of phenomena that looks like life but not bios and not zoe, not life. Some would like to say that this image comes to life, but I don’t see that. Satan cannot give life. [Strong’s definition of pneuma, ‘a movement of air (gentle) blast; of the wind].” (source)
The spirit of antichrist is now in the world, as Apostle John wrote in 1 John 4:3, “and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already.” This spirit is one that hates God and seeks to stop the mouths of the people who proclaim the wondrous name of Jesus.
All the former antichrists have tried to stop the Christians; Antiochus IV, Emperor Titus, Nero, Domitian, Hitler…they were pictures and types of antichrists, which will lead to the final antichrist, the Beast. The persecution is coming, I mean the global persecution against Jews and Christians described in Revelation 12. But the Bride will not be here to experience it. For those who have already died a faithful death like Antipas, and for those who will die a faithful death in the Tribulation, refer back to the verse in Revelation 2…
“and you did not deny my faith even in the days of Antipas my faithful witness, who was killed among you”
…a personal commendation from Jesus! What a treasure! Those who die martyr’s death will receive a crown, the crown of life,
“Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.” (James 1:12)
“Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have tribulation. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life.” (Revelation 2:10).
The best part is that soon, the beast who will be allowed to speak, and I am talking of the Beast who speaks flatteries and causes deception (Daniel 11:32), will have his day and then he will speak no more. After the Tribulation he will be tormented forever in the Lake of Fire,
“And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence had done the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur.” (Revelation 19:20).
He will speak no more!
Artificial Intelligence, aka A.I is getting more sophisticated and more advanced by the day. And many are simply blown away with it and this poses the danger of falling into the trap of worshipping the image of the beast. I told them never to be excited or go wow when they see these things.
A short while later, the Lord said, Daughter post that video. And warn my people not to worship the image of the beast. The Lord explained that those things we watched in the video have damned many souls to hell. While some have received the mark of the beast by accepting the RFID microchip, others have also have their souls damned to the lake of fire, by worshipping the image of the beast. The Lord was very emphatic about it.
God’s people should not be carried away with these hellish scientific breakthroughs.
And now, as you can see in the video, we now have car robots. Cars that can convert to cyborgs or vice versa. Dancing and flying
cars. And humanity are going crazy about them.
SO WHAT IS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE?
The Lord Jesus Christ have revealed that Artificial Intelligence ( A.I ) is nothing but the image of the beast spoken of in the book of Revelation 13:15.
The divine revelation of A.I being the image of the beast was given by the Lord Jesus Christ sometime in 2018. I posted it on August 11th, 2019.
And it’s titled; THE ROLE OF A.I (ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE) IN THE AGENDA OF THE ANTI-CHRIST.
The following is an excerpt from that post.
The Lord said “Daughter, The A.I is the image of the beast. The robots that are now invented are the main A.I agenda, they are the image of the beast. In Revelation 13, the image could speak. The whole world is worshipping this image. Daughter, very soon anybody that shall opposed the A.I shall be put to death or imprisoned.”
This is what the Lord Jesus Christ said about Artificial Intelligence. In addition, the Lord called A.I Anti-Christ Instrument.
“And it was given to him to give breath to the image of the beast so that the image of the beast would even speak and cause as many as do not worship the image of the beast to be killed” – Rev. 13:15
Indeed, Artificial intelligence which is the image of the beast is been made to both speak and act just like humans. In most cases, with more superior intelligence.
A.I have become such hyper-intelligent machines that today, computers can fly planes, interpret X-rays, and sift through forensic evidence; algorithms can paint masterpiece artworks and compose symphonies, Acts as sex partners ( sex dolls) to such an extent that some humans prefer them to natural human beings, acts as newscasters, bank workers, address international conferences, appear in t.v talk shows, etc. “Google is developing “artificial moral reasoning” so that its driverless cars can make decisions about potential accidents.” And one renowned American professor ( name withheld) is greatly fascinated with uploading the human brain, intellect, and emotion into a computer. He is going about exploring how the human brain can be digitalized and how humans can become immortal through artificial intelligence.
Do not be carried away with the so-called technological innovation. No, it’s not mere technology. This is the image of the beast.
Brethren be careful, be very careful. Do not be carried away with the so-called technical revolution of artificial intelligence, which the Lord Jesus Christ called “anti-Christ instruments.”
The dancing cars turned cyborgs dancing in this video are no ordinary machines. These machines are purely demonic inventions with a sinister hidden agenda. They are gradually taking over the world. Many companies are laying off their workers as robots have taken over the employee’s jobs. This is trending everywhere nowadays. And one day after the rapture, they will destroy humans.
You will recall that the Lord gave us a divine revelation exposing the sinister agenda of artificial intelligence in terms of robots.
I posted that revelation on Oct. 7th, 2020. You can find it on my timeline.
( A DIVINE REVELATION FROM OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST.
HOW THEY STOLE HUMAN’S INTELLIGENCE AND TRANSFER IT TO MACHINES TO CREATE ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE.
THE “STAY AT HOME” SLOGAN.
SATAN’S AGENDA IS TO REPLACE HUMANS WITH ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (A.I) ON PLANET EARTH.
AFTER THE RAPTURE, ROBOTS SHALL DESTROY HUMANITY ON A LARGE SCALE.
OCTOBER 7, 2020.)
HOW DOES ONE WORSHIP THE IMAGE OF THE BEAST?
So how does one worship the image of the beast?
By showing admiration, wonder, awe for it, by liking it, or loving it, all these are ways men worship the image of the beast. When men see these things and go wow, this is awesome, such an individual is worshipping the image of the beast. Additionally, anyone who buys these kinds of cars, or buys sex dolls, or who is fascinated with these things in the name of technology, electronic and robotic innovation is really worshipping the image of the beast. There are Christians who foolishly defend these things and argued that these things are mere technological innovation and nothing else.
I plead with you, to desist from such arguments so that you won’t be found guilty of worshipping the image of the beast.
When you buy these satanic cars or sex dolls, you are worshipping the image of the beast. The Lord Jesus Christ said I should warn you, do not engage in any of these things. It will take you straight to the lake of fire.
PUNISHMENT FOR THOSE WHO WORSHIP THE IMAGE OF BEAST
The punishment for those who worship the image of the beast is the same as those who worship the beast and those who received the mark of the beast.
The truth is when you worship the image of the beast you are giving your allegiance, your acceptance, and your devotion to the beast and invariably to the devil who gave his power to the beast. You are showing admiration to Satan who is behind all these things.
These three things must be avoided at all costs.
1. Don’t worship the beast.
2. Don’t worship the image of the beast.
3. Don’t receive his mark on your forehead or on any of your hands.
CONSEQUENCES OF WORSHIPPING THE IMAGE OF THE BEAST
Firstly, all those who worship the image of the beast will suffer the wrath of God. The Lord had designated special angels for this assignment. These angels shall pour the wrath of God on those who accept the mark of the beast and those who worship his image.
Revelation 16:2
And the first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth, and there fell a noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and upon them which WORSHIP HIS IMAGE. (emphasis mine)
Secondly, those who worship the image of the beast will suffer eternal torments in the lake of fire, alongside those who worship the beast and those who receive his mark.
Revelation 14:9-11
And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and HIS IMAGE, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand,
10 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:
11 And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up forever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and HIS IMAGE, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.( emphasis mine)
The bible reiterates this in Revelation 19: 20.
“And the beast was taken, and with him, the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and THEM THAT WORSHIPPED HIS IMAGE. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone” ( emphasis mine)
You have seen it, that those who worship the image of the beast shall eternally burn in the lake of fire with the beast whose image they so much admired and worshipped. Stay clear of this damnable sin.
May the Lord grant his people the grace to stay away from worshipping the image of the beast.
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