Taught by
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Taught by
Stephen ArmstrongTonight we return to the end of Chapter 12 to revisit something we learned at the end of last week
As we’ve been learning, at the mid-point of Tribulation the Lord makes a series of dramatic moves to prepare the Earth for the next 3.5 years
Among those dramatic moves is the establishment of a place of protection for the believing Jews on earth
This place of protection, Botzrah or Petra, will become a fortress in the desert for the second half of Tribulation
The Lord supernaturally protects the remnant for 3.5 years in this place preventing the enemy from wiping out believing Israel
At the end of Chapter 12 we read this:
As I explained that text last week, Satan is now bound to the earth, which alerts him that his time is short
That realization sends him into a panic and enrages him against anyone who is aligned with God and against his purposes
His first target are the believing Jews, because as we will learn later, the Jewish people play a key part in God’s defeat of Satan
Satan attempts to end the existence of believing Jews on earth, but God won’t allow his plan to succeed
Believing Jews are protected because God promises the Jewish nation that a believing remnant will always remain
God promises Israel that a remnant (meaning a group of believing Jews) will always exist by God’s power
Paul tells us in Romans that this has always been the case
As Paul said in Romans, the remnant of Israel is always preserved by God’s grace ensuring faith remains alive in the nation
In Elijah’s day believing Jews were still present in the nation despite Elijah’s assumptions to the contrary
Today, that remnant is part of the body of Christ, the Church, consisting of Jews who come to faith in Jesus Christ
And in the Tribulation, it will be the same with Jews who have heard the Gospel and believed in Jesus after the Rapture
So the Jewish people have always and will always include a minority with saving faith, called the remnant
And in the time of Tribulation, God’s protection takes the form of a fortress in Petra to preserve the remnant until Jesus returns
And since Satan cannot wipe out the remnant as it sits in God’s protective custody, he must direct his anger elsewhere
That leads him to attack two other groups who oppose him on the basis of faith
The first group Satan attacks are those who keep to the commandments of God, which means those who maintain a faith in the Mosaic Law
The commandments of God is a reference to the Law of Moses
So this first group are Jews who continue to worship Yahweh, the God of Israel, through the keeping of the Mosaic Law
However, these Jews are not yet believing in Jesus as their Messiah
If they had believed, they would have been included in the remnant that was delivered into Petra for protection
But because they are devoted Jews without protection, they oppose Satan on earth
Therefore they are persecuted and murdered by Satan through human agents under Satan’s control
Then we have the second group which are those who hold to the testimony of Jesus
As I said last week, this group are principally Gentiles who have come to faith in Jesus after the Rapture
But Gentile believers on earth are not given the same protection as Jewish believers during Tribulation
Many Gentile believers will be attacked and martyred as a result of their faith
And we’ve already seen evidence of their deaths in the earlier chapters of Revelation – as souls under the altar in Heaven
This may seem unfair, but remember there is no promise from God to preserve a Gentile remnant on earth
Moreover, the plan of God for Christ’s return and the defeat of Satan does not depend on Gentile believers as it does Jews
So preserving a believing remnant of Gentiles on earth is not necessary to God’s plan
Nevertheless, as we will see, a group of Gentile believers do manage to survive until the end though most will die
Moreover, dying is not a bad outcome for those who live during the second half of Tribulation according to Revelation 14
We will come back to the implications of martyrdom when we get to Chapter 14
And also in Chapter 14 we learn about yet another group that is persecuted and does not receive protection after mid-tribulation
Meanwhile, let’s move to the next stage of action also taking place at the mid-tribulation moment
Chapter 13 opens with some familiar symbols and some new symbols, which tells us that a story is building and new details are being added
We have our dragon again, which we know is Satan
He is confined to the earth and engaged in persecuting believers and Jews alike
But as I said a moment ago, he does his work through the agency of human beings he controls and directs
Satan has always worked this way, most obviously with Judas betraying Christ, and he will do the same in Tribulation
But at the mid-point of Tribulation, his tactics reach a new level, brought about by his casting down from Heaven
And Chapter 13 is the story of how Satan’s methods change dramatically at mid-Tribulation
That story centers on a familiar character, called the beast
I say this character is familiar because he has already appeared in the book of Revelation in earlier chapters
Most specifically, a beast was mentioned in passing in Revelation 11, as the one who killed the two witnesses at mid-Tribulation
Now we will learn how it is that someone could obtain the power to defeat those two men when no one else could
And this beast also appeared in an earlier chapter of Revelation, though at that time he wasn’t being called the beast
He was riding the horses that opened the seal judgments
In those earlier references, he wasn’t called the beast because he had not yet risen to a place of prominence
Now we learn in Chapter 13 how that man’s rise to world domination happens
It starts with the dragon again standing on the shores of a sea, and the beast rising out of the sea
We know the dragon is Satan, so the suggestion is that the beast’s rise to power is made possible by Satan’s power
So what does it mean that the beast rises from the sea
Remembering our rules of interpreting symbols, we consult Scripture for the answer
And in this case, the answer comes easily because we should remember what we learned in Daniel 7
A beast coming up out of the sea is clearly defined in Daniel 7 as meaning a Gentile nation, or in this case a Gentile ruler coming into power
In fact, the use of the term “beast” to describe this world leader is a clear and obvious reference back to Daniel 7
So immediately we recognize that this chapter is closely tied to Daniel 7
And therefore, as we consider the symbols in this chapter, we will look back at Daniel 7 frequently to understand their meaning
In v.1 we’re told that the beast of Revelation 13 has features that are very similar to one of the four beasts described in Daniel 7, and to the dragon
The beast is a Frankenstein monster of other animals parts including a lion, bear, and a leopard
This beast also has ten horns and seven heads and there are ten crowns on the horns
And on the seven heads were blasphemous names
Before we go any further in understanding those symbols, let’s revisit the description of the four beasts in Daniel 7
When we studied Daniel 7, we learned that the four beasts each represent a world dominating empire
The lion represented Babylon, the bear was Medo-Persia, the leopard was Greece
The fourth beast was altogether different with multiple horns
Notice that in the description of the beast of Revelation 13, we see elements of all these creatures represented in that beast
He has features of the lion, bear, leopard and the fourth unnamed beast of Daniel 7
The implication is clear: the beast of Revelation 13 is the embodiment of the Age of the Gentiles
He is the final and most powerful leader of the Age of the Gentiles, which is why he has the features of the fourth beast
And he is also the one who fulfills the overall purpose of the age, which is to hold Israel under Gentile rule until Christ’s return
At the conclusion of the beast’s rule, Jesus will return
This beast is the final world ruler that Daniel 7 told us would end the fourth kingdom and the age of the Gentiles
So recognizing the connection with Daniel 7, we can begin to form a story from the symbols opening this chapter
At mid-Tribulation Satan will permit a world ruler, called the beast, to rise to power in fulfillment of Daniel 7
That world ruler will be the final world ruler of this age and he brings Daniel’s prophecy full circle
Just as the age began with one, dominant world ruler, Nebuchadnezzar, so it will end the same with the beast
This man is depicted with features of the lion, bear and leopard because he inherits and succeeds all previous kingdoms
He embodies all that the age of the Gentiles stands for
The beast’s rise to power is made possible by Satan’s power
In v.2 we’re told Satan gives the beast his throne and great authority on the earth
But notice the dragon also gives his power to the beast, which indicates that something new is happening here as well
The beast literally becomes as powerful as Satan himself
And the only way for that to happen would be if Satan and the beast become one
Now at this point we would want to know the meaning of the beasts, horns and heads and crowns?
Obviously, they have great similarity to those of the dragon, and we might be tempted to make a direct comparison
But then we notice the arrangement of these symbols is slightly different so that means the meaning must be different too
Both have ten horns and seven heads but Satan wears crowns on the heads while the beast wears crowns on the horns
If we follow our rules of interpretation we find the answer given elsewhere in this book, in Revelation 17
Rather than skipping ahead, we will wait for our answer until we get to that chapter
However, that will make interpreting the next verse a little tricky since it focuses on one of these details: the heads
In the next verse we learn how it is that Satan brings this world leader to rule over the planet
One of the heads of the beast is slain, but we don’t know what the heads represent
To make our study of this chapter easier, I will simply tell you now that the slain head represents the Antichrist himself
When we get to Chapter 17, we’ll unpack the meaning of these symbols carefully
And at that time, we will learn that these heads represent seven world leaders, the seventh representing the Antichrist himself
Therefore, the death of a head on the beast represents the Antichrist himself dying, being killed by someone or something at mid-Tribulation
Now that’s a stunning event, because it seems to run against everything we’ve been learning so far
Daniel said the Antichrist would rise to power at the mid-point of Tribulation and rule for 3.5 years
And we’ve already learned one verse earlier that the beast would receive the power and authority of the beast
So how does his dying fit into that plan?
Remember, during the first half of Tribulation the Antichrist begins his rise as a political and military leader
He is not one of the ten world leaders of that time, since Daniel 7 tells us he will be an eleventh ruler
Instead, he comes into power by negotiating a covenant to permit Israel to return to sacrifice according to Daniel 9
And he consolidates his power through threats of war and military conquest according to Revelation 6
Now we learn that as he reaches the height of his power, the Antichrist will suffer a head wound that is fatal
Notice the language in v.3 carefully: his would is “fatal” and by definition, a fatal wound means the body dies
But then it says that his fatal wound is healed
The only way a fatal wound is healed is if the body dies and then returns to life
And in v.3 the Greek language confirms this interpretation, because the Greek words for “as if slain” are hos sphazo
These are the same Greek words used back in Revelation 5 to describe Jesus in the throne room
At that time, I told you that the phrase “standing as if slain” was a euphemism for resurrection
So here we find the same phrase meaning the same thing: the Antichrist is killed and then is resurrected
We don’t know what kills the Antichrist exactly, but we can make an educated guess
Daniel 7 told us that as the Antichrist rises to prominence, he subdues three of the world leaders and becomes king of the world
So perhaps his rapid rise to power leads three of the world leaders to conspire to assassinate the Antichrist
They succeed and it appears that the world is safe until the Antichrist is resurrected and then removes the three kings
How can the Antichrist accomplish a resurrection? Obviously, that would depend on supernatural power
God has the power to bring a dead body back to life, but in this case He isn’t the One doing the work
Instead, the Lord allows Satan to do something he has long desired to do
God permits Satan to indwell the body of the Antichrist bringing the man back to life for the remainder of the Tribulation
Moreover, Satan indwells the Antichrist taking up residence in the man’s body
This is what v.2 meant when it said that the dragon gives his power to the beast
Satan literally puts himself and his power inside this man, which is how he may bring the man back to life
Having been resurrected, the beast is now even more powerful than he was before
And through this union, Satan becomes the object of the world’s attention and worship
Notice how the world reacts to this stunning development
The resurrection of the Antichrist leads the world to say who can be like the beast and who could wage war with him?
And as a result the world worships the beast as we would expect
But notice also that the world begins to worship the dragon, which suggests they begin worshipping a god behind the scene
Remember, Satan is now confined to the earth, so this is his only domain now
And by taking up residence in the body of the Antichrist, Satan assumes a physical form to gain control over the world
So the Antichrist and the “god” giving him his power become the objects of the world’s devotion and worship
Paul taught that this would happen
The one that Jesus slays at His coming is the same one whose coming into power is done in accord with the activity of Satan
Now we see how that activity happens, as Satan takes advantage of the Antichrist’s death to bring about his resurrection
In fact, since we know that Satan has control of the ten world leaders, we must assume that Satan orchestrated the whole thing
He lead three kings to kill the Antichrist so that he could then resurrect the man and set his plan in motion
This is the moment when the Antichrist becomes the ruler of the world at mid-Tribulation
And now we find the reason the man is called the Antichrist
He is a man who makes the claim to be Christ on the basis of his resurrection
John told us he is called Antichrist because he opposes Jesus and because he is indwelled by the spirit of the antichrist
And now we see he is an antichrist because he is a counterfeit Christ
This is also confirmed by Paul
Paul said the Antichrist would claim to be God and take a seat in the newly built Jewish temple, claiming to be the Christ
And Daniel told us to expect the same thing
Daniel told us that the antichrist would magnify himself above every god and speak blasphemous things
He will show no regard for the religions of the world because he will claim to be above the religions of the world
He will claim to be the Messiah, the Christ
But in reality, the Antichrist will honor a god of fortresses, which is a reference to the god of the world, Satan
With the help of this foreign god, the Antichrist will take control of the strongest of the world’s fortresses
He will also put an end to worship of any other god or religion so that all worship is directed to his god, Satan
And in Daniel 9 we learned that his rise to power includes the ending of sacrifice in the temple, because he alone will be the god of earth
The end of sacrifice in the Temple happens at the middle of the week, and it coincides with an abomination that makes the Temple desolate
So the Antichrist stops Jewish sacrifice in the Temple because he claims such sacrifices are no longer necessary
He is god on the earth, so he takes his seat in the temple, as Paul says, displaying himself to be god
That is the beginning of the abomination in the temple
It’s the same moment Jesus was thinking about in Matthew 24 when He warned the Jews to flee to the mountains
In Isaiah 28, the prophet warns Israel that their agreement with this man of the enemy will come back to haunt them
In Isaiah 28, the prophet warns Israel that their agreement with this man of the enemy will come back to haunt them
So at mid-Tribulation the Antichrist is murdered, probably by three of the kings
Satan resurrects the Antichrist’s body and through this resurrection, the Antichrist claims to be the real Christ
He subdues the three kings that killed him and the other seven kings fall into line under him
He gains a worldwide following claiming to be god and directs the world to worship the god who gave him his power, Satan
Claiming to be God, the Antichrist enters the Tribulation Temple, runs the Jews out, and seats himself in the mercy seat
He desolates the temple and ends sacrifice there and puts an end to other worship
And we now see how these turn of events fit with the events we studied in Chapters 11 and 12
In Chapter 11, the two witnesses are killed by the beast, and now we know how the beast had the power to do that
He was resurrected by Satan and with Satan indwelling him he has the power to kill the witnesses
Remember, the beast is celebrated for ending the terror of these men, and that would only add to the world’s desire to worship
So the Antichrist will be celebrated at mid-tribulation as the risen Christ and as the savior of the world
He ended the terror of the judgments that the world has associated with those two witnesses
And He has established a new worldwide kingdom under his rule with one system of worship centered on him and his god
All of these details are further confirmed in Revelation 13
First, we come to that tell-tale indication that this chapter is describing events of the mid-point of Tribulation
In this case it’s expressed as forty-two months but that is exactly 3.5 years
And as Daniel foretold, once the Antichrist rises to power, he will speak arrogant and blasphemous things for forty two months
Paul told us to expect the same things of course
And the effect of the Antichrist’s resurrection and claims to be God are immediate and profound
The world is now set against anyone who would deny the truth of these claims
Remember at the end of Chapter 12 we learned that Satan went off to make war with Jews and with Christians
Now we see how that war will be prosecuted…Satan will use the Antichrist as his agent to leads those attacks
The Antichrist will bring the world to his side then use them to hunt down and kill anyone who will not worship him as god
And this war will largely be successful, because we’re told he is given authority over the people of the world
Obviously, those who have come to know Jesus as Lord will not accept that the Antichrist is god and therefore they will not worship him
As a result, he overcomes the saints and make martyrs of believers who refuse to obey him
The rest of the world will fall in line and worship the beast as their god
Notice in v.8 everyone on the earth who were not recorded in the Lamb’s book of life from the foundations of the earth will worship the beast
Those who are recorded in the Lamb’s book refers to the elect of God, those who are saved by His grace
Consider carefully what this verse is indicating…if someone begins to worship the beast, they will never be saved
This moment at mid-Tribulation becomes a dividing point not only in the timeline of Tribulation but of humanity
From this point onward, those who worship the beast are unsaveable while those who refuse to worship are martyred
There is no third option so there is no hiding or avoiding a fate one way or the other
It’s worship the beast and live but be condemned
Or worship Jesus and die, but have eternal life
John sums up this truth in v.9 with the iconic Biblical call to believe: if anyone has an ear (to hear the truth of God), let him hear (or believe)
This seems to be a call to the Tribulation citizen reading this book to believe while they still can
We will study the issue of the end of evangelism and belief at mid-tribulation in detail next week in Chapter 14
Then in v.10 comes a sobering reality of the last half of Tribulation, that if a saint is destined to be taken into captivity, then that’s where he/she will go
And if saint attempts to fight back against the Antichrist, then they are destined to die in the fight
There will be no resisting the power of the Antichrist for the time God has appointed for his rule
This ruler is one God has permitted to have absolute control over the world for 3½ years
And nothing the saints can do will impede his rule, so John says this is the perseverance of the saints
It could also be translated the endurance or patience of the saints
Which means if you enter mid-Tribulation as a saint, you must understand and accept the fate you are now facing
You will likely be a martyr and this is God’s appointed outcome
But later in Revelation we hear that it’s better to die at this point than to live through what is coming
So with a recap, we now we move to introduction of yet another character of mid-tribulation
Another beast emerges this time from the earth and not the sea, which indicates this beast is not connected to Daniel’s prophecy in Chapter 7
The beast is pictured as a combination of a lamb and a dragon
Using what we already know of these symbols, we can put a narrative to the images
A lamb is used in Scripture as a picture of Christ in his ministry as the dying prophet sent to be sacrificed (i.e., the Lamb of God)
And of course having a mouth of the dragon means he speaks for Satan
So this man will appear to be a prophet of the Antichrist’s god having been raised up by Satan to be his spokesman
We commonly call this second beast the False Prophet of Tribulation for this reason
John says in v.12 he will exercise (or carry or bear) the authority of the Antichrist in the Antichrist’s presence
Which means he will accompany the Antichrist and perform miraculous signs by the power of Satan
We’re learning that Satan raises up a second man at mid-Tribulation, someone we haven’t heard about before
This second man will work hand-in-hand with the Antichrist to further the deception and further prompt the world’s worship of Satan
The False Prophet calls upon the world to worship the Antichrist as God, John says
And his message is reinforced by a power to call fire down from heaven
His miraculous displays are further proof to the world that the Antichrist is god
But notice that he is only able to perform these miracles when he is in the presence of the Antichrist
This tells us that the power for these miracles is coming directly from Satan who is indwelling the Antichrist
Remember, Satan is not God, he is a created being, so he is not omnipresent and can only be in one place at one time
Moreover, Satan is currently indwelling the Antichrist’s body, so Satan can only be where the Antichrist is
Therefore, Satan can’t know what the false prophet is doing unless the Antichrist is nearby to watch him
And so the false prophet can’t perform miracles except in the presence of the Antichrist so that Satan is able to intervene
Then in v.14 we hear that the false prophet commands that an image of the resurrected Antichrist be constructed
This is a classic counterfeit maneuver that Satan has used since the fall of mankind
Icons, statues, relics and other physical forms of representing God are classic attempts by Satan to trap mankind in idolatry
Many churches today display icons of the resurrected Christ, and all false religions depend heavily on icons and figures
That’s why early in the ten commandments the Lord forbids setting up such things in our worship practices
And once again, Satan will have his representative, the false prophet, set up an image in the temple
The image will represent the Antichrist and give focus to the world’s worship when the Antichrist himself isn’t present
So the world will stream to the former-Jewish temple to worship the image of the beast
And this image will compel worship in a way that no image has likely done before
The false prophet, by the power of Satan, gives some kind of life to this image
The image has breath and can speak and kill those who will not worship the beast
What could be responsible for this supernatural display?
One simple answer could be demonic activity, so that demons animate the image and give it the appearance of life
Remember, Satan is the father of lies, so everything he does is a charade and an imitation
From Daniel 12, we learn that this statue is the abomination of desolation that Jesus refers to in Matthew 24
The abomination of the temple begins with the Antichrist sitting in the mercy seat of the temple
But Daniel says there is an on-going abomination of desolation in the temple that is “set up”, indicating something put in place
That something is this statue brought alive by demonic activity
Finally, the false prophet enforces the command to worship the Antichrist through economic means
Every human being on earth must take a mark on the right hand or the forehead in order to buy or sell anything
The mark is similar to the sealing given to those who were God’s 144,000 bondservants in Chapter 7
That mark was the seal of the living God protecting them from harm for a time
So Satan, the great counterfeit, mimics God once again by developing his own counterfeit the mark for unbelievers
And those who take the mark will be protected from Satan’s wrath and will be allowed to buy and sell
But those who refuse the mark will be killed (later in Revelation 20 we learn they are killed by beheading)
This further confirms that at mid-Tribulation there will be no more hiding or equivocating
You are either believing in the Christ, in which case you will be persecuted and many will die
Or you are believing in the Antichrist, in which case you become the persecutor and are no longer eligible for God’s grace
While the 144,000 of Chapter 7 were sealed with the seal of the living God, unbelievers will take a mark bearing the name of the Antichrist John says
The mark will be represented by a number which John says is the number of the Antichrist’s name
Numbering a name is a uniquely Jewish way of turning a word into a mathematical quantity
It starts by assigning a numerical value to each letter in the Hebrew alphabet
The Hebrew alphabet uses 22 characters but they aren’t numbered 1-22
Instead, the numbering scheme begins with 1-10, then moves to 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100, then ends with 200, 300, & 400
So by adding up the letters in a person’s Hebrew name, you can arrive at a single value
For example, if we add up the Hebrew letters associated with Jesus’ full name and title (Jesus the Messiah), we arrive at 749
Keep in mind this system only works with Hebrew names, so the Antichrist’s name (whatever it will be) must be written in Hebrew
Once it is translated into Hebrew, then someone who knows Hebrew could calculate the number of his name
When his name is calculated, John says it will add up to 666
The number 6 in Scripture is the number of fallen or sinful man
And in Hebrew writing, to double a number means “more” and to triple a number means “most”
So 666 is the most sin or the most sinful man, and of course he is the world’s most sinful man because he is indwelled by Satan
Only the world alive at mid-tribulation will be able to perform this calculation and confirm the identity of the Antichrist
Statistically, many different Jewish names can add up to any particular number
So we could imagine an uncountable number of Jewish names that might add up to 666 and learn nothing through the effort
Only after we have a name in Hebrew can we then verify if it adds up to the required number
Finally, we can look back on the activities of Chapter 13 and find an interesting pattern
We find Satan engaged in perhaps his biggest counterfeit of all time
First, we have a dragon, Satan, acting as the god of the world and the unseen power behind everything
He raises up a beast, the Antichrist, to serve as the focus of the world’s worship
He causes the death and resurrection of the man to convince the world that the beast is a christ
Then he is raises up another man to display supernatural power to create signs and wonders
The second beast’s purpose is to lead the world to worship the Antichrist
Moreover, the false prophet gives all the Antichrist’s followers a mark indicating their faith in the Antichrist
All these patterns are direct counterfeits to the way the real God of Heaven operates with His followers
The Father is our invisible God above all
Christ is the Son He raised up and all worship is directed toward Him
And the Spirit of God leads the world to worship Jesus and marks believers by indwelling them
Satan has created a false trinity to mirror the real trinity
The Christ is imitated by the Antichrist
The Holy Spirit is imitated by the False Prophet
And the invisible Father is Satan himself
So at mid-Tribulation the world is now faced with the prospect of choosing the false trinity or the real one
And everyone is now required to make that choice one way or another
Next week we see the effect of this forced choice and the end of evangelism on earth