Last week we looked at the remnant.

• We finished Revelation 12.
• The last picture that we saw was the dragon going after the remnant of the woman’s seed.
• That represented the SDA church. The characteristics all aligned.
• And we’re not done with the dragon yet.

Revelation 13:1-2
1 Then I stood on the sand of the sea. And I saw a beast rising up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and on his horns ten crowns, and on his heads a blasphemous name. 2 Now the beast which I saw was like a leopard, his feet were like the feet of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. The dragon gave him his power, his throne, and great authority.

The Beast

A beast comes up out of the sea. What does a beast represent?

• It represents a kingdom. We see this in Daniel 7.
• Remember it is not just any kingdom, but it is a kingdom with worldwide influence.

The Sea

How about the sea?

• Revelation 17:15
  Then he said to me, “The waters which you saw, where the harlot sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues.
• It represents a multitude of people. Many people.
• That really is representing Europe, where this beast would rise The old world with great history and a great many people with many different languages.

The 10 crowns

It has 10 crowns on the 10 horns.

• This detail is important as it gives time framing. However, we will only come back to this later when we study Revelation 17 as it is then clear what these 10 horns are.
• Note: if you studied Daniel with us or you have in the past, it is not the same as the 10 horns that we saw in Daniel 7 who is representative of the 10 barbaric tribes that would arise to tear Rome apart – the transition from the Roman Empire to the Holy Roman Empire.

The beast

The other details.

• It has seven heads.
• Ten horns.
• Body like a leopard.
• Feet like a bear.
• Mouth like a lion.
• And the dragon gives it his power, throne and great authority.

We know who this beast represents as we studied about it in Daniel 7.

• It is the little horn in Daniel 7, the papacy, the catholic church.
• It is the combination of all the animals mentioned there in that chapter.

What are those four beasts representative of again?

• Lion – Babylon.
• Bear – Medo-Persia.
• Leopard – Greece.
• Dragon – Rome.

However, in this beast (in this kingdom), all the kingdoms are  represented. Notice the detail:

• Body like a leopard.
• Feet like a bear.
• Mouth like a lion.
• And the dragon gives it his power, throne and great authority.

All this detail are the seeming strengths of each animal.

• The body of a leopard.
• The leopard represents Greece.
• What is the strength of Greece?
• It is the Greek mythology, or Greek philosophy. Superstition.
• And when it comes to the spots on the leopards skin, it doesn’t make sense why it would be spots. How does it camouflage with its spots? Why spots? We have no idea.
• The Greeks like to presume and philosophy on things that are not clear. My thoughts versus your thoughts. Reasoning.
• Acts 17:19
  And they took him, and brought him unto Areopagus, saying, May we know what this new doctrine, whereof thou speakest, is?
• Acts 17:21-22
  21 (For all the Athenians and strangers which were there spent their time in nothing else, but either to tell, or to hear some new thing.) 22 Then Paul stood in the midst of Mars’ hill, and said, Ye men of Athens, I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious.

Then we come to the bear. The kingdom of Medo-Persia.

• The strength of the bear is its feet, its paws.
• The mouth of the bear is actually very small in comparison to its size.
• It doesn’t hunt with its mouth but rather with its paws.
• When a bear is intimidated, it still stand up on its hind legs. The power is in its paws.
• What is the strength of Medo-Persia? It is its infallible laws which we saw when Daniel was thrown into the lions den (Daniel 6). The king made a decree that even he himself could not reverse. Laws that cannot be changed.

And then we see the mouth of the lion. The lion represents Babylon.

• The strength of the lion is its mouth. Not only does it have a really large jaw and it attacks with its mouth. The roaring of the lion is so fearful to other animals that it is known to freeze the prey with fear.
• What is the strength of Babylon? It was idol worship.
• Nebuchadnezzar dreamt of that great image in Daniel 2. And then he goes and makes an image all of gold in the very next chapter and commands everyone to bow down and worship it!
• Idolatry.

And lastly, the dragon is representative of the Roman power.

• And Rome is known for its strength.
• Daniel 2:40
  And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron…
• Daniel 2:41
  … but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron…
• The dragon gives this whole beast its power, and throne and great authority.

All these beasts are combined into one to represent that papal authority, the great antichrist of Bible prophecy.

• And in the papacy you see all these characteristics.
• The leopard of the body – philosophy and superstition. The religion is not built on truth but rather on the doctrines and commandments of men.
• The feet of the bear – it will institute a law one day that will not be reversed that we will see later in the mark of the beast.
• The mouth of the lion – it has idolatry in its worship – the worship of the saints. And we will see the biggest idol later in this chapter called the image to the beast.
• And then the strength of the dragon – we will see that it will use that strength to persecute.
  • So we see again the dragon is related to persecution.

Blasphemy

There is one last detail that is important back in Revelation 13:1-2.

• It has the name of blasphemy.
• Blasphemy is very closely associated with this beast. It is mentioned 2 more times in this chapter.
  • Revelation 13:5
    And he was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies, and he was given authority to continue for forty-two months.
  • Revelation 13:6
    Then he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme His name, His tabernacle, and those who dwell in heaven.
• Where have we seen blasphemy in Revelation?
• Revelation 2:9
  “I know your works, tribulation, and poverty (but you are rich); and I know the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.
• Blasphemy is saying that you are Jew but you’re not, you’re really of the synagogue of Satan. It’s a false Jew.
• This beast is the ultimate false Jew!
• In fact, it is the false Christ.
• Many people will be deceived into thinking that it has the character of Christ. That it is a true Christian, when in fact it is the very opposite.

Wow, what an introduction that we’re given to this beast. Let’s keep reading.

Revelation 13:3-4
3 And I saw one of his heads as if it had been mortally wounded, and his deadly wound was healed. And all the world marveled and followed the beast. 4 So they worshiped the dragon who gave authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast? Who is able to make war with him?”

Overview

Verses 1-4 is really a big overview, a big picture, of the reign of this beast.

• Verses 1-2: The rise and reign.
• Verse 3: the deadly wound.
  • After it receives power and a throne and great authority, one of its heads would be mortally wounded. It would receive a wound that would almost kill it.
• Verse 3: the healing.
  • Then that deadly wound would be healed.
• Verse 3-4: the world marvels, follows and worships.
  • And when the wound is healed, all the world would marvel and follow after the beast.
  • What does it mean that they would marvel and follow it?
  • They would worship the dragon and worship the beast.
  • So worship is a very important aspect to this beast. He wants everyone to worship him.

We see this repeated with more detail throughout the rest of the chapter. It really is a repeat and enlarge within that same chapter.

• Verses 5-8: the rise and reign.
• Verses 9-10: the deadly wound.
• Verse 11-12: the healing.
• Verses 13-17: the world marvels, follows and worships.

The Beast

However, coming back to verses 3-4, we see here a beast – a political power.

• And it wants to be worshipped – there’s the religious.
• We can expect persecution to come!
• It’s not hard to imagine when the Bible tells us “Who is like the beast? Who is able to make war with him?”

When did this beast with seven heads and ten horns receive a deadly wound?

• That took place in 1798 AD – at the end of the 1260 year
• That today is history to us.

But then the Bible tells us that one day that deadly wound would be healed and the whole world will be caught up in this great conflict about worship.

• All of that is future to us today from where we stand.

Let’s continue reading.

Revelation 13:5
And he was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies, and he was given authority to continue for forty-two months.

We are taken back to the dark ages. The 1260 years.

• This beast spoke blasphemy. Yes it was a false Jew.
• But what does it mean to speak blasphemy?
• Luke and John tells us that it is a man claiming to be God, and a man claiming to forgive sins.
• We went through all that detail in Daniel when we studied chapter 7. Please, it is so important to go and study that book first.

This beast had authority for those 42 months. No one dared to challenge. No one stood in its way.

Revelation 13:6
Then he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme His name, His tabernacle, and those who dwell in heaven.

We can connect this to a verse back in Revelation 12

• Revelation 12:15
  So the serpent spewed water out of his mouth like a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away by the flood.
• This must be referring to the serpent in Revelation 13 when it opens its mouth in blasphemy against God.
• It wasn’t political might that it came against God with its mouth, it was with falsehood, false doctrine.

How did it blaspheme name?

• The pope himself took on the characteristics of God, claiming to be God, claiming to be infallible, claiming to forgive sins.
• He took on God’s character which can only be attributable to God Himself.

How did the papacy blaspheme His tabernacle?

• Where it’s God’s tabernacle today?
• Hebrews 8:1-2
  1 Now this is the main point of the things we are saying: We have such a High Priest, who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, 2 a Minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle which the Lord erected, and not man.
• God’s sanctuary is up in heaven.
• And the papacy brought it down to earth by instituting priests after their order, and having confession boxes to take the place of our great Intercessor in heaven.

And how did the papacy blaspheme those that dwell in heaven?

• Well, apart from God, who else dwells in heaven? It is the angels.
• The papacy blasphemes them by claiming that the priests are greater than the angels and that the pope can even excommunicate the angels.
• De Liguori, “Dignities and Duties of the Priest; or, Selva,” 31.
  The sacerdotal [priestly] dignity also surpasses the dignity of the angels…. All the angels in heaven cannot absolve from a single sin … the holy archangel can chase away devils, but he cannot free his client from their claims till a priest comes to absolve him…. If I saw an angel and a priest, I would bend my knee first to the priest and then to the angel.
• Ferraris, “Papa,” in Prompta Bibliotheca…, Column 1826
  The Pope is crowned with a triple crown, as king of heaven and of earth and of the lower regions.… So that if it were possible that the angels might err in the faith, or might think contrary to the faith, they could be judged and excommunicated by the Pope.

Revelation 13:7
It was granted to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them. And authority was given him over every tribe, tongue, and nation.

He makes war with the saints. This is the dark ages of Papal persecution. The saints are overcome.

• Daniel 7:25
  He shall speak pompous words against the Most High, shall persecute the saints of the Most High, and shall intend to change times and law. Then the saints shall be given into his hand for a time and times and half a time.

And he has authority over every tribe and tongue and nation.

• It has power over even the kings of other nations.

Revelation 13:8
All who dwell on the earth will worship him, whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

This seems to be describing the end of time, but yet we know in its context it is talking about the dark ages.

• The book of life contains all the names of all the saved throughout all history.
• So it can definitely apply to the dark ages.
• Those in the past whose names are not there will be lost.
• And did the papacy desire for it to be worshipped? It absolutely did. That’s why it burnt those that they called heretics at the stake and persecuted the Christians that did not agree with them.

Revelation 17:8
The beast that you saw was, and is not, and will ascend out of the bottomless pit and go to perdition. And those who dwell on the earth will marvel, whose names are not written in the Book of Life from the foundation of the world, when they see the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.

• We will see in Revelation 17 that the history of the dark ages will repeat itself very clearly in the future.
• What happened in the past was the wrath of the dragon.
• And that wrath will come upon all those that live at the end of time as well.
• We need a great preparation to be ready for that day which we will see in Revelation 14.
• So there is a purpose for God to keep repeating the history of the dark ages.
• We need to be prepared.
• We need to take today seriously in that preparation.
• We really need to study as much as we can and take our spiritual lives more seriously that we ever have before.

Revelation 13:9-10
9 If anyone has an ear, let him hear. 10 He who leads into captivity shall go into captivity; he who kills with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.

Verse 9 seems to tell us – listen up!

• We have seen this phrase before in the churches.
• He that hath an ear, let him hear with the Spirit saith to the churches.
• We need spiritual insight for this to make sense to us.
• We need God’s Spirit speaking to us to give us the sense of urgency to be ready for the future.

But then verse 10 tells us about the deadly wound that would come upon that beast in 1798.

• He that leads into captivity, will go into captivity.
• The papacy would be led into the wilderness, just as many had to flee into the wilderness because of him.
• And he would be killed with the sword just as he killed many with the sword. That is the deadly wound.

In terms of time framing, we are brought up to 1798.

OVERVIEW

So far what we have seen is this:

• The rise and reign.
• And the deadly wound.

Revelation 13:11
Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and he had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon.

Who is this beast that is represented here?

THE LAMB-LIKE BEAST

How do we know that this beast is the United States of America. Let’s go through all the identifying marks of this beast.

It comes up from the earth.

• It is a sparsely populated area in contrast to the other beast that comes up from the sea which represents many people of different nations, tongues and people.

It is a beast.

• This is also a world-wide power or it has world-wide influence.
• There are only a few of those today.

It is a lamb.

• In contrast to all the other beasts, this one is not a mature It is a lamb. It is young.
• This must be a young nation.
• Quite a number are young nations today.

It is a lamb.

• In Revelation, the word lamb is mentioned 29 times in 27
• Of those 29 times, 28 times it is referring to Jesus Christ as the Lamb of God.
• This is the only verse in the whole book that mentions that word lamb and it is not talking about Christ.
• So this kingdom must have Christ-like characteristics. Meaning, it must be a Christian nation.
• Not many that have world-wide influence, is young, and is a Christian nation today.

It has two horns.

• What does horn represent in the Bible?
• Habakkuk 3:4
  And his brightness was as the light; he had horns coming out of his hand: and there was the hiding of his power.
  • Horn represents power.
• So it has 2 horns that protect. Because the lamb, the sheep, and any animal that has horns for that matter, they are all vegetarian. They don’t use the horns to hunt. They have been given horns so that they can protect themselves.
• So this kingdom has 2 powers that protect it.

It arises while the other beast is going into captivity.

• So this beast comes up around 1798 as the other beast is going into captivity, while it was killed by the sword.

United States of America is the only country today that fits that mould.

• The only other powers today that seem to have a great influence over the world are not even Christian nations.
  • They are atheist or a totally different religion altogether.
• USA started off as a sparsely populated country. It only grew into a great power because of the 2 powers that protected it.
• USA was a Christian nation. It still is considered that. We even see on their money – in God we trust.
• USA was a young nation. Declaring independence in 1776, July 4 – independence day.
• Those 2 powers that protect it and that has made America great is the powers of Republicanism and Protestantism.
  • Republicanism – it is where the power is given to the hands of the people to vote who would they like to lead them.
  • And Protestantism is the religious freedom, the amendments to the constitution.
• This has allowed USA to flourish. And in times past, those fleeing persecution in their own countries were allowed asylum in the USA.

No doubt that this beast is the United States of America today.

However, we are going to end by looking at the last details back in Revelation 13.

Revelation 13:11
Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and he had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon.

This beast would one day speak like a dragon. He is the replacement dragon.

• He is the one that will give power and authority back to the first beast one day.
• He is the key that will help the other beast to heal its deadly wound.
• You see, the reason why the other beast went into captivity is because it had its political power taken away.
• But one day, that will be given back to it by this second beast, the United States of America.
• And this is what we’re going to look at next week when the USA begins to speak like a dragon.