(Post #25) The First Beast

Revelation 13
Water Monster
And Earth Monster

In Revelation 13, John records the drama focusing in on two evil characters symbolized as a water monster and an earth monster. These symbolized the final corrupt political and religious leader (Anti-Christ) and the Kingdom of Babylon that would attempt worldwide prominence.

REVELATION 13 “And I (John) stood on the sand of the sea. And I saw out of the sea a beast coming up, having seven heads and ten horns, and on the horns of it ten diadems (indicating dominion or authority), and on the heads of it names of blasphemy (denying the “pristine” holiness of God- in a display of gross irreverence towards the leaders or nations deemed worthy of exalted esteem- in truth leaving the beast with no hope for claims of godliness- so to unify divinity with humanity).”

Blasphemy is the use of reference to one or more gods in a manner considered objectionable by a religious authority.
It is also sometimes defined as language expressing disbelief or disapproved beliefs, or ridiculing religious figures or symbols.
In some countries, these restrictions have the force of law, and may use the terms blasphemous libel, defamation of religion, vilification of religion, and religious vilification. "Blasphemy" may be used by extension to describe any display of gross irreverence towards any person or thing deemed worthy of exalted esteem.
· An indignity offered to God in words, writing, or signs; impiously irreverent words or signs addressed to, or used in reference to, God; speaking evil of God; also, the act of claiming the attributes or prerogatives of deity. When used generally in statutes or at common law, blasphemy is the use of irreverent words or signs in reference to the Supreme Being in such a way as to produce scandal or provoke violence.
· Figuratively, of things held in high honor: Calumny; abuse; vilification.

Holman Commentary.- Millions of people see the tyrannical political system they are forced to endure as a horrible monster. Sometimes the monster is religion gone astray. With this in mind we can understand the background for the images recorded in this chapter of Revelation. The persecuted Christians John addressed (in the Book of Revelation) daily faced twin beasts: an oppressive Roman Empire and the growing popularity of emperor worship.

MAIN IDEA: The great drama continues by showing that corrupt political and religious powers will climax in two wicked and powerful persons – the Antichrist and the Babylonian Monarchy.

Holman Commentary.- The Water Monster – (Political Evil Incarnated)
SUPPORTING IDEA: Throughout the ages God has seen political evil as a horrible water monster, and in the final time of the Great Tribulation this monster will become a personal, powerful Antichrist.
All sorts of interpretations have been offered as to why the first monster arises out of the sea. The uncharted oceans held terrors for ancient people, and storms at sea easily symbolized evil. English translations customarily use the translation beast, but what John saw can better be rendered by the term monster. John described it, starting with the horns and finally moving on to the feet, as it came up from the water.

(Continuing Revelation 13) Verse 2 “And the beast which I saw was like a leopard (distinguished for bloodthirstiness and cruelty, and thus an emblem of a fierce, tyrannical power in its general appearance), and the feet of it as of a bear (in the strength of its claws), and the mouth of it as (the) mouth of a lion (to seize and hold its prey).”

Mounce Commentary.- While the sea may suggest the “disturbed and stormy social and political conditions out of which tyrannies commonly arise,” it is doubtful whether the Seer (John) intended to load the term with such theological significance. Yet the ancient world commonly associated the sea with evil, and for the last great enemy of God’s people to arise from the reservoir of chaos would be entirely appropriate.

Beast Out of the Sea - The beast has ten horns and seven heads. In the present vision we learn only that on each horn there is a diadem (royal headband), the insignia of royal authority. There are a number of suggestions as to why the diadems are placed on the horns rather than on the heads of the beast. The most plausible is that his claim to authority rests on brute force. It is hardly necessary in apocalyptic to shift the diadems to the horns in order to have sufficient room to stamp the heads with blasphemous names.

NOTE: These “ten horns” are the “key” to the destruction of the Great Harlot Babylon. Their proper identification is mandatory. We are informed in Revelation 17 that these kings, of which the horns represent, have not yet received a Kingdom but will have independent authority in the days of the beast, yet they will end up hating the prostitute Babylon and will bring her to ruin. These are very important horns of strength.

Henry Commentary.- We have here an account of the rise, figure, and progress of the first beast: and observe from what situation John saw this monster. He seemed -to himself, to stand upon the sea-shore. Whence this beast came-out of the sea; and yet, by the description of it, it would seem more likely to be a land-monster; but the more monstrous everything about it was the more proper an emblem it would be to set forth the mystery of iniquity and tyranny.

What was the form and shape of this beast? It was for the most part like a leopard, but its feet wee like the feet of a bear and its mouth as the mouth of a lion (being a sort of composite of those three, with the fierceness, strength, and swiftness of them all); it had seven heads, and ten horns, and upon its heads the name of blasphemy: the most horrid and hideous monster!

Barnes Commentary.- “And upon his heads the name of blasphemy.” That is, the whole power was blasphemous in its claims and pretensions. The word blasphemy here seems to be used in the sense that titles and attributes were claimed by it which belonged only to God (sovereign, or supreme ruler).“And the beast which I (John) saw was like a leopard,” which is distinguished for bloodthirstiness and cruelty, and thus becomes an emblem of a fierce, tyrannical power. “And his feet were as the feet of a bear.” The idea here seems to be that of strength, as the strength of the bear resides much in its feet and claws. As the same time, there is the idea of a combination of fierce qualities –as if the bloodthirstiness, the cruelty, and the agility of the leopard were united with the strength of the bear. “And his mouth as the mouth of a lion.” The mouth of the lion is made to seize and hold its prey, and is indicative of the character of the animal as a beast of prey. John has thus brought together the qualities of activity, bloodthirstiness, strength, ferocity, all as symbolical of the power that was intended to be represented.

Thomas Commentary.- As contrasted with the Lamb of God, he stands for chaos against order, evil against good, and death against life.

NOTE (Paraphrased): To make him an inhuman entity being like the incarnation of evil (the Anti-Christ), satisfies the details of the text. Identifying him as the head of the “past and present” empires of the world under the sway of Satan (the lord of evil, the leader of the fallen angels), is even better.

JESUS - The Bright & Morning Star - (Sun of Righteousness)

* Giving Holiness to Jehovah

* Member of the Exclusive Covenant

*PRODUCES: Civil Government of Democracy

VS

ANTI-CHRIST - God Manifest - Evil Incarnate

* Opportunist

*PRODUCES: Theocratic Terrorism

Thomas Commentary.- The beast must be a personal figure as well as the head of an empire. An evil force operative in the empire or empires must have its embodiment in a malevolent person.

(Daniels vision of pre-history - Not to be confused with Revelation 13 Beast)
Ironside Commentary.- In Daniel 7 we read of the time of the Gentiles pictured in a different way. The man of God (the prophet Daniel) had a vision in which he saw nothing beautiful or grand, but the four great empire were represented as four ravenous beasts, waiting to spring on each other. The (ancient) Babylonian empire was symbolized by a lion with the wings of an eagle- a hybrid, formed from a beast of the earth and fowls of the air. The Medo-Persian dominion appeared as a bear, lifting itself up on one side. If had between its teeth three ribs dripping with blood, representing probably the three chief cities of Babylonian empire that were sacked by the Medes and Persians under Cyrus. The Grecian, or Alexandrian empire, was pictured as a leopard with four heads and four wings of a bird on his back. The four heads, of course, depicted the fourfold division of this Greco-Macedonian empire after Alexander’s death. Finally, Daniel wrote that the fourth beast was dreadful and terrible. It had great iron teeth and broke in pieces and devoured all that came in its way. He gave no exact description of it, however he added that it had ten horns.
That last beast clearly answers to the iron legs of the image, the Roman power.

(Here we pick up the vision - Anti-Christ comes into view)
DANIEL 7:7 “And I (Daniel) was considering the horns, and behold, another little horn- came up among them; and three of the horns (kingdoms) were uprooted from before it. And behold, eyes like the eyes of the man (were) on this horn, and a mouth speaking great things.”
The “little horn” of Daniel is a reference to Antiochus IV, surnamed Epiphanies (God manifest) but called by his Jewish enemies Epimanes (madman), one of the cruelest rulers of all time.

Dominion would be given to the “Greek Empire”- the “little horn”- Antiochus Epiphanies, who wrought such havoc with the temple in Jerusalem.

Meet Antiochus (the Anti-Christ) as he appears at the end of days:


The Invisible Government of a Secret Confederation

“In the chaotic time of confusion, uncertainty, and unrest that will prevail…the world will long for a leader. People will be desperately hoping for someone powerful and influential to unite the divided and contentious nations of the world; someone to bring hope in the midst of helplessness; someone to provide a sense of security in an unsettled time of apprehension and fear. People will be desperately seeking a strong, charismatic, authoritative leader to pull the world back from the brink of disaster.”
“Those longings will be fulfilled. The powerful leader people desire will come and unify the world under his rule. He will appear at first to be everything people thought they were looking for. And for a brief time he will bring peace and prosperity. But he will turn out to be far more than the world bargained for. He will be a dictator more cruel and powerful than any other leader the world has ever known. This man, often called the Antichrist, will be the culmination of a long line of would-be world conquerors. What men like Alexander the Great and the Roman emperors in ancient times and Hitler and Stalin in modern times only dreamed of doing, the Anti-Christ actually will do- he will rule the entire world and receive its worship <{as God Manifest- the “Mighty God” ; the “Anti-Christ”}>.” Such charlatans have been around throughout human history; in the first century the apostle John lamented that ‘even now many Antichrist's have appeared’. But the Bible predicts that the end times will see an unprecedented proliferation of false Christ’s and Antichrists. Jesus warned, ‘Many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am He!’ and will mislead many…’”

“The original source of the biblical teaching about the Antichrist is the book of Daniel. Daniel 7 pictures the Antichrist as a little horn, arising from the ten horns of the fourth beast of Daniels’ vision. That horn represents a person, since it ‘possessed eyes like the eyes of a man and a mouth uttering great boasts’.”

“Later in Chapter 7, Daniel saw that the “horn [Antichrist] was waging war with the saints and overpowering them.’ Antichrist is seen leading a savage persecution of God’s people ‘until the Ancient of Days (God)' came and judgment was passed in favor of the saints of the Highest One, and the time arrived when the saints took possession of the kingdom of the Messiah.”

“Daniel 8:23-25 gives another glimpse of Antichrist and his reign of terror: ‘A king will arise, insolent and skilled in intrigue. His power will be mighty, but not by his own power, and he will destroy to an extraordinary degree and prosper and perform his will; he will destroy mighty men and the holy people. And through his shrewdness he will cause deceit to succeed by his influence; and he will magnify himself in his heart, and he will destroy many while they are at ease. He will even oppose the Prince of princes (Lord Jesus), but he will be broken without human agency.’”

“He will be an insolent intimidator, devious, possessing a power not his own [], a fierce destroyer of his victims, and so arrogant that he will dare even to ‘oppose the Prince of princes', who is the Lord Christ. That move will prove fatal, however, and God’s power will fall on Antichrist, who ‘will be broken without human agency.’”

“According to this prophecy, Antichrist will have absolute power; he ‘will do as he pleases.’ As the leader of a worldwide false religion, he ‘will exalt and magnify himself above every god…He will show no regard for the gods of his fathers…nor will he show regard for any other god; for he will magnify himself above them all.’ Worse, his arrogant pride will lead him to blasphemy, and he ‘will speak monstrous things against the God of gods (Jehovah).” Like his evil master, Satan [the lord of evil, the leader of the fallen angels], Antichrist will be blasphemous, profane, and proud. But also like his master, ‘he will come to his end…” – MacArthur Commentary

(Hypothetically Rendered – End Time Hypothesis)
THE NORTH And THE EAST - DANIEL 11:44 “But news (referring to a report) shall trouble him from the EAST (the direction of “Media-Persia”) and from the NORTH (the land of Meshech is in the far North, of whose tents David dwelt- in a place distant from his own ). And he (Antiochus) shall plant (royal) tents (“his military tents from himself and his court”) between (the) seas, in the glorious holy mountain. Yet he (Antiochus) shall come to his end, and not is a (divinely sanctioned) helper (or miraculous intervention) for him.”

TO BE CONTINUED...