Revelation 50 | Who is 666? | யார் 666? | Revelation 13:11-18 #AbrahamDavidJohn

Revelation 13:11-18

Who is 666?

Revelation 13:11-18, Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and he had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon. ¹² And he exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence, and causes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. ¹³ He performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men. ¹⁴ 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. ¹⁵ 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. ¹⁶ 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, ¹⁷ 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. 18 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. The most dominant weapon in the arsenal of Satan is deception. Satan is a liar and a deceiver. Satan spends most of his time and energy trying to confuse people by covering up divine truth with lies.

Satan barrages the world with demon doctrines from seducing spirits through hypocritical, false religious leaders, teachers, and prophets. Warnings about this deceptive enterprise of Satan are replete throughout Scripture.

As we get closer to the return of Christ, they will escalate. Satan will increase the level of his evil enterprise and his deception as the world moves closer to the return of Christ. There will be an ultimate deceiver, the ultimate human hypocrite espousing demon doctrine energized by seducing spirits.

The description of the world religious leader who aids and abets the Antichrist.

Revelation 13:1-10, the picture of the Antichrist, the first beast.

Revelation 13:11-8, the picture of the False Prophet, the second beast

The false prophet as he is called in Revelation 19:20 and 20:10 The Antichrist, likely controlled by a demon rising from the abyss, and the False Prophet, similarly influenced by demonic powers, will form a counterfeit satanic trinity. They will work together on behalf of Satan, using both political/military power and religious influence to seize the hearts and minds of everyone in the world who is bound to the kingdom of darkness.

During the first half of the seven-year Tribulation preceding Christ’s return, the Antichrist focuses on establishing his world empire through military and political power. Crucially, the False Prophet is building a parallel worldwide religion at the very same time. Revelation 17 illustrates their

required partnership

The Harlot—representing the false system or false church— rides on the back of the Beast, symbolizing the religious entity’s dependency on and support by the Antichrist's political empire. The Antichrist's empire and the False Prophet's religious system coexist until the midpoint of the Tribulation (3 ½ years). At that point, the Antichrist declares himself to be God, destroys the

world religious system he previously allowed, and demands universal worship. The False Prophet then takes the lead in ensuring the world affirms the Antichrist's claim of divinity. By the time the midpoint arrives, the world will be reeling from intense devastation. The judgments of God's wrath, which include natural disasters and supernatural occurrences, will create an environment of profound crisis. With the Church removed and the restraining influence of the Holy Spirit gone, the terrible global events will amplify human desperation, leading people to search desperately for someone to save them.

Recall that the period begins with a false peace, which quickly collapses into wars, rumours of wars, earthquakes, famines, pestilence, and death. This global turmoil drives the world to search for a deliverer. The Antichrist appears, offering military and political power, while the False Prophet simultaneously constructs a worldwide ecumenical religion that temporarily unifies all global faiths.

Ultimately, this entire system converges into the exclusive worship of the Antichrist. The second beast, the figure assisting the Antichrist, is identified for us in verse 11. We established last time that his origin, "coming up out of the earth,"suggests a demonic ascent, rising from the underworld. He emerges, metaphorically, from the inferno or the very core of the earth.

Emerging from the darkness and blackness, which signifies his demonic influence, the False Prophet is described as having two horns like a lamb. Unlike the Antichrist, who possesses multiple heads and horns symbolizing ferocity, power, and might, the False Prophet presents a gentle, winsome, and persuasive exterior, meant to elicit sympathy and make him beloved.

He appears as a tender, gentle lamb. However, this deceptive facade is immediately betrayed by his voice, for he speaks like a dragon. His message, when he opens his mouth, is not the message of a lamb but the message of a dragon.

Here is one who looks like a lamb who comes peacefully and gently, but he speaks the very words of Satan. Satan’s false prophets are generally meek and mild, lamblike preachers whose words are really the deadly words of damnation.

False prophet is a very gifted speaker. He may well be the greatest orator and preacher the world had ever known. He is able to sway the mass of humanity, from one end of the globe to the other, in all their diverse religions, to come together in one religious unit.

That kind of persuasive power is amazing. Of course he gets the cooperation of all the demons. The kingdom once divided now becomes united. He tells the devastated world that Antichrist is now their only hope, and from the midpoint on, they are directed to worship the Antichrist.

We saw his power in V 12-14. V 12, And he exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence, and causes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. The False Prophet operates in the presence of the first beast, standing alongside him. Crucially, he exercises all the same authority as the Antichrist.

This parity stems from a shared source: both figures receive delegated power directly from Satan. Therefore, the False Prophet utilizes the very same satanic energy, plan, and power as the Antichrist. V 13, He performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men.

They will be very convincing, very potent, and very powerful.

Acts 8:9-11, But there was a certain man called Simon, who previously practiced sorcery in the city and astonished the people of Samaria, claiming that he was someone great, ¹⁰ to whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, “This man is the great power of God.” ¹¹ And they heeded him because he had astonished them with his sorceries for a long time. His power was from Satan, but always Satan masquerades as God. He will be able to do things, this coming false prophet that will far exceed those of a small-time operator like Simon. He will do wonders that point to his supposed divine origin and that give him the credentials as a true prophet.

The False Prophet is capable of performing amazing and astounding miraculous signs, likely intending to match the feats performed by the two witnesses described in Chapter 11. V 14, 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.

Always, Satan goes for deception. He wants to lead astray. He causes people to wander away from truth.

Given the extreme vulnerability of people made desperate by relentless disasters the stage is set. A mystical world religion has already taken shape, likely incorporating New Age concepts such as reincarnation and ancient mysticism, unifying the world's faiths.

Furthermore, the Roman system is now involved, along with the remnants of non-Christian charismania and mysticism, all contributing to this global religion. The entire world has been drawn in by satanic wonders and signs, culminating in the fabricated resurrection of the Antichrist, making it appear as if he died and returned from the grave.

The people desperately need hope. They are eager to believe. All of hells demons of the pit are in on the deception. The world, in its vulnerability is universally victimized.

2 Thessalonians 2:10-12, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. 11 And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, 12 that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

• They will not deceive the elect.
• They will not deceive the redeemed.
• They will deceive those who perish because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved.

God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they might believe what is false. Antichrist is deceiving.

• The false prophet is deceiving.
• Satan is deceiving.
• God is even in on the delusion.

No wonder the whole world is deceived.

• Satan is doing the deceiving.
• Satan’s demons are doing the deceiving.
• Satan’s Antichrist and false prophet are doing the deceiving.
• On top of that, God is sending a deluding influence.

The result of all of this is that everybody who is not saved, who has not believed the truth, everyone who is perishing – is going to believe and be deceived. The signs which it was given to him to perform in the presence of the beast involved telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who had the wound of the sword and has come to life.

To escalate this world religion, Satan demands the creation of an idol of the Antichrist (the Beast), who is believed to have been resurrected from the dead, and he wants the people themselves to make this idol. Satan intends for some form of image or replication of the Antichrist to be placed in Jerusalem. This act is a deliberate imitation and counterfeit of prophetic Scripture regarding Christ, who is truly meant to return, rule from Jerusalem's throne, and receive worldwide worship.

Satan introduces his false Christ and sets up this image, which functions as a pseudo-throne. I believe this image constitutes or is connected to the Abomination of Desolation. When the Abomination occurs at the three-and-a-half-year point, the placement of this image follows as part of the event.

My conviction is that this happens in Jerusalem and is specifically associated with the Temple grounds. The compelling sign of the Antichrist's supposed resurrection is given precisely at the moment of his public exposure. Although the exact location of his alleged death and rising is unknown, it occurs in a highly public and exposed manner, specifically at a critical juncture in the establishment of his universal authority.

Thus, we have examined his person and his power.

3. His program. V 15, 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. A very firm Old Testament statement.

It is repeated several times that idols are dumb and idols cannot speak.

Psalm 135:15-16, The idols of the nations are silver and gold,

The work of men’s hands. ¹⁶ They have mouths, but they do not speak; Eyes they have, but they do not see; The prophet Habakkuk affirmed the same thing, that an idol is a dumb thing that cannot speak.

Habakkuk 2:19, Woe to him who says to wood, ‘Awake!’ To silent stone, ‘Arise! It shall teach!’ Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver, Yet in it there is no breath at all. Why would you talk to a dumb rock or a dumb piece of wood?

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.

The word is “breath” here. It is not life, zōē, Or bios. The two Greek words for life. It is pneuma. Here is the presence or the appearance of some kind of phenomena that looks like life, but not bios and not zōē, not life.

Some would like to say that this image comes to life, but I do not see that. Satan cannot give life. His resurrection was a fabrication. The speaking of the image is another one of Satan’s deceptions. If Pharaoh’s magicians could throw their sticks to the ground and turn them into snakes, even in those days, with all the technology of today and all the amassed satanic power, this kind of thing would be very readily done.

Today’s amazing technology, along with people’s desperation to have someone to believe in, makes this very believable. The incredible things they are doing today with technology, the special effects that they can affect in terms of film and all of that will be in place in that time with the added dimension of Satan’s magic.

Satan will animate this statue so that it literally appears to come to life. The whole world will fall into line.

Revelation 17:17, For God has put it into their hearts to fulfil His purpose, to be of one mind, and to give their kingdom to the beast, until the words of God are fulfilled. God’s sovereign purpose is to bring together these two forces— the religious and the political—assign them a shared objective and propel them along this specific path of world domination and forced worship until the return of Jesus Christ. V 15, as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed.

We do not know how this is going to work, but it is not hard to imagine that worldwide television will keep that image in everybody’s home all the time. This image will be capable of delivering speeches. People will stare at it, witnessing the phenomenon of its movement and voice, and they will be forced to their knees to worship it. This idol, which is a reflection of the Antichrist, mirrors how ancient kings set themselves up as gods, built idols of their own design, and then demanded people bow to those symbols as an act of worship toward the king himself.

It will be in that day, and anybody who does not comply will be given a death sentence. We know that executions will take place, killing believers, just as we read in Chapter 7 about those executed for their faith in Jesus Christ.

However, it must be carefully noted that not all believers will be killed. Although a death sentence will be issued against all who refuse to worship the image of the Beast (who are the believers), not all of them will die.

Their survival is essential to the Kingdom of Christ. They must be present to populate the earthly kingdom He establishes upon His return, as Scripture clearly states that all the nations will be represented in His future kingdom.

So, some will be spared. The Antichrist will not be able to find all the believers and execute all the believers. God will protect them. Secondly, there will be Jews who will be spared, rescued from this.

Revelation 12:14, But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness to her place,

where she is nourished for a time and times and half a time, from the presence of the serpent. God is going to provide a great eagle to take the woman, fly her into the wilderness, and protect her for 3 ½ years from the presence of the serpent.

Revelation 12:16, But the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed up the flood which the dragon had spewed out of his mouth.

The earth is even going to help the woman and open its mouth and drink up the flood, meaning the force of Antichrist and Satan which comes after the Jews. The dragon is going to try to make war, but God is going to protect Israel. Not all Israel.

Two-thirds of the Jews will be purged out because they are rebellious, but the remnant will be saved.

• There will be a remnant of Gentiles preserved from the killing machine.
• There will be remnant of Jews preserved from the killing machine.

The kingdom might be populated by Israel and the other nations.

God is going to retaliate.

Revelation 16:2, So the first went and poured out his bowl upon the earth, and a foul and loathsome sore came upon the men who had the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image. V 15, anybody who doesn’t have the mark is to be killed. Revelation 16, anybody who does have the mark is given some malignant kind of disease.

God will retaliate. V 15, “and causes” V 16, “and he causes”. It is taking us back to the false prophet.

• He is the one who somehow causes the world to worship the beast.
• He causes the image of the beast to be able to speak.
• He causes this killing machine to move into motion.
• He is the subject.

Do not get confused that God is going to spare Israel, and he is going to spare many Gentiles. Revelation 11 remember that there was a measuring rod and a measuring out.

Measuring indicated possession and protection. God again is saying there will be a protection for people who belong to Him, particularly there in measuring out Jerusalem. V 16, 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, Very interesting thing, and there is much that is written about this.

In ancient times in Rome, a citizen had to make some kind of an overt offer to Caesar to demonstrate that he saw Caesar as deity, as a token of his loyalty to the Caesar cult. What he needed to do was simply offer to Caesar a pinch of salt on an altar. Christians, of course, refused to do that and were massacred. That is what fomented the killing of Christians under the Caesars.

Antichrist has a requirement also. His requirement is a mark. An identifying mark. A mark that is visible either on the forehead or on the hand. Obviously, in ancient times, they wore robes.

Women were fully covered or nearly fully covered, and the part of them that would be exposed would be the forehead, even if they wore a veil, and the hand. Readily visible, then, would be the mark. Antichrist wants an identifying mark, and that mark signifies that this is a worshiper of the beast. This is one who submits to his rule.

In the ancient world, such marks were known. While not everybody in the Roman Empire had to bear such a mark, slaves did. Slave were branded just like animals. Another group were branded were soldiers. Paul may have this very thing in mind.

Galatians 6:17, From now on let no one trouble me, for I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus.

The people who were slaves had a brand just like a cattle brand. The brand of a slave identifying him with a particular master, a particular estate. Paul said that I have a brand, and my brand shows that I am a slave of Jesus Christ. It was not uncommon to brand in the ancient world, and it will come back again, and all the slaves and all the soldiers of the Antichrist will be branded.

Further, in ancient times, many of the cults, many of the mystical forms of religion delighted in such brands. They would take a brand on themselves. An emblem being displayed on their bodies that would identify them with a certain form of worship.

The cult of Cybele had all its members tattooed with a unique tattoo, all in the same way. While we view tattoos today as a personal brand, in the coming day, refusing the Antichrist's mark or brand will carry a far more severe meaning. To be unmarked will signify you are a traitor and will result in an automatic death sentence.

He causes everybody to be given a brand. A brand that is readily identifiable. V 17, 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. You can’t be involved in daily commerce. You are going to starve to death.

• You cannot buy or sell anything.
• You cannot get any food. You cannot go to the source of food and buy it because you do not have the brand.

• You cannot get anybody to buy it from you because you do not have the brand.
• You cannot get any money.
• You cannot involve yourself in daily commerce.

The needs of life are therefore cut off to you. “Except the one who has the mark.” Get the picture. The future involves a one-world power ruling the globe, a single economic system, and one central controlling computer tracking everyone's name.

Currency will likely be abolished, replaced by controlled credit. Instead of a card that can be lost or stolen, individuals will receive a mark that identifies them as a participant in this global system. The mark is in your forehead, or the mark is in your hand.

What is this? We already have it. You use it all the time. You have seen the little black strip on the back of your credit card that contains all the necessary data to let the computer know you are in the system.

On everything you buy, a little barcode. That is another way that the computer identifies what is passing in front of the scanner. A little barcode system encased in a little plastic container that is designed to be embedded under your skin. It is already being used by dog owners.

People who worry about losing their dog, when a dog is found, a scanner exists at the pound. You pass the dog under the scanner. He is got this little barcode underneath his skin that causes him no problem at all, but it indicates immediately what dog it is, and who he is, and where he lives.

A very simple device to us, because we are used to this incomprehensible in ancient times. Without a global ability to identify everybody such as you have today, the whole operation of Antichrist could not happen. You are all in the computer. Now UK government wants us all to have a digital id.

When you cannot function, and you cannot operate, the death sentence is on you. We can do every bit that and having a cashless society where you never have any money. It is just a debit/credit system.

You work, and your employer, from a computer, puts into your bank account a proper figure called pay. When you buy, it is deleted. Life will depend upon the barcode, the mark. There is a compelling reason to worship the Antichrist.

It is not just a matter of religious deception but of life. They will make the choice to follow the beast not only because they are enamoured by him, not only because they are deceived by the false prophet, not only because they fear death, but they do not have any choice. But the choice is wrong.

V 17, 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. This is very hard to interpret. It is an identifying name and number system. The beast has a name, but inherent in his system is a numbering. Impossible to know exactly what his name is, and impossible to know exactly what the number significance is.

But people will take the mark and somehow it is the name of the beast or the number of his name. John, in seeing the vision, may be having as much trouble sort of discerning it as we are understanding it.

V 18, “Here is wisdom.” People living in those days must be wise and discerning. They will need to recognize the unfolding events and be able to identify the number when it appears. Considering our present reality, where numbers are constantly assigned and requested, the crucial question for those alive then is: how will they be certain that the system being enforced includes the Antichrist's identifying number?

How does he know that? V 18, 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. People living in that time are going to have to be discerning to identify the Antichrist when he brands.

Apparently, this is some way that they can recognize him for who he is. It is very difficult to interpret, and yet it is supposed to be wisdom. It looks to me like a complete mystery. I am quite confident that in that day, and in that time, the significance of this number 666 will come into clear understanding.

For many every taxicab in Jerusalem started out 666, and people used to say that if you work for the Jerusalem taxi company, you have taken the mark of the beast. If you ride in a Jerusalem taxi, you have taken the mark of the beast. That is ridiculous. Some of them have changed their numbers now.

But somehow in that time that kind of number is going to signify the Antichrist. He says the number of the beast is the number of a man, and his number is six-six-six. In ancient times it was common for language to be connected to numbers. In English we do not do that. We have letters and numbers.

In Greek, letters were numbers. In Hebrew, letters acted also as numbers. In Latin letters acted also as numbers. You know that from Latin. Vs and Cs and Is. It was common in ancient times for language to be connected to numbers. The certain of the letters had numerical equivalent.

This may reflect something of that. When the Antichrist comes, his name will have some numerical equivalent that adds up to 666.

People have based their study of this on that kind of thinking, and they have given us so many things I could not even recite them to you. People have taken virtually every prominent personality considered a potential Antichrist and found a convoluted way to make their name equate to 666, often by using arbitrary methods, various languages, or complex numerical concoctions.

The list of suspects is long and varied, including:

• The Pope
• Martin Luther (depending on whether the analyst was Catholic or Protestant)
• John Knox
• Napoleon
• Nero
• Hitler
• Mussolini
• Kissinger
• Stalin, and many others.

For example, by assigning a specific numerical value (where A=101, B=102, C=103, and so on), the letters in Hitler's name can be made to add up precisely to 666. Many people were convinced by this specific calculation. The name Caesar Nero, when transliterated as Kaisar Neron with Hebrew letter endings, yields the Hebrew numerical value

of 666. Despite such historical attempts, the precise significance remains unknown; we know definitively it does not refer to Caesar Nero or Hitler. Irenaeus, an early Church Father, used Greek letters'numerical equivalents and suggested that 666 spelled the name Euanthas.

While the Antichrist's name might be Euanthas in Greek, the truth is, we simply do not know.

Would you notice one thing? It is the number of a man.

What is the perfect number? Seven. God’s number. Man’s number is six. The slave was forced to be free after six years unless he demanded to stay. Fields were sown for six years. Man was made on the sixth day. Six-six-six – man-man-man.

God’s number is seven, the number of perfections. The best man can do is always six. He always falls short. The number represents human imperfection.

Man, at his best, at the ultimate of all human power, is only a six.

• He is a six.
• His government is a six.
• His laws are a six.

A deafening, defeating, discouraging, damning six. God has identified the final form of man’s government in the world as just six-six-six. Somehow that thrice-repeated number of a man, much like the thrice-repeated statements about God, “Holy, holy, holy,” is intended to reiterate the identify of man.

God is holy, holy, holy, and man is always six-six-six, short of perfection. He can’t quite pull it off. Somehow, when this final Antichrist comes, there will be some way to identify him and his mark with an understanding of this, the number of man.

Specifically, what that is I do not know. Nor did John have any more to say to us than this. But this will be the mark that a man that men and women must have or else they cannot eat, they cannot live. Surely, they will die.

We see the person, the power, and the program of the false prophet. There is another last point, but it is not in the chapter. 4. His punishment.

Revelation 14:9-10, Then a third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand, 10 he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of His indignation. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. A warning to the whole word. “You take that mark and you are going to receive the wrath of God.” You can make your choice. You can refuse the mark and get the wrath of the Antichrist, or you can take the mark and get the wrath of God.

The wrath of God means torment with fire and brimstone.

Revelation 14:11, And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever; and they have no rest day or night, who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name.”

You take it and you will suffer torment forever.

Revelation 19:20, Then the beast 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. These two were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone.

The end of the false prophet and the Antichrist. The counterfeit world religion is coming, led by the final false prophet, the greatest of all false prophets. If we look carefully, we can see it forming right now. Hell’s religion is coming together.

The house divided is being united against God and against Christ and against Christianity. This false form of religion that is coming together says what people want to hear. It rejects biblical truth. It deceives with lies. It supports its deceptions with demonic power. This is the final world deception, the final apostasy.

We are seeing the elements of this final system taking shape in our time. It is crucial to avoid being misled by the current abundance of false prophets, who are minor compared to the powerful figure of the end times.

Since these small-time deceivers are accelerating the arrival of the final satanic kingdom, we have a tremendous and urgent responsibility to faithfully proclaim the saving gospel of Jesus Christ and rescue men and women from this coming global disaster.