All men and women that refuse to follow the “Lamb” will render homage to the “beast” and take its “mark” – Revelation 13:16-18.
All the “inhabitants of the earth” take
this “mark,” and thus are legally authorized to engage in commerce. In
contrast, the followers of the “Lamb” are excluded from society’s
economic life.
- (Revelation 13:16-18) – “And he causes all, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free and the bond, that they should give to them a mark on their right hand or on their forehead; and that no one should be able to purchase or to sell, except he that has the mark, the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom: he that has understanding, let him count the number of the beast, for it is, the number of a man; and his number is 666.”
The “mark” is also called its “name”
and the “number of its name.” Its “number” enables some to participate
in the economy but excludes others who refuse to render homage to the “beast”
or to its “image” – (Revelation 14:9-11, 15:2, 16:2, 19:20, 20:4).
If the “seal of God” is figurative, so
is the “mark of the beast.” By default, anyone who gives allegiance to
the “beast” takes its “mark,” wittingly or not, just as everyone
who follows the “Lamb” receives the “seal of God.” The
fundamental choice is between who and what one worships – (Revelation 7:1-3,
14:1-11).
The description of the “number of the
beast” utilizes language from Daniel when Nebuchadnezzar erected a great
“golden image” and required everyone to “render homage” to it.
The passage is the source for the number, ‘666,’ which is derived from the
measurements of Nebuchadnezzar’s “golden image” (“Its height
was sixty and its breadth six cubits”) - (Daniel 3:1-7).
“For its number is also of man.”
Here, the Greek term anthrōpou is used for “humanity”
in general. The point is not the identity of an individual man, but to link the
“number” to humanity itself and thus show the idolatrous nature of the “mark
of the beast.” Just as the “golden image” of Nebuchadnezzar was “his
image,” so the “number of the beast” portrays humanity in its
idolatrous religion, for the “beast” demands the total allegiance that all
men owe to God alone.
The “name of the beast” is just that –
“beast.” Revelation uses the diminutive form of the
Greek noun for “beast,” or ‘thérion,’ which corresponds to the
diminutive form for “Lamb,” or ‘arnion.’ Thus, the “beast”
is an imposter, a false Christ.
The “mark of the beast” is the satanic
counterpart to God’s “seal.” Those
who take it give their allegiance to the “beast,” while those who receive
the “seal of God” follow the “Lamb wherever he goes.” The former will
find their names excluded from the “Lamb’s book of life,” while the names
of the latter are included in it - (Revelation 14:1-5).
The Greek verb translated “worship” or
“render homage” is proskuneō, a compound of the preposition pros
(“toward”) and the verb kuneō or “kiss,” hence the idea is “to kiss
towards,” to prostrate oneself. Derived meanings include “give obeisance,”
“revere,” and “venerate.” It referred to the deference and honor paid to a
superior being, whether human or divine. To “render homage” is to give one’s
absolute allegiance, whether to God, Jesus, or the “beast” - (Revelation
7:15, 22:3).
In chapter 13, two groups are presented: The
“inhabitants of the earth” and those who “tabernacle in
heaven,” Awed by the “beast,” the first group “rendered
homage” to its image, demonstrating that “their names were not written
in the book of life of the Lamb.” The “slander” of the “beast
from the sea” was directed against those who “tabernacle in heaven,”
identified as the “saints,” the group targeted for destruction by the “Dragon”
and his earthy vassals, the same group seen standing with the “Lamb” on “Mount
Zion” in chapter 14 - (Revelation 13:6-10, 12:12).
The “seal of God” identifies those who
belong to the “Lamb.” They are not removed from the earth to escape persecution.
Instead, they are “sealed,” and thereby, they are equipped to persevere through
it. Their identification with the “Lamb” excludes them from God’s
judicial “wrath,” especially the “second Death,” but not
necessarily from tribulation - (Revelation 2:11, 7:1-3, 20:6).
The “inhabitants of the earth” that “render
homage to the image of the beast” are “branded” with
its “mark on their right hand or forehead.” Without it, none of them may
participate in the economic life of society. Anyone who refuses the “mark”
is ostracized and suffers economic deprivation - (Revelation 13:11-14:5).
But the men who belong to the “Lamb” have “his name written on their foreheads.” They will find themselves before the “throne” and the “Lamb,” where they will “sing a new song” that no one else can learn.
Anyone who “renders homage to the image of
the beast” automatically takes its “mark.” In contrast, anyone who “follows
the Lamb wherever he goes” receives the name of the “Lamb” and of his
Father on the “forehead” - (Revelation 3:12, 7:1-3, 14:1-5).
If the “seal of God” is figurative, the
same holds true for the “mark of the beast.” This is how Revelation
divides humanity into two groups. God “seals” all who give their
allegiance to the “Lamb,” but all those who give allegiance to the “beast”
take its “mark” and their names are excluded from “the book of life.”
There is no third alternative, no neutral ground.
This reality was made clear when the angel
warned - “Anyone who renders homage to the beast and his image and receives
its mark will drink of the wine of the wrath of God.” To give allegiance to
the “beast” is tantamount to taking its “mark.” ALL
who do so will partake of God’s “wrath” - (Revelation 14:9-11).
The “saints” who “keep the
faithfulness of Jesus” overcome the “beast” and, therefore, they
will be found “standing on the glassy sea” before the “throne” in
“New Jerusalem.” In contrast to the “inhabitants of the earth,”
they participate in the “first resurrection” and “live and reign with
Christ” - (Revelation 7:9-17, 15:2-4, 20:4).
So, how does one avoid taking the “mark of
the beast”? By “following the Lamb wherever he goes” and giving one’s
allegiance to him alone regardless of any consequent suffering.