(Revelation 13:16-18)


"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, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or f the name of the beast, or the number of his name. 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"


At the peak of the Tribulation, the Antichrist will require all to receive a mark on their right hands or their foreheads, in order to ensure that everyone comes under his control. This mark is the mark of the Beast. To make everyone his servant, the Antichrist will coerce the people to receive his mark. Holding people’s lives as his collateral, the Antichrist then proceeds with his political schemes. He thus makes it impossible for anyone who does not have his mark of the Beast, the proof of his/her allegiance to him, to buy or sell anything in anyway. This mark is the name of the Beast, or his number. When the Beast comes to the world in the future, everyone will be required to receive his mark, made of his name or its number. We must therefore remind ourselves of God’s warning that all those who receive this mark will be thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone. The number of the Beast is 666. This means, in short, that the Beast himself is God. That's man claim to be God, the number "3" denotes the Triune God while "6" stands for man, so three 6 means that man equating himself to God. Is there a number that indicates that “a man is God?” A number bearing such meaning is the number of the Antichrist. As such, the saints cannot receive this mark, for only the Triune God is the true God for us. The saints must overcome Satan with their faith in the Lord and give glory to God. This is the best faith and worship with which the saints can give all glory to the Lord. Let us win with our faith.

Explanation of the Key Terms

The topic of chapter 13 is the appearance of the Antichrist and Satan. With their appearance, the saints will engage in a spiritual battle, in which they would have no choice but be martyred by the Antichrist. The Antichrist is a servant of Satan, the very one who would persecute the saints and have them be martyred. Living in the present era, all the Christians and non Christians of the world alike must know the Word of Revelation. Chapter 13 of Revelation prophesizes that a time will come when Satan would idolize the Antichrist like God. Satan will give great authority to one of the politically powerful leaders of the world and make him stand against God and His saints. In particular, the Antichrist will idolize himself as God and confront Him. Everyone, including the people of God, will suffer greatly from the tribulations and persecutions brought by the beastly Antichrist. The main passages shows us that the Antichrist’s image, having received Satan’s breath of life, would speak as if it were alive, as well as have the authority to harm the people. Those who are not born again would thus surrender to him and become his servants. All those who do not worship the idolized image of Satan, on the other hand, would be killed, no matter how many they may be. Satan also makes all to receive his mark or his number on their right hands or foreheads. We must all prepare our faith in advance, and fight against and overcome Satan with our faith in the future by understanding and believing in the meaning of this Word revealed in Revelation 13 beforehand. Today’s people of God must give glory to the Lord by learning from and believing in this Word of Revelation, and thus standing firmly against the Antichrist and overcoming him in victory. The Origin of Hell We must first know why there must be hell and why it came to its existence. Hell is a place prepared for Satan. The Bible tells us that he was not Satan from the beginning, but one of the many angels created by God. But by challenging God with his pride, this angel became Satan for the price of his sin, and hell is the place that God created to confine him. God made hell to give Satan and his followers the punishment reserved for those stand against Him. Isaiah 14:12-15 explains how this angel ended up turning into Satan: “How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, You who weakened the nations! For you have said in your heart: ‘I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation On the farthest sides of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.’ Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol, To the lowest depths of the Pit.” This angel who stood against God in Heaven coveted the throne of God. Seeing that only God was above him, he sought to drive Him out and sit on His throne, and as a result of this failed rebellion, he himself was driven out of Heaven by God and ended up becoming Satan. The Bible also refers to the angels who followed Satan in this rebellion as demons. To render His just punishment to the creatures that had turned against Him, God made this place called “hell.” Though Satan may seem to challenge God endlessly and blaspheme His works, when the GOSPEL OF THE WATER AND THE SPIRIT is preached to all, he will eventually be bound in the bottomless pit for a thousand years. Because Satan would fundamentally not repent his sin of turning against God, he would continue to try to raise himself high as God, and end up receiving the fearful punishment of hell for eternity. Until his very end, Satan will continue to stand against God and the righteous by making the people idolize him. The Bible calls this fallen angel, who blasphemes God and His saints, Satan or the Devil, and the Dragon or the serpent of old (Revelation 12:9). 666, the Number of the Beast God will finally bind Satan in his prison. But before he is confined to hell, Satan will make the people receive the mark of 666, his name and number, on their right hands or foreheads. He will forbid everyone who does not have this mark from buying or selling anything. The number 7 is the number of perfection, which implies God. On the other hand, the number 6 implies man, for God created man on the sixth day according to His own image and His likeness. The number of the Beast here, 666, reveals the pride of man trying to become like the Triune God. In not too distant future, the time will come to this world when the people would receive this mark of 666. Revelation 13:1 tells us that seven kings will emerge out of ten nations. Of them, the one who has great power, and given authority from Satan, will subject this world under his rule. Performing great miracles such as healing his mortal wounds and bringing down fire from the sky, he will make all the people of the world follow him. In other words, as Satan makes people follow him more than they follow God, many people end up worshipping him as God. As heroes emerge in trouble times, the Antichrist, having received great authority from Satan, will seek to be followed after as God by everyone by resolving the difficult politicoeconomic problems that the world would then be facing. Eventually, Satan will reveal his true colors by trying to challenge God directly in the end times. As we can see from the Book of Daniel, the Great Tribulation will turn extremely harsh when it reaches the end of its first half. This first half, lasting for three and a half years, is the period of horrendous plagues and Satan’s powerful reign. But when these first three and a half years are over, what follows will be an even greater tornado of tribulations. At this time, Satan will be given authority to do his works among the people of the world, killing everyone who does not listen to him, deceiving them with his miracles that bring down fire from the sky, idolizing himself, and making them do the works of blasphemy against God. At the same time, the Antichrist, having received all authority from Satan, will blaspheme the saints and kill all the saints who do not obey him. As verses 7-8 tell us, “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. 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.” There are, however, those who refuse to worship the Beast at this time, and these are none other than the bornagain people of God whose names have been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb.

The Event of Martyrdom


Martyrdom is an event that arises when the saints who have been born again by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit defend their faith in the Lord by rejecting the mark of Satan. Put differently, the Great Tribulation will get into its fullblown stage as its first half-period of three and a half years come to close. At this time, the righteous’ faith must get ready for their martyrdom. However, those who, though believing in Jesus as their Savior, have not believed in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, and thus have not received the remission of their sins and still have sin in their hearts, will end up siding with Satan and eventually surrender to him. Because the Christians who believe in Jesus but are not born again have no Holy Spirit in their hearts, when push comes to shove, they will capitulate to Satan, receive his mark on their right hands or foreheads, and worship him as God in the end. We must know clearly that those who do not worship Satan at this time would be only those who have received the remission of their sins. We must also realize that God has clearly told us that He will throw, along with Satan, all those who surrender to the Beast into the lake of fire and brimstone. Are you truly born again of the water and the Spirit? Download and order more books on exegesis on Revelation and more from the website of the NEW LIFE MISSION click HERE

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