Revelation 13:16-17 Mark of the Beast

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A.Joseph

Puritan Board Senior

What is this passage referring to ? Is the mark on the right hand literal, while the mark on the forehead a supernatural sign/seal? I’m assuming such a mark will be easy to spot for a believer ? or maybe not.....​

“And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:
And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.”
 
I believe the Mark of the Beast in Revelation is a contrasting allusion to Deuteronomy 6:8. Will you obey God or man?
 
It’s not an RFID or tattooed bar code or a national ID card linked to your national bank account. Will you have Caesar as Lord or Jesus as Lord?
 
I take the position of @Eyedoc84. The mark of the beast is not technological; it is spiritual; My view is that it is declaring your allegiance to the evil one and the world. We should always let the Bible interpret the Bible. The Old Testament is the starting point.

Here is what Beale wrote in his commentary:

The mark on their forehead, which is the name of the beast, or the number of his name, is the parody of and the opposite to the “seal” in 7:3-8, which is the divine name written on the foreheads of true believers (14:1; so likewise 22:4; cf. 3:12). Since the seal or name on the true believer is invisible, so is the mark on the unbeliever. That the two are of a parallel spiritual nature and intended to be compared is evident from the immediately following mention of the names of God and Christ written on the foreheads of the saints (14:1). Believers are protected by the power of Christ’s name, which is His presence with them. They may suffer and even die, yet they will receive the ultimate reward of eternal life (20:4, on which see). Unbelievers may receive temporary prosperity, but will be punished ultimately with eternal death (see on 14:9-11). The mark may also connote that the followers of Christ and the beast both are stamped with the “image” (= character) of their respective leader.

That the mark of the name is figurative and not literal is also evident from the picture of the beast, who has written on his heads “blasphemous names,” which figuratively connote false claims to earthly, divine kingship (see on 13:1). Likewise, the point of saying that worshipers of the beast have his name written on their heads is to underscore the fact that they pay homage to his blasphemous claims to divine kingship. In the OT, God told Israel that the Torah was to “serve as a sign to you on your hand, and as a reminder on your forehead” in order to remind them continually of their commitment and loyalty to God (Exod. 13:9). The NT equivalent is the invisible seal or name of God (see on 7:2-3). The “forehead” represents ideological commitment and the “hand” the practical outworking of that commitment. Likewise, as a travesty of the signs of membership in the OT community of faith, the beast’s marks on the foreheads and the hands of the worshipers refer to their loyal, consistent, and wholehearted commitment to him.


G. K. Beale. Revelation: A Shorter Commentary. WILLIAM B. EERDMANS PUBLISHING COMPANY GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN / CAMBRIDGE, U.K. 2015.

 
They are marks of ownership similar to the seals on the foreheads of the righteous in Revelation 7:4. In both cases, they show whom you belong to and whom you serve. They are not physical marks, but a person's allegiance is usually plain to see by what he values and professes.
 
They are marks of ownership similar to the seals on the foreheads of the righteous in Revelation 7:4. In both cases, they show whom you belong to and whom you serve. They are not physical marks, but a person's allegiance is usually plain to see by what he values and professes.
:applause::applause::applause:
Excellent and succinct!
 
Some people have asked me whether or not I think certain technocratic impositions could be the mark of the beast. For reasons that have already been stated, I do not believe that they necessarily are. Having said that, I think there is still some significance in what appears to be an aping of the mark of the beast on the part of the Globalists.
 
I obviously agree about the forehead, but what is it about the ‘right hand’ and what is the buying and selling referring to? What are the connotations for ‘obeying’ God rather than man? In what ways? What does this obeying entail? Thanks!

Does ‘right hand’ mean to swear to something, like an oath or allegiance ?
 
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They are marks of ownership similar to the seals on the foreheads of the righteous in Revelation 7:4. In both cases, they show whom you belong to and whom you serve. They are not physical marks, but a person's allegiance is usually plain to see by what he values and professes.
‘Values’? Can you give an example of a distinction in this area? How is what one professes plain to see? How would false professors be swept away in their allegiance ?
 
‘Values’? Can you give an example of a distinction in this area? How is what one professes plain to see? How would false professors be swept away in their allegiance ?
Sometimes the mark of the beast is institutionalized. Consider the marginalization or outright persecution of believers who, out of allegiance to Christ, refuse to "Heil, Hitler" in Nazi Germany, don't attend Community Party meetings in Soviet Russia, skip the temple rites in the Roman era, or will not bow down to Nebuchadnezzar's statue. These beast-centric pressures recur throughout history, and Christians should not be surprised to have to stand for a different mark of ownership than those around them.

Other times, the mark is more a matter of different moral standards and values that set us apart. Believers will look odd to the world as we have family-level love for each other, care for the poor, practice sexual purity, honor God's name, and otherwise keep the commandments. In contrast, Peter's list of the world's values and corresponding activities fits our day well: "Sensuality, passions, drunkenness, orgies, drinking parties, and lawless idolatry" (1 Peter 4:3).

In my younger days, I was a rising professional in a workplace where social custom dictated going out to the bars together after work. There was a fair amount of ungodly behavior associated with this, and I seldom joined. It may have cost me promotions, and certainly cost me social credibility. And that was in a relatively free country and diverse culture, involving an activity that was not inherently sinful (I could have gone to the bars and behaved in a godly manner there). In many places, those differences are much more stark and the worldly consequences are more severe. My moral differences were merely viewed as unfriendly, but in other places the beast's minions might consider them subversive. And indeed, Christian living is subversive to the beast's agenda.
 
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Buying and selling is being active in the public square. It includes literal buying and selling.

Christians throughout history have been squeezed out of public discourse. “You can have your religion as long as it’s in private.” And then they make sure you are never alone.

I would recommend reading https://www.amazon.com/dp/1940017009/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_imm_t1_1s-VFbCTKRC6C
Sounds like Vanity Fair. It sounds like the public divide will mirror the spiritual divide even further. I could see a parallel where the Christian’s participation in society will be further strained by choice and necessity, if we hadn’t already separated ourselves. I also wonder if our dependency on our phones, especially for unfruitful activity, will become a burden and potentially be turned against us. All speculation of course. But the prospect of widespread virtual connectivity appears to be wrought with pitfalls.
 
Sometimes the mark of the beast is institutionalized. Consider the marginalization or outright persecution of believers who, out of allegiance to Christ, refuse to "Heil, Hitler" in Nazi Germany, don't attend Community Party meetings in Soviet Russia, skip the temple rites in the Roman era, or will not bow down to Nebuchadnezzar's statue. These beast-centric pressures recur throughout history, and Christians should not be surprised to have to stand for a different mark of ownership than those around them.

Other times, the mark is more a matter of different moral standards and values that set us apart. Believers will look odd to the world as we have family-level love for each other, care for the poor, practice sexual purity, honor God's name, and otherwise keep the commandments. In contrast, Peter's list of the world's values and corresponding activities fits our day well: "Sensuality, passions, drunkenness, orgies, drinking parties, and lawless idolatry" (1 Peter 4:3).

In my younger days, I was a rising professional in a workplace where social custom dictated going out to the bars together after work. There was a fair amount of ungodly behavior associated with this, and I seldom joined. It may have cost me promotions, and certainly cost me social credibility. And that was in a relatively free country and diverse culture, involving an activity that was not inherently sinful (I could have gone to the bars and behaved in a godly manner there). In many places, those differences are much more stark and the worldly consequences are more severe. My moral differences were merely viewed as unfriendly, but in other places the beast's minions might consider then subversive. And indeed, Christian living is subversive to the beast's agenda.
I wonder if a further purging and cleansing of what it means to be Christian is God’s sovereign intent when afflictions abound. A reminder that we need to get back on track. To show that we’ve been running with (and are seduced by) the world and we will no longer be able to live in such a way but will be called back to our first love.
 
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I don’t know, I still see a literal, physical reality being conveyed/established.....

If you read this, it is pretty much an antithesis of how we should live. I think we will be compelled to reject the convenience of a super society that will place our dependence on the wrong things. I think there is a belief that if life is made easier and our carnal desires are met, we will no longer turn to religion. There is a view (from the outside) that our Lord is a crux and that humanity itself is disposable, outside a privileged, autonomous few. I’m not sure we will come back from this.....

“My biggest concern is all the people who do not live in our city. Those we lost on the way. Those who decided that it became too much, all this technology. Those who felt obsolete and useless when robots and AI took over big parts of our jobs. Those who got upset with the political system and turned against it. They live different kind of lives outside of the city. Some have formed little self-supplying communities. Others just stayed in the empty and abandoned houses in small 19th century villages.” https://www.forbes.com/sites/worlde...ifferently-well-live-in-2030/?sh=1ce014991735
 
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Some people have asked me whether or not I think certain technocratic impositions could be the mark of the beast. For reasons that have already been stated, I do not believe that they necessarily are. Having said that, I think there is still some significance in what appears to be an aping of the mark of the beast on the part of the Globalists.
Yeah, it’s all in the intent. I’m sure that info is out there somewhere.
 
I saw a real interesting clip on youtube recently by Tom Horn. I don't know much about him, but I read his fascinating book about asteroids and he quoted at length from Greg Beale's book on Revelation so he can't be too bad, lol.

Anyway, I know he studies A.I. ( artificial intelligence) and transhumanism. He said that a guy who spent 20 years working on China's artificial brain project is now afraid of what can happen with it. We are probably 12 years away from an artificial consciousness. ( not sure when the video was made so maybe sooner)

He said that in Rev 13:15 where it says that it was given to him to give breath to the image/statue of the beast so the image/statue can even speak, that is probably A.I. The technology is rapidly advancing to be able to animate a statue with artificial intelligence and speech and some sort of consciousness. You have to worship that thing or be killed ( vs 15). Then comes the mark of the beast. I don't see how we will be alive for the mark, if we get killed for not worshipping the image first.

The video was related to CERN, which is supposedly in some way part of this technology. We don't know all that goes on there and it must be the highest sort of physics technology. I've read that to get everybody put into a digital system for going cashless we need the 5G speed which is up to 20 times faster than 4G, hence the 5G push.

( CERN logo, clearly they picked 666. So in your face, these people. https://www.google.com/search?q=cer...0.0i457j0l6.4190j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8 ) ( they say it is a particle accelerator design, but they have eight of them, not three)

Speculative subject, but what is certain is that high leaders want to create artificial life, and also want control over people. "Ye shall be as God" is the oldest lie in the book.
 
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