THE DRAGON VERSUS THE REMNANT

Revelation 13

We've read about the Big Red Dragon. We've learned about his Beast buddy and now week we are introduced to another one of the Dragon's friends. Unfortunately, they all moved into our neighborhood! Let's jump in and learn a bit more about the last of this sorry trio of two bit bad boys.

The Earth Beast Arrives

In Revelation 13:11. (SRB, Page 1342) we are introduced to another beast. This one joins the "party" or gang. It comes out of the earth. As we saw before, all of Daniel's beasts came out of the sea. The Beast we studied previous to this also came out of the sea. What can it mean that this beast comes out of the earth? We know for sure that this Beast comes from a different place. "The sea" might mean either the Mediterranean or an area in which the population is in agitation. Some older commentaries suggest "the earth" means a settled population.

A very close reading of Genesis 1:24 and 2:19 may call to question of the land really bring these creatures into existence? I think the answer is a definate no! God made, or formed them out of the earth. We must inquire here if there is the suggestion if this reference to the Beast coming out of the earth may mean he is created by God?

The New Testament also provides some insight here. Read 1 Corinthians 15:48. "Of the earth" is a reference to humans. Is it possible this Beast is really a man, and that is why it refers to this Beast "coming up out of the earth?"

Now, as we return to Revelation 13:11 and take a closer look at this "gang-member" he looks like a lamb (evil always likes to imitate God and His Son), however interestingly he speaks like a dragon. There is also the obvious distinction of him being short on horns. The Dragon and the first "Sea Beast" both had ten horns. Again, it is remarkable that when we read about "lamb" in God's Word one always thinks of Jesus Christ, "The Lamb of God." Just as remarkable, when you read about or think about a "dragon" referenced in the Bible, you are likely to have Satan come to mind as we have seen in Revelation 12 and 13. But, in this case we find a unique distinction and may be fooled by its appearance. Is it possible that this interesting beast references someone or possibly a group that in all appearances is God-like, but sounds somewhat like Satan? Could this description fit, say, a religious system that reflects evil? We are warned by Scripture to be on our toes – to try the spirits to see if they be of God. . . . wolves in sheep's clothing. In many religious circles people are obsessed with the view that we are not to judge. However, we make judgements, or should, every hour of every day. It may be a good idea to keep an eye out for this gang member.

Over the past year I have developed some close relationships with other Brothers in Christ and they have offered several and varied ideas concerning these Beasts. One friend who I feel a very close spiritual relationship with is Jack D Hook. He has his study, "Babylon the Great is Falling" posted and I am sure he would be delighted if you read his newest article on the subject. Click on his link, "What's New" and you can read it. Leave a message telling him you visited. I shall take the liberty here to include part of what he has to say for our consideration. It is entitled, "War In Heaven."

"I stated in my last article "Silence in Heaven" that on a day that only God knows he will give the command to his angelic forces to step aside and let the demonic world bring forth the false Messiah. This man will confirm a stunning peace treaty with Israel and her enemies which includes the rebuilding of the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem, Daniel 9:27. This incredible accomplishment will cause men to begin calling him the Messiah. Little do they know that when the silence in Heaven begins with peace on the Earth, the preparations for "War in Heaven" are being made by the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Please understand that at the time Godīs silence is ended on Earth, World War III will break out as Satan attempts to kill every living being on the planet in a nuclear inferno. The double dealing Russian and Islamic forces, led by their own self-proclaimed Messiah, will invade Israel and the nuclear nightmare will become a reality. Please read carefully the following scriptures that describe these coming events.

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Revelation 12:6-9 (6) And the woman (faithful remnant of Israel) fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared by God, that they (angels) should feed her there for a thousand two hundred and three score days (1260), (7) And there was "war in heaven"; Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon fought and his angels, (8) And prevailed not, neither was "their" place found any more in heaven. (9) And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil and Satan, who deceiveth the "whole" world; he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
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If you study Daniel and the Revelation you will discover that on day 869 of the 2520 day time-line God will bring forth two Jewish prophets and 144,000 missionaries who will restore many Jewish people to the true Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ, Revelation 7,11. They will be warned that the Russian and Islamic leaders have lied at the peace table and are going to invade Israel, bringing the judgment of God upon the nation of Israel for its rebellion, Luke 21:20-24, Daniel 8:25. Somewhere between day 869 and 1230 the Russian confederacy will attack and defeat Israel, allowing for the Russian leader to stand in Jerusalem and "take away" the Temple sacrifices, Daniel 8:11, 12:11. Israelīs remnant will finally understand that as John stated above, the whole world, even the President of the United States, is deceived and controlled by Satan. This faithful remnant will flee into the modern day nation of Jordan to a place called Petra or Sela, where they will be supernaturally shielded and cared for by Michael and his angels, Daniel 12:1, Isaiah 16:1, 33:16, 42:11, 43:20. No smart bomb or Delta force commando unit will be able to penetrate this wall of angelic protection. Eventually, the explanation for not being able to overcome this angelic shield will be that aliens have landed and abducted all of these Jewish people or they are cooperating with the aliens to take over the world.

It is at this same time that God commands Michael and his angels to put an end to World War III before all mankind is destroyed in the conventional and nuclear war that is underway, Ezekiel 38, Revelation 6:3-4, 8:7. In order to do this Michael must first engage in angelic warfare in the heavens against the demonic forces arrayed there to stop him. Satan will not be destroyed, only defeated and cast to the Earth, now unable to fly through "their" place in the heavens or atmosphere anymore. Since he can only operate on the Earth, he and his forces will enter and possess human bodies to continue his wrath against mankind, who he hates more than he does God.

Michael and his angels will at this same time rain down fire on all the Russian and Islamic armies and their messianic leader, who have overrun Israel and are now engaged in an escalating battle with America and Europe. Once the Russian and Islamic armies are destroyed by angelic fire, which everyone will watch on CNN, the American and European armies will be allowed by Michael to march into Jerusalem. As I have said in other articles, all of this will then usher in the final 1260 days of Danielīs 70th Week. Somewhere between the death of the Russian leader in Jerusalem (day 1230-1260) and the beginning of the last 1260 days, the American President will suffer an assassination and miraculously be revived, only to be possessed by Satan, who Michael has personally thrown out of the heavens. Among the first words out of the mouth of the risen President will be that the Kingdom of God is now here on Earth and he is its king! Just as the Russian antichrist stood in the Temple to "take away" the sacrifices, so too will the President cause them to finally "cease", crushing the hopes of the remaining Jews who thought they would begin their sacrifices again. The Pope, also known as the Beast of the Earth, will be at his side calling on all the world to believe and ally themselves with him. John records in the Revelation that all the world will wonder after and worship him, except those who have become believers in the Lord Jesus Christ and know he is returning in 1260 days, Revelation 13, 19. This world wide alliance will include the Chinese, who will join forces with the Americans to engage the outer space aliens (Jesus Christ) in the epic battle for planet Earth, Revelation 16:12-16, 19:11-19.

There is one thing I hope you understand and it is that everyone is involved in a war whether you like it or not. You are either at war "with or against" Heaven. For those who reject Jesus Christ completely you are at war against Heaven. If you remain in this state you will experience the justice of God as a criminal does the judges of this world system. There will be no mercy and whether you have sinned less than Saddam or Osama doesnīt matter, you will be with them in Hell. As Paul said to the Thessalonians, those in Christendom who condone or compromise with sin and remain in that state will also experience the fire of Godīs vengeance at the coming of our Lord. They, like the ungodly, are at war against Heaven. For the cowards who have secluded themselves, I can only encourage them to awaken, pull their heads out of the sand, and reach out to the lost people around them and start proclaiming the bloody cross and the imminent return of the Lord Jesus Christ. The cowards are not obeying the command of the Lord to go out among the nations and call all men to repentance, but rather have selfishly and fearfully separated themselves unnecessarily. For those in Christendom who have become the judges of the law and take up the sword with their powerful political friends in condemnation against their enemies; who refuse to be patient and pick up their cross until Jesus comes to execute true justice, they too are at war against Heaven. If any of this describes you there is hope only in Jesus Christ. Before God blows the whistle and the 70th Week of Daniel begins, give up the war against Heaven and become a contender of the common faith that was given to the apostles and to us today. The Bible is alive and relevant my friends, but you must acknowledge and receive the Lord Jesus Christ to experience this miracle."

~~Jack D Hook

I would strongly encourage you to read the complete document. Indeed, it is a must read for you and every Christian you know. Let me know what you think of this man's great insight and understanding of Scripture. I have no idea of its complete correctness, but I am impressed with his profound understanding of history as it relates to us today as well and his comprehension of God's Word. Thank you Jack!

Let's go back to Revelation 13:11 again. What else do we learn about the appearance and speaking characteristics of this second Beast, the "Earth Beast?" He looks like a lamb, he speaks like a dragon. He is comparatively short on the number of horns – the Dragon and the first "Sea Beast" each had ten horns.

Our Earth Beast Observed

Now, lets consider Revelation 13:12-13. Remember in Revelation 13:2 we found the Dragon gave the Sea Beast his authority and power. Now we find the Sea Beast lends his authority to the Earth Beast. What an amazing turn of events! Why does he do that? In my personal opinion it is because the Earth Beast causes the "earth and its inhabitants [to] worship" the Sea Beast. The Earth Beast and the Sea Beast have a joint work as buddies of the Dragon. Simply put, they need each other to accomplish the great deception. And, to accomplish this task, they join their special abilitis. The Earth Beast possess the ability to do miracles, even causing fire to come down from heaven.

Again I would remind you -- any way Satan can immitate Christ in any way, he will do it! A miricale is performed here that brings to mind Scriputure fund in 1 Kings 18. In this chapter, God proved that He was the true God (1 Kings 18:24) by sending down fire from heaven. If this refers to the Mt. Carmel precedent, and the Earth Beast can replicate the miracle on Mt. Carmel, what does this mean for those who live during this time? It means they must be close to God or they will be deceived. This Earth Beast uses "Bible quality" miracles to deceive people.

Please re-read Revelation 16:13 and 19:20. (SRB, Pages 1345 & SRB 1349) And as though in an effort to strengthen our understanding ot this "gang member" here is another name for the Earth Beast. The "False Prophet." This unholy trio is identified as the Dragon, the Beast and the False Prophet. The False Prophet is the one who, according to Revelation 19:20, performs the miracles that cause people to worship the image of the beast. At least three commentaries that I consulted identified the False Prophet as the Earth Beast. The False Prophet "apparently [is] identified with the second beast [the Earth Beast] of Revelation 13:11-17. "7 SDA Bible Commentary 844. Accord, Jamieson, Fausett and Brown; Elwell, Evangelical Commentary on the Bible (commentary on Rev. 16:13).)

The Earth Beast Identified

What we have just covered demands a complete review. We have this Earth Beast who is created by God, he is short on the number of available horns compared to his buddies, he is also known as the False Prophet, he resembles Jesus christ, but speaks like Satan, he performs great miracles apparently to confirm that he is the true prophet (or god). He does this to force false worship. Who do you think this Earth Beast represents?

This area of our study seems to best identify the Earth Beast as the United States. What have we studied here that supports that conclusion? The reference to this Beast coming up from the earth can be understood to mean a sparsely populated area. The United States has a "gentle" (lamb-like) system of government. The lesson suggests the Earth Beast comes up after the end of the 42 months (Rev. 13:5) which is understood to be a 1,200 year period that ends about 1798.) If at all is the case, this is the only reference I know of that might indicate the United States in prophetic scriptures.

There are other reasons. The United States has always considered itself to be a Christian nation (thus the "lamb" parallel). It speaks world-wide with its entertainment industry which largely provides "dragon-speak." It is the only nation to detonate nuclear weapons in war ("fire from heaven").

One has to ask, "are there any reasons the United States is not a good candidate for being identified as the Earth Beast?" First, the "False Prophet" identification does not make the Earth Beast a very good "fit" for the United States. It seems to point to a power that is symbolized by a man. Another problem is that neither in the "fire from heaven" nor in its public speech does the U.S. attempt to force worship of any specific religious system. Its influence on behalf of freedom of speech and worship is not "dragon speak." On the other hand, it has great influence over the youth world-wide to encourage Satanism through some musical bands.

Apocalypse contains a summary of many commentaries and it concludes that about half identify the Earth Beast with Papal Rome.

Of course there is idea that in the middle ages Papal Rome forced worship by killing dissenters. It is symbolized by a man. "False Prophet" could fit for doctrines not supported by the Bible. I would submit that this is wrong becauese it is hard to see how Papal Rome fits the "fire from heaven" analogy. The "two horns" is also not a good fit.

Barnes' Notes on Revelation 13 also identifies the Earth Beast as Papal Rome. However, Barnes sees the Earth Beast and the False Prophet as being different. He has a very interesting commentary on Revelation 16:13 which suggests the False Prophet is Islam, the followers of Muhammad. Since we have found that the False Prophet is also the Earth Beast, how do you see Islam as fitting the description of the Earth Beast?

Other reasons that do support the identification of the Earth Beast as Islam: There is a very interesting fit here. Consider these parallels:

Remember we discussed that coming out of the earth (Rev. 13:11) could mean this beast was created by God. Was Islam created by God? (Read Genesis 16:11-12, 17:20 and 21:17-18. Ishmael is considered to be the father of the Arab nations - the nations which today are largely Moslem. God promised Hagar (Ishmael's mother) that God would "make [Ishmael] into a great nation." Thus, God "created" this man and his "great nation."

Remember we found the Earth Beast has two horns. Horns have generally meant kingdoms or powers. Is there a "two horn" analogy with Islam? Islam has two main divisions (sects)- the Sunni and Shi'te Moslems.

The Earth Beast looks like a lamb. We decided that the lamb is an illusion to Jesus. Is anything Muslim "lamb-like?" Islam teaches that following the words of Muhammad is the way to the heaven. Thus, we have a salvation parallel.

The Earth Beast looks like a lamb, but speaks like a dragon. Has Islam a "dragon" voice? Needless to say, Islam has a violent past and present.

We found that the Earth Beast was also identified as the False Prophet. How does this fit Islam? Almost all Muslims believe "There is no God but Allah and Muhammad is His prophet." Since Christians believe that Muhammad is a false prophet, and since this is a major religious influence in the world, this fits the "False Prophet" description perfectly.

If Pagan or Papal Rome is the Sea Beast, how is there a link between Islam and the Roman Empire or the historic Catholic Church? Does it seem reasonable that Islam would make the world worship the Sea Beast? On the surface, this is not a good fit. However, both religious systems rely on works for salvation. The great desire of Satan, the Dragon, is to make man reject Jesus as the source of salvation and make man believe he can be saved by his own efforts. Thus, Islam reinforces the "works" approach of Catholicism.

Finally, is there any evidence that Islam caused "fire to come down from heaven in full view of men?" How about the September 11 attack on the World Trade Towers? Bet the entire world saw that. Was prophecy fulfilled there?

Which of these theories are the right one? Should we adopt a "wait and see" attitude? It is my firm conviction that we should, of course, always be alert. However, I am troubled that we may miss the "big picture." God tells us that Satan and his two buddies are roaming the earth to deceive us. Our Bible is not the "North American version." Unless Islam is a true religion, I do not know how Revelation could miss mentioning this "1,000 pound gorilla" as part of the problem.

A Look At The Earth Beast in Action

Let us consider now, Revelation 13:14-17. What is the work of the Earth Beast in these verses? Obvously, he deceives those who live on the earth. He helps create "an image" to the Sea Beast. He then helps to force worship of the "image."

What is the issue in this "false worship" controversy? What is the issue in the "true worship" controversy? (Read Revelation 12:17. God's followers obey God's commandments and hold to the testimony of Jesus.

Let us assume for the sake of discussion that Papal Rome is the Sea Beast. Read Daniel 7:24-25. This Scripture does suggest the Sea Beast will try to change? He will set times and laws. If the Earth Beast is trying to force the world to worship the "image" of the Sea Beast, and this worship involves changing times and laws, what does this suggest will be the big issue about worship? It suggests changing the day of the worship of God. Here we pose this question, "Has Islam changed the day of the worship of God? Yes. Islam commands that Friday is to be the day of worship. I then pose this question, "Does this paint a picture in your mind of two Beast buddies that are working to confuse the world about the true worship of God - a worship that is at odds with the Fourth Commandment?"

Now, Revelation 13:18. What response is required of us? We are called upon to show wisdom.

NOTE: Our study feels like speculation in many ways. Our obligation is to continue to study and keep our eyes and ears open so that we can recognize when these prophecies are fulfilled.

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