During an afternoon escape from high school in a Ronald Reagan world, I opened a Bible that was sitting on an end tablein a doctor’s office. The physician was a specialist located an hour away from my hometown and was to advise on a Septoplasty procedure for my deviated septum. It was nothing serious –merely the result of mishaps which occurred, primarily, in martial arts and wrestling.
While paging through the Bible, I flipped to the back because I was an impatient soul back then. It wasn’t the first time I had scanned the pages of Revelation, nor would it be the last, but on that day I was simply waiting. The third verse of the first chapter said: “Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand”.
The following words then formed a kaleidoscope, of sorts, in my mind whereupon visions appeared through the mist and shadow of time: There was an ancient apostle dreaming on an island about congregations future and past; of symbolic animals, beasts and reptiles; angels, priests, and kings… good and evil, all amidst smoke scrolling up toward heaven as plagues and earthquakes ravaged the lands below in diverse places.
The thirteenth chapter was quite interesting in that it described a blasphemous beast rising from the sea and a dragon that gave power to the beast over “all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.” Another beast was said to have risen from the earth and caused all of the accursed to worship the image of the first beast which had suffered a devastating wound and lived. Those who did not worship the beast’s image were appointed to die; while others, upon their own volition, would receive a mark on their right hand or forehead so they could “buy or sell”. The mark might be the name of the beast, or the number of his name… of which those who possessed “wisdom” would identify as 666.
Strangely enough, the descriptions in the Bible’s Book of Revelation also appeared to correspond with the Apostle Paul’s “son of perdition” (KJV), or “man of lawlessness” (NIV), in 2 Thessalonians 2:
No comments:
Post a Comment