Revelation 17: The False Prophet And The Mark

Revelation 13: The False Prophet & The Mark

RRadmin7

[Note: There is a lot of speculation here, but interesting to ponder. I conclude with the last couple of paragraphs from the article, but there is much more in the link]

This article will be looking at the False Prophet and The Mark of The Beast that the Apostle John witnessed while receiving the Revelation of Jesus Christ on the island of Patmos.

As always, there are many interpretations that have been submitted by many godly, respectable, and capable men, and I try not to be dogmatic when it comes to future prophecy. I only offer to the reader my view for their consideration in addition to the many other interpretive views that have been submitted down through the centuries.

Most prophecy teachers agree that there seems to be an allusion to Israel when it comes to the term “earth” or “land,” and to the Gentile nations when it comes to the term “sea” which, if in Israel, would seem to those in the nation of Israel as coming out of the sea looking westward, especially if the Antichrist and the beginning of his kingdom is initially coming out of the continent of western Europe. Or, one could say that the other Gentile kingdoms come out of the “sea of Gentile nations” as opposed to the “earth” or “land of Israel.”

In any case, I did want to make an observation that in Daniel 7, both “sea” and “earth” are used of these last four Gentile kingdoms in the end-times (Daniel 7: The Four Beasts of the End-Times).

“Daniel spake and said, I saw in my vision by night, and, behold, the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea. And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another” (Daniel 7:2-3, KJV). (emphasis mine)

Yet, when we read of the angel’s interpretation of the vision, it is noted that:

“These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth” (Daniel 7:17, KJV). (emphasis mine).

This could be explained in that the angel was confirming that these nations who originally came out of the sea – in relation to Israel – were actually kingdoms that ruled on the earth. In other words, the vision is prophetic imagery (coinciding with Revelation), and the interpretation is more of a literal explanation. This would suggest that we shouldn’t allow the angel’s interpretation to upset the imagery found in both prophecies of Daniel and Revelation. But I felt it was important to at least point this detail out for our study.

Here we are introduced to the False Prophet, and for this study, I’m going to suggest that, indeed, the False Prophet – the beast out of the earth – is related to Israel in one sense or another. With this attribute in mind, let us look into what I believe are the three premiere “candidates” for this office. (But truthfully, like the Antichrist, we may never know who this person is this side of the rapture).

To reiterate: Revelation chapter 13 is not only a difficult chapter, but also includes a myriad of possibilities regarding the identities of the beast out of the sea and its symbolism, Antichrist, the False Prophet, the image, the miracles, and The Mark of The Beast technologies. It’s just flat-out vexing – but also intriguing and exciting!

I’ve concluded each article in this series on Revelation 13 with this friendly reminder:

All future prophecy is mainly aimed at those who will be going through it. While it can be a challenge and often exciting trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together, all of us prophecy enthusiasts would be well-served to humbly admit that although we may believe our interpretations and views to be correct, at the same time, we must confess that we may also be wrong.

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