Revelation 13:1–10

"And I stood upon the sand of the sea." Some read: "he stood." If we take the first reading, it refers to the Seer. If we take the second, the dragon is meant. Hengstenberg notes that outside evidence cannot settle the choice, and the authorities are divided. But a careful study of the context shows clearly that it is the Seer, not the dragon, who "stood upon the sand of the sea." The prophet always takes his stand at a point of observation that suits the subject in hand. So Heaven (Rev. 4:1), the sand of the sea (Rev. 13:1), the wilderness (Rev. 17:3), and a high mountain (Rev. 21:10) are the points of view from which he watches the visions pass before his eyes.

The sea sets forth the unformed mass of the people in a troubled state of the world — people in great agitation, like the restless waves of the deep. It represents a revolutionary condition among men. And it is out of that mass of anarchy and confusion that an imperial power rises.

What is meant by "the Beast"? The imperial system of Rome revived. All the empires refused to recognise God above. Of all beings on the earth, man alone was made to look up to One above, and he is responsible to do the will of God. A beast does not look up but down; it has no sense of an unseen superior, no conscience toward God... this is the more tremendous, because an empire ought to reflect the authority that God in His providence gave it. This Beast will go further than all before it in lawless contempt of God and in blasphemies.

God describes the Gentile powers of both past and future as wild beasts. That is, they have neither conscience nor heart. They rule by greed and brute force. Remarkably, the states of this in-between period, while the Roman Empire lies dormant, have taken up this character of their own accord. Every one of them has adopted either a wild beast or a bird of prey as its national symbol. So we get the British lion, the German eagle, and the rest.

This last is the Roman empire. First it appears in its original energy and unstoppable strength, pictured by the emblem of iron. Then it appears in its final form of ten kingdoms, foreshadowed by the ten toes, welded together in one confederation under a supreme head. Rev. 13 describes the rise of that imperial power in its final form.

The heads stand for the varied forms the ruling power has taken through the years. Whatever they have been, the devil has claimed to wear the crown, and has in fact dominated the scene. When the Roman power reappears in the last days, it will be in a ten-kingdom form, and each king will claim a crown under the beast.

Both clauses of the verse put the horns first. Perhaps this is because the beast here holds these powers in actual use, while Satan had them only in principle.

The Beast is described as "full of names of blasphemy." Blasphemy and the public denial of God and of Christ are acts the Beast commits. The names of blasphemy on its heads (Rev. 13:1) stamp the ruling authority with this awful guilt, but clearly it marks the whole state — leaders and people alike. The fear of God is gone. The empire in all its parts is wholly given up to this most horrible sin.

It looks like a leopard (the Greek Empire). Its feet are like a bear's (the Medo-Persian Empire). Its mouth is like a lion's (the Babylonian Empire). The leopard speaks of how fast it conquers. The bear's feet speak of how firmly it holds the land it has taken. The lion's mouth speaks of the strength and savagery with which it takes that land. Put together, they picture the horrible power of this fourth world-empire.

In Revelation 13:2 the beast that stands for the still future Roman empire is like a leopard, with feet like a bear's. This shows how destructive it is. A bear destroys its prey by the strength of its feet, tearing it open.

Here we have, not the territories, but certain qualities that resemble all three of the first beasts of the prophet Daniel. Satan does not invent; he takes over whatever suits him from what has already been. So by this very strange mixture he tries to bring out the beast, or fourth empire, in its final form. No empire follows it. In this way it lays claim to everything known of old, and to evil without equal.

In the New Testament the dragon is a picture of Satan and of those he energises. In Revelation 12:3 the "great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns" stands for Satan's power in the form of the Roman empire. Through Herod, that power tried to destroy Christ when He was born. In Revelation 13:2, 4 it is Satan who gives the revived Roman empire in a future day its throne and great authority.

The beast combines the marks and characteristics of the empires before it, and their sovereignty too. So it is a fitting instrument through which the dragon can work… Satanic power out of the abyss, Satan's own throne in the middle of a scene that defies God, and unlimited authority on the earth: that is the awful picture here. Christ refused the sovereignty of the world from Satan (Luke 4:5, 8); here is one who accepts it. The dragon hands over his throne and authority at the time when the beast comes up out of the abyss (Revelation 17:8), after Satan has been thrown out of heaven.

This beast gathered into itself all the beast-like forms that had marked the three empires before it. More than that, it received its kingdom, in its final form, straight from the hands of Satan. Nebuchadnezzar had received his rule from God. The revived Roman empire at the end will take its power from Satan, and Satan will energise it. It is the complete falling away of human government from God. Among the ruling powers it will be seen in the dethroning of God and the lifting of Satan to His seat!

The satanic character and history of the empire cover the most serious crisis in the world's future: the three and a half years before the Lord's coming in glory. At the end of that period… the beast and his partner in evil go "to destruction" — that is, into the lake of fire.

Here God is set aside, and the dragon usurps His place. Not the Creator, but Satan becomes the object of universal worship. Mere profession is worthless in that awful day. Reality alone can stand in a scene wholly given up to Satan… In the eyes of men, the dragon has just done what people thought God alone could do. He has given supreme authority to the beast. For that reason men pay him divine honours.

Remember also that Satan came to our Lord when He was tempted in the wilderness. Satan offered Him all the kingdoms of the world, if only He would worship him. The Lord's answer was, "Be gone, Satan." He utterly refused it. But the offer the Lord in His perfection refused will appeal to this man, called "the beast." He will bow to the devil and get the kingdom for a brief spell. For that same spell men will openly call Satan "god." He will seem to reach what he has wanted from the beginning. Isaiah 14:12-14 points to this: "I will ascend… I will make myself like the Most High." Yet the result is this: "How you are fallen from heaven, O Day Star, son of Dawn!" Reaching his dearest desire is the prelude to his fall.

What a fickle thing man is! No doubt, just before, there had been a state of anarchy and confusion. Out of it the beast arises. He becomes an object of wonder and worship to men who are tired of all their earlier turmoil, strife and insecurity… So instead of men running things themselves, some strong chief will take the rule. But it will not be merely the hand of man. It will be the dragon's power.

The beast is the dragon's chief political agent. He will be so powerful and impressive that men will worship him. They will treat his power as unstoppable. Men will feel that here at last is the superman and the super-kingdom. It can impose its will and put down all opposition. This, we judge, is what will lead men to say, "There is peace and security," as foretold in 1 Thessalonians 5:3. But that cry leads to "sudden destruction."

This revival will be a wonder to all the world. It will call out the world's admiration for a power that no other power can match, and that no one will dare to fight. And yet to praise and applaud this empire will in reality be worship of the devil.

"Who is like the beast, and who can fight against it?" His power and skill in war are the dazzling qualities that win the world's admiration. The special point here is the homage owed to his high position, not worship itself. Yet we think more is implied. Men will pay divine honours to the personal head of the restored empire, and the second beast brings this about.

It is clear that three persons are closely linked in this scene: the dragon, the world-power or first beast, and the political and religious second beast. Revelation 13:4 shows that men worship the dragon as well as the first beast… In fact, they are the anti-trinity, and the unseen power of Satan is what binds them.

This power sways all who dwell on the earth. The only exceptions are those God chose before the foundation of the world. These do not worship the beast, the vessel of Satan's authority.

Notice the repeated phrase "given to him" (vv. 5, 7). Verses 2 and 4 explain it. They remind us that the beast's power is not only handed to him — it is handed to him by Satan.

This dark account of satanic wickedness and human arrogance has a ray of comfort woven into its very fabric. God's beloved saints, then and now, find it in how often the words "given him" occur. Behind the Beast lies the hidden yet almighty power of Jehovah. Satan has no power in himself. All power is of God.

First the beast was given an extraordinary, overbearing sense of his own importance: "he spoke great things." It is not doing here but speaking in pride. It is his character, not his acts. Next come insulting words against others, flowing out of that pride — blasphemies.

He will be a boaster, puffed up, like his god Satan, with the sense of his own merits and excellencies... He cannot rid himself of God, of heaven, or of the heavenly saints, but in the helplessness of his rage, glorying in his earthly supremacy, he pours out his wicked heart in insolent blasphemies.

The little horn "speaks great words against the Most High" (Dan. 7:25). The beast "opens his mouth in blasphemy against God" (Rev. 13:6). The little horn's power lasts "a time, and times, and the dividing of time" (Dan. 7:25). The beast's power continues "forty-two months" (Rev. 13:5), which is only another way of saying the same period.

The forty-two months of Revelation 13:5, or three and a half years, show when the events foretold in this chapter will happen. They fall in the last half week of Daniel's seventy weeks — the period just before the appearing and reign of Christ.

Notice what our text states. It is not the existence of the Beast or the empire as such. It is that great crisis in its history when Satan takes possession of it — forty-two months, or three and a half years before its final destruction.

He who sits on the throne will never let the enemy seize the reins of government. His controlling hand measures everything that must fall on His own people, and the enemy cannot go beyond that measure. So the sufferings of the elect during the great tribulation last 1260 days (Rev. 12:6). Satan could not make it 1261, however much he wanted to.

First the beast was given an extraordinary, overbearing claim for himself — "he spoke great things." This is not doing but speaking in pride. It is his character, not his acts. Next come injurious words against others, flowing from that pride — blasphemies... He blasphemed the "name" of God, instead of owning its authority in the place of power he held.

We must acknowledge "the powers that be." But when Satan has given the beast his authority, that is another thing altogether: we owe no allegiance to Satan. In fact, Satan is the one who leads the beast on into all his own depths and heights of sin.

As well as blaspheming God and His name, he adds the blasphemy of God's tabernacle and "those who dwell in heaven" (v. 6). It seems the tabernacle refers to God's heavenly dwelling, so this involves the Beast's bold defiance of all heavenly authority.

This is violent and injurious speaking against God Himself and against His heavenly saints. Those that dwell in heaven are the glorified saints. They are caught up to be with the Lord forever when Christ comes for His own, before the beast comes to power.

The heavenly saints now have their dwelling-place in heaven. The devil has been cast down to the earth, so he is powerless to reach them. He can only open his mouth and include them in the blasphemies he utters against God.

Satan can blaspheme the saints in heaven, but he cannot hurt them... Satan can never get back to heaven once he is cast out... He will make war with those on the earth, but he cannot touch those in heaven. We belong with Christ there. We can sit in calm and peace above the devil's blasphemy, because we are with God... It is a blessed thing to be so identified with God as to be the objects of Satan's blasphemies.

The beast may blaspheme the tabernacle above, and Satan may insult those who dwell there, but he can no longer even accuse them before God. So he turns to violent persecution on the earth. "And it was given him to make war with the saints" — and these saints are plainly not in heaven.

It displays its anger towards those who dwell in heaven. It is already like this in principle. If a Christian will walk as an inhabitant of heaven, the world cannot bear him. That will be still more dreadful then.

This dark account of satanic wickedness and human arrogance has a ray of comfort woven into its very fabric for God's beloved saints, both now and then. It lies in how often the words "given him" appear. Behind the Beast lies the hidden yet almighty power of Jehovah. Satan has no power in himself. All power is of God… A storm once lashed the Sea of Galilee into fury to sink the boat that carried the most precious cargo that ever sailed: Christ and His disciples. That power had its source in the divine Sleeper resting in the back of the ship. For the moment Satan was granted authority over the elements of nature. This was to show us that his power, and how long it lasts, is controlled and checked by God at His will and pleasure (Matthew 8:23-27).

"Also it was allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them." Some are killed — for example, the two witnesses. This could never have happened before. God never allowed the saints to be overcome. All who dwell on the earth are swayed by this power except those chosen before the foundation of the world. These do not worship the beast, the vessel of Satan's authority.

The saints the beast will wage war against are the ones named in the previous chapter (Revelation 12:17). In this, as in everything else, he is only Satan's instrument. God allows them to be overcome (compare Matthew 24:9-10). Not all of them, as we learn later, but many. He does it to test their faith and to purify His people in the furnace of affliction.

This man will not make war with Israel, but "with the saints" — those in the Tribulation Period who will be awakened to take a stand for the living God (v. 7).

The saints in these times are not like the seven thousand silent witnesses in the prophet's day. They are all Elijahs, bold and uncompromising in their testimony.

The empire may cover any amount of territory in the future. Even so, the authority of the Beast seems unlimited in its range and reach, since it takes in "every tribe and people and language and nation" — the four divisions of the human race. Countries and peoples outside the Roman empire will yet be found under its powerful influence and authority.

This warning is meant above all to guide the saints. From the wickedness of the beast and his alliance with the dragon, they might well conclude that they were free to resist him… Their place was not to take the sword in their own defence. If they did, what would the result be? Whatever their character, and whatever the beast's, God would still hold to His principles. They must expect what they tried to inflict.

These conquerors have "gotten the victory over the beast." What a change! Seen from man's side, the beast had made war with them "and overcome them." Seen from God's side, they have "gotten the victory over the beast." On earth the cry is, "Who is like the beast? Who is able to make war with him?" In heaven the song is, "Who shall not fear you, O Lord, and glorify your name?" God is always victorious in the end, and so are those who trust Him.

Except for God's chosen ones, all men will also worship the beast — all who dwell on the earth. This expression now loses its special moral meaning and will include everyone within this sphere except God's people. It will only be the revival of the old Roman custom of paying homage, and offering incense, to images of the emperor.

There is a fixed difference between the nations at large in the world and "those that dwell on the earth." The first is the broader term. The second means the narrower group, whose earthly character is more settled. They had heard and hated the heavenly testimony of Christ and the church. They might still keep the names and the forms, but hearts that had turned away deliberately preferred earth to heaven... Never since the gospel was first preached have men been more thoroughly settling down in the effort to make earth their paradise. One lack accounts for it all: Christ is not everything, and the heart is divided between the first man and the Second.

Carefully keep in mind that "from the foundation of the world" belongs not to "slain," but to the writing of the name. The Lamb was not slain from the foundation of the world, though the eternal purpose was there. But the name was written from the foundation of the world, in the book of life of the Lamb who has been slain. Compare Revelation 17:8, where the omission of the slain Lamb makes the true connection plain and certain.

There is no such thing in Scripture as the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. Revelation 13 says, "Whose names are not written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb slain." If people only mean that the Lamb was slain before the world in the counsels of God, that is fine. But it is true in no other way.

"From" the world's founding does not mean the same as "before" it. Some saints are kept from yielding to the Beast at the close of the age. Their name was written from the foundation of the world in the slain Lamb's book of life. But the phrase used in Ephesians 1:4, as in 1 Peter 1:20, is pointedly different. As Christ was foreknown and loved by the Father "before" then, so God chose us who now believe. He chose us in Christ "before" the world's foundation, to be holy and blameless before Him in love.

The book of the Lamb slain means that only those whose sins have been washed away by the precious blood of Christ will have their names written in that book. Second, being written from the foundation of the world speaks of God's unchangeable eternal counsel. We know that counsel will stand forever.

"The book of life" in Revelation 3:5 is not the same as the one in Revelation 13:8. In 3:5 it is profession, which may or may not be real... But in chapter 13:8 every name recorded was that of a true believer. The names were written from the foundation of the world, and so before the course of human responsibility began. God knows the end from the beginning, and so He wrote each name in letters that cannot be erased.

The formula, "If anyone has an ear, let him hear," is one often used in the ministry of our Lord (Matthew 11:15; Matthew 13:9, 43; Luke 8:8, etc.). It is much the same as the call found in each of the messages to the seven churches (Revelation 2, 3), but shortened. The added clause, "what the Spirit says to the churches," can have no place here, since churches are no longer in existence while these judgments run their course. The call to hear assumes the use of spiritual understanding, as distinct from the natural hearing common to all people.

"He who has ears to hear, let him hear" was said by the Lord to His hearers, and to each of the seven churches in Asia, and also said when the beast, representing the future Roman power, is worshipped, signifying that a spiritual discernment was needed to catch the meaning of what was uttered.

That is a general rule, true of anyone; true even for the beast. If he has been leading others into captivity, he must go into captivity or worse himself... But it is meant above all to guide the saints. They might well conclude, from the wickedness of the beast and his alliance with the dragon, that they were free to resist him. That, I believe, is why this is said: so that the saint is not tempted to forget his place, or God's supremacy and sure judgment. Their place was not to take the sword in their own defence.

Anyone who can tell the difference between God's ways in government and God's ways in grace will see at once how such words fit the first and differ from the second. Stephen had to do with God's ways in grace. He was praying for the men persecuting him. What comfort would it have been to tell him that they would be stoned? Here, though, we are in a different period of God's dealings, tied to His ways in government. So the promise given to His saints is that their persecutor will soon be destroyed.

Human resistance by force was not the path of obedience. Here the patience and faith of the saints were shown. Whoever took the sword would perish by it. Taking the sword is never Christ's way; His way is patience that does not fight back. But the beast, who did take the sword, would perish.

This lays down a principle that applies to the beast and to God's saints in every age — to enemies and friends alike... It is the certainty of retributive justice, or in the words of Scripture, "with the measure you use it will be measured to you" (Matthew 7:2). Whoever leads into captivity must go into captivity himself. Whoever kills must himself be killed... They would not worship the beast, but neither were they to resist him, so captivity and death would be their sad lot. Well, be it so; they had a life beyond the utmost power of the enemy. Their names were written in the Lamb's book of life. No power in hell or earth could erase that writing, or rob them of their eternal portion, which rests on the death of the Lamb of God.

Others are urged to hear if they have an ear to do so (v. 9). People should take to heart what a serious folly this is. They would rather settle down in a corrupted and corrupting world than take hold of the freeing grace of the Lord Jesus, with its eternal blessings in heaven.

The formula, "If any one has an ear, let him hear," is one our Lord often used in His ministry (Matthew 11:15; Matthew 13:9, 43; Luke 8:8, and others). It is much the same as the one found in each of the letters to the seven churches (Revelation 2, 3), only shorter. The added clause, "what the Spirit says to the churches," could not apply here. Churches are no longer in existence while these judgments run their course. The call to hear assumes spiritual understanding, not the natural hearing common to all people.

A great principle runs through all this working and character of the beast on earth: "he that leads into captivity shall go there." So it will be with him. But God will not depart from His principles. Whoever uses oppressing power will be oppressed. The Lord will judge it, wherever it is found: "he that kills with the sword shall be killed with the sword."

It is the certainty of retributive justice, or in the words of Scripture, "with the measure you use it will be measured to you" (Matthew 7:2). Whoever leads into captivity must himself go into it. Whoever kills must himself be killed.

That is a general rule, true of anyone, true even of the beast... But it is meant above all to guide the saints. Seeing the wickedness of the beast and his league with the dragon, they might naturally conclude that they were free to resist him... Their place was not to take the sword in their own defence. If they did, what would be the result? Even then, whatever their character, whatever the beast's, God would hold to His principles. They must expect what they sought to inflict... If He lets him have his way for a season, what is our calling? "Here is the patience and the faith of the saints" — faith towards God, and patience towards the enemy.

What we read in verse 10 is a principle for Christians. The character of the patience and of the faith of the saints is not to resist at all. This is true at all times. If anyone will use the weapons of the flesh, he shall be made subject to them. Whoever draws the sword shall perish by the sword.

Anyone who can tell God's ways in government from God's ways in grace will see at once how these words fit the first and differ from the second. Stephen had to do with God's ways in grace. What comfort would it have been to him, while he prayed for his persecutors, to tell him that they would be stoned? Here, though, we are in a different period of God's dealings, tied to His ways in government. So the promise given to His saints is that their persecutor will soon be destroyed.

In the middle of this tribulation like no other, the saints must take the attitude of "unresisting patience." It was the attitude of our Lord Himself. When the hour of man and the power of darkness had come, He allowed Himself to be "brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so He opens not His mouth." The faith and patience of the saints would show in their confidence in God, and in their meek endurance of the fiery trial they would have to pass through.

They must not resist. Their weapons are not of the flesh, but spiritual... Only in this way can they triumph. Their victories are moral and spiritual, not physical. Helpless and hopeless, their resource is in God Himself. The Beast they would not worship, but on the other hand they must not resist, so captivity and death would be their sad lot. Well, be it so; they had a life beyond the utmost power of the enemy. Their names were written in the Lamb's book of life, and no power in hell or earth could erase the writing.