A Scripture Study That Asks The Right Question So That Yahweh’s People May Know The Correct Answer! Over the centuries, most of the body of Yahoshua ha-MaShiach has been so preoccupied asking the wrong questions and arguing over the answers thereof that the demonic realm is screeching with uncontrollable laughter at our collective spiritual ineptitude! It is an absolute maxim if you do not ask the right question, you will never come to the right conclusion!!! The answer always lies within the question! Many times, while studying “The Set-Apart Scriptures” in Revelation 13, I would meditate on “the mark of the beast”. “What is the mark of the beast?”, I asked myself for the thousandth time. This has been the subject of much speculation by the greatest of theological scholars and most of the church for two millennial. For the purpose of brevity, I am not going to discuss any of the various conclusions different parties and individuals have come to. Instead, I will only share with you the conclusions that I have come to. Conclusions not from my own opinions, but rather from the whole counsel of “The Set-Apart Scriptures”. While meditating on Revelation 13, Ruach ha Chodesh (the Set-Apart Spirit) put the inspired right question into my mind. What is the mark of Yahweh Elohim? It was the most reasonable question, and yet I had never once considered the possibility. If the beast kingdom of ha Satan and this world has a universal identifying mark, then surely it must be the counterfeit of the genuine and only mark of the Kingdom of Yahweh Elohim of the universe! If Yahweh’s people could know the genuine mark of Truth, then they could most easily identify the counterfeit mark every time they are confronted with it. Federal Treasury agents with the Secret Service of the USA are always trained using genuine Federal Reserve Notes only. New recruits never handle counterfeit notes during their training. In this way, they instantly recognize the fake because they are so expertly trained at discerning the genuine. By the correct knowledge and application of truth, the lie is always exposed! Using the on-line Scripture search tool “Blue Letter Bible”, I was able to quickly find the answer to the inspired question concerning the eternal mark of Yahweh’s Kingdom. The mark found in Revelation 13 is the Greek (Strong’s G5480) equivalent of the Hebrew (Strong’s H266) of the TaNaKh (Old Testament) that is translated into King James English as sign, signs, mark, miracles, token, ensign and banner.
There are seven different Scriptures in the TaNaKh (OT) that reference the / a mark of Yahweh Elohim! Incredibly, five of these Scriptures specifically reference the forehead and / or the hand just like the Revelation 13 mark of the beast! Revelation 13:16 – “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:” The following five scriptures concerning the mark of Yahweh Elohim (Strong’s H266) are as follows: Shemoth (Exodus) 13:9 – “And it shall be for a signunto thee upon thine hand, and for a memorial between thine eyes, that Yahweh's law may be in thy mouth: for with a strong hand hath Yahweh brought thee out of Mitsrayim (Egypt).” Shemoth (Exodus) 16:13 – “And it shall be for a token upon thine hand, and for frontlets between thine eyes: for by strength of hand Yahweh brought us forth out of Mitsrayim (Egypt).” Shemoth (Exodus) 31:13-17 – “Speak thou also unto the children of Yisrael, saying, Verily My Sabbaths ye shall keep: for it [is] a sign between Me and you throughout your generations; that [ye] may know that I [am] Yahweh that doth sanctify you. Ye shall keep the Sabbath therefore; for it [is] holy unto you: every one that defileth it shall surely be put to death: for whosoever doeth [any] work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among his people. Six days may work be done; but in the seventh [is] the Sabbath of rest, holy to Yahweh: whosoever doeth [any] work in the Sabbath day, he shall surely be put to death. Wherefore the children of Yisrael shall keep the Sabbath, to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations, [for] a perpetual covenant. It [is] a sign between Me and the children of Yisrael for ever: for [in] six days Yahweh made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day He rested, and was refreshed.” Debarim (Deuteronomy) 6:8 – “You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.” Debarim (Deuteronomy) 11:18 – “Therefore shall ye lay up these My words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes.” In addition there are two more relevant “Mark of Yahweh Elohim” scriptures from (Strong’s H8420) Yehezqel (Ezekiel) 9:4-10 – “And Yahweh said unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Yahrushalayim (Jerusalem), and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof. And to the others He said in mine hearing, Go ye after him through the city, and smite: let not your eye spare, neither have ye pity: Slay utterly old [and] young, both maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man upon whom [is] the mark; and begin at
My sanctuary. Then they began at the ancient men which [were] before the house. And He said unto them, Defile the house, and fill the courts with the slain: go ye forth. And they went forth, and slew in the city. And it came to pass, while they were slaying them, and I was left, that I fell upon my face, and cried, and said, Ah Master Yahweh! wilt Thou destroy all the residue of Yisrael in Thy pouring out of Thy fury upon Yahrushalayim (Jerusalem)? Then said He unto me, The iniquity of the house of Yisrael and Yahudah (Judah) [is] exceeding great, and the land is full of blood, and the city full of perverseness: for they say, Yahweh hath forsaken the earth, and Yahweh seeth not. And as for Me also, Mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity, [but] I will recompense their way upon their head.” I will visit the second witness in scripture of this particular mark of Yahweh later in this study. Serious students of “The Scriptures” know the first rule of study is that “The Setapart Scriptures” always interpret themselves! In addition, believers in Yahoshua ha MaShiach know that everything found in the TaNaKh (OT) is a type and / or shadow of something fulfilled in the Brit ha Dashah (New Testament) – chiefly in the Master Yahoshua Himself! Finally, every prophetic revelation, vision and dream in scripture can only be correctly interpreted as figurative representations = literal / physical realities. Every attempt to interpret any prophetic revelation, dream and or vision as literal (apart from the figurative) will always result in confusion. Almost every prophecy speaker, teacher and preacher I have heard in my life time makes this fatal error. I have searched high and low, and I cannot find one instance where a prophetic vision, dream and /or revelation can be interpreted figuratively = literally and literally = literally as well. Please correct me by the Word of Elohim if I am wrong. Example: A beast in a prophetic dream, vision or revelation always figuratively represents a literal kingdom of this world. Daniel 7:3 & 17 – It never means a literal beast! With these absolute rules of hermeneutic (interpretation) reality in mind, I began to consider each “Scripture” by the light of their Brit ha Dashah (NT) fulfillment.
THE FIRST MARK OF YAHWEH The first mark of Yahweh we find in Shemoth (Exodus) 13:9. This mark is found in both the hand and the forehead of Yahweh’s people, Yisrael. In the context of the entire passage, this mark is found on all Yahweh’s people who keep the feast of the Passover / Unleavened Bread. Yahoshua is the fulfillment of Yahweh’s “Feast of The Passover” Lamb / “Unleavened Bread”. Yahoshua is the Passover Lamb that takes away the sins of the world! In Yahonan 1:36, we read,
“And looking upon Yahoshua as He walked, He saith, Behold the Lamb of Elohim!” 1Corinthians 5:7-8 – “Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even ha MaShiach our Passover is sacrificed for us: Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened [bread] of sincerity and Truth.” The right question at this crux of the study must be: How do Yahweh’s people partake of His Feast of Passover / Unleavened Bread under the renewed covenant? Answer: “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: [it is] the gift of Elohim: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9 – We find a similar passage in Titus 3:4-7. “But after that the kindness and love of Elohim our Saviour toward man appeared, Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of Ruach ha Chodesh; Which He shed on us abundantly through Yahoshua ha MaShiach our Saviour; That being justified by His favor, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.” We, “the commonwealth of Yisrael” (Ephesians 2:12), have become partakers of Yahweh’s Feasts of the Passover / Unleavened Bread by receiving Yahoshua as our Master and Savior by His favor through faith!
THE SECOND MARK OF YAHWEH In Shemoth (Exodus) 13:16, we find the second mark of Yahweh. Once again, we find His mark is found on the hand and forehead of Yahweh’s people. In the relevant context of the entire passage, we find this particular mark is found on Yahweh’s people who dedicate all the firstborn males of their household unto Him. We find this type / shadow “Mark of Yahweh” fulfilled in the Gospel of Yahonan 1:12. “But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of Elohim, [even] to them that believe on His name:” Again in 1Yahonan / (John) 3:1a we read: “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of Elohim:” Romans 8:17 assures us not only are we the sons of Yahweh, we are also all dedicated firstborn sons. “And if children, then heirs; heirs of Elohim, and joint-heirs with Elohim; if so be that we suffer with [Him], that we may be also glorified together.
Question: How do we become the first born sons of Yahweh Elohim? Answer: The exact same way we partake of the Passover / Unleavened Bread! It is only by His favor through faith in Yahoshua ha MaShiach! (Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:4-7)
THE THIRD MARK OF YAHWEH The third mark of Yahweh we find in Shemoth (Exodus) 31:13-17. This mark does not specifically mention the hand or the forehead; however, it is included in this Scripture study because when carefully considered, we see it is the distinguishing mark of the Creator of the Universe! The mark of the Sabbath is the official seal of Yahweh Elohim! Shemoth (Exodus) 20:8-11 – “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day [is] the Sabbath of Yahweh thy Elohim: [in it] thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that [is] within thy gates: For [in] six days Yahweh made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them [is], and rested the seventh day: wherefore Yahweh blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it.” Contained within the official seal of the Sabbath we find His name, His title and His territory: Example: Barak Hussein Obama (name) President (title) of the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA (territory) Q: Whose name is on the seal of the Sabbath? A: Yahweh! Q: What is His title? A: Elohim (God)! Q: What is His territory? A: All of Heaven and Earth! The Sabbath Is also the official memorial of the Creator to His creation “For [in] six days Yahweh made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them [is], and rested the seventh day: wherefore Yahweh blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it.” Q. How Can An Official Seal Be Altered? How Can An Eternal Memorial Be Changed? A. It is IMPOSSIBLE! IT CANNOT BE DONE!
“For I [am] Yahweh, I change not; therefore ye sons of Ya’acob are not consumed.” (Mal’aki 3:6) “Yahoshua ha MaShiach the same yesterday, and today, and forever!” (Ibrim (Hebrews) 13:8) Q: Where do we find the fulfillment of the type / shadow of the Sabbath of Yahweh in the Brit ha Dashah (NT)? A: Ibrim (Hebrews) chapters 3 - 4:1-11. Yahweh’s people enter into the eternal rest of His Sabbath by belief! “The Commonwealth of Yisrael” are not working for their salvation. We work out our salvation/sanctification with fear and trembling! However, we are not working for our salvation! (Phillipians 2:12) We are resting (Sabbathing) in the finished work of the death, burial and resurrection of our Master Yahoshua! Yahweh’s people have received the eternal mark of Yahweh’s Sabbath by His favor through faith! (Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:4-7).
THE FOURTH & FIFTH MARK OF YAHWEH The fourth mark of Yahweh is found in Debarim (Deuteronomy) 6:8 and the fifth is located in Debarim 11:18. This mark is specifically found in the forehead and the hand of the people who keep the ten points of the covenant of Yahweh and walk in the light of His Torah (Mizmore / Psalm 119:105). This covenant is summed up in the two great commands… “Thou shalt love Yahweh thy Elohim with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.” And the second is like it. “Love thy neighbour as thyself.” (Mattithyahu (Matthew) 22:36-40) Yahoshua did not come to destroy “The Torah” (instructions / law) of Yahweh. He came to fulfill it! … every yod and tittle! (Mattithyahu (Matthew) 5:17-18) This mark of Yahweh is witnessed twice in “The Scriptures” because the ten points of Yahweh's covenant was given twice by the very hand of Yahweh. Remember? The prophet Mosheh (Moses) destroyed the first copy when he came down Mt. Sinai the first time. His righteous indignation overcame him as he witnessed the people worshipping the golden calf Aharon made. (Shemoth (Exodus) 31: 18 – 32:19 & Shemoth 34:1-2) In addition the commands are divided into two general portions: the ten points of Yahweh's covenant written in stone by Yahweh's finger; and the ceremonial worship, civil & food laws written by Mosheh from the very mouth of Yahweh. (Shemoth 33:11)
So, how do we receive the fulfillment of Yahweh’s covenant with Yisrael? We receive Yahoshua, the fulfillment of the covenant renewed by favor through faith! (Ibrim (Hebrews) 8:8-13; Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:4-7)
These first five marks are the Hebrew word או תPronounced – ōth The oldest form of Hebrew is Pictograph Hebrew. It is the Hebrew language in aleph-bet pictures. This form of Hebrew is very similar to the Chinese alphabet/language. Many respected scholars are beginning to espouse that pictograph Hebrew may be the oldest written language in the world. Aleph – Ox, Bull, Strength, Leader, First, Power, 'Almighty Father' Vav – Tent Peg, Nail ‘and’, Add, Secure, Hook Tav – Crossed Sticks, Sign, Seal, Covenant, Mark, Signal, Monument, 'The Cross' From Aleph we get 'Almighty Father or Elohim'. From Vav we get 'nail'. From Tav we get 'the cross', upon which Yahoshua died. (We will examine the Tav further later on in this study.) The simplest revelation of this mark of Elohim reads, "Almighty Elohim nailed to the cross!" Yeshayahu 9:6 – "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty Elohim, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace." Incredibly, four different times in the book of Revelation, Yahoshua ha MaShiach identifies Himself as the Aleph and the Tav! (The very Mark of Elohim!) Revelation 1:8 & 11; 21:6 & 22:13 – AWESOME!!! This is a Hebrew idiom that expresses the complete and finished Work of Elohim. Yahoshua is the Word of Elohim! (Yahonan 1:1) The Aleph and Tav appear together 611 א תtimes in "The Torah". To this present day, the best and brightest Rabbinical scholars profess they do not know the full meaning of this. In Hebrew, it is usually not a meaningful word; and as a matter of fact, does not translate into other languages. Therefore, it is almost completely omitted in every Bible translation in the world. As believers and followers of Yahoshua, we have the Brit ha Dashah (NT). We have the book of Revelation and therefore we know the fullness of what this means. Yahoshua is the Aleph and the Tav! He is the Almighty Father and The Son of Man who gave His life on the cross. The first time this Aleph-Tav is found in The Hebrew Scriptures is directly after Elohim in Bereshith (Genesis) 1:1.
"In the beginning Elohim (()א תAleph-Tav) created the heavens and the Earth". In Hebrew Gammantria, it is proper and correct to add the number of total appearances of Aleph-Tav together in “The Torah”. Therefore, 611 would be 6+1+1 = 8. Eight is the irrefutable and undisputed number of Yahoshua ha MaShiach. I hope all of this additional "bonus" material has not wearied you and is edifying to you and stirs you to press on in confidence in our most set-apart faith.
THE SIXTH MARK OF YAHWEH This sixth mark is found in Yehezqel (Ezekiel) 9:4-10. It is found in all those who fear Yahweh Elohim. (Mishle (Proverbs) 8:13)!!! “The fear of Yahweh [is] to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I hate.” This mark found in Yahweh’s people is the Hebrew letter Tav. It originally looked very much like our English alphabet letter “T”! Revelation 13:8b testifies Yahoshua is “the lamb slain from the foundation of the world”! He declares the end from the beginning! (Yeshayahu (Isaiah) 40:21; 41:4; 41:26; 46:10; 48:3; 48:5; 48:16) The men of Yehezqel’s prophecy were literally marked with the sign of the cross in their foreheads! The Hebrew Tav of Yahweh preceded ha Satan’s corruption of it all throughout paganism and pagan woship. Our Heavenly Father foreknew His son would hang on a cruel pagan cross long before crucifixion was ever invented by the Romans as a means of execution. (Mizmore (Psalm) 22:16; Zekaryah (Zechariah) 12:10, Amos 3:7 & 4:13) Yahweh has redeemed all of the commonwealth of Yisrael to Himself by all those who would put their full faith, hope and trust in the finished work of the death, burial and resurrection of Yahoshua our Master and Savior! The fear of Yahweh belongs only to those who have received the indwelling of the Ruach ha Chodesh! (the Set-Apart Spirit) You can only receive the Ruach ha Chodesh by His favor through faith! (Ephesians 2:8-9 & Titus 3:4-7)
THE SEVENTH MARK OF YAHWEH Finally, this exact same mark (Tav) is also found in Iyob (Job) 31:35-36 – "Oh that one would hear me! behold, my desire (mark of Tav) [is, that] the Almighty would answer me, and [that] mine adversary had written a book. Surely I would take it upon my shoulder, [and] bind it [as] a crown to me."
Iyob wrongly believed Heaven to be his adversary because of what he was made to suffer even though he was: "a perfect and straight man, one who fears Elohim and turns aside from evil." (Iyob (Job) 1:8; 2:3) His fervent prayer here was for the finished work of the cross to be the mark of His life in his forehead! "The Scriptures" is the book that was written by Heaven and personified in "The Word", Yahoshua ha MaShiach. All of Iyob's questions and misconceptions / wrong perceptions about Yahweh Elohim are answered in Yahoshua. The shoulder represents the seat of authority. In Iyob's day, the keys to the city or palace were carried on the shoulder. Yahoshua (The Word) carries the keys of the Kingdom upon His shoulder. (Yeshayahu (Isaiah) 9:6; 22:22 & Revelation 3:7) It was the desire of Iyob's heart for the Word of Elohim to be his only and final source of authority. Finally, Elohim's Word (as revealed in “The Torah”, the rest of the TaNaKh and Brit ha Dashah) is to be bound to our minds and our hearts – much like a crown worn upon the head. (Debarim (Dueteronomy) 6:8 and 11:18, Mizmore (Psalm) 119:11, Romans 12:2, 2Corinthians 10:4-5) Truly, all five of the marks of Yahweh (that are found in the forehead and / or the hand) are completely fulfilled in Yahoshua and by Yahoshua ha MaShiach! In Hebrew, each number has a consistent contextual meaning when it is found in “The Scriptures”. The primary meaning of the number five is Yahweh’s unmerited favor! Yahweh’s people can only receive Yahoshua as their Master and Savior by His favor through faith! In addition, there are a total of seven Scriptures that speak to us about "the Mark of Yahweh Elohim". Seven is the Hebrew number for perfection. By Elohim's favor, we are found perfect, without spot or blemish at our Master Yahoshua's return. Ephesians 5:27 – "That Yahoshua might present it to Himself a glorious assembly, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be set apart and without blemish."
IS YAHWEH’S MARK A LITERAL MARK OR A SPIRITUAL MARK? Answer: It is figuratively a literal spiritual mark! First, we will look at Yahweh’s mark in the forehead. Directly behind the forehead is the frontal part of the brain where the conscious moral and conscience facilities are located. Those who consciously decide to trust in Yahoshua as ha Mashiach (the Messiah) have spiritually received the “Mark of Yahweh”!
Simply understood, it is fully agreeing with “The Scripture” that Yahoshua ha MaShiach alone is the way, the Truth and the life and no one can come to the Father except by Him! (Yahonan (John) 14:6) Now let us consider the “Mark of Yahweh” found in the hand. We work with our hands. The right hand is understood to represent power throughout “The Scriptures”. Ephesians 2:10 follows what happens next after we become new creations in Yahoshua ha MaShiach. (2nd Corinthians 5:17) “For we are His workmanship, created in ha MaShiach Yahoshua unto good works, which Elohim hath before ordained that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:10) First, this verse is not necessarily speaking about pre-determinism as is commonly taught by many. All the good works we are supposed to be doing are found in “The Scriptures”. In it is spelled out in exact detail how we are to love our Father in Heaven and how we are to love our neighbor. For the people of Yahweh, our good works always follow after we have been saved by His favor through faith! This is testified to again in Titus 3:8. “[This is] a faithful saying, and these things I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in Elohim might be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable unto men.”
WHAT THEN, IS THE MARK OF THE BEAST? First, it is a spiritual and literal mark just like the mark of the Kingdom of Yahweh is spiritually and literally understood. The mark of the beast’s kingdom is nothing new! It has existed since sin entered into the world. In prophecy, beasts are caricatures denoting world-dominating kingdoms. (Dani'el 7:17) Adam was the first king over the Earth. He thought to cover up his sin by his own works and not by faith in Yahweh’s favor. (Bereshith (Genesis) 3:7) He repented of this error when he received by faith the atoning sacrifice that Yahweh graciously made to cover his nakedness. (Bershith (Genesis) 3:21) Adam’s firstborn (Cain) followed in his father’s footsteps when he, too, erred by trying to come to our Heavenly Father by his own works and merit. However, his younger brother Abel understood that he could only come by faith in Yahweh’s plan for our salvation by His favor; and thus offered an acceptable sacrifice of a lamb without blemish. (Bereshith 4:1-5)
Yahweh’s Will means everything must be done decently and in order! (1Corinthians 14:40) Yahweh’s divine order is that faith in His favor must always precede our works! The offering of Cain is actually acceptable and even commanded by Yahweh (The First Fruits Offering). However, it can only be presented after trusting in Yahweh’s provision of favor by faith! Cain’s attitude was all wrong, as evidenced by him murdering his brother Abel in Bereshith 4:8. Cain wanted to come to Elohim on his own terms. The mark of the beast’s kingdom is simply defined as the spiritual mark on all those who would try to come into divine favor by their own works and merit. They erroneously think they must work for their redemption / salvation; and thus they fill their lives with the many good works of their hands that have been proscribed by their religion. They refuse to trust in the finished work of the cross, burial and resurrection of the Master Yahoshua and rather trust unto their own efforts to enter into the favor of Yahweh! Their thinking is in error and they work according to their own faulty logic and conclusions. Thus they are marked in their foreheads and in their hands!
THE BEAST’S KINGDOM TODAY! Even though there is much disagreement who anti-ha MaShiach is, there can be absolutely no doubt that every religious system in this world that attempts to know divine favor with Yahweh by dead works is the mark of the beast! Prophecy speaks about an end of days Babylon all throughout the book of the Revelation of Yahoshua ha MaShiach. Babylon of old was a triune political, financial and spiritual kingdom. For those who are discerning of spirit, there exists such a global kingdom power today. Every false religious system in this present world can trace its roots back to ancient pagan Babylon. Religious Babylon today can trace all of its present beliefs to ancient Babylon. In addition, there is a present king / ruler in the world today who presides over every one of the rulers of these false religious systems and proclaims they are all worshipping the same el (god) and that he is the priest over all of them. (For those of you who are skeptical of this claim, I can produce substantial video evidence.) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GlSZVse5ydQ I would have to agree with this anti- MaShiach (Christ) beast man / king 100%!! I know for an absolute fact that his el (god) is ha Satan, the devil, and he is an apostle of light whom Rav Shaul (The Apostle Paul) warned us of! 2Corinthians 11:13-15 – “For such [are] false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of ha MaShiach. And no marvel; for ha Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore [it is] no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.”
2Corinthians 4:4 – “In whom the el (god) of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of ha MaShiach, who is the image of Elohim, should shine unto them.” This same king has bestowed up himself many various titles. In prophecy, the title = the name. “And He hath on [His] vesture and on His thigh a name written, SOVEREIGN of Sovereigns, and MASTER of Masters. (Revelation 19:16) Revelation 13:17-18 – “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 (the number of his Official Title!). Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number [is] Six hundred threescore [and] six.” Nailed to the cross of Yahoshua was the title given to him by Pilate, “Yahoshua King of The Yahudim”! This title was inscribed in Hebrew, Greek and Latin. (Luke 23:38) In all three languages (Hebrew, Greek and Latin) there is a letter = numerical value of some kind. It is more than a coincidence that every title this “man of sin” has bestowed upon himself throughout the centuries equals 666 in at least one of these three languages. This can easily be confirmed by many various credible sources. Here is one: http://www.remnantofgod.org/666.htm This becomes even more meaningful to the mind of discerning spirit who considers that all three of these languages are the primary languages of scripture up until the major translation efforts over the last 500 years.
NO ONE CAN BUY OR SELL UNLESS THEY TAKE THE MARK OF THE BEAST RIGHT?! 100% Correct! This prophecy was fulfilled literally over more than a millennium. The works-based religious systems of this world murdered between 500 million and 1 billion innocent people all throughout the dark ages. Question: Why did they wholesale slaughter so many innocents? Answer: They refused to repent”and joined with the works-based religious systems of this world! Obviously, the dead cannot buy or sell anything. However, I believe there is a much deeper spiritual lesson in the teachings of Yahoshua about the fulfillment of this prophecy. Mattithyahu (Matthew) 25:1-9 – "Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. And five of them were wise, and five [were] foolish. They that [were] foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept. And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the
bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him. Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out. But the wise answered, saying, [Not so]; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves." This parable has puzzled the most brilliant of theologians. There can be no doubt it was written to our generation. The interpretation from “The Scriptures”, alone, is as follows: The 10 virgins are 10 women. Many times in “The Scriptures”, virgin simply means maiden. That is the case here. Ten almost always denotes the ten tribes of Yisrael that were dispersed throughout the world and thus lost. (Luke 19:10, Mattithyahu 15:24, Yahonan 10:16) Five of the virgins represent the commonwealth of Yisrael by Yahweh’s favor through faith. Five of the virgins represent the harlot daughters of the whore of Babylon who say they are virgins of Yisrael betrothed to Yahoshua, but are lying to themselves and the world. (Revelation 17:5, Mishle (Proverbs) 7, Mishle 30:20) All of them have lamps that give light (“The Scriptures” is the lamp. Mizmore (Psalm) 119:105) and all of them believe in the bridegroom, Yahoshua ha MaShiach! Mishle (Proverbs) 7:18-20 – “For my husband is not at home; He has gone on a long journey; “He took a bag of silver with him; He comes home on the day of the new moon.” Note: A lamp’s wick will burn for a little while and give off light. This gives the outward appearance that all lamps are equal. In the exact same way, many will tell us there is no difference in all the various world religions. They would have us believe that all roads lead to Heavenly favor equally. “The Scriptures” is very clear concerning this teaching. You cannot come to Him by trusting in any religious system or good works you have done! These two groups are differentiated by the oil that the commonwealth of Yisrael (by His favor through faith alone) possesses. Oil is one of the seven scriptural representations of the Ruach ha Chodesh (the Set-Apart Spirit). We can only receive the oil (Ruach Ha Chodesh) by favor through faith in the finished work of Yahoshua! Notice that every one of the maidens in this parable falls asleep. Sleep, everywhere throughout “The Scriptures” is synonymous with death. History reveals the teaching of the soon return of King Yahoshua died for more than a millennium. Both the assembly of His favor by faith and the assembly of religious good works ceased to teach and preach this central, essential doctrine of “The Scriptures”!
However, at the midnight cry (I have come to believe around the mid-1800’s), all of the assemblies (churches) all over the world awoke to the correct knowledge that Yahoshua was indeed literally going to come again for His people. They trimmed their lamps. This signifies renewed attention given to “The Scriptures”. Furthermore, both the assembly of His favor by faith and the assembly of religious works are fervently teaching and preaching that His coming will be very soon. Notice the foolish maidens that do not have any oil suddenly recognize the necessity of having it. Next, they go to the assembly of grace by faith and request of them to give them of their oil, Ruach ha Chodesh (the Set-Apart Spirit). Every member of Yahoshua’s assembly of favor knows that you can only receive Ruach ha Chodesh by His favor through faith on an individual basis. We know for absolute certain we cannot have faith for any other to be saved by Heavenly favor. No matter how great my love, I cannot have faith for my parents, my children, my friends or even my enemies! Because the assembly of favor knows the assembly of works will not receive the love of the Truth (2Thessalonians 2:10-12) their reply is naturally one of mocking instruction, much like Elijah on Mt Carmel in 1Melakim (Kings) 18. Those who would sell Ruach ha Chodesh as a commodity through religious systems of works are the seed of the Devil, himself. (Mattithyahu 13:38-39) In Acts 8:9-24, we are given the account of Simon the sorcerer. He thought Ruach ha Chodesh was a mere commodity that could be bought and sold on a whim. This Simon is a type and shadow of the beast and the whore of Babylon and all her harlot daughters who also practice sorcery. (Revelation 18:23) All true followers of Yahoshua know the indwelling Ruach ha Chodesh (and thus salvation) power and the gifts and callings without repentance is a free gift from our Abba-Yahweh Elohim to all who will receive Him / it by faith. (Romans 8:32 & Revelation 21:6) Because we have received freely, freely we give to others, according to the command of our Master Yahoshua! Mattithyahu (Matthew) 10:8 – “Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.” From “The Scriptures”, we may reasonably conclude that no one can buy, sell or trade the Ruach ha Chodesh except he has worshipped the beast and / or the beast’s image and taken the mark of the beast! The assembly of His favor can never take the mark of the beast because we will never begin to attempt to work for that which we know is paid for in full by the blood of Yahoshua! Because we know we are saved by His favor through faith, we are not going to try to earn it by false religious systems of works.
Conclusion: I have no doubt this Scripture study has challenged most in their present / previous beliefs concerning this subject matter. Please pray and ask the Heavenly Father for wisdom and He will surely give it without measure. (Ya’acob / James 1:5) I am not saying I am 100% correct. I am just a pilgrim on a journey of Truth and I am always open to repent as “The Scripture” continues to open itself up to me. I trust that you are, too. Shalom, Shalom! Yahonan 14:27 – “Shalom I leave with you – My shalom I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. ~ Yahoshua ha MaShiach Sincerely, and in Truth, Robert McDuffie, Galatians 6:14, Mizmore 119:162