notes • they are worshiping saying saying “Who is like the beast, and who can make war with him?” • v5-10. He is given a blasphemous mouth, against God, his people, and his tabernacle (those who dwell in heaven). • He is also permitted to attack the saints. • He has authority over the entire world. (Rome controlled the entire world in the mind of the people back then). • All who dwell on the earth will worship him (emperor worship became widespread during Domitian’s reign and was mandatory). • Some are destined to these bad fates. Therefore, it calls for endurance on the part of the saints. • v11-17 The false prophet of the beast.... • Is this the roman imperial cult? • They make people worship the Roman Emperor under threat of death and persecution. • They could deny participation in the trade guilds and such if you did not engage in emperor worship. • This fire coming down, and all these other signs are parodies of what God’s prophets do. • Mark on the right hand and on the forehead. • This is a parody of God’s people who are also marked. • The Jews were commanded to bind the law on their hands and on their foreheads. This parodies the Law of God and the people of God. • Isaiah 44:5; Exodus 13:9 • v18. 666 The mark of the beast • This is meant to be representative of a name of a person, or some sort of helpful designation. • This is not a bar code, or something that should make us wary of technology/credit cards/chips, etc... • Some see it as the unholy trinity. 6, 6, 6 three incomplete/demonic persons. Dragon, Beast, False Prophet • Some see it as a word/number puzzle.... In the end, it is not something which will sneak up on us. It was something that involved outright denial of God and worship of something else. It involved giving in to the culture and conceding for the sake of ease of life, and to avoid persecution.
Additional Reading:
Lowery, Robert A. Revelation’s Rhapsody: Listening to the Lyrics of the Lamb. Joplin, Missouri: College Press Publishing Company, 2006
The Apocalypse of John
Revelation Ch. 12-13 Women, Dragons, Beasts, False Prophet, and Children of God... In this section of the book of Revelation, we are dealing with some crazy imagery. Though the rest of the book has had crazy imagery in it before, these next few chapters are going to be tops so far as that is concerned. Once again, we see John picking up afresh as if telling the same story again in a different light. As we progress, I encourage you not to try and immediately begin to draw parallels, but to first read the story with the imagery it suggests, and then draw meaning. Chapter 12: The great red Dragon shows up... • v1-2. The first sign that we come across in this story is that of a woman. • Let’s consider how she is described... • Clothed with the sun • The moon under her feet • A crown of 12 stars on her head Who then could this woman be? • Isaiah 61:10 could be significant • Isaiah 26:17-27:1 is very significant • Hosea 2:20ff • This woman could be representative of Israel (OT linkage, and the • 12 stars on her crown). Likely it is Israel. Especially since Sun, Moon, and Stars are often associated with Joseph’s dream, and thus the children of Israel as a whole (Gen. 37:9). • She is with child, and is preparing to give birth... notice this in connection with the OT idea of God’s people restored through this language. • Check out Isaiah 66:6ff • v3-4. The second sign is a dragon which appears... • great red dragon (who do we already know this is?) • seven heads, ten horns, and seven diadems • This is to represent him as the head of all evil powers. The chief of all that is evil and wicked.
The Apocalypse of John: Ch 12-13
Αποκαλυψις Ιησου Χπιστου
• He swept away 1/3 of the stars in heaven and threw them to the earth. • This is similar to a different prophesy in Daniel 8 about the first desecration of the temple in Jerusalem by Antiochus Epiphanes who desecrated the temple in Jerusalem and it as a temple to Zeus. • Here we see the dragon and the beast being associated with the same idea as that of Antiochus. Disallow worship of God, and demand that God’s people worship something else. He waits before the woman to consume the son, but God does not allow this to happen. • Seems like a parallel with the actions of Herod in trying to kill Jesus... hmmmm.... • • v5. She (Israel) gave birth to male child (Jesus) who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron. He was caught up to God and to His throne. • This is a clear passage about the coming of the Christ. Jesus. And a very short summary of his death burial and resurrection. After this point in the story, we are dealing with the time after Christ’s ascension. • v6. The woman flees to the wilderness where she is nourished for 1,260 days. or about 3 and a half years. (a short period, similar to that in Daniel) • v7-9. The defeat of the dragon • Michael (leader of God’s army) and Satan with his army of angels does battle. • They were cast out, and there was no longer a place for them in heaven (spiritual realm where God’s constant theophany is) • The idea being that they were cast out of heaven to the earth. • They are still invisible, spiritual beings (unless they make themselves known) and they are now on the earth. • v10-12. God wins the battle • 10 is a declaration of God’s victory... • What happens? • Why does it happen? • 11 Here is how we overcome • Blood of the Lamb • Word of the testimony • By holding strong even in the face of death. • 12 Rejoicing and Woe. • v13-16. The dragon persecuted the woman who gave birth to the child. This is the Jewish nation. But God provided a temporary means of deliverence for the woman from the devil. For 3.5 years. or a time, times, and half a time. There is likely significance to this time span which lies beyond a literalist approach to the number of days/years. • Notice the link between v14 and v6. • The serpent tried to destroy her with a flood, but the earth swallowed up the water and preserved the woman alive. • v17. The dragon, enraged with the woman, the true Israel or Zion for giving birth to these people. He goes off to make war with her children. Those who keep the commandments of God (Love God and Love one another) and who hold to the testimony of Jesus Christ. Chapter 13: The beast makes his appearance... How the dragon plans on dealing with the children. • v1-2. Notice here all the parallels with Daniel’s vision of 4 beasts. Daniel 7:1ff • This beast has parts of all of these other beasts (kingdoms) and is the 4th beast. This beast in Daniel has 10 horns. This beast comes out of the sea. one of the horns of the beast makes war with the saints and overpowers them until God steps in and does something about it. • This forth beast will be done away with, and power will be given over to the Saints of God and they will rule the kingdom. • It is in this time (during the 4th beast) that the son of man comes to the Father and recieves power from on high. • It seems like the 4th beast is Rome, and it seems like it transfers very well into the book of Revelation. • The dragon is the source of his power and authority (this beast) • v3. It looks as though one of the heads of the beast suffers a fatal wound. This fatal wound may be intended as a parody of Christ. But it causes people to follow the beast. • v4. These people are then seen worshiping Satan because he gave power to this beast.