Economic War
The False Prophet employs economic pressure to coerce men and women to swear allegiance to the Beast from the Sea.
The “False
Prophet,” the “Beast from the Earth,” uses economic force against men
who refuse to swear fealty to the World Empire, and the “mark of the Beast”
is his tracking and enforcement mechanism. The ability to impose monetary penalties
and sanctions on nations and individuals is key to the political power of the
First Beast.
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[US Dollar - Photo by Giorgio Trovato on Unsplash] |
The Book of Revelation contrasts the “Inhabitants of the Earth” with the followers of the “Lamb.” Members of the former group have the “number of the Beast branded” on their forehead or “right hand.” The members of the latter have the name of the “Lamb written on their foreheads.” The “mark of the Beast” is Satan’s counterfeit of the “Seal of God” - (Revelation 7:1-3, 14:1-4).
All the “Inhabitants of the Earth” take
this beastly “mark,” therefore, they are legally authorized to engage in
trade and commerce – “To buy and sell.” In contrast, the followers of
the “Lamb” bear his name and are therefore prohibited from participating
in the economic life of the World Empire - (Revelation 13:16-18).
Humanity is divided into two recognizable
groups: the men who follow the “Lamb,” and the “Inhabitants of the Earth”
who submit to the “Beast from the Sea.” To which group anyone belongs
determines whether his or her name is included in the “Lamb’s Book of Life.”
References to the “Earth” and “Zion” are not geographical, but
relational.
The beastly “mark” or “number”
designates whether anyone has submitted to the authority of the “Beast.”
Without this “brand,” no one is permitted to engage in economic life. Your ability
to “buy and sell” is dependent on giving allegiance to the First Beast.
Having the “mark of the Beast” also determines
whether anyone is excluded from the “Book of Life.” Placing the Beast’s
“mark” on the “forehead” or “right hand” mimics the ancient
call for Israel to worship Yahweh alone. The Beast’s mark is religious
imitation, a counterfeit of God’s call for His children to place His statutes
on their foreheads, and an imitation of the seal placed on His saints by God:
- “Yahweh our God is one Yahweh! And you will love Yahweh your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might <…> And you will teach them diligently to your children <…> And you will bind them for a sign upon your hand, and they will be for frontlets between your eyes” - (Deuteronomy 6:4-8).
- “Hurt not the earth, neither the sea nor the trees until we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads” - (Revelation 7:3).
If the “Seal of God” is figurative, so is the “mark of the Beast.” Anyone who gives allegiance to the “Beast” rather than Jesus takes its “mark,” just as everyone who follows the “Lamb wherever he goes” is sealed by God.
ALREADY UNDERWAY
The
congregation of Smyrna was experiencing economic deprivation because it refused to compromise with the surrounding culture, and its members were slandered by “the
Synagogue of Satan.”
Despite appearances, the saints “were rich” because they persevered. If
they continued doing so, they would avoid the “Second Death” and receive
the “crown of life” in the city of “New Jerusalem”–
(Revelation 2:8-11).
The beastly system of John’s time was the Roman Empire (“five kingdoms are fallen,
the one is”). Though it was
not the final incarnation of the “Beast,” it certainly was a forerunner and
possessed many of the attributes of the future “Beast from the Sea.”
Satan has been pushing the same agenda from the beginning, whether at the
Tower of Babel, the Neo-Babylonian Empire of Nebuchadnezzar, or today’s prospective
world hegemon. This is in part why Ancient Israel and now the Church often have
experienced economic oppression by governments and empires – (Revelation
17:10).
Nevertheless, the Beast’s final form will
come, and when a political entity appears on the world scene that uses economic
control against nations, peoples, and individuals that refuse to submit to its
demands, it will be the first sign that the final “Beast” has started
its “Ascent from the Sea.”
We must choose now whether to submit and
swear fealty to the “Beast from the Sea” or “to follow the Lamb
wherever he goes.” If we do the latter, we will find ourselves marginalized
by society, but we also will stand one day before the “Lamb” in the “city
of New Jerusalem.”
If we choose the former, we will find to
our dismay that our names have been expunged from “the Lamb’s Book of Life.”
All men who take the Beast’s mark and pay homage to its image will experience “the
Wrath of God” – (Revelation 14:8-10).
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SEE ALSO:
- Beast from the Sea - (The Dragon began his attack against the Seed of the Woman by summoning his seed, the Beast from the Sea – Revelation 13:1-5)
- The Ancient Regime - (The Beast of Revelation embodies the ancient imperial power that has stalked the saints since the Tower of Babel incident)
- Beast from the Earth - (The Beast from the Earth mimics the Lamb. It is the mouthpiece of the Dragon, and the propagandist for the first beast)
- Swearing Allegiance - (In the Book of Revelation, every man and woman must choose between loyalty to the Beast from the Sea or the Sacrificial Lamb)
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