They are not that high-tech, are they? Revelation 13:16,17.

 “ It (the false prophet – also referred to as a beast) causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name.” Revelation 13:16-17 (Emphasis mine)

If you think about how Islam deals with infidels, they are not that high-tech, are they?

I say that because, for the longest time, we were subjected to watching the beheading of Isis captives and an American citizen like Nick Berg – who was an American freelance radio tower repairman who went to Iraq after the United States invasion of Iraq. He was taken hostage and eventually beheaded on public television. Others have been shot in the head, and some have been hanged in public squares.

I have been watching how Islam treats people for several years now and decided to do a little research to see if the Quran prescribed the sword as the unique method of death for infidels. I can't say that I found that directive, but it is clear killing infidels is communicated.

If you attempt to research this for yourself, you will find the obligatory rebuttals to these passages from the Quran. In their rebuttals, they will tell you that Muslims are only to kill if attacked. It would seem that even an oral statement, especially one like this, in which my statements could be deemed blasphemy against Allah, constitutes an attack. Oh yes, the Quran tells them that deception is an elevated form of Jihad; and from what I understand, Allah is openly stated as the greatest of deceivers. So take that for what is worth. So, when they stand in defense of orders to kill, we might need to perceive what they say as nothing more than an attempt at deception.

While the next few lines may not speak to the method of death, it does speak to how serious they are about killing you.

From the website https://www.markalanwilliams.net/post/2017/01/02/koran-says-to-kill-infidels-bible-doesnt.

“So, let’s look at where the Koran says to kill infidels and then the fact that the Bible does not teach the same.”

1. The Koran says to kill infidels.

Note: an “infidel” means “a person who does not believe in religion or who adheres to a religion other than one’s own.”
Synonyms are unbeliever, agnostic, atheist, pagan, idolater, and heretic.

Here are passages from the Koran that teach Muslims to kill infidels (note: a sura is like a chapter reference):

“But when the forbidden months are past, then fight and slay the pagans wherever ye find them, and seize them, beleaguer them, and lie in wait for them in every stratagem [of war]; but if they repent, and establish regular prayers and practice regular charity, then open the way for them: for God is Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful” (Sura 9:5).

“Fight those who believe not in God nor the Last Day, nor hold that forbidden which hath been forbidden by God and His Apostle, nor acknowledge the religion of Truth, [even if they are] of the People of the Book [Christians and Jews], until they pay the jizya [tribute] with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued” (Sura 9:29).

“Prophet! Make war on the unbelievers and the hypocrites and deal sternly with them. Hell shall be their home, evil their fate.” (Sura 66:9)

Two surahs could potentially be used to provide a justification for beheading in the context of war:(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beheading_in_Islam#Beheading_in_Islamic_scripture)

When the Lord inspired the angels (saying) I am with you. So make those who believe stand firm. I will throw fear into the hearts of those who disbelieve. Then smite the necks and smite of them each finger. (8:12)

Now when ye meet in battle those who disbelieve, then it is smiting of the necks until, when ye have routed them, making fast of bonds; and afterward either grace or ransom 'til the war lay down its burdens. (47:4)

There is much more than this, but I am trying not to bore you.

This idea that outsiders cannot work freely in an Islamic-controlled land is not a new concept.

Look at what the Qur'an says:

"Fight those who believe not in Allah nor the Last Day, nor hold that forbidden which hath been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger, nor acknowledge the religion of Truth, (even if they are) of the People of the Book, until they pay the Jizya with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued." Qur'an (9:29)

So, if you submit or are subdued and pay the Jizya tax, then you can live in relative freedom; otherwise, no.

Having been told by a “brother” at church that he was NOT interested in extra-biblical literature, and I have shoved a good deal of this type of literature down your throat, then let me show how this applies and aligns itself with scripture.

“And he (He is the false prophet. Islam believes this to be their version of Jesus, and they believe that he will be of the lineage of Aaron and, therefore, entitled to be the high priest in the Jewish temple.) causes all, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free men and the slaves (With the arrival of the vaccines do you believe that people like Bill Gates had that deadly concoction injected in their bodies? Of course not, after all, they have to run this great reset, that Klaus Schwab refers to as the fourth industrial revolution where humans become bio machines due to the ingredients in the vaccinations and further upgrades,) to be given a mark on their right hand or on their forehead, and he provides that no one will be able to buy or to sell, except the one who has the mark, either the name of the beast or the number of his name.”
(Revelation 13:16-17 NASB) (Emphasis mine)

I never would have guessed that even the great and rich will have to comply.

But what if this mark is not that high-tech, and Islam, who may have control at this point, may have their own simple idea of a mark.

The Jews, forced into the ghettos of Poland, were

given marks, and they were not allowed to do anything without the yellow star that said Juden on them. Few realize that there were many colors used to denigrate people groups under the direction of the Nazis.

 

A puzzling aspect of this prophetic word is the reference to this 666 indicator and how it is the number of a man. For a moment, I thought Walid Shoebat sounded good, as he described how it looked like the Arabic symbols meaning there is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is his messenger. I am not sure, and I am not willing to play with Gematria. So if there is one thing in Revelation that throws me for a loop, it is this 666 stuff. We already know it is a man; I am confident that it will be someone fulfilling the role of the Mahdi; they will head the restored Islamic caliphate, but who it is, is anybody's guess. For a few minutes, I thought Principe Erdoğan of Turkey was going to take the lead in this role, but I now lean toward former President Barack Obama. We should not rule him out.

The passage reads:

“This calls for wisdom: let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is 666.”

Contextually, John had just finished speaking about the image of the beast being set up, but as I said, we have too many options to define this as yet.

Your best bet is to stay ready on God's side. Start by having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. You do that by turning your life over to Him and asking Him to come to be the center of your life. Then work on trimming off the bad fruit you have grown. Jesus Christ knows how to do that.

He will force the world to take the mark.

 Considering how peculiar this “beast” is, what kind of image would you make for it?

Perhaps you could make a portrait of it and focus on the “eyes”; since scripture tells us that “it” is given a mouth, then maybe that is a good starting place.

There is a problem, as I recall, and that is that Islam detests all expressions of art. Evidence for this could be seen as the United States, under the direction of “President” Biden, tucked its tail and abandoned Afghanistan and many of the people who had allied with us. The Taliban swooped in, or maybe they were already there, waiting for their opportunity to emerge. Well, emerge they did, and one of the first things they did was to destroy music schools, crush musical instruments, and beat the youths that were there to learn.

Did you actually believe that they would allow expressions of art, a symbol of American influence and freedom, to flourish?

Not a chance; and so I do not see how they would be thrilled with this “Jewish high priest” making an image and commanding everyone to worship it; but then there are those miracles that the false prophet, or as the Muslims will call him – Jesus, performing the same miracles that the two witnesses performed.

Everyone who is still alive (I say this because there has been a prolific and deadly onslaught against people, in addition to the outpouring of God's wrath from above. It would probably be safe to say that half the population could be dead by this time.) and aware of what has been going on would know that you can't do things like the false prophet has done unless you are empowered (Ah, but by what?). To the Muslims, it will seem as if this “high priest” turned Muslim is empowered by Allah.

Not so clear, is it?

Whatever this convert to Islam decides Allah should look like, he will make an image of it and will demand that all the inhabitants of earth worship this thing that now talks.

Let's assume that many of you have never been to Disneyland. There, they have a place called the Haunted Mansion. As you walk to the “doom buggy” that will take you through the attraction, paintings follow you with their eyes. In a short distance, you come into a room with a ladies head in a glass ball, and she talks eerily to the audience; tombstone heads come alive, sort of, and sing; graves open and characters sing to you; and, there is a grand ballroom where ghostly characters dance in a classical style to some organ music. Every time I go through it, I try to figure out how they did that. It's really not much different from an illusionist's act, where misdirection keeps you from seeing the apparatus that makes it all work.

He will force the entire world to take the mark and worship the beast.

Back in 2017, I could see how Islam might have dominion over the Middle East, but you would never be able to enforce this nonsense over a Modern nation.

But what have we seen in the last couple of years?

I used to think that it would be impossible to effectively force the world to worship a man or an image and take some form of a mark, but the years 2020 through 2022 have demonstrated that most of the population can be herded like sheep and made to believe that they have to comply with the demands of some cackling governing body, and inject multiple versions of some poison into their bodies without question.

We also experienced an Islamic invasion, first in the European nations, and then President Barack Obama (he was the President in 2017 when I wrote this) took multitudes of them into this nation. Thousands of people, many of whom we know, were interspersed among veteran Jihad fighters, and this invasion is a form of Jihad/warfare. Combine that with Islam's gradual and intentional infiltration of our governing bodies, like school boards and congress (another form of Jihad), where they are making quiet inroads into establishing Sharia law as the law of the land (consider Detroit, Michigan, and a few others). Once they establish a strong foothold, they will, under Sharia law, give themselves free rein to slaughter outsiders – infidels; and it will be the unified call from the Mosques that directs them.

Assuming that the rapture has happened, what has been going on in Jerusalem?

God sends his two witnesses.

Let me point something out that most do not catch.

“And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth." These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. And if anyone would harm them, fire pours from their mouth and consumes their foes. If anyone would harm them, this is how he is doomed to be killed. They have the power to shut the sky so that no rain may fall during the days of their prophesying, and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague as often as they desire. And when they have finished their testimony, the beast that rises from the bottomless pit will make war on them and conquer them and kill them, and their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city that symbolically is called Sodom and Egypt, where their Lord was crucified. For three and a half days, some from the peoples and tribes and languages and nations will gaze at their dead bodies and refuse to let them be placed in a tomb, and those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and make merry and exchange presents because these two prophets had been a torment to those who dwell on the earth. But after the three and a half days, a breath of life from God entered them, and they stood up on their feet, and great fear fell on those who saw them. Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, "Come up here!" And they went up to heaven in a cloud, and their enemies watched them.” (Revelation 11:3-12 ESV)

There is speculation on who they are, but is it important that we know that?

What is important is what they do, what they say, and when they get here. I happen to believe they show up right after the rapture, and here is the significant reason – they stop the rain.

Why is that a big deal?

Because this second beast, the false prophet, causes the rain to come back again, and that buys him notoriety. They also perform signs, and the false prophet mimics those also.

So what do the two witnesses do?

• The first and most important thing they do is, as Revelation 11:3 tells us, “they will prophesy for twelve hundred and sixty days."

  Look up the word prophesy in your concordance, and you will find the Greek word prophēteuō; it means to foretell events, or as the Word Study Dictionary conveys, it means “to declare truths through the inspiration of God's Holy Spirit.” If you are NOT a follower of Jesus Christ, this probably means nothing to you. I am, therefore, I can see these two telling the Jews directly and subsequently, thanks to the 24-hour news, the whole world that Jesus is coming and His return is attached, now, to a clear and definite timeline.

  Nobody is telling them the ABCs of salvation. The message is to align yourself with Jesus and NOT the antichrist. Followers of Christ, during this time, will be martyred; that may look like an Islamic sword coming down upon your neck, but there are guillotines and the brutality of other humans who will hate you.

• “if anyone would harm them, fire pours from their mouth and consumes their foes.”

  No doubt that is impressive, but there is more.

• “They have the power to shut the sky so that no rain may fall during the days of their prophesying.”

  Ah, there is that no rain thing. Not quite as impressive as the fire, but the economic aspects are devastating to an agrarian society.

• “ they have power over the waters to turn them into blood.”

  Oh, this sounds familiar, as Moses turned Egypt's waters to blood.

• “ and to strike the earth with every kind of plague as often as they desire”

  Every kind of plague?

  Moses and Aaron hit Egypt with a number of plagues, including one in which their firstborn would die. This terminology, “as often as they desire,” also sounds like God is giving them free rein to follow their emotions. I am sure that many will try to tell me no, but those last five words are telling.

Remember that I said that prophecy to the Jew is a pattern.

How many patterns do you think the Jewish readers are seeing?

In the days of Abram, God struck Pharaoh with plagues.

“But the LORD struck Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai, Abram's wife.” (Genesis 12:17 NASB)

What happened immediately after Moses brought each plague upon Egypt?

In Exodus chapter eight, God struck the Egyptians repeatedly with plagues until Pharaoh finally let God's people go. The bizarre part of this story is that the sorcerers in Pharaoh's court replicated what Moses and Aaron did.

So Moses and Aaron came to Pharaoh, and thus they did just as the LORD had commanded, and Aaron threw his staff down before Pharaoh and his servants, and it became a serpent. Then Pharaoh also called for the wise men and the sorcerers, and they also, the magicians of Egypt, did the same with their secret arts. For each one threw down his staff, and they turned into serpents. But Aaron's staff swallowed up their staffs. (Exodus 7:10-12 NASB)

Sorcerers - the Hebrew word is kâshaph and means those who practice or use witchcraft or sorcery. The Word Study Dictionary tells us that it is a verb meaning to practice magic, to practice sorcery. While the exact meaning of the word is obscure, it involved the use of supernatural powers that hardened hearts against the truth (And that is exactly what you see happening when you read this story.)

Magician is the Hebrew word ḥarṭōm. The Word Study Dictionary states that it is a masculine noun meaning engraver, a writer associated with the occult. (Perhaps this might be easier to grasp if you think about Ouija boards. These things are eerily associated with the occult.) These people seem to have had knowledge of astrology or divination and were commonly associated with the magicians of Egypt in Pharaoh's court. (Keep in mind that) Pharaoh could not find any magicians to interpret his dream, so he called Joseph (Gen_41:24). Moses caused plagues to come upon Egypt, which the magicians could not reverse (Exo_9:11). (Emphasis mine.)

The false prophet will follow the two witnesses to the stage (so to speak), just as Pharaoh's sorcerers followed Moses. It only makes sense that he repeats what the two witnesses just did. Odd, but it occurs to me that while many will stand in awe of the two witnesses and their message, others will see it as a circus sideshow; they will not perceive that these two are legitimate and from God, and that is why they are doing these signs (which, are an aspect of God's wrath and mercy.) It is these signs and the trustworthiness that got this man the position as high priest, to begin with, and it is those very signs that promote the deception that will convince many of Israel's religious elite.

• It (the false prophet) performs great signs, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in front of people.

• and by the signs that it is allowed to work in the presence of the beast, it deceives those who dwell on the earth, 

Nonetheless, it is Pattern!

If I have lost you and you don't know where these bullet points came from, let me remind you. Revelation 13:13. I strongly suggest that you reread Revelation 13, starting from verse 11, as it tells us that the false prophet is the guy who makes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast.

Sounds simple enough, doesn't it? But let me show you how verse 12 ends in the NASB.

“whose fatal wound was healed.”

We have well-known Bible teachers who should know better, trying to tell you that a “world” leader will take a bullet to the head, die, and rise again. If you have bought into that fairy tale, then you are scoffing at me now. But let me show you something.

“And the beast which I saw was like a leopard, and his feet were like those of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave him his power and his throne and great authority. I saw one of his heads as if it had been slain, and his fatal wound was healed. And the whole earth was amazed and followed after the beast; ...”
(Revelation 13:2-3 NASB)

• The beast is not a singular entity but a multi-headed monster. While many will attribute this to the “revived” Roman empire, it also fits the description of the Caliphate rule of Islam.

  Are there many sects within Islam? The answer is yes, and they are all butting heads with each other.

• “The dragon gave him his power and his throne and great authority.”

  This is all happening within one paragraph and applies to a multi-headed beast; yet, Jesus refers to this thing as him and then speaks in the singular about his throne and authority. We have been watching leaders within Islam struggle for power, and one, in particular, kept decreeing himself to leader of the reborn Ottoman empire. Where did that get off to?

• “ I saw one of his heads as if it had been slain, and his fatal wound was healed.”

  
  So as you picture some freakish mutation with many heads, imagine one of those heads,
  equivalent to perhaps a sect of Islam or a Caliphate, and it appears to have been killed; that could happen in so many ways. We are watching such a thing happen in real time with Ukraine. But the sentence does not say it died; it says “as if,” and in a sense, the Ottoman empire played possum as well. (This happened in 1924 when the British, with a bit of help, crushed and dismantled the Ottoman Empire. Although the world thought they were dead, like flickering embers from a wildfire that are thrown across vast regions by the wind, remnants from this empire, like the Muslim Brotherhood, continued to pursue their global domination.)

If I have opened your eyes and prompted you to study, then my job here is done.

He (meaning Jesus) is coming sooner than you can imagine, and He is coming for those who are waiting for Him. This is the rapture of the Church I am talking about. Should you miss that bus and then choose to follow Him, sorry, but you will die a martyr – for your testimony. On the plus side, Jesus will meet you on the other side, and you will be welcomed into the arms of the Father.

Do not think for a minute that you get to bring any selfish, foolish, and hateful attitude with you, as you will be changed, just as the church will be changed. Since the sinful nature is clearly attached to the body, then it might be safe to say that this body will experience death, no matter who it referred to when it comes to being in heaven.

And yes, many are dying as martyrs as we speak, so it is not an exclusive club, and whatever they are going through will come to your neighborhood sooner than you think.

The deception will be great. Matthew 24:3-5.

 

Doesn't this title have a familiar ring to it? 

What was Jesus' first response when the disciples ask Him these questions?

“As He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, "Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?" And Jesus answered and said to them, "See to it that no one misleads you. "For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and will mislead many.” (Matthew 24:3-5 NASB)

As you noticed above, the NASB used the term "mislead." 

Do you realize that any magician, "worth his salt," is a master at misdirection? The words are similar, but if you look up the simple word mislead, you will find the Greek word planaō. 

The first thing Strong's concordance says in the definition of planaō is “to (properly cause to) roam.” 

Roam, in my mind, lends itself to the results of someone misleading you. 

To roam is to stray or wander, among a few other words. Alternative words that explain planaō are "seduce or deceive."

Imagine this scenario if we used the word seduced to convey what the false prophet will do.

We associate seduction as typically being between a man and a woman who are NOT married to each other. If you were the spouse of one of these people, your reaction to what they are doing may not be so cordial or mild.

Why say all that?

Because we read things like the NASB translation of Matthew's account and we glance over a simple word like mislead and completely miss the depth of passion that God was trying to convey.

• He (the false prophet) will also be the enforcer of Sharia;.

  This coincides with the tribulation becoming even more deadly, especially for the Jews in Israel.

  "But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pangs.” (Matthew 24:8 NASB)

Considering what we have seen, how could tribulations become greater unless it is in the number of killings and the associated violence?

Islam and the caliphate that will arise will aggressively begin killing anyone who is not a Muslim.

Allow me to refresh your memory about who we are talking about.

• and it spoke like a dragon

Revelation 12:9 “And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.”

Simply stated, the dragon is Satan; therefore, the human empowered by the dragon speaks like Satan – the deceiver. Let that sink in.

The false prophet presents himself as peaceful, almost like Jesus, but he speaks like Satan. It is NOT the tone of voice, it is the words that make him like Satan, and Satan is a deceiver. So the false prophet will, at some point, speak with the express purpose of deception.

Rabbi Baruch Kahane

Perhaps the knowledge that the Jewish religious council had selected a man to be the high priest in the “new” temple when it is built, and they have already trained him. His name is Rabbi Baruch Kahane, but if you do a search for the high priest in Israel, you will find that the Rabbi stepped back from the position as he did not feel the timing was appropriate.

And, in case you hadn't noticed, Satan does not present himself like the grotesque images we see in movies; he is subtle and seductive. Eve found that out - that is, until Satan goes into fury mode.

Revelation 13:6 ESV "It opened its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name and his dwelling, that is, those who dwell in heaven."

Satan can and does become furious. The idea of making war on "her" offspring will be developed as we go.

Revelation 12:17 ESV "Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. And he stood on the sand of the sea."

• It exercises all the authority of the first beast in its presence. 

The first beast is a man. We were told that he emerges from the sea, so we know that he is NOT a Jew. This man does NOT sustain a bullet wound to the head, die, and rise again. Daniel 7:8 tells us that this man will have a mouth uttering great boasts. The word "boasts," italicized, indicates that it was added for clarity. In this, it seems inappropriate because the Aramaic word translated as “uttering great boasts” is rabrab and also means domineering.

This is a timing issue, and it is difficult to be precise.

What does it mean to be precise when you are God, the creator of time?

We know that there will be a seven-year period of destruction upon the earth, and the clock seems to start with the removal of the church from the earth (the rapture). There seems to be an immediate entrance of a “world” leader. Islam calls him the Mahdi, the 12^th or hidden Imam, the leader of the global Islamic caliphate. We call him the Antichrist or the first beast.

This entrance of the second beast - the one that has horns like a lamb – seems to be at the midpoint of the seven-year period.

Why say that?

Because there is a rapid escalation of events at the mid-point and our false prophet, who has operated quietly in the temple, suddenly gives himself over to this Mahdi, performs the signs, and steps up as the enforcer of this disgusting and bloody sharia law.

Everyone seems to know that the Antichrist will sign a peace treaty. We keep saying it will be with Israel, but scripture says, is that it will be with many. That may not include Israel. When I first wrote this, I guess that none of us would have thought that Russia and China would be in Syria fighting against Isis. Russia believes that defending Bashar Assad is key to defeating Isis, while President Obama is set on removing the Syrian President from power. (There are many good theories on what this is all about, and most have to do with the Federal Reserve Bank.) So, while the Antichrist may be juggling aspects of his worldwide deception, this second beast steps up and handles the enforcement aspect for him.

• and makes the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose mortal wound was healed.

This Jew turned Muslim - temple priest turned desecrator, and a deceiver on a grand scale, makes all the earth worship the first beast.

I need you to consider the description of the beast once again.

“And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads. And the beast that I saw was like a leopard; its feet were like a bear's, and its mouth was like a lion's mouth. And to it, the dragon gave his power and his throne and great authority. One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed, and the whole earth marveled as they followed the beast.” (Revelation 13:1-3 ESV)

Multi-headed, with ten horns and seven heads, it looks like a leopard, a lion, and a bear. However bizarre this thing seems to be it is given a mouth; in other words – a spokesman - the Antichrist.

In the world of clues, this is huge,

“One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed,”

First, there is no such animal; second, Daniel plainly defined the Babylonian empire as the first of these heads. Historically we know that the Medo-Persian empire was the second, and the Grecian empire was the third. Since we now know, we are looking at empires and not a human as the head, what one empire fits this description better than any other? The answer is the Ottoman empire, and the world thought they were finally killed off in 1924.

Guess what? 

They came back to life in 1979 with the Iranian revolution.

One other thing, prophecy, to the Jew, is a pattern.

Nothing was to be judged on the basis of one witness, which also applied to the prophetic.

"On the evidence of two witnesses or three witnesses, he who is to die shall be put to death; he shall not be put to death on the evidence of one witness.” (Deuteronomy 17:6 NASB)

When someone operating in the role of a prophet declares something, all we can do is hold it in the back of our minds. Of course, all changes if the impact should be immediately seen. Later on, another prophecy comes and validates not only the first prophet but the word itself. (There are parameters upon which to judge a prophecy, the biggest is – it is trying to lead us away from God to serve other gods.) The Jewish mind understood all of this. They are not impressed with the waving of hands and fancy words, and the Apostle John knew this as well. That is why in almost every case (some are harder to find than others), these are words that have been spoken over the Jews on a previous occasion.

Focusing on Revelation 13:11-18.

“Then I saw another beast rising out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb, and it spoke like a dragon. It exercises all the authority of the first beast in its presence and makes the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose mortal wound was healed. It performs great signs, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in front of people, and by the signs that it is allowed to work in the presence of the beast it deceives those who dwell on earth, telling them to make an image for the beast that was wounded by the sword and yet lived. And it was allowed to give breath to the image of the beast so that the image of the beast might even speak and might cause those who would not worship the image of the beast to be slain. Also, it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name. This calls for wisdom: let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is 666.” (Revelation 13:11-18 ESV)

• Then I saw another beast rising out of the earth.

Since our first beast rose out of the sea, and we know that the sea represents people, we can learn that the first beast comes out of an environment that is more widespread. This second beast, rising out of the earth, demonstrates that he is from a more localized area, but where?

The easy answer as to where this localized area is is Israel.

• It had two horns like a lamb. 

  

If you are not a farmer, then you may not know that sheep have horns, but for economic reasons, they cut them off. At the time of this writing, we had recently gone to the local county fair. (It is hard to believe that the area I live in was once orange groves and farmers.) That particular year they had several sheep with horns, and the horns were massive.

To the Jewish attendees in the early church, their perception that this meant deception was immediate. 

The fact that it is like a lamb establishes that it is representing itself, to some degree, as Jesus did, at first gentle and caring, but then at the three-and-a-half-year mark of the seven-year period – watch out.

If we were Jewish converts, what would be our immediate association when John introduces an image of a lamb?

Perhaps Genesis 22:8, where Abraham said, "God will provide for himself the lamb ..” The idea of the slain lamb as a way of removing sin was scattered throughout the Torah and a common practice for the Jews. However, the impact of the slain lamb – in tradition – was a good thing, and we already recognize that there is a horrendous deception coming. We all also have the imagery, seen earlier in Revelation, of the lamb as though it had been slain, and that was Jesus, the Messiah, standing there.

Revelation 5:6 ESV And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, with seven horns and with seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth.

This may not be hitting you in the same manner, it is impacting me, but if the Jewish religious council, with their eyes closed, as they are today, get pulled into this deception, they will pull many into the deceit along with them. Think of this scenario as a sinkhole.

I saw another beast rising out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb, and it spoke like a dragon.

This bit about the lamb is another one of those images that gives people grief.

Some information that might help you understand is that the Apostle John is NOT writing mysteries meant to be hidden from the church. I mention this because a previous Pastor told the audience that day that John wrote in code to get this letter - the Revelation, past the prison guards. Sometimes all you can do at the time is moan. The mysteries are only hidden from those that chose not to ask what things mean; the “mysteries” also tend to remain hidden from those who do not understand that John's target audience was Jewish converts. 

I will prove my point.

"He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers, I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.' "And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: 'The words of the first and the last, who died and came to life. "'I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich) and the slander of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan." (Revelation 2:7-9 ESV)

The Holy Spirit has him writing to churches. 

You do not need to have a conversation about Jews and their traditions unless they are a part of the equation, and in Smyrna, they were central to the equation. The IVP Bible Background Commentary states, “The strength of the Jewish community in Smyrna is well attested.”

Another example comes from the book of James and demonstrates how widespread the Jewish converts were. Here in James 2:2, the mystery is cloaked thanks to the translator's choice of terminology, and we, with our stacks of Bibles and no motivation to find out the alternate meaning of simple words, like assembly.

James 2:2 ESV "For if a man wearing a gold ring and fine clothing comes into your assembly, and a poor man in shabby clothing also comes in,"

Translated for the Gentile reader, we see nothing wrong with the word assembly. People assemble themselves together frequently. However, when this was written by James, he actually wrote the Greek word for synagogue. He did not do that inadvertently, thinking that in time it would be filled with Gentile believers. He, too, was writing to Jewish converts.

sunagōgē - an assemblage of persons, the majority of which are Jewish in origin. Now, isn't that something?

If they are calling it a synagogue, then what do they expect to find there?

Jewish converts, of course, but not only that, converts that are integrating the richness of their newly found Messiah into the heritage that makes them special (and we ignore that.)

Who were the two Apostles that seemed to be called to the Gentiles?

Peter – who seemed to end that mission shortly after going to the Centurion's home. The other evangelist to the “Gentiles” turned out to be Paul. Paul, for almost 15 years, we are told in the book of Acts that in every town, he entered into the synagogues.

So, it is safe to say that in the beginnings of the church, the evangelistic impact was toward the Jewish community, but the Gentiles still came. When the traditionalists came around demanding that Gentile converts be circumcised and follow Jewish traditions, Paul withstood them and finally took his arguments straight to the church council of elders in Jerusalem, where several of the original disciples still sat (Peter was one of them), for a decision.

And after there had been much debate, Peter stood up and said to them, "Brothers, you know that in the early days God made a choice among you, that by my mouth, the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and believe. And God, who knows the heart, bore witness to them by giving them the Holy Spirit just as he did to us, and he made no distinction between them and us, having cleansed their hearts by faith.
(Acts 15:7-9 ESV)

Notice the terminology Peter uses as he distinguishes between the Jew and the gentile. Years later, Peter is still referring to them (the gentiles) and us (the Jewish community). It may not mean anything to you, but the statement is dripping with prejudice. There, in the Jerusalem council, the decision was made to acknowledge their freedom but command the gentiles to stay away from blood:

Acts 15:19-20 ESV Therefore, my judgment is that we should not trouble those of the Gentiles who turn to God (20) but should write to them to abstain from the things polluted by idols, and from sexual immorality, and from what has been strangled, and from blood.

The synagogue of Satan?

Pastor John MacArthur says this of the - synagogue of Satan. “With the rejection of its Messiah, Judaism became as much a tool of Satan as emperor worship.”

Think about this for a moment. You should be able to see how Judaism could become a tool of Satan. It was the thing (a zeal for the law) that motivated young Saul/Paul to chase down converts, then beat, imprison, and in Stephen's case – stone them to death.

When Paul had trouble on his missionary journeys, where did most of it come from?

The Jewish community, but not just any Jews, synagogue leaders.

Look at this.

(Act 14:2) “But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers.” (Acts 14:5 NASB) “And when an attempt was made by both the Gentiles and the Jews with their rulers, to mistreat and to stone them,”

This is not the act of people who merely cannot understand. They are choosing not to buy into this Messiah message that Paul preached.

How many of them were around when Jesus spoke of God as his Father?

A statement of this nature would have been blasphemous in their hearing if it was not true.  But it was true, and yet they still wanted to kill Jesus. They chose to be unbelieving Jews and, therefore, combative in their resistance to truth and change.

Since I have told you this, you now need to start thinking like a Jew – A person that has a reasonable comprehension of the Old Testament (something that would have been required of a Jew.)

Are you beginning to grasp that our absence of examining the scriptures has hurt us and left us open to deception?

Now maybe we can understand what John was trying to convey because virtually everything alluded to in the Revelation came out of previous prophetic words found in the Old Testament.